Warms the Heart

On a super cold day like today, nothing warms the heart like the spirit of Christmas. This is a picture of one of the conference rooms in the building I work in. Wall to wall presents doesn't even describe it! The agency I work for has an Adopt a Family program to help families who are in need due to domestic violence situations. I believe we had about fifty families adopted. This means very generous people giving of their time and money to lift up total strangers and their families.

I literally had tears in my eyes when I saw this room for the first time. The picture doesn't even do it justice.

I am trying to keep this feeling in my heart when I am feeling that Christmas stress creep up. This is what it is all about.

My First Jewelry Sale

I think I mentioned briefly in my first post that I like to make jewelry. I am pretty inexperienced, but have a lot of fun with it. There is so much to learn and it can get pretty overwhelming to want to know how to do everything I see. I kind of get lost in what I can do and what I want to do and then I'm left sitting there with a bunch of projects I need to work on and don't know where to begin. I am just trying to pace myself and just improve on the little things and learn new things one at a time. I really had no clue how much there is that can be done with handmade jewelry.

Monday will be officially the first time I've tried to sell anything. A few people I work with also make jewelry and other things for hobbies so we decided to have a little Christmas shopping sale at work for the staff. I'm half excited and half nervous about puttting myself out there like that, but I'm going to do it anyway. A percentage of what we make goes toward the United Way which supports our agency. I have a random selection of things from beaded ornaments to keychains to bracelets.

Here are some pictures of my things:

Here is a picture from a Bead Show I went to a few weeks ago - talk about overwhelming! This is just one of MANY tables. Those are all strands and strands of different beads.



Wish me luck! I doubt I'll be quitting my job anytime soon or anything! :-)

A Wonderful Weekend

Of all the things I am thankful for, being back at work today is not one of them. I am normally the type of person who enjoys some time off, but am ready to get back to routine. Not this time. I had such a wonderful four day weekend. We did so many fun things and I am just wishing I could stay at home all the way through Christmas. We leave for SC in less than three weeks and I am super excited about that. It usually takes me a while to get into the Christmas spirit, but this year I am already there. It must be that little blonde haired boy who is so excited about all things Christmas.

Thanksgiving day was really nice and James and I were really proud to have conquered our very own Thanksgiving meal all on our own. I made plenty of our favorite Thanksgiving dishes and then there was the very stressful, very expensive, very TASTY turkey. We decided that we wanted a fried turkey because we wanted it to be a very southern meal and James makes a great fried turkey. So I bought the turkey and all the marinades and rubs and peanut oil. I knew that we didn't have the propane tank because the movers couldn't pack it, so I bought another one. Well, the movers didn't detach this very necessary hose from the tank so it was in SC too. No problem, I bought another one. Thanksgiving day arrives - big problem - the hose doesn't work with our fryer. Insert trip to Wal-Mart number one, in which James returns with a second fryer. Then there is not enough oil to cook what I thought was a small turkey, but apparently I was wrong. Insert trip to Wal-Mart number two for more oil. Next problem, the propane tank valve won't open. After much frustration, James is able to get the valve open and a little later we had this amazing turkey! We have also had since then very good leftovers too!

I set out Friday morning with my shopping plan a little before 6:30. I pretty much got nothing that I planned for because I didn't get to any place early enough. I guess I am not a very good Black Friday shopper. Friday night we took James to see Christmas lights at a big local church, which he loved.

On Saturday we made this lovely Gingergread House.

We also got the outdoor decorations up and Sunday I got the indoor things set out. All we have left is the tree. Oh and shopping, and cards, and traveling, and.......

All in all, it was a great weekend (minus the GIANT loss by Carolina to Clemson) and I am really looking forward to the Christmas activities to come.

One year.....

Well, November marks one year since we officially moved to Tulsa. (Technically, I didn't move until January, but James began his job last November.) A lot of people ask us what its like here. Once you're in a new place, it is sometimes hard to see the differences. I guess people expect 1,000 miles away to be like a foreign land. Don't get me wrong, there are some big differences, but it is not like we went away to South Africa or something. So I have been trying to think of the things that are different here to try to give people a little more idea of what Oklahoma is like compared to South Carolina.


