Brown Eyed Girl's ramblings...

Where the Heart Is...

2012-02-14T09:59:00.000-05:00

My heart is...

Snuggled down in my oh so comfy bed with a good book or a favorite movie

In a brown eyed boy who has grown up way too fast

Buried in the notes, lyrics, melodies and harmonies of a broad range of music

Between the pages of my favorite books that line my bookshelves...and some that are stacked here and there

Within the walls of my little yellow house

In a quiet, snowy morning

Around the corner from my little yellow house in my momma's kitchen...where I've been fed so many times - both physically and emotionally

In a musty, old auditorium at Fort Caswell where I gave my heart to Jesus

In the smiles, giggles and chatter of a blonde haired, hazel eyed 2 year old little boy

With my Aly-gator

Beside my best friend...in our laughter...and our tears

In the mountains of NC...and on the warm sandy beaches

Pieces and parts...left here and there...

Thank you to my friend Jen who let me "borrow" this idea! :)

2012 Goals

2012-02-09T09:37:00.000-05:00

So...I know it's been a while since I've posted...and it's certainly WAY past over due for me to be setting my 2012 Goals...but here it is anyway.

Last year I attempted to set "Eleven in '11" which was supposed to be eleven things that I was going to do in 2011. Sadly, I think I might have accomplished about three things on that list. And really and truly, that is SO sad. Because they weren't hard things AT ALL!

I hate making "resolutions" - for the same reason no one else likes to make them - we all FAIL miserably at keeping them. So, instead, I've decided to make some goals. I've been rolling these around in my head since January and on Tuesday I finally got around to putting pen to paper so I could keep track of what I was setting out to do.

And when setting these goals, I wanted to set things that were reasonable...within reach...nothing too complicated. Most of these things are just one step to something bigger...and I think these are all great places to start.

So without further adieu...my 2012 Goals (as posted on my dresser mirror)! :)

I'm really excited about this list. And yes...I do think it's funny that "replacing blinds" made my 2012 goals list...but I've been meaning to do this since I moved in...and it's just not happened yet. There are a few other things that I'd like to do (buy new living room furniture, fix the drainage issue in my side yard, buy a Kindle fire) but I truly believe that by accomplishing these things first, I'll eventually be able to do the other things that I'd like to do. And if I do everything in 2012, what will I have to do in 2013??? ;)

In other news, the great college onslaught has begun for my high school kid. He took the PSAT in the beginning of the school year, plus he is now Microsoft certified in Excel & Access (whatever that means)...so the college info has started pouring in. This makes me both excited and sad...excited because out of the colleges that have contacted him, Wake Forest is on the list (to me this is HUGE because Wake is hard to get in to...but it would also mean MAJOR scholarships since 4 years of tuition would probably equal the cost of my house) and I'm excited to see so many colleges reaching out to him. Sad because we are getting closer to the day that he will leave me behind...

And to correct another issue that has been a thorn in my mother's side...I put a special "call out" for my Dad on his birthday in November...but didn't for my mother in December. Why you may ask? Because I only blogged ONCE in the month of December...and it was a full 15 days after her birthday. But, she will not let it rest...so I want to officially wish my mother a belated Happy Birthday via my blog...it's only 2 months & 8 days late. I guess the birthday dinner & gift were not enough for her! ;)

This is one of my favorite pictures of my parents...taken last June...

Seriously, I do love my momma! And I know she had a happy birthday in December! :)

Hope you all are doing well...maybe I'll get back into the blogging habit...we shall see!

Baby, It's {NOT} Cold Outside

2011-12-16T09:24:00.000-05:00

I do not like cold weather.

To me, this is so funny because the college of my choice...the college that I loved...in the town that I seriously considered moving back to...is in the mountains.

And it gets cooooolllldddd up there.

But quite honestly, I can only deal with cold weather for about a week and then I'm done.

I don't like wearing coats. My feet REALLY don't like "real" shoes. And I just generally hate being cold.

There is just about one time of year that I will tolerate the cold...and even hope for a little bit of cold weather...and that's at Christmas. In NC, our white Christmases are few and far between...and I remember Christmases where it was cold, without snow...and I remember Christmases where the high was in the upper 60's. Upper 60's is not Christmas weather.

Not to mention that for the past two years, we have been spoiled with snow right before and even on Christmas. Two years ago it snowed on the Friday before Christmas. It was just about as perfect as any snowfall in NC has ever been. It started snowing in the afternoon of the last day of school before Christmas break. We were able to stay home, play in the snow and by Monday when it was time for me to go back to work, the roads were clear...so I didn't have to miss any work for the snow. Talk about your Christmas spirit! Then last year, we had snow that started Christmas mid-morning...and snowed all night...and we woke up to a beautiful winter wonderland the day after Christmas. Another perfect Christmas gift.

This year, it appears that there is no chance of Christmas snow. And this makes me sad.

This is our 10 Day Forecast:

This is NOT Christmas weather.

I need it to be cold.

I need to make chicken-n-dumplins.

I need to make chili.

I need to use my heated throw...Ok, well I have already used it...but it's not really warranted yet.

I need to see beautiful snow flakes falling from the sky.

*sigh*

Maybe next year...

Of course, you may want to remind me of this very blog post in February when I say "I'm tired of winter and the cold"! :)

In other news, all of my Christmas "events" are coming to a close and I will be Christmas shopping/crafting/baking for the next week. Can I tell you how excited I am about that?

I hope to see you again before...but you all know how hit or miss I am in the blogging world...so, if I don't get here, Merry Christmas to you all!

Blogging Fail

2011-12-02T09:20:00.000-05:00

So, what does one do when you have a built in blogging topic for 30 days...hoping that this will get one back into the blogging routine? Well, if you are me, you do nothing...and fail miserably! HAHA! Yes...my 30 Days of Thankfulness continued on via my Facebook statuses...but never made the transition over here to the ol' blog.

And what do I have to blame this on??? Pinterest. Yes...I've become a hopeless Pinterestaholic. And what's even worse is that I've brought my BFF and sister into my addiction. So...now we are all addicts. Almost every night I snuggle down in my bed, turn on Gilmore Girls or whatever Christmas movie is featured that evening, and scroll through the countless pins. And my lunch time has now become one big Pinterest-fest.

However, Pinterest has also inspired several Christmas gift projects...which I can't go into right now...because certain people who may be receiving these gifts may or may not read my blog...so, you'll have to wait in great anticipation to see what Pinterest inspired me to do.

And I'm hoping they all turn out...because if they don't...I don't know what I'm gonna do! ;)

Finally the weather in NC has turned cooler and I can begin to feel like it's almost Christmas! I mean, for me anyways, it's hard to be in the Christmas mood if I'm wearing flip flops and t-shirts. Which, yes, I wore on Monday...and the mountains had snow on Tuesday. Welcome to NC!

Christmas also means a month of running around...church events...family events...gift buying & wrapping. While I love Christmas and everything that it represents, I h.a.t.e. the general busy-ness of the season. And everything that I do has such value that it's hard to give anything up. So...when you see that blur...that's me running by! :)

Tomorrow, I'm very excited to say that we are headed to the mountains to pick out a Christmas tree. We used to do this every year when I was younger. Several weeks ago, I told Mom & Dad I wanted to do this again and we decided to go this weekend. Dylan has never picked a tree in the mountains...so I'm very excited to share this with him. Plus our tree will be much fresher than if we pick it out around here...meaning that hopefully it will last a little longer and not make me scared that it's going to burn my house down! I love having a real tree...and Dylan isn't particular about many things...but he is VERY insistent about having a real tree! One of the blessings of living in NC is the close proximity to Christmas tree farms galore!

Hope you all are doing well. I feel like the worst blogger ever...I never post and I almost never read. Although, sometimes I read and don't comment...which is probably even worse! I hope to see you again soon! :)

30 Days of Thankfulness - Day 8 & 9

2011-11-09T13:26:00.000-05:00

As I expected...there was no blogging for me yesterday! :) But it's all good...I'll catch up as I can!

Day 8 - Today I am thankful for the life God has given me...it's not often easy, but it's full and I am most certainly blessed beyond what I deserve.

I'll just let you guys know...I wasn't feeling thankful yesterday morning. I was feeling stressed...down...and ready to focus on the "don't haves". But I had to re-direct my thoughts. I don't know that many people have an "easy" life...mine is probably "easier" than I sometimes want to admit. BUT, it is most certainly a rich, full life filled with people who love me and make me laugh. And that is truly something to be thankful for!

Day 9 - Today I am thankful for Godly parents...my parents have been such an example of Christ to me...they have shown me grace, mercy, compassion and love. I am so blessed they are my parents.

This is something I DEFINITELY can be thankful for. My parents are truly the best. They have loved me when I didn't deserve it...and have taught me how to be a good parent for Dylan. There aren't enough words to adequately describe what they mean to me.

With that being said...

Happy Birthday to my Dad! :) He is most certainly one of the kindest, most humble men I know!

Have a great Wednesday!

30 Days of Thankfulness - Day 7

2011-11-07T12:45:00.000-05:00

So...to start things off...don't go looking for Day's 1 through 6 of my own personal "30 Days of Thankfulness"...because you won't find them! Yes, I continue to be a slacker in the blogging department...I have no excuses other than to say that I just haven't done it!

A few weeks ago, I began to look into my November curriculum for our Children's Worship time (I lead this at our church). Our "theme" for the month is gratitude...very fitting as we move towards Thanksgiving and then on into Christmas. I began to think about my own "attitude of gratitude" and I realized that I have a great tendency to focus on what I don't have instead of what I do have.

So...I decided to devote my daily Facebook statuses to one thing each day that I'm thankful for. What was really cool is that others have joined in! And I have been AMAZED at how much more happier I feel. Now, I won't say that I don't have my moments of aniexty & self-doubt...or that I don't slip into thinking again about what I don't have, can't do and can't give. But for the most part, taking a moment each day to focus on what I am thankful for...and reading others' notes of thankfulness...has blessed me beyond measure.

With that being said, I am going to transfer my 30 days of thankfulness right here to my blog. I may have days where I play catch up, like today...but I hope to at least write a few short sentences every day about what I am thankful for.

Here goes! :)

Day 1: I am thankful for my job. The people I work with can drive me crazy, but I'm thankful to be able to have a job where I can laugh a lot and, for the most part, know that work will not be a drudgery every day. Mostly, I'm thankful to be part of a company that strives to serve and honor God with what we do.

Day 2: Today I am thankful for good health. Dylan & I are very rarely sick...this is most certainly a blessing!

Day 3: Today I am thankful for my warm, snuggly bed...however sometimes I like it a little too much!

Day 4: Today I am thankful for the rain...this is a tough one for me...love my sunshine! But I know that the rain is an important part of God's cycle of life for the plants, trees, flowers, etc! So I am thankful for the rain today.

Day 5: Today I am thankful for coffee...especially on a chilly morning when I have to up & out earlier than I prefer!

Day 6: Today I am thankful to have the opportunity to go to church...without fear of my safety, imprisonment or death. Plus I get to work with some great kids...which is a bonus!

Day 7: Today I am thankful for the sunshine...it not only brightens the sky, but it brightens my mood as well!

I look forward to sharing with you my next 23 days of thankfulness...and I encourage you to think about what you are thankful for as well. You have no idea what a difference it will make in your life perspective!

Have a great Monday!

I'm Still Here!!!! :)

2011-10-21T13:00:00.001-04:00

No…you aren't seeing things. No one hacked my blog…

It really is me updating this thing!

So, it's been 2 months & 2 days since my last post…but I'm like Heinz Ketchup and Cheese…worth the wait and I get better with time.

Ok - so that was cheese-y…no pun intended!

So…what has kept me occupied for the past 2 months and 2 days? The same old, same old. School started on August 25^th…and soccer continues…and in the month of September, Dylan was doing driver's ed. Driver's ed. I cannot wrap my mind around the thought that I have a child old enough to drive.

But the driver's ed class was a great source of stress…since I had to have Dylan at school at 6:45…in the morning. And no matter how tired I was, I could NOT adjust my "going to bed time" earlier to compensate for the early mornings. My body rebelled…and for three weeks I was exhausted.

The first week of October was the Dixie Classic Fair. This is one of my most favorite times of the year. I was only able to go twice this year…the first Friday with my BFF, her hubby & Dylan…and the first Saturday with my family. As always, it was fun and fall made a guest appearance for the fair…making it so much better. The Fair is not the Fair unless it's a little bit chilly! :)

Last weekend, our family was supposed to go camping in Fancy Gap, VA; however, my mom & dad have been battling camper issues and the camper finally won. We improvised our camping at Mom & Dad's with a campfire in their fire pit…we roasted hot dogs and made s'mores.

My sister & her family went ahead and camped for the weekend and we drove up on Saturday to visit and play a bit. We went to Galax for lunch…walked around the town…hit some of the stores. We found a bathtub full of Hot Wheels - Ayden was in HEAVEN! :)

On our way back to the campground, we stopped at one of the overlooks off the Blue Ridge Parkway…

And then we went to an Alpaca farm!

I played with the kiddos on the playground at the campground...

And then we ate dinner…had more s'mores and headed home. What a great day!

And this sweet little boy turned TWO yesterday! We are celebrating big time this weekend! :)

Fall decided to set in for good yesterday. Again…the yoyo weather of NC is just fabulous. It was in the 80's on Monday & Tuesday…today's high is 60. But the sun is out…the skies are blue…the leaves are turning. It really is a great time to be in NC! I have yet to turn my heat on…my original goal was to leave it off until October 1^st…now I'm trying to make it to November 1^st…but the next few days are going to be chilly…so I may be a little short on my goal!

Work has been crazy…we are down to one "office girl"…which would be ME. It's been nice because I've kept pretty busy. I'd prefer to be busy than to sit here and twiddle my thumbs! But during my lunch breaks, when I used to blog, I've needed more of a "veg" time than a time when I had to think about writing and such! I would love to get back into this so I'm not posting monthly (or bi-monthly) updates…but we shall see. I miss reading your lovely posts and seeing what you are up to! Any old time you are wondering about me, please feel free to drop me a line at brwnidgrljenn@gmail.com. I'm trying to re-enter the Twitter world too…so if you are on Twitter, you can find me - @brwnidgrljenn.

Hope you are all well! Hope to see you again soon!

Where in the world has Jenn been???

2011-08-19T09:45:00.000-04:00

I'm hoping there's at least one or two people out there that have been wondering where I've been! It's been well over a month since my last blog...which was really more of a "I'm taking time off" post than anything. Things here were stale...bo-ring...and I do somewhat have a life outside of this virtual world! I have to watch myself...sometimes I allow myself to be sucked in to the computer world and it keeps me from investing myself deeply enough into my "real" world.

Anyway...so, what have I been up to since my last post? Well...let's see...

- I dog-sat my parent's sweet Basset Hound, Cookie.

She is quite possibly the most people-dependent dog I know. She doesn't like to be left alone...and she really could be more appropriately named "Shadow"...because that's what she does! But she was a very good house guest and we will probably have her again over Labor Day Weekend when Mom & Dad go to the beach!

- Then...I took a trip to Florida.

We drove.

In a church bus.

With 20-some kids.

Now, normally from Winston-Salem, it would take...oh about 10 hours to get to Orlando. Maybe 12 if you factor in bathroom breaks, traffic, meal breaks, etc.

When you factor in a broken down bus, sitting on the side of 95 for an hour and 4-5 hours sitting in a McDonalds just off 95...then the trip takes more along the lines of 18 hours.

We left at 8:30 on Sunday morning...and arrived in Orlando at 2:30 in the morning on Monday morning.

BUT, our time in Orlando was great. We did Vacation Bible School for the children living at the Orlando Rescue Mission...got to do a few mission projects for the Mission and prepared a meal for the residents on Friday night!

AND, on Thursday we went to Universal...which was sooooo much fun.

And then...we came home.

We had rented two 15-passenger vans at the airport in Savannah to get us to Orlando...so we had to pick up the bus in Savannah.

Which never quite worked right...

But was making it OK until we hit traffic on 85...only about 45 minutes from home...which is where the bus died AGAIN.

So...we left Orlando at 8:00am-ish...and I walked in my door at 12:45am Sunday morning.

Needless to say...traveling to Orlando on a bus is not in my plans anytime soon!

So...on to what I've been doing...

- Dylan stayed in Orlando for another week after we left to visit with his grandparents, an aunt & uncle and his cousins. He had a great time...and wasn't ready to come home...even though he'd been gone already for two weeks!

And I hate to say that I think I have a Floridian on my hands...he loves Florida...the heat and all.

So...he's scheming to go to college in Florida.

My heart is breaking...

;)

- Dylan flew home on Saturday...and then I left on the following Wednesday after work to head to the beach for 4 glorious days with my BFF. This was my view for most of the day on Thursday...

We had the best time...lots of time spent on the beach...lots of movie watching...just a little bit of shopping and a whole lot of good times.

Quite honestly, I didn't want to come home! :)

- This week Dylan has started soccer again...so, we have gotten very busy...very quickly.

Dylan is the middle guy in white with orange shoes...my phone doesn't do good long distance shots! :)

School starts again next week! Seems like just yesterday we were celebrating Dylan being done with exams and school work! And now, I have a SOPHOMORE in high school! I keep asking myself "How did that happen?" :)

I'm not sure where this blog is headed from here. I'm debating. I don't really have time to read a lot of blogs...so...I'm just not sure at this point. So, I'll check in from to time! Hope you are all well!

Lather, Rinse, Repeat

2011-07-12T11:07:00.000-04:00

I am a total creature of habit. I do the same things, in the same way, basically every day.

I have to do things in "order"...when I shower, I wash my hair...wash my face...wash my body...shave what needs to be shaved. I have to do it in that order. If I don't, I will forget something.

Or I will use my face wash on my hair and conditioner on my face.

It has happened.

When I get to work, I follow the same "order" every morning...get coffee, log on to my computer, start my radio station live stream, check my yahoo e-mail, check Facebook and then check my work e-mail.

Over and over...

Just like the back of the shampoo bottle says - lather, rinse, repeat.

And sometimes things just get stale.

And that's how I feel about this blogging thing.

I've been doing the same things over and over and over...

And it's just stale for me right now.

So...for now, blogging is going to be moved to the back burner.

And if you are looking for me on Twitter, there's a good chance I won't show up there either.

For me, blogging & Twitter represent my virtual world. I don't know the people in the blog world or the Twitter world in real life, with only a very few exceptions.

This isn't the end...

It's just "till I see you again".

Almost Wordless Wednesday...

2011-07-06T12:39:00.000-04:00

One of my favorite twins is dealing with something no 18 year old should have to go through. Her 19 yr old boyfriend was hit by a boat while tubing with his family in Nebraska. His younger brother (12) died at the scene in the same accident.

And while this whole thing is horribly sad...there is good coming out of it too.

Matt is an organ donor. They expect for around 60 people to benefit from his organs and tissue that will be donated. Matt was always a giving kid. And he will continue to give, even in his death.

Please pray for the families affected here. They will need all of the love, support & prayers they can get.

Once again this year, I am reminded of how precious life truly is. Make sure you tell your friends & family how much they mean to you...we are not promised tomorrow.

Fifteen years later...

2011-07-01T12:35:00.000-04:00

This sweet baby boy...

has kept me very busy for the past 15 years.

He walked at 9 1/2 months...

And ran at 9 3/4 months! :)

Today...he still keeps me busy...still runs...a lot...and I couldn't be prouder to be his mom!

Happy 15th Birthday, Dylan!

Wordless Wednesday - Family

2011-06-29T06:00:00.001-04:00

from our recent family pictures...

Happy Wednesday! :)

Gratituesday! :)

2011-06-28T10:22:00.000-04:00

I'm really trying to get back into this blogging thing...

VBS is over...

But work was C-R-A-Z-Y yesterday.

And I thought about writing last night, but then I just sat on my couch and played Sudoku & Scrabble on my phone.

I'm such a slacker!

Anyway, I'm hoping a little Gratituesday will help me get back in the swing of things...so, here goes! Ten things I'm grateful for today...

#1 - Vacation Bible School is OVER! I love the concept of VBS...I don't mind participating in it...but this year, I just didn't feel like I had the time to put into it...and I hate not being able to put my best foot forward. Plus it was such a long week. But now it's over until next year...

Except that really it's not...because we get to do this all over again at the end of July when we go to Florida on our mission trip.

BUT, I won't have to teach it...I'm just there for crowd control! :)

#2 - Right at this moment, I'm loving this Jumping Jelly Bean scent I have in my Scentsy warmer at work. YUM!

#3 - Last week, I took my car in to the shop because it keeps throwing these strange warning lights. Sometimes they come on...sometimes they don't. Bad news is, the part that *might* need to be fixed is $1600.00 - just for the part. Good news is, the mechanic says it's not a necessary fix right now since we don't know for sure that it's even bad!

Best news - he didn't charge me a DIME for checking it out.

#4 - I teach in our Children's Worship at church...my helper has had to go be with her parents for the month of July...which leaves me without a helper. I have some subs lined up - hopefully. I've been stressing about this...and then on Friday night I was talking to my friend Deanna (who is on the other Children's Worship team) and found out that she's been going to school to get her CNA license. I had no idea (she wasn't telling a lot of people for some reason) and since then I've just been so grateful for her dedication to this ministry. She very easily could've said that she has a lot going on and she might need to take some time, but she didn't. And I would've understood that, because she also is a hair dresser...is married...and has two step-sons that she & her husband have joint custody of with their mom & step-dad. But she didn't. And she probably doesn't even realize how grateful I am for all of this.

But I'm gonna let her know! :)

#5 - I think my flower beds are pretty much finished. I couldn't be happier with the way they've turned out and the way they look. I am so proud of the way my house looks on the outside now!

#6 - This weekend is the annual God & Country celebration in a town close by. I usually go with my BFF & her hubby. A couple of years ago, we didn't really have much going on and after the parade we drove around a bit and ended up in Mt. Airy. We had so much fun...just walking around...laughing...just having a day out of town. We've decided to do that again this year...but this year, we are heading for Boone after the parade. I'm ecstatic! Boone is kind of my other home and I haven't been in over a year. I need to just spend a day soaking up the mountain air & sunshine.

Plus I got a gift card to the Mast General Store...I hear the candy store calling my name! ;)

#7 - This is Dylan's birthday week! He will be FIFTEEN on Friday. FIFTEEN! When in the world did that happen? I'm so thankful for a relatively good child. He has his moments, as most kids do, but the issues we deal with are so minimal compared to what it could be.

#8 - We finally got some much needed rain last night! I've been water my plants...and they've been doing ok. We had some storms roll through around 9ish last night...nothing too severe in my neck of the woods...but I know we got a good dousing. Of course, with our mid-90's today, most of that is probably dried up by now!

#9 - Last week during VBS, my cousin's little girl was in my class. We were talking about sacrifice and I asked the kids ways that they could show God's love by sacrificing something of theirs. Destiny raised her hand and told me that she had been selling some of her artwork to her family and donating the money to her church for charity. It was probably the sweetest thing...and when I told her Mom about it, her Mom said that she never even asked to keep any of it...she gave it willingly and freely. I'm so thankful to see young children with such giving hearts.

#10 - Next Monday is the 4th of July. I'm thankful for an extra day off this weekend...but more importantly, I'm thankful for the independence that we have in this country. I'm thankful for the men and women who made that independence a reality...and who KEEP our country free. Regardless of how you feel about the economy, our president, wars, etc., you should ALWAYS be thankful for the people who put their lives on the line to keep our country safe - including our local police, firemen & emergency services people.

Hope you have a great Tuesday! :)

Dear Friday...how I love you! :)

2011-06-24T10:14:00.011-04:00

After the longest Vacation Bible School week in the history of Vacation Bible School...I'm so thankful it's Friday! Tomorrow I plan to sleep in...go to the pool with my friends...plant some flowers...and that's about all. I'm hoping to ignore the fact that I desperately need to go to the grocery store so as not to ruin my day...but Dylan tends to get hungry, so I might have to give in! :P

Anyway, I don't have time for a super long post (I know you guys are thankful after the novels I've written lately), so I'll just get right to Five Question Friday with Mama M! If you'd like to play along, head over to her site, copy the questions & link on up! :)

1. What is your current favorite tv show?

Well...I have quite a few. I just recently stumbled onto the genius of Psych...

