HDSL, v 2.0

Smuckers Simply Fruit | Blackberry Flavor: the best thing since peanut butter and jelly. I will eat this with peanut butter, toast, biscuits -- you name it. But any of those things aren't complete without this spread.

Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook | Hensperger and Kaufmann: This is on my wishlist because I know that I will need lots of slow cooker recipes when we're married and both working full time. It will be nice to make dinner in the morning, make JT's lunch, go to work, and workout and then come home for dinner. We'll see if life and all of its busyness affords me that luxury.

Reflections for Ragamuffins | Manning: If you know anything about me, you must know how much I was changed by Brennan Manning's book, The Ragamuffin Gospel. This book includes devotionals based on his previous work, and I can't believe I'm just starting to read it. This will be on my bedside table for many years, I can guarantee that!

August Rush: I'm so excited this movie finally came out on DVD! I saw it twice in the theatre and was totally inspired by it. Well, I haven't done much, but it fed my desire to find something, do it well, and be passionate about it. I recommend it for anyone who likes music or feel-good stories. Aside from Robin Williams' especially creepy role, the whole story makes it one of my favorite movies.

Long Line of Leavers | Caedmon's Call: Do you ever come across one of those CDs where you like absolutely every song? It doesn't happen often for me, but this is the latest. It's kind of ironic because right before I met JT, I started playing soccer and fell in love with Caedmon's Call and Derek Webb, one of their original singers who left the group to do solo work. Those are two of JT's absolute favorite things, so it had to have been God's perfect timing! Anyway, Derek's voice really shines in "What You Want," which is one of my favorite songs right now.

spring fever

Well, folks, I have the flu. Let's just say it gives new meaning to spring fever.

Yesterday morning, I just couldn't get out of bed and it pretty much stayed that way until about six o'clock. I was boiling with fever and my head and lower back felt like they were made of lead. That's why my sleep schedule is shot and I am bright-eyed at this glorious hour, hopefully over the worst of it.

So I missed work, but tried to keep up with emails. JT's best man's first baby was born yesterday morning. He had to drive four hours from a conference in Kansas City, but made it for his daughter's big debut. She was about three weeks early, but ready! She will be such a great girl with awesome parents. Anyway, I was so disappointed I didn't get to go see her, but JT was sweet enough to make sure I felt included:

JT with Emmercyn Averie :)

handsome man

my crutchy man :)

First HDSL

So what if my first Hump Day Shortlist falls on a Thursday? The way I am operating, it's still Tuesday sleep-wise and Friday work-wise so it can be any day because it's my blog! What is a HDSL, you ask? Skip down a post. but do come back! You missed one :)

Sacred Marriage | Gary Thomas: This is a book some of JT's friends told him to read with me. It talks about how marriage has the potential to bring your walk with Christ to an entirely different level and it's very down-to-earth. It does everything from trouble sheet to inspire to encourage. I have sacrificed sleep to finish chapters of this one! Please read this if you're married or seriously considering it.

500 Cupcakes: This was one of my Valentine's present from JT this year because he knows I love to bake and would love the design of the book. True and true. This is the book that contained the recipe to my wonderful volcanic Cupcake Nightmares.

Storytime! I found a recipe for Chocolate Berry cupcakes, and since I've been on a blackberry kick and JT was craving cupcakes, thought I'd give it a whirl. I made it through mixing the batter, making a fruit compote, and my chocolate gloss ganache. Then I overfilled the cupcake papers and had Cupcake Pools after the prescribed thirty minutes in the oven. I stuck them in a little longer and they turned a beautiful golden brown. They tasted wonderful topped with the chocolate ganache and fresh blackberries. WARNING: you WILL get hungry, but they were supposed to look like this. Mine were overflowing and I had to cut them from the tin with the flat of a knife, but they tasted wonderful served warm with milk!
The Reminder | Feist: They do the "1,2,3,4" song found on one of the first iPod Nano commercials. I had to add her because I have been listening to the song, "How My Heart Behaves" pretty much on repeat for the past four days. I'm torn between the gorgeous piano intro and the way her voice sounds with the backup male singer on the bridge chorus. Her voice and lyrics and even instrumentation are pretty much haunting and I love that! Haunting, eclectic, and timeless. She definitely doesn't belong in this decade.


Dr. David & Lisa Frisbie: Okay, I'm not really reading this book, but I have to plug our premarital counselors. This is one of their books. Their specialty is relationships, but they are exceptional with remarried couples, single parents, and the like. They have been wonderful with us. I went into counseling thinking that JT and I were going to experience lots of tearful accusations and other explosive situations. But they just let us explain how we did things, how we maneuvered through decisions and disagreements, what we would do in certain situations. We did a LOT of roleplaying. What would we do if we found out we couldn't have children, etc. Stuff you never think about, but are unexpected realities to everyday couples. Anyway, we love talking to them and are kind of disappointed we only have one follow-up session left. (We passed with flying colors, they said.)


The Goonies | (1985): So I never realized that this movie came out the year I was born. Hmmm. Good to know. I love this movie for obvious reasons. His name is Chunk. My iPod is named after Chunk's signature move, the Truffle Shuffle. Heck, I need to post the video.




I love everything about Chunk, from the mismatched clothes to the tearful fits he goes into and the way he befriends the ever-lovable Sloth. JT and I had Monopoly-Goonies-Turkey Dog night one of the days he was worse for wear and it was so much fun! Those kinds of nights belong to The Goonies.

lifesavers

Figure it's time for an update from me. From making my first delicious, volcanic Cupcake Nightmares to discovering that premarital counseling doesn't involve crying accusations, my life has been unpredictable, fast-paced and absolutely WONDERFUL!

