Prayer request for dear friends of my family

Prayer request for some very dear friends of my family. Sammy Simpson, father-in-law of one of my very dearest friends (One of the most godly women I know who encompasses the greatest attributes of a best friend, sister, and mother in my relationship with her) and close family friends of my entire family, had a heart attack on Friday night. It has been determined they can't do stints, so are proceeding with open heart surgery tomorrow morning. So I ask that you pray for them. Lift them up as they travel through this ordeal.....

thanks!

UPDATED!!!

I just got a text message from Debbie. Sammy is out of surgery and on his way to the ICU. They did a 5 vessel CABG (medical talk I don't understand... but some of you may understand) and all went well. They are expecting to be able to go back and see him in the ICU in an hour or so (so around 6ish EST... they are an hour behind us though in Tupelo.)

Please continue to pray for them, but thus far our prayers have been answered!

Valentines

So we all know that yesterday was valentines day. I usually dread valentines. Typically I am home alone while my friends go out with their significant others. Unfortunately it usually turns in to a pity party for one. This year I was somewhat dreading the holiday... not because I wanted it to turn into a pity party, but as much as I try to be 100% content being single, many days I wish I had a significant other. So this year, I decided since my roommate was going to NYC with her boyfriend, that I was going to try to do something fun and not just be home alone. Two of the girls who I have gotten to know in studio were free for the evening (one's husband is backpacking in south America and the other's significant other was in town last weekend from Va, so was not going to be here this weekend) so we decided to do a simple dinner and movie at my place. As much as I love entertaining, I decided to make a special evening of it as a surprise. I set the table with my red place mats, tied hot pink and light pink ribbons on the chandelier, and then put candy conversation hearts in my big candle bowl thing (kind of like a hurricane that goes around a candle, but it looks more like an apothecary jar... it probably has an official name that I just done know.) I then got little boxes of whitman's chocolates that were wrapped in cute valentines paper that I put at each place. I made beef stroganoff for dinner with a nice salad and bread. We enjoyed a bottle of wine and great conversation over dinner. Then for dessert, I surprised them by making molten chocolate cakes with homemade whipped cream. (i will admit that I cooked them a little too long, so they were a little more cake-y and little less molten-y, but still very good!) Christine brought champagne and strawberries. So we added the strawberries to the chocolate cakes. It was perfect! Then after dinner we enjoyed a girly movie (Maid of Honor) and enjoy the champagne. It became the best valentines day I have ever had!

I only wish I had gotten some pictures!!!

Life.

Do you ever feel like life gets the best of you. You get so wrapped up in the daily activities of life (school, work, whatever it is...) and just forget to focus on what is really important. I have discovered in past semesters it is the time when I feel like you have the littlest amount, if any at all, to devote to my quiet times, that I most need it and when God is trying to showing me something. This year, along with many other new years resolutions, I have made a mental note to self that nights that I would usually just say I am too tired or have too much work, that I am going to focus on doing my quiet time.(it is not hard for me to snuggle into bed with my Bible and do my quiet times when school is not crazy, but its a different story when school becomes a major time-hogger) I decided that I was going to redo a study I did several years ago that I did not really do completely. Last night I got in bed about midnight, which is really not that late, but I was tired and really just wanted to roll over and go to bed. Instead I grabbed my Bible, journal, and my study book off of my bedside table and started through chapter 2 of the study. An hour and 15 minutes later, I finished chapter two (it should not have taken that long, but I did get distracted by Riggs at one point and had to take him outside). I finished realizing He was telling me what I needed to hear but was too focused on the happenings of daily life to see and hear what He was telling me. I need to stop getting overly focused on the earthly things that are going on around me and open my eyes, ears, and heart to what He is telling and showing me.

Blowing Rock....

This past weekend we went to what has become one of my favorite places. We went up to our mountain house in Blowing Rock, NC. It was SO nice to get up there for the long weekend. I got up there at about 1030pm Friday night (I have class until 530 on Fridays, so I was delayed getting up there) to near-zero temperatures. Saturday morning after sleeping a bit late and relaxing around the house, we went over to Boone to run some errands. After that, We came back to the house and relaxed. My roommate joined us up there Saturday evening and we went to one of our favorite restaurants up there called Bistro Roca. We had a lovely meal and then went home and played a little Wii. Sunday we slept in and relaxed around the house. Lindsay and I went up to the parkway in attempt to show Lindsay what it looks like up there and the 100 mile views.... we had no luck. Because of the ice and snow that I had begun to fall over night, the parkway heading from Blowing Rock towards the Linn Cove Viaduct was closed. Instead we went over to the Moses Cone Manner, which is beautiful and has a nice view, but it is just not as long. Sunday evening we went over to the Lehman's house for dinner. It was great to see their new home which is absolutely beautiful! It was also fun to see Anna who is about 3 or 4 weeks from delivering their new baby!!! While we were at Jonathan and Anna's, the snow started falling. It snowed all day Sunday and Monday. We had to have someone come de-ice our driveway before we left. It was the most snow I had seen up there. It was LOTS of fun! Before we left, Lindsay and I went sledding in the front yard, which was also so much fun!!! Then, it was time to head back to Clemson.... school work was calling my name! It was a great weekend and so much fun to get out of Clemson and just relax for a few days!!! Enjoy the pictures from the weekend!

1. View from Moses Cone Manner towards downtown Blowing Rock.... it really is out there...

2. Another view towards Blowing Rock with the pond at Chetola out there.

3. Julian Price Pond from the Blue Ridge Parkway

4. The view out to Yonalossee from our porch... this is out from just under

the covered dining porch....

