Our fireplace - see our Christmas cards? 

Our breakfast area - our first Christmas tree in the background! 

lee and i in charleston over labor day weekend. taken exactly 1 week before the wreck. 

a close up of my booth 

my first art show booth on 10-14 

a posty post

i had my first art show this past weekend. it was pretty cool. i have to say, i think my booth looked really nice thanks to my husband, a few of his coworkers, and my in-laws. unfortunately, i had no sales. but, it was the wrong show for my work. i'm learning that.
i'm very excited about my paintings though. paul and i have even talked about making it easier to sell my work online come the first of the year. you know about the "painting a day" bloggers? some of them have some really nice work. i might be "a painting a week" blogger.
anyway, for those of you who don't know - check out my website

www.lauracoxart.com

here is a quick run down of what's going on with me right now. lee is in bed and not feeling well so i'm trying to give him some peace and quiet. saturday is our one year proposal anniversary. i have a lot of laundry to fold. i have raw chicken in the refrigerator that i'm not sure is safe to eat. i'm still working at namb three days a week. hooray for part time jobs!!! okay, i'm making the list short for now.

jellybeans

it certainly is the year of engagements and weddings. dresses and rings. my goodness!

lee is wanting a 90's ford F150. ballpark - $5,000. anybody know of any?

i got some new pain medicine that lets me sleep peacefully and doesn't leave me with a hangover the next day. hallelujah!

i'm looking forward to going to upstate SC this weekend. it's been awhile. traffic isn't nearly as scary there.

"the kingdom of God is gonna look like a bowl full of jellybeans...better get used to it now"
my pastor said something like this a few days ago. made me laugh.

went to the world of coke on saturday. i tasted TAB. Gross!!! and i tasted this drink called Beverly? can't remember what country it's sold in. that was by far the nastiest thing ever to touch my tastebuds. my husband can do a great impression of the coca-cola polar bear.

on being too busy...

i have made it my goal, since being married - to NOT get too involved with too many things. it's hard, but i'm trying.

i have always been a bit of an over achiever. and success is good, but i think i have come to this conclusion:

"life is so much sweeter
for the non over-achiever."

what do you think?

my monthly post

okay, sorry people who still read my blog - if any of you are still out there. i do miss the blogging world every now and then. i guess it would be a lot more fun if i had a nice computer and the ability to post pictures. maybe i can work on that.
anyway, lee and i were in a bad car accident about a week ago. we were in suwanee - it was saturday night. our friends jill and david were with us. lee was driving and i was up front with him in his 87 mercury grand marquis. yeah - a hooptie - the tank or the yacht as lee called it. yes, as he called it - because it was totalled. a lady basically ran a stop sign right in front of us so we ran straight into the side of her car. thankfully!!! no one was hurt very seriously, except i do have two broken ribs from it. and they have slowed me down considerably ever since. and its very annoying. i am really hoping i can go back to work tomorrow. seems like i say that everyday. i am doing a lot better the past few days about being more still. i hope it will pay off soon.
anyway, in a few weeks i should be back to normal and the other partys insurance is supposed to pay for everything, even some lost wages, hopefully, so i do praise God for that. it could have been so much worse.

i thought i would post a few of the things i miss most by having broken ribs:

cooking
sleeping on my stomach
being outside
exercising (like fun exercise, like racquetball, swimming, shopping, etc. haha)

now, in case you were wondering, i decided i would post the five things that hurt the most when you have a broken rib:
1. sneezing (this is a big one)
2. laughing ( i love to laugh - a lot - and i am unfortunately one of those people who when they laugh, their whole body shakes so this is not fun)
3. hiccuping (sp?) (someone scare me please and put me out of my misery - speaking of scaring me, i guess i could always take one of my lovely pain pills that gives me horror movie dreams. the next time you want a big scare that will really freak you out, do not bother to pay to see a horror movie or go on one of those spook trails. no, simply ask for oxycodone) i really hope no one takes me serious on this, cause it really will mess you up. i figure i can deal with the pain better than i can deal with what my mind makes up when i am on that pill.
4. getting out of bed
5. getting in and out of my little car

those were ranked, by the way, #1 being the most painful.

so, i am reading a lot, sleeping a whole lot, watching a lot of martha stewart and oprah..hahahaha. i know martha was a criminal or whatever, but i still love her magazines, her tv show, and she has a good website. i am sorry, but i love cooking, organizing, and doing crafts. and the martha stewart wedding magazine is the best if you are planning a wedding.
okay, i hope you all still have respect for me! i hope to blog again soon!

thoughts

"the boston pops did a concert one time where they played all nintendo songs. the zelda theme was particularly good." paul - otherwise known as pb

the shoes i was wearing today squeaked when i walked. my shoes made me feel fat...

the above sentence does not sound grammatically correct. it cant be the shoes i were wearing today....hmm

"the older you get, the more it takes to fill your heart with wonder. only God is big enough to fill that heart of ours"
ravi zecharias

"what breaks your heart tells God who you are. what makes you laugh tells God who you are. it is vitally important what you laugh at...it is vitally important what you weep at."
ravi zecharias

can you believe someone lives at 150 soggy bottom drive, trout, louisiana? that is so GREAT!

everyone, please listen to this talk from frank peretti that deals with Truth. it made me die laughing and it made me cry. i found it to be intriguing and entertaining. i don't think it will be available past this weekend, so hurry and listen.

