OUCH

I hate contacts. Not as much as I hate wearing glasses, but I hate them. If they had souls, they would dance with the devil. Little pieces of plastic that you mostly don't know are even there. But then there are the times...they can turn on you in an instant. Literally. All of a sudden they're in the corner of your eye socket and you have to fish them out. That HURTS. And it only happens when you're a) out of replacements/solution b) at work and unable to step away c) driving. Dammit. I've had to, on many occasions, hold one in my mouth, trying hard not to swallow it, until I could get to a sink. I've had to go with only one in at a time because the other one ripped. I rub my eyes a lot, and they don't like that. They know, somehow, we can't live without them. Unless you're lucky to have good vision. Yeah, I had good vision up until junior year in high school. Now that I think about it, it might have been the teacher. My eyes couldn't handle looking at him anymore, so they went blurry. Damn you Mr. Chemistry Teacher for screwing up my eyes.

I'm leavin on a jet plane

During my visit to Texas next week, I will be seeing my first ever live NBA game. I'm very excited. The Mavericks are playing The Heat, which is really cool. Devin Harris of the Mavs and Dwyane Wade of the Heat (pictured here)

both played in Wisconsin, Harris for UW and Wade for Marquette. It's gonna be cool to see two hometown boys playing against each other. And then this guy:

I love watching him play.

Of course I'll also be there to see baby Tatum...I'm super excited. I'm making something for her parents, and i need a picture of the 3 of them. Yeah, none exist yet. The kid is 2 months old, and no pictures of her with both parents! I will have to take that picture and hopefully, somehow, get it developed and finish my project while i'm there!

You drove an hour for that?

Today was our major shopping day. We're gutting our bathroom, so we needed to get a new toilet and faucets. We'd been to the stores in our area, so we decided to try a different one, which had it's nearest location about an hour from us. It was a rainy Sunday, so why not. I'm glad we did. We found a toilet very easily. Well, the tank was easy to find. The bowl part not so much...it was in the wrong spot. It took 3 employees to find it, but they did, so that's what matters.
Here's our faucet:

and the one for the shower



They are a matching set...and we're so excited. The tile is all ordered and paid for. Basically all we have left to do is buy a bathtub and a new vanity/sink. And we just need our plumber friend to help us with the bathtub. He knows what to get.

Then we stopped for lunch at this place. A small-town restaurant/bar. Great service...ok, it was pretty empty, but the woman was friendly and fast, and we really enjoyed it. So I'm sure we'll go back. We also had the appetizer called Chinese Cheese, which was cheese wrapped in an eggroll wrapper and deep fried. It gave us an idea for a new recipe, so I'll have to post that when I try it!

That's hot

Yesterday I decided to make homemade Tomato Soup. Yes, I know they sell it in cans, but I wanted to try something different. It's SUPER easy to make, if you know how to handle a blender. I thought I did. Then, after pouring about 2 cups of HOT soup (right off the stove hot) into it, blending it a bit, and twisting the jar off the blender instead of just pulling...hot soup went EVERYWHERE. including all over my had. HOLY CRAP that's hot. Well I got it all cleaned up , changed my clothes, and finished blending. It's good stuff...not sure if it was worth the burn, but at least i learned how to work my blender.

went to a tastefully simple party at Gertie's last night. Babe rode with me, thank god, cuz there was a bunch of traffic and I needed something to occupy my mind other than road rage. I love Tastefully Simple...but why is it that the less money one has, the more stuff one wants to buy? Damn. Now I'm having my own party so I can get more stuff. Yippee.

Today is work, working out, and more work. Well, a concert isn't really "work", but it's my job, and somebody's gotta do it! Tomorrow we're takin' a trip to Lowes and checking out their bathroom stuff. The tile is ordered, we just have to find everything else!!! Woo!

Hey Oprah...I was duped too!!!

