salvation + strawberry shortcakes.

today is that last day of the blog every day in may challenge.  and boy am i going tho miss this, okay, that's a lie.  today's prompt was a vivid memory. 

one of my first vivid memories was:  i was seven years old. we had guest for dinner life we did often and they had a little girl who i was playing my strawberry shortcakes with, i had them all...the gazebo, all the little dolls, everything.  my new friend and myself were having a great time and then she asked me if she could have my dolls, because i am ME...and i would give you the shirt off my back literally (this can be a negative trait too, guys.) i said, "sure" and we loaded up the entire collection, gazebo and all and took them to her car so she wouldn't forget them when they left.

long story short [not really]: after they left, my mom asked me to go and pick up the things we had gotten out because it was time for bed and my reply was, "i don't have anything out i gave them all to [friend]."  needless to say this little selfless girls mama was not very pleased because even though she had learned how to love from her mothers example her mama still liked collecting toys, dolls, you name it.  and lets be honest, you shouldn't just give loots of things away when you are seven without consulting a parent.

so what's a seven year old to do to save her a little trouble?  oh that's right!  start crying and then telling her parents that she doesn't think that jesus lives in her heart!  well, it worked.  my parents were so excited that on my terms i was ready to ask jesus to live in my heart that we prayed that night together on december seventeenth and i asked jesus to come and live in my heart.

i went to bed with a heart full of jesus and the strawberry shortcakes were never mentioned again.

----------------

here's some fun photos from my week last week.  i am morrisonlane on instagram if you want to follow all the fun times on there.  i've been posting lots of red face post workout looks too, just keepin' it real - and be honest with yourself...you know you do not want to miss those...

hope everyone has a wonderful friday and an even better weekend!  i hope to feel a lot like little sass-o'-frass in the corner over there - all.  weekend.  long.

things that make me uncomfortable, ewwwww.

day three of blog a day in may continues with things that make me uncomfortable...obviously.

MICE.
that is my number one.  talk about uncomfortable on a whole 'nother level.  oh my goodness!  i don't even know if i can write this post because i get the heebee-jeebees just thinking about all this stuff...

FACT:  brad saw a mouse in our house last weekend while i was working.  thank my lucky stars i was working, because i might have died.  we bought those sticky traps and set two out.  then tuesday we were watching mad men in our bedroom and brad hears this squeaky MOUSE sound.  me, being the dummy that i am, said "oh i think that's a bird!"  when do you ever hear a bird tweeting at night?  yeah, no.  brad says, "ugh, i think it might be a mouse."  shivers UP THE SPINE.
i immediately get in the fetal position with my hands cupped around my face and ask him to go check. he comes running back to the bedroom with an affirmation of a mouse.
i'm like "babe!  you have to get it yourself!  i can not help you.  please don't ask me to help you."  and i was begging and pleading.
"well, how am i supposed to get it?" he said, as he gave my an example of what the house was doing stuck on the sticky pad.
ahhhhh.
"just get it and take it out quick before it gets away!"  so THANKFULLY he got it, put it in a plastic bag, sealed that bad boy and took him out in the outside trash.  oh my gosh.  seriously, i'm not right and i know it.

this is what peggy was doing as i was screaming and brad was rescuing...

and here's a few more things that make me uncomfortable...

- when i see pedicurist doing 'the razor" on peoples feet.  ahhhh.

- that commercial on TV where the person is shaving their legs and the razor cuts them and they go "ouch!" ahhhh.

- watching anything plastic surgery on the face on TV.  especially ears.  ahhhh.

- awkward people that think they are cool.  you know what i mean.

- everyone on jersey shore, the show.  not like the actual shore.

- talking about money with your/my employers.

- women that dress in too revealing outfits.  like way to much boob and bottom for the world to see.  i wanna cover them with a blanket.

uncomfortable now?  yeah, me too.

moving on.

here's some instagram dump for the week.  i'm morrisonlane on there if you would like to be friends.

for real...TGIF.

it's been a long week.  i haven't felt great this week, but just trying to keep on keeping on.  i am a believer in the line "fake it til you make it" and sometimes that just what you have to do.  cue this week.  but i am still thankful.  

thankful for a husband that is kind.

thankful for a happy home.

thankful for air conditioner.

thankful for melatonin. 

thankful for fingernail polish.

i'm looking forward to the weekend.  we have an adventure planned, get to see family and rest - also i am real excited about watching more of the olympic trials...'cauuuuuse i'm an olympic nerd.
fact:  i get emails for the london olympics and had planned on going four years ago; then i met brad and he made me fall in love, then made me marry him.  and i forgot i was going to the olympics until a few weeks ago.  whoops!

