WILW!

I know it's late in the day, but better late than never, right?  I missed out on last week's (and possibly the week before that?) so I really wanted to get in on this week's.  I've been in a bit of a blog slump lately.  Hopefully, I can get back into the groove soon.

So, here goes...linking up with Jaime for...

I'm Loving this quote.  It really applies to my life right now and I am trying to abide by it...

"Courage is not the absence of fear,

but rather the judgment that something else is more important than

fear." - Ambrose Redmoon

I'm Loving this orange juice.  It's the best orange juice.  I've gone through 3 containers of it over the past couple weeks!

I'm Loving this sweet girl- my friend Megan's new baby, Lola!  Here she is sleeping in my arms :) ....

She's so pretty...and it is fun to watch your friend become a mom.  She is already a great mommy, for sure!

I'm Loving this yummy fruit salad....

Mix a can of peach pie filling with chopped fruit of your choice.  So easy & so yummy.  It stays fresh for a long time, too.  I usually use apples, grapes, strawberries, and mandarin oranges (plus the peaches from the filling).  

I'm Loving that Spring is on her way...but I wish she'd hurry up! (Click on pics for links)

I'm loving this cuddle-buddy...

Of course, I'm Loving my other main man, too.... ;)

Lola's Here!!!!!!!!

One of my best friends, Megan, had her baby girl yesterday!

Her name is Lola Ryan, and she is SOOOOOOOOOO sweet!!!!  (Ryan is her daddy's middle name.)

She was a little over 7 lbs. and 20 in. long.  For a while, we thought she would be really, really small....but she is a nice, healthy weight!  Megan & Lola are both doing wonderfully!  Praise God for that!

Mommy & Daddy are so in love with their new little girl....as are all of their family and friends....including this "Auntie!"

It was so fun waiting and preparing for her arrival....but now the REAL fun begins!!!

From this....

To this...

Auntie Beth Ann with Lola!

Shon with Lola!

Look at her sucking her thumb!!!

The new family shortly after Lola arrived :)

Thanking God for a healthy friend 

and new "niece" to spoil! ;)

My Valentine

Honestly, I feel like every day is Valentine's Day.  I love my husband SO much...every day!  I feel very blessed to have married my best friend and continue to be amazed at how much I love him.  It doesn't seem possible that two people could love each other so much.  We have been together for ten and a half years....and we are not sick of each other at all.  We often talk about the fact that how much we love each other...and not only love each other but really like each other...is ridiculous.  We are each other's favorite person.  I could go on and on...but really I just wanted to share some pictures of us that make me happy....and to THANK GOD for giving me my husband and allowing me to  meet the love of my life at such a young age.  I feel very fortunate to have been spared the heartache of multiple break-ups or of searching for the right man to share my life with.  No matter what is not "perfect" in my life...no matter what other heartache I'm going through...I am always thanking God for Shon and our marriage.  I know our marriage is extraordinary.  I am truly so, so, SO thankful!

a wee bit of me...

I think this is my first time linking up for "A wee bit of me Wednesdays."  I'll be honest, I'm mainly doing it because I am bored and lonely waiting for the stinkin' hospital to release my med-school-student-husband!  Gees!  Let him come home to me already!!! :(


{one} ice: crushed or cubed?Crushed, please.
{two} what is your worst traffic pet peeve?No turn signals.  Seriously?  It's not that difficult, people.  My husband always yells, "Nice signal, Buddy!!!"  in his best annoyed voice.   (He doesn't really get mean and he never says "bad words" so this is about the extent of his road rage.)
{three} what room in your house best represents your personality?Eek...that's a good question.  I'll go with our bedroom...it is calming, relaxing, welcoming, almost loving... and the bed is oh-so-comfy.  I love my sleep.  I have a love affair with our bed.  

{Doug enjoying our bed...I don't have any pictures of our bedroom as it looks now :( }
{four} do you save old birthday cards?I have to MAKE myself throw them away.  I love greeting cards.  I love getting them, I love giving them.   I like to look at them over and over.  I could stay in the greeting card aisle forever.  I have quite a lot of birthday cards saved from when I was younger.  I saved all of our wedding cards in a big hat box.  Since we've been married, I've forced myself to throw cards away because we just don't have room to store them and really, what will I ever do with them?  Plus, birthdays just aren't quite as special anymore.
{five} when was the last time you went on a picnic?Last summer at a lake with Shon, my parents, and sister. 
{six} do you regularly check your horoscope?No.  
{seven} when you’re home, what do you wear on your feet?Socks, my "houseboots," or little slipper flats.

