The Rose...

So yesterday was VALENTINE'S DAY!!!  Now, some people aren't very fond of a Holiday that makes single people feel inadequate.  And from that standpoint, I totally understand.  For sometime now, a friend and I have referred to Valentine's Day as S.A.D. (Singles Awareness Day) for our friends who find themselves not in a relationship.  And the day has become very commercialized.  However, when you do find yourself in a committed relationship, you should try and make your other half feel very special on EVERYDAY but especially Valentine's Day.


My Valentine's Day with Hugh was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!  It was our first Valentine's Day as a married couple and he went all out - roses, candy (it was actually Blow Pops, one of my faves), and an entire day at the SPA.  To top it off, he took me to one of my favorite restaurants - Bonefish Grill.  We also got my daughter a stuffed teddy bear and some of her favorite candies, because everyone needs love on Valentine's Day.  Don't want you thinking I left Hugh out or anything, but I got him tickets to a Wynton Marsalias concert in a couple of weeks.  If you don't know Wynton Marsalias, he's a VERY well-known jazz trumpeter.


I was very thankful and blessed for yesterday, because when I was married to Herb (my ex-husband) we never celebrated Valentine's Day.  Herb thought the day was "stupid" and a "waste of money."  So I never had the thrill of receiving flowers on Valentine's Day or going out to dinner on that special day.  That use to always sadden me, probably one of the MANY reasons why Herb and I are divorced.  Although if it weren't for Herb, I wouldn't have my beautiful daughter, Amy.


So for the last 3 years, I've been able to celebrate and get pampered on Valentine's Day, thanks to GOD sending me the most amazing gift - my husband, Hugh.  I can only pray that EVERYONE finds a love like I have found with Hugh.

One Moment in Time...

I apologize for not posting for the past few days, but TONS has happened.  Not only in my personal life but also on the national forefront.  First, I attended the last of my Chrysalis Trainings and am so ready to be on the Chrysalis Flight this weekend with 34 Teenage girls and 22 Adult and Youth Team Members.  I know that it will be a blessed event and am truly excited to see how God works everything out.


Then on Friday night, I went out with some of my girlfriends and we saw "The Vow."  Let me just say, EXCELLENT movie, and the fact that it's based on a true story, just tugged at my heart strings even more.  On Saturday, I was in the training I mentioned above.  On Sunday, my mom and I were in ministry together at a church just outside of our town.  God truly blessed us in that venture, both in strong voice and financially.  She and I are doing a series of concerts together this year, and I'm really excited about that opportunity.


Then while shopping on Saturday night, I along with countless others received the news that pop sensation Whitney Houston had died at age 48.  I have ALWAYS loved to hear Whitney sing, her voice was pure silk and she had such a glow about herself when she sang.  She grew up in the church and had sung TONS of gospel songs in her lifetime.  And like all of us, she battled her demons.  But because she was a celebrity, all of her demons were known to EVERYONE.  And some people are using her death to bash her name and only focus on the hard times she went through.  We all go through hard times, but do we want everyone to remember us for something that we did wrong on a silly occasion??  I think not, at least I would hope not.  


Last night was the Grammy Awards and with Whitney's sudden passing they had to revamp the live broadcast to find a way to include her in the night.  So Jennifer Hudson (who has an UNBELIEVABLE VOICE) was tasked with singing Whitney's version of "I Will Always Love You."  It was a most deserving tribute and I'm just blessed that I was able to watch and see it on TV.  Whitney is gone, but not forgotten, and for One Moment in Time her light shined brightly for ALL to see.  R.I.P. Whitney Houston.

Basketball, Youth & VEGAS :)

Tonight was the BATTLE OF THE BLUES.  If you have no idea what I'm talking about then you must either not be from NC or you've never heard of the greatest rivalry in college basketball - UNC TARHEELS vs. DUKE BLUE DEVILS.  If you are a native of southeastern NC or familiar with the ACC conference, you had to pick a side at BIRTH in this rivalry.  For me, I'm a UNC TARHEEL all day long.  Well, tonight's game lived up to the hype and in buzzer beater fashion, Duke made a last second 3-point shot to win the game by ONE POINT.  Needless to say, I was NOT happy with the outcome, but it was an AWESOME game.


