Food and more

Because Phillip handles the paperwork for the free and reduced lunch program at Panther Creek, he can have a free lunch any time he wants it. Occasionally, he'll come home for lunch bearing lunch. Today was one of those days. It was also the annual Thanksgiving meal the school serves for the community so he had spent time with community folks too. Here's one (of TWO) of the containers of food he brought home today. He also brought 2 16oz cups of marshmallow, whipped cream fruit salad and a 16oz cup of gravy and an 8oz cup of cranberry sauce and 6 rolls!!! This was food for the two of us. Can you imagine?!?

Here are the leftovers after we had a generous serving for lunch today.

On another note, I'm migrating away from my PDA because I just don't use it anymore. But, my address book is in it and I've yet to find a good replacement for that. I want to be able to manage my address book on the computer and be able to export out of it so I can print labels, print an address book, etc. If you keep your address book on the computer, would you let me know what software you use?

23 weeks

Emily told me a couple weeks ago that she wanted to come visit Aunt Jenni's house. So, Aunt Jenni and I figured out a time when we could come. Emily and I drove to Dallas on yesterday and met Aunt Cara (and Zachary & Jackson) for lunch at Chick-fil-A, then went to Babies R Us to kill some time. We finally got to Aunt Jenni's house about 4 (after taking a l-o-n-g detour up Central Expresway--don't take the HOV lane unless you're going to north Plano!) and waited for Aunt Jenni to get home. We made waffles for dinner and played with Emily for a while before putting her down to bed.

Today, we got up, took Emily's picture (see below) and started running some errands. There are just some places you have to go when you visit the big city. Like JoAnn and Bubba's. Neither of which you can get in Abilene. So, errand running we went and got plenty accomplished. We finally got home about 4:30 and ordered Chinese for dinner. Now, we're just playing and hanging out before bathing Emily and putting her to bed.

Here's the 23 week picture.

Rancho Loma

Since this year was a special birthday (yes, I turned 30!), Phillip wanted to do something special for me. He made reservations at Rancho Loma and arranged for my parents to babysit. We'd heard about the restaurant (mainly due to its proximity to our house) and were curious about it. It was incredible! It's one of those places where your reservation is for the evening and the menu is set. I think the dining room would seat 22 people.

We started the evening with a Pine Nut, Currant & Fontina Cheese pizza with a balsamic vinegar. A nice light appetizer. Then we moved on to the second course...Fresh Pasta with tomatoes and basil oil. Yummy! The salad was a spinach salad with sun-dried tomatoes, garlic chips and warm garlic dressing with bread with goat cheese. I'd never had sun-dried tomatoes or goat cheese, but both were wonderful. The main dish was Akaushi Beef Short Ribs and polenta, but it was more like roast...incredibly tender roast. It was one of the most tender cuts I've had in a long time. (Akaushi is a Japanese breed of cow raised in south Texas.) Then, dessert. Ah, dessert....Chocolate Panna Cotta. It was a lot like chocolate pudding, but thicker and no after-taste, like some chocolate desserts leave.

It was an incredible evening of wonderful food, wonderful company and a wonderful atmosphere. The best part, though, was that it was all free. When Phillip originally made the reservations (for 11/8), the owners comfirmed them, but then realized they would be in New York that weekend and wouldn't be open. So...because Phillip had a confirmed reservation, they gave us our next meal on the house. It was incredible!

(And, Emily did just fine with her first babysitters. She played for a bit, got a bath, had a bottle and went to bed. Thanks, Mom & Daddy!!)

The weekend, 5 months and 22 weeks

I am a little slow in getting pictures up. This past weekend, my parents and sister spent the weekend with us, to celebrate my birthday. We had a good time, but you know how it is getting your house back to normal after people have come. (Not that I would trade the time with them for anything!)

Before they came, I tackled a project I'd been wanting to do for a while...hang our travel pictures. Eight years ago, I went to Oxford, England, with ACU's Study Abroad. I bought a picture there and have been buying pictures on vacation ever since. The challenge is always to arrange the pictures so they look good. An even bigger challenge this time was to arrange them in a way that won't be changed until we leave here. (All our walls are just paneling so we have to use wall anchors to hang anything substantial and, unfortunately, they leave 3/16" holes in the wall.) I took the "advice" of my dear sister and used butcher paper to decide where they were going. (Here's another tip from her that I used...I just didn't take pictures with my yardsticks on the wall.) Here's the progress and final result.

