Happy New Year!!

Another year has come and gone and I can't believe 2011 will be here in less than 9 hours. This time last year I was unpacking boxes in our new home in MS. The movers arrived in MS on 12/30 and we moved the ENTIRE weekend. Our work paid off b/c all the boxes were unpacked, all pictures hung, closets organized, etc. by the time I left on Sunday, January 2nd to return back to Montgomery for two more weeks of work. (I "officially" became a Mississippian on 1/15/10). With all this being said, I'm sitting here laughing b/c Jason and I both agreed last NYE 2009 we would have a much more fun filled NYE for 2010. Unfortunately looks like we will be home again :(....see below....

The past few days my body has ached, throat hurt and I just feel BLAH!! You know that feeling where you're not sick enough to go to the Dr. yet, but don't feel like doing a thing. So unfortunatley our New Year's Eve will not be fun filled this year. We're leaving for our Vegas/Phoenix trip soon and I want to be 100% for it, so I thought it was best I relax. I know I must feel bad b/c we turned down an invite to the beach (FREE place to stay) w/ some of our favorite friends from Alabama. So tonight Jason and I plan a low key evening of football games, grilled cheese sandwiches, soup and coffee....and maybe a game of Scrabble. Don't we sound exciting...haha. Although I love hanging out with friends, sometimes it is nice to slow down and just enjoy time with the one you love the most.

So here is to another New Year's Eve at home, but at least this year we have cable, boxes are unpacked, and we can RELAX. I think plenty of fun will be awaiting us soon in Vegas/Phoenix and of course the AU/Oregon game!!

Happy New Year's :)

A White Christmas to Remember

We loaded up the family station wagon (well SUV) and headed to Bama for Christmas on Friday. I wish I had taken a picture of how much “stuff” we had packed in the car. You would think we were a family of 5. I would have taken a pic, but would have been too embarrassed to post b/c it is only the two of us, plus a dog (and a little dog at that). We will definitely have to learn to be more efficient packers whenever the Pope family expands. We enjoyed three nights and four days of R&R and spending time w/ family and friends. I always feel I can TRULY RELAX when I’m at my parents. I actually become quite lazy when I’m there. When I’m at my own home I always feel I should be cleaning, doing laundry or something productive.

Some of the highlights of Christmas weekend included:
~Christmas Eve w/ Jason’s family
~Christmas Day w/ my family ~ we were thankful to have my Grandma from Montgomery visiting for the entire weekend!!
~Our annual trip to the movies on Christmas Day (saw Little Fockers…..not as good as the first, but pretty funny)
~Church and lunch w/ my parents, the Griffiths & Chandlers to our favorite…China Luck….nothing says Christmas better than Egg Rolls (haha)
~Lots of coffee drinking, cookie eating and Scrabble playing….yes I scored 60 points with the word “QUESTION”…had to brag Jason..LOL!
~2nd Day after Christmas shopping in Bham and lunch at Zoes…oh how I miss Bham :(

It was a wonderful weekend and I really hated to see it come to an end. I’m really lacking on my picture taking right now and will try to do better in 2011. Like I said, I become really lazy when I’m home. However, the big highlight of Christmas Day, was our WHITE CHRISTMAS!! It began snowing around 10:00 on Christmas morning and never seemed to stop. The Oxford/Anniston area received about 3 inches of snow. I did manage to take a few pics of the snow. Hope everyone enjoyed their holidays as much as we did!!

Watching the beginning of the snow around 10:00

My parents house on Christmas Day

Their street...as you can see the snow continues to fall.

Backyard snow


Thought these trees were beautiful in their neighbors yard.

Family shot on Christmas...Radley hated the snow.

Radley trying to get out of the snow-ha!

Lots of snow collected on Jason's car and continued to fly off driving down 1-20 on Monday (about scared me to death)

Mom's bunny in their flower bed

Hope the rose bushes hold up!

Grandma staying warm in the house

Mom is happy- coffee maker and a Kindle!!

Excuse all these no make up shots (haha). Jason makes fun of my love for fur collars, so my parents got this sweater for me...LOL!

Gotta get geared up for Glendale :)

More Auburn gear!!

Now we are ready for Glendale!! Merry Christmas and War Eagle!!

Prayer Warriors Needed!!

A friend from college, Ashlie Edwards, just received a life saving liver transplant in Memphis. Please keep Ashlie and her family in your prayers. Please pray for her recovery and healing at this time. Thanks!! Gena

http://prayforashlie.blogspot.com/

Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul. 3 John 1:2

Lets remember Jesus all year...

I found this great devotional today and wanted to share. Our preacher in Montgomery shared a message very similar last Christmas. It is wonderful to celebrate the birth of our Saviour and to participate in all the wonderful acts of kindess that Christmas brings, but lets continue it throughout the year and NOT just at Christmas. Merry Christmas to all!!

Don't Put Jesus in a Box....

