"Going to the Chapel..."

Headed home to Allen tonight to practice walking down the aisle in Lynley and Shawn's wedding!  I'm so excited for the two of you.  Thank you so much for letting me share this day with you.  I can't wait to update the blog with pictures of the occasion!  And...it will officially be Christmas break when we hit the road.  2 weeks off couldn't be more needed.  Merry Christmas, Congratulations, Best Wishes, Happy New Year, and Hip Hip Hooray for this time of year!  Can't wait to see everyone...t-minus 9 hours and 6 minutes until it's rehearsal time!

Everyone...Meet Blitzen

Last week, Tyler and I had to say goodbye to our old friend Big Red.  I was torn with emotions that day: sad over the loss of a friend, and excited to welcome in a new member to the family.  Tyler and I had been looking for a new car for a while.  On a whim, we went to Little Rock to test drive some cars we were looking at, and without meaning to, we bought a new car!  We got an incredible deal on our new 2010 Jetta, and we love, love, love it!  Here I am saying goodbye to Big Red (p.s. hugging a car is a difficult thing to do...in case you were wondering, that is what I'm doing in this picture).

Another unexpected thing was that we traded in Big Red for a great deal as well!  The poor thing was pretty much worthless, but Tyler and I worked together, and our teamwork payed off!  It's not everyday that the dealer you are buying a car from offers you a job because you bargain so well.  Here she is...even though blitzen is kind of a boy name...BLITZEN!!!

*Note: I wanted to name her Betty the Jetty...Tyler told me he wouldn't drive a car named Betty...too bad, it had a nice ring to it!

"Just Keep Clipping"

This is my shoutout to the maintenance crew at Ouachita.  Thanks for saving the day yesterday, and for your words of wisdom...storytime!

Yesterday, I was sitting on the couch in our living room. I was flipping through channels on the TV when all of a sudden I heard this "glub, glub, glub" sound coming from the sink in the kitchen. This was not a new sound for me, sometimes our sink just swallows some air and makes weird noises. However, I decided to check it out. When I got to the sinks (both kitchen and bathroom), they were filling with this aweful, black, stinky water. That's right, filling, and filling, and there was nothing I could do!

I ran to call our maintenance director so she could send help, and SHE DIDN'T ANSWER (both times). I finally ran to the cabinet to get a cup so that I could scoop water from the sink and dump it into the bathtub. With each scoop, I gagged and gagged...not pretty. When maintenance finally arrived, they sprang to action and stopped both sinks from filling with the nasty water. Everything was going to be okay...until one of the maintenance workers asked if I had gotten any of the water on my fingers. I told him that I had gotten just a little bit, but that I washed my hands quickly after. His warning was that there is a chemical in the water that could turn my nails brown.

I decided I was okay since I had washed them quickly and there acutally hadn't been a whole lot on them in the first place. Then he told me that if my nails started to curl up and start growing straight up, that I just needed to keep clipping them until they grew straight again. WHAT?!?! Yeah, he was not kidding. This chemical was going to make my nails turn brown and curly...and all he could say was "just keep clipping." This reminded me of Dori singing "just keep swimming" in Finding Nemo, however, maintenance's advice did not have the same joyful sing song feeling as Dori's advice to Marlin.

However, no brown curly nails here...looks like I washed them just in time. But thanks maintenance...for coming to the rescue, saving our sinks, and for the advice on my chemically stained nails! Merry Christmas!

And now, my version of the story in Christmas poem form:

'Twas the night before Tuesday when all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even my spouse. 

The stockings were hung by the window with care,

I had nothing to do, so there was time to spare. 

My feet were all netsled and snug in their socks,

while a present was wrapped on the floor in a box. 

And Tyler in his classroom, and I on a mission,

to find something to watch on our television. 

When then in the kitchen there arose such a clatter,

I sprang from the couch to see what was the matter. 

Away to the sinks I followed the sound,

Thinking there would be nothing in there to be found.

The spoon by the sink from our dinner ago,

Was nowhere to be found in the abyss below.

When, what to my terrified eye should appear,

But a rising black water, that was stinky and queer.

My eyes, how they watered! My feet, how they scurried!

To call up the maintenance crew in a hurry.

