My Huckleberry Friend

After reading a friend's blog today

and get updated on their family matters... 

I was redirected to another bloggy, 

{just.lovely.things}, 

where this lady does some precious crafties... 

and posts some very nice music. 

which i will now steal and post for you. 

I hope you enjoy this song as much as do. 

Patty Griffin also does a beautiful rendition of 

this song as well. 

Also, I know I promised you pictures from our trip from Memorial day weekend, 

but had some technical difficulties with getting the cd to give me the photos. 

Jerky cd. 

Anyway, Jesse posted some on facebook today, 

so I am stealing just one.

This is us at the University of Cincinnati, 

ON the football field.

Yeah, apparently anyone can

wander off of the street there and just

hang out at the stadium. 

Working out, studying, taking 

random pictures, etc. 

So, if you're ever in Ohio, 

stop on by and play an impromptu 

game of football or ultimate frisbee. 

I'm pretty sure it's allowed.

New Store Alert

I know I have mentioned her before, 

but check out my friend, Haley, 

and her new Etsy shop!

It's filled with lovely antique-y jewelry goodies!

Whistle Blower Style 1

Time Heals Style 1

Under Lock & Key Style 1

And these are just a few of the many different

pieces that Haley has made in the past 

couple of months. 

She also has a trunk show

going on at Belle La Vie (?)

in Tuscaloosa.

So, if you're here in T-town, 

make a trip there 

and grab an awesome necklace

or pin. 

They are pretty sweet.

And one-of-a-kind.

Have a great day!

amicus/amica

I'm so thankful for my friends

during this time of planning 

and preparation with Jesse for our wedding

in 44 days!

And I neglected to show some 

of my favorite pics from 

Jesse's and my engagement party

last weekend. 

(as you can see, i tweaked them a little bit, using Picasa and Picnik)

Thanks again, Brooke, for doing such 

a wonderful job with the photobooth

and for your awesome cupcakes!

Also, happy 11 months, Jesse!

I love you. 

Momma, what's vacation?

Are you ready for Turkey Day? 

Or ham or pork day? 

Whatever your meat or meatless preference may be day?

Or are you one of those people that complains

about the origins of the holiday and ruins it for the rest of us?

Maybe you would win an award here.

Or maybe you should just:

And I might just bake you a pie

or make you some fudge. 

Ask Jen if I won't make you some

fudge. I'll even make your favorite flavor of fudge. 

One thing I will absolutely not make is this:

Gross.

Anytime cupcakes look like food...just...blech. 

Why would you eat something sweet disguised as something savory?

I'm going to be eating the real thing, instead of an imposter.

It's a phony!!!

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

And a crazy Black Friday! 

And an even crazier Iron Bowl!

Is that too many exclamations? 

Nah. One more won't kill ya.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Now, it's your turn to say "Happy Thanksgiving" back. 

(Any You've Got Mail fans out there?)

Oh, and by the way, I'm so happy that Jesse gets to come home with me 

for Thanksgiving this year. 

All pics courtesy of weheartit.com

Home

Good morning, all. 

Hope everyone had a great weekend. 

I saw this on Natalie Dee and immediately thought about my friend, Lindsey. 

She is obsessed with bacon.... 

ok, maybe not obsessed, but still.  

It's quite the drab day today in Tuscaloosa.

It's been raining all morning

and doesn't look like it's going 

to subside anytime soon.

I'm listening to my Michael Bublé station on 

Pandora. It's pretty sweet. 

I'm also glad it was raining today, 

because that meant I had to drive instead 

of walk and my legs are crazy sore 

from the 5k/spontaneous ultimate frisbee game

I participated in yesterday. 

The event itself was pretty fun and I saw Quidditch on the Quad

along the way, which slowed down my time ever so much.

I also enjoyed seeing my old friend, Andrew, 

and playing a random game of ultimate with all 

of his friends from Pine Cove. Good times. 

Some friends and I will see him in about

3 weeks, when he gets married! 

Wow. 

I'm still processing....

fait accompli

Fact of the Day:

(Brought to you by mental_floss)

Food chemist William A. Mitchell

 helped invent Tang, Cool Whip and Pop Rocks.

