instagrams lately.

life lately, via instagram

i would rather live in a world where my life is surrounded by mystery

 than live in a world so small that my mind could comprehend it.

-harry emerson fosdick-

peace & love

baily



a week with the little man!

I've been away... obviously.  And I have chronic writer's block... I get to the end of my rope sometimes and give up on trying to make sense of a post.  Then I let so many days get away from me that I just think "what's the use!?" Then, I have an emotional breakdown because I haven't had my dose of blog therapy and I wonder why I do it to myself. 

I don't even know what all I have to catch everyone up on.  But lots of you follow me on Twitter and I still get my tweet on so you know I'm alive and... busy!

I went to Birmingham last weekend for Grayson's baby dedication.  I wasn't supposed to get there until late Thursday and leave Sunday afternoon.  BUT, at breakfast on the MONDAY before... I got a wild hair and changed my flight for that afternoon.  In two hours I was packed and checked in at the Southwest Airlines terminal.  I got to spend almost an entire week with the little man!

We had some very special Aunt Sissy time. We already have such a neat relationship! I brought Ash & Tyler some movie vouchers to lure them out on a date one night - which allowed me to spoil little precious for a few hours all to myself!  It was so much fun!  They went to dinner and a movie (only their second date since he was born 3 months ago) while Grayson and I played, watched the CMA's, danced, sang songs, and changed a lot of diapers!!  We had one "blow-out" but nothing Aunt Sissy couldn't handle.  I am grateful for my couple years as a 'nanny' in college for teaching me how to change a diaper super fast... but those little boy wee-wee's will get you when you aren't looking! ;)

Ashley was better about blogging than I was while I was there.  Check out her baby posts at her blog!

Mom and Dad flew in on that Thursday - when I was supposed to travel with them - and on Saturday some of our family from North Carolina came in.  It was so fun!  I loved seeing everyone's expression when they saw how much he has grown since we welcomed him into the world on August 16th.  It hurts my heart that I am not there to see him grow each day... but his Mom and Daddy keep me updated with plenty of pictures and videos.  And of course, we've got Grayson on Skype now too! :)

Sunday was the dedication and the purpose of us all being there.  It was such a memorable experience to witness my sister and her husband dedicate their life to raising their child in a Godly home.  Grayson was absolutely HANDSOME!

Grayson caught his first (of MANY!) Tar Heel basketball games while we were there.  The Jones side of his family are diehard Tar Heels (it's the other side of the family that dressed him in that Gamecock attire up there) and we watched the Carrier Classic on Veteran's Day as a family.  The game was between Michigan State and UNC on board the USS Vinson - such an amazing tribute!

I seriously am nephew-obsessed!!!

Anyways, that's where I was last week and then this week I just ignored catching up. Sorry!

Now, I'm enjoying a week with the boyfriend in Florida! Love how he's always willing to come see me.  We absolutely ROCK the whole long-distance thing!

I'll write more later.  Just wanted to catch you up on my little boogie boy!

peace and love

xoxo

BAILY

Girls Like Us

I love being girls like us...

WILW

I'm loving that this week is halfway over and we are one day closer to

THE GAME OF THE CENTURY

Unless you've been living under a rock, you know how big this game is.

Roll Tide!

I'm loving this book! My dear friend Maggie sent this to me on Monday and I'm almost done with it already.  I've sorta slowed down my reading pace while I was in the bath last night because I don't want it to end. 



Joan Didion is brilliant and perfectly captures the beauty of love and the wickedness of grief.  I encourage all who have not read this yet to read it.  It will change your life...

I'm loving that Joan Didion's new book is out this month!

(this makes finishing YOMT a little less traumatic)

I'm loving these blue dresses for the holidays...

I'm loving these words...



Have a wonderful Wednesday!!!!

xoxo

peace and love

baily

if i may say so myself...

You may think the past has something to tell you. You may think that you should listen, should strain to make out its whispers, should bend over backward, stoop down low to hear its voice breathed up from the ground, from the dead places.  You may think there's something in it for you, something to understand or make sense of.  But I know the truth: I know from the nights of coldness.  I know the past will drag you backward and down, have you snatching at whispers of wind and the gibberish of trees rubbing together, trying to decipher some code, trying to piece together what was broken.  It's hopeless.  The past is nothing but a weight.  It will build up inside of you like a stone. 

 

Take it from me, if you hear the past speaking to you, feel it tugging at your back and running its fingers up your spine, the best thing to do - the only thing - is run.

