Judith

My Compassion child sent me a letter to thank me for my birthday gift, saying that she had never received such a generous gift before (the cap was $25)... and telling me she bought this dress and shoes, as well as some lotion, some sugar, and some rice for her family (in the sacks in the picture) with the money.

WOW. I almost cried when I read that. Definitely puts things in perspective and makes me want to do much more for those in need... I want to be part of the LOVE REVOLUTION!!

Sarah Bliss

A tribute to… Sarah Bliss Snyder, whom I like to call “Sarah Lee.”

1. Passionate! We don't see eye to eye on everything politically, but I totally respect the fact that she’s not apathetic and that she acts on what she believes.
2. We both fell for our best friend, Josh, and bonded over our mutual love of him and our petty dislike of the girls who flirted with him and the girls he chose over us. (Not great, I know, but true.)
3. Fashionable and a girly-girl who likes to shop and dress up and wear makeup and such! So we always had that in common! :)
4. We love to watch and sing along to fun musicals, especially The Sound of Music and the Bonjour song from Beauty and the Beast. She also loved the dramatic songs in Chicago and Moulin Rouge!
5. Eloquent and intelligent; speaks with poise and passion, and she's always a good person to have on your side during a debate!
6. I stayed over at her house several times, and we would listen to Jewel and Coldplay and Bright Eyes in her room, talking about our deepest feelings and how depressing it was getting... and laughing at the cluelessness of men.
7. She is fabulous and funny and deep and mysterious.
8. She loves and appreciates culture… poetry, art, plays, books, photography, fancy foods, etc. I love her passion; she and Holly are pretty similar there!
9. We spent a great deal of our time together being stupidly angry or sad over a guy who didn't really care about us, but still, it was nice to have each other through that mess. lol
10. Loyal. She was the only one, and I do mean the only one, who was still my friend after the letter. And that cost her some friendships too.
11. We have a lot of inside jokes and memories that I'm not really willing to put online.
12. Memory: ORU wouldn’t let me stay in the dorm when I visited her, so we got a room at the Hilton across the street and the whole ORU crew came over and we had a blast!
13. She has worked for the past few years as a nanny in Boston and San Francisco, and really loves it! 
14. Has a cute Boxer dog named Sadie… she’d always get so excited when I came over and almost knock me down jumping on me!
15. We’re not as close as we used to be these days, but she definitely “has no malice or ill will towards me.” ;)

16. She introduced me to Legends Restaurant in Norman… really good and we always had fun there!
17. We went to see Mama Mia together, and I remember laughing hysterically at the ridiculousness of Meryl Streep jumping off the bed! (And at the High School Musical 3 preview!) lol
18. We roomed together on the Boston trip and had a blast with “the Fab 5” (me, SS, Josh, Zana, and Evan). We both highly prefer heels to tennis shoes and were so happy when the dress-up nights came around!
19. We were the only ones who knew all the songs by heart in the Sound of Music Sing-Along at Boston Pops. So much fun!!
20. She loves to read and is a huge fan of Harry Potter (as are the kids she currently nannies for, so it worked out well!)
21. She loves to cook and has become a pretty great chef whilst being a nanny.  Impressive to me!

22. Her saying "I bet Bethaniiiii can't paint" and "She's gonna be livin' some regrets if she keeps this up" still makes me laugh whenever I think about it!
23. We generally liked and disliked the same people, and we had one of those friendships where you can just look at the other person and know exactly what they’re thinking. lol

24. We got to know each other through IM and email and Xanga before we ever actually met in person!
25. Looking back through our old emails to each other is genuinely funny now… we were drama queens, I must admit, but overall, I’m glad we felt things deeply!

Dad

A tribute to… my awesome Dad!

