The Biggest Loser

My company, CE Holt, announced a competition starting Monday 1/5. The Biggest Loser: CE Holt. Now, I am a fan of the show... in fact, I watch it every season. It is inspiring to watch the transformations that occur on that show... I root for my favorites and enjoy the friendly rivalries because they all want the best for each other (though some try to hide that fact). Either way, I watch it and get so excited at the beginning of the season... new contestants, new lives to learn about, the start of a new beginning.... but somewhere, by the end of the season, I am disillusioned. I have watched my "favorites" go from fat... to hot...and I am still sitting on my couch...

We all know how I love a good competition. Softball, board games, heck, a good game of Catch Phrase and I am pumped! I can get, ok am, pretty competitive. So the concept of a competition at work...to lose weight... and for $$$? (my boss is matching $ for $ all initial starting money...)... I AM IN. I happen to the one of the only girls involved... and may I say, out of the 4 girls involved, I can so cake walk over them.... but the boys. Hmmm, this poses a challenge. Some of these guys have a decent amount of weight to lose (who doesn't?). But it's a ton easier for guys.

Then you have the cheaters.... my 2 bosses... "the Jeffs" as I lovingly call them... have decided to cheat. Official starting weigh in is on Monday... so they are now eating everything in sight (4-5 meals a day). They call it "bulking up". Haha. I even saw one of them eat an entire dozen Krispee Kreme donuts this morning... 12 freakin' donuts! Wow... I may have underestimated these guys.

I tried intimidation... he wasn't intimidated. Then I tried guilting him by calling him a cheater... he challenged me to find the rule that said he couldn't (being that the rules currently are: show up, weigh in, try to lose weight... I didn't have much to go on). I tried to appeal to his sense of honesty.... "that's not really the way it is supposed to go.".... so he countered with reminding me of all of the nice things that I could do with the $800 cash prize for 1st place... (heck, I could do a lot with the $400 and $200 cash prizes for 2nd or 3rd too!) He said that his smoking habit would help his appeitite... I told him I could consider picking up a smoke or two for assistance....He then informed me that he had enough stowed away in his flex spending account for lipo and a tummy tuck....I... don't. So I told him that laxatives work well... until he reminded me that I still have a job to do... so I gathered up my pride (what was left) and simply told him it was ON!

So I give in....or rather, I will step up to the challenge issued....

But I have a few tricks up my sleeve. In our conversation I found out that he has never watched the show.... (nor does he have access to or read my blog) so he has never actually seen the "real" way contestants on the show have "cheated the scale" in the past without ever really "gaining" actual weight or fat....

But I have....(see Lee, I told you those hours spent watching the tv were worth something...)

So, starting tomorrow, I shall be packing on all of the "water weight" that I can possibly hold....Gallons and Gallons of water (an no Diet Coke :-0 so come Monday, I figure I should have about 5-6 spare lbs to help pad my % of weight lost...) Oh, did I mention that I can hold my pee for a really long time???

If ya can't beat em, join 'em.... :-)

GAME ON BOYS!

My morning...

So I feel like I tore a page out of the "Alexander's no-good, very bad, terribly horrible, Day" kid's book when I woke up this morning....

Late, yet chose to put the snooze on my alarm because....?

Then I leave, my husband still asleep in bed because he didn't have to go to work today until 2... lucky.

Go downstairs and realize that my cell phone is not charged because....shocker,.... I didn't plug it into the charger. Apparently, unlike studying in college where sleeping on my open books imported knowledge through osmosis, leaving a cell phone NEXT to the charger does... nothing.

On the to the garage, where I open the garage door, get into the Jeep, narrowly spilling my Diet Coke (which would have made for a Tragic morning...) and promptly back up....


and into our Corolla which is parked behind the Jeep and the outside of the garage door...

BAM!

at this point in time, a rational person would assume that I would cringe and think, oh crap!... but no... running through my mind at the time was "what the heck is in the way?"

ohhhh yeah,... our other freakin' car!

what did I do might you ask?

why I got out, moved the Corolla to the street for Lee to drive it to work, got back into the Jeep and drove it to work.

The Jeep doesn't seem to be damaged at all; but no, I did not even bother to look at the Corolla.

Yes folks, I'm that kind of wife... the one who'll hit your car and not even go back upstairs to tell ya about it. I suppose I should call Lee and tell him about the incident, in case there is a mark on the car and he automatically blames the punk neighborhood kids...

on second thought, maybe they're not such bad scapegoats after all.... ;-)

Merry Christmas!!

