Tragedy!

I had planned to update you all on my Christmas and post lots of pictures but today has turned into a very sad day. I have talked in my post before about a wonderful local band called Folk Soul Revival. They are wonderful musicians that mix rowdy and roots. We follow them around like groupies and listen to their music religiously. They are a true talent!

This morning one of their members was killed in a house fire. His girlfriend also died in the fire.

You will be missed Allun Cormier. You were a wonderful person, musician, singer and songwriter.

Allun is in the white button up shirt in the front.

RIP Allun Cormier!

My thoughts and prayers are with their families! We are also praying for his fellow bandmates and their families.

Tasha

Welcome to the 21st Century!

Oh my, I forgot to mention my exciting news in the last post!

We are ten years into this great century and I finally feel like I belong!

Why you ask? Well this year I started a blog (Yay!) and now I am........tweeting!

I have been contemplating the idea for quite some time and today I decided it was time. Maybe it was a mixture of the cold medicine and boredom, ha! 

I have found a few of my blog followers and followed you on Twitter. If you are on Twitter I would love to follow you, so leave me a comment or follow me and I will follow you back!

My user name is MissTashaTweets!

Follow Me Please!!!

p.s. Setting up the twitter account was easy but I cannot for the life of me figure out how to put the "follow me on twitter" thingy (ha!) on the side of my blog! help please!

Thanks friends!

Tasha

Ahh-Choo!

Happy Monday Ya'll!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! We had a beautiful white Christmas in Tennessee. It was great to spend time laughing, relaxing and celebrating the birth of our Savior with family and friends. I will post about all of the fun festivities in the next couple of days. Right now I am laying in bed, where I have been off and on since Saturday. I do believe I have my first cold of the season...YUCK! I cannot stop sneezing and coughing!

I am on my fourth, yes I said fourth, box of Puffs Plus with Lotion!

This is my trashcan sitting next to my bed! The CEO of Puffs should be calling me anytime and thanking me for keeping his business running!

I keep praying that I am going to wake up and feel better, if not I will be visiting the Doc tomorrow!

I can't believe the holidays are over! It's Monday and as always I am linking up with Never Growing Old for Meet Me On Monday...

1. What are your New Year's Eve plans?

We always have a big party at my brother's house on New Year's Eve. We play games, watch football and socialize. My family is coming in from Texas on Wednesday so we will all be together.

2. How tall are you?

I am 5'6".

3. What is your favorite pudding flavor?

Well, I am not big on pudding unless it is on the ingredient list of a dessert. I would say chocolate if I had to eat it.

4. What room of the house do you blog the most in?

I would have to say, my bedroom. I normally blog while laying in the bed watching tv.

5. What is your best physical feature?

Hmmm....that's a tough one. I would probably say my eyes. I have really big, dark brown eyes and crazy long eyelashes. People ask me constantly if I have on fake eyelashes. I get a lot of comments on my hair, also. I many days find it to be hideous and would love to shave it off! I have curly thick hair and everyone says they would love to have my hair. I give them one day and they would want to shave it too!!

It is now time for me to resume my position, which is snuggled up in my bed and watching a movie!!

I hope you have a great day!

Tasha

The Most Wonderful Day of the Year...

Merry Christmas!

I hope that each and every one of you have a safe and joyful holiday! I will be busy the next few days and will not have a lot of time for blogging so I wanted to wish you a wonderful holiday season. I have family in from Texas now and more to come on Monday so I will be a very busy girl. Nicole tagged me in a fun little game and I wanted to play along before the craziness of the holidays takes over. I am supposed to tell you seven things that you don't already know about me. This should be hard because I feel like ya'll know everything about me!

{one}

I am obsessed with leopard print. I absolutely love it! I found a cute leopard scarp at a downtown boutique a few weeks ago and my mom got it for me. She let me open it this morning so that I could wear it to church and dinner tonight.

{two}

I am a huge Texas Longhorns fan. If I lived in Texas this would be normal. But I don't, I live in Tennessee, and it is not normal. We bleed orange too, but it is a different color. I love the state of Texas and hope to one day live there so I guess that is my way of showing my support. I don't care if people point and stare, I will still be wearing my burnt orange shirts and hats. Hook em' Horns!!!!

{three}

I am completely obsessed and addicted to magazines. I love them all. Gossip, cooking, style, crafting, fitness, home....ALL OF THEM! As I sit and write this, if I look to my left there is a stack of 19 magazines that I still need to read. I am behind on reading them and plan to catch up over break. Some I just look at the pictures, others I actually take the time to read. As I read and look through them I tear out pages to things I like. It may be a recipe, a decorating idea, a cute outfit...just anything that I want to keep to use in the future. I will be able to decorate my house, plan my wedding, bridal showers, baby showers and nurseries from these folders!

