The Big Reveal

You've been waiting patiently, and I've been withholding.

Finally, I will let you see the nursery.

But, not before you see the reason why I am so late getting this post up.

We just returned home from the 3oth celebration of 'The Happening'. It's kinda like the 'State of the Union' address, except more like the 'State of the

University' address for Louisiana Tech University, my alma mater. J. and I were excited to be able to be in attendance! Here are just a couple of images from tonights event. We had a great time and always love attending events, and supporting 'our school'. Tonight's guest speaker was Kix Brooks. What a fun surprise! Kix is a proud Louisiana Tech alumni and supports the University. He gave the audience a little mini concert to close out his time on stage. He sang "Red Dirt Road" and "Only in America". It was really great to hear him speak, along with Coach Sonny Dykes, our head football coach, and Louisiana Tech President Dan Reneau giving updates on the university and athletics.

So....here are the long-awaited images of the nursery. Just to tell you a little bit about the nursery, I picked a color scheme, and my mom and her sister, Pati, helped me find fabrics. Mom (with Pati's assistance) made all of the bedding and curtains. Mom and I made the bulletin board in Ryder's closet. The green pieces were furniture that was in my college room that J. and I painted a while back to match my college bedding....in the back of my mind, I always knew I would want to incorporate them into a nursery. The painted canvas above his bed is by my friend Rachel McGehee of Peek-a-Bootique. And the cross canvas is by my good friend Kristy Lonsberry! I'm still waiting on the dresser that has been on backorder from PotteryBarn Kids for over 3 months!!! So, there are still a couple of loose ends, and the items on the shelf are not definite, but I knew that all of you wanted to see pics....and I've only given a sneak peek via Instagram....so, here it is!

On the Road Again.....

So, once again, I'm on the road. This time, back to the lovely state of Texas. We are heading to College Station, going to cheer on the DAWGS! Last time I was at Kyle Field to watch the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, we had a 2 hour rain delay....and what a light show we got! The lightning was pretty intense, but we lucked out having seats under the overhang.....the entire stadium cleared except the the 'chosen few' that had prime seats.

As much as I am a LOUISIANA TECH fan, I do have to give some props to the Aggies....I have mad respect for their traditions. When I worked at Pine Cove Christian Camps in Tyler, TX, most of my friends had a "whoop" or some secret hand signal that that expressed (multiple times) throughout the summer. I learned to love my A&M friends.....I love that group of people and their traditions.

Something special about this weekend is that we will remember the anniversary of September 11th, 2001; one of the most monumental days in American history, a day that I will always remember. Sitting in Coach Turner's Advanced Math class, finding out that a plane flew into

the World Trade Center. At first, I knew it was something horrible, something awful, but I didn't know what lasting affects it would have on "my Country". Students somberly shuffled to their next class period. Settling into Mrs. Neal's World History class, we gathering in our desks around the television that she had on. And then it happened, we saw it happen.....Flight 175 flew straight into the South Tower. It is a day that I will never forget.

In honor of September 11th, I've thought about making a stop by the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum while in College Station this weekend. Whatever else we decide to do tomorrow (other than attending the football game), I know that I will take a moment to remember what happened 9 years ago. I will say a prayer for the families that lost loved ones that day, and I will thank God that I live in a nation founded on FREEDOM.

"I'm proud to be an American!"

Go DAWGS!