1. His favorite saying is “attitude is everything,” and he lives it out by staying happy and peaceful regardless of what’s going on… and is always reminding us that we may not get to choose what happens, but we can choose how we react to it!
2. Loves God; spiritual leader of our home; has a lot of wisdom and spends time with God regularly.
3. God blessed his State Farm business and it is really successful, but he doesn’t just coast on that – he works diligently and always looks for ways to improve their customer service!
4. He grew up with 2 brothers and 3 sisters (he was the youngest brother). I like to call them “The Muecke Bunch!” =)
5. He hates flying, which means we’ve been on a lot of awesome family road trips (including California, Vegas, Florida, Lake Tahoe, and the Grand Canyon), which I happen to love! =)
6. Whenever I come home for the weekend, he always fills my car with gas before I leave… awesome. Umm, he also paid for the car!
7. Loves chocolate cake and chocolate chip cookies like I do.  But there are several foods (including pie and cookie dough, oddly enough) that he stubbornly refuses to try... he's missing out! lol
8. VERY generous and faithful in giving!
9. His best friends are Bill Wallace, Bill Lemieux, and Rick Minnich… they have a “fantasy football league” that they do every year, and the winner always hosts the Super Bowl Party and gets a fun trophy! :)
10. He is the one that Bill, Bill, or Rick will call first when anything goes wrong or they need advice… which says a lot… he has wisdom and discernment and is trustworthy!
11. His mom, Doris, was sweet and Godly, and I really wish I’d gotten to know her! Sadly, his dad was self-absorbed and made a lot of bad decisions, and he learned a lot of what not to do from him... (For example, my dad doesn’t hoard his money, he’s involved in what is important to his kids, doesn’t let fear control his decisions, and cares more about his family than his job.)
12. Sports fan – loves ESPN, basketball, football, baseball, tennis, golf, etc. Loves to play golf and is pretty awesome; tried teaching me how to play during my junior year, but I don’t enjoy it quite as much. Lol
13. Very helpful ….around the house, he helps with the dishes, vacuuming, and helps keep things looking nice. He also often brings us dinner on his way home, puts gas in the cars and takes them to get the oil changed regularly, takes care of our insurance and tax paperwork for us, etc!
14. Dependable and loyal; you can count on him to do what he says he will do!
15. Very smart about finance and business and has built a really successful insurance agency (well, with God’s help, I should say).
16. Loves to go to the movies (me too), and we go just about every weekend! He also loves to watch Yankee Doodle Dandy every 4th of July and White Christmas every Christmas.
17. He bought our first dog, Kelsey, because Rach and I begged him to and said we’d do all the work… which he totally ended up doing. He was Kelsey’s favorite, and I’m sure he’ll be Rylee’s as well!
18. We have family get-togethers or have people over fairly often, and for a lot of those, he cooks out awesome steaks (well, I’m not a big steak fan, but everyone really loves them).
19. When Rach and I were little, he would read Timmy and Tommy Tiger stories to us, and I remember playing that game and “rocket ship” (where he just threw us really high) a lot. =)
20. Ultra supportive and encouraging to Rach and I, and always proud of us!
21. An excellent and generous boss to his employees at SF. Highly respected by his employees and clients. And he’s good at keeping the peace when someone gets irrationally mad at him.

22.  Humble enough to admit when he makes a mistake... a rare quality in men these days!
23. Loves to watch Charles Stanley, The Gaithers, all sports, and the news. Lol
24. Great with kids… with us when we were little, and he used to teach kids’ Sunday School at FSBC and really was awesome and a great influence there!
25. Definitely not a whiner or complainer, and rarely gets upset or angry. Levelheaded and lives with joy, peace, and gratitude!

Ruth's LG

A tribute to… my womens' lifegroup!

(Front Row: Kimberly & Ruth. Middle Row: Faye, Charlotte, & Colleen, who is new to the group.)

1. God brought me to this group at the absolutely perfect time (6-12-07).  My first time there was a week after "the letter," and these women were a great prayer support system and encouragement to me during that difficult season!

