Thursday, May 28, 2009

Who Says You Can't Go Home?...


Our trip went really well, despite all the rain ;) The picture represents our view from the car most of the time we traveled. All in all, it was a very good trip! We didn't take many pictures in Hope, like I wanted, but we'll just have to travel back soon to do so :) When we first got to Hope, nothing looked the same and I almost started to cry. I felt kind of silly for going back and didn't even want to stay. Luckily, I have a great husband who convinced me to go to the one person's house that I remembered how to get to, Betty Jo. Her husband died a few days before our wedding, so I had no clue if she even lived there anymore. Thank goodness she did and we had a great visit! We then found the place Mr. Knowles works and caught up with him, then had a nice dinner with both of the Knowles at Western Sizzlin'. It was great to see them :)

Today I went to work in the morning and then just kind of relaxed/edited our photos from the trip so I could put them on facebook.

Even though it felt like Monday to me, tomorrow is Friday! I'll need to do laundry and pick up a little bit, but hopefully Phil and I can enjoy the weekend. We SHOULD be finding out about his fellowship REALLY soon so keep your fingers crossed! :D

Peace to you,


"Who Says You Can't Go Home" by Bon Jovi

Friday, May 22, 2009

Once Upon A Time In Arkansas...


Busy past couple of days... but totally worth it :)

Yesterday, I went to Tulsa for the day, even though it turns out I wasn't needed at all. Fantastic. Oh well, after that whole ordeal, I got to see Annette!! I realized before I went to Tulsa that I was able to see all of my BFFs this week! Quite a feat since some live as are as San Diego and St. Paul. When I got home, I had made cheesy potato casserole and some beer chicken (a recipe thanks to an LJ pal!) It was very delicious! Afterwards, Phil and I started to watch "Australia", but I got bored and eventually walked away. Phil thought it was ok, but a little too long.

Today I did laundry, picked up our re-created top tier cake, went to the mall with Jess and went to Kaylea and Tree's wedding! No, his name isn't really Tree, it's a nickname. His real name is Tristan. Anyways, the wedding was beautiful, but it turned into an awkward high school reunion that made me want to move even more than I have for awhile. Anyways, still had a good time and got some good pictures.

Tomorrow, Phil and I are going to Hot Springs for our 1 year anniversary trip!! I can't wait to go! I've been looking forward to this for quite awhile now :) I will make a post with a few pictures when we get back. Other than that, I hope y'all have a great weekend and Happy Memorial Day!

Be sure to thank someone who is in the military or the spouse/family member of someone who is fighting right now. They are the reason we can celebrate Memorial Day and live freely, (which for some people means getting really drunk on the lake the whole 3 day weekend =P). Thank you God, for those who sacrifice so much to make sure we can sleep in peace at night. Watch over those serving and the family members they left behind. Give them strength and a calm heart and watch over them. Amen.

Peace to you,


"Arkansas Traveler"

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

With 25 Sweet Summers...



Today is my husband's 25th birthday! YAY!!! Even though I've been making fun of my "old fart" for turning a "quarter-century" today, I still love him very much :D

I wish we could do more for his birthday, but we're both so busy today :( We'll have dinner together later tonight and then we'll bring a cake, (maybe I'll convince him cupcakes are better), to choir practice at church tonight! As long as he's happy, that's all that matters.

In other news, we went down to help my brother clean his summer only apartment he just moved into. It was pretty awful, especially the fridge. I was just praying none of that stuff was any type of bodily fluid Xb Some of it was rust so now that I've 409'ed it to death, the fridge and stove look a LOT better and he's place looks a little more livable :) Afterwards, we took him to Rusty's Frozen Custard! Love that place... It was just warm enough to eat it outside while we watched the sun set. After that, we went home and showered before going to bed. Even though I got more sleep last night than I have all week, I was exhausted when I woke up this morning! So much so that I almost didn't get out of bed on time and I wasn't able to cook the beer chicken recipe I wanted to try on Phil's birthday. Oh well, I'll just have to make it tomorrow.

I'll be having lunch with Jess today, hopefully hanging out with Jessica sometime soon, going to Kaylea's wedding, going up to Tulsa for some SAI business/BFF time with Annette and then we're leaving for our 1 year wedding anniversary trip!! I just can't wait :D

Happy Hump Day everyone!

