Heck yes!

I LOVE working 11 hour days!

slacking on the blog

Man oh man, it's been forever since I've written on here. Life has been busy as always.

*The end of the semester went well. I got a B in Philosophy! Woohoo! Only one more semester of classes until my internship. I can't wait!

*Matt & I celebrated our first Christmas together (well, being married). We had a wonderful Christmas eve service at Westminster and then headed over to his parents house. Matt & I cooked potato soup and ham rolls (my family's traditional Christmas eve meal) for his family (all 9 of them that were there)! It turned out well and we had a wonderful time together. We then opened presents since Michael & Amy were leaving the next morning. We both got some awesome stuff from his family (and a chunk of money which we spent on a Gamecube and some games...haha). Christmas morning Matt & I got up and had our Christmas together...he got me a diamond necklace! Whoa, I totally wasn't expecting that! And I got the Full House season 2 dvd--how exciting! We had a wonderful time celebrating together and then we headed to church to continue the celebration of our Saviors birth. We had yet another amazing service focused solely on God's greatest gift given to us...His son. We spent the rest of the day with his family and had a nice relaxing Christmas. The only thing that would have made it better would have been if my family could have been here. My dad was sick and they couldn't make it down. I miss them terribly and can't wait to see them this weekend!

*In other news, they are starting a new Sunday school class at Westminster for "Young Married/No Children" couples like us. We have been asked to serve as leaders in this class and we are so excited about this opportunity. We love the Sunday school class we are in now and are going to miss it greatly but what an amazing opportunity to start a new class and minister to young couples like ourselves. God is going to do amazing things in this class!

*While Paul & Kelly were in California last week, Matt & I took care of good 'ol Kerry & Fiona. Let me recap the crazy things these cats did during the week: Kerry pooped a nail and a ribbon and pooped on the bathroom flour a million times (poor cat just can't seem to get potty trained), Kerry & Fiona knocked over the white roses 3 times, broke the wedding candle, peed on the treeskirt, dug up the potted plant, peed on the carpet by the closet and knocked down the banner on the wall twice. It was a crazy week with these cats--but we love them to death!

I've written all this while at work at the gym, so I guess now I better get back to work and clean up so I can get outta here.

Too twisted for color tv...

Wow, it's been over a month since I've updated! Let's just say things have been mad crazy in my world. I've basically been either in class or working every single day (yes even Saturday & Sundays...it sucks). Since I last updated I celebrated my 22nd birthday. 22 feels old. I feel like an old married lady. Haha.

I'm entirely looking forward to Thanksgiving. I'm taking 6 days off of work! We're going to the beach with Matt's family for a few days & then going to Lake Waccamaw to visit my parents. I'm looking forward to pumpkin pie & my favorite...chocolate chip pie!

I registered & got all the classes I need for next semester. It's hard to believe that I only have one more semester of classes & then my internship. It's crazy how time flies! It feels like just yesterday that me & Ang were living up on the 7th floor of Wofford & going to Denny's at 2 am.

We had to take Tigger to the vet the other day because his ears were just nasty & emitting gross fluids. Turns out his ears are infected. He is doing well with the medicine & we went for a recheck yesterday. His ear canals are clear and looks great! Yay! Tigger is the best looking 20 year old cat ever!

Matt & I went on our first marraige retreat a few weekends ago with our ABF (sunday school) from Westminster. We had an amazing time and learned so much! We feel so blessed to be a part of such an amazing group of couples seeking the Lord.

Since it's so close to Thanksgiving I'm going to list things I am thankful for...

• my family (Mom, Dad, & brother)
• Matt & his family
• my cats (Tigger, DJ & Peaches)
• my Savior
• my education and all I am learning about how to help others
• Westminster & Legacy Builders ABF
• warm, sunny days
• fleece blankets
• coffee & green tea
• all my amazing girls at IXF
• friendships that endure time
• the Word of God
• music
• my digital camera & ipod
• Hawaiian Breeze Glade plug ins
• the smell of fresh laundry

That's all for now.

Mackey out.

an early morning of yoga

This morning, for my 8 am comparitive religion class we went to Peabody and were led in some yoga excercises. This was fun and relaxing, but I sure learned that I can't stand on one foot for 30 minutes!

Praise God I have this Saturday off! Matt & I are going to go to the SC State Fair! Yay! You know I've been every year since I was a toddler and I cannot miss out on the funnel cakes, elephant ears, corndogs, fries, and of course my favorite ride, the Feuer Ball! I love love love the fair. If any of you guys are in Cola and wanna join up with us there let me know!

I spoke with my friend, Karina, last night. She's the one that lived in New Orleans. It was great to talk to her and hear that she is okay. And the Friendship House (the transitional housing center for women & children that she works at) got out with not too much damage. Of course there were some people that came to their Bible studies every week and others they ministered to that didn't make it out alive. Please continue to pray for this ministry and those involved.

Pray for Matt as well. He's having a rough time with teaching. Pray that he will find himself and have the strength to go on and do the best he can do.

I got my iPod nano!!! This thing is freakin awesome. I'm loving it! It's definitely a fun toy to invest in!

The African Children's Choir is coming to Westminster next Friday. I'm really excited about this--I saw them when I was younger and they are just amazing. If you don't know who they are, they are a group of African children from ages 5-12 years old who lived in poverty. The tour the world singing and sharing their lives. As most of you know, it is my dream to go serve in Africa and seeing these kids just encourages me more and more. These kids have been given such an opportunity to shine the light of Christ around the world and impact others. It's amazing.

