I'm Just a Girl

An Overdue Farewell...

2010-10-23T19:35:00.004-05:00

For months, I've told myself that "when things calm down, and I have more time, I'll be able to blog regularly again." I'm afraid I've only been postponing the inevitable. Things will never calm down.

But that's a good thing! You see, back in the day, I used to do most of my blogging at work... a bad habit, I admit. However, since accepting my recent promotion, the new job leaves no time for such things. I realize I could obviously blog from home, but honestly, I do most of that via Facebook status updates these days, as it's much quicker and can be done from my phone.

So, for now, I'm saying goodbye to my blog. I won't delete it, but I might make it private - haven't decided that part yet. Should the ideal circumstance arise again one day, I'll come back and open it. I'm sure that eventually, I'll come back. I'm just tired of making empty promises, to you guys as well as to myself, that I will get back to normal. Because, in typical fashion, life is changing what "normal" means for me... in good ways, comfort-zone expanding ways. So, I'm alleviating myself of "blogger's guilt" by going on indefinite hiatus.

I plan to continue keeping up with your blogs though. I still very much enjoy keeping up with your lives, and I feel too close to many of you to just leave completely. I just find it difficult to find time to put my own life into words lately.

Please stop by my Facebook though, if you like. I'd love to be "friends" there!

Until next time...

Audra =)
Jeremiah 29:11-13

Life lately...

2010-09-25T20:44:00.005-05:00

After being gone from the blogosphere for so long, it's hard to come back, because so much has happened, I don't know where to start writing! I feel bad for my unexplained absence, but I have tried to at least keep up with your lives by reading when I can, because I have missed you guys a lot!

I'll try and give an abbreviated version of some of the happenings of the last few months...

Travis and I spent the first part of the summer clearing my mom's belongings out of her house, so we could put it on the market to sell. We had hoped to have it sold before we went on vacation in July, but the economy had other plans. We're still waiting for an offer, and at this point, we'll be lucky to have it sold by Christmas. So, we're currently paying two mortgages, which isn't easy, but we're scraping along making ends meet until we can finally sell.

Speaking of that vacation we were planning... you remember, the one to Universal and Destin, FL? Well, it was amazing!! I do plan to do an expanded post about our vacation, and include more pictures, but suffice it to say it was the best vacation we've both ever been on. I haven't been to Disney World yet, but I'm pretty sure it can't be as awesome as Universal. And if it is, I imagine I'll just lose my mind, haha!

Here's us in front of the big Universal globe...

A few days after returning from vacation, I had an interview for a new position at the hospital where I work. After weeks and weeks of waiting, I was offered the position! It was quite a big promotion, and I've been in my new department for 2 weeks now. I'm finally doing a job that requires my degree, and pays me for having one too! I'm really enjoying the new challenge and my new office is very nice and has a big window!

That's pretty much all the big stuff. I had a pretty bad kidney infection back in July, before our vacation, but other than that, my health is good and stable. I'm actually beginning to notice that I'm losing some weight too, since I've started the new job. There's a lot more moving around and less desk work, compared to my last job. So I'm gonna take advantage of that and try and pair it with a healthier diet.

That's the short version of everything. I hope to be able to make more time for blogging, now that I'm getting settled into my new routine. Hope y'all are doing well and will still stop by once in a while!

I'm still alive!

2010-07-27T08:02:00.002-05:00

I know I haven't updated in over a month. I've just been so busy. We just got back from vacation on Saturday, and I'm swamped at work, trying to catch up. I have lots to share though, so I'll be posting soon!

Deflated Balloon

2010-06-22T09:03:00.004-05:00

That's what I feel like right now.

I've stopped my birth control, as of about 2 weeks ago. We're not trying to get pregnant. I stopped because my cousin, who was also on the pill, was recently hospitalized with very serious blood clots in her leg and lungs. I always knew that was a risk, but I never knew anybody who that happened to. It scared me.

There are just too many other ways to prevent pregnancy than to risk your life with something that wreaks havoc on your hormones and causes such things to happen.

What I didn't know before throwing away that last pack of pills, was what to expect while my body attempts to stabilize itself. I've been feeling pretty crummy the last couple of days, with this strange, sort of headache-like pain in my eyes. I've also been very tired, much more than normal. Last night I feel asleep at 8pm, and it was still difficult for me to wake up and get out of bed this morning at 6am.

Then, to make matters worse, I made the mistake of Googling "side effects of stopping Yasmin." (That's what I was on.) I found this forum where countless women from all over the world all say they've never felt so close to death in all their lives, both physically and emotionally. Some of the most common symptoms listed by them were acne, facial hair growth, hair loss, weight gain, anxiety, depression, panic attacks, stomach cramping and headaches.

The length of time this lasted varied greatly among them, but some were a year out, and were still dealing with the effects.

I hope that's not me. And I hope that the knowledge of those possibilities doesn't psych me out and cause me to imagine these things into existence.

How does this stuff still have FDA approval? Now I understand the commercials on TV for class-action lawsuits with the invitations to jump on the bandwagon.

I hope I make it through this in one piece. I really don't need any help gaining weight. I can do that all by myself thankyouverymuch. Even more than that, I don't need any extra help in the emotional distress department. I've had to deal with a lot in the last 6 months, and I was just beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

With God's help and the support of my husband, I will plow ahead.

Girls, if you take this stuff, please be informed. Do your research and know what you're doing to your body before you take the pill, and consider what you'll have to deal with when you stop. Birth control pills aren't meant to be taken for a lifetime. Had I known this could happen, I never would have started.

Helpless...

2010-06-09T09:00:00.004-05:00

Please watch this.

I didn't want to watch it. I knew what I would see, and I knew that it would be overwhelmingly heart-wrenching. But I watched it anyway. Because why should I be immune? Why shouldn't I share some of the load of the pain? It's the least I can do.

The last few seconds, seeing those 3 gulls, completely covered in thick oil, with only little eyes peeking out and tiny holes over their nostrils as they struggle for every breath...

I can't stop crying. I'm at work for pete's sake, sitting behind my desk blubbering like a baby, hoping somebody doesn't walk in and ask me what's wrong.

I feel so helpless. I want to DO something. I want to quit my job and go down there and find the poor little animals and wash them off. I have water and I can buy a case of dishwashing liquid and drive the 2 hours. But there are licenses and certifications required... all kinds of red tape. I have to ask, wouldn't my careful, inexperienced washing of some birds be better than them just dying in the oil? Isn't it worth it to take the risk of letting people help, as opposed to certain death?

And I feel so angry. I'm so angry at whoever is responsible for this. I'm so angry at the carelessness.

These innocent little animals deserve better than this.

God, forgive us all.

If Roses Grow in Heaven

2010-05-27T12:04:00.000-05:00

If roses grow in Heaven,
Lord, please pick a bunch for me.
Place them in my Mother's arms
and tell her they're from me.
Tell her that I love and miss her,
and when she turns to smile,
Place a kiss upon her cheek
and hold her for a while.
Because remembering her is easy,
I do it everyday,
But there is an ache within my heart
That will never go away.

Happy Birthday Mama

Roll Wave!

2010-05-19T09:16:00.004-05:00

I'm so proud of our Tulane Green Wave baseball team! Our boys crushed LSU last night, 9-1! They are one of our longest-standing rivals, so the excitement was palpable!

Click here for some beautiful photos of the night!

Backyard Catastrophy

2010-05-18T13:56:00.008-05:00

The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is poised to be the worst America has ever seen. It's all so sad. I grew up in Belle Chasse, Louisiana. Belle Chasse is the northern-most town in Plaquemines Parish, about 1 hour from the very tip of Louisiana's "boot."

Most people around those parts do one of two things for a living -- seafood or oil. You either fish, shrimp, crab (yes, those are verbs) or you work on an offshore oil rig or at an oil refinery. It's a way of life.

Today, all over the metro New Orleans area, we can smell the oil.

I'm heartbroken. My heart breaks for the families of the 11 men who were killed and never found after the explosion. I feel so bad for all of the families that are without jobs. I grieve for the little helpless animals. The birds are covered in oil, and when they try to clean themselves, they eat it. The dolphins come up for air and instead suck up oil through their blow holes, and it gets into their respiratory systems.

I'm angry. I'm angry at BP for not taking better steps to ensure this wouldn't happen, and for trying to downplay the seriousness of the spill after it started. I'm also angry at BP for continuing to be so greedy throughout this situation, in spite of the fact that four days of their profits will cover their costs so far. I'm angry at our government for being so deep under the covers of the bed they share with the oil companies that they didn't involve themselves sooner and call upon the Federal government for help. I'm angry at those who want to "drill, baby! drill!" without regard for the environment.

But I'm hopeful. I'm hopeful that the oil leak will be plugged. I'm hopeful that the mess will be cleaned up and that our lands and livelihoods will be restored. I'm hopeful that this horrible situation will not be a wasted opportunity to wake up those who would rather suck up every last drop of oil from the Earth instead of seeking alternative forms of energy to lessen our dependence on fossil fuels.

Please take a moment to see what we're facing and say a prayer.

Quesadilla Burger

2010-05-13T08:04:00.008-05:00

It's been a while since I've posted a recipe, but I'm proud to say I have been stretching my culinary legs lately and I'm cooking more than ever... and actually enjoying it!

Earlier this week, I was craving a hamburger. One of my favorite burgers is from Applebee's. It's called the "Quesadilla Burger" and I decided to try and make it myself, for considerably less money and calories.

Click picture for a close-up.

Ingredients - makes 2 burgers

Pico de Guillo
4 flour tortillas, baked
1 lb. ground chuck*
1/2 cup shredded cheddar jack cheese
4 tbsp. sour cream**
salt & pepper

Divide the ground beef in half, shaping each half into a patty, and cook evenly on each side in a skillet on medium-high heat. Salt & pepper both sides as desired. While those are cooking, bake your tortillas, per package directions. You'll want them just a little crispy, so they will be firm enough to hold the burger together. When burgers are done, turn off heat and cover the tops with 1/4 cup of shredded cheese on each. While that's melting, spread 1 tbsp. of sour cream on one side of each tortilla. Place the burger in the middle of one tortilla, top with pico de guillo and place other tortilla on top. Cut in half to make it a little more manageable and enjoy!

You can put your favorite chips (Tostitos "Hint of Lime" tortilla chips are so yum!) on the side, or like we did, baked french fries with some shredded cheese on top, and a little pico.

*I used lean, 93/7. Not as juicy, but healthier.
**I used light sour cream.

My Renewed Love for Reading

2010-05-05T11:00:00.009-05:00

Last Saturday, Travis and I had a nice, lazy day. We went out for a fast-food lunch at noon. While scarfing down our Wendy's, we remembered it was the run-off election for Parish President that day, so we decided to go to the library and vote.

After we voted, we decided to get library cards. I was trying to think of a few good books to check out when I remembered hearing that Ginnifer Goodwin had recently been cast as "Rachel" in the film adaptation of Something Borrowed. So I decided to get that book, along with Julie & Julia, since I like that movie so much.

I started reading Something Borrowed in the car on the way home, and I don't really remember much of the weekend after that!

New. Favorite. Book. I just couldn't put it down. It's narrated by Rachel, who tells the story of how she ending up falling in love with her best friend's fiance, and the drama that ensues. It's absolutely captivating.

I was very surprised to learn that this was Emily Giffin's first book. The way she writes really appeals to me. The way she describes people, feelings, situations... in such great detail that you feel completely engrossed in the story. The character development is also incredible. Each person in the story has such depth, and you can forsee how they're going to react to certain things.

One thing I did, and I kinda consider it cheating, I went to IMDB.com and looked up who was playing who in the movie. Kate Hudson was cast for the role of Darcy, who is the bratty, bossy best friend in the story. It was so easy to imagine her as that character. So that made it even more fun for me to read, picturing Kate's face and mannerisms.

I highly recommend this book. The movie doesn't come out until 2011, so you have plenty of time to read it first. I can't wait to see how it translates to film. Also, Jim from The Office will be in it! He's playing Ethan... but you'll have to read the book to find out who that is.

This is the kind of book you'll definitely want to own. It's such a good, quick read. I checked it out from the library at 1pm on Saturday, and brought it back after work on Monday. I found it on half.com for $2, like new, so I'm buying it.

Also, I just as strongly do not recommend Julie & Julia. It's nothing like the movie. I think I like the character of Julie Powell in the movie much more than the real woman. She's got a foul mouth!

------------

EDIT 2:39 PM

I can't sing the praises of half.com loud enough. That website is one of the reasons I was able to go to college and not go broke. It's a division of eBay, where people go to sell new and used books at a huge discount - usually between 75%-90%! They saved me hundreds and hundreds of dollars on college text books.

They have just about any book you could ever want. I went there to buy Something Borrowed, and learned that Emily Giffin wrote three other books; Something Blue, Baby Proof and Love the One You're With. I got them all for under $2 each, with like $3 shipping for each one. My total for all of them was $19.92. They're $13.95 retail each (which isn't unreasonable, but we're on a budget), which would have been $55.80. I saved $35.88!

High five!

A Perspective of Death

2010-04-26T13:53:00.008-05:00

The other day, I was having a conversation with a close friend/co-worker. She was sharing worries for her beloved childhood cat, who is going through some health problems that could potentially end her life. During the course of our chat, I said something that has continued to resonate in my own spirit ever since:

"The great thing about death is that it only happens once to every living thing."

Now I can see how sometimes I may come across as a little obnoxious in my optimism/bright-side-finding capabilities.

My sentiment, however, was sincere. The point I was trying to make was that every living thing only dies once, yet we grieve so much more than we should before death ever really approaches. We start to play out scenarios of death in our minds. We begin to make ourselves feel what we think we would actually feel if that person/animal were to die right at that moment. By doing this, we actually experience what should be one death, many times over. This is such torturous, self-inflicted behavior.

Guilty.

In giving a few words to try and help her enjoy the time she now has with her kitty, I opened one of my own wounds, very deeply.

Death has always weighed more heavily on my mind than what seemed should be normal for others, for pretty much as long as I can remember. As I mentioned before, my mother was schizophrenic. I learned that fact as a child of about 10, and I was always afraid something horrible may end her life. So much so, that when it actually did happen, I sort of wasn't surprised. After all, my fear caused me to rehearse that exact scenario in my head for years.

Now that all is said and done, what did I benefit from that? Even after those years of "anticipation," nothing could have prepared me for what it was really like. Nothing.

My own death is something I've also pondered more than the average bear. Having been diagnosed with kidney disease at 14 years old, I was forced to face my mortality. Thankfully, because of God's grace and medical science, my life has been spared, but for how long? Statistics say I'll most likely need another transplant one day, maybe even two more. Those debilitating thoughts still permeate my being so easily, almost as if I'm more comfortable thinking them than I am in the foreign attitude of "I'm going to be fine."

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" - Matthew 6:27

I love how this verse of scripture actually combines worry with death. It's like God wrote this down on a little piece of paper, folded it up into a paper airplane, wrote my name on the side and sent it sailing through the air, hitting me square between the eyes. Message received.

My mind is a battlefield, and it's a battle that I must fight consciously, continuously. When I am an active warrior, fighting fear and doubt with what I believe to be God's truth and refusing to worry about the things I cannot control, life is good. But when I succumb to the fear... I don't even know how to describe the mess I morph into. Not on the outside. I've learned to keep up appearances on the outside. It's the inside where the defeat is felt, and the pain is unbearable, crippling. It has no limits but those of my own imagination, and will extend to those I love. If I'm healthy and don't have myself to worry about, it's my husband, and I'll make up scenarios of how he could be tragically taken from this life, and from me.

It's so morbid. It's embarrassing, especially to acknowledge out loud. At the same time, however, it's liberating. I'm not the only one. I can't be. After all, I consider myself lucky, in spite of the tragic things that have come my way in life. Certainly the throngs of people who have had even worse life experiences than me go through this kind of thing, right?

I am here to remind myself I am not alone. There are people in my life who love me. One day, each and every one of them will leave this life, and at that time, I will have God's grace to lead me through.

I am healthy right now, and for that I am grateful. There will probably be periods in the future where I am not healthy, and one day I will die. I'll just have to cross those bridges when I come to them.

