Dac and Alisha . Get Personal

Thirty, Flirty, and Thriving

2012-03-06T07:00:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Dac turned 30! =) The plan was to go to The Anchor for some eats, drinks, and good times. They have a huge selection of craft beers so I knew Dac would enjoy that.

After a bit of a reservation debacle, we ended at Granite City. Not quite the same but the company was so that's all that really matters! =)

John and Anna were even able to meet us! Here's Dac and John. Dac apparently thinks I'm funny since he's giggling like a school girl! =) haha.

Anna and I. I could have sworn I looked cuter than this when I left the house! ha!

Cori and Val.

Steve and Cori. Steve loves it when I take pictures. LOVES it.

Some drinkages.

It was fun to bring a couple different groups of friends together. We had a good time and I hope everyone else did too. After dinner, John and Anna headed back and the rest of us hit up Target (duh) and went to see Act of Valor. The movie was good. Sad but good. I mean the Navy Seals weren't exactly the best actors but they are NAVY SEALS for crying out loud so I'm gonna let it slide. =) After that of course we went to Quik Trip for cokes and donuts (double duh). We got home way later than I'm used to but it was fun times.

Alisha+Charli Fun Day

2012-03-02T11:00:00.004-08:00

You may remember me mentioning that we had a mini house guest a few weeks ago. It was fun - an entire weekend with Charli! =)

Her mom and dad brought her over that Friday evening and we read lots and LOTS of Fancy Nancy books! We read and talked about the books for quite a while, made little miss a big pallet on the floor, and watched a couple movies before hitting the hay.

The next day we got up and ate waffles, colored, played with Peety and then went and got Sky. The three of us went to the Wal-Marts to get some play-dough (I couldn't find mine at the time) and a pizza. Then - we made Oobleck. What I was thinking... I don't know. I guess I wasn't... clearly. =) It was fun and the girls had a blast but it was a total mess!

Charli looking a little too grown up in her apron! =)

So far so good... and Sky was so good with Charli.

Turning it pink...

And BAM. Mega Mess. This picture does NOT do it justice. Trust me. It. Was. Everywhere. Dripping down all the cabinets, in and on everything on the counter. Oy. =)

While I cleaned up the kitchen, Sky and Charli practiced a puppet show for me. haha. After their lovely production we took Sky home and Charli and I made play-dough cookies.

Kissy face.

Later that day Charli and I had a dance party. Our tune of the day was "I Love You Like A Love Song Baby..." Then Charli took a nap before we met Dac's family for BBQ.

Sunday morning, she was pretty sleepy still and slept in a while so we skipped church. I made breakfast while Dac helped her build a Lego fortress. =)

Charli took a bath, we watched some cartoons, played and colored some more, then went to help Terese fix dinner for Austin's birthday. Well... I helped. Dac and Char had a photo shoot. haha!

On the way home I got to see Mowzer - David and Terese's neighbor's dog. He's a JUMBO lab. He's huge and completely loveable. I want to dognap him and take him home with me! =)

The weekend was a blast and I'm so glad Steve and Cori let us steal their weekend with her away! =) We're so lucky that they trust us with her and that Charli treats us just like her actual aunts and uncles! =) Makes my heart happy.

Midweek Randoms

2012-02-29T07:51:00.003-08:00

Why am I always playing catch up? Here's a quick (or not-so-quick) look at what I've been up to since last time.

Got our taxes done and are getting some money back. Hoping this will help us finish our bathroom/spare room redo.

The night of my last post (two weeks ago!) I watched Criminal Minds with Dac because Heather and Kayla had other things going on. I love Dac and I love for him to be in the same room as me. BUT - I don't particularly enjoy watching Criminal Minds with him. He just doesn't dig it as much as I do and he doesn't get WAY into it. Plus, he talks through it. He's always saying stuff like "oh yeah, like that would really happen". I say, obviously there's a bit of fake to it - it's TV!!! =) Glad to know that Heather and Kayla will be back this time.

The next day was supposed to be Wii Night but Val and Cori went to a concert. So Dac, Steve, Charli, and I went to eat Chinese food.

The day after that we went out to the casino for Dac's birthday dinner. It was really fun. We all sat around for almost two hours just chatting - and the food was good too.

Saturday Kayla, Journey, and I went to Derby for a quick donut/shopping/lunch at Freddy's date. =) Fun! Later, Val picked me up for a Sonic cheese stick run and then we went over to help Cori do some house work. I mean the girl is carrying what will be the world's cutest twinsies - she needn't bother herself with house work. =) We organized some things and helped Charli pick up her room.

Sunday we went to church!!! I know - gold star! =) The thing about our church is that it's small - really small - and we've gone there since we were little bitty. Point being that everyone know's you've been a bit absent and they let you know they know. Later that day Terese made dinner for for Dac's birthday (Theme for the year so far: birthday, eat, birthday, food, birthday, cake, birthday, fat.)

Monday, I picked Sky up from school. We went to Sonic for snacks and drinks and to catch up - then went home to watch Ellen while it stormed. Then, Dac and I went to Wichita with Steve, Cori, and Charli. We just went for kicks - ate at Texas Roadhouse and then hit up Target and Quick Trip then got home too late on weeknight for this girl. 5:30 a.m. came a bit early the next day.

I felt pretty crappy last week so I didn't go to Zumba - not even once.

I did go to church again though - for Ash Wednesday. I didn't give up anything for Lent this year though - or add anything really. Fail. After the service I went to Kayla's to watch Criminal Minds. It was fun to hang out for a bit and to see Journey who I don't get to see nearly enough!

I had a work meeting in Derby on Friday. Got to see other PR people and eat Olive Garden for lunch - so that was a good time. I also hit up Target while I was there (don't judge). Oh - and I also had a follow-up ultrasound that morning... they can't really see endo with those - but there were no cysts so that's a good thing!

Dac and I grabbed taco bell and lounged around watching 24 that evening. I wasn't feeling so good for realz that day.

Saturday my awesome, hunky husband turned the big Three-O. That's right... 30! We sort of didn't do a ton during the day I don't think - but then we went to Wichita to celebrate with great friends! The night didn't go exactly as planned but it was fun none-the-less. I took a few pictures and will post a few soon. (Yes, I realize I've been saying that about my Charli weekend pictures for weeks now... but I promise... they're coming!)

We got home super late/early so we skipped church and basically just watched 24 ALL day again. Oh - that and worked on cleaning/fixing our washing machine. The weeks before it was the dishwasher. Thankfully it hasn't been anything super major and expensive!

This week has been a pretty busy work week. I also met with our Big Brothers/Big Sisters case manager yesterday. I've got to tell you - I am so stinking proud of Sky. She is a nominee for our town's Outstanding Student of the Year award. She has come so incredibly far. =) I will be at her ceremony in a few weeks cheering her on!!

I went to Zumba last night. It kicked my hiney and I was sucking air big time... but I felt pretty good considering! Then I went to (wow...eating out WAY too much... obviously) La Fiesta with Val, Dac, Austin, and his friend Andy. We get there - and Cori and Charli were there too! =)

Tonight is criminal minds night again. =) Heather and Kayla are both coming over and I'm pumped. Ready for some girl time!!

What I've Been Up To Wednesday

2012-02-14T11:53:00.001-08:00

Whoa. It's been a long time since I've posted... so I'll likely forget to mention something fun or important or totally worthless but I'm going to give it a good solid effort. =)

Still going to Zumba... not as many nights per week as I should... but I am going. I love it. It really is kind of the perfect workout for me. Annnd I like to shake my butt. I like to "lean like a cholo", and I like to put a slight stage-choreography spin on things. ha!

The weekend before last, Dac and I went and saw the movie "Man on a Ledge" for date night. It was good! We both enjoy those kinds of movies so while it may not be your "typical" (if there is such a thing) date movie - it works for us! For the most part I'd rather watch a sappy chick flick with one of my girls anyway!

The next day I went with Terese, Mary (family friend and tons more), and Val to Wichita to go fabric shopping for some baby quilts. We left early, grabbed breakfast on the way, ate Pei Wei for lunch, stopped like 12.5 times for snacks and cokes, and had a blast. During our trip I was on the hunt for a Reese's Peanut Butter Egg (since calories didn't count that day...duh) but I couldn't find one for some reason. When I came back to my office after a meeting that Monday... there was a valentine bag on my desk with, none other than, a Reese's egg. =) Oh happy day!! Thank you Mary!

I can't seem to remember what else I did that weekend.

I can't seem to lose any more weight. "WHAT!?!??! With the way you eat?? NO!!!" I know, I know. It IS hard to believe.

The next week I had several work meetings and spent the majority of the week letting laundry and dishes pile up while I stretched out on the couch watching Rescue Me. I was seriously SO exhausted. Can't really explain it other than I. Was. Beat. I'm still kind of fighting the tired's but I picked up some vitamin B-12 and am hoping that helps.

Thursday night we got snow! =) Just a little though.

Friday, I got up SUPER early to get donuts and go with Cori and Val up to Wichita for Cori's maternal fetal specialist appt. I took a vacation day. After a week of being completely OVER IT and tired, I decided it was well worth using a day to hang out with them and see the twinsies. It was SO cool - a very in-depth ultrasound of both babies! Not only did we get donuts, but we went to Nifty Nut House for snacks, and ate Olive Garden for lunch. I got the Lasagna Fritta which is basically fried lasagna bites on alfredo sauce and topped with marinara and cheese. Holy Heaven. AND it only cost me 760-something calories. ha! It was a fun girls day. Plus, I think dr's appt's are pretty interesting. I already halfway consider myself to be a gyno wikipedia of sorts - but there's always more to be learned. =)

I got my brows waxed that day too. ABOUT. DANG. TIME. Then, we all went out for Mexican to celebrate David's birthday (Dac's Dad). After that, Dac and I went with Val, Steve, and Charli to watch Star Wars in 3D. It wasn't bad. I think I prefer Star Trek better... but it wasn't just horrible.

Saturday I had a case of the exhausteds again. I slept in until about 8:30, ate breakfast, watched Rescue Me, made breakfast for lunch, took a two-hour nap (I never do this), watched Rescue Me, ate supper, watched Rescue Me, put in Bourne Identity - fell asleep on the couch at around 7:30 p.m. WOW.

Sunday, Dac and I had actually planned to go to church (shock and awe) but since I fell asleep at 7:30 I forgot to set my alarm. SO - we ended up having a breakfast date at Braums and going grocery shopping - where, I might add - I used up the rest of our "food" money for the month. We get paid Monday though so I think we'll be ok. =) I really am liking this envelope system even though it's hard and less fun. haha. The rest of the day I did laundry, dishes, etc... watched Rescue Me then Dac dropped me off at my parents before his soccer game. Have I mentioned he's playing on an indoor soccer team? He loves it and I love it for him - it's something he's missed doing since living in Wichita. So - I hung out with mom and dad then we all ate a yummy supper together after the game.

Which, finally, brings us to the present week. Sunday night it started to snow... and it kept snowing so it was very pretty and school was canceled Monday. I work for the school district but still have to work rain, snow, or power outage. I was supposed to have a Board meeting that night though and it got postponed SO I went home and made a big pot of chili and a cinnamon roll cake and had my make believe "snow day" anyway.

Hope you all had great Valentine's Days and felt love from someone and or for someone/thing. Dac and I never really do much for Valentine's Day... so it wasn't anything special in that regard. I did get lots and lots of treats at work though (like it's embarrassing how much sugar I consumed...oy) and Dac's mom sent me a goody bag. I also got to go read to a sweet little Kindergarten girl as part of their D.E.A.R (drop everything and read) Valentine project. That was lots of fun! Other than that, I just spent the evening at Zumba with Val. =)

Oh - and there's this one BIG detail I'm leaving out. How could I forget... We got a statement from the surgery center. We owe 5+ different doctors/places for my surgery. All-n-all it's between $4,000 - $5,000 we owe out of pocket. Anyway, we've paid a couple of the smaller bills off, and were paying on the surgery center and my main surgeon (the two biggest bills). The surgery center bill was $1700 and we'd paid $300 so far. The statement I got said our balance was only $96. I thought they surely had that wrong so I called. Well, it was wrong. =| BUT - it was even better!!! WE. OWE. $0. NOTHING. Nada. Zip. Zilch. The insurance company apparently came back and paid more than expected. The receptionist confirmed that indeed we are all paid up and I screamed "Happy Valentine's Day to Me!!!!!" She just laughed and told me to enjoy the rest of my day. =) I can not tell you how much of a blessing this is right now. God works in big ways and I praise him for that!! Sure, by the time it's all said and done, we'll still have forked over lots of moolah to the medical industry - but this was our biggest bill and the fact that it's paid is a huge, giant happy note! =)

Today - I have another special treat waiting for me... a king size pack of Reese's Hearts. Oh my. From guess who... Mary. =) She can make a day, now.

In other news, my heart is breaking for some friends right now. One of my good friends Dads just had brain surgery for Parkinson's (amazing that he's had the opportunity for a potentially life-changing surgery) but he's struggling with the recovery and I know that's hard on all of them. Will you join me in praying for a speedy and complete healing? Also, other good friends of the family just lost a dad/grandpa. I know that's hard too. Nothing can really make that better aside from God's peace - so that's what I'm praying for them.

We get our taxes done today... that should be fun. =| I hope! Then, I may go to Zumba. OR clean house. But either way I'll be watching Criminal Minds. =)

Hilarious.

2012-02-02T12:42:00.000-08:00

I think Kristen Bell AND Ellen are BOTH awesome and hilarious. Check out this video... saw it on another blog and was literally laughing out loud. I hate that I miss the Ellen show... but glad I caught this. Thanks for keeping it real Kristen! =)

Midweek Randoms

2012-02-01T12:47:00.000-08:00

I'm still doing myfitnesspal.com - if you happen to be on there and want to be buddies - my username is acall333. =) I'm not losing tons of weight right now but I'm definitely eating more nutritiously (meaning I'm getting more fruits and veggies, etc.. and not just sugar! haha).

One way I've been doing that is with smoothies (I believe I mentioned this and our new Ninja blender last time). I've actually been enjoying these... most of them anyway. My go-to smoothie is almond milk, half a scoop of protein powder, frozen mixed fruit/berries, and a cup of spinach. I've also had some chocolate-peanut-butter-banana ones that were delish... but also more calories. Duh.

I've still been going to Zumba 1-2 times per week (except this week - due to a funky schedule) and I love it. I've also been walking for at least a few minutes most days. It's just been SO nice!

Still been watching Rescue Me. I know - my life excites you. What'snot to love?! =)

Spent last Wednesday evening with Heather and Kayla eating McDonalds, catching up, talking about boys, and watching Criminal Minds.

Thursday, my parents came over. I made a pinterest meal. =) Honey parmesan pork roast over rice, salad, and my mom brought mixed fruit and cool whip. Yum. I can eat me some cool whip now ya'll. =)

All day Friday I was wanting to get out of work. I mean, it was driving me nuts and I was starved. I wanted to go on a lunch date with someone but never made it happen. I ended up just taking myself to Sonic for a corndog and cheese tots and drove around for a bit. Later that evening Steve and Cori dropped miss Charli off for a weekend-o-fun (at least for us)! Oh that kid. Love her. I have a whole slew of pictures to share in another post, but here's a couple quick ones I took on my phone. =) So glad they let me keep her for a while!!

This first one is of her wearing an apron working on a science experiment! =)

This one is of the little sleepy head later that afternoon. Cute overload.

That evening we went out for BBQ with Dac's family. I actually just got a cheeseburger... lame, I know... and some hot potato salad which was delightful.

Sunday, we skipped church in favor of letting Charli sleep in a bit... she seemed to need it. We did more playing and then went to Dac's parents house for Austin's birthday dinner.

That's the short and sweet version of the weekend. Like I said, I'll share more later.

Our budgeting has been going better this month. I have a TON of medical bills now but other than that... We're using the Dave Ramsey envelope system and it's working great. We have envelopes for food (includes groceries and some eating out), clothes, date nights, and we each have a "fun money" envelope. I've been using mine for dinner with friends, a coke here and there, etc... just whatever I choose. If I don't use it all this time, I can keep it until next time. As for the food money - if we have leftover it'll go to either pay on the medical bills or into savings. I'm interested to see how we fair.

Speaking of medical bills - I've definitely noticed a difference since surgery. At first I wasn't convinced because I'm still having pain... BUT... when I stop and really think about it (ouch... it hurts my head to do that) things are obviously improving. I really need to take the time to bring you up-to-speed on that and give a good "review" but I haven't had tons of time and it requires that painful thinking stuff and I'm still wanting to give it some time so my review can be as accurate as possible.

I've been wearing my hair au natural for the past several days. I get up, take a bath/shower, and just mousse/scrunch my hair. I don't have actual curly hair so this doesn't exactly look great but at least it's not one of my half-dry ponytails. I think I might need a hair cut. Oh, and the eyebrows. Lord help the brows. Oy.

Speaking of a mop makeover... Peety's stank butt went to the vet today to get bathed and to get his nails did. I went home over lunch to throw his filthy, stinky bed in the wash. Seriously. He's been so bad that our whole house smells. Yuck!

I enjoy Sonic ice. I'm enjoying some right now.

I really feel the need to paint my family room and hallway (and all the trim that goes with it) but I just can't seem to get motivated to do it.

Catching Up

2012-01-23T11:17:00.001-08:00

So - Wednesday I went to Zumba!! You may remember I went to a class in Winfield for a while last year but now, there's a class in AC too AND it's offered several times a week and you can just go whenever you can. Perfect for me. I loved it and plan to continue going at least a couple times a week.

After Zumba, I made cupcakes for Wii Night and then Kayla came over to watch Criminal Minds. It was a good one. Before she left, I finally remembered to give her her and Journey's Christmas presents. The next morning I got this picture of J wearing the outfit we got her. I wanted to get stuff that could easily be mix-matched with other things and that wasn't too wintery. I think it fits the bill and Journey looks super cute in it. =)

Wii Night was the next day and it was my turn to cook. I made Cajun Chicken Pasta, a salad, bread, and vanilla cupcakes with strawberry-vanilla cupcakes. The next night Dac and I had leftovers. =) It was pretty good. When I first made it, it was too runny... then I scrambled to thicken it up and got it too thick... live and learn... I think it'd be really good if I made it again.

Friday night was "date night" but it wasn't a typical date. We sat down and discussed our budget... or lack of one at the time. Sigh. Anyway, we made lots of headway and have implemented Dave Ramsey's envelope system for several of our expenses (including food which is a huge variable for us each month that we often over spend on). I'm excited to see how we do this month! After the chat, we watched the second episode of Lifechurch's "Better". It too was good and the topic fit our evening perfectly.

Saturday, we slept in a bit, got some stuff done around the house, and then I went up to my parents' house while Dac stayed home and worked on photos (and the house). My Aunt Diana was visiting so in addition to my parents I got to visit with her, as well as my Uncle Mike and Aunt Sue (actually 2nd cousins but I grew up knowing them as aunt and uncle!) It was a perfect, relaxing day! =) Oh how I've missed Saturdays.

I also got to see this ol' girl. =) My mom rescued Heidi during my freshman year of college... she was around a year and half old and was pregnant with puppies. Needless to say, she's getting on up there in years and I just LOVE her. Look at that white face. She still gets real excited to see me when I come to visit. =) You'd be hard pressed to find a sweeter dog.

Saturday night, we went to Heather and Daniel's house to eat LOTS of italian food, homemade chocolate chip cheesecake, and celebrate Daniel's birthday. We chatted, ate, played games... it was fun but I totally forgot to take any pictures. Fail.

Sunday, we woke up and headed to Derby to do some shopping. Dac got a cool jacket, I got a pair of jeans (our of our clothing budget...lol), some new bowls for Peety, stocked up on some household stuff at Target and got Aldrik a couple of super stylin' shirts for his birthday. We ate lunch at Buffalo Wild Wings, then headed to Aldrik's party. It as a cute sock monkey party and again, no pictures.

When we got home, I did lots of laundry and watched Rescue Me.

Oh, and I watched Peety chew on his new bone... new bone AND new bowls all in one day. =)

Ooh - I forgot to mention we also got a new blender with a Christmas gift card. We've made a few healthy smoothies in it already and it's awesome!! Totally makes the spinach disappear! =) That's a winner winner chicken dinner in my book!

