Bucket-O-Salad

Jenn insisted on bringing a salad to our church's Communion & Community night, seeing as how 16 people signed up for desserts, 8 people signed up for entrees, 8 people signed up for bread (including me), and 2 people signed up for salad.  

The problem: Maddie ain't got no salad bowl.

The solution: Maddie do have an ice bucket!

Beautiful and delicious...bucket-o-salad was a hit and was wiped clean by the end of the night!

Balloons 'N' Tunes (minus the Balloons)

So Chattanooga is the host of many a festival, especially during the beloved Fall season. One such festival is known as "Balloons and Tunes"...which sounds like a really cool event with hot air balloons and music...only there were no balloons. 

Here is the last of the dying breed of hot air balloons, deflating right as we entered the festival. Apparently all the others had gone home because the winds were too rough. 

So what was left to enjoy? Why the sinking Titanic blow-up slide, of course... 

 ...and the Confederate Railroad gospel band. And the "Jesus got 'er done" T-shirts.  And the big man whose beer belly made him bust out of his (unbuttoned) overalls. And the Mayfield cow... 

The boys (Zachary, Kyle, and Woody) were fascinated by the bullet proof ATVs... 

...while the girls (Meleah and myself) looked for their mommies...

And what better way to top off such a Dixieland cultural experience than with a visit to the ole Waffle House...

So when you order "cheese grits" at the Wa-Ho (pronounced "wah-hoe"), you receive a bowl of cold, congealed grits with an unmelted slice of processed American cheese on top. And when you send it back and ask them to warm it up, you receive a bowl of less cold, congealed grits with an unmelted slice of processed American cheese on top. So here I am cutting my unmelted slice of processed American cheese (with a spoon) into little bitty pieces to make it seem more like my definition of "cheese grits."

 The others seemed to actually enjoy their midnight meal. 

 

Uplifted Spirits...NOT

My friends back at home in SC are supposed to be encouraging me...not sending me links like this!

Labor Day Memories

Grace Anne came to visit for Labor Day Weekend...and so did Hannah. Somehow they still managed to surprise me with Hannah's appearance even after Karen and my dad gave it away on two separate occasions. And when I opened the door to find Hannah pitifully cowering behind her pillow, all she could say was, "I'm scared!" Not because of the heifer-sized chihuahua that lives downstairs. Not because of my sketchy neighbors who yell and throw full-sized Coleman coolers on the hardwood floor. No, she was "scared" that I would be mad that she came with my sister. She's nuts. Which is why she ended up here in the trunk of my car on the ride home from Lowe's...

One of the eggs for my omelette was a siamese twin! And I had another one the next morning too!

This is why America is fat...because a "regular" milkshake is now this size.

Our first meal at my new patio table. Baked lemon parmesan seasoned salmon, sweet potato fries, Mimi's black-eyed peas, and the best salad ever created (compliments of Hannah)...yes, please.

More of a home sweet home

Still not quite done accumulating furniture for my little house, but here are the most recent updates to the decor. For more pictures from an earlier post, click here.

Please excuse the lamp on the floor. Like I said, still in need of some furniture.

The framed art you see backwards through the mirror was done by my second mother, Mama Lisa. It has one of my favorite verses, Jeremiah 29:11.

And this amazing work of art done by the one and only Emily Rosebrough.

Lookout!

Last night I went to my first ever Chattanooga Lookouts minor league baseball game. 


This would be Looie, our male mascot. Not so sure what he is or why his eyeballs are on top of his cap rather than his face. He has a female twin, Looise, who looks similar except with more curves, skinnier legs, a blue skirt, and yellow pigtails. 

I always wanted to be a baseball player. Sike.

Prayer is our lifeline

Prayer is praise.
Prayer is humble gratitude.
Prayer is confession.
Prayer is silence.
Prayer is groaning.
Prayer is honesty.
Prayer is peace.
Prayer is clarity.
Prayer is intimacy with God.
Prayer is how we connect with Him and He with us.
Prayer is our lifeline.
Prayer should be my lifeline.

"The human mind needs help to understand the ways of God. Without the Holy Spirit’s illumination we default to untruthful thinking and wrong assumptions that lead to confusing conclusions. For example, someone may not feel loved—and it is in the absence of love that fear and distrust set up shop. One who struggles to think they don’t deserve to be loved is wise to bow in prayer and receive their heavenly Father’s loving embrace. Prayer is not a punch card that gives us credit in heaven, or a last resort when everything else has gone wrong. Prayer is first, last and along the way." 


"An inconsistent, uncommitted prayer life demonstrates a lack of faith, an independent nature, a lack of intimacy, and a selfish, busy, and distracted lifestyle."


"We will never reach a place in our faith where we are beyond dependency upon God. Everyone can pray for anyone."


And my favorite verse of all time:


In the same way the Spirit also helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. ~Romans 8:26-27

These songs have been blessing my socks off recently:

"Faithful to the End"-Cory Asbury

"All my Fountains"-Chris Tomlin

"Shadows"-David Crowder Band (feat. LeCrae)

"Never Once"-Matt Redman

"Desert Song"-Hillsong

"Your Hands"-JJ Heller

"Called Beauty"-Jenny & Tyler

"Soon"-Hillsong

"Here for You"-Chris Tomlin (Passion)

"You Won't Relent"-Misty Edwards

"Our God is Love"-Hillsong

"Beautiful Things"-Gungor