GSJ

This Sunday my little brother will graduate from high school. This upcoming event has brought back some great memories of watching him grow up. Therefore, I decided to blog about some of the memories so they can be shared with others.

Before Greg was even conceived, I would pray every night for a little brother. I did not want a sister...just a baby brother. My prayers were answered on October 4th, 1990, when my mom gave birth to Gregory Stuart Jones. Gregory came from a Tennessee football player (my dad's choice) and Stuart came from the doctor who delivered both Greg and me, Dr. Mary Stuart. He was such a precious baby! He was jaundice so the doctor told mom to put him in INDIRECT sunlight. Well, mom thought she said in DIRECT sunlight so Greg got his first sunburn at a few days old. I remember being told that I could only hold my brother sitting down. This upset me, because I wanted to hold him standing up and walk around with him. With that said, every time Greg laid down for a nap, I would sneak into his room and hold him standing up. He was such a happy baby and he loved his pappy and blanky.

As he got a little bit older, he started acquiring some unique qualities. One of these unique qualities was his love for vacuum cleaners. Yes, you heard me right....vacuum cleaners. If we went to someone's house, his first question was if he could see their vacuum cleaner. He even got two vacuum cleaners from Santa one year. He couldn't pronounce his "SM" sounds so the word "smoke" sounded like "foke" when he said it and "smart" was "fart" to him. He loved riding in the car! When he got into the car he wouldn't make a sound. He would just look at all of the scenery and take everything in his little head. When it came time for soccer and T-ball, Greg was more interested in day dreaming or pulling up his socks than he was actually playing sports.

Now, my little brother is growing up, and while one chapter in his life is closing, another one is opening. He is graduating with great grades even though he had a full time job all through high school. He has a great head on his shoulders, and is an amazing chef....I hope he opens his own restaurant one day. I am so proud of him...he has accomplished so much in such a short time. I will end with a list of things about my thoughts of my brother.

Moments when Greg made me:

• Proud- when he got his Eagle Scout. That is a major honor and I am so proud of him for staying with it and accomplishing this great goal.
  
• Happy- when he came to visit me at my new house in Brandon. He did not get to stay as long as we would've hoped but he is coming back!!!
  
• Impressed- when he owned his own business and when he cooked for mom and me
  
• Feel loved- when he cried about me getting married and leaving for our home for good
  
• Sad- when he left my house in Brandon
  
• Mad :-)- when he is being stubborn
  
• Honored- when he was in my wedding...he had some major roles and he did them so well.
• Helpful- when he wanted me to help him learn his vocabulary words for a final exam in English
• Laugh- when we mess with Dave....especially when he starts telling his stories and Greg acts like he is falling asleep
• Scared- a few nights before my wedding when we went to Hart's Bridge Road
• Relaxed/Content- riding in his truck listening to music
• Stressed- when he backed into my father-in-law's truck at Thanksgiving
• Blessed- when I think of how great of a brother I have and how blessed to have so many great memories together.

I love you, Gregory Stuart! Congratulations on graduating!

A Few more pictures from Friday night!!!

Sorry it has been so long....

I haven't posted in forever, because I could not think of anything interesting to blog about. I pondered over what to blog about tonight and a couple of things came to my mind.
This weekend was amazing! Justin and I came to the decision that we are always on the go and never stop to just hangout with each other. This sparked our weekend plans. This past weekend we had a date weekend. We wanted to relax and not plan too many things. Justin and I are like two peas in a pod when it comes to liking sleep and watching TV shows. Therefore, we got caught up on some much needed sleep and watched TV shows.
My favorite part of the weekend was on Saturday when we went on a picnic date. We chose to go to a park near the reservoir. The weather was perfect, and we ended up having an amazing time. Belle went with us (of course), and she had a great time as well. She is our little vacuum cleaner, because she eats everything she can get in her mouth! She ate two yucky cigarette butts and someone's old piece of chewed gum.
Also Friday night, we attended Hinds Community College's employee appreciation banquet. I was excited that Justin got to hangout with my coworkers and get to know them better. We had a good time, and the food was delicious!
This weekend, we are going to Shubuta for a wedding and for Mother's Day. The weekend after that we are attending another wedding, then we will be attending my brother's graduation (tear).
We are loving our church and our small group. We both feel like Pinelake is the perfect fit for us. Our church and small group just finished the Jaded series and we are now beginning the Relationship series. I am very excited about the Relationship series! Our small group is so supportive and every Sunday night we get closer and closer. God has been so great to us and he continues to do wonderful things for our church and our relationship as husband and wife.
Last but not least, Belle is as cute as ever! She has gotten so much longer. I have a confession to make....every dog chooses the alpha of the house, which means that dogs love both owners but they usually have one they favor the most. Well, Belle's alpha is her daddy and not her mommy. She is crazy about him and it is so cute. If Justin is anything like he is with Belle when we have children, I will be the luckiest wife ever. He is so good with Belle and even taught her how to rollover last month. She always sleeps on Justin's chest or as close as she possibly can to him. Sometimes I wonder how she doesn't get smothered by him because she is so close. Justin is already not a morning person, but he is even worse since Belle came along. We can't wait for summer, because she loves going outside and getting fresh air. She is just adorable (as usual).
Well, that is all for now....I will try not to wait as long next time! Have a great week!

Our New Guest Room

Since I have not posted in a while to our blog, I decided to post pictures of our new and improved guest room. When we moved into our new home, we just used my stuff from my apartment in the guest room. I had that stuff for about five years, and I was getting tired of that look. I really like chocolate brown and blue so I decided to search for things that fit that description. We are on a budget so I did not want to spend a lot of money on the room (especially since my apartment stuff was in perfect condition). I got our comforter for only $35, the drapes for $24, and the accents were either ones we already had or ones we bought with our Pier One gift cards we got for Christmas. I love the finished product, and I really love the fact that it did not cost much money at all.

