Shoe Wild

So I usually am all about cheap shoes.  And once I get shoes I usually wear them out.  But in the last month I went a little shoe crazy.

It all started because my friend Susie sells fibi & clo sandals.  I've always seen her adorable stuff, so when our friend Julie hosted a sandal party, I just had to check it out.

So I ended up with these

... oh yeah, and these...

Then I had my friend Courtney's wedding to go to.  And my closet has seriously been lacking in black heels (seriously?  I do realize that's not a real problem).  And I had been eyeing a pair at Kohls for a couple of months.  I kept visiting them, but couldn't commit.  But the wedding was a good excuse to buy them...

And then I found out about the TOMS ballet flats.  I've always liked the idea of TOMS, but never loved them.  Then they announced their Ballet Flat line and I knew I wanted to check them out.  So I found and invested in these... and they are the most comfortable shoes I've ever owned

Yep, 4 pairs of shoes in the last month.  It's out of control.  Good thing they are all cute (I think) and good shoes, because I've definitely reached my shoe budget for the year ;-)

Lily & the Cow

Meet Lily's Favorite Toy

This is not an ordinary cow, friends.  This cow moos.  Aunt Aja and Uncle Jeremy gave this to Lily as her Christmas gift.  And even then Aja said "she'll probably just tear it up."  Except they forgot, Lily's not Allie... every single one of the toys I've given Lily in the last 7 months is still in tact.  And oh my goodness Lily LOVES this cow.

When Lily first got the cow she was perplexed by it, so she would bite it to make it moo and then sit back and stare at it.

Then she would take it to bed and she would set it off and then jump in bed and cuddle--as soon as it stopped she would jump down to make it moo and repeat the cycle.

Now she takes it with her everywhere.  I put it in my bag to take with us to my mom's and Lily thought I was trying to steal it and dug for it.

This morning the cow started mooing at 6:27.    And just so you have the full effect...

She's looks so proud of herself 

What more could you ask for

It has definitely been a crazy couple of weeks (months?).  Lots going on--lots of good things as well as some stressful.

So I spent my Sunday hanging out with my sister-in-law and my nephew (until my brother got home and then he joined the fun).  We looked at books, cuddled, and played with his toys.

I mean how can you see that smile and not instantly feel better?

Wedding Season Round 2

So last summer was the summer of weddings.  It was so fun to get to celebrate so many couples and spend time with great friends while celebrating.

This Spring is round 2.  Over the next several months there is at least 1 wedding or reception to go to every month.  It's a spring of showers and parties and spending time with friends.

And Last Night started it off with a wedding for my sweet friends Kenneth and Courtney.   Courtney and I actually pledged Phi Lamb together at Baylor.  We only got to spend a semester together before she left for nursing school, but we definitely had a lot of fun.  Then when I moved back to Dallas and went to BSF for the first time, Erin "introduced" her to me as a friend from her small group.  It was fun getting to re-connect.

Then we were all in leadership together, along with Kenneth--so we got to be there as their relationship started and grew.  It was a lot of fun getting to celebrate this long-anticipated wedding!

It was also a lot of fun to catch up with many old friends from BSF.  A lot of us have gone different ways, but it definitely felt like a BSF reunion and it was great to see everyone and get to catch up on where everyone is these days.  (and the venue for their reception--the room on main-- was really gorgeous and had great views of the city)

And a shout out to this lovely couple for letting me tag along with them last night! :)

Small Blessings

It has been a long week already, but full of small blessings and reminders of God's provision.

We are a month into the new year and this year has definitely not been anything like I expected yet.  The last month has been crazy.  And stressful in a lot of ways.  I feel like I've been going full-speed with no end in sight.

And to make things even crazier, my sleep schedule has been ridiculous the past few weeks.  I have always had difficulty sleeping.  Even when I was little I would have trouble falling asleep.  Now I don't have trouble falling asleep, but I do have a hard time falling back to sleep when I wake up.  And I cannot sleep in past about 7:00.

At the beginning of January my internal alarm moved itself up to 5:45 every morning for a week and then 4:45.  And I thought that was bad.

Until every night for the last 2 weeks I have woken up at 2:30 wide awake.  And every night but 1 I have laid awake for at least a couple hours.  Usually I fall back asleep about an hour before my alarm goes off.  So I definitely did not take it for granted that I slept from the time I went to bed last night until my alarm went off this morning.

I am grateful for the Lord's provision in rest and reminders that He is in control even when I feel completely out of control.