Jesus is the bread...so take those rolls off the dinner table!

Sitting in a booth, sharing a bagel with my mom, I was faced with a new reality. We drank our coffee, shared a snack, and caught up with each other - this was nothing out of the ordinary. Since my junior year of high school, this was our routine. Even so, there was something different this time.

Here’s a little background information -

Two years ago (and around the time of this mother/daughter coffee date), as a recent college graduate, I lost about 20 pounds. Standing at only 5 feet tall with a curvy frame, 20 pounds made a huge difference in the way I looked and felt.

I was the girl crash dieting and forcing myself into the gym since early high school. I was the girl constantly tugging at her clothes and explaining my weight anytime I got the chance, just to make sure that I acknowledged my less-than-perfect body before anyone else did. So after months of cutting out all the wrong foods and fueling myself with all the right foods, my mom was curious as to why a bagel was my choice of snack that warm August afternoon.

I don’t think that my mom meant for her words to impact me very much or change my whole outlook – but I’m glad that they did. I truly believe that she had a genuine curiosity about the maintenance phase of my weight loss plan. But as she questioned, and I answered back with some vague excuse, her next words hit me like a ton of bricks.

“Have you ever considered that your battle with self-esteem, food, and your weight is more of a spiritual battle than anything else?” she asked.

Quietly, I muttered, no. Over the next few weeks, I contemplated this question almost constantly. I obsessed on it because I felt so silly for never even considering that all of these years that I’ve struggled and been overly self-conscience, I never once thought to give this “issue” to the Lord.

Why I hadn’t I? When I began dating my husband, which was about a year before this, I prayed daily that God would allow us to connect mentally/intellectually (when we began dating), spiritually (as we grew together as a couple), emotionally (as things became more serious and we started talking about marriage), and physically (after we wed). Now, all four of these things are all extremely vital to building, maintaining, and enjoying our marriage. I think that at some point in my life I just concluded that these four things made up every aspect of our person. So why then, did I not apply these same principles, including the spiritual aspect, to my only real consistent and long-term strife?

Although the answer really doesn’t matter as much as the subsequent action, I realized over time that the answer really boils down to a deep rooted fear. I feared letting go of control.  But, as I just said, identifying the problem is really only the first step. The important thing is how to change the problem.

Therefore, in a day where young women are living in an over saturated, media-based culture that forces us to see its idea what beautiful looks like, I want to extend a white flag of surrender for those who are just tired of trying.

My advice to you is not to quit, but rather, loosen your grip a little bit; let go. Here are some ways that I’ve learned to balance my struggle in a healthier way.

•  Physically - The most obvious way to take action on a struggle with self-esteem, food, and weight is by taking a physical action. I’m not a medical professional, so I’ll just give you basic ideas that I’ve learned from experience. Eat foods that come from nature. The means a diet that contains higher protein and fiber and lower in carbohydrates, sugar, and processed foods. Exercise as much as possible, but make it fun. If you like running, add some fun music to your workout playlist. If you hate running, join a gym that offers classes like cycling, kickboxing, or step aerobics. Exercise with your friends or your significant other and challenge each other; a little competition is always exciting. I’ve even started wearing a pedometer to work, and I try to compete with myself each day to see if I can find ways to walk more just by showing up at work.

•  Mentally/Intellectually - For me, this is the easiest way to conquer my issue. I read a lot of health blogs, exercise blogs, and articles on health and wellness. Sometime I enjoy reading books on health and exercise, but many times books promote fad diets, and I try to steer clear of those. Find a few blogs that you like, and follow them regularly. The beneficial thing about a blog is that it’s a real person writing, so usually it offers encouragement as well as tips, advice, and ideas. I’m reading a book right now that was suggested to me by one of my friends/blog readers called Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst. I recommend it to anyone who struggles with “eating your feelings” as I like to call it. Here’s one (of many) quote from it that truly stuck out to me: “But, if I allowed my brain to park in a place of dissatisfaction about any part of my body, it would give Satan just enough room to move in with his lie that strips me of motivation: ‘Your body is never going to look the way you want it to look, so why sacrifice so much? Your discipline is in vain.’” Honestly, I could probably quote the whole book, but that would make this post completely irrelevant – so go buy the book and read it for yourself!

