O-K-L-A-H-O-M-A

7 December 2009 by

Oh, Oklahoma City was big fun indeed.

First of all, there was this:

An exit row seat with all manner of leg room on the way from Birmingham to Dallas. Every once in awhile I would straighten out my legs and kick them. Just because I could. The seat next to me was empty, so I got to use the under-seat storage in front of it. PERFECTION.

When I finally landed in Oklahoma City, I drove downtown to the hotel, and I had to smile when I spotted it from a distance.

I actually stayed in the very same hotel when I was about 11 or 12. My daddy had a convention in OKC, and you’ll be happy to know that I did not get spanked on the steps of the Capitol during that particular trip. I was so much more mature and, like, PRACTICALLY A TEENAGER, GAH.

Anyway, to add to my joy, there was an umbrella AND a can of spray starch in the closet of my hotel room. Even though I needed neither, I was overcome with gratitude as well as an unexpected longing for some wrinkled white cotton shirts and a nice thunderstorm.

(It’s so much easier to understand the previous paragraph if you’ll just remember HOW NOT AT ALL NORMAL I AM.)

Late Friday afternoon I went over to the arena for Deeper Still, and it was a mighty fine time. Over 9,000 women were there, and we all got to hear Kay Arthur teach the entire book of Hebrews.

THE ENTIRE BOOK OF HEBREWS.

And I’ll tell you something else: if I get to be 76 years old and am tempted to sit around in a housecoat all day while I eat chicken and watch old episodes of “Friends,” I hope I remember the sight of Kay Arthur walking up and down and all around that platform while she taught some uncompromising Truth. And I hope when I remember, I’ll turn off the “Friends” and put down the chicken and put on some sassy clothes and get out there and pour into the lives of some younger women.

I’M JUST SAYIN’.

Friday night I was so wound up that I had a hard time going to sleep (sort of like, you know, NOW), and when I finally dozed off around 12:30, I was awakened by the people in the room above me who, as best I could tell, were picking up various and sundry pieces of furniture and then dropping them. It was either that or they were bowling with 75-pound balls – which, as we all know, is a sport that’s catching on like wildfire in hotel rooms all across the country. So when I woke up Saturday morning, I wasn’t exactly rested, but I felt a whole lot better when I saw this outside of my window.

Sometimes a wide expanse of completely flat land has its advantages.

Priscilla Shirer taught Saturday morning, and without going into all the whys and wherefores, I will tell you that her message on Ephesians 3:20-21 MARKED ME. I really want to write about it, but I honestly don’t think I have the words right now. Just know this: I have loved those two verses of Scripture since I was 17 years old – even had them printed on Alex’s birth announcements – and they are more precious than ever to me now. For an entirely different set of reasons than when I was 17, OH THANK GOODNESS FOR THAT.

And also.

The fact that Priscilla delivered her message while wearing this dress?

Well, that was just an extra portion of blessing. The dress was right up there with Angela’s jeans back in 2007, though let me be PERFECTLY CLEAR: nothing will ever surpass the jeans. They are peerless. And one day when Angela decides she’s not going to wear them anymore, I’m going gently place them in a glass-enclosed shadow box and hang them in our hallway. Right where they belong.

Saturday afternoon Beth Moore taught on spiritual discernment, and oh my word – was it ever timely for me. What I especially loved about Beth’s session is that she really honed in on how to tell if you’re acting (or reacting) out of true spiritual discernment or out of a critical spirit, and she offered some mighty sound wisdom. It was excellent.

And before I forget, let me tell you that if you want to smile until your face hurts, watch Priscilla and Beth’s video about hair. Yes, about hair. Clearly it is A VERY SPIRITUAL TOPIC, AMEN.

Okay. Finally.

This morning I flew from OKC (I can’t bring myself to say “the city” because it makes me feel like my name is Whitney and I’m starring in a reality show on MTV and living with my friend whose parents used to be on “thirtysomething”) to Dallas, then from Dallas to Birmingham, and when my people picked me up from the airport, Alex shared three pieces of very important news.

1) He had his picture made with Santa yesterday.
2) He moved the fish ornament from the tree in his bedroom to the tree in the living room because he thought the fish looked “too much like a girl.”
3) He has a loose tooth.

That last one just killed me, by the way. His first loose tooth. He’s been waiting on it forever, and it finally happened. So if you’ll excuse me, Mama here is gonna go stick her nose in a plastic tub of baby clothes and remember WHEN MY BABY DIDN’T EVEN HAVE TEETH.

Hope your week is filled with exit row seats, a cute dress, and hair that’s exceedingly, abundantly more than you can ask or imagine.

