Happy Layla Eve!

Only one more day until we get to meet Layla Grace!

Emily's C-Section is scheduled for tomorrow morning. I officially declare this day Layla Eve.

I can't imagine how she and Kris feel, today, knowing that it will be the last day of their lives as Just Kris and Emily. From now on, they'll always be parents. Be a family. I'm sure they're feeling a lot of excitement and nervousness and apprehension and joy and fear and love all at the same time.

No apprehension from me, however. I don't have to stay up all night with a newborn. Nope. Just lots of excitement comin' from Aunt Mindy across the street!! Yahoo! I can't wait to meet Little Layla!!

Lots of prayers going your way, Jordans, as you not only enter into surgery in the morning, but also as you enter into this next wonderful, blessed phase of your lives. God is so good!

The vault is opening!

Everybody, get pumped up! Disney is finally opening up that mean vault of theirs to let Beauty and the Beast out!! Yahoo!! I have been waiting forever for my favorite Disney movie to be released, and the wait is almost over! It will be available in October, and you better believe I've totally already pre-ordered my copy. The anticipation is killing me!

You see, I keep my eye on ol' Disney's vault like a hawk. I've made it my mission to collect all of the Disney classics as they are made available, so I'll have them on hand when my kids come around. I've got a pretty good jump start, so far, but my collection has always been lacking my #1 film. (And, also The Lion King.) I remember doing research way back in 2005, when Brad and I were first married, to see when I'd be able to have it in my possession and learning that it wouldn't be released until 2010! Man, that felt like an eternity away back then! But, five years has really flown by, and it's about time I can own it for myself!!

I can hardly wait! Beauty and the Beast is my very favorite of them all. I have different categories of Disney favorites (Old Classic: Cinderella, New Classic: Little Mermaid, Non-Princess: Lady and the Tramp, Boy Type: The Lion King), but my Favorite of all favorites is definitely Beauty and the Beast. The animation is simply stunning. The music is wonderful. The characters are so lovable. And I'm convinced that Belle is a Christian.

Well, I don't really know about that, but she's definitely down-to-Earth and not all spoiled like Tinkerbell. (No offense, Tink.) She's smart and reads books for fun; even books without pictures! (Gasp, Gaston!) She doesn't swoon all over the smarmy, conceited jerk just because all the other girls do and he throws himself at her. She loves her dad even though he seems silly, and she sticks up for him against the whole town. She bravely searches for him in the night, then sacrifices her freedom for his. She befriends all kinds of different things instead of running away from the unfamiliar. And she eventually falls in love with a Beast, for Pete's sake!

And she does all of it without compromising her character. She stays true to herself and her convinctions. She doesn't do what is nice just for the sake of it, or what everybody expects her to do or tells her to do just to please or appease them. She doesn't let the Beast treat her rudely, and she doesn't put up with his attitude, because she knows she deserves better than that. She's strong and brave and still gentle and kind. If my future daughter is going to look up to any of the Disney Princesses, I'd definitely want it to be Belle. I'm just sayin...

And besides, Beauty and the Beast is just such a great romantic, love story. A story about True Love that looks beyond appearances, deeper to the real heart of a person; a  True Love so genuine that it, alone, can redeem a character whose inside has grown as ugly as his outside because of the hardness of his heart. Beauty and the Beast just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. You try watching the Ballroom Scene without getting goosebumps. I honestly don't know that it's possible.



What's your favorite Disney movie / princess? Are you as pumped about this release as I am? Don't forget to pre-order your copy, today!

Baby Whisperer

Look who loves me so much that she fell right asleep on my lap yesterday evening as the whole gang was outside enjoying the nice weather. Apparently, all the cheering for her daddy as the boys played basketball in the street was very exhausting. It's a good thing I'm such a comfy place to rest!

This is the last weekend that Charlie will be the only little girl on the street. Other Emily has her C-Section scheduled for next Wednesday! We cannot wait to meet baby Layla Grace! I'm sure I'll get to spend a lot of time with her, as well. After all, I am the Baby Whisperer...

(Look at those chubby, squished cheeks and arm wrinkles!! Makes me just want to squeeze her!)

Sweet Surprise

When I walked in the door yesterday from work, Brad had flowers and a card sitting out waiting for me on the table! It was so sweet. I'm one of those girls that absolutely loves getting flowers. They never get old. I don't care what kind they are, or how expensive or inexpensive they might be. The gesture is always incredibly appreciated.