As I drew in my breath and was dialing the phone,

There wasn't an answer, and I was alone!

The lip of a cup I held tight in my grip,

Scooping water from the sink and trying not to drip.

As it continued to rise, I was losing all patience,

When all of the sudden, I finally heard maintenance!

They spoke very few words and went straight to their work;

Unclogging the sinks and then turned with a jerk.

He asked if I'd touched any water in the cup,

Because my nails would turn brown and start to curl up!

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old help,

And when he told me that news, I wanted to yelp.

The black, smelly, water no longer was dripping;

And his words of advice for my nails was "keep clipping!"

He sprang to his truck, to his team gave a wave,

And away they all drove, and the day they did save.

And they heard me exclaim, as they drove out of sight:

"You can bet I'll be cleaning my apartment tonight!"

Have Stink

In the Carpenter houshold there is a Thanksgiving decoration that we look forward to each year. We have a set of block letters that spell "Give Thanks" and it has become a tradition to switch the letters and spell out weird phrases.  Thus..."Have Stink!"  Some of the best ones we've come up with are:

SKIN VET

SKATING

THIN GAS

GET VANS

SAG VENT

SHAG NET

HAG KINS

HANG VEST

All this to say, we've gotten pretty creative over the years...oh...and

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Our Thanksgiving this year was great.  You have already heard about our 6 hour drive home...boo, but here is the update about the break after our arrival:

Since both of our families live in Allen, we get to celebrate each holiday twice.  This year we celebrated at my parents' house on Thursday and at Tyler's parents' house on Friday.  We started our break with dinner at Mi Cocina with the friends (Megan, Jordan, Danielle, Tate, Kelsey, Kayla...missed you Lynley, Shawn, Lindsey, Lee, Nikki, Brad, and Aaron).  So much fun, so much catching up, and so much good food!

Thursday was pretty quiet for us.  It was just the immediate family (sisters, parents, husband) and it was pretty low key.  This year, everyone made a dish to share at our Thanksgiving.  We are all so talented in our cooking skills (ladies and gentlemen, we are cooks), and very stylish...check out our sweet aprons:

Kelsey made some delicious baked feta with marinara on crustinis...yum...Kayla made some delicious cranberry salsa...uh yeah...and I made deviled eggs.  Mom and dad made everything else.  Our Thanksgiving menu included:

Mashed Potatoes

Corn Casserole

Stuffing (with and without sausage)

Rolls

Roasted Turkey

Smoked Turkey Breast

Cranberry Sauce

Gravy

Chocolate Cream Pie

Apple Crisp

Pumpkin Pie

Egg Nog Pie

Remember - there were only 6 of us, but it was so yummy.

Fancy napkin fold for the table...thank you food network magazine!

We also managed to have time to decorate the Christmas tree.  As always, it was a headache for some, and a joyous time for others.  I still don't know why our parents invite us back to do this each year...we just end up annoying the heck out of them.  Favorite joke of the year was having the jumping jack nutcrackers ride the birdsnest!  Good job Kayla!  Ta-Da...the finished product (plus Kayla dancing in the tree skirt...never a dull moment at the Carpenter house):

Friday's Thanksgiving was very different than Thursday's.  Our first Thanksgiving attendance included 6...Friday's attendance included 20!!!

We ate TONS of food, watched TONS of football, and gave TONS of hugs.  All in all, Thanksgiving was a huge success.  Now, we are on the last stretch until Christmas Break...otherwise known as wedding season for us this year.  Lynley and Shawn tie the knot on Saturday the 18th of December, and my good friend Hayley ties the knot with Mason on the 1st of January.  My friend Audreyanna is also getting married...her and Jack tie the knot on the 18th also.  I'm sad I won't be there to celebrate with them, but I'll see them soon after at Hayley's wedding. 

Speaking of weddings...Saturday of the break was packed full of wedding festivities.  Lynley had a shower and her bachelorette party.  Here are some pics from the shower:

All the mothers and daughters...CRAZY!

And here are a couple shots from the bachelorette party:

Coming soon...bye-bye Big Red...HELLO BLITZEN (our new Jetta)!!!