2. I love the way they do prayer requests – we go around the circle and hear from everyone, and we all write down and pray over each others’ requests through the week!
3. I met them through LifeChurch’s "Offerings" event to introduce people to the various lifegroups available, where Kimberly told me they would be starting Beth Moore’s Daniel study soon… I was so excited for that!
4. I’m the only one in the group that doesn’t have children (so far), and many of them are grandmothers… but I don’t ever feel out of place. We're all comfortable w/each other and can really share what's on our hearts!
5. Ruth is awesome and very encouraging to me; she really respects me and she always says she’s “praying for my Strawberry Soda!” =)
6. Charlotte is kind and strong and full of grace... she's been through some painful relational loss and betrayal, but she handles it all with God-given joy and peace.
7. Faye is entertaining and fun. She’s also the “official pray-er” for the group, because the rest of us don’t love to pray out loud.
8. We also meet at Kimberly’s house sometimes – it’s in Broken Arrow, which is a little closer than Owasso for me, and she’s a wonderful hostess, as well! =)
9. McKayla joined the group this year (she's closer to my age) and we’ve become good friends; she's got a lot of wisdom and compassion and is really encouraging.
10. The group helped me in throwing McKayla’s Baby Shower for Jackson, which was a lot of fun!
11. Sarah, Hannah, Luke, and Janie are Ruth’s kids, and I feel connected to all of them, although I don’t know any of them very well.
12. They’ve gone through Beth Moore’s Daniel study and The Patriarchs study, both of which were amazing… Beth’s passion for God is just awesome!
13. They gave me the encouragement/confidence I needed to lead my own group in the Daniel study and really encouraged me when starting up the Diving Deeper LG.
14. Ruth is my accountability & Scripture memory partner for this year… we email or text every week to make sure we’re staying on track in our reading through the Bible in a year!
15. You can count on them to really be praying for you and your family and friends!
16. Faye’s “special brownies” as they call them – lol – tasty!
17. We all love Chuck and The Office, and all have similar political views!
18. They had me choose four Joyce CDs for the group to listen to… it was difficult to pick my favorites!

19. Ruth’s house has such a cozy, warm and inviting atmostphere… she’s usually burning a pumpkin-scented candle, and her couch and chairs are super comfy!
20. They let me host the group Christmas party this year so they could all come see my house, and because they know I adore Christmas! =)
21. Ruth also loves John Eldredge, so we talk about his books a lot and send each other encouraging quotes when needed.
22. Kimberly hired me to paint for her, and she’s pregnant right now and has talked about wanting me to help w/the girl’s nursery room! FUN!
23. Charlotte is always so uplifting – she has a lot of wisdom, and I reeeeeally appreciate her advice/encouragement! I also love it that she takes my problems seriously even after all she has been through.
24. We did the Chasing Daylight study by Erwin McManus together – so great!
25. We’re starting Beth Moore’s Esther study tomorrow night, and it’s going to be AWESOME!  Yay, Ruth's group!! ❤

Grandad!

A tribute to… Grandad, truly the best Grandad a girl could hope for!

*I know this picture is strange, but Mom and JB both have one of their old saddles at their houses, and the couch was full on Christmas Eve, so Grandad just sat there as we opened presents... which is actually quite perfect! :)

