So it's only been a week since I blogged last- I've been feeling like it must have been two or three. Let's just say it's been a rather long week.

Don't want to go into full details here (not really a huge fan of posting my deepest things on the internet) but I can say that Jordan and I have hit a bit of a wall in our quest to conceive. At least in the natural and in this physical world, it will take a miracle, but God is a God of healing and of miracles, and He is more than able to do whatever He wants to do. This has been an emotional weekend and early week. We currently have a family (mom & 2 teenage girls) staying with us, again, can't go into detail, but that's been heavy- spiritually, physically, and I have needed Him more than ever. But what's amazing, is I've been sensing Him and being strengthened by Him more than ever too. His grace IS enough!

God is faithful! Jordan and I believe it and feel it more strongly than we ever have before. God will be glorified and He is raising us up to be signs and wonders for Him!

Please pray that Jordan and I would hear God clearly as we continue to seek Him on what His path is...whether it's medical, beginning an adoption process now, etc, but we surely feel His tangible presence and peace surrounding us, in every part of our lives!

I don't know if I should even attempt to write about everything that has happened since last Thursday. Almost a week and PACKED with all sorts of things. So, I think I will let my pictures tell the story and I will give you some highlights:

Friday: Great morning here at the house...enjoyed the peace and quiet and time with the Lord- SUPER fun Bridal luncheon at Lillie Belle's- LOVE the bags Ferris gave us and just cried as Ferris shared with each and every girl there- i LOVE my sister. We had a really good time getting our nails done- the pedicures felt AMAZING....the last time I had one was 2 years ago for Erin's wedding...wow! Rehearsal dinner- the room looked AMAZING!!! The decor crew did such a great job and the food was wonderful. The slideshow played without a hitch, and everyone loved it (maybe I'll post on youtube) I loved hearing Ferris and Robby share and everyone else who said something about or to them. It was a beautiful evening.

Saturday: Ferris & I woke up bright and early- dad made a Starbuck's run for me and Bethany Hawkins and we had fun (me, Ferris, Janelle, Christy & Bethany) getting ready (well, they were getting US ready) in the bathroom. How do I sum up the rest of the day?? Pics were great- weather was beautiful, lunch was delish! The ceremony was AWESOME! The music was perfect- the decor was stunning, and Ferris was out of this world. My favorite part of the day had to be the couple of quiet minutes with Robby & Ferris, just as they were getting ready to run through the blanket of rose petals into the waiting limo...we were on the side of the church, and I got to just love on them for a few minutes- it was quiet and peaceful and awesome!

That evening was a whirlwind of activity as all sorts of family and friends descended on Mom & Dad's house- I'll take another post to tell you about Sunday- Tuesday, but for now- that's enough! :-)

Oh MY GOSH! One Day away!! How exciting. Today is a packed day with a Bridal luncheon, Pedicures and manicures, rehearsals, dinner, etc. Can I just say I am SUPER DUPER excited about my dress tonight for the rehearsal dinner. Mom bought it for me this week (THANKS Mom!) and I really really like it! So, I'll post pics. Here are a couple of pics from the shower last night. It went SO well and was SO MUCH FUN! I really like ALL of Ferris's friends so much. I always have, but it's so much fun getting to hang out with them and be around them more.








And if you get a chance- LISTEN to the new song I uploaded over to the right. It's off the new Hillsong album, "This is Our God." It's written by Brooke Fraser, who I've posted about before- she's incredible- but as I was preparing for the shower yesterday, I put a worship mix on and just worshiped all day- this song came on later and I was FLOORED! It speaks to me so perfectly about what God's been teaching me and calling me to, specifically with my battles with infertility, and it has become the outward expression of what's going on in my heart. It will encourage you where ever you are!

"I will bring praise, no weapon formed against me shall remain. I will rejoice, I will declare- God is my victory and He is here. All of my life, in every season, You are still God, I have a reason to sing, I have a reason to worship!"

We had fun last night. Grandma and Grandpa were here, of course, and Meaghan and Dylan pulled in just as we were ready to eat. We all sat around outside on Mom & Dad's beautiful deck and enjoyed the nice weather, food and family. We all worked on tying the ribbons on programs and just enjoyed being together. I left around 10:15 and came home to make a cheesecake, slice some fruit and cheese and just do some initial prep for tonight. Jordan and Meaghan got here around 12:30 and I think we all pretty much fell into bed. Today's going to be a nice, semi-relaxing day! Tonight is a shower for Ferris that I am hosting, so I'll try and post some pictures from that.

