Christmastime is here!!

I have been terrible about blogging lately! Since I last posted, I have become an aunt! Keagan Drury Dalton was born at 9:44pm on Dec. 16th. He was 7lbs, 13oz, and 21 inches long. They are also telling me he is a redhead like my sister! Melissa and Keagan are home and doing well. I am headed up to Virginia on Monday to meet him myself and I cannot wait! They have been posting a lot of pictures, and I can't wait to meet the little booger! They had pictures taken yesterday of Keagan and they are posted here on my sister's blog! :)

Also, Philip's dad came to visit this week, and we enjoyed spending time with him! We went to see the new Mission Impossible movie which I would definitely recommend! We also went to see The Spirit of Christmas show in Biloxi, and it was outstanding!! It was a "New York style" Christmas show with great singing and phenomenal dancing! They even had a block of ice lowered from the top of the curtain, and an ice skating pair performed to "Oh Holy Night". It was just awesome.

Well, I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas! I am so thankful for our Savior Jesus Christ being brought into the world to save us. Have a blessed holiday!

All moved in!

Oh yeah! I have a blog! Oops. It has been a busy couple of weeks... we closed on our house last Wednesday. Yes, the day before Thanksgiving. It was quite dramatic, too. We were initially supposed to close on Monday. Then, it got moved back to Wednesday at 11am. Well, on Wed. morning the U-Haul was in our parking lot and the movers were on their way from New Orleans when we got a call saying we wouldn't be able to close that day. We were freaking out bc all of our stuff was packed including our clothes. We explained our situation, and they said they would keep trying to work it out. So, we went ahead and packed up the U-haul, and thankfully we got a call asking if we could come close right away. So, long story short- we closed in sweat pants and t-shirts... we were smelly and gross. It makes for an interesting story, though, right?

Anyway, we are pretty much settled in at this point. We finally have our fridge and direct tv! =) The only thing left is the guest room... which will probably be a work in progress for a while bc we don't have a bed in there yet. haha. But it is so nice to have the space and the freedom to talk loud or sing, or just laugh. I didn't realize how miserable the apt was until we got into our house! I have also put up my Christmas tree and decorated my mantle with garland and stockings. Our wonderful sales agent gave us a beautiful wreath for the front door, too! I'll post pics soon. Have a great weekend, everyone!

Moving out!

I haven't done a great job of keeping the blog updated lately. Philip and I have stayed busy working and packing! Business has really picked up at Million Air! We were awarded the government contract on the airfield, so the military traffic has at least doubled our business! I even marshalled a King Air in the other day that we weren't expecting. Our hand signals are based on the Blue Angels', and Pip was surprised that I knew how to do them! haha. I was proud of myself! =)

We had our walk-through yesterday, and the house looks great! We are closing on Monday afternoon, and are hoping to move most of our stuff over on Tuesday. Mom, dad, and Wade are coming through on Wednesday before heading to my Mamaw and Papaw's for Thanksgiving! Here are some recent pics for your enjoyment:

Packing up the apartment!

Our amazing fireplace!

The house!!!



Moving out and my new addiction...

Now that we have our closing day, we are so ready to move out of our apartment! Yesterday, we started going through some stuff, and took a load of books, clothes, and some old furniture to Goodwill. I thought I remembered hearing that Big Lots in Clinton gives away boxes, so I called our Big Lots in D'Iberville this morning to ask. They said they were getting a shipment tomorrow morning and will set some boxes aside for me! Yay! Free boxes! Thanks, Big Lots!

We met with our mortgage lender yesterday morning and signed a lot of papers, so that is basically squared away. We also heard that our driveway and sidewalk have been poured! I haven't been out there since the last pics were taken, but hopefully I will have some more soon.

