GO EAT AT CHILI'S!!! National Donation Day!! :)

Everyone holds something near and dear to their heart... I can name lots of things: My 2006 World Series game ball signed by Albert Pujols himself, my husband, precious family members and friends, hearing my nephew Harrison laugh, pics of sweet Betty, Abner when he cuddles with me, my 2 shiny state championship medals..... And MOST of those things  are uncomparable to my charity of choice, the one that has touched my heart in ways I cannot express, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital... TODAY (Monday, Sept. 27th) is National Donation Day at Chili's Bar and Grill all over the country and I invite you to get out and eat there for Lunch, Dinner, and afternoon snacks BECAUSE 100% percent of profits go directly to St. Jude!!! Chili's is one of the largest donating sponsers to St. Jude and they so graciously do this once a year to help fund the Chili's Care Center wing of the hospital- which is amazing! If you have never toured the Campus and you are in Memphis, TN for some odd reason, make a POINT to visit it :) The most amazing thing that was inducted into the St. Jude goal by founder Danny Thomas, was to leave NO CHILD behind in thier fight against pediatric cancer or life threatening illnesses due to a family's inability to pay.. NO MATTER where a child or family is from- background, city, state, country- St. Jude COVERS healthcare costs, travel, and living expenses that cannot be afforded by each and every family. So for each patient, family member who has to stop work or move, medical treatment costs, salary funds to pay the worker "angels", and just day to day runnings of electricity and bills- the hospital PAYS OUT over ONE MILLION DOLLARS A DAY! So let's help them out by heading to Chili's :)

Having worked there for a brief stent, I am LUCKY to say that I got to stand in the presence of Doctors, Nurses, and staff- all of these people are angels walking on earth. These people are on the forefront of hopefully curing pediatric cancer and they save life after life after life every single day. I got to work alongside these amazing people and my mind and heart are forever changed because of thier souls, minds, and good works. Not only that, I am also LUCKY to say that I got to be hugged by, loved by, and embraced the strength that each of these precious little patients possess. There are no words to decribe the fight in these little bodies and the hearts that they have. There are not even any words to describe the love they give when THEY are fighting a battle we cannot imagine fighting ourselves... On the days that I feel I dont wanna get out of bed because I'm tired or stressed, overwhelmed or overworked, frustrated, upset, confused, or just plain ole BLAH- I think of them and what they go through on a day-to-day basis and I am instantly motivated to give each day my ALL. Rickey and I are official St. Jude Children's Research Hospital Partners in Hope and donate monthly to the cause. I encourage everyone to become a Partner in Hope because your monthly donation is the best feeling! Today we are gonna push the cause further and salute you ST. JUDE!!! Cheers to the best charity and cause in the world and one that is soooo near and dear to my heart! DONATE to the Littles at St. Jude :) NOW GO EAT SOME QUESO AND SIZZLIN FAJITAS!!!!!!! GO GO GO! :)

Avec tout mon couer,
Lace

Ok I am officially the worst.blogger.ever.... That is for sure. Although I wont promise to get better at blogging until my schedule frees up just a bit more time, I will say that I will try harder to keep all our fans in "the know". And honestly, there isnt much to know! The Nolands are just on the same daily grind as usual. Rickey is still working hard with Delta State Baseball and fall ball is upon us. It's always a nice time when it hits because the weather is cooler and we are past the summer that wore us out with games. You have a nice break and its back on the field, and Rickey loves this. I really think that his past time is spent on the grass because it relaxes him. Me? That would never happen but he seems to love just being there. The other coaches call the home plate at Delta State "Rickey's Office". :) Anywho, with ball being back in swing we are back to him having a random and busy schedule. Some nights he is at the office doing scouting calls or cutting grass til 9 or 10 at night, then he comes home to work on more lesson plans and his teaching portfolio. His teacher seems to have cut "some" slack on him, being that he can leave right after school now and not have to stay an additional thirty minutes for "reflection time" (yes, thats right reflection time- and its absolutely stupid). Just a few more months and he's home free! So with lessons, work, baseball, and school hes a busy man. This weekend we did have a little bit of free time to run some wedding errands for our friends Sarah and Clay who are getting married in November. We headed to Memphis to get Rick fitted and purchase his groomsman's tuxedo and it made me smile to see him wear the tux jacket - brought back SO MANY fun memories of us trying on his tux for our wedding! Awww.. We got to do a little bit of shopping in which Rickey had the pleasure of buying a pet hair vacuum for our house. If you havent heard me tell the stories of Rickey and his latest obsession - and I am not kidding when I say this- with vacumm-ing products, well you are missing out. Anyone who knows us knows that our monster child, Abner, sheds furiously two times a year. Rickey and I have been seriously contemplating what we will do if the shedding does not STOP. And soon. We have Abs groomed constantly and we sweep multiple times a day, but no matter what, the hair continues to be EVERYWHERE. That being said, Rickey (and being a man) has turned his attention to recent infomercials and what not in search of the perfect Pet-Hair-Grabber- machine. First he bought a dirt devil vacuum thing and although this worked a little, it annoyed me because the cord was so dang short and it was hand held. So we ended up never using it on the floor or anywhere actually, placing it in early retirement. We then branched to the Swiffer range of products, which do work but we needed something a bit more "heavy duty". Next came his obsession with something called the G2 Swivel Vacuum, which looked to me like a broom on steroids. He ordered it and swore to me that "if Billy Mays endorses it, well you know it MUST work". Yep, not so much.... Actually not at ALL. I mean, this vacuum is running on two double AA batteries, we should've known better.. Last but not least, this weekend while we were in Bed Bath and Beyond, Rickey seemed to be amazed at this new vacuum that he swore would cure our ailments and was specifically designed for Pet Hair... All I can really do is look at him and smile because he looks so cute with excitement but in my heart I know I was thinking- Grreaaattt, another crap machine. This time I am admitting that this vacuum works pretty dang well and although it doesnt get most of the hair off the hardwood floor (which encompasses our ENTIRE house), it does get ALL of the hair off our 8x10 area rug... Words cannot express Rickey's excitement and I watched him vacuum at midnight just to show me that this choice "worked". Bless his heart, hes so cute. So I guess that Eighty bucks is worth having a great, clean area rug....

Anywho.. While in Memphis I was craving some Crab legs for some reason and so we decided that we would go to Red Lobster. Although not my favorite place for seafood, it would do the trick because I do love the cheddar bay biscuits.. I came to find out that Rick was not a pro as I was at the Crab Legs so we spent about 2 Hours devoring those crabbies and having a ball. In the midst of our hectic lives and crazy schedules, its so nice to be able to sit down and laugh with Rickey because he really, really IS my best friend..

So other than our weekend that consisted of vacuums and seafood, we havent been doing a whole heck of a lot other than working, eating, sleeping, and studying. Which reminds me that I need to stop blogging and get back to doing that.. I promise I will update later when there is something more substantial for me to chat about!! :)

Avec tout mon couer,
Lace