http://www.oneplace.com/Ministries/Focus_on_the_Family/Archives.asp?bcd=7/6/2006

http://www.oneplace.com/Ministries/Focus_on_the_Family/Archives.asp?bcd=7/7/2006

i'll be back i promise

back to blogging

my life is starting to calm down now! that means i get to do fun things like blogging. i have many pics to share soon of the wedding. please bare with me as i am having to use lee's dinosaur computer now so obviously it is limited in what it can do.
the wedding was Sweet. today is my one month anniversary! for 9 months, it felt like my life was on hold. i knew where i was going (in a sense) but i couldn't get there yet. time could not have gone by any slower and many dollars were spent on gas to travel up and down I85 on the weekends. (totally worth it) but, now time is flying by and i feel like i can finally move forward. now i just have to decide what to move towards....
i'm working a temp job right now with the North American Mission Board in alpharetta. it's great because it is only three days a week and it's in a very nice working environment. it will last until september. after that, who knows? i feel like i am forever temporary - which i don't really mind.
i love norcross, i love my husband, i love being married...gotta go write more thank you notes....ciao

easter sunday

me in my "i love lucy" dress as leigh hix called it.  

makeup and hair dye

me and my roomie - well, my old roomie - after we had fun with makeup. i love you jen!  

love is in the air

i have the most beautiful, stress free commute. what a blessing! lots of fields and trees and a pond and not a lot of traffic.

we're having showers in april

we're moving in may (well, he is and i'll also be transporting a bunch of my stuff). i'm excited about it and i dread it (the moving part). it will make me get rid of a bunch of stuff though so that's good. i guess i'm definitely more excited though! yay - our own place!

it is so great to have a steady job - thank you God

i made ranch chicken and macaroni pie last night for the first time!

it is a beautiful saturday - i think this is the first beautiful saturday in a month or more!

so many people i know are having babies. they either just had them or are about to. and some of them are my age!!! AHHH! crazy crazy

some details

we printed our wedding invites yesterday! yay - and they're pretty.

i drew detail drawings of a kitchen door today - it was fun. (i'm serious)

my fiance started a new job today and he like it.

we had women's Bible study tonight for the first time in two months and it was a sweet time!

i just drank a cup of warm cappucino with milk and cinnamon and it was good.

my brother came to visit last week from mississippi and i wish he could have stayed longer.

looks like i'm gonna be moving to lawrenceville/buford georgia in june and i'm excited!

i ate a side salad at chick-fil-a today with their lite italian dressing - yum! one day i will master the making of good italian dressing and that will be a great day.

lee and i made croutons on saturday and they needed more garlic but were good.

frazzle rock -

this is my new nickname - according to jake. how nice!

anyway, according to www.kiersey.com i am a Healer Idealist. check out what they say about my personality type. this analysis is related to the meyers briggs results. gosh i love personality tests. maybe cuz i can't figure myself out sometimes and it makes me feel like if someone else can label me, then i'll make sense. HAHA. yeah right.

"Healer Idealists are abstract in thought and speech, cooperative in striving for their ends, and informative and introverted in their interpersonal relations. Healer present a seemingly tranquil, and noticiably pleasant face to the world, and though to all appearances they might seem reserved, and even shy, on the inside they are anything but reserved, having a capacity for caring not always found in other types. They care deeply-indeed, passionately-about a few special persons or a favorite cause, and their fervent aim is to bring peace and integrity to their loved ones and the world.

Healers have a profound sense of idealism derived from a strong personal morality, and they conceive of the world as an ethical, honorable place. Indeed, to understand Healers, we must understand their idealism as almost boundless and selfless, inspiring them to make extraordinary sacrifices for someone or something they believe in. The Healer is the Prince or Princess of fairytale, the King's Champion or Defender of the Faith, like Sir Galahad or Joan of Arc. Healers are found in only 1 percent of the general population, although, at times, their idealism leaves them feeling even more isolated from the rest of humanity."

another thought

i forgot to say - i have several paintings for sale at The Artists' Coop in Laurens, SC. you can check out their website at www.laurensartistscoop.org. it really is a cool gallery.

also, isn't it crazy that mariah carey has her own font? is that the "true" sign of divahood?

a mini update

i think back on the past 9 months of my life and can't believe it. so many ups and a few big downs. so many changes. i'm going to learn to stop saying what next. maybe

i started working again this week. i had almost forgotten what that really felt like. not that i've been slacking totally for the past few months - wedding planning is not a piece of cake (and i have done "some" subbing and a good bit of artwork)- but it is a lot different when you have a boss that is holding you accountable. no, it's just different when you have to be at work at 7:00 in the morning! i didn't even know my brain would work that early in the morning - HAH! but the job is interesting and definitely keeps my mind from dwelling on things too much. an idle mind is truly a dangerous thing. so now i find myself in the kitchen design world - again. how did this happen? i do not know for sure. but it did, and even though i am still getting over my first kitchen design job trauma, i can't help but be very grateful for the job and hopeful that this one will be a lot different.

ciao!

my very own drafting table - built by my dearest one. isn't it lovely? 

the first sunset of the year - greenpond, sc 

just a joke

what do you clean a tuba with?

a tuba toothpaste.

i know you are just roaring with laughter now. rachel's joke inspired me to post.