In other news... I'm addicted to Pinterest. If you don't know what it is, let me fill you in. It is a virtual pin board, that allows you to "pin" pictures from websites and save them to your "boards". I have boards for recipes, home decorating, holiday decor, crafts, gift ideas, quotes, and more... It is so wonderful because you can follow others' boards and get tons of incredible ideas! I have already gotten some outstanding recipes, and home ideas from it! I basically have my new house decorated in my head bc of pinterest. haha! But seriously. My latest project that I want to try this Christmas: an ornament wreath. All you need is a wire hanger and ornaments!

See?! Don't you want to get on Pinterest now??? I thought so! ;)

(almost) closing time!

We are closing on our house November 21st, and we can't wait!! We've really started discussing where everything will go, what tv, internet and phone services to get, and all that jazz. It's starting to feel real. Here are some pics from today:

Kitchen...

other side of Kitchen...

 Fireplace and side cabinets (still waiting on stackstone surround and mantle)

Vanity in Master Bath (I love the drawers in the middle!)

Kitchen from living room

The front... =)

Also, my papaw just found out that his cancer has returned, and he will start chemotheraphy in a couple of weeks. He has not been through chemo before, so please pray for him. He knows that God is in control, but he is still nervous about how the treatments will affect him. I got to visit papaw and mamaw this past weekend and attend a family reunion with a lot of my papaw's cousins and their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. I think that really cheered him up a lot. The picture below is me with my mamaw, papaw, and Aunt Brenda at the reunion.

Cornflake Candy

If you know me, your know that I LOVE sweets... probably a little too much. I especially love chocolate, but one of my favorite non-chocolate desserts is Cornflake Candy. I have had different versions of this treat, but none compare to my mom's recipe. It's just the right combination... not too much peanut butter, but rather a sweet gooey treat!

1 cup of sugar
1 cup of Karo
1 tsp. of vanilla extract
3/4 cup of peanut butter
6 cups of Cornflakes

Combine sugar, karo, and vanilla in boiler on high. When mixture comes to a boil cook for one minute. Remove from heat, then add peanut butter. Stir in cornflakes 2 cups at a times. Mix well. Drop spoonfulls onto wax paper to cool.

**Just a note... if you let the mixture boil longer than 1 minute, the candy will be hard as a rock. I say this from experience. (You know, the first time I tried to cook them in college without mom.) ;)

Smackdown

A week ago, Pip and I got to sit in the front row at WWE Smackdown in Biloxi thanks to Kicker 108! Philip won the tickets in a radio contest by naming the wrestler whose theme song they played. We had an absolute blast. We even went early and got to meet Ted DiBiase (who was actually the wrestler Philip named to win the tickets)! He is from Clinton and graduated from MC, too! He is getting people to tailgate before the shows and call it a DiBiase Posse party. He comes out and talks to everyone, takes pics, signs autographs, etc. It was really fun, and he was so down to earth.

DiBiase even retweeted this picture of us! Pip was so proud. lol

Here's a picture from Smackdown... we had awesome seats!! Sin Cara is diving over the ropes in this one.

The Big Show came right up to us and picked up a chair to smack Mark Henry with. We got on tv at this point... and for the sign that we made for him. Then they replayed it on Monday night Raw last night! Philip is famous. =) Anyway, we had a great time!

Here's a recent picture of the house, too! It's all bricked!!

Here's one of the foyer, kitchen, and dining room from the living room.

Hope you enjoyed!

New house pics!

Well, I didn't get to go by the house on Wednesday because a huge storm rolled in, but Pip went by yesterday and took these shots:

We have a fireplace! I'm looking forward to hanging Christmas stockings on the mantle this year!

I was also excited to see the stacks of bricks... looks like that's next! Yay!

Also, notice we have shingles on the roof! =)

P.S. Melissa, for some reason I can't comment on my own blog anymore... something to do with cookies. Anyway, to answer your question, it should be done by the end of Nov. or beginning of Dec!!



Good times and bad.

