American Idol

Although I haven't been following American Idol very much the past two seasons, I found a great reason for me to start following it a little more closely. One of my childhood friends is a contestant on the show and will audition on tonight's audition in Louisville (1/21/09).

Her name is Felicia (Hocker) Barton. I was doing a little research online and she and her husband are so incredibly talented! I can remember the days of youth camp and camp meeting in Virginia when she'd sing or lead praise and worship. God has definetly blessed her with a wonderful gift.

Here's her website, which contains a video of a performance from last year: http://www.feliciabarton.org/. Check it out!!

3180

Three thousand, one hundred eighty – that’s the mileage of our latest trip! We started prior to Christmas and got home January 4. We left from Omaha (trying our best to beat an ice storm) and drove to MO. Thankfully, we had a wonderful place to stay with family friends! The next day, we drove to Lenior City, TN where my mom’s extended family gets together prior to Christmas. This is the only time when I’m usually able to be with all of the family. We had a wonderful time, but we missed a few family members who couldn't be there.

The next day, we drove to Virginia to be with my dad and stepmom for our “Christmas Celebration.” My brother, Josh and his wife, Shannon were also there. We had a wonderful time! We played games, went to church, crammed in Susan’s car to look at Christmas lights, ate, stayed up late, went to the movies and just had fun together! Shannon and I also worked as Susan’s “elves” – we shopped, wrapped and boxed. We opened gifts on Christmas Eve (AM), ate breakfast at Famous Anthony’s (a family favorite) and then we all left in different directions headed to our next destinations.

We spent the next few days with Matthew’s family in South Carolina. We spent Christmas Eve (PM) opening gifts and eating some incredible home-cooking! The mac-n-cheese truly hit the spot. My in-laws always make the best meals and we just enjoyed being with family and not having much on the agenda. I really enjoyed all the “snacking” (sweets, coffee, etc.) we did while we were there. Matthew was glued to the History Channel (Band of Brothers) and Fox News. We were able to see friends and get our ChickFilA fix since we don’t have it in Omaha. We truly loved living in SC and miss living so close to our family!

After leaving SC, we went to spend a few days in Tennessee with Autumn and JR. They are just like family and always open their home and are wonderful hosts. We had a blast! We were also able to visit more with Josh and Shannon in Cleveland. We ate more ChickFilA and even got some Jenkins! New Year’s Eve/Day was spent with friends and family. Matthew was especially glad the Georgia Bulldogs won.

On the way back to NE, we stopped (again) in MO and then drove the next day to Iowa where Matthew was scheduled to preach. The weather was bad (foggy and ice) and church was cancelled, so we drove home. We were so glad to be home!

I can honestly say that this year takes the award for the Best Holidays! We don’t take time with family for granted and we were so excited to be able to see the majority of our family. As Matthew and I drove (well, actually he drove the entire time – I’m so blessed!!) back to Nebraska, we reminisced on the wonderful Christmas Celebrations we had. We are so blessed to have wonderful families that love and support us.

We are thankful for all of the Lord’s blessings in 2008 and are excited about 2009! Happy New Year!

Highlights of Christmas 2009

Family – TN, VA, SC
Friends – TN, MO, VA, SC
Georgia Bulldogs victory
Neti Pot – somewhere between VA and SC I got sick and it was a life saver!
JR’s Ribs – amazing New Year’s Day meal; they should open a family restaurant
Wonderful Memories!!!!!!

It's been a while....

...Since my last blog. My blog was locked for more than a week and I still don't understand how that happened! In the past couple weeks, we have been getting ready for the holidays and also, we've been on the road (big surprise!).

Last Thursday we left for Branson, MO. Matthew had a steering committee meeting for Winterfest. While he was in his meeting, Jenn (whose husband was also in the meeting) and I went to the outlets to shop and catch up -FUN! Later on we met the guys for dinner and walked around Branson Landing (more shopping). Then we got in one car and went to see a Christmas light display (2.5 miles on the mountain). We had a great time!

The next morning, Matthew and I drove to the Chicago area. We stayed with a friend in the suburbs over the weekend. This trip was for my birthday. Although my family traveled quite a bit growing up (my mom was a travel agent), one city we never visited was Chicago. Friday night we were invited to a Christmas banquet and the next day they took us to the Radio City Rockettes Show. It was fabulous! We couldn't take pictures during the show, but the costumes and choreography were so elaborate.

Later on Saturday, Matthew and I drove into the city. He and his family lived in Chicago Metro over ten years ago, so he had visited and even remembered how to drive to certain places (I was impressed). We found deep dish pizza at Giordano's and walked around and shopped on Saturday night. Although we walked past the Sears Tower, we didn't go to the Observation deck. On Sunday, we started at Navy Pier and from there we walked to Michigan Avenue (Magnificent Mile). We visited Millennium Park and shopped. I took a lot of pictures because the city was decorated for Christmas and it was snowing some, too. It was beautiful!