Now, it's back to the usual work week. Ready or not!

Midweek Randoms

2012-01-18T09:12:00.000-08:00

Back on myfitnesspal.com for REALZ now. Falling in love with it all over again!

On that same note, the girls in my office implemented a bit of a wellness policy this week. We’re each supposed to take turns walking around our circle drive (takes about 8 minutes or so)) once in the morning and once in the afternoon. Granted that’s not a ton of walking but it gets the blood flowing and when you sit at a desk all day, you take whatever you can get. It feels good to get at least a little exercise in each day and I feel like it’s making me more productive. Day 1 was in the 60’s... amazing. Day 2... in the lower 20’s... miserable. C’mon willpower.

To counteract this though, we’ve had donuts one day, homemade to-die-for German chocolate cake the next... sigh. Baby steps people. Baby steps.

I have been eating better otherwise though... I’ve even got to cook some this week already! WOO! I made this hearty little chicken and black bean casserole Monday night. Chili and black bean chili Tuesday night, I also plan on making omelets, cajun chicken pasta, and beef stroganoff this week. I’ve even had some healthy smoothies made of a different mix of fruit, almond milk, protein powder, and even spinach one time! I don’t like vegetables so I have to hide them in things...look closely and you can see spinach in the casserole too.

I love my boys.

I’m becoming more and more addicted to Rescue Me on Netflix. I’m not really watching 20 episodes in a row like with Grey’s, but I’m loving watching a couple on the nights I have time. It’s so funny.

I cleaned house this weekend and I swear it already looks like it hasn’t been touched in a month. Maybe not that bad. But not great either. Why does that always happen? You clean something then it gets dirty again. No fair!

I love love love Reeces Peanut Butter Eggs. Love them. Cadbury Cream Eggs too. Had one of each the other night and now I want MORE. Happy early Easter to me!

I’ve been waking up grumpy in the mornings. I don’t know why exactly... but I sure have.

The good news is I’ve been feeling better in general since surgery. I’ll probably do a more extensive update on that later on... once I know more about how I’m doing post-surgery. But for now, I feel like I can move like a fairly normal person again and the surgical-pain is basically completely gone. Every now and then I notice a little bit but it’s few and far between and totally tolerable. Hooray!! =)

I also got my heart monitor results back... normal. I knew they would be because I didn’t notice any of the weird/hard beats while I was wearing. It comes and goes and is definitely not every day. Earlier this week, for example, it was fluttering and being ridiculous and I found myself feeling more tired and slightly dizzy (not bad... just a little). The nurse mentioned the possibility of a medication to slow my heart a bit because it definitely runs a bit fast... but that it wasn’t a pressing issue. I decided to hold out and see if it gets worse. If so, I’ll call them back... if not... I won’t! =) Apparently racy hearts run on my mom’s side of the family so it may be something I just deal with. At least both I and the doctors are aware of it now and can catch it if things get out of hand.

Weekend Recap

2012-01-17T06:51:00.001-08:00

Dac and I had a busy but fun, weddingless weekend. Don't get me wrong, we enjoy weddings. We've just been a little worn out is all. This past weekend was a very welcomed one!

Friday night we went out for ribs. They. Were. Delicious. Oh. MY word. Afterward, we took a family trip to the Wal-Mark/Wal-Marts/Wally-World. We always do this after eating ribs. It's kind of a tradition I guess. I'm not sure we could stop even if we wanted to. ha. Ok, I'm not sure it's that set in stone but anyway, I digress. I picked up some groceries and some handy hem-snap things for my pants. Good times. Then, we went to Cherry Berry.

Here's a dandy picture of Dac and Val looking like chipmunks with their mouths full of delicious yogurt!

Here's my loaded-with-goodies treat.

And here's my paybacks... mid chewing.

The next day, I picked up Sky and we made cake balls with my new baby cakes maker. We had fun listening to music and baking (and sampling) away. Sky got new glasses - cute, huh?

That afternoon we met a potential bride and groom (and the bride's family) at Biederman's in Winfield for cokes and to talk about their wedding day. They are all super nice and we seem to have the same style and philosophy so I'm hoping that works out.

Later, Dac and I had DATE NIGHT. We were really good about doing something together every week for a few months and then with the crazy wedding/holiday season, we got off track. It's fun though and I'm glad we're making time for it again! Anyway, we went to see Contraband. This wasn't the original plan. I just assumed Girl With A Dragon Tattoo would still be playing here BUT it wasn't. SO - we saw this instead... I wanted to see it anyway so it was fine. We left a little stressed about money, haha, and went to Braum's. The line was forever long but we saw several people we know and chatted for a bit. I came away with a rocky road cone and all-n-all, it was a fun time.

We had planned to go to church Sunday morning but were both pretty tired and decided to stay home and watch Lifechurch instead. I made us each a big bowl of cereal, Dac a coffee, and me a Chai tea with the Keurig.

Lifechurch was really good and it was just what we needed. The one we watched was the first in a series called "Better". The series focus' on verses about being better and how to achieve it. This particular verse was Psalm 84:10 -

"Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked."

It's kind of funny because SO many times in the past several months I have read/heard that sometimes you have to give/pass up something good in order to get something great. Of course, this message said the same thing again! Now, you may not believe in God but I do, and I'm certain it's not a coincidence that I've heard this over and over and over again in such a fairly short period of time. Now, the problem is figuring out what the "good" thing I should be giving up is. =) I'm looking forward to watching the rest of the episodes.

Ok guys... we can call this keeping it real Tuesday if you want. I did something stupid Sunday. Really stupid. I poured my Scentsy wax down the garbage disposal. I don't even know why I did it... normally I put it in the trash... but I did it. Well surprise-surprise, the drain got totally clogged and we (Dac) had to fix it.

At least the pipes smell like cinnamon vanilla now. =)

Sunday afternoon, we took pictures of Mister Aldrik. It was fun and I think we got some cute ones. He's adorable!

After pictures we went out to Dac's parents to join the entire family for supper. We had fajitas and they were fantastic. I hadn't ate lunch so I was starved. YUM!! Here's the birthday girl in the hat Charli made for her. =) We had so much fun.

THEN... Dac, Val, and I went to Steve and Cori's to help them move and clean. Good times! =)

Hooray for a weekend off!!! LOVE. IT.

Midweek Randoms

2012-01-11T05:30:00.000-08:00

Let's start at the beginning I guess... last Thursday. Last Thursday I went to Wichita with Val and Cori. We got donuts. Yum. Went to my post-op appt. where I learned that all the cysts, tumors, and my appendix came back benign. Holla! The endo was considered stage 3 - with over 75% of each ovary covered in it as well as parts of my bladder, bowel, tubes, etc... I also had some adhesions tying one tube down and they were hanging out some other places too. One of my tubes looked funny but she didn't seem too particularly concerned about that. All-n-all, the surgery was a success. She got all the bad stuff out, (Rockstar doctor! YEAH!) appendix included, and hopefully things will get a little better for me in the pain department.

After my appt. we went maternity shopping with Cori, ate Noodles at the mall, Val got a haircut, we went to Babies-R-Us, got heaping piles of frozen yogurt, went to Cori's appt. and I got to hear two little baby's heartbeats!! Eeeek! Then, we grabbed some pizzas from Papa Murphy's to take home and eat with the guys and Charli. Fabulous day.

After work on Friday, Dac and I headed to Kansas City. Saturday, we spent the day photographing Lenny and Emily's fantastic wedding. It was beautiful. A long day with lots of work - but beautiful - and fun! I also got to see several old friends, so that was cool. =) More on that later over on the photo blog. Sunday, we woke up when we wanted to, ate a continental breakfast (waffle for me - yum), made a pit stop at Bed, Bath, and Beyond then headed home. We stopped in Emporia for some tasty Pizza Ranch! =) A special thanks to Dallas and Aubrey for introducing us to this quirky little gem. Then, when we got home, unpacked, etc... I started watching Rescue Me on Netflix. =) Like I need another show to become addicted to.

Monday, I had a Dr's appt. with my normal family doc. Remember how I said the post-op nurses were real concerned about my speedy heart rate? Well, I'd also been having some funny palpitations off and on for a while. While at my post-op appt., the doctor suggested I get my heart checked out just to make sure I'm A-OK. So, I went Monday expecting him to listen to my heart, maybe take some blood... easy peasy. Well, no blood work - yet (What!?! I skipped breakfast for nothing!) He said it appears my heart rate always runs high. SO - he sent me on to the hospital to get a heart monitor put on. Joy. I'm glad they're being proactive and all... but this thing was annoying. Annoying and itchy. Ouch. Plus - no real palpitations while it was on. Go figure huh? Isn't that how it goes? Your car makes a funny sound several times but when you take it to the mechanic they can't hear a thing and look at you like you're crazy. Uh-huh... Crazy... party of one. =)

Don't ya wish your girlfriend was HOTT like me?!?

Don't cha?!

Don't Cha?!

As is all this medical fun isn't enough (and the ridiculous costs associated with all of it) my car is need of some pretty expensive repair. And really... as Dac picked me up after dropping off my car it became uber obvious once again that his car really needs totally replaced. We need a new vehicle period. Have I mentioned two rooms in our house are completely wall-less? Oy. Probably going to have to really tighten the budget (you know, the budget we haven't really been following anymore...) but we can do this! Oh - and I've been called for jury duty this month. (I wonder if stress is causing my heart issues?) My friend Heather said if she was a doctor she'd prescribe a spa day followed by a girl's night with adult beverages. Who needs med school?! =)

Got in an order from Sephora yesterday. New BareMinerals makeup and primer (I've been out for a while) and some new brushes. Yippee!! My face feels like a dream today. =) A soft fluffy dream... like one in the clouds. ha!

Dac and I had a little working dinner date last night. We had lots of photography stuff to discuss. It was actually pretty productive and I'm thinking we should really do that more often.

Tonight I have a church meeting and a friend date w/ Kayla. Holla!

2012

2012-01-10T13:23:00.000-08:00

Finally - I'm getting around to listing my New Year's Resolutions.

Last year I said I'd blog personal stuff... CHECK!

Get to my goal weight... womp womp.

Work less... check-womp. This one's a toughie because while I was more aware of our schedule this year... and valued it more... we still took on too much. And some of the things we did drop the ball on... we probably shouldn't have.

Play more... I'll go ahead and call this a CHECK! It wasn't quite enough but we definitely did do more... fun things like girls weekends, trips to Denver, date nights, spent the holidays away, etc... Hooray!

House stuff... we did get a few new windows... so CHECK! No new doors... womp womp. Floors haven't been re-finished, bathroom and spare room aren't done, no fence... so... womp womp to those. =(

Photography stuff... we began saving back ideas for our new brand and actually booked a designer! CHECK! =)

So this year... it's a lot of the same... but hopefully some of them will be a little more manageable.

------

1) Use the professional camera for more personal stuff. Now that I'm in the habit of blogging personal stuff... which I love even if the photos are crappy... I'd like to at least try to use the 5D more. Spruce the blog up a bit.

2) Speaking of sprucing things up around here... I'd like to get a new design for my personal blog.

3) I'd like to get a facial this year. I've never had a professional one. While I'm at it, I'd also like more pedicures and massages!

4) I'd like to have the spare bathroom and bedroom DONE. Completely. This is NON-negotiable!

5) I'd like to paint the family room, hallway, and upstairs. (I have the paint... just need to do it!

6) I'd still like to have the floors re-finished too!! Pretty please!?

7) Lose at least 15 more lbs. Hey, it's better than 30... and I can do this!

8) Make a batch of freezer meals... and share with someone else.

9) Reveal a new brand for the photography business.

10) Take a vacation... just the two of us... just for the sake of vacation (not to visit friends, family, work, etc... just be away and enjoy each other).

11) Talk to and spend more time with my grandparents. I'm so fortunate to have still have some living!

What about you?? What are you resolving to do this year!? Maybe I'll steal some of your ideas too. =)

A Year

2012-01-09T11:17:00.000-08:00

Here's just a quick look back at our 2011 - month by month. You can check out 2010 here, in case you're interested.

January - I started this blog. Can't believe it's been a year already... and yet... can't believe it's only been a year! I met my goal of blogging something personal an average of once a week or more. So Hooray for that!! We photographed a wedding, I took a Zumba class, started the HCG diet, went to Bingo down at the Casino for Val's birthday and WON! Made dinner for a friend who recently had a baby.

February - Dac turned 29. Celebrated Dac's birthday with a trip to Stillwater. Finished the HCG diet and swore to never do it again! Ugh! Continued Zumba, Wii Night, Criminal Minds watching, and time with Sky.

March - Finished the Zumba class, went cruise shopping, went to OKC to visit the ol' rommies. Got sick with a hardcore 24-hour stomach bug. Got better just in time to get on a cruise ship and enjoy a fabulous vacation in the Bahamas. Went bowling to celebrate some friends' birthdays.

April - Went to a different (and crazy) work conference for the first time. Stayed busy with Big Brothers/Big Sisters. Attended a Bible Study for a few weeks. Spent a fun day shopping with two great friends.

May - Started another busy and crazy photography season. Had tons of stuff going on at work. We took our first weekend-long babysitting job for two kids! Got our pictures taken! =)

June - Got a massage. Started date days with the husband. =) Went on a girls day for a pedicure, shopping, and lots of eating. Turned 27. Went out for one of our boss' last day. Ate birthday donuts.

July - Went to Denver for the 4th and threw my mom a fun 50th birthday party. Took tons of pictures. Did lots of walking with great friends.

August - More pictures. Went to a high school football game. Continued date nights and Wii nights and time with Sky.

September - Went to Branson for a mother-daughter trip with my aunt and cousin. Ate birthday pancakes. Celebrated 5 married years. Spent some time in OKC. Started Criminal Minds nights back up again. Had a Dr's appt. that sparked lots of other Dr's appt's. Went to a Redneck Fest. =)

October - More dr's appt's, ultrasounds, etc... more weddings... went to a work conference, participated in a "Fall Swap", had tons of sessions, celebrated Arkalalah.

November - Even more weddings and dr's appt's. Went to a wedding shower for a close friend, celebrated Thanksgiving.

December - Cheered OSU on in a Bedlam victory. More dr's appt's, surgery, celebrated lots of Christmas' with lots of family, took a trip to Louisiana, got the band back together, and more weddings!

This is just a basic recap of some things I blogged about over the past year. Can't wait for year two!!! =) Thanks for reading!

Heather's Wedding

2012-01-05T04:00:00.000-08:00

One of my besties, Heather (Heather Feather for short... haha) got married on New Year's Eve. I'm so happy Heather's turn for love has come along. She is an amazing person and I'm glad she's found someone that realizes that. He loves her... he shows it... she's happy... you know it!!! GO HEATHER AND DANIEL! =) Seriously though, I'm happy for them!

Our friend Erika did Heather's makeup. She always does a good job. I lurked over her shoulder the whole time, which I knoooow she loved.

After I hung out for a bit, I went home and changed, practiced my song a couple more times then headed back to the church for the beautiful evening wedding.

Heather, of course, was beautiful and so was everything else. Here's a look at one of the reception centerpieces... that's Journey in the background playing with one of those New Years blower things.

Kayla and I. Do you notice I actually fixed my hair? I should have taken a picture of the back... there's where the magic happened. It looked half fabulous half mullet. =) I also put on real makeup (as in I used actual eye shadow - multiple colors even - on my eyes instead of blush. haha. Ooh - I even donned some mascara. Whoa.)

The bridesmaids. That's Daniel's sister on the left... Heather's youngest sister Katy in the middle and her other younger sister Brittany on the right. =) I barely met Daniel's sister but I'm sure she's nice and I just love Heather's sisters.

I didn't get Mr. Jonathon in this picture (I did get one of him in the church but it's from a different camera that I didn't upload on here yet) but here's the girls. Jessi and Jazzy on the left belong to Erika and that's Kayla's Journey on the right.

Kayla and I with the bride.

Wedding photographers can clean up nice when they're not photographing the wedding.

The happy couple!

Mark, Journey, and Kayla - our table buddies. Also, one of Heather's good friends from grad school and her family sat with us too, so that was fun.

Tyler and Tabitha... also getting married this year!

Joby and Jana. We don't get to see these guys all that often... they're always fun! Usually, we just see Jana on girls' nights but we always talk about Joby so I guess that kind of counts. =)

First dance.

Oh these two... Jana and Erika.

Heather and Papa Vern. =) I'm so glad I got to visit with him at the wedding. Such a sweet man. Her whole family is.

Journey getting ready to bring in the New Year.

Dac and Mark talking about house stuff or mac stuff or something else nerdy. =)

The girls! From left to right: Tabitha, Jana, Erika, Heather, Ginger (her mom), Kayla, and I.

Dereck and Erika

The whole gang!

10, 9, 8, 7...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Congrats you two!!!

Midweek Randoms

2012-01-04T03:00:00.000-08:00

As you’ve probably noticed... things have been a little crazy around here. Good crazy but crazy none-the-less. I love that we’ve gotten to see and spend time with so many friends and family members this holiday season. It’s been fabulous!! =) Makes it worth all the “busy”.

I feel tired. I look tired. I am tired. But not as tired as I expected to be after this past week.

We put in lots of time photographing a wedding for a family friend last Friday. Then, the next day, I attended and sang at my wonderful friend Heather’s wedding. Both weddings were beautiful and I’m glad we got to be a part of them.

I somewhat procrastinated learning and practicing my song for Heather’s wedding but God was so good to me and I didn’t screw it up. Whew! When she asked me to sing I told her I’d be happy to if she was sure she wanted to hear my rusty old pipes. They’re not what they used to be. =) I made it through, got some super nice compliments, and the bride and groom seemed genuinely pleased, so I call it a success.

We spent New Years Day sleeping in a bit and eating a late lunch at Dac’s parents’ house. Terese always makes strongly encourages us to eat a spoonful or two of black-eyed peas for good luck. This year, she made a dip out of them so that was a plus. =) We were going to go see The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo but it just didn’t end up working out so we’ll have to try and go see it sometime soon. I think it looks good!

I spent Monday sleeping in a bit and watching the rest of my Grey’s Anatomy episodes on Netflix. =) I did run and get us lunch and I did some laundry/cleaning but fell short come bedtime when the fresh sheets weren’t put back on the bed again. Oops... we slept on the couches instead. How lazy can I be? Yesterday? LAY-ZEE.

How 'bout them OSU Cowboys winning that Fiesta Bowl. That's right... thaaaaaaaat's right!!!! Proud as always. Great season!

I’m having quite a bit of internal pain... not sure if I overdid it this weekend or if maybe this is just my temporary normal. Hoping either way... it’s very temporary. I’m kinda over it. Not to be a whiner...

I considered starting back on a somewhat healthy eating plan this week. BUT - I haven’t really grocery shopped in weeks, plus I have my post-op appointment tomorrow and I plan to get donuts before I leave and a delicious lunch and… who am I kidding... probably a snack and dinner too =) none of which I plan to be salads, mind you. Then, we have another wedding extravaganza this weekend. SO - I’ve decided next week is the week. I plan to be back on myfitnesspal.com and really working hard again.

Let’s see. I’m still rocking sweat pants (no jeans yet) when I’m not in my one pair of work pants that fit. I did sport a dress to Heather's wedding. HOLLA! The dress was nice and comfy but the spanx and tights I donned underneath weren’t so much. =) Kind of defeats...no?

We paid our final payment for some re-branding work we’re having done for our photo business. We should be revealing it in the next month or two. I’m very excited about it... and can’t wait to make some very needed changes in our business world which will hopefully allow for some very needed changes in our personal world too!

I’m super excited to create and order our 2011 blog book. I wish I would have started doing this years ago instead of ensuring myself I’d get around to those scrapbooks. sigh. Oh well... at least from here on out we’ll have some good documentation!

Oh - I still need to paint my toenails. =) I know you’re all dying to know that.