In Memory of Margaret Carpenter

On Wednesday, December 1, I got news that my grandmother passed away. "Grammie," as she's known amongst the grandchildren, had gone into the hospital about a month ago. She suffered a terrible case of shingles, and for a while we thought she wouldn't pull through. Three weeks later, at our Thanksgiving dinner table, I mentioned how I wasn't the least bit surprised that she was still fighting to come back. She had always been one to push through and overcome whatever she faced. However, God took her for himself on Wednesday morning, and rightly so. She no longer struggles, is no longer frustrated by her inability to talk, and no longer is separated from her creator. She is currently in the presence of her Lord, singing His praises, with an even bigger body of believers, including her husband.

Grammie was one of a kind. She had this incredible ability to fall asleep anywhere no matter what was on the TV. or how loud it was. It was only a matter of minutes before her head was back and mouth was open. I remember one time when she was staying at our house, in my room, and in the middle of the night there was a huge BANG! My dad ran upstairs to see what was wrong. Well, the bed had a small quirk in it. The slats under the bed would shift, and if shifted just the right way, they would fall out from under the bed, causing the mattress to collapse as well. Dad fixed the bed, but before he could get back downstairs...BANG! Needless to say, it was a great "control, alt, delete" moment for us!

Grammie would always treat us to dinner when she came in town. One thing that we loved about her was that when we would dine out, she would always wait for my dad to order, and then she would get the exact same thing. It never failed...until one time, while we were ordering, my dad placed his order (and Grammie's for that matter) and when Grammie concurred, my dad changed his order at the last minute! I don't think Grammie ordered the same thing after that day, but you bet we always watched for her to repeat dad's order.

I don't really remember there ever being cookies at Grammie's house, but I'm sure there was never a time that we visited when her candy jar wasn't full of something: the usual suspects being Reese's Pieces, Hershey's Kisses, or M&Ms. It didn't matter how old we were, that was one of the first things we would do when we got to Grammie's house...check the candy jar. Something else we would always do at Grammie's was look through her picture holder that you would turn with a knob. With every dial, more and more pictures would fall down through the pile. Of course, they were always the same pictures from 10-15 years ago: in matching green and navy plaid dresses, in that way too big peach satin dress (which we had to tie on with a blue and white belt) and white sequin hat, in our swimsuits and "swimming pool" in the backyard. And whenever we were done, we always made sure that the picture on display was one of us...that way, anyone who stopped by could admire her most beautiful grandchildren!

Besides checking the candy jar, and fanning through all of the same pictures, another thing on our to-do list at Grammie's was to pull out the slot machine. I have no idea where they got this thing, but they had a slot machine and a bowl full of quarters. Every time we visited, we made sure we got the chance to pull the handle and see if we won. We would play quarter after quarter after quarter on that thing, and when we had finally given up, we would stick our finger under the jackpot tray and push the magical button which would ding in congratulations and release all of the quarters. I wonder if Grandpa taught us how to do that because he was so annoyed with the "pull, click, roll....tick...tick...tick" over and over again.

Thanks to Grammie, Tyler's and my Christmas tree is full of ornaments. Grammie was always faithful to give each grandchild an ornament each year. When I asked my dad about ornaments this year, he said he asked Grammie while she was in the hospital, and to no one's surprise, she has already gotten them. "They are at home on the table," she said to him. Among the collection of Grammie ornaments, I've got a carousel horse bell (family, you know all about these), 2 golden angels, a Santa balancing presents (sorry yours is missing a hand Kayla), and I can't wait to find out what ornament I'll add to the tree to complete the collection.

Other things that bring memories of Grammie are: Giblet gravy, wide brimmed hats, the Grammie "Camry," Swedish Meatballs, Mardi Gras beads, old costume jewelry, that weird crystal thing on her side table (the one we would hold up to our eyes and pretend we were walking on a curved floor), the pop-up monster book in the drawer of the "recliner chair" room, those electronic blackjack games, our Christmas stockings (especially Kayla's with the demonic gingerbread man), those lap table things with the beanbag stuffing underneath, trips to the creek to skip rocks, that weird skylight room with the treadmills, the 50th wedding anniversary of her and Grandpa where they opened 50 gifts wrapped in gold paper, and so much more.

My sister shared this verse with my dad, I thought it was perfect:

Philippians 3:20-21

20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. 