You said, "ask and you will receive whatever you need."
You said, "pray and I'll hear from heaven and I'll heal your land."

You said Your glory will fill the earth like water the sea.
You said, "lift up your eyes; the harvest is here, the kingdom is near."

You said, "ask and I'll give the nations to you."
oh Lord, that's the cry of my heart.
distant shores and the islands will see

another day gone by

A few minutes ago I was walking across campus over here to the computer lab. As I pass Byrnes I see a guy sleeping on the concrete steps. This I do not understand. There are plenty of couches/comfy chairs on this campus. How hard is it to walk a few hundred yards to Bancroft or across the street to Dinkins? But this guy chose to sleep on the hard concrete using his bookbag as a pillow. Whatever.

Guess what? Matthew bought me an iPod nano!!!! Yippee!!! I have been wanting an iPod for quite a while now (ever since Kristi got hers I've been jealous) and now they have come out with the iPod nano. It's an iPod that is quite small (a little bigger than a credit card). And it holds 1,000 songs! And pictures! Matt ordered it off the website (he got a teacher discount) and it should be here in 1-2 weeks. I cannot wait! If you want to see it you can go to the apple website: http://www.apple.com/ipodnano/

My life is still rediculously busy. I wish I had more time to spend with Matt & our kittens. You gotta do what you gotta do though.

Now I've got to run to class. I have a Philosophy quiz this afternoon--aaahhh! I don't think I'm gonna do so hot. I just get all the theories and people and everything mixed up. We'll see.

Stream of Consciousness Writing...

(Once again this will be bullet style)

*The life of Mackey=Getting up atleast by 7 am-going to work or class by 8 am-working one of my two jobs or class until about 9 pm. Oh yes, gotta love this life! Add being a newlywed and two baby kittens to the mix as well! :) It's all good though.

*Most of my classes are going well. The only class I don't really enjoy is Philosophy (I mean who really cares about that crap?).

*Matt & I got two baby kittens almost two weeks ago. Peaches and DJ are there names. They are tons of fun but they sure like stink up the apartment with some major poopage! Once I get my digital camera back (my parents are borrowing it) I'll post pictures. If you really wanna see the sweet balls of fluff you can come visit us!

*Matt's dad will be coming back from Iraq at the end of October. It's hard to believe that he's been over there for a year! It'll be nice to have him back.

*I think I've convinced Matt to go to the Jeremy Camp/Bethany Dillon concert in Greenville on Saturday. I love love love both of them...they are such inspirational people who are real about life and it's struggles!

*I got my hair all chopped off! It's all short & spiky...lots of fun to mousse up in the mornings! I love it--I think I'm gonna keep it this way for a long while!

*Matt & I are doing a bible study on Sunday nights through Westminster. It's all about digging in the Word. We do lots of Scripture memorization and applying the Word to our lives. We're loving it. This Bible study is making us sit down and focus on the most incredible tool God has given us to know Him--His Word. Spending time in the Word has been such a refresher for us, during our crazy busy week!

Guess I better go check on the kittens and scoop some litter!

a quick vent

Can I mention that I HATE how spam has taken over the blogging world!!! Dang comments full of spam!

back in the grind of things

Here I am sitting in Dinkins at the "Wireless Cafe" haha. Us Parks people are poor & don't have the internet so I have to be a dork & come to campus to update my blog. Lots of things have been going on lately. I feel like updating using bullets today so that's exactly what I'm going to do.

• School is going pretty well. I like most of my classes. My class by far is my Social Work class on mental illnesses. This is my passion. I even look forward to sitting in the class for 3 hours every Wednesday night! I must be crazy!
• Hurricane Katrina has dealt a blow to me personally. I am so burdened by the people on the Gulf Coast (especially New Orleans). Many of you know that I lived in N.O. a few summers ago and worked with the homeless there. That has been my dream for a while now...to live in the ghettos of N.O. and minister to the homeless there. I was hoping Matt & I could go this summer but now we'll have to wait and see what is happening there. Even more personal than that, I have a really close friend who lived right in downtown N.O. She worked at The Baptist Friendship House, a transitional center for homeless women and children. At this point I still haven't heard from her and am very concerned. Please pray for my friend, Karina, and the others who worked & lived at the Friendship House.
• Matt & I are going to get a kitten soon...maybe two. :) Matt's friend, Bobbie, has 5 kittens and Matt & I are going to get the runt of the group. His name is Peaches and he has the biggest belly I've ever seen a kitten have! We may also get another one of the kittens. We'll see. I'll post pictures when we get them!
• My parents have now moved to Lake Waccamaw, NC. They are doing well and settling in. I can't wait to go visit them!
• Lately I have been struggling with a lot of bitterness from the past. There are so many friends that I once felt so close to and now that I'm married I feel like they don't care about me anymore. I sit here reading people's blogs & away messages and it just makes me sad that I'm not a part of their lives. I feel like the old married lady that's still in college who nobody wants to hang out with anymore. I know we can't live in the past but it hurts me that many of my friendships have simply dissapeared in the last few months. It makes my heart hurt. I am glad that God has blessed me & Matt with such great friends in Paul & Kelly. Sometimes it seems like they are the only ones left in our simple little world.

Now I'm off to Matt's school to help him get some stuff done around the classroom. Then it's back to my Mental Illness class!!!