1. He babysat me, Rach, and Blake for the first few years of our lives when Mom was still working...
2. He taught us all to play baseball, took us on rides in the little red wagon, cooked for us, helped us learn to climb trees, took us to the park and pushed us on the swings, stacked puzzles and played games with us, etc.
3. Also helped us learn #’s and the alphabet song and how to write our names… that’s right, we were way ahead of the regular preschool crowd! lol
4. He made the very best mac & cheese (it was just the Kraft kind, but all of us liked it better when he made it than when our parents made it! Lol)
5. He watched us or played along in our ridiculous made-up games like “Big Rock” where we took all the couch cushions off and put them into a mountain-like shape to climb; “Trapped” where one of us pretended to be the robber and the others set elaborate traps, a la Home Alone; “Wild West Bakery Shop” where we cooked tasty food for those traveling in the wild west, obviously lol; “Hot Lava” where we could only step on these two pieces of material and had to huddle together on them, because everything else in the house was fiery lava; “Super Kids” where we were a family of superheros defending the world from evil; and of course, “Obstacle Course” which is just like it sounds! Ahh, good times and so much imagination! =)
6. Makes the world’s best chocolate chip cookies and banana bread!! Yum!
7. He could definitely be retired now if he wanted to, but that would totally bore him. He prefers to be working and doing something to help people! I want to be like that when I’m 80!
8. Ultra supportive of his four grandchildren… came to watch several of our recitals, programs, assemblies, games, etc!
9. One of my favorite memories:  He brought and decorated a little Christmas tree to surprise me the year we were in our apartment (I had been so sad about missing out on the tree that year.) Awesome!
10. He always used to rock me to sleep with George Straight’s “Something Special,” and loves to tell that story. :)
11. The only real cowboy I know; he worked on different ranches training horses while my mom was growing up… (he hurt his back when one of his horses bucked him off or he’d probably still be working with them. He really loved it!)
12. He was the first to take Rach and I to the State Fair and bought our first cinnamon rolls :) …and he introduced us to the Rodeo, which is always fun!
13. We used to do the Denise Austin workout that was on TV in the mornings when he was babysitting us! Lol
14. Like JoBug, he is really emotional and will often tear up over a nice Birthday card or a funny old story or picture. Me and Rach both come close to crying whenever we see him like that!
15. He's losing his hearing lately, so he and I are the quietest two at family get-togethers.  But I love it when, in the middle of all the noise and chaos, our eyes meet and we just smile at each other - and sometimes he gives me a wink.  (It's a bit like the While You Were Sleeping dinner scene.)  I know that I'm important to him, and he knows he's important to me... and with or without words being added, that is enough!
16. He stays active and healthy… has no desire to just retire and sit around.  He goes to the mall and walks every morning, and he is working for Napa Auto Parts right now.  He wants to really live "till he dies," and I just love that about him! =)
17. Really loves to read… a book is always a good gift for him!  He would read our favorite stories to us over and over when we were little. :)
18. Always wears a baseball cap, much like Luke on Gilmore Girls.
19. Great dancer... loves to go out dancing; (not a fan of line dances but loves to two step)!

20. Friendly and easygoing; he can strike up a conversation with anyone!
21. When I was around 7th grade, we (Grandad, me, Rach, and Blake) started going to Lake Hefner early Saturday mornings to ride our bikes together… fun!
22. He loves Hershey Bars and chocolate malts… (me too!)
23. He worked as a janitor cleaning buildings for a few years… we always loved to go up there with him and “help.”
24. He still goes over and helps take care of things/cook/clean at JoBug’s house since she works full time.
25. The first character quality that comes to mind is humble! He is unselfish, unpretentious, generous with his time, and loves to serve others.  So thankful for Grandad! ❤

K-Lamb

A tribute to… Kristin Lamb: “Kuteness we can believe in.” (*slogan by Laura Bower!)

1. Lives with an obvious sense of spiritual peace... John Bevere defined a “peacekeeper” as a person who compromises their beliefs to avoid conflict; while a “peacemaker” is a person who is willing to confront in order to have true peace. Kristin is a peacemaker!