•  Emotionally - Incorporating an emotional aspect to battling against my weight and food is almost as hard for me as incorporating a spiritual side. It’s really tough for me to be vulnerable enough with myself to face what I like to call, “The Why’s”. Why am I so drawn to eat things that I know in my head are not good for me? Why am I sitting on the couch talking on the phone or watching TV when I can be walking around the neighborhood talking on the phone or listening to music? Why do I crave unhealthy foods when I’m mad/upset/hurt/sad? Why do I buy things at the grocery store that I know will be tempting to me, even though I’ve been eating so good all week long? Honestly, this list could go on and on, and I’m sure that everyone’s list will be a variance of “The Why’s”. Many times it’s easy to find a surface level answer, but to dig beneath the surface gets messy. I for one don’t like to face the reason for why I turn to food for comfort, or why I remain sedentary when I get home from a sedentary job. It’s painful, and many times the conclusion that I come to is that my strength, will power, and efforts will never be enough for me to make real progress in this area of my life. Which leads to my next point...

•  Spiritually - If you look throughout the bible, there are subtle, but clear references to food in relation to sin. Eve ate the apple and the Israelites freaked out because they were running out of food, just to name a few. But, as a beautiful picture of restoration, the bible also uses images of food to encourage us. When Jesus is tempted in the desert, the adversary tempts him with food, yet Jesus says that no man can live by bread alone. In the gospel of John, Jesus declares, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst” (John 6:35). Jesus also meets the physical need of people when he feeds the 5,000 before he feeds them spiritually in Matthew 14. So, why then do we not cast our burden - our answers to “The Why’s” on our Lord and Savior? Do we think that our food issues or our weight issues are too petty for God? Do we think that we should be strong enough to accomplish our weight loss goal on our own? Or, do we deny that we even have a problem? Something that I’ve learned is that the moment I replace God with food, I’m not only sinning, but I have a problem that needs fixing by the Holy Spirit. When I’m offered a job, my husband and I celebrate by going out to eat. The last time that this happened, it took me almost a day to stop and praise God for providing a job for me. When I’m upset about something, I’ll justify a bowl of ice cream after dinner and a skipped day at the gym, but it might take me hours or even days to bring whatever I’m upset about before the Lord. Does any of this sound familiar? This issue of self-esteem, food, and weight is intricately connected with our relationship with God. Treat it that way and give it the validity in your prayers that its due.

As I look back on the last two years of my life, I almost start to laugh at how it looks. I’d love to tell you that I’m where I want to be and that the truth that my mom presented to me that day over coffee and a bagel has whipped me into shape and now I’m exactly where I want to be. But the reality of this truth that she spoke is that it’s a journey. It’s a spiritual journey, and I don’t pretend that I have all the answers. But I will admit that since that day, things have been different for me because God used my mom as a vessel to reveal something important to me and it finally clicked. My hope and my prayer is that, at the least, is that you’re encouraged by reading this. I’d love for this to be that epiphany moment and you’re literally staring at your computer right now with your hand on your forehead saying, “Man, why didn’t I see this before?!” If that’s the case, I’m thankful that God has used a simple girl like me, and I pray that he receives glory for it all.

That seems to about cover all I had to say today.
So then...
I've blogged to you...
Now you can blogbacktome.

On Making Plans

"Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future. Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand.” 

 - Proverbs 19:20-21 -

There is so much pressure to know.

When we are in high school, we're constantly being faced with questions that beckon us to figure out what we're supposed to do with our lives. Where will you go to college? What will you major in? Where will you live? How often will you come home? What do you want to do with that degree? I remember being 17 or 18 years old and thinking to myself that if one more person asked me what I'm going to be doing for the rest of my life, I was just going to scream!

But we make our decision, we graduate, get a job, go to college, or do whatever is next for us. But it's just the beginning.

