The best gift I've ever received...

1996. I was 9 years old. Nine year olds want barbie dolls, make up, toys, and clothes. My mom decided to start me a snow village.

This piece was to represent the year it all started. See where it says "1996" on the little drum?

I was pretty mad. I didn't want a glass house to count as one of my presents every year. And you're telling me some years I won't even get a house?? Just a figurine?? It sounded terrible to me. What a rotten idea! As a 9 year old, I was severely disappointed.

Mom got this house because of all the Christmas decorations. She use to say that she hoped it
would remind me of her decorating the house. She also use to say she always wanted a wrap
around porch, so I guess you could say this was her dream house.

If I could go back and talk to my 9 year old self, I would tell her to stop being such a spoiled brat. To be thankful for a mom who sees past the current Christmas, to the future of when this would be special. Because now, it's one of my most prized possessions. I may go as far as to say it IS my most prized possession. If my house were to catch on fire, I would probably run to the garage and try to drag my big ol' cardboard box filled with these pieces out with me. Because a piece of my Lala's spirit is in there.

A nativity scene to always remind me that JESUS is the reason for the season!

                                         
Each year, my mom would pick a different house or figurine that would represent something special that had happened that particular year. Each piece has a special meaning. When I open each box, I picture her shopping for it. I imagine her standing in the store and trying to decide which one would describe that year the best. Each piece is so special because it reminded her of me. It reminded her of her love for me. It was picked out by her love.

A fireman to honor the fireman who lost their lives in 9/11. 

                                         
I've only put this out once in the past 7 Christmases. Mainly because I didn't have room in my little apartments. But now that I have a house, I knew I would pull it out. To be truthful, I was actually kind of dreading it at first. It's a lot of work! And makes a big ol' mess. And I just wasn't that excited about it. But oh my.... I was reminded tonight of how much this gift means to me! I was so glad I took the time to put it out.

A big, decorated Christmas tree to remind me of how our family decorated one every year! 

My mom wrote on several of the boxes. Little notes about the piece. It was so special to me to see her handwriting, to read her thoughts. At 9 years old and up, I had no idea how much this gift would mean to me. I wanted girly things, not some dumb house! But now, it means the world to me. These pieces are so full of her.

New Years Eve Celebration to remind me of the NYE parties she threw every year! 

The wedding chapel and bride and groom was from a year
that one of my cousins got married, I think! 

In 4th grade, I was a safety patroller and got this one! 

My grandmother use to be a nurse, and I got this hospital the year that she retired. 

In 6th grade, I learned how to play the flute. My mom
bought this set because she said the flute player looked like me. 

My uncle use to work for Harley Davidson, so I got these! 

I got Graceland one year when I was convinced that we were related to Elvis.
This piece has a lot of other cool pieces, but I didn't have room for them all!

I got these kids one year. When I asked my mom why, she said
it was because I worked so well with kids and she just knew that someday,
my job would have something to do with kids. Pretty crazy, huh?

In 7th grade, I started playing basketball and got this set! 

One year, a movie theater opened in our home town.
It was a HUGE deal! I got this movie theater that year! 

I got this library in 5th grade, after winning a contest for reading the most books in the school. 

The best gift I have ever, ever received.

Because every Christmas, for as long as I live, I will be able to pull these pieces out and think about my mom. It reminds me of her voice, her joy, her love, and her overall loving spirit. One day, when I have my own kids, I will be able to pull out each piece and tell my kids about their Lala and my memories with her. I will be able to tell them the amazing woman that is their grandmother, and they will learn about her through these pieces. She loved Christmas so much...she had sooo much joy this time of year! And this gift is what is going to keep her Christmas joy around for years to come. I feel like I just finished spending time with her while putting this out, and it has made my heart so happy, full, and filled with the Christmas spirit!

My challenge to you is this year, when you pick out presents for the special people in your life, try to find gifts with more meaning. Things that will last. Sure, you can get the little things too. I got them, and loved them in the moment. But looking back, I couldn't tell you what new gadgets I got, what toys I was thrilled to open, or what outfits I was styling post Christmas. But I can tell you about this gift. This gift that I didn't want at the moment, but that I will treasure for the rest of my life.

Lala, I'm sorry for not appreciating this gift as you were giving it to me each year. I want to thank you for leaving me something so incredibly thoughtful though. I miss you so much, especially during this Christmas season!


I'm linking up with Kelly's Korner!

Sister, Sister!

Never knew how much I missed ya!

There's just something about that twin bond!

My sister and I were "wombmates" first, and then went on to be roommates for 25 years!!

