Well, I really intended to post something once I got home from dotMOM Sunday morning, but after I grabbed the computer and sat down in a comfy chair and then fell asleep sitting straight up, there really wasn’t any time to blog. What with me being unable to stay awake and all.

But the tired was totally worth it. dotMOM Chattanooga was loads of fun – three days filled with wonderful people and great teaching and laughs-o-plenty. I always leave dotMOM feeling encouraged to be a better wife, mama, and friend, and I’m still thinking about so much of what I learned this past weekend. So thumbs up on that front.

Anyhoo.

I slept for a good chunk of Sunday afternoon, and I finally made myself get up to go to church at 6 o’clock. That isn’t nearly as noble as it sounds; I just knew that if I stayed in the bed for even one more minute I was going to find myself wide awake at midnight and then possibly watching a Netflix marathon of Parenthood until it was time to go to work the next morning.

So church it was.

I’m so glad I went, because I would’ve hated to miss our pastor’s beautiful (and also convicting) sermon about love. It’s well worth a listen if you get a chance.

All righty. Here’s a great big helping of unrelated information. You’re so welcome.

– We recorded the new show The Blacklist last night. I am oddly excited about watching it later today because, well, James Spader. He makes everything better.

– Next year dotMOM will be in Nashville. Melanie and I are emceeing again, and we’d love to see you there. I know it’s a little early to mention a conference that’s a year away, but sometimes it’s handy if you can plan a weekend away from home well in advance.

– Melanie looked prettier than ever this past Saturday in Chattanooga. She wore a great sweater coat, a gorgeous turquoise necklace, and last but not least, she rocked the side bun. I don’t really have links for any of that, but I think she should do a side bun video tutorial, and maybe if I tell y’all, you’ll put the pressure on her.

– My hair doesn’t have a prayer for side bun success, by the way. It’s way too short. But that doesn’t mean that I can’t cheer on other women as they strive for side bun excellence.

– I still haven’t found my cream shirt and my black shirt. You can’t even imagine the degree of my crazy.

– There’s a saying in this post of Robin’s that would make a great free printable (with a link back to Robin’s blog, of course) on Pinterest. I would get right on that if I had any design skills at all. But alas, no.

– Several people have told me that Lime Wheat Thins are now a real-live thing. I AM SO INTRIGUED. However comma I have not been able to find them in my local stores. Have any of you tried them?

– I reckon that’s enough unrelated info for one day. Except that I’m currently listening to Amy Grant’s Lead Me On album, and “Faithless Heart” is way deeper than I realized when I was a teenager. It’s been quite the revelation.

Happy Tuesday, everybody.

Usually I try to be pretty organized when I pack for a trip. I don’t like feeling flustered or digging through my closet or slinging a bunch of stuff in a tote bag at the last minute, so I try to plan, wash, fold, etc. a few days before my departure date. I don’t have the process whittled down to a science or anything like that, but generally I am efficient. Methodical. Unhurried.

But then there was last night.

HAVE MERCY.

All I can figure is that it was a perfect packing storm.

I had a hair appointment late yesterday afternoon, so I knew that I was going to lose some premium packing and planning time. But hair is worth it (hallelujah), and after I finished at the hair place, I decided that I might as well go ahead and get a pedicure. By the time I left the nail salon, it was after 7. I was home by about 7:15, at which point I ate some supper, caught up with my husband, got the boy to bed, and started gathering up clothes that I thought I might want to take to Chattanooga (for dotMOM, by the way – that’s probably a helpful piece of info). It seemed like my clothes were scattered all over the house – some in the laundry room, some in the dirty clothes, some in my closet, some in the clean clothes pile in the guest room – so for about three hours, I walked from room to room, picking up a tank top here and some jeans there and a pair of socks from somewhere else.

By 10:30 my suitcase looked like I was headed to a destination where the primary fashion requirements were a couple of well-worn Life Is Good t-shirts, some yoga pants, jeans, and approximately 84 pairs of earrings.

Just doing my part to keep things sassy, you understand.

Somewhere in the middle of all my inefficiency I thought about a cream-colored top that is great for layering, and I decided that my life would be incomplete if said top didn’t make the trip to Chattanooga. So I looked in my closet – didn’t see it. Looked in the laundry room. Didn’t see it. Looked in the laundry basket. Didn’t see it. Looked in the suitcase to see if I’d packed it for a previous trip and somehow put it in one of the zippered pockets. Didn’t see it. Looked in the closet again. Didn’t see it.

Well. By that point the hunt for the cream-colored shirt had become a full-blown quest. Forget that I needed to wrap up the packing process: clearly my primary mission in life was to FIND THAT SHIRT. So I looked and looked. Then I looked some more. There were about thirty seconds when I forgot about the cream shirt because I remembered that I could also use a black ruffled shirt for the same layering purposes, but then a horrifying thought occurred to me: I DON’T KNOW WHERE THE BLACK SHIRT IS, EITHER.

