Wednesday's Walk: So Long Insecurity

If you're like me and read lots of blogs of girls in the southeast, you've probably read your fair share of summaries from So Long Insecurity, the simulcast Beth Moore held a couple of weekends ago.

But I want to remember my weekend there, and since I'm certainly not nearly as popular as those other blog girls who've all posted precious pictures and their takes on the weekend, I want to remember the weekend for my own reasons.

Back in February one of my friends mentioned to me that she'd read on Kelly's blog about Beth Moore coming to Atlanta in April for a simulcast.  Amy asked if I was interested in going.  Beth Moore?  In person?  Yeah, I'm in! 

So Amy and I, along with our friend Meredith, bought our tickets and soon found ourselves planning out our weekend. 

And then, Miss Molly scared us all and had us thinking we may be having a baby earlier than expected.  I was put on bed rest and we tried to fiind someone to go with Amy and Meredith in my place.  They asked a few girls, I posted on facebook that I had a ticket to sell.  And we waited.

I knew of one lady who may be interested, so I messaged her, thinking she was already going and may have a friend who wanted to join her.  But she wasn't already going and didn't really want just one single ticket.

Tuesday comes, four days before the simulcast, and I was told by my doctor that I could resume life as normal.  I asked him specifically if he thought it would be okay for me to go to Atlanta for the simulcast.  He assured me I would be fine.

So, we decided I was in ~ again!  By this time, Amy and Meredith had planned and plotted and we had an agenda for our trip, let me tell you!  See, both of them sew and are very, very creative.  Meredith's also expecting her second little girl in August, so she and I both had nursery planning on our minds.  Those two plotted our trip up to Atlanta with various stops to fabric stores, Ballard Designs Backroom, and other shopping spots! 

Boy oh Boy did they mean business!  At 9:50pm on Friday night when we walked out of Target, silly me thought we were going to our car to finally ~ finally! ~ get to our hotel.  Amy starts pushing me the other way, only to tell me we're running in Old Navy first!  This pregnant woman was TIRED!  And Old Navy was closed!  So, we found our way to our hotel around 10 that night.

Saturday morning we woke up, grabbed some breakfast and made our way to Woodstock First Baptist Church for So Long Insecurity! 

Here we are on the little trolley taking us to the building. . .

Meredith, B, and Amy

And here we are with Kelly!  We waited in line to meet her like crazy fans!  And she was sooooooo patient, gracious, kind and humble.  Very humble.

What a great day is was filled with worship, digging into the Word, and being with precious friends!  I'll cherish our heart to hearts and reflections on Beth's teachings for years to come, girls!

Thank you, God, for precious friends!!

If you want to participate in Wednesday's Walk, jump on over to Jenilee's blog now!

Wednesday's Walk ~ The Proposal

 Oooh, I've wanted to participate in Wednesday's Walk every since Jenilee brought it back; when Lynette hosted this, I loved it each week.  And today, I have a very special walk to remember... It was three years ago this past Monday.  I was working in some of our branches along the coast and my mom went with me since it was spring break for her.  We enjoyed a great time together, and I worked during the days that week in various branches.  Each evening, Mom and I would enjoy time together going to some of our favorite restaurants on St. Simons Island and just enjoying being there.  I have a love for SSI that's really second to none.  I grew up going there for vacations, weekend getaways and great fun.   On that Thursday, we had plans for another great night.  Mom would pick me up from work and we were heading over to the island for dinner with one of my precious friends, Ami.  We ate at Crabdaddy's ~ YUM! ~ and enjoyed each other's company.  Then, my mom suggested we go walk around the King & Prince.  This was a place where I grew up running through the resort, probably reaking havoc on everything with my friends.  There were about 5 families who met annually for a weekend trip at K&P, and now we laugh about how the staff would probably growl when our group arrived each February.  The kids?  We knew all the hallways and pathways of the resort. So, the three of us girls head over to K&P.  We walked all through the resort while I was busy telling Ami all about our numerous trips there.  We walked out of the building and faced the beach. We laughed at a dog playing in the water.  It had been a beautiful day and there were lots of folks enjoying the beach.   I remember glancing to the right and seeing this guy who looked very much like Tim.  But Tim - well, I thought Tim was at work.  In Macon.  3 1/2 hours away.  Dealing with what he'd described to me earlier on the phone as a personnel issue.  But this guy is sitting in this swing and looks so much like Tim. So I turn to my momma to ask her if he reminds her of Tim.  And I see tears.  She's smiling and crying.  I look back to the guy and he stands.  It is Tim!  He walks over to me, and asks me to come sit with him in the swing. It's there, in the swing, facing the ocean, on the property of a very, very special place that Tim gets down on one knee and asks me to marry him.  He says some very special, amazing things to me, and pulls out a ring that to this very day is the most beautiful ring I've ever laid eyes on. Needless to say, I said Yes!  Many times!  My momma and Ami had stepped back and were hiding behind some shrubbery watching this all unfold from afar. And that, my friends, began a beautiful, incredibly fun engagement. To this day, those precious words Tim said to me when he asked me to spend the rest of my life to him are beyond comparison.  *Would you believe I can't find the pictures from that special night?!?!  So sorry for no photos of this Walk!

