Once again, it's time for Kelly's Korner's Show Us Your Life. Today is all about our wedding party and flowers. I still don't have any professional digital pictures from our wedding, and I had trouble scanning pictures this time. So I ended up taking pictures of my pictures. Please excuse the quality! Ha!

Probably the most essential part of our wedding - the bride and groom!

Russ and I were married on June 4, 2005. This is a very special date because both our parents were married on June 4! We had MANY special moments in our wedding. The ceremony began with a beautiful version of "Amazing Grace" as a dear family friend signed the words. I absolutely love to watch Melinda sign in church. It is such a worshipful experience. Our grandparents and mothers were seated to "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring." Next, the honorary bridesmaids and ushers came in to "Great is Thy Faithfulness" played by family friends on piano and harp. Our wedding party entered to "Canon in D." We also had several children in our wedding, and they entered to "Jesus Loves Me." I walked down the aisle to "Trumpet Voluntary," and the entire congregation sang "Holy, Holy, Holy" before we exchanged our vows. It was such a moving ceremony. Of course I would say that! One of my favorite songs sung at our wedding was "When God Made You." I would not change one thing about our wedding. And, to top off the special moments, my dad - who is a pastor at my home church - married us. How many people can say that?

Me and Daddy before he walked me down the aisle

Of course, our wedding party would not be complete without showing you our families on that day.

I had 10 bridesmaids - one of those was a junior bridesmaid. Each of these girls holds such a special place in my heart and I could not imagine getting married without each one of them by our sides. Kristin, my sister, was my maid of honor. Kelly and Nikki were college roommates, and we can still pick up right where we left off! I love these girls! Rachael and Jeannie were also college friends. Kelly, Rachael, Jeannie, and I were all Chi O's together at State. Lauren and Sarah Elizabeth are special childhood friends. Clancy, my cousin, and my new sister-in-law, Jenny, also stood alongside Russ and I as we wed. Olivia served as our junior bridesmaid. I loved the bridesmaids' dresses, and I found them for a great deal at Low's! They were black strapless two-piece dresses that gathered on one side detailed with two rhinestone buttons.

Bridesmaids' bouquet

I didn't see the bridesmaids' flowers until the wedding day, and I could not have been more pleased! I trusted our friends at Sanctuary to put together something beautiful, and they went above and beyond what I had envisioned.


I also had honorary bridesmaids that I wanted to be part of the ceremony. Mary Elizabeth, Season, Lynley, and Prentiss are childhood friends. We have had some fun times and gotten in trouble many times together through the years! Marcee and Jennifer are college friends. Jennifer was my college roommate for the last couple of years I was at State. These girls chose a black dress of their choice. They each carried a single Calla Lilly. Aren't these girls gorgeous!?

Another sentimental part of our wedding was our Presenter of the Bells. My mom and a dear family friend created this bell cross. I carried a bell cross in a very special wedding, and I wanted to include this into ours. The bell cross is a symbol of our inviting God to be a part of our wedding. How special! And, we had a very special person carry our bell cross down the aisle as we listened to nothing but the jingle of the bells. Julie did a wonderful job, and she looked precious!

And, yes, we had men in the wedding! Most of our wedding party were members of our families! Ha! Russ has a large family in itself! Russ's dad served as Best Man. His groomsmen included his brother, Jimmy, and my brother, Dustin. Russ's brother-in-law, Jeff, and his two sons, Will and Seth, also served as groomsmen. Russ also chose his cousin, Nathan, to be a part of our special day. College friends, Jimbo and Adam, stood alongside Russ as he married me! And, a childhood friend and later college roommate, Eli, served as well. Our ushers (standing) were special friends to me who I wanted to include. Lee is my sister's fiance, and has become a great friend to Russ and I. A.J., Daniel, and Jason were our college "downstairs roommates." We really didn't room with boys, but they lived right below our apartment. We cooked for each other, they took care of us girls, and we became good friends. Aaron also served as an usher. He is married to Kelly, and through her (I suppose) became a special friend. We were very honored to have these guys with us on such a special day!

The children in our wedding were so precious! The flower girl, Bennett, and Julie both wore an adorable floral headpiece. The bible bearer, Barron, and ring bearer, Clay, wore cute tuxes! They all did wonderfully! Although they look so grown now! This is also probably one of the best pictures of my bouquet, pink and white peonies. I knew I wanted to carry those from the first day we were engaged! Beautiful!