We are faced DAILY with decisions, with plans, with expectations to make decisions that affect our plans. We're just expected to know.

I'm learning very quickly that I don't know. I don't know the answers and I don't know my plans. Most of the time I can tell people what my plans are for the next month or so, at least as far as what I'll be doing. I'll go to work, I'll hang out with this person or that person, I'll go to church, Jason and I may go out of town - we have plans. But the older I get (not that I'm that old) and the more I move through life, I'm learning that I don't have a plan and that I just don't know. For someone like me who is a complete "planner" and scores with the highest of "J's" on Myer's Briggs, that honestly stresses me out.

I don't know what tomorrow holds.

I don't know what I'm making for dinner tonight.

I don't know where we'll live in 6 months.

I don't know how to be the best wife.

I don't know our plans for the holidays.

I don't know when I'll get to run errands.

I don't know when or where my  husband will be working a week, a month, a year from now.

I do know that I'm learning, though. 

The Lord is teaching me to let go of my plans. He's teaching me that it's okay to not know. He molding me into the woman/wife/daughter/sister/friend who has strength to not rely on my own knowledge or plans (as comforting as that may be), but to rely solely on Him.

One of the most well known verses of scripture is Jeremiah 29:11. For years I've been hardened into thinking that it's so cliche to rely upon this passage because it's so overused, and many times taken out of context. But the truth is that it's God's word, and there's nothing cliche or overused about God's word.

These words are truth though. Proverbs tells us that man has many plans for ourselves, but that the purpose that the Lord has given our lives is the only thing that will stand. We can plan all day long, but even so, are we being obedient? Rather than planning our lives and hoping that God aligns His plans with ours, why don't we just have faith that He will make His purpose known to us? He tells us that He's got a plan. He tells us that He's got a good plan. We have a future in Him and we have hope in Him. But so many times, why isn't that enough for us?

Today, I'm relinquishing my plans and my purposes for my life. I'm leaving them in the hands of God, because His ways are better than mine and His plans are greater than mine. My life, my marriage, my job, my husband's job, my stability, my family, my friendships, my tomorrows, my everything is His.

Won't you join me in letting go today?

Alright, I've blogged to you...
Now you can blogbacktome.

Productive Weekend in Review

Here's our VERY productive weekend in review:

Friday -

I just love a trip to the mall. 

Friday night we got new dishes. They look a little something like this:

Jason with our new dishes.

We also got a "something old". Jason's step mom gave us some really awesome red cups as well as some red vases. The cups are from 1967 and they're really cool looking!

We also went to eat at Stix. I went with the teriyaki  chicken with veggies and brown rice. I had enough left over to eat Saturday night as well. Definitely our new favorite Asian food joint.

Saturday - 

Although we didn't we get to sleep in, it ended up being a pretty restful day. We got up early and took Jason's family to see our wedding venue. They loved it, and it was perfect weather.

Then we went to eat at the wonderful Olexa's in Mountain Brook Village. We wanted to make sure that they got to taste our cake :)

Next, Jason got fitted for his tux/suit! Look how hot my fiance is!!!

This is what Jason will be wearing.

This is what the groomsmen/dads will be wearing.

After lunch we kind of went our separate ways. We were all tired and wanted to rest. After about an hour of just chillin' by the TV, Jason and I decided to be productive. We basically just ran errands until dinner time.

Then we rented a movie and watched it at the apartment.

Sunday -

We got up early again to go to the 9:00 service at Brook Hills. We wanted to make sure that Jason's fam got to go to church with us but they also had a long drive ahead of them. I was okay with going to church early...it meant that I got to eat "Perfect Oatmeal" from Starbucks on the way.

After church we went to eat lunch to celebrate Father's Day with Jason's dad. We went to The Fish Market, which is right by our church and only a couple of miles from our wedding venue. While we were there, we asked if they can accommodate rehearsal dinners. After lots of looking, talking, and booking, we now have our rehearsal dinner location! Just one less thing to do :)

After church, they hit the road and Jason and I hit the grocery store. It had been a while since I'd done anything even close to a full grocery run. Since we were in the area, we decided to go to Target rather than the usual Publix.

