How The Sweetest Cowboy & The City Girl Met

Morgan and I get asked quite frequently how we met because we are so different. Morgan was born and raised in the country. Grew up showing cattle, riding horses, and having his life revolve around animals. Me, on the other hand, used to be absolutely terrified of cows. I know that sounds crazy, but it seriously freaked me out to just drive by them. I was born and raised in the city so I wasn't around too many cows. I was used to horses because I used to go to some kind of horse camp for two weeks in the summer and learn how to groom them, etc. If you were to tell me that I would marry a Cowboy, I would have never believed it. Although, honestly, I have always thought cowboys were handsome in their boots, hats, and those cute jeans...haha. It seems like Cowboys have always had good manners and seem to treat a lady right. I had just never really dated a "true cowboy" before so I didn't know this way of life. But, I can say it's great! I'm no longer afraid of cows. Just yesterday I was out there with the guys while they were working the cows. I was 2 feet away from them at times with them running straight at me and I never flinched or even thought of getting scared. I've come a loooooooong way since meeting my sweet cowboy. He's been so patient with me!!!

Okay, so how we met...

My cousin, Theresa, had been wanting to set me up with Morgan for a LONG time. (Theresa is married to Shawn, who used to work with Morgan in McKinney). I would have to say for over a year, but I always told her no. I wasn't interested. I had just gotten out of a serious relationship and didn't want to date anyone at the time. I needed time to myself and the thought of dating again annoyed me. I just wanted to be with me, myself, and I. :) I finally got to where I started dating again. Went out with several guys but none of them were what I was looking for. I actually had a really good friend, named Scott, that I hung out with a lot and I really didn't feel the need to have a "boyfriend" in my life. Scott and I would go to lunch, movies, even go out on the weekends but it was absolutely NEVER a date!!! I seriously believe God put us in each others lives for a reason. We were meant to be friends and nothing more. He had just lost his mom 2 months before we started hanging out and I was mending a broken heart. I know it sounds odd, but it was a great friendship. Anyway, so I wasn't really into dating.

In October 2006, I had to have a hernia repair. (Note to everyone, make sure you don't cough too hard when you have a sinus infection.) I was off work for 3 weeks and was getting bored. Theresa called me up one night...and again...was telling me how Morgan wanted to meet me and was asking for my number. I know this sounds bad, but I was tired of being so bored so I finally told her to give him my number. He called me that night and I think we talked for 3 hours. It was a Wednesday night. After that, we talked every night for 2-3 hours. You must know something, neither of us like talking on the phone. Actually, we both HATE talking on the phone so the fact that I could talk to him this long was telling me something. Plus, he's got the cutest accent so that made me want to talk to him even more. What's funny, now that I am married to Morgan, I am AMAZED that he talked that much to me. He's actually really quiet, even now he's a man of few words. He's a smart man, but just doesn't talk much.

So that Sunday, we decided he would drive down and we would go to lunch. At the time, I lived in southwest Fort Worth and he lived north of McKinney. We were at complete opposite ends of the metroplex...ugh! When Morgan got down to my apt and knocked on the door I was so nervous. We had no clue what each other looked like. So I opened the door and I'm not kidding when I say this...my first thought was, "This is the man I am going to marry." No, it wasn't love or lust at first sight. He just looked so darn cute and had the sweetest smile on his face and I just knew. So we went out and had a great time. THEN...I didn't hear for him for a week. I was a little frustrated. I sent him a text and said something to the fact that I was done with this, that I didn't understand what happened, but I was over it. Sorry, I didn't have time to play stupid games. He called me that night and we talked. He explained that the distance was freaking him out. He wanted to date me but he didn't know how we could ever work out the distance issue. We decided to give it a try and thankfully we did!!! But, actually, I ended up breaking up with him for about 5 days about 8 months into our relationship because I freaked out about the distance. It's amazing we ever got married with this distance issue...haha! It was then his turn to explain to me why it wasn't a big deal and it worked! We've now been married for 8 months!!! Looking back, since I only work 3 days a week, the distance thing was never really that big of an issue.

So that's how the Sweetest Cowboy and the City Girl met. Morgan is the sweetest man! I am so thankful that I was bored on that Wednesday night in October and told my cousin to give him my number!!! God works in mysterious and amazing ways!!!! I thank God every day that I have been blessed to marry a man that not only treats me like a lady, but let's me know daily that I am the center of his world...as he is mine!!!

