Adventures in Bossier & Austin

Wedding bells continue to ring. Wedding #2 of the summer took place last weekend in Thomas' hometown of Bossier City, Louisiana for one of his good high school friends. Congratulations Laura and Drew! We're so happy for you!

Their reception was in the Sky Room at Harrah's Louisiana Downs, and as we were leaving Thomas and I stopped in the casino to each put $1 in the penny slots. I doubled mine [$2.02 to be exact] while Thomas lost it all. The woman at the cashier's desk teased us, asking if we wanted someone to help escort us out with my huge winnings.

We returned to Waco on Sunday and then I jumped back in the car to spend a few days in Austin. Dad invited me to join him Monday night for the monthly meeting of Austin's Professional Photographers Association, and I was really excited to hear from the guest speaker to learn more about lighting and posing. Master Photographer Doug Box spoke for close to two hours, and his hints and tips as a seasoned professional were really helpful.

On Tuesday morning, Sarah and I rolled out of bed to go downtown and stand in line for lunch at Franklin BBQ. I heard about Franklin's while working as an intern at Texas Monthly. Back then, they were serving out of a tiny teal trailer, but as their fame grew, they moved to a permanent building.

Just a few weeks ago, Bon Appétit magazine published an article about Franklin BBQ, dubbing it the "best BBQ in Texas, if not America." Sarah and I were dying to see what everyone was raving about.

We arrived at 10:30 (as per the article's recommendation) and sure enough, the line was already 100-people long. Folks toward the front of the line even had Starbucks cups in hand, evidence of their early morning stakeout to be the first customers served when the door opened at 11.

The line at 10:30. Sarah and I were just a few people past the far left edge of the building.

After an hour-and-a-half of waiting in the hot summer sun! Once we got inside, we waited for 30 more minutes before reaching the counter.

This sign went up around 11:30, much to our surprise. Employees count the number of people in line, "guesstimating" how many can be served before selling out. At this point they went to the end of the line, giving the last hopeful customer a sign that said "Last Man Standing." They were instructed to turn anyone away who came to join the line.

FINALLY inside.

Close to 1:00 p.m. when we finally emerged victorious. We took some to Mom and Dad at work so they could try it too!

Where it all began!

Sarah and I split this "two meat plate" as well as a "Tipsy Texan" sandwich (what they're famous for, on the cover of Edible Austin).

Here's my verdict: the brisket was incredibly juicy and delicious! I loved the taste of the sausage too. We really wanted to get a pulled pork sandwich, but they were sold out by the time we ordered. The Tipsy Texan was really great too, but the chopped beef had too much sauce on it for my liking. Their potato salad was reaaaaaally good!

I told Mom that I didn't feel qualified to conclude if it was in fact "the best," but it was pretty amazing. If nothing else, it was a fun experience with my little sister!

Tribute to Dad

Every time I tell my dad that I love him, he playfully pouts and asks me why. I always smile, hug him, and say something like "because I just do!" or "because you loved me first." Daddy, there are just too many reasons to list.

You are my example of strength, humility, integrity, and compassion. Your servant's heart is inspiring and you're one of the hardest working people I've ever met!

I love that we share our passion for photography, traveling, and great food, and you always have me laughing!! Thank you for everything you do and for being the man of God you are!

Happy Father's Day!

Going to the Chapel

Exactly 14 months from today, Thomas and I will be counting down the hours until we both say "I do."

14 months until I walk down the aisle on my daddy's arm, looking at Thomas with happy tears in my eyes as he waits for me at the altar.

14 months until our closest family and friends are all in one place to celebrate with us.

14 months until I'm Mrs. Reed and I get to spend the rest of my life with my best friend.

That's right. WE SET A DATE!!

August 18, 2012

We are so incredibly excited and are counting down the days until our wedding! I've had so many people say "when's the big day?!" but I didn't want to say anything until things were completely set in stone. But the wait is over!