And then there's always Parenthood...

And for my guilty pleasure??? Jersey Shore.

Such a wide variety there...

2. What's the worst haircut you ever got?

Sorry Mom...but my worst haircut was actually a series of haircuts...and they all looked the same. Very mullet-y.

And I have to say sorry to Mom because she cut my hair way back then...

I'm on the right...

*sigh*

3. What was something that you did as a child that you thought you were so cool for doing?

When I was 9, my family flew to California. Back then (in 1985), people didn't just hop a plane to Los Angeles. We actually few from Greensboro, stopped in Charlotte (but didn't get off the plane) and then went on to Los Angeles. We went to Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm, the beach (COLD) and visited with my Great-Aunt Uncle.

Yep...I was definitely cool...I'd been to the West Coast!

;)

4. Do you have any GREAT frugal family fun tips?

Not really...but I'd love to read some of your tips!

5. Would you drive across country if you had the money to fly?

No.

6 hours is about my limit in a car

And I'm too impatient to drive when I know I can get to my destination in 7 hours rather than 14 days.

I'd like to see everything between NC & California...but I don't think I could spend days in a car...

Maybe I underestimate myself...

But probably not! :)

Happy Friday...Hope you have a GREAT weekend!

What I've Been Up to Wednesday!

2011-06-22T09:18:00.000-04:00

I guess for at least this week, I'm down to two posts per week...

I have missed reading your blogs...I have missed your comments on my blog.

But I guess it's hard to comment when there's nothing to comment on!

So....what has kept me so busy???

Friday night, I had a little BFF / Girl's Night! We went to The Loop (one of my favorite places to eat)...and then we went back to my house for a {mini} Netflix movie marathon. I was so right when I said if we made it to 11pm, we'd be lucky! We watched 9 to 5 and The Incredible Shrinking Woman (kind of a salute to Lily Tomlin). 9 to 5 is and will always be a classic. Not to mention that it was just funny to see all the styles...and realize that the boss in that movie would be in jail for life with all of the horrible things he said/did! :) The first part of The Incredible Shrinking Woman was good...the last half, not so much. In fact, I think we both fell asleep. Oh, well...live & learn!

Saturday I went to get a haircut and then to Lowes to pick out some flowers for my new flower bed. I was able to get all of the impatiens planted before a huge storm came through...

Which I thought was going to threaten my "redneck therapy" at Bowman Gray...

BUT, what actually happened is that the storms came through early enough that it cooled the evening down and made the night at the races so nice!

Before we went to Bowman Gray, though, we did a little more celebrating at El Maguey...my favorite Mexican restaurant...YUM!

Sunday was church...lunch at The Loop (I told you it was my favorite - plus Dad's ate free!)...some swimming in a cold pool...and then some hanging out with my sister, niece & nephew...as well as my parents & Dylan. That evening I had to go back to the church to get some stuff ready for VBS...

Which brings me to the rest of my crazy week...because that's where I've been every night this week!

All in all, a lot of fun stuff. And a great birthday celebration thrown in to the mix!

Thanks for all of the birthday wishes...they were the best.

And I was going to post some pix...but Blogger isn't cooperating...maybe later I can.
Have a great Wednesday...I'll probably see you on Friday! :)

It's Friday, Friday...

2011-06-17T09:59:00.000-04:00

I don't know if y'all have heard this annoying song...not even sure who sings it...but they play it often on the radio station I listen to...as a joke...but still. That's what's playing through my head this morning.

And I couldn't be happier to see Friday! :)

So begins my bday weekend! WOOT WOOT!

I haven't found a birthday YET that has bothered me. And...for your information...I will be 35 on Sunday!

Which is weird...

Because I don't FEEL 35...but that's what the numbers say!

I have a fun weekend planned...mostly spending a lot of time with my BFF. We are going to have a Netflix movie marathon tonight...which sounds like we will be up for hours...and in reality, if we make it to 11pm I'll be surprised.

Maybe I am getting old after all! ;)

Then tomorrow, we are sleeping in (hahahaha)...I have a haircut...and then we are going swimming! We'll finish the day by going to Bowman Gray for a little "redneck therapy"! :)

I'm not really sure what my Sunday plans are...we celebrated Father's Day last night since my BIL has to work on Sunday and I have VBS all next week. I have to get ready for VBS...so that'll take up a bit of my time on Sunday...hopefully not too much and I can get a little more swimming in!

And we did a little birthday celebrating last night. For my birthday this year, I asked for help, dirt & mulch for my front yard project. (I really know how to celebrate, huh?) But my Mom & Dad also gave me a headboard for my bed - actually my Dad MADE me a headboard for my bed. It's a picket fence and I can't wait to get it in my room! Sadly...I didn't get a picture of it, but I will once it's in place!

But I did get pix of these wonderful bday treats...

This is key lime cheese cake that my friend Casey made for me!

My mom found a recipe for lemon drop cupcakes!!!

Anybirthdaycelebration, today, as I most often do on Friday's, I am linking up with Mama M for Five Question Friday! If you'd like to join in the fun, head over to her blog...copy the questions and link on up!

1. What is your favorite summer time activity?

Heading to the beach...no question about it. I would live there all summer long if I could! There is nothing like spending a day on the beach with a good book and a nice ocean breeze.

2. Do you have one laundry soap you stick to, or do you buy whatever's on sale?

I really like Tide detergent. For a while, I switched over to Gain, which was OK...but in my heart of hearts, I know that I'm a Tide girl. Plus, at Wal-Mart it's only a dollar or two more than Gain...so I go ahead and get Tide.

3. What is your favorite dinner to make in the summer?

Hamburgers on the grill with my mom's macaroni salad...maybe a little potato salad too...finished off with some homemade ice cream...

YUM!

4. Do you have any talents?

I think I've answered this question before...I have talents...but the one I'm most proud of is being able to write in mirror. I can write, fairly quickly, so that you can read what I've written in a mirror. I don't know what that's good for...but it sure is fun!

5. If you could instantly be an expert in something, what would it be? Why?

I'm not sure...I would love to know more about blog design...because I feel like mine is a bit on the generic side...but I really don't have time to work at it or read up on all of the great tutorials out there.

I would also like to know more about flowers & plants. I do not have a "black" thumb...but I don't exactly know what is good where. Thankfully my mom is a plant & flower wiz...so I just ask her! :)

I hope you have an excellent Friday and a wonderful weekend! Hopefully I'll see you around next week some!

What I've Been Up To Wednesday!

2011-06-15T12:05:00.000-04:00

OK - so that's not a real meme or anything...but it should be! :)

I've been super busy the past few days...I haven't had much time to do blogging or tweeting. I do check Facebook...it's a little faster than everything else...

So, what has been keeping me busy?

Well...since you asked...

Friday I decided to take the afternoon off. I needed it. Plus it was the last day of school for Dylan. BUT, Friday was happened to be one of my "busy" days. #1 - We pay bills at work on the 10th. #2 - My boss (who does payroll) is out this week...so all timesheets had to be entered & submitted to him before I could leave. I think he knew that I needed the afternoon off, though, because he gave me the payables on Thursday afternoon so I could have the first step of processing done...and I was super efficient on Friday morning - so I got out of the office around 12:45ish!

I had to get my license renewed. :/ Thankfully, I ONLY had to wait an hour...which is an amazing feat in and of itself. The only thing is that they mail you your license - so I have no idea if I'm gonna need to beg for a new pic or not! I'm pretty sure I have a fairly stupid smile on my face because they also don't tell you that they are getting ready to take the picture. I predict that my pic will be featured on a "yes - these are real driver's license pictures" e-mail list or website! ;P

So...after that, I decided to go swimming at my parents house - they have one of those 12' diameter intex pools - which is good enough for me! Dylan was already there and my brother-in-law & niece were already swimming when I got there! Ayden was still napping, but when he woke up, he joined us...and we found out that he is a wanna be fish! :)

Friday night I was supposed to go to a graduation, but there was a really bad storm and I didn't want to chance it, since it was an outdoor graduation. Plus, the high school is not really equipped parking or traffic wise for all of the people who show up for graduation - so I figured I'd have to park a mile away and that traffic would be insane. So, I opted out. Dylan went to the church to play Nerf wars and I stayed home and finished some touch ups in my bathroom...that I painted three months ago! :)

Saturday morning, Mom & Dad came over to help me work on my flower beds...or lack thereof. Also, my brick walkway was in desperate need of some "help". Dylan & I took it up a week or so ago...so we needed to get it back in.

This was my front flower beds before:

Actually, I had already done a little bit of work to the flower beds - on the corner of the house, I used to have cana, which is a great bulb to put in a place where you don't mind it spreading and growing a bit...but mine had spread & grown to be a bit out of control.

THIS is my front flower beds on Saturday after we worked in them:

And, since Saturday, we have finished putting the brick walk in AND I now have mulch! The only thing left is to add some pretty flowers and it'll be all done! I do plan to move the hosta out from the porch railing a bit and move the smaller ones out into the larger bed area, but since they are already grown up and blooming, I'll have to wait on those!

Saturday afternoon, we had family pictures made...

And then I went to a graduation Saturday night...one that didn't start until almost 9pm!!!

Sunday was a "veg" day (Dylan & I have been working our way through Psych on Netflix) and we finished putting in the brick path.

Monday was work, work, work...followed by work, work, work at home...because...

Tuesday night I had a Scentsy party! :) My BFF is a consultant and I agreed to do a party to help her out a bit.

And Dylan & I had dental appointments yesterday as well!

So...yes - I've been super busy. I feel like that's a running theme here on the blog lately...I have about a week when I can update and read and comment on other people's blogs...and then I get busy and have to ignore it for several days...and THEN you get to read my novels! :)

I don't see things slowing down for a week or too...but hopefully I'll get by here again soon!

Happy Wednesday! :)

Thursday - Random 13

2011-06-09T14:47:00.000-04:00

My friend, Rachel, sometimes posts a "Thursday Thirteen" list on, well...Thursday's. Usually it's just a list of similar things - movies, books, places she wants to go, etc., etc. So, I thought I might do a "Thursday Thirteen" of sorts for your reading/viewing pleasure!

The other day, I was looking at the pictures on my phones, and I realized I have some VERY random things there. So, for my "Thursday Thirteen" list, I will share with you 13 random pix from my phone!

1 -

When I go to get my hair cut, or while Dylan is getting his hair cut, I usually catch up on my People magazine reading - because she subscribes & I don't! ;) Anyway, the last time I was at her shop while Dylan was getting his hair cut, I was perusing the People magazine and happened upon these two books in the book section that looked interesting. I don't usually buy books and I'm notorious for snapping pix of books in a store, and evidently magazines too, that I want to read so I will remember to request them from the library! I haven't requested these yet...mostly because I have 4 or 5 already checked out that I need to read first!

2 -

Recently we had some strong storms to come through our part of the world...the clouds were really cool looking that day...I was trying to capture a pic but it was a little difficult.

3 -

I can thank my son for this little gem. He & my brother-in-law love to play "Finger Slayer" - Dylan on my phone...Zach on his own. Dylan sent this to him...it was his all time high score. Later that evening I was treated to a return picture similar to this, but with a high score in the 4000's if I remember correctly. Needless to say, I didn't hang on to that one.

4 -

This is my BFF...she is special...can you tell? HAHA! :)

5 -

I was having a dilemma about how exactly to wear my rainboots...I finally figured out the best way was to cuff my jeans...I had to show my sister! :)

6 -

Alyson got a hold of my phone...can you tell?

7 -

Back when they were promoting the Cake Boss episode where Buddy's wife is having their baby, Dylan & I decided that Buddy is NOT a pretty crier...this was Dylan's interpretation of his face! :)

8 -

My new ring that I love (and took a picture of using Instagram - which I love!!!).

9 -

Dylan & I were having a dispute about how many geese it takes to form a gaggle...and now you know too. We actually were having this conversation as we were walking out of Wal-Mart...a passerby giggled at our conversation. :)

10 -

A headless Dylan! :) Another fun camera app for your iPhone!

11 -

Seth's birthday at El Maguey...he wore the sombrero...they sung to him in Spanish...very loudly! :)

12 -

One Saturday morning, one of the local news shows requested via Facebook that you upload a picture of your first cup of coffee...I complied. (also done with Instagram)

13 -

This is my MOST favorite cupcake - Lemon Drop...it is lemony goodness baked up and iced with lemony buttercream icing. And it's quite heavenly...and unfortunately (although probably fortunate for my waist line) they only have these every once in a while!

Happy Thursday! Hold on...Friday is on it's way! :)

Almost wordless Wednesday...

2011-06-08T09:47:00.000-04:00

We had the most amazing sunset last night...these pictures can't even begin to capture how simply beautiful it was. Especially since Dylan was taking them while I was driving home...from my phone! :)

Ahh...summer...

Happy Wednesday! :)

Grati-Tuesday

2011-06-07T21:06:00.000-04:00

Today, I'm joining my friend Amy Lynn over at PBJ Dreamer in celebrating Grati-Tuesday! :) So...today, these are the 10 things I'm grateful for:

#1 - Summer is finally here. It's a little warm for my particular liking, but I prefer heat over cold. Truth be told, I do not like extreme cold or extreme heat - mild is wear I want to be. But, if I have to chose, I'll take the heat!

#2 - There are only three days of school left! Wahoo! I don't know why this makes me happy - I don't have to stay behind a kid to do his homework or projects or to keep his grades up. I got lucky and have one of those self-motivator kids...well, when it comes to school work...sometimes. But there's still a sense of freedom that comes with the last days of school...even if I still have to get up out of the bed every morning for work!

#3 - Sundresses & flip flops...need I say more?

#4 - Netflix - I had no idea what I was missing! I had been resisting the Netflix craze...but now that I have it, I just. can't. cancel. it!!!! Dylan & I are making our way through Psych and loving it! I have several movies in my "instant que" that I can't wait to watch. Funny Farm & The Money Pit - CLASSIC!

#5 - I have three & a half months left on my car loan. I will be even MORE grateful when I can put on this list that I have no more car payment! :) But, for now, I'm just thankful that I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!

#6 - Casting Crowns - I've been jamming out to their album today - "Until the Whole World Hears". Love it!

#7 - Books...books...and more books...I am currently reading Miss Julia Rocks the Cradle by Ann B. Ross. And I have about 4 more in a stack by my bed waiting to be read. I tend to go reading crazy during the summer!

#8 - We have new curriculum for our Children's Worship at church...I absolutely love it...I love the lesson...the way they present it...the music that goes with it. The whole package is awesome!

#9 - Tonight I'm going to a graduation party for my "favorite twins"...I'm grateful that they are a part of my life...I am sad that they will be leaving in August to go to college...but I KNOW God has great plans for their lives. They are so special to me! :)

#10 - Chewing gum - I go through A LOT of chewing gum! :)

Happy Tuesday! Hope it's a good one for you!

Teen Model ;)

2011-06-06T09:58:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, my photographer friend at Boy & Girl Photography posted that she was looking for 'models' in the 11-19 year old range to do a free session. I knew that she would want specific looks and I hoped that Dylan would be cooperative...or at least a partially willing victim. He agreed to do the pix for her (although he swears that I guilted him into) and we had the pix done on Saturday.

Is it sad that Marsha Brady's infamous line "now, I'll never be a teen model" kept running through my head??? ;)

And for the temper tantrum that he threw Saturday morning regarding the shirt he had to wear, I was quite surprised at how compliant he was when we got to the photo shoot.

For your viewing pleasure, a few of the "sneak peek" shots:

And my personal favorite out of the bunch...

These were all shot in downtown Winston-Salem. Some parts of Winston-Salem have been overhauled - we have a lot of abandoned tobacco factories that have been revamped into loft condos, apartment buildings and offices. For a smallish city, it has a good urban vibe!

Hope you have a great Monday!

Whew! Five Question Friday 6/3/11

2011-06-03T10:20:00.000-04:00

What a week this has been! I didn't intend to not blog this week...it just didn't happen! I had a VERY busy Memorial Day weekend - my house got cleaned inside out! On Saturday, Dylan & my dad worked outside, pressure washing the vinyl while I worked inside cleaning like I've never cleaned before! I mean, I washed the windows, y'all! Can you believe it??? Sunday I had church, worked on some church stuff at home and then went back to church that evening for a concert. Monday we finished cleaning the siding under the carport (it can't be pressure washed because my back door leaks) and I cleaned my car inside out...which hadn't been done since September. And how do I know for sure it's been since September??? When I was cleaning out the trash I found a sunglass tag for some sunglasses that my BFF bought when we went to the beach in September! I know I cleaned it out before we went...so, yep...that's the last time my car was all clean! I took a little nap Monday afternoon and went shopping with my sis...and finished up the day with some homemade ice cream that my Dad made! And work has been busy...not so slammed that I can't breathe...but just busy enough that as I finish one thing, I have something else to move on to. This is the way I like it! So, all in all, not a bad week at all!

This weekend will hopefully be a bit slower than last weekend. Dylan is doing some pictures for a photographer friend of mine - stuff she can use for advertising and promotional stuff. Then we are having a movie night at the church - OUTSIDE! I'm so excited about this!

There were a couple of things that I didn't get done last weekend...so I'm hoping to get those tackled this weekend too! Next weekend is high school graduation weekend...and I have two that I'm trying to go to. My friend Amiracle is graduating from one school on Friday night - I'm pretty sad about this since she & her mom will be moving to LIBERIA in August...and then my favorite twins are graduating Saturday night, as well as some other high schooler friends.

Let me please explain Amiracle real quick...because she (& her mom) has the coolest story. Her mother was born & raised in Liberia. As you may or may not be aware, Liberia hasn't always been a great place to live. Eighteen years ago, Amiracle's mother fled Liberia, while she was pregnant with Amiracle. She left with nothing but her purse and the clothes on her back. She had seen many of her family members killed and had feared that she would also be killed. She ended up in Houston, where Amiracle was born and somehow made it to NC. Amiracle got her name because it was quite literally "a miracle" that they made it to the US alive. Amiracle's grandmother was able to come to the US, but ended up going back to Liberia several years ago. So, Amiracle & her mother will be moving back while Amiracle is in college. Amiracle swears up & down that she will be back and that she intends to live in the US after college. But she will be there in school for about 8 years, since she intends to be a doctor.

Neat story, huh???

Ok - so, now what you all came here for...Five Question Friday! :) If you want to play along, head over to Mama M's site, copy the questions & link up!

1. If you had to choose, how would you prefer to choose to spend money...on landscaping or a pool?

Why do I have to choose??? One of the coolest pools I ever saw was a "natural bottom" pool. It looked very much like a lake or pond and the landscaping around it made you feel like you were swimming out in a pond, somewhere off the beaten path, instead of in a backyard.

I just can't choose...I want them both! :)

2. Death penalty, yay or nay?

I'm always so torn about this...

#1 - As a Christian, I am supposed to be about forgiveness and not "an eye for an eye".

But, I believe there are crimes that are so heinous that the criminal should pay the ultimate price for his/her crime...just as their victim did.

On the other hand, is a quick easy death (we are all about lethal injection here in NC) a true punishment for the crime they committed against another person? Is it not more horrible to have to live each and every day for the rest of your life with the guilt of your crime weighing on your conscious?

I really don't have a clear cut answer...

3. What's the worst thing your kid has gotten into when you turned your back/blogged/showered/blinked?

Once when Dylan was about 5 or so, I would try to get him to dry his hair with the hair dryer...especially in the winter and if he showered in the morning. I'm not sure why I left Dylan's hair longer for so long (as opposed to the buzz cut he gets now)...his hair was notoriously thick, heavy...and didn't sleep well at all. I have a picture from one mother's day when he literally had "horns" on his head from his bed head. And the child was VERY opposed to combing his hair. Anyway, I left him in the bathroom drying his hair for like 2 seconds...and when I came back, the hand towel was smoking in one spot and you could smell something burning. Dylan fessed up pretty quickly and told me he wanted to know what would happen if he put the hair dryer up against the towel. Needless to say, he found out pretty quickly.

And, as a matter of fact, that was the last time he dried his hair with the hair dryer...ever! :)

Ahhh...the curiousity of my 5 yr old boy...

4. How often to you REALLY go to the dentist?

Every 6ish months. Sometimes they can't get us back in 6 months...but that's not my fault.

However, we were supposed to go last week and I cancelled our appointments because Dylan couldn't miss any more school. I still haven't figured out why I cancelled MY appointment...hopefully they will be able to work us in soon!

And of course, if I happen to have a cavity, I have to go back sooner than 6 months...

We love going to the dentist. Dylan has had numerous cavities and after the nervousness of having the first one filled, he really didn't mind at all. In fact, I think he should've minded a little more - maybe he would've brushed better! ;)

5. What is your favorite animal (doesn't have to be a pet-type animal)?

I love polar bears. I think they are so beautiful and fascinating. Several, several years ago they added a polar bear exhibit at the NC Zoo. If I remember correctly, the polar bears were rescued from a traveling circus that was traveling in South America. I do think one of them has since died...so I'm not sure if there is one or two there. I always thought it was strange that we could have polar bears living in NC...but they have a refrigerated room that they can go to to cool off and I believe the water in their habitat is cooled enough to keep them comfortable.

Sorry this was so long...this is what happens when I don't blog for a week...I unleash a week's worth of stuff into one entry! :)

Happy Friday! Have a great weekend!

Five Question Friday - May 27, 2011

2011-05-27T13:20:00.000-04:00

Happy Memorial Day weekend, y'all! :) If you are leaving town going on a trip, I ~~am jealous~~ ~~don't like you~~ ~~please take me with you~~ wish you a safe trip! As for me, I'll be spending the holiday cleaning my house, grocery shopping, powerwashing the outside of my house, possibly planting the hydrangea I got for Mother's Day, killing grass, etc., etc., etc. Doesn't that sound like fun to you? Don't you want to stay with me?

Yeah...I didn't think so.

At some point, I must get some sleep too...hopefully Monday I'll get to sleep in!

Anypoorpitifulme, I'm linking up as usual with Mama M for Five Question Friday! :) If you'd like to join me, please feel free to copy the questions and link up!

1. Do you apologize to your kids?

All the time. Especially when I'm crabby and it's not his fault. When I fuss at him for no reason...when I'm stressed or tired or hungry and take it out on him. I think it's only right.

2. What color are your nails right now?

The color that God made them! ;) I hardly ever paint my nails because, I'm not sure why, but they never seem to dry completely...so I ended up marking them up somehow...or the paint chips off pretty quickly and then I have to take the whole thing off. Generally if I do them myself, the paint lasts about 2 days and then I take it off.

3. When you were growing up, how difficult was it for you to stay home from school sick? (As in, did you have to vomit or just say "I don't feel good".)

According to my mother, evidently I played the "I don't feel good" card one too many times...when I was a freshman in high school I told her I didn't feel good and she made me go to school. I called her from school to have her come pick me up because I felt horrible...her words to me were "That's fine, but I'm taking you to the doctor and if you aren't really sick then you will have to repay me the co-pay." Turned out that I had mono and I was out of school for a week. Needless to say, I didn't have to repay the co-pay! ;)

4. When is the last time you bought a new comforter for your bed?

Actually, the comforter I have on my bed was bought on my behalf by my BFF on the day after Thanksgiving, not this last Christmas, but the Christmas before. I saw one at Wal-Mart, though, recently that I absolutely loved. It was bright and springy and would look great in my room.

Hint, hint...my birthday is coming up!

5. Favorite website(s)?

Well, of course Facebook, Twitter, Blogger...

Other's that I visit often are http://www.boyandgirlphotography.net/, http://www.digtriad.com/ (for my news), http://www.forsythlibrary.org/ (to check out books!), http://www.google.com/ (for anything I can't answer on my own)

I hope you have a great weekend whether you are staying home or heading away! :)

Capturing an object in motion...

2011-05-26T08:34:00.000-04:00

Is especially difficult...

when said object...

is a 19 month old little boy...

generally more interested in...

playing with his trucks, cars and tractors...

than allowing his Aunt Jenn to get a good picture.