Then, Monday was MOPS (and shopping) so I wasn't home all day. Yesterday was long and Phillip had something at school for most of the evening...so pictures just didn't happen. But we did get them taken today.

22 weeks

5 months

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for the next installment of life in God's country.

Our story, part 4

Mary over at Owlhaven is challenging her readers to tell their Love Stories for October. Since this was something I'd been meaning to write down and get into our wedding album for three years now, I figured this was just the motivation I needed. I don't want to overwhelm you (it's kind of long), so I'll put it up in installments. Here's the part 3 of our story! (See part 1 here, part 2 here and part 3 here.) (Yes, I know it's now November, but I started late in October and there was just more to tell than I could fit in October!)

August 10, 2004...the big day! Well, that’s when Phillip proposed. We were spending the night apart, as we did on most Tuesday nights. But, he called me and said he was sick and would I come over? I grabbed some medicine and my sewing project that I was starting for my mom for the wedding and headed over. He had told me that he might be in the bedroom when I got there so I should just let myself in...he’d leave the front door unlocked. I went on in and found him in the bedroom all right! He had the lights off, candles everywhere and he was standing there in a suit. I just about fell on my knees, I was so in shock! He had dried the three daffodils I brought him back in March and gave those to me. He also told me this story (or something close to it).

There was once a beautiful young girl named Heather. She had met this boy. One day she asked him, “Do you like me?” He said no. She was a little puzzled, but asked, “Do you want me?” Again, he said no. Shocked, she asked, “Would you cry if I left?” Again, he said no. She turned and ran off, crying. He ran after her and said, “Wait. Let me finish. I don’t like you; I love you. And I don’t want you; I need you. And I wouldn’t cry if you left; I’d die.”

At this point, he got down on one knee and asked if I’d marry him. Of course, I said yes. We went to Sonic to get an Oreo Blast to celebrate.

Fast forward nine months (the events of those nine months really aren’t that exciting...lots of trips back and forth to Abilene) and on June 4, 2005, we were married at Chapel on the Hill at ACU. Phillip planned the honeymoon and surprised me with a trip to Italy. We went to Florence for 4 days and Venice for 2 days. It was a wonderful trip!

I hope you've enjoyed reading our story. I sure enjoyed writing it, both for me and for Emily (and any other kids we may have in the future)!

(If you choose to participate, leave a comment below so we can all read your story!)

Country life

Tonight there is a junior high football game in Cherokee, located about 2 hours away. Due to the distance, Emily and I decided to stay home and just let Phillip go. He was planning to ride the bus down there with the kids and they were leaving at 2:30. Or so they thought.

Phillip got on the bus and was deciding which seat to sit in, behind the driver or the seat across the aisle from the driver. He, wisely, chose the seat behind the driver because the sun would be coming in on the other side. Just as he was sitting down, something spooked the racoon that was sleeping on the floor of the other seat he was considering. Yes, that's right...a racoon! The bus mechanic had a pellet gun and shot it, but unfortunately, a good amount of the racoon's blood ended up on Phillip's leg because the racoon was just about to go up Phillip's leg. So, when Phillip came in about 3:10 with blood on the leg of his pants, I was shocked, to say the least. First, he was supposed to already be gone. Second, there's blood all over his pants! Everything ended well (for everyone except the racoon, I guess), although they didn't leave until about 3:15. The pants are now in the washer and I think all the blood came out!

Exciting times out in God's country!

Our story, part 3

Mary over at Owlhaven is challenging her readers to tell their Love Stories for October. Since this was something I'd been meaning to write down and get into our wedding album for three years now, I figured this was just the motivation I needed. I don't want to overwhelm you (it's kind of long), so I'll put it up in installments. Here's the part 3 of our story! (See part 1 here and part 2 here.) (Yes, I know it's now November, but I started late in October and there was just more to tell than I could fit in October!)

By Phillip’s birthday (May 9), we had decided that we would be getting married one day. We didn’t know when, but we knew that each was “the one.” On May 20, Phillip told me he loved me. It was the best feeling in the world.

Memorial Day 2004...Phillip finally met my parents. We had a picnic (of hot ham & cheese sandwiches) in the park before watching a concert by the Dallas Symphony Orchestra in the park. Everyone seemed to like each other, which was very fortunate!

