Enough about me...

I feel that my posts recently have been all about me. Well, this is my blog, but I'm tired of talking about me. Please enjoy these amazing photos courtesy of Pink Wallpaper. They really make me smile!

So excited for church today. I love the series we are doing!

xoxo, E

51 years young

Happy Birthday Momma!!!

I'm so glad you're here this weekend for us to celebrate!!

Olive you!

xoxo, LRH

Top 10 Clues

For the first time in 3 weeks, the Top 10 list is on time.

The Top 10 Clues as to What I'm Doing Tonight...

1. Well Momma is back here in the midwest. She's Got a Way About Her, and I'm so glad to have Mommacita here for the weekend. It's her birthday on Saturday! I love you, Just the Way You Are.

2. I'm in a New York State of Mind. 11 days until my interview at IMG World!!

3. I've got a paper due in my "legal and ethical principles of mass media" class tomorrow. These papers are based around ethical dilemmas, we do not determine whether or not someone is An Innocent Man.

4. When Mere and I were driving back from lunch last Saturday, there was so much smoke in the intersection. We thought it was fog at first, but the burning smell convinced us otherwise. I don't know what happened, but I know that We Didn't Start the Fire.

5. I haven't had a date w/ my bloggie (and real life) friend Megan in The Longest Time.

6. The Stranger (aka homeless man) on the side of the road was holding a sign that read "Homeless Yet"... well I thought that's what it said. Mere chuckled and said, "It says 'Homeless Vet'." We laughed so hard, and I'm lucky the inside of my car is not covered in the Diet Dr Pepper that I was attempting to drink at that time. **Please do not think we were laughing at the man's situation, we were laughing at my blonde moment**

7. I do not feel any half marathon Pressure right now. I am back on track with my training following my surgery!!

8. Check out my friend David's pooch being a regular Piano Man.

9. I feel like a real Uptown Girl when I wear my Valentine's gift: a lovely quilted Burberry coat.

10. Momma and I are Movin' Out to see a Big Shot who would be proud that we are going out on a school night, after all, Only the Good Die Young.

Well I sure do hope you figured it out by now. Tonight is the Face 2 Face concert. We are so excited to see Billy Joel and Elton John!! Now, I think it's clear from the song titles in each clue that I'm a Billy fan. I blogged here and here that I wanted to see him in concert. Well, I get my chance tonight!! Thank the Lord the concert in OKC was rescheduled (it was supposed to be the day before Thanksgiving) because now I'm able to go!!!

I. Can't. Wait. To. See. This.

xoxo from someone who desires to be "the girl"

in SO many Billy Joel songs, E

Mind moving a mile a minute

How is that title for alliteration?

But seriously, I feel like my mind is spinning in a million and a half directions.

Currently:

1. I'm wondering why in the world I decided it was a good idea to run my first half marathon. It is HARD!

2. I feel so torn between what I need to do and what I really want to do. Seriously, the pull towards what I want is so strong right now that I don't even know how to move forward. (I apologize for being so vague and emo there)

3. I am in love with Taylor Swift at this moment. What is it about feeling "perfectly fine" that makes us wish for a few bumps in the road?

"But I miss screaming and fighting and kissing in the rain. It's 2am and I'm cursing your name. You're so in love that you act insane, and that's the way I love you. It's a roller coaster kinda rush. And I never knew I could feel that much, And that's the way I loved you."

4. We learned all about lent at church on Sunday. I honestly knew very little about these 40 days leading up to Easter. All I knew is that my friends gave up video games, Facebook, cussing (I find this one a bit interesting, but whatever), etc. However, Jason taught us that there are 3 aspects of lent: becoming more intimate with God, recognizing where we are saying no to God and yes to Self, and finally increasing faith.

After the sermon, I made the choice to give up dessert. I felt like this was something that would be (very) difficult for me and something that I would really need to find strength in God to continue. Man oh man. Have the last 3 days been unreal. I have honestly had a pretty easy time avoiding temptation, but my relationship with God has changed SO much. I have woken up randomly around 5am the past two nights (I am NOT a morning person) and felt called to prayer. After falling back asleep for a bit, I feel so refreshed when I wake. I just know that God has some amazing plans for me in these 40 days. I can't wait :)

5. After talking with a friend, we realized that there is so much to do for a project in one of our classes that it's easier to just avoid it all together. Bad idea? Heck to the yes! Haha

Get excited, tomorrow is a very special "top 10" list. I think you'll really enjoy it!

Ready for day 4 of getting to know God! xoxo, E

a little birdie

Tweet. Tweet.

