A Purposeful Peek

I've always had a fascination with names.  Every name has a story, a meaning, a purpose.  Some are more intentional than others, like a woman I met on the elevator at work who told me her baby boy's name is Sirod...because it is her own name spelled backwards (Doris)!  Then, I have a friend who felt so certain she was having a baby boy that she never considered a single girl's name...so when her daughter was born (surprise!), she handed the baby name book to her husband and said "pick one." Fortunately, he did a great job and selected a beautiful name. It seems I'm not the only one fascinated with the meaning and history behind names. There are thousands of books, websites, and databases that are dedicated to categorizing, analyzing, and archiving baby names.  One of my current favorites is The Baby Name Wizard , a website with a tool called the Baby Name Voyager , which graphs the popularity of baby names over the last 100+ years as well as their meanings....

It's March Madness around here. And what better way to celebrate than with some close friends as we revealed the gender of our little one at our "March Maternity Madness" celebration?! It had rained all week long, but the sun came out just in time for a beautiful Saturday afternoon cookout, and we kicked off our "Game Time" event with 30 of our favorite people.  It was Team Pink vs Team Blue… scroll down to see who won! *All photos below provided by our talented friend Bob Bonnett of http://www.bonnettphoto.com  Team Pink vs Team Blue What's a party without some good food? Game-time snacks Awesome basketball cake made by my friend Danielle Beautiful flowers from our family and "He -r- She" party favors Sweet gift from some thoughtful friends The kids' table Breaking the news with a basketball piñata... Seeing pink! Gathering the goods The winner! ...

Hello, friends! Today, it is my privilege to introduce you to a childhood friend of mine who recently published her first book, featured today on this virtual book tour.  I grew up across the street from Abby and her family, who are still dear friends of mine to this day.  In her book, Abby shares her story of heartache and survival from a battle that almost took her life.  Growing up, I witnessed some of her initial story firsthand, through the eyes of a child, but I never understood the full extent until I read her honest account in this book.  I encourage you to pick up a copy - no matter what your life's battle, you will find encouragement through the words of my friend, whose faith and transparency are awe-inspiring!   Genre: Memoir/Self Help About The Book Paperback: 196 pages Publisher: Bettie Youngs Book Publishers (March 17, 2014) ISBN-10: 1940784174 ISBN-13: 978-1940784175 About The Book I want. I want you to want ...