Yep, I fell for it. I heard the hype, bought the book immediately, and was amazed. It was such a great book. Actually, it still IS a great book. Just not a memoir the way I see it. If it really was what he remembered of his time in rehab/jail (jail was a few hours, not 83 days), then this wouldn't be an issue. But he admits that the people (Lilly especially) in his book are real, but he changes things about them and refers to them as characters when he speaks. Yes, Lilly committed suicide. Just not the way James portrays it in the book. Yes, James went to the dentist. Maybe he only got one root canal instead of two. Maybe he really DID have novocaine. These are things HE is saying. He's admitting that so much of his book is exaggerated, and that's the annoying part. The publisher is now saying that it won't go to print again until a "disclaimer" is put in. Know what? If I would have read the book with the disclaimer, I would have still thought it's a great book. Now I just feel like I was duped. And James Frey doesn't give a shit. I'm glad I saw todays episode so I could see for myself that it wasn't an honest mistake. He did it on purpose. Yeah, I know, who wouldn't if they thought they could sell millions of copies and make tons of money. Thing is, if it hadn't been for Oprah, he wouldn't have sold all those copies. And she just killed his future. Amazing how that can happen, huh?

I.Can't.Imagine.

Part of a CNN article --
Seven children, including an infant, died Wednesday when a tractor-trailer rear-ended their car near Gainesville, Florida, slamming it into the rear of a school bus that had stopped to let children off.
The car, which was driven by a 15-year-old girl with a learner's permit, burst into flames, killing everyone inside, said Lt. Mike Burroughs of the Florida Highway Patrol. The truck was partially burned, its cab overturned.
The accident occurred shortly after 3 p.m., four miles south of Lake Butler in northern Florida.

Burroughs identified the victims as Cynthia Mann and Elizabeth Mann, both 15; Ashley Keen and Johnny Mann, both 13; Miranda Finn, 9; Heaven Mann, 3; and Anthony Lamb, 20 months.
The Manns, except for Anthony, were adopted foster children; and the family was in the process of adopting Anthony, Burroughs said. Ashley and Miranda were cousins.
Nicole Mann was at the wheel of the car, said Tina Mann, her aunt.
"Yes, she's 15, she had her learner's permit, she knows how to drive," Mann said.
"Even though she was an under-age driver, it's my understanding she did not cause the accident," she said. "The same thing would have happened had there been an adult in the car with her. We'd just have one more death in the family."

Not a Nerd!

What does this mean? Your nerdiness is:

Not nerdy, but then again maybe not all that cool either

damn...how can these things be SO right?

Blog of a NY Cabbie

I found this blog by way of an article on Yahoo. It's pretty cool to get a cab-driver's eye view of NYC. And it's amazing how a woman blogging about her work can go one of 2 ways. Either she gets national press and 157 comments on one post...or she finds out she has to sensor everything she writes "just in case". You won't be seeing ME on ABC News anytime soon.

http://newyorkhack.blogspot.com/

miscellaneous stuff on my brain

I made someone mad last week. I don't care for the most part, except that not speaking to this person makes life difficult. And this person hasn't spoken to me since last week. So, in my attempt to turn over a new leaf, I did the "big" thing and spoke first. Nothing exciting, just a casual salutation. I got a grunt and that's it. What the hell am I supposed to do now? Should I keep being nice in an attempt to get over this? Or should I keep doing it to annoy him? Or should I just stop? That would be the "new leaf" way to go, huh?

I love some of the shows I'm watching this season. The obvious ones are Lost and My Name Is Earl. If you haven't seen Earl, PLEASE give it a chance. It is absolutely laugh-out-loud hilarious. I'm having mixed emotions about The Office. It is funny, but I can't decide if it's too over-the-top for me. I'm trying it out though. One that we stumbled on this year on accident is Two and a half Men. Oh. My. God. This show is great, and the only disappointment is that I never watched it before. And the sleeper of the bunch is How I Met Your Mother. I really hope this one does well. Its different in the sense that it's a love story in reverse. If you haven't seen it, you should give this one a chance as well. Neil Patrick Harris (yes, Doogie Howser) is F-in' FUNNY! So is band-camper Alyson Hannigan.

I thought I had more. That's it. Sorry for such a lame post.

Are you ready for some football?