I got one semi-good one out of the bunch...

At one point, I thought I'd be smart and ask him to show me his trucks...

but he wanted to see what was on my screen! :)

Love that boy!

Happy Thursday!

Really...why didn't I set a reminder????

2011-05-23T15:02:00.000-04:00

*sigh*

I knew it was coming up.

I had thought about it...planned for it...

And the day came & went...just like any other.

To be quite fair with myself, I had a lot going on last week.

I was worrying over my friend as she was losing her grandpa...and then, well, you know, life is what it is!

And I totally forgot that last Thursday was my ONE YEAR blogging anniversary!

One year has gone by! I can't believe it.

And then, in other ways, it feels like I've been here forever.

Just for laughs, this is my first post from a year ago.

#3 really made me laugh..."my blogs always sound funnier in my head before I commit them to print"...this does not seem to have changed throughout my first year of blogging! Some things come out funny...or thought provoking depending on my intent...and then some things miss the mark completely.

Some things have changed though...

I have "met" a lot of great people! When I began a year ago, I had one follower...who didn't really read my posts...now I have 97 followers, although I wish I could narrow that down to "readers" because the number would be significantly smaller...but I'm OK with that. The people who read my blog consistently (and I read their's back), I enjoy "talking" with either by e-mail or Twitter.

Speaking of Twitter, I now have a Twitter account...I never in a million years would've thought that I would join Twitter. It just seemed pointless...especially since I have a Facebook. But I have relative annonymity on Twitter...almost no one that I know in real life knows that I have a Twitter account. And only two of my Facebook friends are linked to me on Twitter. I use it solely for blogging purposes and it's nice to have a place to say something that you don't have to worry about offending someone you have to see face to face every day. Not that I just rant & rave...but you know what I mean.

I believe my writing has changed...evolved, if you will. At least I hope it has.

And YOU, my readers have changed too! Babies have been born...jobs have changed...some of you have moved...it's just interesting to see how much different a life can be in a year.

And then, there are things that haven't really changed...I mean, what did I think? Blogging would "change my life"? I'm still the same person I was a year ago...with the same hopes & dreams...and with the same insecurities. But I have a place to put all those things...so, maybe blogging has "changed my life" in that I can release some of this emotional baggage I would otherwise carry around until I exploded on someone in real life!

In all reality, I can't imagine leaving this little part of my world...the "blog world"...and leaving the great women (and a few men, to be fair!) that I've met while I've been here. For now, I'm here to stay.

It's been a great year...here's to another!

Five Question Friday - May 20th Edition

2011-05-20T09:04:00.000-04:00

First things first...my BFF's sweet Papaw Jack left this world at around 2:30 this morning. He is truly in a much better place, no longer in pain, with his friends and family that went before him and most excitingly, he is in the presence of God! He will be truly missed by all who knew him.

So...it's on to another edition of Mama M's Five Question Friday! If you want to join in, head over to her site & link up!

1. Do you and your spouse go to bed at the same time?

Well, since I am not married, I guess I can answer this question "not applicable"! :)

2. A question for the ladies...What kind of facial hair do you like on your man?

I prefer smooth shaven...although a little scruff is not too bad.

3. What's the worst vacation you've ever taken?

I honestly don't think I've ever had a vacation that was bad...

I mean, we drove to Pennsylvania one summer in a small car...camped in a tent...during the week of my birthday...which meant that my birthday cake was a Pepperidge Farms cake...which is not necessarily a bad thing.

Besides the tent thing, though...the rest of the trip was good. We visited the Amish Country & Hershey. That was fun.

But we stayed in a tent.

For a week.

In the summer.

Not so fun...

4. What's the first-ever blog you followed?

On Blogger? My BFF Ashley's blog...for a long time I only followed hers...and she was my only follower back. And then we both quit...and then I picked it back up. Sometimes she visits mine...but she very rarely posts on hers. Which is why I'm not sending you over there. If she takes it up in earnest, I'll let you know! ;)

5. Do you enjoy amusement parks?

Yes! I love them!

Although, I have to confess...I went to Carowinds (it's owned by the same people who own Kings Dominion) a few years ago with Dylan. I found out quickly that Dylan doesn't really care for amusement parks.

And to be honest, the rides were a little too jerky for my 'older' self.

But I rode my classic favorites anyway.

I'd love to try it with him again, now that he's a bit older.

But, I don't want to pay that much for a ticket again to only have him ride just a few rides...so, we shall see!

***********************************************

I hope you all have a great weekend. I'm hoping to get some work done around my house...we shall see how that goes! :)

Happy Friday!

Where I Need to Be...

2011-05-18T12:10:00.000-04:00

I'm not choosy...any one will do...

Happy Wednesday! :)

A picture that says it all...

2011-05-17T11:28:00.000-04:00

I'm not sure that words are needed for this picture.

I have cried and cried over it...not necessarily out of sadness...although there is some of that there...

These are two very sweet people...specifically they are my BFF's Nanny (aka Earlene) & her husband Jack.

Jack is Earlene's second husband...and Earlene is Jack's second wife. They were both widowed...I think about the same time and were married 21 years ago. Jack & Earlene went to church together...knew each other and knew each other's spouses. They are good, kind, loving people.

And as I write this post, Jack is losing his battle with cancer. This isn't completely unexpected, as he was diagnosed in late March/early April. But, the doctors didn't give much hope of being able to put the cancer in remission and rather than spend his final days sick from the effects of chemo & radiation, he decided to enjoy them with his wife and family.

I just love this picture...the love that is shown between these two...

In sickness and in health...

Till death do they part...

Random Stuff That Happened This Week...

2011-05-13T14:18:00.000-04:00

Here are some random things that happened this week:

My sister is taking a Spanish class - my niece gave her a Mother's Day card that was in Spanish.
When I was walking in the Komen Race for the Cure, I had forgotten my iPhone...so I borrowed my sis'. I'm totally hooked on the Taylor Swift Pandora channel.
I actually had this converstaion at work with a caller:

Me: Thank you for calling JHB. This is Jennifer.
Caller: Oh, this isn't Wal-Mart?
Me: No, ma'am.
Caller: Well, do you have that number?
Me: To Wal-Mart?
Caller: Yeah
Me: Um, no.

Google used the Mr. Men characters in their logos on Monday - LOVED IT!

My iPhone shut down and wouldn't come back on. I couldn't figure out what I was going to do. I couldn't call anyone...couldn't check Google...couldn't post a Facebook status or Tweet...then I remembered I had a laptop. Googled the problem and I'm back up & running. *Huge sigh of relief*
After my bouts of "pink eye" back around Christmas time, I figured out that I was actually allergic to my eyeliner. I was so bummed because it was purple and NO ONE makes purple eyeliner. A friend of mine texted me the other day, saying she had found some purple eyeliner...so I went and bought it. It has glitter in it...not sure how I feel about that.

There was more on this list, but blogger went stupid and erased everything I had done yesterday...so, if they ever restore everything (which I'm not sure how that will effect draft posts) I may or may not add to this list!

Hope you have a great Friday!

Why send a normal e-mail when one like this will do?

2011-05-11T09:44:00.009-04:00

My BFF, Ashley, & I e-mail almost daily. Sometimes it's just a quick note to say Hey...sometimes it's a little more. All depends on our moods and how our jobs are treating us that day. Good mood and/or good work day? Short e-mails. Bad mood and/or bad work day? Longer e-mails.

I try to be creative in my e-mails...since we e-mail so often.

Here are some examples...

What I could've said..."I had a dream that I was dating your sister's husband"

But what I did say was this:

OK…so all.flipping.week. I’ve had these CRAZY dreams. Seriously, since Saturday it’s been this ongoing case of crazy dreams. Wednesday night, I dreamed that I met one of my blog/twitter friends (it could happen, she lives in NC) and she was a total witch in real life. Last night’s dose of craziness???? I was dating Hank. Yes, Hank, as in your brother-in-law, your sister’s husband. Now to be fair, he wasn’t married in my dream. At least I don’t think so. And also, I’m not 100% sure it was Hank, as in your sister’s husband, or if it was just a guy named Hank. But as I was passing through that fine line between dreamworld and total consciousness, my brain said “you can’t date Hank, he’s married to Meredith”.

I think I need to go on some kind of meds. Xanax, Wellbutrin, anything that they give true psycho people. I’m checking myself into Dorothea Dix over the weekend.

Maybe they will let me out for Easter…

Or how about this one?

I could've said "my crazy co-worker is wearing a turtleneck sweater today"

But what I did say was this:

I would just like to say, for the record, that today is March 21st.

Yesterday was the first day of spring.

Today’s high is 69. Tomorrow’s high is 80.

I realize it’s cloudy today and not nearly as warm as it was on Friday or even Saturday afternoon, but seriously, it is NO LONGER turtleneck sweater wearing weather.

That is all.

And later in the same week...

Ummm…another turtleneck today.

REALLY?????

And later that day...

Oh. Em. Gee.

I missed the cords.

Cords in March??? With a turtleneck sweater???

And this is a more recent one...what I could've said is "I went to the park and got creeped out by a man, so I left", but it reads so much better like this:

So, seriously…I was truly inspired by your Chick-Fil-A tailgating…and I thought, hey it’s a nice day and I’ll go eat my lunch at the park.

My hesitation was that there might be a playground full of screaming toddlers, but I thought, I’ll just deal.

When I got to the park, there was this guy there…middle age, kind of skank looking…

And when I went to the picnic table, he said “hey, how you do-ring?”

Chills down my spine.

I was nice. Said I was fine. Tried to ignore him.

There was another girl there sitting on a bench at the playground…I figured I was OK as long as someone else was there.

Then a mom and her toddler came out to play…

But when they left, it was just me and the creepy skank man…

So, I left.

I think I will not go to the W-town park for lunch anymore. Ever.

*shuddering*

the end

To which she replied:

Well, I knew my the mere look of this email that it was not going to be a funny or lighthearted one.

Mainly because

you double-spaced

each line which meant

there were things in there that,

under angrier circumstances,

would have been numbered.

I tend to number things when I'm stressed and/or venting! :)

Happy Wednesday!

Mother's Day Weekend

2011-05-09T12:00:00.001-04:00

I had a great weekend...it was super busy, but it was all fun stuff! :)

Friday at 6pm, I finished my 24 Hour Famine! Truly it wasn't that horrible and I wasn't that hungry...well, until about 5pm when I knew I only had an hour to go! We broke our famine with a cookout at our Youth Pastor's community pool. Too cold to swim, but the steak was great! Of course, I told him he could probably have grilled my shoe and it would've tasted good at that point! ;)

Saturday morning, we were up bright & early for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. My sister & Dylan ran the 5K...I walked the 5K. It was incredible to see so many people out for this event. Their goal was 12,000. Not sure if they met or exceeded it, but there were A LOT of people there!

My sis, her friend Julie, me & Dylan - before the race

LOTS of people in front of me - and there were just as many behind me!

Dylan on his way to the finish line

Missy & Julie on their way to the finish line

After the race!

I think what suprised me the most was how many young Survivor's I saw. Which on one hand is sad...but also a reason to be excited because they SURVIVED!

After the race, Alyson had a t-ball game...and after that Dylan had a soccer game. I was literally at home for about 5-10 minute increments!

Then we headed to the Spring Folly...which is one of my favorite events!

Trouble #1, 2 & 3 - headed off to who knows where...sometimes its better to not know what they are up to! ;)

These are my BFF's god-sons! They were enjoying the ice cream...as you can see the one on the right there was more interested in the ice cream than allowing me to get a good pic!

After all that fun on Saturday, I was ready to crash by 9:15!!! It was a fun, tiring day!!!

Yesterday, was pretty low-key. Church...lunch at home...we watched Megamind and then I spent the afternoon reading....then I went to Target & Wal-Mart by myself...which is pretty much a gift to me, since I didn't have to spend 20 minutes in the video game section of each store or trying to track Dylan down in the fishing area! :)

We are officially celebrating Mother's Day tonight - my brother-in-law had to work night shift this weekend...and as it turns out, Alyson was sick all day yesterday! Happy Mother's Day to my sister! ;)

Hope you had a great Mother's Day either as a mother or celebrating with your mother!

Five Question Friday! :)

2011-05-06T10:37:00.001-04:00

Can you believe we are in MAY already???? I know we've been here almost a week, but still...it seems UNREAL!

Speaking of unreal, I had a VERY eventful morning...I witnessed a car accident. And not just someone rear ending another car...a full on flipped truck! The truck ran a red light...a van, not noticing the truck still coming through the intersection, pulled out for the green light, t-boned the truck, sending the truck up on two wheels and eventually upside down. I sat there and literally couldn't believe what I had seen! Scary stuff.

Thankfully, when I left it appeared that both drivers were fine.

I've seen cars go up on two wheels, but most of the time it's on TV or at the race track. This was something I had NEVER witnessed before and hope to NEVER witness again!

This weekend is shaping up to be SUPER busy. But it's all fun stuff...so bring it on! Today, I'm participating in our 24 Hour Famine to raise money for our mission trip this summer. So far, so good. Talk to me again about 2pm and we'll re-assess. Actually, you may not want to talk to me at 2pm...could be dangerous! ;)

My famine ends at 6pm and we are celebrating with a cookout!

Tomorrow, I'm walking in our local Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 5K. Dylan is running! Then my niece has a t-ball game...Dylan has a soccer game...and then we are off to the Spring Folly for the afternoon/evening!

Oh, yeah...and Mother's Day on Sunday...which I'm hoping I'll be awarded with one big, fat nap! :)

Speaking of my niece & t-ball...she got the "game ball" at her game last night!

Way to go Aly! She said she got the game ball because she worked hard and played hard! :)

And now it's time for 5 Question Friday with Mama M! :) If you'd like to join in the fun, head over to her site, copy the questions & link up!

1. Have you ever had roommates?

Does my sister count? We were roommates as younger children. Not always, but for a short time.

Also, in college I had a roommate...and suitemates.

Currently, my only roommate is Dylan! :)

2. How many names do you/your children have? (i.e. Prince Charming William Phillip Arthur Louis John Jacob Jingleheimer-Schmidt)

Dylan only has a first, middle & last name. So, I guess three?

And I'm the same...first, middle & last!

3. Did you watch the Royal Wedding?

I didn't get up at any insane hour and I didn't make a special plan to watch it...but it did happen to be on while I was getting ready. And, yes, I did get sucked in! :)

Kate was just simply beautiful...emphasis on the "simple"...which I think was a total plus!

4. What is the messiest room in your house?

Hands down...Dylan's room. To him, it's organized mess. To me, I walk in and immediately wonder how he finds clean clothes every day...and why can't he empty his garbage can instead of continuing to pile it up...and why is he surprised that he can't find his thumb drive that was "right on his night stand" (which conveniently turned up in one of his shorts pockets...mostly likely washed & dried...but it still works, so we don't question it!).

I just ignore it.

5. What is your ideal mothers day?

As previously stated, I just want to take a nap.

A good, long nap.

In the sun would be awesome; however, it looks like we will be having rain and/or thunderstorms all day...so no sunshine.

But that's OK...I'll nap like a champ!

And maybe watch a movie.

Most likely, at the same time! ;)

Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers...and to those of you who aren't yet Mom's, I hope you get to enjoy your day with your mom...even if it's just by phone or Skype! :)

This is me & my mom from a couple of years ago...on my birthday to be exact! :)

Wordless Wednesday ~ My Sweet Niece & Nephew

2011-05-04T08:44:00.000-04:00

Happy Wednesday! :)

Gratituesday...on the right day! :)

2011-05-03T14:33:00.000-04:00

My friend, PBJ Dreamer, does Gratituesday every Tuesday...last week I did Grati-Wednesday...definitely doesn't have the same ring! ;)

So I thought I would join her in finding 10 things to be grateful for today!

10. Last Wednesday was "Administrative Professionals Day". At our office, the only people who seem to be aware of when this day occurs are the Administrative Professionals. We don't expect much recognition...but a little would be nice.

Anyway, one of the outside sales guys DID remember and took us to lunch today...to one of my favorite places - The Loop! :)

Free lunch is always fabulous!

9. Dylan & I are participating in a 24 hour famine to raise money for a mission trip we are going on this summer. Our group is supposed to be doing the famine collectively beginning Thursday evening at 6pm and lasting until 6pm on Friday. However, Dylan is running a 5K on Saturday...so there's no way he could starve himself for 24 hours...eat Friday night...and then get up on Saturday morning and run 3.1 miles. So, we decided he should do his early.

And he did it beginning at 6pm on Sunday night and going through yesterday evening at 6pm.

I'm proud of him for doing it with such a positive attitude.

Which is quite surprising, because this kid likes to EAT!

And he's raised over $150 so far!

Raising money for missions and having a teen with a positive attitude towards anything? Fabulous!

8. My moods and life outlooks are severely affected by the weather. Winter hits me the worst when it's cold and overcast more than it's warm and sunny.

But the past few days have been absolutely beautiful!

We are supposed to cool off for the next few days and will probably get some rain...so I'm thankful for the sunshine we are getting off & on today!

Sunshine = fabulous!

7. This weekend is the Spring Folly in the small town that I somewhat exist in. I have gone to this for the past I don't know how many years. It's not much...but it's just a fun time of hanging out with friends. It just feels so small town...and I love that.

Small town festivals are fabulous!

6. Last night I had to keep Alyson & Ayden (niece & nephew). We played outside for a long time...Dylan played too! :) Even though Ayden isn't feeling 100% these days (cutting teeth + I think he has a cold = a whiney baby), he was fun to play with outside.

Time spent with my niece, nephew & son? Fabulous!

5. I don't know if you know this, but Redbox will text you a code for a free movie on the first Monday of every month. I usually don't use them because I have to go to work on Tuesday...and I'm not sure what possessed me to get a movie last night, knowing I was keeping Alyson & Ayden...but I used it. I rented Life As We Know It with Katharine Heigl and that other guy...so good. Feel good...funny...seriously sweet movie.

Free movie rental...and a good movie gotten? Fabulous!

4. I got my iPhone back in early March, I think. Maybe February...who knows. Anyway, I love this phone...it's so awesome! I've never owned any Apple products...no iPods or anything. So, I'd never had any reason to download iTunes on my home computer.

When I tried, I kept getting an error message...and it was driving. me. crazy.

I googled the error and tried those solutions.

I asked a couple of people I knew.

Nothing worked.

Until the other day, I found someone who had the same problem and had the same internet filtering software on their computer.

And FINALLY I was able to get iTunes downloaded to my computer!

You have no idea how happy this made me - I don't have to have songs on my phone...I have Pandora radio & KLove has an app for the iPhone...so music wise, I was set.

But, knowing that I couldn't get it to work was driving me crazy!

Successfully downloading & installing iTunes after many, many, many, attempts? Fabulous!!!

3. This weekend is Mother's Day. I don't know what we will do...if I do nothing more than take a nap, that will be fine by me. I'm so grateful for my mother. My parents don't live far away at all and it's nice to know that they are close by. My mom has been retired for almost two years now and she's a great help to me in carting Dylan to & from...especially in the summer when he has soccer workouts during the day. I'm sure that my Dad will be happy to help her with this now that he's retired. But in honor of the holiday, today I'm listing Mom on my Gratituesday list!

Having a great mom? Fabulous!

2. I'm super excited about my gift to her for Mother's Day...but since she sometimes reads my blog, I'm not saying what it is! :)

Having a great gift for a great mom? Fabulous! ;)

1. As I've mentioned before, Dylan & I have started going to a gym. I've actually gone more often than he has...which I figured it'd be more equal because I figured he'd be motivating me!

Each time I go, I feel like I can do a bit more...I can feel myself getting stronger.

I'm so grateful for good health that will enable me to have an even healthier body - physically, mentally & emotionally.

Good workouts? Fabulous!

Hope you are having a fabulous Tuesday wherever you are! :)

Friend Making Monday: Bookworm Edition

2011-05-02T12:55:00.001-04:00

I haven't done this meme in a while...so, I thought I'd revisit it! :)

1. How often do you read?

I go through spells...and it depends on what I'm reading. Sometimes I can knock out several books in a week...here lately, though, it seems like it's taking me several months to knock out a book!

I read more often when I'm on vacay...especially sitting on a beach somewhere. That's some good reading, there!

2. What's the last book you read and loved?

Because I read so much, it's hard to just pick one book. And because I read so much, I can't tell you what the last "new" book was that I read. I love Janet Evanovich and have been re-reading the Stephanie Plum series. I'm looking forward to the 17th in this series...although, I do have to say, they seem to not be quite as good as the earlier Plum books. But, I will read it anyway! :)

3. What book(s) are you currently reading?

I am currently reading The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer. I had mixed emotions about reading this - I love the Twilight series...but I just wasn't sure I wanted to read this. I don't know why. However, I was at the library the other day and it was sitting there...so I decided to give it a try.

4. Share a few of your favorite authors.

Well, already stated - Janet Evanovich, Emily Giffin, Judy Blume, Beverly Cleary, Meg Cabot (she writes 'grown up' books too), Nicholas Sparks, Sophie Kinsella (and I like her books as Sophie Kinsella way better than her Madeline Wickham books - yes, they are the same person), Fannie Flagg, Ann B. Ross, Richard Paul Evans...

yes, this list could go on forever! :)

5. What's next on your list of must-reads?

Not really sure here...I really would like to read the Pretty Little Liars series...and there's a few more on my list that I'd like to read. There's nothing that I'm just dying to read right now...I'm sure something will come along!

Happy Monday! It's an especially happy Monday here in the US! I know that the death of Osama bin Laden is not the end of the war on terrorism, but it's a huge success. I am always thankful for the men & women who protect our country...but I'm espcially proud of our military today!

Five Question Friday! :)

2011-04-29T10:41:00.000-04:00

First of all...

Thank you!

Thanks for reading my 200th post and for your kind comments.

I honestly was so excited about sharing that here and you guys totally delivered!

Don't expect too many more of those "original works"...I'm kind of a "one-hit-wonder".

:)

Anyway, I'm so glad to be back with Five Question Friday this week! Seems like it's been forever! :) My Friday's have been busy over the past few weeks...so it's nice to have a return to somewhat normal!

1. If you could buy any car, money not an option, what would it be?

Well, to be quite honest, I've had Mustang fever for as long as I can remember.

In fact, I almost went and looked at them when I was shopping for my current (more responsible, practical) car.

However, I knew that if I looked, I would buy.

My sister has had the Jeep Wrangler fever...and she may have also rubbed that off on me a little too.

I can tell you...I do not want a mini van - EVER. I'm not knocking them...I'm sure they are great and wonderful and you can put lots of kids & junk in them...yadda yadda yadda. But I seriously would prefer to have a Tahoe, Suburban, Armada, Sequoia, Acadia...anything but a mini van.

And, yes, I do understand that most of these vehicles have horrible gas mileage...not as good as a mini van.

But remember, money is no object!!! ;)

2. What was your worst first date ever?

A lady at church wanted to set me up with a guy she knew. He was very nice. I met him a few times and then he asked me to go to dinner with him.

He had a '68 Corvette...nice car...nice, LOUD, car. By the time I got to the restuarant, I had a headache.

And then the conversation was horrid...as in I would ask him a question and he answered with a one word answer.

So awkward.

And he said something about his pastor's "old lady".

That did it for me.

3. How old were you when you fell in love for the first time?

Honestly, don't think I've ever been there yet...

4. When was the last time you reconciled your checkbook?

It's been too long. I know approximately how much I have in the account...but haven't done the actual math.

Must do that today...it's probably not going to be good...

*sigh*

5. If you were going to fashion a "Wanted" Ad for a best friend, how would you word it?

Well, I already have the awesome-est best friend.

Seriously, we've been friends since we were about 13 & 14ish...so it's hard to think of needing another best friend!

But, if I suddenly needed one...this might be what it would say:

Single mother of one with a slightly twisted sense of humor seeks best friend who will allow her to be somewhat shallow from time to time, laugh with her when she does somewhat "stupid" things, be willing to talk her down when she gets too stressed, and allow her to cry when no one's looking! Must be willing to people watch and comment mercilessly on people whose style is not up to par to our own. Because, no matter what anyone else thinks, we are the most stylish people we know.