happy friday friends, i am one thankful gal that it's friday.
wanna follow the feed?  i'm morrisonlane on instagram.  i like to keep it simple like that.  if you follow me, let me know and i will follow you back.  

a heart content.

here's some life for ya.  as much as brad is in his favorite place tonight, i happen to be in mine as well.  home.  for years and years and years, i dreamt of what would be.  who my husband would be, what my home would look like, where it would be.  would it be fancy or small?  would i be rich or poor?  would my last name be extravagant and cool, plain?  all those unknowns.  you know, being a girl.

and it's funny how life works and how all those things that were so important at the time when you were thinking them, ya know --- they don't really matter when you get in to the heart of the life.

our house is fine.  small by some standards.  large probably to others.
my last name is dukes now.  i think its rather royal.
we aren't rich, but we aren'r poor.  but then again, it is all relative.  to some we may be rich, to others poor.

what i have learned through out it all is contentment.  to be content in my circumstances.  a contented person is hard to find these days, but that is what i desire my life to be.  a life that is full; a life that is content - that is a life of riches.

we are surrounded by media that tells us we need this, and that.  we need it all.  more, more, more.  i fall in the trap as well, darn humans.  but i want to be that girl that when others look at me they see contentment.  that i am happy with what i have and know that i don't need more.  

with contentment comes peace.  our home is a home of peace.  i have always told brad "i want our home to be the refuge that when you walk through the door.  you are home.  peace.  you feel content." and the weight of the world from the day quickly falls to the wayside.  a refuge from the storm, from the chaos of life.  it's so nice to know that as bad a day as i can have out there, i can pull the car into the driveway and automatically feel that home feeling, that ahhhh...peace, contentment.

every day i strive to be that person that jesus has called me to be.  and i am waaay off more days than not, but every day i try to walk out the life he has chosen for me.

peace is such a big part of that; with contentment going hand in hand.

and all those questions that i had and have all go away when i have a heart content.

and with all that, here's the photodump of the week via instagram.  i am morrisonlane on there if you would like to follow.

saying thank you.

"thank you again for going with me last night, i really had fun!

it means a lot to me that you go along with my crazy adventures,

even really late."

this is an email i received from brad early wednesday morning after we went to a concert tuesday night that started at eleven pm.  i had to be at work at seven on wednesday.

i try to always remember to say thank you to brad and anyone else, but especially to those that go out of their way to do nice things for me.  i think it is so easy to "take forgranted" your significant other and just "expect" and "assume."  even though i wanted nothing more than to be with brad on tuesday night at that show, it is always nice to be acknowledged and told "hey i notice.  you are appreciated."  no, it's not needed, but everyone needs to hear it.

saying thank you never gets old, saying it, or hearing it.  let's remember to be kind and to remember to thank the ones that go above and beyond for us on a day to say basis that we might forget to thank.  i know i am so guilty of forgetting to say thank you, and i need not forget.  it's important and something i always appreciate hearing.

ya know?

on that note, here's some pictures from my week in da world of instagram. hey, i'm morrisonlane on instagram if you'd like to follow my feed.  i've decided to do all black and whites for the month of june because i like a good project and i needed something attainable and easy for my blue ribbon 'cause i am all out of time for a real project...know what i mean?

oh, hey, thank you for reading.  really, it's always fun to know people read and comment and care. 

you make my day better every day.  you do.  you really really do.

you. are. so. dumb. {instagram style}

cake for my best friends party

girlfriend had her dress in her panties and her shades on backwards.  and she was READY.

she doesn't like flamingos.  WHO doesn't like a pink bird?

turtles eatin' salad.  i had fries that day.

ezekial bread with better n' peanut butter.  my favorite snack.

toy store.  we were there for FOREVER.

but i landed this picture.  worth.  it.  

summer just started.  and i am sure it will be this perfect e.v.e.r.y.d.a.y.

two of my favorite girls.  

brother loves his sister.

sister got kicked out of the movie.  much to her DELIGHT.

breakfast date.

lunch date.

nerd herd.  i love this picture.  it's sooo them.

dude loves him a map.  i let him lead this day.

sister trying to loose the nanny.

and to think when i thought about writing this post, i was like 

"i don't think i took many pictures this week."

then when i saw the AMOUNT of pictures i had,  

i then said, "you.  are.  so.  dumb." 

what's going on...what's going on...what's...