Titus 2 Tuesday & Wednesday Walk All in One!

Sorry I've been MIA this week!! Things have been pretty crazy these days at work ~ I know, I know ~ so I've not really been able to digress from work duties to write!! And I miss it!!

Today it's a combo of highlighting my precious Aunt Lynda and how she's definitely a Titus 2 lady in my life and a walk down Memory Lane with one of my grandmother's cookie recipes!

My Aunt Lynda has the sweetest, brightest disposition. She's one of the most intelligent women I know, and she is absolutely the ultimate positive Patty. Aunt Lynda is married to my mom's brother, but I've always felt that she loves our family as if we really were blood. And that means so much to me.

Aunt Lynda's taught me how to be a Southern Lady. Aunt Lynda is absolutely the epitome of a gracious hostess. She never loses her cool, even when our family is piled in her house, snacking on buckeyes and cheese balls, with all the women directing whose casserole goes into the oven next, how the ham should be cut, which glasses go on which table. See, in the Towe family, we're all convinced we are the boss. So, you get us all together and we're all chiefs with no Indians. It's enough to make a preacher cuss. But not Aunt Lynda. She never loses that beautiful smile and truly seems to enjoy every second of the family chaos!

To always trust God's plan. Aunt Lynda always has a positive comment to any sad situation. I've said before that the world could come to an end, and Aunt Lynda would not be worried. Rather, she'd be smiling and saying, "Oh what a wonderful time it was!"

So, when Aunt Lynda's daughters, son in law, and grandchildren came through our town on their way to meet Aunt Lynda and Uncle Robert at the beach, we were all excited to get to visit with them over lunch. I made a batch of cookies for them to take on their trip. I used my G-ma's recipe, which I was certain Aunt Lynda would recognize. Wouldn't you know I received the sweetest email from Aunt Lynda asking me what kind of cookies they were and for the recipe. Laura (My cousin, her oldest daughter) kept telling Aunt Lynda she was sure they were cowboy cookies. But Aunt Lynda couldn't seem to find the recipe!

I promised Aunt Lynda I would share the recipe with her, and I figured I'd share it with y'all, too! I definitely remember enjoying these cookies and a cold glass of milk with my G-ma and G-pa years ago.

Cowboy Cookies
Ingredients: 2 sticks butter, softened; 1 cup brown sugar; 1 cup sugar; 2 eggs; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1 cup chopped nuts; 2 cups flour; 2 cups oats; 1 tspn baking soda; 1 tspn baking powder; 1 tspn vanilla; 6 ounces chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugars together. Add eggs one at a time. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and oats togehter. Add flour mixture to the sugar mixture and stir well until mixed. Add nuts, vanilla, chocolate chips and stir until well mixed.

Drop teaspoon size balls onto a greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 12 - 15 minutes until golden brown.

*I did not include nuts in my cookies, and they were just as yummy!

Aunt Lynda, thank you for being exactly who you are. I praise God for you and the incredible Christian, Southern lady that you are. You've taught me much, and I love you!

Join us for Titus 2 Tuesdays by visiting Shanda's blog. For more Wednesday's Walks, check out Lynnette's blog.

Wednesday's Walk: Ronnie Roach

So, I wasn’t sure of what to post today for Wednesday’s Walk.

Then, I got an email at work that said “bug man is here”. Yep. We get these emails anytime anyone enters our building. Shred guys are here. Coffee man is here. You name it. It’s a little annoying, but that’s not my point.

See, whenever I think of the bug man, I think of Ronnie Roach. When I was a little girl, Ronnie Roach was our bug man. He came to our house every month to spray for bugs and pests, and I remember following him around the house, likely chatting away, while he sprayed. For years it was Ronnie who kept our house bug-free.

Time passed. Ronnie retired. We got a new bug man in a new house.

Years later, I was a teenager, and I said something to my mom about how cool I always thought it was that our bug man in Gordon (my hometown) was Ronnie Roach.