 

Lauren Oliver, Delirium

weekly recap

weekly recap

(originally found at Letters From Coco )

in one word or phrase:

 "the norm"

i'm dreaming of you:

Charlotte, NC

Bama beating LSU on 11/5

This clutch...

via Pinterest (Eddera Aurelie elephant clutch)

song(s) on repeat:

"Anne Marie"

(American Aquarium)

Late night call from an old friend

Her voice it was shakin’ at the other end

She said, “I didn’t know who else to call”

I know he doesn’t treat her right

But she’ll crawl back in the bed tonight…

I lie awake wondering what it could have been.

Oh, Anne Marie, won’t you please please please

Tell me what has he done??

Oh, Anne Marie, I’m beggin’ you please

Get out while there’s still time to run…

Well he starts to yell when he starts to drink

And he starts a lot of trouble, never stops to think

About the damage that is being done.

Oh but one night the bourbon flooded his veins

Like a raging black river of lust and pain

That’d be the last time that he’d raise his hands

Well she was shakin’ like a rocket on the boulevard

And her tears they were cold but her eyes they were hard

She returned that angel to the bedside drawer…

Then she packed her bags and she moved away

You know he’s the only reason that she ever stayed

Now she’s out there livin’ on the run…

Oh, Anne Marie, won’t you please please please

Tell me what have you done??

Oh, Anne Marie, I’m beggin’ you please

Get out while there’s still time to run

Oh my telephone, it don’t ring no more

And the last I heard she’s at the Jersey shore

If I believed in God I’d pray for you…

But a prayer without belief is like a pill without relief

So I’ll just save us both a letting-down.

gotta write it down:

via Pinterest

lesson learned:

Even when I doubt my self-value and self-worth, I am reminded by my loved ones and through the Word that I am wonderfully made by the Creator and I am priceless to so many people.  I learned how simply loved I am.

highlight of my week:

Getting beautiful flowers delivered to me!

From THE most amazing guy I have ever met in my life!

I am the luckiest girl in the world...

He got his smile! :)

picture to frame:

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

weekend to-do list:

-Relaxing

-"Dash for Dogs"

-Tailgating for UCF game

-Church

-hopefully a DIY project, too!

I hope you had a groovy week!

What are YOUR weekend plans?

P & L

Baily

This Little Piggie Went To The Vet

Millie had to go to the vet's office today because her allergies are haywire, once again.

Since the day I brought her home (June 2009) she has been one big mess of environmental & food allergies.  I love her so much and I hate that she itches like she does.  I want so bad to take it all away so that she is not in discomfort, so I do my damndest to get her to the vet when her skin starts flaring up.

She itches, she loses hair, she breaks out.... but, she never once stops being a happy, bubbly, loving dog.  That is what is so awesome about her.  She has a way of inspiring me to remain happy even in uncomfortable times. 

We went to the vet today also because there was a knotty-like growth on her left hip.  I was not sure if it was something serious or if she just landed on it wrong when she's jumped so crazily for the frisbee like she does or something.  I am aware that Boxers are one of the most at-risk dogs for bone cancer, so I immediately was on high anxiety when I saw the knot.  She has had lots of problems in the past 2.5 years that we have had to fix or correct, but I had a very odd feeling going into the vet today.

But, it turns out - the problems are all the same.  The root of all this evil is her skin problems and allergies.  So, we have to switch the diet (from chicken & rice to fish & potatoes), we gotta switch up her antibiotic, and she's gonna take baths a lot more than she was, so that we can get her feeling as good as possible.  I just hate it for her!  She is the happiest and spunkiest little dog and to know that she's in pain just KILLS ME!!!

I am just so grateful it was nothing more serious or something we couldn't deal with as easily as this.  Praise God! 

I got some cute snapshots of her lately....

peace & love

baily

"He is my other eyes that can see above the clouds; my other ears that hear above the winds. He is the part of me that can reach out into the sea. He has told me a thousand times over that I am his reason for being; by the way he rests against my leg; by the way he thumps his tail at my smallest smile; by the way he shows his hurt when I leave without taking him. (I think it makes him sick with worry when he is not along to care for me.) When I am wrong, he is delighted to forgive. When I am angry, he clowns to make me smile. When I am happy, he is joy unbounded. When I am a fool, he ignores it. When I succeed, he brags. Without him, I am only another man. With him, I am all-powerful. He is loyalty itself. He has taught me the meaning of devotion. With him, I know a secret comfort and a private peace. He has brought me understanding where before I was ignorant. His head on my knee can heal my human hurts. His presence by my side is protection against my fears of dark and unknown things. He has promised to wait for me... whenever... wherever - in case I need him. And I expect I will - as I always have. He is just my dog."
- Gene Hill