We had talked enough about getting married that we knew we needed to go ring shopping at some point. June 26 was the day. We went to several different jewelry shops and “celebrated” by going to Steak n Shake. We had a lot of fun that day!

July 2004, I went to Branson, Missouri, with my family. The week apart was miserable, but we did get to talk on the phone a couple times and we gave each other gifts to be opened each day. He gave me cards and I gave him pieces of a puzzle I had made.

Part 4 to come later!

(If you choose to participate, leave a comment below so we can all read your story!)

21 Weeks

Not too much to report this week. Emily does love her toes though. This was the only picture in the shoot in which she wasn't holding her toes!

Blinds and Halloween

I finally finished a project I've been working on for several weeks (and wanting to do since we moved in). Some of the windows didn't have miniblinds or the ones that were there were broken enough to warrant replacing. So, that's what I've been doing for the past several weeks...one window at a time. I finally got all six new miniblinds put up and I am so glad to have that behind me. If you ever need miniblinds hung, I'm your girl!

As I read about everyone else's Halloween's, I realized that I hadn't posted about ours. Well, that's because we really didn't do Halloween. When Halloween falls on a Friday night (football games!), you're not part of a church yet, and you live in an isolated area, there's really not much reason to do anything. But, Emily did have a couple "costumes." She had a pumpkin bib and a ghost onesie. So, she was our pumpkin ghost. (And, yes, we enjoyed our time at the football game, even though we lost.)

(I forgot to mention, the bear in the pictures above was a gift to Emily from my mom's cousin Kathy. Thanks, Kathy! Emily loves her bear!)

Music Fun

I found this on Jenni's blog and thought it would be fun!

Directions:
1. Put your iTunes/Ruckus/Napster/etc on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS!
4. Tag 11 friends who might enjoy doing this.

Here are my answers:

IF SOMEONE SAYS “IS THIS OKAY” YOU SAY?
"I'll Always Be Right There" - Bryan Adams

WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
"Be Glorified" - Chris Tomlin

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
"Visions of a Sunset" - Shawn Stockman

HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
"I Will Be Here" - Steven Curtis Chapman

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE?
"Come, Let Us Return to the Lord" - Dick & Mel Tunney

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
"I Got a Woman" - Ray Charles

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
"Selwood Farm" - Bebo Norman

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR PARENTS?
"Heaven in the Real World" - Steven Curtis Chapman

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
"Sing Your Praise to the Lord" - Rich Mullins

WHAT IS 2+2?
"40 Days" - Third Day

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
"Rise and Shine" - Andrew Peterson

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
"Every Man" - Casting Crowns

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
"Heat of the Night" - Bryan Adams

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
"Deep Calling Deep" - Margaret Becker

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
"Take My Breath Away" - Berlin

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
"Tell Me Again" - Geoff Moore & The Distance

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
"I Will Carry You" - Michael W. Smith

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
"In Christ Alone"

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
"Listen to Our Hearts" - Steven Curtis Chapman

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
"Jump, Jump, Jump" - True Vibe

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
"Through the Fire" - Larry Greene

WHAT’S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
"Awesome God" - Rich Mullins

HOW WILL YOU DIE?
"Uptight (Everything's Alright) - Stevie Wonder

DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
"Canon in D" - Dancing on Strings

IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE?
"I Know Your Name" - Michael W. Smith

WHAT HURTS RIGHT NOW?
"Cuts Like a Knife" - Bryan Adams

WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS?
"Beautiful" - Detour 180

Our story, part 2

Mary over at Owlhaven is challenging her readers to tell their Love Stories for October. Since this was something I'd been meaning to write down and get into our wedding album for three years now, I figured this was just the motivation I needed. I don't want to overwhelm you (it's kind of long), so I'll put it up in installments. Here's the part 2 of our story! (See part 1 here.)

On March 9, 2004, Phillip cooked for me for the first time. I arrived a few minutes early (as usual) with three daffodils in hand. What I didn’t know was that Phillip had been dealing with a crisis just moments before I arrived. He had been preparing the table, taking out the leaf because he wanted to be as close to me as possible, when the legs fell apart. So, he’s standing there, about 15 minutes before I was supposed to arrive and had to figure out where we were going to eat. He got creative and set up the coffee table with pillows around it for us to sit on. We had spaghetti that night and it was wonderful!