The end.

Filed Under: Rambling, Travel

I Hear It’s Where The Wind Goes Sweeping Down The Plain

4 December 2009 by

I’m not going to get an “Office” post up tonight. I’m just not.

I know. It’s terrible. YOUR WHOLE WEEKEND IS RUINED.

But I’m leaving early in the morning to go to Oklahoma City for Deeper Still, and I’m still not finished packing, and I just made a last-minute switchover to a bigger suitcase since I’m having to pack scarves and sweater coats and parkas.

Winter’s not kidding around, y’all.

I’ve haven’t been to Oklahoma City (am I allowed to say “OKC”? is that obnoxious?) in a looong time. I went once when I was 3 and once when I was 11 or 12, so I’m excited about visiting again and being able to, you know, DRIVE this time around. I actually remember the trip when I was 3 because I got a wee small spanking on the steps of the Oklahoma Capitol building. And do you know what I did after that spanking?

This.

Somebody was SULK-Y.

Needless to say, I hope I act better this trip. However, if I show out and throw a fit and somebody takes a picture, I’ll be sure to share it. It’s the least I can do, especially with all the not posting about “The Office” that I’ve done tonight. In fact, I haven’t even watched it yet, but I’m sure Michael did something stupid. And I’ll bet Dwight did something sneaky. And I’ll bet Angela said something snarky.

See? That was practically a recap.

All righty. I need to wrap up my rambling. My suitcase isn’t going to pack itself. But I’ll be posting on and off this weekend over at AllAccess, so if you get bored, you know where to find me.

I’ll be the one wearing a parka.

But hopefully not sulking on the Capitol steps.

Have a great weekend, y’all!

Filed Under: Rambling

True Colors. Shining Through. And Somebody Stop Me Or I’ll Quote The Rest Of The Song.

2 December 2009 by

When D and I bought our first house way back in ye olden days – also known as the late 90s – I was totally fascinated by the fact that I could paint the walls whatever colors I wanted. In fact, I remember calling my friend Bubba, a very gifted interior designer, and asking him if he could recommend a good yellow for the kitchen.

“I don’t know,” he replied. “There are a lot to choose from. I mean, think about it this way: you majored in English. Can you recommmend a good VERB?”

Oh, touche’, Bubba. Touche’.

And yes.

PROPELS.

It’s always been a personal favorite.

Anyway, Bubba totally came through for me and picked out paint for every room in the house. His tasteful palette of neutrals lasted for approximately six months, at which point I decided that I HAD TO HAVE a purple kitchen, and really, the front bedroom would be so much cuter if it had a few stripes. And maybe the guest room really needed to be a bright green. And maybe I should never be allowed in a paint store ever again because LOOK! ORANGE!

When we moved to Birmingham a couple of years later, I decided to go with muted colors since our house was brand new. I have no idea what one thing has to do with the other, by the way, but somehow I decided that a new house with muted colors meant that I was officially a grown-up. A Grown-Up, even. Responsible. Far too mature for bright colors. I was going to be content to sit on my beige couch in my beige living room and watch PBS or maybe even some “Murder, She Wrote” reruns if I was feeling kicky.

GROWN-UP.

So y’all know what happened. I made it two years with the muted colors before I painted my kitchen a gold so bright that I’m fairly certain I still have some residual corneal damage. And when I finally got tired of kitchen walls that basically required me to wear sunglasses whenever I wanted to, oh, cook some oatmeal, I re-painted the kitchen a lively green that didn’t really match anything else in my house. BUT IT MADE ME HAPPY.

I’ve fought the neutral / bold balance ever since we’ve been in our current house, because while I get the whole concept of subdued, understated decor – and while I love it in other people’s houses – nothing about me is really subdued. I mean, I don’t know if y’all have picked up on this, but I tend to ERR ON THE SIDE OF LOUD. And so back in the summer, I decided that since color is what energizes me and makes me smile when I walk in a room, I wanted more of it, dadgummit. That’s why I painted my kitchen cabinets green. And then whipped up some no-sew window treatments in a bright fabric.

(So. Now that I’ve established my love of color, maybe now I’ll move along to the actual point of this post.)

(Because do you know what I apparently resist almost as much as I resist neutrals?)

(BREVITY.)

Earlier this year I made my first attempt at turning Alex’s old playroom – which is adjacent to our kitchen and breakfast area – into an office for me. It was functional and had some fun stuff on the walls, but after I painted the cabinets and put up the window treatments, it looked a little blah. And so last week I was cleaning and moving some stuff around when I looked at the desk in that room and thought, I want to paint my desk turquoise.

