Photo Friday!

Picture time!! =)

Rach taught me, Candice, and Katie to make the burlap and decomesh wreaths last weekend! The "class" was fun and funny, and the wreaths turned out great! Love it!!

Seriously the cutest baby ever - mini Miss with her precious little bottom two front teeth.  I just love her! :)

Jaceman was ringing the bell over and over, and I asked, "Can you push the pedals with your feet?" He immediately rang the bell with one foot then the other, then said "YAY" and applauded himself! Lol So cute!!  He probably thought it was a strange request. Hahaha

How precious are hummingbirds!?  This was at Charlotte's house, and it was a connect-with-God moment for me! :)

I love these women.  Ruth and Charlotte mean so much to me, and it was encouraging and affirming to talk to them and catch up on life.  I'm thankful for their support and love and sense of humor!  And that they don't believe true friendship expires. :)

Tiffany, me, and Tall Kyle after the Saturday night LifeChurch service... before dinner at Panera then going to watch the Full Moon 5k.  I was glad Kyle joined us for dinner.  While talking about hiking, Kyle half-jokingly reminded me of the Charles Swindoll quote on attitude - "You know, Lindsey, life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it."  I about fell out of the booth because that is Dad's favorite quote that I actually calligraphed for him a few years back!  Kyle has it on his wall too.  Love it!

Our awesome group cheering for Karli Marie and Kelly Marie (with the signs they made last year for JEM and Chet)!!

This pic of the guys makes me happy. :)

The girls after finishing the race!  I kinda miss the runner's glow, but not so much the running. ;)

My favorite married couple friends and me!  (At Yolotti after the race.)

Cupcakes with Kelly at the Linnaeus Gardens in Woodward Park (her favorite spot in Tulsa).  Very pretty and peaceful!  And our talk was encouraging and quite productive, as she introduced me to what may become my future career... more on that in a future post!

Yum! =)

The coy pond and mini-waterfalls made me happy.

Fun dinner at McAlister's with the women's group!  (Chelsea selling toothbrushes for dental hygiene school.)  =)

Happy "Sprummer" Daffodils in my front flower bed!  So bright and cheery! :)

Me and Tiffany waiting in line for X-Men after our Smashburger dinner tonight!  I'm really thankful for her friendship... it's a comfortable and fun connection.

And just for fun, a pic of Boo and Buddy!!  Next time my puppies go to the groomers, I'm gonna have one of them cut like Boo.  #preshpompuppies  #excited :)

Quotables!

{Talking about how we buy books then take forever to read them}
Talhia:  "It's just a graveyard of books."  
Lindsay (laughing):  "Wow, that was the saddest thing ever!"
Talhia.  "It's true.  They're all like little tombstones, full of a story that I don't know anything about... maybe someday I'll decide to read one and it'll be like Lazarus!" lol

"You don't understand - these people are like mah family!" ~Drunk girl on the phone with her boyfriend in the back of the minivan Lindsay was driving - she said she and Danielle got totally cracked up by that comment!
{Their flight from Dallas to Tulsa was delayed then cancelled, so she called to rent a car.  The aiport was running out of cars and told an older couple in line in front of her that they had nothing for them bc they had no reservation. :(  Then they gave Lindsay a rental minivan because it was all they had left.  So she offered the older couple (Dale and Becky) a ride, as well as two girls she'd met at a restaurant while their flight was delayed (Danielle and the drunk girl). lol  No one but the couple knew each other before the road trip. Hearing her tell the whole story was hilarious!} :)

Lindsay and baby Nolan, aka "Nolar Bear," at our group meeting at Panera! :)

{Talking about starting BibleX}
Talhia:  "Our group name is Without Borders."
Lindsay:  "Is without one or two words?"
All:  "One!"
Lindsay:  "Uh-oh, I think I just created a new group with that same name!!"
Linda:  "Umm, you spelled 'borders' wrong."
{So now there's a new group with zero members called "Without Boarders." LOL}