Back to the WU

Thought I'd give a quick update since I've been slack. Classes started back today and fortunately I was able to come. I thought I might have to take this semester off for financial reasons, but God is good and here I am. I had Comparative Religion this morning which I'm really excited about (even though it's an 8 am class) and I just got out of Public Speaking, which won't be too bad (hopefully). I'm headed off to Philosophy in a few minutes and tomorrow night I will go see Dr. Manetta in Mental Health Services in SCWK. I'm so excited about that class...fits right in with my passions!

Matt is doing well. He's been teaching 1st grade for a few weeks now. He's got some rough kids but he's getting the hang of it. I'm a proud wife.

Both of my jobs are awesome & I'm loving them. I've just got to really learn how to balance my time working 2 jobs, going to school, church activities, & of course being a new wife. This semester should be a challenge but I'm looking forward to it all.

I'm heading out for Philosophy. Hopefully I'll update more soon. Peace, Love, & Chicken Grease!

it's a mad mad world

Let me tell you, my friends, last week was a crazy one (this one's gonna be bullet style).

• Last Tuesday my boy Matt got in a wreck. Oh yes, you gotta love those 4 car pile ups in Charlotte. All is well though--the Lumina is smashed (actually totaled) but Matty is just fine.
• Wednesday was Matt's b-day. I really can't remember what we did--pathetic huh?
• But then, Thursday began the madness. Thursday afternoon I rode to the big town of Sumter with Kelly & Wendy for Kelly's lingerie shower. That was a crazy time with 33 ladies & millions of panties and so forth.
• After the shower began the wedding madness. How much fun it was to follow my Kelly around & be her "assistant". We got pedicures and had lots of girl talk.
• The wedding was so beatiful. I cried and cried. I'm so excited for Kelly & Paul.
• After their wedding I had to head to Lexington for Rene' & Nathan's wedding. Unfortunately I didn't make it in time for the ceremony but I did get to the dessert reception. How good it was to see old friends this weekend (Erroneous, Shlebs, Tam Tam, & I even got to see Pierre!).
• Fast forwarding to this week. Monday was my first day working at Impact. I had a ball & am so excited about working there! To those of you wondering, yes, I am now working 2 jobs. I'm still doing ABA therapy with a child who has autism & I'm a "fitness instructor" at Impact XPress Fitness. It's gonna be an exciting year!
• Yesterday Matt had an interview for a 1st grade position at Rosewood Elementary. He got the job on the spot and started new teacher orientation last night. School starts Tuesday so he has less than a week to get his classroom and everything organized. Pray for him. He is extremely overwhelmed by this transition. It'll be awesome though!

Guess that's all for now. Have a good one.

horses and gators

Last weekend Matt & I went up to Lake Waccamaw, NC with my dad. He has been working at the Boys & Girls Home there for two weeks now. We were excited to go see what it's all about. We had a great time hunting for gators in the swamp (I spotted two!) and feeding the horses. I am so excited for my family. I am a little sad that they won't be so close (3 hours away instead of 3 minutes) but I know God has placed them where He wants them. My dad loves his job and it is such a blessing for him to be there. God is good.

Matt is looking for a new job. There is a possibility of a job at a really nice child development center in Fort Mill. That would be wonderful since it would be a lot closer. Matt is just getting burnt out driving to Northern Charlotte and dealing with all the drama at his job. Pray that he will be able to find a job that he will enjoy.

This continues to be a crazy busy summer for us. I'm looking forward to school starting so I can have more of a routine. I will be shadowing a child at McFeat all day on Monday/Wednesday/Fridays and I'm thrilled about that. It will be fun.

Today is my best friend Kelly Douglass' birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

9 more days until Paul & Kelly's wedding and Nathan & Rene's wedding! How exciting!!!

HELP!!!!

My screenname on AIM (Ragamuffin4abba) got deleted so I had to make a new one (SmacksParks). I lost everyone's screennames so please send it to me! Thanks!

Let Freedom Ring

So I just tried to post some of the wedding pictures on the blog & it's not cooperating. So you all just have to be more patient!

Hope everyone had a happy Fourth of July. Ours was nice. Paul, Kelly, Matt, & I spent the morning at Ray's Splash Planet in Charlotte with a kid we know. It was lots of fun! If you haven't heard of this place, it's an indoor waterpark. Really it's for kids...there is one big slide for adults though. We had a lot of fun splashing around & playing! After that we went to a cookout in Fort Mill. A family at Kelly & Paul's church was having this cookout & they have an awesome house on a pond. We played croquet, volleyball, and went boating. And I can't forget the delicious barbeque. When it got dark we shot off fireworks. When we left the cookout we went to Carowinds to see the fireworks there. It was fun, but we were tired so we left before they were over. We bought some fireworks of our own that I think we may shoot off tonight.

My parents are heading up to Lake Waccamaw, NC tonight. My dad is starting his new job tomorrow! What a blessing that is!

If you want to see my pictures on snapfish just let me know & I'll send you an e-mail inviting you to see them.

The Great Adventure

I decided to come back to blogger instead of my blog on thenest.com. It's just easier and more people are on it.