1.  breakfast was pretty this day.  bagal, faux peanut butter, strawberries.  

(tasted yummy too!)

2.  lil but made this for me and said, "look, caca 'esss you!"

apparently i'm all lips and nose.

3.  clearly a dead ringer for me.

she's such an artist.

4.  "hey, caca.  this needs to charge."

seriously.  cracking me up.

she knows my phone charges in the front seat, hence does hers.

5.  homemade cake for mom

(icing recipe here)

6.  iced coffee afternoon so i wouldn't end up like the pup.

{worked.}

7.  apparently mr. potato head needed to be all over IG this week.

(dance paaaar-taaay.  look, i'm a nanny, sometimes you just have to find entertainment 

when the two year old won't do it for ya...)

8.  does IT get cuter?  i think not.

9.  renovating the back of the house.

aka.  bob the builder is hanging out back.

and that girl is excited.

...more on that later.

10.  girlfriend was RACING to get to brad when she saw his car.

(i was right on her heels.  we love that guy.)

11.  the squirrels, bunnies, cats, birds, chipmunks, opossums, foxes (no JOKING here)

have taken over our yard.

we bought a zoo.

12.  i HATE these carts.  they are too long and i can't drive them.

i have to come up with every excuse in the book to avoid them 

when lil bit sees them.

i lose most of the time.

#fail

13.  seriously.  i told my mom i wanted a yellow and grey quilt.

just in conversation.

a week later, this is what i got.

best mama ever.

wanna follow me on IG? 

you can find me at morrisonlane, i like to keep it simple like that.

happy friday folks.  i'm working ALL weekend and i'm excited about it.

what's wrong with me?

instagrams and underwear. for real. kinda.

this is my life. to a T.

this picture makes me happy.

lil bit in her yoga position refusing to wear her rain boots yet in her pajama pants.

her brother deep in la la land.

while we wait on the other brother to finish up his hoops game.

not an instagram, but such a fun moment.  

who needs oatmeal when you gots a bankie?

myhusbandisspoiledrottendotcom

i was headed out the door to workout, and he needed sweet potato pancakes first.

i love that guy.

speakin' of my husband, there he is.  up there.

and he is real cute too.

eating pancakes or mexican.

sometimes you just need a holding hands shadow picture.

love her heart and her little fingers.

this is a reminder.  my birthday is sunday.

here is my list:

I AM KIDDING.  i mean, my birthday is sunday, but i don't have a list.

but i did wrap these presents 'cause i love me a good wrap job.

speaking of wrap job...i once won a talent show with a RAP with some other girls in youth group.

here was my rap.

check.

my name is jessica and i am real cool.

i may look dumb, but i ain't no fool.

jesus loves me and he loves you too,

he died for me and he died for you...

my part and we took home the gold.

take that eminem. 

i am doing the februaury photo of the day challenge.  

and here was the first day, "your view" so i walked outside and shot this in my front yard.

then i got real and came inside and sat down

and took a picture of my "real view"

underwear and all.

just keepin' it real.

and yes, i fold my underwear.

yesterday i had to drive my bosses truck.

ford F150 big.

and it was fuuuun.

read it, its eye opening and good.

i am about half way through.

and i almost forgot how to turn a page, because of the old kindle.

old habits die hard though.

and this is why i come back every day for more.

hey, i'm linking up with life rearranged today.  

go read her sweet blog, you'll be glad you did.

insta. insta. insta....gramsssssss. woo hoo!

you may only make it through half of these pictures or a third.  it's instagram overload over here on morrison lane.  that only means there is WAAAAAY to much going on currently.  because of the overdose of pretty instagrams we have been divided into categories because i like for you to think i am that organized.  

and you know i am.  

{please don't come over and look in my closet.  or any other room with a closed door.  you'll be crushed figuratively and literally. don't say i didn't warn ya.}

hold up...this is not confession hour, there i go getting distracted again...back to the pictures and their categories.  

organized.  remember?

-KIDS-

whole lotta cuteness going here.  follow me on instagram [morrisonlane] and you'll get all the scoop by the minute.  picture.  instagram.  yes, you can be THAT lucky.

-BEACH-

my best friends wedding happened last weekend.  really it did.  like my real best friend and not the movie.  although if rupert everett showed up i wouldn't mind a sing a long.  


distracted.  a.  gain.  


i would like to take full credit for the loveliness in the pictures above but when you have the fingerprints of god in action which seem so much more visible when there are crashing waves, calm water and sandy beaches...all you have to do is point and shoot and you get perfection.  anyone could have captured it really, i just happened to be in the right place at the right time.  