My new camera... the Nikon P80... I am so excited! Lee surprised me with it on Christmas morning after teasing me with smaller gifts leading up to it like a memory card, case, battery, etc... :-) I spent most of Christmas playing with it and taking pictures of everything. I am excited about its features and want to learn how to use it to take awesome pictures...
first up, I can't wait to take pictures out hiking and at a Checkers hockey game!

Lee got some original paperwork for his 83' Monte Carlo along with a ton of other stuff so I think he was pleased as well. More importantly, we got the chance to spend 3 pretty much uninterrupted days together without studying or work getting in the way! Ha, gotta hate work... :-)

We spent Christmas day with Lee's family and then went to the new Epicenter theatre's uptown with the Wax's and the Sutton's on Christmas night... Yes Man wasn't Marley and Me like I wanted to see, but it was pretty funny. On a side note, the Epicenter is awesome... a theater with a bar and full restaurant.... drinking, eating, and a movie? Awe-some.

Saturday had us getting our butts handed to us by Josh and Julie on Mariocart on Wii. You would think we would do well as we have a Wii... but oh no... this chick sure did come in dead last on about 85% of the races.... oh well, we will have to get the game and practice up! =)

All in all, a Merry Christmas!

Happy Birthday Crystal!

Those that know me, know how much I love my birthday... the highlight of "birthday week" (aka the week following Thanksgiving :-) ) This year started out awesome with these flowers that were delivered to work on my birthday. Followed by Nathan's hotdogs for dinner that night with Lee... and TICKETS TO SWITCHFOOT!

To realize why this was important, you have to know that 1) I love Switchfoot and Jon Foreman... 2) I have been nagging Lee to see Switchfoot in concert again before Jon goes solo for good and the band breaks up.... 3) Switchfoot has come and gone to Charlotte area 3 times in the past 4 years and we have not gone to see them for various reasons.

However, 12/12/08, it all came together... Switchfoot came to Charlotte as the opener for 3 Doors Down (which meant that I didn't realize they were coming) and was surpised to get the tickets! We hit up Rusan's for awesome sushi before heading to the concert. Lee got us actual seats which was nice so we could sit through the local opener who were ok, but not great. Then... Switchfoot!!

Their set list...
Gravity
Gone
a Tom Petty cover song
Beyonce's Crazy in Love cover as a preamble to their song "Gone"
This is Your Life (where Jon jumped up and sang from the stands.... literally 20 feet from where we were at)
Home
Dare You to Move
Meant to Live


Then we stood in line at Lee's suggestion to wait for autographs... felt silly? yeah, me and the screaming high school girls who jumped up and down... but worth it for 2 tickets signed by the band? heck yeah!!!!

3 Doors Down finished up the night with a set of hits... some old, some new... but all pretty good.

Date Night In...

Lee didn't have to study tonight so we made some awesome portabello mushroom linguini and went to get hot chocolate from Dunkin'. Then it was desserts from the Fresh Market.... can you say tiramisu and cappacino mousse?? MMMM!

Oh, and we rocked out a gingerbread house too.... yeah, that's us as gingerbread snowmen in front.... note the candy work... that's all me. Lee piped the icing and was pretty proud of his handiwork as well :-)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, Thanksgiving is a time to gather around with family, watch football, have a fire in the firepit (if you're at my house that is)... and of course, EAT! This year I cooked up some fantastic foods... and then proved that I can be OCD as I insisted on taking pictures of the spread before we dug in... :-) SO here they are... for all 2 of you that read this (that's right mom.... for you too :-))

Happy Thanksgiving!

Fun Weekend

Well, I hadn't blogged about our awesome weekend due to the enormous amount of "tagged" facebook photos from our Halloween night party at Chaise and Heather's and and the following day's Homecoming extravaganza. However, I have found 2 of our friends Danielle and Rob (who hopefully are too busy to check this blog and see the pics) that I am quite confident have not made it to the facebook world. The first is of Danielle who was tired of walking... so Lee carried her... the second of her husband Rob who was "reading" while his newborn daughter "napped." Them being new parents and all the tiredness is acceptable... yet still amusing :-)
Now I know what you're thinking... and you may feel free to leave all hatemail to Lee's email address. I just do what I can to make sure to help my friends to be seen in the best light possible... little Anna Stuart... this one's for you for all of the pics your parents have put up of you...haha...Rob and Danielle...We love you guys!