She is my best friend!

She got married in August, and since then I have only seen her for a total of 10 hours. She came in town two weeks after her wedding to help me throw a baby shower for our nephew, but it was a super short visit!

However, she will be in Dallas TONIGHT! I absolutely positively can't wait to spend the weekend with her!! We have lots of fun things planned!

• Hang out with friends tonight
• Dallas Flea tomorrow
• Alabama/Georgia game tomorrow afternoon
• Friend's birthday party tomorrow night
• Brunch Sunday morning

I can't wait! I so took the time we had together for granted! I can't wait for a sister weekend!!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

I'm slowly, but surely, decorating my house for Christmas. Ya'll, it is a huge deal to get your first home decorated for Christmas the first time! When I lived in an apartment, I thought I had soooooo many Christmas decorations. But now, I'm realizing I don't have nearly enough for an entire house!  And it's taking forever. That's probably because I live such a busy life! This is what I have up so far:

I was really pleased with how this turned out! I had no clue what I was going to do,
 but I think it turned out nicely! These stockings are for me, my roommate, and our two dogs.
But I also have some for when my family gets in town! (Hence the multiple
stocking holders you can see if you look closely!)

I went and bought a red table cloth and snapped this picture immediately-
hence the lines still in the cloth!
 I've since washed it, so it looks much better. :) In the vase are sparkly ornaments!
And I have towels in the kitchen that match that runner!

My big Christmas tree! My dad went ahead and sent all of his presents back to Dallas with me,
hence the millions under the tree. I love to wrap presents, so he sent them all unwrapped. I've been
wrapping for four days and I'm still no where near done. He has a lot of people to buy for, that's for sure!

And no Christmas is complete without an Alabama Christmas tree! I love mine! I have way too
many ornaments though... I'm thinking next year it will be time to get a bigger tree for my
Alabama ornaments! And yes, those are presents wrapped in houndstooth paper underneath! :)

I'll post pictures of my front door soon!

I'm linking up with Kelly's Korner!

RED

OK, seriously guys. I am about to post this, and I don't even care if you think I'm silly. Or crazy. Or that I have bad taste in music. Or that I maybe kind of sound like an immature middle school girl. (I am around them all day long!)

Normally, I hate Taylor Swift's music. I usually like her songs the first time I hear them, but then I'm over them. They are just all so similar. And blah. And is it mean to say annoying?

But ya'll. Her new CD, Red, is amazing.

I'm talking I bought it when it came out and have yet to take it out of my CD player. Yes, that was a month ago. Yes, that means I listened to it for 10 hours on the way TO Alabama for Thanksgiving AND the way BACK from Alabama for Thanksgiving. I just can't help myself.

This is her best CD by far. Her lyrics are just SO good! I think every song on that CD is a good song for at least some point in my life. Check out these videos for some of my favorites!

RED: Losing him was blue like I'd never known, missing him was dark gray all alone, forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you've never  met, but loving him was RED....

STAY: It's been occurring to me, I'd like to hang out with you for my whole life.

I KNEW YOU WERE TROUBLE: I knew you were trouble when you walked in, so shame on me. Now I'm lying on the cold, hard ground.

WE ARE NEVER GETTING BACK TOGETHER: We are never, ever, ever getting back together. You go talk to your friends, talk to my friends, talk to me, but we are never, ever, ever getting back together. (This one is for good ol Johnny Boy! HA!)

ALL TOO WELL: And maybe we got lost in translation, maybe I asked for too much, but maybe this thing was a masterpiece til you tore it all up. Running scared, I was there, I remember it all too well. 

I ALMOST DO: And I just want to tell you, it takes everything in me not to call you. And I wish I could run to you, and I hope you know that every time I don't.... I almost do.

And that's only six of the songs! I could go on and on, but I probably shouldn't put the entire CD on my blog. Seriously, if you even kind of like her music, you need to go get this CD!! It is amazing!

**All thoughts were my own! I was not compensated for this post! Although I'd gladly take two tickets to Taylor's RED concert in Dallas in May if anyone is asking....***

Women Connect '12

Today I'm linking up with 'From Mrs. to Mama" for a "Women Connect" event! First off, I want to say that I am obsessed with this link up party! I love blogging, and I love reading other people's blogs. However, sometimes it's a constant reading of married women and their babies! Which I don't mind, but I'm hoping to find other single ladies who are enjoying this stage of life! Any and all blog friends are welcomed though!

