It's Fall Y'all!

Woke up this morning from a 10 hour sleep to a crisp 53 degrees! Since today is my day off, and the weather felt so wonderful, I decided to get in a long run this morning.  8 miles never felt so good!  It's interesting to me how the further I run, different parts of my body hurt.  The first 3 miles it's my calf muscles, then about mile 3 that goes away and I feel it in my knees until about mile 6, then that pain subsides and moves to the joints in my hips and pelvis area.  Any other runners experience this?

Today I'm going to do some cleaning, including a deep cleaning of our kitchen cabinets, inside and out, as well as our pantry shelves.  Wish me luck!

As promised, here are the photos of our fall decor this year.  I enjoy decorating for the seasons, and I try to change it up a little every year.



::kitchen table::



::front entry::

::coffee table::



::kitchen counter::



::mantle::

::tv cabinet::


More to come! Happy Fall Y'all!

Jewelry Board.

We had a great week here in the Grant house.  Some of the highlights included:

-Putting out my fall decor.
-Cooler weather and a Pumpkin Spice Latte.
-The season premier of Glee!
-Maggie feeling better.
-Making it to 7 miles on my half training.
-Small group at church.
-Hunter and Kirt staying the night with us.
-Dinner with Laura and Caleb.
-Watching the Hogs hang in there against the #1 team in the nation.
-Family time (John Allen came home).
-Vampire Diaries.

Laura also came over Friday night and helped me make this board to hang my jewelry on:

I feel so much more organized now that my jewelry is not tangled in a ball in my closet! You too can do this yourself. All you need is a piece of wood, fabric, a staple gun, some knobs and drawer pulls, and a drill.

Looking forward to getting some things accomplished around the house today before church.  Hope you are having a wonderful weekend!

Fall Wreath.

Today despite my ever growing to do list, I decided to take a day to play.  I slept in, spent some time in prayer, and made this cute fall wreath:

(I got the idea from Laura.  You can check out her wreath on her blog.) 

This was such an easy craft.  You just need burlap, a couple of different fabrics, buttons, a wreath, small clothes pins, paper letters and a hot glue gun. 

Cut your burlap and fabric in to different size circles and overlap them. Attach them to the wreath with your hot glue gun.  You can also glue buttons, and felt on top for added interest.  Tie your rope from one side of the wreath to the other and clip your letters on with the clothes pins.  You can spell out whatever you want.  I did "blessings" and Laura used "thankful".  You can use a strip of fabric to make a way to hang your wreath, and there you have it!

I also got some of our fall decorations out, since tomorrow is the first day of fall.  Maybe to celebrate fall's arrival tomorrow I will give you a sneak peak...



Epoch Women's Retreat.

Friday evening after work 23 women from Epoch loaded in to 6 cars and headed out for the White River.  Three and a half hours later we arrived at the house we would be staying in for the next two nights.  It was amazing! The entire house was walled with windows and decorated very modern.  We all decided it looked like the Cullen's house in the Twilight movies!

Saturday morning, after breakfast we got to spend some time alone with the Lord, looking out over the beauty of his creation.  We then reconvened and spent some time sharing the things God is doing in each of our lives, as well as confessing our struggles to one another.  We were then able to pray over one another for strength to claim victory over these struggles.  This was my favorite time of the weekend.  Everyone was so open and honest.  I felt like I really got the chance to see the hearts of each girl in the room, and I could feel the presence of the Holy Spirit moving among us! 

After lunch, Jordan held a Zumba class for those who were interested.  We spent an hour dancing our hearts out in the garage in the 95 degree heat.  My muffin top region is very sore today...

That evening, we had a wonderful Italian dinner cooked in this awesome kitchen:

Saturday evening concluded with a special time of prayer and worship.  Kim and Natalie had several stations set up for us to use different avenues to worship.  One of the stations was an encouragement wall.  Each girl present on the trip had a bag with her name on it.  We wrote notes of encouragement to one another and put them in the bags.  I felt so uplifted by the words these girls wrote me.