We ended up leaving with a new TV!

Jason setting up his new toy...that lives at my apartment :)

We decided to rent another movie, but we ended up just watching Netflix instead. We also made our third voyage to Steel City Pops. I went with coffee and Jason rolled with strawberry cream.

Sunday night, I made lots and lots of food. I spent probably an hour and a half cooking four meals for two...but more on that tomorrow.

Monday - 

I know Monday isn't a weekend day, but since I'm kind of running a day behind on my blog, I'll just include it.

Yesterday Jason and I both had to work, and then we helped put on Rock the Block with our small group.

Rock the Block is basically Vacation Bible School in a neighborhood or, in this case, an apartment complex. The goal is to reach more people in the community with the gospel as well as build relationships with the folks that live around you.  

We played games, did a bible lesson, and ate popsicles.

Celeste teaching about Moses (right) and the Egyptians (Pharaoh in his "robe" is on the left)

David sharing the gospel to all of these kiddos.

Prayer time. How precious?

Hope you all have a happy Tuesday. Rambling done now.

One for the Books

This weekend was definitely "one for the books"!

Friday night started off with a little tour downtown with some friends from one (one of my bridesmaids and one of my flower girls to be exact).

Reese (age 8), was taken with my scarf collection and the Vulcan, but not so much with Reese St. or her lemon popsicle.

We ate a wonderful Greek dinner at Taziki's, complete with three Friday Specials and one grilled cheese :) I love having a kid around. Even things like what they order for dinner cracks me up. 

We'd told her about the new place in Homewood, Steel City Pops. Jason and I had not had a chance to try it yet, and we've heard wonderful things about it, so we took Chastity and Reese after dinner (well, first we made a quick pit stop at the Vulcan because Reese was very interested in the statue man).

Unfortunately, since Jason and I had never been there before we didn't really know how to advise Reese on what to get. She doesn't like pieces of fruit in things, so her choice of a lemon popsicle kinda threw her off. But we all had fun anyway! Jason enjoyed his Blood Orange pop, Chastity rolled with coconut, and I ventured out to strawberry  balsamic. All three of us loved ours!

We even got her picture on Reese Street (although I don't think she really wanted to get out of the car in the middle of the road to take a picture...oh well)!

Saturday morning the girlies and I woke up and started cleaning and organizing everything for my shower. My family came in town around lunchtime and sent me away while they decorated and got the food ready. Reese and I went to get manicures.

Reese with her purple glitter nails after her first manicure!

When I got back the apartment was all decorated and it was breathtaking! Carlee, Julia, Chastity, and my mom had put in so much hard work! I loved it so much!

The shower was definitely a success! I loved every minute of it and it was so wonderful to see some friends who I haven't seen in a while!

We ended the night at the mall. I really don't spend a lot of time just "hanging out" at the mall like I did back in the day :) Chastity and I did the photo booth with Reese. Julia, Shara, and Reese rode the carousel. We grabbed some dinner, and ended the evening with a little window shopping.

Reese and Shara on the carousel.

Sunday we got out the door just in time. Jason, Julia, and I had planned on doing our engagement photo shoot Sunday morning. Julia is an extremely talented photographer, and we just knew she was the girl for this job!

I'd say that the morning was a success! We had a little rain, but honestly I think it made the pictures even better!

We spent the rest of the day hanging out with my family and went to the evening service at church with Julia and Shara :)

Amazingly enough, this weekend was so great that I don't even need to keep on rambling! It was one for the books and we've got the pictures to prove it.

Prayer Focus of the Day: Pray for high school and college graduates as they are in a time of transition. Graduation is over, everyone is moved, and now is the time that all of the life changes really start to sink in. My sister Carlee is going through orientation at Samford today and tomorrow. I know that it's an extremely exciting time for her (as well as all of the other incoming freshies), but it can also be scary and unknown. Pray for peace, wisdom, courage, and strength for those you know who are experiencing this transition right now.

