You Make It Real...

I have been listening to this song on repeat. It's by James Morrison, called "You Make it Real."

Here are the lyrics, but they don't do it justice. Go listen to it on his myspace. Scroll down to the last song, and there it is.

Mmmmm
There's so much craziness, surrounding me
There's so much going on, it gets hard to breathe
When all my faith has gone, you bring it back to me
You make it real for me

When I'm not sure of, my priorities
When I've lost site of, where I'm meant to be
Like holy water, washing over me
You make it real for me

And I'm running to you baby
You are the only one who saved me
That's why I've been missing you lately
Cause you make it real for me

When my head is strong, but my heart is weak
I'm full of arrogance, and uncertainty
But I can find the words, you teach my heart to speak
You make it real for me

And I'm running to you baby
Cause you are the only one who saved me
That's why I've been missing you lately
Cause you make it real for me

Ohhh
Everybody's talking in words
I don't understand
You got to be the only one
Who knows just who I am
Your shining in the distance
I hope I can make it through
Cause the only place
That I want to be
Is right back home with you

I guess there's so much more
I have to learn
But if you're here with me
I know which way to turn
You always give me somewhere,
Somewhere I can learn
You make it real for me

And I'm running to you baby
Cause you are the only one who saved me
That's why I've been missing you lately
Cause you make it real for me

You make it real for me

Weekend plans

So remember that 60-page paper I had to write right after I got home from the honeymoon? Well that was just the rough draft. The final version is due... MONDAY! And apparently, because I'm just a little slow, I forgot that February was a short month, so I was thinking I had another half-week to work on it. Whoopsies.

Anyway, so I'm going to be doing THAT this weekend. I haven't really touched the paper since I turned it in in January. AND I need to make my travel arrangements for Candice's wedding!! Yay! I ALSO need to get my wedding pictures framed and up on the wall. I have already bought all of the picture frames. I just need to get the pictures printed.

And is it pathetic that I really just can't wait until Monday to see "The Bachelor" finale? I know it's pathetic... but I'm really pretty hooked on that show!! I had Melissa pegged from the very first episode, and I think she and Jason are SOOO good together. And I can understand her parents not wanting to be in the public eye... some people just aren't comfortable with that. Molly seems like a little brat, and I'm fairly certain he sees through her. I think it's just a physical thing with her. I really loved Jillian, but they just didn't have much of a spark, though I LOVE the idea of her being the next bachelorette. She's adorable. And I LOVE how she says "again." hehe...

Alright. I'm going to get writing. Or editing, I should say.

Today was better

So I made it my goal to be positive today. And I only complained about classes, oh, about seventeen times. Which HAS to be less than yesterday. :) But one bad thing DID happen today.
So I enjoyed some lovely sushi yesterday with the girls. Now I'm a sushi-newbie. I'm still trying it all out, deciding what I like. I'm basically sticking with the tempura rolls and the stuff with crabmeat or cooked meat in it. I can't handle the raw stuff yet. But I apparently enjoyed it so much that I had to get some more today. And it was NOT good. But I refuse to let it scare me away. I'll keep on trying it. :)

I need...

...An attitude adjustment. I'm usually such a peppy, positive person. I think I'm fairly well known for being pretty optimistic and cheerful. But lately I've been so GRUMPY and negative. I think a big part of it has to do with being dissatisfied with my classes this semester. Before the semester started I was so excited about the classes I was taking, but almost all of them are shaping up to be pretty crappy. And since school is pretty much my life, the negativity is just seeping into everything I do. A few people I don't even know very well commented on my un-bubbly-ness today. So my goal for the rest of this week is to make an effort to be joyful. The Lord has reminded me today that I am so blessed, and I have so many things for which to be thankful and content. I've got to nip this in the bud before I turn into a jaded pessimist.