Ever since I got the news of Grammie's passing, I haven't been able to get a song out of my head. The song is "Come to Jesus" by Chris Rice. The part I keep singing over and over is the last verse:

And with your final heartbeat, kiss the world goodbye. Then go in peace, and laugh on Glory's side, and fly to Jesus, fly to Jesus, fly to Jesus and live!

I know it's really sad, and every time I sing it in my head, I tear up, but it also fills me with joy to know that she has gone in peace and is in a better place than any of us are capable of imagining. So I blow a kiss to you Grammie, and pray that those of us left here in sadness would find Christ's comfort, peace, and joy to know that you are happier than any of the happiest memories we have of you. We love you!

2 Corinthians 5: 1-8

1 For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. 2 We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. 3 For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies. 4 While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. 5 God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.

6 So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. 7 For we live by believing and not by seeing. 8 Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.

On...and Off...the Road Again

Last week, Tyler and I packed up the Corolla to head home for the holidays.  Seatbelts on, and ready to go, we started her up...and...nothing.  She tried, she really did, but this little engine could not.  So, after trying to jump her with big red (my Explorer), and failing, we transfered our luggage to big red and decided to travel home in her instead.  So, we hit the road...all was well until we were about an hour and twenty minutes away from Arkadelphia.  We were driving down the highway, when all of a sudden we ran over a mysterious object.  Tyler thought it came from the car, but I said "surely not...just keep driving."  His response: "Erin, the check engine light is on...so is the fuel light...and I'm pretty sure I just lost power steering."  Yikes, bikes! 

So, we pulled off the highway, opened the hood, looked under the car, and saw a belt swinging below.  I was so frustrated.  All I wanted was to get home.  However, we were stuck on the side of the road too far from anyone we knew to come and get us.  All I could think about was $ towing the Explorer; $ taking it to a shop; $ possibly having to rent a car; how much was all that going to cost?  *Insert lightbulb here* We weren't too far from Texarkana, so we called our good friend Keven (his parents live in Texarkana...they are very handy).  He contacted his dad, who called us, and he said that they would be there in twenty minutes to take a look at the car.  After waiting for about 30 minutes, they came, they saw, they conquered!  They knew exactly what was wrong, so they ran to the auto store, got the part, and fixed the car.  I couldn't believe it...it was a Thanksgiving miracle! 

Our regularly three hours and forty-five minute drive home only took us six hours.  Who cares?!  We got home and had plenty of time to have two Thanksgivings, decorate a Christmas tree, and attend a shower and bachelorette party!  It was a pretty crazy weekend, but well worth the trouble it took to get home.  And, just so I don't dissappoint blog readers by not posting a picture, here is a shot of our newest friend Gatsby (he came to our rescue when we pulled off the road...also, I named him Gatsby...doesn't he make a Great Gatsby?!)

Look how huge he is standing next to that goat!

And look how cute he is...period.

*All I want for Christmas...?*

We've Lived In Arkansas Too Long

I'll let the picture speak for itself:

Also...coming soon: our drive to Allen and how both our cars died in one day!

Our "Nobody Will Say Anything About It" Passive-Aggressive Battle

I don't know if Tyler realizes it or not...but we are in the midst of a battle.  To better explain the situation I've included an episode description and a link to a clip from "Everybody Loves Raymond."

Ray and Debra wind up in a two-week standoff over a suitcase. When Robert asks Ray if he can borrow a suitcase sitting on the stairway landing for his honeymoon, Ray explains he and Debra have been locked in an "unspoken" battle of wills since a weekend trip over who is responsible for putting the suitcase away. Although Robert thinks Ray and Debra are insane, Frank and Marie can easily relate and offer their own words of wisdom...with Frank counseling Ray and Marie advising Debra on how to resolve their marital differences.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpCr_IkZ7-4&feature=related

Our situation is not exactly like theirs, but that's what it reminds me of.  So here is our situation...

