In case of a traffic jam

Should you be faced with the horrific event of being caught in stand-still traffic, follow these simple steps to maintain sanity and survive the potential 2 extra hours that you had not expected.

Keep a carton of ice cream stashed in the trunk.

You may find this applicable only after a Wal-Mart run. However, if you're anything like us, a daily trip to your local friendly Wal-Mart, the one-stop-shop, is part of the routine of life.

You're ice cream is melting in the trunk, you say?

No problem.

Plan a drive-by at the closest ice cream shop, allowing your passenger to jump out of the car. Passenger: walk confidently into the ice cream shop as if you're a paying customer.

Ask for 2 spoons.

You're going to want to grab a lot of napkins...this is going to get messy.

As the driver makes the 2nd drive-by, pop the trunk. Inconspicuously remove the ice cream from the trunk, strategically placing it under your arm, and jump into the passenger seat.

Move fast.

You don't want to tip off the ice cream girl that you just stole her spoons and napkins without asking for even as much a sample of cake batter ice cream.

Finally,

save the ice cream.

Let it live up to its full potential.

Enjoy your next 2 hours.

(Side notes)

It's hard having such a demanding life.

(I say this with much sarcasm)

Between packing, traveling, unpacking, exams, procrastinating, being a clean freak, and attempting to be a socialite (again, sarcasm) it's hard to get anything done or to have anything interesting happen in your life.

So while I'm avoiding studying (like right now) this is what might be going through my head

(or more likely what I'm actually doing on multiple occasions throughout the day).

Thanks, Mom and Dad, for my ten years of dance training. It really paid off.

My new friend Leyton!

Super weekend: I finally made it home to Hendersonville to see my childhood and life long friend Ashley and meet her little boy, Leyton Bo!

Not only was it a great excuse to get out of town and enjoy the mountain weather, but I got to take tons of pictures with my new camera.

Bath time!

Leyton wasn't feeling great this weekend but he still is the cutest and happy little thing.

So sweet.

He's also quite an attention getter.

During our lunch date at Tupelo Honey this lady insisted on holding him...she had no idea her picture was going to end up on the internet.

Aunt Anna and Leyton (after she fed him ice cream).

Aunts are the best! I would know....

Me and Leyton

Napping with Mom.

We needed a nap too.

Beautiful mother.

It's great to have friends you know that will be there for forever and through any journey.

I'm so thankful for our friendship!

Good Things

Old friends, coos of a new baby, familiar places, ice cream,

laugh until you cry, green mountains, crisp air, good memories.

Good weekend.

Award Winning Facebook Comments

A feW eXamPleS oF tHiNgs PeoPlE NeVer WaNT tO sEe On FaCEboOk (including typing like that)

However, as inappropriate as it is, thank you for making us laugh.

• Im so glad your home baby...aside from the fact that you have to leave today. i hate it. its like we wait all week to see each other and our time is so short lived...but i guess you gotta take what you can get when you got such an amazing girl...i hope you make it back safe sweets and i cant wait till next weekend...it...s like i live for the weekends..lol..its horrible. but uh...i wanna see you before you leave. for real i need me one of those award winning kisses your packin.lol..much love..bye baby:)

• ur last name must be "EVER" and your first name must be "GREATEST!" cause you are!!!!!

• Is it Christmas already????? Cause I just got the best gift ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

• my butt itches.......and I took a shower...

Say hello to my good friend...

Just saying hello to all of my good friends who contributed to the survival of

the last week of school

(aka the longest week ever).

Diet Dr. Pepper, better known as DDP, you have kept me in a

wonderful caffeinated state

all week. Besides all of the shaking I experienced on Monday,

it's been fun.

Hey NeedToBreathe! The distraction you provided me from my project I was supposed to do on Saturday was awesome...made me love you that much more. However, 13 consecutive hours of working on a project on Monday was not that great.

Dear Nikon D40, the anticipation of your arrival has possibly contributed to the sluggish pace of the week, but now that you're here my spirits have been lifted substantially.

I can't wait to take some fantastic photo's.

