Fellowship Fun

My Favorite Friend (john) Fled For some Fun Farther away (SC) so I Filled my night with FRIENDS!

Finally I Found some Friends to Fellowship with! Flying away in Field.

Friends Fighting traffic on Fifth ave.

Find the Fishers!

Five use Fire to Fly Far Far away

Fancy!

Finding Fantastic questions For the Flyers

It's My Birthday!

Yesterday I turned a whopping 25! I had no idea this was a pretty cool birthday but apparently I'm now part of the Quarter Club, who even knew it existed!

I really did have a great day. John cooked me an awesome breakfast & brought me a frozen coffee treat to work. Later John & I went to Erica's house for lunch. Sadly Chris couldn't join us b/c he's running the hospital at Mayo. We offered to eat in the cafeteria with him, but since that place can't function without him he was having to skip lunch. They work him to the bone (that was for you, Chris) ;)

Later in the day I got a wonderful surprise from Katie!!! she sent me the prettiest roses to work and now my office smells like a garden, seriously! As Katie says, "sometimes people at work just need to know you have a life outside of that place...and people like you there!" hahaha

For dinner John and I went with Kendall & Andi to my favorite Mexican place in Rochester, FIESTA! We ate ourselves sick & proceeded to find room for dessert at "Rochester Fest" downtown. R.F. happens one week of the summer when the city closes down a street & vendors set up fair food. It's delicious. This time just got a strawberry shake, a funnel cake, mini donuts & strawberries with whip cream. Can.you.say.awesome!?

Jax was distracted by my watermelon lip gloss. I guess you could say "my lipgloss be poppin"the boys at dinnerthe gals at dinnerme with my b-day gifts! I'm laughing so hard here b/c at first Andi though I just wanted her to help hold my gifts & not be in the picture.... I was imagining me in a close up with 4 hands holding things. ha ha
yum!

The only thing better than the food at R.F. is the people watching...you should never pass up free entertainment!

Another highlight is that I now have a birthday buddy! Jones Wade Hicks was born yesterday as a healthy 6lb. 12oz bundle of joy! I can't wait to meet him in a week.

This weekend I'm helping some friends move into their adorable new house & John is driving (through the night--please pray) 17 hours to Cleveland TN. Thanks to all of you that wished me a happy birthday. Facebook on your birthday gives you the false illusion that you are a rock star...but I'm certainly not complaining!

Celebration Time!!

Last week our small group (those that were in town or not working) got together & celebrated Phil's success! Phil & Kerri are in Rochester while Phil completes his residency. He applied for a four year fellowship in Gastroenterology & matched at his first pick, MAYO! That's right the Harts will be in Rochester for four more years! We are all so happy for them!!! If you want to know more about the program Phil will be in you can check out these Gastroenterology Fellowship highlights.

We had a great time playing outdoor games, talking and eating--of course. The food was amazing especially since we just said, "bring your meat and whatever else sounds good." It was as if we had planned this for weeks! All of us but the Fisher's and Kerri were there. When the sun went down we started a fire & hung a lantern to keep playing. It was such a fun night & set the tone for a great weekend. Friday night the Camp's came over to grill out & watch a movie & then on Sat. after church those of us that were there came back to the house again for some summer fun. Sadly I don't have any pics. of the other two nights because my camera battery died & I neglected to charge it. Saturday night we cooked steaks in the smoker b/c the grill went out. Surprisingly they turned out great! I sure hope it's cheap to fix the grill!

Back to the reason for this post...enjoy a few photos.

Jess & Beka sitting in the last sunny spot in the yard...Jax is pretty happy about it.

Kendall & Jake playing corn hole. John did a great job making these!

Kendall & Andi

There was a little mishap when bringing out Phil's cake. It started to slip and my reflexes grabbed it. Phil didn't seem to mind.

sad little cake with a hand & arm imprint

Justin & Beka were going to have a date night, but instead came to our impromptu cookout so we gave them a little privacy! :)

Jake & Jess getting ready to chow down!

Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde

I have my very own version of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde that many of you have probably seen before. We'll refer to them as Debbie Downer & Polly Positivity. They both live inside me and it seems they come out depending on the situation...and if it is my own personal situation.

Polly rules when there is a crisis or concern that belongs to someone else. The funny thing is I don't even have to try. Positive solutions seem to jump out when it's someone else's problem. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and help that person see it too. The problem is clear and I'm confident in the solution.

On the flip side, Debbie runs my life if the problem, dilemma, or crisis is my very own. I get overwhelmed, anxious for a solution, moody, irritable and depressed. I assume the worse will happen & am convinced there is no light at the end of the tunnel. I become emotionally drained and it affects every part of my life.

Right now Debbie is running the show! I have a million questions going through my mind so fast that it's hard to even make sense of it all. John and I know that there is some sort of change approaching in our lives, but what that is, where it will lead, how and when it will come is all a big.fat.question mark. We have been praying that the Lord will open and close doors as we try to pursue different options that we see in front of us. Polly reminds me to focus on what I know...that the Lord wants what is best of us...all the time, every time. Debbie can't even stop thinking long enough to hear that. Do I trust the lord, Yes! Do I trust that I can undoubtedly hear his voice when it comes down to crunch time, No.

I hope I learn to give Polly a little wiggle room in my own situations. I hope I learn a little more about trust, faith and patience. Most importantly I hope I learn these things before my head explodes! :)

Happy Birthday, John!

If any of you know me well, you know I have a terrible flaw....it's called forgetting birthdays! Sadly some...or most...of you reading this have experienced this flaw first hand. It's important to know that I do it to everyone, even those most important to me so it doesn't mean I love you any less.

