Great Lyrics

One of my most favorite things about being back in Texas is that I can listen to Christian radio stations. We don't have them in England, and I haven't gotten around to downloading any songs on my iPod since Chris has been gone. I am in LOVE with KLTY here in Arlington because it's so nice to listen to music that you can sing along with & feel good about the lyrics. Have you ever been really jammin' away to a song and suddenly realized that the words that came out of your mouth were a little embarrassing? Hmmm, does that just happen to me?? Anyway, I have really enjoyed the Christian radio here, and wanted to share some lyrics of a great song that I heard recently...don't worry, I'll just write the chorus!!

Give me Your eyes for just one second,

Give me Your eyes so I can see,

Everything that I keep missing,

Give me Your love for humanity.

Give me Your arms for the broken hearted,

Ones that are far beyond my reach,

Give me Your heart for the once forgotten,

Give me Your eyes so I can see.

"Give Me Your Eyes" by Brandon Heath

Charleston, SC

After my fun trip to San Antonio w/ the cutest niece & nephew on the planet (I'm not biased, I swear!!), my mom took my brother's girlfriend, Stephanie, and I on a girls trip to Charleston, South Carolina. We stayed in the gorgeous French Quarter Inn which was right in the middle of the old downtown area. We would get up early in the mornings, eat a yummy breakfast on the terrace, and then head to the open-air market that was literally 5 steps from the front of the hotel. Charleston has some of the most amazing food I have ever had, and we definitely tried to sample it all!! We shopped on King Street, visited the Middleton Place Plantation, and took a great walking tour with the famous Ed Grimball. Ed was, by far, the greatest tour guide EVER! He said at the beginning of our tour that he hoped that we would all grow to be friends by the end, and I truly think that we did! He took us all over downtown Charleston. From the Battery, to Rainbow Row, and on down to the 4 corners intersection where all 4 divisions of law merge at one location. It was awesome!! Honestly, I was sad to leave that beautiful city. It definitely goes down on my list of best places in the US!! Here are some pictures of our trip!!

The Slave Church built on a lake at Middleton Place

One of the beautiful houses on Rainbow Row

The Church @ the 4 corners intersection (God's Law)

Stephaie, my mom, & I at Middleton Place

Blog Help!!!

So...if you are wondering why there is a cute background and an ugly front-color on my blog today...well, join the club! I am trying to do a little redecorating, and I've, ummm, well I've kinda stumped myself. If you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear them! Better yet, "Hey Tara...wanna fix my blog??"

Long Time, No Post!!

I've been back in the US (Texas specifically) for a few weeks while Chris is away on his extended business trip :) I've been traveling like crazy since the moment I got here, and have been having so much fun catching up with all of my family & friends! I was invited to a super exculsive slumber party, hosted by by fabulous niece & nephew, on one of my first nights back. As you can see from the above picture, we had some stylin' head-gear too!! I was introduced to the phenomenon that is "High School Musical", and laughed hystarically as my cute little friends sang along w/ all of the songs...it was great! We then made a trip to Sea World in San Antonio, complete with a brief visit to the Alamo as well. It was hot (oh my gosh, sooo hot), but I'm definitely not complaining after coming from chilly England! We fed the dolphins, admired the sharks, & played in the hotel pool after a sweaty day of fun. Enjoy some of the pictures below!!

AWESOME!!!

Allie & I feeding the dolphins
My sister's sweet family

My Dad & I at the Alamo

Stoke-on-Trent Weekend

There are a million tiny villages all over England that are just waiting to be explored. My friend Wendy & I were feeling a little restless, so we decided to take her girls (Cara & Sydney) to one of those villages...Stoke-on-Trent. I have been once before with some other girlfriends, and was amazed by the wonderful deals on pottery & china. There were outlet & factory centers galore and we were in the mood to find some great pieces! We went to the Spode, Wedgewood, Royal Daulton, Emma Bridgewater, & the Portmerion factories. Wendy bought some beautiful Christmas dishes for her family, and found some unique gifts as well. I wasn't really looking for anything specific, but found a rediculously good deal on china that I just couldn't pass up. I got 12 regular plates, 12 appetizer plates, and 2 serving dishes in the Old Britain Castles pattern for about $60. Yes, I said $60!! Now this might be an okay deal in the States, but here in England...I was blown away! I'm super excited b/c Chris and I didn't register for china when we got married b/c we couldn't find a pattern that we just loved. This particular pattern is red (my favorite!!) and actually matches my nice dishes that we did register for! They will also always serve as a reminder of our time here in England...I love them!

The girls did such a good job on the trip that we also decided to visit the Monkey Forest in Trentham on our way home. This place was so cool! The monkeys just wandered around on their own and got within a foot of us on certain trails. We watched them getting fed by one of the workers in the forest, grooming each other, and carrying their babies on their bellies. The girls loved it, and so did Wendy & I!! Below are a few of my favorite pictures from the weekend...

The Lion King

Wow it's been a long time since I've posted!  Hmmm, what have I been up to?  Not  a whole lot to tell you the truth.  I've been spending some great "girl-time" with my fabulous friends, I've had a few movie/game nights at my house, I've done lots of fun shopping, and today I did something that I've been wanting to do since we arrived here over a year ago...I went to see The Lion King in London!  Oh my gosh, it was absolutely brilliant!  The costumes, oh I don't even have words.  I seriously got tears in my eyes when the music started and all the "animals" walked down the aisles.  It was insane.  

Two of my friends, Ashlee & Wendy, went with me.  We rode down on a bus (not the most fantastic way to travel, especially in the London traffic!) which dropped us off in Covent Garden, where all the theaters are located.  We walked around the corner to a fabulous eatery before heading to the show.  I cannot even tell you how amazing it was...very different than anything I have seen before.  I would highly recommend going if you haven't seen it already! 

Rain, Rain, Go Away

You know, there's only so much you can do on rainy days. Snuggling up on the couch in my pj's, watching old movies, and drinking hot cocoa can start to get old after a few days. Yes, I did say hot cocoa! It's freezing here...well, not literally, but my heater IS on. I know, it's crazy! My feet are warm and toasty in their socks, when they should be nice and tan from all the sun they are getting in their flip-flops! I'm counting the days until I return back to Texas and feel the sunshine on my face at last...this British tan is a wee bit too pasty for my taste :)

I hope you all are having very sunny days wherever you are! Send some of it my way, would ya?!

Cheers,
Amy