This week has been an adventure...well, especially Sunday. Sunday morning started off with me fainting in Sunday School and later on Matt falling flat on his face at Cracker Barrell. Let's go back to the fainting part. We are in Sunday School and praying for a couple who is moving. We all are circled around laying hands on them and had stood there about 10 minutes. My arms begin to feel a little tingly (sp?) and the next thing I know I wake up in a chair shaking and everyone is asking me if I'm okay. I've never fainted before and it was a scary thing. We think it's just because it was hot, we were standing for a long time, and I hadn't had much to eat that morning. We hope that's all.

So after church Matt & I meet up with Paul & Kelly at Cracker Barrell. Matt is hobbling along on his crutches up to the front porch and misses the curb. He hops for a while and I laugh because he's hopping like a loon. Well then he losses his balance & falls flat on his face...luckely he fell in hte grass. It was very scary & he hit his head hard. I thought I was going to have to take him to the hospital. But he was okay.

A million other crazy things have happened like our hot water spurting out of the faucets and overdrafting our account to make this week an adventure. Man, this whole married thing is tough!

The good news is that Sunday night Matt started walking on his foot again and it's getting stronger every day. So now I don't have to be the old maid anymore--he can do things for himself now!

I'm working on putting up the honeymoon & wedding pictures on Snapfish.com. I'll let you all know when they are up.

Oh yeah--some REALLY exciting news is that my dad got a job!!!!!! He's going to be a minister of music to the kids at the Boys and Girls Home of NC at Lake Waccamaw. He may be able to start as soon as this Tuesday! My dad is going to go ahead up there and my mom & brother will stay here in Rock Hill the rest of July to pack and get things ready while they look for housing in Lake Waccamaw. SO EXCITING!!!!!

Now that I'm married...

Matt & I are starting a new blog together...so you can enjoy reading about our life. You can find it here http://blogger.thenest.com/blogger/3232088840593150/Default.aspx

So this may be the end of this blog...we'll see.

the day after tomorrow

the day after tomorrow i will be married. and then heading to good 'ol charleston. compliments of anita & impact express fitness matt & i will be taking a cute little stuffed monkey named coconut on our honeymoon. we will take pictures with him in charleston & take them back to the gym & show them to the ladies. :)

guess i'll write when we get back from charleston.

in the home stretch

we're in the "home stretch" (as kelly and paul would say)...4 more days until the wedding. this time next week matt & i will be hanging out in charleston. what fun!

micro-scanny-wave

So to explain my title...Matt got a gift certificate for $70 at Target from his co-workers. We decided to go spend it and were originally planning on getting a vacuum (the one we wanted was on clearance). Well, we get to Target and look around for a while and put the vacuum in our buggy and walk down a few more aisles. What do we see?! A microwave that scans the barcode of your food & automatically knows how long to cook it for. How cool is that?! Actually, we had seen it a few weeks ago but couldn't afford it. Matt really wanted it & I thought it would be pretty cool too. So we returned the vacuum to the shelf & got the microwave (which was also on clearance). I know you guys are all jealous now. Matt & I are the cool kids on the block with our micro-scanny-wave!

Things are going well. I'm feeling better about the wedding stuff. I'm excited about all the people coming--people I haven't seen in years that I love are coming (the Matejas, the Stonekings, Paige, the Campbells...and lots more).

Last weekend a bunch of us went to the Second Chance prom put on by Ace & TJ at 95.1. The group consisted of me, Kelly, Joce, Erin, Tamica, and the gym girls...Anita, Marrissa, the redneck woman, & two other ladies. We had an amazing time dancing with seer sucker suit man and just being crazy. I'll post pictures as soon as I can.

I just found out that the kids I'm supposed to be baby-sitting this summer are going to be in Texas with their grandparents for the entire month of June. So that means I'm currently looking for a job. If anyone knows of anything let me know. As of now I've got an application for the new Dunkin Donuts opening on Celanese.

Two weeks from now I'll be at my rehearsal dinner. Oh yeah...that's crazy.

drama drama drama

I'm so extremely frustrated right now. Yesterday was my break down-i wish this wedding was over day. I'm just so tired of all the planning and spending money...and now the drama. I just want it to be over with.

the answer

i've tried more of me
and i've come up dry
trading You for things
things that go away
my happiness is found in less
of me and more of You
my happiness is found in less
of me and more of You

i have found the answer is
to love You and be loved by You alone
alright! alright! alright!
You crucify me and the world to me
and i will only boast in You
alright! alright! alright!

i'm so satisfied
at the thought of You
growing up in me
covering everything
my happiness is found in less
of me and more of You
my happiness is found in less
of me and more of You

You are, You are (loved by me)
You are, You are (You're loved by me)
You are, You are (You're loved by me)
You are, You are, You are

I've been listening to the old Shane & Shane cd non-stop for the past 2 days and have realized that my heart has been longing to worship. I wish I could say that this song describes my life. I've been doing a lot of thinking tonight--and emotional purging...I am not who I want to be. My desires have been extremely worldly lately...all I care about is school, the wedding, moving in the new apt, my friends, & matt. It makes my heart so sad to realize how desrespectful I have been to my Savior. I can't even take a few minutes out of my day to praise Him for His greatness & seek His face. I'm ashamed to call myself a Christian. I am so unworthy. Yet Christ still chooses me. How amazing is that?! Just a few minutes ago I read a passage in 1 Peter that I have read a million times before, yet it is so true to me at this point in time.

"Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given to you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written 'Be holy, because I am holy.'" [1 Peter 1.13-17]

As I strive to be holy--I urge you to do the same. We are called to live a holy life as we serve a holy God. I praise Him for He continues to forgive me though I continue in my selfishness every single day.

