Vitamin-ed

Started taking these today!  Keep praying.

Family

...isn't just blood.  Keep praying.

Baby?

Today I did this:

(that's my birth control...in the trash)

 

PLEASE keep praying!

Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving, Carrie, Rob, and the kids came to visit!

We had a lot of fun.  On Thanksgiving morning, we went to the beach, and it was the first time Rob and the kids had seen the ocean!

It was FREEZING, but they didn't care!

After dinner, Ashlyn and Ephram helped me decorate our Christmas tree:

  Here it is all finished!

On Friday, Carrie and I went Black Friday shopping, and I got all my Christmas shopping done!  Then, after it stopped raining, we hit up Forsyth park:

Then we walked to River Street for dinner at Spanky's:

Gettin' spanked.

Sadly, they had to head back early on Saturday, but we had a blast while they were here!

If anyone who lives in the Savannah area is reading this, I'd like to invite you to "The Movement of God," Expected End's (the gospel group I'm a member of) annual concert at 6 pm on December 4th at New Covenant UMC on Bull Street.  Tell your friends!

Keep praying. 

Connor James Hall

I found this poem while cleaning out my computer.  I wrote it for my poetry class right after Connor passed.  It's called an ABC poem, because each word starts with a letter of the alphabet, all the way from A to Z.  It was difficult to write and it came out well, so I thought I'd share it:

Any baby can die,

Even fully, generously healthy infants.

Joy killed, leaving many nervous or paranoid.

Quit recalling sadness.

Think.

Understand.

Verify why.

X-ray your zen.

Keep praying.

Thankful

...for a husband that takes care of me.

 

...for a family that loves me (and the angels watching over me).

...for friends who get me (and have great senses of humor).

...for being accepted into a new community.

...for being alive and learning God's purpose for me.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all.  Keep praying.

6 Months Pass...

Yikes!  It's been six months without an update; are you all miserable not being able to read about my life weekly?  Haha!

I apologize for not updating for so long; I went through a bout of depression over the summer months, and getting on Facebook, etc. just made me more sad, missing my friends and family.  But I'm in a better place now, and I will try to update at least monthly.  For now, here's a recap of my life for the past six months:

JUNE

Kolin's mom, step-dad, and youngest brothers came to visit us the first.  Sadly, Kol and I had to work a lot, but it was really nice having visitors!  We even bought some extra dining chairs so we could all sit at the table together for meals. :)

Kol and I celebrated our second anniversary on the 21st.

I love us.

As a gift to each other (really, it was more a gift for me, because Kol felt bad that I was missing home so much), we adopted a kitten from the Humane Society:

Lady Vivian on the day we adopted her, June 27th.

She was born on May 1st.  When we first adopted her, she was very loving and chill.  We thought that was just her personality but then she started to get sick; the vet said she had an upper-respiratory infection - very common in kittens, especially those from the Humane Society - and gave her some meds.  Once she started feeling better, she started to act like a normal kitten and got on our nerves a bit - haha!  But she's calmed down since then and turned into a very loving, very enjoyable cat.  Here's a more recent photo:

 In the window, her favorite place - October 2010.

JULY

On the 10th, Kol and I went to Kentucky for the Fallen family reunion.

   A candid shot stolen from Beth Pope.

It was really great getting to see Mom, Mike, Mamaw, Aunt Becky, Shelby, and all the KY relatives.  There were lots of old pictures and memorabilia to reminisce over.

AUGUST

Autumn came to visit to get away before going back into the grind of grad school.  We ate a lot of good food and made sure she got to see the best of Savannah.  As with Kolin's family, we had to work a lot and didn't get to hang with her as much as we would have liked...but that gives her a reason to come back once we have vacation days. ;)  Tricia and Jason also stopped by for one night en route to Disney World; we had dinner together and walked around the city at night (the best time to do it!).

 Their farewell photo op.

  

SEPTEMBER

The first weekend (Labor Day weekend), we got to go "back home again in Indiana!"  I was so happy to get to see my family again, especially Mia!  I got to babysit her Saturday while Jeremy, Mandy, Mom, and Mike were at the Purdue vs. Notre Dame football game, and we had a lot of fun.  I showed her how to take pictures of herself on my phone, and she took TONS.

She's so adorable!

Saturday night, we went to Kolin's grandparents house to have dinner and shoot some guns!  On Sunday, we went to a cookout at Uncle Dick's house and ALL of the Hall clan was there: Dad, Aunt Marilyn, Uncle Gary, Aunt Donni, (obviously) Uncle Dick, and all the family members that go with.  It was a lot of fun!

 Dad probably contemplating when the food would be done, courtesy of Ashley Osborn.

I turned 24 on the 21st.  We went to Mrs. Wilkes for lunch, a family-style lunch stop.  You have to stand in line for an hour or so to get in, but it is TOTALLY worth it!  The table is full of every Southern food you can imagine.  I hate to say it, but they've got The Lady & Sons beat.  After lunch, we walked around the city a bit: my favorite thing to do!  We were so tired once we got home that we snuggled up on the couch and took a nap together.  Once we woke up, it was time for dinner, so we headed to Ele, my favorite sushi place.  It was delicious, as always.  We finished the night by taking a walk on Tybee beach.  It was a perfect birthday!

