"If anything matters... everything matters."

The Shack on Amazon.com 

Okay, so last night was incredible.

After reading an incredible book, & meeting an incredible author, & listening to his incredible heart wrenching as well as heart warming journey, I realized LIFE IS INCREDIBLE.

Truly.

Incredible.

Let me start from the beginning! I was at the North Augusta library a few months back and noticed a flyer for a book event sponsored by the Friends of the Nancy Carson Library Foundation Inc.. William P. Young (or Paul as he prefers) would be a guest at a book event in North Augusta at Grace United Methodist Church. He apparently wrote, The Shack, which I had never heard of at the time.

Silly, I know, since the book has sold MILLIONS of copies in 40 different languages, & has been loved by many & critiqued by many more. I asked my book club members (Book Lovers R US) if our next pick could be The Shack. (Check out http://www.bookmovement.com/) Since a few had previously read the amazing book we agreed it would fit perfectly with Easter around the corner. I hurriedly bought it at Amazon.com (oh how Amazon Prime has changed my life haha) and started reading it immediately.
 I loved how the book made me stop to wonder.
And think.
And think some more.
Then read a little bit & look deep within my heart.
Then smile from the inside out.

For starters, the book blew me away! I savored every conversation I read, & easily applied it to my life as well as those I love and care for. Immediately I wanted to share it, as most readers have declared, because it is a FRESH way to look at the holy trinity.

(This post it about to get deep. Just a warning. I want to remember how I feel at this moment.)

So, as my mind tried to wrap itself around the VAST & COLOSSAL topics The Shack presents in a truly exceptional story fashion, I found myself in total life bliss.
My children never looked so amazing.
My husband was so handsome, inside & out.
The sunshine was brighter.
The wind was sweeter.
And the space within my heart was wide & deep, ready to be filled with grace again.
I found myself more ALIVE & able to cease the constant chatter of my ego & just BE PRESENT.

Which is the most difficult thing I have ever yet to do.
Awareness I learned from another book, is very, very powerful.

(Hello Stephanie's ego, I know how to keep you quite now.)

I finished The Shack a few days before the book event, & my anticipation grew & grew. I have never listened to an author speak, yet alone meet one! Thursday, March 22nd arrived & Kane picked up a pizza & promised the monkeys a good time at a park. I was honestly nervous leaving Ezra from 6pm to 9pm. How on earth was he going to fall asleep without me? Or my milk producers? Kane said he would be fine, & I wanted to believe him. At least Ezra was 10 months old & could probably cry a little before falling asleep without his mommy.

I got ready then hurried to the church a bit early to save seats for us girls. When I arrived and choose seats I heard a voice behind me I truly recognized. Was the radio on? Where have I heard that voice before? Then I turn around & directly behind me I see a tall gentleman chatting with a short smiling man. It was the author himself, Paul, & radio announcer Cleve Walker from 88.3 WAFJ! Right behind me!

I giggled quietly in my seat thought "if only he could sign my hardcover copy of the shack". But I was NOT going to be a silly fan and ask him then & there.

My luck changed, a few others near me figured out Paul was right there chatting with people and they decided to discretely ask him for an autograph. He greeting each individual with a huge bear hug, & listened to their personal story. I picked up my new dslr and gathered around Paul too...I was not going to miss this opportunity! Besides, he wouldn't have been out there with us unless he wanted to mingle.

Paul greeting me with a big hug and huge smile, then asked my name & how I was that evening. I smiled and said thank you for coming to North Augusta. He reached for my book

"If anything matters... everything matters."

For more information, check out   www.theshackbook.com

rare color photos

Check out these rare color photos from The Library of Congress


These vivid color photos from the Great Depression and World War II capture an era generally seen only in black-and-white. Photographers working for the United States Farm Security Administration (FSA) and later the Office of War Information (OWI) created the images between 1939 and 1944. 


My favorite one depicts commuters, who have just come off a train, waiting for the bus to go home, Lowell, Mass. (LOC). It has class! The women are dressed nicely...why isn't fasion like this anymore? Everyone has a hat; I wish hats were common again!

I also adore this one with a pretty sky & home in the country, it has that great vintage feel.

Negro tenant's home beside the Mississippi River levee 

I like the colors in this one taken in Natchez, Miss in front of a store in 1940.

Pause..drink Coca-Cola 

Instagram for Android Devices

Does anyone love Instagram for iphone? I think I may try out Instagram for android soon!

