Top 10 Things I Miss About Middle Tennessee

Well, it's been a month since our family relocated to Knoxville! We're slowly getting acclimated to the area and beginning meeting neighbors. I'm even going to play in our neighborhood Bunko group starting in October, so I'm very excited about this! However, there are some things I miss desperately about Middle Tennessee:

1) Family: Goes without saying!
2) Friends: Ditto
3) Our Church and Lifegroup: We are so sad Sunday afternoons thinking about Lifegroup!!
4) Publix: Yes, this is 4th on my list! I miss Publix SO much! Food City here in Knoxville is nasty!
5) Sunset Grill: Many late nights after a movie or a night out, Josh and I would stop in for their Habanero Bread Pudding. There's nothing like a spicy/sweet dessert and this bread pudding is amazing!
6) Mama Mia's: Josh and I are on the hunt for an Italian restaurant that comes close to how much we loved Mama Mia's! A $5 cork fee is unbeatable!
7) Nashville Predators: The TN Titans didn't make this list because we drive back for every home game, but it's unlikely we'll be able to make it back to any Pred's games because so many are during the week.
8) Bunko/Bunco/Girls Supper Club/Couples Supper Club: I grouped these together because truly, it's about the social aspect of getting together with friends and enjoying each others company! I miss all of you!
9) Our family physicians/vet: This is a strange one, but have you ever had to start from scratch finding your primary care doctor, your pediatrician, your obstetrician, etc? It's tough, especially when we loved our doctors in Nashville!
10) Shane, my hairstylist: My hair is so impossible to cut, that this weekend's trip to Nashville included a trip to see Shane. It's SO hard to find a stylist that can actually cut my hair properly without making me look like Gilda Radner. :) I'm not sure how long I'll continue to go to Shane, since there's a chance he's moving out of Franklin, so I've got to get on the ball and find another salon quickly!

What a Crazy Two Weeks!

Well, Josh, Addison and I are slowly getting settled into our new home. We have approximately 15 boxes left to unpack, which is a breeze considering we have already opened 50 + boxes! Slowly but surely we'll get it all done! During these two weeks, Addison has cut two teeth AND Josh and I took our annual trip to Chicago. We ate like kings and as a result, I feel like I need to go on a veggie strict diet! A good cleansing after 2 trips to Giordano's would do me good!

Maggie finally made it back with us to Knoxville. She's a bit confused but loves her back yard and we've gone on several walks to help her get acclimated to the area! We'll be back in Nashville this weekend for the Titans game and will visit the condo to make sure it's still in good shape!

Pregnant for 46 Years....

Let me preface this post: If you are pregnant or have a weak stomach, stop reading this post immediately. It's would not be wise for you to read this.



Somehow, I always find myself watching the craziest shows on TLC and The Discovery Channel. It seems they all end up about miraculous pregnancies or strange illnesses...most involving some "viewer discretion" because of the possibility of viewing something that would make the normal viewer squeamish. I LOVE these shows...you can't get me to watch a gory horror movie (i.e. "Saw"), but I'll watch a surgery on T.V. any day.

I watched a program last night on TLC entitled "Pregnant for 46 Years." It caught my attention immediately. A 75 year old woman from Morocco talked about how she was pregnant 46 years ago, went into labor and was unable to have the baby naturally. She was terrified at the thought of having a C-Section after viewing another woman die in the hospital, so she went back home!!! She labored for 3 more days and then the labor pains stopped and the baby stopped moving. Her culture believed in a "sleeping baby," so that's just what she thought it had done...gone to sleep inside of her.

Fast forward 46 years. She begins to have the same pains again and her adopted son insisted she go to the hospital. Long story short, her pregnancy had been an ectopic one, but the unique thing about it was that the baby had implanted OUTSIDE her womb and the placenta was attached to several vital organs. Apparently this is rare. They did surgery and removed a "stone" baby....a baby that dies inside the mother and then the body begins to build a calcified wall around it. This woman had carried her baby for 46 years! I couldn't help but cry...you could see everything about this baby...it's arms, fingers, etc. SO sad.

The IRONIC thing about this is that this woman LIVED because of her fear of surgeries. In 1955, if they had attempted to remove the baby and placenta, she would have bled to death because while the vital organs were able to establish an ample blood supply to the baby, those new blood vessels would never have been able to shrink back.

It's amazing what the body will do to protect itself from harm.

Opening Ceremonies

I listen to Way-FM on a daily basis, specifically their new on-air morning personality Brant. I like his program because it's entertaining, yet leans towards the intellectual side. Brant talked this morning a bit about the Olympic Opening Ceremonies that will air tonight, and about how he always gets the goose-bumps when all the countries begin their processional into the Olympic arena. I found myself nodding my head in agreement. It truly is a wonderful sight to behold...all these countries coming together in the spirit of friendly competition and peace. Brant then went on to quote a few verses from the bible: Revelations 21

24 The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the world will enter the city in all their glory. 25 Its gates will never be closed at the end of day because there is no night there. 26 And all the nations will bring their glory and honor into the city.

He said it's no wonder that we all get goose-bumps and feel a bit of excitement when we witness the pomp and circumstance of the games....it's a small glimpse of what will come when we all meet our Maker.

I got goose-bumps.

The To-Do List is Getting Shorter

We met with our real estate agent Saturday and have decided to list our home beginning August 7. The windows are in and are scheduled to be installed this week and we are setting up someone to come out and stretch/steam the carpeting. Josh is also 3/4 of the way finished pressure washing our deck. I am AMAZED at how effective a pressure washer is. The deck really does look much better! Other than these things, the only thing left we have planned is to paint the master bath. Originally, we were going to leave it as-is, but after a closer inspection have decided that it needs a fresh coat of paint. Hopefully, I'll be able to finish this at night when Addison goes down at 7.

This Wednesday is my last supper club with the girls for awhile. I'm hosting and since I have ZERO food in the house, nor do I wish to go grocery shopping, we are ordering pizza! I hope they can all see past the clutter and especially the pressure washer sitting in the kitchen!

We are officially 18 days away from closing on our new house! On top of all this, I think I'm coming down with the sniffles!

Successful Weekend

Josh and I had a successful weekend house hunting! We made an offer on a house and had 2 more we were willing to make offers on! The first home accepted our offer and we will be closing August 22. That's right around the corner! I officially have heartburn and think I may have a stroke in this whole process! Josh has purchased a home before, I haven't. This is all new to me! We are excited but the next few weeks are gonna be crazy!!! Keep us in your thoughts and prayers! Here's a couple pics of the house!

Headed East

Keep us in your thoughts and prayers. Hopefully, we will find a house this weekend! Have a good one and I'll update everyone in a few days with the results of our house hunting!