I love football. Don't invite me somewhere during a Badger or Packer game, unless you plan on watching it with your full attention. And if you have tickets to a Packer game that you cannot use, I hope I'm a good enough friend that you would think to sell them to me. Because I'll go, God willing. Even if it is the coldest day of the year. I'll watch NCAA bowl games. The excitement is just crazy enough, even if I've never seen either team play. Oh, and when the NFL playoffs come around, I'll gladly spend a lazy day watching whichever teams are playing. I'll root for my team, the home team, the veteran who is playing his last season, or the underdog, whoever hits my nerve first.
I heard tonight as I was getting ready for work and ESPN was on in the background that Superbowl X was January 18th, 1976. Pittsburgh beat Dallas 21-17. I must have known, because I was born just hours later at 12:10am January 19th. I was 2 weeks late. I guess I was just waiting for a reason to arrive, and football did it.

What a night!

Yesterday was a great ending to my birthday celebration. Had dinner w/Gertie, J & Dave. YUM! Took a long time to get our food...we actually had to tell the waitress to hurry because we were going to be late for the party we were hosting! Thankfully we got there JUST before people started showing up. And boy did they show up! It was an evening of food, friends, family, presents and beer. A really good time. THEN....then we went to a nudie bar. A friend of Dave's---he's 36 and it was his first time. EVER. So, of course we bought him a lap dance. It was a private one, so we don't know exactly what went on. But he didn't stop smiling the rest of the night.

All in all, an awesome night. Some of us are probably better off than others today, but I think (and hope) everyone had a good time!

More birthday celebrations

if it's true that you not only have a birthDAY, but that you can celebrate all week, like a birthWEEK, then I'm well on my way! yesterday was day 2 of celebrations, even if it didn't seem that way at the start. as soon as i got out of bed, i was washing dishes and cleaning the house. i had to run to the store for apples, which turned into apples and vegetables and beer and cheese and crackers...and another trip inside because i forgot the sour cream for the dip. then it was more cleaning and finally dinner preparations. Babe, Gertie and their men came over for dinner. In 3" of snow. We haven't had snow in some time, and it hit just in time for them to hit the road last night. Everyone was late, but that's ok. Babe & her man got there just as Dave and I were finishing shoveling. We munched on veggies & dip and cheese & crackers for a bit, and then it was time for dinner. I must say, it was pretty good. 4 Cheese and pasta casserole, 7 layer salad courtesy of Gertie, apple crisp, and a birthday cake courtesy of Babe. I loved it, even if the handwriting of my name was a bit messy! I've tried to do that (when i worked at dairy queen) and it's not easy. So no harm done! After dinner we played Apples to Apples. Well, some of us. C was playing a mario game, and Dave was helping him. He was a bit distracted, but it kept C entertained, so it was all good. He's such a good kid. He wasn't even crabby when they left around 11pm. Course that's 2 nights this week his mom kept him up late...he's probably used to it! It was a good time, thanks to my wonderful friends. Tonight is night 3. The big night out with tons of family and friends. I hope. I invited tons, just hoping most of them are coming. And depending on how tonight goes, it might be the end of the celebrations. I MIGHT be able to post tomorrow. Or I won't be able to stand up straight. We'll see!

Pictures for you

Found this on my car at 2am.
thanks Gertie!











Got a knock at my door at 11:30am from Prairie Floral. Thanks, Babe















enjoyed some of this at about noon...thanks again, Gertie!




Got this from Dave. I don't have #5 yet....




















enjoyed the buffalo chicken quesadilla with Dave. I had to eat the tomatoes




also enjoyed the eggplant, spinach & feta flatbread pizza. YUM!




All-in-all a very good birthday. I can say that when it was about to hit midnight, I wasn't happy. 30. Holy crap. That's old. Well, when I was 20, 30 was old. Now it's nothin'. Especially since I have such wonderful friends. It doesn't matter how old I am, my friends will always be there. That's all that really matters. Friday, Babe, Gertie & their men are coming over for dinner. Saturday is the big party. Thankfully, it's at a non-smoking bar. For one, I tend to smoke when I drink, and if I have to go outside, I'll be less likely to partake. (ok, that's what I'm telling myself now anyway) Plus, with Babe being 'in the family way', it's healthier for her. And I sure don't want her to miss it!

Today, it's turning 30.

All Fours

Sorry it's not more interesting. It's all I've got. Thanks to Jen for the tag!