First, there is the landscape. The people that live here call this area "Green Country," which I haven't figured out if that is just for Tulsa, or the whole state. I have to bite my lip when I hear people say this. I want to say, "Listen, are you color blind?" When I first came, they had recently gone through a pretty bad ice storm and all the trees were bare and the grass was dead. So I figured I would give it until Spring. Well, the grass did turn green and the leaves came back, but there was still brown hay surrounding my house and it wasn't quite what I expected. It was also very short lived, we barely got into fall before all the trees were bare again and we're back to "Brown Country." I want to say, "If you want to see 'Green Country' please take a little field trip with me."

Tulsa a.k.a Green Country....

South Carolina road


Get the idea???

Oklahomans also consider this a "southern" area. I disagree. While I was surprised that you can order sweet tea at some restaurants and not get strange looks, I would call it "slightly sweetened tea." In South Carolina, you are lucky to get some tea in your sugar and if you come across any restaurant, fast food place, gas station or vending machine that doesn't sell it, then I think you've just stepped out of SC. It is also not hot enough here (year round) to be considered southern. Yesterday, it was 37 when I left for work and the high was 47. I believe it was 71 in Charleston. If it gets close to 37 in SC, milk, bread and batteries start flying off the grocery store shelves. Also on the "southern" note, no one has an accent in OK. There is never any question if a word is really one syllable or two (did vs. dee-id) and all the words they say can probably be found in a dictionary unlike "Ah-sposo" = "I suppose so."

I may step on many OK toes with this next topic, but I don't think any of the few people I know here read this, so I'm going for it. The road systems make no sense. gasp! They think its genius, and it makes perfect sense to them. The entire city is mapped out on a grid. If you looked at it from above you would see perfect little squares. All roads are parallel and perpendicular. And they are very, very long. So to me, just because I think I know where something on 71st street is, I am most definitely probably going to be wrong, because a road could be in Downtown Tulsa and also Broken Arrow, which is about 25 minutes away. Because they are all in blocks, there is a red light every half second which is good for safety, not so good for people running late. The majority of streets are numbered AND they throw in a directional (sometimes at the beginning and the end) so addresses end up looking like 8642 E. 31st N. and that just makes no sense to me, but they say "OH I know RIGHT where that is!" If you ever come to OK make sure you bring a compass, because no one will tell you to turn left or right, or if they are located on the right or left corner, they will say that you should drive west and they will be located on the northwest corner of 31st and 96th. I really could continue on this topic, but I think that pretty much covers my frustration with it for now. :-)

I get lots of questions about the food in OK. Yes, there is food here. Lots of Mexican and barbeque restaurants and an Arby's on every corner. There is a big variety of restaurants here and a lot of non-chain places. Well, they might be chains, they just haven't made it to the East Coast. There is also a list of restaurants that have not made it to the Mid-West. Zaxby's, Fazoli's, Bojangles are ones that come to mind that are not here. There are very few seafood restaurants (for obvious reasons) and the barbeque restaurants and totally different than SC ones. A barbeque restaurant here has a choice of smoked meats with a few side options (hash & rice not being one of those choices). They also serve pickles, peppers & onions on the side of every plate, which I haven't quite figured that out yet. Pulled pork is one of the options, but that is not the main entree, like at SC restaurants. There is also no "mustard" bbq sauce. I think if they saw what SC considers barbeque, they would be really confused (and just maybe grossed out). But I miss it!

