lin at home

Black Thumb, or Sabotage?

2009-11-16T13:24:00.002-06:00

Ok, so I'm not known for my green thumb... I know it partially has to do with the fact that when I purchase plants, I usually tend to buy the saddest, most scraggly ones, because I feel sorry for them that nobody else will adopt them. However, over the last few months, Mom has started me a few herb plants that are perfectly healthy & alive when I get them, but are completely dead within a couple of weeks. I figured I wasn't watering them properly (too much or too little?), so I got some of the AquaGlobes to do that part for me. The last one she gave me, Molly the Mint, is technically still alive, but is in a pretty sorry state:

Then, the other night, I think I discovered the source of my black thumb!! I caught MAX eating the leaves!!! I haven't been able to catch him on camera, but there were a few white hairs left behind as evidence. Has he been eating all my plants, or do I really end up killing them all?

i simply cannot be a pagent mom anymore.

2009-10-27T18:31:00.001-05:00

oops... somehow, i published this without writing anything on it... sry...

anyway.

No, I cannot be a pagent mom anymore.

Our first was the costume contest at Petsmart. I thought it was a bit dodgy to begin with, when they announced that the winners would be decided by an applause-o-meter, one guy being the meter. Now obviously, Caroline was the cutest one there, but I thought that we received applause ratings of about 2nd. The "Meter" didn't even think she was good enough to be a finalist. Later, he was patting her, and she peed on him. Good Girl.
The winners: 1) A boxer, wearing boxer shorts & boxing gloves hanging from his collar. (incredibly simple, but cute) 2) A chihuahua, wearing a tiny cowboy hat, bandana, and saddle with a cowboy riding him. (admittedly adorable- by applause, we were 2nd to him) and 3) a dragon costume from target. Cute, but same as the boxer- SO easy. We weren't the only contestant to get ripped off- a cat (!) on a leash (!!) dressed in a lobster costume (!!!) and sitting in a pot (lol).

The second contest was at the Pleasanton Public Library. Strangely, there was a little more competition here, but she was still the cutest. Caroline's category was "best homemade costume". The winner? A papillon terrier as "The Tin Man". The costume: A piece of foil wrapped around his belly. The owner: The LIBRARIAN. At a contest sponsored by the library. Did I mention she was a judge too? hmmm... RIGGED MUCH???

Grrrrr.... Oh well... I know my baby was the sweetest & cutest & most well behaved one at both events, and she had a lot of fun meeting the other doggies.

INTRODUCING:
CAROLINE, THE GYPSY GENIE BELLY DANCER!!!
(every time I put her down, she did a little shake that sent the beads on her pants twirling)

Thank you Mom for the idea & the hours of handstitching- I had fun!

You TwitFace

2009-10-13T23:16:00.002-05:00

“In the year 3000
YouTube, Twitter & Facebook will merge
into one super time wasting website
called:
YouTwitFace.”

~Conan O'Brien

I'm afraid that's what's happened to my blog... Facebook. It's nice to not feel bad about wasting everyone's time with a little one sentence update, because EVERYONE'S wasting everyones time with one sentence updates! But, I suppose I don't ALWAYS have to post lengthy epistles... in fact, I'm sure most of you would thank me for shorter thoughts!

SO: Here's to shorter and (hopefully) more frequent blog updates from me! *clink*

Non-Transformers

2009-10-13T17:17:00.003-05:00

Did you know that if you go to the store looking for a Transformer toy, you have to be careful & be sure to get one that actually transforms?? Most are "Fixed State/ Non-Transforming" Transformers. RIDICULOUS.

yup, I still hate tailgating...

2009-09-05T23:10:00.004-05:00

... but this is my new favorite part:

Our little Miss Caroline was QUITE a hit... I expect she will be internet famous in no time :)

She had a ball last night and this afternoon... she is so personable, and just LOVES everyone. I was a little worried how she'd take all the action, just because she hasn't been around big crowds much before, but she did great! She posed for pictures right and left, and even got to eat some yummy ribs. :) After last night, she was so tired she slept til 10... I'm hoping for more of the same tomorrow morning.

PS: I made her dress :D

HighHeeled Hiking

2009-08-22T14:18:00.003-05:00

I haven't forgotten the Ruidoso stories I promised I'd tell you!

The whole time we were there, James kept talking about an old fire watch station on a mountain that you could drive to. One evening, we were out driving around, and wound up there. We got out of the car, and I thought, "hmm... you can't do much looking out surrounded by trees..." This was when James informed me it was "just a short walk down a path" to the point. I happened to be wearing brand new heels, but he assured me it wasn't far. He lied. It ended up being about a half mile hike over rocky terrain, which I know isn't far, but it is when you're wearing heels. THEN, we had to climb 3 flights of stairs to get to the fire watchtower. By the time we got to the top, I was huffing & puffing, and had multiple blisters on my sore feet. Needless to say, I was not a happy camper. James sweetly offered me his shoes, and said he'd walk down barefooted. Then he said, "Oh, come on... they can't be THAT bad," and put on my shoes. He took one step, fell off, and broke the strap. That brightened my mood considerably- it's hard to be grumpy when you're laughing your head off. :)

In all this, I learned a tip- If you have a pair of crocs, & the buckle thingie breaks, you can order replacement rivets from their website FOR FREE.

Name Decisions and the Renovations Begin Again!

2009-08-04T17:08:00.005-05:00

Not only was the name "Caroline" the overwhelming favorite at the polls, but we could never remember any other name we tried calling her. Caroline it is. Here is our baby with her Aunt Jenny (Mom & Dad's dog). They are BFFs now, and Jenny even shared her bed with Caroline. She's wearing a sweater (sock with the foot & armholes cut out) because she got wet when she went outside, and she was shivering cold.

In other news, the remodeling has begun again! For some reason, we seem to wait until it is 8,000 degrees outside to do anything to the house... This time, we're doing our bedroom & bathroom. The first completed project, however, is in the kitchen.

See our old ugly acrylic sink, broken on the left corner (so that it snagged your shirt every time you got too close), and stained & cracked in both basins.

BEHOLD! our lovely shiny new stainless sink, complete with extra tall faucet with the pull out spray & built in soap dispenser. You may commence oohing & ahhing.

***and PS: James installed the new sink & faucet himself!

Meet Caroline!!!

2009-07-28T12:31:00.002-05:00

...or maybe Meggie... or Roxie... or Madison... or Paprika she hasn't told us totally for sure yet, but she is completely adorable. She is a 7 week old pure bred miniature schnauzer, and weighs about a pound and a half.

I felt a little guilty about not getting a shelter dog, but my allergies would not be too good with just any dog, and schnauzers are hypoallergenic! Also, we didn't want to have to break the shelter habits of barking like crazy all day long, and going to the bathroom in their kennel.

As for our choices in names: Caroline is after our favorite piano bar in NYC, Sweet Caroline's. Roxie is from the first show we saw on Broadway, Chicago. Madison- Madison Avenue. Molly, Luna or Lily from Harry Potter. Paprika because she's salt-n-pepper colored. The list goes on... any thoughts?

we're really not callus...

2009-07-27T03:00:00.004-05:00

We have decided to get a puppy. I hope it doesn't seem heartless of us, but something about losing Aspen made us want another dog. Maybe it's because we need another furry thing to project love for her towards, or to help us in grieving for her... (sorry if it sounds silly "grieving" for a dog, but... well... there you are.) Maybe I feel like I need another chance to be a better pup-parent... Aspen was always James' dog. I've never really had one... my family has had a couple over the years, but never for more than a few months (since I was old enough to remember).

Also, I have a confession... I seem to have Baby Fever lately... I know I'm not ready for a baby just yet, but I want one anyway. Now, I know most of you are saying... "Lindsey?!?! but she doesn't want kids!!" Well... I've changed my mind. We've only been married for 7 months (today!), and we aren't ready for them yet, so we've decided to sort of use this new puppy as a baby pacifier/ training program. I've only ever been totally responsible for Max, and he is about as low maintenance as a living thing can get. Puppies are a handful, but not nearly the handful a baby would be. Sounds like a logical stepping stone to me...

So tomorrow morning, we are headed to meet a prospective new little sister for Max. Will let you know & post pics soon. Wish us luck!

update (warning: slightly graphic... not much, but slightly)

2009-07-22T20:49:00.003-05:00

Thanks for all the mental hugs, guys. We really appreciate them.

Let me just say, the state of after-life care for pets in Austin is appalling. The only way (that we could find) deceased pets can be picked up is IF YOU PUT THEM IN A BAG ON YOUR CURB AND THEY WILL TRY TO PICK THEM UP WITHIN TWO BUSINESS DAYS. Sorry for all the yelling, but... well... that made me yell a lot...

Anyway, we took her for her last ride in the back of the pickup to the vet for cremation today. The vet said that she had heartworms (we already knew that part), and that they must have spread into her lungs & caused an embolism, which would have been painless & instant.

We are still sad, but things have been much better since we got some whys & hows.

Thanks again for all the hugs.

A sad, sad night

2009-07-22T00:39:00.004-05:00

I took this picture of Aspen today, on the way home from Pleasanton (incidentally, Max was sitting in my lap at the time). When we got back to town, I took her to the vet for some routine vaccine updates. We got home, and since she had to wait a couple of days before being groomed, we put her in the back yard. James took her some water, which she drank. Pretty soon, she laid down. It had been a pretty exciting day, so we figured she was tired. I went to the store, came home and brought her some food and some more water (with ice- it's hot out nowadays!), but she didn't seem interested. A few more times during the evening, I went out to check on her, and once her collar seemed a bit tight, so i loosened it. She still seemed ok... tired and hot, but ok. JR & Kat came over to fix our fence, & I went back out to check on her, and she had passed away. We just don't understand... she was happy & energetic just a few hours ago. I'm so sad for James... he's had her for all of her 8 years, and he just lost Denver (a 13 year old dalmation) a few weeks before we got married. We are sad tonight.

Late Night Wizarding

2009-07-14T19:56:00.004-05:00

Last night, James and I went to see Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince. At midnight. HOLY moly was it ever packed. We arrived about 30 minutes ahead of time, and after cruising the parking lot for EVER looking for a space, decided to put Lexi's 4wheel drive to use & park on the grass. The theatre had all 10 screens showing the movie at midnight, and all ten were sold out (we bought our tickets online last week).

No, I did not dress up (James said no), but I did wear my jammies... it was midnight, after all. There were a few people there wearing pointy hats & graduation robes with stripey scarves, but the biggest crowd were the teenagers that had evidently had parties with all their BFFs to make matching puffpaint t-shirts saying things like "HP6 '09" and "I *heart* Ron". They all had smudgy eyeliner "scars" on their foreheads, too.

The movie was great, but I will give the same bits of advice I gave for Dark Knight and 007:

1) Whatever money saving magical combos they tempt you with, do not, I repeat, DO NOT give in and purchase the large drink... the movie is nearly 3 hours long.

2) Show up early enough to not have to sit in the front row, three inches from Ron's freckles. Luckily, this one didn't give me a migraine like the last one did (it was all the 3-D in the IMAX crazy that did me in last time), but it was still neck cricking, and difficult to fully appreciate all the incredible special effects.

Don't get me wrong, I really appreciated my sweet James' willingness to take me to a 3 hour long movie at midnight, but sometimes, he will do or say something that simply makes me fall in love all over again. During one part, some romantical stuff was going on, and instead of hooting like the rest of the audience, he leaned over and whispered, "aww... he's her lobster!"

He, most certainly, is my lobster :)

By the way, the theatre was not only running the movie on all 10 screens at midnight, they did it all over again at 3:20am. Now THAT'S crazy.

Sticky and Patriotic.

2009-07-14T14:38:00.005-05:00

Boy do I have poor spatial awareness. This morning, I noticed a hummingbird hovering around our month-old feeder, so I decided to make him some fresh juice. Not much, only a half feeder full or so.... if even that. We don't want the juice spoiling in this heat before they can drink it. I made some up, and was pouring it into a jar to put into the freezer (I always do this so they don't burn their little tongues on hot juice). I realized too late that I had made about twice as much as would fit into the jar. There was a sticky red mess alllllll over me and the kitchen. *sighhh*

As of right now, the new juice is still cooling, and the hummer is getting bombed on the old and probably fermented juice outside.