Four jobs I've had in my life:
1. ice cream slinger at Dairy Queen
2. weekend night auditor at hotel
3. gas station slave
4. college bookstore cashier/book finder

Four movies I could watch over and over:
1. Legally Blonde
2. A Time To Kill
3. Back to the Future
4. The Cutting Edge

Four places I've lived:
1. Stevens Point, WI
2. McFarland, WI
3. Plover, WI
4. Wausau, WI (for about 2 weeks before Babe invited me home!)

Four TV shows I love to watch:
1. Lost
2. 30-Minute Meals
3. Joey
4. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

Four places I've been on vacation:
1. Cancun
2. NYC
3. San Francisco
4. Dallas, TX

Four websites I visit daily:
1. Bloglines
2. Yahoo
3. MSN
4. Pink is the new Blog

Four of my favorite foods:
1. Sushi
2. Spaghetti
3. guacamole
4. my mom's potato salad

Four places I'd rather be right now:
1. sleeping
2. eating sushi
3. somewhere warm (it's 19 degrees right now)
4. in my stampin' room

Four Bloggers I am tagging: Anyone who reads this!

My Most Important Blog

Do you have children or know someone who does?

I recently spent 4 days learning more about St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, including touring the actual hospital and listening to pateints and their parents tell their stories. It was my second visit, and I want to share with you a few things I have learned in the past few years.

Before I started working in country radio, I would see the television commercials of celebrities pleading for you to send your money to St. Jude. I never paid attention. I didn't know.

Then I found out exactly what they do. They're not a hospital in the traditional sense of the word. They are a RESEARCH hospital. Which means they have labs and research towers and they share everything they learn FREELY. With hospitals around the WORLD. Which means that while the actual hospital is in Memphis, the hospital in your area has access to the protocol developed at St. Jude. And children from across the world are also treated at St. Jude. One result of their research: when the doors to the hospital opened in 1962, the survival rate for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) was 4%. This fall it will rise to 90%. They are also a CHILDREN'S hospital, which means that while your child may be suffering from a catastrophic disease, they try to make the child's experience at the hospital as normal as they possibly can. They have Mardi Gras and Halloween parties. Doctors eat lunch with patients in the cafeteria. They make sure the family is not responsible for ONE SINGLE PENNY when it comes to the care of their child. Seriously. Not a penny. Whether they have insurance or not. If they do, insurance pays their part, and the rest is left to St. Jude. The daily cost to run St. Jude has risen to $1.2 million. Daily. This is so that parents don't have to worry about anything except making sure their child gets better. As one speaker this past weekend told us, St Jude gave him Daddy Time with his sick child. There is the Grizzlies House, The Target House, and the Ronald McDonald House in Memphis, where families stay while the child is getting whatever treatment they need. Even when your child is sent home (wherever that might be), when they need to come back for their checkups, travel costs are paid by St. Jude. The parents just don't have to worry about money. Which, with the cost of healthcare today, is a HUGE deal. I even read a story about a family who had to be in Memphis because their son had a tumor. Even the community treated them like family. They would go out to dinner and have their meal paid for by an anonymous person. Just because.

In 1989, Randy Owen (lead singer of Alabama) got together with Danny Thomas (founder of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital) and they came up with Country Cares. Every year, country radio stations across the nation hold radiothons, raising money for St. Jude. So far, we've raised over $250 million, but that's not enough. We're waiting for the day that we don't need to raise money anymore, because childhood cancer has been cured.

Please, if you would, contact your local country radio station (even if you don't listen to country) and try to find out when their radiothon is. Use this website for help. Just type in your city and state. Every single penny helps. If your local station doesn't do a radiothon, visit St Jude's website and donate. It's easy. Even if it was difficult, wouldn't you do it to save the life of a child?

Lastly, a thought crossed my mind this past weekend. Do you want to wait until your child or a child you know needs help from St. Jude, or would you rather know that if it ever happens to you, the money you've donated has already been put to good use and they'll be even more prepared to help your child survive?