We made the beautiful drive home this morning.  What an amazing weekend!  I feel so blessed to get to be a part of what God is doing at Epoch Church. 

Here are some pictures from our weekend:

"Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.  Know that the Lord is God.  It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture."  -Psalm 100:2-3



Can I Just Be Honest?

Well, can I?  I've been feeling a little overwhelmed by "the to do list of life" this week.  Allow me to explain. 

Our phone line and credit card machine have been down off and on all week at work.  This means I get to juggle working with waiting on hold to speak to an unhelpful Comcast "customer service" representative, only to be told they will "get back to me."

I am in the midst of planning an open house at the salon, my income tax estimate for this quarter was due today, product commissions needed to have been figured on the 5th, and it's now the 16th. 

On the home front, I have a basket full of clothes that need  to be ironed, Maggie went back to the vet this morning, Lola has flees, and to top it off our kitchen sink is stopped up.

I spent most of this week catching up on 2 weeks worth of laundry, grocery shopping, cleaning house, and paying bills, all while working every day, working out every morning, and trying to find time to spend with Gary at night.

Whew... does it ever slow down? 

Tomorrow after work I am headed to the White River with 21 other women from Epoch Church for a women's retreat.  This couldn't have come at a better time. 

Sunday we began looking at Psalm 23 at church.  I've had the first 3 verses on my mind this week.

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.  He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul."

Praying that he will restore my soul this weekend, by giving me time away to experience his goodness though the beauty of his creation and relationships with my sisters in the faith.

Gameday Superstore.

What a busy weekend! 

Many months ago Jenkins Enterprises signed on to provide all of the Razorback Merchandise sold at War Memorial, and man all of the booths and tents at the Little Rock Hog games.  What a big undertaking!  They all worked very hard to organize everything and get the merchandise to and from the first game.

Yesterday I worked at the salon until 2, then headed over to War Memorial with Laura and Caleb to help the family sell Razorback merchandise to all the Hog fans at the first Little Rock game.  Gary left to help Dad set up the 9 booths and 2 super tents at 6am, and he didn't leave War Memorial until midnight last night! 

Laura, Caleb and I worked a booth inside gate 8, and Gary helped Mom, Dad, John Allen and Jessica with the super tent outside our gate.  We stayed busy from the time the stadium opened at 4:00 until everyone was gone around 10.  We sold everything from seat cushions to t-shirts to hog noses and hats.  You may have seen some of us scattered around wearing "Gameday Superstore" aprons.  If you missed us, no worries, we'll be back for the LSU game in November.

Today we got some much needed rest,  went grocery shopping, caught up on laundry, gaveLola a bath, attended church service at Epoch, and watched the Cowboys loose their first game of the regular season. 
I'm looking forward to another busy week at work and the Epoch Women's retreat to the White River this weekend.

My New Toy!

Well, I finally did it.  After months of dreaming about it (and talking myself out of it for fear I wouldn't be able to figure out how to use it), I bought a sewing machine.  It's a Brother beginners machine with a zebra print skin on it, and it is super cute.  My craft room is now complete! 

I also invested in this cute sewing basket to hold all my supplies:

And what seamstress doesn't have one of these little guys?

Now I just need to learn how to sew...

Maggie Goes to the Vet.

A few days ago I noticed Maggie was limping around the house, not using her front, right leg.  I could tell she was in a lot of pain.  After giving her a few days to "walk it off," I called and made her an appointment to see the vet today.  (Our vet was conveniently on vacation, so we took a chance on another clinic.)

If you have ever had a cat, you already know they do not like riding in the car.  So, just getting her to the vet was a job in and of itself!  But, we made it and she was a very good kitty for Doctor Baynes.  Upon feeling  her "arm," the vet determined it was her bone, rather than a growth or bite and proceeded to get an x-ray.