Brittni Fact of the Day:

(That you probably don't care about)

I'm feeling a bit flu-y. 

I hope it passes quickly. 

I feel like chillin' at home like this

feline here.

Except my eyes will be closed and 

there will be snoring

and an occasional trudge downstairs

to fix myself some chicken noodle soup.

With saltines...ooh, I love saltines.

Sadly, that will not happen today... 

I must continue to work and 

help the students. 

I hope they appreciate it. 

And also, I hope they don't get sick, too. 

That would be unfortunate. 

Prayer of the Day:

Please pray for my friend. 

She's got some serious health problems

and needs fervent prayer for healing. 

For You Now

One of my besties visited T-town this past Tuesday. 

(The blonde in the middle.)

It's so nice to hang out with a girl

after basically hanging out with guys all of the time.

For reals. 

Didn't really get to catch up too much, 

because we went to see a movie!

Life As We Know It

 did not disappoint.

Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel

were great and the movie was great

and I loved that Joan from Mad Men

was in the film as well.

Love her. 

Here's a little taste of the soundtrack... 

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

Anywho, I'm hoping to head

on up to Nashville to visit her 

very soon...but I won't say when

because all celebrities seem to 

disappear when I visit Haley. 

It happens every time. 

Have a great Thursday!

You're my best friend.

If you were expecting a beach trip story today, 

here you go.

I know I keep using it everywhere, but I just love this picture.

Jesse caught me hopscotchin' at the best moment possible. 

On the first day (after some much deserved sleep), 

Jesse and I ate breakfast with the gang and 

then set out on our own to search for benchmarks in

downtown Panama City, Florida.

We found like 10 or so... I lost count after a while, 

because I was more focused on looking at the 

old buildings and chalk art (see above). 

We caught up with everyone later in the 

afternoon and played some serious 

ultimate in the non-oily Gulf of Mexico.

Good times. 

We stayed at place called "Venture Out," 

a trailer park for the beach-set. 

Very nice.

Jesse really enjoyed it.

As you can see, he adopted this golf cart

to take us around the neighborhood and across the 

street to the beach. 

I want to move there immediately

for this reason alone.

We were joking about getting jobs extremely close 

to our house after we get married, 

so that we can just drive a golf cart to work.

It's that awesome.

We saw lovely sunsets on Saturday evening...

and did a photo shoot with the group

and even some couple-y pics walking on the beach.

I was telling Jesse last night, while we were looking through 

the "roll" of pictures, that there's not one person 

on this trip that I do not love. 

They are all awesome. 

Just sayin'.

Katie did a wonderful job of "shooting."

We had a fabulous time at the beach....

And hope to get back there soon!

What're you lookin' at butthead?

If you don't know where that title is from

then I suggest that you update your 

80s movie trivia knowledge.

It'll be useful at some point, I promise.

However, I have allowed 

some of my 80s trivia to seep out 

of the recesses of my mind

to make room for knowledge. 

What kind of knowledge? 

I'm not really sure. 

But it's in there and 

pushing out my favorite movie quotes. 

Before they are completely gone however, 

I will give a list of some of my favorite 80s movies. 

1. The Breakfast Club

Duh.

2. Some Kind of Wonderful

3. Back to the Future 

Great Scott!

"Why don't you make like a tree...

and Get outta here!"

If you are unaware of these fine films, 

please head to your nearest Redbox 

or order these on Netflix, because

they are essentials. 

That is all.

via

Hey...hey, baby!

I made some cupcakes
(Pumpkin Spice with Cream Cheese Icing)
 last night...
however, I am sad that the candy corn "melted" onto
the cream cheese icing.

I hear they're yummy.

Half are for my office and the other
10 (some were eaten...)
are for my small group tonight!

They will be a nice accompaniment to

PW's meatloaf.

AND

1 John insights. 

Can't discount ol' John.

In the past couple of weeks,
my small group has grown
tremendously.

We have changed venues, but
people continue to show up.
It's terrific.

Currently Listening To: 

Michael Bublé. 