OCTOBER

Kolin had been itching to go somewhere all month, so we finally went to Atlanta for a weekend.  We stayed in the Hilton downtown and got the worst sleep we'd ever experienced in a hotel - total bummer.  Kol surprised me with tickets to  9 to 5: The Musical, and we were in the seventh row!  

 I was so excited, because Diana DeGarmo was playing to role of Doralee (Dolly's character in the movie).  Then, while the first song was being sung, who walks into the theater but DOLLY PARTON HERSELF!  Not only that, but she sat literally six seats away in the row in front of me.  Needless to say, it was difficult for me to pay attention to what was going on onstage.  After the show, she came out to take a bow with the cast: 

 Overall, the show was phenomenal and seeing Dolly was an extreme perk!  And I got to take a picture with Diana:

Don't we look like best friends for life?

We also went to the aquarium while we were there.  Feel free to check out my Facebook album for more pics, not just of Atlanta, but of fall in general.

NOVEMBER

I was really missing Mom last month, so we planned a trip to "meet in the middle" in Chattanooga, TN for her birthday weekend.  We went to Rock City,

 (it was beautiful; see for yourself here)

hit up the mall, and went to see Morning Glory at the movies (it had a slow start but ended up being worth seeing).  We had a lot of fun; it was great getting to spend time with my mama!  

We recently bought a 2011 Chevy Equinox, and I am in LOVE with it!

Her name is Carolina Bleu (like the cheese).

It will be great for when we start our family next spring!

Now you're up-to-date.  Kolin's sister Carrie and her family are coming this week to spend Thanksgiving with us, so look for a new update in about week.

And, as always, keep praying. 

365 Days

It's been a year since...

I was almost killed...

I broke seven bones in an instant...

and I underwent my first major surgery.

Since that fateful day, I've also...

gone through a second major surgery...

had to relearn how to walk...

 

and needed to teach my left wrist how to work again.

And that was just the big stuff!  There were so many things I once took for granted that I had to figure out how to do again.  My wrist will never be the same.  I will never walk down stairs without hobbling.  I will always have glass working it's way out of my skin through the scars that will never fade.  There are so many things I could be angry about, but instead I have learned to focus on the fact that I'm still breathing.  I get to kiss my husband everyday.  I get to see my niece grow.  And, soon enough, I'll get to raise a family of my own.  I'm so grateful that God let me live through such a disaster; I'm thankful for the opportunity to find beauty in catastrophe; I appreciate knowing I'll never take anything for granted again, even something as small as scratching my own face.  Thanks to everyone who helped me make it through this past year, especially Kolin and Mom.  Where would I be without the love of my family and friends?

Keep praying.  I'm proof that it works.

Mother's Day

Happy mother's day to all the wonderful mamas out there, especially mine!

You raised two amazing kids, Mom!  We love you!

Keep praying.

Alligator Soul

Last night, Kol and I went to Alligator Soul for dinner.

Lookin' sharp!

We decided to do the six-course chef's tasting with wine pairings:

amuse-bouche: pesto wrapped in zucchini and topped with tomato on a crispy baguette;

 

first course: seared scallop and bacon fat over 
ham and cheese grits, topped with a sunny-side-up quail egg;

pre-second course: pecan corn muffins;

 second course: oyster and corn chowder with croutons fried in duck fat;

 third course: fresh grouper over yellow rice with squash and mushrooms;

 inter-mezzo: peach sorbet in vodka;

 fourth course: duck over a fried plantain (sorry I ate it before taking a picture :/);

 fifth (main) course: braised boar and fingerling potatoes over haricot vert;

 and the sixth (final) course (dessert): pecan roll, white raspberry 
truffle coated in dark chocolate, and a cookie with apricot preserves.

The evening was perfect and the food was delicious!  Everything was cooked to perfection - beautifully seared scallop, juicy oyster, crispy haricot vert, etc.  If you're ever in the Savannah area, give Alligator Soul a try.

Keep praying.

TO DA BEACH!

Last Friday, I went to the SCAD Sand Arts Festival with Michael, Amanda, and Eric:

It was the perfect day to go to the beach - warm and breezy.  This was my favorite sand piece:

On Saturday night, Kol and I went to Amanda's to hang out where Kolin met his new best friend.  He wants his own dog SO BAD; maybe we can convince our landlord to let us have one...

Sunday we celebrated Cinco de Mayo at church.  I got to lead my first song in praise team and it was in Spanish.  I was nervous but it turned out pretty good.  After service, we had a Mexican buffet and it was delicious!  It seems like we're ALWAYS eating at church; I'm going to gain a hundred pounds!

I put in my two weeks on Thursday, but my boss has been so awkward, that I'm going to go ahead and start my new job this Monday instead of next.  I'm really looking forward to it.  It will be nice not to have to drive an hour to get to work and another hour to get back everyday.

On Tuesday, Kolin and I went furniture shopping.  We're going to redo our living room soon and are very excited about it!  Here's the couch we're planning on getting:

Last night, MACK and Josh (J MACK?) met up at Michael's apartment to celebrate the true Cinco de Mayo.  We had Mexican lasagna, Mexican casserole, and strawberry margaritas:

Yum!

And for dessert...

 CHOCOLATE CAKE!

This morning was really foggy,

but it's starting to clear up.  Maybe it will be a beautiful day!

Keep praying.