Finally...my trip to KY!!

I am so sorry that it's taken me almost a week to post about my trip to Kentucky this past weekend! My journey to KY began last Friday morning around 7:40 AM. I was so excited to see my friends Todd and Jennifer! Little background...I've known Jennifer my whole life...she and I are 2nd or 3rd cousins (I always get that confused), and Todd and I have known each other since I moved to Rome in 2001. His family was my family in Rome. When the 3 of us..Todd, Jennifer and myself all lived in Rome, we were together ALL the time...usually causing trouble. :) Not really. Anyway, since I moved back home to Gainesville and they've been in New Orleans and now in KY for Todd to go to seminary, we NEVER get to see each other. It was such a blessing to spend some good time with them for 2 WHOLE days! It was wonderful, relaxing visit! We did a little sight seeing, but mostly just hung out, watched movies, ate and acted goofy..which is what we do best. I didn't take a whole lot of pictures, but here are a few. Welcome to KENTUCKY!
My face after finally making it to KENTUCKY! What a long drive! I was so glad to finally be there!

World's largest baseball bat...in downtown Louisville. Moments like these are once in a lifetime people.

We were offered some free tickets to a festival in downtown Louisville on Saturday called "Abbey River on the Road". There were five different stages set up where bands were rockin' to the oldies. Lots of "hippies" were present so we kind of felt a little out of place! :) We stayed for about an hour - people watched, made a few comments during our people watching, snapped a few pictures, then headed to dinner. We had a great day on Sunday at church. After church, we grilled out for lunch...it was yummo, we watched a movie, all took a little nap, had pizza for dinner, took a walk, and then watched another movie! Life is good. :)
Todd and Jennifer at Abbey Road on the River.
The three of us by the Ohio River.
Jenn and I by the Ohio River.

I was sad to leave after such a fun visit. It's so nice to be with friends that you can totally be yourself around, they can be themselves around you, and you can just relax and enjoy life! I headed out from KY around 8 on Monday morning, stopped in TN to have a yummy lunch with my friend Kevin, then finally saw this sweet GA sign around 4 o'clock that afternoon.

As sad as I was to leave my friends, I was able to smile knowing that I was almost home. Thanks, T & J, for welcoming me into your home for a few days. Love you guys tons and can't wait until you move back this way so we can see each other more often.

Home Sweet Home...

I made it home safe and sound from KY this evening! Had a WONDERFUL time and can't wait to blog about my fun times there and share some fun pictures. I'm heading to bed for now but will try posting those tomorrow! Thanks, Todd and Jennifer, for a super fun visit! Y'all rock!

I'm Here!!

Made it into Louisville around 3 this afternoon! Drive wasn't too bad - just glad to finally be here! We've had a great evening and are making plans for a super fun day tomorrow! :)

Almost on my way...

Tomorrow morning I will head out bright and early to Louisville, KY to visit my wonderful friends Todd and Jennifer! I'm so excited! Todd is in seminary and as soon as he's done, they are hopefully moving back home to GA. I'm ready for that day! We are sure to have TOO much fun, lots of laughs and crazy times. Pray that we stay out of trouble...it's been known to happen when we're together. (trouble, that is!) I'm sure to return with lots of fun stories to share. Pray for safe travel...it's about a 7 hour drive! Got lots of CD's and a list of phone calls I need to catch up on! Hope you all have a super Memorial Day weekend! :)

Prayer

Some of you have probably already heard or read about this. It breaks my heart and I don't even want to imagine what Steven Curtis Chapman and his family are feeling right now. Read this story and join me in prayer for this family.

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/05/22/1211182968194.html

Happy Birthday to My Mama!

Happy Birthday to my sweet Mama! Mom's birthday was yesterday and we had a great time celebrating her! We grilled out steaks last night at my sister and brother-in-laws, had YUMMO birthday pie and loved showering Mom with some fun birthday presents. I am blessed beyond all measure with the incredible Mama I have been given. I'm so thankful for her life...she's an amazing example to my family of what unconditional love is, what sacrifice and hard work mean, that it's important to live the same life you live in front of your family as it is for your friends and those you don't know. That working on issues of the heart is far greater than working on issues of outward appearance and that storms in life usually bring on something great. She's taught us what it means to appreciate what you have and to take care of it - not worrying so much over what others have that might be "better". And not to mention that she's super fun...we're watching American Idol together as I type this and she just thinks David Archuletta is precious! I could go on forever about how priceless it is to have a Mother like the one I have...I'll keep some of these things to myself for now but I will say that I have big shoes to fill and I very much look forward to trying...I want to possess so many of the qualities I see in my Mom! Enjoy some fun pictures of our night together as a family last night!