I broke down and joined Twitter.

You can check me out here if you like. I'm still getting used to it, but I'm already obsessed with getting tweets on my iPhone. In addition to the fashion and entertainment twitters I follow, I also get news!

Get excited for Thursday's "Top 10" list! xoxo, E

I'm not a gambler...

I've been to Vegas...

gambled once...

lost money...

hated it...

Today, I lose my last bargaining chip. Today, I say "So long stitches!!"

I have had a great sense of humor about my melanoma diagnosis... post surgery that is. I was laying in bed the day after my surgery and asked Momma to get something for me. After giving me the Momma look, I said, "But Moooooommmmmmmma, I just had surgery for cancer!" This was followed by a giggle from me and a "milk it while you can!" from Momma.

Fast forward a few days: Marcus and I were discussing what movie to see on Free Movie Night. I didn't want to go, but told him that I would go if we could get sushi first. He started to argue, but I looked at him and said, "You do know that I just had surgery for cancer, right?" Hehe.

(for those of you that might be questioning my joking attitude about the situation, just think of it as a coping mechanism? LOL. Plus, by this point, I knew the doctor got all the cancer and it was no longer a presence in my body)

Ok, fast forward a bit more: Marcus and I are leaving for Free Movie Night and he talked me (well, more like dragged me kicking and screaming) into seeing "Dear John." We ran into a couple of guy friends on the way and they asked what we were going to see. I told them that Marcus was making me go see "Dear John." After we got in the car, M looks at me and says "Well thanks for throwing me under the bus! You are so lucky you just had cancer, otherwise I'd be really mad!" I'm not sure I've laughed that hard in a while. I loved it!

So, today is the last day for me to pull out the line, "But I just had surgery for cancer! The stitches haven't even been removed." Oh well! On to bigger and BETTER things!!

So long stitches!!

xoxo, E

I love the olympics

Every two years I get incredibly excited for the olympics. I love both the summer and winter games. This year is no different.

I particularly enjoy hearing the stories of the athletes, even if they aren't from the US. The stories allow me to become emotionally involved in the different sports, beyond the sheer entertainment factor.

I loved this moment at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics.

Alexandre Bilodeau won the gold medal for freestyle skiing men's moguls. He was the first Canadian to win gold on home soil at the Winter Olympic Games. What an honor... and such a special moment!!

His story was one that made me even more excited for his win. Alexandre's older brother has celebral palsy and serves as an inspiration. After the Torino games, when Alexandre placed 11th, his brother told Alexandre just how proud he was. Alexandre said, "Did you not just see what I did out there in front of millions of people?" Frédéric (his brother) replied, "You came to the Olympics. You did what you wanted to do."

Well, get excited Frédéric, baby brother did so much more than that this year!!

This was my other favorite moment. Evan Lysacek won gold for the US in Men's Figure Skating.

He knew at the end of his program that he had done what he came to the Olympics to do. It was such a cool thing to watch.

My absolute favorite moment of Evan's experience at the Olympics was watching his reaction when he found out he won.

It took at good 15 seconds for it to register. It was amazing.

The Olympics are so special. Mere and I were discussing yesterday that the Olympics are, for two weeks every two years, how the world should be. We are impassioned with pride in our country. There is a healthy competition and a unifying of countries.

Happy Sunday! xoxo, E

This week's Top 10

The Top 10 things I love about being a blogger:

1. I was reconnected (and able to stay in touch) with two childhood friends: The Company She Keeps and Polka Dots and Protein Bars

2. I was introduced to Kate and her adorable Flapperdoodle drawings.

It's no secret that I just love them. In fact, she's working on another custom piece for me. The theme of the project is a secret for now, but don't worry, I'll share it with you once it's done!!!

3. I have formed friendships with people I do not even know! Who would have thought that I would have "strangers" praying for me and sending me well wishes?! It has been such a blessing.

4. I have learned so much about interior design, men's fashion (Nicolas, that's your blog, lol), cooking, and...

5. ... missions in Africa. I made this a separate one because it is heavy on my heart right now. I'm not sure if I shared this with you all yet or not... Over our recent snow days, I spent a great deal of time reading Katie's blog. I started from day one and read through all of her posts.

I was so moved and drawn to read other blogs about various missions in Africa. The list also includes:

Pitter Patter Art

(check out whose name appears in this post. I'm so excited to wear my new shirt when I go to Africa!!)

We Love Our Lucy

My Crazy Adoption

**I have a favor to ask of you my dear readers... Please check out this page on Kari's blog. They are in the process of raising funds to adopt their second child from Ethiopia. We exchanged a few emails last night and they need to sell 1,000 shirts to move forward in the process. I just love the shirts and ordered this one...