Not so happy she's about to get a bath. 

Me holding Jaylen. Jaylen is the granddaughter of my good friend Sandy from work. 

Matt holding baby Jaylen. She's 9 days old. 

My girls at work celebrating my last day.  

love this

i absolutely love this song...

Banana Pancakes
Jack Johnson

Cant you see that its just raining
Aint no need to go outside...
But Baby, You hardly even notice
When I try to show you this
Song is meant to keep ya
From doing what your supposed to
Like waking up too early
Maybe we can sleep in
Ill make you banana pancakes
Pretend like its the weekend now

And we could pretend it all the time
Cant you see that its just raining
Aint no need to go outside

But just maybe, hala ka ukulele
Mommy made a baby
Really don't mind the practice
Cause your my little ladyLady lady love me
Cause I love to lay here lazy
We could close the curtains
Pretend like there's no world outside

And we could pretend it all the time
Cant you see that its just raining
Aint no need to go outside
Aint no need aint no need
Mmmm MMmmm
Cant you see cant you see
Rain all dayAnd I don't mind

The telephone is singing
Ringing its too early
Don't pick it up
We don't need to we got everything
We need right here
And everything we need is enough
Just so easy
When the whole world fits inside of your arms
Don't really need to pay attention to the alarm
Wake up slow, yeah wake up slow
You hardly even notice
When I try to show you this
Song is meant to keep ya
From doing what your supposed to
Like waking up too early
Maybe we can sleep in
Ill make you banana pancakes
Pretend like its the weekend now

And we could pretend it all the time
Cant you see that its just raining
Aint no need to go outside
Cant you see cant you see,
You gotta wake up slow

makin' banana pancakes

I'm sitting here listening to Jack Johnson's new cd, In Between Dreams, and it is absolutely amazing. I love this guy--and have since I was in high school. All three of his cd's are so worthy of listening to. If you haven't heard him you definitely need to check him out. Kelly, Paul, Matt & I are going to go see him in Atlanta in September. I can't wait!

I had my first exam tonight. SCWK 432 with Dr. Wells. Despite Dr. Well's little surprises, the exam went extremely well. I feel very confident with this exam and that's a first! Now I've just got to bust it out with these next 3 exams.

This week I have been picking Caleb up from school & then going to get Sarah from her mom's office. I feel like such a mom picking the kids up from school, fixing them snack, & taking them to the park. Today was Sarah's third birthday. She was so excited--it was so cute!!! These are the kids I'm going to be baby-sitting all summer. They are cool kids so I'm excited.

Last weekend was amazing. One of the best of this semester. Friday night Paul, Kelly, Matt & I hung out at the Pink Palace, had some drinks, and played Lord of the Rings Risk (which Kelly & Paul are now addicted too). Saturday morning we headed to Jones Gap State Park which is above Greenville to go camping. We requested camp site 12 which was about a 2 mile hike up the mountain. We put all our gear on and hiked up the muddy mountain to our camp site. We set up camp and made a camp fire. Kelly & I are some proud girls--we have real men who are good at making camp fires even with wet wood! We then roasted hotdogs, meat, & made smores. We then proceeded to play Clue. After that, we headed to bed. It was a long, cold night, but finally morning came. We got up & the boys starting up another fire. Paul made homemade hot chocolate out of hersey's bars & hot water. I had my doubts but it was delicious! We then ate more hotdogs & meat. We hung out for a while...made some friends with the hikers passing by. Met a dog named Possum. After a while we packed up & headed down the mountain. Matt & I were trying to get back to Rock Hill for our Financial Peace graduation, so we were pressed for time. With Paul setting the pace--we made it down the mountain in 35 minutes! We headed off & decided to go to the Beacon in Spartanburg for lunch. When we arrived it was closed b/c it was Sunday. Boo! So we went to Fuddrucker's instead & had a wonderful time. We made it back to Rock Hill just in time for Matt & I to get to our FP graduation. After that we headed back to the Pink Palace to find Kelly & Paul playing Risk again. And my girl Kelly was kicking Paul's butt! After a little coercing, we all headed over to the hot tub at Pace's River. That was wonderfully relaxing and a fun end to a wonderful weekend.

Okay, this has been a long enough entry. Enough rambling.

What a crew! 

Our campsite 

Matt & me by the waterfall

Paul & Kelly at the waterfall

Cool pic of me 

Kelly & me...ready to go!

Matt trying to get a little weight off his back 

*EXTREMELY* pissed off!

Wanna know why?

My mom & I *thought* we had ordered the wedding invitations a month ago. We hadn't heard anything from the lady who owns the store we ordered them from so I decided to call. She wasn't there when I called so she called my mom back today. Just before class, my mom called to tell me that Betsy (the owner of the store) never ordered the invitations! Argh! We ordered the proof, that came in, and then we revamped the invitation a little. I specifically remember my mom having a conversation with Betsy over the order and Betsy said she was going to order them, there was no need for another proof. So we left it at that. Well, Betsy says she never even remembers that conversation. So, my mom is over at the store right now straightening everything out. She is very pissed off and I'm sure she is giving Betsy a talking to. So for anyone wondering if they're getting an invitation--they will be in in about 2 weeks and then we have to address them. So you should get them about 3 weeks before the wedding--a lot later than planned. Oh well, as long as we get them. I'm still pissed off though!