As promised, I'm including a completely unrelated story from Ruidoso here.

Last year, a local casino/resort hosted a massive firework show/ cookout/ live music fandango on the Fourth of July. The place is simply not built for that large a volume of people, and they had HUGE problems with traffic. This year, they decided to hold it on the 2nd, in hopes of avoiding the additional holiday weekend crowds. James and I had heard horror stories of people having to park up to 2 miles away the previous year, so we were pretty worried. Turned out, we shouldn't have! We arrived at about 5, pulled straight into the parking garage & parked about where we usually did, walked down to the lakeside. There were lots of people there, but we picked a spot, laid out our beach towels, and went into the casino to play some cards. About 9:00, we headed outside, found our towels, and plopped down just in time for a spectacular show. It was perfect!!! Great fireworks, a light breeze blowing away from us, so I didn't have any trouble smelling the sulfur... Did I mention that it was about 60°??? Absolutely amazing. We didn't get any pics of the fireworks (too hard to enjoy the full scene through a two inch view finder), but this was the sunset at the same place a few nights later. I'm sure you can imagine the fireworks reflecting off the water and the explosions echoing through the mountains.

I've enjoyed about all the nature I can stand...

2009-07-12T19:47:00.005-05:00

Not that I'm complaining... it's truly been amazing. I am on my way back to reality from spending 3 weeks in Ruidoso. We set out to spend about 10 days to two weeks, but after hearing all about the 110° weather at home, we just couldn't bear to leave our 70° haven.

During our first week, Mom & Dad came up to visit, and instantly fell in love with the peace & nature of the cabin & quaint little town (not to mention the lures of the nearby casino for Dad).

One night, on the way back to the cabin from town, we found a mama bear digging for some dinner for her cubbies! We didn't have the camera with us, so we hurried to pick it up & drop off mom. When we got back to the same dumpster, she was nowhere in sight. I rolled down my window, made a noise like we'd heard her make earlier, and she answered! In a few seconds, here she came! She was making a pretty big racket, and we think she was telling her out-of-sight cubs to not come out while she was posing for the weirdos in the big car taking her picture. Unfortunately, the only shots we got were pretty dark, and lightening them on the computer just kills the photo quality.

We had lots of other flora & fauna to entertain us, including deer, raccoons, a pair of orioles, some unidentified yellow birds, and woodpeckers, but the hummingbirds were the stars!!! Tons of them zoomed and flirted everywhere! They drank 3 large feeders full every day, and probably would have had twice that much if we had been obliging. A couple of times, one actually came inside, looking for another feeder. In the mornings, if we were lazy in getting up and getting their breakfast (who, us???), they would come up to the windows tell us all about it, and sometimes, they'd get so vehement about it, they'd get their beaks stuck in the screen for a minute!

James monkeyed with the camera, and figured out how to get some incredible shots. Once, one landed on his hand while he was snapping pics. In the first picture, a mama hummer came inside and got her beak stuck trying to get out, poor thing. James eventually put the feeder in the doorway to lead her out.

We are so blessed- we got to spend our six monthaversary such a peaceful place. I learned that my hubby can make a killer omelet! Sometime around the end of the second week, I sort of had a nervy ditherspaz breakdown about the spiders, so James was a darling & set off a couple of bug bombs, and things were much better after that. Even though he told me he thinks I need therapy about the spiders.

To say that Max had fun would be the understatement of the century. (In this picture, he was hanging out about 15 feet up the tree.) His favorite thing to do outside is to roll in dirt, so when it came time to leave today, he was beyond filthy. We decided to give him a quick bath before we got in the car. He has been pouting ever since. As soon as we got in the car, he crawled under and between the suitcases, and hasn't shown his face in hours.

In the intrest of keeping this blog readable, I'll post a few other more detailed blogs about things like Smokey the Bear, the 4th of July, & hiking in high heels.

VBS mission trip?

2009-06-15T11:33:00.006-05:00

James and I like to frequent a neighborhood karaoke bar. Neither of us has ever participated, but it's fun watching people perform, and usually plays pretty good music. And they serve popcorn & chex mix for free. The other night, we were there with a couple of friends, and one of them decided to sing, so we were perusing the book. (Am so proud of her! I don't think I could do it.) I, of course, was looking to see what children's/ Disney type songs they had, and was amazed... They had a WHOLE CATEGORY of kids church songs!!! I threatened to get up and sing B-I-B-L-E or Who Did Swallow Jonah, but James said no. :) They even had "An Austrian Went Yodeling"!!!! (which, I may or may not have thought was called "An OSTRIDGE Went Yodeling" until my senior year of high school...)

Anyone up for hosting VBS in a bar?

Prayer Request

2009-06-11T11:26:00.002-05:00

Hello everyone...

Just got an email from one of our tailgating friends... His wife (I've met her a few times, but James knows her fairly well) fell at her gym last night, and is now in the hospital with several broken vertebrates and is paralyzed from the arms down. The email we got was understandably pretty sketchy, from a frightened and devastated husband, but as best as I could tell, she was in surgery this morning to try to stop some internal bleeding and repair some of the vertebrates. They have a 4 year old daughter.

Thanks in advance for your prayers.

A Beautiful Bride

2009-06-10T16:58:00.004-05:00

Something Old:
Her (great ?) grandmother's butterfly brooch, pinned to her boquet.

Something New:
A fantastic dress.

Something Borrowed:
My veil.

Something Blue:
wouldn't YOU like to know?!

for all the pics, click here.

Again with the random sleeping habits...

2009-05-25T07:40:00.004-05:00

I woke up a little before six today. I never do that. Unless...

That's right, we've been to Vegas. again. oops. We may have a problem. :)

This time, just Dad came with us, and we stayed downtown. No convertible this time, but we did get to cruise around in a 2010 Infinity that had some serious zippy under the hood and NO KEYS! (Pushbutton start is so weird to me...)

No poker luck this trip... I made 3 final tables, but never cashed... that is FRUSTRATING, let me tell you. I still love blackjack, and I actually 1/2% understood what was going on when I played craps with dad.

We got to see each extreme of Vegas... Arrived on Tuesday to a practically empty town because it was in the morning on a week day. Left on Saturday night from MGM, an hour or so before the big UFC fight started... even Dad said he didn't think he'd ever seen that many people there.

Tuesday night, we went to The House of Blues to see Ben Folds- he was GREAT. I think Dad really enjoyed it. He is an impressive musician. Unfortunately, it was standing room only. They had a few tables around, but on top of the regular ticket price, it was a minimum $250 bar tab just to sit down. Needless to say, we stood for nearly 4 hours through the opening act & the concert. The opening act was incredibly bizarre. One thing that always strikes me about Vegas is the amount of unrecognized talent. There are TONS of street performers & players in little dives that are great, but just not quite good enough to make it in a town full of world class acts. This makes even the cheap shows and opening acts enjoyable. Usually. This opening act, however... they were three girls and a guy that were from the northeast UK, and sang only solo funeral dirges. Seriously! One was about a whole town being killed when a mine collapsed, and another was about a women who had several babies, but they all died. On top of that, while one girl was singing, the others just kinda stood around looking bored. It was very weird... anyway, it was ok, because Ben Folds more than made up for it.

Wednesday night, we saw Terry Fator. Absolutely fantastic. If you're not familiar, he's the ventriliquist/ impressionist that won two seasons ago of America's Got Talent. He is now (deservingly) the most successful reality show contestant... after he won the million $ & one year at The LV Hilton, the Mirage picked him up for a mere 5 year- $100 million contract. Anyway, sry if you knew all that. But he was GREAT. If you get the chance, go see him.

As always, some great food was involved, and it was an all around great trip. But then, will I ever go to vegas and NOT say it was wonderful?

***Update: i've left my wallet in the room safe, and my purse & phone in pleasanton. *sighhh*

Super Excited!!!

2009-04-29T22:53:00.004-05:00

James & I start Ballroom dancing lessons tomorrow!!! I'm soooooo pumped. He will be Gilles & I will be Lacey (from Dancing With The Stars). Wheeee!!!!

Ow. I tell you what, Ow.

2009-04-15T00:18:00.003-05:00

So earlier today, I gouged my hand with a pair of scissors. I was trying to cut the packaging off our new can opener (YAY- gnawing is no longer the most effective method to open canned goods!!!), the scissors slipped, and of course, since they were open, cut my hand in two separate places.

I just thought that hurt...

Later, I was boiling some water in my tea kettle. Usually, the handle is heatsafe, so you can pick it up without mitts, even when the water is boiling. Not so today. It was super hot, so I tried to quickly set the kettle back down, and when I did, some water sloshed out on my hand. That sent the kettle flying, pouring almost the whole kettlefull directly on me. Or rather, directly on my right boob. HOLYPOO.

So now my right chestybits are covered in bandages & an inch thick layer of burn cream. The doc said usually second degree burns arent that bad, but since they're on such a *ahem* sensitive area, they're having me come in for the next few days to clean & have the bandages professionally changed. I got a tetnaus shot (I didn't even tell them about the scissors fiasco), a pain shot, and some vicodin. I'm totally looped right now, and very happily itching like mad, because I'm no longer in much pain. I already slept for a few hours, and I woke up a couple of times with my face held in very theatrical positions... like... a big giant "hmmmm...", an "eeeeeew" crinkled nose, and a very skeptical "uh, yah right". So g'night! I'm off to have some incredibly bizarre dreams...

Messed Up Internal Time Clock

2009-03-30T03:26:00.005-05:00

Argh... I must say, this is rather annoying... Maybe it's Vegas... We spent a week there, and I could hardly hold my head up past 11 pm. Now that I'm home, and it's desirable to be asleep at 3:30 am, I just can't do it. It's all very weird for me... usually, I'm practically narcoleptic, & can always snooze on command, and in Vegas, I'm good to go on nothing but a shower & neon lights in my eyes. Now, this is the second night in the last few days that I simply cannot sleep. Oh well.

So yah, Vegas :)

James' birthday was the 22nd, so we went for that and for the beginning of March Madness. James thinks they invented that tournament in honor of his birth.

Mom & Dad actually got to meet us there for a few days! It's been AGES since I've been on vacation with my mom, so it was really nice. I had a mid-day nap partner, and James had a basketball watching partner. I was sad they couldn't stay the whole time.

We stayed at Harrah's, and saw Jersey Boys, Rita Rudner, and a hypnotist show. If you get the chance, SEE JERSEY BOYS. It's really fantastic- definitely one of the best shows I've ever seen anywhere.

We ate at a couple of the best restaurants I've ever eaten at (one was The Range- pretty much everything we ate was the best thing we'd ever tasted) , and ate THREE TIMES at In-&-Out Burger. yummm... On James' birthday, we ate at The Eiffel Tower Restaurant... wow. I've eaten at some fancy restaurants, but this one was definitely right on up there with some of the swankiest. Our waiter was zees leetle French man weeth zees outRAGEous accente... He seated us at what HAD to be the best table in the house/ in town... up in front of the window, overlooking the strip, with the Bellagio & it's fountains RIGHT in front of us. It was incredible. (see below). They served Amuses Bouches (remember Monica serving them, & Chandler said, "well... they are amoosing..."??) of tiny little cheese puffs, then some AMAZING french bread, then scallops for an appetizer, & our main courses. Then, our waiter came out singing, & carrying this tiny little pudding cup on a plate that had "Happy Birthday" written in chocolate on. THEN, we shared a chocolate souffle (drool), and then a plate of some teeeeeny little candied fruits, chocolates, caramels, nougats, & tartlets. Holy Moly. All the while, we got to watch the fountain show every 15 minutes. :) OOH, the funniest part: I asked where the ladies' was, and the waiter led me all the way there, held open the bathroom door for me, and when I got inside, there was an attendant that held open the stall door for me, & then prewarmed the sink faucet for me before I washed my hands. Sheesh... of course, I couldn't stop giggling about it...

