I’m not a fan of shopping. Don’t get me wrong… I like new stuff… but the process of looking at all that’s out there and sorting through a bunch of junk to find a “prize,” is a bit overwhelming. I want to go in to whatever store for whatever it is that I need or want, have it easily accesible and fit just right, then walk out with a smile and move on with my life. I do not enjoy “just looking,” or the idea of “shopping around.” Either it’s for me, or it’s not… it’s the best deal, or it’s not… they should have my size (and that size fit the same way in whatever style or brand of clothing I may be trying)… and it shouldn’t be an all day, week, or even longer process. Let me give you a picture… it took me one day to decide on the car I wanted, I looked at only 5 houses in one day before choosing mine, and had to do a lot of convincing with my mom to get her to let me go ahead and buy my wedding dress with only looking one day at 3 stores. I know what I want, and what I don’t want to bother with, so what’s wrong with that? Latest example: I just returned from a little road trip to Atlanta with two good friends. We visited Ikea (www.ikea.com) and athough I’m not in the market for any home furnishings right now, I AM in the market for wedding ceremony and reception decor. I put my mom “on call” as I continued to find items that could be useful; but her only help was, “Just write it down, and we’ll look at it all later. We haven’t even talked about a plan!” I told her that was very mature advice, yet boring. She chuckled. I was ready to get it all and move on to the next thing on my to-do list! But, alas, my impatience probably would have proven unwise. Lucky for me, I have people to hold me back at the right moments. Lucky for Tony, I’m not a fan of shopping… but if I go… he better watch out! Who knows what I’ll come home with! And lucky for my bank account, these sprees are few and far between. (By the way, I left Ikea spending only $20. Of course, we then proceded to the Mikasa, Old Navy, and Gap outlets. But, all in all, it was a pretty tame day.)

OK… So I’ll play along with this little game of tag. Apparently, I’m supposed to share 7 interesting facts about myself with you and then tag 3 other people to do the same. So, here goes…

(7) I was in a pageant my senior year in high school. During the question portion of the program, I was asked, “What season are you most like, and why?” I responded with “The fall, because of all it’s colors.” I felt that I was a well rounded teenager, thus the many colors of my life, but the question that I received most the next day at school was, “Are you multi-racial?”

(6) My favorite color is red. My mom says that I like it and want to wear it because I like attention.

(5) Music makes me happy. When I was younger I wanted to be a rock star. My first tape was of Lee Greenwood, and I loved to sing God Bless the USA at the top of my lungs in my room. Yeah… you heard me… Lee was my inspiration for rock-stardom. Now, I’m happy to jam to Corinne Bailey Rae, Frou Frou, David Crowder, Kelly Clarkson, Snow Patrol, Jack Johnson, and so, so, so, many more… it’s so difficult for me to choose a favorite.

(4) If I could adopt a talent and have any job, I would love to be a fashion designer in New York. Fashion icon I wish I was cool enough to imitate: Sarah Jessica Parker.

(3) My favorite movie is Under the Tuscan Sun. It’s my “feel good” movie. The main character (played by Diane Lane) begins with a devastating life change. On her quest to move on, she makes three goals. Although her road is rocky and she often feels as though she’ll never really get ahead, she realizes in the end that all her goals have been met and were beyond her greatest expectations.

(2) I’m looking for some good (not cheezy) songs for my wedding ceremony… any ideas to pass along?

(1) I was once told that I’m too concerned with greatness. Hmmm… that’s a bad thing? Colossians 3:23 tells us to do whatever we do with all of our heart; 1 Corinthians 10:31 tells us to do whatever we do for the glory of God. So if I’m too consumed with myself becoming great, I plea for forgiveness. I would hope, though, that knowing that God is great, I would be consumed with Him and making His greatness known.

I must take a moment to give a shout out to my sistas.  Yeah, okay, so “cool lingo” doesn’t really work for me.  However… I am constantly reminded of how blessed I am to be surrounded and supported by such great girlfriends.  As I sat in Starbucks (which I have definitely visited every day this week) with two friends yesterday afternoon, I wondered how differently I would face life if I didn’t have people like them walking with me.  We shared stories of frustration, life change in the lives of teenagers, how we can improve our influence, and where we’ve struggled (a lot for one little hour, I know).  Brooke Shields commented on the TODAY show this morning that 85% of women surveyed say that even more importantly than looking good is the confidence that they gain from strong relationships with girlfriends.  Although I’m not sure about what the survey was about, or who did the surveying, or how accurate that percentage is… I think that it is an intersting number.  Even on my worst of hair days, or horrible, no good, very bad work, emotional, relationship, whatever days, a much deserved ice cream break with a friend has often been the best pick-me-up I could ask for.  Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 says that “two are better than one” because there will be someone there to help, listen, support, comfort.  And although “one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves.  A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”

