Weekly Wrap Up

Sunday - May 12, 2013

On Sunday, we drove back home from celebrating the triplet's 1st birthday. It was also at this time that I realized I had left half of their presents in OK, so just something to look forward to later, I guess.

I rested most of the drive home. We ate a quick pizza for an early dinner because we had forgotten to eat lunch.

TJ took my phone to the Sprint store. They said they fixed it, but less than 15 minutes after coming home it started turning itself off and on again. Of course, this was approximately 8 minutes after I had already posted on Facebook that it was fixed. Oh well.

I unpacked and caught up on some reading. I also did couponing in the evening and got roughly $80 worth of product for $20 - YAY!


Monday - May 13, 2013

I didn't feel well when I woke up, so I stayed home from work. I ended up sleeping until after noon so I must have really needed the rest. It has been an exhausting last couple of weeks.

That evening we celebrated the birthdays of Becky, Carol, and Emily...

And mother's day for Deedra and Carol

Then we kind of got into a picture frenzy. 

Becky, Emily, and myself

TJ and myself

Tuesday - May 14, 2013

This was the first birthdays for the most adorable triplets ever. See lots of pictures here.

It also is the birthday of TJ's grandmother. Here is her birthday SHOUT OUT!

This was also the day I took my phone to the Sprint store for the FOURTH time for repairs. I had to leave my phone over night. I am very frustrated with their customer service and repair departments. But, I also enjoy occasional moments without my phone. I do seem to get more accomplished that way (Bright Side!)

Wednesday - May 15, 2013
This was the day Becky was born! Yay for sisters-in-law! See her birthday SHOUT OUT here.

On this day, I finally got a phone that worked. Sprint decided to replace my old phone with a new one. Still a Samsung Galaxy SII, but brand new. Now I just have to download all my favorite apps again and collect phone numbers.

We both attended church this evening. I spent my time catching up on the videos I had missed the past two Sundays for the women's Bible study. I really enjoyed being able to pause and rewind to catch everything.

And that was Wednesday.



Thursday - May 16, 2013
On this evening, TJ and I attended Emily's 6th grade awards ceremony with their mom, Deedra. Emily was awarded the Outstanding Student Award for Speech and Drama!! Yay Emily!!

Emily and I before the ceremony.

The handsome TJ and I.

And this is my favorite picture of Emily with her award. 

Friday - May 17, 2013
On Friday evening TJ and I went our separate ways. By that I mean we each went to a different celebration.

TJ went to an Office Watch Party to see the series finale episode of The Office. He, of course, didn't get any pictures.

I went to a Birthday Celebration for my sister-in-law! I thought it was so sweet of her to invite me and I was super excited to hang out with these ladies! We had all met before during Becky's wedding, so I knew it wouldn't be awkward (you know, besides just my general awkwardness) and they are all so nice and always make me feel included! The original plan was to go dancing, but that fell through as a few of the girls couldn't stay out late due to previous commitments for the following morning. It all worked out though as we stayed up late chatting about life, which is always fun! I love just hanging out an talking with people!

Sadly, I didn't get any shots of the whole group. I was just having too much fun :) But here are a couple of me and Becks!

Saturday - May 18, 2013
We are so blessed by the members of our church family. Last week, TJ and I were given an amazing gift by the members of the youth group band - restaurant gift certificates!

This evening we went to Red Lobster for DATE NIGHT! We both got all gussied up for it too. I was so proud of my TJ because he tried all new foods - caesar dressing, king crab legs, and lobster! Neither of us were very impressed with the lobster, but we both loved the king crab. It was fun tearing it apart, and I was happy because I remembered how to make the claw open and shut, haha!

Our waiter was amazing and earned a big tip!! He gave us a free salad, since we split a meal which only came with one salad. He also came up to our table at the end of the meal saying he heard it was my birthday so we would get a free dessert. He did all of this because TJ knew one of the other waiters who was friends with our waiter. How does the saying go? It's good to have friends in high places?

So that was our week. :)

How was your week?

Weekly Wrap Up

Sunday November 18, 2012

This was one of two Undie Sundies at our church. We are trying to gather new underwear, shirts, and socks for a local school. 

This was also our church's Thanksgiving Dinner. I meant to take pictures and didn't. :( 

The food was super delicious though and it was packed house. Love fellowshipping with everyone! :)

Monday November 19, 2012

The beginning of a three-day work week. Definitely worked hard all day. The time flew. 