My logical, rational side thought, That’s ridiculous. No grown woman has a turquoise desk.

And then my creative side thought, Hush it, logic.

I bought the desk at a thrift store a couple of years ago for ten dollars (TEN DOLLARS!), so it wasn’t such a valuable piece of furniture that I was worried about ruining it. It has a not-so-lovely piece of laminate on the top, but the body of the desk is real-live wood, so it’s sturdy and practical. Here’s a picture.

I decided that I was going to tackle it with spray paint because Thanksgiving was two days away and quite frankly I was in no mood to fool with paint brushes, so I went to the Walmarts and picked up two cans of spray paint. I decided on a color that was the closest thing I could find to a light-ish turquoise in a glossy finish, and six dollars later, I was ready to go.

And no kidding – within twenty minutes I was ALL DONE.

I painted the hardware because, well, it was easier that way and we’re talking about a ten dollar desk. I can always take off the hardware later and paint it some kind of metallic finish. Or not.

Clearly I am an artiste who is deeply committed to her craft.

I let the desk dry for about an hour, and then we brought it inside. I moved it to a different wall, and then I hung (read: TACKED) a whole bunch of my favorite colorful things around the desk. And then I was all done.

(I have no idea why I went with the angle on that last picture.)

(Perhaps I have unrealized dreams of becoming a beret-wearing photographer who specializes in images of painted thrift store furniture.)

Anyway, there you have it. The desk isn’t perfect, but it’s colorful. And it only cost me six whole dollars to give the office a little facelift.

Which certainly propels me to paint more stuff.

Filed Under: Decorating, Rambling

Pretend This Post Is Made Of Linen

25 November 2009 by

Normally we go out of town for Thanksgiving Day, but this year we’re staying home. We’re having a wee-little gathering at our house, and with the help of the fine people at Honeybaked Ham, I’m doing all the cooking. I love doing all the cooking, by the way. Especially when all the cooking doesn’t involve a big ole dried-up turkey.

(To be clear, I am a turkey fan.)

(However, I have never had much success cooking a turkey.)

(Mainly because one time our friend Benji deep fried one for T’giving, and I have been RUINED by its deliciousness ever since. Baked turkey stands in the shadow of fried turkey and cowers.)

Anyway.

This morning I looked at the date on my computer and thought it rang a little bit of a mental bell – and sure enough, I looked back at my posts and realized that I started my blog four years ago today. That is so hard for me to believe. Especially since this is what Alex looked like in the blog’s early days.

IMG_4809

Did you just hear me sigh? Because I sighed really, really loudly.

And while I could sit here and wax nostalgic for a sweet forever, I’m going to resist that temptation and say this instead: I am so grateful for every single one of you who stops by here to read every now and again. Your kindness and your hilarious comments and your tolerance of my never-ending obsession with Mississippi State football and basketball have been an incredible blessing in my life and my family’s life. I cannot say “thank you” enough.

I hope y’all have a wonderful Thanksgiving – and I hope you’re surrounded by people you love.

I also hope you’re surrounded by some really good casseroles. And maybe even some homemade chocolate pies.

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!

Filed Under: Rambling

Sharing Crazy With The Internet Since 2005

23 November 2009 by

When I get into nesting mode, I cannot do anything else. NOTHING ELSE. I mean, I may look all laid-back and casual when I’m moving, say, a vase from one room to the next, but DO NOT BE DECEIVED. Because secretly I am hoping that I can get the vase moved before I see a dust bunny out of the corner of my eye since CLEARLY THE DUST BUNNY REQUIRES ME TO STOP AND VACUUM AND THE WHOLE VASE-MOVING SYSTEM IS RUINED.

Perhaps this is why I try to warn innocent bystanders when I sense a fit of nesting on the horizon.

Over the weekend I pulled out all of our Christmas decorations and set up a few things (I know. I know. It’s early. But I’m trying to seize pockets of decorating time when I can because the next two weeks = craziness). I put together a new centerpiece for the breakfast room table, put my feather trees on my dining room table, looked through a few storage bins to take a quick mental inventory of decorations, and then I decided that I really – truly – needed to rearrange some furniture.

Yes. It is a sickness. Thank you for asking.

The rearranging was complicated by the fact that Saturday was just a tremendous day for SEC football fans – State held on with Arkansas until the 4th quarter, and the LSU/Ole Miss game was probably the best SEC game I’ve watched all year. Alex was so into that game that it made me laugh my head off, and at one point, when things didn’t go the way he wanted, he actually stood up and STOMPED OUT OF THE ROOM. We had to have a little talk about keeping the football game in perspective, but I’ll tell you right now that the whole time we were talking to him, I was smiling and clapping my hands way deep down in my heart.