So to start off, I'm Heather! I'm a 25 year old single girl living it up in the big D! I was born and raised in Alabama, and moved to Dallas immediately following college graduation. Looking back, that was a crazy decision! I didn't know anyone here, but I packed up and moved anyway! I haven't regretted it for a second!!! My blog is titled "Bridge to Birmingham" because it started out as a way to stay connected to friends and family back in Birmingham. I guess that's pretty much what it still is! However, I've loved connecting with other bloggers along the way!!

Becky, from Mrs. To Mama, said to just write about who we are today! To share a story, share something challenging in our lives, and just open up! So that's what I will be doing on this post! Just sharing a little bit more about me!

Like I said earlier, I'm 25 years old! I have an amazing family who means the world to me...

(From left to right) My dad, Cort, lives in Birmingham and owns Action Sports Art! My stepmom, Ashley, lives in Birmingham as well and works for my dad's company. My twin sister, Holly, just got married to my brother in law, Zack! They live in Tulsa. Zack is a personal trainer and Holly teaches preschool! My older brother, Kevin, and sister in law, Alicean, live in Austin! Kevin is a wireless engineer and Alicean is a realtor! They just had their first baby, Carter. He is my favorite person in the entire world! Chase is my younger brother and is a freshmen at the University of Alabama!

I just bought my first house in April. I am what people would consider a "crafty" person, and I have loved spending the past few months decorating my new home! I have been finishing different pieces of furniture and have loved how they all turned out!

I painted this piece red! There are new lamps on it now, though. 

I painted the piano and the china cabinet! And there is a white mirror that hangs on that blank wall now. :)

I am a middle school ELAR teacher at one of the coolest schools in the world. This is my fourth year teaching, and each year I have taught a different grade! I currently teach 8th grade ELAR, 7/8 grade Yearbook, and 6th grade DI. It's definitely a busy schedule!

Becky said to write about challenges that you have faced in your life. Well, that is a really long story for me! Between the ages of 15 and 18, I faced several different challenges that included my mom being diagnosed with leukemia, my friend drowning at the beach, my parents divorcing, and my mom losing her battle to cancer. I wrote about all of that last year, so you can read that post ****here!****

There are so many other things that I could say about myself! I love hanging out with my friends. I'm obsessed with college football! (ROLL TIDE! I'm so nervous about the SEC championship game Saturday!!!!) I have a dog named Julio, who is my favorite little thing! My roommate's name is Meagan and she pretty much rocks. I love being crafty and I'm always working on some craft or another!

My sweet Julio

Basically, I am just loving life! I am enjoying the single life, but at the same time ready to find someone special and settle down. To say that I've dated my share of losers would be an understatement! Here's to hoping my prince is out there somewhere! :) :) PLEASE feel free to follow me! I'm excited about meeting new friends! Leave a comment saying you've followed me so that I can check out your blog, too! And don't forget to link up with Becky!

PS. This is my 500th post! Happy 500 posts to me! :) :) What a fun way to do it, too! Meeting new friends! :)

Giving Thanks

Before Thanksgiving break, I was in such a funk. Work had really worn me down. My personal life seemed so blah. I was just down in the dumps like.... all.the.time. It was a poor, pitiful me kind of mood.

But then Thanksgiving break came along! And oh my, how I needed it!!

9 days of FREEDOM from work. Don't get me wrong, I love my job. Like, so much. I'm so blessed with amazing students, amazing administration, and even more amazing co-workers. But I've just put so much more into my job this year, taken on so many more roles, that I was just worn out. And I needed that break so badly!!

I left my computer at work and walked out at 4:00 last Friday ready to get back to my good place. And oh, the past 9 days did my heart so good! I spent the break....

-Showing Birmingham to Burks
-Catching up with so many high school friends
-Seeing some of my closest college pals
-Thanksgiving with my mom's sweet family
-Lots of quality time with my little brother
-Saturday in Tuscaloosa for the Iron Bowl
-Celebrating life with the people I love the most


It did my heart so good! I'm back in Dallas now, ready to conquer the next 4 weeks of work. I feel like I'm back to my normal self and out of that terrible funk. I have so many things to be thankful for, and the past 9 days really reminded me of that! I'm so blessed! I hope your Thanksgiving break was as wonderful as mine!! :)

Exploring Downtown

Burks came home with me for the first part of Thanksgiving! He has interviews this week in Birmingham for oral surgeon school, so it just worked out for him to come! We've had so much fun!

Last night we stopped in Tuscaloosa on our way in and took my little brother to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants in ttown- mugshots! It was delicious! After that, we headed over to Bryant Denny. Burks got to meet the bear and go on the walk of champions! Roll tide! After arriving in Trussville last night, we went to a late movie of skyfall! I've never seen a bond movie (I know, crazy!) However, I really enjoyed it!!! It was so good!