Last weekend, I had Fri. and Sat. off so I went to Clinton. I stayed with Deann, and I had such a good time! I got to participate in a Bible study at her house that was so encouraging! It was so nice to feel unlimited by time and really discuss God's Word. On Saturday morning, I went squeal day for KT! (Where rushees find out which tribe they are in at MC). It was so nice to see a lot of my KT sisters. :) Then, I ate lunch with Alletta, and we got to catch up on life! It was nice to see everyone... but it made me miss Clinton even more! At least I only live 3 hours away.

On another note, please pray for my hometown- Rincon, GA. There has been quite a few deaths recently, and most of them were teenagers. From suicides, to car accidents, to sickness... the community is suffering from a lot right now. I was encouraged to see pictures from See You at the Pole this morning at my old high school, ECHS. All of the young people that have died have been either students or recent graduates of that school. It needs so much prayer, and it is encouraging to see so many students turning to God in times of tragedy.

Sorry there are no house updates... I have been so busy that I haven't been over since I took the last photos. I am probably going to swing by before church tonight. :)

Our new home!!

I promised pictures of our home... but what I didn't know is that I would have multiple pictures for our first post!! The foundation was poured last Friday 9.9.11...

My best friend, Deann, came to visit me yesterday, so we went to see the house. When we got there at about 5:45, they were still working! They had been framing it out! 9.15.11...

This afternoon, I got a picture message from Philip of the house. So, then I had to go see it again...lol. 9.16.11...

YAY!! It's really coming along so quickly. Hope you enjoyed the pictures!

New Beginnings

This week Philip and I signed the papers to build a house, and we are VERY excited about it! Besides making a good investment, we also are thrilled to: 1. Be in Gulfport where we both work and go to church. 2. Be able to yell at football and baseball games (or talk above a whisper) without being turned in by our neighbors. 3. Be free from the constant barking of our neighbors' chihuahuas... (yes, the same ones who turned us in for noise). LOL. 4. Have space for family and friends to visit.... and etc. etc.... I could go on all day. We are very blessed to be able to own a home, and we can't wait to move in!! The slab is supposed to be laid by the end of this week. I will post pictures as our home progresses from its current state- a pile of dirt.

Million Air also officially opened this week! WOOHOO!! Side note- my feet are adapting to heels after a little help from Dr. Scholls. Lori would be so proud.

In other news, we are getting ready to begin the Awana program at our church for the first time. I am going to be the director for the T&T girls (3rd-5th grade). I am so excited about the program, but also nervous because I have never done Awanas before. Please pray for me as I prepare, and also for clarity in sharing the gospel with these children.

I also went to adult choir for the first time last week... I feel like a real grown-up now. :)

So They Can Know

I have a heavy heart after reading my precious friend Laura's blog. She moved to Haiti about a week ago to teach at an orphanage.

Read the last few posts. Be challenged.

This week...

This week has been a fun one. I went out with some ladies from church on Wednesday night to see The Help. It was SO good that I want to see it again! I laughed, I cried (a lot), and I wanted to punch Hilly Holbrook. The setting was Jackson, so I recognized school and street names, tv station, and more. That was really neat to me. I'm so thankful that I did not live in that era.

On Thursday night, my childhood friend Whitney Miller (America's first MasterChef) was in D'Iberville for a cookbook signing. It was right down the road, so of course I went! I had fun visiting with Whitney and her parents. There was also an artist there who drew this charicature of me... haha!!

Last night, I went to dinner with the Nave's, some of our friends from church who both went to MC and MHBC in Clinton like me! They are so much fun, and their son, Christian, is adorable! Pip (or Peep according to Christian) met us after he got off work. Christian found out that Pip "talks to planes", and so he was talking to planes all night. Haha! We had a great time hanging out with them!
Hope y'all have a great weekend!

Birthday week!

Life has been a little crazy for me lately, going from being home all the time for 3 months to working full time. I've been taking naps a lot more since I started work! We are still not open... but the building is getting very close to completion. I can't wait for us to be open!