The New Year

So this new year started out with less than a bang.... I mean I was the only one still awake in our household. But since then, things have been pretty busy. I am excited about all this semester seems to be offering education wise as well as the growth that I am expecting personally. This semester I am taking a health care studio. We are working on specific aspects of the patient room which I find very interesting. Plus we are working with the industrial designs students at Carleton University in Ottawa Canada, which means we will do some traveling this semester- they come here, we go there... etc etc. Should be a wonderful learning experience in product design. So far studio has been busy but manageable. I think it will get kind of more crazy in the next few weeks, but for now, it has been good.

Outside of school, I am just enjoying life. I made several new years resolutions that I am working hard to keep and hold to. One of them, is getting back on track with the diet I started last year. So far, since school started that is, I have lost about 4 pounds. So I am happy with that in 2 weeks!! I hope that I can keep that up! I also made a resolution to get more exercise. So far I have done fairly good at that. I have gone to the gym several times with my roommate as well as taken Riggs for long walks, which is good for both of us! I am also working at being more social. It seems to be a resolution I always have a hard time with. I always fall into the trap that I let school get in the way of life. I am trying really hard to not have that be that way this semester. I know that there are times when I will have to let school take over, but for the moment, I am trying hard to not be that way. Finally, I really want to get back on track with my daily quiet time.

On that note, I am going to go and do some reading and then head to bed.

The Best Friends a Girl Could Ask For....

This past Saturday evening I was up in Simpsonville, near Greenville, visiting with/reuniting with some of the best friends a girl could ask for. Pretty quickly after school started my freshman year, I joined a Bible Study that Campus Crusade for Christ was starting in my freshman dorm. Little did I know that when I joined that Bible Study, that I would be making some of the best friends in the world- the kind that last a lifetime. We all stayed in the Bible Study from freshman year through graduating.... losing a few people along the way and gaining others as the years went by. Saturday night, most everyone was there. We were missing a few people, but it was great to see these friends who I love like family.....

I am so blessed to have these women in my life. God chose these people and put them in my life for a reason. Each one is unique and special, each one a wonderful example of a Godly woman. All I can say is Wow. I am so blessed!!!

Christmas Lovin......

So I saw this on one of the blogs I frequent... so I decided to do it here!!

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper (unless it is a weird shaped gift, then MAYBE a bag... but only maybe) I like to wrap presents so that they are so beautiful people don't want to even open them!!!
2. Real tree or Artificial? REAL... the fatter the better and must must must be real!
3. When do you put up the tree? no set day... just depends. Sometimes right after thanksgiving some times only a week or 2 before Christmas. Just depends.
4. When do you take the tree down? New Year's Eve-ish
5. Do you like eggnog? Love it! Especially Egg Nog Milkshakes!!!
6. Favorite gift received as a child? probably baby dolls.... one year I asked for anatomically correct twins (a boy and a girl) I still have them for my kids one day. And a few years later I asked for the boy twin to match the girl twin I had gotten for my birthday that year. Still have those twins too..... I had a thing for twins!!!
8. Easiest person to buy for? My niece... she is only 7 weeks old, so I can buy her the cutest little outfits!!!
9. Do You have a nativity scene? Yes, several. One from my childhood, and then 2 that Brad brought us back from Ecuador.
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail...
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? probably when I was about 15 years old... no I was a sophomore in college and my dad's mom got me this little 6" long baby doll...... weird. I was in college and had long since stopped playing with baby dolls, but she said it reminder her of me. So I smiled and politely said thank you for thinking of me. I think my mom probably gave it away to goodwill or something....
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Miracle on 34th Street
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? usually a last minute shopper for the most part.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? not that I can remember... but I have nothing against it. One man's trash is another man's treasure.
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Christmas Cookies
16. Lights on the tree? Lots and I prefer classic white lights.
17. Favorite Christmas song? "O Holy Night"
18. Travel for Christmas or stay home? Depends... some years we stay home and some years we go out to Washington to spend Christmas with my mom's family!
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Yes... but I would have to sing the song to do it!
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Usually a star but this year a bow... my mom did it because the star that we usually use is mine and therefore at my house. I forgot to bring it home. so. bow it is...
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas MORNING!!! and we have strict traditions.... we come down stairs and open our stockings in the living room. We go around the room, one at a time. Then we eat breakfast and then we open the presents under the tree. Again, going around the room one at a time. We savor the moment and enjoy seeing what everyone gets!!! Plus it makes Christmas last close to all day!!!
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Rude people and people forgetting the REAL reason for the season! It is not about Christmas presents or Santa. It is about the birth of our Savior!! Jesus's birth is what we celebrate!!! not Santa.
23. Favorite ornament theme or color? My tree at my house is red, green, white/silver but my parents tree, which is also sort of my tree in that I help decorate it every year and I have some sort of emotional attachment to the idea of the Christmas tree at their house and a deep emotional attachment to the ornaments, it is just all glass ornaments with sparkles of red..... I will post picture of it all soon!!!
24. Favorite Christmas dinner? Beef Wellington
25. What do you want for Christmas this year? I asked for mostly stuff I need, but because of my pea-sized budget as a student I cant afford.... make up (i am almost out of concealer and foundation), shoes, a bra, thumb drive.... nothing too exciting. Just stuff I can actually use and need!!!

Enough for now. I am heading to bed!!!