Today we decided to explore Birmingham. We quickly found out that lots of sites in bham are closed on Monday though! Random, I know. We walked around the newish Railroad Park though! It was fun to spend the morning chatting with beautiful scenery. After that we headed to Kelly Ingram park and did the civil rights you. The institute was closed, but there's still plenty to see and experience. I hadn't been there since middle school so it was interesting! We then ate lunch at Dreamland's BBQ! So yummy! After that, we headed to Vulcan Park. I hadn't been there since they redid everything (10 years ago!) but it was so nice! It was a beautiful view, too. I really wish we had gone at night! I bet the lights are beautiful. Anyway, that was fun! We wanted to do some other things as well, but everything else was closed! So we headed home and watched "First 48" for a few hours before he had to head to a dinner at UAB.

Tomorrow he has interviews all day, so I'm going to meet him downtown afterwards for dinner! I think we are going to go to Rojo! I'm pretty pumped about that. I've had so much fun showing him around Birmingham! I haven't gone to any of these places in years, so it's been fun to explore again! :) Its been a fun start to the week for sure. It's going to be kind of lonely when he heads to Arkansas on Wednesday! Ill need new people to show around! :)

Christmas in Dallas

This will be my family's first year to have Christmas in Dallas, and not Christmas in Dixie! We decided to move Christmas to Dallas for many reasons. One reason is that my older brother and his wife just had a baby. They live in Austin, so it's easier for them to travel with a newborn to Dallas than it is to travel to Alabama. Another reason is that my sister got married and now lives in Tulsa. Her husband has to work the day after Christmas, so it will be easier for them to drive to Dallas and back then it would be for them to travel to Alabama and back.

My dad, step mom, and younger brother arrive in Dallas the Saturday morning before Christmas. They are staying for a week. We were really hoping that our Mawmaw and Pawpaw would make the trip as well, but they have decided to stay home in Alabama. It will be our first Christmas without them and we are going to miss them SO much!!!!

One reason I am excited to have Christmas in Dallas instead of Alabama is because we will have so much more family time. When we all go home to Alabama, we spend the entire week running around trying to see everyone that we haven't seen in awhile. But with Christmas in Dallas, that won't be a problem! We can just spend time together, enjoying the holiday season!

Since we've never done Christmas in Dallas before, and my family will be here for an entire week, I'm trying to come up with a list of things that we can do together while they are here. This way we won't get too bored! Here are my ideas so far! If you have ever done Christmas in the DFW area, please include your ideas!

1. Take Carter to see Santa Claus at either North Park or the Galleria. I'm sure that Kevin and Alicean will have already done this, but I think it'd be fun for all of us to see it happen too. :)
2. Go see the christmas decorations at the Gaylord Texan.
                                      
3. Go to ICE! at the Gaylord Texan.
                    
4. Go to the Christmas Eve service at PCBC.
                                 
5. Holiday in the Park @ Six Flags
          
6. Watch: "It's a Wonderful Life", "Christmas Vacation", "White Christmas", and "Elf"
7. Bake lala's Christmas cookies!
8. Paint canvas with Carter's foot prints:
                               
                           
9. Girls can go get Christmas pedicures :)
                           
10. Finish Christmas shopping together! Trip to the mall! (Not Northpark though! That place is a nightmare at Christmas!)
11.  Christmas in the Square- in Frisco! It's suppose to be the largest choreographed Christmas lights in North Texas!
                                       
12. Trains at NorthPark Center... this is apparently pretty cool! Even if my family doesn't go, maybe I can at least take Charlie?
                         
13. Holiday at the Arboretum-- this sounds so good! I've never been to the Arboretum, but it says it has ta nativity scene up and that kids can take their pictures with Rudolph and Frosty! This runs through the 31st, so we will definitely be hitting it up at some point!
                                       
14. Prairie Lights- This is in Grand Prairie and apparently has tons of lights and decorations and a light show! There is Santa and carnival rides and souvenirs! It's $15 for a car of 8 during the week and $20 on the weekend. It runs through new years eve and sounds like lots of fun! We may need to check this out too!
                                   

Oh, this list has me so excited! So many different holiday options! Hopefully my family is up to some of them! I want the week to be filled with fun and family, so here's to hoping they go for it all! :)

And I may or may not be hoping that this list will convince my mawmaw and pawpaw to come to Dallas for Christmas! Come on, mawmaw! It's just a measly little hour and a half flight! :)