I Need my Nick At Nite

Why do hotels have the WORST choices for television viewing? I don't know about you, but I need something to watch when I'm trying to get to sleep. Especially when I'm in a hotel in a strange city ALONE. The options seem to become more limited every time I stay at a hotel. Nick At Nite. That's what I need. It's been a long time since I found that in a hotel. Or the Food Network. Or HGTV. Maybe TV Land. C'Mon hotel people. Is it really that hard to give me some good channels? The choices you give offer very little after 10pm, and if there is something besides an infomercial, it's some obscure movie no one's ever seen. I appreciate the comfy bed and mountain of pillows. But please give me better television.

Rum Boogie

I could have done the Rum Boogie tonight, but I wasn't up for it. It was a long day of seminars and speakers. Good information for me to absorb. It was also the time of the songwriters dinner, where 6 songwriters from country and beyond (as we found out) come to play their songs acoustically. it was so fun. it was really great to see M and B react when they read their booklet and saw the name of this guy:











For the "non 80's hairband folks" reading my blog, that is Mark Slaughter. From Slaughter. It was pretty cool to see him up there playin' his guitar and singin'. He sang "Fly to the Angels" and the crowd went nuts. You wouldn't know that 99.9% of us work in country music! It was fun to mix it up a bit.
Anyway, after that, we went to Huey's (a local bar, real low key and quiet) near our bar and finished out our night. and our trip, really. we will get up in the morning, try to find some barbeque for lunch, and head home. whew. it's been a long couple of days, and i'll post pictures when i get home. i'm too tired to do it now. i should be packing. yeah. that'll happen at the last minute!

What day is it anyway?

It's amazing how the mind completely looses track of time when you're out of your normal schedule. I think it's still Friday, and I'm pretty sure I'm still in Memphis.
Today was quite a day. I met up w/Z and B at 7:45 for breakfast at the place across the street. A very well known 24hour place with funny names for their breakfast sandwiches. Anyway, we sat for about 20 minutes before we left because we hadn't even been approached for coffee or water yet. So we headed to the place in the Peabody (where the famous ducks are, and where part of the movie The Firm was filmed) and got a mocha (that had no chocolate) and a bagel. Not breakfast like i was expecting, but that's ok. We then heard a speaker and before we knew it, it was time to head to the hospital. (we're here for a St. Jude Children's Research Hospital seminar) Then it was time for "lunch". At 10:45am. Thank God we didn't eat a big breakfast. We hung out in the gift shop for a long time (it was nasty cold/rainy outside). Then we listened to another speaker. She was much more technical (a doctor) and a lot of that went over my head. Then there was a patient story, which brought me to tears. The girl has been in remission for 9 years, and that's so awesome to hear. After that we headed back to our hotel for a beer and B and I went shopping. Didn't buy much except some Rocky Mountain Chocolate. YUM! I rested for a bit, then it was off to a "gambling" night, where we were playing with fake money, and we could use that money to buy autographed items for our auction coming up in March to benefit St. Jude. I hung out w/B and M for a bit longer, and called it a night fairly early. We're all exhausted, and waiting to hit Beale Street tomorrow night. Woot! I can't wait. But, we have to make it through tomorrow first. Meeting B and M at 7:45 for breakfast. It's a buffet courtesy of the seminar this time, so no waiting for 20 minutes for a coffee. I hope.

Walkin' In Memphis

Well, right now I'm typin' in Memphis. We're here for work, and I'm taking a quick break. I found the wireless internet connection, so here I go!
To start, I don't know where my luggage is. We went from Madison to Minneapolis, where our luggage was put on a plane to Memphis. Just not OUR plane. And that plane had to go back to the gate. So, hopefully M is retreiving our luggage right now and it will be at my hotel when i get back here in a couple hours. we have a big dinner tonight, and i feel so icky. the i've-been-flying-all-day icky.

so, that's it so far. i'll keep you posted.

WHAT? SERIOUSLY...WHAT?