Delinquent Wal-Mart buggy on the run

You always make me laugh when I see you in various places throughout the neighborhood causing traffic obstructions.

Facebook

Where would I be without you? Especially when I'm doing so well on an assignment and I completely quit for at least a half-hour to check you out.

Mom and Dad, thanks for being silly and letting me call and tell you every single boring thing about my day...oh, and for laughing at my stories.

Paula Deen, I love watching your party. You're always entertaining me with your creepy come-ons towards young(ish/er than you) men such as Jason Priestley, Clay Aiken, and Blake Shelton. I'm almost certain none of them appreciated your

inappropriate comments and gestures,

but I sure did.

I'll be calling on all of you again for exam week.

"This"

I realize that I've been doing a lot of this lately.

I'm actually currently sitting in Chick-fil-A working on my billionth education project of the semester along with my billionth Chick-fil-A sandwich and realizing that there are a lot of things that I'm trying to do.

Key word: trying

It is in these times that I realize once again that I am NOT super-woman...nor will I ever be.

I cannot:

1) Keep a perfectly clean house at all times

2) get every assignment done weeks in advance

3) Be in 2 places at once

4) Not sleep and eat bad without feeling awful

5) Be amazing at everything I do all the time

At least not without looking like this:

But do have this:

Have you not known? Have you not heard?

The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He does not faint or grow weary;his understanding is unsearchable.

He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength.

Even youths shall faint and be weary,and young men shall fall exhausted;but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;they shall mount up with wings like eagles;they shall run and not be weary;they shall walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:28-31

And I can:

1) Make a joyful sound

2) Find comfort in the company of family and friends

3) Laugh

4) Restore my soul with music

5) Find wonder in God's creation

6) Enjoy the present and look forward to the future

And then I can do this:

Glorifying melodies

I just want

Something beautiful to touch me

I know that I'm in reach

I am down on my knees

And waiting for

Something beautiful

-NeedToBreathe

I just can't get enough

I know it's a strange infatuation and that it has lasted since I was in the 4th grade

but I really just can't get enough of

These Guys

Yes. That is Hanson.

I love everything about them. I love Zac's crazy greasy hair. I love that Isaac always wears the same outfit.

And I love that Taylor is always wearing glasses like these.

I also love that to this day, I get a silly giddy feeling that little girls get when they talk about their favorite celebrity crush (or how 13 year olds get when they see Zac Efron) every time I see that they have new music, or new videos, or I get to go see them in concert.

I love going to every show that comes near me.

I love that my dream to meet them was fulfilled.

This is Zac and me.

I'm obviously taking a picture with Zac, but he is not so much taking a picture with me.

Priceless. And infinitely ridiculous.

Their music just makes me happy...all of it.

All the way from MmmBop to

the NEW ALBUM that I just pre-ordered. Yes I pre-ordered my album so I would get it first thing on June 8th. I'M SO EXCITED that I just had to blog about it.

Click this album cover and you'll see my newest favorite reason (the music video for "Thinkin 'Bout Something") for why I love them.

How can you not be a fan of that?

Ultimate Pancake Challenge

Genesis pancake dinner!

19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

Matthew 28: 19-20

This summer, Genesis will be traveling to Mexico to do mission work so our small group helped out with the pancake dinner fundraiser.

Be in prayer for the team traveling this summer that God will provide, for lives to be changed, and for people to experience the love of our precious savior, Jesus Christ.

Aside from a really successful night, Jesse and Sarah showed off their superb

cafeteria lady skills...

And I made some gorgeous pancakes.

So did Tyler.

Unfortunately, these are not mine.


1000 pancakes later...

I made this amazing Mickey Mouse pancake (and we all know how big of a Disney fan I am so I was quite proud of this). I also love how Rodney is totally photobombing in the background.


The Denson's and their pancake-making-crew decided to challenge me by making a Snowman.

I retaliated and made a K for Kelsi (which there is not a picture of because I ate it).

I think we all know who really won this competition.

Oh the places you'll go...