OK - that was entirely too complicated to write...mostly because I was basing it on my current BFF! :) Sometimes it's hard to put our friendship into words!

Hope you have a simply wonderful Friday.

And for those of you catching the royal wedding today...

Cheerio! :)

I Dreamed of You

2011-04-28T01:07:00.000-04:00

This is my 200th post.

Wow...200 posts ago, I wasn't even sure I'd have enough to say to keep this going.

I've thought and thought about what to do to celebrate this accomplishment. And sometime today, I made the decision that in honor of my 200th post, I wanted to share something that I've never shared with anyone.

Not even my BFF.

But, I need to back up a bit...because I need to let you know what brought this particular item back to my thoughts.

Last week was Parenthood's season finale. I've thoroughly enjoyed this show. It's real. It's just incredible. But this particular scene really struck me...and made me think back to something that I had written in the past.

Let me set the scene for you. Zeke's granddaughter Amber was in a car accident...an accident in which her side of the car was most impacted. To make things worse, Amber was in the car with a 'friend' and they were both drunk and/or high (I can't specifically remember). Even though Amber wakes up in a hospital with broken ribs, a fractured wrist and countless lacerations, she doesn't seem to grasp the seriousness of her accident or the events that brought her to be a part of the accident.

Now watch...

The line that got me was when Zeke said "I dreamt you"...and it took me back a few years.

You see, I'm a day dreamer. I day dream about my future all the time. What Dylan will be like. What it would be like to be married...have a kid or two more. I do most of my day dreaming while I'm driving. I make up stories of what I would say to these kids that I may some day have. At one time I did a lot of driving back & forth - taking Dylan to school...picking him up...taking him to the sitters for after school...then going back after work to pick him up. And I did a lot of day dreaming then.

I know it sounds a little nuts...but this is my world.

And one day, I remember it just like yesterday, I was driving to Dylan's sitter's house and I remember thinking I would love to tell my future child one day that "I dreamed of him or her". The words stuck in my head...I couldn't shake them.

And so, one night...I wrote this.

For my 200th post, I'm sharing this very special thing that I've written...I'm not sure you would necessarily call it a poem or what. I would love one day to publish it as a children's book...but for now, I'm sharing it with this little part of my world.

Enjoy.

******************************************

I Dreamed of You

     I dreamed of you...

Before you were ever born,
I dreamed of you.

I dreamed of how it would be to have you in my belly...to feel you kicking and growing within me.

I dreamed of what it would feel like to hold you for the first time...to feel your warm body in my arms...to hear you cry and feel your hand around my finger.

     I dreamed of you.

I dreamed of what you would look like...would you have brown or blonde or black or red hair...would your eyes be blue or brown or green or some mixture? Would you have my smile..would you have Daddy's nose?

     I dreamed of you.

I dreamed of you taking your first steps...carefully...holding on to make sure you didn't fall and knowing all along that you would.

I dreamed of hearing you say "Mommy" for the first time...of hearing you say "I love you"...

     I dreamed of you.

I dreamed of how you would very bravely walk into your first big school class...how you would hold your head high...but look back to make sure I was still there. How you would need me...but not really. I dreamed of how proud I would be of you...

     I dreamed of you.

I dreamed of how you would love me and tell me silly stories...and how we would go for walks...and how you would brighten every one of my days...just by being in it.

     I dreamed of you.

And all of this I dreamed before I ever even knew you would be mine...

     but I did dream of you.

Grati-Wednesday!

2011-04-27T09:57:00.000-04:00

OK - yeah...it doesn't have quite the same ring as "Gratituesday"...but what do you do when you are a day late?

I had mentioned several weeks ago that I wanted to participate in PBJ Dreamer's "Gratituesday", where she lists of 10 things that she's grateful for...but I didn't. And she called me out on it! :) Seriously, no hard feelings! I should've done it.

And I fully intended to do this yesterday...but the guys at work tempted me with Mexican food for lunch...it's my weakness. I can give up a lot, but not Mexican. Especially on Tuesday's when they have my favorite dish (chimichanga) on special! YUM!

So, you will have to just deal with the fact that I'm participating in Grati-Wednesday this week...and hopefully I can get my act together and particiate on the correct day next week! :)

10. Already said, but yesterday I had lunch at the local Mexican restaurant. Tuesday's are my favorite day to go because my favorite dish is on special. But, as a bonus, one of the other guys paid for our lunch!

Free lunch? Fabulous! :)

9. Yesterday morning, Dylan woke up not feeling well. He barely ate any breakfast, which isn't really unusual, but he mentioned that his stomach was really hurting. He troopered through the day and texted me around 2:15 to see if my Dad could pick him up early. My Dad was out of town, but my mom had to pick up my niece at school and was able to pick him up early so he could go home and not have to ride the bus.

Having a retired mom who is willing to pick up her sick grandchild? Fabulous! :)

8. Furthermore, Dylan is feeling much better today!

Well kid? Fabulous!

7. On Sunday, my Uncle Eddie had a stroke. He was very far from a "good" hospital. Fortunately, his family realized what was going on and called the EMT's, who airlifted him to Duke Hospital. They were able to give him the clot busting drug in enough time to help reverse the effects of the stroke. By Sunday evening, he had regained strength in his hand & foot and by Monday morning, he had been released from physical therapy and by that afternoon he had passed the swallow test for thick liquids. Yesterday, he was able to walk out to the waiting room to visit his grandkids. The only effect that he seems to still have as a result of the stroke is that his speech is still slurred. He will probably go home by the end of this week.

My uncle's expected full recovery from a stroke? Fabulous!

**Truly, my uncle is amazing...he has had two near death experiences - not including this stroke - and has walked away from both. I could probably write a whole post on him!**

6. My BIL had to work on Easter...so we celebrated as a family on Monday night. Sometimes I enjoy the delayed holiday celebrating. Seems to work out that way for Thanksgiving & Christmas too, because of his work schedule. It's like a little bonus holiday! We had such a good time...laughed a lot and just enjoyed being together.

Having family time, any time? Fabulous!

5. The weather in NC has been beautiful this week. It's been in the mid-80's all week. At little on the warm side, but I'll take that over cold, snowy weather!

Beautiful, sunshiney weather? Fabulous!

4. Yesterday afternoon, part of my job was unwrapping 100 packs of gum and gluing business cards to each pack. While this might seem like a tedious task (and usually I hate tedious tasks), it was really kind of relaxing and nice to have a change of pace! It also meant that I could listen to music and not have to constantly pause it because I was trying to concentrate on writing a letter or something like that.

A change of pace at work? Fabulous!

3. A few weeks ago, I won a giveway on my friend Katie's blog. It was quite ironic because we live kind of close and I actually knew her when she was younger. I had told her that if I won, she would be able to hand deliver the goody bag...and she did! I couldn't even remember what all was in it...so it was even better when I actually got it! It had 30 Day Shred (which is still wrapped in plastic and I'm currently ignoring!;) ), a cute make up bag, some pens, some fabulous Bath & Body Works candles, which I have in my bathroom, pretty lip gloss, nail polish and some coconut M&M's...which I shared with my mom & dad (because she met me at the soccer field)!

Winning anything??? Fabulous!

2. Also, while I was hit or missing in the blog world, I went to a BBQ that had a bucket raffle. If you've never participated in a bucket raffle, it's so much fun. You buy raffle tickets and then choose the items that you want to "enter" by dropping your ticket (or tickets) in the corresponding bucket. I.won.so.much.stuff! I won $25 to my favorite Mexican restaurant, a basket full of Scentsy goodies and some Starbucks coffee with a thermal coffee press, which I'm dying to try out...when I get brave enough! :)

Winning some of my favorite things??? Fabulous!

1. My next post will be my 200th post. Amazing that I've had so much to say and share. And I'm still so amazed at the little community that I have joined here in the blog world. I don't even really know any of these people who read my blog, well know them in real life (except Katie, of course), but there is such a sense of family. And in a few weeks, I'll be hitting one year of blogging! Simply amazing!

Having a place to dump all of my thoughts & feelings and having people read & respond??? Fabulous!

Have a great Wednesday wherever you are. And if you are in the stormy parts of the US, please be careful!

Hello, again! :)

2011-04-25T13:32:00.000-04:00

No - you are not imagining things...I really am updating my blog!

It's been a crazy few weeks since Dylan came back from his trip to CT.

We've spent at least 2 nights per week at the church, getting ready for the Easter drama. That doesn't include the regular Wednesday night activities and Sunday morning church.

However, it was all worth it because that was hands down, one of the best Easter dramas our church has EVER done. Such a powerful re-telling of some of the miracles Jesus performed, as well as His death, burial and ressurrection! We did three shows over the weekend and during the intermission at the last show, they decided to do Act II at both morning worship services.

It was a great thing to be a part of...glad we did it...and I am glad it's done!

Since I last regularly blogged, D & I have joined a gym. So far, so good. We've been members for a little over a week and we enjoy it, for now. I know that eventually the 'newness' will wear off and we will begin to make excuses to not go. I just hope that's a while from now. My BFF also joined and as I'm going more often, I'm discovering other people I know that are members. I'm hoping that will keep the excitement going to!

My BIL had to work yesterday, so we are celebrating Easter as a family tonight. Not only were D & I really involved in the Easter drama (and to be honest D had more to do with it than me!), but my mom was also the Costume Coordinator - which meant she was sewing right up until the dress rehearsal. So, we are all looking forward to things calming down and being able to spend some time with family.

The weather in NC is absolutely BEA-U-TI-FUL today...we basically went from Winter to Summer in a snap. We probably will have a few more chilly days before it's all said & done...and I can't say I'm complaining. Flip flops & sundresses are my favorite part of NC spring/summer. So, this weather can stay!

Hope the weather is beautiful wherever you are. I plan to be back more often and hopefully will be able to visit you guys too! :) I've been trying to keep up when I can...I may not have commented, but I was there!

Hey - BTW - my 200th post is right around the corner! I can't believe it! And May will mark my one year blogging 'anniversary'. Doesn't seem possible. Not sure what I have planned for either event, but stick with me! :)

Grass Heads

2011-04-20T12:43:00.000-04:00

No...I don't mean 'pot heads'! ;)

A few weeks ago, our church had a health fair and they asked me to come up with some kind of activity for children. I tried to find something crafy that I could do relating to good eating or good health, but it's kind of hard to find something along those lines. So, I switched gears and tried to find something spring-y. Plus I had a VERY small budget. I landed on what I called 'grass heads'.

picture courtesy of Family Fun

I found this activity on Family Fun's website. I used to subscribe to the magazine, but I never seemed to have time to read it. I may or may not have several years worth of back issues at my house. But, you can usually find some cute things to do with kids on this website, whether it be crafts or games or costume ideas.

Anyway, to go directly to the official instructions, you can click here.

Here's how I made ours:

I used ankle high hose - who knew they made such a thing! And I'm not really sure who's ankles these came up to...they seemed pretty long.

Put about 1-2 teaspoons of grass seed in the toe of the hose. On top of that, put enough potting soil to make yourself a good "head". Tie the hose off in a note and decorate your "face". I used googly eyes and drew on a mouth with a Sharpie. Then place the grass head in a cup filled with water in a nice sunny window and within a couple of weeks your "head" will grow "hair". We made these on April 9th and I noticed the grass yesterday. So, it doesn't take too too long.

I have to admit I was getting a little worried since I didn't try this out beforehand...but the grass finally came in!

The Family Fun example used decorated yogurt cups as the base of their grass heads. I just used a smallish plastic cup ~~because I'm a slacker and planned this at the last minute~~. I love the decorated yogurt cups, though! They are so cute.

Now a word to the wise, be careful how you shape your grass head...mine obviously has all the grass seed towards the back of his head...which I guess is like a receeding hairline! hee hee! :)

Happy Wednesday! Easter is almost here, which means the crazyiness in my life should calm down a bit and I can get back to posting more regularly. Especially considering I'm only a couple of posts away from my 200th post and about a month away from my one year blogging anniversary! :)

Have a great week...hopefully I'll see you again this week!

Jenn

Five Question Friday!

2011-04-15T10:49:00.000-04:00

The crazy days are continuing...and I don't expect to slow down this weekend...not even on Sunday. I have at least 1000 things to do this weekend. And an Easter egg hunt on Sunday at church. Which really bums me out since that's when I catch up on my rest! Oh, well...I guess I'll sleep later! ;)

Today, as I do *most* Friday's, I'm linking up with Mama M for Five Question Friday! If you'd like to play along, feel free to head over to her blog and link up! :)

1. What is your favorite sign of spring?

Of course my absolute favorite sign of spring is when the temperatures begin to warm up. I am not a cold weather person - which is so funny to me, since I lived in the mountains for two years! I like not having to put on bulky sweaters and real shoes! I can switch over to my flip flops and that makes me happy!

Also, I love just seeing everything blooming and looking so pretty. I was just noticing yesterday that the dogwoods & azaleas are looking so bright & beautiful. I love the pink dogwoods...and the white aren't too shabby either.

2. What was your best birthday ever?

I'm not sure which was my *best*. I've had a lot of good ones. My 16th birthday was a surprise party. And then last year, I headed to the beach on my birthday. That was pretty good too! I think one of the best, though, was a year that I took the day off, went to the movies with Dylan in the afternoon and just kind of hung out all day. I still love birthdays and in my family they are a big deal. I love that.

3. What is your favorite dessert?

I don't know that I really have a favorite...I love lots of desserts - peach or strawberry cobler, pound cake, chocolate eclair dessert, brownies, ice cream...it kind of just depends on my mood. But I ALWAYS love birthday cake! At ASU, they used to have a 'bakery' where you could order cakes & such...and when they had left over birthday cake, they would sell it by the slice in the dining hall. It was my favorite! :)

4. What is the best excuse you've ever used to get out of a ticket?

I don't have one...not that I haven't been pulled...but this is my favorite "speeding ticket" story.

One night, I was heading home after dropping my friend off at home. I was just driving along, listening to my music and all of the sudden I saw blue lights in my rear view mirror. I looked down & noticed I was going 50...which I didn't think should be a problem because I was thinking that the speed limit was 45. I pulled over...the officer came to my window and asked the proverbial question "Are you in a hurry to get somewhere?" To which I replied, "Not really." He asked if I knew what the speed limit was and I responded "Well, I thought it was 45, but since I know I was going 50 when you pulled me, I'm going to say that it must be 35." He just chuckled and said I was right...asked for my license & registration...and went back to his car to pull my record. When he came back to me he said that the residents living on the road I was driving down had requested that the WSPD patrol that road a bit more because a lot of people were speeding up and down that road. He said that ironically the majority of the people that they were pulling actually lived off of the road! He gave me a warning and sent me on my way! I was so relieved! :)

5. Do you wake up before your alarm, with your alarm, or after hitting snooze several times?

All of the above! :) Sometimes, like this morning, I wake up because I hear Dylan go to the bathroom (which is right outside my bedroom). His alarm is set to go off earlier than mine - basically so he can watch TV in the morning. He doesn't often wake up with his alarm...but occasionally he does. Most mornings I wake up WHEN the alarm goes off, but I lay in bed and listen to the radio...and occassionally fall back to sleep. Most of the time if I hit the snooze button, I don't go back to sleep...but sometimes I do. I usually only use the snooze button on the weekend....which I know is weird, but I like to listen the morning radio show during the week and on the weekend it's usually just music! :)

Hope you have a great weekend! We are supposed to have storms all day tomorrow and it sounds like they could be pretty severe. I'm just hoping we keep power throughout! :)

The crazy days just keep on coming...

2011-04-12T12:57:00.000-04:00

I really should be "punching back in" from lunch about now...not because I've used up my allotted hour, but because I have SO. MUCH. TO. DO.

*sigh*

I've been missing writing here...and reading your posts.

But, right now...I just don't have time.

Even though Dylan was gone for 6 days...I don't think I stopped for a minute.

Ok - that's a lie because on Sunday afternoon I took a nap! ;)

Our church is gearing up for our Easter production...so I'm spending two extra nights at the church for that.

Tonight, I *think* I will get to stay home...although, I think we might have to go sign up for a membership before the promotion ends tomorrow...

So, just know that if I don't show up here again for the next week or so, I'm not ignoring you and I haven't given up...I just don't have time.

BTW - Dylan had a FABULOUS trip to Connecticut. He brought me a t-shirt AND a cupcake from Carlo's Bakery...and I will say...I ate the cupcake 4 days AFTER he bought it and it was still pretty good.

Although, I have to admit that I'm more partial to the cupcakes from a local bakery.

Dylan got to visit Hoboken, he went through NY City, visited Lexington & Concord (Massachusetts ??), went to UConn (and got a National Championship t-shirt), went to see the Statue of Liberty, went to Philadelphia and through DC...and arrived home yesterday morning at 2am! :)

But I think he had an awesome trip!

Hopefully I will see you later this week...but I make no promises...

Have a great week! :)

Crazy Days...Crazy Nights

2011-04-06T10:27:00.001-04:00

Oh. my. goodness.

What a crazy week so far!

I was planning to blog on Monday...and didn't have time.

And then Tuesday was crazier than Monday...

So, here it is Wednesday and I'm trying to squeeze this in while putting off updating sales folders.

Sales folders - completely redundant & tedious...UGH!

So, what has been so crazy in my life this week? Well, I'll tell you! :)

Saturday I spent a good portion of the day working in my poor non-flower beds. I call them non-flower beds because there are no flowers growing in them...currently. I have hosta that have come in and that's about it. I used to have a monkey grass border on the one bed...but I dug it all up! Monkey grass is a great border...but it tends to not stay within its own border...so now monkey grass in my real grass...and that is not cool. I also have a bed of cana that is being dug up because it's not my favorite and it spreads as well. I have no idea if I'll ever be able to get all of that up.

*sigh*

Plus, someone before me spent a fortune on little white rocks as covering in the beds. My original plan was to remove them all. After I removed about a 2 foot square, I realized this was futile, at best, and so now I will bury them in the top soil.

After all this work, I spent Sunday afternoon in bed. Granted this is not unusual for me...but still, I was worn slap out! It didn't help that I drank a huge Coke on Saturday afternoon...which led to me not sleeping well - at all!

Monday was just a regular old Monday...I thought we had to be at play practice Monday night for our church Easter program...and they did have play practice (Dylan is running video / I'm a stage hand), but we weren't really needed. Wish I had known that because I had to do all of Dylan's laundry for his big trip (getting to that in a minute).

I had been hearing for days that we were supposed to get some pretty severe weather on Monday night as a cold front was approaching NC. When I checked my forecast Monday night before bed, it showed chances of thunderstorms all. night. long. This did not make me happy.

So, needless to say, I was already not sleeping well when I woke up at 2:30ish to the most horrendous wind, lightning and thunder I've ever heard. Not to mention my phone weather text alerts were going off non-stop. Severe thunderstorm warnings. High wind warnings. Tornado watches & warnings. I live so close to the county line that I get alerts for the county I live in, as well as the next county. So I was getting them twice.

Scary stuff.

Finally around 3:45ish I was able to get to sleep...once I was certain that the crazy storms were past us. I got ready for work...Dylan got ready for school. I happened to check my phone and I noticed I had a text...when I checked it was a notification that school was cancelled! And I began to understand why when I called my sister...who had been without power since about 2:30am. Since she's only minutes from the elementary school, I assume that the elementary school did not have power...and as I found out later, several of the schools were without power. Dylan was, of course, excited to have an extra day off.

Between the time that I woke up and the time I left for work, we were having super high winds and heavy rains. We still had power (which is just amazing because we usually lose ours at even the suggestion of a stiff breeze) when I left for work...I happened to call Dylan from the driveway to remind him of something and he said that I had just gotten in my car when our power went out! So, we got all of his stuff and I took him over to my parents' house for the day.

I'm sure it was interesting, since they ended up having Dylan (14), Alyson (7) and Ayden (17 mos)...and no power.

Rest assured, my power is back on...and so is my parents' and my sisters'! :)

After I got off work yesterday, I took Dylan to his Dad's house - which is about an hour away because...they are going on a family trip to Connecticut! Dylan's grandfather is originally from Connecitcut and Dylan's great-grammy (who is in her 90's) still lives there...along with some other family members. Dylan & I have only met his great-grammy once...about 10 years ago. Ever since she met Dylan, though, she has sent him cards & money for holidays, including his birthday. She is not a wealthy woman and this has always meant so much to me that she would consider and remember him for everything. She is no longer able to physically send the cards...but her daughter who takes care of her has kept up the tradition and sends Dylan a card on his birthday and at Christmas. I'm really excited that Dylan will have the opportunity to see his great-grandmother again (even though she won't remember him...I believe she has alzheimers) and meet his great-aunt as well! Plus, his grandparents are flying up and meeting them to spend the time with them in Connecticut! So, it will be a great family trip.

It will also be interesting, since he will be in a car with his dad, step-mom, twin 4 yr old half-brothers and 3 mo old half-sister. :)

On their way, they are going to stop in Hoboken to visit Carlo's Bakery - yes THE Carlo's Bakery from Cakeboss on TLC. And they are going to go through New York City. I'm not sure how much time they will have in the city itself...since his dad called Carlo's and they told him it would most likely be an hour & a half wait to get into the store! But he will SEE New York City, if nothing else. They will also be visiting UConn, since that's where Dylan's grandfather went to college. It should be fun since they just won the NCAA tourney. On the way back, they are either going to come back through Philadelphia or Balitmore.

So, needless to say, this will be one of those hard-to-forget trips! I'm so excited for him...and a little sad too, since he will be gone until Monday. But he's so excited and I know he's going to have fun!!!

Of course, I don't really have a free moment while he's gone. I didn't plan it that way...but it's working out that way.

Well...that's where I've been...what I've been up to. Tomorrow I'm taking off to try to get some more stuff done on my flower beds since the rest of my weekends in April are booked up!

Hopefully, I'll see you before Friday...but if not...hope you have a great week! :)

So Glad It's Friday!

2011-04-01T11:26:00.000-04:00

YAY Friday!

I always love Friday's...but today is even better because I see SUNSHINE! After a fairly cold, rainy, dreary week, I am super thankful to see a little sunshine outside! And it looks like the sun will stick around for the weekend! We won't be back to the glorious upper 70's or even 80's this weekend, but I'll take sunny & 60's over rainy & 40's! :)

And, Mama M is back with her Five Question Friday! :) Another reason I love Friday's!

1. Have you ever had surgery?

Yes - when I was 21ish? I had my tonsils out. So thankful I did it. That fall I had been battling tonsil infections for about 2 months. I would go to the doctor, get an antibiotic and within days of finishing the anitbiotic, I would be sick again. I was on 3 antibiotics and codeine for the pain (which I had to cut in half because my throat was so swollen) before the final Z-Pack knocked the infection out. However, a week or two later, I checked my tonsils and they were almost touching. And I was technically well! I went back to the doctor and told him - I think my tonsils need to come out. He took one look and went to get my referral to the ENT. Right after Christmas, I had them removed.

Even now, if I get sick, it seems to attack my throat first...I don't know why. But, it's nothing like those months when I was continuously sick. So, I'm thankful to have lost my tonsils! :)

2. Ever ride in an ambulance?

Nope - and I hope to never have to.

Although with a little boy who knew (and still sometimes knows) no fear, I'm surprised that I never did. Our only trip to the ER was from our doctor's office and didn't necessitate an ambulance ride.

3. How are you in a medical emergency? Panicked? Calm?

In the one medical emergency that I've had to deal with I was very calm. Of course, part of my calmness was due to the fact that I kept downplaying what was wrong. So, as far as I was concerned, there was nothing to panic about. I was a little more uneasy when I had to leave Dylan before his operation...I was leaving my child with a person that I didn't know and trusting a doctor I hadn't even met yet! God truly gave me a peace during that whole situation!

BTW - to get the whole story on Dylan's emergency surgery, click here.

4. Do you have a garden? Flowers or veggies?

I currently don't really have a garden. I would like to create a flower bed in the front of my house...it's on my ever growing house to-do list!

The only veggies I would probably personally grow are tomatoes & cucumbers...but I'm not sure that I have a place in my yard that I can grow them.

So, I will steal them from my parents' garden!