{eight} what’s your favorite gambling game?This girl barely knows how to play Uno, Old Maid, and Go Fish.
{nine} have you ever written (or started writing) a book?No.  I do not understand how anyone writes a book!  It's amazing!
{ten} what is your favorite musical?Grease.  (Yes, I can probably sing all of the songs...I used to have the soundtrack. ) (And yes, I know the hand jive.){Be jealous.}

WILW!

{Link up with Jamie for WILW!}

I'm Loving that today is my sister, Sophia's, 10th birthday!  I cannot believe she is already 10!  She has brought so much happiness to our lives!  At 10 years old, she is beautiful, smart, talented, and loves to sing, dance, read, play basketball, practice cheerleading, american girl dolls, and fashion designing.

Little Sophia

Sophia now

I'm Loving daydreaming about Spring clothes:

{Forever 21 Embroidered Peasant Tunic}

{Gap Peep-Toe Flats}

{Rosette Bib Necklace}

{I MUST get one of these this Spring! LOVE them...and there are SO many to choose from on Etsy...}

I'm Loving God's faithfulness, timing, and the fact that I can lean on Him for strength all day, every day.  {And I do.}

I'm Loving my supportive, encouraging, there-for-me-no-matter-what/loves-me-no-matter-what husband.  I cannot.imagine.my.life.without.this.man!

What the Superbowl means to me...

FOOD!

Lasagna, garlic bread, salad, wings, sandwiches, chips & dip, fruit & dip, crackers & squeeze cheese, bbq weenies, brownies, chocolate peanut butter bars, cookies, monkey bread, ice cream sundaes...oh yeah...that's what I'm talkin' about.

I ate and talked and ate some more....honestly, it's impressive that I even know who won...

Doug "watching" the Superbowl...

Did you catch the pug Superbowl commercial?  We missed it, but had to look it up online after a few people told us about it.  Okay, it wasn't that funny...but it was still cute...especially since we can picture ourselves as the goofy dorito guy.

<a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/video?vid=3b21037b-24c0-4748-b056-a8d6c24e0d7d" target="_new" title="">Doritos: Pug</a>

And this is not, in any way, superbowl related...but they're WAY cute...so look at them! ;)

Life is good...

Superbowl Sunday

Doug's ready for the Superbowl............

We are COLTS fans...so we're not overly excited about this year's Superbowl.  (Actually, I'm not much of a sports fan so I'm not really ever too excited about it...)  We are going to my parents' house...the main attraction for me is all of the good (bad!) food that will be there!  I like to see the commercials, too.  ;)

Happy Superbowl Sunday!

sweet & easy craft idea

I recently became a follower of Michaela Noelle.  I found her blog through a link-up that was sharing blogs that people loved.

Click above to check out her blog!

Anyway....she posted this post about a little crafty project that she just "dreamed up" one night.  I thought it was such a cute idea...and SO EASY.  I love easy craft ideas.  I am not really a "crafter" at this point in my life....but for now I do enjoy simple, easy projects like this one!  

Here's how my version of her project turned out:

(Please excuse quality of the pictures....these were quick snaps with the iphone.)

I just used a piece of scrapbook paper and bought the frame (50% off!) at Hobby Lobby.  Talk about easy, right?  It's a modified, cute version of a dry erase board.  I picked the scrapbook paper to match our kitchen, since that is where we are keeping the frame.  Shon and I are taking turns writing a bible verse on the frame before we go to bed.  He chooses, writes it, and I see it in the morning and vice versa.  I thought it would be a good way for us to explore more scripture and to have a bible verse to pray and have on our minds each day.  

My sweet hubby took his "verse writing" turn first.  When I got home from work in the morning, there was that super sweet verse from Song of Solomon waiting for me.  *Swoon.*  I'm lucky. ;)  

Just wanted to share this great idea!  Be sure to check out Michaela's blog!