JT has improved significantly. He slept through the night for the first time since his surgery this past Sunday night. His color has returned, he’s a regular speed demon on his crutches and he’s his ornery self again – oh wait, no surgery or severe pain could ever take that away from him :)

Wedding planning is going well. No turning back now. I bought my veil yesterday from this woman who is the perfect picture of what an African-American matriarch should be. She runs this shop called The Clothes Horse (very Sweet Valley, I know, right?) but I had never heard of it as a bridal shop. She has all kinds of dresses and accessories and MAKES veils. Plus she can alter my dress, which is a huge lifesaver! She pretty much can do anything and lets you know, too.

I have had the strangest dreams lately. The other night, in a half-sleep phase, I obsessed for hours about registering for a slow-cooker cookbook. We don’t even have a slow cooker yet! But if we’re both going to be working, I have heard those things are lifesavers! (That’s the second time I’ve used that word in this post; voila – a title!) In another dream, my wedding day came and I had to get married just as I am. For some reason, I focused on how much I needed a tan and we didn’t have any plates or silverware to offer our guests either. Also, I was sick as a dog and my wedding came and went and I couldn’t remember it for the life of me. In fact, the next morning, I woke up in my bed at my parents’ house, where bees were stinging me (?), and JT had left for Costa Rica without me.

We both feel that God has huge things for us as a couple, in our relationship, our future, our careers, and especially our ministry. We are praying and exploring right now, and we both have a feeling that something’s coming soon. Please keep us in your prayers! Oh, and our website is up, so if you want the address and are ready to propel us out of anonymity, check my Facebook or leave me a comment!

At work, we routinely call bookstores to schedule signing and discussion events for our authors. Naturally, I spend a lot of time on the Borders website, checking to make sure our books are listed properly and finding all of the stores within a 50-mile radius of an author’s hometown. I’m going to add a new feature to my blog: Hump Day Shortlists. They are based on the bottom left corner of the Borders website, where they feature celebrities’ top five book, music and movie choices. Now I’m no Radiohead or Stephen King, but this is a short and interesting way to keep me accountable to blogging, and I’m going to take it, starting this week in a new post.

JT's poor ankle.

valentine's and surgery

That is my handsome man! JT's surgery is over and he's recovering at home like a trooper. He's holding true to his motto of "Sooner Tough," even though those words are grating to my ears :)

They ended up having to do a lot more to him than we'd originally hoped. They had to reconstruct his shredded ligaments and reshape his bones and do all kinds of things in there.

He's in a hard cast as we feared, but only has to wear it for two weeks and a boot for four weeks after that. That's an answer to prayer! He'll have two weeks before the wedding to regain his strength and mobility. He's very strong, heals fast, and works hard, so I have no doubt that he'll be up and playing soccer in no time! Needless to say, he's in a lot of pain, so please keep his healing and pain relief in your prayers.

So our first Valentine's Day together wasn't quite like we'd imagined it would be. If you look back to Valentine's Day last year, I can't believe how much things have changed. It was such a wonderful day, though, to relax with him all day and be his helper. He is a wonderful patient. He has been so sweet and loving despite his pain. It's been hard to watch him in pain, but I feel like our relationship and our comfort with each other has improved even more.

On the way to his surgery, JT surprised me with our first Bible with our initials on it for Valentine's Day along with chocolate, a cupcake recipe book, and a sweet card. I had given him his presents ahead of time, but I threw in one last surprise:

heart-shaped sandwiches he'd been craving since he woke up from his surgery. Very "cheesy" of me, I know! Anyway, I feel like I am floating on air. I am so lucky to be marrying him!

generic update 398493

After that downer of a post, I am glad to report that things are looking up. I'm trying to relax and keep the panic attacks at bay...no really, it's not that bad.

Action Step #1: I am making a rule that no computer will be allowed to touch the bed except for extreme special occasions, such as writing in bed all day. All internet searching and posting will have to be conducted from the "comforts" of my desk chair.

Action Step #2: Six (6) loads of laundry will be washed and dried today. Eight (8) bags of extra clothes will be vacated from my bedroom and relocated to JT's garage. At least eight (8) bags of additional garage sale material will be selected and removed in two weekends.

Not next weekend because JT's fourth ankle surgery is Thursday. You may or may not remember that Valentine's Day is the same day. For a present, I got him this game so he can have something to keep him occupied while he's laid up. You newbies don't know this, but this past summer, JT broke his other ankle and found some relief for his restlessness with the Wii.

Please, please pray for the best outcome in his surgery. Worst case scenario: he'll be in a cast until the week of our wedding. Best case scenario: boot for four to six weeks, physical therapy before the wedding. He will be strong and well within no time, but it will be nice if he has the chance to do so before our wedding, but it will be the best day no matter what!

My dress came in Friday! It fits like a glove, but I am going to work to lose a few more inches this month so I can get it fitted in time for the wedding! My mom has joined my gym, so we went a few times together last week and it was great. I'm going to try to do weights and running three times a week and just running twice a week before the wedding. High protein breakfasts and trim lunches and dinners will help me. My fridge is already stocked with pink lady apples, hummus, whole wheat waffles, and Lean Cuisine dinners.

I'm going to try to be better about posting the fun and exciting things that are happening, but half the time I wonder if people really want to hear about meetings with marriage counselors and finding out how true it is when people say you don't only marry someone, you marry their family, too!