2. Her 30th B-day Party was awesomely fabulous… complete with dinner at a fancy restaurant, casino night, watching 13 Going on 30 in a limo, and stopping at Krispy Kreme for dessert and dancing! =)
3. Very passionate about seeing our country restored to its Christian foundations and educating people about our nation’s true, un-revised history.
4. Good at boldly speaking the truth while maintaining an attitude of love.
5. Filled with Biblical wisdom and great discernment; she's given me helpful advice that really changed the way I thought on certain issues.
6. Defends the truth even when she has to stand alone in the midst of arrogant and often cruel opposition.
7. Encouraging and uplifting; helps others see themselves as God sees them and be confident in their identity in Christ!
8. Faith that I really admire! She knows and deeply believes the promises of God, regardless of emotions or circumstances.
9. Introduced me to the Lord of the Rings movies last year, which are packed with awesome spiritual parallels, and to White Christmas, which is just super fun!
10. Has a great, dry sense of humor and is always fun to hang out with!
11. Speaks with eloquence and passion… “When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say, and she always says it kindly.” (Prov. 31)
12. A few of my favorite K-Lamb stories: their scary night in Israel when God protected them; the crazy lady in the checkout line yelling at her; the "God pen;" her getting the full scholarship to ORU when everyone had doubted her; her mom telling her she looked like a homeless person lol; and their Michael Scott-like boss promising them a “special surprise” that turned out to be ice cream… :) Hilarious!
13. Desires excellence in the church and wants to make sure we, as Christians, represent Christ well in all areas - including the small details that most people overlook.
14. One of my favorite memories w/her is when we went to get pizza before our movie night at Dave’s house… I won’t go into detail here, but I will say I was really happy to realize we were on the same page! :)
15. Our trip to Austin – so much fun – and she introduced me to Wizard Academy, which was awesome! She was hilarious when we first saw our yellow Jeep rental… “Yeaaaaah, this was a bad idea.”
16. Really loves Twitter lately (because of all the awesome connections she’s made) and is making me think about getting another Twitter account…
17. She has been to Israel and Egypt and has some incredible stories of God’s protection during that trip!
18. During my NY Eve Pary, when there were different groups branching off and Kyle was dramatically acting out a charades scene during the Partini game and everyone was yelling different guesses, it was the funniest thing ever when she said with a totally straight face, “This is mass chaos.”
19. It was her idea to start the prayer group for our country, which is obviously in need of sincere prayer… she also introduced our LG to Billy and Nikki and encouraged us to faithfully pray for them and believe for God’s best in his life!
20. Servant’s heart… serves others and truly is not seeking anything in return.
21. Has an extremely tough work schedule and coworkers who strongly disagree with and mock her views, but she’s keeping the right attitude, and I definitely believe God knows she has the strength of character to stand strong, and He's using her as a light in the midst of the darkness.
22. She has been through several painful events in the last few months but has turned to God for healing, comfort, and strength rather than blaming Him or losing heart!
23. Lives with integrity and quiet joy and peace.

24. She’s actually met Joyce Meyer and Darlene Zschech (one of many of her funny stories) – which is totally awesome in my book!!

25. Genuinely believes that “Apathy is not an option! Not now. Not ever.”  Yay, Kristin!! ❤

Laura Allison

A tribute to… Laura Allison Bower – ( that’s Laura, not Lora, people!)

1. She has the most unique and entertaining Facebook posts of anyone I know! :)

2. She introduced me to some new books and authors that have been helpful and encouraging for me!
3. Deep, sarcastic, funny, and self-deprecating…. (this seems to be a theme among my friends!)
4. We have so many fun memories together and have shared lots of laughs and deep conversations!
5. She loves Ted and his Café Escondido as much as I do, and also apparently shares my love of Velveeta Shells & Cheese!!!
6. She blog-stalked me before I really knew who she was. lol We talked a lot on Election Night 2008, and I remember being surprised when she knew and agreed with several things I’d written here!

7. She introduced me to the magical awesomeness that is Zumba!
8. Shares my love of Scrubs and Gilmore Girls, and Niles Crane on Frasier… random, but true.
9. She wrote -- and sang, I might add -- a fabulous Birthday poem for and about me called Raspberry Chuckles! =)
10. Always easy to talk to… someone I was immediately comfortable around!
11. She is trustworthy - careful not to gossip or be unkind or negative, and a good confidant!
12. In random order, she knows fun Mitch Hedburg quotes, likes to dance and taught us the now-famous pretzel move, loved 500 Days of Summer, and aspires to run a half-marathon before she’s 30… (woohoo, November 22nd, here we come! Lol)

13. I remember she and I talked about God, life, marriage, relationships, healing, theology, etc. till 4 am or so after Tara Lynn’s B-day party… apparently, watching the captivating drama that is The Transporter put us into a deep conversation mood? lol

14. She humors my love of pictures by line dancing on a park bench, a la Coyote Ugly… or stopping to smell the roses… or randomly holding some other woman’s Tea Party sign… or toasting with our water in champagne glasses in the back of the limo… or whatever other ridiculous posed-candid photo idea pops into my head! :)
15. Always fun to talk to and hang out with; her smile and sense of humor brighten my day!
16. Genuine, caring, and compassionate, she has a servant’s heart, as evidenced by her volunteering at a hospice and always serving with Remnant!
17. Has the ability to give Biblical advice, tough love, compassion, and humor as they are needed, with discretion and Godly wisdom!
18. She invited me to a “pill packin’ party” and a Valentines-themed “Craftacular!” She pretends to loathe Valentines Day, but I don’t buy it. :)
19. She is lovably quirky and truly one of a kind!
20. This “Chubby Bunny” pic of her and Chet always makes me smile! They also both enjoy burning the precious little yellow Peeps… (but kudos to the Peeps for not going down w/out a fight!!)