Getting ready to open presents!
This is one of my most FAVORITE pictures of Mom and Luke...precious!
Mom, Dad and a "clapping" little Luke.
The Girls...Carrie, Mom and Me.
Dad and Kevin...so excited about watching Mom open her presents.
Luke thinks his Nana should have a birthday EVERYDAY...apparently he benefits well from it!
Luke with his Mama...this is another one of my new favs.

What a super fun day!

Meredith's Get Fit Journey - Take 4...More than the physical!

Sorry I haven't posted a GFJ update in almost a MONTH...wow. Time flies. Things have gone pretty well as far as exercise and eating have gone this month, although I haven't lost but about 2 pounds. I'm ok with that though...2 pounds is 2 pounds! My current total is 71.2. I was talking with my friend Joel the other day and after hearing some very encouraging words from him in regards to my weight loss, he reminded me that the principles and disciplines I'm gaining through my weight loss can be applied to SO many areas of my life...not just in losing weight. The ways that I'm learning to set goals and boundaries, reaching those goals and celebrating when they are met...so many things I'm learning! I need to set goals and boundaries in my financial life, my spiritual life, in my relationships with others. And I need to celebrate when those goals are met! Not to sound cheesy, but since starting my GFJ, I've gained much determination. For the past year and a half that determination has been geared to my weight loss and while I want that to continue, I also want to find determination in these other areas of my life. I want to save more money and spend it more wisely. I want to spend more time in the Word and in communication with my Lord. I want to cherish and nurture the relationships and friendships that I have an be determined to make new ones. One of my favorite verses of scripture comes from Hebrews 12:11.."Now no discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." Learning to lose weight, learning to save money, learning to lay aside wants so that I have more time to spend with the Lord, learning to get out of my comfort zone so that I can build new relationships...these things are not always easy and not always pleasant at first. But the rewards are so sweet! Hang in there on your "get fit journey"...whatever your journey may be!

Someone please remind me...

...if I'm ever blessed to have children of my own, to just skip the baby toys while registering and head straight to the kitchenware! Mom, my sister and I sat in the kitchen floor for over an hour the other night while Luke played with bowls, spatulas, blenders...ok, so maybe not the blender, but you can bet your bottom dollar that he would have if we'd of let him! My Mom actually has a picture of me when I was about this age with a bowl on my head just like this...all great minds think alike...what can I say!
Ladies...one day he'll be a mean, lean, cookin' machine...watch out! Isn't he so sweet?!?

Please Pray!

I sent this out as an email but thought it wouldn't hurt to put it on the 'ol blog too! Please pray for this family.

Hey Sweet Friends and Family,

Hope this finds you all doing well and having a good week! I am so thankful that my God hears us when we pray - that He listens intently as we pour out our praises to Him, our cries for help, our complaints. He hears our prayers and He answers them! I'm sending this email on behalf of Kenny Pope. Kenny is a cousin to my brother-in-law Kevin. Kenny and his wife Teri are two of the sweetest people I've ever met. Kenny fell from his roof this past Sunday, leaving him unable to feel or move his legs. So far, he's had two surgeries and is scheduled to be moved to Shepherd Spinal Center in the near future. Kenny was told two days ago by a specialist from the center that he would not be able to walk again. This breaks my heart but I'm ever reminded of the great Healer that I serve...the same One Kenny serves!

I wanted to send you this website and ask that you please visit it, pray for Kenny, leave him a comment with some encouraging words, or just simply be encouraged by what God's doing and is going to do in this sweet couple's life! http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/kennypope

Thanks for praying over their lives! You are wonderful!

Love,
Meredith

Weight Watchers Update!

Sorry I'm a little behind in my posting this week. Life is CRAZY! :) I lost another pound this past week, bringing my current total to 71.2 pounds. God is so good! Most of you know that my next goal is 75 pounds...so close! Stay tuned for my next "Get Fit Journey" post. Hopefully that will come later on this evening but for now...gotta go work out!

Mother's Day and Luke's Baby Dedication

Hope you've all had a wonderful Mother's Day! I have been blessed with the most incredible Mom who I am SO thankful for! I have a sister who's an amazing Mom, tons of friends that are amazing Mom's and even some very special ladies in my life who serve as incredible "Mom's" to me! I am abundantly blessed and so appreciative of the examples these women are to me and hope that I will be able to take what they have taught and are teaching me and put these things into practice one day with my own children! We also celebrated Luke's baby dedication this morning...what a special gift for my Sister and Brother-in-law to publicly give their child back to the Lord on such a special day. I pray our lives will always guide Luke's attention to the Lord. Enjoy a few pictures from the day!

Luke with his Aunt Meredith...I LOVE this boy!

Myself, my sister Carrie, Luke and Mom
Dad, Mom, Carrie, Luke, Kevin and Me

The Girl's and Luke again with Mom after an amazing lunch at the Royal Lakes Country Club. We enjoyed a super WINDY lunch out on the deck overlooking the beautiful lake. Georgous day with the family! Love those!