 

                                  my way                                  his way

          

There is a pillow on our couch that has a decorative "button" on it.  Whenever I put the pillow on the couch, I make sure the button is in one of the top corners of the pillow.  Whenever Tyler puts the pillow on the couch, he makes sure the button is in one of the lower corners.  Neither of us has said anything to the other about this phenomenon, we just arrange the pillow how we like and move on.  I always know if Tyler has been on the couch, because the pillow button is in the bottom corner.  While this doesn't bother me (I just end up fixing the pillow) I sometimes wonder if he knows this is going on.  I wonder if he is trying to see how long it will be until one of us cracks and brings up the "pillow arrangement" to the other. 

Maybe I will start a tally and see how many times I change it in a week.  Maybe I'll turn the pillow sideways and see if he notices that, or if he just changes it back to "his" way.  Everytime I change the orientation of the pillow (especially if Tyler is in the room but has his back to me) I find myself imagining our own little live audience laughing out loud as I change it, and then laughing again, when he flips it back.  I'll make sure to keep everyone (because I know everyone is interested) up to date about our little unspoken battle of the pillow. 

Stay tuned for updates about Thanksgiving break!

Wedding Wishes for the Mr. and Mrs.

'Tis the season...wedding season that is!  This past weekend, we celebrated with Hayley and Mason.  These two love birds are getting married on January 1st...just a short 46 days away!  On Saturday, I (along with 4 other wonderful ladies) got to host a co-ed shower for the two of them.  It was my first shower to help host, and I would definitely call it a success...not a sucksess!  It was beautiful, simple, and so much fun to have boys and girls there.  Hayley and Mason don't really like cake, so we had a choclate chip cookie shower! 

Their wedding colors are white, black, and yellow, so we decorated with yellow leaves!  The trees have just changed colors and what better timing!

We also had a chip and dip bar, or otherwise known to the shower guests as "best shower food ever!"

And here's the happy couple!

All the beautiful hostesses!

We also had a little friend reunion...so glad you could come Karlee!

We had so much fun!  I can't wait for the next shower I host!  It's a lot of work, but definitely worth it all!  Soon, I'll be at my next shower for BFF Lynley, then, BFF Nikki, then, BFF Lindsey...that's right!  EVERYONE'S ENGAGED!  Picture coming soon of all of us with our rings...as requested by Lindsey!  Get ready Lynley...33 more days...can you believe it!

I Dropped the Ball on This One

So, this past Wednesday/Thursday at Ouachita, Red Cross came to campus for a blood drive.  As I tried to think of an excuse to get out of giving blood, I kept thinking that maybe this time I shouldn't look for an excuse.  After a good pep talk from my boss and from several students (who probably thought I was such a baby), I decided that I would finally give blood for the first time.

Yes, this would be the first time that I would give blood, but it was not my first attempt.  I had tried to give blood 4 times before this:

1) Taking an antibiotic - NO BLOOD FOR YOU
2) Out of the country too close to blood time - NO BLOOD FOR YOU
3) Anemic (not enough iron) - NO BLOOD FOR YOU
4) Anemic (again) - NO BLOOD FOR YOU

So this time, after I secured a blood buddy (a veteran donor too) who would go with me, I finally mustered up the courage to sign my name on the "give blood" list (I don't think that's what they call it though).  I got my "I made a difference sticker" and read the literature on giving blood.  Now, this sticker they gave me, is bright green, not red like my blood buddy's.  Green means first timer...so it's like a warning to all the Red Cross people..."beware, she's new at this...she'll probably freak out."

I walk into the room, and there's no wait, so I head straight to the finger-pricking chair.  Here they ask me all sorts of questions about my sexual history, and if I had ever had sexual relations with a prostitute in Africa since the year 1970.  Now I know why they don't like to read these out loud.  Finger prick...check...anemic...nope...here we go!

I get settled in my chair, after a not so reassuring vein check on both my arms, and after finally finding one that will work, we get to work.  As nervous as I was, once they got the needle in, I felt great!  I couldn't believe I had made such a big deal about giving blood.  So I'm rolling around the stress ball they gave me (my only instructions), and I'm chatting it up with my blood buddy.  We even pause to take a picture together!  We'll call this the "before picture" (a little blurry)...I should warn you, we didn't get an after picture.

I started to feel a bit light headed and dizzy, so I told the lady who was helping me, and the next thing I remember was another Red Cross helper clapping his hands and saying "Erin, we need you to wake up...Erin, you passed out on us!"