Shhh...don't tell! ;)

5. When did you move out of your parents house?

Three years ago this June. I had Dylan when I was about halfway through college...and then a couple of years after I graduated, I had him at a private Christian school through 6th grade. I found our house in the spring of his 6th grade year and decided it was perfect for us...it was a good time to buy a house, since I didn't have to sell anything to get into it...and we made the move.

Hope you have a fantabulous Friday...for those of you still getting snow, ice & cold weather...I'm sorry. And please don't send it back to NC! :)

The ABC's of Brown Eyed Girl Jenn :)

2011-03-31T10:02:00.001-04:00

Well, since I didn't participate in PBJ Dreamer's Gratituesday (and she called me out on that too!), I decided to follow her lead and do the ABC's of me.

BTW - do you know one of my favorite things about her blog??? The name...because I L-O-V-E peanut butter & jelly. I believe that I ate one for lunch everyday during my school days. To this day, if I have nothing in my cabinets but peanut butter, bread & jelly...I am one happy girl. Of course, Dylan is not a sandwich kind of kid...so he requires more than PB&J...loser! Just kidding...although if the kid would eat a sandwich not purchased at Subway, that would make me happy.

Anyrandomkidrant...Miss PBJ Dreamer also wanted me to point out that she's not funny all the time...which is true. Some of her posts are very serious and poignant. But they are still good...and definitely worth a read.

How's that for a shout out??? ;)

OK...so, without further delay...here are MY ABC's of me!

A. Age: 34...I'll be 35 in June. I know how old I am...but sometimes it's hard to believe I'm almost 35.

Especially, when I'm sitting on my couch watching Spongebob, Scooby Doo or Ned's Declassified.

By myself...

B. Bed size: Full size. I *heart* my bed...it has real box springs...not just a plywood box. I love it.

C. Chore you dislike: Dusting...it's so pointless. You get rid of the dust for about 5 minutes...and then it comes back.

Of course, I hate seeing dusty furniture too...

Although right now, if you saw my house, you'd highly doubt that.

D. Dogs: I love basset hounds & beagles. We had a basset hound for several years who had to be put to sleep last spring. She was such a sweetheart. Then my parents got another basset a couple of months ago. I didn't think it was possible to find a dog sweeter than Rosie, but then my parents found Cookie. And she's doubly sweet.

Although, I think I actually found her for them!

Go me! :)

E. Essential start to your day: Coffee, of course. Followed by lots of water. I must caf up...then hydrate! :)

BTW - did you know there's a Brown Eyed Girl Coffee on the internet??? I'm going to have to order some coffee from there...just once!

F. Favorite color: My favorite color is blue. I love blue...and at one point had so much blue in my wardrobe that I had to force myself to look at other colors of clothing. Now, very little of that blue clothing fits anymore...

*sigh*

Although, I do have to admit, I'm a fan of any bright, rainbow-y color!

G. Gold or silver: I mostly wear silver these days.

H. Height: 5'4"

I. Instruments you play(ed): recorder...I mean, didn't everyone have to learn recorder at one point in their life?

I also learned (very badly) to play the guitar.

And for a short time in my life, I took piano lessons...but I didn't have time or the $ to keep that up.

Nor did I actually own a piano...made practice tough.

J. Job title: Office Manager

Also known as, Chief Coffee Maker...

And the one who has to do all the "grunt" work...

And has even had to do babysitting as part of my job...

And some other "personal assistant" things - like booking my boss' personal trip to see a baseball game or buy his wife a birthday gift.

Who am I to complain? His name appears at the bottom of my virtual check each week.

Virtual because I have direct deposit, of course...not because it's non-existent. I don't complain about my wages...I'm probably overpaid anyway! ;)

K. Kids: Dylan - age 14

He's alright...I'm not trading him in anytime soon...

:)

L. Live: In a very small town outside of Winston-Salem, NC...Winston-Salem being the home of the Wake Forest Demon Deacons...which I have never quite understood, seeing as the school began as a religiously owned school.

My town is so small, there is no main street...it was just incorporated a few years ago...and they are building a town hall...which I've heard will double as a recreation center.

It's fab! :)

M. Mom’s name: Brenda

Although I mostly know her as "Mom"

Sometimes you will see her comment on my blog as "Mom"...but my favorite is "Your Mom"

:)

N. Nicknames: Jenny, Jenny B, Jay

Those are all previous nicknames...

None of which I like anymore...

Just call me Jenn.

For real - don't add the Y

or the Y & the B

O. Overseas travel: none, yet. Although Dylan & I have decided we are going somewhere in Europe when he graduates high school.

P. People you admire: Our Pastor's wife Rhonda - she is simply amazing. She was diagnosed almost 8 years ago with breast cancer...she beat it, only to find out about 6 months later that a tumor had formed in her brain. However, she completely gave it over to God and not only did He bring her through the surgery, He brought her through AMAZINGLY. As in, most people who have brain surgery such as what she had spend at least one day in ICU...she went straight from recovery to a regular room. The doctors & nurses were amazed. I was amazed to see her at church only a few days later.

She has endured I don't know how many rounds of chemo and total brain radiation. And she does have some long term effects. But the best news of all is that as of today, she is cancer free. And has been cancer free for several years.

She is amazing!

Q. Quote from a movie: I'm so bad at these...I don't even know which one I'd quote here!

You'd think with all of the movies I watch, I'd be able to pull out just one.

But I can't.

R. Righty or lefty: I'm a lefty! :)

S. Siblings: One - Missy. She's 3 1/2 years younger.

T. Time you wake up: 6ish during the week...but I don't actually move until after 6:15...or closer to 6:30. *See "B" regarding my bed! :)

U. Underwear: yeah right...like I'm talking about my underwear here...

V. Vegetables you don’t like: I don't think there are too many vegetables I don't like. I'm not a huge fan of squash. I definitely don't like "greens". And sometimes, I like a veggie prepared one way, but not another. i.e. cabbage - I love it raw...hate it cooked.

W. What makes you run late: see "T" and then "B"...

And I blame ironing often...because I only iron as I need to...because I always think that if I iron in advance, my clothes will just get wrinkly in my closet...and I will have to iron them again anyway.

Of course, I've never tried "pre" ironing to test my theory.

Hmm...a thought...

X. X-rays you’ve had: Teeth & both arms...and possibly my ankle

Only one broken bone - my right arm

Y. Yummy food you make: chicken pie, green beans, pound cake, box brownies...these are my favorites

Z. Zoo animal favorites: I love the polar bears...although I have to wonder how they survive the NC summers when sometimes I don't think I will survive the NC summers...and I am more prone to warmer climates than polar bears.

And yes, they do live outside. Supposedly their water tank is kept very cold, so they can go swimming and they have a refrigerated area that they can escape to when it's hot. But you can't see them in their "cold" area.

I also like the seals.

NC has one of the best zoo's in Asheboro. I love it because all of the exhibits are (loosely) based on the animal's natural habitat. So the elephants and gazelles have large areas of land to roam.

Of course, this makes it sometimes difficult to see the animals.

And with everything so spread out, you do A LOT of walking when you go to the zoo. Like miles of walking.

I hope you've enjoyed my ABC's! :) Have a great Thursday!

Take a little advice from me...

2011-03-30T10:23:00.000-04:00

A few months ago (please note the word MONTHS), one of the flaps covering my dryer vent fell off. I had gone out for some reason to sweep the lint off of the outside of the vent and knocked one of the flaps off. The vent is placed really high on the wall - especially outside - so I knew I would need a ladder or something to put the flap back on. I ignored it and forgot about it...thinking it was really no big deal.

One Saturday morning a few weeks ago (note the word WEEKS here), I thought I heard something in my dryer vent...it sounded like a bird flapping around in there. I went to check it out and of course, the noise no longer could be heard. It was kind of windy that day, so I attributed the noise to the wind and went on with my life.

One day last week, I came home and heard the noise again. I said to Dylan, "What is that noise?!?!?"...to which he replied, "That stupid bird in our dryer vent." Gee thanks Dylan for letting me know you'd been hearing this bird in the dryer vent EVERY AFTERNOON! I decided I needed to take action and between Dylan & myself (Dylan on the stepstool...me holding it down because wouldn't you know the ground slopes away from my house very abruptly right where the dryer vent is way up on the wall) we got the dryer flap back on.

No more bird noises! YAY! At least I thought it was a YAY...

Last night I went to get some towels out of the dryer that I had washed & thought I dried on Saturday. They were still damp. I thought this was strange...and figured I had just forgotten to turn the dryer on. Trust me, it's happened before. I re-ran the towels...they were dry...and I put the freshly washed clothes in the dryer. Later on, the washer stopped with the next load...the dryer buzzed off and I went to make the switch...and my clothes were not dry! My first thought was that the dryer was dying...it's older and has been put through about four moves (including the move to my house). This was not making me happy.

And then, suddenly, I had a thought. Even before I confirmed that a bird was in my dryer, I had noticed that I'd been hearing things moving around in my dryer vent when it was on - like little pieces of dirt. I really thought it was just due to the absence of the dryer vent flap...knowing that a bird had been in there at least once or twice...and that wind had blown "stuff" into the dryer vent.

But I knew that if the bird had begun nesting in the vent and that if I didn't remove that, I could burn my dryer up.

So, I stopped the dryer, removed the coil from the top, where it vents to the outside...and this is what I found:

My dryer vent was STUFFED with twigs, grass and all kinds of "nesting" supplies. And when I say "stuffed", I mean "stuffed". I thought I could just pull it out with the vacuum...but it was a no go. So, I had to get a glove and PULL this stuff out. And I pulled stuff out...and I pulled stuff out...and I pulled stuff out. Only to realize that it went ALL THE WAY DOWN the dryer vent...

Which meant, I needed to pull the dyer out...

Which is no easy task as my Dad or Dylan can tell you. My laundry room (more like a closet) is just big enough to put the washer & dryer side by side. There's no room for moving them around. To move the dryer out, you have to take the doors off the closet and move the washer out...and I didn't want to unhook the washer, since I really don't know how to do that anyway.

At any rate, we finally got the washer out...Dylan got behind the dryer and pulled the vent coil off and I took it and shook the rest out outside.

This is only PART of what I pulled out of my dryer vent...

And just to get an idea of how much dryer vent coil this bird was working with...this is how my dryer is vented...

We believe the original inhabitants of this house had a stacked washer/dryer. That's the only logical reason we can come up with for having the dryer vent so far up the wall.

So, here's my advice...if one of the dryer flaps falls off, put it back sooner than later.

And I'm happy to report that my dryer is working just fine, now, thank you very much!

Hmmm...

2011-03-29T12:55:00.000-04:00

Yes...that about sums up what I have to say today.

Hmmm...

I've gone back & forth about what to post.

I thought about joining PB&J Dreamer for Gratituesday...

BTW - do you read PB&J Dreamer? She's super awesome! Pretty much always good for a laugh!

Then, I thought about just being random...but that only got me so far.

So, I'm back to hmmm...

My weekend was super busy...as predicted. Saturday morning Dylan, my sister and another friend, Jamie, all ran in a 5K. It was cold. As in, my sister's legs were bright RED when she finished. But they all did well. Jamie is a runner and finished his 5K in 21:02. Dylan finished in 27:02 and my sister finished around the 37 minute mark. So, they all did well!

After lunch, we headed to Dylan's soccer game. I believe it was colder at the game than it had been earlier at the 5K. I froze to death. I had put on a long sleeve shirt, sweatshirt, toboggan, gloves and was wrapped up in a heavy fleece blanket and my teeth were still chattering! They tied the game - it was pretty good. Of course, the players didn't notice the cold.

When we got home, I took the longest, hottest shower ever...then we headed to Seth's birthday party...which was a blast!

Sunday, thank goodness, Dylan's soccer game was rained out and I took Alyson to see Tangled. Such a good movie...she loved it!

I did get Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella finished! So, the library is officially off my back until next week when they start bugging me about the other books that are now past due.

*sigh*

Monday was a strange day all around. I overslept because I forgot to re-set my alarm on Sunday night. When I woke up (45 minutes late), I realized it was sleeting. So, I had to take Dylan to the bus stop. By the time I left for work it was full on snowing. Yes, folks...this is what happens in NC. Last Tuesday, it was 84. I wore flip flops or sandals to work all week. Yesterday we had freezing rain, sleet & snow. Fortunately, the ground was way to warm (thanks to the warm temps of the prior week) for us to have any accumulation.

Today is sunny...still a little chilly...but it's our nice break, since tomorrow and Thursday are to be cold & rainy.

Boo!

Hope your Tuesday is warmer than mine...and if so, please share with NC! We are done with snow & cold weather! :)

Friday, Once Again! :)

2011-03-25T08:35:00.000-04:00

Ahhh...Friday! It's such a relief to know that another work week is behind me and we are on to the weekend!

Usually, you will see me linking up with Mama M for Five Question Friday...however, it appears that Five Question Friday was pre-empted by her daughter's appendectomy! I mean, can you imagine that she didn't have time to come up with five questions for us to answer??? ;) Please send some prayers up for her daughter...her last update was that she was doing well, beginning to eat and her fever was gone. So things appear to be on track for her!

So, since I don't have any questions to answer, I'll treat you to my weekend to-do list! I know you are so excited. These are some things I'd *like* to do this weekend:

finish painting my bathroom - this is mostly done; I just lack painting the door frame & a window frame
clean my stinking house - last night, it was quite literally stinky
dig up the cana from my flower bed...also remove all the white stones that some person thought would look so lovely in the flower bed...but now half of them are gone and what is there is covered in cana & weeds
finish reading Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella so the library will get off my back (the book is only three weeks late, I think...could be more)

Seems like there were so many other things that I had on my list of to-do's for the weekend. Typical...when I commit fingers to keyboard, my mind goes blank.

Anyway, that really doesn't seem like a lot...but out of that list, the only thing I *expect* to get done is the reading.

Because this is what I will be doing this weekend...

Dylan is running a 5K tomorrow - he has to be there at 9am
Dylan has a soccer game at 1:30pm tomorrow - not sure how that's going to work after running 3.1 miles in the morning...we shall see
Dylan's best friend, Seth, turned 16 this week and we are attending his suprise party tomorrow night
Church, of course, Sunday morning
Dylan has ANOTHER soccer game on Sunday afternoon at 3:30pm

AND, it's supposed to rain. Tuesday it was sunny & 81...Saturday & Sunday are rainy and in the 50's. Why doesn't the weather cooperate with our work schedules? Sunny & 81 is weekend weather...rainy & 50's is weekday weather! :)

Of course, rain may mean that the soccer game is cancelled.

It also may mean that I'm sitting in the cold rain trying to scrunch under my umbrella while watching the game.

*sigh*

Hope your Friday is happy & bright! See you Monday, if not before! :)

Wordless Wednesday: Basketball

2011-03-23T06:00:00.001-04:00

A couple of weekends ago, the boys played basketball at the house...

And this is one from the day that just made my heart melt...

Happy Wednesday! :)

Crazy Cat Lady

2011-03-21T08:47:00.000-04:00

I am still trying to get over last week and decided that I needed a little "mood lightening" this morning! :)

I absolutely love Gilmore Girls - I own all seven seasons on DVD and usually watch an episode or two before I go to bed. The show is also the soundtrack for any Sunday that I just need to lay in bed and doze all afternoon.

I have a lot of favorite lines & scenes from this show, but this has to be one of my favorites...maybe because I relate just a little too well...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZp1kYLE7Bw

*Youtube wouldn't allow me to embed the video...sorry*

Ironically, I already own a blue bathrobe...so I'm off to buy yarn...

Happy Monday! :)

Sunshine after the rain

2011-03-18T11:22:00.000-04:00

Sunshine after the rain...that's how today feels to me. It's been a most stressful week and I, for one, am glad to be on the other side of the "rain" that this week has thrown me.

Deep thought, though...I guess we all need a little "rain" in our lives to make beautiful things grow.

That's free - I won't even charge you for that!

Thanks for the kind thoughts and words in regards to the death of my friend. I didn't know Melissa that well...I only met her a year ago...but her death - especially the suddenness & unexpectedness of it - has really been tough. My best friend is hurting so much...and that hurts me. Ashley said the other night, "if this is hurting me so much, I can't even imagine what her family is going through". I think, as I said in my Wednesday post, this has just made me realize how precious life is. She was a sweet, fun loving girl and she will be greatly missed.

So...now for the sunshine of my day today...Five Question Friday with Mama M! If you want to play along, head over to her blog, copy the questions & link up!

1. Have you ever testified in court? For what?

No - but I almost had to. One day, I was sitting here at work, minding my own business...and I saw this truck come down our driveway and turn around. I didn't think anything about it...but I thought it was odd that he stopped at the top of the driveway, let two kids who were running down the street jump in and took off. I didn't think much more about it...until the sheriff's department showed up with their K-9 unit. And then, one of the officers stopped in to ask if we had seen anything...and I told them what I saw. So, they sent me a summons to appear as a witness. Of course, the trial was scheduled during my vacation. But, as it turned out, someone else had seen the same thing...and they ended up not needing my testimony...so I didn't have to leave my beach vacay to come back and testify.

2. Do you still have your wedding dress?

Well, I haven't bought my wedding dress yet...

But my mom & sister both still have theirs

3. Is there a special place you like to go when you're happy, sad, stressed, etc.?

Not necessarily...I just like to be home...around the people I love when I'm happy or sad...stressed is a whole other story and I usually just want to be alone.

4. If you have kids, do they sleep with you? If you don't have kids...will you let your kids sleep with you when/if you have them?

When Dylan was younger, he would sleep with me from time to time...especially if he was sick. But now, I don't think he would even entertain the thought. One night recently, I was in my room watching TV or reading and he was in the living room watching whatever he wanted to...when his show was over, he came & laid down on my bed with me. That was the first time he's done that in a long time...

5. Do you watch late night TV?

I watch TV late at night...but I don't watch what is considered "late night TV". From time to time, I may stop on David Letterman or Jay Leno, especially if they have someone on that I really like. But, it's not a regular habit.

I hope everyone has a great Friday and a great weekend!

Putting things in perspective

2011-03-16T09:21:00.000-04:00

This has been a week of seriously putting things in perspective for me.

Last Friday, I woke up happy, thankful for the sunshine, thankful for Dylan being better. I was ready to Tweet it up and post a light, happy status on my Facebook.

And then I began to get reports of the horrendous earthquake in Japan.

And suddenly, all of my little problems seemed non-existent. It even seemed wrong for me to be so happy and excited that it was a bright, sunshiney Friday.

Sometimes, it just seems so wrong that in the light of a tragedy such as the Japan Earthquake that life just keeps on going. It seems like everything should just stop.

I remember right after 9-11 when air travel was ceased...I was outside with Dylan while he was playing...it was a beautiful day. It was so much quieter...which I knew was due to the fact that there were no planes flying over our house. We don't live in a high-traffic air pattern, but we are between the two airports in our area and so we get some air traffic throughout the day. It's just part of the normal sound track.

But, to me, I remember thinking that it just seemed so strange that thousands of people had just lost their lives only days before and our little world had changed so much in such a short amount of time, but my life still appeared so normal. It was just another day in my life with my Kindergarten son who was enjoying the bright, sunshiney, fall day.

Slowly, the shock of what had happened in Japan began to wear off and I did celebrate the day...the sunshine...my kid's wellness.

The weekend went on...my life returned to normal.

Monday & Tuesday came in rough...stressful...tiring.

Yesterday evening was such a fun time...I was at my sister's for a Scentsy/Thirty-One party. We laughed...a lot. I was a little annoyed when I left because it was raining...and I had to back out of her LONG driveway...and I don't back well. I got home...was sitting in bed playing Sudoku, when I received a text from my best friend that a friend of hers, that I also knew...just not as well, had died yesterday evening in a car accident.

I stared at my phone for about 5 minutes trying to process if this could possibly be the same girl that I knew...that I had just seen only a few weeks ago...that we had just talked about at my sister's party.

And suddenly, all of the little annoyances in my life seemed so small & insignificant. At the same time, I just wanted, at that moment, to have all of the people that I loved around me.

I began to also think about this girl's family...her mother, father, brother & sister...her husband...her almost 3 year old little boy. I wondered where she was going...or coming from. I wondered what her little boy would remember about his mom...who, no question about it, loved her son so much.

I don't fear dying itself...I know that I am promised eternal life in Heaven because I gave my life to Jesus when I was 13. My fear is for the people that I would leave behind...and not being able to be there with them.

The events of this week have just put things in perspective for me. Please love on your kids...stop whining about all the "bad" things they do. Hug them...make sure they know you love them. Do the same for your parents, siblings and friends. Be kind to people. Don't put things off until tomorrow...we aren't promised tomorrow, after all. Keep in mind the legacy that you are leaving behind...whether it be in the minds of your family, friends, or the people you deal with on a daily basis. You never know what kind of impression you are leaving behind.

Catching up...again...

2011-03-15T08:26:00.000-04:00

Hey! *waving brightly*

Do you remember me??

Honestly, I had to check to see what I blogged last.

My crazy life is getting in the way of my blogging.

And I don't appreciate it AT ALL!

What has happened since last Wednesday...hmmm???

Well, Dylan did NOT have strep throat. He spent Thursday at home again, but was feeling well enough to go to school on Friday! YAY! And now he's got the sneezies & running nose that is oh so common here in the allergy belt. :( All of the spring trees are so pretty...but not nice to allergy sufferers.

Friday night I BOUGHT PAINT for my bathroom - a whole gallon...not just a sample! :) My plan was to tape off everything & paint on Saturday. However, Dylan had a semi-surprise visit from his dad. His dad, step-mom, half brothers & half sister had all made the trek to come see Dylan's soccer game...which I found out was cancelled...as I showed up at the field for the game! Oops! The one problem I was having with my phone was not checking my mail often or at all (it was set to manual). If I had checked my e-mail, I would've known. Well, since they were already close, we decided to meet them for lunch and then we went to a park. So...that actually took more of my day than I planned!

Then Saturday night we took pizza to my sister's house since my brother-in-law had knee surgery last Thursday. We played Just Dance for Wii...and it only proved how uncoordinated I really am. But watching Aly & Dylan play was too much fun...and Zach even got into the action...very carefully! :)

Sunday the time change hit me hard...so I spent a good bit of the afternoon on the couch before deciding to get my bathroom trim ready for paint...and since it was ready, I went ahead and painted the trim. That alone has made such a difference! It so clean & fresh!

So yesterday I had jury duty. They do jury duty weird in my county...I had to show up, watch the video about my responsibilities as a juror and then they dismissed us until this morning. I made the 45 minute drive to work...only to find that our computers were down and had been down all morning. Finally, around 1:30ish the computers were back online...except for mine. Because my network cable was bad...and had to be replaced. Which meant pulling a new cord from the network hub to my office...it was more work for my boss than me...but this all meant that I didn't get on my computer until close to 3!!!

Yeah...it was a Monday.

I'm headed back to jury duty this morning...I'm just praying that they don't like me! The one time I definitely don't want to get picked for the team! :)

Hope you all have a great Tuesday...and hopefully I'll be back again before a week goes by! :)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-03-09T11:36:00.000-05:00

Words can't even express how much these children love this dog...

:)

I'm taking that big kid in the last pic to the doctor...he's pitiful and not feeling well. Trying to decide if I want him to have strep or not...at least they would give him meds. We shall see...

Happy Wednesday!

I Did It Again...

2011-03-08T10:23:00.000-05:00

Oops! I did it again...

And I'm not talking about the Britney Spears song...

I forgot to blog.

You see, with my fancy new phone, I check Twitter & Facebook ~~constantly~~ often.

I even get my e-mail, with all of your lovely comments from my blog...when I DO blog.

But I really can't blog from the phone. Trust me...typing on the thing is the one part of the phone that is annoying. And the autocorrect will get me every time.

Like the other day, I was texting my Dad and was attempting to tell him that "I wouldn't even attempt it on a Friday night"...it referring to shopping at Wal-Mart. Well, I'm not sure what happened, but the text my Dad received was "I wouldn't even attempt Orion Friday night"...to which he replied, "I'm uninformed. What's Orion?" I had no clue what he was talking about until I scrolled up to see what I had actually texted him.