Well, if you're keeping up with either of my counters over to the right, you can probably guess why I haven't been blogging much lately. Yes, that's right, we are FOR SURE 3 days away! So exciting. I've been emailing, calling, editing photos and music, setting up appointments, organizing teams, charting music, painting, moving, cooking, shopping, cleaning, etc. I feel like this is WAY more work than my own wedding- super fun- but I think maybe it's b/c three and a half years ago at mine, I was so blissfully ignorant it all just floated by! hah! Everything is going to be beautiful and exciting, so I will be sure to update a LOT after Monday or Tuesday. But, you may not hear from me before then. I am SO grateful for people though- being willing to help and put themselves out there to see something accomplished.

And a big congrats to Mike & Sarah Clinger who are expecting their first baby in March! Yay!!!

Well, the Dance finale was last night and we were NOT disappointed. In a perfect world, I think I would have had Katee win, but I certainly wasn't upset that Joshua won. In my book, they were both very deserving!! Last night was a great finale, and Jordan and I enjoyed watching it VERY much.

Speaking of Jordan, he's feeling much better and is now well into his quick overnight to Evansville to see Steve, Dan and others and play a couple of rounds of golf with them. Leaves me wondering what I am doing tonight...but don't worry- I have a few ideas of my own. Might make it down to Green Hills (TEAVANA CALLS!) and end up with a friend back here in SH. We'll see...it's kind of fun not having a plan and not having anywhere I HAVE to be.

So, here's my Grocery Game Week 4 Update. This was the most disappointing week of all, BUT, it as also a week where I really needed to get lots of items that weren't on sale at all, so I know that certainly didn't help me.

My Kroger trip:
Total Cost: $54.19
Total Savings: only 25% (Eww, I know, but oh well! That included, like I said about $20 of non-on sale items.)

My Publix trip:
Total Cost: $12.54
Total Savings: 58%- that was AWESOME! I paid $12.54 for over $30 worth of stuff.

I also went to Walgreens on my own, based on sales I saw they were having. I got 4 packages of pens for 9 cents each, almonds at 50% off, only got a few items, but I only spent $5.03 for $21.57 worth of stuff!! That's a 77% savings- woohoo!

I'm going to stick with it. It's been 4 weeks, and although some have been better than others, I think I have found the way for the "system" to work best for me. Whatever your plans are- have a wonderful weekend!!

Jordan's been sick. Most of you who know Jordan, know that he has to deal with more than the lion's share of allergies and sinus issues. And to top it off, he's usually more susceptible to infection than your average joe. So, he caught something the other day. Blame it on the abnormally high pollen and ragweed counts and him being outside all day Monday giving tennis and frisbee lessons....whatever the case- he was OUT yesterday. He's feeling better, and I was grateful for the opportunity for him to rest and get well. He's feeling much better today, but I am trying to encourage him to take it easy...since he'll be playing two rounds of golf this weekend.

Yesterday, I got the opportunity to go be a part of my sister's Bridal portrait session for a few hours. (Thanks to my WONDERFUL father in law who also happens to be my boss) He let me take off a few hours yesterday to do that and let me tell you- Ferris looked incredible! Her dress is SO classic, elegant and gorgeous and she looks amazing in it! Combine that with the beautiful Cheekwood gardens and an incredible photographer, and you get some pretty incredible pics. I'll be sure to post some- AFTER- the wedding. Can't show you the dress now! But, for now, I will let you enjoy these adorable baby pics of the Bride & Groom. So fun!!

So, who decided and how did we get to the point that breakfast foods were breakfast foods, lunch foods were lunch foods and dinner foods were dinner foods? If you asked anyone in the United States to guess which meal was what for you the previous day and the choices were bacon and eggs, tuna sandwich with chips and grilled chicken with salad and baked potato, I bet (and I haven't tested this) 9 of 10, if not 10 out of 10 would say the eggs for breakfast, the sandwich for lunch and the chicken for dinner.