When the x-ray came back, she discovered Maggie must have had an injury prior to us adopting her 3 years ago.  The fracture healed on its own (as she was a stray for 2 years prior to being adopted).  When it healed, it healed strange, causing the extra white you see around her bone (right, wrist area).

She has learned how to "live with it" over the years, however, something she did in the past few days, aggravated the old injury, causing arthritis.  The solution is an injection in the joint once a week for the next month, accompanied by an oral pain reliever.  After the first month, the injections will continue once monthly ($20 per month) for the rest of her life to help her cope with the arthritis. 

I had no idea! I can eventually learn to give her the injections myself, but for now I will be taking her to the vet to get them.  A small price to pay for the joy she brings us!

Tonight was the return of "Vampire Diaries" on the CW.  We had our monthly  "Supper Club" tonight with Kirt, Laura, and Caleb at Laura and Caleb's house.  Kirt cooked a mean Mexican Chicken Spaghetti and the season premier was everything I had hoped it would be.  I'm so thankful for time with friends after a busy day at work.

Belated Labor Day Post.

Since yesterday was the Ouachita BlogAbout, I'll fill you in today on our Labor Day weekend with the Grant's in Ft. Worth. 

We left early Saturday morning to head to the Lone Star State.  One of my favorite parts of going to visit family is the car ride.  I enjoy looking out the window, listening to music, while singing my lungs out (although there wasn't much of that this trip since I was still without a voice), and having Gary's undivided attention for 6 hours straight.  We get to talk about things and just be silly together.

After a late lunch Saturday, I enjoyed some down time reading on the porch swing while the others napped.  They had wonderful weather, and their backyard was a quiet getaway. 

Saturday was a lazy day, but Sunday was jammed packed!  We attended church at Gary's parent's church in Azle, followed by lunch with some of their friends at "Uno" in downtown Ft. Worth.  Uno serves deep dish, Chicago style pizza. Yum! 

That afternoon, we strolled through both the Ft. Worth Water Gardens, and the Ft. Worth Botanical Gardens.  They had huge fish at the botanical gardens, and we enjoyed reenacting a childhood picture of Gary feeding these same fish as a little boy.

Saturday evening we drove to Allen, where Gary's aunt, uncle, cousins and grandmother all live.  His Uncle Jay grilled for us while we spent time with their new 2 pound Yorkie puppy!

Monday morning we said goodbye to the family over a pancake breakfast, then made the drive back home in time to catch John Allen before he headed back to OBU.  We ate another huge meal with my family at Dixie Cafe for dinner.

Hope your Labor day was fun and family filled like ours.  We ate way too much, so we tried to compensate for some of that with an evening run tonight.  I'm still battling this sore throat, but I think it may be on it's way out after 6 days of steroids.

Here are some highlights from our weekend. Enjoy!

My OBU Story!

So today is Ouachita's birthday, and to celebrate they decided to create a "blogabout" and have students blog about their Ouachita story.  That's kind of overwhelming, because if you know much about me, you know I loved my time at Ouachita and I could talk about my OBU experience all day.  But, I'll try to narrow it down for you...

Freshman year I moved in to Frances Crawford not knowing what to expect.  I was leaving behind close friends and family, and I went in skeptical, thinking OBU had some big shoes to fill.  I felt like everyone had "the Ouachita bug."  They were all in love with the place!  But, I wasn't so sure that would ever be me. 

Much to my surprise, it didn't take long before I had caught "the bug."  Ouachita became my home, and looking back I see how it has molded me in to the woman I am today.  Ouachita taught me to think for myself.  Being away from home challenged me to question the things I believed in; political beliefs, as well as religious beliefs.  I guess you could say I learned who I was at Ouachita.

Freshman year:  The first friend I made at Ouachita was a girl named "Tate"  (her real name was Stephanie, but I wouldn't learn that until Sophomore year).  Then, midway through my freshman year, I moved in with Laura. These two girls remain to this day two of my very best friends.  We had an instant connection and stayed attached at the hips all 4 years, even though we all pledged a different social club. 