21. She and I walked LaFortune Park together while chatting about our shared hatred of exercise and/or dieting, including her dreaded “Bridesmaids Dress Diet.” lol
22. Beautiful and kind; has a Drew Barrymore-like smile and a warm personality that people naturally love!
23. Great listener, and an uplifting friend
24. Amazing and talented writer… she’s real, witty, entertaining, deep, and poignant!
25. Started her own Wordpress blog over a year ago, but has yet to perfect the first post… I say the time has come! =)

Shopping Spree!

Hooray for Labor Day weekend! Work has been unusually busy lately (and we've had some rare courtroom drama, which I may post more about later), so it is ultra-nice to have 3 days off here!

Friday after work, I played tennis w/Bobbi and Malori. We've gotten slightly better, and I wanna start playing more now that I have my own fun pink racket. =) After that, we celebrated Bobbi's birthday at In The Raw, where I got a chance to catch up w/Natalie Lovenburg. Then me, Malori, Bobbi, Liz, Chet, and Nathan went to hang out and talk outside Starbucks for a while. It was a lot of fun, and we had some hilarious and memorable conversations!

Saturday, I slept in, put my pics on Facebook, then drove home (to my parents' house.) Mom and I went to AT&T and I got an iPhone -- YAY -- because my Blackberry Pearl was literally falling apart. The contact list is the only thing that has frustrated me so far -- it put back all the #'s of Josh and co., which I had deleted ages ago... and most of the #'s for my LG friends are missing. Grrrr, what on earth!?

After that, we went to Old Navy and the mall and had a major shopping spree! I typically despise shopping, especially trying on clothes... but it was fun this time, because I've gone down another size! I actually need some new jeans/slacks because most of mine are a little big now. It's seriously so exciting to be 3 sizes down from where I started... I'm obviously not where I wanna be yet, but seeing that was definitely encouraging/motivated me to keep it up! Anyway, in addition to all that, Babah decided that I should have an iPod since I've started running outside more, so I got that this weekend as well! Wahoo!

Today was church w/Christine Caine again, so that was awesome! Then we went to see Babah, who's still recovering from her back surgery. Then JB and Emma came over so Rach could practice doing Emily's makeup for her Senior pics.

Right now, I'm about to run 10 miles, so I'm hoping God will give me the energy for that! lol Then tomorrow should be super relaxing and fun, and will probably include a movie and family coming over to play games and hang out! =) That's about it. 

Oh, and I will post more tributes soon, I promise...

Rachael

A tribute to… Rachael LaJo, my fantabulous sister!

1. She's the only person I know who would be equally as thrilled to see Lil’ Wayne and Eminem in concert as she would Hannah Montana and the Jonas Brothers!!  She has extremely varied tastes and introduced me to a lot of rap music I wouldn't otherwise know. lol
2. Loves the same movies and TV shows I do, so we quote them all the time and send each other random texts with fun quotes! =) "A vampire wouldn't tell. A cyborg wouldn't know."  "Smart Brova, am I gon' die!?"

3. We argued a lot when we were kids, but we were very close and had several mutual friends throughout high school …and we’re still close now, and I love that!
4. She’s very sarcastic, self-depricating, and hilarious!
5. The queen of small talk… she’s perfect for working at my dad’s office with her friendly, outgoing personality and ability to carry on lengthy conversations with people that I just truly wouldn’t know how to talk to. lol  She is good at making people feel comfortable!
6. She never minded me being close friends with her classmates in high school… Me, Rach, Holly, and Megan were always a fun team. And their hilarious guys… Mark, Jason, Jay, Adam, Derek, Aaron, Jordan, Ethan, etc.