Peace to you,


"Gulf War Song" by Moxy Früvous

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

We're Down At The Cinema...


{via}
Before she left for California, Phil and I wanted to hangout with our friend Carrie one last time! We decided to go to the Warren Theater and see Angels & Demons. Now, neither Carrie nor I have read any of the books, but Phil has. All three of us enjoyed it very much and Phil says it follows the book really closely. The volume in our particular theater was pretty loud, but it probably didn't help that we were towards the front of the theater. This movie was given a thumbs up by all of us so go and see it! You won't be disappointed :)

Peace to you,

"Don't Say You Love Me" by M2M

Long Winded About Me

Hello!
Since this is a public blog, I figured I should introduce myself :)
{March 2011}
  • My name is Courtney and I live in central Oklahoma. 
  • I have lived in northwest Missouri and southwest Arkansas before my family settled in Oklahoma. 
  • I have some Oklahoma specific habits, (such as putting ranch on everything), but there are a few things I don't do/don't like that give away the fact I'm not a natural-born Oklahoman ;) 
  • I only have a few nicknames. Courty-Court was the nickname my dad gave me and Nenay (knee - neigh) is from my mom. 
  • I don't allow many people to call me Court because that's what my dad would yell when I was in trouble.
{May 2004} 
 {May 2009}
{December 2010}
  • After I graduated from high school in 2004, I attended a small private university in Tulsa, Oklahoma for Vocal Performance for 3 years. 
  • I enjoyed my time there, but I ran out of money and motivation. It was becoming too costly to continue attending school there since it is a private university and I also got into a bout of depression that I just couldn't shake.  
  • I moved home and started attending the local community college where I proceeded to change my major many, many times. I finally settled on Liberal Studies and received my Associates Degree in May of 2009. 
  • I then transferred to a local public university where I am received my Bachelor's Degree in General Studies in December of 2010.
    {March 2010}
    {April 2010} 
    {April 2010} 
    {June 2009}



  • I am a proud citizen of the Chickasaw Nation. 
  • I do have some Cherokee blood lines, but those relatives did not enroll in the Dawes Roll so we can't verify anything.
  • I am a people-person introvert. I enjoy meeting people and having great conversations. However, when I need to recharge and relax, I like to do so in the privacy of my own home. 
  • I love to drive. 
  • I love getting lost in a movie. If I have no distractions, I forget what day it is, what's been going on in my life, etc. when I watch a movie. It's a fun escape when I don't have a good book to read. 
  • I rarely read, but when I do, I usually love the book. I'm pretty picky about what I read. 
  • I know everyone says they love music. I do as well, but for different reasons. I love song lyrics. I love to quote them and if a song has great lyrics AND great musicianship, I'll listen to it over and over again. In fact, my family calls me the "living jukebox" since I know at the least the chorus to some of the most random songs. I think it's silly to be a music snob. Every type of music has a place somewhere. 
  • I've been in a choir since I was 5 and have been taking private voice lessons since I was 14. I have made All-State, Regional and National Honor Choirs before and I'm trained to sing opera. I love to sing, but I don't think I'm overly fantastic, though most of the people I've worked with disagree. I gave a senior recital for fun the day before my college graduation in 2010. 
  • In November 2009, I was diagnosed with PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome)
  • My favorite colors are pink, yellow and turquoise. 
  • I love cheesecake more than a human being should. My other favorite desserts are tiramisu and creme brulee.
  • My favorite flowers are (in a very specific order): tulips, gerber daisies, roses, and carnations. 
  • I have a few small OCD tendencies, including using only even numbers or multiples of 5. 
  • I have a tendency to cut my hair short, then immediately grow it back out. Once it's too long for my taste at the moment, the cycle begins again. 
  • I have a list of 30 things to do before I'm 60 and I've already accomplished 5 of them. You can read about it here
  • I love watching How I Met Your Mother, Gilmore Girls, Food Network, Sex and the City, I Love Lucy and most family sitcoms from Andy Griffith to Full House. 
  • If I could be any fictional character, I would be Charlotte York from SATC. I just love how intelligent, classy and sweet she is. 
  • I have a fear of ferris wheels. {Don't judge!}
  • I love to play board games with a group, but prefer to do jigsaw puzzles alone.
  • I cry at the drop of a hat. 
  • I am very quiet at first, but if you show interest in me, you'll start wishing I was quiet again! 
  • I love lists. No really, it's a sickness!
  • I love to travel, but I hate to fly. 
  • I love the beach, the mountains, and I like to camp, but I love the feeling of coming home after a vacation. 
  • Unfortunately, most of the most pivotal moments in my life were surrounded by the death of someone important to me. While the pain is still there at times, I am thankful for the person I have become because of those moments.
  • I like baseball, hockey, and college football, but I don't know RBIs, stats or anything else like that. I just ask if the team I like won or not. 
  • Because my dad was born in KC, my brother and I were destined to be Royals fans. Even though they're not super great, I still love them best. 
  • My top 3 sports teams are, the Kansas City Royals, the Arkansas Razorbacks, and the Seattle Kraken!
  • I prefer to go to games over watching them on TV and I love going to local games over Major or Professional Leagues.
  • Both of my parents are ordained Presbyterian ministers, though they've always had separate churches. It was definitely different growing up in a house with both parents as ministers, but I would not trade it for anything in the world. 
  • I am very close to my family and love them dearly. 
  • My parents live in Wisconsin and I try to visit as often as I can. My mom is one of my best friends and I'm one of the biggest "Daddy's Girl"s you will ever meet. Did I ever tell you he serenaded me the night before my wedding with his guitar? Yep, he definitely did :) 
  • I have 1 older brother. He is quiet most of the time, but when he always has something meaningful to say when he does talk.
  • My brother and his wife live in Seattle with our nephew. While I don't get to see them more than once a year, it makes our meetings that much sweeter :) Plus, we have phone catch ups about every other month.
  • My parents both come from large families, (5 siblings each), but my mom is in the middle while my dad is the baby of the family. 
    {May 2008}
    {May 2011}
    {May 2012}