The last thing that I will comment on is the weather. It's basically hurricanes vs. tornadoes. I prefer hurricanes. Lots of pre-disaster warning, not gonna sneak up on you in the middle of the night, can do things to gaurd your home against them for the most part. Tornadoes, however, the only warning you get is an at most five minute pre-strike siren, that you could possibly miss or mistake for a car alarm. The best you can do is get in an interior room (if you have one) or get in the bathtub with a matress over you (note - this is only if you heard the alarms!) Keep in mind, the possibility of a two year old cooperating is pretty slim. Evacuation is not part of the weatherman language around here. Take-shelter, NOW is more their style. There are shelters you can pay big bucks for, but I haven't quite been talked into that yet. I keep picturing a movie scene where I just didn't make it to the shelter in time and the tornado swept me up along the way. I'm sure when spring-time (a.k.a tornado season) comes back around, I will have much more to say on this topic, and I am not looking forward to it.

So, for one year in the Mid-west, this is what I can tell you. A new shade of green, a different style of barbeque, and a road system that requires a degree in statistics. Interesting, to say the least.

November already?

Halloween was a blast. We went to a church festival while it was still daylight and then came to our house to trick or treat at dark. James did great. He said all his Trick-or-treats and Thank-yous right on cue after just a little practice. He has more candy than he can ever think about eating. His favorite treat was a cupcake from the church (which he got confused with a pancake). He mostly likes to just play with the candy more than anything.

This picture was taken at the church festival.

I really can't believe it is November already. I kept putting off thinking about Christmas until November, but now it is upon me. Maybe I can postpone until Thanksgiving? That is probably not a good idea. This year will be slightly more complicated with shipping gifts to and from SC and figuring out when Santa Claus comes and where, so early planning will be my best bet - so I am trying to get motivated.

We are not going to SC for Thanksgiving. We decided to save our traveling and vacation time for Christmas. This seems like a good plan now, but I'm sure I'll start feeling the blues when the day comes. I am planning to make a dinner myself, which hopefully will keep me occupied enough to keep from feeling sad. Fingers crossed!

I went first thing this morning to vote and luckily my line wasn't too long. I am super impressed with those who are waiting in line for hours. That is true American spirit. I am anxious to find out the results. I don't get too involved in politics, but this election has been pretty interesting and it seems more people are voting than ever. I am sure it will be a long night and I hope there aren't any major glitches that cause delayed results like we have seen in the past. I hope everyone that can gets out to vote today!

Happy Halloween!

I didn't think Halloween was all that exciting, that is, until I had a child. After having a child, it is like holidays are fun again! Actually, more fun than when I was the child experiencing them. There is so much joy in watching them have so much fun. It is a totally different perspective, and one I couldn't possibly understand until I experienced it. As James gets a little older, the excitement just grows. Each holiday since he was born I think, "This year he will really enjoy it, he's at just the right age." Then, when the next year rolls around, I think the same exact thing and that it will even better than last year.

His Halloween party at school last night was lots of fun. It was so cute to watch them checking out their friends with the looks on their faces, as if to say, "Hmm, I know you, but you kinda look a little different, maybe its the monkey get up you're wearing?" We are really looking forward to trick-or-treating tonight.



Here are some pictures from the past Halloweens (not that there have been that many - he's only 2 1/2!)



First Halloween - Incredible Hulk (and pumpkin sweat suit after the party)

Second Halloween - University of Carolina Football Player (all football players like Smarties, right?)

Tonight's costume - a dinosaur (It's actually a dragon, but we're sticking with what he knows)

Happy Halloween!

Impressed

I got to go to the Carrie Underwood concert last night! It was a lot of fun and she is SO good. The concert was at Tulsa's brand new BOK center, which is a really nice place for events. (Similar to the Colonial Center or N. Chas. Coliseum for my SC people) It was also pretty neat that she is from Oklahoma, so she had some family there and probably people who "knew her when" in the audience. (I think maybe the young girl behind me knew her - or at least thought she did - by the way she kept screaming CARRIE!!) She sang a couple of songs about being from OK so that made it fun for the people there. I have actually driven through her hometown (by mistake) on the way to another town in OK on the 4th of July.


I liked her a lot when she was on American Idol, but I really didn't realized just how good she is. Wow she can sing! Martina McBride is one of my favorites and I think Carrie Underwood is up there with her. She sang a song from her second album called I Know You Won't which was what totally had me thinking she ranks up there with Martina McBride. Check it out sometime.