{I switched to U-Verse, which I keep calling Youversion, and had to call and cancel Cox. :(  I was dreading the call from the day I decided to switch...}
Bullying Cox Rep:  "I'll tell you right now we can knock $50 off your monthly bill for a year.  Would you consider working with us?"
Me:  "No; I'm sorry."
Cox:  "Did you even bother calling to see if we could change the price or match their service?"
Me:  "Nooo, I didn't."
Cox:  "So what have we done wrong, Lindsey, that after seven years of service you just leave without even a phone call to try to work with us?  I'm just trying to figure out what we've done wrong here.  Have you been somehow dissatisfied with your service?"
Me (laughing nervously):  No.  I'm sorry, but I just need to cancel.  They're literally coming to install U-Verse today."
Cox:  "Okay, if that's what you want.  But I would request that you discontinue laughing at me.  I take my job very seriously, and your laughter is very rude.  When you figure out that they're not at all who they say they are, we'll be glad to have you back."
{Ahhh, can I crawl into a hole now?  SO AWKWARD!  I shan't be going back to them any time soon.}

{On his recent conversation with a musician -- after unknowingly talking to Justin Bieber through an entire flight...}
Jeff:  "I went ahead and asked if he was famous, just in case." :)

"Whenever I hear Kevin Durant talk, he reminds me of Tall Kyle."  ~Me
{...everyone either laughing or giving me a confused look...}
"I think you should quote yourself on that."  ~Karli

Casey's FB status:
{Cozy night in at the Smith house}
Casey:  "I wonder what the temperature is outside?"
Dad:  "Here, I'll look it up" {types on computer}
Mom:  "How? ...Does the computer know how cold it is if the computer isn't even outside...???"
Casey & Dad:  {blink,blink,blink}

{Discussing the gate code}
Me:  "It's hashtag0423."
Laura: "Did you just say hashtag instead of pound!?  Wooooow, that's a sign of the times."
Me:  "I didn't even think about it - it just came out naturally."
Laura:  "I call status-ing that!" lol

Me to Laura:  "I kind of hate to admit it after our earlier conversation, but I was totally that girl who cried at the end of a Spider-Man movie tonight. In my defense, Andrew Garfield is about 1,000 times more adorable and endearing than Toby Maguire, and it's hard to watch him be sad."  (True story.)

"Everyone is saying YOLO (you only live once). Jesus proved that saying wrong 2000 years ago haha he said YOLO.....sike! Happy Easter to all!"  ~Michael's Easter FB status - lol

"The art of the sale is all about what you leave out: “'83 classic wagon” -- tough to find parts -- “They don’t make ‘em like this anymore.” -- for legal reasons -- “Enjoyed for many years by one happy family.” -- of raccoons!" ~Phil Dunphy

"I feel like the success of Subway's "Flatizza" will be completely dependent on no one having heard of pizza."  ~Jon Acuff :)

Bethany (personal trainer): "Harper, I am going to the grocery store. Do you need anything?"
Harper (her toddler daugher): "Umm, yes! I need chocolate chips, candy bars, M&Ms, and a sucker!" =)

"Way to have a permanent memory of someone, you fool!"  ~Chet, on L.D.'s tattoos by her ex

Me:  "I really think I'd enjoy being a teacher."
Chet:  "Well, if you manage your classroom the way you do your puppies, we'll have a problem."
{Because I think they're too cute to punish sometimes. lol}

{Studying the ducks at Crescent Park}
Me:  "Aww, the babies are so cute!"
Laura:  "Mmm, looks like it's a single parent, so they're probably struggling." lol
{We later decided another duck was the divorced dad who was observing his kids from afar.} :)

{Talking about The Middle}
Chet:  "I'm telling you, that show is a glimpse into my childhood. Just imagine that as a single wide trailer and put my face in there!"

{At JEM's fantastic dinner + Thunder watch party!}
Jeff:  "That robin in the tree is upset - she keeps chirping because her babies are in the nest down here."
Laura:  "Well, we can go inside now anyway."
Chet (yelling to the bird):  "Or maybe stop being a coward and come down and protect your children!" lol

Chettles:  "All right, Mossy, the Wilson's are departing."
JEM:  "Make it a great night!!"

Laura:  "Lindsey doesn't understand why no one is going for the chocolate on chocolate cupcakes... it's a lot of chocolate!"
Me:  "My point exactly!!"