When Thomas asked my parents for their blessing, he told them it was his intention to wait until he was done with grad school to get married. I'd absolutely marry him tomorrow if I could, but I'm so thankful for a long engagement because we'll have more time to plan. We also wanted to wait and figure out a few calendar technicalities - August 18 is the weekend after Thomas graduates and the week before my sister Sarah returns to Tech to start her senior year, so the date works perfectly!

Check out our wedding website, complete with the full proposal story for those of you who still haven't heard it!

The Unemployed Life

I've come to realize that "free time" is only truly enjoyable when you don't have it very often. Don't get me wrong. I have LOVED having time to sleep in, relax, watch TV and movies, blog, and make progress on my summer reading list. But it becomes a little monotonous after a few weeks. Dare I say, even boring. *gasp*

In order to keep myself sane, I've made daily to-do lists, regardless of how tiny the task. Laugh all you want, but I'm driven by accomplishment. At the end of the day, even if I haven't left the house, I feel like I've at least accomplished something! It may be running an errand for one of my roommates, unloading the dishwasher, sending out emails to wedding vendors, or searching for jobs. When Thomas, Alex and Allison come home from school in the evening and ask me "so, what did you do today," I can look to my list for the answer.

Speaking of the job hunt...

I'm reading through Psalm this summer and laughed out loud when I read the following verse:

"My soul is in deep aguish. How long, O Lord, how long?"

Psalm 6:3

I wouldn't describe my frustration as anguish in any way, but sometimes I think, "okay God, is a job ever going to come along?" I've had two or three "almost opportunities" and after weeks of waiting was told that another candidate was chosen. But another verse this morning reminded me that "He never forsakes those who seek him" (Psalm 9:10), so I'm trusting the One that knows it all!

I've sent out 10+ applications/resumes in the last three days, and GOOD NEWS - I had a phone interview yesterday. The position is a Marketing Coordinator job in Austin that would allow me to dabble in both marketing and PR, plus social media! Prayers are appreciated as I wait "a few weeks" for the possibility of a second interview at their office!

The other day, I accompanied Thomas and Alex to campus since they both needed to print things off for their lesson plans and schoolwork. This gave me the opportunity to visualize where they are and what they're doing during the day.

I helped Thomas with those pig vocabulary cards for his clients, and he found the sentence poster when we went shopping in Austin.

Thomas' therapy room! He has class in the afternoon, but in the morning, he has two "Camp Success" clients who are there for help with language and literacy.

Another one of my unemployment hobbies is cooking. I was so giddy after my phone interview yesterday that I decided to whip up a meal from scratch. Here are some snapshots of my creation - turkey lasagna roll-ups! [Recipe compliments of a fellow Pinterest user]

I used lean turkey instead of ground beef, and then mixed it with parmesan and ricotta cheese.

I covered the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish with roasted garlic marinara.

Cooked lasagna with turkey filling; after this, I rolled the noodle (see below).

The finished product! I covered the noodles with the remaining sauce and baked it at 375 for 30 minutes.

I made a fruit pizza for dessert! Simple simple. Just buy pre-made sugar cookie dough (or make your own), bake the dough and allow it to chill, cover the cookie with frosting (1 package cream cheese blended with 1 cup sugar and 2 tsp of vanilla extract), and then top with your favorite fruit. I used strawberries, grapes and peaches.

Before going to babysit my precious cousins tonight, I think I'll spend the afternoon with my nose in a book. I've got to enjoy unemployment while I still can!

An Early Father's Day

The weekend adventures continue! Our trip to Austin this weekend served two purposes: Thomas has come to love my hometown and always looks for an excuse to make the trip. This time he wanted to go to IKEA to find things for his new place! Also, since we'll be in Louisiana next weekend for Father's Day, I really wanted a weekend to be with family and celebrate my amazing dad.

On Saturday morning, Mom made pancakes and bacon for breakfast. Sarah and I got Dad a new grill for Father's Day, but the boxes were so big and heavy that we couldn't get them inside the house without the help of a strong man. Our solution? A creative clue made out of our breakfast food, leading him to his gift.