I think it's worth noting that I have good taste. Real good taste. Good, expensive taste. You wouldn't know it by looking at me. But trust me. It's there. =)

In other irrelevant news... it's becoming more and more obvious to me (so probably totally obvious years ago to others... ha!) that I have some obsessive compulsive tendencies... especially in regards to cleaning. I almost annoy myself. Ok, I DO annoy myself. There. The first step toward a solution is admitting you have a problem. Right? Of course right.

Now that I'm done with Grey's... I have the urge to start another season of 24 again. Surely you remember that when we watch 24 it practically consumes our life. We SO do not have time for that right now. But it sounds like fun to just veg out on the couch and watch tv together for the next few weeks. =)

The Band: Back Together.

2012-01-03T06:30:00.000-08:00

So we have these friends... good friends. A whole group of weird, crazy, out of control great friends. The guys started out as Dac's friends but now I've taken them all (awesome, cool, not afraid to sport t-shirt and comfy pants wives included... duh) as my own too.

Anyway, we try to get together a time or two (or hopefully more) a year. This was one of those times. Dac bought another surprise box of beers so John and Kelly dove right in!

Then we ate lots of pizza and cookies.

Anna and the newest member, Ruby!

Matt and Kelly

Tarl, Joy, Anna, Kelly, and Ruby.

I hate to even admit what we're doing here... ok... I'll do it. We were watching Birdemic. This awful, bad movie (everything about it is bad) on Netflix. Seriously, it's awful. But... kinda funny and it does seem to pull you in.... NO... it's awful I tell you!! Thank you Tarl for broadening our culture horizons.

Then we watched some You Tube videos. Everyone was pretty tired and/or sickly so the night ended fairly early compared to previous years but still... it was so good to see everyone.

The next day a few of us went to Breakfast at Brick's... a few of us girls went to a couple shops around town... then a few of us went to El Maguey and even met Bear... another of the guys' good friends from high school. Good food and good times.

After lunch the guys went and played disc golf and that night, Matt's parents had us over for a delicious meal and we played a game of Balderdash (winner, winner, chicken dinner right here folks... haha!).

Yay friends!!! Can't wait 'til next time.

Korny Christmas Pictures

2012-01-01T20:00:00.000-08:00

Clever title huh? =) No? Fine.

Due to surgery and work stuff and being sick and Christmas... Sky and I went several weeks without getting to hang out. So finally, last week we got together to eat Grinder Man cookies, drink cokes, and exchange gifts.

I couldn't think of anything amazing to get her so I just got a Wal-Mart card taped to her favorite... Skittles. Which, she kindly shared with me (yes, after the cookies) like she always does. =)

Still in sweat pants...

Sky got me this awesome scarf and a pair of fancy pants gloves. I'm a model... you know what I mean...

Sky even tried some coffee (eewww) from the new Keurig pot Dac got for Christmas.

She ended up pouring it out. =) Duh. Coffee's gross.

Sky also brought along her new Spirograph. I had one of these when I was younger too. Sky is a total artist... she's great at drawing and painting and so naturally... a little spirograph challenge is nothing to her. She let me give it a try and I screwed up every. single. one. Oops.

Oh well, at least it got a couple of laughs. I'm great for making 14 year olds laugh. And as you can see from my joke at the beginning of this post... it's not because I'm cool funny. =)

Call Christmas

2012-01-01T17:30:00.000-08:00

Every year, after Christmas, the big Call clan gets together to eat, play games, eat, chat, eat and play Dirty Santa. Everyone brings snacks and even though it's big and loud and crazy... it's fun!!

This year though, I was exhausted and hurting from a long drive back from Louisiana so I wasn't getting the most out of the experience. After attending Call Christmas for many dating and married years but at one point I felt like an only child (which I am) going to a huge family function for the first time. It was fun and and loud and crazy but it was loud and crazy... it's all part of the fun, but that day, that day... I was an only child. ha! =)

Still, it was great to see everyone and I'm glad we were able to make it back to go.

Here's Grandma Jo and one of her besties, Margaret. =) Ornery.

Playing games.

Charli and Aunt Vallie.

Dac and Justin talking cameras.

=)

Mark and Kayla

Val and Cori

Annual picture w/ Kayla. PS - I apparently over moisturized?? Or wait... can I blame the greasy face on surgery? No? Hmm.

Love these girls!!!

More fam...

Grandma Jo with her kids and their spouses.

Our fam.

We photographers play it real cool in front of the camera. ha!

My loot from Dirty Santa. Two new games for Christmas! =) Score!

So hooray for Call Christmas! I look forward to not being tired and sore next year so I can get my game-playing on with the best of them. =)

Christmas Day

2011-12-31T06:00:00.000-08:00

Christmas morning was kind of awesome. Dac and I woke up a little after 7 and just laid in bed for about an hour. We didn't really talk or anything. Just laid there catching up on facebook and blogs. We held hands, looked at each other some, and enjoyed the moment. Normally Christmas is so hectic that we tend to lose sight of the joy and what Christmas is all about. We're aware of that and yet haven't been able to break the cycle of Christmas crazy. This simple little time together was pure magic to us. =)

The four of us sat at the kitchen table and ate leftover sausage balls for breakfast. What more can you ask for? Courtney made some potatoes, we all got ready, loaded up and headed to Courtney's Gran Gran and Papa's house for lunch. There was a big southern spread and we ate ourselves sick. Then, we headed over to Aunt Cindy's for more visiting, eating, a couple sugar coma's, and a nice game of Dirty Santa.

Aunt Cindy and her ~~jumbo hound~~ lap dog Macy. Pretty girls. =)

Dad and Uncle Jerry.

Me and my Boo.

More Sangrias and Aunt Cindy striking her famous pose!

The guys.

Mom and Grandma B.

Dirty Santa. This crowd plays rough... lots of stealing.

Dac ended up with a pigs-in-a-blanket snack maker.

I got the Loaded Questions game and my Dad got himself a fine LSU cap.

I'm still having to wean myself off the sugar slowly. It's an ugly thing coming out of a sugar overdose. Very ugly. We had a great time though and I sure hated to tell everyone goodbye. Thankfully, it sounds like there may be a chance or two for us to get together this coming year... hopefully with the rest of the family that we missed this time around. =) Can't wait!! I love having something to look forward to.

After not sleeping well due to a major sugar-induced belly ache, we got up by 4:30 the next morning to pack up and head back home.

We got home just in time to take a shower and head to Call Christmas. More on that next...

Christmas Eve

2011-12-30T06:00:00.000-08:00

I am so glad to be knocking all these Christmas posts out. There's a slew of them - hope you don't get overwhelmed.

Ah. Christmas Eve. My favorite of the Christmas holidays. =) I love it.

We got to sleep in a bit Saturday and just kind of lazed around before getting ready. Courtney wasn't doing as much lazing because she was cooking for the big shin dig that night. She wouldn't let me help. =|

Later, the four of us went to Taco Bell for a light (mine ended up not being quite as light as I'd planned) lunch. It was fun to hang out and not be all rushed and stressed. I also love that Dac and Ry Ry (haha - somehow our family has adopted this pet name for him - even my Dad called him this - hilarious) were able to hang out. They've met and all before but usually when we've gotten together it's been either one or the other or neither of them. This was the first time they were really around each other for a more extended period of time. Courtney and I realize that we can be a bit... much. Yes, that's it. We tend to turn into a couple of rowdy, giggly little girls when we're together. We realize this and we also realize this probably isn't ever going to completely change. Poor boys. At least they had each other this time though... makes for a fairer fights. Ha! Anyway, Dac and Ryan are buddies now and my Boo and I see plenty of long weekends in the four of us' futures. =)

(Quick story: my grandpa, Carl, and grandma B. used to call Dac "Duck" when we were dating. They were just being silly and giving him a hard time. Well, this came up this weekend and Ryan got a kick out of it and kind of chuckled to himself. Dac didn't waist a second before coming back with "ok, Ry Ry!". We all laughed so hard. They're going to get along just fine and they're both great and "easy" additions to the family. Love it.)

Anyway, after Taco Bell we went back to their house to finish getting ready for all the family to come over. Within a few minutes my stomach was killing me. I mean - horrible, horrible pain. At times I thought I might die... or at the very least have food poisoning (which I knew I didn't because Dac and I had the same thing to eat and he was just fine). Apparently my post-surgery stomach just wasn't quite ready to take on the Bell. Lord have mercy... I was tore up from the floor up. A couple hours and a few Pepto pills later... I was decent again... decent enough to eat. =) Gasp.

Courtney and Ryan hosted our side of the family (her mom is my dad's sister) as well as her Dad's side of the family. When we go down there we always spend the holidays together so we know them and all get along, etc... All the food was great, Courtney's house was the perfect venue, and we had a blast.

My mom, Grandma B, and Aunt Cindy. Sorry the picture is dark.

All us girls. =) PS - yes, I sported sweat pants the entire weekend. Don't judge. Also, my mom really wasn't unhappy... just caught her between smiles I guess.

Dad, Jerry Neil, and Uncle Jerry hittin' the beverages already.

See? =)

Courtney made some amazing Sangrias. I didn't think I'd like them b/c I'm not a big wine fan... but about three sips later, I was sold. Oh yeah - we gangsta. It's how we do.

Yea-ah.

Courtney set these rolls out to make brisket sandwiches. She had BBQ sauce too but we all decided mustard would be good so she put that in the little dish attached to the platter. Jerry Neil gave her so much crap about serving mustard and "biscuits". (Karl from Sling Blade liked mustard on biscuits...) It was hilarious. All night we talked about mustard and biscuits. I know it doesn't seem funny but it was. Fer realz.

This is Courtney's Papa and the adorable little rosy-cheeked doll is Hailey. She was convinced Uncle Jerry is Santa Claus. Con-vinced. Oh my word... she was so excited. Cute as can be. He played right into it telling her that his new clippers were to trim his reindeer's feet. Good lawed.

She also got a kick out of Jerry Neil taking funny photo booth pictures all night. Everyone ended up with big ol' box heads or something and she thought it was the best thing ever. Scratch that - the best thing after Santa Claus. Don't let her fool you though - she knew the real reason for the season and wasn't afraid to tell you about it. =)

Us.

Ryan and Court.

Probably laughing at more funny faces.

The pretty tree. =)

Aunt Cindy and I. We had fun. A few sangrias later and there was all this talk about aliens and such. I kid, I kid. I mean, there was... but it wasn't nearly as drunken as it sounds! =)
After we got everything cleaned up (finally I got to help by doing dishes!!) were were tired and went to bed. Santa Claus is comin' pretty soon... =)

Super Girl

2011-12-29T13:07:00.001-08:00

I'm going to briefly interrupt our previously scheduled Christmas posts to share a few pictures from Charli's birthday party a while back. It was so cute and the kids ran around having a great time. Cori made each kid their own super hero cape that they could decorate. =)

Here's the birthday girl!! You can see more of her official pictures here.

Here's my Goddaughter Journey and her cousin Ellie playing. Ellie and Charli are like besties. So cute.

Our friend Jamie's little girl. So cute!

Time to decorate! I laughed because Val got stuck at the arts and crafts table... playing with the herpes of the arts and crafts world... glitter. =) She didn't think it was all that funny.

Jamie's other kiddo... he's a hoot.

Charli got fun princess dress up clothes. Here's some of the kids playing ring around the rosie.

Three of the little church buddies. =)

Rainbow cake! =)

It's hard work being a super hero birthday girl princess!!
Ha! Love it. I'm so glad Steve and Cori let us be part of her life and I'm glad all her other family members nicely share her with us! =)

Semi-Cajun Country

2011-12-29T06:00:00.000-08:00

A week after surgery I got stupid and decided to take the 10-hour trek down to Louisiana to see some family. Ok, ok, this has been planned for over a year. It probably wasn't smart but I wasn't about to miss the chance to head south. This is where a good deal of my dad's family lives and I haven't spent a Christmas with them since college. Plus, it seems like for the past year we've had to get together for funerals... it was time for a much happier visit! =)

Anyway, we left Thursday morning and made it to my Grandma B's in decent time... it would have been fabulous time had we not been hosed up in Dallas for like 45 minutes. (Side note: I've taken a few road trips with my dad and it never fails... he always says something about being hosed in traffic. My cousin Jerry Neil got to experience Dad's driving last year so ever since we've given him a hard time about this phrase and his mild road rage! ha! He's a good sport though...hey, in this family you have to be able to take what's dished out... 'cuz the dishin' never stops!)

That evening we ate homemade hamburgers and watched the season finale of the X-Factor. I'd never watched it before and Grandma B. was all for Josh (is that his name?) to win. He didn't though and apparently we're sore losers in this family. haha! =)

The next day my mom, dad, and Dac went shopping with my Aunt Cindy. I still wasn't getting around real good and was in a load of pain from the long car ride, so I stayed home with my grandma. Then, she went in to get her hair did and I stayed home then too... being lazy, eating banana bread, and watching SVU reruns. I'm not gonna lie... it was kinda nice.

Later that day Aunt Cindy, Jerry Neil, and.... wait for it... MY BOO (cousin Courtney who's more like a sister than a cousin...only better I guess... b/c there's never any fighting!) came over. YEAH! Everyone was on their iPads and phones (so much so that my grandma decided she needed an iPad stat... and she got one... ha!).

Dad and Dac

Grandma B. and JuJu.

Grandma B. got me started on hot chocolate with tons of cool whip when I was little. Add some milk and it's even more divine. Yum!

We ate a delicious spaghetti dinner and got caught up. Mom, Grandma B, Boo, Aunt Cindy.

Jerry Neil. He used to be dubbed the Grinch when we were younger. He's cheered up since then though, ha! =)

An apparently sleepy Dac and I. =)
It was a great night of quality family time then Dac and I were off to stay with Courtney and her husband Ryan at their new house. Oh. My. Word... it's gorgeous! SO nice. I love that they got such a great place AND that I have a room there. =) After the grand tour we stayed up chatting before resting up for another awesome day.

Christmas #1

2011-12-28T06:16:00.000-08:00

A couple days after surgery Dac's immediate family came over for our Christmas get-together (we had it early because Dac and I were going to be out of town for actual Christmas). We always have a fun time and the past several years we've done cuisine-themed events (we've had Hawaiian, Cajun, Cruise-themed food and drinks, etc...) to change things up and keep it different than all the other holiday food.

This year we had Italian. I feel so bad that I couldn't help with the meal (or anything for that matter... sorry guys!) Val was a trooper and took on the meal although I know others made some things too. We had a delicious lasagna bake and a chicken/shrimp alfredo dish. Plus there was salad, bread, a veggie tray... etc... It was so good.

I think we all made out like bandits... here's the pile of gifts. We're all so spoiled. We do stockings too and Terese (I mean Santa) always gets us socks and underwear. I always get some Burt's Bees too. =)

Charli and Val. I was still kind of loopy this day and I don't feel like I really got to talk to anyone very much. Kind of a bummer. Aren't they cute?

Dac. =) We had Christmas at our house this year since I had just had surgery. We set up extra bag chairs.

Grandma Jo. Austin's in the background being awesome and doing dishes.

He loves getting his picture taken.

Cori kept a still puffy-me company. We like to sit real close to one another. So what!? =)

Steve and Char. I think this is a good picture of them. =) Two smiles even!!

Opening gifts. Dac's messing with our new Shark steam mop. Don't look at my messy laundry closet! That's Dac's dad in the blue.

Charli trying on Steve's special new elf undies. =)
Peety opening his gift...
A dog bone! Peety doesn't really get all that excited about toys anymore.

So that was that. We ate. We talked. We laughed. Probably picked on one another... you know, the usual. I'm so happy to be part of this crazy family.

Keeping it Real: Surgery Style

2011-12-27T20:00:00.000-08:00

NOTE: This post contains some hideous photos of me and some kind of graphic info. Proceed at your own risk.

I had surgery on December 15 to treat some female dysfunction and pelvic pain issues. I had my last meal or sip of water at 11:30 the night before. I reported at 1:15, signed my life and our next several pay checks away, and was taken back to begin the pre-op fun. My pre-op nurse was nice (I love a nice nurse ya'll... a nurse can make or break any medical encounter but after having three surgeries and having a mix of several great (and one-two horrible) nurses, I can tell you that good pre-op/scrub/post-op nurses have a special place in my heart!)

Anyway, I peed in a cup, changed into my glamorous gown and booties then shyly paraded in front of the other surgery center patients on my way back to my bed. The last two times I had surgery, it seems like there was more waiting. This time, things went very fast up until the actual surgery. I answered tons of questions, got my iv, and had a nice chat with the anesthesiologist, nurse anesthetist, and my doctor.

Like I said, I've had surgery before (including this same-ish surgery) and each time I've dealt with lots of nausea. The anesthesiologist was great. He sat down and visited with me about this patch I could wear and a special cocktail of drugs he'd give me to ward it off. He said he'd yet to have one person feel sick after this regimen and I assured him I'd try not to break his track record (which I didn't... amazing!) if he could assure me he wouldn't let me wake up mid-

surgery. I love to crack jokes with the doctors and nurses. haha! =) He told me that if I did wake up, the surgery would be free (doubt it... but tempting...) and that he likes to be paid so I didn't have anything to worry about. =)

I told the pre-op nurse that I was treating this surgery like a spa day. =) Warm bed. Slippers. A nice long nap. Cocktails. Being waited on hand and foot. Sounds like a dream, no?

When my doctor came in - it took me a minute to recognize her. We'd only met once plus she had her surgical cap on. It's not that I didn't like her when we had our first appt., it's just that she seemed way nicer this time around. She was just as nice as could be and explained what she'd be doing, what to expect afterwards, etc... she also told me she tries her darndest to keep organs (ovaries, tubes, etc...) if at all possible. This will be funnier (in a dark way) later in the story. =)

The doctor seemed a little concerned by my high heart rate prior to surgery but chalked it up to nerves. I tried to convince her that I wasn’t all that nervous... cool. as. a. double dip ice cream cone. =) She didn’t buy it.

After our chat, I hugged Dac and my mom, and was wisked away slowly rolled to the operating room. It was cold and buzzing with activity. (Side note: it was not as cold and sterile feeling as the time I had knee surgery in the hospital... apparently the surgery centers are a little more relaxed?) It was mostly women in there. They all introduced themselves and we had a couple laughs. I told them how the last time I had this surgery I don’t remember even being wheeled out of the pre-op room let alone being in the operating room. They said this time I hadn’t had any kind of drug put into my iv yet and that I’d probably remember all of it (which I clearly do). The best part was when the nurse anesthetist leaned over and with big eyes asked if I was ready for a margarita. Ha! I said “That sounds amazing, how did you know!?” =) Shortly after, I was sound asleep.

I remember waking up with the oxygen mask on my face and in TONS of pain (but at least the intubation tube wasn’t still in like it was when I woke up from knee surgery... that was awful). I remember bits and pieces from here on out but it’s all a little fuzzy because I was in and out of sleep, a total druggy high on life, and plus I hadn't had an ounce of food or drink in like 20+ hours (anyone who knows me knows I get parched and like out of control cranky/out of it if I go more than like an hour without food.)

Mom and Dac were in there and so were two nurses... they were buzzing around me earning their pay. I was one of only two patients left at this point so I was practically the spa guest of honor. haha. Both of them were super nice and treated me like royalty but one of them was particularly hilarious. Or maybe it was the drugs. Either way - loved her. She took the mask off my face and when I told her I was hurting super bad I was informed that I would probably be in a lot more pain than last time because my doctor removed lots of endometriosis, scar tissue, cysts/tumors, and... wait... what’s that? Oh yes, my appendix. I thought to myself “go figure... so much for keeping all my organs in tact!”. Oh well... it’s just an appendix. She then told me to sleep. I, of course, was super worried about the time. I knew last time I had surgery my recovery time was pretty lengthy. Poor Dac had to stay up there with me and miss lunch and practically dinner because I just couldn’t quite get it together. Though I didn’t feel sick this time, (HOORAY!) I was very sleepy and loaded with Demerol. They told me my 45-minute surgery had turned into a three-hour one and to not worry about the time. "Sleep" they said. "Sleep cures a lot of things." So I did.

