Thanksgiving

After Deavin and I left, my mom sent me this picture of my grandparents asleep in a chair. Aren't they the cutest?

Two good looking Bama dogs ready for the big game.

Come thou fount of every blessing

I've noticed that there is a trend lately that during the month of November, or perhaps until Thanksgiving, each day you say something you are thankful for. I thought it would be a good idea and a great reminder of the many blessings that I have. So, here goes my catching up for the past 9 days. As a side note, my list of thankfulness is in absolutely no particular order, but I am using what happened that day as a catalyst for what to write.

Day 1: I'm thankful for my family. It's my mom's 54th birthday and I was able to spend the day with my parents and Daniel. 

Day 2: I'm thankful for employment. I work tonight. Despite realizing that my current job is far from my dream job, I am grateful that I even have a job at all.

Day 3: I'm thankful for great friends. I am looking forward to this weekend and seeing the newly engaged Liz and Ben.

Day 4: This is a day of double thanks. I'm thankful for an employment opportunity and pray that this is the right position for me.

Day 5: I'm thankful to have a day off and be able to watch the Alabama vs. LSU game.

Day 6: I'm thankful for a loving, merciful God. I'm honored to be baptized today by the wonderful David Platt at my church, Brook Hills. I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. {Galatians 2:20}

Day 7: I'm thankful for my wonderful and selfless husband. Two years ago, he asked me to be his wife. God has blessed me with my soul mate.

Day 8: I'm thankful for food and shelter. Such basic things are so often overlooked, despite plenty of people who do not have our conveniences.

Day 9: I'm thankful for opportunities to visit churches with Deavin and hear him preach.

Wilford B. Cottingham

I'm done with your picture nonsense.

Pretty Wilford.

Showoff much?

Wilford Brimley Cottingham, my furry pride (aside from my precious Briggs, of course) and the Cadillac of kitties. He's sickeningly cute.

New Camera

Holly and Andy Get Hitched

Holly and Andy's wedding was this past Sunday, October 9th at 3:00 at Rosewood in Pinson, AL. They had a pretty outdoor ceremony with a desert reception. We had a good time, despite a pretty rocky start to the day. Deavin and I got up that morning to be at church by 9. We walked to our car at 10:30 so that we could head to Rosewood since I was supposed to be there at 11. We unfortunately found out that our keys were locked in the car. Well, Deavin uses his belt to pry open a portion of the door so that he could get a stick/limb from a tree into the door in hopes that he could push the unlock button. After some sweating and strange looks by people leaving church (thanks for the concern, by the way), he got the doors unlocked! As we drove away onto Brook Highland Pkwy, we heard a loud thud and something flying from our car. It didn't take long for me to realize that the object flying from the car was Deavin's extremely expensive bible that he had received as a gift from our friend, Matt. We turned around, put the emergency lights on, and Deavin got out of the car to retrieve the bible that was in the middle of the busy road. Of course, the lovely church people either ignored Deavin's pursuits at getting his bible or just didn't care to help him out. He also fell down in the road and tore part of his shoe. All said and done, he got his bible back with slight damage, but it could have been far worse.

The awkward "stare at the groom" pose.

Aunt B with Abby and Hannah

Mom, Hannah, and Abby

Mr. and Mrs. Cottingham

Mom and myself

First Dance

The father-daughter dance that made me cry. Dang it.

Best wishes to Mr. and Mrs. Benson.

Love List

This is a "love list" of sorts, but it only pertains to music. Particularly, it is music that I grew up listening to and brings back so many good memories for me. I will frequently update it as I remember songs. However, I did grow up listening to classic rock ALL the time, these songs will not be listed on here, but only those songs that were released from about 1989 to the early 2000s or so. This means a 90s explosion is imminent. 


In no particular order.