I love going to concerts and hadn't been to one in a while, so this was a nice free treat.


Here are some pics from the concert, they're not very good though. My seat was WAY up high. (what can I say, it was a free ticket!)

Fall Fun

We went to a little Fall Festival and James had a blast. They had rides for anything that moved and more pumpkins than I would think could fit in Tulsa.

Yes, that was me on a CAMEL up there. Not sure where a camel fits into the "It's Fall!" picture, but he was there.

By the end of October, James is going to be all Fall-ed out. He's been to pick out pumkins three times, has a Halloween party at school this week, then Halloween Friday night and we will probably end up at the Tulsa Zoo's Hallo-zoo-ween festivities at some point this week too. Lucky little kid :-)

Somehow Fall in Tulsa = Winter in South Carolina. They really like to think its "so warm" here. They're wrong. It was 38 this morning. There aren't many days in SC that it gets that cold in winter, much less in October. There are actually four seasons here, as opposed to SC's two (hot & not as hot). At least I get to enjoy winter clothes (without sweating) a little more than I have in the past.

Happy Fall!

To my son

I have seen several blogs where letters are written to someone in particular, and I just love that idea. I would like to write a letter to my sweet little man, though it will be some time before he can read it. A lot of this blog is for me to record memories for him, since I am not a scrapbooker (gasp!) So here goes....

My sweet baby boy,

I have so many names for you, its hard for me to settle on just one, but I call you baby most often. I know this will have to stop one day, at least publicly. I already heard from one of your friends at school about it. I said to you, "Hey baby, are you ready to go home?" and he said, "James not a baby." It was actually pretty funny, since I didn't think that sort of thing would happen until much later. You will always be my baby though (we just don't have to tell your friends).

There are so many things I want to be for you - caretaker, protector, comforter, teacher, play-time buddy, and so much more. It is not always easy, but it brings me so much joy. At the end of a long day, seeing your smiling face brings a smile to mine. I am so blessed to have you in my life. You are such a loving child, you will stop anything to give a hug or a kiss. If I give one without the other, you always remind me by tugging on me, "Kiss, kiss" you will say. Anytime, baby boy.

I have been reading a book (not sure if I should tell you its about discipline) and it talks about Proverbs 31:28. "Her children will rise up and call her blessed...." That was so interesting to me. What a goal to work toward! For you to grow up and be honored to be my son. I know that it won't come without hard work and dedication on my part. You are so worth it!

I have been watching your imagination grow lately. You make up little stories with your trains (your favorite thing to play with) that are so fun to listen to. I wish there was some way to record each and every thing you do. It is passing by too quickly.

I am so thankful to have you in my life. I am "blessed" to be chosen to raise you.

Love,
Mama

Weekend Highlights

I took James to his first Circus this weekend. We had a great time! He was mostly impressed with the animals, of course, but was probably a little too young to enjoy some of the other acts. The circus hasn't changed much from what I remember (except the admission fee!) but is still a pretty fun thing to do. Here we are in a famous "take it yourself" picture and then James with his ($20) souvenir.





I also impressed myself with a little Halloween decorating. I am not the best decorator in the world, but I am pretty happy with what I did and it makes James happy and that's what counts!





And, now, for THE most exciting part of the weekend..............





There are GAMECOCK fans in Oklahoma!! This car was parked in the church parking lot yesterday morning, and yes, I just had to take a picture! You can't tell in this picture, but the plate holder is from a car dealership in Charleston. If you know anything about me and my car dealer background, of course you know this is extra exciting. James even noticed it and said, "Cocky on that truck!" I said, "Yes, I know, it's so exciting isn't it!" I don't think he got it, but still a proud moment. Even though they lost this weekend :-( But that's ok! I was seriously tempted to leave a note, and say "Hi, you don't know me, but can we be friends?!" I sorta hoped to run into them when leaving, but that didn't happen. Maybe next time. It may be a bad sign that this sort of thing is exciting to me, but I can live with that. :-)

Oklahoma City Memorial

Yesterday I went to Oklahoma City for a conference on domestic violence for work. (ps. October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month - wear purple! ) This was my first trip to Oklahoma City since moving out here, even though it is only about an hour and a half from Tulsa. After the conference was over, I decided to go to the downtown area to look at the Oklahoma City Memorial which is in honor of those killed in the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in April 1995.