I guess I'm going to have to be careful! :)

Anyway, I had a good, non-productive weekend. Heavy on the "non-productive". I swear the NC weather did not cooperate with productivity. Saturday was gray and looked like it was going to rain all day...and finally sometime Saturday night the rain did come...and it rained all.day.Sunday. The kind of rain that causes you to curl up under a blanket and watch TV and play with your iPhone all day long.

So, I didn't get my post written regarding my truth vs lies in my Awards post...so, it didn't post yesterday morning...and I didn't get around to writing it yesterday because I have been slammed at work. But, for your reading pleasure...I will now reveal the lie within my list of facts about me.

*It should also be noted that I do not read directions very well...this has always been an issue for me...I tend to skim, glean what I *think* are the directions and then move on. Yes, this caused problems in my school work...but evidently I never learned my lesson...because later I went back to Katie's award post and realized I was supposed to list 4 things that were untrue and 1 thing that was true. Oh, well...too late now! :)*

1. I sleep with a teddy bear named Joshua every night that my uncle gave me when we went to Iowa when I was four.

This is true. We went to Iowa to see my uncle when I was four...I don't really remember much of the trip, other than that my mom said it was the longest drive and my sister cried pretty much the whole way (I'm sure she will correct me on this if I'm exxagerating at all). My cousin, Joshua, is about the same age as my sister - so he was a baby too. And I don't know if I felt left out, neglected or if my uncle just wanted to give me something special, but I ended up with a teddy bear. I had a habit of naming things after people I knew (I also had a bear named Jason after another cousin)...so Joshua he was. Joshua is now 30ish years old. He's had surgery from time to time to mend his seams...he's lost his mouth...and he's not quite as fluffy as I'm sure he was at one time, but he still gives me a great deal of comfort...especially when I'm away from home!

2. I have never seen the Star Wars movies. I tried to watch them with Dylan once...and fell asleep.

Sadly enough, this is true as well. I really tried to watch these movies - Dylan loves Star Wars...but I just couldn't do it.

3. When I was in high school, I worked at Action Video - a movie rental place. It was my favorite job. What could be better than getting paid to watch movies at work?

This is true...and truly, this was one of my favorite jobs. Seriously, get paid to sit on a stool and watch movies while you work??? Of course, there were times that it wasn't so laid back and I didn't actually get to watch the movies because we were busy...but still it was a great job.

4. I went to California when I was about 9. It was my first "real" plane trip. My first actual plane ride was between Greensboro & Winston-Salem...which are probably no more than 30 miles apart...so the plane ride was about 10 minutes! :)

This is true as well. My mom has an Aunt & Uncle (he passed away several years ago) that live in Torrence, right outside of LosAngeles. The strangest thing for me, at 9, was leaving NC at 7:30ish in the morning and when we got to LAX it was only 11:00am. We had all eaten lunch on the plane...and they were ready to eat when we got there!

I'm not 100% sure, but I think we also celebrated my birthday while were there. I know we went to Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm and Rodondo Beach (??)...which was VERY cold. I would love to go back...to visit...but not to live.

5. My only broken bone was a toe...which I broke last Christmas when we were putting up our Christmas tree.

This is the lie!!! I did break my toe last Christmas when we were putting up our Christmas tree...I couldn't wear real shoes for like two weeks. However, that wasn't my ONLY or FIRST broken bone!

Nope - I broke my arm on Easter weekend - March of 2008. I was walking into a local pizza place to pick up pizza (duh!) on my way to Ash & Zac's house. Dylan had been working with them all day and the pizza place was on my way to their house. As I was walking up to the curb, I didn't step up on the curb and fell. I took most of the impact on the palms of my hands. The doctor said I probably pushed one of my lower arm bones up into my elbow...which caused the end of the bone to fracture. The up side: it was my right arm and it didn't take too terribly long to heal. I only had to be in a soft cast for about 4 days and a sling for about a week. The down side: even though I'm left handed, I do an awful lot with my right hand. Now, I look back and laugh about it and every time I come up to a curb when I'm with Ashley & Zac, they warn me to "step up". This could also be because before I broke my arm, I had tripped over another curb and fallen one night. This fall caused no significant damage! :)

6. I was on the Safety Patrol in elementary school.

This is true...and I'm proud of it! :)

7. I got written up my Senior year of high school for skipping a class...I was with my friend Jamie in the school office. We still had to do after school detention.

This is also true...Jamie & I were in this bobo typing class. By the beginning of the second quarter (we had block classes, so we did four classes in one semester and then switched to four new classes the next semester), we had pretty much finished the curriculum for the typing class...as well as the curriculum for the NEXT typing class. We were in this class with a bunch of slacker losers...truly. Since we were so far ahead, our teacher would often let us go to the library during class. This day, however, we didn't realize that the library was closed due to testing. She evidently had forgotten as well. So, instead of going back to class we went and sat in the school office. Not one person questioned WHY we were there...we spoke to several teachers & administrators and we were basically just hanging out...until, one of our classmates appeared and told us that our teacher was VERY mad at us. We went back to class and she wrote us up for skipping the class. Ironically, one of the administrators that we talked to while in the office was our Assistant Principal...and she basically said he had to give us detention since the teacher wrote us up. So, I had two days of staying after school and watching cartoons as punishment. Wow.

That was the ONLY time I EVER got written up in high school...and my ONLY after school detention...and furthermore, I almost got thrown out of the National Honor Society.

Stupid typing teacher.

OK - so you now know a little bit more about me! :) Hope you have a happy Tuesday! Looks like I'll be playing PlayStation tonight...since Dylan's PlayStation was delivered to Wal-Mart this morning! Hopefully I'll see you again soon!

Bits & Pieces

2011-03-04T11:27:00.001-05:00

OK...so, I didn't mean to go all week neglecting my blog.

It just sort of happened.

I intended to blog on Monday during my lunch...but I had to reconcile my check book...then I was too depressed to blog.

Then on Tuesday, the clouds parted, the sun shone down on me and I heard a choir of angels singing...because my Federal Tax Return was deposited! :) YAY for God's provision!!!

Of course, that meant I went out directly on Tuesday night and bought myself this..

Can I just say, I am in love with this phone? It's so cool! And I love not having to wait impatiently for Dylan to vacate the computer so that I can check e-mail/Facebook/Twitter.

Although, I may be just a teeny, tiny bit addicted! ;)

Last weekend, I did make a monumental decision. I FINALLY picked a color for my bathroom! I know you are all relieved! :) Actually, I took the blue shower curtain ring (the rings are different colors from the shower curtain itself) to Lowes and they color matched it...perfectly, I might add! I'm so excited...I want to paint this weekend! However, the reality of that is not looking good since I've not spackled & sanded anything yet and I still need to figure out why my crown molding is sagging. I'm hoping it will just need a bit of caulk and I'll be good to go! So, I'm looking at next weekend for painting. I'll let you know how it turns out. I've also decided to get rid of the disgusting mini blinds in there...I'm going to put some contact paper "frosting" on the window and hang a chocolate sheer or curtain. I'm super excited to have the bathroom looking fresh!

BTW - the bathroom will only be the second of my windows to receive a window treatment other than blinds! :) I need to replace all of the blinds in the house and buy curtains...but curtains can be expensive...so I just put it off. Maybe this is the year that all of that will happen.

So, anyway...my week has been good, but busy. One thing I had wanted to do was to reveal my "lie" from my Awards post that I did last week. I plan to write that up this weekend & have it post on Monday! :) Hopefully, I will be more attentive to my blog next week!

My favorite Friday event, though is Five Question Friday! Mama M & her friends always come up with the best questions! :) So, without further adieu...here we go!

1. Have you ever forgotten your child in a store or at school?

I can't say that I have. I was always so paranoid about losing him that I had to have him in my sight at all times. I didn't even like for him to "hide" in the clothing racks or walk to another aisle. Even now, at 14 yrs old, I really would prefer he stay with me...but mostly that's because I have to wander all over the store to find him when I'm ready to go! :)

2. Where did you go on your very first date? (Like...first first, not first with your spouse or current significant other!)

I think I was in college when I went on my very first date...and it was so unmonumental that it's not even worth mentioning. I think we went to Subway and then rented a movie.

I guess it should've been a sign as to how that relationship would go.

We live & learn...

3. What's your "silly" fear? (We're not talking water and heights.)

This may not actually be so "silly" but I've always been terrified that I will come home and someone will be hiding in my shower. I don't know why I even think that. Even when I lived at my parents, if I had to come home late in the evening, I would have to check the shower to make sure no one was in there. I have no idea what I would've done if someone had been there...but I just needed to make sure.

4. Confrontation: do you cause it, deal with is as it comes, or run far far away?

Avoidance is my best friend. I don't like confrontation...I avoid it at all costs. When I have to call someone that I think may be confrontational, I pray that I will get voicemail...and that they will listen to the voicemail and NOT call me back. If possible, I will hide behind an e-mail all day long. I think one of the reasons I avoid it so readily is because I tend to not be able to think clearly and I get flustered. Also, in my company, I have to make some of the "confrontational" phone calls (not so much anymore, but at one time it was a daily event), but I have no power within our company structure to make negotiations. I was simply the deliverer of information...mostly negative information...and trust me, these people were all about killing the messenger.

5. Wood floors or carpet?

I like both. I love wood floors and if my house came with all wood floors, I would take advantage of that. However, I do think I prefer bedrooms to be carpeted. But I'm not swayed completely one way or the other.

Hope you all have a great weekend. It looks like it will be a little gray here in NC over the weekend. We've had some beautiful sunshiney days this week...and some wicked storms on Monday. I guess we are due for a little gray weather. Hopefully it will be a productive weekend for me of spackling and getting ready to paint...although the gray weather may cause a case of the "lazies". We shall see! :)

Five Question Friday

2011-02-25T07:00:00.001-05:00

Well, it's finally Friday! :)

OK...confession...it's actually Thursday and I'm doing this tonight because I have the time...

;)

Anyway, it's time for Five Question Friday with Mama M. If you'd like to play along, head on over to her blog and link up!

1. Can you drive a stick shift?

Oh...this is a funny story.

I wanted to be able to drive a stick shift so bad when I finally started driving...but both of my parents' cars were automatic. However, my BFF's dad had an old, old, old Volkswagen Rabbit that was a stick shift and I was determined to learn how to drive this car. So, one day, we all pile in the Rabbit and I get a crash course in driving a stick shift. However, I think that Ash's dad couldn't actually stop laughing long enough to truly teach me! I would get going and then stall out by slamming on the brakes. The whole clutch, brake, gas, shift combo threw me. Oh...fun times!

Then, on my first date with Dylan's dad, we had some time to kill between dinner & our movie...so he decided it was a good time for me to learn...on his Mustang...in the mountains. Yeah, that went real well.

Finally, my friend Tori in college taught me how to drive her Probe. And I drove it well.

Guess I had to find the right teacher! ;)

2. What are two foods you just can't eat?

There's very little that I just can't eat...often even the foods I detest I can eat if they are mixed into other foods.

But quite honestly, I HATE pintos & mushrooms. Mushrooms give me the heebie jeebies.

3. Do you buy Girl Scout Cookies? What is your favorite kind?

I have not been ~~accosted~~ approached by any Girl Scouts so far this year...but usually, I will buy some cookies. My all time favorites are Thin Mints...although I do like the coconut ones (can't remember their "new" name). And last year I discovered the Lemonade cookies...which sadly didn't come back this year. They were delish...and didn't last too long in my house last year!

4. How do you pamper yourself?

I love getting pedicures. I also love getting massages.

Sadly I don't often have time or the cash for either.

But when I do...I enjoy them to the fullest! :)

5. What is your nickname and how did you get it?

My current "nickname" is Jenn. And I pretty much gave it to myself. I've always been one of about five Jennifer's wherever I was in school. I'm not sure when I made the transition to Jenn...and not everyone calls me that. It's usually Jennifer or Jenn.

And it's suggested to NOT call me "Jenny". There's only one person who calls me that that actually gets away with it...in fact, I don't even notice it anymore!

I hope you have a great Friday and an awesome weekend!

Awards & Such...

2011-02-24T22:10:00.002-05:00

It's been quiet over here on my blog. I've been a little busy this week...I blame this sweet girl:

This is my Mom & Dad's sweet new basset hound, Cookie! She's three and just about the sweetest thing. She is so laid back and allows Ayden to love all over her! They brought her home (along with her brother Gumbo) on Monday...so of course we had to go visit. Gumbo was a little too aggressive, considering Alyson & Ayden...so they decided to take him back. I was a little sad, because they were so sweet together. But I think, from what I'm reading/seeing, she is adjusting just fine.

About a week ago, I did a little blog spring cleaning...meaning I weeded through the blogs I'm following and deleted some that I wasn't reading and that I never remember reading me. If you are a "lurker" and you read my blog...never comment...please let today be the day that you comment so that I can return the favor!

So, last Wednesday, my good blog friend Rachel gave me two awards...when do you think I remembered this honor? Today...when another blog friend Katie posted on Twitter that she had left an award on her blog for me!

Do you want to hear a funny story about Katie? Well, not really about Katie...but it's just proof positive that this is a small world after all. Somehow (and I honestly can't remember how), Rachel & I connected here in the blog world. We don't know each other IRL...but we've gotten to know each other in this virtual world. Then, one day...she posted her 101 in 1001 and she credited her blog friend Katie. So, I hop over to Katie's blog to check it out...and I realize that I KNOW KATIE! Like in real life know Katie. We used to go to church together when we were younger! So, we've been catching up on Twitter...and it just cracks me up to think that we reconnected through a girl in Texas when we probably live less than 30 minutes from each other! :)

So, anyway...back to my awards...Rachel awarded me these two awards...

The rules for these are to thank the blogger who awarded me; share 7 facts about me and pass the award on to other blogs.

Today, Katie gave me this blog award:

For this one, I'm supposed to list 5 facts...one of which is not true!

So...how will I handle this??? I will list 7 facts for Rachel's two awards, but in order to fulfill the requirement's from Katie's award, one of the facts will not be true! Can you guess which one is not true?

1. I sleep with a teddy bear named Joshua every night that my uncle gave me when we went to Iowa when I was four.

2. I have never seen the Star Wars movies. I tried to watch them with Dylan once...and fell asleep.

3. When I was in high school, I worked at Action Video - a movie rental place. It was my favorite job. What could be better than getting paid to watch movies at work?

4. I went to California when I was about 9. It was my first "real" plane trip. My first actual plane ride was between Greensboro & Winston-Salem...which are probably no more than 30 miles apart...so the plane ride was about 10 minutes! :)

5. My only broken bone was a toe...which I broke last Christmas when we were putting up our Christmas tree.

6. I was on the Safety Patrol in elementary school.

7. I got written up my Senior year of high school for skipping a class...I was with my friend Jamie in the school office. We still had to do after school detention.

Now...I'm supposed to pick some blogs to pass the award on to...but I hate doing that because I don't want to leave anyone out! :) Definitely check out Rachel & Katie's blogs...and here are a few of my other favorites...

Diary of a Fickle White Woman
Freckle on the Nose of Life's Complexion
Handbags & Handguns
My Little Life
My Three Bubs (which I think has been re-named to My Four Bubs)
PBJ Dreamer
Salt Says...

Hope you are having a good Thursday...I know I'm posting this late...but it's when I had the time! :)

See you tomorrow for Friday!

Note: Mom...you cannot play the game...you should know which one is a lie. Also, Ashley...if you happen to read this, you can't play either! ;) You two know too much! HAHA

Monday...it's not so bad afterall! :)

2011-02-21T11:54:00.000-05:00

I know...to each their own...but today is Monday and for me, so far, it's not been too terrible. I can't complain too much...and really, do you want to hear all my whining and complaining? I think not. I mean, you listen when I do whine and I appreciate it...but that's not really what you want to read from me all the time, right? ;)

Anyway, my weekend was spectacular. Friday was bright, sunny, warm...high of 70-something...flip flops on...it was an all around beautiful day. And I spent a bit by myself in the office, which meant I could open my window and enjoy the fresh air. I'm blessed to not just have an office with a window, but an office with a window that OPENS! My enjoyment was shortlived, though, because soon my boss returned and insisted on air conditioning. Party pooper!

Friday evening I went to my BFF's sister's house for a Scentsy/Premiere Jewelry Party...which also turned into a 31 Party since her sister sells 31...and the girl who does the Premiere is one of her best customers! :) Fun times...and I'm looking forward to some new Scentsy stuff! I got a new warmer for my office and some summer-y scents to enjoy while I'm here at work!

Saturday I woke up to more sunshine. The temps weren't quite as warm as Friday...but still upper 60's. I laid in bed for a while...watched Step Mom, Can't Buy Me Love & Sixteen Candles! It was a great morning on ABC Family! And...I began my taxes...which is looking good and I'm hoping to finish today...because I need that money! :) Well, not really...but I'm looking forward to it. I caved and told Dylan I would pay for half of a PlayStation 3...because I'm the best mom ever! ;) Plus, it looks like I've also been swayed to the iPhone camp. My upgrade is due in a couple of weeks...but I think I can pretty much upgrade any time. I wasn't going to go the iPhone route...I was completely sold on the Droid phones...but then my co-worker got one...and my sister got one...and they are in love. And it's just so cool. And I haven't heard any complaints. So, I think my decision is just about made. There are a few other practical things I want to do with my tax refund...so I'm looking forward to seeing it hit my account!

Saturday afternoon was a little windier...which made the temps feel a bit cooler. Dylan has started Spring soccer. We were overyjoyed to find out he has the same coaches as he did last year when he played rec soccer. And his coach seemed to be happy to have him back too. The team isn't the same, but it didn't look too shabby. So, I'm excited for another soccer season beginning.

Saturday night we went to dinner with Zac & Ashley for BBQ...and stopped in at Krispy Kreme for some doughnuts. Krispy Kreme is headquartered in Winston-Salem...so we have a lot of stores in this area. Most of them have a window into the kitchen so you can see the doughnuts being made & glazed. Their trademark is the "Hot & Now" doughnuts...which are absolutely to die for. They melt in your mouth. So, while we were watching the doughnuts travel down the assembly line...fried...shuttled up on to a belt...glazed...and on around to be packaged...we noticed that the conveyor belt ended...at a trash can. We watched an *overjoyed* (not TREMENDOUS) sarcasm take some of the doughnuts off the belt toward the end and put them on a tray...but then she walked away...and we began to wonder what was going to happen to the doughnuts when they reached the end...and the big trash can. Ashley was APPALLED to see doughnut after doughnut fall off the conveyor belt...and in to the trash can! It truly was amazing to see the waste...and we are all now wondering WHY these doughnuts didn't make the cut...and does that happen often??? Life's little mysteries...

We also celebrated Christmas...yes we realize we are almost 2 months late...but we are very busy people and this was literally the first time we could get together to do Christmas!

Sunday was an AWESOME day...Church was incredible...then Dylan spent some time at Seth's house...I went to Kohls, Target & Wal-Mart...came home to catch up with my DVR. It was GREAT!

In the afternoon, Dylan called to ask me to bring him some suitable "Nerf war" clothing...and I was on my way back to the church to drop the clothing off...and I began to think about our services on Sunday...and my own story of how God has so richly blessed me...

You see, Sunday morning we heard from three of the seven students who gave their lives to Christ over the weekend we were in DC. And I was so thankful to be a part of both the weekend in DC and the service yesterday (I do our Children's Church every other month...this is my month off). Each was baptized and we just celebrated these decisions Sunday morning.

And not only was I thankful for that, I was thankful for all that God has given me...my son...my parents...my family...my friends...

I began to cry and just thank God for all this. Because I know that if God never gives me anything else in my life, I'm FULL. That's the only word I could use to describe how I felt yesterday - FULL!

This feeling doesn't take away my desire to meet someone, get married and have more children (hopefully).

But, it does make me content.

And I think that's what I need for now...to be content.

That full-ness has poured over into today...

And I couldn't be happier to be alive...to be able to enjoy this sunshiney, spring day...and to know that I have a God who loves me...and continues to bless my life.

Happy Monday...I hope yours is as good as mine has been so far! :)

Beautiful Friday!

2011-02-18T09:27:00.000-05:00

Today is gonna be a beautiful Friday here in NC. Forecasted temps of 73 = breaking out the flip flops! :) I know this is short lived and we will probably get snow next week...but I'm going to enjoy this beautiful weather while it lasts!

*BTW for my other NC blog friends...I haven't heard of snow in the forecast next week...it's just how the NC weather rolls...you know what I'm talking about! ;)

So, it's time for another edition of Five Question Friday, brought to you by Mama M! :) Head on over, grab the questions & link up! You know you want to!

1. Have you worn the same outfit more than one day in a row?

I honestly can't remember a time when I've worn the same outfit more than one day in a row. Except maybe a work uniform, but I don't think that counts. Even when I'm sick, I must change clothes...no matter how bad I feel. Fresh clothes make you feel just a little bit better.

2. If you had to choose any LARGE city to live in, which would it be?

I can't say that I would ever want to live in a LARGE city. Let's face it people...I can't go to Wal-Mart on a Saturday after 9am...I don't think being herded through city streets would work for me.

Actually, now that I think about it...Orlando is not so bad. It's a pretty large city but it doesn't feel as large as it is. I'm sure there are the sketchy parts...but Dylan's grandparents live just minutes from downtown and, other than the skyline, you wouldn't really know you were that close. So, I guess I could choose Orlando.

3. Fly or drive with the kids on vacation?

Either is fine by me. Dylan started flying when he was about 10 months old. I don't really like to be in a car more than about 4 or 5 hours myself...so flying works for me. But I don't remember any negative car trips with Dylan. We drove to Orlando once when he was about 3...Dylan wasn't a problem...but a sleep deprived driver was scary...

4. What is your idea of "spring cleaning"?

I don't really do much "spring cleaning"...I guess for me that would just be going through the junk I've accumulated over the past year...cleaning my car...cleaning the outside of my house, which desperately needs to be powerwashed.

5. What is the best book you have ever read?

hmmm...that's tough for me. I'm such an avid reader and read a lot of books that it's hard for me to chose just one. I really enjoyed The Shack...I loved the portrayal of God in this book. At Christmas, I read The Christmas Box by Richard Paul Evans...which was such a great reminder of what Christmas is really all about. That one impacted me greatly.

Hope you have a Happy Friday...and hope that it's as lovely a day for you as it will be for me, wherever you are! :)

A few of my favorite things...movie edition

2011-02-17T07:00:00.020-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, when I was sick...I basically laid in bed or on the couch and watched TV.

All.day.long.

And sometimes all night long...

At some point during my illness, I was flipping through the channels, only to find one of my all time favorite movies on...

I love this movie. I have seen it a bazillion times. And although while I was sick, I didn't quite enjoy it to it's fullest (to be quite honest, I probably slept through a good bit of it), it was so nice & comforting to find a personal "classic" on to watch while I was ailing.

And it got me to thinking that there are certain movies that I will ALWAYS watch if I find them on...so, I thought I would share those with you.

I know you are overjoyed! :)

#1 - Ferris Bueller's Day Off - I know I already mentioned above my love for this movie, but I selected a good round 10 movies...so I can't leave it off the list. I love everything about this movie...I love that Ferris' illness is blown so far out of proportion that people are collecting money, sending flowers, printing messages on the local water tower, running newspaper articles...you get the idea. And just the coolness of the whole day...spending the day in Chicago...seeing the sites...being the lead person in a parade...driving a super hawt car...going to a baseball game and catching the pop fly ball. It's a charmed life that Ferris Bueller leads. And just when you think the "jig is up", his sworn enemy - his own sister (Jennifer Grey pre-Dirty Dancing) saves him from being kept back in high school an additional year by everyone's enemy...the school principal. This movie is just CLASSIC!

#2 - Sixteen Candles

Another John Hughes classic. Really, what girl didn't feel like Sam in high school...the middle of the road girl - not popular...not a true "nerd"...in love with the most popular guy in high school who didn't even know she existed...

only in this movie Samantha Baker ended up with Jake Ryan...

Jake Ryan

*swoon*

:)

#3 - When Harry Met Sally

A great Meg Ryan flick about the "rules" of love & dating...and how two old friends end up falling in love.