“I will extol Thee, my God, O King; And I will bless Thy name forever and ever. Everyday I will bless Thee, and I will praise Thy name forever and ever. Great is the LORD, and highly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable. One generation shall praise Thy works to another, and shall declare Thy mighty acts. On the glorious splendor of Thy majesty, and on Thy wonderful works, I will meditate.” Psalm 145:1-5

When do you take down your Christmas tree and decorations? For many, it all comes down this week. We pack them all up and we put Christmas back in the box.

I don’t like packing Christmas away for another year. But I also don’t like keeping Jesus as a baby and in a box.

Yes, there is something simple about the birth of Jesus. We think of this story and it somehow feels safe and warm. Visualizing Him as helpless and small makes Him easy to be controlled. I don’t need to deal with His majesty and power.

Jesus doesn’t want to remain a baby in our lives, nor does He want to be put into a box. He grew up and delights in being the God we can trust and follow through every circumstance of our lives. He came to be our Savior and He desires for all of us to see His majesty and awesome power, to fall to our knees and worship Him as our Lord.

Each year I like to keep one Christmas decoration or ornament out of the box and place it somewhere where I least expect it as a reminder to myself to not put Jesus in a box. But to see Him for Who He truly is, our Savior and Lord.

Happy 30th Brooke!!!

Although it is a day late...I wanted to wish one of my very best friends, Brooke Griffith Chandler, a very Happy 30th birthday. I look forward to celebrating with you soon. Thanks for your life long friendship....it has truly been a blessing!!

Friends celebrating with Brooke at her wedding in January 2010

Christmas Bunko

Thanks to Marsha and Rachel for a great night!! Looking forward to the next time we roll the dice!! Marsha- I loved my gift and used it today :)

Lauren, Marsha, me and Whitney....just a few girls of the group. Loved chatting with them last night!! Looking forward to another year of making memories!!

There's no place like home for the holidays....

Oxford, Alabama at dusk

At Christmas, all roads lead home....

Every Christmas of my 29 years have been spent in my hometown of Oxford, Alabama. We always visited our family in Montgomery the weekend before Christmas, so we can be at our home Christmas Day. Whenever God blesses Jason and I with children we plan to do the same with ours....so mom & dad...get ready to drive to MS (ha). For now, I'm looking forward to spending Christmas Day in Oxford. I love my parent's house at Christmas, going to the movies Christmas Day, seeing old friends. We are also lucky....we have lunch with both sets of parents on Christmas Day. One thing I miss most about North Alabama are the mountains. I think NE Alabama is so beautiful. We're looking very forward to visiting friends and family this Christmas season!!

Tacky Christmas Sweater Party

The Granthams hosted a Tacky Christmas Sweater Party at The Golf Course last night. There were some awesome outfits!! I just hate that my parents live 4 hours away and I couldn't borrow my mom's sweaters. She is a teacher, so of course she has plenty of Christmas sweaters. Mom- I promise I don't think they are all tacky. Most of the best sweaters/outfits were worn by girls whose mom's or mother-in-laws are teachers too. Jason and I found great matching sweatshirts at JC Penney's. I was almost embarrassed to take them to the register. We were shocked to see two other women "Seriously" looking at the sweatshirts to buy. I didn't take any pics at the actual party, but below are a few pics from The Pettit's house. They had a few couples over to "preview" the outfits.

The shirts says -"Tis the season to be freezin"...pretty bad!

Kayla and Whitney :) Kayla had some great plaid pants and some wonderful Santa jewelry. We all thought Whitney's sweater was actually pretty cute.

Kayla, Rachel and JJ....Rachel wore an awesome crushed velvet dress with a lovely jingle bell necklace and earrings. JJ looked pretty snazzy as well w/ here gift box earrings.

Looking forward to next year's Tacky Christmas Sweater Party!!

Hectic Holidays!!

It seems like Christmas has snuck up on Jason and I this year. Football season consumed so much of the fall and then the SEC game came on 12/4. Before we knew it...the holidays were here!! Life has been so busy the past few weeks; I have failed to take any pics of all our fun Christmas events (except the tacky sweater party from the last night). This New Year's Eve will officially mark 1 year we've been in MS. Time really does fly!! Jason actually has been here since Nov 30th and lived in a B&B in town before we moved in our house on Dec. 31st. I'll admit the weekend we moved here (although excited about our new town and Jason's opportunity) I was soooo NERVOUS/ANXIOUS!! I had never lived or moved anywhere that I absoulutley knew NO one!! Well, the good thing about small towns is most people already know who you are before you even meet them. We have been extremely blessed to make some sweet friends. Kosciusko is very fortunate to have so many wonderful young couples come back home after college and settle here. I think it says a lot about the HEART and PRIDE of this town when so many natives chose to make this their home. So enough of my rambling...here are some of the highlights of our past few weeks...sorry not one single pic!!