(Still think about Jon Hamm's SNL sketch "Hamm and Buble")

via

Come on pretty baby!

I have reconnected with Pandora... 

I'm sorry that I haven't listened in so long. 

Their playlists are always wonderful. 

Right now my songs are coming from
"Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter"

by Herman's Hermits.

Good stuff.

And since I attended a copyright law meeting

yesterday, I have been thinking about how 

legal it is to listen to this music in my office.

Can my friends who have just been sworn in as FL attorneys

help me out with this quandary?

Have a jail-free Tuesday!

via

Baskerville Italic

"Guard your heart above all else, for it determines

the course of your life."

Proverbs 4:23

Lovin' my daily verse emails. 

Last night began the first of night of 

our VERY in-depth study of 1 John

(of which we read this past summer)

AND the first night of Bible studies 

to be held at Andy's house. 

Good times. 

I think Colby enjoyed being

our new small group mascot. 

He's a good dog. 

We only read through about 5 verses of Scripture, 

but oh boy did we extract some 

deep thoughts from them!

Developing imagery through light and darkness...

hosting a television show A LA Bill Maher, 

without the self-righteous atheism. 

I'm telling you, Andy has a funny facilitator way

that makes him sound like he's about 

to take a call from Deb from Milwaukee. 

"What's your question, hun?"

\

via

I don't know if it's cloudy or bright...

Almost done!

Super excited. 

No more stressing about

 getting stuff done after today!

Going on little to no sleep...

Not sure what I'm talking about?

Sorry. 

In other news, my friend

has some new goodies on 

her Etsy shop.



It's super sweet.

Here are some of my faves!


Sweet Home Alabama Chalkboard


Owl Chalkboard Clock


Swooping Swallow Corkboard


Hope you go today and order
something special for yourself
or if you want...you can get me an
early birthday present.

Just sayin'.

Have a super ultra mega sweet Tuesday!

Have I used this one yet?

images via etsy and ffffound

That's not my bag

Good times over the weekend. 

Lots of stuff accomplished. 

Mainly "Angry Birds" levels. 

Alabama football watchin'...you know. 

Roll Tide. 

Gettin' to sleep at weird early hours. 

I'm kind of glad that my iPod is 

dead so that I can't play it right now.

It could become quite an addiction. 

Lawdy mercy. (My southern-ism of the day)

I tell you what I think I built up some upper body muscles

carrying boxes up to the attic last night. 

Haha. And just for the record, 

when the lights go off in the attic, 

it is pitch black, 

and I'm not ok with that. 

The last time I checked my name was NOT 

Vin Diesel. 

Already looking forward to this weekend.

You know why?

Nope, not the Alabama/Arkansas game, 

although I will watch it.

The 38th Annual Birmingham Greek Festival!

It's going to be super fun!

It's hosted by the Greek Orthodox Church

in Birmingham, AL

and they have the best foods, 

dancing, and Greek crafties!

Get excited!

And a last minute shout-out to

 my friends, Jonathan and Lindsey, 

who passed the Bar Exam!!!

Congratulations!

Have a great Monday!

via

Quaggy. I won't say really.

I said it anyway. 

Haha. 

And as always, I am trying to

focus on what the Lord 

is trying to show me. 

Another great verse of the day:

...For I am doing something in your own day, 

something you wouldn't believe 

even if someone 

told you about it.

Habakkuk 1:5

Last night's youth group 

at 2420 (aka Deon's)

was wrought with discussion

about faith and doubt

and God's timing, 

The Safe Haven youth are really blessed to 

have Jameson and Brianne

as their leaders.

I'm glad to have them as friends.

Again, even though some things 

happen, the Lord makes things right 

sometimes slowly, but sometimes so 

quickly that you don't even realize that

it's happened already.

via

Free to be you and me

"There's a land that I see, 

where the children are free.

Come with me, take my hand, 

and we'll live...

IN A LAND

where the river runs free...."

Yes, Vicki.

Even joking about that song, 

gets it stuck in my head.

You and Target are on my "Lassiter List."