At this point, we decided to make it official...we were dating. But, I laid down a ground rule...we would not kiss until we married. Fortunately, Phillip grudgingly agreed to it. Then, he went off to West Virginia for Spring Break with his parents to visit his dad’s family. His dad encouraged him to call me and I’m so glad he did!!

Over the next couple months, we continued seeing each other, going on dates, etc. By Easter (April 11, 2004), we were dating and had bought each other a small gift since we wouldn’t be together. (I was going to Abilene and he was going to Bronte.) I bought him a small stuffed bunny/duck with jelly beans attached and he bought me a Beanie Baby bear named Harmony.

part 3 to come later!

(If you choose to participate, leave a comment below so we can all read your story!)

20 weeks

Sorry this post is so late (for those who have been waiting for it). Emily took a five hour nap this morning/afternoon so I couldn't take her weekly picture. Here it is and here's another recent favorite with her newest obsession.

Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday, my mom and I took Emily to the DRI Pumpkin Patch in Abilene. We had fun taking pictures of Emily, even though we discovered that she'd had a diaper leak (that we found out later was a MAJOR blowout) just as we started taking pictures--you can see it on her pants in the first picture. We continued on and took pictures first, then took care of the diaper. I know, I'm a terrible mom, but I'm so glad we didn't try to change her before we took pictures because the clothes all came off and, well, it just wasn't pretty! Here are my favorite pictures.

Emily was telling me a secret!

Our week(end) in review

The seniors were selling t-shirts to raise money. I needed a new Panther Creek t-shirt, so I bought one. It might be a bit big for Emily.

Friday night at the game, it was SO cold. But, we bundled up and enjoyed the 66-20 win over Brookesmith. Emily is showing off her new coat and hat that Phillip bought her in Waco a few weeks ago.

My cousin, Lauren, had a birthday party for her daughter last Saturday. Grandpa was trying to keep the sun off of Emily.

I decided Emily was ready for the Exersaucer...she loves it!

Every night, Phillip reads Emily a story right before bed. She's starting to really get into it sometimes. As you can see here, she is helping hold the touch-and-feel book she got from her Aunt Kim.

Back in August, we took a picture of Emily on my knees (you have to scroll to the end of the post to see the picture). Emily has grown a bit since then, but the expression is still the same.

Thanks for waiting on Blogger. I was so frustrated yesterday when I couldn't get this one up! More to come later!

Blogger

Blogger's being poopy so I can't finish and save the post I've been working on about our week(end) in review. Hopefully soon I can finish it. But, for now, here's yesterday's picture...to appease those who are on the edge of their chairs!

Our story, part 1

Mary over at Owlhaven is challenging her readers to tell their Love Stories for October. Since this was something I'd been meaning to write down and get into our wedding album for three years now, I figured this was just the motivation I needed. I don't want to overwhelm you (it's kind of long), so I'll put it up in installments. Here's the beginning of our story!

I had been attending church at Saturn Road Church of Christ for about a year when Phillip placed membership. Neil Plunkett, who worked with the CYP group I was in, had told us he would be placing membership and asked some of us to invite him to class. Phillip started coming to class and immediately noticed me. I didn’t think too much about it because he was just another new person in class.

On February 15, 2004, Phillip called me and asked me to dinner. We planned dinner for Tuesday, February 17, 2004. He picked me up and we went to Chuy’s in Dallas. He had fajitas and I had rice, chili & beans. I enjoyed the evening, but didn’t really get any “vibes.” The next night after church, Phillip and I were talking and I told him I just wanted to be friends (something that has “haunted” me ever since!).

Phillip started hosting a Bible Study at his house and I attended. A few other people came, but no one really came on a regular basis, except for me. We continued seeing each other at church and at the Bible Study.

Part 2 to come later!

(If you choose to participate, leave a comment below so we can all read your story!)

Saving Supper Blog Carnival

I'm a sucker for posting comments on other people's blogs that link them here. So, I found the Saving Supper Blog Carnival on Jordan's blog and that took me to Save the Phillips Family. So, here goes.

I enjoy cooking. I make my menus for a couple weeks at a time so I know what I need to buy at the store on my twice a month grocery trip. My supper preparations usually start in the morning.  So, I just look at the calendar (yes, I have a calendar that tells me what we're having!) and make sure anything that needs to thaw is in the fridge. Depending on what's going on that evening, Phillip takes care of Emily while I'm cooking dinner. But, sometimes she has other plans and wants to eat while I need to be cooking. I've learned to be a little flexible!

