Part 1. I haven’t forgotten that I have a blog. I promise.

Part 2. I haven’t forgotten the things you said to me on December 9, 2010.

I like to go back and read that blog post. I like to think about all the things that you want to do with your life. I like to wonder if you have made a move in the direction of that dream. Or I wonder if sometimes you remember what you wrote.

It was a simple question…

Be brave.

Just say it.

My dream is __________________.

. . . . .

And it is amazing to read the comments and see the ones that have come to pass. Like Jessica.

Yep. That’s the same girl you see in my picture taken in downtown Prague. She did it. She moved there.

. . . . .

And look at Jamie.

Now she has a booth at the Tennessee Antique Mall. Amazing, yeah?

And I just have to wonder about the other 85 commenters. Have they stepped towards that dream?

. . . . .

I had a birthday in 2006.

My family and I went to one of my favorite restaurants. I ordered grilled chicken and the most delicious macaroni and cheese that I’ve ever tasted. [The restaurant has since closed and I mourn that.]

My dad passed over a card. Inside was a small sum of money and a handwritten note. On the note he said, “I hope this helps you step towards your dream of being an author.”

And it did. And I did. And here we are.

. . . . .

Last week I went to my storage unit. [Yes, I'm still mildly homeless. No biggie.] I was looking for a dress that I never found. But I did find one thing I was really looking for. That note from my dad that is displayed in a simple black frame.

I’m stepping again. I’ll tell you all about it soon. But I’m taking some big steps towards some new dreams and I wanted to put that letter on my desk again. I wanted to remember that no matter what, Mama and Daddy took the first step for me. No step is scary when you have those kind of people stepping with you.

I’m making new dreams. Stepping into old dreams. And somehow, releasing those dreams that I have completed… though I don’t know what that looks like yet.

. . . . .

So I think of you.

Are you stepping towards the dream you were brave enough to confess a year ago?

Do you have new dreams that you are ready to proclaim to this corner of the internet?

Update me.

Tell me new dreams.

Tell me that you haven’t forgotten.

Get ready, people. Santa Annie is sending you a little mail today! Here are the winners, as picked by my top elf, Random.org.

#31. Libbi H … she’s giving the extra copy to her cousin or her best friend. Blood is thicker than water, Libbi. But BFFs are thicker than jello. So…. I’m glad that’s your choice and not mine.

#46. Kelley … she wants to give her copy to the 10th grade girls Sunday school teacher. I give that choice two thumbs up. Also, I wore the same jacket to school every Wednesday of 10th grade. You’re welcome.

#75. Heather … congrats to the two lucky girls at Heather’s church that are about to get free books for Christmas!

#62. Amy Pitman … she’s giving her copy to a senior at church. I like seniors. Seniors are finishers.

#114. Jennifer … her sister is getting the extra copy. You know what they say in White Christmas- “there were never such devoted sisters…”

Congrats, ladies! Check your email for details and so I can get your addresses and put these in the mail first thing tomorrow!

For the rest of you, we only have about TEN Christmas packs left and if you buy today, I’ll mail it tomorrow. So anyone in the continental US *should* get it by Christmas [no promises here, peeps].

BUY HERE!!!

Oh man. I love days when people are winners. Sigh….. Happy Tuesday.

So I made a silly mistake when I mailed out a bunch of the Christmas gift packs last week.

I included a candy cane.

Seems like a simple addition, does it not? Just a little candy cane to brighten the spirits, and the breath, of young ladies around the USA.

Unfortunately, it seems, from what I’ve heard from a few of you, that the Christmas gift packs were stomped and smashed and sent through an oven because candy cane shrapnel is meltingly covering every corner of your gift pack.

I’m really sorry…. for having too much holiday spirit and it causing a peppermint flavored disaster.

If that is the case for you, and your poster or bookmarks or anything are messed up, please just email me (annieblogs [at] gmail [dot] com) and let me know your address and what needs replacing and I’ll ship it out today. No biggie. My pleasure. My fault. Let me replace the candy caned products.

. . . . .

Now to the fun stuff. We have a few of the Christmas gift packs left and I’d like to mail one to you! Well, “you” being a few lucky blog readers. Here’s the dealio….

I want to send you a full gift pack PLUS an additional copy of the book for you to give away to someone in your life!

Here’s how to win:

1. Leave a comment below and tell me who you would get that extra copy of the book that will be in your mailbox.

2. You can leave a SECOND comment saying that you like me on facebook… either you already do or you pop over, click LIKE, and then come back and say, “I like your page on facebook.”

3. You can leave a THIRD comment saying that you follow me on twitter… either you already do or you pop over, click FOLLOW, and then come back and say, “I follow you on twitter.”