Me with my amazing Mom & Mrs. Kay 

My finished product...Banana Toffee Pizza! 

Yes, I had to get up there and cook in front of everyone! 

Nikki, me, & Joce at my bridal shower 

Me with all the girls I used to baby-sit in Columbia. They're all grown up! That would be Annie, Kylie, Hannah Grace, & Megan. 

I am blessed

I found out on Wednesday that I'm going to have to stay at Winthrop another semester. At first I thought that really blows, but now I'm kind of glad. I only need a few more hours that semester so I'm going to spread it out and make these next 3 semesters relatively easy. And I don't think I'm going to summer school (at least not this summer). In actuality, I'm actually kind of excited about staying another semester now...I'll only be doing my internship the last semester anyway.

Matt's mom is amazing. She bought us a brand new bedroom suite and a car today. We already had picked out a bedroom suite last weekend but we decided to order a different one today that was nicer & would last longer. Then we went to Carmax where I ended up driving our 2001 Nissan Sentra GXE out of the lot. Cccrrraazzzyyyy! Matt & I are still in shock. Matt can't drive it right now b/c insurance will only cover him on the Lumina b/c of his past driving record. So right now, I'm driving the Sentra. Yeah--definitely still in shock.

Tonight me, Matt, Kelly, Paul, Carrie (Beasley) Wilkes, & Jamie went to see the Come See Me fireworks at the lake. That was fun.

It's 11:55 pm and I'm heading to bed. Today has been a busy day and tomorrow will be as well...church, going to see Reckless, Financial Peace, and 2 papers to write.

all about me

Advanced Global Personality Test Results Extraversion |||||||||||||||| 70% Stability |||||||||||||||| 66% Orderliness |||||||||||| 43% Empathy |||||||||||||||||||| 90% Interdependence |||||||||||||||||||| 90% Intellectual |||||| 30% Mystical |||| 16% Artistic |||||| 23% Religious |||||||||||||||||||| 90% Hedonism |||||| 23% Materialism |||||| 30% Narcissism |||||||||||| 43% Adventurousness |||||||||||||||||||| 83% Work ethic |||||| 30% Self absorbed |||||||||| 36% Conflict seeking |||||||||||| 43% Need to dominate |||| 16% Romantic |||||| 23% Avoidant || 10% Anti-authority |||||| 30% Wealth |||| 16% Dependency |||||||||||||| 56% Change averse |||||||||| 36% Cautiousness |||||||||| 36% Individuality |||||||||||| 50% Sexuality |||||||||||| 50% Peter pan complex |||||||||||||||| 70% Physical security |||||||||||||| 56% Food indulgent |||||||||||||||| 63% Histrionic |||||||||||| 43% Paranoia || 10% Vanity |||||| 30% Hypersensitivity |||||||||||||| 56% Female cliche |||||||||||| 50%

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personality tests by similarminds.com

babies, furniture, and ashlee

This will be quick but I wanted to write because today has been an exciting and eventful day.

First, this morning we had the Financial Peace University yard sale where Matt & I bought a baby stroller (that story will come in a later blog).

Then, this afternoon Matt's mom purchased our bedroom suite from Tinsley's. That is definitely the most expensive thing anyone has ever bought me. Crazy. It's so awesome though!

Finally, tonight Matt & I went to see the one and only Ashlee Simpson in concert! It was absolutely amazing! I've never seen or heard so many screaming 13 y ear olds in my life. It was an adventure and I'll post more about it and pictures later.

Now it's time for bed since I've been up since 5:30 this morning and we lose an hour of sleep tonight!

Me & Matt  

Easter dinner at the Parks house...Aunt Karen, Mrs. Parks, Me & Matt, and my parents (sorry it's blurry) 

Burning with passion

My heart is burning with passion for my Savior. The past few weeks I have been overcome with His love for me. This semester I have just been going along, living each day for myself: planning my wedding, working, and going to school. My Savior desires so much more for my life. I have been reading the book of Isaiah lately and today came across one of my favorite verses...

"Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts." ~Isaiah 26:8

This is my desire. I want my entire life to be about His name and renown. Every minute of every day--should be His.

acid reflux sucks!

I must be a true Ashlee Simpson fan...suffering with acid reflux right along with her. It sucks.

3 more days until Matt & I see Ashlee Simpson in concert! Wow--I'm so freakin excited!

Not too much has been going on lately.

Matt called his doctor & got some new medicine so hopefully it will help.

Matt & I decided to go to Charleston for our honeymoon. We were planning on going to New Orleans but we figured we wouldn't have much time to do all we wanted to and it would be cheaper to go to Charleston. I'm excited. I love Charleston!

I am so tired of classes and schoolwork. I'm so ready for this summer...so I can get married and play with little kids all day!

My family (minus my brother) spent Easter afternoon at the Parks' house eating and talking wedding plans. We had a nice time. Things seem to be going very well with all the family stuff. And Matt's mom is buying us a really nice bedroom set for our wedding present!

Today I signed up for a free 14 day trial of Napster and it is super-dee-duper.

That's the end of tonights blogging.

Isaiah 53:5-6

"But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed.

We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all."

--Isaiah 53:5-6

Wow--nothing else needs to be said.

is there anyone out there?

So, as you can figure, I have a million things to do for school but I'm sitting here updating, just like any other college student would do. I feel like writing bullet style today.