I want to know- why is this? My husband has laughed at me before because I have occasionally pulled out last night's leftovers to eat for breakfast, or wanted black beans and rice or something like that. Most people have certainly had the "upside down" dinners with pancakes and sausage or bacon and eggs for dinner, and lunch seems to be the most hodge podged of them all.....b/c if you move it too early, then it's brunch and then anything goes- almost.

Anyway, just a question I've had. I have been bad about eating lunch at a decent hour recently. More days than nought...it rolls around to 2:00 and I'm just plugging away working, when I suddenly realize that my stomach is about to eat itself. Today, I stopped at 12:00 and decided I should go ahead and eat. I'm not your typical sandwich person, it's just boring to me, but our refrigerator is pretty random to say the least (I'm going to the store today) and what I ended up eating was an egg cooked in olive oil, some fresh watermelon and a potato. It was definitely an odd combination but strangely pleasing and satisfying.

So, if anyone happens to know origins of our meals and how they came to be, do please inform me!

What a weekend!! It was full of wedding prep, painting, a little pool time, youth group, worship, potluck dinners, spending an afternoon with the Moore kids, and ending it all with a little bit of reading. Okay, so actually a lot of reading....I was up until midnight last night reading "The Shack." But, I slept well and the morning is starting out great with a bright, sunny day and whole-wheat waffles with fresh strawberries. It's gonna be a good week!!

Oh yeah! Look at these yummy fresh, organic veggies. This week I got lots of tomatoes, a watermelon (its buried under there) some potatoes, peppers, eggplant, fresh basil, summer squash. We're going to be eating fresh tomato basil soup this week!! Yeah, and probably going to be making some fresh salsa. Mmmm, Mmmm, Mmmm!

So I was TOTALLY wrong! I knew Mark could go, but I didn't think Chelsea would. OH well...next week's sure to be a good one.

Jordan and I are taking it easy tonight and staying home to work on some things. Him his message for tomorrow and me some wedding stuff.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Really nothing in my life I can think of to blog about right now...so I'm going back to dance....

Okay, so did you watch So You Think You Can Dance last night? We were pretty old school....we went to dinner with Jordan Fenton (who lives with us) and recorded it on a VHS tape. haha- hey- we still got to see it.

Some of the highlights, in my opinion, were Katee & Joshua's contemporary routine, Joshua's solo dance, Twitch's solo dance and Chelsie dancing the mambo.

So, who do you think is going home tonight?

It's a tough one, I know. I'm going to go ahead and say Twitch and Courtney.

I would LIKE it to be Mark & Courtney, but I just don't know.....America's weird like that.

what do you think?

Grocery Game- Week 3 Update:

So, it's beginning to work out pretty well. I'm stocking up on things like meat and pantry staples, as well as getting toiletries and medicine for dirt cheap! It does take some planning, but using what I'm getting and supplementing it with the fresh produce I get has turned out pretty well. Here's what happened this week:

Publix:
Regular price: $36.15
My price: $17.06
Savings 53% ($19.09)
Some items I bought: Season salt, couscous, bananas, fresh cherries, etc.

Kroger:
Regular price: $58.39
My price: $33.94
Savings: 43% ($24.45)
Some items I bought: HUGE package of pork chops, whole chicken, turkey meatballs, peaches, onions, etc.

**again, I spent about $10 on non-sale items- things I needed to make some of my planned menus for the next couple of weeks, but it still turned out to be a great savings b/c I had a couple of coupons for some of those items. So, I saved about $44 this week. Hey- if I can save an average of 45-50 per week- that's almost $200 a month. I think it's worth it so far!! We'll see if this holds up.

If you haven't been watching "So You Think You Can Dance" you've been missing it this season. I'm so blown away by Katee, and she RIPPED it Wednesday night in a Contemporary dance with Twitch, but I've decided this is my favorite. I feel like I could watch it over and over...



Incredible.