{four}

I am sooooo excited for the new year! I am very excited about a fresh start! I talked about my fresh start here. I think that 2011 is going to be a great year and I look forward to the new year. I am also very excited about growing with the Lord in the new year. 

"The Lord says, 'Forget about what has happened before. Do not think about the past. Instead, look at the new things I'm going to do.'"  Isaiah 43:18-19

{five}

I am hoping that 2011 is the year that I finally graduate from college. 3 colleges + 3 majors = 1 burnt out, over it girl! 

{six}

I am very excited about a new year for my blog! I cannot believe that in 3 months I now have 72 followers. I am really looking forward to starting of a new year with all of you sweet friends. I am so thankful for our friendship. It is great to know that I have so many wonderful women to turn to. It feels great to know that we have each others back!

{seven}

I am in the process of creating a 101 in 1001 list. I want to encourage all of my followers to do the same. It is a list of 101 things that you want to accomplish in 1001 days (about 2.75 years). I hope to have my list finished by January 1st. My end date will be September 28, 2013, one day before my 27th birthday. 

I am tagging...

Jenni

Lindsi

Cherish

Lesli

Leah

Kari

Kit

I have to go get ready for Christmas Eve church service and then a big southern feast! I hope you all have a blessed day. If you are traveling, be safe. 

Merry Christmas!

Tasha

What I'm Loving....Christmas Edition!

Wow! I cannot believe that Friday is Christmas Eve! Where did December go? I am so excited about spending time with friends and family this weekend. 

What I'm Loving...Christmas Edition!

I am loving all the Christmas cards that come in the mail everyday.

I am loving the Christmas lights at the speedway.

I am loving the Christmas Eve Candlelight Service at church Friday night.

I am loving the new series that we are starting at church in January. It goes along with the Fresh Start I talked about in this post.

I am loving this cute video! It is a social network version of the story of the nativity. It shows what it would be like if Jesus was born today.

I am loving this video too! It is the digital story of the nativity.

I am loving the presents I found for my neighbors little girl today. It is a drum set and amplifier made from CARDBOARD! It actually plays and makes sound! What will they think of next?

I am loving this sweet girl! I am so lucky to have her in my life!

I am loving all of my new followers! I can't wait to get to know all of you!

I hope that everyone has a very safe and MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Tasha

A Fresh Start...

I went to church Saturday night to watch my Nana and my niece in the Christmas play. The play was phenomenal. It was so good I went back on Sunday morning to see it again. During the middle of the play the preacher came out to deliver the message. The title of his message was How To Make a Fresh Start for Christmas. I sat in my seat, overwhelmed with anticipation. I have had a wonderful year but it has also been a very hard year. Before I started this blog, I had just come out of a very serious four year relationship. I thought it was my last relationship. Four years ago I would have told you that I had met the man I was going to be with forever. It took me four long years to realize that this was not the man that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. 

I am a planner and always have been. This year I learned that no matter how many plans and to-do lists I make God has the ultimate say. He is steering my ship, not me. He knows what my plan in life is and I know that he will not steer me wrong. I was content in an un happy relationship because the next step in my plan was to get married and have children. One day I realized that I was staying with this person only to fulfill the next event on my list. Don't get me wrong, I loved him dearly but I knew that I would never be happy. 

Nicole wrote on her blog a few days ago about being content. I really connected with this idea because I realized that I need to be content with my life. I realized that no matter how much I worry about what is going to happen I am still not in control. I know that I am only 24 years old but I always "planned" that by now I would be married and have a child or trying to have a child. Never did I plan that I would be single. This has been a huge struggle for me. I have never been alone. Not only that, my three closest friends all got married this year and are all pregnant. When my best friend found out that she was pregnant a couple of months ago I found it very hard to be happy for her. I just broke down and cried. I went to Books a Million to buy her a baby book the day after she found out and had to walk outside because I started crying. What is wrong with me? I am a horrible friend! Those are the only thoughts that went through my mind. I didn't understand why I felt the way I did. I was not content with my life. I know that  their life is not my own and I have to be happy for them. I am now helping plan baby showers and I am so excited for this little person's arrival.

I sat in church Saturday night and Sunday morning and soaked up every ounce of God's word that I could. I was so excited to hear the preacher talk about a fresh start, My Fresh Start! I normally do not go to this church. I have been there several times and love it but I always go with my parents to there church. The Christmas play was sold out and my Nana searched to find me three tickets. God knew that I needed a fresh start. 

