gotta love Coach Nutt

favorite line from The Blind Side:

"There are lions, bears, and tigers, but there is only ONE Razorback!"

dang straight there is!!! woooooo pig soooooooie!!!

I want a Hippopotamus for Christmas

Okay, so the video itself isn't the point here....you HAVE to listen to this song. It's absolutely hilarious, sung by an 11 year old Gayla Peevey in 1953. It might be my new favorite Christmas song - listen and enjoy!

giraffe manor

I was reading with my 4th grade girls today about giraffes. In the article, a place called Giraffe Manor was mentioned. We were curious, and decided to google it. It's an ultra-cool place that I'd really like to visit someday. Check it out ::

yes, virgina, I suck at blogging

Yes, I've failed at blogging lately. I just went back down to Arkansas for my college homecoming, so what better way to update a blog than with pictures? Everyone loves pictures, right?

loving this band

love the words to this song...and her passionate expression of love for her Creator.

being redeemed

I've been reading in Isaiah the past few nights, and have been struck with how many times God is referred to as our redeemer - more so, how incredible that thought is. In the dictionary, the word redeem is defined as "to buy back," or "to release from blame or debt." When I think of its meaning, I think of it as collecting something of worth. Any of these definitions describe exactly what God desires with us - to buy us back from the life of sin we were born into, releasing us from the debts we owed to him (by sending Jesus to the cross)....hence, collecting something of worth....us. He cannot NOT be redeemer...and we cannot NOT be redeemed. Redeeming us -any single one of us, regardless of our past, regardless of what we have done - is His very nature - it is who He is.

***
But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you.
O Israel, the one who formed you says,
“Do not be afraid, for I have redeemed you.
I have called you by name; you are mine.
² When you go through deep waters,
I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty,
you will not drown.
When you walk through the fire of oppression,
you will not be burned up;
the flames will not consume you.
³ For I am the Lord, your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
I gave Egypt as a ransom for your freedom;
I gave Ethiopia^a]">[a] and Seba in your place.
⁴ Others were given in exchange for you.
I traded their lives for yours
because you are precious to me.
You are honored, and I love you.

--Isaiah 43:1-4

craziness

I realize it's been awhile since I last blogged. I feel like it's been awhile since I've done anything other than work. However, life is slowly returning to its usual groove, and awesomeness is on the horizon. Like tonight. Irish Festival & Crystal. What more do you need?! Hopefully tomorrow, I'll have some super sweet photos to post!