"Wrong Impression" - Natalie Imbruglia (2002)


"Wonder" - Natalie Merchant (1995)


"Jealousy" - Natalie Merchant (1996)


"Blue on Black" - Kenny Wayne Shepherd (1998)


"Closing Time" - Semisonic (1998)


"California Love" - Tupac (1995)


"Rhythm Is A Dancer" - Snap! (1992)


"Linger" - Cranberries (1993)


"No Rain" - Blind Melon (1992)


"Fast Car" - Tracy Chapman (1988)


"Ironic" - Alanis Morissette (1996)


"You Oughta Know" - Alanis Morissette (1995)


"What It's Like" - Everlast (1998)


"Crush" - Jennifer Paige (1998)


"How's It Going To Be" - Third Eye Blind (1997)


"Semi-Charmed Life" - Third Eye Blind (1997)


"Jumper" - Third Eye Blind (1998)


"Shimmer" - Fuel (1998)


"Californication" - Red Hot Chili Peppers (1999)


"3 AM" - Matchbox Twenty (1997)


"Bitch" - Meredith Brooks (1997)


"Never Let You Go" - Third Eye Blind (2000)


"Deep Inside of You" - Third Eye Blind (2000)


"Kiss The Rain" - Billie Myers (1997)


"Don't Cry" - Seal (1995)


"All For You" - Sister Hazel (1997)


"Good Vibrations" - Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch (1991)


"My Favorite Mistake" - Sheryl Crow (1997)


"You Get What You Give" - New Radicals (1998)


"Return of the Mack" - Mark Morrison (1996)


"Light in Your Eyes" - Blessid Union of Souls (1998)


"Stellar" - Incubus (2000)


"Drive" - Incubus (2000)


"One Headlight" - The Wallflowers (1997)


"Bad Day" - Fuel (2000)


"Sweet Surrender" - Sarah McLachlan (1998)


"Swing, Swing" - The All-American Rejects (2002)


"Take A Picture" - Filter (1999)


"What Would You Say" - Dave Matthews Band (1994)


"You and Me" - Dave Matthews Band (


"American Baby" - Dave Matthews Band (2005)


"Where Are You Going" - Dave Matthews Band (2002)


"The Space Between" - Dave Matthews Band (2001)


"Just Another Day" - Jon Secada (1992)


"Lullaby" - Shawn Mullins (1998)


"She's So High" - Tal Bachman (1999)


"Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?" - Paula Cole (1997)


"I Don't Want To Wait (1998)


"Sunny Came Home" - Shawn Colvin (1997)


"Shine" - Collective Soul (1994)


"December" - Collective Soul (1995)


"Kiss Me" - Sixpence None the Richer (1998)


"Dig" - Incubus (2007)


"Slide" - Goo Goo Dolls (1998)


"Iris" - Goo Goo Dolls (1998)


"Black Balloon" - Goo Goo Dolls (1999)


"Broadway" - Goo Goo Dolls (2000)


"Hold My Hand" - Hootie & the Blowfish (1994)


"Let Her Cry" - Hootie & the Blowfish (1995)


"Only Wanna Be With You" - Hootie & the Blowfish (1995)


"Wonderful" - Everclear (2000)


"Times Like These" - Foo Fighters (2003)


"Wonderwall" - Oasis (1995)


"Champagne Supernova" - Oasis (1996)


"Leaving Town" - Dexter Freebish (2000)


"My Own Worst Enemy" - Lit (1999)


"Butterfly" - Crazy Town (2001)


"Rest In Pieces" - Saliva (2002)


"Bittersweet Symphony" - The Verve (1997)


"If You Could Only See" - Tonic (1997)


"I'll Be" - Edwin McCain (1998)


"Barely Breathing" - Duncan Shiek (1997)


"I Love You Always Forever" - Donna Lewis (1997)


"Name" - Goo Goo Dolls (1996)


"Gangsta's Paradise" - Coolio (1996)


"Where Do You Go" - No Mercy (1996)


"Cotton Eye Joe" - Rednex (1995)


"Save Tonight" - Eagle Eye Cherry (1999)


"Carnival" - Natalie Merchant (1995)


"Otherside" - Red Hot Chili Peppers (2000)


"Better Off Alone" - Alice Deejay (2000)


"Hemorrhage (In My Hands) - Fuel (2001)


"No Such Thing" - John Mayer (2002)


"If You're Not The One" - Daniel Bedingfield (2002)
Not exactly a song I would like today, but during my emo moments it was great for some reason.

The Adventures of Ava

On Saturday we took Ava to the see the vet. She's 5 1/2 months old and hasn't had her shots yet, so...it was time for that lovely visit. We also wanted to ask the doctor about having her spayed. Everything checked out ok and we were told that she is "a healthy kitten." Her spay was scheduled for 3 weeks down the road and that was that.