Yeah...I passed out!  My blood buddy says that the last thing I said before I passed out was "oh no!"  I finally woke up, sweating bad, so they put an ice pack on my back.  Then, I was so nauseous, so they brought over a bright red BIO-HAZARD bag for me to "get sick" in if I needed to (the girl behind me in the picture has one too...in case you were curious as to what I am talking about).  I will say that the red bag and the green sticker made a lovely holiday combination, but not exactly the kind of attention I wanted while other students were preparing to give blood themselves.  Once I realized that I would get sick, or maybe even pass out again if they didn't get that needle out of me, I had to quit.  I asked if what I had given could still make a difference, and I got a reassuring "you know...we'll send it in a see what they can do with it!" BOO!  All that for probably nothing!

Oh yeah, you want to know the first thing I thought when I came to?  "The ball...where is it, I must have dropped it!"  That's right, I dropped the ball...literally and physically.  Oh well, maybe next time...and then, my sticker and BIO-HAZARD bag will match!

His and Hers

One really great thing about marriage is sharing.  You know..."what's mine is sometimes yours!"  And while sharing everything is both grown up and well, a necessary part of marriage...I'm glad there are still His and Her things around our home. 

His and Hers Coffee Cups:

Tyler and I have nailed down our evening/getting ready for bed ritual.  We make sure our porch lights are off; turn the air to about 63 degrees (so glad we don't have to pay for utilities!); lay out clothes for the next day; set the alarm; get a new glass of water for the bedside table; and get the coffee ready for the morning.  

One thing that is definitely his and hers is our coffee cups.  Lynley, Nikki, and Lindsey got me two of these beautiful coffee cups for my birthday last year, and I LOVE them!  Tyler was a little more hesitant to use them though.  Maybe it's the cute patter, or maybe its that his fingers don't fit in the swirly handle.  Whatever the reason, he decided he needed a more "manly" cup to drink his coffee out of.  So...I got him his very own Andy's mug (now he fits in with the population of men over 60 in Arkadelphia).  Even though we both take our coffee with two packets of Equal and french vanilla Coffee-mate cream, we definitely make sure it's in our own coffee mugs!

His and Her Oatmeal:

I used to not eat oatmeal.  Maybe that was because we only had the Apples and Cinnamon flavor in our house.  Well, while Tyler was out of town for a couple of days, I decided to find out if I really didn't like oatmeal or if it was that particular flavor.  That's right...I bought a variety pack of oatmeal to see if there was any flavor I liked.  So these are the ones I tried:

Apples and Cinnamon (thought I'd give it another shot)

Cinnamon Roll

Regular

And then I found a winner!!!

MAPLE AND BROWN SUGAR!!!  A plus to this was that I accidentally bought the sugar free version and LOVED it! So, on the list of foods that I didn't like, but have learned to like: eggs (check), oatmeal (check), hot!hot!hot! tea (check)...next on the list: honey!

His and Her Cars:

Tyler and I were very fortunate to be given our cars when we got married.  Both our parents signed over the title to us, and we got to start our marriage with 0 car payments!  I guess they were both okay with signing over the titles, because our poor cars aren't worth much.  In fact, I don't even know if our cars alone could get us anything.  I have devised a plan, though, to fix this problem.  Together, my Explorer and his Corolla would make the perfect car for us!  All we would need to do is combine the parts of each car:

His Corolla                                             Her Explorer

    Air Conditioning                                           CD Player         

Ability for the windows to roll down                          Sun Roof                 

Transmission                                              Hubcaps   

Gas Mileage                                              Windshield  

    Odometer                                              Keyless Entry   

I guess we could call it either the "Corollorer" or the "Explorolla."  Either way, it would be our super car!  Until we figure out how to do all of those things, we'll just have to save for that 4Runner great used car that will some day be ours (and maybe have all the things on our super car list)!

His and Her Make-Up Bag/Shaving Kit:

Though I probably wouldn't mind sharing my make-up bag with Tyler, he is the one who appreciates these his and her things most.  He thinks my make-up bag is a disaster, and doesn't know a) what half of the things in there are, and b) how to find half of the things you need in there.  He uses his bag mostly for traveling.  He carries his toothbrush, deoderant, contact solution, etc. in his bag.  I use mine on an everyday basis!  A note for anyone who might make the same mistake that I did: DO NOT call his shaving kit a make-up bag (even on accident).  He is a boy and does not wear make-up and he made that very clear to me when I slipped up one day and asked if he packed his make-up bag for the trip...YIKES BIKES!!!  That probably won't happen again Tyler, don't worry!