So, you can have THREE different comments total. As many as the gifts the wise men brought…. which, if you read the story closely, you see that they also included candy canes in their packages. [No they didn't.]

How many gift packs am I giving away? FIVE. FIVE lucky winners will get a gift pack shoved in the mail, sans candy cane, on Tuesday [so you have until Tuesday morning when I wake up and get movin' to enter].

BRING ON THE WINNING! Ready… set… go!

I’m alive!

In crazy weeks like this, if you are worried that something disastrous has happened to my mortal body, you should probably check on twitter. Or Instagram. [I love me some Instagram.] Or facebook. Really, whatever your heart desires. Because I’m able to pop in easier over there.

But hey! I’m popping in here at AnnieBlogs! Yay!

Important news: thanks to Santa making a super early stop in my life , I got the new iPhone yesterday.

Old iPhone’s name is Anita. New iPhone’s name is Anita New iPhone. [Get it? Me hopes so.]

I’m in a wedding on Saturday …. one of my dearest friends from my years in Athens, GA. So I head over to Athens for the weekend to celebrate her and him and to dance and to wear a pretty dress and see tons of friends and do all the things that college Annie loved to do. [Except eat chicken out of a can. I don't like that anymore.]

Also… final notice… we have a couple of CHRISTMAS GIFT PACKS left if you wanna scoop one up. We’ll mail a final group of ‘em on Monday, so you’ve got until then!

Finally…. pictures of where I’ve been all your week….

Decorating cookies with my important [albeit small] people …

Eating with the Mocha Club staff at Loveless Cafe….

Being hilarious with Cara Davis and Kyle Chowning at Help-Portrait…

Going to my VERY FIRST Tennessee Titans football game… [this is Heather. You would love her.]

Throwing surprise birthday parties for a BFF who legitimately was so surprised that she could not speak….

So that’s where I’ve been! But I’m back in action, y’all. We’re leaving 2011 with a bloggy bang! See you Monday [with a giveaway...ooohhhhhh.....]!!

How was your week? 

. . . . .

PS- Today is an important day. Another BFF of mine, Marisa, turns 30. So would you pop over to her blog or send a tweet to her (@marisavh) and send big bday wishes? I’ve told her over and over again… being in your 30s is amazing. But you could probably remind her… I mean, if you are in your 30s +. If you are in your 20s, probably don’t bring that up.

Love you, Maris! Excited to live this decade with you!

Well, people. It is finally here.

I am so excited show you the AWESOME From Head to Foot Christmas Gift Pack for 2011! I called up a bunch of my buddies and got everybody together in Annie’s Christmas workshop and said, “let’s make the coolest Christmas gift pack ever.”

So we did.

If you have a girl in your life that is, ya know, 13-25 years old, and you like to buy her a Christmas present, you should get her this. She’ll be happy and clap and hug you and stuff. [That's not a guarantee... my lawyer/mother says I shouldn't make those.]

Here are the details:

The 2011 Christmas Gift Pack costs only $30 (that includes shipping for USA residents!).

The package includes :

An autographed copy of From Head to Foot… my book… you know… I wrote it.

An autographed copy of Matt Wertz’s new Christmas album Snow Globe

[You know I love Wertz. He's such a good dude. But even if I didn't, I would tell you- this album is GUH-REAT.]

One of a kind poppy pin … looks so cute on a backpack, headband, as a brooch or as a pin. With about 30 different fabrics and a few different designs, you can be assured that your poppy pin is totally unique! There are two clasps on the back… so you can either pin it or clip it!

[You know why? Because my friend Katie B, who made these AND is seen here wearing one of the poppys, thinks of everything. So clip and pin? Check and check.]

Cool *brand new* 11×17 poster!

This beautifully designed poster is bright and fun and has a memory verse for each chapter.

Such a great encouragement for girls to see on a daily basis!

[I am BEYOND excited about this poster... I mean, SUCH a cute addition to the AnnieBlogs world.]

. . . . .

So what I’m saying is….

BOOK + CD + PIN + POSTER + (random Christmasy things I find in my local Target) + SHIPPING = $30

Happiness in the eyes of your friend /child /granddaughter /amiga /roommate /girlfriend when they open this multi-faceted gift = I wanna say priceless, but actually, we both know that you paid $30 for that. So the answer still is… $30.

I’m tired, so I’m making dumb jokes.

ORDER HERE!

Big thanks to Matt Wertz, Katie Edwards, Jordan Duncan, and Emily Keafer for helping make this Gift Pack happen.

Y’all have a great weekend… and if you wanna, feel free to pass this info along to anybody who you think may be looking to give a cool Christmas gift this year.

We have a limited amount of Christmas gift packs left [my newsletter peeps got first dibs], so hurry and order!

The thing about blogging is that it gives us each a chance to share a few moments of our day with our reader friends.

