Tangled

I have been waiting for months to see "Tangled."  I watched it tonight and was not disappointed. I immediately fell in love with the newest movie put out by the great and wonderful Walt Disney Company.  It ranks right up there with my all time favorites -"Sleeping Beauty," "Cinderella," "Snow White," "Little Mermaid," and "Beauty and the Beast" just to name a few.  I am so happy that I can still sit and enjoy a fairy tale animated movie.  I don't think that you ever really outgrow movies like this.  I think I have stated before that I am a Disney freak.  I love any and all things Disney.  For a while there we weren't really getting any new Disney animated movies but lately they have been on a roll and given us several new favorites.  Several years ago "Enchanted" was released.  Last year "The Princess and the Frog" came out.  Not to mention all of the Disney Pixar favorites like "Toy Story 3" and "Cars."  The release of the sequel to "Cars" is something that I will be looking forward to this summer. 

I love getting lost in a fairy tale every once in a while.  I know life isn't a fairy tale but it sure is nice to believe in wishes and dreams.  It is nice to think that the bad guys will always lose in the end and the prince and princess will live happily ever after.  I think that my faith helps me see that life is more like fairy tales that most people will admit.  In the end (whenever that may be) the bad guys will lose and the believers will live happily ever after with the King of Kings!

Peace and Love,
Selena

Choir

I got home from church a little while ago.  On Wednesdays I usually stay late for choir.  I am so thankful to be a part of my choir family.  Just being with them puts me in a great mood! I love how we pray for each other, joke with each other, and take care of each other.  Thanks to all of you who make my Wednesday evenings so enjoyable! Oh! I almost forgot that I won a door prize tonight! You never know what you will go home with on door prize nights!  Seriously, if Gwyn says she has door prizes you better come just to check them out!  I am proud to say that I won a puzzle that my HG kids can have fun with! Not so sure what I would have done with the mailing envelope...

Peace and Love,
Selena

Peace Lily

When my Papaw Wright passed away my friends at Play World Child Care sent me a peace lily.  Believe it or not several years later it is still alive.  I do not have a green thumb.  My peace lily tells me when to water it.  When it gets all droopy I know it is thirsty.  Every time I see it I remember my Papaw.  I am grateful for having him in my life.  I still miss him very very much but I am at peace knowing that he is walking and talking in Heaven with Jesus.    That peace comes from my faith but it sure is nice seeing my peace lily and remembering it!

Peace and Love,

Selena

Big Orange

Sad news tonight...the Lady Vols lost.  We can always count on them for a good season.  Pat Summitt is queen of NCAA basketball.  But tonight was not their night.  It was not their year for another national title.  Oh Well I guess it is on to football season!  I am a Tennessee Vol loving girl! I can't wait to hear those 5 words...IT'S FOOTBALL TIME IN TENNESSEE!  We have a little over 5 months to get ready for the first game of the 2011 season.  I can't wait! Football season means fall fun.  Don't get me wrong I am not trying to hurry along spring and summer but I live for fall.  After all one of the most beautiful colors of fall is ORANGE!  I love crisp autumn days.  I love watching the leaves change.  I love sitting in Neyland Stadium with 102,000 of my closest friends cheering on our boys!  I love eating Petros and Smokey Dogs!  I am thankful for the Saturdays that I have spent in Knoxville with my friends and family.  I am counting the days until I can be there again!  It is great to be a Tennessee Vol! 

 Mindy and me getting ready to cheer on the boys one weekend a few years back!

 This was taken at the Auburn/Tennessee game in 2008 in Auburn, AL.

 Me and some of my favorite friends!

The team bus on the road. 

 Rocky Top!

 Getting settle in our nosebleed seats for a game.

 Power T!

 Sea of Orange!

 My mom and I getting ready for the Vol Walk.

 Pride of the Southland Marching Band

Whatever team you cheer for I imagine you are just as anxious as I am about the arrival of the 2011 season. Can't wait to see what the season brings! 

Peace and Love,

Selena

Ice Cream Sundae Sunday!

The last couple of months the kids at HGUMC have been practicing for our spring musical - Oh! Jonah! They have been doing such a great job and I am very proud of them.  I am also very grateful for the hard work that Gwyn and Carolyn are putting into this production! I am very blessed to be on staff with these 2 wonderful ladies.  When we started practicing back in January, Mrs. Gwyn told the kids that we would light a candle each week during practice for good behavior.  If the kids stayed on task they candle would stay lit.  The candle would be put out if the kids started misbehaving.  The candle was a tall, skinny pillar candle.  Mrs. Gwyn marked the bottom of the candle with a mark.  Once the candle burned down to that mark the kids would be rewarded with an ice cream party.  Well, the candle burned down last Wednesday (much sooner than we thought it would) so tonight we had our party.  I am so proud of all our kids! This is going to be a great musical that I hope everyone comes out for.  It is May 22 just in case you need to put it on your calendar! 