ANYWAY...

We actually got out of town one day & drove to see Hoover Dam... pretty cool. But I'd still rather be in the poker room. The first day we were there, I won a tournament for $380!!! Somehow, even 8 days was not long enough for us... Hopefully, we'll be back soon :)

For all the pics, see here.

The view from our table at the Eiffel Tower Restaurant.

My hair pretty much stayed messed up because we got to drive around in this cute little red convertible. :)

You can't tell in the picture, but I'm actually in Arizona & James is in Nevada.

Over the dam.

I know, I'm a nerd...

Lookit what I did this weekend!!!!!!

2009-03-11T16:57:00.005-05:00

I KNOW!!! ME!!!!
Meet my 2009 Baby of the Year: Miss Mikenna Maxwell!!!

James and I had dinner on Saturday night in San Antonio, and Jamie, Kara, Mike, Jenn, & Miss Mikenna came to meet us. We had SUCH a great time!!!

Then, Sunday morning, I HELD HER ALLLL. CHURCH. LONG. voluntarily. happily. I even fed her, burped her, took her out when she got fussy, & put her to sleep. She is sooo sweet!!! I KNOW!!! ME!!! The last baby I held for that long was definitely Chloe, who is now in the 8th grade. And LOOKIT!!!! I gave her Her Very First Pedicure!!! (don't look too closely- have YOU ever tried to paint a one month old's toenails??)

Good thing James is not as picky as Max

2009-03-11T16:40:00.003-05:00

Last night, I made this for supper. It was good... not great. Definitely RaeRay's (or my) best recipe, but better than edible. James & I both feel the same way about sundried tomatoes: We like the flavor & the asthetics they add to a meal, but neither of us would care to voluntarily bite into one. When we finished, both our bowls were left sitting on the coffee table, with them left in it. I did accidentally burn them, but only a bit, and since they were soaked in soy sauce, they didn't look very pleasant... like slugs.

We were watching tv, & before we could get around to bussing our dishes, Max hopped up on the table. He sniffed around our bowls very curiously, circling around it several times, then, to show us what he thought of my cooking, he turned around, and started "covering" it with his paws on the table... evidently he thought it looked and smelled like something that should be in his litterbox.

addictions, basketball, scales, honks and wedding bells

2009-03-05T00:35:00.010-06:00

Last week, Mom came up for a few days! To give you an idea of how long it's been since she's been to Austin, she cashed in her gift certificate from last Mother's Day, and got facials at a nearby day spa. Let's just say... I may very well have a new addiction... If you've never had a facial, GO GET ONE. NOW. *purrrrr* Mom & I had a great time drinking coffee, shopping, and we accidentally found another addiction...

A couple of days ago, James took me to a UT basketball game... we sat on the 2nd row, right between the basket & the Baylor bench. I know, I know, I'm not exactly Sporty Spice, but I infinitely prefer attending a game than watching one on TV. Anyway, thanks to James' CraigsList prowess, we had amazing seats, and had a blast. Of course, we recorded the game on ESPN, and when we got home, we were able to see ourselves EVERY TIME the game was on our end of the court! And thanks to my new hot pink longhorn shirt, Dad, Mom, Ava, & Granddaddy could pick us out on the TV. And saw me get up & go to the bathroom just before the end of the first half. Darn that paparazzi...

My last post was about boycotting the gym... between my second week at the gym and the time I gained 3 lbs, I switched scales... at the end of the week, dad came up & said, "HEY! Your scales are about 6 lbs heavy!" He'd just weighed at the doctor's office, so I'm sure it was accurate, which actually means I lost 3 lbs, but by the time I figured that out, it was too late... (see my second new addiction above). Oh well... I've unboycotted the gym now. blegh. I kinda liked having an excuse...

Tonight at trivia, when we got there, I was still doing my eyemakeup, so I thought I'd stay in the car & finish up, & told James to go on in & get our names on the list. When I finished, I tried to get out, but the car locked me in & the alarms started flashing & honking. Everyone was walking by, looking in like, "what a moron..." for about 5 minutes til James came back out to rescue me. It was embarassing...

Am looking VERY forward to my cousin's wedding shower this weekend :)

That's about it for me... what have YOU been up to?

*muah*

Lookit us!!! it looks like i'm wearing something on my head, but i'm not...

This is SOOO Wrong...

2009-03-01T14:32:00.005-06:00

...but I think the person that put this sign up had to have done it on purpose & have a sense of humor about it, so I think we're allowed to laugh.

James & I took this picture this afternoon...

Weiiiiiird...

2009-02-26T00:22:00.002-06:00

I've been going to the gym every Monday, Wednesday, & Friday for two weeks now. Today was the first day I haven't gone, and I actually kinda sorta 2% missed it!!!! I don't know why though... last week I actually gained 3 lbs... grrrrr... nevermind. I didn't miss it. I'm boycotting.

On a happier note, Mom & Dad are visiting us!!! And they actually have their very own bedroom & bathroom!!! YAY!!!

New Look

2009-02-24T16:23:00.005-06:00

Hello everyone :)

I was inspired by Erin... what do you think of the new look? Does anyone know how to use a downloaded font? I found a super cute (and free) one called "MA Fishy", but I can't make it work... any suggestions for that, or anything else to add to my page?

*muah*

Happy Birthday, Dad!

2009-02-02T18:17:00.007-06:00

Today, the 2nd of February, is my Dad's birthday.

The other day at Memaw's house, I ran across a box of old pictures. It was a true treasure trove of memorabilia... some of my brother & me, my parents, TONS of pictures of my grandparents from the 20's-40's, plus some dating way back to the late 1800's-early 1900's, & even a couple of old lithograph tiles of my great grandparents.

Especially since I have never seen a single baby picture of my dad, I was ecstatic.

Anyway, Happy Birthday, Dad! I love you!

My Pepaw, in 1936

Memaw: "Red Cross Motor Corps, 1942

Finally, Some Wedding Pictures

2009-01-29T20:07:00.011-06:00

Our wedding was lovely.
I couldn't have dreamed of anything more perfect.
To those of you who came and/or helped, I truly cannot thank you enough.
We love you all :)

My sweet aunt helps James fix his collar.

Preeeeetty dress :)

My Parents' Lovely Living Room

James waiting for me under the Mistletoe

I didn't have flower girls, I had Snow Angels!

During the Ceremony:

After that kiss, he had lipstick EVERYWHERE!!!!

Feedin' Time

P-Town Friends

A-Town Friends

Cutest Li'l DJ Ever

The Whole Family

My sweet MofH/ Cousin
& Her Fiance

Me-n-My Brudder

My sweet Memaw:
Bless her heart, she had no idea where she was, who she was, or who any of us were....

The Yummmmmy Buffet.

YaY for mistletoe!!!

The Girls with our mani/pedi's

The Getaway: I LOVED the paper airplanes!!!

For allllll the pictures, click here to see my Photobucket album. In particular, LaMores, Johnsons, and Maxwells: There are some GREAT ones of yall!

If you want to have any printed, let me know, and I'll get you the original sized picture, and get with Caleb if any slight edits need to be made (ie: color adjustment, cropping, or removal of red-eye or double chins).

Squishy

2009-01-27T22:04:00.005-06:00

Today, I got to have lunch with a friend I haven't seen in about two years. We used to work together, & then she moved out of state, but she's recently moved back to town.

The last time I saw her, her son was in daycare, & she lived next door to her mother in law, so I thought I was safe. No such luck- she's now a stay at home mom, so four year old Jaiden came to lunch with us. Boy was I ecstatic.

Of course, he instantly became my "best fwiend", and wanted to sit by me. As kids go, he was pretty intelligent, fairly polite, and a very talkative & personalitied little thing.

Around the time Sarah was telling me "ugh, I've GOT to go to the gym today... I can barely fit into my size 3 jeans today!", Jaiden gave me a biiiiiiig hug, and proclaimed loudly enough for our waiter & all the surrounding tables to hear,

"WOW!!! You're really SQUISHY!!!"

He then proceeds to poke me everywhere, to see just how squishy I am... ("your ARMS are squishy... and your LEGS are REALLY squishy!", etc.)

Things I've Learned

2009-01-27T00:01:00.002-06:00

1) Two people run through things like toothpaste & soap a LOT more quickly than just one.

2) James runs in his sleep. It's cute.

3) It's nice to be rescued from the middle of a bad dream.

4) I always figured that once I got married, I'd trade in my necessary 47 pillows and a stuffed animal or few for my husband. Especially given what a hugger I am, I always figured I'd be a big sleep cuddler. I am not- cuddling is great & required and all, but when it's time to go to sleep, I need my space. And I still need my bears. James is very understanding.

Happy one monthaversary to my sweet husband :)

ps: when I woke up this morning, there were a dozen red roses on the dresser... i think he likes me :)

why does the urge to write always strike at the most random times?

2009-01-25T01:58:00.002-06:00

Yah, like at 2am on a church night...

I think I've been avoiding my blog lately because I know that the task that lays before me is such a daunting one. I've got a New York trip, a wedding, a honeymoon, and almost an entire month of marriage to chronicle for you! I'll start small...

I love visiting home... I only let myself do things like take a 3 hour nap, then wake up only to lay around on my fat happy & read an entire book when I'm here.

a quick peek

2008-12-31T12:58:00.006-06:00

It's gonna take me awhile (& probably multiple posts) to catch you all up on the blissful wonderland of The Hunnymoon, so here's a sneak peek of what we've been up to. So far, we've spent a couple of days in Seattle, a few days in Ashford, WA (at the base of Mt. Rainier), and a few more days in Vancouver, Canuk-land. Now, we're enjoying a bit warmer weather in sunny Las Vegas, and will be here until Monday.

James lovingly & laughingly took this video of me playing in the snow outside our cabin in Ashford, but the picture can pretty much be transferred to everywhere we've been (except Vegas)- It's been snowing like CRAZY all over the place! In fact, the other day, I stepped into a drift that literally sunk all of me in snow up to my shoulders!

Love & miss you all!!!

Mr. & Mrs. Greenhaw (*teeheeheeheeheeheeheeheehee*)

quick random thoughts

2008-11-23T15:42:00.003-06:00

1) I LOVE it when it rains fall leaves outside!

2) The one bright spot in the TTU/ OU game last night: one of the sports announcer guys was talking about some upcoming awards show, and he said "Bay-onse" (insead of "bee-on-say")was going to be performing...

Friday Night Date Night

2008-11-22T17:32:00.003-06:00

I learned a couple of things last night:

First:
Friday Night, 9:45 + High School Musical 3 + Bolt (in Disney Digital 3D) = bad time to go to the movies. Like OMG, every preteen/ teenage girl & all their BFFs & all their boyfriends in like, Austin, like HAD to be there. Like totally.

Secondly, don't show up 5 minutes before the movie starts for the new James Bond move... it's a hard one to watch from the second row. True to Classic 007 style, there's LOTS of shoot-em-up-punch-em-in-the-face-drive-real-fast action, and it gets a bit dizzyfying from that close up. Like the first Daniel Craig-as-Bond movie, it has a different style & feel from all the older ones. It had a LOT of very striking symoblic social & political commentary in it, and there's not as much car-drooling to do as usual, but I really enjoyed it anyway. I never thought I'd like a BlondeBond better than Pierce Brosnan, but I must say, I do lurrrrve Mr. Craig.

James took me to dinner at one of my favorite Mexican food places (Chuy's), even though he's not particularly crazy about it. And he didn't complain once that the wait was an hour. Like a champ, he just waded through the hoardes of people at bar area, & snagged us a table as soon as he could, so we could stuff our faces on chips & salsa before we could be seated at our real table. Then, during the interlude between dinner & the movie, we went to Barnes & Noble to do a bit of research for our next NYC trip, WHICH IS IN JUST 15 DAYS!!!!

It was a fun, relaxing evening, and I think I'm still full of chips-n-salsa...