Mr. and Mrs. Russ Johnson

I would love to hear more about your wedding too! So, click over to Kelly's Korner and link up! You can also see more of my wedding dress here.

One of Those Days

So yesterday I just had one of those days. You know the kind. I woke up early to the sound of my phone ringing over and over and over and over and over again by some random fax number that calls repeatedly every day for a certain amount of time...a number that I canNOT get to stop calling! After such an abrupt wake-up call, I continued my crummy day. I mean really bad! Thank goodness I was at Felicia's when most of my day transpired so I had supervision! When I came home around 7 that night, I entered to the smell and sight of a total of three - yes, THREE - spots where Farley felt the urge to urinate in my kitchen. Then I saw it. He must have decided that leaving a little poop would be a cherry on top for his weary mother! I simply put my head down on the counter, and he knew. He was hovered under a chair in the kitchen so that he could not be reached and thrown across the kitchen. I cleaned it up. Wanting nothing but to lay on the couch and rest, I walked into the living room. No rest for the weary! I looked atop my mantle to find this:


You see, we just had a new roof put on our house because of a leak. Well, it looks as if the leak is back! I know you are wondering about the color! Apparently, the best we can tell, the water dripped from the ceiling landing on my burgandy silk flower in a vase and continued to trickle (now colored) to the lovely, white mantle...leaving a stain that even Sol-U-Mel couldn't get rid of completely! BTW...Sol-U-Mel gets ANYTHING out including grease and years of nail polish off carpet. But not this. It was just a terrible day, and I'm sorry that I can't even tell you all that transpired or you might feel sorry for me! Ha! But, just trust me.

Now, I've been trying pretty hard to cause my hubby the least amount of stress possible this past month. I mean - now you may want to be seated for this part - I have had supper ready pretty much the minute he walked in the door from work almost every night. We enjoy each other's company for the hour we see each other. Then, he takes his exhausted self to bed by 9:00. The bed is always made these days so he can get into a "fresh" bed each night. I told you that you needed to be seated for all that! Ha! But last night I did none of those things.

Russ knew some of what my day entailed because I had to get his advice at one point. And my sweet hubby came home with a surprise for me!


Yep. He stopped by Blockbuster and rented a 3-D movie for me! He's the best! When I was watching the View one day last week or so, Teri Hatcher was a guest, and she was promoting this movie she was in, Coraline. We did start it. But, we were too tired to finish it. So, I don't know if it's any good. Maybe I'll watch it tonight and let you know. Anyway, Russ and I were in Walmart this past weekend, and I asked to buy it. I'm so frivolous like that! I just buy things before I see them instead of renting them. Ha! He, of course, said no. I really never thought another thing about it until he brought it home! Although my day was still bad, he made me smile!


Just one word of advice, it's very awkward trying to watch a 3-D movie in your home wearing cardboard 3-D glasses! We laughed at ourselves more than watched the movie. Or at least the little part we had on before going to bed.

So I suppose my day wasn't ALL bad. Thanks to Russ who put all his stress on hold to make me feel a little better! Thanks babe!

Wow...62 Years!

July 24, 1947 was the date my grandparents were married. 62 years ago! Wow! Yesterday afternoon, we all headed over to the nursing home to celebrate. My uncle picked up my grandfather from the assisted living complex, my cousin brought my aunt, and Russ and I met everyone there. We arrived just as the residents were getting ready for supper, so everyone waited in the hall so we would not overwhelm the other ladies. Clancy and I visited with Nonnie while she ate supper. It was a hoot! She talked nonstop. The nurses cleared the other residents out so we could celebrate in the dining room.

Clancy had to work last night and had to leave early, so we got a quick group shot before the party. Uncle Howard brought a cute cake, and Nonnie and Pops opened lots of cards from family and friends. Pops also gave Nonnie a very cute necklace. Nonnie used to always say, "You know, I'm party gypsy!" She loves jewelry. We enjoyed cake and ice cream while we visited.

Opening cards

Cute cake!