7. One day, we were at home playing pool and had the Sister Act 2 soundtrack in, and really got into it -- (not the game of pool, because we both suck, but singing at the top of our lungs and using our pool sticks as fake microphones and such)… till Alan walked in, that is (we hadn’t heard the alarm go off bc we were singing too loud) – so embarrassing! Lol
8. We're both terrified of bees and wasps, and we would almost drown ourselves trying to stay under water when one came near our pool!  We also seriously went and stayed at a hotel one night when there was a mouse in the house. :)

9. She’s the biggest "impulse buyer" ever… her quickly regretted purchases include two cars, a really expensive purse, Versace sunglasses, and an adorable little white puppy named Baxter (now adopted by Danielle)!
10. She has a compassionate heart and believes the best in people, and she's great with kids!
11. She actually learned the guy’s part in the Dirty Dancing ending dance just so I could practice the awesome, fun twirly part! Lol (Yes, we taught ourselves by rewinding it a zillion times… and yes, I intend to do some fabulous version of that dance at my wedding!)
12. She's very pretty... (and everyone says we look alike, so cheers to that! lol) ...she's trendy and fashionable and talented with hair and makeup… I get several great ideas from her, so that’s awesome! :)

13. She went to her first class on her first day of college, saw the ultra-long syllabus with all the assignments and projects, came home and immediately dropped all her classes and decided to try hair school! Lol
14. She went through Duncan Brothers, and can cut and style anyone's hair, but decided she didn’t wanna do that because it’s gross to touch dirty hair. Which I’m quite sure it would be. She also finds it really annoying that I still don’t trust her with a curling iron. Lol
15. She has the most irrational, random fears – including being stabbed in the arch of the foot. She’s also terrified of bugs, like me. But the things she actually should be afraid of - like walking to her car alone in a dark alley after midnight -don’t typically scare her... hence, the mugging.
16. She is great working at State Farm, but she would love to be a Special Ed teacher… so I’m hoping she’ll go through the pain of getting a degree so she can do that someday!
17. We send each other long, funny, ranty emails during our boring work days, and hers are always hilarious to read... the latest one was about her extreme love of bread... English muffins, croissants, sourdough bread, etc! lol
18. She highly prefers to communicate through texting and has become skilled at texting without looking while driving and having a conversation with the passenger... yikes! lol
19. Really stubborn, which can be a good thing or a bad thing, depending…
20. We once sat across from each other for a lonnng time, inside the little window seat with the curtain shut around us in our Vegas hotel room, overlooking the city and talking about everything… patiently waiting for Emily to get there so we could jump out and scare her! Lol So fun… yay Vegas!
21. She finds most women too needy and dramatic and generally prefers to hang out with the guys. (She is somehow able to do this on a daily basis without becoming attracted to any of them; I didn’t get that gene.)
22. (This one's long, but funny.) When we went on our fun little San Antonio trip, she put a big fake diamond ring on her wedding finger before we went out shopping. I told her before we left the hotel room that people would think she was engaged, but it fit that finger, and she was certain no one would even pay any attention. The sales clerk at the sunglasses shop saw it and freaked out, asking if she was engaged or already married. Caught off guard, Rach said she was "just engaged." Oh, so many questions followed... "What are your colors going to be? How did he propose? When's the wedding? How long have you two been dating?? What does he do?" By the time Rach bought her glasses, the girl was telling her she wanted to see pictures of the fabulous wedding she'd been describing! Hilarious, and Rach did a pretty great job of making up tons of fake answers. But me, I had to walk away because I seriously couldn't stop laughing. I told Babah about it, and Babah called Rach pretending to be offended that she hadn't gotten an invitation! lol
23. She has road rage and is not afraid to honk or cut people off, and always seems in a rush to get wherever she’s going! Mark and Jason once blocked her off where she couldn’t get around their cars, then went 10 miles an hour down the stretch of Douglas Blvd. It was quite funny for me; she was about to explode!
24. Other than the road rage issues, she's quite carefree and loves to just laze around and relax and watch TV all day!