Nothing like ending a fabulous weekend with a huge bowl of ice cream with all my favorite toppings!

Peace and Love,
Selena

Buttercup

Today I am thankful that I survived the Buttercup 2 times in one day.  My camp buddies will know exactly what I am talking about.  Sorry if you don't have a clue.  You'll just have to come help out with youth events or camp to find out.  I had lots of fun folk dancing with the HGUMC youth! Love you guys!

Peace and Love,
Selena

Discovery 2011

Tonight, I am very thankful for the youth and adults participating in the Discovery weekend at HGUMC.  The theme is Celebrate Life oddly enough! I am blessed to be a part of such a wonderful church family! Can't wait to see what the weekend brings! 

Peace and Love,
Selena

Easter Candy

You get another short one today.

I don't know if I should really be thankful for this or not, but today I am happy to have Reese's peanut butter eggs in my life! Yummy! Probably won't be so happy the next time I step on the scales.

Peace and Love,
Selena

Advil, Hot Baths, and Heating Pads

I am just a little bit sore today.  With that being said I am thankful for Advil, hot baths, and heating pads!

Peace and Love,
Selena

Angels

Well, it is days like today that I really benefit from this blog.  Tuesday, September 8, 2009 I had a horrible wreck in Athens, AL (still hate to drive there!)  A guy "didn't see me" (whatever) and pulled out in front of me on highway 72.  I was going the speed limit which was 65 and barely had a chance to slow down.  I saw it coming.  I hit the brakes but still ending up hitting the guy and took a few 360 spins in the middle of the highway.  His truck wasn't even scratched.  My airbags deployed and thankfully the only injury I had was a burn on my arm from the airbag.  My car was totaled.  Today, I was on my way to church in HG to get ready for soccer tonight and I got hit by a guy who "didn't see me stopped to turn."  Once again I have to say stupid man! He was driving a big old truck and guess what - his truck didn't even have a scratch!  I have no idea if they will total my car out this time but if it does get fixed the first thing I am doing is trading for a big old truck!  I am 34 and have now been driving more than half of my life.  I am very lucky to not have had more wrecks than I have. Just take note - the ones I have had have not been my fault (except me backing over that mailbox one time back in college!) I totally, completely, 100% believe in ANGELS! I have had one riding with me at least 2 times now.  To walk away from both wrecks with not a scratch is my little miracle.  I am fairly certain I will be sore tomorrow morning but I am still here.  My angels have been with me and will hopefully continue to be.  I could have come home tonight and started feeling sorry for myself but I remembered I made a promise to find something to be thankful for everyday of Lent.  Today I am thankful that God and his angels are always watching over me.  I believe in angels!  Do you?

Peace and Love,
Selena

Books

I am a nerd when it comes to books.  I will read pretty much anything (except what I actually had to read in school.)  I love being able to open a book and get lost in a story.  I have read all 7 Harry Potter books at least 4 times.  I have read the Twilight series 3 times.  I love Nora Roberts and anything she writes.  Books make me happy.  I love brand new books and old ratty books.  My Harry Potters look like they have been through a couple of wars because they are so worn.  I am not a Kindle, Nook, Ereader kind of girl.  There is just something special about having a book in my hands.  I love bookstores and think it is a shame that many are going out of business.  My brother's fiance works for Borders and they are closing stores all over the country.  I am all about technology but to me it is sad that books seem to be on their way out.  I am so thankful that I fell in love with reading at a young age.  Pick up a book and see where it takes you.  Neverland, Hogwarts, Forks, Camelot, Peyton Place, Narnia, and on and on and on.  These are all places I have visited once or twice and I challenge you to journey there too!  Happy reading!

Peace and Love,
Selena

Outside Fun

It was such a beautiful day to be outside!  I really enjoyed hanging out with the HGUMC kiddos tonight outside on the playground.  We had some monkeys on the jungle gym, a kickball game, frisbees being tossed around, and kids laughing everywhere! I think it is safe to say that all of us kids (big and little) enjoyed the evening.  I am looking forward to many more fun times outside in the upcoming months! Thank you God for this weather! Can you keep it coming please?