• I went to David's Bridal with Kelly this afternoon to buy her wedding dress. It is geourgeous and she looks like a beautiful princess!
• Kelly's gonna borrow my tiara for her wedding--I'm excited that I get to share it with her!
• This wedding planning stuff is a whole lot funner now that Kelly's engaged.
• Paul Edinger is one pretty cool kid.
• Spring Break went by super fast and I feel like I didn't do anything but sleep (which really is the truth).
• Sleep is my idol.
• Matt finally went to the doctor and got a bunch of medicine, but he's still sick. Boo!
• I have been drinking lots of Light Hawaiian Punch lately. Yum!
• We had a sleepover at the "club" (aka gym) last Friday and it was tons of fun. Tamica, Joce, & I got to play lots of silly games!
• My mom bought me a new cookbook and I'm really excited about it! Matt is excited too because now I'm going to cook for him.
• I've been baby-sitting more and I'm so glad. I really have missed it. I'm going to keep Caleb, Sarah, & two of their friends all day Friday so that will be an adventure. Those are some crazy kids!
• My desire for learning how to surf has come back. I really want to go to the beach and take lessons. That would be freakin awesome.
• I wish I was going to see Maroon 5 tomorrow night in Charlotte. But it's all good because in two more weeks I get to see Ashlee Simpson!
• I'm upset because I cannot find the wheels, trucks, & hardware for my skateboard (I took them off a while back). I really want to skate and don't want to buy more!
• Last Friday I went up to the Charlotte Coliseum with my mom to watch Duke & UNC in their practice rounds for the NCAA tournamant. I thought it was pretty cool.
• 75 days until my wedding! Woowee!
• I want people to comment on my blog.

Think I should go do some schoolwork now? Guess so.

the laziness of this week

It's spring break & I'm being totally lazy. I didn't have to work today, but of course I woke up at 7 am anyway. Dumb internal alarm clock. I was able to go back to sleep around 8 and slept until noon. How nice. Then my mom & I went to go make my final invitation order. Yay! Everything's coming together. (uh oh! as i am typing this a little tiny bug is crawling on my screen! now it just flew away! haha!) Okay, back to today. I then went to my parent's house to do a little laundry. I headed to church around 3:45 pm to babysit Robin & Missy's kids. We had a nice little time, especially when Lexy & Sarah decided to dump all of their goldfish in their cups of water. Cute kids. Then it was time to work nursery. I hung out in the baby room for a while--totally overstaffed with 5 adults and 2 babies. We talked about school accredidation, the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, the Amazing Race, playing pranks on husbands, and acid reflux. What fun. After a while I headed down to Robin's office b/c my payroll paperwork had somehow gotten misplaced & I needed to re-do some of it. So Robin & I sat in her office for a good long while just chatting & watching funny videos on the internet. And Robin was wearing her 'nigga shoes (Saucony) tonight...she cracks me up! So, I definitely got paid for doing nothing. Hey, it's cool.

I have this urge to buy something on ebay. I used to be such an ebay addict. I miss it. Ebay is superdeeduperwonderful! Okay I'm a dork & just bid on the latest Jump Little Children cd. It came out last year but I've been slack & still haven't gotten it. Just found it on ebay for 8 cents. Holla!

I've decided that there are three things I really want to do before I die...
1. hike the entire Appalacian Trail
2. go backpacking across Europe
3. work in an orphanage in Africa

Yeah--hope those dreams become reality one day.

Ahh! That bug is back!

Okay, I'm off to watch Will & Grace. Love that show.

This is Matt's dad flying his apache in Iraq. 

Here's the chocolate fountain I'm having for my wedding!  

Spring is in the air!

Everyone is getting engaged!

Congrats to Paul & Kelly!

(and everyone else)

Spring Break!

I've finished my SCWK 432 paper and now it's officially spring break for me! Woo hoo! I still have to work at the post office & Westminster nursery but that's not much. I had the most horrible day yesterday and I'm so glad I don't have to worry about school for a few days. I still have a lot of schoolwork to do over break, but I'm not worrying about it now.

Monday afternoon my Mom & I are driving to Columbia to meet with my caterer. I'm excited about that. I also ordered my wedding invitations this past week. I like them a lot.

I just want to go to sleep now. I'm going to go turn my paper in & then take a nap before going to the gym. My poor roomie, Kristi, has only gotten 9 hours of sleep total this week. Those crazy art professors are about to kill her.

I've been learning a lot about covenants in the Bible lately--through my Old Testament class and Jeff Ferguson. Growing up Baptist, I never really knew the importance of the covenants that God made with those in the Bible. It's exciting for me to look at these as I'm about to enter a covenant marraige. My mom and I were discussing last night how marraige is so much more than signing a piece of paper for the state, but it is a covenant with God and the person you are marrying.

I may have found a job for this summer. Robin Madden & this other lady at church want me to watch their kids this summer. That'd be cool. I like keeping kids during the summer because you can take them places and do lots of fun stuff.

Guess that's it for now. I'm headed to Bancroft to turn in my paper.

it's march already?

Where did February go? I have no clue but what I do know is that my wedding is in 95 days! How scary is that?! We still have so much to do and so little time.

Today is Matt & my 10 month anniversary. That's not really that long considering we're getting married. Some people still think we're crazy for getting married so soon, especially since I'm still in school. But when you know, you know. And that's how it goes. My friend Meredith & her fiance have been dating 7 years and they are getting married in November! Now that's some patience!