Overdue Catch-Up, Part I: My Birthday

2008-11-16T20:35:00.008-06:00

I had a great one. I was treated to a fantastic date night the night before, because it was a tailgating weekend. Dinner at a really nice new place, and then he gave me my present over dessert and coffee at one of our favorite places. I was stunned by my present: I'd been kinda vaguely wishfully looking at a camera (the last one I owned was a Kodak Advantex), and I had mentioned that I thought it would be really cool to own a nice one someday- He gave me a Nikon Coolpix 80p!!!! It is amazing... I'm pretty sure I creeped out a few customers at the restaurant of all the pictures I was taking of the table, walls, lights, food, etc. WoW.

That night was chilly, and I had been pretty sick lately, so we ended the night earlyish... When we pulled up in the driveway, James said that if I hadn't been sick, he had planned to take me to a spot fairly far out of town to give me "the other part of my present"... I thought, "MORE???" He got out of the car, came around to my side of the car, and put a GIANT box in my lap. Before I tell you what was in the box, rewind a couple of weeks... While we were at the State Fair (see "Texas/ OU Weekend"), we visited the planetarium, and James learned what a dweeb I am about the stars. For years (probably 4th grade through about my sophomore year of high school), I wanted to be an astronomer. I've visited planetariums and observatories, taken classes, etc, and although I realized that a career in the area was not in the stars for me (hardyharhar...), I've never stopped loving them. I opened the box, and inside was an 80 x 800 mm (about 4"x 32") Galileo TELESCOPE!!! I haven't had a chance to really get to use it much yet (Austin is too bright to properly stargaze), but I am sooo incredibly excited about it. James is the best :) Actually, tonight would have been perfect: we're in Pleasanton, and we just watched the most spectacular moonrise, but I didn't know we'd be staying the night, so I didn't bring it. Poo.

The next day, my actual birthday, I got a manicure, pedicure, haircut/wash/blowdry, and took a nap. All in all, a great day. At the tailgate, my roommate Marcie brought me a cake! Saturday, Gameday, I had lunch with JR, and only had to be at the tailgate for a couple of hours! YaY!!!

Below are a few pictures taken with my supercool new camera :)

My Birthday cake, complete with poker chips... how apropos. :)

A nighttime view of the Texas State (Bob Bullock) Museum from the tailgate spot. ISN'T MY CAMERA AWESOME???

The birthday. You can't tell from the picture, but I'm COVERED in glitter :)

Bachelorette Weekend

2008-11-08T18:56:00.004-06:00

I know, I know, it's been awhile since I posted, but I'll put up a few retroactive entries for the time between then and now.

Yesterday, I met my Jess in Salado for my wild-n-crazy bachelorette weekend! W00TW00T!! We ate dinner at The Range (YUM food, not great service), & spent the night at the sweetest little B&B (Alamo Cottage). This morning, we got up & partook of a homemade breakfast of biscuits & jelly, cinnamon rolls, quiche, fresh fruit, vanilla yogurt with granola, orange juice, & coffee. We drove around the little town- VERY picturesque- and "admired" all the men in skirts- there was some Scottish Festival in town, did a little antiquing, and ate (yes, again) lunch at THE cutest little tea room.

We had so so so so fun!!! :)

Below are some pics- see my cooool bridal wear that i wore the WHOLE time!

Dallas Weekend Omission of Very Impotant Evening

2008-10-20T20:08:00.004-05:00

But I promise, it wasn't my fault!!!

I swear there was a whole big-ole paragraph about getting to eat dinner with my darling cousin/ MofH Jess & her boyfriend Michael on Sunday night! She left me a sad comment, so I went back & re-read it, and it was missing! I know that sometimes when I highlight all the text to change the color, some stuff gets deleted or moved around, but I usually catch it, because it usually does it in the middle of words or other paragraphs... All I can think is that it got deleted, but cleanly, so I didnt catch that something was missing... So here is the missing event:

Sunday night, James & I met up with my darling cousin/ MofH Jess, and her boyfriend Michael. We ended up being a bit late to her house because of my inability to pull James away from the attractions of Fair Park, so by the time we got there, the poor things were starved. They took us to a YUMMMMMY gourmet pizza place... you know it's going to be good if they refer to their pizzas as "Pies". It was so nice to get to be with them... particularly Michael, because we so rarely get to see him outside of Best-Behavior-ENTIRE-Family-Mode. Unfortunately (because we were so late, I'm afraid), by the time we got back to Jess' place, it was past Mikey's bedtime, and he had to go home, so we just went in for a quick looksey around... James had never been there before, and Jess has tons of pics from when we were kids & in college & stuff. I am so jealous of how cute her place is... She had it all decorated up for fall... cute little punkins & leaves & cute dishes & stuff. In fact, at her inspiration, I am going to Hobby Lobby tomorrow to get James' place all Fall'd up.

So, Jess, this one's for you... I'm sorry!!!! I promise, it was COMPLETELY inadvertant!!!

Texas/ OU Weekend

2008-10-13T20:55:00.003-05:00

Last weekend, we traveled to James' Mecca: the State Fair for Texas- OU Weekend.

This was my first state fair experience, and I must say, it is definitely better than the Poteet
Strawberry Festival. Don't tell James I said this, but it was actually pretty much the same, except on a bit larger scale, and that it wasn't so dusty- everything was paved, and a lot of the exhibits (buy a hot-tub, get your teeth whitened, adopt a pet rock, etc) were indoors and air conditioned. I was incredibly grateful to one exhibit in particular: the Tempur-pedic Mattress Test Center. I laid down & had a 20 minute zzz.

All weekend, the weather was beautiful, and we both got pretty lobstered, so I actually had to push back my bridal portrait date, so I wouldn't be all red & peely. oops.

Friday night, we had dinner with a few tailgating friends that had also made the trip up to Dallas. They were originally from Dallas, so they took us to this GREAT Mexican restaurant on the South East side of Dallas... I knew it would be good, because all the businesses around had all their signs in Spanish. There were two 9-piece mariachi bands playing, and one of our friends (who had already consumed about 14 margaritas too many) knew ALL the words to EVERY song. And sang along LOUDLY. And he cannot carry a tune in a bucket. It was a bit embarrassing, but hilarious. Eventually, he called the band over to "honor" James & me with a few songs as an engagement present... They played 10 songs. At $15 a pop. It was a long night.

We stayed in a Westin, which was really nice (we got a great deal, courtesy of hotwire.com); there was a double shower head (yum!), valet parking, and the bedding in our room was FANTASTIC. A little card said that the "Heavenly Bed" was all for sale, and the cost of the feather bed, 400 thread count Egyptian Cotton sheets, feather comforter, duvet cover, and five pillows (a yummy combination of feathers & memory foam) for EACH of our full-sized beds was like $3500 ! The robe in the room was for sale too, but it wasn't as comfy as the one in the rooms at the Bellagio. Needless to say, I slept well.

The game on Saturday was a really close one, and even I actually enjoyed it. We were sitting in the end zone, and got to be a part of the "X" in a card stunt that spelled out "Texas Fight" or something. A HUGE B-52 flew directly over our heads just before the opening kickoff- it didn't matter that I was wearing orange... it all felt like a big game when I was in college. In fact, I had to keep reminding myself NOT to cheer for the red team...

Party Party Party

2008-10-05T20:14:00.005-05:00

*whew* Big weekend!

Saturday, James and I drove alllllll the way down to Carrizo Springs for my Granddaddy's 80th birthday party at my Aunt Doris' house. Unfortunately, my mom didn't get to go, due to back problems, but that just meant Dad got to go. There were about 20 of my family there, including my cousins Jacob (works in Africa!) & Jay (lives in Atlanta), and a couple of old family friends I hadn't seen in years. I'd say the highlight of the party was when Jacob agreed to give me, Jess, & our 3 aunts a ride around town in his brand new, bright yellow H3T (nicknamed "The Short Bus"). Keep in mind that the truck is made to seat 5, there were 6 of us, and almost every woman in my family is... shall we say... bountifully blessed... in the posterior department... After hoisting each other in (my cheerleader pyramiding skills came in handy), we drove off, amidst peals of giggles, through the heart of downtown Carrizo Springs, honked and waved our way through the Sonic, and by the Mexican Rodeo (no kidding! a guy in a sombrero was riding a burro when we passed).

We spent a long night on the couches at my grandmother's house (I'll post a separate blog on that one).

Sunday afternoon was my bridal shower! I was honored that so many people came, and the hostesses did a beautiful job. The room was filled with ladies from my family, former bible class teachers, my babysitters, babysitting clients, friends parents, parents friends... it was basically a "This is Your Life" of female role models. I had been nervous about all eyes being on me, but it wasn't like that at all. Everyone was just sitting or walking around visiting, and I happened to be opening presents in the corner. Jess, Mom, & my aunt Mardi all helped with the present opening, & my cousins Carroll & Chloe acted the part of Vanna White with the presents very well. Oh yeah... and I got lotsa cool stuff.

We have a Marine!

2008-09-19T15:59:00.015-05:00

It's been an exhausting weekend, but he's home!!!

I've known for quite some time that I've got this quality about me that seems to attract misbehaved kids, overly friendly dogs, and very strange people. Evidently, I inherited this from mom. One thing we've learned from the trip is that when you combine our magnetisms, you get to laugh at/ be annoyed by a lot of weirdo's. On the shuttle between the airport and our hotel, we met a couple of ladies that had a son and grandson in Tyler's company. Mom made the mistake of asking one of them a question, and she promptly proclaimed that she was "Aaaaarmed with knaaaaledge" in a nasal Wisconsin accent. This quickly became her nickname, and our first suspicions of doofus-ocity were quickly confirmed. And, true to our magnetism, on a base full of the family of the nearly 600 recruits, every time we turned around, there she was. EVERY. TIME. Anyway, she provided a lot of laughs...

We arrived on base a little after 7 on Thursday morning, only to find out that there was almost no shade, almost nowhere to sit, and we would not get to see Ty until 10:30, and would not get to talk to and hug him until 1. Also, the green flag was up, announcing that it was too hot for certain people to work out. After months of Ty's letters containing many brrrs & shivers, we arrive, and its about 90 & sunny. And what do we hear from James? Oh yeah, it's 65 in Austin. argh. Also, the base seems to be located in some sort of wormhole that makes time pass at half the speed of smell.

Ok, so enough whining... at 9:30, a drill sergeant came out to yell at us all the rules of the base. There are a LOT. For an hour. Finally, at 10:30, all the boys came out for their final run as recruits, a four mile run called the "MotoRun" (it stands for something about "Motiviation").
They came marching out in formation, and since they had us lined up by platoon, Ty ended up almost right in front of us. We knew they couldn't turn their heads, but you could see all the boys eyes scanning the cheering crowd for their families. I think this may have been my favorite part of the whole day. We finally spotted our boy in the back row and waved & cheered more than we ever did at any of his football games...Tyler's eyes landed on us, lit up, and it was so obviously all he could do to keep from breaking into a huge grin. We could actually see him biting his cheeks to keep from laughing. The boys took off for their run, and Mom said it was cruel to dangle them so close to us, but not let us have them. We were all herded into a theater to watch a film & get yelled some more rules, while the boys finished their run. We watched them run back up, and got to see them from afar for another minute before they had to hit the showers.

After what seemed like hours later, we headed to the parade deck for the noon drill parade whatsit, followed by the moment everyone bought the plane tickets for. They had base liberty time from 1-5:45, so immediately after the parade, they were finally released to our hungry arms.

After the whole day in the sun, I developed a fever, and fell into bed the minute we got back to the hotel, and stayed there until I was roused sometime in the 5s on friday morning. Again, we arrived on base in the early 7s (that was the latest the shuttle could take us), but this time we were a bit smarter about it & tried to hang out inside as much as possible. The graduation ceremony (during which a little girl sitting behind me kept standing on my rear...) started at 10:00, and lasted until about 11:30, and was very cool and all, but the result below was all we cared about.