Sausage Balls

I know this is not typical blog material...but these are sooooooooo good I had to post it for everyone. Plus it's really easy. The Sunday after Christmas Morgan's ENTIRE family got together and one of his family member's brought these sausage balls. They were so yummy! The best I have ever had!!! Everyone loved them and they went really quick! I had to tell my friend Lydia at work about them and I printed her a recipe. It was funny because patients were walking by and we were talking about them so I had to print them a recipe, too! haha! I've only made them once but it's really easy. It just takes a while to make all of the little balls but thankfully, if you recruit your husband to help, it's not so bad. :) Lydia had a good idea to get a melon ball scooper...or something like that. That's about the size of the sausage ball you need to make.

Do not cook the sausage. It will cook in the oven. I used the Owens Regular Flavor Sausage.
The Velveeta I grated because I didn't want to chop into tiny pieces. I actually added all the ingredients at once, then mixed, and it worked well that way, too.

SAUSAGE BALLS

1lb-hot sausage
16oz-Velveeta cheese
2 cups Bisquick

Mix the sausage and cheese together in a large bowl. Add the Bisquick a little at a time. Once the mixture is mixed well (this is the messy part), shape into balls. Place on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.

ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Morgan turns 31!!!

My Wonderful Husband, Morgan!

Such a Stud!!! :)

Our Sweet Moms...the best moms ever!!!

Matt and Morgan...brotherly Love!

I equally hate these two pics of us and couldn't choose...so I put them both up. Note to self...must hit the gym routinely asap!!!

Morgan's birthday is January 10th. He's six months younger than me and doesn't let me ever forget it...haha! The funny thing is, his brother and his wife were born on the same day and so they are exactly 6 years apart. Anyway, so Morgan is now 31 and so we had to celebrate.

For some reason, Morgan slept in until 10. That is completely NOT like him. So we turned on the tv and just watched tv until his brother Matt started banging on our back door. He came over to say good morning and wish Morgan a Happy Birthday. It's so funny to watch the two of them together. They pick on each other and Matt felt the need to start harassing him and flippin' our covers all over the place trying to get us out of bed. Besides Morgan, Matt is the only one who I will let see me in the morning because I have no choice. I am absolutely NOT a pretty sight to see in the morning...glasses, cream on my face, and curly hair does not do well when one sleeps on it. Thankfully, Matt has never said anything about the way I look which I am sure he really has to bite his tongue on that. So Matt stayed over until noon. Before he left he put one of my flip flops in front of the tv and turned it off. That way, if we wanted it back on we had to get out of bed and do it. Our bedroom is in the back of the house and everyone comes to the back door because we can't hear anyone at the front door. When Matt left, he left the door to our backroom/laundry room open, the door to outside propped open, and then the screen door propped open. It was FREEZING that day. I got up to see what the heck he was doing and he was just standing out there laughing...he's a nut! When I see Matt and Morgan together I realize that brothers have this special bond that is VERY hard to break.

After Matt forced us to get out of bed, we decided to go to a movie. Well, actually, I had decided I wanted to go to a movie the day before. Morgan agreed and unfortunately, the movie I have been really wanting to see is Bride Wars...complete chick flick. I told him we didn't have to go see it but he insisted because he knew how bad I wanted to see it. Poor thing, here he is on his birthday sitting in a movie theater watching a chick flick. He actually fell asleep. I've never seen him fall asleep in a movie, but I didn't have the heart to wake him. After all, it was HIS birthday so he could do whatever he wanted.

That evening, Morgan's family and my parents went to dinner to celebrate. Morgan's dad chose Trail Dust, outside of Denton, so my parents could meet us. It was a lot of fun. I had never been there before. It's a steak place and it has a dance floor with a country-type band. Morgan and I country danced and he was sweet to dance with his aunt and his mother. I danced with my father in law. It was really fun when Melissa (my sister in law), Becky (our aunt), and Sandra got out on the dance floor to do line dancing and this other dance. I was so worn out after those two dances. I knew I was out of shape, but that out of shape? I was sweating...ugh! The good thing about Morgan's birthday celebrating this year was that Sandra could dance...his mom. Last year right after Christmas she had double knee replacement...wow!!! I told her she was crazy for doing both at one time, but she did it anyway. She was walking around with a walker and not feeling so great at all! It was so good to see her out there dancing with us.

