First Loves

Ok, so I had a really weird thing happen to me the other day…. I saw a picture of my "first love" holding his new little baby girl and I have to tell you, my heart m-e-l-t-e-d. I mean literally my heart was overcome with pure joy and excitement and might have even skipped a little beat. For a moment I looked at this picture and had a gi-normous smile take over my face, which then faded as tears of happiness began welling up in my eyes, which soon turned into streaming tears of "Oh my gosh...oh MY gosh... OH MY GOSH, you're a dad” tears! And once I got to that point, I got sad. My heart kind of hurt, like ‘Really, you're a dad?!... Really?... and why do you look exactly like I always imagined you would look holding your first child?’

I can’t even recall the last time I saw this person or even spoke to him, but for a split second I was taken back to the summer our paths crossed for the second time in our lives. Then, the next thing I knew I had a slide show of flashbacks flood my mind… It was a summer night before we started high school and we were both totally coming out of our awkward adolescent phases and immediately clicked in front of the Tabernacle at Highland Lakes Baptist Encampment. If I remember correctly, I referred to my Bible as a "Holly Bib-le", and he immediately caught my nervous, witty, attempt at flirting- turned his head to look at me, gave his cocky/notorious grin, squinted his eyes and flirted back!

The slide show continued to my first kiss (with him) on a church bus. I thought about John Michael Montgomery’s song I Love the Way You Love Me; David Lee Murphy’s, Dust on a Bottle; and the New Radicals’, You Get What You Give.

I remembered when we both got our driver's license, which meant we did not have to spend hours on the phone each night. Instead, he would come get me in his blazer (White Lightning) and we would just drive- usually out to the lake because that was “far” to us and would get us just enough outside the city limits that we could get lost in all the "what if'" conversations of life, ultimately dancing around the topic of "us". You know what I'm talking about or maybe you don’t because this was our M.O. We were notorious for “I won’t show my hand, unless you show me yours”.

The memories continued through numerous church events, a family trip to Lake Whitney, High School Graduation, Beach Trips to Port Royal, Ranch Trips, Lessons on how to drive a standard, Lake Days, Sonic trips, dinner at Shoreline, etc.

All in all we knew how to live and love each other to the fullest. Unfortunately, we also knew how to bicker and upset each other to the fullest. Our friendship continued through college and briefly after college. We parted ways after a visit to Atlanta when it became clear to both of us that we had each grown…in different directions, but the right directions that God had carefully planned for our lives.

First Loves- we've all had them. Mine was a good one and to this day makes me laugh, smile, and roll my eyes thinking back through the host of memories and fondly remembering the feelings that were associated with each. It’s funny how these memories resurface from time to time and absolutely weird at the same time. Now, if I know him like I think I do, he is going to be the best dad in the world and spoil his new little lady rotten… with camo gear!

Traffic Humor

I'm driving home from work tonight and totally got the giggles when I saw this to my right:

Rain Humor

Compliments of Theodore Dykoski!

Q: Why does Snoop need an Umbrella?

A: Fo' Drizzle!

We HEART Teddy and all his monogrammed Jon Hart luggage!

latest obsessions

i'm having a hard time putting into words how much i love amy poehler. it's hard to contain because she has been all over the place lately! a couple of weeks ago was her "best of" snl, "baby mama" has been playing on hbo non-stop, and "parks and recreation," while it is dragging a bit, still gives me such joy to know i can tune in each week and support this lady who i love. below is my favorite snl character she does. you might recognize it from the show, or your name might be rick and it will finally click to you why i yell your name really loud over and over and over again everytime i see you...




my next obsession, well, is pretty obvious... clearly if you know me at all you know justin timberlake and oprah are my guiding stars, but what i would like you to focus on is jt's GLASSES! aren't they adorable?! he is a style/dancing/sweet singing god amongst men... that's all there is to it. here's a tip to all of you guys, reading this blog, who have spent hours upon hours sitting in your room, wondering how to get my attention and make me fall in love with you... um, get some of these glasses and we'll talk.

this next picture also contains several obsessions in one as well. sweet blake chandler martin will be my obsession until the day they take me out feet first, as is her mother, who is one of my nearest and dearest, but again, you must look beyond the people and see the... wait for it... TOWN GOWNS! old navy town gowns are sweeping the nations, people. it is the most comfortable clothes item i own and at $15 a pop, they are recession-proof. i hope you can notice that we even put baby blakey girl in a tiny tim town gown for our big shopping excursion in sugarland last week :)

ok. that's all i have at the moment. good news- lct swore she had a post coming tonight, so be looking for that! (and yes, lauren, i put this in so that you feel pressure and will make SURE you post later...)