"Chet came to this party for one reason only: To get his back popped by John!" ~Evan :)

"You know, Nick and John and I used to have a really good threesome..." ~the innocent beginning of JEM's wedding toast to a friend lol

JEM:  "I still remember when Kevin and I realized John and Krista were on their first date!"
Kevin:  "Yeah, it was at a wedding... John and Krista were at the couples table while me and Jeff were stuck at the table of misfit toys!" LOL

I Give Up.

Work is so busy lately.  Blarg.  I'm not sure I'll ever get caught up, and I'm over it.  This is how I feel when I look at the stack of transcripts awaiting me...

But this too shall pass.  Right?

Thankfully, the rest of life is going pretty well! :)

Thankful Thursday!!! :) (66)

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change."  ~James 1:17

Today, I am thankful:

1.  That tiny Sam-Sue and Bellsy are okay after ingesting poison (they ate the granules the exterminator put down).  It was a rough night for very sick puppies, but the vet confirmed that all is well now)!

2.  For Tiffany, Kelly, Laura, and Karli!!  And for the supportive and comfortable friendships with the women's lifegroup!  And for fun girls' nights watching Enchanted and making enchiladas and chocolate bread pudding!  And for trying new things (my first sour cream sauce enchilada). lol

3.  For a fun night watching Jim Gaffigan and having a good talk with the Wilsons and Lauralai! :)

4.  For the many, many bright and colorful healthy options at Whole Foods! :) (I went to the new one for the first time this week, and it was much nicer than I'd expected!)  Also thankful that I have a genuine desire to be healthy right now!
{Sidenote:  Whilst shopping for healthy food at Reasors this week, where they've never handed out samples before, a lady behind a table noticed me and asked, "Would you like to try some Ghiradelli chocolates?"  I laughed out loud.  Every. time.  ...But this time, I resisted!  Yay, me! lol}

5.  "Nature walks" at Crescent Park! lol  The baby geese, baby ducklings, sweet puppies, adorable bunny, and begging duck trio made yesterday's walk especially memorable! :)  Those ducks were sure Laura was holding out on them. lol

6.  Oh my gosh, where has this book been all my life!?  I am loving it, and learning a lot about myself and others and how to have healthier relationships with better boundaries in the future!!

7.  For getting to see (and photograph) Sarah Elizabeth's graduation from OU-Tulsa!  So excited for her!!

That's all for now.  It goes fast when I have several recent photos. :)
Anyway, hope you have a fabulous day today!!

F-R-I-E-N-D-S!

Any idea what you were doing on this exact date 10 years ago?

I was watching the Friends finale!!  (And calling Rachael, who was on her Senior class trip to Boston, to talk about it together).
The Frasier series finale aired the next week (a sad month for NBC).  Crazy that it's been 10 years!

Friends was on from 1994 to 2004 (my 4th grade year through my last year of college).  Rach and I started watching somewhere in the middle, but quickly caught up on the reruns and became faithful fans!  I distinctly remember the first episode I watched was the one where Joey and Chandler lose Ben on the bus, then have the heads v. tails debate ("What kind of scary-a$$ clowns came to your birthday party!?"). =)   Rach and I were well known for our love of Friends (they wouldn't let us be on the same Catchphrase team for that very reason. lol)  We even had a fun signature wall with the Friends logo painted on it in our game room!

(I'm so glad we at least still have the pictures.)

Anyway, I really love the heart of this show and still watch the reruns, and odds are good I'll still watch them if it's on 10 years from now!

The cast changed so much through the years - their personalities and their sense of fashion! lol  But so did everyone who watched the show, because a lot happens in 10 years!

So in honor of the 10 year anniversary, here are 10 random fun Friends quotes:

"Pi-VOT!!"  ~Ross

"Is it short for anything... like Ross-topher?"  ~Joey
"No, it's just Ross."  ~Ross
"Oh... pretty."  ~Joey

"Damn the jellyfish!  Damn ALL the jellyfish!!"  ~Monica, after being stung

"Well, that's not even a real fish.  No, that's a Goldfish cracker!"  ~Chandler

"Okay, Hannibal Lector... better roommate than you!"  ~Chandler

"Well, this is kinda out of the blue, don't you think?"  ~Eddy
"This is SMACK-DAB in the middle of the blue!!" ~Chandler

"Stephanieeeee knows all the chords!"  ~Phoebe

"She liked what she saw, did she?  Checkin' out the Chan-Chan man!?"  ~Chandler
"That was... surreal."  ~Rachel