My mom laughed! And promptly corrected me, “B, his real name wasn’t Ronnie Roach. I don’t even remember his real last name. Your crazy daddy called him Ronnie Roach because he was a bug man!”

Oooooh, I get it now! Thanks, Daddy, for keeping me laughing years after you’ve gone. I don’t know that I’ll ever not grin whenever I’m told the bug man is here!

Check out Lynnette's blog for more Wednesday Walks!

Wednesday's Walk: A little of this, a lot of that!, and Blogger Appreciation Week

Whew, lately it’s been like I’ve rushed to get up some blog posts just so I can stay connected. I’ve not really put a ton of myself into this blog, and I miss it!!!

So, in honor of Wednesday’s Walk, I’m going to tell you all about our Memorial Day weekend, how we accomplished oh, so much, about my art project, and maybe even I’ll throw a little blogosphere-games in the mix!! So hold on tight, y’all, here we goooooooo!!!!

This past weekend, Tim and I were stoked to be at home for an entire weekend! Add to that fun that we had Monday off, and we were chompin’ at the bit to figure out what all we could get into! I did work Saturday morning, but other than that, it was all fun times for us! We watched three – yes, three! – movies over the course of the weekend. The best one? Marley and Me. Hands down. If you’re an animal lover whatsoever, you’ll surely enjoy this family movie! Just make sure you have your tissues (or a big ole' comfy afghan will do, if you're like me and you spontaneously cry throughout the entire movie. Cry bigtime. Like Boo Hoo Cry.) handy.

We also painted the final room in our house! Well, actually Tim really did most of the painting. I don’t mind painting the big areas with a roller, but I was little messy on Saturday. Eek?!? So, I was quickly excused from that project to tackle my own arts & crafts. . .

Ah, yes, the door sign. So I’ve sort of seen similar, much more detailed things recently, and since we’ve painted our front door Posh Red, I decided I would prefer something simple, clean, and crisp on our front door and forego a wreath for a little while.

Enter the need to go to Hobby Lobby.

Tim obliged, so Saturday we headed to Hobby Lobby so I could load up on supplies. Only after, though, we visited Lane Packing Company and enjoyed some delicious homemade strawberry ice cream!

So, check out my creation! Whatcha think? Seriously, artsy folks, give me any tips and suggestions you might have. Melissa, be thankful I don’t know your phone number, otherwise I’m sure I would’ve called you a million times asking a million questions as I painted! I really have a new, refreshed admiration for your talent! Only straight lines for this chickadee, and it still has room for improvement!

We also took Belle and Buddy to the dog park and then bathed them, so they’re worn out and clean pups!

As for blog games, this week is Blogger Appreciation Week. This week, we have the chance to share with our readers why we blog, why we write, how reading other blogs has touched your heart, what God’s doing in your life through blogging, mention others you’ve met through blogging, etc. . . Shanda even suggesting including titles of some of your favorite posts so that visitors can see what your faves are. Of course, after posting, make sure to put your post info into Daveda’s Mr. Linky.

Make sure to visit other participants while you’re at Daveda’s site, too! We bloggers heart comments and encouragement!

So, I celebrate Blogger Appreciation Week this week for a number of reasons. In high school, I realized I loved to write. While I’m not stellar at it, I do enjoy every minute of it, and I definitely feel the release from writing is phenomenal! I was hesitant to blog because we currently don’t have kids, so I didn’t know really what I’d talk about. I had no idea when I started blogging that themes exist for virtually every day of the week!

Nor did I know the incredible women I’d meet through this blogging world. I love that so many of my blog chums are folks I’d never meet otherwise. Some of you are big city folks, others live on farms and ranches. Many of you are moms, which I definitely admire. And many of you are amazing Christian women who’ve taught me so many things about my Heavenly Father! And that is amazing!

The blogs I most look forward to reading are those that are so popular their authors definitely don’t read my measly little blog, but who doesn’t crave a good dose of LPM every day? And for goodness sake if you believe Miracles Happen, you definitely know all about precious Harper in Kelly’s Korner! Shanda is one of those incredible Christian ladies who I just know would be a fast friend of mine if we lived closer! And Jeriann, I just eat up her posts every day! I love them! So thanks, y’all, for reading along as I live this crazy thing called life. It’s fun times!

Okay, so this has gotten crazy long, so I’m waiting til tomorrow to talk about another blog award / game! Later, taters!

Wednesday's Walk ~ My 100th Post

It’s my 100th post!!! YAY!