peace, love & the 3 W's... sem

come be my light

that's the title of the book i'm reading right now. it's a collection of mother teresa's writings and even though i'm only on page 50, i highly recommend it.

so after she received the call from Jesus to go to the "poorest of the poor" in calcutta, the words "i thirst" (words spoken on the cross before Jesus died) kept coming back to her. she meditated on thirst, that "physical need of longing for what is missing" and told her followers something that i want to pass on to you tonight, as they were such a word of encouragement to me today:

"Jesus wants me to tell you again... how much is the love He has for each one of you-- beyond all what you can imagine... Not only He loves you, even more-- He longs for you. He misses you when you don't come close. He thirsts for you. He loves you always, even when you don't feel worthy...

Why does Jesus say 'I thirst'? What does it mean? Something so hard to explain in words-- 'I thirst' is something much deeper than Jesus saying 'I love you.' Until you know deep inside that Jesus thirsts for you-- you can't begin to know who He wants to be for you. Or who He wants you to be for Him."

Jesus, help us to believe you thirst for us. it's impossible to understand. but it's real nonetheless. thank you.

say whaaaaaa?

hi c & p reader. we have been delinquent on our postings and i hope you are still checking in once and awhile. please know we understand that when it comes to blogs, there are countless to choose from, and we thank you for your loyalty as we live our lives and wait for something blog worthy to occur. i have several things to cover, but first and foremost-

PIRATES ATTACKED AN AMERICAN SHIP AND TOOK THE CAPTAIN HOSTAGE?!?! say whhaaaaaaa??? if i know you like i think i do, i'm pretty sure that you have all been as outraged at this INCONCEIVABLE headline as i was. to think that pirates a) still exist and b) would have the GALL to attack an American ship is beyond me.

what i do not understand is why it took so long to act. in this day in age of garmins, noaa weather radios, night-vision goggles and hd dvr- how in the WORLD did it take several days to get this thing under control?

i majorly eyeroll my roommate, babs, anytime she watches some late night court case show and gets all up in arms over murder cases that have nothing to do with us... i kind of feel like i'm totally pulling a babs right now, but honestly, this travesty is a big deal and you want to know how i know?

because last sunday afternoon, before my entire family sat down to easter lunch, my grandpa came galloping in (moving faster than i have seen him in the last 15 years) and announced to the whole group that captain richard phillips had indeed been rescued without so much as a scratch or broken bone and is on his way back to the states. an honest to goodness, sincere, collective *WHEW* filled the room. so even though i'm sure you THINK you're above caring about the somali piracy scandel of '09, don't even try to deny the fact that you slept better sunday night, knowing those hooligans had been defeated.

Hoots and Salutes!

Cankle, thank you from the bottom of my sole for pedaling our blog along while I went dark… I owe you a cookie cake.

Hoots and Salutes to my life lately:

Salute to Uncle Billy for making my 29th birthday one for the books… he made Cankle and I feel like royalty at an ACL taping for Relentless 7!

Hoot to Mr. Giggles getting me into Perez Hilton’s SXSW party (did I mention Kanye was there?!)… I honestly thought my number was up- I was that excited!

Salute to BDT for getting selected to go to Boston for a leadership development conference.

Hoot to Frost’s rodeo Fridays (during rodeo season Frost encourages all employees to dress in rodeo gear each Friday, so I dusted off my boots and sported my best plaid, ruffled, button-down with jeans)!

Hoot to Spring!!! Austin is beautiful right now- everything is blossoming, blooming, and bursting with color!

Hoot to my new emergency contact for my bike events: Makeup Maven! She was a trooper and supported me on my Rosedale Ride!

Salute to Scott MacIntyre on American Idol for ‘making the right song choice’ last week… and Kris Allen!

Hoot to Mr. Giggles getting a bike!

Hoot to Twitter and Facebook- I’ve joined both since I last posted:)

Salute to Griff and Abby for bringing sweet little Blake into the world- she’s beautiful!!!

Salute to Tripp Black for making a goal at his soccer game this weekend!

Hoot to Daddy Yum Yum!

Salute to the author of Hebrews (who ever that may be). I just finished studying that book and I must admit, it was very challenging, but in the end I realized I loved it.

Hoot to T-Rog and the Loj for introducing us to creamy jalapeño at Maudies!

Hoot to Opening Day!

Hoot to the Sara Bareilles at the Austin Rodeo! (and double Hoot to the Founder’s Club)!

Salute to Cherry Blossom lip gloss (see makeup maven’s blog)!

Salute to Philosophy’s “Grace” products (thanks J&E)… everyone needs something from this line- the messages are wonderfully inspiring.