#4 - You've Got Mail

I always appreciated the Meg Ryan / Tom Hanks combo. I loved Sleepless in Seattle, but I wanted to see MORE of Meg & Tom's characters together. I guess that wasn't the story line, though. This is just a fun, feel good movie...and it cracks me up that the movie's not that old...but the dial up, AOL connection, chat room references are already so outdated.

#5 - Wizard of Oz

Well, really...what needs to be said about this one? A true movie classic.

I remember when this (& my next movie) would come on once a year...seems like they always aired it on a Sunday night...and it was one of those select times that my mom would allow me to stay up past my bed time to watch this movie in its entirety. I actually own this on DVD (bought it at a yardsale for $1!!!), but I've never watched it from the DVD. It's just better seeing in on TV. I can't explain this!

#6 - The Sound of Music

Another classic...this year, in honor of the 45th Anniversary, they showed this movie in Sing-A-Long format at a local theater...it was great because they actually put the words to the songs on the screen! Awesomeness. My BFF & I went and sang along with about 12 other people in the theater.

Isn't it sad that there were so few people there???

#7 - Clueless

I just love this movie...I don't have to justify it to you people! :)

#8 - Chasing Liberty

I'm not really sure what the appeal is for me in this movie...I just think it's cute and fun.

#9 - The Holiday

This is one of my newer favorite movies. I don't remember this being released...I'm sure it was. I just don't see too many trailers. But my parents bought the DVD, watched it and told me how much they liked it. I wasn't sure...the only movie I'd seen with Kate Winslet was Titanic...so, I wasn't sure. Not that her being in Titanic was a strike against the movie...or that Titanic was a bad movie. Anyway, I borrowed this and it has become one of my favorite movies. I just watched it (read: slept through it) on Sunday night.

And I didn't sleep through it because it's boring...I was really tired Sunday night...

#10 - 27 Dresses

This is also a "newer" favorite. Loved all the dresses...so hideously funny.

So, those are a few of my all time favorite movies...hope you enjoyed this little bit of insight into my movie watching habits! :)

Wordless Wednesday - Washington, DC

2011-02-16T08:15:00.000-05:00

Happy Wednesday! :)

I'm ba-ack!!!

2011-02-15T22:41:00.000-05:00

Well, I made it back from DC all safe and sound. All in all a good weekend...full of fun and short on sleep! :) A typical Youth trip...

I'm a little slack in sharing my DC adventures...mostly because I didn't get home on Sunday until 7ish...and was in my bed at 8:30pm. I watched a movie that was on TV...OK, so I dozed through a movie that was on TV and turned in around 10ish. Monday was busy and when I got home, I really just didn't want to do anything but lay on the couch...and sleep some more. Tonight, Mom & Dad invited us to go to the movies with them (they typically go every Tuesday) to see the Narnia movie. We have a local theater that has $1 movies all the time and on Tuesday, popcorn & drinks are $1 each! So for $6, D & I got into the movie, each had a small popcorn and a small drink. Awesomeness! Mom said she won't go in the summer...it tends to get very crowded. But tonight there was hardly anyone there. The theater typically shows older movies...I tease Mom that they are usually movies just about to be released on DVD...but it's nice to have the "theater" experience.

So, I spent Friday night & all day Saturday at a Dare 2 Share conference. Our Youth attended this conference in November of 2008 and it was amazing. The Dare 2 Share organization is committed to teaching students to share their faith with their friends in an easy & relational way. Through an easy acronym - GOSPEL - the students (and adults!) have a guideline for telling their friends about Jesus and how to become a Christian...

G - God created us to be with him.

O - Our sin separates us from God.

S - Sins cannot be redeemed by good deeds.

P - Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again.

E - Everyone who trusts in Him alone has eternal life.

L - Life with Jesus starts now & lasts forever.

We had an awesome time...had 7 students give their lives to Christ...witnessed students being bold about sharing their faith with their friends, as well as complete strangers...and saw our Youth group grow in unity as a group.

And we also had our "Youth" moments. Saturday night we were driving around DC trying to get to the Lincoln Memorial...all of the sudden I hear "Oh my gosh...that hobo is peeing on the street". Yeah...that dominated conversation for about 10 minutes.

Since our main purpose was the conference, we didn't actually get to see much of DC. But we did see the Washington Monument, the White House (as close as we could possibly get) and the Lincoln Memorial. Unfortunately, we saw all of this at night...and furthermore my crazy camera wasn't working well...so I got a few pix, but they are all with my phone. I plan to share those tomorrow for "Wordless Wednesday".

So, all in all, a great weekend with a great group of kids. Now, if I can just get caught up on my sleep...yeah, I know...good luck with that! :)

Friday! :)

2011-02-11T07:49:00.001-05:00

Well, Friday is here and I really have so much to do right now...but I don't want to do it! I need to clean house because we are leaving this afternoon to go to DC! I don't know how much of DC I'll actually get to see - I'm chaperoning our Youth trip to a conference in DC...so, I don't know that we will get to the city. We went to a similar conference in 2008 and we took time on the Sunday to site see. But, it's looking like we are planning to be back early on Sunday...so I don't know that we will do the site seeing again. We shall see...

Anyway, I need to get moving...but sitting on the couch, surfing the net is so much more appeal.

*sigh*

I guess I'll get up and be responsible...

But not until I finish my Five Question Friday post!!! :)

If you'd like to play along, you can visit Mama M, copy the questions & link up!

1. Would you rather be on ABC's Extreme Home MakeOver or TLC's What not to Wear?

This is quite a quandary for me. I *hope* I don't need to be on What Not to Wear...but I'd love for someone to give me $5,000.00 and some tips to use clothing to my benefit. On the other hand, if someone could take my little house and make it amazing...that'd be cool too. Although, I guess I could actually be ON Extreme Home MakeOver and not be having MY house re-done...the show actually filmed close to us a couple of years ago and they will sign up volunteers to work on the project throughout the week. I actually had a friend who was a worker! I think I could definitely do that. :)

2. Do you have any tattoos?

Not yet...but there are 2 that I want. The first is a daisy on my toe. Growing up, every summer we went to camp and we would sing the song "Daisy on my toe". Can I be honest & tell you I didn't realize until much later (like maybe when I was an adult) that this song was about a tattoo?? Can I also tell you that I learned this song at a church camp? That cracks me up. Anyway, my BFF & I want to get this tattoo "on the second toe of my left foot"...and it will "have no stem" it will "have no root...'cause that wouldn't look good". However, I'm a little leary of the tattoo on my toe because I'm afraid it will really hurt. Because that's what people have told me. And I'm a little squeamish of needles...and my BFF is even MORE squeamish than I am. We've been talking about this about 2 years or more...so maybe it will happen this summer.

But probably not... :)

The other I want is in the shape of a charm I have for a necklace...it's a heart, with the sign of the fish inside and a cross. I just don't know where I'd put this one...

This is a VERY rough drawing of what I want.

3. Do you tell your kids about things you did growing up?

All.the.time. Ad nauseum. Just last night I gave him a story about a youth trip we went on where a guy decided to stay out all night the last night we were at camp. Part of his "punishment" was that he could not go to sleep on the way home (a 6 hr drive) and he was told that if he started falling asleep then they would stop the van and make him walk around the van until he was awake enough for the next stretch.

Of course, this was in response to Dylan staying up after bed time on Wednesday night.

Boy do I know how to beat a dead horse...if I asked Dylan if he was overly tired yesterday once, I asked him a hundred times.

Fun times! :)

4. If the traffic signal turns yellow, do you stop or speed up?

Depends on how close I am. If I think I can make the light, I speed up.

5. What's your preference: chocolate or chips?

Chips...but I only like "flavored" chips, unless I have dip...then I can eat plain chips!

Alrighty...I'm off to clean the house and then to DC! Have a great weekend...see you Sunday afternoon! :)

Superbowl Thoughts...

2011-02-07T13:41:00.001-05:00

I'm ba-aa-cckk! :)

If you had asked me on Friday or Saturday if I'd make it to work today, I would've said no way...no how. Normally my sicknesses last 1 to 2 days. I'm in bed for a day...and by the next day I might not feel 100% but I feel well enough to go back to work. But this thing knocked me out of the world for 4 days. Yesterday was the first day that I felt somewhat human...

Thanks for all the well-wishes. I'm thankful to be back in the world today! :)

Now...my thoughts on the Superbowl. As I have explained, I am not a huge sports fan...at all. I do tend to get wrapped into the major events, like the Superbowl & World Series. I don't do basketball at all...mostly because Dylan doesn't. Basically my sports interests follow whatever my son decides is his interest! :)

With that being said, I do not wish to argue or discuss sports strategy, etc. These are just my thoughts on what I ~~barely~~ observed while watching the Superbowl. Please keep in mind that last year during the Superbowl I read a book...this year, I worked a jigsaw puzzle. So, my interest wasn't completely in to the game.

Also, Dylan was pulling for the Steelers...he was disappointed...

- I liked Lea Michele's rendition of God Bless America...it wasn't too over the top. I was really surprised to find out that the Glee cast actually sing their own stuff...I'm a newer Glee watcher. I wouldn't go with "fan" just yet...the musical numbers interest me. The story line, or lack thereof, does not.

- Christina Aguilera - mad props to her for singing The Star Spangled Banner acapella. And I appreciate that she didn't over try the higher parts. I realize she messed up the words...and I can forgive her for that because I have a feeling nerves played into that heavily. I'm not a Aguilera fan, at all...but I can appreciate her effort with the National Anthem.

- For a while, I wondered if the Steelers were ever going to show up...they appeared to be missing from the game.

- The person in charge of sound for The Black Eyed Peas really should be fired. That was horrible. I understand that the first guy needed to be loud when he was by himself...but when the rest of the group was singing, it would be better if he blended a bit more. Same goes with Fergie. Quite honestly, I don't know if her mic kept cutting out...or if it was just where she moved around so much...but it sounded like she didn't really know the words and that she was just singing the ones she knew.

- I really hated Fergie singing Sweet Child of Mine.

- What was Usher's purpose in being there?

- Is it just me, or do The Black Eyed Peas not have enough of their own music to be able to carry the entire five minute half time show without having to sing everyone else's music? Seemed odd to me...

- The field show was pretty cool, I must admit.

- It appeared to me that the Steelers played a good bit of the game in "desperation" mode...

- Seems like I remember a time when the Superbowl commercials were the best of the year...there were some good ones, but I wouldn't say they were incredible. And another thing, it used to be that the commercials were not unvieled until the Superbowl...I actually saw repeat commercials last night. So sad...

- Glee was pretty good...loved the Thriller half time show. I'd love to see that re-created on a high school football field near me! :)

Hope you enjoyed your Superbowl experience. I, for one, got a good deal done on my jigsaw puzzle.

Yes...somewhere in my 34 year old person is a 75 year old woman who loves a good jigsaw puzzle. Don't judge.

:)

Sick...sick...sick

2011-02-04T13:04:00.000-05:00

Normally I would be thrilled to know that it's Friday.

Today if I felt well enough to go to work, that would've thrilled me.

My nose is stuffy...

My ears hurt...

I have coughed my head off...

My throat hurts...

I haven't slept well in three nights...

And to top it off, Dylan is sick too.

We are quite pitiful.

Hope to be back among the living soon...

Really soon...

Wordless Wednesday

2011-02-02T07:00:00.004-05:00

Preview of the pix Dylan & I had made on Sunday...

I cannot wait to see the rest! :)

Happy Wednesday!!!

Some blogging advice needed...UPDATED

2011-02-01T21:29:00.001-05:00

I'm dabbling in the world of blog design...dabbling, meaning learning by a lot of trial and error.

So...a while back, I thought I'd be cool...download a nice blogger template that I found online...and voila - you have my current blog design.

But as is the case with many things in my life (furniture arrangement, handbags, shoes, hairstyles), I like to change quite often and now I don't know how to un-do the once super cute to me template so that I can possibly use one of the handy dandy templates that blogger now offers. And add a little customization. Still working on learning how to do that...

So...if anyone knows how I can get rid of this downloaded template...and return to any kind of Blogger template, I would be forever grateful if you would share this with me.

And I know I copied some stuff into the HTML watch-a-ma-call-it...but I don't know if I can just delete all of that or what? I guess I could use my trial & error method...so if I disappear...please let me know.

Although that could be difficult, I guess...

HELP!

CRISIS TEMPORARILY AVOIDED...Have I ever mentioned that I'm not a very patient person?

Things "He" Should Know

2011-02-01T14:18:00.000-05:00

Every new year brings the same hopes and dreams...hopes for a bigger bank account...hopes for losing weight...and the ultimate hope & dream of *most* single girls...that this will be the year that I can kiss this single life goodbye and meet "that guy"...the one that makes my heart pitter patter...Prince Charming...etc., etc., etc.

You get the picture.

And this got me to thinking about other people I know who have fulfilled that dream in their own lives and I wonder if there are things they wish they knew about the other person BEFORE they got married and lived somewhat happily ever after.

For example, I wonder if my brother-in-law would've appreciated knowing about my sister's love of watching Nick at Night re-runs, including her all time fav Full House...and occasionally The Nanny. It probably wouldn't have kept him from marrying her...but still it would be nice to know.

So, I've come up with a list of things that I think my potential hubby should know about me...things that are not "deal breakers" in love & marriage, but things that would be "nice to know". I would even consider printing this list for all first dates that I may or may not have in 2011...ok, I'm not that brave...maybe a 2nd or 3rd date. OK, I'll be honest...I *might* let him see this list when we've been married for a couple of years.

#1 - I'm left handed. No - I don't consider this a disability or anything...but people (and I mean ALL people) need to understand that we left handers look at life just a bit differently. For instance, in cutting a loaf of bread, I have been known to turn the entire loaf around trying to figure out how to go about cutting off a piece of the loaf. Trust me...I have witnesses. I also think this is one reason that I can't easily tell left from right. Seriously. It takes me a minute to figure out which side is left & which is right...and it's usually determined by me trying to find the "bump" on my left middle finger that is caused by writing with my left hand.

#2 - Yes, I am a girl...but that does not render me stupid. I CAN program a DVR and also am quite capable of setting up a TV & DVD player. I also know how to use these devices quite well. I also know how to check the oil in my car, replace my windshield wipers, replace the bulb in my headlights and/or tail lights and once upon a time I removed the door from my dryer and turned it around so it would work better in my laundry room/closet. I also work for a construction company in which not one man seems to be capable of hauling large bags of trash to the dumpster or carrying heavy computers up stairs. However, this "tough" persona that I attempt to maintain does not mean that I won't burst out in tears with no explanation. Remember, I am a girl.

#3 - I do not watch cartoons because I have a kid...rather my kid watches classic cartoons such as Scooby Doo, The Jetsons, and The Flintstones because I have taught him the value of these great cartoons. We also watch Spongebob quite often. I may or may not even watch these when he's not at home.

#4 - I have a great love of syndicated shows, such as The Cosby Show, Gilmore Girls, Laverne & Shirley, I Dream of Jeanie and the NC classic, Andy Griffith Show. I will watch any of these shows at any given time. I also recently found a channel that airs The Monkees. I was beyond excited.

#5 - It would be very wise to NOT keep me from my morning coffee. I'll refer you to Dylan on that one.

#6 - I also value and appreciate my sleep...especially on a Saturday morning. Again, I'll let Dylan speak for my love of sleep...and what happens when you interrupt this sleep...no matter how good your intentions are in not waking me up. It's not pretty.

#7 - Some people may say that I have a tendency to over-react or over-dramatize things. I call this being "spirited". I may or may not have thrown a brownie across a room once because a friend was being annoying. He may or may not have deserved to have said brownie smashed in his face.

#8 - I tend to act silly...I do silly things...I say silly things. I like to make people laugh...sometimes I say something that isn't even supposed to be funny...and people laugh. If I know someone is in a rotten mood - namely my son - I am not above putting on a pair of heart shaped sunglasses to pick up his mood. I can prove it...I have pictures.

#9 - My family is top priority to me. I love spending time with my son...some of our best times are when we are just hanging out around the house, laughing, cutting up, being silly. :) I actually enjoy spending time with my parents...and so does Dylan. I love visiting with my sister and brother-in-law. And I love, love, love my niece and nephew. Other than Dylan, they are two of the greatest blessings in my life.

#10 - While this list may say otherwise, I am not a complicated person. I really love the simple things...I don't need much to make me happy. I look at my life and the line from You've Got Mail describes my life to a "T" (in my opinion) - I lead a small life - well, valuable, but small. I truly believe that there is value in the small & simple things that make up my life.

These are things that I think are important for "him" to know. There are probably others I could list, but I would say these rank in the top 10 of things that people, especially "that guy", should know about me. Wish me luck! :)

Monday, Monday...

2011-01-31T12:35:00.000-05:00

You know what's the worst part of a weekend "Spring Tease" in January? We somehow forget that this is a temporary thing that is sure to go away as quickly as it came. This weekend was absolutely beautiful. Saturday was bright, sunny and the warmest day of January (until Sunday came along)...55ish. Sunday was even more beautiful with a high of 58. On the up side, it was a great day for having outdoor pix made! :) On the down side, it did not prepare us for Monday...which dawned gray and much cooler...with a predicted high of 40.

I did not do my "week in review" which I've decided to abandon. Mostly because I realized why I couldn't remember what I did in 2010...I do nothing. Ok, not nothing...but not so much that it's worthy of writing a weekly blog post. Anyway, if I do something that's fun or exciting, there's a good chance that I'm going to commit it to the blog anyway. So, I don't think I want to repeat myself every Saturday. So, for now...unless I just have a week of non-blogging that I need to recap for you (or myself as the case may be)...I will not be doing a week in review.

I know you are sad.

Also, if you read my Friday post...I teased that I *might* write a funny post for today...that didn't happen over the weekend either. So, maybe tonight or tomorrow I'll get around to that. I just hope you find it as funny as it sounds in my head! :)

And if you are wondering, which I know you have to be, I took notes on this one...so I didn't try to commit the entire post to memory before putting it down on paper...errr computer screen.

My Monday is not too terrible so far...the sunny, Spring like weekend helped to boost my spirits for the week ahead. Which I desperately needed...

And in 11 days, I'll be leaving to chaperone our Youth trip to DC! THAT is something I'm excited about and looking forward to.

So, happy Monday so far...hope your's isn't too terribly horrible either.

Finally Friday

2011-01-28T13:58:00.000-05:00

Can I just tell you how thankful I am that it's Friday? And moreover I'm thankful that I don't have to be anywhere tomorrow at any certain time so I can SLEEP IN! Of course, that means I'll be up bright and early...but I'm going to try my hardest to at least lay in bed for a while...even if I do wake up early!

I know I've been quite depressing...the NC weather has been depressing this week...I sometimes wonder if I have seasonal affective disorder...and I'm not even being funny about that. The dreary weather kills me...I need more sunshine than gray clouds. Thankfully, the sun finally came out yesterday...and it's back today...and promises to be here all weekend! Plus it's going to warm up...is it sad that I'm excited about seeing the 50 degree mark?

Plus...I'm super excited about Sunday. Finally, it looks like Dylan & I will be able to have our pics done! I'm super stoked. Leah (our photographer) did a session with my sister's family last weekend...OH. MY. GOODNESS. I'm in love...

See why I'm so excited???? Leah is amazing!

And if sunshine and warmer temps are not enough to make my moods lift, I'm hoping to write a post for Monday that will surely make you smile. A more hopeful post...we shall see what happens over the weekend! :)

And now...I love Mama M's 5 Question Friday...always the best questions. I know this has to be hard work pulling this all together, but I appreciate her dedication to this meme!

1. If you had $1,000 to donate to a charity, which would you choose?

That'd be really tough...there are so many great charities to choose from. Ronald McDonald, Susan G Komen, our local pregnancy crisis center...it'd be really tough to choose. Most likely if I had that opportunity, it would take me a bit to make a decision.

2. Snow days: Do you welcome them happily or are they a pain in your butt?

I *heart* snow days...I did as a child...I do now as an adult. Just a day, most often unplanned, to be at home in warm PJ's with maybe a quick trip out in the snow...awesomeness...love them.

Having to go back to work once the roads are clear and the snow is still on the ground is a pain in the butt though...

And our kids losing out on days "off" is kind of sad...

3. What talent did you wish you had and why?

Well, forever and always, I wish I knew how to play the piano. I'm hoping one day to have the time and money to put towards this dream...we shall see...

4. Are you a news, politics or celebrity gossip junkie?

I don't watch the news...it's depressing...

I don't get into politics...I don't even want to go there...

Celebrity gossip...that'd be my choice of the three...although I would call myself a "junkie" per se. Although, one of the main reasons I love going to get my hair cut is that I have the opportunity to catch up on reading People Magazine. I love People...

5. What is your favorite "cocktail"? (Are you a beer person, a kiddie cocktail junkie, or perhaps your more the "Cosmo" kind?! Anything flies...doesn't hafta be alcoholic!)

Well, I'm not a drinker. So, I don't have a favorite...but I have had some Cheerwine punch that was fabulous.

And for those wondering what "Cheerwine" is...check out their website. You can't find it everywhere. But I'm blessed to live in a state that does sell it! :)

Have a great weekend!

Winter Doldrums

2011-01-25T12:59:00.000-05:00

I swear...I had no idea I hated January as much as I do until I needed something to write about. And I began to think back and realized just how much every January just seems to drag by. Don't get me wrong...my sis' bday & my nieces bday both occur in this month...but I think my sister would most likely agree that this is one of the worst months - for sanity, for emotion, and yes, even birthdays. Many a birthday would find NC covered in ice (no snow back then...you know global warming and all)...which would inevitably either cancel a birthday celebration but in some cases, it would extend a birthday celebration...since the birthday sleep over attendees could not get home!

Whatever the case may be, I am ready for January to be over.

It's cold.

It's gray.

Our weather forecasters forecast snow...and then change their minds and say it's gonna rain.

I have no money.

I have no where to go (not in the depressing "I'm at the end of my rope kind of way", but in the literal sense).

I get cold at night and go to bed hoping my feet will eventually warm up.

oh, my...I'm depressing!

But, unless it's going to snow, I'm done with winter. I'm ready for warm sunshine-y days...flip flops...windows down...music loud kind of days. I'm ready for the winter doldrums to be behind me.

Again, if it choses to snow, all bets are off and the winter doldrums will be forgotten.

There's no reason for cold, gray days unless it snows.

At least in my little world.

Week In Review

2011-01-23T14:35:00.000-05:00

Today, I'm in such a lazy mood...I don't really wanna do this, but I'm gonna make myself.

And if you knew how many typos I've already corrected, you'd probably tell me to give up!

Anyway, this is my week in review...yeah, I was supposed to do this yesterday...give me a break!

Last Saturday was Aly's bday party...just like a 7 yr old's bday party. This was the first party where she had school friends over...I could've stayed home! :) She was all about being with her friends that I'm not sure she really knew who else was there! But, of course I loved being there and visiting and playing with Ayden! :)

Sunday was church day...love church day. This is my month in Children's Worship...although we spent a good bit of time in the regular worship service for music and a baptism. But, it was still a good morning! Then Dylan spent the afternoon with Seth...and then later that day, he went back to the church...for Nerf wars. Our Worship Pastor (who lives next door to the church) has started an "unofficial" weekly "Nerf war" event for his son (who's 9 or 10), Dylan & Seth, Zac, and a couple of guys who attend our church from the Rescue Mission. And when I say, "war", I mean they are all dressed in black, in the dark and skulking around trying to sneak up on each other. While they were attacking each other with Nerf darts, my eyes began to get irritated. By 9:30, my eyes had a nice gunky film on them...which impaired my vision...which of course, I didn't realize until I left to go pick up Dylan. Thank goodness, I didn't have to go to far and I know the way pretty well...because things were a bit fuzzy!

Monday was a "blue" day...I wrote about it earlier this week. It kind of set the stage for the whole week. And the week just dragged on and on and on. Work was slow...as it often is in January/February. We didn't have much going on in the evenings...and we finally got to the weekend!