So, that was Morgan's 31st birthday celebrating events. I had to write about it because we don't have children yet. I see my friends write about their children's birthdays and so I wrote about Morgan...ha! :)

Football

Here's a picture of our Christmas football game and the day that did me in for a while. Sweet Angie just sent it to me. Just wish I wasn't wearing Morgan's shirt here. I had a pretty pink sweater on but after being tackled a few times and having grass all in it, I figured I would change. Plus, I have my ugly glasses on because I scratched the cornea in my right eye. Ugh!!!Anyway, good times...

I was on the team with Matt (my brother in law) and Jose (Angie's husband). We were the "green team" because we all happened to have green shirts on. I also think we were the team that won...haha! Honestly, we didn't keep score but we did seem to score a lot of touch downs. Angie was great in that she seemed to score a lot of touch downs for her team, too. I was basically only good for kicking the ball straight and then throwing it directly into the other team's hands. Oh well. We had so much fun. I would like to say this would be a yearly thing, but not for me. I think I will take to the side lines next time and just cheer my sweet hubby on because my body can't handle all of that again.

Nursing and Why I Love My Job!!!

Since I have been off work for 16 days I have started to really miss work and all of the girls I work with. I know that sounds crazy because most people would love to have that much time off. I am just so fortunate to work with some pretty great girls that are fun and always keep me laughing. I have never worked where I enjoy working with everyone. Usually there is that one nurse who I would dread going to work with, but not here at this hospital. Everyone is so supportive of each other, we tell stories, and the day just goes by fast. Don't get me wrong, we are a busy bunch of nurses. We tend to have 5-6 patients a piece and you really have to know how to manage your time, deal with different patients in different stages of recovery, and also deal with all of the family and friends that come to see them. I really love doing post partum nursing because it is usually a happy time in a couple's lives. Doing this type of nursing really teaches us to know how to relate with a wide variety of people from all different types of cultures. I think that one thing that I hate to hear is that we are "pill pushers and pillow fluffers." That drives me crazy!!! I would love for anyone who thinks that to come to work with me for one day. I'm sure the second they see a patient go bad as fast as they can blink an eye, they would think differently. Nursing is a very rewarding job and in those bad, horrible days where every thing is going wrong and nothing you try to do works...we have to remember that we are only human and can only do so much. Thankfully, those days are few and far between. So, back to why I love where I work...here's a list of the reasons why I am so thankful that God placed me exactly where I needed to be...

1. Lydia...who is NEVER in a bad mood and if she is, she doesn't show it. Plus, she always has yummy recipes for all of us.

2. Rebecca...the BEST tech ever!!! No matter how awful the day is going, if she's there, it will be alright because she is a huge support to all of us. There are days I know I wouldn't have made it without her. Always up beat and willing to do anything for us.

3. Courtney...always makes us laugh! Will get up from her secretary chair and help us make beds, etc without one word of hesitation.

4. Lynn...who is like my mama! I feel like I have so much to learn from her about nursing and when I have a baby I want her to be my L&D nurse.

5. Jill...the day I met her I felt like I found a long lost sister. We've got so much in common it's crazy!!!

6. Michelle...my twin, although we look nothing alike other than we have brunette hair and are around the same age. Everyone else seems to get us mixed up with each other. Still can't figure that one out.

7. Frances...the way she says "Girlllll" and her sassy little walk. She's so helpful and won't hesitate to help a patient shower or take her to the bathroom.

8. Shyney...who is always looking out for us and making sure we are doing okay and not drowning.

9. Christine...I know when I am going to work with her I will be laughing all day. She makes me laugh without even trying to.

10. Barbara...the only person I have ever known that can say whatever she wants to whoever she wants to and get away with it because she has the cutest accent.

11. Amy...she is really smart and sarcastic at time and makes me laugh. She is a very sweet person and would probably give you her right arm if you asked her to.

12. Joanna...all her wild stories from the past...WOW!!!

13. Lizy...half the time I have to make her repeat herself because I can't understand what she's saying, but she's really sweet and she's my partner for switching days. If we can, we always switch days for each other.

