Book Club: Tuesdays with Morrie

I am thrilled! I have just joined my first book club! A friend at work, Lindsey, invited me to join a book club that she is in. I absolutely love to read... so joining a book club is right up my alley! Lindsey mentioned it to me a few weeks ago. They have met a few times before, but were looking for some new members. I was honored that they asked me to join.

They are already chosen the book for the month of February, Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom. I read this book several, several years ago... I think maybe in college. I loved it and loved the "life lessons" that were shared throughout the book.

At book club we eat dinner and then discuss the book. One person, who is in charge for the month, brings questions then we discuss. It's a blast!

Tuesdays with Morrie is about a relationship between an older college professor and one of his students. The relationship dwindles after the young man graduates from college, but then is rekindled when he hears that his beloved teacher, Morrie,  is dying. Every Tuesday he makes the trip to visit his professor and they share life lessons together. One common thread that kept coming up in our discussion was Morrie's attitude. He remained so positive even though he was on his death bed. He found the good in everything and in every circumstance.

I highly recommend this book. It's an easy read and not too long!

At the end of book club, the host presents three books to read for the next month. Then everyone votes on what they would like to read. We voted for Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks. I received his new book for Christmas, but haven't read it yet. So I am super excited! Nicholas Sparks is one of my favorite authors!

Good Memories

This past weekend one of my good friends from Auburn got married. Christina Smith became a Christina Wagoner on Saturday. She and Mike make a perfect pair. I absolutely love Mike too! They are honeymooning in St. Lucia right now, which I am extremely jealous of!

Christina and I met our Freshman year at Auburn. We both pledged Alpha Chi and both lived in the Quad. I remember when she called me up during the Fall to go to a social with her. I barely knew her, but went anyways. Of course we had a blast! I still remember the social was "Red or Dead" (dress up like a redneck or a dead head). The one picture I have of us from that social is too bad to post. Christina would teach me how to dance at the socials, since I was a terrible, terrible dancer. Here is picture from our Spring Formal Freshman year.

Our friendship continued, and I spent many days and nights in her room on the hall sophomore year. Junior and Senior year I was the Palace Girls (where Tina and five of my other close friends lived) "other roommate." We had so much fun together and so many memories!

This is one of my favorite pics of the Alpha Chi Girls. This was before our Carnation Ball our Junior Year. Here I am with the "Palace Girls" and a few extras! 

Christina was in my wedding and I really wanted to be there for her wedding... 

I had full intentions of attending the wedding, but after my "episode" with kidney stones I just wasn't sure about making the trek to the big ATL. I prayed about it all week, and finally Thursday night I just didn't have a peace about going. I felt like I needed to stay here and rest. I think this was the right thing to do. That may have been my last weekend of rest. The last two days I have not slept well at all... we are talking I have slept maybe 4 hours each night. I just can't get comfortable and my lower back is killing me. I am praying for some rest tonight, and maybe hitting the hay at any minute.

For something a little fun this weekend, since I was bummed about the wedding, Gunter and I went and had pictures made... and of course Heath had to join us. I found a great photographer in Enterprise. I adore her and am pleased with the pictures. She is going to take John Turner's newborn pictures too. I'll post some pictures soon!

I also went to the doctor today for my 32 week check-up. Everything is going well, and I am pleased with my progress, except for the weight gain ;(    I think that it is mainly water-weight or so I am hoping. I am thirsty all of the time! Only 8 weeks left and I hope that it flies by!

The glider also came today! Yippee! I will post pictures of that too... when I can find my camera cord. It's still MIA.

Yummy Strawberry Cake!

This has been an interesting week... I woke up early Monday morning with terrible back pain. I was in tears, and Gunter had to get up and get me my heating pad and some Tylenol. I didn't go back sleep. When I got up, I was feeling a little better, but not great. I called the doctor. I went in to see him, and he told me that I had passed another kidney stone! This is horrible! I have had two kidney stones since I have been pregnant, and passed four before I was pregnant. This summer I am going to the urologist to figure out why I continue to have stones.

