The Names

When Josh and I got our fluffy puppy child 3 years ago it took us quite a bit of time to pick the name...and by us I mean me. Once we had a picture of our little pooch it was all I could to keep myself from scouring baby name websites every waking moment. I made lists like crazy. I'm pretty sure apple and peanut were on there right next to Chloe and Sophia. It was fairly absurd the sheer vastness and range of name types I had on my list. The prospect of naming something was sort of  fulfilling a childhood longing of mine....

You see, I have 3 sisters and I'm pretty sure none of us could ever agree on pet names no matter how many family meetings were held with the nameless animal in the center of the room. (Things got so bad at one point that we ended up calling our family cat - Kitty which then morphed into Ki Ki.) Most of the time my parents would default to one child...*Ahem*...emily! (Who i believe named tucker AND dolly)...or they would just name the animal themselves.

Anyways - Josh pretty much shot down every puppy name I came up with which was devastating but mostly motivating my search for the perfect name. A few days before we went to pick her up Josh and I were driving in the car and he said "what about willow?" 

And

It

Was 

Perfect!

I loved willow trees...the new pup had long willowy hair. it was a cute semi-uncommon name. Voila! Our dog was named willow...Willow Cotton to be exact. (Cotton came later once we discovered she liked to eat cotton balls...plus her chin kinda looks like a cotton ball)

So when we finally became pregnant it was sort of surprising that we settled on a boy and a girl name as quickly as we did. I know I had floated the names out there a while back, but never got a 100% yes or no response from Josh, so it was still up in the air. But once we joyfully celebrated the news of being pregnant and decided to wait to find out the sex of bébé these names just felt right. We are waiting on announce the middle names upon their arrival - mostly because they are pretty out there and hippie-like and we don't want ridicule or other opinions to sway our choice. 

Sooooo drum roll please! 

The names we've chosen for our coming little one are......

Meaning: Happy or Fortunate.

Meaning:  Season of Rejoicing. Jubilation. Joy.

There you have it. Our new little one - boy or girl - will carry the name of gladness and cheer.

:)

Quenched

The rains have finally soaked the earth after a long dry season where the land seemed to constantly cry out in thirst. The long awaited quenching that finally covered middle Tennessee over the last few days in the form of scattered thunder storms parallels my heart and it's need for refreshing to come.

I really haven't spend much time in blogger land sharing the ache that was in my heart while Josh and I tried for over a year to get pregnant. I was afraid to bear that part of my soul for with me, once it's on paper it becomes real, and once it becomes real I have to allow God to poke in the place that hurts the most. When in reality being transparent and allowing God to touch the wound is really where healing begins.

So I ran from sharing. I ran from allowing others to be a part of my story and pretended like month after month didn't carry worry and devastation. I pretended like it was no big deal...and we were "trusting God" when really deep down He felt further from me than the moon and I wasn't sure if the promises that in good times seem so easy to cling to and spat off to others were really ment for me in the dark.

We were in limbo waiting for the next chapter of our lives to begin and like many of you know, you can't force your way into God's timing. I needed God to speak. I needed Him to give me a vision. I needed him to help me dream. And dream we did. He brought me out of the darkness and truly gave me a peace about the season I was in. I was in the simplest way of saying it - transformed. My heart became glad and I found purpose and life again through Love.

It was in this peace that God answered. The dessert was all but forgotten as Josh and I parachuted into a new land, with new jobs, and no jobs, and dreams, and creativity...when God opened the heavens and let it rain. And the land that we voyaged to was green and lush and full of life! He brought us into wholeness as individuals and as a family and then put the cherry on top and said - Oh and remember that baby you wanted? Here you go!

We're pregnant! 13 weeks and 3 days to be exact! In counting back to conception (if that's not awkward for you) God opened my womb when I finally truly had peace and really did trust in His will being good and perfect. Thank you Jesus for answered prayers and a season of Joy that is beyond comprehension. We are waiting to find out Boy or Girl till the bébé arrives - but we have perfect names picked out. (I'll reveal those soon!)


So I'm moving forward more than quenched, but actually full to the brim at this point and ready to let the inflow that God has given me become an outflow to the Kingdom. Learning that vulnerability with myself, others, and God is good because when authenticity and an open transparent heart combine...He comes like the rain.


I encourage you all to not shell up  your story, but share it. Share it with close friends and family. Share it with God and allow yourself to process in whatever way possible. And when it makes sense share it with the world - you never know who's heart may be touched by bearing a genuine heart.

Travel Bugs

Life has been full to the brim lately. I'm carrying my glass carefully so as not to let a single drip of the sweet nectar fall to the ground.

Josh and I have been travel bugs.

We celebrated our 5th anniversary with a road trip to New York City with several pit stops on the way to and from. Nashville to Columbus to drop off Willow with my parents. Columbus to Bethel, CT to visit a dear friend Chelsea and an added bonus of Matt stopping through from Boston, as well. Filled with a home cooked meal, late night talks, quaint town life, a ruckus polo match, and many trips down memory lane.