Also, for anyone interested.... these pics are waaaay more exciting that the snore-fest CU Homecoming football game in which CU LOST by more than FORTY points. Yes, that's right, we can't even win a game that is supposed to be rigged to go our way....

Anyways, outside of the awesome weekend in late October, it's late November now and Thanksgiving quickly approaches (gulp). There is so much to do, and so little time...even less so the more time I spend on this freakin' computer.

Happy Thanksgiving! Pics of the family shindig festivities at the Saunders' household to come... be afraid, be very afraid =)

Tag...

November 7, 2008

I've been tagged.

10 years ago:
1. I was at Chapel Field High School, probably in our new batting cage doing "winter practices."
2. I was learning to square dance to raise money for our trip to Florida.
3. I was the "new kid" and had just met Koop, the Vogels, and Big Red.
4. I still fit into my favorite pair of green corduroys.... don't hate.
5. I worked at Dunkin' Donuts and drove a big blue minivan... you know you're jealous.

Five things on my To-Do List today:
1. Pack for the retreat I am going on in less than 4 hours... yet I continue to play online?
2. Get the oil changed in the Jeep.
3. Watch last night's Gray's Anatomy and Wednesday's The Ultimate Fighter.
4. Start planning for Thanksgiving and hittin' up the grocery store.
5. Clean out my email inbox.

Five things that I would do if I were a millionaire:
1. Buy Lee the car of his dreams.
2. Pay for our house.
3. Buy me another Jeep Wrangler :-)
4. Plan a trip to see the west coast (Vegas, Cali, Seattle, COLORADO!)... probably in the winter so I can ski in Vail.
5. Take a vacation to Africa for a safari and then onto Europe on a culinary tour.

5 Places I have lived:
1. Wappinger, New York... home of the Indians, parades, and the mosque where they let the cows from the farm next door block cars in the driveway.
2. Buies Creek, North Carolina.... come on now, NOTHING beats livin in the "Crack."
3. Pineville, North Carolina... from my "rich" days workin' as a bartender.... makin' the big bucks and living close to Ballantyne where the rich folks live...
4. Colorado Springs, Colorado... no really.... I'm lying.
5. Charlotte, North Carolina... wouldn't be so interesting except for that it's where we bought our first house, got our dogs, and started out life together!

5 Jobs I've had:
1. Donut seller extradonaire:... that's right, you may have mocked me, but you loved the free donut perks that went along with workin' at Dunkin' Donuts!
2. Resident Advisor/ RD - what's that you say? I was crazy to spend 3 years workin' with a hall/dorm full of freshman girls and the drama/laughs/fights that went along with that... I concur... kind of!
3. Bartend with a college degree... that's right, my first "real" job out of college was at a bar! Hoo-rah, that's what I studied all of those nights for.
4. Crisis Counselor... if you thought I was crazy to be an RA/RD, then you thought I was out of my mind to work with the crazy kids who punched, bit, kicked, and spit on me for 4 years... by the end I kind of thought I was crazy too!
5. Student Activities... GAA - (G- to the double A)- assistant to the grad assistant... LOL... by far the MOST fun job I've ever had... doing concerts, games, Spring Fling.. and who could forget... Fear Factor? =)
6. PS- this is only supposed to be 5 jobs, but I must include... workin' at the hOasis for 4 years! I did feel a sense of pride this past weekend when Jon reminisced of the days of old and the awesome philly's and chicken wraps that I used to make... me, Bramley, Josh, and Billy Dunn... good times!

Ha! Now.... TAG... you're it!

a long awaited hike!

Well this weekend Lee gave in and went hiking with me and Dumb Dumb aka Andie :-) I planned a trip to Latta Plantation to hike the "Paradise Trail" and "Split Rock Trail." A quick trip to Dunkin' Donuts for a bagel and iced coffee... and we were slipping in the mud and tripping over tree roots as we trekked through the woods. I got pulled halfway through the woods by Andie who wanted to see everything... and fast! We saw a man on a boat catch a fish and had a pretty good time even though it was "misting" rain for half of the time we were out! All in all it was an awesome morning and my faithful blog readers...all two of you........ will be impressed to know that we did all of this and were in the car on the way back home BEFORE 11am! Woot! I know, Lee thinks that I am becomming a morning person... I am NOT for the record but will do what it takes to get to do what I want.... next up, I want to go to the shooting range to play with guns.... and then to Atlanta to see the Coke Museum, the aquarium, and to the zoo!

guess who?