Moving & Moving Forward

Wow -

As I began this Monday I now have a sister who is a high school graduate. Jason and I enjoyed Carlee's graduation weekend in Destin/Fort Walton.

Friday consisted of good food, lots of family, and that memorable moment when they said, "Carlee Anna Sansom" and she walked across the stage. After graduation, my parents and Carlee's boyfriend's parents had put together a wonderful party for them just down the road.

Carlee and Tyler (her boyfriend) were "Preschool Sweethearts" (as we like to say).

They're old pros at this whole graduating thang :)

My wittle swister is moving forward.

By the end of this week, Jason and I will hopefully

• Have Jason moved in to his summer residence 
• Have a lot of Jason's stuff moved into my apartment for storage
• Have a working and functional washing machine (finally!)
• Have tons more wedding planning done
• Have our engagement pictures taken (finally!)
• Have done tons of random things in between all of these huge things and both worked a 40 hour week!

Jason and I are moving forward - and Jason's a-movin'! 

In the midst of all of this, I MUST get back to eating right. Last week I got my blood work results and everything was fine except my cholesterol was a tad bit high and my insulin levels were high. Praise God that there is nothing more serious. I know that I MUST focus on eating according to the plan that the doctor gave me (I'll share that later this week) and exercise regularly. I also know from experience that during a time of lots of celebrations and transitions, it's very very hard to stay focused on a healthy lifestyle. I am praying for focus and discipline during this time.

I am wanting to cook dinner at home a couple of nights this week, so stay tuned for recipes. If all goes as planned, I may have some good ones up my sleeve :)

Now that you all feel sufficiently caught up on my life, I'll quit rambling. Happy Monday everyone!

Prayer Focus of the Day: Today I am praying for focus and discipline. Titus 1:7-9 says, "For an overseer, as God's steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it." I am praying myself and for each of you friends and readers that these characteristics would define our inward and outward lives. 

At A Stand Still

Do you ever have moments when you feel like life is moving so fast that you wish you could just stand still for five minutes?

That's me this week.

Jason and I got home last night around 9:30 and I walked into an apartment that was screaming transition. My roommate had been moving all of her stuff out over the weekend, we have a couple of Jason's things stored in the dining area, and our fridge was completely empty.

By next Friday (June 8th), Jason will be living in his summer residence, I'll have my 3rd roommate while living at this apartment, one of my sisters will be a high school graduate, and I'll be a couple weeks closer to the wedding.

I was planning on doing some sort of "where do I go from here" update. If you've been reading for a while, you'll know that I did a cleanse about a month ago and I've been trying to live a healthier lifestyle ever since. Unfortunately, I've decided to put that off until next week. This week will be filled with lots of eating out and less working out. Transition makes it hard to be healthy, but I'm trying to do my best.

Needless to say, look for the update next week.

Jason and I will be heading back down to Destin this weekend for my sister's graduation. I can't wait to see her walk across the stage!

In the meantime, be praying for this time of transition. I know that I'm not the only one who feels like it'd be nice to stand still for just a few minutes. So as we begin this week (a little late), I hope that any of you in the middle of transition will be encouraged knowing that you're not the only one.

'Tis the Season

Well, today marks the beginning of summertime in the South.

Growing up, Memorial Day marked the beginning of "the season" for everyone I knew. When you live in Destin, or any coastal town, Memorial Day marks the beginning of a three month long Black Friday.

So...in honor of my hometown and - well - we'll call it "heritage," here's my "Top 10 Summertime Favs"

10 - Less Traffic in the mornings

Source

As much as I absolutely loved growing up in Destin, I do not miss the summer traffic at all. Although I appreciated it, because I knew that it meant that people were supporting our economy, I have to say that sitting in traffic for hours a time just to get to work, the beach, the mall, or to a friend's house was not ideal. In Birmingham, summertime means less traffic. School is out and everyone goes to...well...Destin. Although my family may get annoyed at the hundreds of Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and Tennessee tags that they pass (or rather sit in traffic with) on the way to work, it means that I get to leave for work five minutes later than usual.