I refuse to rehearse and imagine scenarios that rob me of the joy I take in life. That refusal takes effort, but it is worth every ounce. I must allow myself to rest... really rest. I cannot control everything, particularly those things that are most important to me, and maybe that's just the way it's supposed to be.

We all have this in common - we are all going through this human experience together, learning as we go, having the same experiences of joy, gain, loss and sadness. It seems like such a simple thought, but it's also so profound. When I take a moment to try and wrap my head around it, I find comfort.

I will live, until I die. But until then, I will really live.

An average day...

2010-04-18T17:07:00.000-05:00

Our girls deserve better...

2010-04-05T08:25:00.012-05:00

Am I just a prude, or is there something seriously wrong with the way girls of this generation are being influenced?

I'm only 25 years old, and yet I feel so completely disconnected from this next generation. I thought it wouldn't be until I was in my 40's that I'd be shaking my head and saying things like, "when I was your age..."

Last night, I was lying in bed trying to find something on TV to lull me to sleep. I ran across this new show on E! called "Pretty Wild." I had seen some previews for it the last few weeks, and decided to see what it was all about.

I was absolutely stunned.

The show centers around 3 girls, ages 16, 18 and 19. They live in Hollywood with their mother and step father, and have a money tree in the back yard. The mom is a former lingerie model and is trying to help the 2 older girls launch their careers in fashion/modeling.

I only watched about 10 minutes of the episode, and in that span, the 2 older girls did a nearly-naked photo shoot to land a modeling contract, while their mother stood around posing them and telling them how hot they looked. They went out partying and drinking with rock stars, which included spinning around on a stripper pole, very professionally, I might add - but I guess they've got it mastered, because they have one in their house. The last thing I saw was the middle sister getting arrested. After doing a little Googling, I discovered it was because she was allegedly involved with a ring of thugs that was breaking into various celebrity homes.

I had to turn it off.

I felt so angry. I don't have kids yet, and I know people say don't pass judgment until you have your own, but that's just bull. This is wrong. I feel like such an old crooner saying this, but it really seems like the children and parents of our society are being conditioned to believe that this is how to live life. We should take all discipline, conventional wisdom and restraint and throw it out the window. The new parenting style involves mothers being in a popularity contest with their daughters, not teaching them how to be respectable human beings.

The more I think about it, the more my head just wants to explode!

The message that I hear as a girl is...

"You know, there are a lot of people in this world, and life is short. So you should probably do something to make yourself stand out, that way you can be famous and have a lot of money. Then you can do whatever you want, whenever you want and have lots of nice, expensive things. Now, this comes at a price. Every now and then, you're going to have to do something to keep yourself relevant. A sex tape maybe, or make a drunken scene in a night club when the paparazzi is around. It will get easier each time, because you'll continue to die inside a little more each day. Don't worry, you don't really value yourself that much anyway. This is going to feel right. And if it doesn't you can always have another drink."

The message I wish these girls could hear is...

"You are so special. You are beautiful and smart and have talent and gifts and abilities that could make such a difference in the world around you. Don't waste all that. Don't give it away for just anybody or anything that promises immediate fulfillment. You deserve the absolute best life has to offer, you know that? You really do. You are needed, by your family, your friends, your community and by one special man. That's right. You only need one. It may take a little while to find him, but when you do, you will be so glad you waited for him. This life comes at a price, however. You have to work hard, and seek out the wisdom from successful people around you who have gotten where you want to be in life. Things won't always be easy, and they won't always go according to plan. You will make mistakes, and people will sometimes disappoint you. But during those times, you will learn more than ever how to appreciate what you do have, and life will be that much sweeter. You may not be rich. You may not be famous. What you will have is worth more than all that, because your life will help to change the lives of others, for the better."

Cain killed Abel, with the leg of a table, and God paid him back with a mother-in-law.

2010-03-31T11:55:00.007-05:00

It's moments like this when I'm glad nobody in my family, or in my husband's family, knows I have a blog, much less reads it.

Girls, I bet more than a few of you will be able to relate to what's annoying me right now. Let's start with a little back story...

I have an Aunt who was adopted by my grandmother. She's always been different from all the other aunts and uncles, mostly because she has always been involved with drugs. She behaves a little strange sometimes as a result. Every year at our family Christmas gathering, each family member brings a home made dish and we eat pot-luck style. This particular Aunt, however, always stops at Popeye's on her way to the family gathering, and brings a bucket of fried chicken as her contribution to the meal. There's nothing wrong with that. Most of us just giggle, because that's a very "her" thing to do, and we probably wouldn't want to eat anything she prepared herself anyway.

How does this relate to my current annoyance with my mother-in-law? She's trying to turn me into the fried chicken bringer. Let me explain...

Much like my family, my husband's family does put-luck style get-togethers for major holidays, with one little exception - they think they are the best cooks in the world, and they will do whatever they can to not have to eat any food prepared by outsiders. Guess who's an outsider? Yep. You got it. I don't have that Cajun blood flowing through my veins, so I must not be able to cook.

They're very tricky with the way they go about it too. See, if you don't offer to bring something you want to cook, they will ask you to bring something you can't screw up... like corn. That's what I was asked to contribute to this past Thanksgiving's feast. Everybody else was making green bean casserole, shrimp stuffed merlitons, sweet potato casserole, etc. I was asked to make corn.

I politely told my mother-in-law that I would like to contribute something with a little more difficulty than that. She asked me what, and since I was the last one asked (remember, they had to assign the good stuff to everybody else first, so I couldn't get my grubby little fingers on it), the only thing I could think of was potato salad. Nobody was making a potato dish, save sweet potatoes, so that was all I could think of. Now here's the kicker - they don't eat cold potato salad! Have you ever heard of such a thing? Everybody I've ever known eats their potato salad cold. So, I took my dish back home with only a small dent from myself and my husband (he knows when to come through), and I felt defeated.

For Christmas, I stayed ahead of the game. Before anybody had a chance to ask, or tell me what to bring, I announced that I was making a spinach & artichoke casserole. That was that. No discussion. I made it, it was delicious, and half of it was gone by the end of the meal. Of course, not by my mother-in-law's doing. She doesn't even eat the 2 main ingredients.

Now the Easter BBQ is around the corner, and what do I spy with my little eye this morning while at my desk, typing away? A text message... from the mother-in-law. Below is a transcript of that conversation:

Mother-in-Law: "Hi - Can u bring hamburger buns for Easter? We will need about 5 packs."
Me: "K" (can you sense the infuriation in my shortness?)
Mother-in-Law: "Is that too much?" (way to add insult to injury)
Me: "No"

I forgot Easter was so close and didn't beat her to the punch and offer to bring something I wanted to cook, so now I'm stuck bringing buns, because she knows I want to contribute something, and she has to ask me to alleviate her own guilt. We all know she could get the buns herself. She thinks she's doing me a favor by asking me to bring buns! Can you believe that?!

I don't know if she intends to, but she makes me feel 2 inches tall. All of the other women in the family will be bringing delicious, home cooked dishes, but I have to look like I'm domestically retarded because I'm not in the club. That may not be the reality, but that's surely what it feels like. I'm never called upon to do anything that matters, and to the others in attendance, I'm made to look like I don't even care enough to throw something of my own together.

Am I being paranoid, overly sensitive, or any of the other words my husband called me when I told him how hurt I was? Or do I have a right to feel this way, and should I do something about it? Because I've gotta say, the idea of having to go through this 5 times a year for the rest of my life is enough to make me crazy.

I'm a Mac

2010-03-24T10:05:00.006-05:00

That's right. I have crossed over to the dark side. I'm abandoning the familiar world of PC computers for the less-familiar, very attractive world of Apple. My husband still hasn't forgiven me yet. He's a more attractive version of the "I'm a PC" guy.

I've been thinking about buying a new computer for quite a while - probably close to a year now. I've spent the past few months comparing different laptops, and came to the conclusion that I would finally try a Mac.

I bought my last laptop right after Katrina, and it has been officially dead for more than a year. It's a Dell. At our house, we have my dead laptop, Travis's 2 desktops and we use 2 other laptops that he brings back and forth from work. All of my music files, pictures and documents are spread out between those 5 computers, and it is past time to get everything consolidated on one master computer.

Through my comparisons, I searched high and low for a computer that was pretty. Yep, you heard right. My laptop needs to be pretty. It is as much an accessory to me as my purse, cell phone or car. Of course I want functional, and that was easy enough to find, but Mac was the only company to meet my "pretty" requirement. It's a shame too. I could have had a computer that was functionally identical from Dell for a lot less, but they aren't pretty! Don't judge me. I'm not the only one. PC is losing tons of my generation to Mac, simply because they look cooler. I don't understand why PC companies don't get that and come up with better designs. Most of their stuff is big, bulky shiny plastic that will inevitably get covered in fingerprints the first time I take it out of the box. No thanks. I've got my eye on this...

Smooth, full-body aluminum. Modern, clean lines. Small and compact. Isn't she a beaut? She arrives tomorrow, and I'm so excited that I'm taking the day off work on Friday to play with her and get all of my files transferred over from the other computers. I'm also thinking about getting this sticker...

How cute is that?!

Along with my MacBook, I got 2 pretty sweet accessories...

That's the Apple Magic Mouse. It's completely wireless, and has touch-sensitive abilities. For example, instead of having to use a roller-wheel to scroll up and down on a page, you can just slide your finger back and forth and move in any direction! It's very sleek.

This little guy is the Apple Remote. It works with any Apple product created after 2005. I'll be able to use it with my MacBook Pro and with my iPhone, to navigate through music or movies. It's also compatible with Apple's televisions.

I can't wait to have all of my new toys. It's going to be like Christmas in my house this weekend!

Defeated

2010-03-23T08:05:00.005-05:00

So, I've deleted my weight loss blog, and the sidebar, and the whole big official plan. Losing weight is hard. I've learned you can follow all the rules and still not lose weight, and that is frustrating.

Vice versa, you can eat terribly and still lose weight. I just don't get it. I ate Wendy's 4 days in a row for dinner last week, the same meal each time - large fries, small chili with cheese and 5 piece chicken nuggets. After the 4 days, I had lost 3 lbs. What's up with that? I don't know. It just seems like when I spend so much time focusing on what I eat and trying to be "good," I end up gaining more. So, maybe I just need a break from the stress. I tried the whole public-accountability thing, and that didn't work. Because at the end of the day, I need to do this for myself, not other people.

Our summer vacation is still on. We officially booked it yesterday for July instead of June. I have 4 months to try and take off some weight to wear a nice bathing suit. I have picked up some good habits through this, and I will continue them. I'm more active and I'm learning the way my body reacts to different food. I'll do the best I can with the goal of health, and if I shrink a little in the process, that's just an added perk. Maybe I'd have been better off if I had that outlook from the get-go.

Oh, Oscar!

2010-03-08T08:49:00.004-06:00

Travis and I love the Oscars. We planned our entire day around the awards yesterday, from putting a roast in the crock pot in the morning to avoid any evening cooking, to printing out ballots from moviefone.com and picking our predicted winners beforehand, wagering a 10-minute backrub. It should come as no surprise that we tied... that's just my luck.

My pick for best-dressed of the night was Penelope Cruz. She couldn't have picked a better color for her glowing skin and dark hair. I think she was dazzling.

I was really surprised when "The Hurt Locker" beat out "Avatar" for so many awards. I can't really give you an intelligent argument though, because I didn't see "The Hurt Locker." Movies like that are just too sad, violent and depressing for me. I was really happy for Sandra Bullock to get her first Oscar for Best Actress. Her speech was so sweet and moving.

Of all the movies nominated last night, the only ones I actually saw were "Avatar" and "Up." The only ones I want to see now are "Precious" and "The Blind Side."

What were your favorite moments of the Oscars? Any big surprises or let downs?

I'm Just a FAT Girl

2010-02-26T10:16:00.005-06:00

Before you all start with your sweet comments about how I shouldn't say that about myself, I promise it's all in self-deprecating humor. It is also the title of my new Weight-Loss blog!

You probably already noticed that all my weigh-in and food log posts have disappeared. That's because I decided to keep that separate from my regular posting. It was taking over my blog, and that's not what I intended.

It's also because I haven't been doing so well with my "rules," and rather than give-up, I want to give myself a new beginning, and renew my commitment to myself and my health.

So, please feel free to follow me over there, if you like. In the transferring of my posts, all of yall's sweet comments were lost, so a fresh dose of encouragement is always welcome.

Here's me, climbing back up on the wagon... again. I will do this!

I promise to morph back into the charming, witty gal you first fell in love with when you hit my follow button the first time, haha! There are new non-weight-related posts coming soon.

Ash Wednesday & Lent

2010-02-17T13:28:00.005-06:00

I'm not Catholic, so my observations of Ash Wednesday are from the perspective of an outsider. Here in New Orleans, it's nothing at all to see everybody walking around with ashes smeared on their foreheads, as the vast majority of our population is Catholic. I try not to be judgmental, but knowing so many Catholics personally, I find myself very confused about the whole tradition of Ash Wednesday. I know that to many, it has deep meaning, and the symbolism isn't lost on them, but to so many others, it seems like an obligation that is just done because that's what's expected of them.

In New Orleans, Ash Wednesday immediately follows Mardi Gras Day. So, in effect, everybody goes out and gets absolutely knock-down, drag-out drunk on Tuesday, and then asks for forgiveness by getting ashes on their heads on Wednesday. Now, I always thought the whole point of the ashes was a symbol of repentance. How is it repenting if you know you're going to do the same thing next year?

Also, who sets the standard for the types of things you're supposed to give up for Lent? I was chatting online with my sister-in-law this morning, when she was telling me that she gave up chocolate for Lent. Chocolate? Really? That's it? I always thought the idea of giving up something for Lent was that it should really be a sacrifice, something that will make a difference in your life, your spiritual life more specifically. I'm sorry I sound so mean/flippant, but it all just seems so silly to me. The idea sounds nice, but it appears to have been made so meaningless and ritualistic.

I won't even go into my "not eating meat isn't in the Bible" spiel. I could be here all day!

Seriously though, tell me what you guys think of this. I would love to hear both Catholic and non-Catholic points of view.

I haven't looked up in days...

2010-02-02T09:18:00.005-06:00

You may remember, back in August, when I posted about how badly I wanted an iPhone. I was unsuccessful in my manipulation attempt.

However, after seeing my little sister-in-law get her new iPhone on Saturday, I couldn't wait any longer! Yeah, yeah, monkey see, monkey do... blah blah blah.

I finally got it! Travis was eligible for upgrade, and he graciously let me have his new phone upgrade so I could get an iPhone. He took my Samsung Propel, which is a vast upgrade from his old flip phone that didn't have a full keyboard.

Another awesome perk is that we're finally on a family plan now. We couldn't get on one before because we had phone numbers with 2 different Louisiana area codes. I guess AT&T changed that regulation, so now, on our new family plan, our bill will be even lower than before, even with the new data package.

Needless to say, I'm having a blast with my new toy. I've downloaded a full page of apps, the first two being Facebook and Twitter. Those websites are blocked on my company's intranet, so it's fun being able to check in a few times a day when I couldn't before. That's also the reason my Twitter feed is back on my sidebar. With a little computer-phone, I actually tweet again.

...

For those of you out there who have iPhones, could you recommend some good apps... particularly good free apps? I don't want to pay for them, as the phone was expensive enough. I just know there are some cool ones out there, and I love playing with gadgets, so let me know what your faves are!

Free speech is only for some...

2010-01-27T12:38:00.012-06:00

I am pro-life... unapologetically so.

I may lose some readers for saying that. I'm not being flippant about it either. I don't want to hurt any feelings. I just happen to care enough about you and your family to say that I think you deserve to exist, and that you have always deserved to exist, from the moment your daddy's little sperm swam into your mommy's little egg and landed on her uterine wall. You have the right to be here.

The pro-life, Christian organization Focus on the Family has purchased, for the hefty fee of $2.5 million, a 30-second commercial time slot during the Super Bowl. They intend to run a commercial that features Florida's quarterback, Tim Tebow, and his mother, Pam.

When Pam was pregnant with Tim, their family was on the mission field in the Philippines, and she began to experience complications in her pregnancy. The doctors advised her to abort the baby. She refused.