I am feeling much better.... and still in the Valentine's Day mood. Tomorrow is our Valentine's party at school, so I just finished addressing the Valentines to the kids in my class! I all this talk of pink and sweets has made me want a delicious dessert - like Strawberry Cake!

I love strawberries! I can't wait for the strawberry patch to open right outside of town. They have the most delicious strawberries! I did find some yummy strawberries at Publix. I had a delicious Strawberry Cake at a shower the other weekend. I begged the friend that made it for the recipe. She sent it to me the other week, and I made a Strawberry Cake for another friend who just had a baby, passed some out at school, and Gunter and I ate the rest by ourselves!

Here is the recipe for Strawberry Cake, compliments of Shari Crim...

1 package of white cake mix

1 package of strawberry jello

1 cup of oil

1/2 cup of water

4 eggs

1/2 chopped strawberries

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour 3 cake pans. Mix first 5 ingredients. Add strawberries. Bake for 25 minutes.

Icing: 

1 stick of butter

1 box of powdered sugar

1/2 cup chopped strawberries

Let cake cool before icing. Shari usually make 1 1/2 of the icing recipe, and I did the same. Keep cake in the refrigerator. You can use fresh or frozen strawberries. 

The cake is very moist and delicious! A must try, because it's easy and strawberries are in season! 

I wish that I could say this is my picture... but it is not. 

I can't find the cord to connect my camera to the computer :(

This picture is just a one layer cake, my cake was 3 layers - more icing, more yummy! 

Thanks Shari for letting me share your recipe! 

Nursery Update: Curtains and Bedding

Finally I have a minute to sit down and post some pictures of the nursery! I have just a few more thank you notes to write, but they can wait a few minutes....

The nursery is really coming together and it makes me so excited! Now all we need is a little baby! He will be here before we know it. I can't believe that I am already 30 weeks. Only 10 weeks left. It has flown by! I can't wait to see what God has in store for our family in 2011!

Without further adieu here are the new pictures from the nursery!

Relaxed Roman Shade on the window. 

Fabric is the blue and green houndstooth that I found from New York. 

Panels that open and close. 

Also in the blue and green houndstooth. 

The bassinet is going to be moved and the rocker will go in front of the window! 

The crib is ready! 

Bedskirt is in the green fabric with gray and blue circles. 

The bumper pads are green and white gingham on the outside and white fabric on the inside. 

I monogrammed the bumper pads! I was so proud of myself! 

Close up of the bumper pads. 

This is the bedspread that was in the green bedroom before it was turned into the nursery. 

Mom made a pillow out of a green, white and gray plaid for the bed.

The piping around the inside of the pillow is the houndstooth in the curtains. 

You can see a tiny bit of the rug in the bottom of the picture. It's a gray "shag" rug. 

Mom found this when she was cleaning the other day! 

My grandmother, MeMe, made all of her grandchildren shoe holders. 

The bottom house on the left is her chicken house. Growing up she used to raise chickens. 

I loved it! John Turner only has one pair of shoes, but I know he will soon get some more! 

Our glider/rocker is supposed to be shipped today. So hopefully it will arrive in about 5 days. My plan is to put it in front of the big windows. The bassinet will be moved to our bedroom. I am finishing the bumper pads for that. Pictures to come soon! Once the glider gets here then I will hang all of the artwork and pictures on the wall! It's all coming together! 

Thanks to my mom for all of the hard work that she put into the curtains, bumper pads and pillows! 

The Craziness of Life

I know I said that I would post pics of my nursery next time... but life has been a little crazy. And honestly, I have not even put up all of the gifts that we received from the shower yet. More are streaming in on a daily basis! Thank you and more on that in a minutes. At the end of the week before last, I woke up with a  terrible ear ache. I have not had an ear infection since I was at Auburn! When I was little I lived with an ear infection year- round. I am praying John Turner does not do the same.

Around lunchtime I decided I needed to go to the ENT to get this checked out. Sure enough I had the beginning stages of an ear infection. That is terrible pain! I was prescribed an antibiotic and started feeling better the next week (last week). But on Friday, my ear started hurting again.  I knew that I couldn't make it through the weekend, so I called the ENT. No appointments. I decided just to head to the "doc-in-a-box" and see what they said. The doctor there prescribed me some drops to use for the rest of the weekend, until I could make it back to the ENT.