I love blogging when I get to tell about seeing the Royal family or when I learn a new recipe. I love blogging when, in all honesty, the writing is good and the stories are funny or tug on heart strings. I love blogging and reading blogs for an hour or so a day.

But that leaves another 23 hours.

The thing about blogging is that it is our real lives, it’s just not the FULLNESS of real life….

You can read the rest of this article over at (in)courage today.

. . . . .

On Saturday night I sat on the bus from Princes Street to Morningside and thought long and hard about that article I wrote for (in)courage. It was dark and chilly and windy like a November night in Nashville. I missed my train then missed my bus and I was two hours late getting home.

I thought about the fact that I was missing the (in)courage beach weekend, I was missing Georgia football, I was wondering how things might be different if I was in Nashville.

And I was totally alone. 

It’s not that I hadn’t seen friends all day. I had.

It was a deeper alone than that. It was a going home alone thing. A family-less alone. A man-less alone. A best friend-less alone. A someone who has known me longer than 6 months-less alone.

It was this alone that doesn’t cross my heart very often.

I am totally digging my life in Scotland, you know this. But it doesn’t mean that it is pain-free or sacrifice-free or perfect. It can be hard. Really hard.

[This doesn't shake my faith, don't let it shake yours.]

It is hard for me to feel alone. It makes me worry that it is permanent. It makes me feel like I have to be stronger than I want to be. It makes me feel like I am the only one who looks out for me. It makes me wrestle with God and who He is and what it looks like to call Him my home.

And that is something that I normally wouldn’t blog about.

But I am today. Because if I’m going to tell you about praying and pulling weeds and exciting weeks, then I need to tell you about nights alone on the bus.

So the thing about blogging is that it isn’t easy to admit when things don’t feel perfect or awesome. But the thing about blogging [and this being MY blog ] is I get to choose which minutes of my day I share with you, whether that is easy or not.

And today, I’m choosing to share the hard minutes. Hope that’s okay.

. . . . .

Feel free to share your hard minutes or your easy minutes in the comments today… and know you are prayed for.

I could give you 1000 reasons that I keep blogging.

There is only one reason I started.

I started because my sister blogged. And being that we are only 15 months apart, we pretty much lived with an “if she can do it, so can I” attitude. [Not super great for our relationship, but we were very accomplished.]

So in November of 2006 I started a blog.

In November of 2006 I taught 4th grade in Marietta, GA. I was 26 years old and a proud first-time home owner. I thought I may have figured out who I wanted to marry and I certainly knew where I wanted to live. I blogged for the ten friends who read the blog [big waves to all the Blog2Facers!]. I named my blog after a letter Daddy wrote me where he said, “Hope this helps you take a step towards your dream of being a writer.”

The old blog used to be named “Taking A Step Towards Your Dream” – anybody still around from those good ole days?

Almost five years later, the blog has a much simpler name [you're welcome] and my life is significantly different. I live in Nashville. I’m one week from turning 31. I’m single and I have no clue who I am going to marry [but if you have any suggestions, I'm all ears...]. I quit teaching school to pursue a writing career and my first book is in hands of women all over the world.

And this little blog, this little corner of the internet sky, has seen it all. You see the words and the pictures in every post. I see the place where I wrote it. I see what was between every line. I see the tears dripping on my keyboard and I see the jokes that I read out loud to anyone around me.

I see the steps we took towards my dream.

And I see you. When I started this, I did not know that I would love it, but more importantly, I did not know I would love YOU.

Today is a cool day.

This is my 1000th post.

And I just want to say that it is a privilege to write for you. For her. For them. For Him.

So thank you for being a part of God’s story for me. Thank you for coming back here, day after day, a thousand times for some of you [hey Mama!], and thank you for teaching me the JOY of living openly and honestly.

It is a joy.

I’m not going anywhere. This is no swan song. But I just couldn’t let this 1000th post pass without making a point to stop and thank you.

So on behalf of myself and Mr. Darcy, thanks y’all.

Thank you so much. You will never know what you have done for my soul.

And thank you, Daddy, for that first note, for giving me the freedom to put my feet on the path towards this life.

1000 steps later, I’m living my dream.

Because I eat dinner and then go to bed.

I’m pretty sure I’m the wildest girl around- you know, in the bed by 9pm and all, cause I gotta be up and smiling by 4:30am.

Anyways, I’m terribly sorry about the blog silence.

Here are some things:

1. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers last week. My heart and mind are feeling healthier.

2. We had boot camp yesterday in the rain. I kept fluctuating between the desire to cry and the desire to throw up. Neither happened. This time.

3. I have decided that Bethenny Ever After is my favorite show. I adore Bethenny and Jason. If Gina ever goes back to Trinidad, I would be Brynn’s nanny in a New York minute. Literally.