  • I am a proud wife to Phil. 
  • He is one of the smartest men I've ever met, but he's also the sweetest. 
  • He treats me better than I deserve some days and he is my shelter when life gets a little too stormy.  
  • He has a wonderful family that I am very glad to call my own. His mom is a high school teacher and his dad is an accountant up in northeast Oklahoma. 
  • He has a younger brother who married to a wonderful woman. They live near with our two nieces!
  • He grew up attending church in the Church of Christ denomination.
  • Phil graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering in 2006. He earned a PhD in May 2012. He is currently working for a local start-up company and is really enjoying his job! 
{December 2004}
  • Phil and I technically met towards the end of July in 2004. I had just graduated from high school and he had just finished his sophomore year in college. My first roommate in college was by a potluck drawing. We were both music majors at the time and had never met before. She called me one day to talk about stuff we were bringing and decided to exchange AIM screen names. One day, I got an IM from a screen name I didn't recognize. It was explained that it was my roommate's friend from high school band who just wanted to get to know me since he'd be hanging out in our room a lot. Well, one thing led to another and we started talking quite a few times a day up until school started. 
  • We went on our first date on August 27, 2004. We did break up for about a 4 month period in early 2006 due to some personal issues I was facing, but we got back together and the rest is history :)
{November 2006} 
{via}
{November 2007}
  • We got engaged November 18, 2006. 
  • We actually had a fight about getting engaged earlier that day! I was in town for an organization retreat and I was in meetings for most of the day. That night, I asked Phil to pick me up so that we could have dinner and make up. I was watching The Wedding Singer in my hotel room, when Phil knocked on my door. He had a wrapped gift, (in Christmas wrapping), saying it was to apologize for our fight. I unwrapped it and it was a Cinderella snow globe I saw a few weeks earlier. He instructed me to play the song and when I flipped the snow globe over, my ring was taped to the bottom! I had no idea, was very happy and of course said yes!! :)
{via}
{May 2008} 
{May 2008}
{December 2011} 
{December 2011}
{December 2013}
{December 2013}


{August 2016}

{August 2017}
Peace to you,

But I Know What It Feels Like

This post is going to be awfully vulnerable and hard for me, but I really want to finally say it out loud. I got permission for my daughter ...