the blindside...we've all got one

if you know me you know i'm a sucker for true stories - especially when they involve teenagers. today adam treated me to a movie and we saw The Blindside. it has been a very long time since i've seen a movie that affected me as much as this one. i'm not going to go on and on about it, and i'm not going to write a movie review or anything like that. i just want to say that leigh ann tuohy is now one of my heroes, and i hope to be like her someday. i really appreciated that at the heart of this movie was a lesson on how to be more like jesus, and that's what i'm after. i know kids like michael oher, and i hope i'm brave enough to love them, love on them, and teach them to love.

my morning workout

apparently this is what i'll be like as a mom...

Brooke Shields in Playground Tales from Brooke Shields

i'm engaged (!!)

"have a fun drive home. and don't worry. God's got someone in mind for you. i asked him to. " -greg, a note left to me on my car several years ago...

on march 28th, 2008 i went on a date with a boy named adam. i didn't really think it was going to go anywhere. i mean, he was cute and all, but seriously...

then we just kept dating. and i kinda tried to get rid of him a few times, but it didn't work. and i'm really glad it didn't work. really, really glad. you see, as much as i think i know what's best for me, i know that God knows better. and most of you know how long i've pined for romance, relationship, partnership, etc... there are about three or four of you who heard me say at one point or another, "i would never date adam johnson" or "i will not marry him"...

never say never.

God knows better than i do, and i'm thankful for that. i have fallen in love with a man who is wonderful. he's not perfect, but neither am i. and frankly, he seems willing to put up with me, so how can i say no to that? he's officially agreed to a "complicated order." we both love God, trust God, and rely on God for wisdom. this relationship has been deeply blessed, and in the last year i've learned a lot about the fruit of the spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control).

i'm absolutely convinced that it will take me a lifetime to truly understand this word "love" and i'm very happy to have found someone who's willing to take that journey with me.

adam probably first mentioned marriage some time around the end of last summer. i thought he was crazy. i wasn't convinced. as time went by, however, my heart changed. by christmas we agreed that we wanted to get married.

we looked at rings at the end of december. well, to be honest, i endured what felt like some form of cruel torture in the following months. we live five hours apart and see each other once every two to three weeks, so every time we see each other is exciting. add on top of that the "is he going to ask today" feeling and it was almost miserable sometimes. guys, don't torture girls like this. and adam certainly didn't mean to, but...dang...it was rough. it didn't help that four of my friends got engaged during the time period i was waiting for my turn... in the end though...it was worth it :)

we went out for dinner last thursday night to celebrate our one year anniversary. i had asked to go to the salt water grille because that was where we had our first date. he picked me up around 7. i had already convinced myself that he wasn't going to propose during spring break, so i didn't think it was going to happen. when we got out of the car though, i noticed something strange. i was walking with my left side close to the row of parked cars. despite the massive space on my right, adam wedged himself between the cars and me (for some reason my brain can't decide if that's grammatically correct...). then, when the waitress was seating us i was walking with my left side next to a wall, so i expected adam to join me on the right. he wasn't there! i glanced around my shoulder to find him walking single file, directly behind me as if we were kindergarteners on our way to the lunchroom. at this point i allowed myself to hope that he had a ring in his pocket and he was trying to hide it. i didn't dare say anything. after dinner he suggested we go down to the marina back at coffee bluff; i loved this idea, but wanted to change clothes first.

we headed back to my parents house. we got out of the car and made our way up the driveway. adam stopped me and hugged me. and then, quite to my surprise, he whispered in my ear, "will you marry me?" now, i had been waiting to hear that question for...oh...twenty something years...but i didn't want to feel dumb if for some reason this wasn't the official proposal, so i paused, thought it over for a second, and then casually said something like, "yeah. sure..." (this part's a bit blurry) adam then backed slightly away, got down on one knee, pulled out a ring, and repeated the question.

what??? are you serious? are you serious?? are you SERIOUS??? i said that about three or four times before it sank it that he really was asking me. i was expecting him to ask down at the marina, so he did manage to catch me off guard. i said yes!!! we hugged, kissed, and he placed the ring on my finger. funny side note about the ring - it was really dark and i couldn't see it :) it wasn't until we got up to the door and the flood light came on that i saw it - and it's gorrrrrrrrrgeous!

i asked if we could keep the news to ourselves for a night, and i'm glad we did. it was kinda fun to walk around with this great secret.

friday afternoon we shared the news with adam's parents and they were very excited. we went to dinner at my parents' house later that night. b/c we're a bit cruel, sick you might say, we didn't say anything to my family. we just waited for someone to notice the ridiculous ring on my finger. erik, my brother, noticed it first. nikkie, my sister-in-law was second. then the puns began. "how was dinner last night? icy?" "how's your bling break going?" it was hysterical. fun times.

after dinner we began the phone call party. it was a lot of fun.

and now, a week later, i'm still having lots of fun talking about it. my kids at school freaked out. now they're all confused about what to call me. mrs. reagan? mrs. johnson? so we had to have a little lesson on how that all works. a few kids were sad b/c they won't be able to call me LoSeR anymore. i told them they still could if they really wanted to.

we haven't set a date yet, but when we do, you'll know about it.

a special thanks to my close friends. i've driven some of you just about crazy talking about how i wanted to find "the right guy" and blah blah blah. you guys have loved me through this search, and i really appreciate it.

those of you who are married, adam and i welcome your advice and wisdom. i love you guys and can't wait to share this special day with you all.

love
laura sue

i forgot

there were two other videos i meant to post yesterday.

these guys are just ridiculous. i used this video to teach my kids what an allusion is.


this is, without a doubt, my favorite erykah badu song. i've been listening to it for years, but recently re-discovered it when my ipod was on shuffle. :)

as of late

well, there's always something going on, isn't there? i've started my second semester of teaching in north georgia, and it looks like i'm starting to figure it out. i love my school. i am very blessed to be able to say that, and i know it. i have my first honors class, and they're awesome. they're challenging, but in a different way from my other classes. i'm enjoying the new perspective. my other two classes are a lot of fun. i have some great kids this semester. also, i am trying to book invisible children to visit my school, so i'm really excited about the possibilites there.

i found out this week that one of my uncles has inoperable cancer. he lives in florida. i'm not sure if i will get a chance to see him or not. there are lots of things i could say, but i'm not sure where to start. it's not easy though. when i was little he lived on lake lanier. now that i'm up here, it makes me sad that he doesn't live up here anymore.

this week has been very interesting for me in terms of politics. those of you who know me, could probably never say you've had a conversation with me about politics. one reason for that may be that i hate discussing it. but i can't keep from commenting on this week's events. i thought that tuesday was a fantastic day. i want to believe that obama will make good choices for our country. i want to believe that he is an honest man, and that he believes he is making healthy decisions for us all. i couldn't help but feel hopeful on tuesday, watching the inauguration with my students...watching history take place. but i confess, as with every politician, i don't agree with everything obama plans on doing. i'm not going to go into specifics b/c that's not the point. i'm just going to be honest in saying that i know i'm not going to like everything he does, but i do pray that he is wise, steady, and honest.


here is some lighthearted entertainment to lighten the mood.

whenever i need a smile, i check out ps22 and their latest videos. this teacher is getting it right. i don't care who you are. music is the universal language.


don't inarupt. rude.


these next two videos are ridiculous. and no matter how you feel about obama, i think you'll get a kick out of them.