There is nothing about me that is tech savvy...not in the least bit. I have to ask my mother for help on Facebook quite often, I haven't got a clue how to work my own television most of the time, and I definitely do not know anything about computers. However, I have become quite Bloggerific in the past few days (which is taking a bit of a toll on my schoolwork).

My blog pretty much sopped with awfulness until Easter weekend when my sister Shea gave me the quick run down. She helped me put in my cutie-patootie background which is from HotBliggityBlog.

Also, thanks to Kevin and Amanda I now have a much more aesthetically pleasing blog. Grab this button for some Q&A's.
They can teach you how to:

• place a signature in your blog
• place a header into your blog
• provide TONS of way cute fonts to download and also tell you how to change them in your blog
• add a blog post divider

As you see, I've added a signature to my blog. MyLiveSignature is a super easy site for creating a signature (or just Google handwritten signature generators). Then go to Kevin and Amanda and they'll give you the run down for putting it in your blog.


Make sure to check out Shabby Blogs for some great headers, dividers, buttons, and much more. This is where my header came from.


There is also a tutorial (using Fotoflexer) on how to place a picture in a header. You may want to try out this website for some easy photo editing. Then all you do is save the header you have edited (using the tutorials directions) to your computer and in your Layout upload it to your Header there it is! WARNING: if your background is not white (like mine is not white) you may have trouble finding a header that doesn't have a white box in the background. I haven't found a way to make it transparent but I'll let you know if I do! This goes for the post dividers too.
If anyone knows how to fix this, tell me please!!!

Also, download Picasa for a great FREE photo editing program. You can use this to write on photo's as well...but I did not find that I could get it to work with the headers so you will want to use Fotoflexer for that.

You will also find that using Photobucket is quite useful when you have to use the image address in codes. If you need to upload pictures to Photobucket (and you will be asked to), it will include it in the directions. This is also a free program to sign up for!

Life behind Wal-Mart

There are many things that I am thankful for.

One of these is living behind a

Wal-Mart

The Store That Contains Everything

The reasons I love living behind the Wal-Mart could honestly

go on for a while so I'll only list a few

• While throwing parties, I often find that I've forgotten either the MOST important ingredient in a recipe, or the ice. I have no idea what it is about the ice, but I can never remember to pick it up.
• It's your One-Stop-Shop!
• You should see the characters that I see traipsing about the Wal-Mart shopping center. I often wonder what it takes to be one of those people who hangs out outside of the Wal-Mart entrances (you know, the ones that are always sitting on the ground right by the door). Do most stores have these groupies who sit by the door? Maybe they secretly want to be Wal-Mart greeters.
• I was privileged enough to live next to an actual Wal-Mart greeter, Miss Gere and her little dog Oreo (that's how she introduces herself). She has since retired, but she is still my favorite neighbor because she gives the best neighborly greetings around.
• Where there is a Wal-Mart, there is a nail salon, a Chinese take-out, a Sally's Beauty supply, and a Dollar Tree...the classiest combination of all time.
• And most conveniently located in your neighborhoods visitor parking spots or your flower bed, there will always be a Wal-Mart buggy parked for your use should you decide to be a bag-lady. I have to say, this is becoming such a common occurrence in my neighborhood they really should install our own buggy drops on each street.

PeopleAtTheBeach.com

First day at the beach!

Every year at the beach we do the same things and take the same pictures.

We toss around the football, play bocce, frisbee, paddle ball...





Observe the beautiful Charleston beach scenery



Build superb sand castles





And then I noticed that I tend to see the same sights at the beach as well....


Such as:


The fully clothed family knee deep in the ocean.
Is that just poor planning?

The people who start feeding the seagulls creating the fear that your eyes might be pecked out.

The guy in the cut off-T...and work boots (maybe not exactly That Guy but still, work boots?)

The not-so-young man showing far too much skin riding back and forth on the beach.

Those are some tiny shorts.

The "too intense for the beach" soccer game that never fails to catapult a ball towards you and your towel, sending you scrambling across the sand to try to save your nose from being broken.

The ugly-dog walkers. There is always a vast plethora of them to enjoy.

Fabulous.