Instagram for Android Devices

Italian Nite

From The Pizza Joint Website

Okay, not necessarily authentic Italian cuisine, but pizza counts right? Kane texted me from the hospital and asked if we wanted to have a late dinner at The Pizza Joint located in downtown Augusta. (Late dinner equals 7 pm here!) Initially I didn't want to go; Ezra goes to bed at 7 and I figured he would be cranky at the restaurant. But on second thought, why not try it? We never take our kids out for dinner. Mostly for the sake of the other dinners; who wants to relish in good pizza & beer with fussy kids in the background?

From The Pizza Joint Website 

Then I remembered we are young parents who deserve to get out on the town even with kids in tow. So I bathed the monkeys & buttered them up with promises of gooey cheese & crispy crust. The Pizza Joint has a great eclectic atmosphere perfect for friends and family to gather over some good grub. We got a table near the back doors where all the server action is. Ezra was the perfect audience; he ogled over commotion around the ice machine and pizza assemble line.

From The Pizza Joint Website 

We knew before we arrived Tuesday had great specials... dollar drafts & two dollar slices. Usually the dollar drafts specials are not premium beers at most restaurants, just the run of the mill American beer. But not at The Pizza Joint, nope, I ordered a pint of Guinness. Yup, this girl fell in love with the Irish stout when she visited Ireland in 2008. Men around the world should be happy. Here is a mom who likes her dark beer.

from beerhelps.com

When the waitress brought our drinks, she immediately gave Kane the Guinness. He was like, "that's, my wife's..." I blushed and took the "meal of a drink". I promise, if you have never had Guinness on draft, give it a try, its magically smooth. (From the bottle its blah) 

The night was wonderful, Ezra happily gnawed on everything in sight since he is teething, the table next to us couldn't stop smiling at his goofy expressions, and Alex busied herself with her must-go-everywhere bag of "goodies" she calls it.

Oh, and the pizza? It was super yummy. My favorite is the crispy crunchy thin crust. My slice had chicken & peppers. Kane swears his meatball & green olive slice was to die for as well. The Pizza Joint...we will return!

Spring Artists' Market and Festival

Spring Artists' Market and Festival | Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art, Augusta, USA | Whatsonwhen

I think we are going to go check this out!!!

Super Fun Weekend

Saturday we decided to pack the kids and browse around the Augusta Library for the first Augusta-Richmond County Literary Festival. I love living in cozy North Augusta & having cool events just across the river. A little bit of culture is a fabulous thing!

Here is the old library...

And here is the new library just across the street..

The festival was rumored to have sixty plus authors ready to talk about their books & sign. When we arrived, I noticed lots of empty tables. Bummer. The children's department had the old school showing of The Lorax so Alex & Ezra were quite entertained for awhile with other little kids. In theater's now, the NEW Lorax is making his debut with Danny Devito as the Lorax! I really want this to be Alex's first movie at the theater. 

How cute is he??? Maybe I can talk Kane into going along with me. I think both my monkeys would sit through it. When I taught 7th grade Going Green at Seminole Middle school, I incorporated The Lorax into our curriculum at the end of the school year. The kids enjoyed watching the film in class & writing an essay about it. 

I miss that class. Teaching middle school kids about the environmental was super fun!

Anyway, back to the literary festival, I found a table with an author by the name of Bob Young. The book jacket caught my eye because it had a train depicted on the front. Titled, The Treasure Train, it looked like something my Dad would enjoy. I have fond memories of us setting up his model trains in our Michigan City, IN basement together. After speaking with the author & learning it is a book about trains & confederate civil war history, I thought it would be the perfect birthday gift. I had the author sign it "General" too!

Boy did he get a kick out of that grandpa name. Who wouldn't?

I didn't find anything interesting for me particularly at the festival & neither did Kane. We stopped my Publix & picked up some tasty subs for lunch and that was that!

Sunday we visited the Morris Museum of Art in downtown Augusta. I noticed in the Augusta Family Magazine a posting for the monthly Artrageous! Family Sunday event. The Super Fun Show was making a stop in Augusta, with its award-winning performance of songs, stories, and interactive good times at 2 pm. 

Was it worth skipping nap time to make the show at 2 pm? YES!

The little performance was soooo cute! Alex had a ball grooving and shaking and singing along. Ezra was content to sit in stroller in the first row and take all the commotion in. Totally geared for toddlers, a peppy young girl (probably college age) did a fantastic job entertaining a bunch of kids for 45 minutes. 

And that is not an easy task! Here is the The Super Fun Show Song...

 Here is a video of Alex not sitting down during the alphabet song:

Apparently the creator, Shawn Brown, has a ton of super fun music for little kids to brush their teeth to, dance, clean up, etc. Needless to say, we had a super fun time :)

The Super Fun Show CD by Shawn Brown