Ok, sorry this took soooo long for you to read, but I was asked for the play-by-play, so.... you got it. It's sooooooo incredibly good to have him home.

PS: Out of all the almost 600 recruits, Tyler was the second best gun-shooter-person. :) cant you tell i learned all the terms?

helloooo from San Diego...

2008-09-17T23:29:00.004-05:00

I could input a crude "Anchorman" joke here.... but I'll refrain... I am very mature that way...

My parents and I left Pleasanton in the 7s for the airport this morning. Got to see an amazing sunrise, & mom & dad treated me to a lively chorus of "Red Rubber Ball". We had some amazing stickybuns at this little bakery in San Antonio. Yes, I got icing down my shirt & in my hair. None on my elbows or feet though, so yay me.

We arrived in San Diego (via Houston), but I have no idea what time. Somehow this time change business does not register in my brain. After a bit of a "Clampetts go to Maui" type checkin, we got settled in our room for a big fat nap. Had dinner at a Yummm restaurant that was literally on the bay. We rolled back to our room, (not because we are hip & use cool lingo, but because we were so full, we actually had to be rolled) and since I am not a fan of waking up in the 5s, I decided to go ahead & wash my hair for tomorrow. After nearly an hour of trying to blowdry my hair, it still was not dry, and I was beyond frustrated. My sweet dad finished blowdrying it for me, just like he did when I was small! Dad really is a peach... a bit odd sometimes, but a complete peach.

I really am going to have to get a new blow dryer... although maybe all blowdryers get tired & smell like theyre burning after being on for that long...

anyway, who cares... I GEDDA HUG MY TYLER TOMORROW!!!!! I bet he'll be all pretty in his uniform...

you have a baby.... in a bar...

2008-09-10T13:09:00.005-05:00

Sunday, James & I went to Pleasanton for a poker tournament. It was held in the local dance hall, which I had never been to. Even though it was in the afternoon, and hardly anyone was there, the whole place was hazy with years of heavy cigarette smoke & smelled of sweaty cologne & stale alcohol. Blegh.

The front of the building is small, just a bar with a few tables & a jukebox, then, you have to go through a hallway to the main dancehall/ stage in the back. Evidently, they rent out the space for parties and such, because the remains of the most recent shindig were still there during the poker tournament.

Hanging from the ceiling, there were bright pink, heart shaped signs declaring, "Baby's First Birthday!!!"

Updated Date!!!!

2008-09-10T13:06:00.003-05:00

Change your calendars everyone, the New Official Date is:

December 27th, 2008!

We really wanted to have the wedding in my parents backyard, so we pushed back the date to accommodate for the repairs from the vandalism.

how can people be so ugly?

2008-09-07T17:57:00.003-05:00

sometimes, i just don't understand people.

ok, well, a lot of times, but particularly about things like this.

Last night, some stupid kids broke into the house my parents are building, and destroyed everything. Took a sledge hammer to all the windows, the fireplace, the roof, the wall beams... everything. They didn't steal anything, and there were a number of expensive tools and copper wiring in the electrical work they ripped out, so evidently, it was all just for fun.

I'm sure my parents are more devastated than they're letting on... they're acting like they're just sad we can't have the wedding at home now. I know they're just dying for a house of their own again, since they've been in limbo for practically a year. This setback is so heartbreaking for them; this house is their (or at least my mom's) baby and light at the end of the tunnel. Sure, they'll fix everything, but who knows how much longer it will take now, what with insurance drama and a police investigation.

pooooooo. big doodoo heads.

so, i know i promised this wouldnt become wedding central...

2008-09-01T19:55:00.002-05:00

but i have to gush...

I HAVE A DRESS!!!!!

It's PERFECT. Everything I wanted, two sizes smaller than I expected, needs NO alterations, and on sale, 40% off!!!

Gleeeeeeeeee!!!!

Blast From the Past

2008-08-31T18:07:00.003-05:00

This morning, James & I went to the Methodist Church with his family to tell them the news, and I had a moment that made me laugh out loud.

Usually, when we go to church with his family, I know more than half the songs they sing there, but today, I thought I only knew two. In the middle of the service, the choir started up a lively song that I have not thought about in YEARS...

Anyone remember the "See Your Mama Cooking Quaker Oats" song???

The presentation was a bit different (IE: tambourines & maraca gourds), but the jubilant feeling of the song took me straight back to Camp Blue Haven.

For those of you unfamiliar with the Quaker Oats song, it's an African song meaning "We are Marching in the Light of God".

I lol'd :)

We've Set the Date!

2008-08-28T09:29:00.002-05:00

Ok, I promise I'll try not to let this blog become Wedding Central, but just to let everyone know, We've Set the Date! (in case you didnt gather that from the title...)

December 6th, 2008

In a tent in the backyard of my parents new house!

Let the Diets
Begin!

GUESS WHAT ELSE?????

2008-08-24T01:59:00.007-05:00

Here's where:

And here's what:

I can't stop giggling. :)

and i may or may not have bought a bride's magazine at a newsstand on the subway...

GUESS WHERE I AM???

2008-08-21T12:10:00.005-05:00

Today for lunch, We are going to have Philly Cheese Steak Sammiches. I have never had one before, so I figure, if I'm ever going to, now's the time. Why, you ask? BECAUSE I'M IN PHILADELPHIA!!!!

That's right, Pennsylvania. Last night, around 12:30, James said, "Let's go to New York tomorrow!" So, here we are, been up all night packing, left austin (after a "randomly selected" delay) at 5:30 this morning, swapped planes in Atlanta at 9:45, and here we are, driving down Broad Street headed for my very first Philly Cheesesteak!

YAY!!!!!

**Update: I had a "Whiz wid" (a cheesesteak sammich w/ cheesewhiz & onions), and james had a "Prov Widout" (cheesesteak sammich w/ provalone, without onions), we shared some YUM "freedom fries", and some Birch Beer (INCREDIBLE rootbeer). YUMMMMStuffed.

It's been awhile...

2008-08-20T11:11:00.003-05:00

So the living room & kitchen are mostly done... they just need to be cleaned & accessorized a bit. I'm waiting to photograph until all the stuff for the bathroom is out of the floor. The dining room is mostly done, except that I haven't finished putting up the new baseboards, and the chandelier doesn't work yet. The entryway needs one last coat of paint, and the front door hasn't been painted yet. Haven't replaced any door knobs yet. The bathroom has been gutted, and now has 2 new pieces of sheetrock up (thank you JR!!!), but still has a looooong way to go.

Mom came up & stayed with me for a few days last week, & helped me make the new living room curtains.... THEY'RE GORGEOUS. There was a poker tournament in Pleasanton on Saturday as part of the "Cowboy Homecoming" festivities, so I went home with Mom so I could play with Dad. We've played in this tournament before, and if you can get even a leeeetle bit lucky, you can really clean up. Unfortunately, neither of us did.

Mom & Dad are living with my grandmother & great aunt now, and I was evidently allergic to something at their house, because i spent the whole weekend in a fog of sneezing, stuffiness, itchiness, & without oxygen.

Sunday night, I got to spend some time with Caleb, Daniel, Jamie, Jennifer, & Mike, so that was really nice. I hadn't gotten to be with them much in several months. Jenn & Mike's new house is lovely, and I loved their new small kitteh, Macchiato, and am anxious to see whether my annual baby will be a pink or a blue. (I only hold one a year... will it be Jenn's or Erin's Miss Liz or Jenn Tolbiert's little blue one???) Sheesh, girls, good thing that stuff's not catching...

Dad drove me back home on Monday, played in my poker game Monday night, then woke up early with us to help me drag James to the acupuncturist yesterday morning (his foot has been bothering him). Had lunch with dad, then came home, took a nap, & made supper (see previous post).

That's about all I've been up to lately. How about you?

PS: HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY, KLUB!!!

There's a Grasshopper in the Ham!!!

2008-08-19T22:30:00.003-05:00

Tonight, I made us a lovely supper of homemade chicken cordon bleu with fondue sauce & asparagus wrapped in pancetta. Unfortunately, somehow a little friend got into the ham while I was cooking, and when I yelled, "There's A GRASSHOPPER in the HAM!!!", nobody understood what i was talking about. I had to yell it a bunch of times before James came to take care of it for me... Anyway, Aspen got a little treat tonight.

Kids: Gotta love em!

2008-08-10T23:36:00.004-05:00

I was at Ikea the other day, when a little kid actually made my day.

A little boy that looked to be about 2, was kinda wandering around behind his shopping parents, eating an ice cream cone. All of a sudden, the ice cream fell off his cone. I prepared myself for total meltdown, but the kid was totally unconcerned. Rather than freak out or tell his parents, he simply reached down, picked up the blob of ice cream, & stuffed it into the pocket of his cargo shorts.

I just kept walking, laughing my head off.

You may call me June Cleaver.

2008-08-05T19:41:00.006-05:00

Today, I cleaned & cooked, wearing heels & pearls. JK on the heels & pearls part...

I cleaned up the kitchen & living room, & decided to surprise James with a nice meal :)

I made Engagement Chicken, something I've made several times before, but for the side dish & dessert, I decided to branch out a bit.

LOOKIT!

Engagement Chicken

RATATOUILLE!!!
I had this for the first time in Vegas, and LOVED it, but it didn't look like Remy's Ratatouille. I did some searching, & found the recipe used by the people at Pixar!

And for dessert: I decided to try a new-to-me twist on an old favorite... Peach Pie!
(I've never done the latticed crust before.)

Ohps.

2008-07-30T12:08:00.004-05:00

So when we got back yesterday (around 5:30 pm), we decided a nap was in order...

I crashed on the couch, and when I woke up, the clock said it was a little before 6, & it was dark. Since it is totally not unreasonable for me to sleep more than 12 hours even when I'm not completely sleep deprived, I assumed it was morning, & got up. I was all proud of myself for getting up so early... I made coffee, and thought I'd maybe write my brother, maybe go to the grocery store when it opened...

By the time I realized the clock was broken, and it was actually about 1:30 in the morning, I had already consumed the entire pot of coffee, so there was no way I could go back to sleep any time soon. I ended up playing poker til almost 5.

FAIL.

Viva Las Vegas! :)

2008-07-29T16:28:00.004-05:00

I LOVE that town!!

We are on our way back to Austin from San Antonio (it was cheaper to fly from there), and we are completely exhausted. We have been awake since about 11:30 yesterday morning.

When we arrived in Vegas on Friday night, it was 105 degrees at 10:30 at night!!! It was soooo hot the whole time we were there... go figure... it is sorta in the middle of the desert...

We ate some fantastic food, did some shopping, & even won some money. I actually hit Quad Aces in a poker game, but The highlight of my trip was Phantom. It was an absolutely spectacular performance. Even James loved it. We thought we were gonna get slightly cheaper tickets at the Tix 4 Tonite booth, but we got an even better deal! James found a ticket broker on Craigslist, and we ended up with 8th row center floor tickets, for HALF PRICE.

Various pics:

Lookit! My toenail polish matches our rental car!

I found my dream car in a parking garage at a mall... yes, the license plate says, "BARBIE".

All dressed up at the Palms

Can you believe we're indoors here??

Cruisin the Strip

Sheesh, it's hot.

Haha... i steeled ur car.

GUESS WHAT???

2008-07-24T22:40:00.005-05:00

JAMES SURPRISED ME WITH A LAST MINUTE TRIP TO VEGAS!!!!

We leave tomorrow, and won't be back until Tuesday afternoon!

So, today, i went & got a manicure, pedicure, a new pair of sunglasses, & two new pairs of shoes (for a grand total of less than $100)!

:) gleeeeee :)

Dark Knight

2008-07-23T01:51:00.002-05:00

Remember, have no fear of spoilers from me.

EXCELLENT movie.

Whatever money saving magical combos they tempt you with, do not, I repeat, DO NOT give in and purchase the large drink... the movie is nearly 3 hours long.

Again, I'm reminded of what a phenomenal actor the world lost in Heath Ledger... and I'm not just saying that because everyone will feel like they should...