 Anyway, my birthday was this week and one of my very best friends, Laura, came to visit me! I'm really glad she came bc Pip was playing in a softball tournament, and he had 2 games that night. Laura and I went to the first game, then we ate pizza and ice cream cake from Bop's! :) I was really thankful to spend some time with Laura bc she is moving to Haiti on August 21st. She will be teaching English at an orphanage there. She also has a blog, and it is super encouraging- So They Can Know.You should check it out! Since Pip didn't get to hang out with me much that night, he took me to Olive Garden the next night. :) He also got me the elliptical trainer that I wanted so bad! It is like a small elliptical that only has the foot pedals. It is awesome! It is small and easy to balance on, and you can also turn it around and place it in front of a chair to use it like a stationary bike! I have really enjoyed using it! Thanks Pip!

DIY Name Plaque

Recently, I made a name plaque as a wedding gift for my friends, Adam & Jennifer! I thought I'd share my pictures and directions on my blog, so you could try it, too! I got the idea from The Southern Stitcher. Her blog is amazing. To make your own, you will need a wooden plaque, paint, white tissue paper, Mod Podge, a paint brush, and distress ink.

I bought this wooden plaque at Michael's and painted it white.

Cut a sheet of white tissue paper down to copy paper size, then tape the edges

of the tissue paper to the copy paper.

Print your lettering. (I actually printed on regular copy paper first until I decided on the font sizes.)

 I printed the last name in a larger size and with a more interesting font.

Cut out each word. (Try to cut close to the edges!)

For those of you who are new to Mod Podge (as I was), this is what the bottle looks like! :)

Place your words where you want them to make sure you are happy with the size and fonts.

Use a paintbrush or foam brush to mod podge the tissue word to the wood,

and then brush over the word as well.

It will look white like this when you mod podge over it,

but it dries clear!!

I also sanded it a little, and then used brown distress ink (that you can find in the scrapbooking section in your local craft store)!



I hope you all like my finished product! I was very proud of it, and I can't wait to make another. 

Crazy life

Well, life has been crazy for the past few weeks! I got to stay in Georgia for a couple of extra days in order to go to a close friend's wedding. Adam Dozier and Jennifer Driggers have been dating since we were in the 10th grade, and they were finally joined in marriage on July 16! It was such a sweet wedding! I'm so thankful that I got to attend! (I will try to blog about their wedding gift that I made myself in a future post... if my computer cooperates and allows me to add multiple pictures in one blog post.) I have a picture from our senior prom of Adam and Jen Dozier, Adam and Abby Newland, and me and Pip. We were all dating the guys we ended up marrying. I think I will always treasure this picture!

I also started my job last week, and it has been a fun 2 weeks of orientation and training! I think I'm really going to enjoy working for this company. We are preparing for our grand opening... as soon as the building is complete. I can't wait! Now I'm just trying to learn everything I can about airplanes...

In the midst of all of this, Pip and I celebrated our 1st anniversary on the 24th! I am so incredibly thankful for him. He is truly the perfect husband! We also met Bruce from Swamp People!! He's the one that wears the overalls with no shirt, and his dog, Tyler, rides in the boat. (Pics on facebook... lol) Last but not least, my sister just found out that her baby is a BOY! I can't wait until my little nephew arrives in December! I'm gonna spoil the little booger.

Masterchef, Braves, Class reunion

Well, I haven't posted in a little bit, because we've been out of town. I'm actually typing from my parent's home in Georgia right now. We are on our vacation, and we've had a lot of fun! Before we left, we went to my childhood friend, Whitney Miller's cookbook launch! She won the title of America's first Masterchef last September on FOX. The Miller family went to our church in Poplarville, and I was close friends with Whitney and her younger sister, Brittyn. I also really looked up to their older sister, Leslie, who is an amazing singer! It was so good to see their family and many other families from Poplarville. (We moved there when I was 3 and moved away when I was 10, so I was seeing most of them for the first time since we moved to Georgia). Her cookbook is phenomenal! I recommend it to everyone!! It's called "Modern Hospitality- Simple Recipes with Southern Charm". You can find it on amazon.com or most major bookstores.