When I started blogging, I honestly only knew that I loved to write, that I loved reading other folks’ blogs, that I loved how different people had different, unique styles of writing. I remember being apprehensive because we don’t have kids. What would I write about?
But, 100 posts later, here’s what I do know about blogging

- There is always something to write about! Be it trips we’ve taken, family fun, home projects we’re undertaking, our dogs, running, or random letters I’d like to send.

- It’s definitely become one of my favorite hobbies!

- I could easily have a theme for every day of posting. Right now, I just choose to participate in Shanda’s Titus 2 Tuesdays and Lynnette’s Wednesday Walks. There are Not Me Mondays, Weekend Wordles, Six Word Saturdays, and a host of other themes. They all seem like they’d be loads of fun, but I’m perfectly content with my two themes each week.

- YOU people ROCK! I always anticipate reading your blogs each day. Some of you are very different from me; some of us are very similar.

- I’m so obnoxiously proud of my niece that oftentimes readers mistake her for my child! LOL! It happens on Facebook, too! It always makes me laugh! I’d claim Ellie Grace in a red hot minute, but I’m just her ridiculously proud Aunt B!

- I’m an even bigger fan of Beth Moore because of her blog!

- Many of us are Children of God, and that makes me smile like nothing else! I’ve learned so much from so many of you about faith, God and His Amazing Grace, and living with childlike faith. So many of you have been through heartaches beyond explaination. Yet you cling to your faith, and that, friends, is beautiful.

So, to celebrate my 100th post, I’m hosting a giveaway! One of you can win a few of my favorite things!

First, a copy of Charles F. Stanley’s book, Leaving a Godly Legacy.

My Bible study group just finished this study last night, and it’s great. I almost didn’t participate in this study since it was very parenting-oriented, and well, we’re not there yet. But, I am so thankful that I did the study anyway! It’s a very straight-forward guide to instilling ten very important principles in your children so that we “give the inheritance that really matters”. It’s also a great guide to leaving a Godly Legacy in the workplace, your neighborhood, and with your friends.

Also, this new mascara is my FAVE! It really does make my lashes seem longer!

Third, a package of my favorite coffee ~ Chock full of Nuts.

It’s super yummy! And every cup of coffee is better in your own monogrammed mug, right! (Lora, I know you agree!)

So, to thank you, my readers, for joining me on this journey, it’s my first giveaway! To participate, simply comment on this post, leaving your email address so I can contact you when you win! If you’re a follower, you’ll be entered into the drawing automatically, but to have more than one chance, please comment, too! Become a follower, and you’ll be entered an additionaly time as well! It’s really that simple!

Have fun!!!!

Wednesday's Walk: Posh Red Door

For today's Wednesday's Walk, I am showing you our new front door!! It's finally finished, and is definitely "Posh Red"!!


I absolutely love it! Tim patiently painted it with seven - yes, seven! - coats of paint! I doubt I'll ever see a red room after our first experience with red paint!! And that's okay! Because we have a Red Door!!!

I couldn't be happier!!

Wednesday's Walk ~ Third Day Concert

It's Wednesday! Wednesday's Walk! If you want to participate, jump on over to Lynnette's blog for details.

Friday night, Jodi and I, along with our little sisters went to the Third Day concert at our church. It. Was. Incredible. Awesome. Unbelievable. Revive opened the show with incredible music, amazing worship, and got us P-U-M-P-E-D up! Here is a picture of the lead singer in the middle of the audience! During a song!

Brandon Heath came next. Crazy cool he was. Also amazing. He was so real with us, telling us how his new song, Wait and See, was basically about his life growing up. He was great!

And then, oh, then the show began! Third Day rocked that church! It was so incredible!!! I really cannot begin to explain to you the emotions that I felt while worshipping my Savior during that concert. Jodi said it best, though. When we were leaving, she said, "I worshipped God harder tonight than I think I ever have before!" How exciting is that!

Check out the light show! Those are not real stained glass windows; they're lights!




The Encore ~ All of them on stage at the same time!!

It was also an amazing time to cherish: worshipping your Savior along side your sister, your best friend, and her precious little sister. Time well spent, and time I'll never forget!

For today's Wednesday's Walk, I have a couple of things I'd like to remember. So, we're taking two walks today, folks. Because I said so. Wanna play along? Visit Lynnette's site to join in the fun!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Two years ago this month, April 5, to be exact, Tim asked me to marry him. I was down in our coastal region training, and my mom had gone with me since it was her spring break. Tim surprised me by sitting in a swing along the shore at the King & Prince. My mom got me there, along with my friend, Ami, and helped coordinate the entire thing! I was so shocked to see Tim! I absolutely could not believe he was actually proposing! To Me! I can't find a picture of the actual proposal, which mom was able to snap shots of from behind a tree, but here's a picture one of our friends took after our real engagement pictures were taken.