So Friday night, Gunter put the drops in my ear (which was supposed to be 10, but they came out so fast... no telling how many drops I got!) Then I put some pain relieving drops in my ear. About an hour and  a half later I got up to brush my teeth and I noticed that my mouth felt a little weird. I walked into the bathroom and this is what I saw....

Ok... maybe I am exaggerating a little bit. But my not too much! The left side of my face was so swollen. My lip was huge, my left nostril was swollen, my eye, not sure about my ear.... didn't even look I was so upset. So I decided not to put the drops in anymore.

Sure enough when I went back to the ENT today, he said that I was allergic to an antibiotic in the first drops that I used. Stay away from those!

But to make my day better I got home to find this sitting at my door...

A box from Tiffany's always makes your day much better. It was a gift for John Turner from my dear friend Stefani, who lives in New York and couldn't make it to my Birmingham shower. Inside I found this...

Adorable keepsake dishes for John Turner! 

Thanks Stef! 

Gunter wanted to open the gift, but when I saw it was from Tiffany's and wrapped in bubble wrap, I advised him to be very careful. I can't tell you how many dishes he has broken from just unloading the dishwasher! 

Well, I am off to shower for my friend from work, Kara, who is due four weeks before me! I am taking this... 

Onesies I appliqued for her! 

Pictures of the nursery coming next post! I promise! 

Dothan Baby Shower

I went to the doctor today for my 28 week appointment! I can't believe that I am 28 weeks! It has flown by. You can definitely tell that I am pregnant now, and it is coming on fast! It just won't stop!

The nursery is almost finished. Mom finished the curtains and they are hanging in the room now. When she came this weekend we worked on the bumperpads and finished those. So my next post will be pictures of the nursery! We are still waiting for the glider, which should be here within the next two weeks. Once that comes in, then I will hang all of the pictures on the walls... and really be done with the nursery! The hard part is finding places for all of the great stuff we have gotten from our showers. How can 1 person, who is not even here yet, accumulate so much stuff! I am so thankful for our friends that threw the shower for John Turner. It was so much fun and we racked up on great gifts for our precious little boy!

The Hostesses! 

Katie Pilcher, Rhoda Weber, Susanne Richardson, Me, 

Christina Hayes, Christen Price and Connie Ridley

Thanks for everything! 

The table setting! I loved the flowers! 

John Turner's first Blah Blah! Thanks Mrs. Smith! 

John Turner's first  smocked daygown! Thanks Mitizi! 

Sign for the hospital door! Thanks Kara! 

John Turner's Christmas stocking from Mom! 

"War Eagle Hey!" John John from Ms. Faye! That will be good for 

next football season! 

Monogrammed pillow for the crib from Mrs. Hardy! 

Christen, Me, and Susanne! It was so good to see you guys! 

Katie, Me, Emily, and Christina

Gifts from the shower

Blah Blah, Monitors, whale outfit (perfect for the beach), Binky, 

tool daygown, stocking, Christmas PJs, and swaddle blankets

More gifts! 

Peter Rabbit dishes, monogrammed basket, golf outfit, Auburn burp cloths, 

monogrammed burp cloths, and knit hat

Nap Nanny, changing table pad, monogrammed pillow, 

several daygowns, and blue and white polka dot onesie and matching bib

Thanks for a wonderful shower! I had a blast and John Turner got so many nice gifts! 

Pictures of the nursery coming soon! 

To Phoenix and Beyond - Part 3

Last week was a crazy week! I had full intentions of writing the last part of our Phoenix trip, but of course things don't always go as planned. I wanted to finish all of my thank you notes from my Birmingham shower before this weekend, because I had a shower in Dothan this weekend. I didn't want them to get built up. But on Wednesday I started not feeling well. By Thursday my left ear was killing me. So I called the ENT and he worked me in. Sure enough I have an ear infection. I haven't had one since college. I forgot how horrible they are and how they make you feel terrible! I am already praying that John Turner does not have my ears! 