I've been in a pretty mopey mood lately. (Hence the lack of blogging. Sorry about that, btw.) Not only are we hardly getting chances to see each other with our work schedules, but I've been struggling with this ridiculous outbreak of hives for weeks, which just makes me completely crabby. Yesterday was especially bad, and Brad figured out a way to show me his love, even though he hasn't been able to be home to baby me like I'd he'd like.

I really am blessed to have such a great husband who loves on me like he does. Sometimes, I can't believe how spoiled I am. But I'll never, ever take it for granted. He and our marriage is a blessing straight from Above, and I'll never forget that. Nor will I stop giving thanks to the One who ultimately takes the best care of me.

Bacon Extravaganza

Friday night was Man Night at the Mehaffeys. They lovingly entitled the event The Bacon Extravaganza. Sure, wives were also in attendence, but the evening was all about the men. Let me explain...

When Brad and His Boys get together, they get ridiculous. They start making jokes and speculating about "awesome events" and have a good time laughing about all of their outrageous ideas. Seriously, you get them together, and they just feed off each other. All of the wives simply look back and forth incredulously at each other, reassuring ourselves that none of these crazy things could ever possibly become reality. However, recent events have proven that they aren't afraid to follow through with some of their wild ideas.

Exhibit A: The Bacon Explosion. This is some Man Meat Concoction that they discovered online forever ago. Literally, I think they've been scheming ways to create it for nearly a year. Somehow, I really don't know how, it has actually happened. In real life. The event was so highly anticipated, that Brad was sending out two of Homer Simpson's Top Ten Bacon Quotes each day of the week leading up to the main attraction, just to further pump everybody up.

I, and every other woman present, made a point to have no part in the scenario; however, I'll attempt to walk you through the process, just so you can get a real grasp of the ridiculousness of it all.

First, they created a bacon weave by interlocking 2 lbs of bacon.

Then, they seasoned it with some sort of dry steak rub, before layering it with two more pounds of sausage.

They cooked another pound of bacon, and poured the cooked crumbles on top of the sausage layer.

Then they coated it all with some barbeque sauce.

Before rolling it all up into a big log of pig. (Gross!)

They encased the the bacon/sausage combo with the prepared bacon weave.

Then coated the whole thing with butter and more dry rub.

Here they are, all proud, with the finished, uncooked product.

They then grilled it for 3 hours.

After much care and many "extra special checks" and sessions of rebasting (and a legit cookout equipped with ordinary hamburgers and hot dogs, so we had real food to actually eat and fill up on), Wes gingerly brought the baby inside. Really, you would have thought he was introducing his first born son.

Seriously, the final presentation of the Bacon Explosion was so ridiculously extravagant, that we had to film it. They created a "human bridge" and even had We are the Champions playing in the background as a soundtrack to the momentous event. They ended with High Fives all around and a "slow clap" (not caught on film). I'm not joking. You have to see it to believe it.

They cut it up and served it as if it was a rare delicacy. I have to admit, the swiss roll effect is pretty impressive.

They gathered around for a big, simultaneous first bite of their creation. I believe the reaction was unanimous -- it was gross. Most of them could barely swallow a single bite. Wes proved his manhood by eating his entire piece, and Brad, having also completely finished his piece, was convinced that syrup would make it better. So, that's what he tried on his second piece. Second Piece, People! I'm telling you, it was insane. Completely out of hand. Double O - C (Out Of Control).

The girls couldn't even stomach to look at it. So the guys tried to decorate a plate of some B.E. to entice us into trying it. You have to give it to 'em; they really did pretty it up and make it look almost-appealing. I thought the side of Tums was an especially nice (and considerate) touch.

For your information, Brad did whip out his puppydog eyes and convince me to try a tiny bite. It meant so much to him, how could I resist? My reaction? Blegch!

Speaking of the girls. We really were there, just in the background of all the Bacon Explosion Hooplah. Here's some proof of our presense.

Final Note to Self: When the boys all get together, they will instigate each other to do the ridiculous. Given enough time, things that began as only off-the-wall ideas will eventually become reality. They are not ashamed. They will do absolutely outrageous things, just to prove to each other that they're brave enough to do it. Be careful. Be warned.

Final Conclusion, however: We have the best.friends.ever. Period.

Complete Bacon Extravaganza Photo Album

A5 - Then and... then

As I was going through some old emails, I stumbled upon this picture, and it immediately sent me back in time to 2002. This is my interface group on the very first day of college, just after we moved all of our stuff into our dorm rooms. We had no idea what to expect from college. We didn't even know each other until we started posing for this photograph.