Fast forward 22 years, and we have one of the most talented football players in college football history, who uses his talent to bring attention and glory to The One he credits with all of his success, not to mention, with his life.

This is the story that is to be told in the 30-second commercial time slot during the Super Bowl. Pro-choice groups are losing their minds. They are appealing to CBS, and anybody else who will listen, to keep the commercial from airing. The arguments are staggeringly unbelievable. They say that football shouldn't be used as a means of "furthering an agenda." You mean the way movies and movie stars don't use their status to further their agendas? Or the way musicians don't use their fame to further their agendas? I don't hear them get angry when famous lesbians stand up for same-sex marriage. Their belligerence sounds pretty selective and one-sided to me.

A lot of this protest is in the name of women's rights. What about Pam Tebow's right to continue her pregnancy and her right to share her story? Part of women's rights is knowing what your options are, and that one of those options is to not have an abortion. Pro-choicers need to just call themselves what they really are... pro-abortion. If that's wrong, why does the pro-life "choice" make them so angry?

I thought this article made some great points. Please read.

And please, say a prayer that not only will the free speech rights granted by our constitution be upheld, but that this will speak the message, loud and clear, that life is a precious gift, that isn't ours to devalue or take away.

What doesn't Dollar Tree sell?

2010-01-14T08:42:00.005-06:00

Seriously. Dollar Tree has everything. My new motto might just be, "If Dollar Tree doesn't sell it, I don't need it."

For example...

I bought 10, for future use, just in case. The cashier looked at me, fought back laughter and said, "I don't even want to know."

I <3 American Idol

2010-01-13T08:39:00.006-06:00

Last night's American Idol auditions were fantastic. They are my favorite part of every season. I usually don't watch the show anymore after they're over, until the season finale, which is always start-studded and very impressive.

Maddy Curtis was my favorite audition from Boston. Not only does she have an incredible voice, but for 16 years old, she is very mature and just generally seems like the poster child for the word "sweetheart." I hope she goes far in this competition.

Even more fun than the great auditions, are the dreadful ones. Here's one of last night's gems:

On my drive in to work, I was listening to Kidd Kraddick's morning show, where they were discussing the above performance, and debating its authenticity. Apparently, the whole country is doing that right now. Last night, Andrew Fenlon was the 3rd most searched topic in the U.S. on Google. He has a Myspace page with his "music" posted, as well as a Facebook, and lots of fan pages.

What do you think? Is this guy the real deal, or was he playing a part to try and get his 15 minutes of fame?

Feeling a little less... bleh.

2010-01-08T10:47:00.004-06:00

Yesterday after blogging, I copied and pasted my post into an email and sent it to my uncle. He is a pastor and counselor, and being my mom's older brother, we've been going through our grief together. This is what he wrote back, and it helped me immensely.

"This is normal and I knew it would come. When you first heard about your mama you were in shock. That is a defense mechanism that protects us from traumatic emotions. But when that wears off there is a period of depression followed by grief. You have to let this thing run its course. Everyone on earth goes through such experiences. Even Jesus was a man of sorrows acquainted with grief. It might be helpful to speak more accurately to yourself. You see, if you can't snap out of it then you are doomed to remain in your current emotional funk. But the reality is you've not yet snapped out of it. And I can't find the light at the end of the tunnel is really I've not yet found the light at the end of the tunnel. You have lost the person closest to you in life. Of course that's depressing. But it will get better. Let the process play itself out. Meanwhile do whatever you can to distract yourself. Go to a good movie or out to eat. It's much too soon to talk about pills or therapy. That's for those who continue in that state for months or years. Now you have an inkling of what your mom went through. But her depression was pathological. Yours is situational. They feel the same but one ends and the other remains. You will bounce back, you'll see. Call me if you need to."

I know my battle isn't over, but it sure does help to know that it's normal. I am so terrified of falling into a mental state similar to my mother's, that I make myself that much more "mental." My uncle is very wise and very supportive. I am grateful to have him in my life during this difficult time.

Thanks to those of you who posted support and encouragement yesterday. I needed it, and once again, you were there. Thank you for that.

I feel so... blah.

2010-01-07T09:11:00.002-06:00

I could use some insight right now... and some serious prayer. I just don't care... about anything.

I have always considered myself to be a positive person. I don't require much to be happy. Being home with my husband and puppies was always enough for me. I chose to be satisfied with a life that was simple. That's not to say I haven't been through anything stressful. On the contrary, I have had to overcome a lot in my life. However, until now, I was always able to bounce back.

Unfortunately, I'm not feeling very bouncey lately. I can't snap out of it. I don't know if I'm placing too high of an expectation on myself or what, but I can't stand the way I feel, and I would think that by now I'd have started to feel better. I feel so melancholy, if that word is still in use. I feel like I have nothing to be excited about, or look forward to. I am so bored with my daily routine of work, home, dinner, shower, sleep, etc. I've never felt like this before, and I don't know what to do.

I don't know if I should talk to somebody, go see my doctor, get put on some kind of drug. I don't want that. I'm not a fan of those kinds of drugs. I'm not against them for all people. I believe some people need them and are legitimately helped by them, but I've always wanted to deal with the problems that made me feel certain ways, instead of just numb myself to those feelings by taking medications. Only, I don't even know what I'm dealing with this time.

I don't even know if any of that makes sense to anybody. I just want to feel good again. I want to be excited about life again. I've lost that, and I need it back. I've been praying and reading my bible, but I can't seem to break through it.

I hate this version of me. My husband deserves better than this version of me. I don't want him to think I'm dissatisfied with him, because I know I'm not. I'm just having trouble finding joy in anything. I can't find the light at the end of the tunnel. I've never felt this lost before in my life.

What can I do?

Healing

2010-01-06T09:32:00.006-06:00

I've been trying to think of what on earth to write. Even with days of consideration, I've got nothing. I just miss my mom. I never knew my dad. No brothers or sisters. It was her and I against the world, as far back as I can remember. The world seems like such a dark and scarier place without her here.

She was an incredible person who faced a lot of difficulty in her life. She was schizophrenic. The only solace I have is knowing that her suffering is over. She knew Jesus. Her entire life, despite the madness in her mind, she clung to Him like a frightened child to a parent. Growing up as an only child with her was challenging, but every day she did the very best she could. I always knew she loved me. No matter what, she loved me, and probably held on as long as she did because of that fact alone. I miss her so much.

There is a part of me that is empty, that only she can fill, because she put it there. She gave me a love for knowledge, an appreciation of humor, life and faith, all mixed up in a way that only the two of us understood in our little world we shared together.

It's painful to think of what she will miss in my life. I'm afraid of forgetting what her voice sounded like, or the way she laughed. I look at pictures from Christmas and wish I could reach back just a few weeks ago and say, do, change something, anything that would have made this not happen. I can't. She's gone. It hurts. I want to call her. I've never gone through something so horrible and not had her to talk about it with.

She's with God now. I believe that with all my heart and soul. At her memorial service, the words of Chris Tomlin's rendition of "Amazing Grace" were like hearing her whisper to me from her new home.

"My chains are gone. I've been set free.
My God, my Savior, has ransomed me."

She is safe now. She is free of struggle and pain. While I grieve, I rejoice. I don't know if people are aware of the lives of their loved ones after they have gone to the other side, but I hope she knows how much I loved her, how much I love her still, and how proud I am of the life she lived and the life that she gave to me.

Mom

2009-12-29T11:10:00.002-06:00

My mother took her own life yesterday. Please pray for me and for my family.

I'll update soon.

I'm STILL Full

2009-12-28T07:48:00.009-06:00

I hope everybody had a wonderful Christmas, full of love, family, great food and great gifts!! We had a very nice few days. Travis and I were both off Wednesday-Sunday. My family's Christmas party was Tuesday, and it was great to see everybody. We didn't have a get-together last year, as my Uncle Brad had just passed away, and it just seemed too soon for celebrating.

My mom came and stayed with us a few days. We all went to Travis's grandmother's for Christmas Eve, complete with bonfires. Christmas morning, we woke up and opened gifts with my mom. I was really excited to get her some nice stuff this year. When you're a kid, your parents go all out to make your Christmas great, and they kind of get the shaft. It was really nice this year to let her relax while we got her some great things she would enjoy, and we did all the cooking.

I can't wait to get to all of your blogs to see how your Christmas went!

Now, as I've done every January 1st for the past 5 years, it's time for the diet. For me, diet means no fried food and trying to remember to exercise on my elliptical for 30 minutes every night. We'll see how that goes. My goal is to lose 50 lbs. by May 1st. That's my boss's daughter's wedding, and I want to wear a hot little dress and dance with my hubby all night. Then, we'll be going on our first vacation in 2 years this June, and probably to the beach, so obviously, I need to be bathing-suit-ready. Wish me luck!

Please say a prayer...

2009-12-17T00:04:00.010-06:00

As many of you probably know from news reports, the Cincinnati Bengals' wide receiver, Chris Henry, was in a very serious accident today, and is on life-support.

I went to grade school with Chris, and have known him since we were about 6 years old. He was our star football player. He hasn't always been what you'd call a model citizen, but I'm hoping and believing that God has a plan for his life, and that he will live to reach his full potential.

Please lift him, and his family, up in prayer. He's fighting for his life. He has three small children, and a big family that loves him very much.

Hang on, Slim. Don't give up.

UPDATE - Thursday 12/17/09 8:00am: I just found this video about Chris's comeback and second chance after being allowed to return to the Bengals post-crime. I sure hope he pulls through. Reports are beginning to surface that his condition has started to stabilize. Thank you, Jesus!

UPDATE - Thursday 12/17/09 9:16am: RIP Slim. You will be missed by many.

Spinach & Artichoke Casserole

2009-12-09T09:10:00.005-06:00

This is a delicious recipe that I got from one of my co-workers. It makes a very tasty addition to any Holiday potluck party, but it can also jazz up a quiet dinner at home, as it's very simple to make. Prepare to impress your man with this one!

(Click picture for a bigger view of the yumminess!)

Ingredients

2 - 10 oz. pkg. frozen spinach
2 - 14 oz. cans artichoke hearts
1 - 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 tsp. shredded lemon peel
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
1/2 cup butter
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Cook spinach according to the package's directions, drain and set aside. In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, melt cream cheese and 6 tbsp. of the butter, stirring constantly. Add the drained spinach, lemon peel, salt and pepper. Mix well. Cut artichoke hearts into small pieces and spread evenly in bottom of a 2 quart rectangular baking dish. Spread spinach mixture over artichokes. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and dot with the remaining 2 tbsp. of butter. Bake in 350-degree oven for 30 minutes. Makes 8 servings

Christmas Cookies!

2009-12-02T09:33:00.011-06:00

A few weeks ago, I was contacted by Hilary at C&H/Domino Sugar, with an offer of a $20 gift certificate to cover the cost of making one of their holiday baking recipes and blogging about it. I gladly accepted the challenge, and here's how it went down!

I got my little gift card in the mail about a week later. I went to their holiday recipe website, and looked around for something that sounded yummy. I decided to do cookies, and printed this recipe for Cut-Out Shortbread Cookies. These cookies are pretty much half butter, and half sugar. Those are two of my favorite food groups, and I knew I couldn't mess them up too badly.

So I went to the grocery store and got everything I needed, and a few fun extras to decorate them, since I had $20 to spend on the project.

Then the cookie preparation began...

...and continued...

...until it was time to put them in the oven.

Self portrait during bake time to document the occasion!

* Drum Roll Please! *

My Beautiful Christmas Cookies!

These cookies were so delicious (as was the batter!), and they were so easy and fun to make!! I highly recommend these for any Holiday baking plans you may have.

Thanks to C&H/Domino Sugar for sponsoring my night of fun and deliciousness, and for making such yummy cane sugar! Living in a place that's surrounded by sugar cane fields, it's nice to enjoy some local flavor!

Christmas Shopping Monday - Third Edition!

2009-11-30T09:56:00.002-06:00

Today's Christmas Shopping Monday topic is co-workers!

Co-workers can be difficult to shop for, for a number of reasons. You may want to give them something special, but you may be afraid they will feel they have to give something in return. Another common dilemma is price... not giving too much, or too little.

So, here is my co-worker gift-giving guide, based on budget.

$1-$3 per person - high sentimental value

Baked goods! You can make a batch of cookies, brownies, etc., and wrap 3-4 of each in some nice Christmas colored saran-wrap, tied with a little ribbon for each co-worker. Nobody objects to sweets around the holidays! To beef this one up, include a nice hand-written note of appreciation for your co-workers abilities, friendship, or any other quality you admire about them. If you prefer, you could even keep this anonymous by signing Santa's name, and giving one to yourself. The mystery will bring lots of fun and holiday spirit to your office!

$8-$12 per person - medium sentimental value

Desktop gifts! These are nice because they can adorn your co-workers' desks year-round, reminded them, and you, of your gift. These can range from ornate paper weights and engraved letter openers to desk clocks and photo frames.

$20+ per person - low sentimental value

A Relaxation Basket! This is especially good for a boss or co-worker that has a high-stress job. Your basket could include things like a stress-relieving hand squeezer, a CD of nature sounds, aroma-therapy lotions, little massagers, flavored teas, scented candles, etc. You imagination is the limit!

Good luck with your shopping, and be sure to stop by and let me know about any great finds you stumble across!

Christmas Shopping Monday - Second Edition!

2009-11-23T08:01:00.005-06:00

As promised, here is our second edition of Christmas Shopping Monday. Today, we will focus on grandparents who have it all.

I have always found that grandparents are some of the most difficult family members to shop for. If yours are anything like mine, they are incredibly picky, having a whole lifetime to develop preferences on everything under the sun. We are usually left with the last-resort option of a restaurant gift card, which I find to be a little too impersonal for close family members.

Then we discovered these...

These are candy boxes, and they include all the popular candies from each decade, starting with the 40's and going up through the 90's. One thing old(er) people LOVE to do is reminisce about their childhoods. When we gave these as gifts last year, some had tears welling up in their eyes as they remembered these little treats they hadn't seen or thought about in so many years. These really aren't just for grandparents, as anybody who is a few years past childhood could appreciate this gift.

You can get these gift boxes at amazon.com, who distributes them from a company called Candy Crate. They are $30 each, and worth every penny, in my opinion. We even got one for my mom, and she began opening the packages and trying the candy. She said it was all fresh and just as good as she remembered it.

Stay tuned next Monday, when we'll share ideas about what to give your co-workers!

New way to Blog

2009-11-19T10:16:00.004-06:00

I'm pretty sure I had a wicked case of food-poisoning yesterday, from some questionable ground beef. I stayed in bed all day, very near my beloved bathroom. It was yesterday's sickness that caused me not to post. Not posting caused guilt, and the guilt caused me to do some re-evaluating. The fact that I feel guilty if I don't blog everyday is a pretty good indication that my priorities are a little backward.

Since my big blog makeover this summer, I have tried my very best to blog every weekday. The problem is, I don't always have something interesting to talk about. I'm not the best writer, but sometimes it's just because I'm swimming along nicely in my day-to-day and nothing of note comes up for a day or two.

The thing is, I do this for fun, but holding myself to this self-inflicted standard has started to suck the fun out of my blog. Posting for the sake of posting is not the direction I want to take, not to mention the filler material has got to be boring as all get out for you, my much-loved readers.

That being said, I'm not giving up my blog by any means. I just wanted to let you know that I may not necessarily post everyday. I think this is best for the writer and the reader. There may be some weeks when posts are scarce, and there will be others when I post everyday... maybe even the occasional weekend post - dare to dream.

Anyway, I will still be opening my Google Reader everyday to keep up with everybody else. This will actually allow me more time to do that. At least when I do post, you will know that it is something remotely relevant and/or important to me.

Thanks for caring about my little world, for reading and your feedback. Pathetic as it may sound, some of you are closer to me than my "real" friends. I really do cherish the relationships I've developed in the Blogosphere, and I'm not going anywhere.

Hospital Vampires Strike Again

2009-11-17T10:48:00.004-06:00

Today's post is late because I had a lab appointment to have some blood drawn this morning. Lucky for me the Phlebotomist who was assigned to drawn my blood only had 2 fingers on her right hand... the hand she stuck me with! Boy, did it hurt! She shoved that needle into my arm as far as it would go, and it nearly came out the other side.

