Happy Thanksgiving!

I know, I'm a day early but I just wanted to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving! Tomorrow, I'm heading out with Casey to Grand Saline to have a good ole' southern style thanksgiving out at his grandparents house. Then we are heading back for round 2 Thanksgiving with his mom and sisters. I don't think I should have any problem getting full tomorrow! I'm sure I'll have stories to tell after that trip so don't fret, I'll fill you all in on all the details. Now, here is a fun Thanksgiving comic that I really enjoyed and hope you will too!

Twilight and my obsession

My latest obsession is the one and only Twilight Series. Now, even though I have seen the movie twice already, the books are where my true love lies. Casey went with me and about 11 others to see the opening of the movie at midnight. We all met for dinner at 7:30 thinking this was allowing for plenty of time. Boy were we wrong. Do not underestimate the obsessed 14 year old who thinks she will marry Edward Cullen (star vampire of the film). The theater we had tickets to we found out started letting people in at 1:00 in the afternoon! Girls were in PJs and camped out with blankets and playing cards already in the theater! We would have been the front and that was not going to happen. So we switched to the smaller theater (aka "adult theater") which was a much better choice. We went in to check out the big theater filled with girls, someone shouted "Edward!" and everyone screamed. I could not handle that for 2 hours waiting for the movie to begin. The movie was really good but could not even compare to the book. Although, I thought it was only fair to give it a second viewing so I went on Saturday with my friend Kate. Sunday, I finally finished the book series so now I really don’t know what to do with my life. I have contemplated re-reading the books or just holding tight for the movie to come out on video so I can watch my favorite scenes all the time. Until then, all I can do is sit here and daydream about the characters I love.

Christmas in November

Last Friday was the opening of ICE! here at the Texan. We got to have a sneak preview of the exhibit so I took some pictures so you all who don’t get a chance to come can see what it’s like. You can’t tell from the pictures but it is literally FREEZING in there! Nine degrees to be exact. One parka just does not work when it is that cold. That night was the lighting ceremony in the atrium and I dragged Casey to that with me. Luckily, 3 of the girls I work with also dragged their boyfriends there so he had some buddies to get a beer with while we waited. We got snuck into the VIP section by some other co-workers so we had a great view. They have been decorating the atrium since October 3rd so I feel like it’s been due to be Christmas for a long time now. But I really so love the atrium this time of year. At night, it truly is magical!

The entrance to ICE!
The Coca-Cola Bears
The Winter Forrest. This is my favorite part and apparently where a ton of Holiday proposals happen

Being a Chi Omega, I still find myself drawn to Owls!

The atrium all lit up

I thought you would appreciate this Mom and Dad. It's a wine bottle tree outside of Old Hickory!

The Quiet Place

My favorite thing to do at Forrest Home (the camp I went to growing up) was to find a quiet place somewhere out in nature to just sit, reflect, and ahve a moment with God. Typically these spots were along a creek or hidden in the trees somewhere. Well, since I am too old to go to summer camp anymore, I’ve started to do it on the capming trips I’ve been taking recently. On Sunday morning, in Cossatot Falls, I woke up and went for a little walk. I found a path down to the river and saw the most amazing site. It was freezing outside but the sun was burning brightly causing this mist to rise up from the river. The mist just moved along the top of the water like it was dancing. It was truly beautiful. The mountains around the creek with the fall colors only added to the beauty. It’s moments like these that I don’t see how anyone could NOT believe in God. It’s also times like these that I just appreciate what a beautiful artist God truly is. In this fast-paced, busy, cell-phone talking, radio listening to world we live in, it’s very rare to get a quiet moment. For the few minutes I enjoyed this scene, I just felt like God was there and that he would actually hear me if I spoke to him. I said a prayer and then carried on back to the campsite. But wow, if only everyday could be filled with more moments like those.

“In the secret, in the quiet place

In the stillness You are there.

In the secret, in the quiet hour I wait,

Only for You,'cause I want to know You more”
~ Chris Tomlin

Cossatot Falls

This weekend I went camping at Cossatot Falls in Arkansas with Casey, Candace, and Ryan. Let’s just say the trip was…interesting. The camping was amazing, we had the best site there, the river was beautiful, and the trees were turning into fall colors. However, it was what happened away from the campsite that made the trip interesting. Here are the top stories of the weekend:

1) Candace and Ryan left around noon on Friday so they could get there while it was still light outside (smart decision on their part. Casey and I left around 4 after he got off work. I had printed out directions to Cossatot River State Park so we were good to go. The only problem was that we were going to Cossatot Falls, not Cossatot River. Apparently, there is a difference because Casey and I went at least 20 miles past where we wanted to be and ended up on Polk Road 31 in Country Bumpkinville, AR. Casey has officially banned me from direction duty (although I think this is the 2nd time he learned this lesson). Luckily, in between the phone cutting out, I was able to get the correct directions from Ryan and we made it.