Tuesday November 20, 2012

Spent a quiet and lovely evening at home with my handsome hubby. 

Wednesday November 21, 2012

My work department had their T-day potluck lunch. I brought a copy cat recipe of Cracker Barrel's hashbrown casserole. It's something I love to eat at thanksgiving, so I thought someone else might as well. Everyone loved it, which made me really happy. :)

Here's the recipe: Copy Cat Recipe - Cracker Barrel's Hashbrown Casserole. Be sure to read the reviews for any changes you might want to make. 

Our church didn't have services this evening, so there could be more family time for the holidays. Love that they encourage us in this way. 

Thursday November 22, 2012

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Every year we switch back and forth for Thanksgiving. This year was TJ's year so we went to his family's T-day celebration.

Ready to nom on some Turkey Day deliciousness!

Us and the original Shinns :)

Becky and I take great pictures together :)

This year we all took turns shooting Lucy's (9 y/o) bow and arrow after watching Brave. 

Friday November 23, 2012

Since we weren't able to spend Thanksgiving with my side of our family, we went and saw my grandma today. I'm kicking myself for not taking any pictures, but we had a wonderful time talking with her and catching up on all the news. I swear, grandmas are the original Facebook; they know everything that's happening with every one. :)

Later that evening we went on a date to Cheddar's and a dollar movie - Looper. This was seriously the most people I have ever seen at a dollar movie, the theater was probably 1/4 full people! I didn't like the movie. Yes, it made me think, but I called the ending within about 20 minutes of the beginning, and [SPOILER ALERT]

I didn't like the part where they kill a little boy. I was ready to leave right then.

Oh, speaking of movies, I can't remember which night it was, but we watched Source Code and that movie still has me thinking. I really liked it!!

Saturday November 24, 2012

On this day, we decorated for Christmas! :) TJ got us a 4 ft tree this year, which is twice as big as our 2 ft tree from last year. We just don't have room in our apartment to put up or store anything bigger. Can't wait to get a house and get a big tree, and we'll have a medium and a small tree to match :) 

Our Christmas Window

Stockings hung with care

Our Christmas Tree

Sorry this didn't post earlier in the day, but here ya go, our weekly wrap up :)

Weekly Wrap Up

Sunday November 11, 2012

We went to Sunday School and discussed wisdom. During service we learned about the importance of joy and laughter in life. I was very impressed with how our pastor handled this sensitive topic because he addressed the opposite of joy and laughter: depression.

I've heard various mental illnesses mentioned from the pulpit before and more often than not it's not spoken of appropriately. Our pastor spoke of the research he had done and the statistics he had found: Oklahoma has one of the highest rates of depression in the country and the demographic that is most reported as having depression is ages 45 to 65.

He didn't speak of it flippantly or as a joke, but as an issue that is important, not to be ignored, and needs to be addressed both by the church as a whole and by each individual with a professional. I was very happy to hear his words of truth and encouragement, because we would all be ignorant to assume someone in the room wasn't dealing with depression at that very moment.

After church, we went home and did what we do best, TEAM WORK! We managed to plan our meals for the week, grocery shop, clean out the fridge, empty and load the dishwasher and clean the house a little. :) So happy and blessed to have such a wonderful teammate!

Monday November 12, 2012

As a state employee, I had Monday, Veteran's Day, off. TJ didn't. But he worked out a deal with his boss and worked extra time last week so that he could have this day to spend with me. :)

Usually we have plans and don't get to eat at home for all three meals of the day, so this day felt special because I got to cook for us. Now don't get too excited because it wasn't anything fancy: sausage biscuits with gravy and eggs for breakfast, grilled cheese and tomato soup for lunch, and hashbrown hamburger helper (my favorite!) for dinner.

We played Black Ops together, watched American Pickers, got ALL of our laundry done, and saw Skyfall! :)

So happy to have this day to recharge our souls and invest time in each other :)

Tuesday November 13, 2012

We spent the evening together, just hanging out at home.

Wednesday November 14, 2012

We went to a special Thanksgiving service at our church, with all ages together. We heard testimonies and worshipped our God as one church.

Thursday November 15, 2012

We hung out at home. :)

Friday November 16, 2012

I went with my MIL and SIL to see Breaking Dawn Part 2. It was AMAZING!! There is such a huge twist but it's just ... perfect! Loved every minute. Wish I could have seen it again, immediately and want the soundtrack SO BAD!

