valentine's :)

i have the sweetest, most bestest, wonderfulest, greatest...

mommy in the world!

i bet you thought i was going to say boyfriend. fooled ya. (but he's pretty great, too!)

i just got a package in the mail (who doesn't love packages in the mail? it's even better than just a regular present!) from my mom for valentine's day! it had a coffee cup with a scene from

this book (this is one of those books that makes me cry when i read it now. kind of like "i love you forever i like you for always..." i love children's literature.), dove dark chocolate, and a sweet valentine's card.

brad and i are going to celebrate valentine's day on sunday night. he never tells me what we're going to do for any special occasion... he likes to surprise. AND he's really good at that. and presents. he's really sweet and thoughtful :) i like him.

i haven't had a car all week, so i haven't been able to get him a present yet. like i'd know what to get him anyway. i already exhausted all my options on birthday. (which, by the way, one of his friends got him the exact same book i got him! dangit. this just proves that he's insanely hard to shop for.)

we're going to birmingham for the weekend so brad can run in a half marathon, so i need to go make some clothing decisions. what should i wear for our valentine's date? hmm....

i have a class every wednesday from 8-10:30.

today, my professor didn't show up until 8:30 because he thought that was when class started.

REALLY?

last night, katie came over for our weekly prayer/accountability time, and it was so good. i really enjoy when we get to hang out- mostly because she's awesome and we make each other laugh. and because i like hanging out with girls. just talking to her made me realize how thankful i am for the friends i've had throughout high school and college. there's always been an honesty and love for one another in the Lord. so thankful for the friends that have prayed for me and with me, held me to high standards, and loved me regardless of how well i behave.

carbo-loading.

The University cancelled class because of winter weather.

This means that it's less than 40 degrees outside and raining, apparently.

BUT that means that I get to cook tonight because Brad's meeting got cancelled! So I don't have to just eat leftovers! And my only company isn't Rachel Ray or Ina Garten! (Even though I love Ina. I would have lunch with her any day. But dinner... I prefer people who don't live in my television set.)

I'm going to make chicken strips. Healthy, I know. But see since I made those orange scones I have some buttermilk... so why wouldn't I use it on chicken strips? It just makes sense. And we will be eating green beans! And maybe some salad. Justified.

I'm also excited because Monday is Brad's 21st birthday!

This is Brad's happy face.

Just kiddin.

There, that's better :)

Reasons I'm excited for this include:

1. It's his 21st birthday! So we can (finally) have wine with dinner. Or beer. Tonight I would be picking beer, but as it's not Monday yet... water it is.

2. I get to cook yummy things. He's real simple, so for his birthday dinner it will beeee... steak (good thing Ina and I had a conversation the other day on how to cook steak sans grill), green beans (his favorite veggie?), potatoes, and maybe some salad. And probably yummy yeast rolls. And red wine.

But for his birthday party I get to pick!! It's a super bowl party (ha. themed.), so I'm making pretzels, this ice cream pie, cake, and rotel dip. Fun, yummy, and football-y.

This is my life lately. I get excited about food when I can cook it. I read food blogs (I LOVE LOVE LOVE pioneer woman and joy the baker), I do a little school, and I sit on my couch and tell you about it.

love :)

today started my three day class rotation...

my schedule rocks.

i also got to talk to my best friend today :) sarah moved to texas recently because she married her lover, matt. (she calls him matthew. but that's only cause she's related to him now.)

see sarah and matt? aren't they so cute? you can have a couple crush on them if you want to. they're kind of amazing. (Sara Renee did their wedding photography. she's kind of amazing, too!)

we skyped for almost 2 hours. it's kind of ridiculous, but i miss her. so much. after living with her for more than four years, how can you blame me?

in other news,

i made chocolate orange scones last night. it was Joy the baker's idea. I might have a friend crush on her. or maybe that's called a blog crush. the scones were real good, but apparently citrus gives me fever blisters. too bad, because citrus is real good.

that's all. im going to go to bed ridiculously early, now. good night :)

a blogger resurfacing.

This saturday I'm pretty much worthless.

I woke up and made myself some pancakes, moped because my only friends are out of town, and then got back in my bed to read my Bible and complain to the Lord. Cause I have it so bad. Except not really. Or at all.

Yesterday I went house hunting in b'ham with my dad. B-rad joined, and we had fun... or i did, anyway. I saw two that I liked, but I'm not sold on anything yet. (my favorite one from internet looking already sold. I'm telling myself that it sucked in person.) I liked looking though, and I think the plan is to continue to look. Grateful for my knowledgeable pops.

And now I'm thinking about lunch.

What I should eat: salad.

What I want to eat: grilled cheese, potato chips, a pickle, and a diet coke.

Healthy isn't as fun as not healthy. Maybe if I go on a walk later I can justify that grilled cheese... it is, after all, a gorgeous day!

it's summer again...

apparently blogging is a summer activity for me :)

im in richmond for the next 4 weeks (ive already been here for 2). im working for erica's mom and living with erica- both of which im loving. i do THE most random stuff for mrs. bonnie- from researching how best to sell a fridge online to editing letters to fed-ex'ing shoes she left at the nail salon. living with erica is always an adventure :) we have a lot of similar interests... well. we both like junk antique and thrift stores. and the Lord. she's an artist, which fits the mold of my favorite roommates, and im currently watching her paint a piece inspired by the woman with the issue of blood (which, we just learned is in every Gospel BUT John. which is the one she was supposed to be painting from for her church. oops.). we're listening to coldplay (her choice) which makes me think of last summer and a concert with sara noojin...

i miss my bama people. kind of a lot.

my best friend is engaged!! and found a dress yesterday. and i get to go to the fitting in a couple months!!!

i love my life. have i said that recently? because i do.

because my last post was on adoption... i recently dubbed (in my head) my savings accout my "adoption savings account." im 1/25 of the way there. so maybe in like 15 years i can actually have a kid. hah.

"satisfy me in the morning with your steadfast love, that i may rejoice and be glad all my days..."

I never write any more. I thought about excuses, but decided a post is better.

I've been thinking about adoption a lot lately... as in, more than usual. For several reasons, I think.

I'm scared of growing older and not doing the things I always said I'd do because life happened.

I just read Noel Piper's adoption story, and pretty much wept the whole time. She and John adopted a little African American girl (Talitha Ruth) when her youngest son was 13 (they have four sons) and she and john were in their 50s. (By the way, Talitha is what Jesus called the little girl he raised from the dead- it means "little she-lamb." That's about the cutest thing I've ever heard.)

Went to BrookHills yesterday, where my heart was first stirred toward adoption. Several months after that first happened, I found myself in that same sanctuary beside a couple in their 50s, white, with a little black girl, about 7. Watching that family, the little girl climbing into her daddy's lap made me teary. Because that's her daddy, and the colors of their skin have no consequence in her eyes. I wanted to thank them, to tell them how much I loved and respected what they were doing, and how much I want to do that one day, but was afraid I'd burst into tears if I tried to talk to them.

I'm only 21, unmarried (and staying that way for awhile), still in school (and staying THAT way for awhile), and currently broke. I have don't have the resources, family position, or financial position to adopt or provide for an adopted child. But my heart cries for it daily.

I don't understand why the Lord puts things in my heart way before they can bear fruit, but I trust Him. And I know that this is from Him. So in 15 years, when you see my little multi-racial family, don't be shocked. Because I've known since I was 20 that my kids wouldn't all look like me :)