How To Make a Fresh Start This Christmas

"The Lord says, 'Forget about what has happened before. Do not think about the past. Instead, look at the new things I'm going to do.'"  Isaiah 43:18-19

I looked down at my sermon notes and read this verse. That was all I needed to hear. I need to stop focusing on my past because God is going to do wonderful things with my life.

1. Stop making excuses.

"A man who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful. But if he confesses and forsakes them he gets another chance." Proverbs 28:13 (LB)

2. Take stock of my life.

"You have experienced many things. Were all those experiences wasted? I hope not." Galatians 3:4

3. Act in faith.

"According to your faith it will be done to you." Matthew 9:29 (NIV)

"Being afraid of people can get you into trouble...". Proverbs 29:25 (NCV)

4. Refocus my thoughts.


"Be careful how you think. Your life is shaped by your thoughts." Proverbs 4:23 (Good News)

"Happy are those who...are always meditating on God's Word...They are like trees along a river...that do not dry up. They succeed in everything they do." -Psalm 1:1-3 (Good News)

5. Trust Christ to help me.


"'You will not succeed by your own strength or power, but by My Spirit,' says the Lord." - Zechariah 4:6 (NCV)

I am so excited about my fresh start. I know that 2011 is going to be a wonderful year. I hope that it is the year that I meet the man I am going to spend the rest of my life with but if not, I know it is God's plan. The preacher said Sunday that the next ten years will be the best years of my life if I make them the best.

My friend, Jenni sent me some very inspiring words when I shared my story with her several weeks ago. I really appreciated her advice because she has been in the same situation that I have.
Jenni said,
"I have learned to listen to my heart. I have learned that if you never make room for better things and better ways to be, if you never clear out the things in your life that stand in the way of your happiness, then you are not aligning your universe to allow for amazing things. In this life, you don't find yourself. You create yourself. And the same goes for love: you don't find love, you create a road for love to travel and wait for it to come."
Thank you Jenni for your email and these wonderful words.

I hope that this has inspired all of you to make a fresh start this Christmas.

Blessings ya'll,

Tasha

p.s. Check out both of these sweet ladies blogs. They are wonderful! I am so glad to call them friends.

Meet Me On Monday!

It's time for Meet Me on Monday!

{one}

What will your Christmas dinner consist of?

Well, we had one Christmas dinner tonight. We always do Christmas with my brother before Christmas and my Mom always makes chicken and dumplings, chicken casserole, chicken tenders, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, green beans, stuffing and deviled eggs. I made a pecan pie and an apple pie. I am stuffed!!! This Christmas eve we are going to my brother's house. I am not sure what we are having but I know that it will be yummy! On Christmas day we go to my grandmother's house. We always have a fish fry. I don't like fish so my grandmother always makes me chicken casserole, chicken and dumplings, green beans, mashed potatoes and all the SOUTHERN fixings!!

I think I just gained 10 pounds writing this!

{two}

Do you watch commercials or do you flip through the channels?

Both! Sometimes I can watch commercials and sometimes they drive me CRAZY! I absolutely love my DVR because I can record my favorite shows and then fast forward through the commercials!

{three}

How long will you leave your Christmas decorations up?

We normally leave our decorations up until New Year's Day. I hate taking them down, I just love them!

{four}

What movie makes you cry every time you watch it?

Oh my! I cry at a lot of movies! 

Hope Floats

Steel Magnolias

The Notebook

and many more I didn't mention!

{five}

Do you have a Facebook?

Yes of course! I am Facebook obsessed. I am on it constantly on my phone and at home. I love that I am able to see pictures and statuses of everyone I went to high school with or don't see in everyday life and they don't know it. Is that considered stalking???

I hope everyone has a WONDERFUL Monday! Only 5 days till Christmas!

I will be back in the morning with a wonderful post about my Church service today...it was AMAZING!

Blessings,

Tasha

Fill in the Blank Friday!

Happy Friday ya'll!

It's still snowy and icy here in Tennessee, unfortunately! I was supposed to be finished with school on Wednesday but I can't make it to school to take my last exam because of the weather! I am hoping I can make it out today so I can start my Christmas break!

It's time for fill in the blank friday!

1. Giving is exciting! I love seeing people's faces when they are opening presents. I especially love watching the kiddos open up their presents. I love the look of excitement on their faces. I also love thinking, planning and putting ideas together for presents. I enjoy personalizing everyone's present and giving them something I know that they will love.