~Prayer Group Christmas Party - always enjoy our Thursday meetings with these wonderful couples :)

~Christmas Parade- yes I got to be in it (haha). I'm in The Cosmopolitan Club (women's service club) and the new members are responsible for making the float and riding in it. It was quite humorous. One 1/2 of the lights quit working and I did my best to hide in the back of the float. My plan didn't work b/c my face was on the front page of the Life Section of the weekly paper from the parade. So much for trying to hide :)

~Ornament Swap at my house- I hosted a swap for some of the sweet girls I've met here. Some I've known since we've moved and others I've just met recently. It was lots of fun and I hope to make it an annual event

~Tacky Christmas Party at the Golf Course- this was absolutley hilarious- nuff said!!

~Weekend visit from my parents- we enjoyed having a low key weekend with my Mom & Dad last weekend and watching Cam win the Heisman!!

~Cosmo Christmas Dinner at Uncle Big Allen's- yes my city slicker friends....Uncle Big Allen's restaurant used to be in a gas station...like everything else in this town. Food was great and decor was lovely. You can do a lot with old gas stations!!

~Last minute Christmas shopping...yes Jason and I did ALL of our Christmas shopping this weekend in Jackson. We made it to Dogwood, Northpark Mall, Bass Pro & Highland Village in one weekend. We actually went back today to finish up and to eat at Amerigo (haha). I'll never wait this late again....too much stress!!

So as you can see, it has been a very hectic last few weeks, but I've loved every minute of it!! This holiday season has reminded Jason and I how blessed we are. We're so thankful for our new town, friends-old & new, family, jobs, home, etc...

I'm looking forward to Christmas Bunko this week and then heading to Bama to spend Christmas weekend with our family :)

Merry Christmas to all :)

Radley plays Santa....

Radley braved the cold this afternoon & dressed as Santa to help us deliver poinsettias to our neighbors :)

Radley is ready to spread Christmas cheer!

Delivery time!


Poinsettias all delivered...now time to take care of my "other" business :)

Yes, this is ridiculous I know!

Why do they do this to me?? (haha)!

SEC Champs....13-0!!

What a fabulous time we had this weekend in Atlanta watching Auburn dominate SC and securing the SEC title. It was a great feeling knowing the win assured them a spot to play in Glendale for the National Championship game. This season has been a blast and has provided us with some great memories. I hate to see it end :( We're now looking forward to January 10th and our trip to Glendale. It will definitely be a once in a lifetime trip....well.... lets hope AU can do it again in my lifetime. War Eagle!!

Brooke and I enjoying hanging out before the game.

Jason and Corey...they are just beaming over Auburn's season (haha)

Brooke and I enjoyed hanging out with one of our dear AU friends, Jennifer Harris and her friend Cassin. Jennifer now is an Interior Designer in ATL. We used to make many roadtrips to visit here when we lived in Bham. It was great to catch up :)

Ready to watch Auburn win!

No better place to spend some quality family time :)

56-17....what do you think about that Lou Holtz...maybe you'll pick AU over Oregon, but does your opinion really matter?

I've enjoyed sharing this wonderful season w/Jason and my parents.

My highschool friend/Alpha Gam sis/Bham roommate, Katie White. Isn't she a doll!! She just happened to be sitting in front us. It was great to see her! Ignore the random guy behind us...he wore a TN hat to the game...boo!

Hope we see this AU celebration in Glendale!!

I'm proud we have a head coach that represents Auburn so well!!

Decorative December

To kick off the month of December, I decided to post a few pics of our Christmas decorations. This post is primarily for my mother and mother-in-law. They as well love decorating for the Christmas season and have been eager to see our decorations. So here is the post you've been asking for. Jason and I are looking forward to their visits this holiday season when they can see everything in person. Happy Holidays to our families...we especially miss you all this time of year.

When we recall Christmas past, we usually find that the simplest things -- not the great occasions -- give off the greatest glow of happiness. - Bob Hope

Keeping Room Christmas tree--the bow is still hanging in there after 3 years and a move

Keeping Room Mantle- the beautiful wreath was one of our wedding gifts from Jason's mother. I now have something covering that ugly power cord.

Making use of my Christmas China....when other 15 year old girls were asking for clothes for Christmas, I was asking for Christmas China....strange I know. I've always loved China and started collecting my Christmas China at a young age.
Hope to soon add some beautiful flowers to the center of the table

Christmas ornaments just aren't for trees :)

More China and Santa in his sleigh

The newest Christmas Tree and my $8 Reindeer (love Design World)

Still have more to add to this tree (like a topper). I'll be making a trip to Design World in Alabama this weekend. If you're ever near one, you must go!!

The stockings are all hung (even Radley's)!

We're trying to diet, so no sweets on my Lenox candy dish, just ornaments :(

Now we need a piano player to come over and play some holiday tunes!!


Burton Hillis, Better Homes and Gardens
~The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other. ~