I have to admit, I couldn't remember a whole lot about the bombing (shame on me and my degree in History!) just that it was a terrorist act, a lot of people died, and that Timothy McVeigh was held responsible. I was about 15 at the time, so I'm sure I should remember more, but probably didn't pay a lot of attention to the news at that time.

I was so struck by the scene when I first pulled up, it was not at all what I expected. There is a fence surrounding the main entrance and it is covered with flowers and other things people have left in remembrance. It was so surprising and refreshing to see that people don't let things like this be forgotten. We all have seen many things on the news where people put flowers out and hold vigils during tragedies, but this, 13 years later, people still honor the victims. What a wonderful tribute to the them and their families.

This is just one section of the fence where visitors had left things.



Across the street from the Memorial is a church that was also damaged by the explosion. This statue of Jesus stands on the corner. I think it is so beautiful. Below His feet it says "And Jesus Wept"



On either side of the Memorial are two very tall walls you can enter through. One wall says 9:01 and one wall says 9:03. According to the brochure, this represents the time when the city was still innocent before the attack and then the time after the attack. There is a shallow reflecting pool between the two walls that makes a very peaceful sound when you walk through the area.






These are chairs that represent the 168 people that lost their lives. The smaller chairs represent the children that died. I would love to see this at night when the bottoms are lit up and the names show through.






There was much more to the outdoor memorial, but it was getting late and dark, so I didn't get pictures of much else. There is also a museum, which I did not have time to go through, but would like to some other time. If you, like me, need a refresher about this tragedy you can read about it here or here. I was really impressed by this memorial and the tribute it pays to the victims of this tragedy.

I hope you enjoyed your little history lesson :)

Remembering....

Today would have been my dad's 56th birthday. He passed away February 14th, 2003.

I was just thinking back to all the "firsts" that happen after someone you love passes - the first birthday without them, the first Christmas, the first anniversary of their death. The firsts are so hard, and though the second, third and fourths do get easier, there is just something that sticks with you throughout the day. What would it have been like on those days if the person was still here? What would we have done together? What can I do today to show I still think of them? Is he proud of who I am now? On many of those firsts, I thought I would never make it through. I did.

When I was going through the really hard part of the greif I felt because of the loss of my own father I heard a Mercy Me song that helped me so much. It still helps me today. So many times when we're hurting, we just want to know why. What I learned from these lyrics is that even if I knew why my dad was gone, I still would want him here. I try to remember this and not continue to weigh myself down with things I cannot know. It is hard to do sometimes, but I just think about this song. The song, Homesick, says:

Help me, Lord, 'cause I don't understand your ways
The reason why, I wonder if I'll ever know
But even if you showed me, the hurt would be the same
'Cause I'm still here, so far away from home

I hope this song is helpful to you at a time when you need it.

Back in OK

My trip to SC was wonderful! James and I had a lot of time to visit with family and friends, but not nearly enough time to visit everyone we would like to have seen. We miss everyone already and can't wait until Christmas!

The plane trip was relatively uneventful - thank goodness! Pay no mind to the yellow crayon that some how ended up on the window shade! On the first leg of our return trip, the pilot announced that the plane was unbalanced and that two people from the front needed to move to the back. I'm thinking it is no coincidence that the nice folks in front of us decided to take a trip to the back. I can't say I blame them, but James did fall asleep for most of that part of the trip. I did find it pretty funny when we got to our seats on the second leg and my seat was on one side of the aisle and James' seat was on the other. The two nice gentlemen in the accompanying seats couldn't figure out why I was looking at them oddly. When I asked them politely to either switch sides or take care of my two year old, one of them quickly moved. He was sweet enough to add that his son was named James too, but I guess that didn't mean he wanted to entertain mine.