On another note.... can I just tell you how HOT my husband is?!? I think, because we have been together for so long, I become immune to his charm and good looks sometimes, but SERIOUSLY... that boy is gorgeous. God deserves a round of applause for his handiwork. And how lucky am I that I get to wake up next to him every morning?? :)

Bliss...

There are few things that make me happier than a really fantastic cheese enchilada. I'm sitting here, stuffed like a turkey from my favorite enchiladas in Houston. And life is feeling pretty great today. I had a brief (which is a document you prepare for a court) due tomorrow. And it's almost wrapped up, which feels nice. AND I get to go home this weekend and see the fam for my brother's birthday. I'm just in for a couple of days, and I'm always running around like a chicken with my head cut off trying to see everyone while I'm there, but I haven't seen anyone since the wedding! So it'll be nice.

One thing that IS pissing me off is the kid across the alley who thinks it's okay to BLAST his car stereo so loud I can't hear my own thoughts. And he's "working" on his car, so the music just keeps on coming. Plus it's not even good music. So I, not so subtly, went out in my backyard and looked at him. His friend realized I was CLEARLY not happy about the music and made him turn it down. But it's still too loud. I sound like an old lady, huh? This kid's just trying to enjoy some music and I'm raining on his parade. But whatever. I want to take a nap here in a little while, and I deserve some peace and quiet. :)

Two things...

1) Even though I read close to sixty-ish pages every day to prepare for class, I'm still an avid pleasure reader. I ALWAYS have to have a book on my nightstand. It keeps me sane. So right now I'm re-reading The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. If you haven't read these books you REALLY REALLY should. Especially if you're a Christian. Because these books are just FILLED with biblical undertones and allegories of Christ. Every time I read them I find myself feeling closer to the Lord. Anyway... read them.

2) I have been having a LOT of pain in my neck the past week or so. I'm clearly sleeping on it wrong, and I can't figure out why!! I'm even using my Tempur-Pedic pillow, which is supposed to be GOOD for your neck and back. But I think it's because I sleep on my stomach, mostly. So my neck gets pissed off when I sleep with it to one side for most of the night. So if you know of an pillows that are especially good for stomach sleepers, let me know. I'm sick of walking around with a crick in my neck.

Shadow

Yesterday was a tough day. My dad had to put my dog to sleep. Shadow was a German Shepherd. I got him for my birthday my freshman year of high school. He was the sweetest, smartest little puppy. He LOOOOVED my family and I, and he was so easy and fun. Apparently he just got old. His hips just gave out, and he wouldn't eat anymore. It was time to put him down. Anyway... I just thought I'd post a picture of my sweet dog, who I will miss so very much.

Love...

So you know about Postsecret, right? This guy in Germantown, Maryland set up a P.O. Box where people could send in postcards. The postcards contain the secrets of the people who sent them in. Sometimes the secrets are funny, and sometimes they are disgusting. But it's always interesting to read them, especially for a naive person like myself, who only believes the best in everyone. The guy posts new secrets every Sunday at postsecret.blogspot.com. And today he had love secrets, Valentine's Day secrets. And I saw the most adorable one and thought I'd post it.



I love it because she does this even though she knows her husband will never see the heart. Who looks inside a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? She does it just because she loves him and it makes her happy to do something secretly sweet for her husband. I'm trying to think of something I can do like that for Micah, that he'd never know about.

I'm a jerk...

So I come home last night fifteen minutes after Grey's Anatomy had started, so I threw my purse on the counter, shoved my school stuff in the office, and plopped on the couch next to Micah so he could fill me in on what I missed. He kind of gave me a weird look, but I was pretty into the show, so I didn't really pay much attention.

Fifteen minutes later, during a commercial break, I look over at the kitchen table and noticed that it was a lot less cluttered than it was that morning, and I saw conversation hearts spread all over the table. In the middle was an adorable pink gift bag (it even had the cute curly string tied on the top) and a card. Inside the bag were MORE conversation hearts, my favorite Dove chocolate, and a bright yellow iPod nano. But the card was the best part because it was my very first "For My Wife" Valentine's Day card, and he picked out the sweetest one AND wrote a very perfect message in it.