We stayed at the K&P that night, in a cabana room overlooking the ocean. I didn't sleep a wink! Tim slept like a baby. He said he'd been going without sleep all week as he'd prepared for the proposal! Ah, the memories. . . .
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

This past Sunday, we celebrated Easter with my family. We had the 2nd Annual Shrimp at the Slocums Easter Celebration! YUMMY! As you might imagine, Ellie was the star of the day! Here are some pictures of her in her Easter dress and of her at our house for lunch.

Dressed up for Easter

Happy with Mommy

Solemn Profile, which I love because she looks like Jenn here

For today’s Wednesday’s Walk, I wanted to reminisce about my time spent with Lawson on Saturday. Lawson is Jodi’s son, he’s almost four years old, and he’s 110% B-O-Y! Jodi’s husband and my husband are on the same church softball team, and they had practice Saturday. Jodi and Bella, their 10 month old, were out of town or a family shower. So, I volunteered to play with Lawson during the boys’ softball practice. Here are some precious tidbits from my time with Law-bug.

Here's a picture of Lawson and his best friend, Dad (Brad).

Before they got to the field, I received a text from Brad: “don’t laugh at me. I’m in my full softball uniform so Lawson and I can be twins.” Brad the Great Dad put on his baseball uniform just so he and Lawson could be dressed alike. Lawson had a game that morning and was still sporting his Braves uniform. He told me more than once, “I’m on the blue team. Dad’s on the red team.”

I was sitting on the bench waiting for them to arrive, and I turned to see Lawson sprinting full force towards me. He gave me a big ole’ bear hug that very likely would’ve knocked me down had I not been sitting already!

And we were off. . . .

To the playground we went, where we immediately tested the speed of the slide, the poles you can slide down from the top of the monkey bars, the tunnels, and the “ship”. The “ship” was the sandy area under the top of the slide.

The first excitement was when Lawson was up at the top of the slide and I realized he was steady pulling at his pants.
Me: “Whatcha doin, buddy?”
Lawson: “I gotta tee tee.”
Me: “Whoa, now, why don’t you come down the slide and we’ll go to the restroom.”
Lawson: “Nah, Aunt B, I can tee tee outside. See?”
And you know what happened from there. . . . from the top of the slide, Lawson tee teed on the sand.

He quickly slid down the slide once that was over, and he decided he wanted to go UP the slide. I tried to tell him that’s not the way you’re supposed to do it, but he was determined. And I could help him. I tried to tell him I’m not tall enough, and I couldn’t reach up that high. We tried a few times, but to no avail. So, Lawson stood up at the bottom of the slide, put his hands on his hips, and said, “Aunt B, me, you and God, we can do this. I know we can. You just push me up.” You better believe I tried with all my heart, and we did get him to the top of the slide! I was more excited than he was, I think! He just said, “See, Aunt B, I told you. Me, you and God, we could do it.” Oh to have that childlike faith!

The conversation while swinging was worth gold to me. He could see his Dad on the field playing softball, and Lawson said, “See my Dad, Aunt B?” I told him I could. Now, keep in mind, I’m pushing this little booger while he’s talking, so I couldn’t hear much of what he was saying. He said, “Dad’s my best friend.” And he promptly listed all the things he and Dad do together. “We play together. We watch T.V. together. We go outside together. I go to school and Dad goes to work.” Don’t fret, though, everyone is Lawson’s best friend. “Mom is my best friend. Bella Grace is my best friend. GaGa is my best friend. Pop is my best friend. Aunt Meg is my best friend. You my best friend, too, Aunt B! Hey, where’s Tim?”

I tried to show Lawson Tim on the field. “I can only see my Dad.”

To the woods we went. Now I’m not an outdoorsy type of girl. And sense of direction is not one of my strong points. But I knew we were walking close to the 5 lane road. I tried and tried to keep Lawson out of those woods. But he was determined we were hiking. And we did. No trails, just rough woods. And that precious little boy couldn’t have been happier about it!

Other excitement included 2 little girls showing up and playing with us. Lawson showed all of us how to build a fire. “See, you put the wood here and here. And then, you get a match, and you light it. It’s not hard.”

We had a grand ole’ time together, and when practice was over, it was time to hit the road. I don’t think it had been 15 minutes before I got a text from Brad thanking me and saying Lawson was already falling asleep in the truck!

And Jodi called me Sunday to tell me I’m now a princess. I’ll be Lawson’s princess any day of the week!

If you'd like to participate iin Wednesday's Walk, check out Lynnette's blog for details!