BUT... lots of scaries in it... and clowns... scary scary clowns (you already knew that from the previews!)... am currently surrounded by pillows, and am positioned in a way to see the door to my bedroom, the door to the closet, and my window. Eric (my body pillow) is protecting me from the scaries...

Getting There

2008-07-21T11:50:00.006-05:00

THE HOUSE IS LOOKING SOOOOO GOOD!!!!

We are exhausted, but the house is finally starting to look great. The Living Room, Kitchen, & Entryway are almost complete! We hired a couple of friends that do this sort of thing as part time work to come help out, and they were AMAZING. Watching them work was like watching a show on HGTV where they give someone a job & put em on fast forward. Plus, having them there kept James and I from "taking 5" every 15 minutes. THANK YOU SOOO MUCH JR & KC!!! I promise, I will put pics up soon, but I don't want to take any until this part is completely done.

Today I ordered the fabric for my curtains!!! This pic is kinda hard to see, but they're a rich taffeta in gunmetal grey, with caramel colored flocking. I think the caramel color will really bring the room together. eeeeee I'm soooo excited!

AND, i just ordered my kitchen cabinet hardware! Including shipping, I paid about $24 for 18, as opposed to over $60 for uglier ones from Home Depot!.

In other news, Max got a catcussion last night... he bonked his nog sooo hard on the (newly painted!) coffee table, that he still has a big bump on the top of his little pin head. Poor Kitteh... maybe it knocked him normal...

She Sells Sea Shells...

2008-07-17T15:07:00.004-05:00

Guess where I've been the past few days!!!

Nope, not the jungle... Port Aransas! If you look closely at the top picture, you can see the Marina in the background.

We (yes, i did help some!!) installed DTV for a lady that has 3 rental properties on the beach, so we got to stay in one of them while we were in town! The pics are views of & from the house we stayed in. I hadn't spent much time in Port A before, so I never knew this, but it is such a quaint little town! I don't think the island has a single chain store/ restaurant, apart from gas stations.

My favorite was this little "Bow-Teek" (as spelled on the sign) called Gratitude. The building caught my eye, because it was BRIGHT Barbie pink, complete with matching car out front. I went in the store, and HOLY MOLY... the floors, walls, lighting, & vast majority of their merchandise was the same shade of pink. Every square inch of the place was covered with stuff, & the floors were covered with an inch deep layer of glitter, sequins, & confetti. The only thing in the whole store that wasn't pink was a blue painted Adirondack chair that had a sign on stating that it was "The Husband Chair". The owner behind the counter was probably in her 60's, and was wearing a pink mini-skirt, a glittery pink belt, a pink tye-dyed tank top, pink flamingo sunglasses, and had snow white hair, with a big section dyed SHOCKING PINK! Somehow, it ended up being cute, rather than tacky... see below:

Yesterday, we went to the beach for about three hours, and I ACTUALLY HAD FUN SWIMMING!!! It wasn't too crowded, almost no garbage or tar, and there was a good breeze going so it wasn't so so hot. AND, I got a little bit of a TAN!!!

The only thing I'm sad about is that James wouldn't let us have hermit crabs for pets :(.

Anyway, we're bringin back almost 3 lbs of caught-this-morning "colossal" shrimp (seriously, these suckers are HUGE), stopping in P-town on the way back, and mom's making shrimp fettuccine for our supper. mmmmmmm.

W A N T !!!!!!!

2008-07-11T00:09:00.002-05:00

i neeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed this!!!!!!

and then, of course, i'll need this....

Wanted

2008-07-10T13:35:00.003-05:00

So, the other night, James & I went to see Wanted.

I reeeeally liked this movie. If you go see it, be prepared for tons of blood-n-guts, heaps of pretty impressively foul language, and a couple of fairly graphic sex scenes, but other than that, it was a coool movie. I won't give any spoilers any time I write a movie review for you, so I can't say too much, but the music was great, and the plotline was pretty original (it's theme, not so much, but it had plenty of surprises throughout the movie). The special effects were SPECTACULAR.

One comment? I'd like to give Ms. Jolie about 50 lbs from each of my thighs...

I think Max is high...

2008-07-09T11:49:00.003-05:00

The remodeling is slow going, but we're all in a much better humor than the first day of work. The ceiling is done, and we have a beautiful ceiling fan up & working. The retexturing of the walls is done, and we've repainted the silver trim around the sliding glass door/windows, so that it's all fresh & clean. We used spray paint to do it, and SHEESH, it's smelly. I am allergic to spray paint,
but I found this superduty SARS mask that is specifically for paint fumes, so I didnt get ded. BOY did I look sexy... Unfortunately, they did not have a kitteh-sized mask, so Max has been acting a bit loopy since yesterday afternoon. We covered EVERYTHING in plastic, newspapers, & tape, and so far, it doesnt look like we got any paint anywhere by accident. Anyway, today I get to start on the Color!!! :) I'm excited. Gotta run... will post my movie review of Wanted later.

Dashed are the dreams of the ambitious...

2008-07-06T23:36:00.002-05:00

ZZZZZZZZZ

I am EXHAUSTED from my wideawake night followed by DIY day. We worked & worked & worked & worked & worked, and after 4 more trips to Home Depot/ Lowes, we have 1 1/2 installed fans, no light at all in the kitchen, 1/2 of the bedroom ceiling painted, 1/4 of the living room ceiling painted, and two very short tempers.

We bought this to help paint, and it works well, but it's pretty heavy when it's full of paint... I just read one tip to *duh* only fill it halfway, so I'll be trying that tomorrow. I don't have the upper body strength to paint the vaulted ceiling with it while I'm halfway up a ladder. We got one the other day, used one tube full, dropped it & broke it, then went back (trip #2 of the day) to HD to replace it.

Anyway, Max thinks we've built him his very own jungle to play in, what with all the plastic drapings & oddly placed furniture. OH... and... about that plasticwrap... yah, the camera is buried somewhere beneath it all... if I find it, I'll take a few pics, but I just couldn't be bothered with it today...

*sips lemonade* here's to better luck tomorrow.

Hancock

2008-07-06T03:15:00.003-05:00

I've been meaning to post about this for a few days now, but I keep forgetting... did you see what all we have going on over here???

We went to see Hancock on opening night. Has anyone else seen it? I'd love to know what you thought... James hated it... I can't decide whether or not I liked it... I definitely think it was poorly marketed... for MONTHS, everyone's been excited to see this movie... from the previews, it looked fantastic and, more importantly, hilarious. (I've said this a bunch, but I've always thought Tyler looked a lot like Will Smith, minus the whole Black thing... I totally thought from the previews that this is what Ty would be like if he had superpowers.)

I don't think this movie will do well, simply because of poor marketing. EVERYONE expected a comedy from the previews. Pretty much every funny part in the entire movie was in the previews. I hate it when they do that. This movie was NOT a comedy... It was a lot more of a psychological profile... not quite a Drama though... it kinda reminded me a bit of Neil Gaiman's "American Gods"... but not NEARLY as complicated, obviously.

thoughts?

It's 2:30 in the morning...

2008-07-06T02:30:00.003-05:00

... and I can't sleep.

Musta been that pot o' coffee I had before bedtime...

oh well...

now my brain is spinning with everything I need to get done.

We are remodeling! The living room is in a TOTAL shambles. Everything is pushed to the center of the room & draped with plastic (which Max LOVES). So far, we've ripped up all the old baseboards, re-textured 2 walls (one of which was the lovely 70's dark wood paneling), taken down those awful vertical blinds hiding our 12 feet of sliding glass doors/ windows, and ripped off the old vertical moulding on another wall. AND spent a retarded amount of time & money at Home Depot... I think they must put Eau de Ambition in the air vents there... something about the smell of places like that makes me think I can build/ fix anything, if only I were to purchase all the most complicated equipment I can find.

Today, we bought wall paint (Cliff Rock), Trim paint (Ultra Pure White), more rollers, brushes, tarps, & tape than we can ever use, a new ceiling fan for the living room, a chandelier for the dining room, cool track lighting for the kitchen, heat resistant brushed nickel paint for the fire box & old ceiling fan, & new plates for all the switches & plugs in the house.

Tomorrow, I'm painting the ceiling, finishing up the 2nd coat of texture on the Wall Formerly Known as Ugly Wood Paneling, and hopefully *crossing fingers* gonna start putting up some color. All this white is soooo boring.

Then, we get to go pick out new baseboards & crown molding. Unfortunately, I didn't get a good "Before" picture, but tomorrow, I'll take a couple of "During" pictures, so you can see how bad it reeeeeeally is.

Of course, the longest wall in the living room passes through the kitchen, entryway, and dining room, so they'll all have to be redone soon too... I'm thinking a nice green for the kitchen... there's really not much wall space in there, so that can really be an accent color for the living room... I'm not sure yet about a color for the dining room... any ideas? It's a VERY small area, but it's got a big bay window, so it's pretty well lit.

Anyway... sorry... thanks for listening to (IE: reading) the rantings of a caffeined up, overly sleepy, whirring brain... it's now officially The Threes, & sleep is nowhere in sight... oh well... could YOU sleep with all this on your mind???

Tubing was....

2008-06-28T19:08:00.004-05:00

...not as bad as it was the last time I went... (although it would be nearly impossible to be that bad)... I only got one comment from a stranger regarding my level of white-ocity, and I didn't almost pass out from sunstroke this time.

It was about as hot as The Bad Place, and there were a MILLION people there. Thank you, JR, for warning me about the "Tube Chute"... If he hadn't warned me, nobody would have... All James said was "Oh, it's nothing, just a gradual slope from one part to another"... LIAR. This is me, the person that doesn't like elevators because they fall down too quickly... IT WAS TERRIFYING and I scraped my foot on the wall. When I came out, James let go of me by accident, and I shot right into a group of random strangers... that might have been my favorite part... that, or the weeds that appeared to be magnetized to my butt...

Also, I slathered the SPF a hundred on about an inch thick, from head to toe, and it worked wonders. Except that evidently, I missed my knees. Now, my knees are both BRIGHT red, except for a single thumbprint directly in the center of my right knee. Very fashionable.

Anyway.... back to the positive side... it was NOT as bad as last time... I *almost* enjoyed sporting the oh-so-sexy "Leg-And-Arm-Fat-Squashed-Up-By-Hot-Rubber" look all day.

Whee.

2008-06-28T13:42:00.001-05:00

We are going tubing today. I cannot wait. I'm sure this will be the best monthaversary yet.

WHAT DO I DO????

2008-06-27T16:12:00.004-05:00

HELP!!!

We've known for awhile now that we've got a family of birds (grackles, I think) living in our chimney. Today, I was sitting in the livingroom, working on Ebay stuff, I heard a *thunk*, and chirping like mad.

It's a baby bird friend!!! what do I do??? I think his wing's broken :( If I touch him, his mom might not take him back... and even if I did, what on earth would I do with him?!! Any suggestions?

He's gone.

2008-06-23T19:31:00.005-05:00

My liddle brudder is no longer My TyTy... He is now Tyler Bryan, Private First Class, United States Marine Corps.

I think that's his title, anyway. This weekend, James & I went home for Ty's last weekend. Saturday, we took him & his girlfriend to San Antonio for some shopping & a sushi bar for lunch. Then, for dinner, mom made his favorite, Chicken & Dumplings, and since he couldn't decide whether he'd rather have pumpkin crisp or peach cobbler for dessert, she made both.

Last night, the whole family went to drop him off with his recruiting officer for Basic Training. Before dropping him off, we had dinner at Morton's Steakhouse. We all had some form of steak, and we all shared pretty much everything. We had Caesar salad, French bread, sauteed mushrooms, oysters on the half-shell, baked five onion soup, grilled asparagus, Lyonnaise potatoes, lump crab meat, steamed asparagus in Bearnaise sauce, hot -chocolate cake, and cheesecake (imported from a bakery in The Bronx). Everything was fantastic. YUM. Holy Moly, I'm still full from it. Anyway, Tyler's goal for the evening was to be in need of a wheelbarrow to get him to the hotel to meet with his recruiter, and I believe his mission was accomplished. We were all in need of said wheelbarrow.