Peace and Love,
Selena

Trip of a Lifetime

This weekend HGUMC is hosting a Bible Conference with Dr. Jim Fleming.  Going to the session last night and the ones today reminded me of my trip with my Dad and a group from Killen UMC to Israel in the spring of 2007.  It is hard to believe it has been almost 4 years ago!  That was definitely an experience that I will never forget.  I am a visual learner so it really made the Bible stories that I have heard all my life come alive for me.  Being able to walk where Jesus and his disciples walked gave me a brand new perspective to these stories. It was amazing and I hope to go back one day.  Experiencing this with my dad made it even more special.  He has always wanted to go so I am glad that was something we could share.  If you ever get the chance to go just do it! You will not regret it! 

Here are only a few of the hundreds of pictures that I took!  

This was just a few hours after we landed on our first day! We drove up the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.  It was beautiful! 

We finally made it to Tiberias where we spent the first half of the week.  This is the view out our hotel room window of the Sea of Galilee.

Our first full day we toured the small towns along the Sea of Galilee.  This is at one of our stops.

This was our lunch! St. Peter's fish! Yes, I did eat it while it continued to stare at me! OK, so it was dead but still kind of creepy.

We stopped at a place on the Jordan River and had a baptism renewal service.  This is the Jordan River.  It wasn't nearly as wide as I thought it would be!

My dad one evening on the shore of the Sea of Galilee.  We ended our time there with a communion service on the banks of the water.  

The second half of the trip we spent in Jerusalem.  This was literally our first view of the city! Breathtaking!

The Mount of Olives looking back on the Garden of Gethsemane (I think!) My dad is surely to correct me if I am wrong.      

Trees in the Garden of Gethsemane

Pool of Bethesda

The Western Wall

Shepherds fields in Bethlehem

Qumran - where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found

In the middle of the desert is this awesome oasis.  En Gedi. We hiked up to the cave in the middle of this picture.

This is the view from the point we hiked to. That is the Dead Sea in the background.

Taking a break to enjoy the small waterfall behind me.

Another stop to play in the water!

Playing in the Dead Sea. It was very slimy!

The group that we went with shared an awesome journey to the Holy Land!  I am thankful for this opportunity and pray that one day I can do it again!

Peace and Love,

Selena

FRIDAYS

It is FrIdAy! Do I really need to say anymore?  Woohoo God! Thank you for Fridays!

Have a fantabulous weekend!

Peace and Love,
Selena

Flip Flops

It is officially spring in my book regardless of what the calendar says! How is that you ask? Today was the first day of the year that I wore my flip flops!  If I wasn't so cold natured I would wear them everyday of the year but I must admit that I have to wait until the temps outside are above 70.  I can't leave the house without my toenails painted either.  Today they are purple but not just any purple - grape times to be had purple.  Don't ya just love the names of some of the nail polish colors?  If you ever wonder what team I cheer for just look at my toes in the fall and you will see Tennessee orange!  So today I thank God for the beautiful weather, flip flops, and nail polish in every color imaginable!  It really is the little things in life!

Peace and Love,
Selena 

Extra Hours of Daylight

This evening I was late for our children's musical practice! I was sitting in my office entering soccer info into the computer when 6:30 rolled around.  I kept thinking I had plenty of time before practice because I am so use to it being dark out! All of a sudden I realized that it was 6:30 not 5:30! As much as I hate having to adjust to daylight savings time I am so glad that we now can enjoy a few extra hours in the evening of sunshine!  Why can't we just keep it that way all year? Of course when November rolls around I will be thankful for that one tiny extra hour of sleep!  But right now I can't wait to sit outside on warm evenings and watch the sunset, play some soccer with my HG kids, cookout with some friends, or enjoy an evening walk.  Bring on summer! I'm ready!

Peace and Love,
Selena

BFFs

My confidants.  My encouragers.  My partners in crime.  My best friends forever.  I have been blessed with some pretty amazing friends over the years.  I have friends in Albertville, friends in Rainsville, friends in Madison, and friends in Florence.  I have camp friends who I see once or, if I am lucky, twice a year but we have connections that not everyone can understand.  Every girl needs a BFF.  I am very blessed to have a few!  I may not get to see them as often as I want but when we get together it's like we were never apart.  We have been through a lot together - the good, the bad, and the ugly!  In fact, I am sure that the reason I have made it to where I am today is because of their love and support.  Thanks guys! I love y'all! 

My best friends helping me celebrate my birthday last year!

 Girl's Night at the Melting Pot

Mindy's Birthday

This was at my going away party when I moved back to Huntsville.

Mindy and I cruisin' to Cozumel!

And cheering on our Vols!