I love the tiffany blue color!

This is the back of the men's shirt. Love it.

I hope some of you will order a shirt and support Kari and her family. I'm definitely not in a position to help an orphan in a big way, but I like to think I'm making a difference in the life of Kari's future daughter!

Ok, back to the list...

6. I love having an online journal. I love to write down my feelings, stories, and share whatever I'm obsessed with at the moment. However, I stink at written journals because I'm such a perfectionist when it comes to my handwriting.

7. I get to share my creativity... which leads me to expressing the desire that I have to make my blog a bit snazzier. So many of my bloggy friends have adorable, customized blogs. I think I want to do this as well. Do any of you have designers that you recommend?

8. Sharing with you makes me happy. When I take the time to share stories or feelings with you, I have the opportunity to analyze how I feel or relive the funny moments.

9. I get my daily fix of cupcakes without all the calories via Cupcakes Take the Cake

10. I got infected with bloggy fever because of my friend Kelsey. And I've passed along the fever... a few of my friends have started their own blogs as well!

Happy Friday to you all! Don't forget to check out Kari's shirts!!

xoxo, E

p.s. I turn 22 in exactly 2 months!! Eek!!

Are you a follower of my blog?

The subject of this post is a question that came to mind yesterday afternoon.

Are you a follower of my blog?

And who did I ask this question of?

Oh, just God.

"God, are you a follower of my blog? Cause I'm pretty sure you answered a request in one of my posts." He must have read my Shaking in My Boots post because when I checked my email yesterday I had a pleasant surprise waiting for me. I got an e-mail from IMG World (they produce Mercedes Benz Fashion Week... that's the fashion week that everyone talks about) that said I had been selected for an interview for a summer intern position in NYC.

I'm pretty sure I started dialing the parents before I finished reading the email on my iPhone.

This is THE dream internship. Once again, I'm shaking in my boots... but it's an excited nervous, not an anxious one. My interview is March 8th!! Eek!! I'm SOOOOOO excited!! NYC here I come for the summer!! I'm wishin'... I'm hopin'... I'm thinkin'... I'm prayin'

Happy Thursday!! xoxo, E

p.s. I know this is the second week in a row that I haven't posted a Top 10 list on a Thursday, but I promise it'll come tomorrow. I just couldn't wait to post this exciting internship news.

p.p.s. even MORE exciting news... the pathology report came back and I'm cancer free!!! Hooray for skilled surgeons and an awesome God! I kicked cancer's asK once again!!! (hehe, if you haven't seen this video you've GOT to watch it. It explains the asK rather than the other word you probably expected to see)

No Way, Jose!!

No

Non

No Way

Nuh-uh

Nope

Nein

Not gonna happen

Heck to the No

No, thank you.

"Hey Elizabeth, will you _____?"

"Yes!!"

Even with all of the options listed above, I can never say "No."

I like to say that this is a genetic defect. Momma has it too. Hehe. This usually leads to an exorbitant degree of stress.

Recently, I've realized I have too much on my plate, and my surgery solidified that feeling. I had to meet with a very dear friend yesterday and tell him that although I had said "yes" to spearheading a project for him, I needed to now say "no." Ugh, can I please tell you that saying no after saying yes is WORSE than just saying no in the first place? Friend was SO understanding and totally agreed that I needed to focus on myself and school first, but I felt horrible!

Goal for myself: Learn to say "no" from the start.

Happy Tuesday! xoxo, E

Shaking in my boots...

Do you ever get crazy nervous?

Now, I'm not talking about the occasional butterfly or when your heart skips a beat...

No. What I'm asking is, do you ever get that "oh my gosh I might just pass out, my hands are literally shaking, I think I might vomit, and I'm breaking out in hives" feeling?

I do.

Not terribly often. But it happens when I find that I really care about something.

The latest proponent of this feeling...

the summer internship application process.

No, it's not a boy. This post just happens to fall the day after Valentine's. Hehe.

Like O.M.G. The nerves are enough to knock me over.

Wait, that doesn't really make sense.

But still, do you get my drift?

I hate the waiting process. I have ZERO patience. I just want to know what I'm doing this summer!! It'd be one thing if I didn't really want to intern anywhere. But I have found a few places where I REALLY want to work... that's when these awful nerves kick in. Eek! Pray for me?