-RANDOMNESS-

a.  breakfast with brad.  outside.  and bagels.  (theres a whole lotta b's in that sentence)

b.  speaking of brad, he got me this external flash and she want to the beach for the first time.

c.  local florida pub for lunch in the bathing suit.  doesn't get much better than that.

d.  the wine shop next door.  i don't really drink at all.  

(couldn't tell by the last two pictures...)

e.  bicycles at seaside.  serene.  we were in a large marge black SUV.  not serene.

f.  pedicures after a busy week.

amen.

instagram friday! did someone say FRIDAY?

i'm linking up with the great blog at life rearranged today.

i thought my week was boring and i had no pictures...so i'd make them fun with

some cool fonts..and then i just got carried away!

whew...its FRIDAY!

instagram friday.

i'm teaming up with life rearranged for another instagram friday this week...and while you are scavenging all these great blogs thanks to her lovely page, don't neglect to leave her a comment as well.

let's all take a deep breath together and say "yay!!! it's friday! finally!" and EVEN BETTER, it's a loooong weekend.

here's what's been going on in my neck of the woods (you can take a girl out of the country, but not the country out of the girl...)

 1.  misser bwat that we have graduated to calling him instead of bwad and 

lil bit have a crush on each other.  

2.  the three amigos all clean and ready for bed.  don't you love the smell of freshly 

bathed kids with wet heads?  its the best!

3.  my shadow.  everywhere i go, she is there.  i'm the lucky one.

4.  i am trying to talk misser bwat into getting this puppy, so far my talks have not been too convincing.

i even went as far as letting him have the liberties to name the little guy.

doesn't he look like he needs us?

5.  i organized all the dvds and wii games this week.  and the job was more than i bargained for...

wonder how long the organizational cabinet loveliness will last with two six year old boys in the house?

6.  misser bwat took me to waffle house for dinner on a date.  i am THAT lucky.  don't be jealous.

7.  she waits til her brothers leave for school and then scavenges their breakfast.

it's possibly her favorite time of the day.

it's possibly mine too, because she is the clean up crew.

8.  seriously.  natural light, i love you.  and look at those sweet little lips.

9.  sooooooooooo, chic fil a is being built across from my house and i found this out on thursday. 

and today i am still excited about this discovery.

i mean, does news get better than this?

waaaaa hoooooooo.

10.  yesterday was her second day of preschool

girl is worn out.

i'm excited for the weekend, some of our best friends are getting married 

and we are headed out of town for a long weekend o' love.  

i love love.

happy weekend!

what are your plans?

p.s.  this day five months ago, i married my best friend, misser bwat.
every day i love him a little more than the day before.
i love you.

check out HIS blog.  he's waaaay cooler than me.

www.braddstudios.com

its instagram friday (aka weekly photo dump).

this past weekend, the second brad and i got off, we hit the road for a quick trip to charlottesville, virginia. i had never been and we were due a road trip, so to charlottesville we headed.

such a fun city, there is always something to do and see. and it's just all around lovely. the first night we were there, we ate at a little diner (we love us a good diner) called the nook, and while we were there we read a local publication called the hook.

we read the hook in the nook.

and i thought that was huuuuularious and ran that joke into the ground.

bless brad's heart, man has a lot of patience.

 we also ate at a little pub called millers in the outdoor downtown mall, and when i was handed the menu, i noticed the saturday special was the 'nacho burger' and i immediately thought, "oh my lord, that sounds horrible, WHO would order that?"

waitress came to take our order, "i'll have the nacho burger" said brad - i threw up in my mouth just a little.  and it looked as disgusting as it sounded.

possibly it was delicious, i will never know.

by the way, those bricks up there...monticello.

thomas jefferson might have walked there.

that's cool.

oh lord, i would accidentally put the nacho burger picture in twice!

sweet frog became our local hang out.  because the frozen yogurt was gluten and sugar free and AWESOME.

the OPERA!!!  brad took me to the opera to see the king and i.

and IT WAS awesome.

then, baaaack to reality to these three sweet faces.
she has decided that shirts are optional in her life since her brothers tend to never wear them.

we drew pictures of our families yesterday and this is the best i could do.
watch out...i might be a budding artist.
or maybe not.

happy instagram friday!

follow me at morrisonlane

let me know your instagram name and i will follow you too!

yay!  happy friday!

p.s.  i am doing a little maintenance on the blog, so if things seem crazy around here, i'm sorry.  soon we will be running smoothly!