25. She's been out of the Mustang crowd for over a month now, which makes me really happy, and I hope she stays on that road and finds better friends who sincerely appreciate who she is! I know God has something great in store for her future, and I'm so happy she's getting back on the right path! ❤

Jenna-Lou

A tribute to… Jennifer Diane Womble, a friend who can always make me laugh! =)

1. She's always in the mood to have fun, and her laugh is contagious and brightens my day! =)
2. She once tried to sneak Dippin' Dots into the movie in her purse… we got it past the movie people successfully, but I'm pretty sure she had to buy a new purse after that! lol  Total disaster.
3. All in the same day: she kept her foot on the brake rather than putting her car in Park at Sonic, then we slid into the pole in front of us… then we got back to her house and she didn’t quite pull in far enough, so when she closed the garage, it took her back bumper off. Really funny… to me, at least.
4. We bought several balloons to take to the Senior Night volleyball game, then on our way home, she randomly decided opening the sunroof would be fun… you can guess how that went!  Haha, I can still hear her saying "Sunroof time!  ...Ahhh!!" :)
5. Always fun and uplifting and makes you feel more joyful!
6. One of my closest friends in my class. She was an awesome volleyball player and we rode to most of the away games and tournaments together. =)
7. She loves to write encouraging notes and cards to people, and she’s really good about writing Thank You notes!
8. Leaves the longest and most entertaining voicemails ever, typically starting with, “Lindsey Claire Muecke, it’s Jenny freakin’ Womble!!” :)
9. In our 5th grade class picture, she and I went all out to be fashionable… both wearing sunflower dresses and a sunflower hat! And probably sunflower earrings too. lol  Yikes.
10. Very expressive - definitely a sanguine personality who sometimes speaks before she thinks, but is lovable and has a great heart for others! 
11. We’ve been good friends ever since she came to CHA and we were in Mrs. Sawyer’s 4th grade class together. Her brother, Ethan, was in Rach’s class, so they were always a fun family to hang out with!
12. She rewinds the funny parts of movies over and over, laughing louder every time. :)
13. She’s passionate... her emotions definitely go up and down, but she’s very alive and really feeling things at all times, and I love that!
14. Generous and loves to help others, and sometimes people have taken advantage of that. But what goes around comes around, so that’s comforting!
15. She's smart and very determined to make the most of her potential!
16. She's now an Assistant Teacher for elementary kids and has the perfect personality for that. She’s going back to get her degree in Education, and I’m excited for her!
17. Memory:  We once went to a movie where there were only a couple other people in the theater, than one awkward or creepy guy came and sat right next to us in the middle of our row.  We got so cracked up but were trying to hard not to laugh out loud or be awkward, which always makes you laugh harder! lol
18. She coached a Club V-ball team… I went with her to one tournament, and everything that could possibly go wrong did, including the car she borrowed from her friend breaking down in the middle of the night and us having to wait on the tow truck… then us dramatically thinking we were being targeted by a gang when someone kept flashing their lights at us, then realizing she didn't have her car lights turned on. lolol  It was entertaining times!
19. She is a girly girl and loves to shop… as evidenced by our shopping marathon last time she came to see me in Tulsa! She also loves Gelato ice cream, so that’s always fun!
20. She's the only girl and has three brothers - I think it made her more competitive in sports stuff and more easygoing and fun in the rest of life!
21. She was one of the first friends I had over to swim at 9121, and we had so much fun pulling each other out of the "buddy seats" in the pool!
22. She really loved meeting and hanging out with my LG friends when she visited me a few months ago! She was an immediate fan of Bobbi and Jaci! =)
23. We had a Point of Grace obsession in 5th and 6th grade... me, Jenny, Rach, and Tiffany dressed up like them and took a picture posed like their CD cover… so ridiculous! (I was Terri and Jenny was Shelly.) We also made dramatic music videos of us lip syncing their songs, which I hope have now been destroyed. lol
24. She desires to be in God’s will and is rebuilding her confidence and identity after finally ending a horrible relationship with a manipulative, pathetic guy.
25. Just hilarious and fun and quotable!  My favorite CHA classmate for sure - yay, Jennifer Diane!!