Home Is Where You Make It

Today marks my second anniversary as a Nashvillian.  I've heard it takes about two years for a new city to really feel like home.  After two years, it is still sometimes hard to believe that I live here! But I'm so thankful for the year I had to live with one of my best friends and figure out what life is like after college, and for the year I've spent making a home with my husband.

Nashville is far from home and we sure do miss our friends and family back in Texas, but there are so many things we love about good 'ole Rocky Top.  Here's the short list:

• Ryman Auditorium- The "Mother Church of Country Music" and one of the country's most legendary music venues.  We have enjoyed the backstage tours, some great concerts, and a live recording of the Grand Ole Opry!
• Arrington Vineyards- This is one of the first places Marcus and I went together when I moved to Nashville! It's owned by Kix Brooks (the first half of Brooks and Dunn) and is a great place to have a picnic, taste some wine, and soak up the views.
• MAFIAoZA'S and Rotier's- Just two of our many favorite restaurants in Nashville- one has great pizza and the other is a Nashville institution, famous for its burgers.  From five-star dining to food trucks, Nashville does not disappoint when it comes to food.
• YMCA- I never knew much about The Y growing up, but Nashville has several and our neighborhood center is one of the best.  It was recently renovated and I have really enjoyed working out at Zumba classes and lounging by the pool during the summer.
• Blood:Water Mission- I have the best job I could have ever dreamed of.  You've heard the story- when I returned from Africa, I knew I wanted to do something to continue the work I did there, and my job allows me to do just that.  Blood:Water Mission exists to empower communities to work together against the HIV/AIDS and water crises in Africa and I feel so privileged to be a part.
• Chuy's- Our little piece of Austin in Nashville.  I'll admit, we are snobs when it comes to Mexican food.  Tex-Mex is the best and Chuy's is better than any other Mexican restaurant in this town. End of discussion. 

Nashville is a one-of-a-kind place, with all the perks of a big city, but the feel of a small town. It is full of good food, good music, and good people. Come visit and let us show you our home!

Mini Quilt!

Ladies and gentleman, I think I'm officially hooked on quilting! My lessons with Pam have continued and I'm now ready to put my quilt together. Last night we practiced by making a miniature quilt in the form of a pot holder! Ta-da!

We used some of Pam's leftover fabric scraps and some special batting that is actually heat resistant, specially for hot pads. I started by pinning all three pieces together (top, batting, and bottom). Then I stitched around the perimeter using a special "walking" foot on the sewing machine.  It's used for quilting because you typically have multiple layers of thicker fabrics.  Then I proceeded to quilt across the pad.  I used a simple vertical line, but you can really go crazy here and stitch however you want. Finally, I put the binding around the edge.  

Repeating this for the entire quilt will be a more time consuming task, but it's a great feeling knowing that these are the last steps and I will have a completed quilt! I've already been searching out my next project on Pinterest.  Better not get ahead of myself! Stay tuned for a final post featuring my finished t-shirt quilt!

Oh, Technology!

Last week, I moved offices! I still have the same job, in the same building, but I moved my desk and everything on it into a room with a door. Woohoo! It has been a slight adjustment getting all of my various forms of technology in sync with one another again (phone, computer, printer, check deposit scanner, etc.). But I'm liking the change so far.

And today, I arrived at work to find out that my work e-mail (which is based in gmail) was making a change that wouldn't allow me to be logged into that account and my personal account at the same time.  So I reluctantly made the move from viewing all my mail online at gmail to using the mail application on my Mac.  I'm also trying out iChat for the first time.  I will tell you now, I don't deal well with change.  I got very used to my routine of sitting down at work in the morning and opening up my two email accounts in the same firefox window.  It will for sure be an adjustment but I'm trying to see the good in it. :) How do you deal with new technology or any change, really? Do you get on board early and embrace it fully or only make the change at the last possible moment because your current situation is on its way out?

And while we're on the topic of new, let's just talk about Pinterest.  I've been on it for a while (after resisting for as long as I could) and I still just don't get it.  I like the idea of being able to "bookmark" images I like and feel inspired by, but then what? I just imagine it's a place for me to stare at all this stuff I want. How many of you actually act upon the things you're pinning? And for that matter, where are you finding all this stuff you're pinning? Do you just follow an insane amount of blogs or are spending most of your time re-pinning things from other people?  Enlighten me, people!

Steps

Two years ago today, I stepped on a plane bound for Africa. It was a step that changed my life.  As I look back on that day, I’m amazed at how that one step had such a powerful and direct impact on the steps I take today.

When I walked into training for my upcoming Africa trip, I had just finished my final presentation for my bachelor’s degree in Public Relations.  I spent three days meeting my teammates, learning about Africa, and preparing for a month in rural Kenya.  In the month between that training and the actual trip, I returned to Austin to walk across the stage and receive my diploma, walked down the aisle at four weddings of close friends, and walked along the beach as my now husband asked for my hand in marriage.  No doubt, these were all pretty big steps in my life.  But I had no idea that stepping onto that plane to another continent would be equally as big.

I spent the next month in Kenya hosting summer camp for hundreds of kids in a rural village close to the Tanzanian border.  Many mornings, I went for a walk with a friend, watching the sunrise over the Chyulu Hills.  I walked down many dirt roads visiting schools and homes of the people in the community. I ran (ok, I jogged) up and down the fields attempting to play soccer with the Africans- not an easy task. I had the profound privilege of walking alongside these people I hardly knew and I fell I love. I walked away with a desire to know more. More walking, more steps toward a life I never imagined for myself.

I got back to the states, went to one more wedding, and spent the next day driving to Nashville to pursue a career in the music business.  A few months later, I found myself walking into Blood:Water Mission, not as a publicist, but as a finance assistant. I know it doesn’t make much sense, but here I am, still walking alongside some incredible people, both here in America, and across the world in Africa.  We are all walking together toward the same goal and it’s a beautiful thing.