14. Yasmin...always makes me laugh at shift change and giving her report.

15. Deb...and how the "world is coming to an end" point of view. I try to ignore what she says but she's probably right to some degree...:)

16. Roz...and her magic stick that she waves around. I laughed so hard that day!

17. Ellen...a quiet charge nurse who is going around helping our patients when they call out and never saying a peep about it.

18. Judy...our boss! She's a great Christian woman who sends cards to us when those close to us pass away. She comes around making sure our day is going good and has an "open door" policy which is nice when we want to take...steal...candy from her office...haha!

19. Carmella...where to begin...always smiling, shakin' her booty, etc. She's a WILD woman, but oh so fun!!!

20. Janene...don't really get to work with her much, but she's really sweet!

I could go on and on and on and on...I am so grateful to have the chance to be a part of this great group of girls!!!!!!!

Cowboy Rules!

I am posting this in honor of my sweet, cowboy husband...

1. Pull your pants up. You look like an idiot.

2. Turn your cap right, your head ain't crooked.

3. Let's get this straight: it's called a 'gravel road.' I drive a pickup truck because I want to. No matter how slow you drive, you're gonna get dust on your Lexus. Drive it or get out of the way. (THIS ONE CRACKS ME UP BECAUSE IT'S SO TRUE! EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE WE GET STUCK BEHIND ONE OF THESE PEOPLE AND THEY DRIVE SOOOOOO SLOW!!!)

4. They are cattle. That's why they smell like cattle. They smell like money to us. Get over it. Don't like it? I-10 & I-40 go east and west, I-17 & I-15 goes north and south. Pick one and go. (OH, THIS IS MORGAN. EVERY TIME IT "SMELLS" NOT SO FRESH, IF YA KNOW WHAT I MEAN, MORGAN ALWAYS SAYS IT SMELLS LIKE MONEY. ME, PERSONALLY, I THINK IT SMELLS LIKE SOMETHIN' ELSE...HA!)

5. So you have a $60,000 car. We're impressed. We have $250,000 Combines that are driven only 3 weeks a year. (YEP! SO TRUE!)

6. Every person in the Wild West waves. It's called being friendly. Try to understand the concept. (TOOK ME A WHILE TO GET USE TO MORGAN WAVING AT EVERYONE AS WE PASSED THEM ON THE ROAD AND THEM ACTUALLY WAVING BACK!!! AT FIRST I ALWAYS ASKED IF HE KNEW THEM AND HE WOULD SAY, "NO, IT'S JUST WHAT WE DO OUT HERE IN THE COUNTRY.")

7. If that cell phone rings while a bunch of geese/pheasants/ducks/doves are comin' in during the hunts, we WILL shoot it outa your hand. You better hope you don't have it up to your ear at the time. (THIS DOESN'T APPLY TO HIM, BUT IT'S PRETTY FUNNY TO ME.)

8. Yeah. We eat trout, salmon, deer and elk. You really want sushi and caviar? It's available at the corner bait shop.

9. The 'Opener' refers to the first day of deer season. It's a religious holiday held the closest Saturday to the first of November. (THANK GOODNESS THIS DOESN'T APPLY TO MORGAN! I SAID I WOULD NEVER MARRY A HUNTER BECAUSE WHO REALLY WANTS TO BE A WIDOW ON WEEKENDS EVERY FALL? NOT ME!)

10. We open doors for women. That's applied to all women, regardless of age. (SO TRUE! SO TRUE!)

11. No, there's no 'vegetarian special' on the menu. Order steak, or you can order the Chef's Salad and pick off the 2 pounds of ham and turkey. (YEP!!!)

12. When we fill out a table, there are three main dishes: meats, vegetables, and breads. We use three spices: salt, pepper, and ketchup! Oh, yeah . . We don't care what you folks in Cincinnati call that stuff you eat . . IT AIN'T REAL CHILI!! (I HAVE NEVER, EVER, SEEN SOMEONE USE AS MUCH PEPPER AS MORGAN DOES! IT'S A LITTLE EXCESSIVE IF YOU AS ME. :) LOVE YOU MORGAN!)

