i saw seals and my heart was changed forever ;)

it's been a hectic last few weeks around here! Jake and I went to San Diego for a few days to see some friends from work that expanded campus outreach to san diego a few months ago! it was so fun for us both, kinda like a mini vacation. SO, i've never been to the west coast before but always really wanted to go!! It was just as pretty as i thought it would be, but so different!! i realized..wow i am such a true southerner!! One of my favorite things that we did while we were there was see the seals at la jolla. i am a big animal lover, and i loved taking pictures of them and videos too!! i think we stayed there for an HOUR and jake was getting so tired of it... BUT now i have tons of cute pictures of them! We also got to meet people at the church out there, and it was awesome for me. I think Jesus used the culture to awaken my heart again to the depravity of the human soul, and how desperately each one of us needs the gospel, each one of us needs to meet Jesus face to face. A lot of the time i was walking around, looking at the cultural idols and seeing myself in these people, so into physical beauty, always wanting to do something FUN. both of these are my main idols, and God was showing me a picture of my brokenness all over again. It was fun and humbling and all, not to mention the plane flights. (i am deathly afraid of planes!!)

THEN, once we got back, we went to our staff fellowship time where we basically hang out all day, eat candy and talk about life. Just joking, we do SOME work, but hey, i slept in til 12 one day. maggie decided to, so i reluctantly went along with her. ha. Here are some pics of both trips. I truly LOVE traveling with Jake and love going new places!!

 it was soo pretty!

 i found me, linz and kasey while i was there! ;)

 seals sunbathing!!! so cute!

 seals sitting out!!

 look at this little guy's face!

 us before our date!! :)

 mo and ali at staff fellowship!

 me and james. isn't he soo handsome?!

 my twin sister and her husband, "Big d"!

 us after we lost our games in battle of the sexes. i lost at air hockey. :(

 Maggie woke up at midnight one night. this is her face. she's posing and eating dinner!

 Staff initiation!!

San Diego!

Jake and i are headed to san diego tomorrow for a few days! Campus Outreach expanded there a few months ago, and we're so excited to see the city, the church, and our friends who we miss!!! mags is staying with her me mama and mac while we're gone. she will be spoiled rotten by the time we get back!!! we sure will miss her!

Maggie turns 1! (well...a month ago)

Sweet little peanut turned 1 a while ago. it was so fun for us..and kinda sad too. For her birthday, we decided not to go all out. We had a small party with our families at home, and mags definitely got spoiled being the ONLY grandchild on both sides!! :) Here's a few pics of the day!! Such a great memory for us!

The finished product-maggie's teddy bear cake!

All the fam together!!

 Maggie's teddy bear "cub cakes" ;)

 Mags was tired of the pictures. She literally burst into tears when we sang happy birthday to her!

 we were so happy maggie's aunt say say and fiancé chase could come!!

She ate the whole cupcake!

 check out the black icing on those nostrils ;).

Maggie got a princess cozy car. She hated trying it out in front of everyone and cried! She loved it when all the guests left though!

 My twin sister and my little sister with me!

 Maggie offering me mama some of her treat!

 Happy birthday to me!!

 Maggie's white bear and my white bear-my favorite bear growing up, "Jerry".

Her favorite toy she got-fake lip stick. She carried it everywhere!

Just one of those days...

Today started off just like any other day....get up, take a shower, get dressed, get maggie dressed...

that would be the only thing that went well today. HA. 

It all started when i had a doctor's appointment, and jake was going to watch maggie AND go with me to the dr because i get really anxious about doctor's offices (what if they take out my blood?!!!). The appointment was supposed to be at 10:45. I showed up at 10:52. I was finally called back to be seen at 12:05. yikes. i felt so bad for jake, who had already had to rearrange his schedule once for me to go to the dr, now again because he missed an appointment he had scheduled for 12. 

I finally made it out of the doctor's office at 1:00, thinking the worst of my day was over. boy, was i wrong. Just as mags was getting settled into her nap, it was time for me to go to the dentist. Jake's appointment was an hour after mine started. To make a long story short, i left the house with the car seat in my car. BIG. MISTAKE. right after i finish at the dentist, i pick up my phone and see i have 2 texts from jake. the first one says "you have the car seat." the second one "what should i do?" 

I call jake and find out that he has maggie. in the car. without the car seat. IN THE HIGH CHAIR!!!! i am freaking out, but i calmly reply, "oh, i'm sure shell be fine.."

five minutes later jake calls and says he is on the highway, on the side of the road, out of gas.

i felt so incapable. so weak. so, "why are you doing this God??"

but then it got worse.

as i am on my way to go pick him up and bring him to his appointment, he calls and says he made it to a gas station. meanwhile, I'm 10 minutes past where he is. In a panic, he decides to head on in to his dentist appointment and leave maggie in the car alone. with the windows cracked. in her high chair. 

Luckily, i got there 10 mins later and she was fine, just chillin in her high chair and looking out the window. 

3 diet cokes later and a few advil later...jake and i head to furman to take a walk and a breather. while we're there, i drop my phone in the toilet, and at the same time a trickle of pee runs down my leg because i can't hold it any longer. 

it's moments like this i have to laugh and not take life circumstances so seriously. it reminds me to focus on the eternal and not the temporary. right now, my phone is in rice for the night. here's to hoping it works in the am ;)!

Charleston with Jellybean!

Some of yall may not know this, but a few years ago (summer of 2008 to be exact) Jake and i went from dating at the pace of a snail to deciding we were going to get MARRIED. How did that happen? he said 3 little words, "i love you", and i started to really trust him for the first time!!! anyway, his nickname "jellybean" was formed by the girls in my room at the Leadership Project that summer. If you know me, you know i have a deep love of all things small, furry, and cute. I REALLY wanted Jake to call me a cute little nickname like "whisker sprinkle", "fluffy bunny", or something unique and funny. he was totally not into it. He has called me "sweet girl", "pretty girl" and "princess" since we started dating, and he's great with that. Long story short, my girls and i decided he should call me muffin, and i would call him jellybean. Muffin lasted for 2 days, but jellybean stuck. I don't really call him this to his face, but it's his name in my phone and i write it on cards for fun :)

Jake and i went on a little vacation to Charleston for 5 days in July and it was so much fun. We didn't go anywhere for our anniversary since we were in the process of moving, so we decided to go on a trip, just the 2 of us when we got back from Myrtle! One of our fav things to do is go to bed and breakfasts and look at antique stores, and that's just what we did for 2 days. The rest of our time was spent eating and at the beach! it was definitely different not having peanut with us..no responsibility for 5 whole days!!! I am so thankful for this man, who knows i need time away with just him, and for the ways that he is always surprising me with a little date here and there and a night away every few months!!

 us exploring and walking around downtown

 us at the first b&b we stayed at :)

 us going to dinner one night!

 maggs was happy to have us back :)

a pic i took of Furman the night we got back...so pretty :)

peanut is almost one!

I can't believe my little peanut is almost one! I have had so much fun watching her and playing with her over the past few months! She is so sweet and full of life, and very easygoing. I think that probably comes from being in college ministry...she loves being passed around and meeting new people!! Here are  a few recent pics of her doing different things...these are probably some of my proudest moments in life! There really is nothing like laying your life down for a little one...so fun and yet so humbling and exhausting!