On a separate note... a surgery update:

Things are going well here. This patient is healing, and I get my stitches out in a week. Woot! Thank you for all your prayers and love! It is MUCHO appreciated :)

xoxo, E

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

xoxo, E

Eye Love Ewe

Q Tee Pie

(photo from: Cupcakes Take the Cake)

Belated Top 10

It's late, but it's here...

The Top 10 things that I'll remember from this week...

1. Because Papas is a pilot, Mommacita was able to fly to OKC in time for my surgery. Within 2 hours of finding out my surgery had been moved up 2 days, she was at the airport.

2. I had surgery to remove 1 spot of melanoma and another spot that was questionable. Both were surgically removed as if they were melanoma.

3. In prep for my surgery, I had five shots of numbing medicine in my arm and three shots in my chest.

4. I reenacted the "Charlie bit me" video while on the operating table... complete with the British accent. I wish I could blame it on laughing gas or Valium, but sadly, it was just me being me :)

5. I had some great visitors... who I blame for the weight I put on this week...

Mere gave me a care package of Twix, Reese, Double Mint Gum, and magazines

Roomie brought me a City Bites Soonerdoodle cookie

Kendra brought me 2 cupcakes from Ruth's

Marty brought me cookies from Ruth's

(as well as a book... food for the mind!)

Danielle brought a red velvet cuppie from Saturn Grill

Marcus, Jeff, Lyonel, and Zach came to visit as well.

6. I came up with a great system for sleeping on my back

7. Momma and I got a record number of phone calls/text messages from friends checking in on me

8. I've watched 6 movies from Blockbuster w/ Momma:

Love Happens

The Invention of Lying

Couples Retreat

The Time Traveler's Wife

Amelia

The Hurt Locker (we still have to watch this one)

Tomorrow we're going to see: Valentine's Day and When In Rome

9. I'm incredibly pleased with my incisions so far

10. I realized I might actually be a "runner." I miss my training SO much and hope I can be back running again after my stitches are out in a week and a half. Eek!!!

Thank you all for your comments and prayers! xoxo, E

Slight change of plans...

There's been a slight change of plans...

my surgery is tomorrow morning (Tuesday)

I'll probably be out of blogger commission for the week.

Still smiling through the storm :)

xoxo, E

God is bigger than we'll ever know...

Well, I'm back from Dallas, and I was just getting caught up on the blogs I follow. I hope it's okay with Megan that I mention her, but after reading her most recent post here, I have no doubt that God is so much bigger than we will ever know!

Those of you that have been following my blog for a while now know that I was diagnosed with Melanoma in August, had surgery, and the doctor got it all. Hooray! Since then I have been super-paranoid and go to the dermatologist every time I notice anything that might be odd. It's a bit ridiculous...

Well, I went last Wednesday and saw the doctor's PA. To be completely honest, I thought, "Is it a waste of time seeing the PA when the doctor is a cancer specialist?" However, Jill was absolutely amazing. She did a head to toe (literally) exam. She understood my concern and said, "If you think a spot looks weird, and I think it looks weird, let's just take it off." She was so sweet and put me at ease. After removing 3 spots to be biopsied, she said, "No news is good news but you can always call us in a week to double check." After I left, I wrote a note in my calendar to call next Thursday.

Fast forward 44 hours... I'm sitting in Business Statistics watching the clock tick, eagerly awaiting 11:50am because I would then hit the road to Dallas to meet Momma for our girls weekend. My phone started ringing and I did not recognize the number on the caller ID. However, when it was a 405 area code (here in OKC) and they left a voicemail, I decided to excuse myself from class to listen to the voicemail. "Hi Elizabeth, It's "name" from "Dr. Name's" office. Please call me when you can." There are no words to describe the feeling after hearing that message. It was a mix of nausea, dizziness, and utter despair. I walked back into class, fighting tears, and I have no idea what the professor said for the remaining 10 minutes.

When 11:50 (finally) arrived, I booked it out of class. However, the motivation had changed. I called the nurse back immediately and she delivered the bad news. The spot on my arm was melanoma and the spot on my chest was dysplastic (an abnormal development of cells). The doctor scheduled surgery for Thursday at 8:00am to take 1cm on all sides of the spot on my arm and 5mm on all sides of the spot on my chest. As I walked to my car, all I could say was, "Okay... Okay... Okay... thank you... I'll be there."

I got in the car and immediately called my dad.

"Hey there Sweetie."

"Daaaaaaaaaad...."

"Uh oh, what's wrong?"

"The dermatologist just called..." ::tears, tears, tears, unintelligible speech::

**Dad was a total champ. He listened, spoke calmly, and kept me calm.**

About an hour and a half into my drive to Dallas, Momma's airplane landed and she called.