I don't have to do too much to try to save my sanity at supper time, but Emily's not all that active and certainly not underfoot yet. At times, she has been known to sit in her Bumbo on the counter and watch while I make dinner. That's always fun!

That's about it.

18 weeks

This morning I brushed Emily's hair up so I could see the cradle cap that I need to treat. She just looked so cute I couldn't resist a picture!

4 months

I'm a little late on this post because we spent the weekend at my parents' house (even though they weren't there!). Emily's 4 month birthday started with a present from Aunt Jenni--cute overalls (with an attached horse) and The Tale of the Three Trees (in board book form!).

We took Emily to get pictures taken at Sears. While it wasn't the best experience, I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt because it was middle of the day on Saturday. Next time I'll go on a weekday. We did end up getting a good picture so I'm thankful for that.

After the long "experience" at Sears, Emily was fussy, but slept on the way home to my parents' house. Because she was asleep when we got there, we decided that I would go to Walmart and Lowe's and Phillip would stay home with Emily. Well, we did that, but Emily wasn't exactly pleased with the arrangements. Phillip did okay for his first time alone with Emily, but did learn some lessons. I arrived home about 2 hours later and tried to calm her down, but she was so out of her routine that she was just fussy. I took her for a walk (in the Umbroller that my mom used for me and Jenni!) so Phillip could have a bit of calm. Neither she nor I slept well Saturday night.

Sunday, we enjoyed church at Highland then took Granddaddy to lunch. We tried to rest Sunday afternoon after going to JCPenney, but that didn't go very well either. We finally got smart and moved the crib into another room and everyone slept well Sunday night.

Monday was MOPS for me and Emily. Emily slept beautifully in Karen's arms so I was able to listen as Summer talked about birthday parties...planning, ideas, etc. I got a lot of ideas that I hope to use in the next few years.

Today brought a doctor appointment for Emily. She did great, even though we had to wait a long time. She weighs 13 lb 2 oz and is 25" long. She's growing so well! She got shots again, but didn't cry too much...I remembered to bring in her pacifier this time! She slept most of today and now we face the challenge of trying to give her vitamins every day. Tonight's attempt resulted in her throwing up what I had just fed her. I can't really blame her...I gag at the smell of the iron too. We'll try something different tomorrow night. (If you have any great success stories, I'd love to hear them! Our next attempt will be mixing the vitamins with milk in a bottle.)

And, now for the picture. What a cutie!

Priceless

I laid Emily down for a nap this morning and gave her her pacifier as I usually do. Within seconds, this is what she looked like!

17 weeks

I found Emily sleeping like this the other day and could not resist!

I was playing with the settings on our camera and seeing what "Night" does. Apparently, it does wierd things with seemingly normal settings! I took this at the football game Friday night.

Sunday afternoon is not complete at our house (usually) without a few naps.

And, finally, our baby is 17 weeks old! Saturday, she'll be 4 months old. Where has the time gone?

Challenge

Mary at Owlhaven gave this challenge...go to your pictures folder, open the sixth file folder and post the sixth picture. I chose to be a little more specific because of the way my pictures are organized. I chose the sixth folder in my 2008 folder. This is out old house in Mesquite.

If you decide to take the challenge too, leave the address of your post on my comments.

How Many of Me?

HowManyOfMe.com

There are 67 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

16 weeks

This week has been rather calm. Emily doesn't like being on her back so she'll roll to her tummy, but then she gets mad because she's on her tummy! Now that she's figured out how to go from her back to her tummy, I think she's forgotten how to go the other way! Since Sunday, I don't think she's gone from her tummy to her back once! (Sunday she was going back and forth from back to tummy and tummy to back all on her own.) We had dinner with my parents in Coleman last night and made Emily perform for them. Not the best circumstances, but the back of our Pilot worked just fine in a pinch.

I was playing with my camera to see if I could take a bunch of shots sequentially, but I can't figure out how to do it automatically, so here's what I came up with manually. (and, yes, the last row is the same as the first...Picasa has to have a certain number of pictures!)

I like to call this one "Papa's got me, but I've got my bib." (Notice how she's holding her bib, even in her sleep!)

And, last but not least, "Papa's little angel."