Ashley and I at the Monster Truck show! This just proves best friends will do anything to spend time with each other! 

Me and Michelle

My Morgan

My camp friends!

The UNA crew!

Brandi and I at Bon Jovi!

Thank you all for the memories I will cherish forever! Can't wait to make a lot more!

Peace and Love,

Selena

Wes

Wes is my baby brother.  My baby brother who outgrew me when he was 13.  He is one of my best friends.  He is the smart kid of the family.  He is the UT alum! He is the one that followed in his big sis' footsteps and became drum major at Bob Jones.  Wes is simply the best. 

I always wanted a baby brother.  As soon as I found out that I was going to have a brother or sister I knew IT was a HE.  I was 3 and can remember my cousin, Angie, sitting in my Mamaw Green's house and telling me to pray for a sister.  I thought she was crazy.  I wanted a brother and I got one! By the way, Angie is now the proud momma of 4 beautiful girls so she got her girls!  He was a great baby brother until he got old enough to fight back! We had some major brother/sister fights! Fighting over the tiniest things.  "Mom, he's on my side of the car!" "Mom, he's in my room!" "Mom, he's doing this." "Mom, he's doing that." You get it.  He was a typical menace. Then around the time I turned 16 or 17 things started to change.  We were actually becoming friends! Now I can't imagine not having him there.  I remember the first time he came to visit me when I was in college.  I was so ready to impress him with me being a "grown-up."  He laughed at my attempt to make cheese toast.  I don't think he was all that impressed with my apartment, or having to sleep on the hand-me-down sofa.   

Since he graduated from the University of Tennessee and moved to Nashville we don't get to see each other very much.  The year I turned 30 we decided to take a trip together - just the two of us!  We took off on a road trip to Walt Disney World.  We had a blast! Since then we have tried to take a vacation together each year.  We have some stupid inside jokes.  We laugh at the same dumb things.  My brother is one of the funniest people I know.  He can turn anything into a comedy.  He cracks me up. 

He is engaged to a great girl! I have actually known Amber longer than Wes has.  Amber was a freshman in the band the year I was a senior.  Wes and Amber have been together since right after high school.  Who knows when they will get married but I don't care.  They are happy and I love both of them.  To me, Amber is already my sister-in-law.  Today and everyday I thank God for my Wes!

Here are a few pictures of us being our crazy selves!

Not really sure what is going on here but this is typical Wes!

Picking Pinocchio's nose.

This was in 2008 on our cruise to the Bahamas!

Disney 2009!

He really doesn't enjoy having his picture taken.

The whole fam last summer.

Wes and Amber

Hug your brothers and sisters and be thankful for them!

Peace and Love,

Selena

Family Gatherings

Today was a busy day.  Most Sundays are.  My typical Sunday usually goes a little like this: wake up, go to church, come home and eat lunch, catch a quick nap, back to church for evening activities, then home to crash in bed!  Today I had to give up my afternoon nap but it was for a very good cause.  As soon as church was over I headed to Florence for a surprise lunch for my mom.  This week my mom will celebrate a special birthday.  I won't tell you her age but I'll give you a hint.  It starts with a 6 and ends with a 0! Mom, don't kill me!  OK, so with the help of my fabulous cousins we got all the family (minus my cousin Kevin and his family) together for lunch.  This is not something that happens with my mom's side of the family a lot anymore.  Usually the only time we all get together is at Christmas and most likely some of us are missing in action.  It was so great to be able to spend a few hours catching up.  We were able to celebrate with my mom and my uncle who also has a birthday next week.  Over the years we have lost my grandparents, my great aunt Ada, and my uncle Thaddeus.  There is never a family gathering when we don't all miss them.  We know that they are celebrating too they are just having a bigger party in heaven!  There are also always new additions being added! The most recent being the precious Miss Paisley!  I love my Green family (yes, that was my mom's maiden name!) I am so very thankful that they are mine!

You can't celebrate anything without GiGi's! Yummy!

Not the greatest picture ever but you see most everyone!

I think this was my mom's favorite part of the day.  She was not holding a bouquet of flowers but Paisley.  I think you can barely make out her eye!

This is my Uncle Wendall who will celebrate his birthday next week.  He is also known as Papaw to Paisley and her 3 big sisters!

My cousin Amanda finally got a turn with Paisley.  Paisley was trying to stretch her feet out.  What cute little toes!

Mom opening a few of her gifts with a little help from Chesney.

My brother Wes drove down from Nashville to spend the afternoon!

I hope you enjoy the snap shots from a fun filled Sunday lunch!

Peace and Love,

Selena