2. Receiving is exciting too! I love gifts and I love surprises. 

3. The best gift I ever received was my 90th edition candy apple red Kitchen-aid mixer with the glass bowl. It's the best gift I have received lately. I love to cook and bake so I was very excited when I received this gift.

4. The best gift I ever gave was .....I don't know! I would probably say the kid's gift every year. I try to put a lot of thought into their gifts.

5. Something intangible that I wish I could receive is sewing skills and more craftiness. I love being crafty and making my own stuff!

6. Something intangible that I wish I could give is health! I wish I had the power to make everyone around me healthy!

7. The one gift I always wanted as a child, but never got was ....I don't know again. I can't think of anything that I wanted and never got. I am sure there is something because at that age we want everything that we see. 

I hope you have a great day!

Tasha

Ice, Ice Baby!!!

I know, I know such a corny name for a title but so true. I don't know about ya'll but the weather is killing me! This past weekend and pretty much the beginning of this week we received around 8 inches of snow here in east Tennessee. Then, last night and today a huge ice storm blew through. I love snow, I'm not a big fan of ice but I do absolutely love snow. One thing that you have to understand is that here in Tennessee we are not used to that amount of snow...by that I mean the entire city shuts down. I live in the country, not the city. It takes me around 20 minutes to get into civilization so 8 inches of snow and an ice storm means I am stuck inside for DAYS!!! Here are a few pictures of the beautiful snow and ice...

Icy tree...

Semi-clear roads

This picture cracks me up. She had almost her entire head stuck in the snow! 

Tasha

Operation Christmas Child!

Last Friday night, I went to Boone, North Carolina along with my Nana and Poppy. We went there to help with shoeboxes for Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child. 

I could not believe what a beautiful facility they have in Boone. It was so big we couldn't even find where we were supposed to go. We went there with Nana and Poppy's church and we had so much fun! I have already told Nana to sign me up for next year.

"I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth." -3 John 1:4

It was so rewarding and fulfilling to know that every shoebox I inspected would be opened up by a sweet little child who would be so grateful for this gift. My Nana and I would look at the items in the shoebox and get all excited because we could just imagine how the child would smile and be happy with their box. 

This was half of the warehouse. It was packed full of boxes for us to inspect.

The other half....more boxes!

Me inspecting shoeboxes.

Nana having fun!

Nana and I

*sorry for the quality, these were taken from my phone*

I had so much fun volunteering for Operation Christmas Child. I plan on doing it every year. I have decided that next year, for every pair of shoes that I buy, I will fill it full of items for these sweet children. It really touched me to know that these items were going to children who need and will appreciate this shoebox.

A few facts about Operation Christmas Child:

800 million shoeboxes delivered last year

Over 130 countries have received boxes since 1993

One mission....

To demonstrate God's love in a tangible way to needy children around the world, and together with the local church worldwide, to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

"I received many items in my box- pencils, school supplies and other things. I am very happy because we can't afford to buy those items. But the greatest gift I received was Jesus Christ." -Gemher, Philippines, age 9

This was a wonderful experience and I am counting down the days till next year. I would love if each of you would fill a shoebox for these children. Just grab a shoebox stuff it with hygiene items (no liquids), school supplies, toys, hard candy, flashlight, batteries and a letter or card. Then go online to Samaritan's Purse and download a label for your box. You can also track your box so that you know where it goes. 

They gave every volunteer a free t-shirt and Christmas ornament...

It is my new favorite!

Tasha

Meet Me On Monday

It's time for Meet Me On Monday!

{one}
How do you order your steak?
I am not a big steak eater. If I do order a steak, I order it medium.

{two}
Are you superstitious about anything?


Umm...not really...well I guess...kinda! I always knock on something (it may not always be wood) if I am talking about something good.

{three}
Who is your best friend not including your spouse?


Well I have two!

This sweet lady is like my big sister and I love her to death!

Katelyn and I have been friends since before middle school and just recently became very close again. I am so thankful for her and our friendship!


{four}
When was the last time you wore a dress?
The other day I wore a cute button up dress and my cowboy boots...I don't have a picture though :(

{five}
Do you have any trips scheduled?
Sunday we are supposed to go to Asheville, North Carolina to The Grove Park Inn for the gingerbread houses. My parents and I are thinking about going to either Atlanta or Nashville for a few days after Christmas.

Tasha

Fill In the Blank Friday!

happy friday ya'll!

It's Fill In the Blank Friday!