Although, we are still human, and I’m sure have all been burned by friendships at one point or another.  And girls are especially mean.  I know this because I hear so many stories of unhealthy friendships, have some crazy stories of my own, and watch countless girls tear one another down both behind one another’s backs and face to face.  But, the point of friendship is to sharpen one another (Proverbs 27:17) and build one another up (Ephesians 4:29).  So if you’ve been left swearing off girlfriends for eternity, I dare you to give them another chance.  Let me know how it goes.

As you have read in a previous post, I am now engaged to the man of my dreams, Tony. There are so many wonderful things I love about him (bear with me through the mushy part… it will get better, I promise). First, I’m incredibly attracted to him, and he has fantastic hair. He loves the Lord and passionately pursues a growing relationship with Him. He has a heart for ministry and being a part of student ministry. We have been able to talk about anything and everything, and a ton of fun together (despite the fact that he’s a little bit of a nerd, and I’m super cool. Hahaha! Just kidding.) I have loved getting to know him, and now that our relationship has entered the “next level,” I’m daily learning about (we’ll say… interesting) new habits, expectations, assumptions, and idiosyncrasies. It’s becoming more clear by the moment that even though we compliment each other so well, we are extremely different people. Again, keep in mind that I’m incredibly in love with this man, and I’m sure he would have all the same things to say about me. I also am fully aware that he will read this post.

I have grown up in a house where the kitchen is our primary location of bonding. If you know me at all, I love really good food. I also love to cook. This is partly due to my fabulous parents (yes mom, you’ve made it into yet another post, imagine that). Cooking, eating, and cleaning up have always been family affairs and when we have shared some of our most fun (and crotchety) times together. Friday is “our day.” The day that Tony and I just hang out… he often does some work on the computer, I clean, we run errands, and catch up on favorite TV shows/movies. Today, around noon, he was in the kitchen rummaging through the M & M’s, and I asked if he was hungry for lunch. Being as I haven’t gone to the grocery in over a week, I really only had ingredients for sandwiches a la carte. He said that sounded great and proceded to walk out of the room. I was offended that he just automatically assumed that I was to make the sandwich for him. He also has a habit of getting a drink or a snack with no offer to get something for me. Granted, it was ONLY PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY, but let’s remember that I’m used to doing things in the kitchen TOGETHER as a part of quality time. So, we sat and had a little chat of meal-time expectations.

Neither of us was right or wrong, we have simply been used to doing things differently, and I think we were both a little overwhelmed of our P.B.N.J. disagreement. We realized it’s only a taste of what is to come - figuring out how to live and do life together, but we agreed to always be honest and keep up the communication. AND, it reminded me that yet again, (see previous post on snobbery), that it’s not all about me. Lord, help me be open to making some changes and not be selfish!

PS, although he is not yet used to preparing meals together (and I’m sure there will be many times I cook alone in the future), following our chat, he happily prepared very tasty sandwiches for the both of us.

In honor of my good friend Dawn, I must pass along a recommendation for our new favorite pick me up CD… Jason Gray’s All the Lovely Losers.  Click here for a little taste of who he is and what he sounds like… and enjoy!

This is what he says about the title song of the album and the lyrics… (Matt 5:1-16)
“There seems to be a special blessing available only to the poor in spirit, the meek, those who mourn, or in a word: the losers. It’s a shame that most times we are deathly afraid of becoming the kind of person Jesus described as eligible for this blessing.”

Losers
All the lovely losers
Who never thought you’d hear your name
Oustide
Always on the outside
Empty at the wishing well
But time will tell

Blessed be
The ones who know that they are weak
They shall see
The Kingdom come to the broken ones
Blessed be

Thirsty
Like you’re drinking from a salt sea
But one day you’ll be satisfied
Hungry
For the taste of mercy
If only you could have your fill
One day you will

Blessed be
The ones who know that they are weak
They shall see
The Kingdom come to the broken ones
Blessed be

Not for the strong, the beautiful, the brave
Not for the ones who think they’ve got it made
It’s for the poor, the broken, and the meek
It’s for the ones who look a lot like you and me

Blessed be
The ones who know that they are weak
They shall see
The Kingdom come to the broken ones
Blessed be