(At Freed-Hardeman University, the freshmen are separated into various "Interface groups" along with two upperclassmen to help make friends and get acquainted with the campus as well as campus life. Even though Brad and I were already dating, he's not in my group picture, because he was part of his own interface group.)

We did everything together for an entire week. Lots of fun, random, hilarious activities. Also lots of opening up to each other and Bible studies. Once the semester began, we didn't have as many organized events, but we did maintain our friendships throughout the years.

Look at us back then. So young. So naive. So scared of what lay before us. And yet so eager to move ahead.

On graduation day, four years later, after we walked across the stage to receive our degrees, we reminisced together of how little we were when we all met for the first time. The response to the memory was unanimous, "Man, we were so young back then. So much has changed in four short years." Here we are again, on the last day of college. Some of our A5 group transferred to different schools, or dropped out, or graduated at different times, but a lot of us literally started the journey together and ended the journey together, from the very first day to the very last.

Four years is what separated the opening and the closing pictures of our college careers. And, similarly, four years have passed since we donned our caps and gowns and gathered on the library steps for a second time as a group to commemorate that period of our lives.

Look at us back then. So young. So naive. So scared of what lay before us. And yet so eager to move ahead.

Man, we thought we were so big and grown-up. We thought we were the biz-niss. We thought we had it all figured out. We had no idea. I have to admit, sometimes I miss the old days. The college days. The days when I hung out in the student center with a bunch of friends, stayed up all night chatting with girlfriends in the halls of the dorm, when Brad and I walked across campus holding hands, and the biggest stress I faced was finals.

Don't get me wrong. Being a grown up is fun. It definitely has its perks. I can stay out as late as I want with no curfew to follow. I can go wherever I want without signing-out and notifying my Dorm Mom of my whereabouts. (Obviously, FHU was pretty strict.) I get to share a room with the love of my life instead of a group of other girls all fighting over mirror space. I get to decorate an entire house to my liking, instead of squeezing my whole life into a teeny-tiny room. I get to raise a sweet puppy, and eventually, I'll get to start a family.

But that doesn't mean I don't sometimes miss the simplicity of a life filled only of class schedules and social events. Sometimes grownup life is hard and full of responsibility and making right decisions. Sometimes, I just miss the Good Ol' Days.

Thanks to facebook and blogs, many of us have kept in touch. Even others of us have remained good friends to this day, almost forgetting that we originally met on Day One. It's cool to have memories with people that knew me before I had contacts or was married. But it's weird to look back at college, even the end, and think "Man, I was sooo young back then... So much has changed in four short years."

3 months old

Today is Charlie's 3 month birthday!!

I can not believe how much she has changed.

She's so full of personality.

And she's started giving "kisses."

She's even reaching for things like a big girl!

And since she's such a big girl now, she was treated to a mini-pedi.

You've got to hear her sweet little baby sounds. She's going to be a singer, just like her mommy!

Oh, I just can't get enough of her! If you want even more Charlie Joy, check out her mama's blog.

Happy Birthday, sweet girl! Love you so much!!

Happy Counting Day

Today is 8-9-10!

I know. It happens every year. But still, only once a year. And besides, once 2015 rolls around, it won't even happen at all. So we better enjoy the annual Counting Holidays while they last!

Now, get both those hands out and let's make Seseme Street proud by counting to ten! One... Two... Three...

[pic via]

Taylor's Mine

Okay, technically she's not mine. But her new song is called "Mine," and it's her's, so...

Over the past year, I've become completely in love with Taylor Swift. I think she's an  incredibly talented songwriter as well as absolutely hilarious and just plain ol' real. To me, she's such a shining light of old-fashioned, girly love and romance, amidst all of the nasty, smutty, over-sexualized, barely-dressed girls that we're bombarded with, nowadays. She's pure feminity in a way that allows other girls to accept the Princess inside of them and long to be loved the way God intended for us to be. And besides that, she really seems to be just a regular girl that loves hanging out with her friends.

Brad gave me the Platinum edition of her Fearless album for Christmas this past year, and I've shamelessly belted my heart out to every word of it in my car ever since. Her new album, Speak Now, on which she wrote every single song all by herself, with no help at all, comes out at the end of October, and I can't wait! The video of her first single, Mine, will premier in a little over a week, but the song itself was released online, yesterday. I'm just gunna go ahead and say that I'm so far on the T-Swift Train, that I'm going to eat up anything she comes out with.