Me with my rommate, Laura.

Our entire hall had a unique bond.  Some of my fondest Ouachita memories are just spending time in the rooms of the girls on FCE2.  We played flag football together, studied together, and even got in trouble together... (but the fun we had at that hall slip and slide was totally worth the punishment!)

 

I participated in Tiger Tunes with Campus Ministries, was elected to serve on Student Senate, joined the campus activities board, had a work study in the photo lab, pledged Tri Chi with the TC pledge class of 04, and was elected to compete as our pledge class representative in the Miss OBU pageant.

Sophomore year: I lived with Laura, Tate, and Rachel (who also lived on FCE2 with us) in Mattox, started dating Gary (that is a story in and of itself! It's also posted on this blog for your reading enjoyment), and added a second major, Christian Studies, to my first major, of Mass Communication. 

Gary, Tate and I attended church at Fellowship, Arkadelphia.  My advisor and professor in the Christian Studies department, Dr. Duvall and Dr. Jackson (another one of my professors in Christian Studies) were the co-pastors.  We were in Dr. Jackson and his wife, Mona's Kgroup that met at their house every Sunday night.  We developed a close relationship with their family during our time at OBU.

I continued to serve on Student Senate, CAB and as an active member of Tri Chi.  I participated in the Tri Chi Flight Attendants show, where we won 3rd place!  And in the fall, I was honored to be chosen as a Kappa Chi little sis.

With Gary at KX rush.

The roomies in Mattox!

Junior Year:  This was probably my favorite year at OBU! I moved back in to Frances Crawford East and worked as an RA.  I still remained active in the same activities, serving as Secretary of the Student Senate and Pledge Mistress for Tri Chi.  Gary and I continued to get more serious.  In the fall he gave me his Kappa drop and in the spring he asked me to marry him!  I was in both the Tri Chi and Kappa Chi Tiger Tunes shows.  The Kappas placed as Chimney Sweeps and the Tri Chis won 1st place as Girl Scouts!!  Gary graduated in the spring of 06 and I was sad to see him leave OBU.

KX Chimney Sweeps.

Laura and Tate were also asked to be KX lil sises, making us all members of the same club for the first time ever. Even though we were no longer roommates our bond was stronger than ever. 

Homecoming 2005

My Closet OBU friends!

Laura, me and Tate: KX lil sises.

Tri Chi PC 04 Tiger Tunes 05

KX/TC Toga Mixer.

Tri Chi Rush.

Tri Chi 80s night TWIRP 2005.

Senior Year:  I finished my time at OBU in 3.5 years, so my senior year was only 1 semester, but I made the most of it.  I served as the president of Tri Chi and participated in my final Tiger Tunes shows with Tri Chi (hairstylists) and Kappa Chi (Outlaws).  Kappa took home first place!  I was on the homecoming court for Tri Chi, and Tate was crowned homecoming queen. 

In 3.5  years: I had received a 1st class education, learned life lessons, and developed lasting relationships. I read the scripture at the December commencement and tried not to cry as my Ouachita story came to an end.

My best Tri Chi friends.

Homecoming 2006.

But my story didn't end there.  I see it continue every day.  We meet people all the time who have a connection to OBU, and we have even developed close friendships with OBU alumni we didn't even hag out with during our time at OBU. 

I met my husband at Ouachita (Dr. Jackson married us in Jan. 07), my closest friends at Ouachita, and I leaned who I was at Ouachita.  I work with Laura at my salon in North Little Rock, and I was in Tate's wedding this past May.  I'm looking forward to attending Tiger Tunes next month, and my younger brother started his Ouachita journey this year.  Ouachita will be a part of who I am for the rest of my life, and for that I am very grateful.

I'm leaving out so much, from rush parties, to mixers, to club outings, but I did the best I could.  You can read about other Ouachita stories here.