We're on the website news!

While we didn't make the TV news, we made the website news!

It's 4 minutes long. It's fun to watch or you can fast-forward to the 1:12 minute mark to see us at the 1:15 mark for 5 seconds of us digging into our cheesecake and my cheesecake's closeup in the to go container! (They ran out of plates!)

Click here for the video!

Our Cheesecake Day!

We had a great night!

Wanting to beat normal dinner crowds, Walt went into work early today. We got to The Cheesecake Factory at 4:15pm. There were crowds of people waiting to be seated. We wanted to sit in the bar area to take advantage of the food specials during happy hour and it was completely full so we went ahead and put our name in for a table.

While waiting in line for a pager, the woman behind us said that she was willing to buy cheesecake to go at the regular price. (The $1.50 special was for dine-in guests only.) They told her it would be a 25 minute wait to get a slice TO GO!!! We get to the hostess stand and they quote us a 60-80 minute wait.

We take our pager, turn around, and walk through the tables one more time. We get towards the other end of the restaurant and there is a table that was occupied before but now is completely open! Someone had just left! (The bar sections are smoke-free here! YAY!)

We sit down, Walt returns the pager, order our food specials, and remembering what the woman in line told us, decide to order our cheesecake up front so it will arrive in time for dessert! It worked out perfectly!

We get our waters, our food including super fresh bread, and then our cheesecake. They were out of my favorite kind (fresh strawberry) so I venture into a new flavor. I have tried about 12 kinds in the past but keep coming back to fresh strawberry. I ordered fresh banana cream and it was delicious!

I'm enjoying the moment and Walt's digging into his latest favorite flavor, dulce de leche caramel, and the film crew from Channel 11 comes running up to film us eating cheesecake! They film us and tell us to pretend they're weren't there. (Easier said than done!) Then they interview Walt and take his name. They were with us for at least 5 minutes!!

We watched the news tonight and at the very very end, they have a 10 second plug about Cheesecake Day at the location we were at. (Arlington) The crew was there for a long time! None of our footage got used but it was fun! They reported that people waited up to 3 hours for a table! (We were there for only an hour and still got home in plenty of time for our hour walk!)

Thank you, Lord, for spoiling us tonight: no traffic each way, no wait for a table, food that was delicious and very affordable, a super sweet waitress, and a delicious flavor of cheesecake to add to my favorites!

O Happy Day!

Huge Praise: We just found out this morning from D.C. that the VA will buy our house and this means our relocation package details are complete! We can move to the next step and by this Friday, we should have dates for when the packers and movers are coming!

Praise the Lord!

Thank you for all of your prayers!

Deals this week!

Don't forget about Cheesecake Day on Wednesday!!! It is now on their site...click here for more info. We are going to see if you can just order cheesecake by dining in...if not, we'll order the appetizers we mentioned here

If you are a Souper Salad fan, today (Monday) is their 30th birthday and they are having their buffet for $3.49 all day long. With coupons, you can purchase the buffet between $5-$6 each so today's price is about half the regular price.

Also, today is free movie day at Red Box! My friend, Michelle clued me into this great deal! You can sign up here and with the email deal, you'll get one free code to use for a free one-night rental...you have a little time to use it. If you join the SMS deal, you'll be texted a free code EVERY Monday good for a one-night rental good only on that Monday. We have enjoyed getting caught up on so many movies we missed at the theaters! Click here for Michelle's much better explanation! Thank you, Michelle! (Today's code is JH4KB6. Feel free to use and share!)

A little updated info about the Starbucks rewards card...the Starbucks rewards card is the same as a gift card. Just register any gift card online and you get lots of extra goodies. The special on July 25-26 was doubly good to us. I was able to order the Orange Banana Mango smoothie on the 26th for free. So we got 3 free drinks out of this promotion. (one coupon on Thursday for the future, one Banana Chocolate on Friday, and one Orange Banana Mango smoothie on Saturday!) When we went on Saturday for a little afternoon date, Walt just got a brewed coffee which they put half and half in and with the rewards card, you get a free shot of caramel syrup (or any other favorite flavor). It cost him $1.95 before tax and then with the card, you get a free refill with the caramel too! For a little more details about all the reward freebies, click here.

Three years

Today is our three-year anniversary as a Texas homeowner! We (or mostly I) always get sappy every year looking back on various anniversaries. Last night, three years ago, we arrived and wondered what life would have in store for us. Without being too dramatic, as I look back, we have had events beyond our wildest expectations and events beyond our greatest fears unfold before us. It's both inspiring and humbling as we see the path the Lord has laid before us. As tempting as it would be to have our life laid out like the LIFE game board, I am thankful that only a few steps of our journey revealed at a time.

We look forward to what life in Arizona will bring us!