9 - Baseball

I don't get as much into the sport as I do into the atmosphere. I love all kinds of baseball in the summer - from tee ball to pro ball. I grew up going to the occasional Braves game with my family and during high school, I was privileged to get to see a couple different really cool games around the country. Don't get me wrong, I'm all about the big leagues, but I also love going down to the ball park and just watching the kiddos play. Obviously, Jason and I don't get to do that because we don't have kiddos (or even really know any up here), but those are definitely some of my favorite memories from growing up.

Jason and I went to a Braves game last summer and it was really a blast. We're trying to plan a fun little trip back to Atlanta this summer to and go to a game.

8 - Parks and outdoor events

Sunset Cinema at Railroad Park
Source

I'm a sucker for anything outdoors. I love concerts, movies, food, picnics, markets, garage sales, plays, and truly anything that consists of sitting outside in the warm air with a cool breeze.

Again, growing up in Destin, I feel like I've been conditioned for outdoor events since birth. My parents would always take up to events out at Seaside or Baytowne Wharf. It's kind of fun to get to do things that tourists do and then go home and sleep in your own bed at night.

Birmingham has fun things to do outdoors in the summer as well. I'm just learning about them as we go along. I guess that's part of the transition from living in Destin (either full-time or even just in the summertime) and living in Birmingham full-time. Jason and I enjoy outdoor activities, so if you hear of one nearby, let me know...we'll be there with shorts on!

Jason & I at Harborwalk with my family last year for the 4th of July

7- Pool time

I didn't know this until I permanently moved to Birmingham last year, but most pools apparently don't open until Memorial Day weekend...or may a week or two before. I'm a big fan of clean pools. I love being able to lounge on a raft (like our friend Mr. Speedo Man) or lay out for a little while and then jump into a refreshingly cool pool.

6 - Weekend getaways

You're probably tired of hearing me say, "Growing up..."

But, growing up, my family and I would sometimes go stay on the beach for a weekend or some short amount of time. We knew a lot of people who would come to town or who owned houses/condos on the beach. Occasionally, we'd go stay out there. I loved doing that because I still got to hang out with my friends and go about my normal routine, but when I wanted to feel like I was on vacation, I could.

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Jason and I have a lot of little weekend getaways planned this summer. Starting this weekend, we're in Birmingham very little over the summer. I cannot wait for those Friday afternoons (and some Thursdays) when we get to jump in the car, turn on some good music, and drive out of town.

5 - New movies

There are not many things that can top the opening weekend of a movie you've been waiting to see for months. Many times, new movies that we've all been waiting for happen to open during the summer.

This year...here's what we're waiting for...

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We actually just discussed going to the midnight premier. We'll see if it happens or not.

4 - Sales

Summertime caterers quite specifically to the shopoholic. Now, I'm not sure that I fit quite into that category (especially since I've been "on my own"), but I do love a good sale. Lucky for girls like me, summertime also brings with it lots and lots of sales.

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Memorial Day sales
Fourth of July sales
Back to school sales
Tax holiday
Labor Day sales
Spring clothes clearance rack

Need I keep going?

3 - Vacation days

Oh the joys of vacation days. I've learned very quickly that there are vacation days and then there are vacation days.

Vacation days are days that you're actually on vacation. Most of us go on a summer vacation every year or so, and vacation days laying out by the pool, laying on the beach, nice dinners out, shopping, and sight seeing are familiar to us.

Vacation days are days that you don't work, but you're not on a vacation. These are used for days when you don't go to work because you've got things to do (yucky errands) that can only be done between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

None of this...
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So far this year, I've only taken vacation days. I'm so excited about getting to take vacation days this summer!

2 - Wedding season

Summer is the seasons of weddings. This year there are quite a few that Jason and I will be attending as well as few that we can't make it to. Summer weddings have always been part of my life. If you've been on the beach in Destin/Pensacola/Panama City on a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday evening I'm sure you've seen a wedding ceremony.

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I'm sincerely excited for all of my friends getting married this summer (and next) and I can't wait to become a married woman myself.