So I continue to take steps, not always knowing where I’m going or what lies in front of me. But I know I can’t stop, because wherever I go, I have to believe there is a reason, not only for the destination, but for the journey itself.

Dusting Off the Sewing Machine

Remember that time last September when I took a quilting class (if not, read about it here.)? It's only been about nine months, but this past week, I finally made progress!

If you've been keeping up with the Womacks, you know that Marcus has been doing a lot of traveling the past two months.  Last week, he was in northern Alabama on a mission trip with his Jr. High youth, and when I found out my friend and co-worker, Pam, was an experienced quilter, I recruited her to help me move forward with my little old t-shirt quilt.  Pam is our Africa Field Manager and, therefore, spends about a third of her time on the field in Africa (imagine that!).  You can read about her many adventures on her blog, Pam the Nomad.  So, my goal is to finish the quilt by the time she jets off to the other side of the world again!

The first thing I did was lay out all my squares on the bed to decide how I would place them:

Next, Pam reminded me how to work the sewing machine! Even though I've had the machine since I was about nine years old (it was a Christmas present from my uncle one year), I clearly haven't put it to good use in quite some time. Needless to say, my sewing skills were pretty rusty, but with a little help, I picked it right back up (it's like riding a bike!). 

After a refresher lesson, it was time to start putting the squares together!

I made two rows of five squares, then ironed the seams before putting the two rows together.  And here's how it turned out!

I am so pleased with my work! I ran out of the backing material, so I have a few more squares that need that ironed on, then I can put the rest of the rows together and finish it!  

While I was busy sewing away on the machine, Pam was also hard at work crocheting this beauty:

(As you can see, Max was a fan.)

I am so thankful for new hobbies, the fun times I'm reminded of when I see all the different t-shirts I'm putting together, and good friends who teach me new things (and keep me occupied when the hubby's away!). This was our first, but surely not the last of summer nights filled with frozen pizzas, yummy cocktails, good friends, and lots and lots of crafting!

Hot Fun in the Summertime!

Summer 2011 is officially in full force! The Womacks (mostly Marcus) have been on the go for the past month and are ready for more!

Summer started with Marcus traveling to England for a school trip! Marcus spent several days in class in Salisbury, and visited Oxford, Bristol, Stonehenge and London. He returned with a wonderfully tacky William and Kate umbrella for his royally obsessed wife.

While he was gone, I spent a fabulous weekend with these two lovely ladies:

Learn more about that trip on Leisha's blog here.

As soon as Marcus got home, we headed off to Texas to celebrate with some dear friends who were tying the knot!

Meet the Pitcocks:

and the Litzlers (off to Hawaii!):

We were so blessed to be a part of these amazing celebrations! The weekend was extra special for us as we celebrated our first wedding anniversary.  After the weddings, we headed back to Nashville, but not without a couple days at the beach! The road trip continued with a pit stop in Baton Rouge to see this pretty girl...

...(and the Kappa Delta house at LSU!!)...

...and finally arrived at the fancy schmancy Beau Rivage in Biloxi, Mississippi!

We spent one glorious day at the beach, stuffed ourselves with delicious seafood, and of course, squeezed in a quick stop the outlet mall!

It was so nice to have some time to ourselves and celebrate the past year. What an incredible year it has been! Yes, there have been trials and lessons learned, but it has been full of the Lord's goodness. I am so thankful for a husband who puts God first and loves his family (and me) unconditionally. As my parents celebrate their 30th anniversary tomorrow, I think about the next 30 years with Marcus and am so excited for the journey ahead. 

For gifts, we decided to make each other something, but to give the traditional first anniversary gift of paper.  Marcus made me a sweet photo album with his favorite pictures of us. He also cheated a little and gave me a beautiful necklace he picked out in London. I guess I also cheated a little- I painted a canvas for Marcus, which technically isn't paper, but it's close enough, right? It was my first time making anything like this, and I was really happy with how it turned out!

The words are from one of our favorite songs, "Can't Take My Eyes Off You."

Before I go, I have to give a shout out to the other man in my life, my amazing daddy.

I love being your Sweet Baby Girl! Happy Father's Day!

Pot Roast Take 2

It's hard to believe it's been almost a year since the infamous pot roast incident that resulted in hot oil splattered all over my face.  I'm happy to report that I've survived and haven't left the kitchen yet! Our first year of marriage has included some ok meals, and even some that had to be thrown out (thank goodness we have a Little Caeser's close by!). But we've also enjoyed some really delicious dishes too and one of our new favorites is pot roast and roasted veggies! My mom passed this roast recipe on to me and it's not your traditional pot roast, but it's super easy and goes really well with roasted carrots and potatoes. Yum!

Easy Crockpot Pot Roast

4 lb. pot roast

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 packet onion soup mix

1 cup water

Place pot roast on two pieces of foil (make a cross out of the foil). Mix together soup and soup mix.  Spread mixture over the pot roast, making sure it covers all sides.  Wrap the roast in foil and place in crockpot.  Pour water around the roast. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Roasted Veggies

potatoes (depending on size, 1-2 for each serving)

carrots (3-4 per serving)

small onion (we don't actually eat the onion, we just like it for flavor but you can add more if you want)

1/3 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon rosemary

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Cut veggies into small pieces and place in single layer on baking pan.  Mix together olive oil and spices (may need to adjust depending on amount of veggies). Pour mixture over veggies and toss to coat each piece in the mixture.  Bake for 30 minutes at 450 degrees.  Test with fork and continue baking if needed until soft.  Some of the smaller pieces will get brown and crispy- so tasty!!

Hope you enjoy!