Oh. It was a festival of crazy.

Long story endless, I spent about two hours trying to find those two shirts. And I never did find either one of them. I don’t know if I left them somewhere, if I put them away in a place where they don’t normally go, if they’re crumpled and lonely at the bottom of a carry-on bag. But I could not find them, and I still haven’t found them. Which doesn’t drive me crazy AT ALL.

It was after 1 when I finally went to sleep, and when my alarm went off at its usual time this morning, I thought for a split second that I’d been unknowingly transported to Thailand. Apparently the iPhone software update created some new settings, and I’ve never heard such an array of Far Eastern chimes in my life. I mean, I appreciate that there are all sorts of new alerts and ring tones, but that new alarm tone was a little disconcerting. Because CHIMES.

However.

I eventually finished packing my suitcase, and I made it to Chattanooga this afternoon, GLORY BE. I’m mighty happy to be here, and after spending time with some sweet friends tonight, I am ready to get some good sleep and hit the ground running tomorrow. With or without the layering options that those two missing shirts would provide.

I’M SURE IT’LL ALL BE FINE.

I’ve almost stopped twitching and everything.

And if you’re at dotMOM this weekend, just know that I’ll be the person who’s trying to figure out how to operate her newly updated phone while wearing shirts that are most definitely not cream or black. Because I don’t know if I mentioned it, but I STILL CAN’T FIND THEM.

(I’m totally over it, by the way.)

(Or at least I will be by tomorrow.)

(Promise.)

Can’t wait to see some of you here in Chattanooga – it’s gonna be good times, y’all!

It’s been a while since I’ve done a post about random things I’m enjoying, so I thought tonight seemed like a fine time to pull together a little list. Considering that I didn’t get supper on the table until about an hour later than usual (pre-heated grill, put chicken on grill, went outside to flip chicken, grill was out of gas, moved chicken indoors, located big skillet, etc.), and since for some reason falling behind schedule made me very rattled and jumpy and whathaveyou, I’m hoping this little list-o-favorites will provide a SERENITY NOW moment.

Listen. Every so often a good list can soothe and comfort me. I believe that’s what you call AN ILLUSION OF CONTROL.

– NARS Pressed Powder in Flesh

I bought this powder on a whim this past February, and I’ve used it ever since. Now granted, it’s a little pricey, but it’s my all-time favorite. It’s great over foundation, over tinted moisturizer, or on its own, and if you like a matte (but not thick) finish, you’ll love it, too.

– “Call Home” by Noah Guthrie

Noah’s mom Lori has been commenting (and making me laugh) since the early days of this here blog. Last year Lori told me that her son had recorded some music videos for YouTube, and I decided to check them out because, well, I am one nosy individual. At the time Noah was covering songs by other artists, and since I love me a good cover, I was FASCINATED by his talent. Apparently other people were, too, because Noah actually released a studio album last month, and his first single is fantastic. See (and hear) for yourself.

– “The Delta 101” by Julia Reed

It’s no secret that I’m wildly sentimental about my home state of Mississippi, and over the last six or so months it seems like I’ve had an inordinate number of conversations about the Mississippi Delta. I’m not from the Delta, but I’ve long been fascinated by it. It’s difficult to explain to people who have never seen or experienced it in person, and that’s one reason why I so appreciate this article by Julia Reed. It’s beautifully written, and it perfectly captures a place that’s quite the character in its own right.

– Paradise Valley by John Mayer

So yeah. Still obsessed with this one.

– Rimmel Lash Accelerator Endless Mascara

I know. I have a new favorite mascara every two months. But I really, really like the brush on this one. And it doesn’t clump at all. And it is EIGHT DOLLARS AND NINETY NINE CENTS.

– Wusthof Gourmet Hollow-Edge Santoku Knife, 7″

My fellas gave me this knife a couple of years ago, and I adore it. I feel certain that I look at it lovingly when I’m chopping or slicing or dicing whatever happens to be on the menu. It is hands-down my favorite kitchen tool, and I use it every single day of my life. I used to think it was ridiculous to spend more than $25 on a knife, but I HAVE LEARNED THE ERROR OF MY WAYS. This knife is a treasure. Whither thou goest, etc.

– “Grace” by Beth Moore

If you participated in the Living Proof Live simulcast this past Saturday, you probably remember that Beth read something she’d written about grace at the end of the second session (at least I think it was the second session). I was trying to soak up every word as she read it, and I even thought about trying to write it down, but there just wasn’t time. Well, fortunately for all of us, Beth posted it on her blog today, and it is every bit as gorgeous as I remember. As my friend Elise would say: “if that don’t light your fire, your wood’s wet.” So, so good.

Happy Wednesday, y’all!