I didn't think I'd be sad about him leaving, but I was pretty upset about it last night. I know a big part of it is that I know my mom will be sad without him around, and my parents having empty nest syndrome & all, but I think another part of it is that I'm scared they'll change him in a bad way. I'm definitely hoping they'll help him grow up a bit, but what if they change his personality or his sense of humor? I'm scared he won't be my brother anymore.

Alright... off to find the Prozac.

Wheeee!!!!!

2008-06-13T00:09:00.002-05:00

OH. MY. WORD.

Everybody. If you haven't already, drop whatever it is you're doing, and GO SEE KUNG FU PANDA!!! Even if you're at work, take your boss- you won't get in trouble, I promise. YOU WILL NOT BELIEVE IT'S BODACITY!!! (PS: that's a fantastic new word i learned from the movie.)

I knew we we're in for it from the very first line:

"Legend tells of a legendary warrior whose kung fu skills were the stuff of legend."

This movie was billed as just another great Jack Black movie... but it also stars Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogan, Lucy Liu, Ian McShane, and Jackie Chan!!!

FANTASTIC movie, and I want to go see it again, but this time at the IMAX.

Wheeeee!!!!

ack!!

2008-06-09T20:35:00.002-05:00

Ok, remember how I was sick for a week a couple of weeks ago??

I TOTALLY THINK I HAD SALMONELLA!!!

I heard about the Tomato drama in New Mexico, and started thinking about when I got sick, and that James didn't, so I looked it up, and all the symptoms & timing fit!

YUKKYeeeewwwwww.

Another one for the poker players...

2008-06-07T13:17:00.002-05:00

Dontcha love it when people insist on blabbing on & on when they obviously have no idea what they're talking about?

Last night, Dad, James, & I were at a poker game in South Austin, and I got a straight flush (YaY!!!). A little later on, this drunk, obnoxious, foul-mouth caught quads against me. He kept saying he should get something for having the high hand of the night. I knew he was incorrect, but Dad insisted on pointing it out to him. He kept going on & on, quite loudly, that we were dumb, and that 4 of a kind beats a straight flush. Of course, dad kept arguing, other people got in on it, & the more people disagreed w/ him, the louder he yelled about it. This one guy that looks & acts a lot like Hurley on Lost said, "dude... yah... three pair is a good hand too..." Anyway, he kept obsessing about it long after everyone else had written him off as an idiot, until his buddy bet him on it, & then proved him wrong on his phone.

What type of person feels the need to be so argumentative, when they obviously dont know?? Even if he was totally positive, why would he feel that strong a need to prove everyone else wrong? Maybe I am just super passive, or not that confident in my own knowledge, but if it were me, and EVERYONE was saying I was wrong, I would keep my mouth shut! I just don't understand this whole "human interaction" thing...

a butt-broadening experience

2008-05-31T22:09:00.004-05:00

I just got home from my lil brudder's graduation. Holy. Moly. It started at 7:30, and we just got home. It is past 10. TWO AND A HALF HOURS of listening to every little kid's accomplishments. Of course, I babysat or went to school with the siblings of half the kids, but sheesh. Thankfully, there was a breeze, so the football stadium wasn't too unbearable.

PS: My brudder's Marines scholarship was the highest single scholarship amount. So there.

The Loooong Way Home

2008-05-26T22:14:00.019-05:00

We have now been on the road for approx. 8.5 hrs, and I think we have about another hour to go. Max has, again, slept the entire trip. I am afraid I may be getting sick- I've had a fever pretty much all day. Hopefully, I'm just allergic to long car trips, because I've got wayyy too much to do to be sick this week. Anyway, since I dont feel well, I'm allowing myself to do a "picture dump", a la Benson (iwastetoomuchtimeatwork blog).

THIS was AMAZING. This pic is not a closeup, and has not been modified. We were driving along and came across this. I stuck my arm out the window & snapped.

We just thought we were excited to see a few deer on the road... There were sixteen of them!!!
They seemed completely unafraid, just meandering down the road. I think they were just whitetails, mostly doe & yearlings.

This pic was taken on the lake right next to the Inn of the Mountain Gods resort & casino. From inside, there's an enormous window looking out onto this scene... minus the blonde dude & chubby girl...

and... my glasses are HUGE!

This is a view of the cabin. I was standing on a rock by the river when I took this. Beautiful, huh?

This is us on the other side of the cabin. We're wearing our Smittens!! Thanks, Auntie M & fam!!!

This was one of Max' many many adventures... He had a BALL!!!

"YIPES, dis water am ccccold!!!"

Max, all tired out, curled up about a foot from the fire.

more cheerful now

2008-05-23T18:03:00.010-05:00

Sorry for that last post, guys... had to get it out of my system, so I relegated it to the one post. This one will be much more cheerful, I promise.

Last night, on our way home from the stupid casino, we saw two elk(s?) in two different places!!
They were massive. It was night, and they ran off pretty quickly, so we couldn't get pics, but they both looked like this:
Their bodies seemed like the same size as the car, plus their antlers. I think I counted 12 points on the smaller one, but I couldnt see the points of the bigger one. They were both in velvet like this one was, so they'll probably get even more huge later on. They were amazing. Both were probably about 10-15 feet from the car when we discovered them... the first one was just chillin, walking down the middle of the road, totally unconcerned, and the other ran right across in front of us. Where we saw the first one was just down the road from where we stopped to take these pics:

Also, it's been snowing!!! Just a few random snows here and there down in town where we are, but you can see up at the top of the mountain (Sierra Blanca) it's practically a blizzard.

Today, I had possibly the BEST White Chocolate Macadamia Nut cookie I've ever had... Do I look happy, or what??

time to whine

2008-05-23T17:27:00.002-05:00

Sorry guys... i hafta whine for a bit. If you're looking for something positive & uplifting, look elsewhere.

First of all, last night at the casino was disastrous. Since I know most of you aren't familiar with/ don't care about poker play-by-plays, I'll spare you all the disgusting details, but suffice it to say, I lost about $65 in one hand. Had I won, like I should have, I would have won over $150 in the one hand, which, in a $3-6 limit game like we were playing, is pretty rare. In fact, I was only 2 cards off from hitting the $38,000 "Bad Beat Jackpot". My pocket Queens hit a full house on the turn, and the idiot that beat me hit Quad 9s on the river, after calling 2 separate $24 bets with 9-6 offsuit. BLAAAAGH.

For those of you that have no clue what I'm talking about, the proper response is sympathy & indignation.

SECONDLY.

We just got back from Ruidoso Downs, the local racetrack. They have nowhere to sit inside. It is currently about 55 degrees, and super windy. I was FREEZING, and WINDBLOWN (so much for having rolled my hair this morning), and while we were watching the race, my horse kicked dirt all over me, and lost anyway. I stomped my foot, and we only stayed for 2 races.

Sorry guys, that is all.

further clarifications...

2008-05-21T13:29:00.002-05:00

Some of you may be confused by a comment left on my last blog...

There is no need for "invitations" just yet. Don't worry, you haven't missed anything. Remember? I'll be gushing the news from every pore & you'll KNOW when anything happens. :)

Although... some of our friends do have money on an over/under date for us to get engaged...

:)

thank you, thank you, we'll be here all week...

2008-05-19T15:23:00.007-05:00

It is so beautiful here. Aside from the yukky nature stuff.

Sunday night we drove to White Sands to watch the sun set & almost full moon. Last night, they were holding some big Full Moon shindig, but last night was also the Spurs game, & we couldn't miss such a big game, so we decided to go the day before. Several pics are below (mostly of White Sands, but also some of town). The sunset was phenomenal.

We have decided to stay here for another week (probably gonna leave on Monday), so I am currently sitting on top of a washer at the local laundromat. Last night, after the spurs game (HOORAY!!), we decided to try our luck at the $1-2 No Limit poker game at the Inn of the Mountain Gods casino... dumb idea. James was out in one hand, and I was out in half an hour, due to this idiot donkey that would play and follow through with ANY hand with ANY club in it...

It has rained more today. The sounds of storms up at the cabin are fantastic. We ordered dial up service at the cabin, but it is so frustratingly slow, we decided to go ahead & do most of our work in town. We had a lunch of BLTs on a big rock by the river today. It was nice, and only had to fight off a couple of roly-polys for our seats. The flock of hummingbirds have finished 2 regular sized feeders and part of a ginormous one we have. Yesterday, I saw a bird I didnt know... anyone ever heard of a bird that is black & larger than a grackle, but with a peak on his head like a cardinal? Anyway... just catching up...

ps: I think I put a permanent dent in the top of this washer... :|

Buh-buh-buh-BRRRRRRR!

2008-05-16T00:05:00.000-05:00

We finally arrived at the cabin last night around 8:15, after a retardedly expensive & long trip to the local Wally World. I must say, I was not in the best humor... I was tired from the trip, wearing a sleeveless dress in the 45 degree moisture, in need of a bath, and still had to set up the cabin. The cabin was built in 1902, and still has no heat, other than the giant pot-bellied stove in the center of the living room, and no insulation. Needless to say, it was FREEZING, and covered with a layer of dust, complete with leaves & bugs. I was, quite literally, not a happy camper. We finally got the cabin all set up, wiped down, beds made & fire lit.

If you've met me, I'm sure you can imagine the effect all the dust & cleaning supplies had on my allergies. I sounded like I had swallowed a squeak toy, and I was dreading the prospect of taking a shower. In my head, I kept remembering the pure misery of bath time at Blue Haven. If you are unfamiliar with that form of torture, imagine Hades freezing over. Then imagine having to take a shower there. That's right, BRRRRR. Since I was not quite looking forward to it, I decided to skip it & head straight to my bunk.

Did I say where the beds were? They are outside, on a screened in porch. Yes. I said Outside. It was 35 degrees, and the fire was in the next room. Fortunately, the cabin is stocked with Magic Blankets (i.e.: extraordinarily warm), and I think I was zzzzing almost instantly.

I awoke this morning to the sound of birds outside, the stream babbling just below the porch, and a light rain of the tin roof. And I had a Max on by belly. The view from my bunk is AMAZING. The cabin is surrounded by giant pine and birch trees, sits on the side of the mountain, about 20 feet from a creek, and is home to a whole little flock of very tame hummingbirds.

This morning, I felt much more optimistic about the shower situation (plus, I was getting to be a bit yukky, what with all the nature & no bath). The tub is an antique cast-iron claw foot tub, and luckily, I just happened to bring my bubble bath. I used up about half a bottle, and all the hot water, and had the bathroom steaming in no time. It was possibly the most positively delicious hour and a half I have ever spent in a tub!! And the shower head? Forget those new fangled “water saver” showerheads… HaH- this one was the old fashioned full blast kind that bullies you into being clean. PURE BLISS.

James and I spent today working in this cute little coffee shop, bumming off their free WiFi. We had a fantastic lunch of green chili burgers & Cuban sandwiches. We hooked up the caffeine IV when we arrived, and it flowed coffee all day. After work, we headed to the local sports bar to watch the Spurs tie up the series against the Hornets, then to the Inn of the Mountain Gods to blow a quick H at the blackjack tables.

Now, we’re headed back to the cabin to see how Max fared the day. After sleeping for practically 12 hours straight on the way here, Max was the posterkitteh for Ritalin last night. He RAN and JUMPED and EXPLORED and HID and FELL and SKIDDED and ATTACKED and STREAAAAACHED and got a little singed and got stuck and got in a fight with a rug and his shadow and a bug and a leaf and finally crashed, evidently on my tummy.

Ok, now that this blog has officially reached “epistle” length, I’ll go, and I promise I’ll try not to be so windy tomorrow. It is still raining, and is supposed to snow tonight & tomorrow. James is making a fire, and Max is still being Max, and I am still cold and not a fan of nature, but I am in a much better temper than I was last night.

Aaaaand we're off, like a speedingherdofturtles!