Here are some pictures from our trip.

Our trip to the beach.....

Our trip to the zoo with my mom.......

And picking out pumpkins.......

We hope to see everyone again soon!

Up, Up, Up and Down, Down, Down

Tomorrow I get to visit home! I am very excited about my visit, but starting to stress about the flight. I am flying alone with James, which I have done before a few times, but it is like the first time everytime. He has done well, for the most part, every time we have flown (thank you, Benadryl) but I just worry that this time will be the first time he a) has a really horrible diaper on the plane (where do you change diapers on airplanes??) b) has a really bad temper tantrum, or c) gets motion sickness (because you know with kids it is in the form of "projectile").

I try to come armed with everything I think I will need that meets airline standards, won't roll to the back of the plane when dropped sixty-three times and will not make noise. This is a pretty hard task. This rules out large bottles of benadryl (don't worry I have a small one), crayons, trains (his favorite!) and pretty much any toy that he gives more than a few minutes of his attention. Thank goodness for the Ipod. I have a few kids shows downloaded to my Ipod so he gets to watch a few things that no one else has to hear. He looks too cute with the little earplugs in. Like a little prodigy (which he is, right??) :-) After he's tired of that, I fill him up with snacks (if you see crumbs in your seat, know I was there) and then he pushes the window up and down and the same with the tray table and by then its usually time to land. If I time the Benadryl just right, I might get lucky enough for naptime to take place during one of the two flights.

I always feel when I'm walking through the plane that the looks I'm getting are to say "Oh boy, I hope the two year old doesn't sit next to me." Somehow though, I always end up near a really nice older woman who has a cookie in her purse or a little toy frog that surpasses his interest in my fancy Ipod.

The sercurity clearance is so stressful too. The people that work this area just make me nervous and I always feel rushed by other passengers who only have one little bag and slip-on shoes. Then you have me with a purse, book bag, child, stroller and our two pairs of shoes. Sad that even the child has to take his shoes off, but I don't question those people! Then once we get through, we have to put it all back together and still make it to my gate on time.

I think this time he understands what I mean when I say we are going on a plane. I asked him this morning where we are going tomorrow and he said "On plane to see grandmas, up up up and down down down." My little seasoned traveler! :-)

Wish me luck!

First Post!

So, here it is, my first blog post. There are so many blogs out there, that I'm sure will be way more interesting than this one, but I'll give it a try!

I won a drawing for the design of this blog through a fundraiser my friend, Leslie, had for the adoption of her second daughter from China, Laurie Alice. You can read her blog, Two Tea Blossoms, which is all about their adoption process and life with her two precious girls. Thanks Leslie! And thanks to Danielle for this really cute blog (I could have never done it myself!)

I have been married for 6 years (to James E.) and have a precious 2 1/2 year old son (James C.). I'm sure this blog will be filled with stories and pictures of him (oh wait, it already is!) and anything I would like for him to know about his life growing up.

I call South Carolina home, although I recently moved to Tulsa, OK from Columbia, SC. It is almost exactly 1,000 miles from here to home (a.k.a. too far!) I have so many people ask me what it's like out "west" so I guess I will write about that on occasion.

My husband works for a fishing products company called Zebco and that is what brought us to Tulsa. He is a chemical engineer, way smarter than me! He is passionate about fishing, so he is doing what he loves for a living. Fishing=Testing=Work - what a life!

I work at a non-profit agency that works with victims of domestic violence and promotes the awareness of this issue in the city of Tulsa. I am the Executive Director's assistant which mostly keeps me at an arm's length from the real hard work that most of our staff deal with.

I recently picked up the hobby of making jewelry, which I have really been enjoying. I have never been a crafty person, but this has been something that has been pretty easy to make it look like I know what I'm doing.

Other than that, I'm just a busy mom, trying to "do it all." If you have things you want to know about, just ask!