On a train from Bethel to NYC where Josh and I did everything under the sun in 3 nights and 4 days and savored every last moment together. Shopping, espresso shops, the staten island ferry, brooklyn bridge, times square, Rockefeller center, the statue of liberty, New York style pizza, metro rides galore, a broadway show (yay bucket list check off!), the 9/11 memorial, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, classic NY style bagels and so much walking my feet and legs may or may not have fallen off.

Back to Bethel from NYC to get our car and then onward to Philadelphia for a whirlwind 3 hour visit with my cousin Kira eating a philly cheese steak, seeing old town, the liberty bell and discovering Rita's Italian ice (i'm salivating thinking about it...). Then pressing on into the wee hours of the morning back to Columbus to rest a day from our travels and soak up some Mom and Dad time and pick up our dog-child before heading back to Nashville.

Our actual anniversary isn't till July 6th, and I know with only one income right now the trip was a bit of a stretch. But I'm so thankful that I'm married to a man who values the vagabond heart as much as i do and knows that while travel isn't always convenient, cheap, or easy to make happen, it is always worth the memories that are made.

Here's to 50 more years, my love. And a much bigger glass and heart to hold what is to come.

A Healthy Dose of Veggies

My brother-in-law John Paul is part-owner  of an organic farm - Real Food Farms - right here in Nashville. Cynthia and JP are some of our closest friends and we decided to start a food trade to try and eat healthier as a group.

The Process:
At the beginning of the week I pick up a load of veggies from JP and he takes a load of veggies back to his place. Monday and Tuesday each household cooks a unique, healthy, veggie-based and tasty meal for 4 adults. Then each couple eats 1/2  of what they made and packages up the other half for a swap on Wednesday resulting in local, organic, veggie dinners 4 nights a week, but only cooking 2 nights a week!

The Challenge
One of the hardest parts about cooking with real foods (foods not found in a box or a bag) and especially real foods that are freshly picked (read: local) is the prep work that goes into each meal. (washing and cutting the veggies). Also, sometimes then coming up with a filling meal that is also healthy and tastes good from what seems like a random assortment of veggies can sometimes be challenging.

The List

• Swiss chard
• Carrots
• Beets
• Radishes
• Broccoli
• Kale
• Green Onions
• Eggs
• Yogurt
• Milk
• Kohlrabi
• Cauliflower 

The Creations:
Each meal is supposed to utilize as many veggies as possible and is suppose to have limited non-organic extras. Here are a couple example of things I've made over the past few weeks.

Fresh Mozzarella and Roasted Veggie Pizza

Homemade Pesto, Garlic, Mushroom and Broccoli Pasta

Spicy Veggie Tacos

Creamy Bean and Greens Soup

Mixed Veggie Feta Quiche

Mixed Veggie Thai Peanut Noodles

Black bean, Tomato, Carrot and Chard Jambalaya

The Results:
So far I FEEL way healthier. I haven't noticed much of a change on the scale, but my energy level is up and I really have enjoyed being creative in the kitchen - even though sometimes it's a grind to chop and clean all those earthy goods. The biggest payoff so far has been in our check-book. Before we were eating out 4 or 5 times a week and now we eat out only about 2 times a week and it's usually on the weekends! It's been perfect as a scaled back income family. :)

I'm thinking about starting a weekly series walking you all through one of my vegetable concoctions. Would that be of interest to anyone out there? Let me know!

Happy Bubbles

It's amazing how busy your life can be even with out a 9-5 job. I find my hours spent much differently than they were when I worked from a cube, but they are still jam-packed. Jam-packed loads of activities and loads of happy-bubbles. 

Def. Happy-Bubbles: little things that float around each day bringing moments of joy, blessing, inspiration, ah-ha's and other fabulous things for the creative mind. 

Some happy-bubbles floating my way recently:

Lace curtains found at Goodwill and turned into lace ribbon for Voyage packaging

Costco flowers in mason jars that are lasting an alarmingly long time

This adorable dog who dotes after me and follows me everywhere even though I have invaded "her" home during business hours.

My skirt mania fever being fed by super deals at thrift stores....now if we can only get some warmer weather.

Coffee, thrifting, and thai food dates with the fabulous Amy Dunn.

Teardrop Earrings from Target for $5!

My niece Annalee's new-found curly hair.

Indian and Cigars with friends

Exciting plans for these collected Hatch Show Print babies

Discovering Pueblo Real and their dish that rivals Aroz con Pollo in Anderson, IN

West Wing marathons with my stud.

picking up my groceries here and eating organic vegetarian dinners 4 nights a week.

cute Easter family iphone portraits

Oh...and let's not forget my surprise new computer from the stud.

any happy bubbles in your life?