V is for...

Visiting with friends!

My friends, Erin and Rebecca, and I got to go to Tupelo to spend a few hours with our friend Audie. She has been in South Korea teaching for the last 6 months and came back to the States to spend Christmas with her family. It was so great catching up with her and hearing all the good things God is doing in her life and how he is using her to touch the children she is teaching. We sure miss you around here Audie! I will be praying for you! :)

(Rebecca, Erin, Me, and Audie)

What a special day!

Today is my birthday and what a special day it has been. My day started off with some sweet messages from some friends and a thoughtful card from my wonderful husband. When I got to work, I received a beautiful purse from my friend Rebecca and a delicious chocolate cake with cream cheese icing from my friend Erin. Yumm-O! :) It was all gone by the time I went home that day. Don't worry...I didn't eat it all myself. Also an added bonus about today is that we got for a two week Christmas break! Yeah!


Jason also had some surprises for me up his sleeve. I knew that we were going out to eat, but I didn't know where. He kept giving me clues to where I thought we were going, but they were misleading clues. :) He is such a trickster. We ended up going to the Melting Pot, which is a fondue restaurant. I love to eat any thing that I can dip so he thought a fondue restaurant would be a great treat and boy was it! I would definitely recommend it to anyone. The surprises did not end there. When we got home, he had a scrumptious red velvet cake for me and another envelope. Inside it was a gift certificate for massages, dinner, a night's stay, and breakfast at Bonne Terre, a bed and breakfast nearby. I don't want to sound like I am bragging, but I must say that I have the best husband in the whole world. He sure knows how to make a girl feel special! :)

U is for...

Understanding... the true gift of Christmas!

This time of year is so spirit filled and busy. We have so much going on from Christmas parties to finishing up the last minute shopping for that special gift. With everything going on, I can honestly say that I haven't taken the time to really think about why we celebrate Christmas. This last week at school before we got out for Christmas, we read the students "The Legend of the Candy Cane." If you haven't read it, I urge you to do so. It explains that the candy cane is a special Christmas candy that is shaped like the letter J for Jesus and when turned over it looks like a shepherd's staff, who were the first to hear of Jesus's birth. It goes even further to explain that the red strips stand for Jesus's blood shed on the cross to save us from our sins and the white stand for how His blood can wash away our sins, leaving us white as snow. After reading and explaining the book about 20 times this week, my mind has been refocused on what the true gift of Christmas really is. . . Jesus. I wish everyone reading this a Merry Christmas. Celebrate the birth of Jesus!

T is for...

Okay...back to the alphabet posting. :)

Traditions...
Every year my church has an annual Women's Traditions Dinner. Ladies in the church sign up to host and decorate tables and sell tickets to other women in the church or in the community. During the time there, we ate a delicious meal that was catered, listened to a terrific and uplifting speaker, and participated in a silent auction that was used to raise money for the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. This was my third year to attend, but my first year to decorate a table. I loved decorating my table with all types of red and lime green decorations that I borrowed from Jason's aunt and mom. I also enjoyed spending time with all the wonderful women that were sitting at my table. I hope to continue this tradition each year! :)

This is a picture of my lime green and red table. :)

All the precious ladies that sat at my table. (my friend - Emily Melichar, my friend and coworker- Susan and her daughter Kathryn, Jason's aunt - Patti Guest, my neighbor -Heather Colston, my friend and coworker - Rebecca Emerson, me, and my mother-in-law - Charlotte Dawkins)

Girls' Weekend

This past weekend, my friends Sally and Melissa came to see me. We had a great time catching up with each other until 1:00 in the morning. That may not seem too late to some people, but for me (who goes to bed by 9:30 every night) it is super late! :) My sweet friends got to my house late Friday night, then we woke up Saturday morning and got ready for a fun filled day. We enjoyed a Premier Jewelry party at my house in the early afternoon, shopped at the mall until dark, and then ate Japanese food until our hearts and stomachs were content. We also enjoyed a great service Sunday morning at my church. Thanks Sal and Mel for spending the weekend with me. I also must say a special 'thank you' to my sweet husband who was such a good sport about sharing the house with three women all weekend. :)

Food, Yahtzee, and Lights

We had a great time in Nashville for Thanksgiving. We ate too much, played lots of Yahtzee (my grandmother's favorite board game), hung out in downtown Nashville, and admired the beautiful lights at the Opryland Hotel. We also celebrated my Moma's birthday while we were downtown. Her birthday was November 30th. There's nothing like spending quality time with you family for the holidays. I miss you all already!

This is a picture of us at the Opryland Hotel.

(Meagan, Jeb, Me, Jason, Mamaw, Daddy, and Moma)