We also went to see a couple Braves games before heading home! We went last Wed. night with our friend, Aaron, who lives in Atlanta now. The Braves beat the Rockies 9-1 that night. The next day, Pip and I went to a day game, which the Braves won 6-3! We got to see 4 homers between the 2 games (all hit by the Braves). Besides it being really hot, we had a great time. Philip got a few autographs (Eric Hinske, Cory Gearrin, and Wilkin Ramirez) and I got on the big screen!! lol.
We drove to our hometown on Thursday night after the game. We got to celebrate Liam's birthday on Friday with family and neighbors, and I had my 5-year class reunion Saturday night on a Savannah Riverboat Moonlight Cruise. Yesterday, we got to worship at our home church where my dad is the pastor. It is so good to be home and to see people we care about so much. I also had a BLAST watching the Women's World Cup game yesterday between the US and Brazil. If you didn't see it... you missed the most exciting game ever. Find out when it's being replayed, and watch it! We still have a couple days here before we head home, and we plan to enjoy them... especially since I am finally supposed to start orientation for my new job next Monday. Yay! If you read this far, thanks for caring. haha.

Pageant time

So, maybe I'm lame, but I have been watching all the prelims for the Miss Mississippi pageant this week. I always hated when you watch a pageant on TV, and the very first thing they do is announce the top 10! I wanted to know WHY they were the top 10. Well, last summer when I was in Georgia, a friend posted a link for the prelims on facebook, and I was SO excited! I watched all 3 nights of prelims, and I had favorites before the actual pageant on Saturday night.
This year, I got really into it and scored the contestants, and even picked my own finalists. It's also exciting to see some of the same contestants from last year that were favorites of mine. I'm cheering on Jill Duckworth (Miss USM) and Jessica Terrill (Mrs. MSU)! Jill was my pick to win last year, but she was 1st runner-up. Jessica made the top 10 last year, and I know her because she went to MC before she transferred to State. (She was Miss MC 2009)... Anyway, I'm also expecting Mary Margaret Roark to do very well. She won the swimwear prelim for her group, and also did GREAT in talent! We'll see how it all pans out!
I'll be eating pizza and thanking the Lord that nobody is judging my body. LOL!

New job and couponing

First of all, I FINALLY got my security badge today!! This is such a huge answered prayer. This means I can finally start my new job at the airport. I am beyond excited about this, bc it has been 2.5 months since my last day at Kohl's. If I had known it would take that long, I would have stayed at Kohl's until I knew I could start... but there's no way I could have known. Anyway, I am very happy and grateful to finally be able to start at Million Air. I think it's going to be a really fun job!
In other news, last night I went to a couponing class at church! I have been wanting to start couponing to save us some extra money, but it is kind of overwhelming. Reagan was very helpful, because she is from the coast. There are so many great websites out there for couponing, but we don't have any of the grocery stores that they use here. (No Publix, Kroger, Harris Teeter, etc.) So, we have to shop at places like Winn-Dixie. However, Reagan gets pretty much everything except milk, bread, and meat from drug stores. So, now I have some helpful tips, and hopefully it will motivate me!

New blog!

Welcome to our new blog! I thought this might be beneficial since we live so far from our family and friends. Life in Mississippi is treating us pretty well! Philip is now a fully certified Air Traffic Controller, and I'm hoping to start my new job as a Customer Service Rep for Million Air any day now! (Who knew it could take 2 months+ to get a background check?!...). Meanwhile, I am trying out some new crafts and watching a LOT of HGTV. :)
We are really loving our new church family at Bayou View Baptist in Gulfport. In fact, Pip is playing softball with the church's team! We are very thankful for the friends we have found there. I am really anxious to get more involved and start singing again. That is something I really miss.
I guess that is all for now! I will try to keep you all updated pretty often. It has been at least 4 or 5 years since I was an active blogger, so we'll see.

Lauren

P.S. Thanks to Ryan Stone for the blog name! Also to Emily Trussell for another great suggestion- The Knightly News! You guys are so creative.