Hoot to Brad Schuetze!

Hoot to Voinov and the toilet paper!

Daddy Yum Yum

Dear Oprah,

I came on the site to look for Christmas presents for my wife (which you guys always help me with...thank you) and then I saw this and was oddly inspired...perhaps its fate.

I would want to invite five people who could teach me something- people who have been through life, people who understand how to do life, people who understand truly being human, and people who could teach me to be a better and more authentic me. This would include:

Anne Lamott- She has a better understanding of religion and parenting than anyone else. Her books are what led me into keeping my faith and going into ministry. Her books are what give me faith that in a few months, I can raise my daughter.

Jon Stewart- His humor is intelligent. He is able to use his skills as a comedian to make people think and maybe see things differently. His communication is brilliant.

Bono- Simply because he could choose to live like a rock star, but instead has chosen to be a saint. If we could all learn to be as selfless and giving as he is, the world would be a much better place.

Hillary Clinton- Hillary has broken the barriers for all women,including my future daughter. She will forever be a hero to America.

Ralph Lauren- He has the ability to continue being traditional and classic, yet always new. He has stayed true to his core and foundation,while being successful for decades.

I would want to talk to them about what keeps them human, the role God plays in their life, what makes them laugh, what makes them cry, who they read, the best things they did raising their children (and the worst), how to push my daughter to be all she can be, and the most important lesson they have learned in their experiences. As far as location and meal, I would not care. We can eat microwave pizza and drink boxed wine- it's the company that always makes the meal.

So this is an ACTUAL letter written to Mama O, in response to the question "What Five People Would You Invite to a Dinner Party?" And the author of that letter just became a Daddy two little days ago. I have been waiting and waiting for the perfect time to post this gem and the time is finally here!

I was planning this big Daddy Roast Post... where I would talk about how this guy, who loves Oprah, has a pet name for his yoga instructor and ears that can only be measured in centimeters because they are so small, has actually had a BABY. I had a ton of jokes lined up, outing him on so very many mind-boggling quirks he lives out every single day... it was going to be great. You were going to laugh, he was going to get annoyed (but secretly love it), and I was going to win Miss Comedic Blogger 2009.

All of that was shot to heck the second I walked into the hospital room and saw this:

Even now my eyes are flooded just looking at this picture! The moment Aunt Abby and I walked into the room and saw this beautiful girl in her Mom's arms for the first time takes one of the- hands down- top sweetest and most incredible moments in my life thus far. I had never been to an actual birth before and I am still blown away by the whole thing.

They have their own blog and you can get all the details from the happy parents themselves, but y'all, I have got to say- I have never experienced anything like this before... ever. The birth of a child is a miracle from God alone and I would dare anyone to say anything different. Thank you to my dear friends for letting me be apart of Blake's literal BIRTH. DAY. It is something I will never forget, and I am speechless when I try to put into words how much you mean to me and how honored I am that God has blessed us to be able to live life together for so many years... and sooooooo many more years to come. Auntie Sarah is even re-thinking her plan to mess with y'all by teaching Blake a fun cuss word at an early age. That precious baby girl is wrecking havok on my prank life!!

So later on, after Blake had been welcomed into the world, I heard of someone who had just come from a funeral. A funeral?! On Blake's birthday?! It got me thinking about other things that must have happened on March 31st, 2009... probably more than one funeral in the world, probably more than one person had lost their job, gotten a less than encouraging test result back, had a wreck, a speeding ticket, a bounced check... Chancing the risk of sounding very Elton John "Circle of Life," I've got to say, that is exactly what it is. And the whole idea of it gives me such hope and reverence for Who created all this in the first place.

Because even in the midst of bad days, uncertain futures, health issues, etc... Blake's here. And "Blake" can stand for many things... The point being- in the midst of all that we'd rather not be up against, there is also so much good. There is new life and new opportunities to be better springing up all around us... Even as I type this, the leaves on the tree outside my window are budding and growing and ushering in this season of renewal and new beginnings.

This tiny baby was and continues to be a lot of things to a lot of people, but her perfect entrance into the world was such a reminder to me of my perfect Maker. He's got it all under control. And when I'm doubting it all, He always comes through to show me there's more to His plan than I'll ever be able to comprehend or predict. And if I'm especially lucky, He'll let me hear stories like the one about Blake's Daddy being called "Yum Yum" by all the nail ladies at the place where Blake's Mom gets her mani/pedi's. They apparently think he's so good-looking that they only refer to him as "Yum Yum" when he pops his head in to say hi or to pick his wife up. That is a true story and you are more than welcome to pass it on. God is so good.