It's the most wonderful time of the year!

A lot of people that know me well probably know that growing up my family didn’t have much money. Don’t get me wrong, my Mom always made sure we were fed and clothed and gave and did for us everything she could. I’m proud of my Mom and know it was hard to raise two children on her own after my Dad died. I was also very blessed to have a Mother who would give anything to see me happy. That is what my Mother defined motherhood to mean to me; strength, courage, determination and a love so strong you would give your life in a seconds notice. One of the things growing up this way instilled in me is the constant need to give back.


A great organization here in Christiansburg is the Montgomery County Christmas Store. This organization is near and dear to my heart because I went to the very same one when I was a little girl. They not only let my Mom pick out toys for my brother and I, they also let me pick out gifts for my family. My Mother still to this day has a set of Christmas canisters I picked out for her when I was around 4 years old, the first time we went to the Christmas store. Each Christmas she puts them out in her kitchen. They have always served as a reminder to me of how wonderful God is and great things he has done for my family. If it wasn’t for the Christmas Store I don’t know if I would have had the Christmas’ I was fortunate enough to have had and the memories I’ve been given. In November, Brad and I will be volunteering there and I’m very excited to help others and an organization that helped my family. I encourage all my friends to help out in anyway because this is truly an organization that changes people's lives.
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God is good all the time.
Things are going refreshingly well. Lots going on and lots to look forward to and keep me busy!


Friday I received a huge confidence boost and it was much needed. I performed well at doing something that I found myself slightly apprehensive about. What will come of it? I’m unsure and frankly think the boost may be enough.


Shout out to my lovely ladies. Friday was also a great day because I got to catch up with a few of my girls, Gabe and Brittany. We frequently plan girl’s night out Fridays but have all found ourselves very busy and been unable to see each other for awhile. While we missed Jenny, who was out of town, we had a nice time eating sushi and chatting, which to me is like therapy to some. I love my girls and find myself having withdrawals when I don’t see them regularly. They are all very unique and beautiful women. I love having such diverse friends that I can learn so much from. I carry a piece of each of them everywhere I go and thank God for each of them daily!


Saturday was a great family day. My Mom and I took my nephew to lunch and took him to play arcade games. I think he had a nice time and I know Mom and I did! It's surprising to see this area grow so much and still have very little attractions for young children. I think it's sad there is no indoor play areas. There's the skatign ring but I don't think a 3 year on skates is a good idea. This evening Bradley and I had a much needed date night. We had dinner and caught a movie. While our first choice, Couples Retreat, was sold out, we settled for Paranormal Activity. This is a movie I don’t believe I would ever have seen if it weren’t for the fact that there were no good choices. It was scary and as I write this before bed, I do not want to think about it.

Sunday I hope for so much needed time for cleaning and catching up on T.V! Coming up next weekend is Halloween and Brad and I are looking forward to it. While we haven’t gotten our costumes together because we can sometimes be procrastinators. I’m looking forward to my creations coming together. This year we will be going as, drum roll please… Sherlock Holmes and Waldo. Yes, I came up with that one myself. This will be the first time we semi match. We always tend to be on two very different pages when it comes to costumes and Bradley usually ends up refusing to wear what I have chosen for him.


I’ll keep you posted!
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These are a few of my favorite things…
The best parts of living in this area;



Poor Billy’s Sushi



The Parkway in Fall



Dudes Drive-In hotdogs!



Virginia Tech football season, GO HOKIES!

Starlight Drive-In during the summer, you can’t beat paying a dollar for a hot dog, fries or popcorn!



Grama’s Goodies chicken salad

Kobe, Japanese fast-food that is good. I don’t even want to get started talking about the Hokie Sauce, it’s delicious. I’m unsure of what’s in it but it’s some sort of mayo based sauce and as for the rest I don’t care.



Hiking spots like The Cascades and Alta Mons.
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Rejuvenation
This weekend flew by faster than usual. My church had trunk or treating on Saturday night and it was a lot of fun. Lots of costumes, candy, pizza and games, what more could any kid (or kid at heart) want? Sunday, after church, I headed to Wal-Mart for the Judgment House bake sale. It was 40 some degrees and it felt like 30 after an hour but was successful. We gave out hundreds of flyers, made some money and met some great people. We even had a man bring us some Starbucks hot chocolate. Sweetest thing ever! It was fun and was kind of refreshing to see how many great people there are out there. Lots of folks were very receptive and wanted to help out!
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Pumpkin Patch
Since I’ve already posted about my favorite parts of fall, I won’t bore you with it again. But, today Brad and I went with his nieces and nephews, only five of his nine, to the Sinkland Farm’s Pumpkin Patch. We got to eat hot dogs, go for hayrides, find the perfect pumpkin, get face paintings and go through some mazes. Its days like today that make you remember that family is what it’s all about. I’m blessed to have received such a wonderful family and I guess I got Brad as a little something extra!

















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Man's Best Friend
This morning I received one of the cutest chain emails I've seen in awhile. Needless to say this was one I passed along.

It defiantly reminds me of Annie, my 1 year old JRT. She loves attention so much I think she would let someone do just about anything to her. She would probably try to eat the marker though. : )
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Go Sarah Go!

My friend and fellow co-worker Sarah has been training for her first marathon for the last 6 months. The big race day has finally come and will take place this Saturday in Baltimore. I just wanted to give her a shout out and wish her well! I’m very proud of her because I sure as heck know I couldn’t run a 26.2 mile race. I think it’s something that not many people have the dedication and work ethic to do and I know she’ll do great!
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