I'd be willing to bet those three fingers were bitten off by somebody else who didn't appreciated her impaling their elbow.

Christmas Shopping Monday - First Edition!

2009-11-16T07:38:00.006-06:00

I pride myself on coming up with thoughtful gifts for those I love. It's very gratifying to listen to somebody mention things they want throughout the year and then surprise them with something that means a lot at Christmas.

But sometimes, I get stumped... and sometimes, we just can't afford to get everyone the perfect gift. Most commonly, we run into this problem when shopping for large families within our family. It can get very expensive, very quickly if you try to buy something for every member of a 4-person or more family. That's why we've come up with family gifts!

Family gifts are something that they can all enjoy and do together. Last year, we bought these very nice Cafe Du Monde gift bags (For you out-of-towners, Cafe Du Monde is a famous, outdoor French Quarter coffee shop that is known for their incredible beignets.).

Inside of each gift bag, there was a box of beignet mix, a box of Domino powdered sugar, a sugar shaker, a can of Cafe Au Lait, 2 coffee mugs and the paper hats that real Cafe Du Monde servers wear. Everybody we gave this to said they really enjoyed it.

This year, we're doing "Movie Night" gift bags. Inside will be a gift certificate for a local movie theater, a box of popcorn and a bunch of assorted theater-sized boxes of candy. Who won't like that, right?! Especially families with kids.

Stay tuned until next week, for the second edition of Christmas Shopping Monday, when we'll talk about what to get grandparents who have it all!

The football gods must be smiling on me.

2009-11-13T07:44:00.004-06:00

All of "my" teams are doing well right now, and the one team I despise (LS-Who?) has lost 2 big games, so I'm reveling in that like a dog in stank.

Our New Orleans Saints have broken their own previous record(s) by going 8-0 so far this season. I'm so proud of them, and I really hope this is their year to go all the way. Even if it's not, they have accomplished so much and the coach has done an exceptional job.

My father-in-law is the Head Coach of my husband's hometown's high school football team, and they have played an incredible, undefeated season. Tonight is their first playoff game, and we're hoping they'll be playing for the State Championship in the Dome next month. This would be their 4th State Championship title in 10 years.

Last, but certainly not least, Tulane has won 3 games this year, which is crappy, but for them, is a positive step. My hubby is the Director of Video Operations for athletics at Tulane, therefore they pay my mortgage, therefore I am a fan.

Here is a little taste of the awesome work he does. Enjoy!

Alice in Wonderland

2009-11-12T10:38:00.001-06:00

It's no secret that I ~~think~~ know Tim Burton is the best Director of all time, but I'm more excited about this movie than any of his others.

To watch the theatrical trailer, click here.

Move over, Starbucks!

2009-11-11T09:55:00.009-06:00

I recently bought the most magical little machine. It's a Hamilton Beach drink blender, and it cost me a whopping $15 at WalMart.

It holds about 24 ounces, and is the perfect size for making your own smoothies, salad dressings (which I do a lot) or making your own coffee drinks.

Last night, I made the most delicious frozen treat. I know winter may not be the time to pull out the ice cubes and throw them in a blender, but I make frozen coffee drinks much better than I make hot ones.

In the blender, I combined 8 ice cubes, 2 splashes of milk, and one packet of hot chocolate powder. You talk about gooo-oood!

I stole this picture from Google Images, but this is totally what it looked like. Ladies & Gentlemen, I give you my "Frozen Hot Chocolate."

Now, I'm not big on coffee, but if you wanted something with a little jolt of caffeine, you could do the same thing, but add some strong black coffee to the mix. Just make sure to add some extra sweetener,* since the sugar in the hot chocolate powder will be that much more diluted.

Tonight, I'm going to make the same thing I made last night, but I'm going to add a few chunks of Peppermint Bark to get a little taste of the Holidays. You can really play with this recipe and make whatever you like... heck, throw in your favorite candy bar, or even a few splashes of Kahlua after the kids go to bed!

*When adding sweetness to your frozen drink, remember to use some type of artificial sweetener or sweet syrup, like chocolate or caramel, because granulated sugar will not dissolve very well in ice, and you'll feel like you're munching sand when you drink it.

Christmas Gift of the Year

2009-11-10T08:44:00.009-06:00

I have discovered what I'm calling "Christmas Gift of the Year." If you're having trouble thinking of the perfect gift for the guy or girl who has everything, this one will not disappoint. Not only will I be giving a few of these, but I've also got one on my own wish list!

"Deluxe Frangrance Sampler For Her" from Sephora $50

"Deluxe Fragrance Sampler For Him" from Sephora $50

The way these work is genius. You get 12-15 sample fragrances with each set, and we're not talking about the cheap stuff either. Both of these sets include fragrances by Juicy Couture, Dolce & Gabbana, Dior, Givenchy, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Versace, Giorgio Armani and Michael Cors, just to name a few! I don't know about you, but those are names I want to smell like!

But wait! It gets better! After you have tried them all, and you know your favorite, you get a free full-size bottle of it! Included with each set, there is a coupon for one free full-size bottle of the fragrance of your choice from Sephora! And you still have all those other awesome sample fragrances, so you can change things up every now and then.

Is this not the coolest thing ever? At $50, these are an incredible value, as one bottle of good perfume/cologne typically costs at least that much. I can't wait to get mine, and I can't wait to give a few either! I just know my mom is going to love it!

2009 Kidney Walk

2009-11-09T07:53:00.003-06:00

This year's Kidney Walk was a smashing success! I exceeded my fundraising goal by $45, and the event was a blast. Mucho thanks to The Hubs for walking with me in support. :-*

Also, there is totally a hurricane heading toward the Alabama/Florida state line today... in the middle of November!! What craziness! Thank God we haven't had any big scares this year. This hurricane is called Ida. That means they barely got through half of the alphabet, because we had so few storms! Woot! I sure hope this will be a recurring pattern. Those of us down here in the South enjoyed the break.

Freak-Out Friday

2009-11-06T12:22:00.002-06:00

"So much time, so little to do. Scratch that. Reverse it!" -Willy Wonka

Sharefest! What was your favorite childhood story?

2009-11-05T10:11:00.004-06:00

There are a few books that still grace the bookshelves of my mother's house, and when I visit and see these books, it warms my heart. My mom is an avid reader. She reads more than anybody I know, hands down. She literally has a LARGE bookcase in every room of her house, except the bathroom. Naturally, when I was little, reading was what we did together. My mom had great taste in children's books. They were never just the cutesy little colorful books with a shallow story. They were deep stories, that created emotional attachment to the characters.

One of those was Ferdinand the Bull.

Ferdinand was a little pacifist bull who lived in Spain and would rather sit under a cork tree and smell flowers, instead of fighting in the ring like the other bulls, until the day he met his match, in the form of a bee sting.

The book was written back in the 30's, right before the Spanish Civil War, and it paints a great picture of Spanish culture at the time. I always could relate to the meekness of that strong, yet gentle bull, and it's certainly a story I'll be passing down to my kids one day.

A Loss in the Family

2009-11-04T08:27:00.004-06:00

Please keep Travis's grandmother in your prayers today. She lost her very dear friend of many years yesterday.

It was not unexpected, but painful nonetheless. It's during these times that we are reminded how short life really is. Today, may we all love a little more, argue a little less, and make sure that everybody we care about knows exactly how much.

"Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints."

Psalm 116:15

T.M.I. Tuesday

2009-11-03T07:41:00.007-06:00

WARNING: If your genetic makeup contains a Y chromosome, I strongly discourage you from reading any further!

So, I ran out of birth control refills. We all know what that means. It's time for one of "those" exams. I called yesterday morning to make an appointment, and lucky me, they had an availability for 330pm the same afternoon. I took it, wanting to just get it over with. It was during this appointment that I was reunited with my old, cold-metal friend.

Who's the sick, twisted jerk that invented this thing, huh? I wanna know his name, so I can ~~gouge his eyes out~~ send him a letter of appreciation for allowing my doctors to make sure I'm healthy where the sun doesn't shine.

I'm a bad, bad blogger.

2009-11-02T08:44:00.003-06:00

I'm very sorry for my unexcused absence on Friday. It was, by far, one of the craziest days I've ever had. I was super busy with work, not only at the hospital, but with Scentsy! I'm happy to report that my very first Scentsy party last Thursday night at my mother-in-law's house was a smashing success! Naturally, that made for lots to do on Friday, entering the ginormous order, etc.

We had a decent enough Halloween weekend. Saturday was the LSU vs. Tulane game, so hubby was working. Not wanting to sit at home alone, I tagged along with my cousin who was bringing his little boy trick-or-treating. I'm pretty sure that was the first time I've actually been trick-or-treating since I was young enough to do it myself. It was interesting, walking around, doing that from an adult perspective. It's kind of cheeky for all these little kids to walk up to people's front doors, demanding candy, in a funny way of course. All of the adults happily obliged. It was lots of fun.

Yesterday, hubs worked pretty much the whole day. I got to be lazy, finally catching up on my awful sleep schedule with a 4-hour nap! I did my Sunday night cleaning routine, and tonight after work our old friend, Kwon, may be coming over for dinner.

Now that Halloween decorations are coming down, it is very difficult for me to delay my Christmas decorating. Christmas is our (me and Travis) absolute favorite holiday. I think within the next 2 weeks, I'm going to start getting things out of the attic and begin decorating. Why wait?

I love to hear others' Halloween stories. What did you guys do?!

Unschooling?

2009-10-29T09:46:00.006-05:00

While reading a new [to me] blog yesterday, I learned about something I've never heard of before... unschooling.

Most people have heard of 3 types of grade school: public school, private school and home school. I, myself, was a home school student from 7th grade until I finished high school, and my experience was decent enough, although I don't intend to home school my children.

So naturally, I was intrigued by this word. I found the blogger's "unschooling" label, and began to sift through her post in which she talked about what it is, and how it differs from the other schooling options.

Now, I won't pretend to be any kind of expert on education or parenting, but this just doesn't seem right to me. While I am not yet a parent, my goal as a parent (one day) will be to help my child develop into a successful adult, right? Isn't that the long term goal? I don't believe that this model of teaching thinks ahead to socially prepare children for adulthood.

While reading the information she presented, there seemed to be a recurrent anti-authority theme in her writing as she counted off the things she finds unsettling about the "government-run" education system (paraphrases mine).

- Children having to submit to being known as a number, ie., grade number, student number, class number, seat number, etc.

We will be assigned numbers our whole lives... Social Security numbers, student ID numbers, employee ID numbers, medical record numbers, etc. We better just get used to that, because while it would be nice if humans had the capability to recognize all 7 billion faces on planet Earth, and know them all by name, that's not going to happen.

- Children having to follow the chain of command by obeying their teachers without question, whether or not those teachers are actually smart or capable enough to properly lead said children.

Most of us will have to follow a chain of command in more than one facet of our lives, most of all in our careers. So unless you've got a big fat inheritance coming your way, you will have to enter the workforce. Every workplace has somebody who calls the shots, and that person may or may not be qualified to do that. That doesn't mean you get to choose when to listen and when to do your own thing. You better be prepared to start at the bottom of the food chain, and submit to people that you feel are inferior workers.

- Children having to get their answers from somebody supposedly more qualified than themselves on any given subject, instead of learning for themselves.

All of us will have to get our answers from somebody more qualified than us in different areas of life... and is this really such a terrible thing? Do we really want to teach our children to question everything? I appreciate the Meteorologist knowing weather better than I do, and my doctors knowing my kidneys better than I do, and my mechanic knowing how to keep the brakes working on my car. Do we really want to instill a lack of trust in our kids that prevents them from learning from anybody else? That sounds like a life filled with fear, if you can't believe anybody who thinks differently from yourself. People with those issues will struggle in college, and certainly the work place. We need the ability to take information from others, and we can decide what we do with that knowledge, but to write others off as "unqualified" from the start is foolish.

- Lack of personal time and space.

That sounds like the life of the average parent if you ask me. Since more than 90% of people have children, you better just get used to that. Unless you choose to live your life in seclusion, who doesn't deal with this on some level?

All of these "injustices" are directly related to things that we, as humans, will face in the adult world. Why shelter our children now, instead of prepare them for life as an adult? I don't mean to interrupt their childhood, and not let kids be kids. I think we should begin familiarizing them with the ways of the adult world, so the transition won't be such a rude awakening.

The very last line of her post, I believe, is truer than she knows...

"My children will grow up as children. "

That sounds exactly right. Your children will still be children when they are adults. They will not be able to relate to any of their peers, as they have grown up in a completely different world, with a completely different (wrong) way of thinking about how the world works. They will have an undeserved sense of entitlement and they will not submit to any authority other than their own. They will do poorly in college and hop from job to job because they will never have experienced learning from people they disagree with.

Sound off, dear readers. Check out the FAQ's at unschooling.com. I want to know what you think about this, really.

With me, the force is.

2009-10-28T09:19:00.006-05:00

Hubby and I went to Star Wars in Concert last night. It was so much fun watching his face light up throughout the night, letting me know he was having a good time. It was certainly a night well spent.

Sharefest! What's your favorite Halloween movie?

2009-10-27T10:11:00.010-05:00

I mentioned yesterday that the Mr. and I would be carving a pumpkin and watching Halloween movies last night. I made a big pot of veggie beef soup (recipe coming soon), and he hollowed out a pumpkin for me to start carving later. We also baked fun little cookies with pumpkins and ghosts on them, and I brought some to work today to share with my co-workers.

Of course no such night would be complete without one of the classic Halloween movies. Now I don't know about you folks, but I CANNOT watch scary stuff. I don't like watching anything with a lot of violence, or blood, or killing people, or things with scary faces. I ~~like~~ LOVE the classic, family Halloween movies.

Here are a few of my all time favorites...

Share with us what kind of movies you like to watch around Halloween, and what some of your favorites are! I'm totally up for suggestions!

EDIT: 12:33PM I'm laughing because I JUST realized that 3 out of these 4 movies were directed by Tim Burton! I knew I loved him, but still, this was a funny accident!

Life, As of Late - III

2009-10-26T09:18:00.003-05:00

Travis had the day off work yesterday, which was his first day off in almost 2 months. We got a lot of house cleaning/organizing done. It was fun having him around for a whole day.

It's soup weather outside right now, so I'm making a big pot of vegetable beef soup tonight. I can't wait.

We bought pumpkins last night at the grocery store, and some ready-to-bake Halloween cookies. We'll be carving pumpkins and watching scary movies tonight after our yum soup.

Tomorrow night is Star Wars in Concert. I just know that my honey is excited and ready to go. We're eating at our favorite Mexican restaurant before the show.

My first Scentsy party is this Thursday, at my mother-in-law's house. She's invited a buncha ladies, and I just know it's going to be such a great time.

I'm off to get some work done on this crazy busy Monday! How were yall's weekends?

Finally Friday

2009-10-23T10:20:00.003-05:00

I have enough housework to keep me busy all weekend. I've been in a spring-cleaning mode this week... except it's the fall. The cluttered closets/drawers/cabinets in my house are driving me nuts. I want everything organized, whether visitors can see it or not. I LOVE having everything in its place. The cleanliness of my house is one of the few things in my crazy life I can control.

God bless my poor husband who has been graciously moving furniture, cleaning and straightening his own clutter, and in many other capacities, pretty much being the victim of my new found obsession.

I'm having a Scentsy open house tomorrow afternoon, and I'll be distributing fliers in my neighborhood after work today. I'm hoping to book a few parties, and gain a few new customers. We'll see how that goes.

I hope yall have a wonderful weekend!

Pico de Guillo

2009-10-22T09:12:00.007-05:00

I think it's about time to make a fresh batch of pico de guillo. The stuff is magic. It's delicious and very good for you. I only make it about once every 6 months, because it takes about that long for me to forget how miserable I was the last time I made it. Pico chopping is not for the faint of heart. To taste really good, everything has to be chopped as small as possible, so that you get a little of everything in each bite... and that can take a while. And after you're done, it's so yummy, that it ends up disappearing much faster than you made it.