We spoke for only a moment because we were both crying and decided to talk details once I got to the hotel in Dallas.

All this is to say that I know God has amazing plans for Thursday of this week. Thursday is the day that Megan from "In This Wonderful Life" will find out the report for the left side of baby Cohen's heart... and it's the day that I am convinced I will once again be cancer free. I have complete faith the doctor's will get it all.

Like Megan's most recent post, this is not a sad post, but rather a post acknowledging God's complete control.

If there was any doubt, I'm convinced the first hour of music playing on the radio for my drive to Dallas was picked especially for me.

I cried, smiled, and cried some more as I sang along and was reminded of how amazing God is:

You are God alone

from before time began

You were on your throne

You are God alone

And right now,

in the good times and bad

You are on your throne

You are God alone

- "You are God Alone" Phillips, Craig, and Dean

I was sure by now, God, that You would have reached down
and wiped our tears away,
stepped in and saved the day.
But once again, I say amen
and it's still raining
as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away.

And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands

for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

- "Praise You In This Storm" Casting Crowns

In Christ alone I place my trust 

And find my glory in the power of the cross 

In every victory, let it be said of me 

My source of strength, my source of hope Is Christ alone

- "In Christ Alone" Brian Littrell

I hope this provides you with the hope that it has for me over the last few very difficult days. 

Here I stand in awe of YOU, God. 

xoxo, E

The Top 10 Things I Love About a Weekend in Dallas...

1. Making my packing list

(and checking things off)

2. Making an iTunes playlist

This one starts with a song from Shrek: The Musical

Shrek

You know, this may turn into the longest day of my entire life

Donkey

Oo! I got the perfect remedy for that!

Shrek

Donkey please no. I am begging you-

Donkey

Sing a song

Yes a travel song

when you gotta go somewhere

'Cause the fun is getting there.

Yeah. Oh what the heck, I must confess

I love a road trip!

3. I love to pack up the car, especially because I get to use my adorable tote bags! There are no luggage restrictions when driving!!!

4. I enjoy the peaceful drive along I-35

5. Pokey O's!! Talk about the world's best ice cream sandwich.

pick a cookie flavor + flavor of Blue Bell ice cream = HEAVEN

6. Shopping at the Impeccable Pig and Northpark!!

7. Trying out a new restaurant, a suggestion by Mere and Linds: La Duni!

8. Spending quality time with Momma!!

9. Having a mini-vacation!!

10. Getting to use my reuseable bag that roomie gave me!! SO cute!

It's almost the weekend!!! xoxo, E

p.s. we are supposed to get snow today, tomorrow, Sunday, and Monday... Stop It Oklahoma!!!!

I love box DVDs

I'd like to blame my friend and co-worker, Charlie, for getting me hooked on more TV shows.

First, it was One Tree Hill.

I watched 3 seasons during finals week last semester, and I watched the last 3 the first week of school this semester. I'm waiting for the current season to come out on DVD to get caught up.

Now, it's Dexter.

It was the topic of conversation at our extended family's Christmas get together. So, when Charlie mentioned that he had the first season on DVD, I jumped up and down and asked him to bring it for me to watch. I started it last night and am watching another episode as I type.

It's a neat premise: Dexter is a forensic specialist in blood spatter analysis at crime scenes. Yet, he takes his job one step further and goes after murderers that were not convicted. He's a serial killer that rids the world of the scum. It's got quite a bit of gore and VERY dry humor. I'm a fan so far :-)

Happy Tuesday! xoxo, E

Whispers from God... I'm serious.

So, I know that God is VERY busy, but I am convinced He had a good little chuckle this morning. And He definitely had a hand in setting up the joke.

First, a little backstory... The day was January 11th, the place was Meredith's room, the goal was to go through all of her new clothes for student teaching. She pulled out a few adorable dresses, then an orange long sleeve shirt and brown J.Crew puffer vest!!

"OMG! Mere, I have both of those!!"

"They look way cute together!"

"Great! I'll wear it on the first day of school in your honor!"

Fast forward to today.

::Knock, Knock::

"Come In!"

I peek around the corner of my room...

SHRIEKS!!!

Me: "I KNEW this was going to happen!!!"

Result: We had on the exact same outfit.

~

~

~

~

~

~

~

~

One quick-change later, we were ready to leave for church.

Fast forward a few more hours. Mere and I met up to go to the gym.

::Knock, Knock::

"Come In!"

Mere walks into my room.

Me: "Shut up! We have on the same shirt! This is out of control!!!"

Thank you Lord for "double-over, shed tears, unable to speak" quality laughter