For the record I did not forget John's birthday....I was just confused on what day it was. So when John told me to call my dad since it was his birthday I immediately knew I screwed up. John & my dad share the same birthday. June 3. crap. I'm not going to make excuses about how we just got back in to town or how we talked about not doing anything much for either of our birthdays this year or how I really was confused on what day it was because all of that doesn't really matter. It should have been the first thing out of my mouth.

So....I dedicate this post to my awesome, sweet, funny, handsome, wonderful husband who is a year older & much more wiser. ;)

John & I are very different on the surface, which has been very entertaining for our friends in the past, but our core values & parts of our personality are very much the same. I think that is one reason we work so well together. We're similar on the serious stuff, but opposite on...well...a lot of things. ;) I refuse to say a cheesy line out of a movie or hallmark card, but it's very true that John compliments me well. He is my level head when I'm lost in a array of emotions. He helps me to explore the adventurous side that sometimes gets buried deep inside my homebody self. He can make me smile when I'm determined to stay mad & that is hard to do. It's actually shocking how quickly he get me packed! I love him for so many reasons and selfishly some of those reasons are for the person he makes me. I'm better when I'm with him. It's that simple.

We look at the same situation, problem, circumstance differently sometimes, but respect each others opinions enough to hear out the other side. And surprisingly in doing so, we come out on the other side what a totally new view...part his, part mine & it's perfect for us. I've learned to love seeing through his eyes...they are much more fun & simple. He'll be the first to tell ya that I seem to complicate things quite a bit.

Thank you John David Turner for being everything I've ever imagined in a husband. Thank you for putting up with my forgetful brain & loving me in spite of it all. Thank you for trying to make my life the best that it can be...you're doing a wonderful job. I'm glad you were born & I'm glad that I'm the one that gets to celebrate every birthday with you from here on out...until death do us part.

I love you.

Your Wife,

Lisa


ps. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here are a few pics. I thought would make you smile.The only camo I've ever worn.

New Years in Charlotte, 2005

a braves game.

our engagement night!

the night I was tapped for ARX

a DZT formal

after 101 of softball!

Chi Cruise

Pizza Party!

This past Saturday was John's last game coaching the 4th grade girls soccer team. Sadly it rained the whole time, but the girls won and ended the season with a pizza party at Mr. Pizza provided by the coaches.

Jenny & I felt a little guilty coming to "celebrate" after not going to many games, but hungry stomachs overruled the guilt. The girls were happy to get their "participation metals" & chow down on pizza. The coaches were relieved to see this season come to a blissful end & received some participation gifts of their own.

The girls made John & Jeremy cute cards & collected some money for them, so sweet!

opening a gift certificate to caribou coffee, yum!

Sophie & Jenny enjoying the food!

wet & hungry!

Playing in the Florida Heat!

To end my tour de FL (see previous post if you're lost) I was meeting John for a good friend's wedding. Trish & Monty were getting married June 1st on the beach at sunset & John was a groomsmen. I flew from the Ft. Lauderdale airport to Atlanta & then to Ft. Walden airport where John and Jake picked me up. It felt like forever since I had seen John! We went straight to the beach & relaxed until dinner.

bocce ball. Jake, Monty, Chris & John

for Monty

That night Chris, John, Jake & I headed a few miles down the beach to see the Hicks family! It was great to play with the kiddos & eat everything in their refrigerator since they were headed back to Cleveland in the morning. We were so loaded down with stuff when we left it took all 4 of us to carry everything. haha!

Chris running & Fletcher in the background

little boys vs. big boyssomebody feed that baby! :) Harper crying for another cookie

Lisa: "Jake do you want me to help put sunscreen on your back?"

Jake: "no, I've got it just fine."

Saturday morning changed the whole weekend. Monty's 4 year old nephew Luke had been in the hospital due to a grand mal seizure. Luke took a turn for the worse so Monty & Trish decided to call off the wedding and head home to Cleveland. I can't imagine the weight on their shoulders trying to figure out what they needed to do. When Monty and Trish left they had been told Luke wouldn't make it through the night. When he survived the night we were told there was a 0% chance Luke would be normal and 1/100th chance he would not be totally brain dead. You can't tell me prayer doesn't work b/c it has absolutely worked for Luke Cook. The doctors are more optimistic now because he is showing signs of improvement and actually surviving on his own! There is still no definite statement on his brain damage, but the damage appears to be less than they thought. We serve a mighty God. Please continue to pray for Luke and his family...they have described these events as an emotional roller coaster & I think we can all understand why.

People trickled back home throughout the weekend. John and I looked into changing our tickets to fly home from Chattanooga or Atlanta, but it would have been over $600 so we decided to hang tight at the beach. This consisted of eating, sleeping & reading on the beach so we can't really complain can we!?

the boys on "dress code night"

Chris, Adam, John, Jake & Todd

eating at Dewey Destin

You can't beat this place.

getting the poles ready for surf fishing.

still optimistic, but they didn't catch anything

the two amigos hard at work

One highlight was getting to see one of my best friends in the world, Arhmin. I miss seeing her so often & it was so great to be around each other. John can't hardly stand to be close to us when we're together b/c he says our constant giggles is annoying. He always says, "well...Arhmin & Lisa are together again." It's good to know we're just as goofy today as we were the day we met & that is one of my favorite things about our friendship. I miss you, Arhmin!

we've seen better picture days

at Dewey's again

Arhmin got cold & put on John's polo

For Hannah & Jess

Me feeding the stray cats our leftover hot dogs & lunch meat