Before the game, I had Youth Group tonight and it was amazing - as always.  And this morning, Hugh and I booked our anniversary trip for May.  Come that time, we will celebrate 1 YEAR of being happily married.  Our destination for the year - LAS VEGAS!!!!  I've been before, but my husband (Hugh) has never been.  So I'm really looking forward to our trip, with a "little less conversation and a little more action"..VIVA LAS VEGAS :)

 

One Day at a Time...

Today has been a very interesting day.  We've got a lot going on at work right now and I'm preparing to be a team member on the upcoming Chrysalis Flight for teenage girls, and it's NEXT WEEK!!!!  On the work front, I personally like it when we're busy.  But let me clarify there is busy and then there is just plain insanity.  Over the past year, I've been asked to work what I believe qualifies as "insanity."  And I worked it, because that was asked of me.  However, after enduring several months of health issues last year, I made a promise to myself and God that NOTHING is worth killing myself over.  So this year, I've tried not to work more than 10 hours of overtime each week.  That still shows my commitment to my job, but also shows that my family and other activities that we're involved in are also very important.  There has to be a work/life balance and I've made the commitment that this year, that balance WILL happen.


Then tonight I had the privilege of attending my monthly Chrysalis Board Meeting.  It is SUCH a wonderful blessing for me, because it's another way that I get to play a small part in helping shape the spiritual growth of teenagers.  Tonight we discussed thinking of ways to continue to do our mission, but also ways to expand and make sure that people of all races are included.  I personally am SO THANKFUL to hear that, and to see the willingness of all on the board to make this a reality.  


Well, I've been going since 6am this morning and am WIPED out.  Like I said at the beginning, ONE DAY AT A TIME.  That's about as good as it gets for me lately :)

Superbowl & The Church Lady

Well like millions of Americans, I watched the Super Bowl yesterday.  Hugh and I actually went over to watch the game with some dear friends and their kids.  We had a wonderful night of eating, fellowship and tons of laughter.  That morning, we went to church and it was an AWESOME service.  Communion, healing service and great message.  I worked for a few hours in the afternoon, but all in all it was a GREAT day :)


I asked my husband if he had ever imagined his life or our life being like it is now - spending so much quality time w/ our daughter, God, church, hanging out w/ our friends and their families.  He looked at me and honestly said "no."  Our life amazes him DAILY.  Truth is, it amazes me as well.  Had you told me 18 or 20 years ago, that I would be a "Jesus Freak" I would've probably laughed in your face.  The church we attend now (I've been there for 15 years, and Hugh has been there for almost 10 years) is a loving, nurturing church family.  Everyone helps take care of everyone else, listen to our children and youth for ideas on how to do things, and help take care of those in our community (and beyond) who can't take care of themselves.  This is SUCH  a drastic change from the church I grew up in as a child/teenager.  My old church pretty much had one group of people that ran everything.  If that one group didn't like a Pastor and what their sermons said, they would get rid of that Pastor.  We had one pastor when I was a teen, who tried to engage the young people in church.  She wanted to hear what we had to say, but that same "group" of people didn't like her doing that.  So they ran her out of the church, sad but true.  That was the first incident that made me not want to attend that church any longer. 


Sad to think that "church people" could be so hurtful and have such a cliquish mentality.  Notice how I referred to that group of people in my old church as "church people" and not Christians.  That should really make you think...

Got Faith???

Today was an extremely busy day and I for one couldn't have been happier.  I had training for most of the day up in Swansboro, NC.  My training was part of a spiritual community I belong to called Chrysalis.  It's a community that focuses on Youth, ages 15 - 19, and helping them to grow in their faith of God.  It is such a blessing to be involved with this community of believers and so humbling to see the Youth that have already experienced the event, share their faith so openly, with so many others.

At that age, the LAST thing I was thinking about was God or my faith in Him.  If anything, when I was a teenager I would probably have been classified as agnostic.  I didn't think God cared about me, and the church I grew up in (the same church that all of my mom's family had attended FOREVER) didn't really "nurture" the faith of a child or teenager.  Their philosophy was "you will believe in God because we say so" and they spoke of God in a manner as if God was "vengeful and full of wrath."  So yeah, after about 15 years of hearing stuff like that, I figured that God only wanted "perfect people" and "people who feared Him."  So I quit the church and God.  And the rest of this story, is for another day.