When I woke up the second time, the nurses were pressing on my stomach. Apparently my heart rate was off-the-charts high which had them concerned for a number of reasons but particularly because that can be a sign of internal bleeding. YIKES! (Note to funny nurse: don’t tell this to a half-drugged post surgical patient. Thanks. I worried about this for days - checking my belly every 30 seconds to make sure it wasn't too hard or warm.) Then she called me tachy (but clarified that she was referring to tachycardia and not ugly sweater tacky). ha! After lots of examining she determined that I was just fine and that because I had a high heart rate both before and after surgery - that probably meant that it’s just how I roll. Well hall-lay-loo-yer. Good to know.

Finally... hours later... I decided I could probably pee. (HELLO gorgeous swollen goddess! That spa day did you wonders!)

*Graphic Content Ahead* That was a trip. When I finally got up, I noticed some blood and blue dye on the bed. I asked her if that was normal - she said yes and covered it up. Makes me wonder! =) We struggled into the bathroom and of course, I couldn’t go. The sweet older nurse (not old, just older than the funny nurse) explained that they had removed lots of endo from my bladder so it might be hard/painful to pee for a while. The funny nurse laughed and said I

probably just didn’t want an audience so she turned on the sink and they left. That didn’t help. They came back in with a cup of sprite and told me to blow bubbles into it... that the pressure might help. Just when you think you’ve heard it all. That didn’t work either - although it did do a pretty good job of making me feel like a total moron. FINALLY... I peed. YAY! That meant I could go home! And it was only 9! =)

I was awesome and dressed myself before sprinting out the door The nurses dressed me, we joked about my granny panties and the fact that I brought fresh undies just in case, they removed my iv, and then I was wheeled out to the car for a pretty long and uncomfortable car ride.

We had a bit of a scare when we got home. Not long after we'd been there I went to the bathroom and noticed I was YELLOW. Not like bright and happy yellow... like death by liver failure yellow. Dac called the emergency line and the doctor on call said that as long as I didn't get worse and as long as my eyes stayed white... I was fine. By morning I was already looking better less yellow so we knew I was in the clear. I could even sit up (for like 5 minutes).

I spent the next few days eating crackers, sipping on Sierra Mist, downing pain pills and stool softeners, and lying around on the couch watching Grey's Anatomy. It was a sad and pitiful existence. BUT - my pug - whom I love - was worried about me. He followed me everywhere (to the bathroom and back) and was by my side the whole time. See?

Dac had to go back to work the next day so my mom and dad took shifts. I also had some visitors, got lots of texts/messages/phone calls, a couple plants (one from work and one from my grandma and grandpa) and some chicken-n-noodles and mashed potatoes from Terese. Everyone took such good care of me and I'm so fortunate to have so many people who love me and who I count on to be there in the not-so-pretty hours. See photos above. =)

I'm still huge and bloated, still in pain, and still needing elastic waist pants and the occasional pain pill. I still have stitches in my three incisions. Surgery was way more extensive than any of us thought. I still don't know all the details yet and I don't go back for my post-op appt. until January 5. It's driving me nuts that I don't know specifics of the surgery, or my biopsy results, or what's next but I believe everything will work out just fine.

Thanks so much for your prayers and concern! I'm well on my way to feeling better. =)

Back At It/Randoms

2011-12-27T11:55:00.001-08:00

Well, well, well - no shocker here - I'm behind on blogging.
Right now I feel a little like Peety looks in this picture from his stay at Pug Camp (Dac's parent's house) over Christmas.

Seriously though, is he not the cutest?! Love him and miss him!

I had my surgery. It was a little more extensive than any of us previously thought it would be. I'm still sore and sportin' a huge, bloaty/swelly stomach but I'm oh so thankful things went well and that I'm on the mend. I'll share more about this soon.

A couple days before surgery Dac, Val, Steve, Cori, Charli and I took a road trip to SUMO's in Wichita for a fun night of face stuffing. Good times!

We've had several Christmas get-together's now and spent the actual Christmas holiday in Louisiana visiting family. We got back yesterday afternoon before heading to Call Christmas. I'm pooped. Dac's pooped. Peety's still at pug camp until this afternoon and I imagine he's pooped too. We had a great time though and I have lots and lots of pictures to post in the coming days (maybe weeks).

I found out that Steve and Cori are having TWINS!!!! Shut up!!! I KNOW! =) I just love it!! Couldn't be happier or more excited for this family. EEEK! I also love to think of all the fun things Charli will teach her siblings. ha!

I think it's also safe to mention now that Kayla and Mark are expecting a little brother or sister for Journey too!!! =) SUPER happy for them as well!!! So many babies!! =) Thank goodness I have an un-ending supply of excitement and cuddles to give them. Can't wait!

My toenails need painted in a baaaaaad way.

I tried (and liked) Dr. Pepper Ten for the first time this past weekend.

I also tried Sangria for the first time too at my Boo's Christmas Eve partay. Liked it too! =)

We have almost-ish got ourselves caught up on photos... only to have two back-to-back wedding weekends coming up.

The good news is the weddings are all for friends so they should be extra good times! =)

We have friends coming in tomorrow. I know we're both super excited to see everyone and hang out. It's not nearly often enough but it's always fun times when we get the band back together. ha!

Today is my first full day back to work since surgery. It's also my first day sans sweat pants (not going fabulously I might add) and my first day to drive. Baby steps.

I can't believe it's been almost a year since I started this wee little blog. I need to get all the end-of-the-year craziness recorded so I can order my first blog book! =)

We made out like a couple of Christmas bandits this year. It's seriously ridiculous how much we have and how good people are to us. I feel super blessed to have a savior, an amazing family, fantastic friends, a belly ache from all the holiday food I scarfed... the list goes on and on. Full hearts.

Like I said - much more interesting and picture-full posts coming soon. Hope you all had as merry a'Christmas as we did.

Censored

2011-12-14T07:36:00.001-08:00

Warning: the following post isn't the MOST family friendly. Proceed with caution. =)

My friend Heather is getting married on New Years Eve. Her last days as a single girl! Her sister threw her a fun a bachelorette party. Theme: Penis. (Hey, you were warned!) There was penis' everywhere!

PS - I uploaded these backwards so we're going in reverse order. Sorry, but I'm too lazy to go back and fix it.

The majority of the party was at Kayla's house and like I said, everywhere you looked there was male anatomy staring you in the face. There were streamers, a pinata, pin the hose on the fireman, penis tablecloth, plates, and napkins, penis cupcakes, balloons, straws, Heather wore a special crown, and she even had a special glass with a light up you-know-what in it. Ha! =)

Here's Heather opening a few gifts.

I'm still on antibiotics so this was my beverage for the night.

We played old school truth or dare and Heather had to give someone at the party a lap dance... Watch out Daniel, this girl's got moves!

The guest of honor being fabulous as usual.

The snack and beverage table.

Before heading to Kayla's house we all met at Chili's. Here's Heather and her Cosmo.

More gifts.

A couple of Heather's friends from school (she's getting her masters in social work) were able to come!

Heather's sisters Katy and Brittany. Love these girls (and Heather's entire family!) PS - I still can't believe Katy's even old enough to be going to a bachelorette party... in my mind I still think of her as 10. Even though she's way cooler than that.

Heather and I.

Tabitha being silly and Kayla.

Tabitha being more like Tabitha. =)

There's many other pictures that I could post... but won't. =D I wouldn't do that to ya Heather! The party was way fun. Brittany did a great job planning it and I can't wait for the big day!!!

Midweek Randoms

2011-12-13T09:30:00.001-08:00

Life is a crazy mess right now. A good (for the most part) mess, but a mess none-the-less. =)

I'll pick up where we left off last time. Last Wednesday was Charli's 4-year pictures. Holy smokes how did this child get to be 4? Time is a'flyin'. I'm pretty much attached for good at this point. =) So don't go moving far away, k Cori? That night Heather and Kayla came over for Criminal Minds. I fixed Frito chili pie and cinnamon roll cake. Pretty tasty - but I forgot to get pictures. I found the cinnamon roll cake recipe on pinterest. Gee I love that site. The cake was good and I'm sure it'll become a chili night staple. =) It'd been a while since I really got to see/hang out with those girls so it was fun.

Thursday was a bit of a bad day. Or at least it started out that way. I finally went to the doctor about this ongoing crud and turns out - it was a sinus infection. I don't know why I waited so long to go in. I get 1-2 each year and I should have known that's what it was. Anyway, I was sent on my way with an antibiotic and some nasal spray. I had a meeting that afternoon and suddenly, right during the middle of the meeting, I felt so sick to my stomach. I don't know if it was the antibiotic kicking in or something else but I just walked out and went home. Thankfully, I started feeling better after just an hour or two (weird). When I got home, I got a call from a not so super happy client which broke my heart and had me in tears by the end of the phone call. I was devastated but I think we can make the client at least somewhat happier and I'm feeling a little better about it now.

That night, Val, Cori, and Steve came over. Cori made delicious chicken and scratch noodles and a tasty rainbow layer cake with marshmallow frosting. Shut the front door. Yum. It was fun catching up. We love these friends! After we ate we mostly just watched dumb youtube videos. ha! Party animals.

Friday night was our work party. Every year we girls at the office have a secret santa week and a little reveal party at someone's house. They're always fun and I'm glad to work with people that get along and care about each other. I'm not saying it's always drama-free but it's pretty close. =) This year we opted to not do secret santa and just play dirty santa instead. We went out to Traci's, ate chicken and noodles and potato soup (yum!). We played a game where you had to guess who's baby picture was who (WAY harder than I thought i'd be although I got lucky and tied for first place!), and then opened presents. Everybody must have liked what they got though because nobody stole anything. =)

Saturday morning we got up early and went to Wichita for a lifestyle family session for a photographer friend who just had a baby girl. =) Oh my, she's sweet. We had a great time getting to know Jennifer and her husband better and it was a lot of fun to do a less posed shoot. I'll, of course, share the pictures over on the photo blog later.

I ate a chocolate chip cookie which I managed to melt to my butt and the seat of the car. Fail. Still haven't cleaned it up yet. Double Fail.

After pictures, Dac and I hit up Kohls and Target for some more Christmas gifts (still not done yet but SO much closer), ate some Spangles and headed back home so I could get ready for Heather's bachelorette party. I felt super rushed but the party was fun and I'll share pictures on here soon. =) Look out!

Sunday, I got up and went to church. I know. Gasp! Dac stayed home to help David with some stuff but I went and we had Amanda's wedding shower afterwards. We had lots of donuts, cider, and hot chocolate and she got lots of goodies so I call it a success. =) Her wedding is coming right up and I can't wait.

After the shower, Val, Terese, Cori, Charli and I went to eat at La Fiesta. THEN, we helped Cori get everything ready for Charli's awesome superhero birthday party! THEN, we went to the party. =) Super cute! I'll share pictures of that soon too.

Since then it's just been work - edit photos - clean house - laundry - work - second verse same and the first.

OOH - important news here... we got our carpets cleaned today!!! =D AND Peety went to the pug spa for a bath and a good nail trimmin'. =)

In other news, I'm scheduled for surgery Thursday. Not looking forward to that but hoping it'll make life (and all the pain) a little more bearable. Any prayers and/or warm, fuzzy thoughts would be much appreciated! =)

I don't like that you have to take off nail polish for surgery. Boo. What will I do with bare toes? Of all the times when you want cute, freshly painted toes and they go and pull that on ya. Thankfully I have some new fuzzy slippers to hide them in. ha!

Speaking of frivolous hygiene - I got some new lotion. It's this kind. It's a little more scented than what I normally go for but it's not overpowering and it softens my rough man arms so I'll deal. =)

Midweek Randoms

2011-12-06T07:56:00.000-08:00

I like to talk trash as much as the next guy but at the end of the day, I know this is what's it's all about.

Is it just me, or is the OSU band looking a little smaller these days?

I don't like that you miss this stuff when you watch games on TV. I also missed seeing Bullet ride. =)

I've been keeping up on my pre-surgery nesting. This week I made an appt. to get our carpets professionally cleaned. They're awful. Really awful. But while we've shampooed them ourselves a few times, we've held off on spending the money because we've been renovating and because we planned on replacing them by now. That's the way it goes, right? So I'm excited about that. Also, I took everything out of our bathroom drawers, cabinets, etc... and threw stuff out, vacuumed them out, and re-organized. This was a particularly lengthy and messy job because our built-in drawers back up to the spare room closets that were torn out - so, all the insulation, plaster, dust, and wood chips had settled into them. Guh-roas. Glad it's done. I still have the cabinet under the sink to do and then of course, just regular deep cleaning/scrubbing - but it's coming right along. =)

I got some more Christmas shopping done Saturday. Went to Derby with my aunt and Grandma. We had a good time. I still didn't get everyone bought for. =| But I'm at least a step or two closer. I had hoped to have all this done this week BUT... yeah right. Looks like the rest will either be bought online, or will be gift cards.

While I was Christmas shopping, I did some shopping for myself. I know, I know... I just can't help it when there's sales going on like that. Plus, I don't get out to shop very often anymore. Anyway, I had ordered this adorable, classy, perfect black dress a couple weeks ago. I just knew it would be just the thing for Heather's wedding. It wasn't. Instead of looking classy, adorable, and perfect... I looked frumpy, fat, and hideous. SO, I needed to find something Saturday. (The wedding is this month) I had pretty much given in and decided to wear bib overalls when I found a lone dress hidden amongst lots of pretty new things at Maurices. It was my size. It was black. It fit and was fairly flattering. Nothing special, glamorous, or stunning. But. It. Worked. It is me. Plus it was $20 cheaper than the one I'd ordered. I took the dress and a pair of jeans up to the counter to check out. The cashier's eyes got big and she said "This dress is on sale! You are just going to die!I asked her how much it was, expecting it to be down $10 or so. No. "$9.89!" I told her to GET OUT. I got the $40 dress for $9.89. GAME ON and Alisha FOR. THE. WIN. It's a dress I could wear to a wedding or a funeral (not that I plan on going to any of those anytime in the near or not-so-near future)... with pearls or a colorful cardigan and fun tights. Plus, it's something I can probably wear even if I gain or lose a size. Holla. To wrap it up, the jeans were 40% off, so I got the jeans AND the dress for less than what I would have got either one of them for alone. =)

I can NOT seem to shake this cold stuff I've got lingering. It's been about a week and a half now. Some days I think it's headed out then the next I feel like I'm back at the starting line again. Sunday was one of those days. I basically laid on the couch all day. I did get up to cook some cavatini and do a load or two of laundry and dishes but that was it. Lazy, lazy day.

We had our first "snow" Monday night/Tuesday morning. It was just a light dusting but I did manage to find a slick spot on my way to work. It's of course been cold and I decided to have a hot chocolate at work. =) We have a hot chocolate stash there so I had my pick. I chose a dark chocolate sensation and added vanilla caramel creamer to it. Yum. Warmed me right up. Maybe I'll finally bust into my tasty chi packets! Can't wait. Honestly can't believe I've waited this long. This sums up my current life nicely I believe.

In other random news. You know what I don't like? I don't like when you're making a breakfast casserole with canned croissants... and the can won't pop open on it's on. You know the ones right? Both cans I tried to open last night wouldn't budge. Then I got nervous just anticipating that pop sound. I had to practically beat them with a big spoon and STILL my heart jumped.

I made some healthy and nutritious muffins last night. They're called morning glory muffins and I got the recipe as well as the picture from this blog I follow. They happen to be Vegan but I don't really need or want for them to be necessarily. I just like that they're loaded with fruits and veggies. I followed her recipe but I used two cups of white whole wheat flour, pecans instead of walnuts, axed the raisins, and added a little almond milk. They definitely have a hearty taste and are full of fiber. I ate one for breakfast today with a little yogurt butter on it and it was good... plus I'm not hungry yet. Bonus.

The remainder of the week, I have the following: dinner/criminal minds night, Wii Night, my work Christmas party, Heather's bachelorette party, a wedding shower, and one of my favorite kid's birthday party. SO - needless to say, I should have lots of pictures to show next week. =)

Oh Holy Leotards!

2011-12-05T08:52:00.000-08:00

I got to enjoy one of the many perks of being an adopted auntie this weekend!

It was Charli's first DANCE RECITAL! A day Val, Cori, and I have waited on with much anticipation for quite some time. =)

Before the recital, Terese, Val, Dac and I went out for BBQ. Then, we swung by the store to get some gifts for the little star, and off to the recital we went!

The Christmas recital was put on by Ark City Dance and it was pretty good and it was a great way to start off the Christmas season. Plus, I danced for around 10 years so I always enjoy watching. There's some fantastic dancers at that studio! Of course, none of them were quite as adorable as this one. ; )

Charli was a gingerbread girl and she did great - singing along the whole time I might add. =) No stage fright! I couldn't be any prouder!!!

That single orange rose is from me and Dac got her an orange, haha! So practical. =) Val joined him and got her an apple with her flowers too!

After the show Dac had his heart set on ice cream, so we ventured back out, got a hot chocolate ice cream cone (YUM) and drove around just looking at a few Christmas lights in town.

How 'bout them Cowboys?!

2011-12-05T06:23:00.000-08:00

Win or lose, I'm always proud to be an OSU Cowboy. Always. No. Matter. What. BUT - I'd be lying if I said that beating the tar out of OU during the Bedlam game Saturday night didn't boost that pride just a little bit! =) I was so stinkin' excited!

Dac and I had fun watching the game. We have just basic-basic cable and unfortunately, over the last few years we haven't been quite good enough to get a lot of prime time coverage... and we shoot weddings on a lot of Saturdays so we haven't got to catch many games. We both donned our orange, ate stew with extra carrots, and homemade sweet potato biscuits (ORANGE POWER) and cheered the boys on!

OSU 44 - OU 10. GO POKES! =)

As if beating OU wasn't enough... we're the BIG 12 champs! HOLLA!

Unfortunately, this wasn't enough to allow us to play LSU. Totally bummed here, people. This team deserved a shot at the championship. Sure, they lost to an unranked team just a couple weeks ago... but it was in overtime at least... and while none of us will ever know for sure how the plane crash the night before that game affected the team, given the way they've played the rest of the season, I think it's safe to say they were affected. Plus, the majority of my Dad's side of the family are big LSU fans and I would have loved to talk a little trash with them. =)

Oh well, the Fiesta Bowl is nothing to scoff at, we're still #3 in the nation, and this alum is proud. Did I mention we BEAT OU? ... Oh, I did? =)

Congratulations Cowboys!! Now go beat Stanford!

Photo credit: here and here.

Midweek Randoms

2011-12-01T06:14:00.000-08:00

I realize that while I talked about Thanksgiving, I didn't mention the day before. I normally have to work that day but we happened to get off this year. =) Woo-hoo! I'm thankful that I get holidays off. I know people in many professions still have to work and I'm thankful for those people too!

So, Wednesday, I got up and met some girls I work with and J.K., my old boss, for breakfast. It was fun to catch up and as tempting as it was to sleep in, I'm glad I went. The rest of the day was pretty productive. I got an oil change and went to lunch with two of my favorite girls, Kayla and Journey. Dac and I payed some bills and took two big truckloads of metal to the metal recycling place. We also took the rest of the "donate" stuff (lots) to Salvation Army and Goodwill.

That evening we went to El Maguey with Val, then Val and I had sister time at the Walmarts. =) We got stuff for Thanksgiving and even shopped for two kids on the Angel Tree. What David wants for Christmas each year is for us to each shop for an "angel". So we do. Val and I always do this together and it's always an absolute blast! Love it. Val had a little boy and I had a little girl. Both were right around the 1-1.5 year age. Here's a look at Val's loot: several warm adorable outfits and a couple car toys.

And my loot: a stacking cup game, a dressy outfit, hoodie, sweats, tee, and pj's. =)

Since then, of course was Thanksgiving and the wedding.

This week, I worked all day Monday due to a meeting that night. Tuesday, I made a vegetable soup over lunch and then I got real crazy and went grocery shopping after work. Like real grocery shopping - the kind where I actually come home with stuff to make actual meals. It was wild. It was kind of exciting... it's been so long since I've really shopped or cooked or had anything real healthy and nutritious in the house. After the shopping, I cleaned out the fridge and freezer. I took everything out, threw out the old stuff, cleaned the inside of fridge and then re-organized everything. So glad that's done. I've been putting it off for months. Or at least weeks.