I got up and worked out this morning. See, I used to, in college, have a great habit of running and working out and was very much in shape. Most mornings of the week, I'd be up and run 4-6 miles before the sun was fully up...then, for some reason, after getting married and both of us adjusting to one another's schedule, that stopped happening. Mornings weren't as easy as they used to be. So, I've stayed "in shape" but definitely not where I'd like to be. I'm smaller than I used to be, but size truly isn't everything, and I know my body needs more exercise and I need more energy. A friend was over here for dinner on Tuesday night, and was talking about how she and two other ladies from church go to the Rec Center at 5:30am every morning. Ewww...But, last night, after Life Group, I came home, ate b/c I hadn't all evening, and decided I should just go on to bed about 9:50, so I did. I woke up this morning (w/o alarm) at 5:40am and decided, "What the heck- I'm going." So, I went and had a great work out and I must say I'm feelin' great. Not sure if this is a new pattern or not, but I am certainly going to try and make it more of a habit. (I also made it to the gym yesterday BEFORE life group- so I'll fit it in when I can)

On another note, I need to do my Grocery Game, Week 2 update. I have to say, I'm not quite as thrilled with this week. I am finding some holes (for me) in the Grocery Game. Part of the problem is that a lot of things on the list- I just don't buy normally, so I've bought a few things the past 2 weeks that I normally wouldn't, which means, even though I am saving money on THOSE, I'm not really for us, b/c we don't typically eat it anyway. BUT, I think with that realization I can use it to work for me and still save a good amount of money. Here's the breakdown:

At Publix, I spent about $23. I don't have my receipt, so I can't remember exactly, but I think that was actually about a 56% savings....didn't use a lot of coupons there, but bought several buy 1 get 1 items and stocked up on some good stuff. I didn't get the penny item though...it was hot dogs, and I just can't do that :)

At Kroger, I spent $31.73. I saved $33.74, so 51% savings for my items. Here's the bad part about Kroger- I HAD to buy butter- spreadable and in sticks, and that was NOT on sale. Luckily I had a coupone for $1 Smart Balance, but those two items still added up to $6.18 which was almost 20% of my total spending, so you see buying stuff when you need it as opposed to when you don't and it's on sale certainly does cost more.

I do however, after 2 weeks, have a freezer stocked with Bacon, italian turkey sausage, chicken breasts, a whole chicken, shrimp, lots of frozen beef, 16 oz. shredded cheese, lots of frozen veggies, etc. for much less than I would have spent normally. So- I'm stickin' with it. We've certainly been eating well (with the help of my organic produce I get from Delvin farms bi-weekly) Here's a run down of this week's meals (if you REALLY care to know)

Sunday Lunch: pot Roast with Organic potatoes & carrots (we had a church picnic, so it was actually more than that- but that's what we brought)

Sunday dinner: homemade pizza with italian turkey sausage, red onion, tomatoes, bell pepper

Monday dinner: shrimp & beef kabobs with squash, zucchini and onion, FRESH tomato basil soup (made from the tomatoes from the farmer's market and my neighbors home-grown basil) cranberry walnut salad and bread

Tuesday dinner: grilled honey soy chicken, fresh corn on the cob, mashed potatoes, salad and watermelon (it was a yellow one- very strange!

Tonight: I don't know yet- I'll open up the freezer and be creative!

Weekend Re-cap:

Friday after work, we took off to Franklin for me to do my final dress fitting for Ferris's wedding. The dress was great and we left there and headed to downtown Nashville to see Scott & Courtney and new baby Noah! He was precious and we had a great time with them, chatting and holding the newborn. Jordan and I left Baptist hospital and headed down the street for some Mexican food off Nolensville road, and then met up with Robby & Ferris to see "Dark Knight." It was a great movie- VERY dark, VERY intense, but very good. We were up WAY too late though and got in bed somewhere b/w 12:30 & 1am. (ewww, I know)

Saturday morning came too early, as Jordan had a bunch of high school guys meeting here at the house at 8am to go play in an Ultimate Frisbee tournament. I woke up to make him some breakfast before he left and spent a couple of hours, cleaning and preparing for worship before I took off. I got to squeeze in about 45 minutes at the pool to catch a little sun before taking off to meet up with Ferris. We looked at some paint color options for her apartment and had a great time chatting and catching up. I ended the evening in Spring Hill with the youth group in a great night of worship, teaching and connecting in our small groups.

Sunday again came early, and I had a great time leading worship for our service. After church, we had a great baptism/picnic with the congregation, the only downside being that it was incredibly hot!! By the time the events were wrapping up, the ONLY thing that sounded good was a pool, so Jordan and I headed off with several of the youth to the pool to cool off. We spent the next couple of hours playing Green River and Categories in the pool and had a blast!! We finished off the evening back at home with homemade pizza (I topped this one with hot turkey italian sausage, green peppers, red onion & tomaotes) and Step Up 2. I got in bed early and slept like a log- ready for an awesome- full week!