On a baking note:

I made the cupcakes I saw in Cartwheels in my mind last night

for Haley's birthday.

They were a huge success!

(From their website) I'll post my cupcakes later, maybe. Haha.

Keep the fun, crafty ideas a-flowin' Cartwheels!

I'm debating whether or not I should make a cinnamon swirl bread

 that I saw on the Pioneer Woman's website...

I do have a loaf pan now...on loan. 

Happy Friday!

weheartit.com

Orthoepy \awr-THOH-uh-pee\

It's important that I included that second part (above), otherwise

the definition of the word would be lost. 

via

Hope everyone is having a fine Thursday morning. 

Including my buddy, Mizz Baker, 

who is 24 today!

Happy birthday, friend. 

And extra observation,
it feels great outside.
I love the beginnings of autumn.

via

I speak general American English, Y'all!

Having a fun visit with my friend, Mizz Baker, 

for the whole week!

Congrats to her for her perseverance

and the great things that are coming her way!

Haven: Sanctuary of Style

Whelp, getting back into tutoring again this fall...

that'll be interesting after a summer away

not...tutoring. 

Hopefully, I'll be able to maintain a nice balance (a la Liz Gilbert)

in my life with everything that's happening in my life lately. 

All good things, I assure you. 

AND 

I got a new book yesterday, about which 

you must be so excited to read.

It's called Love on a Dime.

You're already compelled, I know. 

I probably shouldn't even have to say more, 

but I will just because I want to do so.

Isn't the cover just so nice?

And to answer your question, 

yes.

I do judge books by their covers ALL THE TIME.

Summary:

Same ol' chestnut of a tale.

Boy falls in love with girl and

vice versa.

Family disapproves of match. 

Boy leaves girl to claim fortune. 

Girl becomes secret author and 

not-so-secret women's shelter volunteer. 

Boy returns a man with enough money to support woman.

Woman with new guy... who doesn't know she's a dime novelist. 

Duhn, duhn, duhn... what is going to happen?

Find out tomorrow... if you dare. 

I can't keep a straight face...

Two posts in one day? Slow down! Surely you could have waited until tomorrow to devulge more useless information about yourself...

Nah, I just wanted to share some thoughts from Safe Haven today. Some good and sad things happened today.
1) We had a meeting to reiterate the non-trip to Mexico. The tickets are still good until April 2011, so there's that.
2) We moved into the biggest theatre, however they blocked off a lot of the seats, making it hold the same amount of people... interesting.
3) Found out that two of the first people that I met at Safe Haven are transitioning out of the church to other ministries.
4) I caught up on the sermon series about HEAVEN today, since I missed last week (bummer).


Today, Troy focused on heaven on the context of "where did Grandma go?" Did she go to heaven? If she was a believer, heck yes she did!

He then proceeded to describe the heaven from Scripture. A physical place with physical beings with an intermediate cognitive state of mind. Because this heaven isn't going to be permanent, yo.

"You can't get any more physical than a palm branch. Well, maybe a bowling ball."

This quote was in reference to the masses in heaven who were waving palm branches. Catch up yet? No? Sorry. It was also a reference to Plato thinking that all "bodies" were evil and nothing physical can exist in the spirit world...because that would be bad. Sorry, Plato.

What is the present heaven like you ask? According to Troy, and the Bible, the paradise described by Christ in Luke 23:43 and the paradise in Genesis 3...is the same place! A "walled garden".

Other verses referenced: John 14:1-3; Luke 16; 2 Corinthians 5:2,8; Philippians 3; Revelation 21:1; 2 Kings 19:15; and Revelation 2:1-10.

Read up.

P.S. Is it sad that whenever Troy mentioned the "walled garden" I immediately thought of the Olive Garden?

Dork

Oh yeah, that's right. I am cataloguing all of my books for my own personal library. And when people borrow my books, I will know who has them and when they were borrowed. Yes, I realize this makes me a little more than obsessed, but I absolutely loved going to the library when I was little and filling out the card and getting it stamped and returning it to repeat the process... nothing like the nerdiness of a child.

Let me know if you want to borrow a book!