Sarah was very proud of her bacon arrow.

Surprise! Dad even said he was planning on going to get a new grill that afternoon. We knew you wanted one and beat you to it. :)

Dad and Thomas spent the morning putting the grill together while us girls went to a charity Zumba-thon at the gym. After a day of errands with Thomas (including a stop at Hey Cupcake!), we enjoyed a Father's Day meal cooked on Dad's new grill.

Thomas and I stopped at Hey Cupcake! to get dessert.

The grill even has a side burner where Mom cooked pasta as Dad grilled chicken, onions, zucchini and mushrooms.

After church on Sunday, Mom cooked a brisket and asked us to grab sides at Rudy's BBQ on the way home. Sarah insisted that we all wear the clean hands stickers, and I couldn't pass up the opportunity for a blog photo.

Well, we're back in Waco and Thomas hit the ground running with another week of language and literacy camp for grad school. I'm so proud of him, as well as my two roommates, Alex and Allison who are in the same program. They're going to be the best speech pathologists!

Held

Sometimes you're down and then the perfect song comes on and turns things around. That happened for me last night, and I am so comforted by the quiet reminder of God's grace through anything.

"This is what it means to be held

How it feels, when the sacred is torn from your life

And you survive.

This is what it is to be loved and to know

That the promise was that when everything fell

We'd be held."

-Held, Natalie Grant

My life is wonderful and I feel so blessed. I'm more than surviving. I just finished college, I have the greatest family and friends anyone could ask for, and I'm going to marry my best friend in a year. I'm not going through pain or turmoil or loss. I'm truly happy.

But life after college is so odd (can anyone else relate?). I suppose "normalcy" has been torn from my life, so to speak. The other day, I found myself thinking, "I can't wait for everyone to get back in August." Then it hit me - I may still be in Waco, but the people I graduated with have left and moved on. [I'm just glad that Baylor is such a close-knit family and that we'll be together again for Homecoming, football games, and Sing!] But everything is different. We're not in college anymore. Hello real world.

I'm using this time of unemployment to refresh and relax, but ask anyone who knows me and they'll tell you I'm kind of totally a planner. NOT knowing what my next step is, when I'll finally find a job, or where I'll be working is driving me crazy. I've applied, I've interviewed, and nothing has come of the job opportunities. I've debated back-and-forth if I want to live and work in Austin or in Waco, so now I'm searching in both places.

This transition is all about finding a new normal. I may call my mom crying a few more times until I find it. But with prayer, the support of those around me, and the knowledge that my God already knows the future, I know I'll find it.

He's holding me in His perfect will, and it feels so good to be held!

Mr. & Mrs. House

After the craziness of final exams, I unintentionally neglected my agenda book for a little R&R. When I picked it up the other day and flipped through the next few months on my calendar, I realized that almost every weekend of the summer is already planned. With all of the weddings we're attending, I'm going to blink and it will be August!

Sallie graduated from the Speech Pathology program with Thomas and Alex, and over the years she has become a great friend to me as well. This weekend, she and her high school sweetheart Tyrus tied the knot in their hometown of Camdenton, Missouri, and we wouldn't have missed it for the world! We wanted to break up the road trip (and save money on a hotel) so we stopped in Tulsa on Friday night to stay with one of the Reed's family friends, the Smiths. When we arrived, they had dinner ready for us, and we spent the evening catching up on their back porch. Thanks again for letting us stay with you, Glenda!

We left Tulsa at 9:30 Saturday morning to drive the remaining 4.5 hours to Camdenton, and the wedding was beautiful! Sallie looked absolutely gorgeous in her wedding dress, and it was so fun to be a part of their special day!!

Since it was our first time to visit Missouri, we made Thomas stop and take our photo in front of the Missouri sign.

Wedding ceremony at St. Anthony Catholic Church

The happy couple!

My beautiful roommate Alex, who was Sallie's maid of honor

Dinner was served in the backyard of Sallie's parent's house.

Congratulations Mr. & Mrs. House! We love you!