Happy Mother's Day!!

Pleasant Words...

"Pleasant words are like a honeycomb...sweet to the soul and healing to the bones." (Proverbs 16:24) Ok, so a little background on the first time I really discovered this Bible verse. I was a freshman in highschool, he was a senior. Oh yeah! I'm definitely talking about the boy that my heart desired oh so much that very first year of my highschool career! Of course he didn't really even know I existed, but I didn't care. Somehow, I would make my mark upon his life. I was determined. I've always had a thing for guys that love the Lord, even at this particular time in my life. Not only was my "crush" so very, very handsome, but the thing that won me over was the fact that he prayed over his lunch every single day before eating it. This made a huge impact on my life. Sure, you say the blessing at home...but around all those macho, burly guys?!? I knew he was the real thing! I sat at the same lunch table he did...just on the opposite end! Long story short, he graduated and unfortunately missed out on what it could've been like to have had an incredible girlfriend like myself! :) I thought about him often that summer, and before it was up, I decided to mail him a letter. Yes, I knew where he lived! The jist of the letter, if my memory serves me correctly, was to thank him for being such a strong Christian example to those around him, that I hoped he had a great summer and that his first year of college went well. I'm a cheeseball. Anyway, several weeks went by, and by george, if I didn't come home one day to find a letter in my mailbox to ME from HIM. WHAT?!? Needless to say, I was a bit excited and surprised. I don't remember much of what his letter said, but I do remember that at the end of the letter was this Bible verse. Kind words are so sweet and so healing in our lives. I was reminded of this today as I was in a meeting with my office manager. Work as been really....insane...over the past few weeks. Allergy season in an Allergy Clinic. Need I say more? :) It's easy to get discouraged when you're worn out and today, her kind words were "like a honeycomb...sweet to my soul and healing to my bones." I pray I'll think about the words that come out of my mouth the next time I speak. Are they sweet words or words that are destructive and not healing? The world is all to full of destruction...speak words of life!

Fusion...

...is going to be a GREAT thing in my life! Last night was my first experience with "Fusion" and I think I'm going to like it! "Fusion" is a singles gathering for 20 to 30 year olds that stems from North Point Community Church and it's not even so much a Bible study but more instead a social event to get together with people who are in the same place in life that you are/I am. SINGLE!! Fusion Gatherings are about every 2 weeks. I've been placed with a super group of about 30-35 people and I can already tell that many of these people will become friends. That's exciting to me. I came to a hard realization a few months ago that 99.9% of my friends are married and beginning to have children...and while I truly am THRILLED for them, as hard as I try and still relate with them, the reality of the situation is that I just can't in many areas! So..thank you, Jesus, for opening up this door for me to meet some fun, new people who are in the same boat I'm in. Good times are sure to be had by all!

Sin AND Sorrow?

This morning in church we sang the old hymn "I Stand Amazed (How Marvelous)". One of the verses says "He took my sins and my sorrows and He made them His very own...". My sins AND my sorrows! When I sing that verse I usually just think about the overwhelming fact that Jesus took every sin known to mankind upon Himself so that we could be made clean. But the second part of this says that He's not only taken my sin, but He also takes my sorrow. How often do we choose to live under the guilt of our sins? Yes, we should be sorry and we should feel sorrowful at our wrongdoings, but once that sin is laid down at the feet of Jesus and once I've turned my back to it, it's done! Jesus does not desire for me to live under the guilt of my sins...He not only took the sin, but He also took my sorrow so that I could live in freedom. What a wonderful remider today! Live free!

2nd Annual Mother~Daughter Luncheon!

Well, today was the Sisterhood's 2nd Annual Mother/Daughter Luncheon and it was great!! Incase you don't remember, these (the Sisterhood - of which we named ourselves when we were in the 5th grade) are 5 of the most precious girls in my life. We have known each other bascially since the womb and we count it an incredible treasure to still be such close friends. We began the tradition last year of having a Mother/Daughter day every year around Mother's Day to celebrate the amazing Mom's that each of us have been blessed with! Today was the day and we had an incredible lunch at Cafe 'N Crepes on the Square in Gainesville. Everyone was able to attend today except for Karla and her Mom, Penny, and we also missed Patsy, Kimi's Mom. I have a feeling the number of people in this group photo will continue to grow for the next several years to come! Look at all those little ones! Such a blessing!

The Sisterhood Girl's with our Mom's and children!

My Sweet Mama! "She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her. Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all. Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." (Proverbs 31: 26-30) I love my Mama, and am so thankful for the legacy she is building and instilling within me.

Kacee, Courtney, Alyson, Me, and Kimi

Precious "Sisterhood" Girl's! Love y'all! What a fun day!