As my grandpa says... 3 guesses (and the first 2 don't count) as to whose idea it was to put the SOLD sign on my dear Paige-pup. :-)

I hate to tell Lee... there isn't a dumb enough person alive to buy that dog with all of her quirks....


But I love her anyway (Lee does too, he just is in denial... serious denial...he represses his positive feelings towards Paige and deflects into annoyance towards her) Yes, that's the counselor coming out...trust me, I'm a professional =).

Cardboard Testimonies

this is incredible... watch it and be encouraged!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvDDc5RB6FQ

I see your freedom... and I'll raise you

I've been thinking a lot these days about freedom. Specifically what it means to be free. Not in the "out in the general public, and not in jail sense" but with regards to how we live our lives. I think that freedom and being or feeling "free" is a process or a journey that is ever changing in our lives.

For the young child freedom means getting to ride your bike to the top of the hill by yourself....but for the teen it is the freedom of getting a driver's permit...for the young grad freedom means a chance to vote or drink (legally at least).

And then there is the faith aspect. I remember apologetics class in high school that introduced the subject of Christian liberty. I remember the concept of living in Christ without guilt or always wanting to "get saved" again... The idea that there was freedom in a God who saved and rescued me and that I had the chance for my life to reflect that.

Anyone who has been to a college campus knows the "f" word...
F R E E... that food, and the promise of fun, will make any college kid scream (and show up at any event no matter how lame or cheesy...trust me, I speak from years of experience in Student Activities and residence life). But for most, freedom in college mean making "adult" decisions (with adult consequences but few thought about that part...). Freedom meant the opportunity to live on your own, really live it up, (choose your meals and make your bedtime at the VERY least).

Currently in my post-collegiate/early marriage years I am learning what freedom means in this phase of life. I am becoming overwhelmingly convinced it means peace. To be "free" for me right now would mean not stressed... no worry. Imagine that! And I don't even consider myself to be a "worrier"...I'm pretty much a live by the seat of my pants, impulsive, and have some fun right now kinda gal.... yet more and more I find myself yearning to be "free". To make decisions once again that don't have such "adult" rammifications. To feel able to be myself without worrying what others might think of me (or say behind my back with a "bless her heart" to follow).

To be free.

Shawn McDonald wrote a song called "Free" that played last week which prompted much of this thought... the lyrics are:

"FREE" by Shawn McDonald
I feel like the weight of the world is all - crashing down on me
And some how I just don’t believe this how - it is suppose to be
And all this expectation on - the way I’m suppose to live
Becomes my minds distraction - with nothing left to give

You said your burden is light and your load - is no more
You said your ways are right and in you I would soar

I want to be free - free to dance and free to sing
Free to live and love and free
Oh, free to be me

I feel like my heart is being beat - down into the ground
In you I’m longing for some peace - to be found
I know the heaviness that’s - making me cold
Is stealing my youthful soul and - making me old

You said your burden is light and your load - is no more
You said your ways are right and in you I would soar

I want to be free - free to dance and free to sing
Free to live and love and free
Oh, free to be me

to hear it on youtube go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeKNXBMw4UQ

Mat Kearney - Nothing Left to Lose

This is Lee's new favorite song. (He's busy studying for con law so I thought that I would post it for him)

sushi?

So one of the benefits of being extremely ADHD is the ability to go off on whims/tangents on an almost daily basis that sometimes results in some pretty awesome times around the Saunders' household. I usually end up dragging Heather over to the house to attempt my "new ideas" with me... last time it was making ravioli... didn't end up so well.

Wednesday it was making sushi! Turned out pretty well for our first time... and we made black bean spicy aioli to go with... mmmm good.

Kudos to Lee for being patient with me and humoring me by taking the pictures of the sushi.

I know, I'm a dork... but at least I make (some) things fun as long as you forget about the amount of time and money that it takes to make these "whims" happen! :-)

Spare some Change?

Apparently with the election approaching, the "buzz" word is.... change. Which is odd because I've been thinking a lot about it lately. Only unlike the politicians who are currently promising the world through "change" I have begun to realize that the more I think on the subject the more pessimistic I become.