[Sorry if you don't watch the show and that entire #3 is foreign to you.]

4. These are some of the funniest videos I’ve ever seen. Obviously, this is not who Jesus really is, which is what makes it absolutely hilarious.

So I may be the stinkiest blogger this month, but hopefully this video will make up for it.

5. Our book club is reading Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand and I am loving it. It’s set in the UK, which you know blesses my soul. I get to host as well and we will be having some delicious British treats. Saturday, I am excited about you.

6. I have a new plan for blogging on Fridays. It’s gonna be fun.

7. I love getting emails. It means the world. And right now my inbox [and my facebook inbox] is full to the brim. Forgive me if you are waiting on a reply. I’m going to be taking some time this weekend to respond to all of you- my friends, my family, my enemies, my bandmates, and my suitors.

I’m kidding. I’m not in a band.

But I’m not kidding about the email replying thing.

Happy Wednesday.

I think if I keep repeating this to myself, it shall soon become true.

I had an absolutely awesome weekend. My sisters were in town, some friends came to town, we watched a lot of basketball and had about forty people over to the house for BBQ. We saw Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors in concert. We ate like we were on death row [meaning good, like REALLY good food that is super bad for you but we didn't care]. And we did a lot of this…

Which leaves me with absolutely nothing to complain about.

Except the weather. It. Is. Freezing. But because Mondays are for winners, I refuse to dwell on the winter temperatures. Because I’m a winner and winners don’t dwell on negative things but pardon me, if it is 40*F in March, doesn’t that equal -20*F in my soul?

I’m just saying. It’s science. Look it up.

So… my first two (in)courage Bloom Book Club posts are up! It makes me sweaty to think of being the center of attention over there for the whole week, but it seems to be going okay so far. [Ummm, the "center of attention" part isn't what I hate- who are we kidding? I actually love that. So maybe just running the show somewhere outside of this little corner of the internet sky is what makes me nervous.]

You can check out the posts here–

Meet Annie Downs [you already know me, but you can pretend like you don't]

An Interview With Annie [thanks for the questions!]

There will be a new post there every day this week, so be sure to check it out. I mean, if you wanna.

Also, my sweet friend Ashleigh blogged about her Marine coming home from deployment and I love them. Thought you might want to love them too.

Also, it makes me mad that Charlie Sheen stole “WINNING!” from the rest of the world because it is a word that I wish I could have used a few times throughout this post already. But he high-jacked it and I’m mad.

I think you need to see this picture as well.

Know what this means? It means I’m getting ready to start writing again… in a major way. Know what that means? It means I’m about to start writing my next book. Know what that means? You’re about to have to PRAY.ME.THROUGH.

I’m spending the next few weeks honing my craft, reading books that make me think and write and make my heart feel like it is going to explode out of my chest. I don’t know what God is doing, but I can’t quit thinking about being a better writer and the excitement of starting something new. It’s kinda fun… kinda scary… and kinda awesome.

Someday, when I haven’t already written 474 words, I’ll tell you why your prayers mean so much to me when I’m writing. But for now, I’ll just remind you how I finish writing a book.

I’ve done it before. I can do it again. And hopefully, I’ll finish this one on a Monday.

WINNING!

[Ugh, see? See what he did? It's not even fun anymore. Sigh... back to your Monday, my friends.]

How was your weekend? And also- how is the weather where you are? And also- are you mad that Charlie Sheen stole “WINNING!” from the rest of the English-speaking population?

Sorry I have been bloggy absent. I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed by The Camera Incident of 2011 and the fact that in the last five days I have located TWO GRAY HAIRS on the crown of my head.

TWO.

Meaning that as of today, I am officially older than I feel, act, or admit.

[Kidding. I'm 30. I promise. And proud of it.]

I kept the first gray hair. It is in my change purse and I keep showing it off. Gross or not, it’s my life.

Now. Less about me, more about you.

I need your help.

Next week, I am the featured author on the (in)courage Bloom Book Club [squeal!yay!woot!]. And I’m just wondering if there are any questions you’d like me to answer…. like, you can interview me. I mean, I could just interview myself- I’ve done it before- but before I do that, I figured I’d check with you.

Anything you’d like to know about:

• the book
• the process of writing my book
• blogging
• Nashville
• my dating life [answer: like the Lochness Monster- I believe it exists, but it is just hard to see]
• Nail polish colors
• future plans
• past mistakes [answer: be gentle.]
• what’s next for my writing
• my middle name
• my favorite things
• anything else that has been burning in your soul

If you can’t come up with anything, I’ll be forced to interview myself and it always ends up getting way more volatile than I intend.

Help me? Help me help you? Help me help you help me?

Amen.