1. I wish I had more time in the day. I wish I had more time period. I always feel like I am being rushed everyday.

2. Yesterday I spent the entire day observing a kindergarten class. It was my last day and I was so sad to leave their cute little faces. I really enjoyed spending time with them and I can't wait to have my own little classroom. 

3. Today I will go to Boone, NC to stuff shoe boxes to send to little kids, all over the world, for Christmas. It makes my heart smile to know that I helping someone's Christmas to be better :).

4. Tomorrow I will be writing a paper, mailing my Christmas cards and hopefully watching my little 10 year old nephew be baptized.

5. Maybe I will have time for a nap tomorrow!

6. Someday I will have a little family of my own to make the Christmas season even more special.

7. I love my family and friends. The Christmas season makes us all remember what is so special in our lives and I feel so blessed with the special people I get to share my life with. I also love my amazing blogging friends, each of you are very special to me!

Go over to Lauren's blog and fill in the blank!!!

Have a wonderful evening!

Tasha

What I'm Loving!

happy wednesday ya'll! 

It's a chilly morning here in Tennessee! We still have snow on the ground because the temperature has been under 20* for three days! I'm looking forward to the high of 31* today! {actually I am looking forward to summer}

Well it's Wednesday and as always here is What I'm Loving this cold Wednesday morning!

I am loving this beautiful Christmas ornament that I just ordered.
Nicole, blogged about these ornaments featured on HSN.
This ornament was designed by Whiting and Davis and I think it is stunning.
At least 30% of the purchase price goes directly to St. Jude.
Go check out all of the ornaments that HSN has to offer and support St. Jude.

I am loving this AMAZING hospital! The wonderful doctors and staff at this hospital work non-stop to find cures and save our children. The Holiday season makes us start to think about what is important in our life and it is important that we protect our future. Children are the future! This Christmas, I pray that you will remember the children in this hospital. Pray that this is not their last Christmas. Pray that each one of these children is healed. Pray that St. Jude continues to find cures to heal these children. I pray that families keep supporting this wonderful hospital, like my family does.

I am loving this sweet video! This video is about a young boy, Dax, who was a patient at St. Jude. Please watch this video and support St. Jude! 

I am loving that there are only 17 days left till Christmas!

I am loving that I only have EXACTLY one week left till Christmas Break!

I am loving that Friday I am headed to Boone, NC to stuff gift boxes for children at Christmas! It's such a beautiful city and I love every chance that I get to go there!

I am loving that my order from Pampered Chef will be here tomorrow!


I am loving all of my new followers!

I hope everyone has a great Wednesday and a great week!
Go over to Jamie's blog and tell us What Your Loving!!!

Tasha

recipe blog!

Hey friends!

I just wanted to let ya'll know that I have started a recipe blog! I absolutely love to cook and bake. I, also love to share recipes!!! I hope that each one of you will follow my recipe blog and use the recipes I post. I would love for you to share recipes with me and leave comments on what you love and don't love! 

from my kitchen to yours

To all of my wonderful friends out there who love to cook, hate to cook or are looking for a new recipe, I am participating in a recipe exchange. Many women are participating in the exchange and in the end each person should receive several recipes. If you are interested in participating in the swap either leave me a comment with your email address or email me your address at tasharogers86@gmail.com. I will add you to my list so that you can receive several new recipes!

I hope ya'll enjoy the new recipe blog!

p.s. I am so excited to see all my new blogging friends! I have around 10 new followers from today! I love to log on and see more followers. I hope you all enjoy my blog and I can't wait to get to know you all better!

Tasha

Monday Link Up!

Happy Monday Ya'll!

I had a very boring weekend and I am getting back into the routine of blogging. The snow has kept me inside all weekend and today too! I love the snow but not when it keeps me from going places.

Today I am linking up with Never Growing Old for Meet Me on Monday!

{one}

What is your favorite kind of cheese?

I love a lot of cheeses, however, I am very picky about my cheese!

For my sandwiches I only like a certain kind of cheese...

It's sliced very thick and I love it!

{two}

What size is your bed?

QUEEN! and it's all mine! There is no room for anyone else....so when I get married I will definitely have to upgrade to a king! My Mom says a king size bed is a must in any marriage!

{three}

What is your most overused praise?

I say, "That's hilarious!" all the time. I say it so much that I notice 2 of the kiddos saying it all the time now! 

I also say, "Ya'll!" a lot!

{four}

Green or purple grapes?

Green only!

{five}

Shower, morning or night?

Either one! I don't have a set schedule so I just shower whenever I get a chance during the day. I prefer to shower at night because of my crazy curly hair, it makes it easier to manage in the morning!

Go link up!

Tasha