And I already love the new song. I bet you will, too.

20 Questions

There's not much going on around here that's really blogworthy, so I thought it'd be a good time to complete the 20 Questions Tag I got from my friend, Ashley. I know you're all just dying to know random facts about  my life, anyway. So, why not? Here we go.

1. How often do you go over the speed limit? Pretty much every time I drive, but no more than 7 mph over. Well, maybe that's kind of a lie...

2. Do you dance like crazy when no one is looking? Not really. Even I know I have no rhythm. But I do totally belt out the music like a rockstar.

3. If you were going to be stuck on a deserted island, which book, which movie, and which CD would you take with you? The Harry Potter series (I'd find one of those books with all 7 books in one, just to trick the rules); Dirty Dancing; and Taylor Swift's Fearless, Platinum Edition (talk about belting it out!)

4. What did you get in trouble for when you were a kid? Talking back and being a smart alack, thinking I knew everything all the time. Man, I do not ever want a 14-year-old daughter.

5. What really gives you the creeps? Big gross spiders with millions of tiny babies hiked up on their backs. They exist, people, and they're creepy. *shudder*

6. What was your favorite toy when you were a kid? Hmm, I really don't remember playing with toys much. I mostly talked on the phone and flirted with boys. (Again, not sure I'll be able to handle a daughter!)

7. You run into a friend while shopping. Where are you? Target. Love it. I can hang out in that store forever, especially when holiday decorations are out!

8. When you fall asleep, are you usually on your side, your stomach, or your back? Definitely my side, preferably with my husband curled up right behind me cuddling me close.

9. If fat or calorie intake wasn't an issue, what one food would you eat the most? My first reaction is hot dogs, but I think I'll have to go with pizza. Even though it's only one food, think of all the different varieties available! Cheese, pepperoni, supreme, veggie, pineapple... frozen, cardboard frozen, real kind... It's never the same meal twice. Again, I'm cheating the system.

10. If you could hire one of the following, which one would it be? Driver, chef, maid, or stylist? Are you kidding me? A chef. The others would all be great, too, but it'd for sure have to be the chef.

11. What movie have you watched the most? Dirty Dancing or Moulin Rouge. In college, I'd have one of them playing in the background as I studied or wrote papers. They were enough noise to distract me from the social activities going on in the hallway, and yet, I knew them well enough that I didn't need to pay attention to them like I would a TV show or singing to songs on the radio. I could focus on my work, and turn around at any given moment for a break and know exactly what was happening. I pretty much  know them both by heart and love them. They've kind of become my comfort blankets. When the world is getting out of control, I can pop the familiar movies in and feel safe again.

12. What kind of perfume do you wear? Givenchy. Brad bought it for me, and he likes it. And I like it when he likes me.

13. What was your favorite sitcom growing up? Depends on when "growing up" occurred. Full House when I was little, but then Friends, and also Scrubs. Now it's Modern Family, How I Met Your Mother, and The Big Bang Theory. (I'm terrible at one-answer answers!)

14. What were you doing the last time you had a really good laugh? Accidentally, inappropriately touching a man who was not my husband. Laughed so hard I cried. (So did everybody else involved. - Another story for another time.)

15. What was the very first concert you ever attended? No Doubt, Tragic Kingdom Tour with my friend, Kari

16. Who is the fourth person on your missed call list? This is a random question. Happens to be my friend, Kristi, who was calling to tell me about Goodwill's next 1/2 off day, so we can stock up on some retro attire for the upcoming 80's slumber party.

17. How long does it take you to get ready in the mornings? A whole hour. Seriously, how do people take fast showers? No matter what I try to do, I can't get out of there in less than 15-20 minutes. Add the hair straightening to the routine, and it's at least an hour before I can walk out the door.

18. When is the last time you went to the mall, and what did you buy? I rarely go to a mall, hmmm... We went to the mall in Atlanta when we were there, and I bought some sunglasses.

19. Ever go to camp? Never as a camper, but a couple of times as a counselor. However, we love to camp a lot.

20. Do you collect anything? Disney movies (stocking up for the future kiddos), Christmas stuff (specifically snowmen, Santas, reindeer, and Christmas trees), and, of course, gnomes!

Well, wasn't that just random and wonderful? Now, let me tag a couple people for when they have the time: Kristen, Audrey, Kristi, Emily, and Erin. Anyone else who has a blog and would like to join  the fun, consider yourselves tagged!