P.S. On a silly note, regarding the happy events that Walt relishes from our stay here: For the record, I (Sarah) accurately predicted mid-season in 2005 that the Steelers would win the Super Bowl and Walt has never been too proud to admit I was right! I'm 3 for 3 for season predictions and last night, he was hounding me for this season's prediction. So much pressure!

Do you have a Starbucks rewards card?

Walt has cut back on his Starbucks purchases since finding RaceTrac's coffee that he likes for $1! He used to go to Starbucks every Friday morning as a treat and now he goes to RaceTrac instead. Once a month or so, he goes to Starbucks to indulge.

Today and tomorrow, Starbucks is giving you a free Vivanno beverage with your registered Starbucks card. They looked at me like I was crazy but I went, didn't purchase anything else, they swiped my registered card and it was FREE! Walt accidentally threw away the one he got as a gift and so he got another one for me with $5 on it so that I could have it for today. Last night, he asked about the promo this weekend and they looked at him like he was crazy but gave him a coupon for one to order on his next visit! (good through 9/30/08)

This morning, I followed him to our local Starbucks, he ordered his monthly treat off the card. Then I ordered my banana chocolate smoothie on a separate transaction. They were surprised it worked and it was free. Now I still have the free coupon for a later date! That was $5 well spent last night! Three drinks plus a little change left on the card.

The rewards card gives you other free stuff too. (I think it's on the web.) When he got the original gift card, you register online and they sent a postcard for a free drink.

The Lord waits on us!

Yesterday, I was going to post on here "STILL WAITING" with a big fat sigh but God's been working on me. To reinforce his point, last night, my dear Traci, emailed me a devotion that is too perfect...God is amazing. Thank you, Traci for sharing and encouraging me! (This is from my Nebraska Traci...I am blessed to have two wonderful Tracis in my life!)
**************************************
Isaiah 30:18 "therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you....blessed are all they that wait for him."

We should not only understand the importance of our waiting on God but also realize something even more wonderful - the Lord waits on us. And the very thought of His waiting on us will give us renewed motivation and inspiration to "wait for him". It will also provide inexpressible confidence that our waiting will never be in vain. Therefore, in the spirit of waiting on God, let us seek to discover exactly what it means right now.

The Lord has an inconceivably glorious purpose for each of His children. "If this is true," you ask, "why is it that He continues to wait longer and longer to offer His grace and to provide the help I seek, even after I have come and waited on Him?" He does so because He is a wise gardener who "waits for the land to yield its valuable crop" and is "patient....for the autumn and spring rains" (James 5:7). God knows He cannot gather the fruit until it is ripe, and He knows precisely when we are spiritually ready to receive blessings for our gain and His glory. And waiting in the sunshine of His love is what will ripen our soul for His blessings. Also, waiting under the clouds of trials is as important, for they will ultimately produce showers of blessings.

Rest assured that if God waits longer than we desire, it is simply to make the blessings doubly precious. Remember, He waited four thousand years, "but when the time had fully come, God sent His Son" (Gal 4:4). Our time is in His hands, and he will quickly avenge those He has chosen, swiftly coming to our support without ever delaying even on hour too long.

Free vitamins

Speaking of mail, I had an email from NatureMade about getting a free 14 day supply of your favorite vitamin. They have these new liquid softgel kind they are trying to get the word out about! I ordered them and got my sample less than a week later. (despite the 6-8 weeks warning!) Get yours while supplies last!

http://www.lsgmulti.naturemade.com/naturemade/Default.aspx

Free CD and great ministry!

A couple weeks ago, I was checking out church websites in the area of where we'll be moving and one click led to another and I found myself on a website for a free music CD! Not one to pass up something free, I signed up and today I got not one free CD but 10! So those from my Prestonwood class, I will be bringing the other 9 CDs to class this Sunday. If you're not in my Prestonwood class, use this site to order your own free copy. (www.rickgoad.com) If you get 10, please pass the other 9 on. This CD is an easy listening style Christian CD. Very worshipful!


Great info below of the ministry from their website:

Rick Goad Ministries was formed in August 2006 by Rick Goad. Though Rick was battling pancreatic cancer, he felt compelled to begin a ministry of encouragement and hope. He completed a CD, entitled My Miracle, not long before he passed from this earth on January 6, 2007. Rick knew this CD would bless so many who suffer from depression, despair, grief, or loneliness. This album is uniquely touched by God though a heart that was thirsting after Him. You have to hear it to appreciate Rick's talent and the relationship he shared with our Lord. His goal was to give 1 million copies away FREE! His wife, Jackie, keeps this vision alive by distributing her husband's CD. Tens of thousands have already been given away.
www.rickgoad.com

$1.50 Cheescake!

1978 was a good year. Many of my friends and myself were born and so was The Cheesecake Factory. In honor of their 30th birthday, on Wednesday, July 30th, all cheesecake slices are $1.50 each! These are the normal-sized pieces but only available to dine-in guests.

Mark your calendars!