Up top is Dac's variety-o-beers. Last time we were in Wichita he picked up a box of craft beer that the owner of Rob's Beer World put together. It was a good deal but the catch is that he didn't know what was in it until we got home. You woulda thought it was Christmas morning. =)

There's also eggs, and butter, and yogurt, and apples, and almond milk, and cheese, and fresh veggies. Fresh. Fresh spinach, fresh carrots, fresh celery, fresh... carrots... oh and zucchini. =) There's also gatorade and sierra mist (partly left over from my flu bug and partly in preparation for post-surgery).

On the freezer side there's now sausage, ham, stew meat, chicken, ground turkey, fish, frozen veggies (yes, more veggies, please proceed to pick your jaw up off the floor), and some fun little peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that Val and I picked up on our shopping date. =)

I forgot to mention that I have a cold. At least I think it's a cold. I thought it was just sinus drainage at first (Saturday night) but now it feels like a full blown head cold. First the flu, now this. Minor things - sure - but annoying none-the-less. I'm hoping this is the last of the sickness for a while.

Sky came over last night. We made omelets, bacon, and biscuits. That's right... another homemade meal. BAM! We also played her Sims game... and by played, I mean she helped me figure out how to create a character. Ha!

Currently:

Obsessing over: this cold, my desire for yummy baked goods, cheesy casseroles, the need to get stuff done!

Working on: deep cleaning and organizing the entire house, warming my feet,

Thinking about: what's for lunch, surgery, Christmas, what to give as gifts, what to wear to Heather's wedding

Anticipating: Christmas, seeing family I don't see very often, Heather's wedding

Listening to: my mouth breathing, Grey's Anatomy, Christmas music

Drinking: lots of water, Spark energy drinks

Wishing: for a more organized and cozy house, an enjoyable Jesus-family-laughter-good attitude filled holiday season, to feel better, to have a better idea what the future holds,

My Roomie's Wedding

2011-11-30T11:32:00.000-08:00

Let me just preface this by saying I am SO stinkin' excited for Julie and Jon. They are two of the kindest people and seem so perfect for each other!!! =) Eeek! I'm happy for them!!

The day after Thanksgiving Dac and I lounged around the house. He worked on

photos, I did some laundry and packing, but really... it was a pretty lazy day. It was nice. =) I watched lots of Grey's. Addicted. I finally threw some makeup on, grabbed us some McD's for lunch, finished packing our camera stuff and we were on the road to OKC (well, Yukon) for my old roomie and one of my most greatest friend Julie's wedding. Oh wait... that's after we dropped Peety off at "Summer Camp" (dac's parents house). Peety enjoys going there because he gets spoiled and gets to play with Tater. I'm not sure how much they enjoy having him, but thankfully they're willing to keep him for us. =)

When we FINALLY got to Yukon, I squeezed Beth (other roomie and an

other one of my most greatest friends who was kind enough to let us crash her place for the weekend) half to death, made about 5 minutes of chit-chat before not-so-sneakily suggesting we get some grub! =) Thankfully Beth's used to this type of behavior and happily agreed that we could finish catching up over some Bad Brad's BBQ! Love Bad Brad's. It's one of my Stilly fav's that just so happens to be in Yukon too. So, we ate and chatted and laughed and caught up... then we went back to Casa Beth for more catching up and MORE laughing before walking across the street to see Jon and Julie's adorable new place! That's right... literally across the street. I love that they live so close together still. Beth was sure to point out that there's a couple other houses for sale in that same neighborhood. =)

The next day, we got up, grabbed some Chick-Fil-A for breakfast, and headed over to the Salon to take some shots of Julie and her bridesmaids (sister Natalie and cousin Liz) getting ready. Next, it was off to the wedding!!! They had a beautiful, simple ceremony and reception at the Thunderbird Chapel in Norman. It was perfect. Here's me at the reception working my "I need some volume spray photographer look". Do I always look this haggard and homely? Oh crap. I do, don't I? Sigh.

Some of the old college gang. Beth, Natalie (friend Nat, not sister Nat), Julie, and me!

We always have so much fun!!

Yay Jon and Julie!!!!!!!!! Julie looked absolutely beautiful and I LOVED her dress. AND her cute cardigan.

Aw, so cute!! So happy! On their way to Hawaii!!

Oh Nat. She's a funny one. =) One of the funniest I know.

After the wedding, Beth drove us to the mall so Dac could get an Apple TV. Then, we ate at Chili's, drove through their awesome park-o-lights, and watched Wolverine. =)

Sunday morning we got up, went to breakfast, said bye then headed over to Julie's parents house to photograph Ben and Natalie's (sister Natalie) three adorable kiddo's. I'll post those pictures and the official wedding pictures over on the photo blog later. I tell you what, Julie's family is made up of some of THE nicest people you'll ever meet. Truly, they are wonderful. I mean it. I hadn't seen them in years so it was to see everyone and catch up real quick! =) I giggle a little bit because my college friends are the only people that call me "Lish". I don't even process when they do it, but it's funny to hear their parents and families say the same thing. I even find myself introducing myself as that to new people down there because that's probably how they've heard of me. =)

Good times with great friends!! Loved every stinking minute of it. Can't wait to go back!

Thanksgiving

2011-11-30T10:37:00.000-08:00

I hope you all had a very happy Thanksgiving! We did! =) Having missed Dac's family's meal and having been sick and on a soup diet for a couple days, I. Was. Pumped for Thanksgiving dinner at my Grandma's. It didn't disappoint. I've always kind of enjoyed this holiday. Used to be - I'd spend the day before Thanksgiving helping my mom, aunt, and grandma start preparing for the big meal. When I was little, I was in charge of "washing" the turkey. This meant the turkey was thawing in the sink and I had to give it a bath. I won't reveal how old I was when I realized there was no such thing as giving the turkey a bath. =| Here I was thinking I ha

d this big important job... and really... they were just trying to keep me busy and out of their hair. ha! Later on, I was in charge of helping Grandma with the pies (I know everyone says this, but seriously, my Grandma makes THE best pies you'll ever taste. AND they're always pretty too. Amazing.) and the cleaning (the house, not the turkey). It was fun girl time.

Then, Thanksgiving morning I'd watch the parade with my dad before heading out to Grandma's early to help some more. Getting there early is the best part. It was always lots of fun. We'd stuff ourselves, watch football, and that's that. Later, my parents and I would watch Home Alone or another fun Christmas movie. When Dac and I were dating, we'd sometimes go see a movie Thanksgiving afternoon too. It's just a fun holiday... getting together for reasons other than gifts, etc... That's what it's all about. I was telling Dac how we don't really do any of that fun stuff anymore. I think we should make a change for next year!

My grandma Millie, Aunt Deb, and my mom.

The spread. =)

My contribution. Usually, I make a mashed sweet potato casserole with a cinnamon sugar pecan crusting on top... this year, I was lazy and just used Schwans sweet potato chunks and dressed them up with butter, brown sugar, pecans and marshmallows. Still pretty good.

Later that day, some of Dac's family came over for a casual "Drinksgiving". We sat around in our sweats, ate appetizers, drank cocktails, and watched Bridesmaids. Real family-friendly movie. =) I wanted to get pictures that night, but nobody was cooperating. Huh-hmm! Thankfully Peety and Tater felt like posing. =)

My Peety man!

Cousin Tater!

All-in-all it was a great day.

Midweek Randoms

2011-11-22T06:24:00.000-08:00

Let's play catch-up from last week, shall we?

I had a meeting in Salina Friday so I spent the day in the car. That evening we went to Wichita for a dinner/christmas shopping date. We ate at Old Chicago and picked up a few gifts. I wasn't able to get as many as I'd have hoped... but it's a start! Since I'm having surgery soon and since we'll be out of town some for the holidays, I really don't have many shopping days left. It'll all come together though... and if not, there's always gift cards, right!? =)

That brings me to my next topic. Saturday. Saturday was clean out the house day. We had hoped to take some scrap metal to recycle and get most if not all our stuff taken to Salvation Army, etc... that needed to go. Welllllll... no such luck. We got our normal recyclable stuff dropped off, I cleaned out our bedroom.... took everything out of our closet (please understand, since our spare room/bathroom is under construction... most of that stuff has taken up residency in our bedroom closet.)I threw stuff away, got stuff ready to donate, and cleaned and organized. The room looks grand. Bare and totally undecorated with non-matching sheets, mind you, but grand. =) We deep cleaned the floors, blinds, etc... and Dac even hanged new curtain rods. I got thecurtains washed but they're not hemmed yet. Half the stuff from the closet is now in the hallway. ha! And while we got a bunch of stuff from the garage taken to Salvation Army, the stuff inside the house I was so desperately hoping to get rid of, is still there. In piles in about every room in our house. Maybe tomorrow?

I think part of the slowness was due to my not feeling well. All day longI felt kind of queazy. I just knew I was getting sick. Well, I was. I spent all night throwing up (it's not pretty people, I'm such a violent puker... you're welcome for sharing that tidbit) and feeling like death was upon me. I slept out on the couch and couldn't get comfortable and couldn't seem to regulate my temperature. It donned on me Sunday morning that maybe I had a fever. Well, I did. It was like 100.5 and I imagine it was well over that during the night when I was at my worst. I spent the rest of the day on the couch either sleeping or watching old Grey's Anatomy episodes on Netflix. I even missed Thanksgiving dinner with Dac's family. =( Didn't even get to eat a take-home plate. Double =(.

This is also the day I found out about the plane crash that killed two of the OSU Basketball coaches and two others. My heart breaks for their families, players, etc... An article about the crash can be read here.

Unfortunately this isn't the first tragedy of this nature to affect OSU... visit the Remember the 10 page here. I have such pride about Oklahoma State. I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to go there and be part of the great orange-wearing cowboy family.

Monday, I woke up still feeling pretty bad. I wasn't puke-sick anymore but I still had the awful headache, was super sore, and I could tell I needed more recovery time. I spent another day on the couch... barely getting up... watching more Grey's and eating soup. I missed girls night out too. Triple =(.

Today I have a hair appt. Praise the Lord.

This week is full of Thanksgiving festivities and one of my great friends' wedding! Can't wait!

Midweek Randoms

2011-11-17T05:47:00.000-08:00

Seriously? How is it time for this again? This time of year always seems to fly by. Although, I think I say that during every time of the year.

I had to stay home sick from work again last week. My pain was, I'm almost sure, the worst it's ever been. At this point as much as I dread it, I'm SO ready for the surgery. I just want to feel better. That same day I missed out on a trip to Wichita for Wii Night. =| NOT cool.

Friday night Dac and I went on a date. I didn't take any pictures b/c still wasn't feeling the best. We went to Ponca, ate BBQ, went to Brace Books and Wal-Mart, stopped for a treat at the gas station then went home. Nothing special or out of the ordinary, but we had fun none-the-less. =)

Saturday, Dac worked on photos and I worked on cleaning and doing laundry. Then, that afternoon/evening we photographed a friend of ours, Lynnette's wedding. She and Deryk had a beautiful wedding and it was fun to be a part of it! We got to see several people from high school so that was fun!

Sunday, I woke up and started cleaning the house and doing more laundry. Then, we met David and Terese for lunch and visited with them for a while.

Sunday happened to be the PanCan Purple Stride in Dallas - it's the 5k for Pancreatic Cancer. I've wanted to walk/run in one for years now and it's never worked out. This year, my cousin Courtney along with my aunt, one of Ryan's best friends, and several others formed a team "KABOOM" (one of Ryan's catch phrases) in memory of him. I hated that I couldn't be a part of it. I. Hated. It. But we had already scheduled a wedding Lynnette's wedding for that weekend. I donated and sported my purple Ryan shirt to show support. I thought a lot about him that day. I know we all were. (PS - if you're new around here, Ryan is my older cousin who died due to Pancreatic Cancer last year. You can read more about him and that situation here, here, here, and here.) Here's a scary picture of me wearing the shirt.

I love my family and can't wait to spend time with some of them over Christmas! Eeek!

As crazy and busy and hectic as this next month and a half will be, it's full of lots of excitement and good times too! Lots of friend and family time. Pretty excited about it. =)

Anyway, Sunday night, David came over to help Dac with the house and Terese came too and brought Tater. Tater and Peety played outside (I wish I'd gotten a picture) and Terese and I chatted and went to Sonic. I got a chili cheese coney. Haven't had one in a long time. It was pretty good. Some of my college buddies and I would get those on OSU game days. =) Fun times.

Everything else this week has basically been work and photography related. Although, I did get to hang out with Sky for a while last night. That was fun. We didn't have a whole lot of time together so we went and got a snack, listened to music, and created people on her Sims game. haha. It was a real educational and productive time together. =)

Then, Kayla and I met for dinner to catch up. That was fun! Then we met Heather at Wally World (we have been soooo foodless at our house... yikes!) and then we all hung out, caught up, and watched Criminal Minds. It was fabulous.

Midweek Randoms

2011-11-09T13:48:00.000-08:00

I don't have much to say this time around.

Dac and I spent Saturday down in Enid, Oklahoma photographing this adorable couple's wedding. Gorgeous no? Inside and out, people. Inside and out. Wow. It was an awesome ceremony.

We ate a lot of McDonalds that day. We're certainly not proud of that, but it was kind of fun none-the-less. =)

Sunday, we went to my Grandma and Grandpa's house for lunch. It's been a while since we'd been out there so it was a nice, welcome change. My Uncle John visiting was the special occasion - not that we really need a special occasion to stuff our faces full of Grandma's amazin' cookin'. Oh my. She even had peach pie. Listen, I know everyone says this, but fo realz, my Grandma's pies are literally THE. BEST. Hands down. I'd bet a fortune on it if I had it to bet. Peach just so happens to be my favorite. =) I was a happy girl that day.

After lunch, Kayla and I went to Heather's bridal shower. While there, I laughed a lot, ate some delicious cake and chocolate covered strawberries, and hugged my friends I don't get to see nearly enough.

I promise since Sunday I've been a much healthier eater. =) Speaking of which, I'm trying to cut back on pop again. Oy, I was out of control with it. I was doing real good until yesterday's Grinder man. I can't go to Grinder Man without a pop or cookie. Just. Can't. Do. It. I figure one (and a refill) in a whole week is a major improvement for me.

Monday we were supposed to have Elizabeth's sister Kimberly's pictures. BUT it was raining cats and dogs (that's an expression people) and so we've rescheduled. I love rain. Love love love it but being a photographer has made me get a little less excited about it. That's kind of a bummer.

So, instead of a photo session I did a half-hearted ab/leg/butt workout I found onPinterest, did some laundry, and felt the earth mooove under my feet. That's right folks, I felt my very first earthquake tremor. Kind of exciting and kind of disappointing too... you know, after all the hype they'd been getting all weekend. I'm glad I finally know what all the fuss is about. I'm sure many of you have seen these by now, but when I first saw them, I about peed my pants. Hilarious. Personally, I'm glad we've gone more than 30 seconds now without everyone posting facebook updates about the eeaaaaaaarthquake.

Bahahahaha. Funny, I tell ya.

Criminal Minds tonight. It's about tornaders. Hellerrr!

More Dates

2011-11-07T10:53:00.001-08:00

I realized after last week's randoms that I forgot to mention some recent dates.

After my Dr's appt. last Tuesday, Dac and I went to McAlister's Deli. I love McAlister's but seeing as how we don't have one here (there is one in Stillwater so I was used to having one in town...sigh) I don't eat it that often. I ate there quite a bit when I lived and worked at Dillards in Wichita though. Anyway, don't get there a ton now but I'd been craving it so since it was my traumatic day, I got to pick. =) We both got spuds and sweet teas (to. die. for). I got the cheese spud with extra sour cream - but couldn't finish it. I think my stomach was just upset from nerves. After lunch we did some quick shopping at Old Navy (took back my recently purchased way too tight pants) and Target. It was nice just to have that time together - especially on a week day - where we could just talk and hang out.

Last week was just a total mess all together. Between that and several long days with night meetings, AND pictures, we were both beat and getting a little cranky. (Who me?!). SO - I decided kind of last minute on Friday to invite Dac out on a date. I knew we probably shouldn't take the time... I mean... we're so busy and behind on life right now... but I decided that's exactly why we should take the time. We ate supper at Biederman's, drove around looking at all the pretty trees, and stopped by College Hill for dessert. I actually got pictures this time! =)

Dac with his coffee (with half-n-half...haha... THE way to drink coffee) and cranberry scone.

Me with my skinny vanilla chai tea (best around). I'm wearing what is probably my new favorite sweater. =)

Mmm... spells and tastes just like fall.

And my spiced walnut bread.We had a great night before getting back to work and having a looooooooong day at a wedding the following day. I'm thankful we live in the same house now, instead of hours away like we were for about 4 years. I try to not take that for granted. Being able to go on a spontaneous is definitely something to be excited about! =)

Endweek Randoms

2011-11-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

=) I'm not as grumpy today so I think it's an appropriate time to have a randoms post!

"It's Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday"... you're welcome.

Lately, Friday's at work have meant BREAKFAST! (Sound all the obnoxious bells, whistles, and lights circa Pee-Wee's Playhouse's secret word of the day) We've had pancakes, breakfast casserole, cinnamon pull apart bread (pure awesome), donuts, biscuits and gravy, etc... you get the idea. It makes work a little more bearable and it fills my hungry, breakfast-lovin' belly. =)

Going back a bit - Sunday we photographed one of our favorite little guys for his 1-year pictures. Oh my he's so sweet and so adorable. We just love taking his picture. I think Dac and I would both steal him if it wasn't so frowned upon in our society. Ha! =) I kid, I kid... we're not creepers. No but really, he's CUTE.

I had another Dr's appt. Tuesday. Again, this really should have it's own blog post. There's just too much info. for a "randoms" post. But basically I'll have surgery within the next couple months to hopefully improve some on-going pelvic pain problems. I had a real similar surgery 2-3 years ago and quite frankly, I'm not looking forward to having it again. Plus, there's my un-natural, excessive fear of blood clots. But I digress. With our wedding schedule it's going to be interesting trying to find just the right time to have it done but we'll get it figured out and everything will be great! Right? Right. Breathe Alisha.

Let's see... what else.... OOOOHH... I participated in my photog friend Laura's "Fall Swap" again this year. I racked up and got some great stuff! My swap buddy was very good to me. First here's a picture of the stuff I sent her (note pads for lists... yep, I'm a list maker; Sharpie pens, pumpkin spice Yankee Car Jar; Autumn Vanilla body spray; Chocolate Donut hand sanitizer; Burts Bees original chapstick... fav; orange quick dry toenail polish; Mini Reeses Peanut Butter Cups; a pumpkin bread recipe, and all of it was put in a fall mixing bowl. I also sent a Real Simple magazine... it just didn't make it in the picture).

She sent me: fall decor, a lens cup, apple cake mix, a fall candle, Reeses peanut butter pumpkins, quick dry nail polish, lip gloss, fall car fresheners, and three flavors of chai tea. She must know me... I love these things!!! =) I was surprised to see how alike our tastes are. I've already painted my toenails, used the lip gloss, decorated, and of course ate the Reeses (hey, I shared with Dac at least) but I still have lots of goodies to enjoy this season. Can't wait to get my hands on that chai!! There's some yummy flavors!! Thanks Melinda!

Arkalalah: Days 3-4

2011-11-02T06:12:00.000-07:00

I know it's Wednesday and I should be posting some midweek randoms - but I'm rather grumpy and stressed today - so I figured I'd better focus on fun stuff instead. Maybe I'll do a midweek randoms post another day this week. =)

Friday (Day 3 of Arkalalah) was a picture-less day... sorry. I just flat out forgot to take any pictures. I worked a half day then Dac and I ate at Subway and goofed off for a bit. Then, I met Terese and her friend Melissa downtown to watch the Kiddie Parade. Ok - to be completely honest here - I thought the kiddie parade pretty well sucked. I haven't gone in a couple years and I really only went this year to see Journey and the other kids I knew I wouldn't see all dressed up on Halloween. Well, I couldn't see any kids in the parade... it moved too fast, was a total cluster, and I wasn't able to get pictures of any of my favorite munchkins. =( So sad.