And here's what I have to say to the Twilight haters out there. This is a movie series created solely for the fans of the books. It was never intended to win awards or change your life, just to entertain those who enjoy the books or the films. If you're not one of those people, DON'T WATCH IT! end rant.

Saturday November 17, 2012

Saturday, this week, is our day to reboot EVERYTHING: cleaning, resting, reading, playing, blogging, planning, etc.

And just because I loved this how as a kid, and I said the name in the previous sentence, here's a random picture.

P.S. I will try much harder next week to take at least one picture every day for the next Weekly Wrap Up, especially because it will be THANKSGIVING Week :) Yay friends and family!!

Weekly Wrap Up

Sunday November 4, 2012

On Sunday we went to church, like usual, and went to the adult Sunday School, which isn't usual. We are normally helping with the teens, but we are intentionally seeking to learn and be fed for a period of time so we chose to surround ourselves with older adult couples. It was very refreshing to not be in the leadership position and to simply be open to the Word. We very much enjoyed it.

After service, TJ had band practice for a gig he had on Tuesday [more details on Tuesday]. I took a wonderful nap.

I spent a lot of time on Monday reading so that I could finish my Book Club book, Everything We Ever Wanted [more details on Tuesday].

Monday November 5, 2012

Monday night I went to an event for the Aegis Element, which seeks to end human trafficking, also known as the sex slave trade. Please visit their website and educate yourself not only on the problem but how you can be part of the solution.

This occasion was also the motivation for my first attempt at Live Tweeting, which is when you tweet an event while it is happening. If you have a twitter account, simply search for #TheAegisElement and you'll see all of my tweets from that evening.

Here is a picture of me with Sarah, one of the co-founders of The Aegis Element, my co-traveler to Vietnam in 2008, and a dear friend. I am blessed to know her and to witness the many ways that she is making the world a better place. Love you Sarah!

Tuesday November 6, 2012

This was no small day. This was ELECTION DAY!! We, the American people, cast our votes and Barack Obama was elected for another four year term. No, I will not share who I voted for, but I will say that as an American, I will respect the choice of my fellow Americans and recognize Obama as our country's leader.

This totally looks like I'm pointing at my boob,
but I'm really pointing at my "I Voted!" sticker
Also, it appears that I have no bottom teeth :(

This was also the evening of my very first Book Club! :) I had no idea who else was going to be there, but it turned out to be all older women, except the librarian who hosted, who was a young, redhead like me. We all discussed Sara Shepherd's (she wrote the Pretty, Little Liars series) Everything We Ever Wanted.

I'll save my review for another post, but just know that I very much enjoyed the book club experience. I can't wait for next month's meeting, after we read Major Pettigrew's Last Stand.

After the book party, I drove over to TJ's work place where he was playing in a band for an election watch party. My husband's boss campaigned for a seat on our state senate, and won! It was my first every watch party for someone running, and I enjoyed it. I loved hearing TJ play.

TJ is in the back, and the lights were so bright, this is the best picture I got. 

Wednesday November 7, 2012

On this night, TJ went to church to help with the youth group. I stayed home to work on a project. The teen group went to Orange Leaf after service and I loved seeing all of the pictures on Instagram. TJ was so sweet and brought me home a soda.

Thursday November 8, 2012

Early in the afternoon we got word that TJ's grandparents were in town and wanted to go to dinner with us and TJ's sister and husband. It was so wonderful to see them all! Even though I live in the same city as my SIL, we don't get to see each other that often, which makes me sad :( Hopefully we can schedule more SIL dates soon! :) 

Just the ladies! :) 

Everyone all together! :)

We met everyone for dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, Teds! I tried their chicken nachos for the first time and they were sooo yummy, although the portion size was much too much for me!

Friday November 9, 2012

On Friday I went to another event at my local library called Learn to Knit with my friend Misty. It is EXACTLY what it sounds like. We were both happily surprised that there were many younger women there too. It was a lot of fun and we both went home with some yarn and new knowledge. :)

Me and my teacher, Catherine

A start of something...

Saturday November 10, 2012

I was so very excited for Saturday to get here so I could watch some OU Volleyball! Few people know this, but I LOVE volleyball!! It started when I played for my college my freshman year. I was absolutely horrible at it then! (I'm not nearly as bad now.) At our last match I finally had a chance to just sit an watch others play and I just loved it. 

Well, Saturday happens to be Fan Appreciation Day, so the game is free.

Problem: It's also game day for football. All of the roads I needed were blocked off or turned around, so I never actually made it there. Oh well, more time to get other stuff done I guess. :)