Sarah's Original Bargain Tip of the Day: Want to know how to eat there for less than $12.90 before tax and tip on their birthday??? Go during happy hour (4p-6p), sit at the booths around the perimeter of the bar, order two of the many discounted appetizers including several for $4.95 or less and two pieces of cheesecake for $1.50 each! (It would be $10.90 before T&T if you order two $3.95 appetizers!) You have a great splurge and won't feel quite as stuffed to the gills! I love a bargain! We did this in AZ but without the $1.50 bargain! Thankfully, we had $30 in gift cards to help!



More info in case you're interested from CCF's website:
The Cheesecake Factory Serves Up a Delicious 30th Anniversary Celebration!
Celebrating “30 Delicious Years,” The Cheesecake Factory is serving up several sweet initiatives throughout 2008.

To kick-off the anniversary celebration and in commemoration of National Cheesecake Day on July 30th, 2008, The Cheesecake Factory restaurants will offer every delicious slice of its more than 30 varieties of cheesecake with a dollop of nostalgia by featuring all cheesecakes at $1.50 per slice, limit one per guest, on that day—as they were when the restaurant first opened in 1978.

In addition, a special, limited edition cheesecake, the 30th Anniversary Chocolate Cake Cheesecake, will be introduced on July 30th with $0.25 from the sale of each slice sold this year benefiting the national hunger-relief organization, America’s Second Harvest – The Nation’s Food Bank Network. Additional activities will be announced throughout the year.

Mirages and an oasis

In an attempt to keep our mind off of waiting for our relocation packet to be approved, I realized I haven't mentioned it in a month and have gotten a few emails wondering if we've moved yet!

We are still here! We got to spend 4th of July with our BF/SS class! YAY!

We are still waiting. The new relocation deal has been approved and now they have to go through the list of people who were approved for a promotion from 3/23-6/23. Unfortunately, Walt is one of those in this three month period. Normally, once you are officially approved for a promotion, it is lightening quick and in LESS than a week, you have your packing and moving dates all set up! It will be 9 weeks tomorrow since Walt was officially approved for promotion to AZ. (15 weeks since he was told he was selected but had to wait for official approval.)

We are patient (in more areas of our life than one) but we ask that you pray for us while we wait and that we can see the amazingness of having to wait so long. There are a couple areas of our lives that are on hold right now because we can't move and the stress of not having even a moving date is not helping.

After so long, you begin to wonder is this really is going to happen?? Walt is assured every week that he is coming to AZ or the new boss will come and get him! (ha ha!)

To make it seem a little more real, Walt suggested we go to AZ this weekend so we are taking a little road trip! We'll spend the first part of the weekend looking at some apartments and open houses just to get us excited and check out a few areas. Then early Sunday afternoon, we are checking into a resort in Scottsdale with gorgeous mountain views and relaxing for two days...just sunshine and rest. He proposed this as a combo exploratory trip/belated anniversary trip! Walt wants to stop by his new office one day while I'm at the pool. The icing on top is that the weather this weekend will be about 15 degrees cooler than it has been the last couple weeks! Perfect!

Free slurpee on a hot summer day!

Free slurpee
at 7-Eleven stores
on FRIDAY
in honor of 7-Eleven Day!

See http://www.slurpee.com/ for details and store locator.

Excellent News!

I am so excited to be able to post that friends from Nebraska, Matt and Tori, have become parents!! Their baby boy, Nicholas John Clark, was born on Saturday night and he is 6 lbs, 11 oz and is 18" long!

It has been a whirlwind of a 24 hours for them as they just found out last night that they would be picking Nicholas up this morning in Iowa! Since the adoption is taking place in Iowa, they must keep the baby in the state until the court has released the baby (they've been told this could be 1 to 2 weeks). They are asking for a specific prayer request that all goes quickly and the baby is released by the courts by July 16th so they may join their families in St. Louis for a previously planned family weekend.

It has been a long journey and my heart jumps for joy knowing that your dream has come true! Congratulations!

America's 20 Best Places To Raise A Family (according to Forbes)

Props to Collin County (TX) for making the list!

From Forbes.com: http://tinyurl.com/6sxxhf

Happy 4th of July!

Praying that you have a beautiful Fourth with loved ones
as we celebrate our freedom and the men and women
who gave their all so that we could celebrate not just today but every day.

A few photos from St. Pete

I take way too many pics while traveling...half the battle is going through them all and deciding which ones to post...instead of 100, here is 10. :)

After dinner on the Pier the first night.

Sunset on the Beach...
would have been pretty with the ducks but it was cloudy.

Best sunset that week...from the Pier

The gorgeous parks along the bay!

I love palm trees...thought this was pretty with the street light.

Some pictures taken while playing with my camera.

Flowers at check-in. I love white roses!

By the pool.

At a delicious Italian restaurant!

Sunrise on the plane ride home. A sweet ending.