I may be jaded... I confess, I am a creature of habit... but who isn't? Everyday you wake up, dress, drive the same route, park in the same spot,... as the day previous. For the most part, people tend to resist change simply because it takes too much effort. I know I have stayed at a job, stayed in bed, procrastinated... simply because it would take a great deal of effort and motivation to stop doing what I was doing to start something new. That's the thing about change... you have to stop doing something to begin anew (as in, admit what you were doing before wasn't working... and then determine the new thing is going to be worth the effort to change).

I know in my own life, change has usually resulted in good things...relationships, locations, stuff. I really have no reason to be pessimistic. But then I take for example, some of the kids that I have worked with. Or my experiences with their crappy families. And my outlook on the "rosiness" of change dims a great deal. In the past 3 months, 2 of my former kids that I have worked with have been shot and killed in separate attacks. Another kid has unfortunately stayed true to his word when he told he that he "wanted to kill someone" and yet a few other continue to utilize the revolving door to the jail system for various misdemeanors and felonies. 3-4 years later... they are older, yet in the same crap if not worse. 85% of kids that I have worked with will have improvement in their situations or outlook/attitudes on life... none. And only 4.3% will make a "significant" improvement on their lives. From the outside it seems hope-less. No change, just crap.

You can argue that they are not motivated to change. Or that their surroundings/family/culture do not encourage nor allow for change in their lives. But at the end of the day, it comes down to the simple fact that for most of them, it was just too difficult to "be better" and change. And they are just kids?


People want to believe in change. They want to believe that the world could be better. That they themselves could change to be better. They just don't want to put the effort into actually doing it.

Do I believe in change? Yes, a million times yes. Just not change based in the promises of politicians, the frustrations of the destitute, or the ramblings of the misinformed.

"May integrity and honesty protect me for I choose to put my hope in You." Psalm 25:21

I Remember....

Well, this post is a few days late, but as most things that I don't like or am unsure of how to articulate, I put it off..

Anyways, last Thursday was the 7th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on our country. I suppose this blog is just to say that amidst everything else that is going on in my life... I remember 9/11.

I remember....sleeping through Spanish class and waking up to a phone call with the news
I remember....the first sight of the awful scene
I remember....the sick feeling that I had in my stomach for days on end
I remember....getting the phone call to ask me to go through my and a neighbor's dorm to ask each girl if they were ok or needed to talk
I remember....my friend Lauren bringing me a polar bear and leaving it on my bed in the hopes that it would bring a smile to my face (it did).
I remember....the dead silence in Marshbanks cafeteria
I remember....being very very angry and confused
I remember....random strangers on campus that I didn't ever remember meeting asking me how I was doing
I remember... feeling so proud of all of the flags all over campus
I remember.... my best friend Rachael's voicemails over the course of the 2 days...and hearing the sirens in the background on her phone
I remember.... wanting to drive to NY and quickly as I could, and then wanting to drive as far away from NY as I could in the next moment
I remember...having to write an opinion paper on my thoughts about social psychology that evening, and for once in my life, finding not a single word to put down
I remember....my criminal justice professor crying and spending 2 full days of class in prayer
I remember....getting into an argument with one of my residents who told me that I was a sinner for being in support of a war over the attacks
I remember....hugging Belle Darden on the quad as we walked to CEP and trying to help her write a prayer that she was supposed to give to the students even though we both had our thoughts on our friends and family in NYC.
I remember....the email that I got to say that my uncle was covered in dust... but ok
I remember....seeing my friend Luke agonize over whether his dad at the Pentagon was ok (he was)
I remember....the phone call from my friend John - that his dad wasn't ok and wouldn't ever be
I remember....the way our country came together over a common cause
I remember....the pictures- the 3 fireman, our President and the fire chief
I remember....watching the memorial and hearing them read over 2000 names
I remember.... seeing "God Bless the USA" on a strip club sign
I remember...."America Bless God"
I remember....waiting more than 5 years to see the World Trade Center movie - and crying through it like it happened yesterday
I remember....going to the city for the 1st time and seeing the enormous pit of nothing...
I remember....making a mural in Chele's place of Ground Zero
I remember....the feeling of pride in country songs that reminded us of all that was lost on that day (Where were you when the world stopped turning? Courtesy of the Red White and Blue).
I remember....going for drives to nowhere to try to make sense of it all
I remember....the first time someone suggested that we should not make such "a big deal" about 9/11... and the intense anger that erupted in me over it
I remember....the first anniversary, and the second, and still the 7th
I remember....