Well, Ava had other plans in mind I suppose. Today she decided to pop her jaw out of place and start making this nauseating grinding noise with her teeth. It was disgusting. Pizza Hut was supposed to be delivering a pizza to us any minute, but now we had a kitty emergency on our hands. So, Deavin cancels our order and to the vet we go. She grinds her teeth all the way there - again, disgusting. It turns out that she broke one of her baby teeth. Broke. They rip off the hanging broken portion of the tooth and ask that we move up her surgery to next week so that they can examine the remaining part of the tooth while she is under anesthesia. Surgery is now scheduled for October 4th for her spay and tooth extraction. 

Oh, Ava, the problem child.

New Addition

This is our newest addition to the Cottingham family, Wilford. He is a flame point Himalayan and is 10 weeks old. He's so precious! I saw an ad on al.com for Himalayan kittens for sale and told Deavin about how great of a deal it was. He called the woman who posted the listing, and we drove up to Huntsville to get him this past Saturday. Ava isn't too excited about her new brother, but I can't imagine going from a spoiled only child to having to share attention and toys in such a short amount of time with no warning! I just wish she would quit the hissing - it's driving me crazy. Oh well, soon enough they will be great friends.


On a heavier note, my Uncle Ken passed away Saturday morning after several years of poor health. My mom, David, and Aunt Janice are in North Carolina now with the rest of the Hand family.


And, just a random thought of the day, I decided to take a drive today and ended up hitting a garbage can with my car's passenger mirror. The outside shield of the mirror came off, so I attempted to drive back around the neighborhood, back and forth, attempting to find where the white cover was laying. I finally saw it when I was passing down the road for the -oh, EIGHTH- time. So, I turn around and back down the road I go. With my fabulous luck, I manage to hit the garbage can with my passenger window again, but this time I actually knocked it off the car. I'm talking, it is hanging by its wires. I somehow managed to drive home without any other catastrophes. Now I get to show Deavin when he comes home and hope that he can fix it. 

Briggs Tuesdays

While Deavin was at work, I stayed at my parents' house and hung out with Briggs and Molly. They are quite entertaining! Briggs got so excited to see me that he peed all over the couch.

Holly's Bridal Tea

The groom finally arrived for the family dinner after the tea.

Holly and Andy's gifts

Cody enjoying the punch

This is Henry, my cousin Kevin's child. He's precious!

The hostesses with the bride

The pretty setup at Joyce's house. I loved the hydrangeas!

Holly's bridal tea was on Sunday, August 28th at our Aunt Joyce's house. It was a very pretty tea! We had a family dinner afterwards since we never get to see this part of our family anymore due to a change in holiday plans several years ago. :( It was great getting to see everyone!

Deavin's Birthday

Brittany and Drew

Matt and Kelli

Captain Deavin with his birthday pineapple boat

We went to Sumo to celebrate Deavin's 22nd birthday. Of course, it was wonderful, with the exception of a really obnoxious and rude chef!

Honeymoon

We went to Orlando, Florida for our honeymoon/first week of marriage. During our stay, we went to Disney World's Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios, and Universal Studios' Islands of Adventure - The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. They were all great! We had a lot of fun, with the exception of the unrelenting heat, millions of tourists, and my getting sick. :(

Overall, it was a really fun trip. I wish we could relive it - during a cooler month! I can't wait to go back sometime and go to Animal Kingdom (yay), Epcot, and the rest of Universal Studios. And one day I WILL take Deavin to see Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party (the most Christmas-filled fun you will ever have).

Donald Crockett?

My favorite view of the castle!

Pretty view of Islands of Adventure at Universal Studios

Right when we were having the strongest margaritas known to man.

The man himself!

The Three Broomsticks

Butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks

The Hogwarts Express!

Once we got home, I finished moving in the rest of my things into the apartment (which lead to such a strange mixture of emotions and a few outbursts of tears). And then -gasp- cut my hair. We're talking at least 6 inches here. Monumental. I really enjoy having all of that extra weight off of my head though. I can't believe I let my hair get so long!

I Do

Mia and Liz putting my veil on. Before the tears started.

Deavin, Brittany, and me at the reception

Nursing school friends

I told Liz that she looked like the cowardly lion from The Wizard of Oz. ;)

Stefanie Dewhurst Photography - I'm very excited to see the rest of the photos!

My love

Lee, Christi, Cayden, Aunt Janice, and Logan

It was such a happy, surreal day. And very hot.