(You have to understand that having a child who loves SEC football and basketball just DELIGHTS ME TO MY TOES.)

(Personally I think we should all pause at this juncture and give the Lord a handclap of praise.)

(IT MAKES ME SO HAPPY.)

In the midst of Saturday’s rearranging and game watching I decided that OBVIOUSLY I needed to paint the desk in my office area a fun shade of green and/or turquoise and/or green-y turquoise, and I think we can all agree that when you’re trying to get your house ready for Christmas, it is always VERY wise to start a completely new project, preferably one that involves a good bit of acrylic paint.

(Maybe once I finish the desk I’ll just go ahead and re-tile the guest bath. Then construct some sort of stone walkway from the street to the front door while I’m at it.)

(Oh, I kid.)

(I think.)

Yesterday I didn’t get anything done around the house because of church and such, but David did put up the Christmas tree. It’s supposed to be pre-lit, but the lights were apparently too tired to twinkle this year, so D took all the old lights off of the tree. That whole taking-the-original-lights-off-the-tree thing looked like a SUPER fun task, by the way, and I’m hoping to try it myself sometime really soon in the near NEVER.

Tonight was great, though – we listened to Travis’ Christmas CD (it’s our all-time favorite, hands-down) while David put lights on the Christmas tree and Alex helped and I watched (I haven’t put lights on a tree since 1998 – it’s a sad, tragic tale that involves many tangled cords as well as an impressive amount of tears). Now the tree has pretty new lights (that work!), and it’s waiting patiently on some ornaments. The ornaments are next on my list. Just as soon as I get that desk painted and cook Thanksgiving dinner.

So there you have it. All the news that approximately four people care about, and it is really so sweet for them to care since we’re related and all.

The end.

Filed Under: Family Fun, Rambling

Insert Funny “Office” Line Here

13 November 2009 by

Well, I missed “The Office” tonight because I’m in Nashville. And I guess that last sentence sort of makes it sound like Nashville is the land that TV forgot, but certainly that is not the case. It’s just that I didn’t get to watch TV tonight because I was doing fun stuff like visiting with Sister and picking up Melanie at the airport and then screeching into the LifeWay parking lot about two minutes before Travis‘ worship concert was scheduled to start.

So it wasn’t the usual Dunder-Mifflin hijinks, but it was definitely good times.

And by the way, Melanie thinks it’s BITTERLY COLD here in Nashville. Apparently life in south Texas has ruined her in terms of having a tolerance for any temperature below sixty degrees. After the concert we walked outside to the car, and she practically trotted across the parking lot because she was so desperate to escape the thirty-five seconds of chilly air that she had to endure. When we got in the car I looked at the thermostat, and it was 46 degrees outside.

Or as you northerners like to call it: spring.

If this keeps up tomorrow we may have to find a Burlington Coat Factory so that we can buy Mel some sort of quilted down jacket.

Anyhoo, now we’re back at our hotel, and I’m checking email and watching SportsCenter. I don’t really care about SportsCenter, mind you, but I’m sitting on the bed and the remote is across the room on the desk and, well, it’s just so far.

(It just occurred to me that if you could somehow meld Melanie’s brain and my brain right this very second, you’d wind up with a very cold lazy person. And for some reason that makes me laugh.)

(However, I feel like my temporary bout of laziness is kind of okay since I’ve been up since dark thirty this morning and started off my day by trying to load two elderly dogs in my car for a trip to the vet, and I was only able to coax the lab into the car by encouraging her to eat a renegade sour cream and onion Pringle that Alex left on the floorboard after his last soccer game, so I might not have a great deal of PRESENCE OF MIND at this juncture. It’s been sort of a long day.)

(The good news is that everything strikes me as completely hysterical right now. Even SportsCenter. AND THAT IS NO SMALL FEAT.)

Anyway, I hopped on here to tell y’all two things:

1) Tomorrow (Friday) I’m going to be spending the day at LifeWay for the Women’s Leadership Forum, and there’s going to be a live stream of the festivities running pretty much non-stop. You can check out the schedule of events over at AllAccess.

And.

2) The Compassion bloggers have done an incredible job this week – and this post of Shaun’s is a must-read.

I’m going to bed now. I fully expect to dream about elderly dogs who eat Pringles in the bitter cold while they watch SportsCenter and sing worship songs.

I’ll let y’all know how it goes.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

Filed Under: Rambling
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