13. You bring 'Coke' into my house, it better be brown, wet and served over ice. You bring 'Mary Jane' into my house, she better be cute, know how to shoot, drive a truck, and have long hair. (ACTUALLY, MORGAN IS THE FIRST GUY I HAVE EVER KNOWN THAT PREFERS SHORT HAIR...BUT HE DOES LIKE FOR ME TO KNOW HOW TO DRIVE HIS TRUCK. IT'S A LITTLE TO BIG FOR ME, BUT I CAN DRIVE IT.)

14. College and High School Football is as important here as the Giants, the Yankees, the Mets, the Lakers and the Knicks, and a dang site more fun to watch.

15. Yeah, we have golf courses. But don't hit the water hazards - it spooks the fish.

16. Turn down that blasted car stereo! That thumpity-thump crap ain't music, anyway. We don't want to hear it anymore than we want to see your boxers! Refer back to #1! (PERSONALLY, I LIKE THIS ONE! HOW CAN ANYONE ENJOY MUSIC THAT IS EXTREMELY LOUD?!!!)

Simple Day...What A Blessing You Are!!!

I just have to write about today because it was such a wonderful day and basically because it was just a simple day that I would normally take for granted. But, because I have been sick lately with dizziness and blurred vision and am finally feeling better and almost back to normal, I realize what a blessing today was.

I woke up this morning and was afraid to sit up in bed due to the fact that the past 3-4 days I have woken up and sat up, I had been really dizzy. I always pray before I go to bed...as well as through out the day when I think of anything that I am thankful for or feel concerned about...so, I prayed to God that he take this dizziness away because I was about to go crazy. I couldn't work two days because of it and strangely enough, I was really missing work and all of my girls!!! Plus, who wants to be walking around dizzy with blurred vision all day? Not me! Back to when I woke up this morning, I was afraid to sit up and just laid there in bed for a little bit before Lillie perked up and started running around. I then had no choice but to get up...so up I was and praise God I was barely dizzy and the blurred vision had pretty much gone away! YAY to God for that!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I then took Lillie outside and preparing for it to be cold like usual I was bundled up to only walk outside and realize it was nice, warm, and breezy. Clear blue sky and what a beautiful day it was...in JANUARY!!!

So, I showered and Morgan got off work at noon and was off to the Youth Barn. The Youth Barn is where high school kids show cattle. Morgan still helps them from time to time with grooming the cattle...whatever that means. I'm still clueless and probably always will be. Anyway, he called and wanted me to go up there and since I hadn't been out of the house hardly in the past few days and it was a beautiful day, I went. Got lost like 4 times...no joke...on the way because it had been a while since I had been, but I didn't want to let Morgan down so I didn't give up till I found it. I must say, every time I go I feel REALLY out of place. All of the girls have these cute western shirts, jeans, boots, and these country sparkly belts that I have never seen till I moved up here. Here I am in t-shirt, jeans, and tennis shoes. I told Morgan that I felt REALLY out of place but he reassured me that I was okay and then I thought to myself, "Why do I care what these people think of me?" and then I was over it.

On the way home I decided that since it was such a beautiful day that I wanted to cook out, but when we cook out we usually cook out at Robert & Sandra's house (aka my in laws) because it's big and open and just easy for everyone to meet there. I called Morgan and told him of my plan and he called the whole gang up which consists of his parents, his brother and his wife, his aunt and uncle, his nannie and his dad's best friend from college and his wife. The good thing about his family is that everyone is so close and always ready for anything. So it was set, dinner at 1830 and Morgan's doing the grilling. So everyone got together for a "spring cook out in January" and had fun. You never know where the conversation will go with this group but it's NEVER boring!!!

After dinner we came home and I cuddled on the couch with Morgan and Lillie...our Pug. We watched the Colts lose...tears...the game in overtime. Not usually a big football fan unless it's the Cowboys or UT but some how I got sucked into this game. To top it all off, Saturday Night Live is on with Beyonce and Justin Timberlake and it's a rerun...it's the one that makes me cry from laughing so hard because Beyonce has "back up dancers" that are males. It's the funniest thing ever!!!

As I am sitting here typing this I am looking at Lillie asleep in her dog bed next to ours and Morgan is already snoring. I can't help but be so thankful for them and the joy they bring to my life!!!

So that was my day today. I had to write about it because it felt like a gift from God. Then again, isn't everyday a gift from God!!!