2008-05-14T18:43:00.000-05:00

James and I are headed to Ruidoso! Drive out time: 6:42 am, stinking early, but much better the "3 or 4 am" that James suggested we leave.

Max is coming with us! He has spent the entire trip sleeping & lazing around the car. Also, he made me a dress of fur.... He's been shedding buckets all over me... blegh!

After we'd been on the road about an hour, a big storm hit,and max did not like it one little bit:

Now, we're in Artesia, NM, and are driving through another huge storm. I can't get a good shot of max, but it's pretty similar to this one, except he's buried down between a bunch of suitcases & pillows... There is so much hail here that it's piled up in fields & on the sides of the road, and it looks like snow.

Emergency of the Day: We forgot the keys to the cabin, but that wasn't the big drama. We also forgot the bag that had all our toothbrushes/ deodorant/ soap/ shampoo/ etc in it, but that wasn't it either. No, the emergency occurred when James realized (along about Fredricksburg) that he remembered the 42" plasma and the satellite dish, but forgot the receiver. Horror of Horrors, for a few minutes, we thought we were gonna be without TV for a few days... but no worries... My hunny quickly got on the phone & remedied the problem by having a friend go to the house & OVERNIGHT us the box to Ruidoso's post office....

OH... aren't we nerds for taking a pic at the state line?? :)

in response...

2008-05-14T13:54:00.003-05:00

...to my dear friend's (who is wrong) blog post entitled "Do Not Want!!!"....

Utter and Bitter Disappointment

2008-05-11T20:33:00.006-05:00

In selfish scalpers... In myself... & in the inevitable habits of cruel time...

On our way back to Austin, James and I were going to try to go to the Spurs game. We stopped at a couple of ticket places, but nobody was selling anything for less than $150 per ticket for uppers. We decided to go ahead and pay the required arm & leg to park, then try to get some from a scalper closer to the arena. We have been successful doing that before, but evidently, it's a bit more difficult to do for a playoff game... prices were still about $140 per seat from the few scalpers around. Even halfway into the first quarter, nobody would come down on their prices, so James and I are now sitting at Hooligans watching the game, and I still do not have my sparkly pink jersey. :(

When we first got here, they were showing all the celebrities at the game... They showed Tommy Lee Jones, and of course, Eva. Then they showed some old guy. Some totally nondescript old guy in a baseball cap, sitting next to a middle-aged blonde woman. Just as the words, "Who's that old guy supposed to be??" came out of my mouth, the words popped on the big screen...

George. Strait. (and his wife Norma.)

It was my hunny. The man I've been in love with since my prenatal days. The man that winked, waved, and smiled at me as he drove away from the DQ in Dilley. The man that wrote and sang "I Cross My Heart" for me (he did SO). THAT man.

It wasn't just the lack of cowboy hat and view of that adorable Wrangler-clad posterior that made me mistake him for just "some old guy"... He looked so unbelievable aged, I don't know if i would have recognized him in his traditional cowboy hat! Surely i would have if he had smiled at me... those dimples are unmistakable... but then, i thought his whole aura was unmistakable...

I have been plunged into the depths of despair. :(:(:(:(

One more for today...

2008-05-09T15:25:00.004-05:00

I've got a pretzel in my head!!!

Anyone watch LOST? awesome... Sooo confusing...

I had nightmares after last night's episode... I woke myself up talking in my sleep because I kept dreaming I was dying. I was dreaming I was Sun on Lost...

Actually, I've been doing that a lot lately... odd, eh? Over the past few weeks, I've been shot (a few times), chased down & knifed, drowned, chopped up into slices, and just faded out... CREEPY!!! and no, if you dream yourself ded, you dont actually die...

anyone into dream analysis??

Am I evil for being so annoyed by this?

2008-05-09T14:08:00.003-05:00

In the coffee shop area of borders, there is a group of 5 within earshot of me. They apparently have never met each other before. Their goal in their meeting is to "brainstorm ways to combine their passions: art, fundraising for various charities, cultural diversity, and their faith". They all have the same annoyingly soothing tone of voice and superior air of "mineth doesn't stinketh" about them. Isn't Borders a bit commercial for them? Isn't there some completely unknown hipster coffee shop (perhaps in Austin) they should be sponsoring??

have i told you how much i LOVE my job?

2008-05-09T13:28:00.003-05:00

I do. I really really do. Right now, I am sitting in Borders at the Quarry on my supercool laptop, working (yes, I really am! some), and drinking a yum coffee. James had an install on the north side today, so we came down this morning, had lunch at Pei Wei, and he dropped me off here to ~~shop~~ work. Later, we're meeting up with my parents for dinner & the races at Retama Park, then heading home for the weekend. Keep your toes crossed for me... there's talk of working next week from the cabin in Ruidoso...

I think we're gonna try to go to the Spurs game on Sunday on our way back to Austin... see?? I reeeeeally DO neeeeed this. And I've worked it all out... If I wear it on every game day next year (not counting next year's playoffs), it would average out to costing about a dollar per time to wear it!! And I know I'd wear it for more than a year... so I'm allowed to spend a retarded amount of money on a cool sparkly pink jersey, right??

A Post for the Sake of Posting...

2008-05-08T11:20:00.002-05:00

ohaiguys! Sry I haven't been posting much lately... Guess I just haven't had much to post about...

Last week, we went to the spurs game (the one in which the Spurs won the series against the Suns). It was pretty fun... Our tickets were pretty high up, but center court. A kid sat 2 seats down from me, but his binoculars and his attention were glued to the game the entire time, so YaY! Someone had the brilliant idea to hand out maracas to the sold-out crowd, so the arena sounded a bit like 20,000 tiny rattlesnakes on speed... Also, some guy behind me somehow kept clapping his maracas in my hair... All in all, it was a great time... OOh... I found out I neeeed this. I believe that's the one Eva wears when cheering on Tony (except hers is #9, of course).

I've been doing research on starting a website for the company. I'm coming to find out that I've become my dad... anything I touch that is electronic refuses to work for me. Oh well... the "For Dummies" book I've been reading should help... if anyone has any suggestions, they'd be greatly appreciated.

Hmm... what else has been going on... Just the usual, really... Monday night poker, Wednesday night trivia, and we're headed home for Mom's day weekend. I guess that's about it... oh yeah... I got my very own laptop. AND super cute bag to carry it in. :)

Anyway, sorry for the boring post... but, I suppose any post is better than no post.

Oops... it's almost noon... time for breakfast!

As Promised, Bathtime for Max

2008-05-02T09:11:00.004-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, Max got out a couple of times (you should have seen the dogs trying to make friends with him!), got pretty muddy, and turned into a bit of a fleabag. James had some kitteh shampoo on hand, so we decided it was time for Max & Annie to have their baths. Max went first, and after the very necessary peticure, we finally got him in the sink. The entire process was hysterical, but required all 4 hands, so we didnt get any pictures until it was time to dry him off. Next, Annie had her turn. She had taken baths before, and she's about a quarter Max's size, so James could hold her while I took a couple of pics. In the middle of it all, the guy from the phone company showed up, and he looked at me pretty strangely when I opened the door, and the entire kitchen was covered in watery soap suds, and he saw what we were doing to our animals... Hope he didnt call PETA... Anyway, here are the pics...

think I'll name him Scuttle...

2008-05-02T08:10:00.013-05:00

Have you missed me, fair readers? I've missed you too. And, I've lots to catch up with you on. Nothing important, just all the daily joys of Lin at Home.

You may be wondering to yourself, "wait a minute... is this the same Lindsey I know?? It's awfully early for her to be alive..."

You are correct, my friend. Believe me, it was not by choice that I am awake at this ungodly hour (ie, in the eights)...

There is a lovely birdfriend that lives in the tree outside my bedroom window at my apartment complex. For some reason, he thinks the sixes are a good hour to begin practicing his arias.

I've no idea what kind of bird he is, except that I think maybe he is akin to our favorite animated albatross that so brilliantly serenaded us in The Little Mermaid. Perhaps he moved to Texas because he couldnt find work during the Writer's Strike. Perhaps I should invest in some avian singing lessons from Cinderella or Princess Giselle from Enchanted...

Anyway, I woke up, he was too noisy to go back to sleep, so I came on over to James' house, and by the time I got here, I was too awake to go back to sleep.

Clarification & Congratulations

2008-04-28T14:11:00.002-05:00

OkOkOkOk... nobody panic...

A comment was left on my post from yesterday referring to someone's "soon to be daughter in law".

Now, really. If I were the "soon to be daughter-in-law, possibly in the fall", do you reeeeally think I'd be able to keep a lid on that? Heavens, no. I'm afraid I'd be that annoying girl that calls/texts/emails/myspacecomments/faxes/snailmails EVERYONE she's EVER met EVER, with full details including pics & audio/video clip of EVERY moment of the event. Yup. I'm that girl.

No, don't worry, you haven't missed anything. In that comment, I'm one of the nieces mentioned. "Mimi" is my aunt Doris, and evidently, my cousin Jay recently popped the question to his girlfriend. Congrats & luvs to them!!!

In other news, my attempt at global domination via Risk:

and it took almost 7 hours!!

Delicious Day

2008-04-27T15:45:00.004-05:00

Yes, I always compare everything to food... haven't you met me??

Today, James and I are sitting around in our pjs, watching the spurs have their hineys handed to them by phoenix in game 4. Our bellies are stuffed full of yummm homemade nachos. It is pouring rain, crashing thunder, and we have a glowing fire in the fireplace (yes, i know it's almost May, but hey, it's in the 50's, & it'll be ages until we get another chance at one!). We have two purring kitties lounging across the room from each other, each facing different directions, because if they knew they were both in here, they would not be sleeping. I think we may play monopoly in a little bit, or maybe get out the crayons & coloring books.

Anyway, I was deluged with comments after my last post, so rather than clogging up my comment section by responding to each one, i thought I'd respond here:

Yes, I know comments are like cooties, so I'll do my best to infect everyone!

I always found it necessary to keep at least an entire package of papertowels handy. How do you think my computer kept working for almost 3 years?! again, havent you met me? :)

YaY i gedda work in my pjs every day!!! (but i do have an official shirt with the directv logo on it, for in case i hafta go help with something)

Thanks for all the luv :)

hmm... think i'm off to play risk...

first post- a slightly disjointed catch up

2008-04-26T14:15:00.000-05:00

For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to be some kind of mashup of June Cleaver and Martha Stewart... minus the whole jail thing, of course... but more fun... maybe add a little Bridget Jones in there.

Recently, I quit my Office-Space-Cubicle-Hades type job, and started my dream job, working from home. Well... it's not actually my home yet *fingers crossed*, but I'm working on it. My boyfriend James has a DirecTV franchise, and works from home, so I have become his new Office Manager. If you don't believe me, just ask my new super-official business cards.

Today is Saturday, and I've just finished Week 1 of the Dream Job. There's lots to do. I've mostly just been filing, so far. James' files have been completely disorganized, with papers just stacked in piles, dating back to January of 04. He needed me.

At this point, you may scratch your head and say to yourself, "... Lindsey?? the same Lindsey I know?? organized?? *pfft*..." Now, I know, I am not always what one might call a "neatnik" (no snickering allowed), but let me refresh your memory.

Does anyone remember me in school? I always had matching spiral notebooks, folders, and pens for each class. How about the time I was asked to create a notebook detailing the job duties for the receptionist position at my old job? It was color coded and cross referenced. More recently, has anyone seen my Poker Notebook? Not only is it color coded & cross referenced, it efficiently & concisely stores the records of every poker game I've ever run.

I am the perfect candidate for this job. I have a somewhat unhealthy obsession with office supplies. Give me a project, and I instantly flip into Turbo Anal-Retentive Organized Barbie mode (complete with pink file cabinet). I will have this office so micro-organized that James wont be able to find a thing in no time!

Anyway, I'll be keeping everyone that cares (or is bored enough to read this) up to date with my goings-on here. And I promise not to be so long-winded in future posts.

Coming soon: Max's First Bath (complete with pictures!)