It's Friday, how exciting! It's a beautiful day here in Middle Tennesse. This morning, I was out watering my flowers (which are growing splendidly, by the way!) and marveling at the size and height of my pink impatiens. Mom & I planted several plants a few months ago and despite some plants having difficulty growing in my flower beds, these have LOVED it. I've never seen some get so tall. Here's an idea of what they look like when you buy them at the store:

Here is what one of the stems from my plant looks like....plucked out of the whole bush of them:



I think it's hilarious! Who knows why some grow the way they do...it's just the mystery of God's incredible creation!

Big news to announce: Baby NOAH is here! Scott & Courtney Ray's little baby boy was born yesterday around 2:30 by C-section at Baptist Hospital. He was 8 lbs. 6 oz which was a BIG relief to Scott & Court who had been told based on ultra-sound that he was swiftly approaching 10 lbs!! (They thought he was 9lb.8oz) Jordan and I will see him later tonight, so we'll post some pics of that, I'm sure! I got to talk to the new momma this morning and she sounds great! So, CONGRATULATIONS!!

All of you have a marvelous Friday and weekend! May it be full of God's perfect will for each moment :-)(That's what I'm shooting for!)

Ferris & Robby's wedding is:

1 MONTH FROM TODAY! YAY!!!

So last week I blogged about The Grocery Game, a way to seriously save money at the Supermarket. I'm currently doing a 4 week "trial" so see if I want to continue to subscribe to the lists that provide insight to the best savings. So, here ya go:

The Grocery Game: Week 1
-clipped coupons from Sunday's paper and some old papers I had. I hadn't really been in a habit of clipping coupons but I figure if I'm going to do this right, I had better collect as many as possible.

-I am currently subscribing to Kroger & Publix lists, which are the stores I go to regularly anyway. After pulling up "The List" (which organizes all of the best deals of the week and color codes them to tell me what to buy) After trips to both stores, here's how I made out:

Publix
Total bill w/o coupons & savings: $113.46
I paid: $59.80
Savings of 53% overall
(keep in mind that my savings is actually more b/c most of these items are already ON SALE w/o coupons)

Kroger
Total bill w/o coupons & savings: $110.46
I paid: $44.56
Savings of 62% overall

Here is a sampling of some of the things I got and some meals I will make from this:
- 1 1/2 lbs. of fresh organic shrimp (for jambalaya and shrimp scampi pasta)
- 2 bags fresh frozen asian veggies & 3 lbs. hormone free chicken breast (for stir fry)
- 2 boxes of whole grain spaghetti
- 2 lbs. top sirloin steak for grilling
- 9.5lbs. sirloin roast (this will last a LONG time. I felt like a butcher cutting it up, but with a little work, I saved a TON of money on this)
- Grilled Mesquite chicken strips & Dole Salad Blends for a yummy southwestern salad
- lots of fresh stuff like tomatoes, cherries, bananas, eggs, milk, turkey lunchmeat & then lots of pantry items like graham crackers, townhouse crackers, popcorn, brownie mixes, air freshener, bathroom cleaner, cereal, tea, shaving cream, medicine, and many other things!

I have a few doubts, but I am going to give it at least 3 more weeks. It takes me being creative, b/c I can't just plan out my menus and get what I need, but I need to really plan around the sales/coupons, but as I go more and more weeks, I'll have more and more to work with and will be able to probably get back to some of my "normal" menus.

I would say it's definitely been worth it so far.

We got to have our "adopted" children over this weekend! Charis & Judah Moore spent the evening with us so Mommy & Daddy could spend some time for their anniversary. Our time was full. We had sandwiches for lunch, and took naps, went to the park and played on swings and in the sand pit, went to the grocery store and got balloons and Diego (from Dora the Explorer) fruit snacks, ate chicken and zucchini (which they loved) for dinner, watered the plants, and ate pancakes and bananas for breakfast. Oh, and of course took a bubble bath! (Just the kids, not me- haha) We had a great time and we hope Mommy & Daddy did too!