On to Phoenix....
On my last post I ended by telling you that we had made it back to our room and got in the bed around 1:00am. Our flight was leaving Phoenix at 6:50am, so we decided to get up at 4:00am pack and head to the airport. Everything went as planned. We made it to the airport in plenty of time. We were surrounded by many excited but exhausted Auburn fans. The flight from Phoenix to Chicago was a long one. But since it was so early most people just slept in the plane. Flying to Chicago was part of our flight plan....

We landed on time in Chicago and I turned on my phone. Mom had texted me to say that the Atlanta airport was shut down, due to the bad weather - ice and snow. We immediately checked our flight schedule and all was well. Our flight was still bound from Atlanta. But what was weird was that all the other American Airlines flights we cancelled. We had a little time to kill so we ate lunch in the airport. Just as we sat down Mom texted me said that our flight had also been cancelled. Lovely!

As soon as we finished lunch, we got on the phone with American Airlines to book another flight home. There was one flight still available later on Tuesday night, but it was full, and there were already 45 people on standby. American suggested that we fly to New York City and then to Atlanta. Why would we do that? New York was getting 12 inches of snow the next day! Then they suggested that we fly to Houston and then to Atlanta. All we wanted to do was get home. The only direct flight that they could book us on to Atlanta was on Thursday afternoon. That meant we would have to spend 2 days in Chicago. That would be fine if #1 - the airlines paid for us a hotel room (a big negative), #2 - we had appropriate clothing. Remember we had just left Glendale with 65 degree weather. Kelsey didn't even have a jacket.

So we debated our options .... stay in Chicago until Thursday, fly around the US trying to make it Atlanta, or drive home. After debating for a while we decided we should drive. So we then began the hunt for a rental car. We called five rental car companies before finally finding a car with 4 Wheel drive. Guess what the only car available in Chicago was... a Ford Escape!

An hour later we were headed south. It was snowing hard in Chicago. We did a little sight seeing from our car windows...

Leaving the airport! Lots of snow everywhere! 

"Hello Mom. I am driving home from Chicago. See you in 12 hours!"

Garmin... a must have!  It says that we will be home/Atlanta (all most home)

 in 11 hours and 34 minutes! 

Sight seeing ... The White Sox stadium

We drove for about an hour. Then Gunter said, "I don't feel so good. Sorry guys we are going to have to pull over." No big deal. I have to go to the bathroom about every hour anyway, so I could always use stop. Little did we know what we would be stopping every thirty minutes from here on out. Gunter didn't feel any better after we stopped, instead things got worse. Kyle had taken over the driving, and that was a good thing because Gunter "got sick" shortly after that. Poor thing! It lasted all night! 

The only thing we can figure out is that it was food poisoning. We all ate at Chili's for lunch, but no one else got sick. Gunter did have a delicious smoothie before we left the airport. It must have had bad fruit or something in it. Good thing we had Kyle to drive! I don't think I would have been able to drive in that weather! It snowed the whole time! From Illinois to Georgia. The roads were icy in some parts too. In Kentucky we sat on Highway 65 for an hour and a half in stand still traffic. When we reached Louisville, we decided to stop for the night. We all needed a shower, and Gunter needed to get in the bed. 

On Wednesday we started out bright and early. We had about six hours left until we reached Atlanta, and then we had 3 more hours to Dothan. Our trip from Kentucky to Alabama wasn't as eventful as the day before. Gunter was still not feeling well, but not throwing up anymore. This was a very good thing! 

See Rock City? I wish that we had time! 

At least we had beautiful snowy scenery while we were driving

Finally at about 3pm, we made it the Atlanta airport. We had to go there to turn in our Escape and get our cars from the airport parking lot. Kyle and Kelsey were headed to Birmingham, then Kelsey had to head on to Auburn. Gunter and I headed to Dothan. We got home about 7pm that night. What a trip! 

Oh Escape! We will miss you! 

I think we put about 750 miles on the ole Escape. We all decided that we would do it all over again! Well, Gunter said he would if he didn't have food poisoning. At least he lost some weight! ha! ha!  Our trip was very memorable! And well worth it to be able to see our Auburn Tigers win the National Championship! War Eagle! Hooray for great family memories! The things we do for the ones we love! Wouldn't trade it for the world!