Do you?

the boys...

Lee and Robert Wii- boxing

HA! :-)

CU Football

Well, Despite our AC going out the morning of, and our dogs being "home alone" (they loved it) all day, Lee and I packed up and headed down to good ol' Campbell to see their latest attempt to become like all other colleges... first co-ed dorms, now FOOTBALL! It was a beautiful day, just 100 degrees! My makeup literally melted off of my face, but not before its SPF power spared my face from getting burned... too bad Lee does not wear makeup... he was as red as a tomato by the end of the day!

In usual Campbell fashion,... we lost at the end by 6 points. But I must admit (start your recorders here), they did much better than I anticipated. They actually looked like a football team! But i had a much rosier view of them before I found out that their opponents only started their football team last year!

house guest

This is Louis (aka, Louis Vitton)... he stayed with us a few weekends ago... needless to say he was ADORABLE! how in the world can you tell that face no? He even knew how to stand up on his back legs and wag his paws towards you for a treat like a little circus monkey...

Brutus was less than impressed but was able to get along with Louis for the last 4 days of his trip.

Grant and Tab's wedding reception

Here are some pics from Grant and Tab's wedding reception... most notably, yet another wedding where Jay and Lee were requested to go out and dance together... LOL... the highlight of the dance was Lee grabbing Jay and throwing him across his shoulders and spinning him around like a helicopter.
Good times!

that's my fatty!

That's my girl.... eating her diet snack of carrot sticks.... note the pile in front of her legs.... don't let her nosing it fool you... she definitely took each carrot stick out of her bowl, shredded it, and then went back to do the same with another.....

we're not quite dead yet....

Well to steal from Monty Python... "we're not quite dead yet...." Just busy!

I finished my penance at Special K and began to work at my new job (Lee's soon to be old position). He starts the police academy on September 8th so he's got the fun?!? job of training me in the fine art of refrigeration for the new 3 weeks. :-) At least we're saving on gas driving to work together!

In other news, we went out to the lake last weekend for Heather's birthday party.... I braved my fear of heights and jumped off the dock. Unlike almost everyone else in the world, the jump and the splash part are what I enjoy... the whole "stomach in your throat" feeling is the WORST! LOL

Anyways, all is well.... the pups are good, Paige's prescription diet food seems to be working... slowly, but working... and I am enthralled with the Olympics (much to Lee's dismay...) I could watch this stuff forever... it's like I feel like I "have to".... they're Americans..... who cares that they are running and then shooting a gun at a target? LOL

PS- Guitar Hero for Xbox 360 is awesome.... and just as addicting as the Olympics =)

"Real"

I post this as a result of a discussion yesterday with the ladies in my small group about a woman's desire to be "real" and "known" by others... I think the song captures that line of thought perfectly.

Hope you like it.

LOL... just kidding! I cannot get this video to upload for the life of me...

so go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRzJrfNyAtA

Tell The World That - Hillsong united

My friends Adrienne and Caleb are going to Paupa New Guinea to be missionaries pretty soon and I wanted to post this blog for them and others who have a heart for missions... or for Jesus for that matter.
check out their blog www.weirmissions.blogspot.com

God Bless you guys... we love you! :-)

Dog biting his own leg!

This dog makes me feel SO much better about my own dogs.... watch it... it is HYSTERICAL!!! :-)

C U WHAT???

So it is official.... Lee and I will be attending Campbell's newest adventure in wasteful spending.... football. Yes folks, millions of dollars later, the folks in administration at Campbell have been able to determine a better use for their dollars than brick sidewalks that lead to more brick sidewalks..... football. They just had to go and ruin our only "undefeated" team at Campbell by actually adding the program. Lucky for CU alum, there seem to be no plans in the works for a ping-pong team or synchronized swimming.

But, like it or not, Lee and I will be in attendance, marking the first game I will have ever actually PAID to attend. All those reading this, please note, I gladly paid my $30 for Lee and I to attend... so that we would have a place to hang out with old friends, not to support their miserable attempts to be like other schools with athletic programs that actually win.


:-)


C U there!

Pie Makin'

Well Lee is gone for the week in Florida with some friends. I couldn't go because of work... and it ended up being the best thing anyways as I've come down with a cold/flu.... Dis-gusting!