So I kind of feel like a jerk for being stupid about dinner. Because I have the sweetest husband ever. :)

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On a COMPLETELY different note...
I was thinking about what a weird little kid I was growing up. My mom was amazing, because she ALWAYS encouraged me to be who I was and never ever hindered my dreams or made me think I couldn't do something. Which I am SO grateful for now. But, thinking back, I wish my Mom would have saved me from myself sometimes. :) Like when I sang in the talent show when I was horrible?? Or when I wore that atrocious headdress we bought at Scarborough Fair to school? I also had HORRIBLE taste in clothing, which my brother never ever failed to remind me of.

And I think it's interesting, because some of the people I went to school with were MEAN to me! And as I grew up and have occassionally run into some of them or found them on facebook or whatever, I see that they are some of the sweetest people in the world! I think kids just don't realize how hurtful they can be sometimes. They just do what they have to do to fit in, even if that means hurting others. I started to wonder if I had ever been hateful to others when I was growing up. I'm sure I was, and I hope I didn't leave any lasting damage. How do you teach kids to accept everyone while also enabling them to fit in enough to not feel like an outcast? It's tough, I'm sure. Anyway... I was just thinking about that. :)

Alright, I'm going to get dressed for dinner tonight. We're going to go to Papadeaux tonight. :) Yum.

For my Aunt Brigitte :)

So I'm a little high maintenance, it seems. It is my first Valentine's Day as a married woman, and I wanted a little romance. Is that too much to ask?

Here's how it started. At church last week, our Pastor gave a "Husbands, love your wives" kind of sermon. It was actually super great, and Micah even took notes. He's so cute. I tried to do really good and NOT point out the parts Micah especially needed to listen to. But the pastor said something that was kind of bothering me already, so I mentioned it to Micah. He said that husbands need to take control and continue to DATE their wives. Women love it when men take the initiative to suggest and plan a whole date. Saying "wanna grab something for dinner tonight?" does NOT count. No, I mean like a REAL date, with dinner and maybe a movie or dancing or driving through a pretty neighborhood and looking at the houses. And I don't want to play ANY role in the planning of it. Surprise me. So I mentioned this to Micah, and he said, "Don't worry, babe. I promise I heard that part."

How would you have interpreted that last statement? I took it to mean that Micah would take me on a date sometime soon. So when the next weekend came and went without a date, I was a little disappointed. But I figured that since Valentine's Day was coming, Micah might do it then.
Well Micah hadn't made any plans for Valentine's Day. None at all. I KNOW Valentine's Day is a complete fabrication and it shouldn't be a big deal, because you should express your love and appreciation every day of the year, but I can't help it. I love love. And I love Valentine's Day. I just do. Micah has known that since the day he met me. So by Monday, I realized that if I wanted a date on Valentine's Day, hints were NOT going to work. So I straight up asked Micah what we were doing. He, of course, said he didn't know but that he'd try to make reservations for dinner the next day. Well of COURSE there are no more reservations anywhere good during the actual dinner window. So Micah called to tell me that, and I just got disappointed. He asked if he could cook for me on Saturday, which theoretically sounds romantic, right? But in reality, it's not like I'm going to sit on my butt and watch him cook. I'd probably end up cooking most of it, and then feeling like I needed to do the dishes, too. So anyway, I kind of got all girly and we hung up, and then I realized I was being all girly and called back to apologize. He's already buying me a present, and a nice dinner at home IS actually a sweet gesture, even if I DO end up doing the dishes.

So our first Valentine's Day, we're staying at home and cooking steak with herbs, bacon and garlic mashed potatoes, creamed spinach stuffed tomatoes, and berries with chocolate ganache (a la Rachael Ray). And my husband IS very wonderful. He just forgets sometimes that he married a hopeless romantic that needs a grand gesture every now and then. :)