1 - No school

Unfortunately, this one only applies to my life indirectly these days. I was always a huge fan of summer vacation. One year I heard rumors about how our county (or state?) might be going to year-round school and I cried...literally...sat down and cried.

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Now, I'm no longer in school, but summer means that my family is way more available for me to hang out with them! Having two sisters in school, a mom who teaches, and a dad who is a principal has made me feel a weeeee bit left out this year :( Luckily, now that they're all going to be on summer vacation, I get LOTS of family time!

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I hope that each of you have a wonderful holiday weekend. I will be heading home to Destin as soon as work gets out today. For those of you traveling, be safe! For those of you taking a little staycation, enjoy your relaxation!

I'll be taking a break from rambling this weekend...but next week I want to know: What are your summertime favs?

Birthday Recap

Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes yesterday! I was so overwhelmed by the Facebook comments, Twitter @mentions, text messages, emails, and in-person friends who wished me a happy birthday. It was indeed a happy day. I'm so blessed.

Jason surprised me at work yesterday and took me to lunch. He showed up carrying pink impatiens and a birthday balloon.

Then, he whisked me away to Urban Cookhouse for lunch. While we were there, I reminded him that we ate there last year on my birthday too! I think it must become a tradition.

While we were at lunch, he went ahead and gave me my birthday present. He bought me beautiful diamond earrings from the same store that he bought my engagement ring. I'm telling you, that man needs a frequent buyer card at Helzberg Diamonds.

Best. Fiancé. Ever.

After lunch, we walked down to Savage's Bakery and Jason bought me a red velvet cupcake. It was the perfect amount of cake for my birthday. And it was magically delicious.

I went back to work and counted down the hours until I got to go to dinner. At 5:00, I battled the rain and Hwy. 280 traffic to get to Chuy's. Jason was already there so that he could get a table and we wouldn't have to wait.

We took full advantage of Chuy's nacho bar. For those of you who don't know, Chuy's offers a free nacho bar from 4:00-6:30 (or 7:00) on the weekdays. I could have honestly made a meal off of that...but of course I didn't. I ordered the Monday special, which was enchiladas blancas. Yummy...but I didn't even make a dent in my meal after the nacho-fest.

Friends started showing up around 6:00. I was so excited to celebrate with my friends. It's always fun when different groups come together and you get to fellowship with everyone. We ended up staying at Chuy's until almost 8:00. It was so fun just to sit and talk and laugh.

I can always count on Rachel to remember to take pictures on special occasions!

Again, I'm so blessed.

After dinner, Jason and I went back to my apartment just to hang out. My roommate and her fiancé are in grad school and they were busy writing papers. Props to them for sure...but Jason and I decided we don't miss college (or at least that part of college) one bit. To all of you in grad school: you are a more determined person than me...and smarter too!

This morning I decided it was time to get back on track. Time to stick to my rules and my plan. No more splurging in the name of birthday!

Breakfast: sliced strawberries and blueberries

Jason and I have small group tonight, so we'll have to eat a quick dinner before we head out the door this evening. I'm planning on making Caribbean chicken, so I'll have the recipe for that up tomorrow.

I am also going to try a recipe I saw on my favorite blog yesterday. Vanilla Avocado Soft Serve sounds like it would be right up my ally. I even sliced up and avocado this morning and put it into the freezer so that I come make this treat after small group tonight.

Well, until tomorrow, I'll press pause on my rambling.

Prayer focus of the day: Today I am praying for my sweet neighbor, Mr. Fritsch, who lives next door. His wife passed away this year after battling Alzheimer's disease for over three years. Will you join me in praying for him today?

Absolute Perfection

This is how I felt this morning...

Source

I woke up this morning and looked to see what time it was. When I saw that it was a 8:00, I decided that I still technically had 30 more minutes to sleep, so I rolled back over. But then, I remembered coffee. The sooner I got up, the sooner I got coffee.

The first sip was everything I hoped it would be...and more!

Needless today, when I came to this realization, I hopped out of bed and headed downstairs. I chose Vanilla Biscotti by Folger's as my first cup of "happiness".