I was trying to get Nonnie to stand by Pops for a picture (you never know what she will be willing to do these days, so I was crossing my fingers) and she just plopped down on Pops's knee! When we got back in the car, Russ said, "I bet Pops felt like a young man again with Nonnie on his knee." Ha! How cute! Also notice her new necklace.

He looks pretty happy! This was right after she leaned in to kiss him.

Russ, Nonnie, and Pops

It was so special for all of us to be able to celebrate 62 years of marriage with my grandparents. One thing we have learned through these past few months is to never take one day for granted. You never know what the next day will hold!

Happy Anniversary Nonnie and Pops! We love you!

Show Us Your Life - Wedding Dress

Kelly's Korner is hosting her "Show Us Your Life" blog carnival now, and today's is on wedding dresses. So, I'm sharing pictures of my wedding dress. Now, I - like Kelly - have no professional digital pictures. I scanned a couple in myself doing the best I could. Sorry about the quality!

I absolutely LOVE my wedding dress! My goal was to find something that I would still love on my 50th wedding anniversary. I searched several places, but I was saving all my energy for Low's. Low's is a huge bridal store in Brinkley, AR. There are like five floors of wedding dresses! My mom and I drove the distance the summer before Russ and I were married. This was the last dress I tried on, and I fell in love! I would highly recommend Low's for anyone looking for your dream dress.

I wore a white strapless dress with a moderate train. Besides the crystal and silver embroidered bodice, I loved the detailing on the train. This is the best picture I could find to show you the train and veil. My veil was fairly simple with two layers edged in rhinestones. I also had a rhinestone comb that fit right above the veil. I loved it!

I love this picture with my grandparents. Nonnie actually made her dress for my mom's wedding, and she wore it for mine as well. It was back in style! The funny part of this is that my other grandmother won a beauty pageant in her dress the summer before! She did buy new shoes, but she was much too confident in this award-winning dress to buy a new one! "Pink is my color," she informed us.

We also used both our mothers' wedding dresses in the wedding. We layered the trains on the Lord's Supper Table and lined the top with beautiful white candles. It was a great way to honor them on our wedding day - which is also both our parents' anniversaries! I wish I had a picture of that.

I'd love to see your wedding dress! Just click on over to Kelly's Korner and link up!

Not Me! Monday

Last week, I DID NOT go on a mini shopping spree at Ann Taylor LOFT. I most certainly would never need to buy new clothes because I have outgrown all my old ones! No way! I exercise often, eat healthy, and lift weights daily! There is no way I would need new clothes for school! And, if I were shopping, I definitely DID NOT buy new shoes just as the cherry on top! And, I'm certainly NOT obsessed with my new duds! Nope. Not me!

Last Monday I DID NOT travel to "the other school" in Oxford for a week long teaching workshop! I would never be so productive as to spend a week in a stinky, hot, bug infested, male, elevator broken, mold growing up walls in stairs, and shower shoe necessary dorm! Yuck! Absolutely not! If I did decide to go to such a workshop with such poor accommodations, I would without a doubt NEVER take a class titled "Teachers as Actors" and expect to sit quietly in the back row! I definitely know that such a title would require constant ACTING on the part of ALL teachers involved! No way! I would NEVER take such a class with a room full of teachers from around the state! And this so called class DID NOT require me to create a commercial for an upcoming lesson and a 2 minute snippet of a lesson using ACTING SKILLS we had learned - taking on a new character and grabbing the students attention. And, if I did go to a class that required such a thing, my commercial most certainly DID NOT look like this:

I DID NOT go on a major grocery shopping adventure just to sneak a box of Snickers Ice Cream Bars in the buggy. And, my husband and I DID NOT eat the whole box full! No way! Healthy is our middle name! We would never do that! And, if we did do that - which we DIDN'T - I would NEVER go back to Kroger to restock our freezer with another box. Nope! Not me!

Saturday, my dad and I DID NOT sit outside on my back porch for over an hour, while Russ and Lee slept, and Kristin and Mama shopped, watching - no, staring at my new hummingbird feeder to catch a glimpse of any takers. I would never allow my dad to buy us a lovely feeder so that we may steal some of the 50 hummingbirds from my neighbor's three feeders. I would never be that sneaky.