Ingredients

tomato
red onion
bell pepper
jalapeno (seeds removed!)
parsley
cilantro
salt

There really is no set amount of each ingredient. It really varies, depending on your taste. I typically use about 3 tomatoes, one big red onion, 1 bell pepper, 2 jalapenos, a handful of each parsley and cilantro and a tiny pinch of salt.

Some people add different spices, but I really just enjoy the flavors of the veggies themselves. Also, most would recommend eating this with corn chips. Not me, no sir. This is the absolute best with plain old Lay's potato chips. As a matter of fact, if you eat it with Lay's, the chips themselves are salty enough, that you really don't need to add that much to your pico.

If you go through the trouble of making this, I suggest making a large amount. It really is good, and it's easy to sit and eat a bunch at a time. Also, hide it in the back of the fridge, where your husband's grubby little fingers won't find it. Trust me.

Enough

2009-10-21T09:01:00.004-05:00

Thanks so much to everybody who poured out words of sympathy and encouragement yesterday. I really appreciate your support. I was a little hesitant to share my news with the blogosphere. The whole thing is rather personal, but in the small amount of time I've been in the blog world, I've met some of the most incredible people, and made some truly wonderful friends. I knew that you guys would lift me, just as you have, and I am so grateful.

A little explanation... It's not that I can't get pregnant, it's that getting pregnant would be very risky. You see, my kidney function is enough to keep me going, and hopefully I will get, at least, another 10 years out of this transplant, before I require another one. Getting pregnant would put a big strain on my kidney, which could cause me to lose it much sooner than intended. So, with all of that in mind, my doctors and I have decided not to take that risk. I don't want to bring a child into this world, and leave him/her with a sick mother, or worse, without one at all.

It helps to think back to a time when I was very aware of what it meant to feel confident in God's plan. My own plans have fallen through now, in a big way. So today, I'm going to lean on The One who has a perfect plan, and know that He will carry me through to the other side, with a more amazing and wonderful experience than I could have ever imagined or planned for myself. I can't see it now, but He can. That's all I've got right now, but I'd say that's enough.

The Baby Blues

2009-10-20T07:44:00.004-05:00

I got some bad news yesterday from my doctors. I could go into details, but I don't feel like it. Long story short, I can't get pregnant. It hurts to say. It hurts to type. I can't get pregnant.

I know there are other options out there, and I know that one way or another, we will be parents one day, but that doesn't ease the failure I feel right now. I feel robbed. I feel like I've robbed my husband.

We bought our first home back in May, and we have 3 bedrooms. One is ours, one is the man cave, and one is empty. We never wanted to put anything in that room. We were hoping...

Now, what?

I've got a case of the Mondays

2009-10-19T09:23:00.004-05:00

Horrible weekend... so horrible, in fact, that I don't even feel like blogging about it. You KNOW that's bad.

Now I'm enjoying a perfectly horrible Monday, complete with uncontrollable yawning.

I'm absolutely exhausted, so my foul mood is only made worse by my sleepiness. I'm hoping a post-work-day nap will chase away the grouchies.

TTFN.

Balloon Boy

2009-10-16T09:04:00.004-05:00

Wow. Where do I even start?

I was flipping through different CNN.com pages yesterday, catching up on the latest news, when I saw a banner at the top of the page saying there was a 6-year-old boy floating in a runaway balloon over Colorado. Trying to catch my interest or something? Consider it a success.

So I started watching the live feed in disbelief, with the rest of the world. I watched the balloon land, and I heard them say it was empty. What happened next, however, I was not prepared for. They showed a picture of the family on the screen. OMG! I know that family! They were on Wife Swap!

Now, I realize this is old news to most of you. The thing I don't understand though, is that the media keeps talking about their second appearance on the TV show. They were on twice! And it's the first episode where we discover this family is headed up by one maniac father, who should probably not be allowed to procreate.

They were "swapped" with an overly-extreme safety conscious family who strongly condemned the Heene family for the danger they put their children in. In this episode, we watch the dad drive his kids with him to chase tornadoes, and the family literally sits in his truck about 50 feet away while he rides a little motor bike right up to a cyclone to do whatever scientific stuff he claims to do.

Not only that, but he is a CNN "iReporter." There is video of them on CNN, in which he drove his kids down into Hurricane Gustav to investigate the storm's power. We see them jump out of their car in the eye of the storm and go play with an over-turned 18-wheeler!

Could there possibly be more? You betcha! (spoken in Sarah Palin voice) Last night, after the whole balloon ordeal was over and we discovered the little brat was just hiding in the attic to escape parental punishment, Wolf Blitzer interviewed the family. After asking little Falcon if he heard his parents calling for him and why he didn't come out and reveal his location, the little booger admits, "You guys said that we did this for a show."

Wow. In my opinion, if that's true, this family should have to reimburse the Air National Guard, the County Sheriff and every other government agency that poured their resources into rescuing that runt. And the parents should be psychologically evaluated and thrown in jail for good measure.

Watch below for the confession at 0:34.

On a side note, I was pretty amused at how quickly this thing blew up. Before the balloon landed, there were already 4 Facebook groups/fan pages dedicated to Falcon Heene, and before the sun set, you could order your own "Go Falcon, Go!" t-shirt, complete with a picture of the balloon.

Baked Beans

2009-10-15T10:01:00.005-05:00

This is one of my family's favorite recipes, and it's easy to make. My uncle always makes it for Holiday gatherings, and I learned the recipe so I could bring it to a few work functions... most recently our Boss's Day lunch last Tuesday. They go best with BBQ meat and potato salad... wow, I drooled a little when I typed that.

Ingredients

1/4 cup butter
2 medium onions, chopped
1 lb. lean bacon, chopped into 1/2" pieces
4 10 oz. cans of Campbell's Pork n' Beans
1/4 cup Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup

Over medium heat, melt butter. Add chopped onions and cover. Allow the onions to saute until clear. Add chopped bacon and replace lid. Cook until the majority of the fat cooks off of the bacon. Drain. Add beans, BBQ sauce, brown sugar and maple syrup and bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for one hour.

When I bring these for any type of gathering, it's easiest to dump them into your crock pot, so when you get where you're going, you can heat and stir them really well.

Enjoy!

The Google Image Game

2009-10-14T09:18:00.014-05:00

The rule is, you take these ten things and go to Google, do a search of images, and post the best image you see on the first page of images for these ten things:

1. Your Favorite beverage

2. Your hometown

3. Your favorite TV show

4. Your Occupation/You are in school for

5. Your first car

6. Your favorite dish

7. Celebrity you've been told you resemble

8. Celebrity on your "to do" list

9. Favorite Childhood toy

10. Any Random picture

USS New York

2009-10-13T09:51:00.004-05:00

This morning, as I spent 3 hours in accident-caused traffic on my way to work, I learned that the USS New York was sailing to New York today, from here in New Orleans. For those unfamiliar, the USS New York is a ship that was built with over 7 tons of steel from the World Trade Center. It was built in Avondale, a small ship-building town on the outskirts of the city.

"On September 11, 2001, our nation's enemies brought their fight to New York. The USS New York will now bring the fight to our nation's enemies well into the future." - Governor George Pataki

Life, As of Late - II

2009-10-12T07:54:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow, we are celebrating Boss's Day at work with a potluck lunch. I've committed to bring baked beans, but I don't have a single ingredient at home. I'll have to grocery shop on a weekday, which absolutely thrills me.

Layla's new favorite toys are rolls of toilet paper. I'm actually surprised it took her this long to figure out how much fun it would be to destroy one. There's no salvaging one after she's gotten it. That would be like trying to put toothpaste back into the tube.

My aunt is doing a Scentsy "Basket Party" this week for me, where she carries around a little basket of the sample scents and products and takes orders. It's my first one, and I'm very excited.

The Andouille (yes, it's a word... Google it) Festival is this weekend, in our little town. I hope we'll be able to go on Sunday if the mister has some time off work. I'm debating if I want to buy a booth to sell/advertise my new biz.

I went and had lunch with my in-laws yesterday while Travis was at work. I feel really lucky to have in-laws that I love and get along with, so much so that I enjoy spending time with them, even if my hubby isn't there with us.

LSU lost to Florida on Saturday. I am quite happy about that. I loathe LSU fans. Not the nice, quiet people who just want good things for LSU... I mean the other 95% of their fans. They are rotten people, mostly of the redneck, drunken-buffoon persuasion, and most never went to college at all, much less at LSU. This weekend confirmed that. The best time to see a sports fan's real character is after a loss. Is there a stronger word than loathe?

I keep saying I'm going to decorate my house for Halloween, but I get busy doing other things, and I forget. I feel like it's almost too late, but we bought some really cute stuff, so I need to make time to put it all out. Maybe tonight...

Yall can expect that baked beans recipe tomorrow, if I remember. As we say down here, "They're so good, you'll slap ya mama!"

Pam + Jim = <3

2009-10-09T08:12:00.004-05:00

Last night was the one-hour episode of "The Office" in which Pam and Jim finally got married. My heart is full and happy.

Average is the New Funny

2009-10-08T08:59:00.004-05:00

I have two new favorite websites.

AverageCats.com

They attempt to debunk every LOLCat you've ever seen.

MyLifeIsAverage.com

From the people who brought us AverageCats, these are 1-5 sentence stories about funny things happening to average people.

"Today I installed a program and it asked if I had read and agreed to the terms and conditions. I hadn't, but I clicked 'yes' anyway. The program didn't know I lied, and began to install."

"Today, I was in a store pretending to be a mannequin. I saw a little girl running around as her mom tried to leave, yelling, "I haven't said goodbye to everyone!" She proceeded to run down the line of mannequins, hugging them all. When she got to me, I hugged her back. I've never heard anyone scream so hard."

"Today, while driving to school, the Spice Girls "Wannabe" came on the radio. I began singing loudly and dancing in my seat when I pulled up to a red light. I looked to my right and saw my physics teacher, also singing loudly to the song. We made eye contact. It was awkward. We are both guys."

"Today, a guy left his cell phone at the bank that I work at. We called the first contact number and asked, "Can you tell us whose cell phone this is?" The lady on the other end said, "Yes, this is my son's number" We asked her to contact her son and notify him that his cell phone was at the bank. Two minutes later the cell phone rang. We answered to an irritated but familiar voice saying, 'Hey! You left your cell phone at the bank!'"

Campaign for Real Beauty

2009-10-07T07:29:00.005-05:00

I have been impressed with Dove's mission to correct the distorted perception of beauty that so many of us hold here in America. This is one of their campaign videos, and one that, I believe, every teenage girl should see.

These are junior high school girls...

Johnny Diaz is trying to help out too! Check out his awesome song/video, and stop by my friend Jessica's blog to enter her giveaway to win his newest CD.

Cheeseburger Soup

2009-10-06T07:57:00.010-05:00

It's been a while since I made this... before the move to the new house for sure. I forgot how much I enjoy this soup. I came up with it by accident really. I was trying to make potato soup from a recipe I found on a cooking website, but it was a user-submitted recipe, and it wasn't very well thought out at all. After throwing in the towel, I had to serve something for dinner, so I added a few things I knew I liked, and thus, cheeseburger soup was born.

This is one of the easiest and fastest things to make for dinner. I made it in 30 minutes last night, and I already had most of the ingredients in the pantry without even planning for it.

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
2 medium sized onions
1 lb. lean ground beef
3 standard sized cans of beef broth
2 very large baking potatoes
8 oz. whipping cream
finely shredded cheddar cheese

In a dutch oven, melt your butter. Chop your onions, leaving the pieces fairly large and chunky. Put the lid on the pot to let the onions saute until they are clear. Add the ground beef, breaking it up into small chunks. While the beef is browning, wash, peel and cube your potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes. After the beef is thoroughly cooked, add the 3 cans of beef broth and the potatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook until the potatoes are tender. Then remove from heat and add whipping cream. Stir well and serve. Add a handful of the shredded cheese to each bowl.

Makes about 6 hefty servings.

Now this isn't supposed to be a healthy recipe, mind you. After all, it is "cheeseburger" soup. So, eat rarely, and with caution... and then go for a jog.

"Whenever you eat something delicious and ask yourself, 'What's in this?' the answer is always butter." - Julie, Julie & Julia

Life, as of Late

2009-10-05T09:39:00.003-05:00

This weekend I waxed my eyebrows after leaving them bushy far longer than I ever previously have (cut me some slack, I WAS in the hospital). It was painful, yet very fulfilling... like cleaning a very dirty room until it's spotless.

I intended to decorate my house with my Halloween decorations yesterday, but I napped instead. I can't say I have any regrets about that decision.

My father-in-law is the head coach of his town's high school football team. Last week, he earned his 200th win. Travis and I missed the game, but apparently the team dumped the cooler on him. They were too scared to ever do that the first 199 wins. Wish I could have seen it.

Everybody's orders from my Scentsy party came in on Friday. I delivered everything to the girls at work this morning. We had a squeal fest going through all of their fun, new stuff. I love my new [side] job.

Tulane beat Army on Saturday. We are now 2-2. Some people choose to see this as an upswing. I, however, know we have entirely too much time to screw this up.

My dogs seem like they're always sick. Layla hasn't walked on her back right foot in 4 days, and I can't figure out why. Boogie is having stomach problems. His belly gurgles kept waking me up from yesterday's nap. Our veterinarian owes me a brick with my name carved in it on his house.

There is pastalaya (jambalaya made with pasta instead of rice) in the cafeteria for lunch today, and I'm already salivating.

I'm making cheeseburger soup for dinner tonight. I haven't made it in a long time, and it's so yum. I'll post pictures and the recipe tomorrow... if I remember. =-\

Winner!

2009-10-02T10:21:00.004-05:00

Thanks so much to all of you who entered my giveaway! It was great reading your responses. As a new consultant with Scentsy, I want to know the kinds of things people like when it comes to candles and scents, so thanks for all the feedback. I hope you guys enjoyed surfing around the website and learning what Scentsy is all about. If you ever have any questions, or want more info, please feel free to contact me anytime.

Now, on to the matter at hand... the winner of the giveaway is...

Shannon!

Shannon, you have until Sunday night to shoot me an email and claim your prize! Congratulations!

Have a wonderful weekend, yall!

My First Blog Award!

2009-10-01T08:31:00.008-05:00

I'm all giggley this morning, because as I was surfing through my friends' blogs to catch up on their lives, I discovered that my friend Jessica has bestowed upon me the "Superior Scribbler" award!

I am so flattered and so grateful. The fact that 42 people (probably only like 30 without those of you who just want free stuff, but still...) deem to keep up with my little life is heartwarming.

In celebration of my very first blog award, here is what I must do...

1. Post it on my blog, together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his/her blog link, as well as a link to This Post from the original Superior Scribbler! Check.

2. Add your link to the list of Superior Scribbler Awardees. This will promote your blog AND officially add you as a luminous Superior Scribbler! Check.

3. Pass the award to your 5 most-deserving blog friends. Check. See below.

So, here goes...

[Descriptions taken from each author's "about me" section.]

1. Stephanie, from Steph in the City. "I am an aspiring romance and young adult novelist who has been writing far longer than she'd dare to admit publicly. For me, writing has been a lifelong passion yet I still feel my journey has just begun. I look forward to meeting many other aspiring authors as we take our journey to publication together."

2. Jeanette, from Sweet Jeanette. "I am a Christian and not ashamed. My true love on earth is my husband. I have a passion for all things "domestic" and I love to practice hospitality as well as baking and giving gifts.(One of my love languages!)I have fun re-purposing" things and am inspired by so many! Enjoy your visit as I hand you a (virtual) glass of Southern Tea and let's visit a while. I hope you'll come back often. I so enjoy your company...and follow me if you'd like. I'd be thrilled!Take my button and put on your blog too if you would be such a dear!"

3. Betsy, at Honest to Betsy. "I live in a yellow house in the suburbs with small children. It's mostly chaos."

4. Brooke, at Blogging is Conceited. "I'm a 30 something wife and mother living in Ohio and trying to figure out how to do it all. I work as a legal assistant by day and take care of the fam by night. I'm hopelessley optimistic. I sometimes wonder if I'm just hopelessley naive. I don't take any moment with my son for granted. Even when he used to wake me up at 2:00 a.m."