"When is my birthday?  ...Would you care to venture a guess?"  ~Benjie (Greg Kinnear)
"(Picks a random date)"  ~Ross
"That's...not even kinda close!!"  ~Benjie

"What a great time to be alive! Look at this plate-bouncy thing. (Bounces the plates) What an inspired solution to man’s plate-dispensing problems!"  ~Parker (Alec Baldwin)

Memory Monday ~ Top 10

 Another round of randomness. :)

1.  I really miss the days of Lifegroup at Blake's house!  This was obviously a party night of some sort, and I know it was the first night I had my new DSLR camera with me. :)  So many good lifegroup memories there - my favorites probably being the prayer circle nights with "popcorn prayers."  

2.  The cute blue punch (tasted like Skittles, really good) at the baby shower for Jace!  This was a Pinterest idea Rach had seen, and I think it turned out really cute! :)

3.  The chairs Mom and I made for Emily's sorority sisters - they turned out SO cute, I think!!

4.  Reagan as a precious puppy!  (And Danielle holding her. lol)

5.  Celebrating Easter Sunday night at Bobbi's house! :)

6.  JEM inviting us over for the first time and baking his now famous sopapilla cheesecake! :)  (This night was also memorable for the infamous cockroach incident! lol)

7.  Group hug for Tara Lynn when we came to help her move and see her new place in OKC! (She's actually moved again now this past week).

8.  Getting the water balloons ready for the Eugene Field cookout! lol  This was a fun night, and a fun/memorable day afterward too! :)

9.  Summer cookout with the Wallaces and Lemieux's!  (Bill and Bill talking by the waterfall - no doubt being hilarious - whilst Dad cooks and Rach is getting ready to bring some of the steak in.) :)

10.  Hero Factor concert at Utica Square!  I went with Laura, but I knew a surprising amount of people there.  It was the first time Jennie Curran and I got to hang out much, and I remember she bought me a drink at Starbucks bc my wallet was in my car. :)  We also hung out with Erica and Audrey a bit - Audrey cracks me up!  I love seeing what she's up to on Erica's FB. :)

Finally, this is a youtube video that's gone viral now, and everyone seems to love it.  (I don't.)  To be fair, all of these "Spoken Word" things seem obnoxiously superior and pretentious to me, even and maybe especially the Christian ones.  I get the idea of "engage in relationships and don't spend life glued to your cell phone or computer."  I support that.  But I found the implication that technology has emptied our parks really irritating - what parks is this guy visiting?  As well as the idea that everyone only presents their best self rather than being real about their imperfections online.  Not true, especially in the blogging community.  You can truly connect through reading and writing.  It may not always be the best way, but it is a form of genuine connection for many people.  (Many people who don't spend their nights in total isolation because of it.)  I have great friends and we hang out and talk often.  Mostly, we plan our hangouts and keep in touch through the week through texts, Facebook, or email.  If you happen to be texting a friend or reading an email or looking at Facebook or reading YouVersion rather than starting up conversations with strangers in a waiting room, I don't think that's a waste of time or dooms you to a life of isolation.  The dramatic ending implying that you will miss out on marriage, children, grandchildren, and blissful purpose and fulfillment because you happened to be looking at your phone while your future spouse walked by... overboard ridiculousness.  I think the underlying idea is that people need to have discretion and heart and character, and to form friendships with people who genuinely care about them.  It's just stated in a way that makes it seem like those deeper relationships will automatically result if you stop using your cell phone.  So anyway, no shame or false guilt about that here!

Anywho, have a lovely week.  Happy Monday!

Photo Friday & Quotables!

The cute Frozen 5k meme I made for Rach (not my original idea, obviously, but the white words were hard to read, so I made the font pink and changed the lyrics a bit).  We're both doing the Couch to 5k (C25K) program right now and planning to do the Tulsa Run together in October!  (There are no good July/August races, and we figured that'd keep us training longer anyway.)  Get excited!!