Friday night I went to a Mary Kay party with Ashley...Saturday I kept Ayden while Missy & Zach took Alyson to cheer at a basketball game. Then I took Dylan to my parents to help with the living room project. I cleaned the house - dust, clean bathrooms, vacuum, mop. My house is sparkling today! The rest of the day was just kind of lazing around until I couldn't keep my eyes open anymore!

Today was church again...another great morning in Children's Worship...and now I'm tucked in under my heated throw blanket watching You've Got Mail. I watched it last night before I went to sleep...and have realized that I slept through a good bit of the movie last night! :) I'm seeing parts that I didn't see last night!

We are due for another snow this week...possibly...we shall see. It's always a crap shoot here in NC. Trust me, I remember many 100% snow chances where we got nothing. But, they are saying this is shaping up to be similar to the Christmas snow...but more moisture in the atmosphere than our last snow/ice event. Somehow, though, we missed a snow storm yesterday that actually hit our beaches! Yes...on the coast of NC, they were treated to 3-6 inches of snow...which is so strange! I'm sure the kids that live in that area are loving it because I don't know that they get much snow ever!

I'm hoping this week will be a little more "uplifting" and not so blue! Next Sunday, we go to get pix made...I'm so excited! My sister & her family went yesterday...and I've already seen two of the pix...AMAZING! Can't wait to share them with y'all!

Have a good week!

Five Question Friday! :)

2011-01-21T08:39:00.000-05:00

I hope you enjoyed my late night post from VERY early this morning. I can't say that my late night didn't have its effect on me...dragging myself out of bed was difficult...but I made it all better with a Grande Non-Fat White Chocolate Mocha from Starbucks...and yes, I DO want the whip on that. I trade my fats out.

Anyway, I love Fridays because it's the end of the work week...tonight I'm going to a friends for a Mary Kay facial (I'm super excited since I've never had a facial before!)...and I have next to nothing planned for the weekend. Oh, wait...I have nothing planned for the weekend! I probably should at some point clean my house...specifically the kitchen & bathroom floors...but we shall see. I promise nothing.

I also love Fridays because of Five Question Friday, brought to you my Mama M! It's easy...simple...and I don't have to think too much. So, if you want to play along, go on over, grab the questions & link up!

1. Where did you meet your spouse and did you instantly know it was love?

Well, I'm out on this one...maybe, hopefully, one day I can share this story with you...but since it hasn't happend yet, you'll have to wait to hear it. I mean, I've been waiting a looooonnnnnggggg time...so the little bit of time you possibly have to wait isn't that much.

Hopefully.

Fingers crossed...prayers lifted!

2. What is your favorite room in your house?

No question - my bedroom. My bed is comfy & cozy. The color is sage green. It's all mine.

I thought I had a pic on my work computer or phone...but it's a no-go.

3. Can you wiggle your ears?

Sort of...

I had to try it out...

4. What is your evening ritual?

Well, usually I get home, fix dinner, clean up (or make Dylan clean up), do laundry if need be, watch a lot of TV, go to bed, read and/or watch Gilmore Girls until I fall asleep.

Obviously my evening ritual did not work last night...

5. How many hours of sleep do you need to function?

I prefer at least 6. That's my goal each night. Usually I get close to 7, which is even better. I can tell you that 4 or 5 is not enough...
Well, today should be a pretty hum drum day...just like the rest of my week has been. Both of my bosses are out today, which means that the office is quiet. Hmm...lack of sleep...quiet office...do not disturb! :)

Hope you have a happy Friday & a great weekend!

It's late

2011-01-21T00:55:00.000-05:00

I missed my "prime-going-to-sleep-time"...so now it's after 12:30 and I'm still awake.

:(

So...you get to see my late night rambling.

Lucky you.

:)

Today, I sent my BFF Ash an e-mail...part of her response said "I can always tell when you're in a 'venting' kinda mood because you begin to number things."

This was probably more noticeable because I've been in a "venting kinda mood" a lot here lately...and I realized she's right. When I vent, I make lists. I have no idea why.

Although, I like to make lists a lot...

Sometimes the list contains important things...like something that's troubling me or the fact that I'm in a snarky mood or that I'm feeling quite shallow...

And then sometimes the list contains things like "I bought 27 Dresses after Christmas and we need to watch it some time" because that's one of our fav movies...

Or the list contains this very important nugget: "I wish that Jersey Shore came on earlier and not on a Thursday so that we could get together and watch it."

Yes...I'm a Shore watcher.

Don't judge.

Hopefully sleep's going to come soon...I hate lying awake with nothing to do but think and worry and over analyze my entire life...because it just leads to more not sleeping.

*sigh*

BTW - are any of my blog friends watchers of the now obviously cancelled show Life Unexpected? 'Cause I watched the "season" finale aka the series finale...and was very confused. I read somewhere that the CW caused the writer to change the direction of Season 2. Hmmm...maybe the networks don't always know what's best...you think?

And I'm only half way through Tuesday's Parenthood...I'm loving this show but it always makes me cry...

My other current favorite show is Hawaii 5-0. Love it. It's the bomb-diggity. One weekend Dylan & I came across the original series...not even close to the current show.

And we want the table that they have....it's like a big computer...you can type on the tabletop and then swoop it up on a TV/monitor on the wall...

I have to have one of these...too cool...

Of course, I don't plan to use it to look up criminals and gang leaders and review medical examiner pix of dead people.

But, I still think I could make pretty good use of this table.

These are my late night thoughts when I'm trying not to dwell on everything and waiting to be tired enough to fall asleep.

I'm going to play Mahjong tiles or solitaire or something until I fall asleep...

Almost Wordless Wednesday...

2011-01-19T09:40:00.002-05:00

Saturday was Aly's bday...and of course, that meant I went home with a goody bag...

And...Dylan had to try them on too...

Happy Wednesday! :)

Blue Monday...

2011-01-17T13:02:00.000-05:00

Until this year, I've never heard of "Blue Monday"...but evidently today is that day. The saddest day of the year. I've always disliked January in general...I truly believe it's because December is SUCH a big month with so much crammed into it...fun stuff, family stuff, friend stuff, church stuff...that when you come off the "Christmas High", you fall into January. In NC the grass is brown, there are no leaves on the trees, there is often cold, cold rain...and if not cold rain, then snow...which is OK, except when it's accompanied by it's friend ICE. Or when ICE comes alone. It seems there are more cloudy days than sunny days and, of course, I have no money...whatsoever. It's an "Eeyore" of a month.

See...Blue Monday, huh?

Of course, it didn't help that I woke up at 3:30am with my eyes matted shut.

'Cause...yep, you guessed it! My friend Pink Eye has returned. My own fault this time...I'd rather not go into it other than to say - I've learned my lesson.

The nightmare that I had sometime between 3:30 & 6:00am didn't help either.

So, yeah...I'm buying this Blue Monday stuff.

I'm trying to focus on the silver linings of the day:
- that the doctor's office didn't make me come in to be seen for the recurring pink eye...the first nurse I spoke to said I most likely would...which of course, made me so overjoyed knowing that we are knee deep into flu season
- that the meds the doctor called in are NOT the $60 prescription that they called in the last time...these are $10 *sigh of relief*
- that when I reconciled my checkbook, it looks like January will be tight...but February's looking up
- that I've secured February 11th off to chaperone our Youth trip to Washington DC
- that I got a lot of stuff "purged" over the weekend...you have no idea how happy this makes me!

Although...this poor item is most likely not going to make the cut...and will be purged to my local Goodwill...

As you can see, this bag has seen it's better days. I bought it at Cracker Barrel on clearance ages ago. I loved the colors...and the "thatched" looking bottom. For a couple of years, this bag toted my "workout gear" while I still had my Curves membership. Probably, I shouldn't have ever stopped carrying this bag.

But as I was cleaning, I set this bag out of the closet where it was hanging...holding some of those receipts from 2008. Then I moved it further out in my bedroom...closer to the door. And right now it's very close to the door.

But, other than the dirt...it still has a good number of years left on it.

So...it's hard to send it off.

We'll see....

Here's to Blue Monday...hoping it won't return until next January...

Eleven in '11 Update

2011-01-16T14:00:00.007-05:00

So, how's my "Eleven in '11" going so far??? Or my "Thirteen in '11", if you prefer...

Let's see...

1. Paint my bathroom - I've been wanting to do this since shortly after I moved. I have yet to decide on a color, but I would like to commit to doing this this year.

No progress on this as of yet...but I do have a color swatch sitting in my bathroom...I'm trying to decide if it's a good color or not...I'm leaning towards "no".

2. Have professional pics made of me & Dylan - When I was generating this list in my head, this was on the list. However, I've already taken strides to have this completed! My sister introduced me via Facebook to a photographer friend of hers. I fell in love with her pictures and in January she was offering FREE sessions. How can I pass that up? So, we are having pics done NEXT SATURDAY! I'm beyond excited!

Well, this hasn't happened yet. The lady who is to do the pictures has been sick! :( But, we are hopefully going to have this taken care of in a couple of weeks!

3. Watch Casablanca, The Godfather & Cool Hand Luke - I have been intending to watch all three of three movies for a while...and actually have The Godfather & Cool Hand Luke on my DVR. So, I'm well on my way!

Even with a lazy snow day, I have not watched any of these movies yet. But, hey...I've got 11 and 1/2 months left, right???

4. Take a trip with Dylan, somewhere - I'm hoping to repeat my September Caswell trip with my BFF's as we did last year...but I would like to take him somewhere...just us. I've already been thinking on one trip in my mind...just don't know if I'll have the $$ to do it this year! :)

Still in the hopeful planning stage...

5. Go to Boone - I didn't make it to Boone AT ALL in 2010...despite being very homesick at one point. So I WILL make a trip to Boone...once it warms up, because Boone is in the mountains. :)

Since Boone had blizzard like conditions last week (Appalachian State actually gave the students a "snow" day...which is unheard of), it's gonna be a while before this happens!

6. Begin a running/exercise program - I started Couch 2 5K this fall, but my greatest fears were not having time and the fact that it would soon be getting dark earlier - and our local park would be closing earlier. And that's exactly what happened. So, I'm hoping to get something started - something I will stick with.

No progress... *sigh*

7. Make better eating choices - I know that I need to make better choices with my eating. I can't continue eating like I do now and expect to remain healthy.

Again...no progress....this is depressing. I still have Christmas candy in the house...need to ~~finish eating that~~ get rid of that.

8. Read my Bible at least Monday-Friday - This is one of those things that I do for a while, then fall off. I allow a lot of things to get in the way of spending time reading my Bible. I want to spend less time on the computer and watching TV and invest more time in reading my Bible.

Not doing this...yet

9. Along with reading my Bible, I want to have a quiet time DAILY - Another thing that I have a hard time keeping up with - especially on Saturday's & Sunday's.

Need to work on this, too...

10. Be more diligent in watching my finances - I hate paying bills and doing my checkbook. So I tend to put it off. I usually have a good idea of what's available...but by keeping up with this better, I think this will help me to be better at spending my money and planning ahead.

I *think* I'm doing OK with this...of course, I remembered today that my vehicle property tax is due at the end of this month...so, I might not be doing as well as I had hoped.

11. Spend less time on Facebook, Blogger & Twitter while at work - I have a tendency to just "jump on" real quick anytime I need to do something on the internet that IS work related...and then I forget what I was doing for work. It has become a bad habit and I want to be a more focused employee!

HAHAHAHAHA! Yeah right...

In all seriousness, I've always found that a decrease in my workload usually results in an increase in time spent on these websites. I'm not saying that justifies it...but I think I do put my actual work first.

Still, I'd like to see myself looking for more productive ways to spend my time at work when the workload decreases.

And what about the extra two items that were inadvertantly left off??

Run a 5K - once I start my running and/or exercising program, I'll be more likely to achieve this goal for this year.

Go through the receipts/bills/statements/paperwork that needs to be filed/purged - I actually did work on this A LOT today and have a huge bag of garbage and a huge stack of papers that need to be shredded or burned! This really makes me happy!

So, I don't plan to do these updates often...maybe once a month just to see where I'm at. I know I'm only a couple of weeks into the new year...so I'm not feeling defeated yet on the items that I haven't made progress on! But, as I see every year...the months tend to fly by...so I need to get moving! :)

Week In Review

2011-01-15T20:13:00.001-05:00

Well, it's been another week...and it's time for me to review what I did for the week so I can know what happened in 2011! :)

Last Saturday ended up being more productive than I planned. Dylan went over to my parents' house to help remove fixtures from a bathroom in their old bedroom....which is now the living room! I know it sounds strange, but about 15 years ago they added a room to the house so that my great-aunt could live with them. So, it was basically a large bedroom with a bathroom and walk in closet. A few years later, she had to go to a nursing home...and she has since passed away. With Dylan & I still living with them, they moved into my great-aunt's old room and I took over their old "master" bedroom. The only thing "master" about this room is that it had a half bath attached. After we moved out, they've been working here and there to turn my old room into a "girl" room (for Aly) and Dylan's old room was going to be the boy room. Last year, Mom & Dad decided to move their bedroom into my sister's old bedroom and open my great-aunt's room into a family room. Until Dad retired, though, they didn't really have much time to work on it. And now they do.

If you kept up with all that, congrats. And to confuse things more, they are now going to move their room into the "boy" room and turn their current bedroom into the "boy" room.

Oh yeah, and their old living room is now the dining room...better used, though, as Mom's craft room...since they never eat in there anyway.

I'm tired...

Wait...I'm not even close to finishing my week in review!

Anyconfusinghouseplan, Dylan went over to their house to help out...so, I took the time to catch up on my TV shows. Then, I debated on doing housework since I had a feeling Monday and/or Tuesday would turn into a snow day...and I decided to work on Saturday so I could be lazy on the snow day. I finished off the day by having spaghetti at Mom & Dad's. I love spaghetti...but I think I overdid it when Dylan & I first moved...so he doesn't want to eat it ever.

Sunday was church...Dylan's friend Seth came for lunch and then they went over to my parents to do some little odd jobs for the afternoon. I had a little "veg" time and then went over since my sis & her family were over at Mom & Dad's. I needed to see the niece & nephew!

Monday was crazy...#1 - I was working with the hope/thought that I might have to leave early and be out on Tuesday due to predicted snow. #2 - My boss had jury duty. I honestly think it was more stressful having him sitting in jury duty with nothing to do but e-mail me via his Blackberry. At one point I told him to stop e-mailing me so I could get the stuff done that he asked me to do via e-mail. Sheesh! #3 - I spent the whole day waiting & watching for snow. By the time I got to work, only 15-20 minutes south of where I live was getting snow...and a bunch. At my office, we were getting NOTHING. Later in the morning it started snowing...but then it stopped. This off & on snow kept up until about 3pm when the snow actually set in.

I live in a very large county, geographically speaking. Population-wise, not so much. But since the county runs long North-South...and this storm was coming from the south...the southern part of our county was getting hammered by sunrise...which meant that Dylan didn't have school. A friend of mine who lives about an hour south of us got 6-7 inches of snow. We got maybe an inch...with a 1/4 of an inch of ice on top.

Ice messes EVERYTHING up.

Tuesday morning, I determined very quickly that I would not be going in. All I heard on the news was ice, ice, ice. So, I called in and lazed the day away. It was great.

Wednesday morning I decided to wait a bit before going in...mostly to allow the sun to get up and melt away some of the ice and allow all the stupid people to get out of my way before I headed to work. Of course, since I had been out on Tuesday, work was crazy trying to get caught up. We had missed "bill paying" day on Monday due to the fact that my boss was on jury duty...and we couldn't make it up on Tuesday since neither of us made it in. Plus all the other crazy-ness that results from missing a day of work. No church that night due to the ice that was remaining, since the temps were barely getting above freezing. In the shade, there was no hope for melting ice/snow.

Thursday was a fairly normal day...except that the stapler on my main copier broke and I was having trouble doing color prints. So, I didn't leave work until 6pm.

Friday was Friday. Thank goodness! Several of the guys in my office had a meeting out of town, so from 10:30 on, I was basically by myself for the rest of the day. I got so much done. :)

Unfortunately, due to the snow/ice and the cold temps, Dylan missed school all week. This was supposed to have been their exam week and then they were supposed to get Monday-Wednesday off next week. Monday is a holiday and Tuesday/Wednesday were to be teacher workdays to process exams. Well, since students haven't taken exams, this won't work. So, our school system has re-arranged the schedule for the next two weeks. Dylan is still out on Monday for the holiday, but has school Tuesday & Wednesday (he doesn't have to go Wednesday because he's exempt from his exam). Then he goes to school on the following Monday and then will be out for two days for teacher workdays to process exams.

Also, it appears that this storm has taken their entire spring break...and extended the school year to June 10th...which by law is the last day students are supposed to go to school. However, using all of these days doesn't help make up these 5 days...so I'm not sure what's going to happen in order for them to make up the days. We shall see. Hopefully he'll be out of school by July.
Today I got up early to go & get my tires rotated....spent a little early morning shopping at Target...and spent the afternoon at Aly's birthday party.

All in all, a good week. Nothing huge or earth shattering in this week...but that's OK by me!

Not sure what this week holds, yet...we shall see!

Friday!!!

2011-01-14T07:00:00.002-05:00

Shew...what a week. Monday was crazy because I was working with the thought that I most likely wouldn't be at work on Tuesday...which I didn't...which meant that Wednesday was crazy...and then there was Thursday.

Needless to say, I'm SO ready for Friday. Plus we have a busy weekend - our picture make up day is tomorrow, as well as Aly's birthday party! :)

Anyway, it's time for Five Question Friday with Mama M. If you'd like to participate, go on over, grab the questions and link up!

1. What movie could you watch over and over again and not get tired of?

There are so many to be able to pick just one...of course the classics - Sound of Music, Wizard of Oz, Mary Poppins. Pretty much any John Hughes movies - Sixteen Candles, Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller, Pretty in Pink. Then there's Breakfast at Tiffany's...yeah, I watch that everytime it's on TV! I love movies...and could watch many of them over and over and over.

2. What's your biggest pet peeve right now?

Well, there's nothing that's bugging me more right now than at any other time. Always and forever, I hate things that beep or rattle incessantly.

3. If you had to describe your best friend in five words or less, what would you say?

funny
tenderhearted
silly
loving
loyal

4. If you did not have to worry about money or go to school what would you do for a living?

Probably teach...although, my ultimate job would to be just be a mom...without an "outside" job.

5. What is your one "splurge" item, that you will always buy, no matter the cost?

Salon shampoo...I've said it before and I'll probably say it again...buying salon shampoo really does make a difference. My personal fav is Clear Moisture by Redken.

Hope you have a great Friday & a fabulous weekend! :)

Happy Birthday, Alyson! :)

2011-01-13T12:37:00.000-05:00

Today is my niece Alyson's 7th birthday. And since I haven't been blogging since she was born, I get to share with you some of my fav pix of her over the years. You agree, right???

Only a day old...

We call this her "pyrex dish" pic...she was actually in the hospital basinet...but doesn't it look like a big pyrex dish? And look at all that hair...she never, ever lost it...promise!

How about this cutie? Look at those big brown eyes! My heart melts...

And those curls...so sweet...

Truly the cutest ladybug!

And this summer...at the beach, we were partners...

It's hard to believe that this pic is only 6 months old!

The best lemonade sales girl ever...

And to top it off she's a GREAT big sister...

A daredevil MarioCart driver...

And definitely a snow angel :)

I love my Aly-gator. Dylan was a 7 year old boy when she was born. When I was much younger, I thought I'd like to have all boys as children. Then I had one boy...and I thought, maybe one is enough. When I found out my sister was having a girl, I was overjoyed. And so were most of her inlaws! Alyson was the first girl on her Dad's side since his Mom and an Aunt (his dad's sister). So, needless to say...they were thrilled.

But Aly & I "click" in ways that I never remember clicking with my aunts. Maybe it's because our family is so close...not sure. When my hair was long, Aly spent hours "fixing it"...and I may or may not have been the person who introduced her to M&M's. I also will admit that I *might* have taught her to say to her Mom - "You drive like a madwoman!" And I love that when I haven't seen her in a while, she will make a beeline to hug me, sit on the couch beside me, force me to "droll" (draw) with her and laugh while I say silly things to her. I also love our sleepovers...the ones where I invite her and the ones where she invites herself! :)

She is my Aly-gator...and I'm so thrilled to be her Aunt Jenn!

Happy Birthday, Alyson! :)

*sorry for the picture quality...a few of these were scanned copies of printed copies...and others were taken from Facebook...I don't have all my pics here at work with me! :)

Snow days and stuff

2011-01-12T20:31:00.000-05:00

Well, our snow event wasn't as spectacular as the Christmas snow...but the ice that came afterwards has wreaked havock on our lives here in NC. To the South & East of where I live, they got more snow. The word on the snow in Winston-Salem is that there was a VERY dry part of the atmosphere...so it was snowing, but not reaching the ground. We ended up with about an inch of snow...with a nice ice coating over it.

So, I stayed home from work yesterday...and did absolutely nothing. It was great. I got up early to call in to work...well, I actually "texted in" that I would most likely not be there. Then I went back to bed and slept for a bit. Then I got up and worked a jigsaw puzzle...watched TV...played Wii...and that's about the extent of my day. I was very one with my couch...and the amazing heated throw I bought myself after Christmas! :)

There's something about a snow day that just puts me in a complete vegetative state. Outside of checking Facebook, Twitter and e-mail, I really didn't have the "brain strength" to read blogs or post blogs. You would think that with nothing to do I'd get all caught up...but seriously, I just couldn't.

So, if I missed your fabulous blog posts, I'm truly sorry. I'm trying to catch up tonight...so, we shall see.

I went back to work today...which was crazy since my boss had jury duty and we both were out yesterday. Plus my co-worker is sick...with the flu. I hope she stays home and keeps her germs away!

Tomorrow is another snow day for Dylan...he hasn't been to school all week...but he will pay! Especially next week when he goes back for exams! Now if this ice will just melt so he can go back to school at least on Friday! We shall see...

OK - so this was mostly about snow days...and not so much about stuff...oh, well. I'm not changing the title! :)

Happy Wednesday!

Week in Review

2011-01-08T15:15:00.000-05:00

Well...one of the things I wanted to do in 2011 (and also was conviently left off of my Eleven in '11 list) was do a week in review every Saturday. This, my lovely readers, is not necessarily for you...nope, it's for me! I can't keep up with what I did in 2010...so, I'm going to fix that. This will most likely be bo-ring for you guys...but at least I'll have some kind of record of what I did in 2011! :)

Monday was my sis' bday...so we celebrated with Olive Garden take out. I gave her Just Dance 2...and I can't wait to try it out with her...of course, when her hubby's not there! :) He tends to make fun of me...but it's all in good fun.

The rest of the week just kind of crept on...work was slow...life was slow. I think after December, you need for January to be slow so you can catch up.

Today we were supposed to have pix done...but our photographer was sick. So, we have to reschedule. Which means that I now have longer to stress over what to wear! :)

This week has been good...kind of nice to get back into a normal swing of things. Dylan went back to school and is in those last few weeks of his 1st high school semester. His school does "block" periods - meaning he only has four classes each semester...when the next semester begins he will have four new classes. It's kind of nice and geared more like college. Next week, unless we get more snow, he will have exams.

Speaking of snow...Yep! It's in the forecast again! This storm is taking the same track as our Christmas snow storm...so, we are probably in for another round of beautiful snow. At least I hope so. If we are going to have any winter weather, I'd prefer snow over ice. We shall see. Of course, we were supposed to get snow yesterday...and got nothing! Which is typical in NC! :)

Oh, yeah...Mom caught Ayden on video saying "kitty cat"...which would be his first words other than "dadadadada" and "mamamamama". We are all excited!

Next week is Aly's 7th bday...and we are due to party on Saturday! Looking forward to celebrating this special day with my favorite niece.

Well, it's back to my lazy Saturday...I may or may not do a little cleaning/laundry...but I haven't decided whether to do it today or put it off until Monday or Tuesday, hoping for snow. Decisions, decisions!

And, guess what? I have a post that I'm rolling around in my head that I actually took notes on! So, I won't forget what I was going to write! :) Stay tuned!

Happy Weekend!