Val took me home after that and Dac and I walked back down town to eat supper. We each got a brisket sandwich and it was divine. =) Then, I went with Erica and Kayla to see Footloose. Good movie! =)

Saturday, I woke up at 4:45 a.m. to meet Cori so we could set out chairs. Then, I went back to bed until more like 9:45 haha. We met John and Anna in Winfield to take Ruby's 1-year pictures. Can't believe she's about one. Geez Louise.

She's a cute little thing. And so fun! =)

Then we headed down to the parade (and food!)
Watched Charli make a mad dash for the candy.
Good Daddy.

Good Daccy. =)
Cori and Terese. Our parade buddies.
So glad these guys have been able to join us for several years!!

After the parade (well, we left early) John and Anna tried to con Ruby into a nap. They were unsuccessful. While they did that, Dac and I went to Grandma Jo's for Chili. I didn't eat though b/c we had the late lunch.

Once we got back we went for round two of pictures before Ruby tired out on us. Then, we went to Braums!!

That evening, we were going to hit up my buddy Chris' Halloween shindig but, I kid you not, and I'm kinda ashamed to admit this on the interwebs... we fell asleep. =| Totally missed the party. Yep, really did that.

That pretty well wraps up Arkalalah: Totally 80's. =)

Arkalalah: Day 2

2011-10-31T07:58:00.000-07:00

I already shared a few pics from the first day of Arkalalah on the Midweek Randoms post I did last week. For those of you who aren't from her and have no idea what the heck Arkalalah is - it's basically our home town's fall festival. It was started back in the depression as a way to boost morale and lift spirits. There's a carnival, lots of parades, band competitions, concerts, a Queen Alalalah, street games, and all the streets downtown are lined with food booths.

Now, for day two!

This just so happened to be Wii Night, which, like I've mentioned before includes very little Wii playing and lots more eating and hanging out with friends. So anyway, we ventured downtown with Val, Cori, Steve, and Charli for a night of "eat 'til you're sick". =)

Here's Cori at her first stop!

My first (and supposed to be last) stop. Oh yeah.

Dac with his bowl of chili.

Val patiently waiting on all of us to get our 15 things so she can move on to what she wants!

Charli goin' to town.

Like I mentioned, I went with the intention of JUST getting the loaded tater. Instead, I ate every last bite of that, then had part of Steve's onion blossom, part of Cori's potato twisty thing, and what was left of Steve's funnel cake. I totally blame Steve for the stomach ache I had at the end of the night. Totally. I also ate this and at least 1/4th of Dac's cheesecake-on-a-stick. Oy.

After we got drinks and took a break at Grinder Man, we took Charli to the carnival for a bit. It was fun watching her ride rides so I'm glad they let us join them!

Dac even accompanied her through this fun house. It was a sight. These two are such friends.

Cori got this on video but Charli got a little overwhelmed trying to get out of the fun house. Dac pushed her through all the while she's yelling "I don't know how". Pretty dang funny... but kind of sad too.

After the carnival, we trekked back through the food booths to get that last snack... Charli had won a prize at the carnival... a big blow up baseball bat (which she lovingly beat Steve with) and this pretty pretty princess crown. She was kind enough to let Steve wear it as we walked down Summit Street... she even serenaded him. "Daddy is a princess, Daddy is a princess..." all the way back. =) It was hysterical.
Pretty dang good Day 2 if I do say so myself! =) These guys are so much fun.

Midweek Randoms x 2

2011-10-27T07:38:00.000-07:00

So I didn't blog last week because I was on the road to a school PR conference in Kansas City. As much as I hate to be away during busy times, I always enjoy this conference. You see, I am the only person in the district who does what I do... everyone else does different stuff, thinks in a different way, etc... so it's nice for me to be surrounded with people who just get it. They're cool people so it was fun to hang out... and I got some great ideas.

The other good part about the conference is that Cori rode along with me. She didn't have to work and she has family around KC so she and Charli just rode along and played during the day while I was at the conference. Then, when I got done, we met her family for dinner. Oh my word, they are so super sweet! We ate at Cheeseburger Paradise one night, Famous Dave's the next, and that second night we did a little shopping at The Legends. It was fun and I'm glad I had the company! =) PS - totally disappointed with myself that I didn't get pictures. Sigh.

Speaking of Cori, I think I forgot to mention that she's PREGNANT! So excited for them. I know Charli is going to make a great big sister and I just can't wait to meet him/her. We love this family to pieces and I'm looking forward to having another little one to play with and spoil. =) Eeeek!

Back-tracking a bit... the week before last was kind of a rough week... wasn't feeling so hot and we had a wedding that weekend so we missed out on date night that week. FAIL. BUT... the wedding was fun and pretty and we got to go on a couple "dates" this week to make up for it.

Saturday we went to Wichita just for fun... just for us... no agenda. =) We ate at The Wichita Brewing Co. and had the Hopperoni Pizza, the Mac-n-Cheese Pizza, and the S'more Dessert Pizza. All of it was pretty tasty. Dac tried a couple new beers and I had the homemade rootbeer... also good. Then we took a leisurely trip to Target and Old Navy (where I got two pairs of pants that are waaaaay too small...ugh).

Then followed everything up with a trip to The Donut Whole. We each ate a donut there and then took a box home with us. Like we needed that! Ha! On the way home we stopped at my parents' house and had a good visit. We don't get the chance to hang out with them much due to lots of busy schedules but it's always fun when we do. =) They shared the donuts with us!

Sunday, I had a sister day with Val. We went to lunch together, caught up on lots of chatting, and went out to Austin's while he was working on a couple projects. We also made a happy hour run before I had to go home for a photo session. It was a fun one - our photog buddy Laura McPherson of Elephant Juice Photography and her family!! Always a blast!

Tuesday, we went back to Wichita to photograph a sweet family and then we ate pumpkin pancakes at IHOP for date #2. =) It wasn't a real date per se, but it was nice to go in, sit down, and be together for a little bit.

This week is OSU's homecoming. "America's Greatest Homecoming Celebration." That always gets me feeling a little nostalgic and makes me want to be in Stillwater big time. We (college buddies) were all going to try to go but we ended up not getting tickets... so maybe next year. Instead, we'll stick around for Arkalalah and a couple more photo sessions this weekend.

Did I mention that week is Arkalalah!?!?! HOLLA! I hadn't seen Sky in several weeks so Dac and I took her downtown to eat. She also talked me into paying $5 for one ride on the Kamakaze. Sucker. Anyway, I had the usual Jeffy Pup and Pickle O's that I can't seem to live without. (I was Jeffy Pup in elementary school!) Dac got a Gyro. Sky got... wait for it... a slice of pizza. Ha! She's worse than I am.

It's hard to get cooler than this ya'll.

(I must have seen a squirrel... ha)
These two = trouble. AND they're always scheming up "Alisha pranks". Sigh. At least they have fun.
Dinner.

Speaking of Sky... I love that kid. She's a total mess and it's that crazy teen time when she's not a kid but not an adult or full blown teenager either. Nuts. Makes me glad babies don't pop out as teenagers. Can you imagine?! Ugh. Anyway, she is just so much fun!!

After I took Sky home, I went home for a bit then walked back downtown to see miss Charli ride on her school float in the night parade. The parade itself was sadly pitiful... but this face... totally worth it. =) She so sweetly invited me to her parade... how could I resist? Exactly... I couldn't. So I donned my ear muffs (don't hate... appreciate) and joined in the spirit! (Photo stolen from Cori's facebook page. Thanks Cori.)

Like I said, it's Arkalalah, so I might actually have more pictures for once! =)

Midweek Randoms

2011-10-12T08:05:00.000-07:00

Here we are again! =) I hate to just talk about what I've done since last week - but since this is a scrapbook of sorts, I guess I kind of need to do that. I hope become a better blogger someday.

This weekend was Dac's cousin Courtney's wedding. We took a half day on Friday to head up for that. It was fun and Courtney was simply gorgeous! We haven't even began editing those yet but when we do, I'll share them over on the photo blog and maybe even share a couple here too. Thanks to Val, there's at least one or two of us dancing. =) We RARELY go to a wedding where we get to dance so that was fun. On the way up, we rode with David and Terese and on the way back we rode with Val... and ate Quick Trip at 12:30 a.m. Mmm.

Saturday, I went with Val and Terese to Wichita. I went to get stuff to make a birthday gift for Journey but, no surprise here, that didn't get done. Also, I've been on the lookout for the perfect comfy pants to replace the ones I lost. I mean seriously, how. hard. can. it. be. to. find. a. comfy pair of comfy pants!? I've bought two recently from Target that I've had to take back. I've pinned some from Old Navy that I think might be the golden ticket but we'll see. BUT - the trip wasn't a total loss because we ate at Olive Garden. I got this: it's basically fried lasagna (hello beautiful) laying on a bed of alfredo sauce and topped with marinara. Seriously yum.

It has donned on me that maybe if I didn't eat so much (see above) I wouldn't be quite so addicted to comfy pants. There's some food for thought (haha) for ya.

Sunday, we had a photo session with a 1-year old little Sophie Lou. If you follow the photo blog, you've met her here, and probably several other places too.

After that, we met David, Terese, and Charli for pizza at Gambino's. David came here to help with the house afterwards while Charli, Terese, and I ran some errands, got a coke, and headed to Journey's party.

(Birthday Girl!)

The party was adorable and the kids went on a fun treasure hunt. =) Mark and Kayla did such a great job.

While I was there, I got to quickly catch up with Erika and her sweet girls.

So far this week it's just been work, work, and more work. It has me mega-cranky. MEGA cranky. Thankfully there's Criminal Minds tonight. Whew.

I did stop and get me some new work pants (FINALLY) and a cute sweater. Saw this on the way home.

Midweek Randoms

2011-10-05T07:54:00.000-07:00

Again - sorry for the lack of pictures. I'll get better. Promise. At least temporarily. It's just been hectic. I know you can understand that!! We're all busy.

Let's see. I realize I forgot to share our date night from two weeks ago. So we'll start with that. On Friday the 23rd, the same weekend we went to OKC, Dac and I ate at home (philly cheese steak sandwiches I believe) and then went to see Moneyball. It was really good. We went to the earlier movie and spent the evening with several members of the senior crowd. =) They laughed and talked through the whole thing so we spend lots of time just laughing them. Silly old people. =) The movie was great too though. I'm not a huge Brad Pitt fan but he did a good job as did the supporting actor and the story was a ''feel good'' one. After the movie we swung through McDonalds for a treat and headed home. We stayed up late finishing season three of 24 and decided that we needed to take a break before we started the next one because we just have so much photography stuff going on and Dac and David (FIL) are working hard on our bathroom/spare room project.

Last Wednesday I got my hair cut. Finally. It's SO much better. I can actually fix it now. Hallelujer! I don't quite look like Jen Anniston but close. Real close. =)

Thursday I had my doctor's appt. I'm being sent on to a specialist and really, this subject needs it's own post... so that might be for another day and another time. But my mom went with me and we had fun shopping, eating, shopping... eating. =)

Last Friday, for date night, we went to Ponca. Dac needed to stop by Lowes and we decided to go there since I/we'd been in the Wichita area a lot lately. We ate ribs at Head Country, browsed Brace Books, Dac bought the long-coveted Buckyballs and really payed little attention to me the rest of the weekend... I kid, I kid. Then we went to Cherry Berry. We like treats, ok?! Geez.

I went to breakfast the next morning with Kayla - she wanted to hear about my appointment and where better to chat than over a pancake and glass of chocolate milk (told you I'd celebrate soon!). We had a nice visit, I ran a couple errands in Winfield, then did some random stuff around the house before a family session.

SUNDAY. Oh my. We slept in. Like really slept in. 'Til 9:00. That's rare people. We met Dac's mom for lunch at Gambinos, then got to work on photos and house stuff. I spent about 6-8 hours totally cleaning/organizing the kitchen from top to bottom. I pulled everything out, cleaned the inside of the cabinets, put that shelf gripper stuff down, put everything back in an organized fashion, prepared a big box of stuff to take to the Salvation Army, scrubbed the cabinets, WD-40'd the stainless steel appliances (oh my word... thank you pinterest.com for reviving my hope in stainless steel. Who knew!?!?), swept, mopped, yada, yada, yada. It's like a new room. Ok, so it doesn't look that much different but to me... it's brand new. =)

While in Wichita for another dr's appointment yesterday, I picked up some new comfy pants. Guys, I love comfy pants. I love pajamas. I love soft fabrics that move when you do. Sigh. I want to be wearing comfy pants right now. Clearly this is exciting news. Val went with me. We ate like pigs, walked, and laughed a lot. Win.

I am SO ready for some of our bigger house projects to be complete. I especially want our disgusting carpet out of the family room/hall. Ugh, it's awful. I keep dreaming of my re-finished wood floors (hopefully) with a giant super soft rug down in there. Glorious. Even if there's not hardwood under that whole area and/of if it's too far gone to refinish - I'd settle for new, clean, soft carpet. =) Again... more first world problems.

I've been wanting to go to a pumpkin patch recently. I love Fall and everything that comes with it. The last time I went to a real pumpkin patch was right after we got married. Well - actually - it wasn't really much of a real pumpkin patch... it had pumpkins but was mostly a corn maze. But I digress. We went and had a blast. We didn't have much cash on us (plus we were pretty poor anyway) so we couldn't afford much in the way of a pumpkin. Dac, not wanting us to go away empty handed, picked out this little bitty perfect pumpkin and we named it Pumpkin Breath. =)

Oops - just realized I never posted this yesterday!

Since I forgot, it's worth mentioning that Steve Jobs has passed away. Co-creater of Apple, Founder of Pixar, visionary, icon, husband, father, friend. It's sad to see him go. Boo Pancreatic Cancer. Boo. I was reminded of this quote from another photo blog:

Photo Source

Midweek Randoms

2011-09-28T08:23:00.000-07:00

Well what'dya know... it's Wednesday... it snuck up on me... and I really have nothing random prepared. =) I'm sure I'll think of something... hold the phone...

OK, now!

We have been picture takin' fools this week so there will probably be lots of posts on our photo blog over the next several days. Keep an eye out for those... you'll like them... they're pictures from an actual camera... not a phone. =)

One of those sessions was an engagement session for my super friend Julie (you met her here) and her fiance´ Jon. Although they've dated for a few years and I've heard lots about him - this was my first time actually meeting him and, thankfully (seeing as how they're getting married in a couple months), I whole-heartedly approve!! He's suuuuuper nice and they are a perfect match. Fo sho. Plus - they're super adorable together. =) They took us out to eat at Hideaway Pizza (OKC just got one downtown) and if Heaven could be baked into a couple slices of pie... that was it. It was sooo good and the company was even better. We got adventurous and tried these:

"Paradise Pie: This isn't Heaven, but it's as close as we could get with a pizza
pie. Hideaway Alfredo sauce covered with a blend of mozzarella and smoked
provolone cheeses, grilled chicken breast strips, smoked bacon, fresh sliced
mushrooms, fresh spinach and diced Roma tomatoes. Yummmmmm."

"The Maui Magic: An all-time favorite for Oklahomans living in Maui... or
wishing they lived in Maui. Hideaway Red Sauce topped with mozzarella,
Canadian bacon, pineapple, and mandarin oranges."

Actually, I think last time Dac and I were at the one in Stillwater we were adventurous too... remember? Anyway, I digress. After lunch we got to work. But since it's fun, it really didn't feel like work. =)

Speaking of pizza (and pictures) we had dinner date with Mark, Kayla, and Journey. We ate at Gambino's (YUM! Even got the cinnamon streusel pizza I've been dying for...holla!) and then took some family pictures as well as Journey's 3-year pictures. It was fun. Journey was cracking me up - she always looks like she up to something. =) I'd say she comes by it naturally.

Speaking of Kayla and Journey - have I mentioned that I've been freezing my feet off while sporting sandals at work this week... trying to show off my beautiful OSU-orange toes. Sigh. What we won't do for beauty.

I'm sad friends. I'm disappointed in myself and quite frankly, you should be disappointed in me too. I let both National Pancake Day and National Chocolate Milk Day go by without celebrating either one. Boo. Someday soon I'm going to have to make up for this in a big way!

I'm getting my hair cut tonight (and my brows did... you're welcome). Can't wait. It's pitiful and next to impossible to fix. Hopefully this helps and I come out looking like a brunette Jen Aniston. Cross your fingers and your toes!

Tonight is also Criminal Minds!!!! Boop Boop! Last week Heather and Kayla came over and we had taco dip and tried Skinny Girl margaritas. They were ok but kinda nasty all at the same time. I'm not a huge marg fan anyway... unless it's frozen and full of strawberry awesome. Still - it's a lower cal option. Kayla hated it and Heather loved it... so, I guess it's just a figure it out for yourself thing. =) Tonight, I'm making chicken spaghetti. I've just thought that's sounded good for a while now. Here's to a fun, creep-tacular night! =)

Tomorrow, I've got a Dr's Appt. tomorrow in Wichita. Nothing serious per se - there's just some ongoing issues that I hope to get some solutions to. I'm not particularly looking forward to it. Maybe I can throw in some yummy lunch and a little shopping to make it better? Maybe? Prayers for an easy appt., that tests go well, and that I get some answers would be greatly appreciated.

Ok, I think you're up to speed!

PS - Sorry for the lack of pictures!

Sunday Funday

2011-09-26T17:31:00.000-07:00

My Goddaughter is turning 3 in a week! How did this happen? =| Her mom Kayla and I started a tradition a couple years ago for our birthdays (both in June). Instead of doing gifts we spend a day getting our toes did, eat, shop and just enjoy the heck out of girl time

Now that Journey's becoming quite the big girl, Kayla decided we should continue that tradition with her AND I got invited to join in the fun. =D PS - most the pictures below are from Kayla.

We got donuts then shopped and ate lunch at Freddy's...
She's cute no? And smart too. We enjoyed a very intellectual conversation about pickles while her mom was trying on clothes. =) I love when she opens up!

We shopped some more then got pedicures!

Journey's first! She did so good!

Then we came back to my house so Journey could see Peety. She loves that dog. But how could you not? Here she is showing off her toes.

Mine are the orange ones. =) Peety thought he needed to show off his pretty paws too! =)

Journey got pink and black to match her pirate birthday party coming up.

Showing Peety her toes. Peety is so good with kids and most the time is extremely gentle (sometimes he gets real excited but usually, he's low key). Journey and Charli both love him and he loves them!It was a fun day and I'm so glad I got to share in it! =)

Redneck Fest

2011-09-25T17:08:00.000-07:00

Like I mentioned a few posts back, Dac's brother had a little shindig. He has welded this jumbo smoker and he smoked/grilled steaks and lots of other goodies. We ate and drank and had a boy-howdy-let's-get-rowdy good time. I enjoy getting my redneck on every now and then. =)

Austin acts like a total tough guy but clearly he's a major softy. He's also taught me a lot. I've learned lots of new phrases and use them somewhat frequently. Some of them, I'm sad to say, aren't necessarily all that family friendly. =| One day I'll write a book. (I have lots of books I'm most definitely going to write in my lifetime.)

A couple of Austin's friends from out of town were here and this was the first time I got to meet them. They seemed cool.

Matt and Krystle - we just so happen to be photographing their wedding next year and. oh. my. word. I. can. not. wait. It's gonna be off the charts.

Told you.
Terese, Val, Krystle, and I. Boop Boop, thaaaat's right, that's right!

Ah, aren't the cute?

We even roasted marshmallows in the fire pit of the smoker. Yeah, it's multi-purpose.

Seester time.

A great time was had!

So Fresh and So Clean, Clean

2011-09-22T17:53:00.000-07:00

It's a big day guys. Peety went to the spa. And by spa, I mean vet. He got a bath, a pedi, and his teefs clean.

He's walking around (barely) like he's been drinking margaritas all day. Poor guy... keeps falling down and obviously isn't feeling good. He looks soooo sleepy too. BUT - he's sweet and cuddly as can be. =) Perfect TV snuggle buddy.

Plus - he's so soft, clean, and smelly-good. AND there's not even a hint of stank coming from his mouth. AND he got an A+ report from the dentist. His teeth are perfect!! =)

Just like him. See?