And since it's "Photo Friday," I've randomly decided today to become an Instagrammer.  It's basically just sharing pictures with captions and annoying hashtags, but it seems like a good way to store photos and to have a fun slideshow link on this blog. =)

I had the cavities on the left side of my mouth filled yesterday.  Always entertaining times with Dentist Neil (& nitrous)! :)  I took a pic with him and Amanda afterward - but I was numb so I couldn't smile correctly.  He said "Let's all droop our mouths since Lindsey can't smile." lol  ...Hence, I'm laughing and look even worse. lol

Take 2 was a bit better. :)  He's such a mess. lol  He and his staff must have so much fun!

"Wow, what do you think caused it? Getting stressed out over nothing, maybe?" ~Dentist Neil, when I explained that I was nervous because I'd had Bells Palsy on that side of my face before... apparently, he didn't see it as an issue! lol

"I keep getting on Gina to write a story like Harry Potter. Then we'd be all set and I could retire."  ~Neil
"Well, did you give her some good story ideas?"  ~Me
...a few minutes later...
"Oooh, I have a story! (holding both hands with dental tools in the air dramatically)! There's this girl who's like in her mid-20s, and she has two Pomeranians - one kinda brownish and one kinda whitish.  And she comes home one day, and they've been smashed!!"
"Like, drunk?"  ~Amanda
"No, like squished."  ~Neil
Me, Amanda, Jessica, and Heidi:  "Whaaaat??  No!"
Neil:  "No, it's okay.  The real Pomeranians make a comeback in the end. Those were just imposter Pomeranians; see!?   .....so what do u think?"
Me:  "Best Seller!" :)

"He confesses!? That was dumb! .....He goes to jail!? Well how many people died?"  ~Neil (discussing the movie Flight with Amanda)
"Like four."  ~Amanda
"I'd have to kill way more than four people if I'm gonna go to jail!"  ~Neil  

We also spent a ridiculous amount of time looking up videos his son likes - including this gem, "Beavers Are My Friends," which he sang, complete with hand motions! :)


"So do the faction systems just disappear and go away completely?"  ~Amanda to me (she's on book 2 of the Divergent trilogy)
"Wait, before you tell her that, DON'T tell her that!! She wouldn't even tell me the smallest details when I had questions after the movie!"  ~Neil

"Yeah, you get married and you see all these parents with their kids who basically fall off the face of the earth, and you're like, "Not me! I'll still be social. I can beat the odds!" ...But then you have a kid.  ...I'm just saying, you better like who you're married to because they're the only person you're gonna talk to for a while!  That's a little glimpse into your future."  ~Dentist Neil :)

"Is he in a mood today?"  ~Me
"He's always in a mood. He has more PMS than any woman I know!"  ~Lauralai

"Yeah, maybe I'll like yoga better when I start to feel a little..... smmmaller.  I couldn't think of another word for it." Lol  ~Talhia

"Yeah, he was hoping to become a State Farm agent, but since that didn't pan out, he went for the NBA."  ~Bill Lemieux, teasing Dad, talking about KD :)

"This is very poisonous ... But I'm gonna give it a little kiss. On the fang."  ~Chet, imitating the Croc Hunter lol

"It was okay. But on Facebook, it was a 'HUGE success!'  ...Don't judge me."  ~Chet, about his first open house :)

"The thing with those jeans is, no matter how wrinkly they are, when I put them on, they're like jeggings!!"  ~Chet again, cracking me up because I totally get it!

"See, Evan has this problem called Dad jeans. Jessica's been really open about it."  ~Chet, after insisting that Evan try on his jeans

"Karli and I are on a budget now, so I can clip my own toenails."  ~Chet, on why he's skipping the pedicures for a bit

"Never would I have thought a pair if my pants would've been the light at the end of the tunnel."  ~Chet, after the fashion show was a success! lol

"He's a bundle of entertainment!!"  ~Me, describing Chet to Chelsea

"It must be so exciting to live your life as a Roman numeral!"  ~Lauralai, referring to my LCM initials! :)

"I don't want to like it, but I like this song."  ~Me, when Blurred Lines came on the radio
"Oh, I know!  It's terrible and rapey, but it's got a fun beat."  ~Laura
Cut to us both dancing and humming along to it. lol

Okay, that's all for today.  Chet and Dentist Neil kinda dominated that Quotables. lol

Happy Friday!  Seeing Spiderman 2 with Tiffany tonight - yay Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone!! =)  And Happy Game 7 for the Thunder tomorrow night!!