His and Her Toothbrush:

One of the things I learned about Tyler when we got married, was that he was very set in his ways before marriage, and there were just some things that I would never change about him.  One of those things: how he applies toothpaste.  I like to apply toothpaste to the entire brush by dragging the toothpaste from the bottom of the bristles to the top.

Tyler is different because he likes to just squeeze a big blob of the toothpaste right smack in the middle of the brush.  He doesn't spread it around, he just applies a big blob.  Even though he is firm in his ways, he never has tried to convince me that he was right or I was wrong.  If we happen to be brushing our teeth at the same time, he will (or I will) kindly apply my toothpaste across the entire toothbrush bristles, and then apply his in that, oh so familiar now, glob. 

His and Her Oven Mitts:

Enough said!

His and Her Pillow Set Up:

As I mentioned before, we have a very detailed bedtime ritual.  Sometimes this ritual includes some reading time.  Whenever we read before bed, we both prefer our pillows a certain way.  Tyler likes the more firm/bigger pillow behind his back, while I like the softer, less bulky pillow for my support.  A side note about the bed/pillow/comforter set up: We have to make sure that the comforter is pulled way over on his side of the bed leaving just the edge of the comforter on my side.  That way, in the morning, it is even again (yes, I'll admit, I'm a bit of a blanket roller...I'll pull the comforter with me when I roll over in the night). 

His and Her Books:

I've been in a bit of a reading funk lately, but the other day, Tyler and I made a trip to Hot Springs and bought new books to read!  While I currently enjoy reading a bit more sophisticated books, Tyler is reading Tex by S. E. Hinton.  That poor boy did buy a grown up book when we went to Hot Springs, but he is usually stuck reading books for his eighth grade class.  Read it up Tex...read it up!

So, while sharing things in marriage is such a blessing, it is definitely a neccessary and wonderful thing to have our own His and Her things!  I love you Tyler...but Apples and Cinnamon over Maple and Brown Sugar?  That's just crazy!

Congratulations Mrs. Birdsong

Last weekend, Tyler and I took off from our dorm duties, and headed to (among other stops) Wimberly, TX to see Kassidy and Derek get married!  The weekend was packed with family visits, good meals, and lots of driving.  On Friday afternoon, we made our way to stop #1: Allen, TX. 

We stayed with Tyler's parents on Friday night and got to treat his mom to birthday dinner at Italian Villa...that place is missed for sure!  After a wonderful breakfast of homemade blueberry pancakes, we packed up again and made our way to stop #2: Waco, TX. 

In Waco, we met up with my parents and Kayla for lunch.  Even though we didn't see each other for a very long period of time, it was still good to catch up and...let's get real...have a free meal!  After lunch, it was a quick wardrobe change and then off to stop #3: Wimberly, TX.

The reason for the trip: Kassidy and Derek's wedding.  It was beautiful.  Even though there was a last minute change of venue (inside instead of outside) you would have never even guessed because everything was perfect.  Their ceremony and reception were held at the Red Corral Ranch. It was out in the country, which made for the perfect country wedding.  Here is a picture of Tyler and I at the reception...gorgeous!

BFF Lindsey and I...before we got crunk on the dancefloor!

The happy couple's first dance...and my attempt at getting a picture of the dress:

Attempt #2:

Outside the barn looking into the reception!

Everything about the wedding was intimate and unique, from the music, to the room, to the vows, and even to the "grooms cake pudding bar."  It was so personal, and I'm so glad that we got to celebrate with them.  Here is the beautiful bride!

Married couples!

Thank you Kassidy and Derek for inviting us to share this day with you.  I can't wait to catch up and hear how married life is treating you.  Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Birdsong!

*Also, thank you Zac and Kathy for room and board on Friday night; thank you Carpenters for lunch on Saturday; thank you Kevin and Roycee Kerr for dinner on Saturday; and thank you sister Kayla for room and board on Saturday night!