Random

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Lemony Goodness

It’s the last Tuesday in July…already! I cannot believe how quickly this summer has gone!

Today was actually a pretty productive day for me. I say actually because I have been soooo tired lately! This last weekend with my cousins and the tonsillitis wore me out! 🙂 Plus, today is one of those rainy, overcast days (love those!). I worked on my newsletter (which you can sign up for! Send me an email at erynnmangum@gmail.com and I’ll be sure to add you to the list!). I worked on a new story (check out my name contest).

I had lunch today with one of my sweetest friends, Elisa. I’ve known Elisa since junior year of high school and she’s one of the few people who knows me very well. I tend to swim on the shallow side with most people. Elisa pushes me to the deep end.

We’ve talked about how we worship God. We’ve talked about haircuts. We’ve talked about practical ways we can glorify God. We’ve talked about boys. She’s one of the precious people God has placed in my life that just makes me thankful.

I hope you have a friend in your life like that! If not, start praying for one. God knows exactly what you need before you need it. And know that I’ll be praying for you as well!

Yesterday, I did something that I’m feeling the need to confess. I turned my back on my longtime friend known as Chocolate and made Lemon Bars.

In my defense, they are one of Jon’s favorite desserts. And also, I was snooping around Bakerella’s blog and they looked soooo good! Lemon Bars are like the epitome of summer desserts. Best of all, they were super easy and pretty foolproof (always nice for someone like me who doesn’t measure). 🙂

Here’s how mine turned out:

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Throat Problems

So sorry for the delay, guys. I came down with yet another case of tonsillitis (yes, yes, I can hear you screaming for me to just get them taken out. In due time), so I took a few days off. I drank my body weight in water and tea and I’ve been eating antibiotics like Pringles.

My brother’s birthday was this weekend and so my two cousins flew from Dallas to surprise him. So despite the tonsillitis, it was lots of fun! I think Caleb had a great time – it’s hard for me to believe my baby brother is 21. Weird…

Caleb’s birthday starts the wave of birthdays for my family – between now and January, we have one every month except for December (which is filled with Christmas!). Now that I’ve got my amazing in-laws, I think we about cover the whole year in birthdays!

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All done!

I finally finished my deadline last week with 4,000 extra words! Oy! 🙂 Now comes the weed-eating process of trimming that down. I’ve got a busy week ahead!

I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend!

I really didn’t have that much to say, just wanted to pop in and say “hi!” Keep those names for the name contest coming – you guys are dreaming up some great ones! I have a special surprise in mind for the winner of the contest – beyond the name being in my next series and the winner being listed in the credits. Also, don’t forget to send me an email and sign up for my newsletter!

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Counting words, cleaning floors and making cookies!!!

Hey everyone!

Well, it has been a GREAT day! I got nearly 3000 words written this morning, got my grocery shopping done (we can eat again!) and between Jon and I, we got the floors clean and a batch of chocolate chip cookies made. Yay!

We were productive. 🙂

I love productive days! I sleep so much better. And yes, I’m one of those people. 😉 On the days where nothing gets done, I just have issues. So thank you, thank you, thank you for the prayers regarding the deadline! Much was accomplished.

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In the Meantime…

So, I just wanted to put up a few pics of what’s been happening here lately!

Our good friends from Colorado Springs came and visited – SO MUCH FUN!! Jen, Greg, Barb and Walt all came for Memorial Weekend. I had so much fun catching up with them! Then, Jon and I went with my family to visit my great-aunt and great-uncle at their lakehouse in San Antonio. Awesome time! We came home sunburned, bug-bitten and peeling, which equals a successful lake trip! And yesterday, Jon and I decided to go to the zoo – I hadn’t been there since I was eight years old. It was so much fun!

We are definitely enjoying our summer break!

Hope everyone is doing well!

My mom and Barb

Me and Jen 🙂

Hot and sticky at the Zoo 🙂

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To the Mailbox…In my PJs…

Okay, they weren’t technically my PJs, but they were about as close as they can get (but, I was wearing a bra. Important difference). I probably should be more like them, but I’m not one of those girls who puts on jeans and makeup and styles her hair before she goes out to stick a letter in the mailbox (and our box is even across the street in one of those combined lock-box things. They say they’re safer. I say they aren’t as convenient). I do put on jeans and makeup when I go to the grocery store though. Mostly. Always mascara. Usually. 🙂

ANYWAYS… Things have been sort of slower around here. Poor Jon has been dealing with a woman going through a post-PMS mood swing (I swear, PMS has to be part of the curse on Adam. I look back at some of the things I’ve burst into tears about and gotten frustrated about and if I were married to myself, I’d have a hard time living with me. Um…yeah…). So, I’ve been trying to chill out.