Yesterday, my sweet hubby DID NOT try to cheer me up by taking me shopping! I'm certainly not one of those divas that cheers up at the sight of new merchandise. Absolutely not! And, my favorite purchase is certainly NOT my new Wallflowers from Bath and Body Works - Autumn Apple for the living room and kitchen, and Sweet Pea for the back bedrooms. I'm NOT obsessed with "smell good stuff." Nope! I don't need that stuff to make my perfect home smell good! Not me! And, in return, I DID NOT settle for watching 2 and a half hours of the new Harry Potter movie! We never make trade offs like that. We always simply do these things to make the other happy - not to get the opportunity to get what we want. Ha ha! Not us!

I DID NOT pick up the latest People magazine just because I wanted to see what drama has unfolded with Jon and Kate! I am not that desperate for entertainment that I would read such a story. That's just not me!

And last, I DID NOT pay to simply drive through the parking garage so that I could leave a cute note on Russ's car. I would NEVER spend my hard earned money on such a thing! Not me!

What have you NOT done this week?

Our "Brave" Weekend

Russ and I have had a great weekend so far! I returned from a week long teaching workshop on Thursday, just in time for my family to come in town Thursday night. Russ had to work Friday, and Mama had two presentations Friday morning. So, Daddy and I spent the morning grocery shopping and picked up a few packages at the school. We met Mama for lunch and reminisced...or rather, THEY reminisced as we drove through parts of South Jackson passing by Mama's elementary school - Barr Elementary, Farrish Street - stopping at The Mayflower for coffee, and Mama's old house off Capital Street. They also pointed out other things that I just can't remember right now.

This is where the "Brave" part starts:

Friday night Mama's side of the family had plans to all attend the Mississippi Braves baseball game. Nonnie's aunt - more like a sister to her - was very close to my mom. Her daughter, Alice, invited us all to watch the game in a suite!! It was fabulous! This was the first time I had met some of the relatives. And, since Alice and I are both "baseball freaks" we both enjoyed the game immensely! (That's for you, Alice!) Now, this is what I call watching baseball!!

Pops, Mama, and Kristin

Pops, Mama, Kristin, Aunt Patsy, Clint, Derek, and Derek's girlfriend
(Derek and Clint are Alice's sons)

Aunt Patsy and Lee

Clint, Aunt Patsy, and Uncle Howard

Everyone visiting as people arrived - there were 19 of us total!

Jack, Clancy, and Russ

We even had our own waitress! She was great!

Jack and Daddy keeping cool inside the suite

Clint, Vince (Alice's brother), and Alice watching from outside the suite

Pam and Mama - I'm pretty sure they didn't stop talking until AFTER the game was over! Ha!

Pops and me

Me and my sweet Dr. Hubby

Mama + Alice = CRAZY!!!

After the game, we enjoyed a fantastic fireworks show! It really was one of the best I've seen...besides Disney World of course! I think we got home around 11:30 last night!

Once everyone was up this morning, my family headed to Julep to eat brunch. I had never been during the day, so it was a treat for me! It was delish!!! We ate so much, Russ and I didn't eat supper until 8:30 tonight!

After a wonderful brunch, Kristin needed to look for patio furniture at none other than the discounted Big Lots! Russ, Lee, and I were still full and in no mood to shop around. We found relief as soon as we entered the store!

Such a sweet couple, don't you think? Russ said we could put this in the middle of our living room!

We looked over to see that Lee had found a spot to rest too!

Another part of our "brave" weekend was our stop to the nursing home to see Nonnie. I never know what's going to be happening when we visit her there! So, it was a "brave" thing to do! Ha! And we came just in time to see some dancing - I think they called it "exercise!" It was such fun to see Nonnie enjoying herself! She always loved to dance!

Nonnie "cuttin' a rug" with the nurse. The room was filled with other residents, watching as she shook her booty to "Rock Around the Clock"!

After our fun visit to the nursing home, Mama and Daddy reminisced some more! We stopped by the Swinging Bridge. It is closed off to cars now, and has been since Mama and Daddy were in college. But, OH the memories that must have been made here! Ha! So we did it! We "braved" the Swinging Bridge!!!

Lee, Kristin, me, and Russ on the Swinging Bridge

Mama and Daddy on the Swinging Bridge

Fun times and memories!! A "Brave" weekend!