Mighty High...

It's Friday and I was really looking forward to spending time with Hugh and my daughter, Amy, this weekend.  BUT, Amy woke up a fever, body aches and head congestion; so I'm not really seeing us being able to go to the movies tonight and see "Joyful Noise."  I'm only bummed about the fact that my daughter is sick and doesn't feel well.


I'm also a little irritated that my place of employment has asked me to work this weekend.  Please understand, I'm very thankful for my job, as I realize many don't have one.  I enjoy what I do and enjoy the people I work with on a daily basis.  However, since I only have my daughter 50% of the time (the other 50% she's with her Dad) I try very hard to spend those times with her.  So finding out that overtime work is required on a weekend that she's with me (and she's not feeling well) isn't exactly a highlight for me.  But again, I realize the blessings in the fact that I at least HAVE a job, so I'm moving past my irritation.  Just going to focus on God, my family and the beautiful weather; and hopefully Amy will feel better soon, so she can "Ride the Mighty High."

It's Groundhog's Day...AGAIN

I absolutely LOVE the movie "Groundhog's Day" starring Bill Murray.  If you've never seen it, you're missing one of the funniest movies EVER.  Quick summary, it's about a weatherman named Phil, who's been sent to cover the Groundhog events up in Punxsutawney, PA.  He finds himself trapped in a time loop as each and everyday is the repeat of Groundhog's Day.  At first he's discouraged by all of this, even so depressed that he commits suicide on NUMEROUS occasions, but he finally decides to do things that he always dreamt of doing but never having enough time for (like learning to the play the piano, ice sculpting, spending time w/ the elderly, etc.) and actually becoming very proficient in those things.


I think about the point of that movie to say, how many times have we given up on something because it was HARD, or the converse, how many times have we done the same thing over and over and over again, expecting a different outcome but sometimes we have to relive those moments so we can learn a lesson.  Now I know the point of the movie is greatly exaggerated, but it makes a great point nonetheless.  


I also think we can apply that same lesson of not giving up on things just because they might be HARD, as we spend time this month celebrating Black History here in the USA.  Many great accomplishments and strives in our country were made possible by Black Americans, but because the history of our country was one where we thought one race was more important than another, a lot of these milestones in American history aren't known by everyone.  I'm thankful that we take this time to celebrate and learn about Black History, but truthfully, isn't it really EVERYONE'S history???  We are the UNITED States of America, and whatever happens or has happened in our nation's history is history for EVERYONE that is a citizen of our great country.

Courageous...

Tonight after dinner, my hubby (Hugh) and I decided to watch the movie "Courageous."  It's a Christian themed movie, and it's something that ALL households should watch.  But it's really trying to drive home a message to MEN about what role God EXPECTS them to have with their wives, children, jobs, etc.


It made us laugh and made us cry (A LOT), but I'm very thankful that we watched it.  The movie made me realize something that I've known for a REALLY long time.  Hugh is an AMAZING step-father and husband.  God has blessed me so much with Hugh being in my life and I'm very thankful for that.


Only other interesting thing to happen today was I received an invitation to my Mom's family reunion this summer.  *Sigh* not really sure where to begin in regards to my Mom's family.  But let me just say, I really have NO clue where my Mom fits in, with respect to her siblings.  They are as far as the East is from the West, HAHA!!!  But, I do love my Mama and her courage for being her own person :)

Everyone has a story...called My Life

After much thought and reflection, I've decided that starting a blog might be a great tool for me.  People decide to blog for various reasons, and I'm no different.  My reason for starting this blog is simple - I'm hoping that it can help someone who might've gone through some of the experiences that I have, and to help spread the LOVE of God to everyone.


As with anything in life, my story has a beginning.  But like any great J.J. Abrams show, I'm gonna jump around on the timeline of my life.  My story, my journey that led me to God is an interesting one.  A journey full of ups and downs.  A journey that took about 6 1/2 years before I accepted HIM, and one that I'm still living today.


People find God at unusual times and places in their lives.  For me, it was at the bottom of a bottle of rum - or should I say 100+ bottles of rum.  Even thinking now about this time in my life, I realize that God was working on me...