I just finished the first half of my english exam. It was a killer. I'm dreading the discussion part on Thursday.

I have recently become more and more aware of my stubbornness. Never in my life would I have said that I was a stubborn person, but I'm 'fessing up to it now. Matt & I have these dumb arguements over dumb little things (example--how much water to boil when making macaroni, whether to go to bojangles or not, etc.) and through these arguements I have now realized I am extremely stubborn. Both Matt & I are both stubborn & sometimes won't take the time to listen to the other person--we just keep arguing our point. We always resolve it within minutes and it becomes a laughing matter, but still...it kills me that I am as stubborn as I am. Guess this is what marraige is gonna be all about...learning new things about yourself and dealing with them!

So, I am hardcore dieting & exercising for the wedding. I've decided I'm gonna lose all this weight for the wedding & then after the wedding get fat again. Wanna know why I'm gonna get fat again? Because Matt & I did our budget the other day & it's gonna be extremely tight...therefore we're gonna be eating lots of ramen & macaroni & cheese. There go the carbs.

Wanna know something funny? I can't go a single day without spilling something on me. Let's see...Thursday=ketchup & eggs at Waffle House, Friday=syrup at my house, Saturday=honey mustard at Longhorn's, Sunday=honey mustard at church...but I don't think I spilled anything on myself yesterday or today (yet)! Yay! I'm a big girl now! :)

wedding stuff

Many of you keep asking who my caterer is and stuff. So, why don't you just check out her website. http://www.southerngourmetcatering.net/home.html

And if you wanna go to my photographer's website go here. http://www.carolinadigitalphotography.com/

So that's my wedding. And the food is gonna be real good...and I'm gonna have a chocolate fountain! Heck yeah!

raindrops on roses

It's been a great weekend. Very busy but fun.

Friday morning I went to work & then headed home to spend some time with my family and do laundry. I ended up spending the entire rest of the day with them, which was great. After Matt got off work he came over to my parents house and we ate pancakes for dinner. Yum!

Saturday I had to work the nursery at Westminster from 9 am-12pm. We had four kids--two fourth graders, a six-month old and a one-year old. The babies were great and so adorable. Then Matt & I headed to Pineville for lunch & shopping at Old Navy. We went to Rafferty's for lunch which was good but a little expensive for us being that we're on a really tight budget. Then we went to Old Navy & I got a few things. Later on we headed to Columbia with Matt's mom & Aunt Karen (aka Crazy Aunt Karen) for dinner with the Army Aviation Association, Jimmy Doolittle Chapter. Matt's mom was invited by some friends in honor of Mr. Parks. The dinner meeting was held at Longhorn's. Oh yeah, it was delicious. There was a speaker there, some guy who talked about helping Latin America. Out of his 45 minute talk all I understood was that many Latin Americans live in extreme poverty and are illiterate. After the meeting we headed back up & I came home and went to bed. I was pooped.

Today we had church & the college luncheon. I really enjoyed college luncheon because Matt & I sat with two families with young children. We had a lot of good conversation and the kids were adorable.

Then tonight we had Financial Peace where we learned about insurance. I'm still a little boggled by it all. I'm so ignorant about all of this stuff. Then we had our engaged couples Bible study with Jeff which was wonderful. I always enjoy spending time with Jason, Christen, Matt, & Stephanie. It makes me feel good that other couples are going through all we are.

So I'm sure this is the most boring entry ever.

Right now I feel pretty distant from a lot of people. I am so busy and it seems like I don't have any time just to hang out with anyone anymore. I miss spending time with people. Sometimes I feel like nobody wants to hang out anymore just because me & Matt are engaged. Yeah we're getting married but I still want to hang out with everyone else. I want to hang out with the girls without Matt. I want to hang out with my roomies. It just sucks because we are all so busy.

My dad is still searching for a job. It's been almost a year. That is so discouraging. I can't even imagine how my dad feels. He got two more rejection letters yesterday and sent out two more resumes. He didn't get one job just because he doesn't have a masters in social work, even though he has 22 years of experience working in the social work field. That scares me.

Matt & I have all of these random thoughts for our future. I am now realizing that I will have to go to grad school. We may stay here & I can go to Winthrop for grad school. We may move to Tennessee (Nashville or Memphis) & I could go to UT. That would be incredible. We may head down to Florida. We have no clue. We are definitely open to anything though.

Okay, I guess this is a long enough random entry. Bye for now.

I'm back!

I've decided I'm gonna update in this thing again...as well as myspace. Here's the lowdown on me...

Only 100 days until I get married.
I'm thinking about going to grad school (University of Tennessee maybe?).
I love being a social work major.
I'm now working in the nursery at Westminster and Forest Hill.
My room is a crazy mess & I need to clean it.
On Saturday I'm going to Columbia with Matt & his mom for a Doo Little Raiders dinner.
I've been working out with Joce at Impact Xpress Fitness and it's a lot of fun (Holly & Tam Tam are going there too).
Matt & I are apartment searching.
I gave up french fries for Lent.
I really want to cut & dye my hair but I'm gonna wait until after the wedding.
I'm going to see Ashlee Simpson on April 2nd.
I ate both boxes of my girl scout cookies and now I feel deprived.
I need to do laundry real bad.
I've been a huge slacker this week.

Guess that's it for now.

what hotties! and yes, that is Jeremy Camp!!! 

hot girls! 

holla! 

Haning out at the Bobcats game