Christmas at the Doggett's Home

Our home is finally ready for Christmas! Justin grew up with a real Christmas tree and I always had an artificial tree. We both decided to get a real tree this year and buy an artificial one after Christmas. We went to a local Farmer's Market and picked out a gorgeous 9 foot Fraser Fir Christmas tree. I enjoyed the experience so much that we have decided to continue this tradition every year. Next year, we are going to go to the actual farm and cut down our tree. Next, we got decorations and began decorating the tree and mantle. We decided to take it easy on the decorations this year, because we were starting from scratch. You can't see Justin's stocking very well but it has his name on it like mine. How have you decorated your home? Post a comment about Christmas or to just give us a Christmas wish. Merry Christmas!

Callie "Belle" Doggett

The newest member of our little family is a precious Yorkshire Terrier named Callie Belle Doggett. We call her Belle, and she is our pride and joy. We bought her from a breeder in Louisville, MS. Belle stole Justin's heart and that is why we chose her out of the other Yorkies. She loves to play and watching her run is the cutest thing in the world. Everyone who meets her just adores her. We took her to my parents house for Thanksgiving and my mom and brother were depressed when she left. Now, we can't wait to pick things out to put in her stocking for Christmas. Her stocking is in the shape of a bone...so cute!
Belle's Favorites:

• Place to sleep- as close as she can to her daddy
• Toy- her bear and pig
• Place to play- when we first got her she loved playing under our table but now she plays all over the place
• Food- her treats called Nature's Recipe
• Moment- when her mommy and daddy come home to play with her
• Place to visit- her grandma's house (she loved it there)
  

Extraordinary Women Conference

As most of you know, I attended the Extraordinary Women Conference at First Baptist Church in Jackson, MS. The conference was amazing! Over 3,300 women came from all over Mississippi to worship God.
Friday night kicked off at seven with a praise band then Chonda Pierce spoke. Chonda is a Christian comedian that opened our eyes to stop judging others and start helping others in need.
Saturday we were up early and at the church before 8 in the morning to see the Children of the World Choir. They were adorable! These children along with millions of others are orphaned due to AIDs. Only 14% of Christians give money to help these children, because of the stigma AIDs has in this world. This was very sad to hear especially because these children did not choose to be orphaned. Then the praise band opened up with several songs. The next speaker, Karen Kingsbury is a best-selling author who had everyone in tears when she read her book "Let Me Hold You Longer." The next speaker was Angela Thomas and she was very inspirational. Thelma Wells was the last speaker. She was great and spoke on how God is the way to success. Finally, Mark Schultz gave an amazing concert. He is a great performer and in Abbi's words, "He is very humble." My favorite song he sang is "I Am." I am posting the lyrics below. Have a great week!

I Am
I AM the Maker of the Heavens
I AM the Bright and Morning Star
I AM the Breath of all Creation
Who always was
And is to come

I AM the One who walked on water
I AM the One who calmed the seas
I AM the Miracles and Wonders
So come and see
And follow Me
You will know

chorus:
I AM the Fount of Living Water
The Risen Son of Man
The Healer of the Broken
And when you cry
I AM your Savior and Redeemer
Who bore the sins of man
The Author and Perfecter
Beginning and the End
I AM

I AM the Spirit deep inside you
I AM the Word upon your heart
I AM the One who even knew you
Before your birth
Before you were

chorus

Bridge:
Before the Earth (I AM)
The universe (I AM)
In every heart (I AM)
Oh, where you are (I AM)
The Lord of Lords (I AM)
The King of Kings (I AM)
The Holy Lamb (I AM)
Above all things

chorus:
Yes, I AM Almighty God, your Father
The Risen Son of Man
The Healer of the Broken
And when you cry
I AM Your Savior and Redeemer
Who bore the sins of man
The Author and Perfecter
Beginning and the End
I AM

Justin's Birthday and more

Yesterday was a special day because it was Justin's 26th birthday! I asked him if he wanted me to cook dinner or go out to eat. Since he had been craving Chili's chips and salsa, he decided to go there. We invited Mike and Sarah our friends/neighbors. Justin got a chicken sandwich with corn on the cob and I got a Caesar chicken pita with french fries. Oh and of course, our favorite, the bottomless chips and salsa. We had a great time! After dinner, Justin and I went home and I watched him play PlayStation 3. Justin's birthday gifts included a black State UnderArmour polo, a State leather wallet, softball pants, blue tooth earpiece for the PlayStation, $100, two pairs of pants, and three work shirts. He was probably the least excited about my gift but he needed more work clothes so that is what he got.
Other news that is going on in our life:

• We got an alarm system
• I passed my comps...Wow, what a relief!
• Justin is going home this weekend
• I am attending the Extraordinary Women Christian conference this weekend

Have a great week!

Our Jack-O-Lanterns

Carving Pumpkins

We decided to carve pumpkins tonight! I was very excited because Justin had never carved one. I went to Kroger and bought two good size ones. I wanted to make this activity something fun for the both of us! Therefore, when Justin had the idea to make his an MSU themed one, I was thrilled with his great idea. He was nervous about his drawing skills so he asked me to draw his design for him. I decided to make mine a traditional Jack-O-Lantern.
When we finished, he was unsure about his showing up, but I told him to be patient and he will see outside. We went outside and lit our candles and the smile on his face was priceless. He was so excited about our pumpkins and told me that he had a lot of fun. We both stood outside hoping that one of our neighbors or someone would drive by and admire our creations. We want to continue this tradition and one day make Jack-O-Lanterns with our children.
Well, that is all for now! We hope you all enjoy our pictures. Happy Halloween!