5. Allison, from Life of a Tater Tot Mom. "2 cups happily married couple, 1 cup adorable wacky son, 2/3 cup bargain shopper, 1/4 cup crafting & sewing & decorating, 1 T reading and writing, 1/2 tsp blogging, Pinch of dealing with picky eaters. Mix it all up and bake until golden brown."

Congrats ladies, and welcome to the club! Now go forth, and award!

Meet my friend, Pandora.

2009-09-30T08:46:00.005-05:00

I feel as if I've been reacquainted with an old friend I haven't seen in years. Let's start at the beginning, shall we?

I love music, and I REALLY love listening to music while I'm at work. Music makes my office feel more like home and less like work. So imagine my excitement when my husband introduced me to Pandora.com. For those of you who are learning of her for the first time, welcome to your new best friend and favorite website.

This is how it works... you go to pandora.com* and create an account. Don't worry, it's free. After you have your account, you create what are pretty much your own personalized radio stations. You start by typing in a favorite artist or song. They scan through their database of zillions (yes, zillions) of songs and play either something from that artist, or a song with similar qualities to the song you typed in. It's important to note they don't play exactly what you typed. The point is that they are trying to figure out what kind of music you like, not just let you create a song-by-song playlist. That's what playlist.com is for.

So, after it plays the first song, you rate it, either thumbs down for "I don't like it," or thumbs up for "I like it." As you rate the songs, it continues to get closer and closer to what you like, and after a few songs, you have created your perfect radio station, with not only songs you like, but also new songs you may not even know about... and you can create as many stations as you want! I have about 5 right now, with categories like Soft Rock, Girl Bands, 90's music and Punk.

You can listen for free for 40 hours each month. After that, you can either pay $0.99 to listen for the rest of the month, or pay $36 for a whole year's subscription, and be ad-free. I have wanted to pay for it for a while, but I never know when I will be able to listen -- the reason being our hospital's intranet. Our internet blocks many websites, such as Facebook and Myspace to name a few. I completely understand why, and if I owned a business, I'd probably block my employees from being able to waste time on the computer also. However, Pandora sometimes gets mixed up in the shuffle and gets blocked too. I'm not sure if it's intentional or not. I don't really see the harm in employees being able to listen to music. You don't really have to spend any time away from your duties to do it. It's not against policy or anything. I'm sure somebody abused it or something and ruined it for the rest of us... but not for long, because she's back!

My BFF Pandora is back, and we are having so much fun together. With my one little earbud in my left ear, we've been humming along with Michael Buble' and Harry Connick Jr. all morning... and what a great morning it's been!

* I was in no way asked to write this, nor was I compensated for this review. I will, however, gladly accept a free subscription in exchange. =)

Busy Little Bee

2009-09-29T09:16:00.004-05:00

Buzz.

There isn't anybody who does what I do if I'm not at work, and since I was out last Thursday, Friday and yesterday, I have quite a mountain ahead of me. I want to be caught up before the weekend, so I'm off to get started.

In the mean time, go enter my giveaway... tomorrow is the last day!

If you've already done that, go look around here for some amusement.

Earliest. Update. Ever.

2009-09-28T06:35:00.002-05:00

Good Morning All!

Thanks so much for all the love, prayers and encouragement lately. Being sick is no fun, but it is nice to have cyber-friends that care. Your kind words have meant a lot.

Unfortunately, things began to go downhill pretty quickly on Saturday, and I had to go to the Emergency Room. I was admitted into the hospital, where I've been taken care of very well. I'm at the hospital where I work, so it very much feels like home. My doctors are great, and I'm feeling a lot better already. They think I'll probably be heading home today.

Some good strides have been made toward learning what causes these severe kidney infections I've been experiencing. My transplant doctor came and sat in my room yesterday for what had to be an hour. She talked with me about many different options and possibilities, and she answered so many of my questions. She really is great, and I feel so taken care of.

As for the hospital stay itself, I absolutely cannot complain. We transplant patients have our own newly-remodeled floor of the hospital. My room is big and pretty, and clean. I've got cable TV and my laptop with free wi-fi. Last night's dinner was steak & potatoes with a salad... so yum!

My co-workers will be here soon for a visit. Thanks again for the love. Be back tomorrow!

Can. Barely. Move.

2009-09-25T06:49:00.001-05:00

So, I'm home from work again today. This is for sure a kidney infection. I waited all day yesterday for my doctor to call me back so I could get some antibiotics, to no avail. Hopefully, he'll call me today.

I'll be back Monday, and hopefully feeling much better by then. I'm going back to bed, soothed by my little puppies curled up next to me and Cartoon Network on the TV.

Don't forget to enter the giveaway! It ends at midnight on Sept. 30th!

Hit by a car.

2009-09-24T14:06:00.005-05:00

No, I wasn't, but that's what I feel like. This post is so incredibly late today because I JUST woke up. That's right. I'm home sick again today. I'm not sure what's going on in my crazy body, but it really needed rest apparently, because I slept from 10pm last night, until 1pm today (save 5 minutes at 6am this morning to text into work that I was staying home).

In happier news, I successfully surprised my husband last night with "Star Wars in Concert" tickets! He is so excited, I just know it. This came with a price, however, and I don't just mean the cost of the tickets. The show is on October 27th, so I have one month to watch all six "Star Wars" movies, so nothing gets spoiled for me when we go to the concert. Talk about backfire.

I'm glad he's so excited about it. He's tolerated far too many chick flicks and episodes of "Gilmore Girls" for me to not share this with him. I know we'll have a blast.

I'm off to call the doctor. Have a lovely day!

The Holiday Police

2009-09-23T08:33:00.004-05:00

Somebody answer me this... How come WalMart, Kirkland's, and all the other stores can put their Halloween decorations out, but I cant??

I have so much fun between September and January. I love decorating for the holidays. Halloween is first of course, and I try to get all ready for that before October. After Halloween, Thanksgiving/fall decorations, and then Christmas, which is my absolute favorite. Christmas is usually up from the day after Thanksgiving, until the first or second week of January. Packing up Christmas decorations is always sad for me. I never want it to end.

This is our first holiday season in our new house. Last year, we were in a second-floor apartment, and while we were able to decorate the inside from top to bottom, we couldn't buy any outdoor decorations. So, being the holiday-decorating freaks that we are, this holiday season will be an expensive one.

I was pretty thrifty for Halloween stuff. I found some really cute things on sale at Big Lots, both indoor and outdoor. I think the total was under $100. I have a nice collection of stuff when I combine that with what I've been collecting through the years. I think I'll spend some time this weekend beginning to get everything decorated.

I promise to post pictures of the finished product!!

Yellow Water

2009-09-22T07:50:00.006-05:00

A few minutes after I got home yesterday, I received a frantic phone call from my mother-in-law. She was watching the news and had just learned that LaPlace (the town in which the mister and I reside) had it's main water supply pipe burst, and we were on a boil order... as in, you have to boil any water that comes out of your faucet before you can drink it, cook with it, brush your teeth, give it to your pets, etc.

For those unfamiliar with my neck of the woods, let me give you a little history on LaPlace water. It is yellow. Sometimes brown, but always at least yellow. I should have expected to have issues with the water when we bought our house out here. Many of my friends who are from LaPlace are in Facebook groups like "I grew up on LaPlace water and lived to tell about it."

Yum.
I suppose I just figured that was how it used to be. It never occurred to me that I would have to drink yellow water that is the consistency of milk... even after it comes out of the filter on my refrigerator door. That didn't even cross my mind. But now... now we have to boil it?!

My little kidney needs lots of fresh, clean water to stay healthy. So, I'll be spending my lunch hour today going to WalMart to buyout their stock of bottled water. Le sigh.

One "Scentsational" Giveaway

2009-09-21T08:30:00.010-05:00

As I've previously mentioned, I hosted a Scentsy Party this past Saturday at my house. It was a smashing success, and so much fun.

I have been involved with Scentsy for about a month, planning my party, and telling my friends, family and co-workers about it. The response has been overwhelming, and I have indeed decided to become a Scentsy Consultant!

So, in honor of my new side-job, I'm hosting my very first giveaway!

The winner of this giveaway will be able to choose one free Plug-In Warmer, and one free Scentsy Bar from our current catalog! You can click the "Scentsy - Independent Consultant" link in my left sidebar to get to my website where you can learn what Scentsy is all about and look through the catalog at all the great products Scentsy has to offer.

This giveaway is open to US residents only, age 18 and older. It will run until Wednesday, September 30th, 2009 at Midnight. The winner will be announced on Friday, October 2nd, and will have until Sunday, October 4th to contact me, via email, to claim their prize, or another winner will be selected on Monday. The items will be shipped at my expense, via USPS.

To enter...

Please tell me (in the comments) what your favorite types of scents are, ie., florals, fruit, spices, baked goods, etc.

For additional entries...

* Please add an additional comment for each additional entry! The winner will be chosen by random.org, so make sure you don't leave all entries in one comment! *

- Tell me how often you use candles in your home.
- Tell me which Plug-In Warmer is your favorite.
- Follow my blog publicly on Google/Blogger.
- Post about this giveaway on your blog and link back here.
- Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway.

Good luck, and I look forward to reading all of your responses!

Faith at Work

2009-09-18T09:55:00.006-05:00

Literally.

I was having a conversation with one of my co-workers this morning about faith. He's a very philosophical person, always looking for the next big explanation for life, gravity, the possibility of aliens, etc. He's in his late 50's and has lived a good life by most standards... 2 kids, loves his wife, takes care of his family, and so on. He was raised Catholic and went to Catholic school his whole life. He's a genuinely good person, if ever there was one.

Through the course of our conversation, I got a glimpse into his own personal beliefs of God, humans, and science. He's very into science. If he sees some special on TV that tells him gravity will be "turned off" in 2012, he'll believe it (joke, of course). Anyway, you can imagine the dilemma somebody experiences when they were taught to believe in Jesus, but they also put a lot of stock in science. He has this "I guess we'll find out one day" attitude.

How scary that must be. I can't imagine living my life like that. I suppose it's because I am fortunate enough to have already experienced God's power in my own life, that the blinders have been removed and I am no longer capable of ignoring what I now know to embrace some other way of thinking. Even in my darkest days, when there have been times that I turned my back on God, I still knew what I was doing was wrong. I could never justify myself, or convince myself that I was right.

I'll be the first to admit, I don't know all the answers. I have tried to think of ways to make things like evolutionism and creationism fit together... that maybe there is some link where one ends and the other begins... but it just makes my head hurt. I'm okay with not knowing, because science doesn't know either. 500 years ago, we "knew" the Earth was flat. Imagine what we'll "know" in another 500 years.

"Blessed are those who believe without seeing," our Lord told Thomas, the Doubter. What matters is faith, and part of faith is trust. I trust that my God has a plan, and has all along, and that we are not here by accident. I am grateful to be part of that plan, and I hope that I am living my life in a way that people, like my co-worker, will be curious about my Hope, and not just settle for "finding out one day."

...

I encourage you guys to stop by my friend Jessica's blog today. She's starting a new feature today, called "Faith Note Fridays." I think we could all use a little encouragement, to inspire us to be an encouragement to others.

Have a lovely weekend!

A Fun Weeknight Excursion

2009-09-17T10:21:00.005-05:00

I love when we (the hubby and me) go places on a week night. We're usually so tired that we don't even consider leaving the house after we get home from work, but last night we went out anyway, and it was bunches of fun.

One of the things I've wanted to do before my candle party on Saturday, is to get something to put on one of the walls of my living room. It's the focal point of the room, and it's been empty since we moved in, as I'm very picky and wanted something very specific.

I wanted some kind of metal work art, circular, and around 3-4 feet wide. Last night we made the 30-minute drive to the nearest Hobby Lobby, and I found what I was looking for.

Mine is not exactly like this one, but it is very similar. It's about 2.5 feet in diameter. Mine has more of an elaborately designed edge around the whole thing. It's really pretty, and I think it's going to look great on this wall. Not to mention, I had a 40% off coupon! It was a steal!

After Hobby Lobby, we went to Shoney's and had the breakfast bar for dinner. Fun was had by all!

I do my best work under pressure...

2009-09-16T09:57:00.006-05:00

That is my excuse for my habit of procrastination. It was my mantra throughout college. I think I said it so much that it turned out to be true. I became the master of starting a paper the night before it was due and working through the night, and ending up with a fairly decent final product.

Too bad that hasn't spilled over into real life. Oh, the procrastination did. My cup runneth over with procrastination. However, my mastery of playing catch-up did not accompany it.

My Scentsy Party is this weekend, and I have SO MUCH I need to get done beforehand. I told myself I would start Monday after work, and do a little each day after work until Saturday. Like scrub my floors, weed the garden and many other mindless tasks that will make my house look nice before my big day.

Today is it. I can't put this stuff off any longer. I will go home today and begin the de-funking of my house. WRONG.

I called the dentist's office today to make an appointment for my 6-month check-up/cleaning. The girl told me they don't have any openings until November... unless I want to take the 4pm cancellation they have this afternoon. I would have been stupid not to take it. So I took it, and that's what I'll be doing after work, instead of cleaning my house.

The lesson to be learned here: When you put off doing unpleasant things, something inevitably comes up that gives you even less time than your under-pressure self needs to finish; often something else unpleasant, like a dentist appointment.

I love my husband.

2009-09-15T10:00:00.005-05:00

I always have. Please, don't think this is a new development. However, the phone call I got in my office yesterday was the sweetest reminder.

"I saved a mouse's life today." I couldn't imagine what he was talking about, so I waited for the rest of the story.

Apparently, Travis and his assistant keep a stash of snacks in their office, and lately they were noticing little holes being chewed through their bags/boxes of goodies. They reported this to the Orkin man, who responded by laying out sticky traps around the area.

It worked. Yesterday, Travis went to work and found a little baby mouse, who was very stuck to the little pad, with only a peanut (bait) to snack on until he was discovered. Being the tender-hearted animal lover that he is, he couldn't believe the other guys around the office expected him to kill the poor thing. So he Googled how to remove a mouse from a sticky trap.

Vegetable oil is apparently the lubricant of choice, but having only lotion at his disposal, he would have to improvise. He grabbed a pair of gloves, took the mouse outside, still attached to the trap, and proceeded to give the little guy a massage. The mouse didn't even fight him or try to bite or snap. He sat there, like he knew he had an ally, patiently waiting to be set free. Travis rubbed his little belly, feet and tail with the lotion, until finally he was free and skittered away.

My poor husband was given grief the rest of the day for this. He works in athletics, with big dudes who would gladly step on a tiny mouse, just to feel big about themselves. Not my honey. That cute little mouse needed his help, and he answered the call... and he'd do it again if he had to.

Un. Be. Lievable.

2009-09-14T08:08:00.005-05:00

I'll be writing about something that half of you are probably also writing about today... Kanye West stealing Taylor Swift's thunder last night at the MTV Video Music Awards.

Here's the video, for those of you living under a rock...

Can you believe that? I know. Unbelievable. Poor Beyonce even looked at him like he lost his mind, and didn't want anybody to think she had any part of his outburst. Kanye was escorted out of the building after he left the stage, and poor Taylor was seen crying her eyes out backstage. Thankfully, Beyonce, being the classy lady she is, gave Taylor her moment back.

If everybody wasn't already tired of Kanye West after he called himself "the voice of this generation" last year, I sure hope they are all tired of him now. On my drive in to work this morning, I heard every local radio station declare war, vowing not to play his music. Good for them. Finally, the good guy, or girl, finishes first.

And now, for the adorable video that Taylor won her award for in the first place. I love this song!

The Man in the Hallway

2009-09-11T08:14:00.003-05:00

I doubt he knew my name. We would pass one another in the hallway everyday, and we would always politely say hello. I'm sure if he saw me in public, he would recognize me from work, but he wouldn't know my name. I knew his though. Mr. Jimmie we called him around here. He was the sweet, little old maintenance man, probably in his 60's. He never talked much, save for his hallway courtesies. We all knew him though, even if he didn't know us.

I guess looking back, it makes sense. His countenance was always heavy. Sure, he smiled at everybody he encountered, but his face quickly melted back into it's default downtrodden position. He always seemed deep in thought, as if trying to solve a Rubik's Cube in his mind. Who could have known the burden his heart carried around? He had only three months left, according to the doctors.