Anyways, after 2 days of watching Sex and the City and Iron Chef marathons, I decided to try to be productive....

So I tried my hand at making lemon meringue pie....what do ya think? The filling came out a little runny, but at least the meringue looks pretty :-)

Happy Independence Day!

Meredith Andrews on WJTL - You're Not Alone

This has to be one of my new favorite songs... awesome message and her voice is incredible. :-)

I'm the kinda girl who makes my parents proud.....

Well, I must say, I have had some exciting weekends in the past month or so.... UFC fights, out to the bar to watch the fights, sewing, and now, this past weekend.... my poor mother who happens to call and ask the question, "what are you up to?" I dare say I doubt she will continue to ask that question much longer.... it's one thing to tell her I'm on my way out to play a softball tournament in 98 degree heat, it's another to inform her that we're celebrating our anniversary at a UFC MMA fight.... but this past Friday, I had the honor of letting her know, that I, her New York born and raised, not very "country" daughter,... was going (voluntarily) to a RODEO!!!

So we went to the rodeo with Lee's friends' parents Wayne and Kathy. Lee said I made Wayne's year by volunteering to go to a rodeo with him. I had no idea these types of things actually existed outside of the movies.... Boys with HUGE belt buckles, girls carrying confederate flag pocketbooks, little kids with chaps and cowboy hats on.... did you know you can buy souvenir whips and ropes?

SO I thought I was going to watch bull riding, like on television. Apparently a "rodeo" is much more... roping and barrel stuff,... they even had an event with fainting goats that girls rode up to and had to catch and tie up.... funny stuff when they fainted and laid on the ground legs sticking up in the air!

All in all, it was an experience... I'd like to watch the bull riding again, that was entertaining I must say so who knows, I might just pop up at one of these events another time.


Next week... we hit up a reenactment of the War of Northern Aggression.....














just kidding... I haven't turned too redneck for that one.... just yet ;-)
(oh yes folks, I make my parents P R O U D!!! LOL)

she can sew?!?!?!?!?

Some of you may remember the great fiasco of late 2003.... the last time that I attempted to sew something and in the process ended up using a rotary cutter to slice my finger to the bone ...

Well.... I attempted to sew again! (see picture for proof)! This time I got roped into helping a friend who needed costumes for a church camp.... A girl from our small group and I were the only ones to own sewing machines so we were "chosen", ahem, the only ones dumb enough to volunteer, to make 3 identical costumes for a "disappearing" act play. IE all of the costumes needed to look alike.. HA! Where is the individuality? So she and my other friend Heather came over for dinner and a Friday night of sewing... I tell you, I live it up now that I'm an "adult" LOL. Heather did not tell me that she was actually experienced at these things and actually makes purses... so set me up at the machine to sew straight lines... I must say, I didn't do HORRIBLY... but I'm not exactly a ruler-straight line kinda girl. All in all, I was 2 for 3 which if we were playing softball, wouldn't be half bad! She was nice enough to wait until I was busy eating my Taco Bell to take out the stitches of the messed up one and redo it.

the results are in!

Well, we took Paige "aka Fat girl" to the vet today to have her thyroid checked to see if that was the reason that she has gained 10, yes 10 pounds in the past 2 years. My dog is now ridiculously obese and no diet or exercise has made a difference to her yet... Anyways, a thyroid condition was her last hope.... an actual reason for the weight gain.

But no... her thyroid is in perfect working condition... so are all of her other vitals.. normal. Except her weight, the vet made sure to inform me that she was not fat, she would be classified as obese. Great... how you word it apparently makes for more of an "impact"

So I guess Lee has been right all along.... I am apparently the reason that Paige is fat... can't tell you where I went wrong but apparently it's all my fault... Fan Freakin' Tastic. :-(

An Anniversary Celebration!

So Lee and I went out tonight to celebrate.... We started off with taking pictures (or shall I say, attempting to take pictures!) They started out poorly but finally progressed into something nice once I got the hang of my new digital camera....

Then we left and went to Blue Restaurant in Charlotte (

Where flowers were waiting for me on the table..... nice touch Lee!



Some fantastic falafel, pear and Mediterranean salad, and halibut later.... they brought us a Godiva chocolate mousse with raspberry sauce.... MMMMmmmmm

Anyways.. it paled in comparison to the dinner I cooked last night for us...




HAPPY 2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY :-)