Midweek Randoms

2011-09-21T00:08:00.000-07:00

So, it's been a while since I've posted some deep thoughts... I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting. =) Over the past couple months I've really been noticing how judgmental parents can sometimes be towards other parents. Sometimes it even seems to happen unintentionally - and I know we can all be like this about anything - not just parenting. I've just noticed it a lot in that area. We (human beings) seem to compare ourselves to others way too much (Guilty as charged) and I think that perpetuates the cycle. Example: I feel insecure about something, I feel like you notice and judge me for it, I begin to judge you as a defense mechanism. It's vicious and can be never-ending. I also think for some people - and probably all of us at different times - being heard is equal to being loved. We like to talk and we crave confirmation that we're smart, good, doing what's right, etc... but in the process of us talking - we can miss God's confirmation and our words can sometimes be downright hurtful.

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. 1 Corinthians 1:25

I think that means sometimes it's wisest to keep our mouths shut.

Besides - what's there to judge anyway? We're all genius' in our own right. =)

Work has been CUH-RAZY this week. We have a former staff member who is being sought be police for alleged child sex crimes. I'm the district's PR person... I think your imagination can probably paint a pretty clear picture of what my week's been like.

After 2-3 weeks of weight struggles - I had a loss this week. I'm at 15 lbs lost now. Holla. Let's get this train movin' full steam again! I'm a little behind schedule (I'd hoped to lose 18 by September 12 and clearly we've missed that) but still excited to be moving again. Choooo-choooo!

I fell down our porch steps Monday. I was leaving for work and it was the weirdest, most slow-motion thing ever... but I couldn't stop it. I fell. It hurt. Neighbors saw the whole thing. My pride hurt even more. Now - I'm still super sore and my ankles hurt BAD. I prooooobably need to go to the chiropractor. We'll see if I actually get around to doing that. =) My shoe broke in the process. They were my comfy black wedge sandals... strap pulled out of the bottom. =|

We did some senior pictures last week. We don't usually get to do a lot of seniors (for some reason weddings and families seem to take the majority of our session times) but we LOVE shooting seniors. They're so much fun. Can't wait to share that session and can't wait for the others we have lined up this fall. =)

I finally scheduled a hair appt. for next week. I'm thinking something along these lines. What do you think?

Facebook changed its layout again guys. I know. Again. Things are always changing though... so I'll just chalk this up as a "first world problem".

Tonight is the premiere of Criminal Minds!!! Can. Not. Wait!! AAAAAHHHHH.

Five

2011-09-20T13:23:00.000-07:00

That's five years Dac and I have been married as of September 16. Total - we've been together for more like 13 years. Crazy, huh? =) I just can't really even imagine life without him at this point... he's pretty much always been there in some capacity or another.

I wasn't feeling good on our actual anniversary and we didn't have any exciting trips planned or anything but, all-n-all, I'd say the weekend was pretty alright and it was the "at ease" that I know both our hearts needed.

Friday, we got up and went to Ike's for donuts. We usually don't see much of each other in the morning - even though we have to be at work at the same time now. We're usually doing our own things. I had a fresh glazed doughnut and a chocolate long john while Dac had a sausage egg and cheese roll and a glazed. Like I said, I wasn't feeling good, and I just flat didn't think to take a picture. After work we went out to eat (with apparently everyone else in the county) at Montana Mike's. Then, because College Hill was close (boo), we picked up a couple of toasty drinks from the gas station. First hot chocolate of the season! That night we lounged on the couch and watched 24.

Saturday, we woke up and headed to Stillwater (God's country). Dac and I both really love it there and I honestly think we'd be happy living there if the opportunity ever came about. When I was finished with college I probably wouldn't have said that - but the town has spread out, added lots of great shops/restaurants, and it's just a lot less hectic feeling. Anyway, love Stillwater, love all the orange, love being there with Dac. =) We ate at Joe's... shared a plate of THE cheese fries (with a side of ranch w/ ketchup mixed in) before our meals came. I also got a t-shirt. =) Don't judge - my t-shirt addiction is fierce and hard to shake.

After lunch we walked around downtown, ran into Summit Co (for being so incredibly inactive - I sure do love all the stuff in there. I could create a whole wardrobe out of that stuff and be content), played disc golf at Boomer Lake (sure do miss that place and wish we had something like that here) and did some more casual shopping. We finished off the date at Aspen Coffee for a quick treat before heading home. By this time it was rainy and storms were moving in. It continued to rain, thunder, and lightening the rest of the night - whatd'ya know? Perfect 24 weather. =)

The next morning we got up, listened to a great lifechurch.tv message (which really made me wish we had a real small group to be a part of) while we cleaned house. I clean regularly (honest) but the thing is - we have so much shtuff laying around because it doesn't have a home since we're remodeling a couple rooms in the house. We got quite a bit done that day too so it's definitely an improvement. We were supposed to have a session that afternoon with our friends the Cassidy's. Little miss got sick though so we have to reschedule. So - I cleaned and did more laundry and Dac edited photos. We re-convened for another episode of 24 before heading off to bed.

That was our big 5-year anniversary weekend! I know it doesn't sound like much, but it was a chance to be 'us' instead of worker bees on the brink of major stress-induced breakdowns. We laughed and played and talked and life was good.

Just for kicks and geegles - here's a look at us at our first dance in 1998 (right before we officially started dating). It wasn't our first date per se - because that was when we went to the movies with Val and Tarl. Haha. I sat with Val and Dac sat with Tarl. =) I kid, I kid... no, but seriously. It was awwwwwwwkward.

Oh to be that size again... that in shape again... and that tan again.

Here's us not long after getting engaged in 2006:

Here's us on our wedding day - also in 2006.:

Here's us on our 5-year anniversary: =) Thankfully, still happy!

Branson Trip

2011-09-18T19:30:00.000-07:00

Like I mentioned a few days ago, My cousin Courtney and I took our moms on a mother-daughter trip to Branson, MO for their 50th birthdays!

We all left from our respective states Saturday morning (Labor Day Weekend) and after a few pit stops and lots of winding roads, we made it to our hotel that afternoon. Once we got there and squealed and hugged a lot - we went for a walk. It was a toasty trek too, I might add.

Anyway, we kind of just explored the the strip around the hotel, perused a few tacky t-shirt shops (even found some ROCKS like old times), and then decided we'd better stop and eat/drink before we had heat strokes. So - we landed at Charlie's. We were greeted by a singing (or maybe lip syncing) lady and while our waiter was nice, the food was just mediocre and they put us back in a corner behind the sound guy (oh yeah... she was totally mouthing the words...knew it!) For Pete's sake - nobody puts baby in a corner!! Clearly they didn't realize who we were. Clearly.

Courtney and I lookin' like a couple of hot messes after drinking like 3 whole pitchers of water... each.

Mom and Aunt Cindy

With our rocks. Listen ya'll... I'm gonna let you in on a little secret. Courtney and I were... huh hmmm... total dweebs. =) We would go to Bonnie-n-Clyde Trade Days and beg our parents to buy us the little pouches of polished rocks. Then, we'd proceed to wash the rocks in the bathroom sink because we were both experts in how to care for those priceless stones. I'm pretty sure she also convinced me she had a book about how to turn regular ol' driveway rocks into gems. Wait, now that I think of it... I may have had a book too. =)
We continued back to the hotel after supper and found ourselves at the Montana Mike's bar having a drink.

The next day we got up, ate continental breakfast, and headed to the outlet mall. We spent several hours there picking up all sorts of bargains! I NEVER shop like that and I got some great finds for Fall - including my most exciting purchase - a $25 Banana Republic pullover that is so soft and so cozy and so perfect. I also got some work shoes and some sweaters. We just ate lunch there at the mall (jumbo hot dog for me... yum) and then once we were done shopping we headed back to the room to get ready for DIXIE STAMPEDE.

Aren't they purdee?

Mom sportin' the 50th crown.

=) You all wonder where I get it... Exhibit A.

Me workin' it... haha

Dixie Stampede was good. Honestly - better than I expected. Sure it was totally cheesy and hoaky - but it was pretty dang entertaining anyway. I ate practically my whole meal too (maybe I shouldn't admit to that). The meal consisted of a rather chunky cornish hen, a slab of pork, half a potato, a mini corn cob, cream of vegetable soup, a cheddar biscuit, and an apple turnover.

My boo.

Aunt Cindy sportin' the crown. Court bought this crown and they only had one... so the birthday girls had to share.The adorable little squishy fuzzy butt piglets from the show.

During the pre-show.After the show we went on an adventure (ie: I was driving). We had a heck of a time getting up this awful hill. I was willing to sacrifice my cool facade for some good laughs. That's me - always taking one for the team. =) Annnnnnyway... we decided to drive around and check out the downtown area. After catching a glimpse we decided it'd be fun to skip Silver Dollar City and hit up some shops, check out the Branson Landing, and eat our weight in snackages.

The next morning things took a turn for the worse... we had an issue at our hotel. I've contemplated even mentioning this... it's that bad... but this is my scrapbook. Not that I'll likely ever forget this... but still... I feel it's worth documenting. Ya'll - there. were. bed bugs. What!?!?! I KNOW!! It was sooooo unbelievable. Sooooo gross. Sooooo haaarible. =( To make an uber long story short - we got a full refund, all our stuff laundered, and a new hotel room. And a lot of itching. Eeewww. Even though we were upset and it certainly put a damper on things - we were not going to let it ruin our day!

There were several little five and dime shops downtown... this one wasn't all that little.

We weren't out long before we had to stop for a coke.
We got some delicious old fashioned cokes (vanilla Diet Dr. Pepper for me).

Then we made our way down to the landing.

We ate lunch at the San Francisco Oven. Then shopped. Then ate again.
Then shopped. Theeeeeen ate again. =) This time, at the Rowdy Beaver.

It was fun and our waiter was from Kansas so that was cool. Aunt Cindy and her marg. Can you blame her? After the day we had?
The responsibles with our sweet tea.
And - then we ate. Andy's frozen custard. Yum! And we used a coupon. For the win!The next day we got packed up, ate breakfast at Cracker Barrel, hugged goodbye, and headed back.

We had such a great time and while we would have done some things differently I think, the important thing is that we got to spend time together and as always... had fun!

Midweek Randoms

2011-09-14T08:43:00.000-07:00

I fully intended to have already posted about our Branson trip AND this past weekend AND our dates... but obviously I'm lagging behind. =|

On the bright side, I do have this picture that Dac took of our adorable pug licking his chops. Does that make up for it?

I guess since I don't have a whole lot to chat about today, I can just go ahead and tell you about our dates this past weekend.

We had a little extra free time this past weekend so we were actually able to each plan a date. It worked out since the week before didn't allow for an "official" date. I picked first. Friday night we ate Subway then went to the high school Cowley Cup football game. We got rained on quite a bit but we won - Go Bulldogs! We were sure to celebrate by grabbing an ice cream cone on the way home. =)

Saturday we got up and grabbed a drink (Diet Dr. Pepper for me and an iced coffee of some sort for Dac) on our way to Wichita for a family session. I'd been pretty excited for this session for a few months because even through our e-mails back and forth, I knew we'd hit it off! =) It was one of those sessions where you feel like you've known each other a long time. We took pictures at the park then went our separate ways. Dac and I grabbed Panera for lunch right after, bought me a couple discs, then went to play disc golf! Dac loves disc golf and that was the date he planned for us! =) It was a lot of fun! It started raining on us as we were finishing up the 9th hole, so we headed to Cherry Berry to complete the date.

Once we got home, got ready, and got the cooler and chairs packed up, we headed out to my brother-n-law's customer appreciation party (he's a great welder). I think it was Val that lovingly dubbed it redneck fest... and it was just that. Don't be fooled though, I can kick it with the redneck crowd. =) I have tons of pictures from that, so it'll have to be it's own post... BUT... here's a quick glance at the fun we had. haha.

Guys... listen to this. We had this big honkin' spider under our door when we opened it this weekend. SO - I had Dac step on it (I'm a pansy) and, yeah, it gets worse, get this... BABY SPIDERS went EVERYWHERE. *Gags* Hundreds of them... I'm at least 99.8% positive they all went outside but STILL. UGH! We killed as many as we could. I hate to be like that ya'll. You know I love God's creatures. Really, I do. BUT, I draw the line with spiders, babies or not. I discriminate. Forgive my sins. Now, had the spider been out in the yard or at the nature center for example, I wouldn't have dreamed of killing mama and her babies. Never. But practically in my house? You better believe it. *Shutters* Furthermore, I don't understand how when you step on the mom - how the babies even survive? I mean, the little creeps hang on her back and if you step on her back, I'd think that'd do it. I shutter. *Scratches head for the up-teenth time since starting this paragraph*

I'm still t-totally sucking at my diet. I've gained a couple pounds and REALLY want to get some more weight off before more holidays and fall eating extravaganzas come my way. Unfortunately, my will power level is barely even registering on the will power-o-meter. How can I fix this!?!

Our anniversary is Friday! It's a big one... FIVE YEARS! I'm excited. Don't know why exactly, we don't really have any major plans yet. No second honeymoon or hot date planned... at least no plans yet. We kept Friday and Saturday open though so there's definitely time for dates. =)

Remember

2011-09-12T11:29:00.001-07:00

Saw this editorial cartoon in today's newspaper... thought it was cool.

I settled in for a night of 9/11 TV specials last night. The first was CBS' "9/11: Ten Years Later". Wow! It was intense to say the least. I mean, oh my! So scary and heartbreaking. It essentially followed a ladder company from a few months before 9/11 until now. It included footage I hadn't seen before as well as another perspective. It was so good and so horrible.

9|11

2011-09-11T12:56:00.000-07:00

I remember I was sitting at a desk between Megan Whitehead and Dacinda Musgrove in Mr. Bucher's web design class my senior year of high school. Another teacher quickly and quietly came in and just turned on the TV. We sat. We watched. The first tower had already been hit. My first thoughts were, like many, that it was a horrific accident. As we watched the second hit, a lump formed in my throat and my heart sank. It was too horrible to watch but I couldn't so much as blink. I remember Megan crying. I remember not being able to. I remember telling her we were just there. We talked about irrelevant things like that we were glad we got a picture of the buildings.

The next few hours are foggy. Then we left for a tennis tournament in El Dorado. Honestly, I don't really remember the ride up. I suppose we talked about it. We were probably buzzing about what we thought happened and why and what was next and how sad it was and the death toll. We probably got fired up about war and the gruesome images we saw all morning. I remember the tournament was a tri and that I lost every single match. That's when I realized it affected me more than I originally thought. That's when I remember feeling the weakest, the most drained, the most hurt.

I remember listening to the radio on the way home and watching more news once I got there. If I wasn't before, I'd become a news junkie then.

I remember all the flags and the feeling of unity and the way we all helped each other out. I remember a few months later when my buddy Chris called to say he was joining the Marines. I cried then. I remember Dad calling me on the first anniversary to see if I was doing ok. I remember knowing the feelings about that day would never really go away.

Today, I look at pictures and I watch the news coverage and I read the stories of survival, of death, of heroism, and of perseverance. I think of all those on the planes and the fear they must have felt. I wonder if God's peace came over them and if so, what that felt like. I think about the hijackers and what it must take to do such a thing. I wonder if they were scared, if they felt noble, or if they even had any feelings at all. I think of those in the buildings when the planes hit. I wonder how it must of looked, sounded, smelled, and felt in there. I wonder what made people jump. I think of all those who lost their lives and all those who have to live with the fact that they weren't one of them but easily could have been. I think of the brave ones who went in to rescue, who handed out wet towels, who carried people away. The fire fighters, police, nurses, doctors, preachers, "everyday" citizens who stood up to make a difference. I wonder how scary it must have been to run from the debris cloud and not even know what was going on. I think of those babies who were born shortly after and don't even have so much as a picture with their dad, I think of the spouses and families left behind, and I think about those who've had to deal with PTSD, cancer, addictions, depression, and fear ever since.

Today, I look at the pictures of the new memorial - fountains - and I remember how far we've come and how far we have to go. I know that there's been threats made for an anniversary attack. I've checked the news off an on just to make sure it hasn't come true. I wonder what the rest of the day will hold... what the years ahead will hold. I wonder how many more tragedies I'll have to remember.

I remember that day and I always will. We all will. I hate that we have to.

Midweek Randoms

2011-09-06T15:08:00.000-07:00

SO - Labor Day weekend is over. For many of us, that means the last "break" until Thanksgiving. Hmph. Did you have a good one? What did you do? I, for one, went on a mother-daughter-girls-weekend-trip-to-Branson with my mom, Aunt Cindy, and my boo (cousin Courtney). Courtney and I planned this as a 50th birthday gift to the two of them. The trip was fun (albeit interesting) but most importantly we got to be together and that alone was fabulous and priceless. =) More on the trip (with pictures) soon!

On our trip we did some shopping. I found some great bargains. Looking at some of them now and realizing I need to branch out and also, I can be such a dude (look at all this green, blue, and gray!) Still, I'm excited for my finds (2 v-neck sweaters, a charcoal boyfriend cardigan, an awesome charcoal pullover, work shoes, and a pumpkin decoration for our dining room table for good measure.)

I used the weekend to completely blow any and all efforts I've put toward losing weight the past couple months. I ate, and ate, and ate and ate and ate. Five jumbo points if you can tell me where that phrase was adapted from. (Can't believe nobody got my last pointless pop culture trivia question...After a tragical week spent in the total depths of despair... those thoughts were brought to you courtesy of Anne of Grenn Gables! C'mon people! Julie? Are you out there? I KNOW you know that one!"Anyway, the point is I feel like a total out-of-breath fatty now and it's time to get back on the wagon-o-health.

I'm pretty sure work has swallowed my husband. Since I've been back I've seen him just a couple of hours. I actually had to take him a snack to work last night and actually help him work just to see him and say "hey, I'm back!" Then we met friends at La Fiesta for a quick dinner. Dac went back to work... came home for a bit, went back and then rolled back in around midnight. He's been putting in tons of overtime this past month - here's hoping that lets up real soon.

Speaking of Dac, he attended a family reunion out at Camp Horizon this weekend. It spanned two days and he ate, swam, played games, played disc golf, etc... and he said he had a really good time.

Dac workin' those intense disc golf moves. (photo courtesy of Erica Wheeler.)

Dac's extended family on his dad's side. (Next photos courtesy of Darla Mann.)
Family from Grandma Jo's side.

While I was gone, I received this in a text. It said "somebody misses you". Awww. =) Love that Charli.

Now, just for kicks and giggles, let's go back in time. A couple months ago, Steve took charge of Wii night and created a Joe's Crab Shack-esque feast. He boiled crab legs, crawfish, shrimp, mussels, corn, and taters. He added some so-hot-it'll-melt-the-hat-right-off-your-head spice and we all practically burnt up just smelling it. It. Smelled. HAARRRIBLE. After gagging for a few, we settled down and ate. I vowed to try everything there. It was actually all really good (minus the awful mussels... they didn't necessarily taste awful but the texture did me in. Oy. ) I ate it up like a cajun champ. Here's a couple shots from that night that I forgot to post.

Ooh, I realize I forgot to mention our most recent date night. I didn't get any pictures but I basically just planned for us to stay home. We got in lots of chatting while I made some fajita chicken tacos and we watched a couple episodes of 24 before breaking to pack (me) and work on photos (Dac). It definitely wasn't anything fancy but I'm so glad we made the time for it.

I've decided I REALLY need to start planning meals and sticking to that plan. At this point, I'm not even talking gourmet awesomeness... I'm just talking about fairly quick, fairly nutritious meals on most week nights. I love to cook and even more, I enjoy eating home cooked meals. SO - I need to plan to make this happen. Like. Now. I also really want to get back in the habit of using coupons and saving some moolah. No extreme couponing or anything just a little savings here and there. Who's with me!?!?!

On a final note - how is this weather!?!? Highs in the 80's... lows in the 50's. Sigh. Fall has arrived friends. Fall has arrived. =) I was made for this weather and I'm LOVING it.

Friends

2011-09-02T07:23:00.000-07:00

You may remember from last week's randoms that we visited our friends John and Anna a couple weekends ago. We had fun...as always. =) I just posted some pictures from little Ruby's 9-month session over on our photo blog so be sure to check out those portraits and leave a comment reminding them how absolutely fabulous she is!