He knew better though. He wasn't going to leave this earth that way. Not him. Some people were okay with the fate cancer handed them... withering away until one day the flame just burned out. Not Mr. Jimmie. He was going to go on his own terms. "He put a pistol in his mouth." That's how I found out, yesterday morning as I walked by a group of maintenance men, and into my office. The man in the hallway was gone.

...

His obituary was printed in the paper this morning. He left behind a wife of 38 years, as well as many children and grandchildren. I cannot imagine feeling despair so deep that ending my own life is the best option I can think of. I cannot imagine the pain and hopelessness he must have lived with, and I hope that I did not miss an opportunity to somehow shine a bit of light into his world.

Family Dance Party

2009-09-10T07:46:00.003-05:00

I'm back at work, and needed some comic relief to help me look past this pile of work that was waiting for me... so I made my own. Enjoy!

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

Still. Friggin. Sick.

2009-09-08T08:16:00.003-05:00

I'm back at work today, and I'm not holding up as well as I thought I would. I'm going to visit Employee Health soon, and they may send me back home. Ugh. I'll update you guys later. Thanks for the prayers and encouragement.

UPDATE 11:30 AM - I'm home. The doctor examined me and said she doesn't think I have any form of flu, but that I need to go home and rest this off... until Thursday! Having been home sleeping the last 4 days, that wasn't the answer I was looking for. I'm not looking forward to playing catch up when I do return to work. Oh well. I refuse to think about that right now. I'm doing what I was told, and that's all I can do. Now I'm going curl up on the sofa with the pups and watch the rain. That should help me sleep.

I should totally be my sick self for Halloween.

2009-09-04T07:53:00.003-05:00

It's that scary. Hair a mess, clogged/dripping nose, a cough that you would only expect from a smoker of 50 years, and I probably smell... but I wouldn't know... because I can't smell.

Yesterday, I decided to tough it out and go to work, because I didn't have a fever, and I needed to get a lot done. I'm glad I did. I worked extra hard, so in case I developed a fever today, I could stay home. Sure enough, the hubby took my temperature this morning... 101.6.

So I'm home. Alone. Tonight is Tulane's first game, and Travis will be crazy busy all day. I will cry if I have to miss our first game. I hope my fever breaks before then, and I may go for a little while, wrapped in my Tulane blanket, sitting far enough away from everyone so as to not spread the plague.

I'm off to bed, with my Gilmore Girls DVDs in hand. I'm hoping to finish Season 1 today, and maybe start Season 2. Breakfast... mmm.. cottage cheese and a fruit cup of mandarin oranges will hit the spot.

Enjoy the 3-day weekend yall. I'll be back here Tuesday, and hopefully, I'll be feeling much better.

I Haz a Bug

2009-09-03T08:35:00.005-05:00

I'm sick. Again. And I'm at work... sick. Again. I should have taken this LOLCAT's advice...

It's just a cold. I'm semi-thankful for it. I'll take this kind of sickness any day over some kidney-related illness that puts me in the hospital. The kidney is doing fairly well lately, thank God.

Anyway, I'll be munching on Tylenol and Halls Vitamin C drops all day. Hopefully I'll feel better tomorrow, and I'll have something remotely interesting to talk about.

2009 Kidney Walk

2009-09-02T09:08:00.014-05:00

I will be participating in the National Kidney Foundation's Kidney Walk at Audubon Park this year, on November 8th. Some of you may remember that I did this for the first time last year. It was a really wonderful experience, and I look forward to being part of it every year that I am able.

When I look back to this time last year, and I think about where I was emotionally, regarding my kidney disease, I am astonished at the changes in my thought process. I have made great strides toward a healthy viewpoint of life and how I should spend mine... and I don't intend to spend it full of fear and worry.

God put me on this earth for a purpose. I may already be aware of that purpose, and I may not. Nevertheless, I know that purpose is not to sit around and wonder why certain things have befallen me. I believe Jesus said it best...

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"

Matthew 6:27 NIV

Having kidney disease is a scary thing, and so is having a kidney transplant and knowing that you will need another one some day. But when you come together with people from every walk of life, and they share in your experience, your struggles, your joys, and your milestones, you draw strength from one another. I feel so fortunate to be able to be a part of that each year.

Last year, my fundraising goal was $200, and with the generosity of so many family members, friends and co-workers, we exceeded that goal by almost $100, and the New Orleans Kidney Walk raised more than $14,000 from the entire event. This year, I am setting my sights even higher. My goal is to raise $500 for the National Kidney Foundation. All donations are tax deductible, and the funds are used in their mission to continue life-saving research and provide support to families who are affected by kidney disease.

I hope that everyone who comes across my blog will do two things...

1. Please consider sponsoring me in this year's Kidney Walk. You can click on the picture in my left sidebar for more information.

2. Even more importantly, please consider becoming an organ donor. My life was forever changed by somebody who put that little red heart on their driver's license, and I know there are countless others who could say the same. More than 100,000 people are waiting for organs. The organs from one person can save eight lives. You can get more information on organ donation and even register as a donor by clicking the "Donate Life" picture on my right sidebar. It takes less then 5 minutes to register.

Thanks so much for allowing me to share something that is very near and dear to my ~~kidney~~ heart... Oh come on, you didn't expect me to go this whole post without at least one kidney joke, did you?!

Weather-Induced Nostalgia

2009-09-01T08:54:00.007-05:00

My favorite time of the year is approaching... cold. It doesn't matter to me if cold happens in the fall, winter, or spring. I just love when it's cold. We have a slight cold front in town right now, and it's teasing me, giving me little bits of excitement about what's to come.

I think my love for cold weather comes from about 4 years ago. Hurricane Katrina forced me to relocate to Ruston, LA to go to school at Louisiana Tech while UNO was closed. It was September, and up there, cold came a little earlier than in New Orleans. I hate to talk about Katrina like I am grateful for it, but my time in Ruston was one of the best times of my life, and wouldn't have happened otherwise. I suppose I associate the cool weather with that time, as the good memories and emotions from that time flood back to the forefront of my mind when I feel a chill in the air.

Ruston is where I was on my own for the first time in my life. I had a great job as a child care worker at a home for troubled kids. I rented my own house. I paid my own bills... rent, utilities, car insurance, cell phone (wow, I wish that was all I had to pay now!). I got my first laptop - which was a big deal to me back then. Last, but certainly not least, I met the man I would marry - who, coincidentally, was evacuated from the same university I was.

In retrospect, I don't think the months we spent together in Ruston could have been much more ideal. We were both away from our families. We were both pretty much hurricane refugees. We were both going to college. We both had part-time jobs, so when we weren't working or going to school, we were absolutely inseparable. All we had was each other in a strange new place. We learned so much about each other in that time, and we both learned that we never wanted to not be together. He was my best friend and I was his. When it came time to return to New Orleans, we were going together. And together we stayed.

We've gone back to Ruston once or twice, to visit friends and see the place where our love first blossomed. It was bittersweet. It's amazing how those emotions come rushing back. Being there made me wish we were still there, that we could have some how frozen our lives in that span of time, living there forever, care free, in our young, exciting love, with nobody else, just us.

Things are different now. Not worse... different. There is a mortgage, and full-time jobs to pay that mortgage, and families that lay claim to our weekends, and one day there will be kids. All these things demand our time and seem to want to pull us apart. But it is this sweet cool chill in the air outside that reminds us who we are when all these new things are stripped away. We are a boy and a girl who are completely, madly, giggly in love.

No Case of the Mondays Here

2009-08-31T07:56:00.005-05:00

First of all, let me save you guys 100 calories and $.75... don't buy Yoplait's "Cinnamon Roll" yogurt. I really should have brought breakfast back-up before deciding to toss that in my purse on my way out the door this morning, without ever having tried it. Yuck! It tastes like cinnamon flavored soap.

So you know what you're avoiding.

Welcome to another week! I woke up to the sound of my dog [quite unusually] peeing on a box in the corner of my bedroom. In spite of that, I'm having a great morning. Travis and I spent a while yesterday de-funking the house. We did about 2 hours of yard work, making the garden pretty by adding dark red mulch over what the previous owners decided to throw in the flower bed... rocks. We also scrubbed the kitchen from top to bottom. I HAVE TO have a clean kitchen before I go to bed on Sunday night. I don't know where this compulsion comes from, but it makes my whole week better if I clean the house Sunday night, and don't have to worry about it during the week when I'm coming home each day from a 10-hour work day/commute. Being an ex-psych major, I'm guessing it has something to do with my need for control... and in my crazy life, the cleanliness/dirtiness of my house sometimes feels like the only thing I can control.

I woke up a little early today, so I got up and straightened my hair. I only actually do this about once a month lately, but I feel so much better when I do. It's nice to feel pretty. For that reason, I'm proposing that us girls make a resolution. For the next week, we are going to do one selfish thing each day... something that makes us feel pretty and more confident. A few examples might be styling your hair, waxing/plucking your eyebrows, or painting your fingernails and toenails. Now I realize there are some girls who just plain won't leave the house without having this stuff done everyday. If you fall into that category, my hat is off to you. I simply can't dream of keeping up with you. But if you are like me, then taking a small amount of time each day to pamper yourself and make yourself feel pretty will do wonders for how you feel. So let's do this together, for one week. Tomorrow, I'm going to tackle these bush-man eyebrows of mine. Who knows? Maybe somebody will feel inspired to ask for a raise, a promotion, or accept a date proposal! I'd love to hear your thoughts on what makes you feel pretty too!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I spent Saturday with my mother, who came over for a visit while the hubby was at work. Of course, I took that opportunity to make fried green tomatoes. They are so good. I wish I was tired of them, but I'm not. I'm actually kind of salivating as we speak. Also, I'm craving tuna salad this morning... weird. No comments asking if I'm pregnant. I'm definitely NOT.

Make it a great week!

Spaghetti & Meat Sauce with Fried Green Tomatoes

2009-08-28T11:41:00.005-05:00

Last night the mister and I cooked a delicious dinner. We are spaghetti freaks. Not because that's all we know how to cook, as you may suspect, but because we just REALLY like our spaghetti recipe. We probably make it every other week. So here goes...

You'll need...

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 large onion
4 stalks of celery
1 bell pepper
1 tbsp. minced garlic
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 small can of tomato sauce
1 small can of tomato paste
1 small can of mushrooms
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp. dried parsley
1 tbsp. dried basil
1 tbsp. dried oregano
salt & pepper to taste

Chop onion, celery, and bell pepper. Saute in olive oil with garlic until tender. Add ground beef. Brown and drain. Add tomatoes, sauce, paste, mushrooms and bring to a boil. Add dry ingredients and reduce heat. Simmer for 30 minutes. Best served over angel hair pasta. Top with your favorite grated cheese.

...

These fried green tomatoes are ridiculously good. I can't wait until green tomatoes go out of season, because I've been eating these 2-3 times a week, and I probably gain 5 lbs. each time. I like the way they taste all by themselves, but you can also eat them with ranch dressing, or whatever your favorite dipping sauce is. They are sooo good... and they are super easy to make!

You'll need...

firm green tomatoes
eggs
cornmeal
vegetable oil
salt & pepper

Pour about an inch of vegetable oil into a skillet over medium heat. Slice tomatoes into 1/4 inch slices. Beat eggs together and dip tomatoes slices into egg, then batter the tomatoes in cornmeal on both sides. Place into hot oil. Fry each side about 3-4 minutes, or until golden brown. Lay them out over a layer of paper towels to absorb the excess oil. Add salt & pepper as desired.

...

I hope yall have a wonderful weekend! We just found out that Travis will have the day off this Sunday, as Tulane is shutting down the athletic building to sterilize it, now that the football team has recovered from the plague. This is the first nice thing the swine flu has done in its wake, and we're going to enjoy a relaxing day off together, knock on wood. See you guys Monday!

In Sickness and In Health

2009-08-27T08:39:00.009-05:00

I had to go to a doctor's appointment yesterday after work. While I was sitting in the waiting room, I noticed a couple that was sitting a few feet away. It was a husband and wife, probably in their 60's. The wife was wearing a neck brace and couldn't move very well. After a few minutes, I saw the husband turn toward her and very gently remove her neck brace, after which I could see a very large scar on the back of her neck. I assume she recently had some type of surgery.

Anyway, she starts giving him these directions... right, left, up, up, down. I realize that he is trying to scratch an itch for her. After she is relieved of the itch, he smiles sweetly at her and gently puts the neck brace back on, and goes back to reading his newspaper, while she watches Dr. Phil on the waiting room TV.

How comforting it must be to have him faithfully by her side, as he once promised many years ago, "in sickness and in health..." - ready to scratch an elusive itch or anything else she may call upon him to do in her time of need. That's the way it was meant to be.

That moment of kindness brightened my day, and made me very grateful for my precious husband, who is always there when I need him, and has been there "in sickness" many times already. He's my puzzle piece.

AT&T, You Are a Cruel Mistress

2009-08-26T08:13:00.009-05:00

I've been a loyal AT&T customer since I was 17. I got my first cell phone for Christmas, 2 months before I turned 18. It was an old Nokia with the black and green display screen and the monotone ring tone... and what a ring tone it was!

That boosted my cool points by like +5 to have a song play when the phone rang in public. Don't judge me. We all did it, and we all silently hoped our phone would ring at the mall when that cute boy was behind us in line at Taco Bell, so he could hear our phones beep their way through the chorus of "Iris" by the Goo Goo Dolls, and immediately ask for our phone numbers because of course that alone made us cool and beautiful and the kind of girl any sensible guy would be proud to have on his arm.

I digress...

In the past 7 years of being an AT&T customer, I have probably gone through somewhere between 5-7 phones. It's hard to keep count. Because I'm not one who ~~can afford~~ feels the need to be cool and keep up with technology's latest fads, I usually don't get the popular phones until they've been out for a while and are on sale, ie., the Motorola Razor - in pink. I'm pretty sure this phone made its debut at $200, but I didn't get it until it was $50.

Now saving money is all fine and good, but the problem is that I tire of phones quickly, mostly because I damage them very quickly. So while I may not buy a new phone until it's 12 months into its current reign as King of Phones, I still get bored with it at the same time as everybody who has had it from the beginning. This particular phone was in my back pocket when I sat down on a concrete porch and cracked the screen, less then a month after I got it.

My current phone is definitely the coolest one I've had yet. It's a Samsung Propel and it's the first phone I've owned with a full QWERTY keyboard. It's also the one on the Ozzy Osbourne commercials, which gives me another +5 cool points.

When I got this new phone last year, the excitement was short-lived, as it always is, because I got this one at the same time that I got a new puppy. All it took was leaving it on the bed for 5 minutes, before those little sharp teeth sunk in and carried it away. By the time I got it back, it was too late. Adorable as they were, those little tooth marks ruined my love for my new phone, and had me already on the lookout for my next one.

When I bought my Propel, the iPhone was just getting off the ground. At a whopping $600 during its first few months, I didn't even consider it. Now there's a new kid on the block... the iPhone 3G-S. You know what that means? Nobody wants the little old regular iPhone anymore, so they're only $99! Unfortunately, I'm not eligible for upgrade for another year, so I'd have to pay $200 extra.

All that to say that my day will be spent on the phone with AT&T today, trying to convince them that as a loyal customer of 7 years who has never missed or been late for a payment, and has never asked for anything, they owe it to me to waive the early upgrade fee and let me pay $99 to buy an iPhone, so that I can pay them an additional $20/month for the required data package. Win/Win for both sides, right?

Wish me luck!

Back in Action

2009-08-25T08:42:00.005-05:00

Thanks again for all of your happy thoughts yesterday. They truly kept me going during a day of craziness when I didn't think I had it in me to keep it together. I got all of the work done that I needed to. I almost didn't come in to work today to try and get some catch-up rest, but I really got the bulk of my work load done yesterday, so I can relax today in my office and ~~not really do much~~ take it easy.