We drove home on my birthday and stopped in Des Moines for my birthday lunch at PF Changs. We had such a wonderful weekend and I'm so thankful to have a wonderful husband who is always full of surprises!

YUM!

Thanksgiving

This year was our first Thanksgiving away from our family. Matthew and I both saw our families a few weeks ago, so we decided we'd wait until December to take another trip to the East Coast. We went to the home of a couple who attends the church plant. They graciously invited us to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner at their home with their kids (who are around our age). We had a wonderful day. I'm so thankful for our family and can't wait until Christmas - to see them all! I didn't take any pictures, but we had two turkeys and a table full of food. Also, we saw our first Omaha snow this weekend. It snowed Saturday night and some on Sunday - very pretty!

Our Latest Trip

Over the past week, Matthew and I have been all around. Like I mentioned in my last post, he had a conference in Myrtle Beach and while he was there, I spent a few days in Virginia with my dad and step mom. I had such a great trip! I enjoyed relaxing at their house, celebrating my birthday (a month early) and eating at restaurants that I miss frequenting. I also enjoyed the shopping (more like browsing) I did while I was in Roanoke. With the luggage restrictions (and additional cost) on airlines, we always have to be careful about the items we pick up during our trips. I was able to see several friends during my visit.

I had lunch with Melissa, Logan and Lea. I can’t believe how much those kids have grown up. L and L are so well behaved! Happy belated birthday to Lea - she turned 1 on Sunday.

I also met up with my friend Dawn (her husband was my youth pastor) and her kids (Madison and Harrison) and we had dinner together. Mark was at the same conference Matthew attended. It was so nice to see them – it’s been a while! Dawn and I had fun catching up and I enjoyed hearing what her kids are doing in school – impressive.

After leaving Roanoke, I drove through NC and got to see my cousin Emily. Her house is beautiful! We did some catching up and then went to eat lunch at a wonderful restaurant – one of her favorites. She and her husband just announced that they are going to be parents, so I was able to congratulate her in person. They are going to be wonderful parents!

My road trip ended in South Carolina and it was great to see Matthew – this was the longest we’d been apart. We got to visit with his parents and celebrate an early Thanksgiving. The meal was wonderful! Props to the turkey chef! It was the best. We had a wonderful time with his parents and sister. Unfortunately, we didn’t take any pictures. They also celebrated my birthday (YAY!) since we won’t see them again until Christmas. We have a wonderful family.

The night before we left, we got to catch up with some friends at Starbucks. This year each couple (excluding us!) has added a member to the family. I hadn’t met little Addison yet, so I got to hold her – she’s so cute! Chase is growing up and he’s as handsome as ever. We really enjoyed meeting up with Josh and Brooke and Ryan and Jessica.

Our trip was busy, but I’m so glad we could see some friends and family. Anyone who lives several states away from friends and family knows how special a short visit or meal together can be. I appreciate our family for making our trip so special! Since our flight was delayed out of SC, we were routed through Detroit instead of Memphis (shorter flying time). While we were waiting for our flight in Detroit, we saw some snow flurries and it made me excited about seeing snow (hopefully soon) in Omaha. Who knows, maybe we’ll have a Thanksgiving Snow!

It's November?!?

I can't believe that today's the first day of NOVEMBER! It seems like it was just July and we were moving in. Today I got an email from my stepmom asking for our Christmas lists - and we've already started our Christmas shopping (gotta plan ahead)!

As Matthew and I are watching the Georgia/Florida game, I'm realizing that the holidays will be here before we know it and football will be ending soon, too (Matthew's always sad about that). Living here and having to travel as much as we do, planning ahead is imperative. We're already looking ahead to next year and the weekends we will be traveling. Since we moved, we've been fortunate to be able to see our family pretty often. I have a feeling after the holidays, this might change a little.

I'm looking forward to our next trip. While Matthew is at a conference in Myrtle Beach, I will be able to visit my family in Virginia for a few days. I'm so glad that I am able to travel with him. It will be great to spend some time with Dad and Susan and have a few laidback days in Roanoke. Usually when we visit there, things are super busy or it's a holiday. After my VA trip and his conference, we're going to celebrate an early Thanksgiving with Matthew's parents since we won't be traveling for Thanksgiving.

My Dad - my hero

Yesterday was my dad's 54th birthday (he's the youngest 54 year old I know!) and all day I was wishing I could be with him. I've always been a "Daddy's girl" and although I was very close to my mother, there's a special bond between a father and his daughter. My dad is certainly a hero in my eyes. My Dad has shown me that no matter what situations in life may come our way, we are to be faithful to the Lord because He has certainly been faithful to us. Through everything he has faced, he hasn't ever waivered in his faith. Instead, he has always been such an encouragement to me and those around him. I am so thankful for my family and my heritage.

Sam Belisle - a true, Godly man of his word and I am so glad he's my Dad!