When I walked into the kitchen to get my coffee, I found my dad making a wonderful breakfast!

Look how precious my dad is making breakfast for his girlies. Whole new meaning to "provider".

He made turkey bacon, eggs, and sliced watermelon. I opted to just go for an egg, watermelon, and some coffee, but the smell of bacon was delightful!

Around 9:30, it was time to hit the road. We had an 11:00 appointment at David's Bridal in Pensacola, which is about an hour away. But we weren't sure where in Pensacola the store is, so we made sure to leave with plenty of time.

The view from the Destin Bridge is my favorite in the entire world. Today was perfect in many ways, but this is definitely one of them:

I'm glad that we decided to leave early, because we walked into the store at 11:01. I also spilled my coffee in the car and it got all over the back of the sundress I had on...great way to walk into a wedding gown store. I might as well introduced myself as "Clumsy".

As soon as I started looking at dresses, everything got better. My consultant's name is Joan and she's been "in the business" for over 25 years. Let me tell you, that woman knows her stuff. She guess my dress size about five minutes after she met me. Incredible...

I wish I could post a picture, but my loving and supportive fiancé does read my blog (Hey Jason!), so I cannot. I will just say that we HAD to find a dress today. I told Joan that I was walking out of the store with a dress and she sure did make that happen. We were there for two and a half hours and I tried on six dresses. I never put a dress on twice. I bought the sixth dress and knew it was "it" before I even looked at myself in a mirror. My family literally gasped as a walked out of the room (and one of the consultants did too). I felt so special and I just knew that was the reaction that I needed to get from the perfect wedding dress.

Even though I was/am on a super strict budget for my wedding, I ended up getting a designer dress that was on sale. I really don't know any designers for wedding gowns other than Vera Wang, but this guy who designed mine also designed Jackie Kennedy's and Grace Kelly's dresses. I thought that was a fun fact.

For anyone who is about to go wedding dress shopping soon, or even someday, here are a few tips.
1. Don't wear a lot, or any face make-up such as powder or foundation.
2. The shop will have all the undergarments you need. You don't need your own (I was way over prepared).
3. If you have your shoes, bring them with you! It helps so much.
4. Set a budget ahead of time.
5. Plan the appointment early. Plan to be there for a while. Don't plan it close to a mealtime.
6. Take people who will be honest with you, but who will also celebrate the experience with you.

I did a lot a little research before dress shopping today so thankfully I did all of these things. It made the trip run very smooth! It was so special and I got to ring a bell when I "said yes to the dress". When I rang the bell, everyone clapped. I truly did feel like a bride and buying the dress made it seem so much more real!

After dress shopping, we hit up Ruby Tuesday's for their salad bar.

The Garden Bar is always a good choice. 

I had a delicious salad topped with cucumber, egg, sunflower seeds, a few black olives, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. I also had a little bit of Waldorf salad and something that resembled potato salad, but I decided not to eat the potato salad. When we got home, I fixed an afternoon coffee. It wasn't as exciting as my morning coffee today, but it still hit the spot!

By request of, well, me, we picked up some fresh red snapper from the seafood market on our way back into town. I am super picky about seafood, but I knew that fish would be a great way to ease out  of the cleanse. Since I'm picky, I usually only eat seafood if it's fresh and if it's from Destin. My dad marinaded it in this lemon pepper sauce and then grilled it.

I volunteered to make my parmesan crusted asparagus tonight. It was a big hit with my family, and I honestly think I ate too much of it. Usually, I use the sprinkle kind of parmesan, but all we had at the house was fresh shredded. It all worked out okay.

Cousin/yogurt love

After dinner we hung out with my cousin Matt. I decided to treat all of them to a yogurt. I opted for a small helping to reward myself for completing the cleanse and for finding my wedding dress.

I believe that the whole meal (and really day) has inspired my plan for realistically maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Since the cleanse is over, I have to space out my topics for posts though :) I will share my plan soon, but not tonight.

Enough rambling, it's been a perfect day and this bride-to-be is super tired.

P.S. Jason comes home tomorrow!