In other news, a sweet little lady came into my office yesterday and asked me if I knew anybody who would like to adopt a six-month-old rat terrier puppy! For those unaware, I currently have 2 rat terriers. As a matter of fact, all the dogs I've had my whole life have been rat terriers. They are really an adorable breed if you can make it through that first year of hyper-activity and furniture destruction. They have the most distinct little personalities.

Boogie & Layla

So, I went home and told Travis about the puppy that was offered to me. As I expected, he told me no. I'm glad. I wanted him to say no. We don't need another dog, but I needed a reason to tell the lady. I will be content with my two little beasts.

--insert blog post title here--

2009-08-24T08:09:00.011-05:00

I've been feeling mega-crappy since last night, and I'm doing all I can not to hurl all over my desk/computer/keyboard this morning. I would have just called in sick, but I've got tons of work to do. I'm going to try and leave as soon as I'm caught up. My apologies for this sorry excuse of a post.

So since you have no pearls of wisdom to read from me today, go play with this.

EDIT: 8:50 AM - Wanna know the nastiest thing in the world to puke up? Green Tea. Just in case you were curious.

EDIT: 9:56 AM - It's magic how just giving in and ralphing makes you feel better. I think I'm on the road to recovery. Hopefully this was just a little 24-hour bug. My appetite is already starting to return and I can't wait for lunch. Thanks for the kind words!

EDIT: 10:10 AM - You know what's NOT magic? When various co-workers come into your office telling you, "Oh, your color is coming back. I can tell you must be feeling better, because earlier, you looked awful." Thanks.

EDIT: 1:50 PM - I finally was able to eat a little for lunch. Hope I can hold it down. I was able to get enough done at work that I'm about to schlump my way home. Thanks again for the well wishes!

Friday FTW

2009-08-21T09:09:00.005-05:00

Today is a particularly exciting Friday for me. There's a lot going on, and I'm so ready to get my weekend started!

This is the last week my hubby has to worry about football camp. I think regular practices begin Monday, and his schedule will be much more conducive to marriage. And our first game is only 2 weeks away! I'm looking forward to that.

Since he will be working until about 10pm tonight, and since it's the weekend, I'm treating myself to a take-out dinner of sushi. There's this really great place in LaPlace called "Ronin." It's a delicious Hibachi house, and they make the BEST sushi. I've got their number stored in my phone, and if I time it just right and call them as I'm getting on the spillway, I get there right as they are packaging it up, then I go home and put on a good movie, and try to eat while 4 little eyes follow my every move, praying and hoping against hope that maybe, just maybe I'll drop one little piece.

After my dinner adventure, my Scentsy consultant, Tammy, is coming over at 7pm. She's going to bring all the scent samples and products for me to look at, in addition to the invitations for the party. I'm getting so excited about all this. I can't wait until the party, and I can't wait until after the party because I think I'm going to become a consultant too! How fun will that be?!

Tomorrow I'll be doing yard work. Not fun, but very fulfilling because of the beautiful results. I went to Home Depot last weekend and bought a ton of mulch for the garden in the front yard. The previous owners had rocks as mulch, and I don't like the way it looks, so I'll be covering that all day Saturday. Thank God my father-in-law discovered and removed the poison ivy from my rose bushes. I didn't even know what the stuff looked like. That would have been bad.

Sunday is my BFF's daughter's 1st birthday party, for which I'll again be making my cupcake tree. I got her some REALLY cute little outfits. It's a lot more fun shopping for babies than it is shopping for yourself. Tiny pairs of jeans only cost like $5! I can barely get a pair of jeans for myself for $30, but for that much I got her like 4 little outfits, plus a pair of shoes! Much more rewarding.

I hope everybody has a great weekend. I'll be back Monday, and I'll either be posting beautiful pictures of my completed front yard, ranting about rain that will not cease to pour from the heavens, or recounting a hilarious story of defeat.

Cheers!

Self Help at its Worst Best

2009-08-20T09:23:00.011-05:00

Dear Self,

It is highly illogical to be working overtime everyday with the goal of paying off credit card bills, while simultaneously using your overtime pay as an excuse to do more shopping. Stop it. If you want your bills to be paid off by Christmas, sacrifices must be made.

Sincerely,
Self

...

Dear Self,

Quit trying to be pretentious by saying that you drink wine, when the truth is that you hate wine, and instead you fill your wine glasses with Minute Maid Pomegranate Blueberry. It's okay to not like wine. That doesn't make you less cool.

Eating sushi with mad chopstick skills doesn't make you cool either, but at least you're not faking your enjoyment of that one. High five.

Sincerely,
Self

...

Dear Self,

Every now and then, your husband is going to willingly spend 2 hours of his evening, after a long day of work, folding and hanging 5 loads of clean laundry, asking only to watch "Jurassic Park" as he goes about his task, while you nap on the living room couch watching 2 hours of "Octomom - Unseen Footage." When he is finished, it's a very good idea to praise him and thank him for his assistance, rather than storm into the closet and demand an explanation for the empty laundry basket that was left on the floor in the wrong spot. Statistics show he is much more likely to repeat this desired behavior when rewarded and not scolded.

Sincerely,
Self

"Three Rivers"

2009-08-19T08:11:00.009-05:00

Last night I was watching Big Brother, and during the commercial break, CBS showed a preview for their new show that will be airing this fall, called "Three Rivers." It's set in a Pittsburgh transplant hospital, and attempts to show the 3 different perspectives of the transplant process - the donor/donor's family, the recipient/recipient's family, and the medical/surgical team.

A little catch-up for my fabulous new readers who may be unaware: I had a kidney transplant 6 years ago, at the age of 18. I know this doesn't make me an expert, but having spent the last 6 years of my life learning all that I can about caring for my new kidney and getting active in my community with promoting organ donation and kidney disease awareness, I am very aware of the fears that are held by the general public when it comes to organ donation.

In this preview, we're shown a brief scene where a doctor tells a brain-dead woman's mother, "No one ever regrets saying 'yes,' but 90% of people who say 'no' are haunted by that decision." Now of course I'm for organ donation, but guilting patients and their families into making that decision is something that does not happen... or at least it shouldn't, ethically speaking. Not only that, but in an organ procurement situation, it is unethical for the doctor who is treating the potential recipient to have any contact whatsoever with the potential donor. As a matter of fact, the recipient and the donor are almost never in the same city, much less the same hospital.

They aren't really breaking any new ground with this concept. "ER" did a few transplant episodes that dealt with the ethical concerns of transplant. This show is just concentrating on it exclusively. It looks very well written and artfully done. Shoot, tears even well up in my eyes at the end of the preview when the mother asks to hear her daughter's heartbeat in the man who now possesses it. But these TV execs need to be careful when they are using fiction to portray reality - a reality of life and death for thousands of people. The average Joe has no idea what goes on in these kinds of situations, and he will watch this show, take it as fact, and make a decision about what to do with his organs as a result of it.

I'm afraid that this show will feed people's fear that if they become an organ donor, doctors will allow them to die, in order to give an organ to somebody who "deserves" it more. If you ask a random group of people who are not organ donors, why they aren't, this is the #1 answer given, especially among those over 50 years of age, who are taking hundreds of healthy organs to their graves everyday as a result.

In this preview, we see an interview with the cast and producers. The Executive Producer says, "The theme of the show has to do with second chances... who gets them, who deserves them, what you do with them." Deserves? So if a guy comes in the ER who was shot in a bad drug deal, and he's fighting for his life, but there's a 6-year-old girl who could live if she had his heart, we're going to let him die because the little girl deserves it more? What if there's a woman who's a better match for this heart than the 6-year-old girl, but she has a drinking problem? Do we skip her name on the list because we don't think she'll "take care" of the gift she was given? I know that is not what is being said, or even implied, but that is the way it will be interpreted by a person who is fearful of becoming a donor. Interpretation is key, so let's err on the side of caution, rather than fear for entertainment's sake.

I do plan to watch the show when it airs, and I hope I am wrong. I just worry, with 103,013 (as of 8/11/09) people on waiting lists for organs in the United States, we don't need to stir up unnecessary fear in the public that will shrink the donor pool even more, for the sake of ratings and entertainment.

...

What do you guys think about this? Obviously, as the fortunate recipient of a life-saving, cadaveric transplant, I have strong feelings about it, but I would really like to hear other opinions!

EDIT: This post inspired me to place a gadget for organ donation information on my blog. 3 bonus points for anybody else who steals this idea and runs with it!

My, How Things have Changed

2009-08-18T08:22:00.006-05:00

Nothing much going on today... just another work day, content in my routine. Since I don't have any of my own words to bore you with, here's one of my favorite stories.
"My, How Things have Changed"

One evening a grandson was talking to his grandmother about current events. The grandson asked his grandmother what she thought about the shootings at schools, the computer age, and just things in general.

The Grandma replied, "Well, let me think a minute. I was born before television, penicillin, polio shots, frozen foods, Xerox, contact lenses, Frisbees and the pill. There was no radar, credit cards, laser beams or ball-point pens.

Man had not invented pantyhose, air conditioners, dishwashers, clothes dryers, and the clothes were hung out to dry in the fresh air and man hadn't yet walked on the moon.

Your Grandfather and I got married first, and then lived together. Every family had a father and a mother. Until I was 25, I called every man older than I, 'Sir'- and after I turned 25, I still called policemen and every man with a title, "Sir.' We were before gay-rights, computer-dating, dual careers, daycare centers, and group therapy. Our lives were governed by the Ten Commandments, good judgment, and common sense.

We were taught to know the difference between right and wrong and to stand up and take responsibility for our actions. Serving your country was a privilege; living in this country was a bigger privilege. We thought fast food was what people ate during Lent.

Having a meaningful relationship meant getting along with your cousins. Draft dodgers were people who closed their front doors when the evening breeze started. Time-sharing meant time the family spent together in the evenings and weekends - not purchasing condominiums.

We had never heard of FM radios, tape decks, CDs, electric typewriters, yogurt, or guys wearing earrings. We listened to the Big Bands, Jack Benny, and the President's speeches on our radios. And I don't ever remember any kid blowing his brains out listening to Tommy Dorsey.

If you saw anything with 'Made in Japan' on it, it was junk. The term 'making out' referred to how you did on your school exam.

Pizza Hut, McDonald's, and instant coffee were unheard of. We had 5 & 10-cent stores where you could actually buy things for 5 and 10 cents. Ice cream cones, phone calls, rides on a streetcar, and a Pepsi were all a nickel. And if you didn't want to splurge, you could spend your nickel on enough stamps to mail 1 letter and 2 postcards.

You could buy a new Chevy Coupe for $600 but who could afford one? Too bad, because gas was 11 cents a gallon.

In my day, "grass" was mowed, "coke" was a cold drink, "pot" was something your mother cooked in, and "rock music" was your grandmother's lullaby. "Aids" were helpers in the Principal's office, "chip" meant a piece of wood, "hardware" was found in a hardware store, and "software" wasn't even a word.

And we were the last generation to actually believe that a lady needed a husband to have a baby. No wonder people call us "old and confused" and say there is a generation gap.

And I'm only 58 years old."

My Favorite Food

2009-08-17T08:57:00.012-05:00

In case any of you are dying to break into my online accounts and steal my information, it will be of great help to know my answer to that "Security Question." My favorite food is Greek Salad. There, now you know how much money I don't have in the bank. Disappointed? Yeah, me too. Sorry.

With Travis's insane work schedule comes a silver lining, for both of us. You see, during the 3 weeks of football camp, he gets fed breakfast, lunch, and dinner at Bruff (Tulane's cafeteria). I don't think we've been to a fine dining restaurant that he likes as much as he likes this place. Sad, I know.

Anyway, the perk for me in all of this is that I don't have to cook for 3 weeks! I refuse to cook just for myself, so I get to make the things I love that he hates. Greek Salad falls into this category. Here's how the magic happens...

Salad Ingredients

1 head of romaine lettuce
1 tomato
1/4 of a small red onion
1 handful of sliced black olives
2 square inches of feta cheese

Dressing Ingredients

1 whole cucumber
2 tbsp. mayonnaise
2 tbsp. sour cream
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1/4 tbsp. dried parsley
salt & pepper

Chop the lettuce, tomato, and onion and toss together in a bowl. Add olives. Cut feta block into little squares and add to salad. Place all dressing ingredients in a blender, or food processor, or any similar food pulverizing device. Puree until it becomes liquid. Pour on top of salad. Salt & pepper to taste. Enjoy!

I'm totally having this for dinner tonight. It's so delicious. And it's VERY healthy! I'm pretty sure this is a whole day's servings of veggies on the food pyramid, or what ever geometric shape we're supposed to listen to these days.

_________________________________________________

On a side note, here's a picture of my cupcake creation that I told you I was planning to make last week. I made it for my mother-in-law's 50th birthday party, and it was a hit! This was my first attempt at experimenting with a frosting design applicator. Didn't it come out cute?!

Scentsy

2009-08-14T09:45:00.007-05:00

I am very excited to report that I am going to be hosting a Scentsy Party at my house next month! I ran across this company on the Internet recently, and I fell in love with their products! They sell flameless, wickless candles that smell divine.

The tons of beautiful designs and the more than 80 yummy smells are to die for. Who doesn't want their house to smell pretty? I don't know a girl who doesn't. I love walking into a person's home and being met at the door with a lovely scent. It makes me think of that person anytime I smell the same scent somewhere else. You can tell a lot about a person by the smells they like.

Walking into somebody's house and smelling dogs, or kitty litter boxes, or Cheeto slime from their kids... not so much. As a dog owner, I always worry about what my house smells like, because if it did ever begin to smell like dogs, I'd probably not notice... but other people would. So I'm always lighting candles and pouring fresh potpourri, just in case. How awesome to be able to flip a switch, and make my house smell nice, without have to worry about burning the place down?! Not only do nice smells make our home more cozy and pleasant for ourselves, but it makes the whole place that much more inviting for others.

In addition to the great smells, there are so many different burner designs, that they add to any decor. Here are a few of my favorites...

The "Dandy" Plug Warmer in Turquoise

The "Cyprus" Deluxe Warmer in Green

Aren't they totally cute?! You're not gonna find these in the Glade aisle at Walmart. I can't wait until my party. Girls, your invites are coming soon! If all goes well, I may even decide to become a Scentsy consultant for LaPlace!

They didn't sell them separated.

2009-08-13T09:50:00.011-05:00

This weekend, my mother-in-law turns 50. We're having a little party for her at my sister-in-law's house. We'll be breaking in the new propane frying pot, and having fried fish, shrimp, french fries, onions rings, hush puppies... the works. I'm so excited that I've started taking cholesterol medicine in preparation (just kidding, don't send any concerned emails). There's also going to be a chocolate birthday cake, as Travis's mother LOVES chocolate cake.

However, since a few of those in attendance don't care for chocolate, I was asked if I would mind preparing a "non-chocolate" dessert. I jumped at the opportunity to search for some really great recipes and learn how to make something new and delicious. After mulling it over, I decided I would make my first cheesecake. That was shot down pretty quickly with a phrase I've grown quite tired of hearing from my husband's family: "They're not gonna eat that."

Alas, this was true, and I knew it. I would have to find another occasion to showcase my culinary experiments. So, I decided to make something a little more simple, for the ~~un-sophisticated palates~~ the picky eaters in the family.

Because nothing says "Happy Birthday" like a color explosion, right?

I spent two hours last night separating the mixed multi-colored sprinkles into color groups... red, yellow, green, orange, and blue. See, this is how I make up for being creatively stiffled in my choice of dessert... I'm gonna artsy it up so it's at least the prettiest thing on the table - and this new little gadget is going to help me...

Cupcake Stand Target $10

I bought this adorable cupcake stand yesterday at Target. I also got a pack of food coloring. My plan is to make the cupcakes like normal, but go a little nuts with the decorating. I'm going to make 5 different colors of frosting... pink, light blue, light orange, pale yellow, and light green. I'm gonna use my fun little cupcake decorator tool to make cool effects when I frost them, as shown in the ones above. Then, I'm going to put the corresponding colors of sprinkles on each one, hence my need to separate them. I'm sure this is child's play for the average soccer mom, but hush and let me have my moment.

So last night, Travis got home around 9:30pm. I was just finishing up with the sprinkles, and he says, referring to his mom, "Don't worry. I'm gonna make sure she knows they didn't sell them separated."