I think I’ve caught on to something: When I’m not being constant in my walk with God, I’ve noticed my general attitude around this time of the month isn’t something to put on a pedestal. When I am plugged into the Word and my prayer life is amazing, I don’t seem to have too many issues that resemble mad cow disease. 🙂

So, I’ve been reading my Bible more, praying more and decided the only other thing I could see helping too is shopping. So, I went shopping. Granted, it was at Wal-Mart (we’re on a budget), but I figured, “Hey. Wal-Mart is trying to compete with Target in the clothing aspect, so I should have lots of options.”

Well, they might be trying to compete, but it’s not for someone my shape. It was either too short, too big, too small or too icky. My cousin is getting married in three days, so I was hoping to find something cute and summery to wear to her lakeside wedding.

Didn’t happen. I’m going to look again today (not at Wal-Mart) so we’ll see. Does anyone else have this problem of always being able to find hundreds of amazing things when you don’t have the money and never being able to find anything when you specifically need something? Frustrating! I think my new goal is to get on What Not To Wear so I can have $5000 to spend on new clothes (I guess if I keep wearing PJ-lookalikes in public, I won’t have a problem getting on the show).

I’m onto the second book in the Maya series with a deadline of August 1st. Hoping to finish it sometime the end of June, though! This summer is going to be busy and I don’t want to stress the whole month of July. Cool Beans just finished the first round of editing. Yay!

Hope you all are having a fantastic week! I’m going to post a few more pictures of my new niece and my adorable nephew – can anyone tell I’m a proud aunt? 🙂

So tiny!

 

Beautiful baby

 

Our inquisitive Josh! He’s hilarious! 🙂

 

The most adorable family 🙂

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One Week!

This week is going to be extremely exciting! Come Friday morning, I will be the proud aunt of both a nephew and a brand-new niece, Lillian May! My sister-in-law is due for a C-Section at the end of this week. Would you please send up a prayer or two for Ashlee and our little Easter Lily? 🙂 Thank you! Jon and I are SO SO SO excited to meet this little girl!

What an amazing day to be born, right? Good Friday. When I was a kid, I always thought it should be called Bad Friday or Awful Friday or something like that since it was the day Christ died. We used to go to a church that would have a very solemn, very quiet Good Friday service. You came in, you sat down, you didn’t visit with other people. You can understand why I would get confused about the name.

The older I get, the more I think that Good Friday isn’t a day of sadness. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us! That’s a cause worth celebrating, not mourning! Christ obeyed the will of His Father. You have been purchased with a price, and not silver or gold, but the blood of the Son of God.

I’m not sure “Good Friday” does it justice.

This Good Friday, lets mourn for the sin that put Him there, but lets also rejoice that He was there! Through His resurrection, He defeated death, but through the cross, He bought our salvation. If you’re looking for True Love, look no further. This Man loved you enough to lay His own life down onto two wooden planks. He loved you enough to stretch His arms out and have spikes driven through His flesh. He loved you enough to be spit at, beaten, mocked and ridiculed. All for you.

Paul says in Galatians: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”

This Easter weekend, I’m praying that I won’t let Christ’s death be for nothing by continually worrying about measuring up. That I’ll confess my sins and then rest in His forgiveness, instead of always beating myself up over my shortcomings. That I’ll focus on forgiving others as I have been forgiven, instead of holding grudges and witholding grace.

Lets do this together, okay? 🙂

“Grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ…” 2 Peter 3:18

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Spring Break is Over – So Tragical!

Hi!

Today is the first day back to my normal schedule, so I apologize for the lateness in this blog. Last week was Jon’s spring break, the weekend before that I was in Dallas and had SO much fun! I got to meet several of you (YAY!!) and had an amazing time seeing old friends and making new ones.

I have a lot of extended family in Dallas, so I was able to catch up with them as well – it’s so weird to see how much my cousins have grown up! Part of me hates it, but then again, there’s lots of good things that come with getting older (like Jon), so I guess it’s okay. 🙂 I got to see one of my best friends since the seventh grade who lives in Dallas too – awesome! So, between the Christian Book Expo and the Cheesecake Factory, I had an amazing weekend!

Here’s a few pics of me meeting some incredible girls at the Book Expo: 🙂

SUCH FUN!!!

So, last night, after hiding it for more than a year, Jon finally discovered something pretty awful about me. I think he knew about it, he just didn’t know the depth of it. And no, it’s not some tattoo thing like the lady had on Three Musketeers. I’m going to confess it to you just because I’ve heard confession is good for the soul.

I HATE MICE.

And not just hate in a “Oh, I don’t particularly like them” kind of a way. I hate them. I have panic attacks just thinking about mice. I could probably have made my living being a pole vaulter without the pole if someone just let a bunch of mice out behind me.

It happened because we were watching a show where someone rubbed their cheek with a mouse. DISGUSTING. Obviously, I flipped out.

I think Jon cried from laughing so hard last night. It started with him lightly touching my cheek with our fuzzy blanket so I’d begin shrieking and ended with him running his fingers up my arm like some horrendous creature.

Bleugh.

Despite the gross factor, last night was fun and silly and relaxing and a perfect way to end spring break.

I hope all of you are having a fabulous week!