2) Saturday, we pulled into the E-Z Mart in Wickes, AR to get some more firewood. When we asked where we could get some the lady said “Firewood? Well I don’t know. Folks ‘round here just chop their own.” So we set out to find some firewood. About 2 miles down the road we saw a house that looked like it was selling anything and everything out in their yard. I mean ANYTHING, garage canopies, Barbi bikes, one-eyed giant teddy bears, and firewood! Casey pulled into the driveway and started heading up to the house. From our point of view, it looked like Casey just walked right in the door without knocking (apparently the guy waved him in though) but that made Ryan say “Uh, Jenna, maybe you should get into the driver seat in case we need to make a run for it.” Well “Earl” as we like to call him came out with full Santa beard and all and sold us some firewood for basically nothing. He also asked where we were staying which we cleverly skirted around answering just to prevent old Earl showing up at our campsite.

3) After going on a 3.5 mile hike that was mostly either steep uphill or steep downhill walking, we wanted to grab a couple beers. We drove into Umpire, AR and stopped at TNJ’s Grocery (also a gas station) where they are known for their fried catfish. They didn’t have any beer so we asked if any of the local towns might have some. The girls said “I sincerely doubt it.” We either had to drive across the state line to Oklahoma or to Hot Springs. I didn’t understand this though…isn’t that what teenagers do in small towns? Go out in the fields and drink? We concluded they must make their own moonshine or brew their own beer.

4) One example of the kind of people we were around was the guy who pulled up at the E-Z Mart in his big truck in his hunting gear with a dead deer in the back. It was my first encounter with a dead deer and a little too much for me. The cherry on the top was the stickers he had on his truck though “I taught your wife that thing you like.” Classy.

5) The second time we had some slight fear for our lives was while we were sitting and enjoying the beautiful stream when “Cletus”, as we call him, pulled up on his four-wheeler. He drove by once and then pulled around again and stopped. All he said was “Water’s pretty ain’t it?” He had a gun on his four-wheeler and spit twice while he talked to us. Casey and Ryan just tried to keep him entertained for about 10 minutes. He asked if we wanted to see his gun which Casey quickly responded “No” too and then he said something about his dual exhaust and just drove off all of a sudden. We weren’t sure if he expected us to be there when he got back but we weren’t waiting around.

6) To top off the trip when we went to pack up the car, we realized I had a flat tire. Hurray. Luckily, we made it back on the spare.

As you can see, it was a very interesting weekend but overall we had a lot of fun. We made some really good food and thanks to Earl’s firewood, we had a raging fire Saturday night. I think Cossatot Falls is definitely on the repeat camping list.

ANGRY.

What is with black sweater material lately? Within the last 4 days, I have had two, I repeat two, black sweater garments that I recently purchased rip on me. Monday, I was wearing a long black sweater when I realized that my under arm was a little more drafty than usual, only to find a giant hole right below the cap sleeve of my sweater! Luckily, I had a camisole on underneath otherwise, my co-workers would have seen a little more of me than I would have liked. Then, today, not more than 10 minutes ago, another co-worker pointed out a whole on the back of the neck of a new black sweater dress I purchased less than 24 hours ago. Needless to say, I am angry. I’ll admit, it’s not like I paid an arm and a leg for some high-end couture sweaters; but still, shouldn’t clothes last for at least one wearing, even if it only cost $15? The quality of low priced clothing (I know that’s an oxymoron) but still, it is going down hill and I’m tired of my clothes ripping for no apparent reason.

However, even in my sadness, I would like to take the time to thank Julie and Kate for helping me temporarily hide the holes in my clothes so I don't look completely unprofessional at work.

Decieved...on Election Day!

My morning started off well enough. I was actually pretty excited since it was my first time to actually vote in a formal poll (last election I had to vote by absentee ballot). I got there right as the polls opened and was one of the first to vote. This whole week I have been looking forward to getting my “I Voted” sticker and wearing it around proudly all day. After submitting my vote though, sadly, I did not receive the classic sticker that I had seen my parents wear when I was younger. However, outside the church where I voted was a little old lady with a table set up. She was giving away cookies, tiny American flags, and stickers! Everyone that walked out was getting a sticker from her so I joined in, excited to be getting to live out my sticker dream. This was not the classic sticker I knew and loved though. It said “Yes I did!” on it with a little American emblem and a check mark in it. I would have to settle for the homemade sticker. After being at work for a few hours, Debra came over to visit me and see if I voted. I proudly showed her my sticker only to hear her say “You voted for Obama?” I was confused by this question until she pointed out that the American emblem on my sticker was in fact, Obama’s logo! Who knew he had a logo? Instantly, I was furious that I had been deceived. I had been deceived by the face of innocence…a little old church lady. So my friends, on this election day, beware of these little old church ladies recklessly handing out these stickers. And above all, do not be fooled by the chocolate chip cookies!

A Night in Hollywood

Today my good friends Jeanie and Neil McDoogle called to tell me all about their amazing night. They live in Minnesota and won tickets on the radio for a real Hollywood Red Carpet party out in LA. They got a little lost on their way but their handy Hollywood map helped them find the party. Jeanie spent all day getting ready and even brought out her "fancy jacket" as she calls it. Neil brought his polaroid camera to try to get some pictures with the famous people. Once there, they found out that it was an Oscar party and they were handing out awards. The highlight of their trip was winning an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay (aka Most Original Costume). She sent me some pictures so you can see their great outfits...Enjoy!

Lost before the event

Picture with Pebbles Flinstone and Jessicaa Simpson

Winning the Oscar