We also took some candid shots while we played. John took some of these too!

I'm curious to see how Ruby turns out. Will she be more like John? Anna? Physically speaking, I'm definitely starting to see more Anna in her... where before it was tons of John. Will she have John's crazy personality? (one of the nuttiest, coolest guys I know).
Case in point.
Super sweet and caring like Anna?Who knows?! Maybe a little of everything, huh? =) Hooray for friends!

Midweek Randoms

2011-08-29T13:36:00.001-07:00

After a tragical week spent in the total depths of despair (5 jumbo points if you can name that movie), I had a fabulous weekend! =) It started off with date night, then on Saturday I went shopping. Found a cute work shirt for $14, a pair of comfy cargo capris for $8, and a little satchel purse (perfect for traveling/shopping) that wasn't on sale but I used an upcoming trip to justify it. Oooh, ooh - I also got a new pair of jeans (smaller jeans even) that were on sale too.

Later that evening we had a family session with a super sweet family and after that we grabbed some ice cream and drove around talking about photography and some of our upcoming projects and goals. Exciting things are around the corner! Eeek! Sunday, we went to church, celebrated a spunky lady's 90th birthday party, and met my parents for a fun lunch. Then, we just worked on stuff around the house before taking a walk with Cori and Steve (and Charli of course).

We rounded out the weekend with a couple episodes of 24 and aside from the whole weekend being way too short, it was pretty perfect.

My sinus' are on my last nerve... like literally. I take my allergy pill every day I remember and I'm downin' Advil but it still hurts. =| Hopefully I can stay on top of it and keep it from blowing my head clear up.

How crazy is it that the East coast has been hammered by natural disasters this past week? Not cool friends, not cool. First the earthquake, then Hurricane Irene. I feel for those folks!

Oooh! BIG news here people!! Are you ready???? We finally bought Peety a new bed!! We adopted Peety almost 4 years ago. Poor buddy has had the same pitiful bed ever since. He loved it from first sight but over the years it has gotten super stinky, thin, totally disgusting, and the zipper on the cover broke. It was time. It was probably time 3 years ago but he just loved it so. Plus, I'm picky and have an unhealthy fear of commitment (to things, not people) and a serious buyer's remorse condition. Finally, I just bit the bullet, bought a normal bed from Target and called it a day. He was skeptical at first but now I believe it's love sweet love. =) It's GOT to be much more comfy for him too.

Before:

After: (obviously it's poor quality but you can get the idea... I'll have to
post one of Peety on it soon!)

This week I've been pretty dag-gone lazy. I think last week's lameness and this week's sinus issues have taken their toll. All I can manage to do is lay on the couch and whine about my head. We've been catching up on 24 though which has been fun - but we both have so much work to do. Maybe today will be better.

Well, I do believe that'll do pig, that'll do.

DAAAAAAATE NIGHT!

2011-08-27T12:47:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned last time, Dac and I have started planning weekly dates. This week marked week 2 and it was Dac's turn to pick. He knew no matter what else we did that he wanted us to try the new Wichita Brewing Co. So, that's exactly what we did! We stopped and got a drink on the way (he knows me) and by the time we got there we were starved. We got there a little later than expected because 1) we got a later start, 2) we thought, for who knows why, that it was down the the Delano district (artsy area downtown) but we were pretty off. It's actually way west on 13th. Plus, 3) we got stuck in some road construction traffic jams for a while. Anyway, we finally got there and it was a cool place. =)

Dac ordered the Brewship Belgium (pale ale) and I got the Half-Wit Wheat (wheat...duh). Both were good (as much as I can think beer is good). Dac really liked both... especially his. My wheat was unfiltered, kind of smooth (like milk only not like milk), and citrusy.

Anyway, enough of that beer snobbery, let's get to the good stuff... the PIZZA. We ordered the Honeysuculent BBQ Chicken pizza. It was delicious. It was a thinner brick oven pizza and had, like the name suggests, chicken, cheese, bbq sauce, and honey. MMMM. The pizzas are on the small side but really, I think one was perfect for us. They have peanut butter s'mores dessert pizzas but we passed this time. NEXT time, it's on like donkey kong. It sounded amazing.

We had a really good time, the service was good, and the atmosphere was small but fun. At one point a waitress dropped a metal pan and it made a huge racket. The whole place started clapping. Kind of funny. =)

After supper we went to Target for a second, then on to Menards to look at doors. We had kind of planned on going to All-Star sports too but by the time we did all that and since we got a later start, we were tired and decided to just grab some ice cream and come on home. We topped off the night at Spangles with a jumbo ice cream cone and headed back.

All-n-all I'd say it was a great date. We got to talk a lot and really enjoyed being out and about together. Dac and Alisha... For. The. Win!

Am I an overcomer?

2011-08-25T10:48:00.000-07:00

A blogger I follow shared another blogger's post today. Just so happens it was Baron Batch's blog. Now, Amy is an inspiration and a true woman of God. She has openly shared her unfortunate several-year struggle with infertility. She has shared her fears, her pain, her doubt, her willingness to be quiet and wait, and has done so in an honest, genuine way. When she wrote that this post moved her in such an awesome way, I knew I had to check it out.

I'm certainly no football junkie but apparently Baron is a Texas Tech alum who was drafted to play for the Steelers. He recently suffered a season-ending injury - but through it is sharing an amazing story. It's on the long side but worth it and I encourage you to read it. I'm glad I did and I am now an official subscriber to Baron's blog. =)

A storm is coming...

So, am I an overcomer? Heck, I don't know. I'll tell you this though, I want to be willing to find out.

Midweek Randoms

2011-08-23T06:32:00.000-07:00

I am so incredibly tired, so incredibly busy, so incredibly worn out. Work has been crazy, photography has been crazy, our house has been crazy. It has caught up to me. HELP!

We spent part of our weekend with John, Anna, and Ruby. Dear, dear friends that always make life feel better. We had such a good time and while I didn't take any personal pictures, I'll share more about our trip and at least a picture of the sweet little Rubster soon. =) I loved the heck out of getting to play with her.

Dac and I had our first installment of "weekly date" this weekend. We both decided we need to make a more conscious effort to actually plan dates and make them happen. Granted we don't have kids but that doesn't mean we're always spending quality time together. We work practically non-stop and that's only getting worse. Plus, when we are hanging out, it's usually running an errand, eating just because we have to, taking photos, or talking about what all needs done. Anyway, we agreed that we'd take turns planning each date. They can be fancy out-on-the-town dates, sit at home on the couch dates, morning dates - you name it. We can pick anything as long as it's us spending actual quality time together and having fun. I offered to pick first. =)

Enter date night. I decided we'd order in a pizza (since we'd both been craving it for a while) and watch Wolverine (the Netflix movie we've had for a month or so). Well, we were having so much fun with John and Anna that we left there later than we originally anticipated. We could have just said "ah, forget it" but we've made a commitment to one planned date per week if AT ALL possible. SO - we stopped at Pizza Hut in Wellington, ate, and then continued our trip home, picked up Peety from "summer camp" (that's what we call it when we send him to stay with Dac's parents...haha) and since it was later when we got home and we were tired, we just watched a couple episodes of 24 and called it a night. Was it exactly what I had envisioned? No. Was it still good? Absolutely. Can't wait for this week's!

Last night I started a new devotional. I signed up for You Version a long time ago but haven't really used it much. Since I've been checking e-mail one last time on my phone once I get in bed, I decided I might as well use that time for something more beneficial. I started the devotional plan called "Unquestionable Character - A 21 Day Study in Stewardship". Once I'm done with this, I think I'll do the "21 Day Plan for Busy Women" (maybe I should do that one now!) and the "5 Day Love and Marriage" plan. You can also just read the Bible (any version you want) on there. It's kind of a cool site/app.

Ya'll. I. Need. A. Haircut. And. I. Need. It. Now. Oh lawd. It's bad. SO bad, that I got desperate and tried THIS (*warning, not for the faint of heart).
I dedicated a whole pinterest album to my mop makeover ideas. That's where I found THIS grand idea. You basically put an elastic headband on, wrap your hair around it, sleep, and voila! Right? WRONG. I woke up with a total mess of a 'do. NOT the glamorous waves I was promised. Sure, I was skeptical to begin with, but I had hope. I will try it again and when I do, I'll wrap my hair tighter around the headband, may even use dirty hair, and less hairspray. We'll see. I'll keep you posted. Try not to fall off the edge of your seat until then.

Due to a schedule change we've moved Wii night to every other Tuesday (instead of Thursday). It was my turn to cook so we had grilled steaks, sweet potatoes baked in the crock pot, veggies & dip (for the weirdo veggie-lovers), and bing cherries. I hadn't had bing cherries in YEARS and I'm not a big cherry fan... or so I thought. I LOVE THESE THINGS. John and Anna had them, I tried, I liked, now I'm eating them all dang week. =)

I think that's all I've got to bore you with today. =) Have a great rest of the week.

P.S. - Did I really just post a picture of raw meat on my blog?! Why yes. Yes I did.

Edited to add: It's the first day of school. People aren't always nice. I've decided I'm going to drive my quickly-getting-cranky self to Sonic for lunch. I'm going to sit there, eat, drink, and pretend there's no such thing as chaos in my life. I've asked Heather to join me. It's going to be divine. Then I'm making breakfast for dinner. French toast. I'll be making it healthier than I'd like but it will also be divine. I may walk tonight too. Divine. THEN, and only then, will I work to catch up on photo work I'm so unfortunately behind on. THEN, and only then, will I think about my day job. =) As for the rest of the day. I'll keep plugging along and remind myself every 2.5 minutes that "I is kind, I is smart, and I is important". Long sigh.

Because...

2011-08-19T10:25:00.000-07:00

Because cancer sucks.

Because if we haven't been already, we'll all be affected in one way or another.

Because we should all give and get this kind of love every single day.

Click HERE to watch a short series of three videos revolved around Martina McBride's new music video - I'm Gonna Love You Through It. One will stop and the next will start automatically. Don't forget the kleenex.

Midweek Randoms

2011-08-17T09:23:00.000-07:00

Here we are again... the week's half over! =) I have zero pictures for you but here goes anyway.

1. This week is always a little rough. Things are crazy at work since school is starting again. We have teachers and other staff coming back. It's fun to see people but with that comes the fact that they need things. Some of them haven't even thought about school since May which is fine, I suppose, but it's hard to give everyone everything they need at the same time. Oh well, most are pretty understanding. The other thing is, everyone comes back looking all rested, refreshed, and tan. Meanwhile, I look pale, pasty, haggard, and like I have a wet mop on my head. Sigh. Such is life I guess.

2. I'm still not feeling super great either which may halfway explain my less than stellar mood right now. =) I plan to go watch Glee in 3D tonight while eating lots of buttery popcorn so I'm hoping that helps. haha. My kind of "alternative medicine"!

3. I can't believe it's already time for political debates and all the hoopla that comes with them. I guess it never really ends though. I started doing a little bit of research last night. It seems I'm a pretty true moderate and I tend to have a hard time distinguishing candidates because while I may line up with the social/civil ideals of one candidate, I'll line up with financial, etc... ideals of another. In fact, I didn't even vote in the last presidential election. Gasp. I know. I'm a big promoter of voting... and voting educated... but the truth is, last time I just didn't feel like there was a candidate worthy of my vote. I haven't done enough research this time to know how I feel about the possible contenders. I'll work on it though!

4. I'm pretty addicted to Pinterest. I could spend hours on there and have found so many cool house ideas, skinny outfits, and photo inspirations it's ridiculous. LOVE IT. =) I read tons of blogs and check out tons of sites so now when I find a great idea I just "pin" it and all my wild and unruly thoughts will be hanging out in the same place when I need to find them.

5. I try to enjoy things in the present... you know, current life situation, current season, current everything I guess... but I'm to the point of looking forward to fall now. I LOVE fall. I love the colors, the activities, the crisp air, the hoodies, the food. Mmmm. Can't wait.

6. I want to paint my toenails gray now. I'm in desperate need of a pedicure, even a self-given one.

7. I've been feeling extremely blessed in the friend department lately. I have some amazing besties that make life more interesting, bearable, and fun. Yay friends!

8. I miss cooking. I've either not had time, haven't been home, or haven't had the calories left at the end of the day to make a big, warm, cheesy, delicious meal. I'm hoping that changes next week. There's so many things I want to make.

I believe that's all for this week. Have a great day!!

Retro Cam

2011-08-14T09:40:00.000-07:00

I've been playing with the Retro Camera app on my phone. It's kinda fun. The other day I took some shots of the new-old green chair in our family room.

Here are the books on my little makeshift tv-tray/end table. Both are super cute.
And this is the print that hangs out on the wall above the chair. I got it from Etsy and I love it. It says "Wherever we are together, that is home." Isn't that the truth?
Then, yesterday, I took Sky on a little shopping trip to Derby. We had such a good time. She ended up not letting me buy her any clothes but I did get her some funky earrings and a CD. She has really grown up and we laughed all day long.

We went to Target, and ate Freddies. Oh. My. Word. I don't think that's ever tasted as good as it did yesterday. AND I didn't even eat all my fries. WIN!
Then we went to Kohls, Game Stop, and I introduced her to Cherry Berry. That's mine on the left and hers on the right.
We got to see one of Dac's best friends, Tarl yesterday too. He and Dac hung out all day and I'm so glad they got the chance to do that. I should have got a picture of them but I didn't even think about it. FAIL.

Last night, I went to see "The Help" w/ Kayla. It. Was. Amazing. Seriously one of the best movies I'd ever seen. Oh so good. Watch it. Watch it now!! I had intended to get a picture of us but totally forgot. We got in there and the theater was packed. We had to sit in the second row. The movie was worth it though.

Today, I'm sick. I don't know why or how but I am NOT feeling so hot. So, I'm just laying here, doing nothing, watching crappy movies on Netflix and drinking Gatorade.

Midweek Randoms

2011-08-08T12:57:00.000-07:00

So, after last week I've decided to start a "midweek randoms" recurring post. I'm stealing this idea from another blog I love to read. I plan to do a post each Wednesday. Since I worked at our school district's enrollment yesterday, and I'm a day late.

1) I love this guy. He is my buddy to the max. He loves me and spins circles for me when I come home (mostly because I feed him but I do think there's a little unconditional love there too!). Granted he stinks and sheds and there was one night this week where neither of us slept particularly well b/c he was barking all night (which he really never does). But I couldn't stay mad for long. Look at that face...
2) Dac and I began watching '24' on Netflix. The show is obviously over but neither of us had watched it before and decided what the heck... now's the time. I'm t-totally addicted now. We just finished the first season last night! We've been watching about one episode a night when we can... just to unwind after working non-stop up until that point. It's been good for us I think.
3) I received an e-mail with pictures of these cute things this week. That's Ellie and Layla - my cousin Ryan and Erin's sweet girls. I rarely see them in real life but I love staying up on what's new with them. They are both getting SO grown up. I see a ton of Ryan in Ellie especially and Layla - a spitting image of her beautiful mama. Erin's dating again... sort of took my breath away when I learned that but not in a bad way. Well not really... it's a reminder that he's gone and never coming back (which is oh so hard) but I couldn't be more happy for Erin. =) She is an amazing girl and she deserves the best and the most happiness that can possibly come her way! I know if she thinks he's special then he absolutely, without a doubt is. I can't even imagine how hard the whole process of losing the love of your life, picking yourself up again, being a great mom, deciding you want to let someone new in, and then actually seeing it through. Wow. Hope I never have to find out.

4) My friend Kelly blogged about our trip to Colorado. I stole this picture of me going down the crazy steep slide at New Belgium. I'm such a dork. Please still be my friend.

5) It's been hellaciously hot here lately. But... BUT... this week has been cooler and RAINY. I love rain. I love storms. I love cool, breezy, overcast weather. Mmmm. I've seen this cartoon before but ran across it again a couple days ago and I think it sums things up nicely. You know me... I feel bad for that corn cob. Sigh.

6) My friend Erika remembered me saying how much I liked her chair a while back. It's not exactly her style and they wanted to get rid of it so she called me. Wasn't that nice? =) I'm not sure that it's necessarily my "style" either but I do love it and am happy with it's new home in my family room. It brings some spunk and diversity to that room, plus, it's in terrific shape and will be great for pictures... including some of her girls.
7) We went out to eat at College Hill Coffee today with a few local photographers. It was perfect. Today was just kind of a meet-and-greet time. I had a blast and I know Dac did too. We didn't want to leave! =) Everyone that came was super cool and I only see it growing. Can't wait for next time. PS - I finally tried a waffle from there and it was fab.

8) I made a dentist appt. Guys. It is SAD how long it's been since I've been to the dentist. Like... gosh... 2 years now? I just hate it THAT much. I'm too scared. SO, I made a dentist appt. with a new dentist that Dac used to go to... made us both one. Dare I say it... I'm excited! I think. I told them to bring on the gas and sedatives and let's do this thing! =) Eeeek!

9) I hit my first mini weight-loss goal yesterday. I wanted to lose 10 lbs in 30 days and I managed to do it in 31. I'm pumped! Weight-loss seems to be going better this time around. I seriously just love love love myfitnesspal.com. Seriously. Love it.

10) I've been walking a lot. Sometimes I walk with Kayla and it's great to chat and the walks always go by fast! Super fun. Sometimes I walk with Dac and it's great to talk and sometimes that's the only time we get to really spend together (except for our new-found 24 time). Sometimes I walk by myself and while I always love the thought of that, I usually end up going about half the time I plan to, hurting a lot, and feeling like crap afterward. It's just not as fun!

I think that's it for this week's installment of randoms. Have a great rest of the week!! =)

Roomie Reunion

2011-08-07T17:38:00.001-07:00

A few weeks (almost a month ago now... geez... I'm behind) I went to OKC to hang with my college "family". Granted, a couple girls were missing, but it was a great time and I'm hoping we can all get together for homecoming or something this fall.

Anyway, I stayed with two girls I actually lived with while down at OSU. Beth and Julie. They currently live together now... at least for a little while longer because Julie's getting married in November (couldn't be many more stinkin' excited for her!!)! These girls are some of my most bestest friends ever. Love them,love them, love them! This is the sign they had on the fridge to welcome me. =)

The top left hand corner is a Law and Order: SVU episode on TV. We always watched this... especially the marathons. The sign also has cookies (Tuesday night special while watching Gilmore Girls), a camera - for obvious reasons, a mocktail (we are so painfully cool), and a picture of us doing the "O-S-U" pose.

As soon as I got there, we went to eat at Saturn Grill. I'd never been there and it was delicious. I had a sandwich. The place was just kind of modern - sort of played up the space thing - and had a cool atmosphere.

Then, we went to Gigi's cupcakes. I had already started myfitnesspal.com (less than a week into it) at this time but was willing to splurge this weekend. Oh holy cupcakes... love.
We got a variety and split them all so we could taste each one. =) Every one I tried was fantastic... especially when they were fresh. Yum!
After cupcakes, we went to the Rink... a cool little antique-y shop in an old skating rink. It's always fun to browse around in there. Then, THEN internet, we grabbed some Sonic and got our eyebrows threaded. I had always heard about this and thought it sounded cool. I've heard it was less painful than waxing. I heard a lie. =) We went to this little hole in the wall place where all they really do is threading. It hurt like a son of a gun. I don't know that it hurt worse than waxing... it just lasted long. My brows looked great afterward though and I'm sure I'd get used to the torture just like I have waxing. It was definitely an experience! =)

After being tortured and suffering in the heat all afternoon... we opted to stay in the rest of the night. We played lots of silly board games and ate more cupcakes.

Julie looking rather dapper in her headbanz!
Beth sportin' the cool look too.
Then, I helped Julie (she did most the work, don't let me fool you) make lasagna. Oh my yumtacular. It was mighty tasty. Natalie joined us for dinner too! Yay!
Natalie and Beth chatting and eating more cupcakes. =)

Beth and I.

Julie and I during the mocktail hour...bahaha. I crack myself up.
If I remember correctly... Beth won the mocktail mixing contest.

After that, we chatted some more then hit the hay. The next morning beth made us cinnamon rolls, we watched lifechurch.tv and I headed home. Awesome weekend all the way around!!!