NICK SUES JESSICA FOR ENDING MARRIAGE THREE MONTHS BEFORE CONTRACT ENDED
According to court documents, Nick Lachey has sued estranged spouse Jessica Simpson for ending their marriage three months before the pair contractually agreed to stay together.
“Mr. Lachey signed over to Ms. Simpson all royalties from ’98 Degrees’ songs, his appearance on an MTV reality show to promote her albums and perfume line, and his soul in exchange for 41 months of marriage that would keep him in the public spotlight,” wrote Lachey’s attorney. “The couple has been married only 38 months and Ms. Simpson is in violation of the contract, ending the union early.”
In a written response, Simpson’s lawyers argued that since Lachey would continue to receive publicity until the divorce is official in several months, she is still fulfilling her contractual obligations.
“I hope Katie Holmes is paying attention to this,” said one source close to Lachey. “These Hollywood stars feel free to play fast and loose with marriage contracts and they think they have so much power you can’t do anything about it. The lack of morals sickens me.”

my New ME Resolutions

(sorry in advance for such a "deep" post)

I'll be 30 next week. I've decided that instead of freaking out about being 30...well, maybe along with freaking out...I'm going to change some of the habits I have. Try to make myself a better person.

-I will stop doing things I'm not proud of

-I will take more time for the things that need to be done, rather than TV or internet (i'm not giving up my shows or my blog, I'll just put them off a little til the house is clean and the workout is done)

-I will be more up-front. If I don't want to do something, I'll say so, instead of saying "Maybe" and then being mad at myself because now I have to do it (this will probably be the hardest one)

-I will make more of an effort at work

-I will have a more positive outlook on things. I'll try to see the bright side.

-I will spend less and save more, for those just-in-case moments

-I will do a better job at being a good friend, wife, sister (in law), daughter, etc.

-Remember, I'll be 30 NEXT week. These don't count til then! :o)

in the voice of Stephanie Tanner-HOW RUDE!

as i sit and eat my sub, you ask me how my weekend was. I say "it was ok, but i feel like i'm getting sick." (at this point i was NOT showing any signs, ie: coughing or sneezing.) this is NOT, i repeat NOT permission for you to say "OH GOD" and spray me down with disinfectant. The shit STINKS. I realize it kills germs, but right on the can it says "hazard to humans and domestic animals. do not get in your eyes or on clothing. avoid contamination of food and utensils." DAMN YOU! all you had to do was say "ok, i'm staying away" and be done with it. if you cared, you'd say "how do you feel now?", but i don't expect it from you. i don't expect much. just DON'T spray me down with disinfectant!

in other "news", how completely STUPID do you have to be? you think the NFL's gonna take you NOW? There's enough drama in the NFL without your stupid ass, even if your brother is an Atlanta Falcoln.

I LOVE SURPRISES!

I just got a call from my friend Sarah, who had Baby Tatum on December 1. They live in the Dallas area, and I'm going to see them (and Dad Scott) February 9th. I'm super excited. Sarah said to me "You're the only one I'm telling. I'm going to be in Madison on Wednesday!" OH MY GOD! First of all, I am so excited to meet Tatum. Second of all, Dave gets to meet her because he's not going to Texas with me. Third...It really makes me feel special. She grew up here and has friends here, and wanted to make sure that I get to meet Tatum. She isn't telling anyone else because she doesn't know how much time she'll have (they're driving to Iowa to meet great grandma Elsie, who also doesn't know the big secret!) So, the fact that she's making sure that we get to see them in the short amount of time they're here is SO amazing. I can't wait. I think I have to get to the store NOW and buy something for Tatum for her first trip to Wisconsin!!!! She needs something a little less Iowa than this outfit!

Weekend Wrap-Up

I woke up Friday feeling not-so-well. You know, when it feels like there's a baseball in the back of your throat so you can hardly swallow. It's amazing what a little Sex and the City (i didn't watch it when it was on, I just got season 1 from Netflix), Smart Ones Lasagna Bolognese and a fudge pop can do. Quite a remedy, I must say! I felt better, so of course I went shopping. I had to get to bed fairly early to work Saturday morning at 6, so when I woke up at 1:30 and found I couldn't get back to sleep until 3:30, I was a bit annoyed. But I did enjoy some "being lazy with the cats" time. I eventually fell back asleep til 5:15 and promptly headed out the door. Shortly after I got home, Floor Guy Denny (brother-in-law) came over to measure our place. We're re-doing the floors. And apparently we're re-doing our bathroom too. We were going to replace the icky tub and tile floor. Now the shower will be tiled, new bathtub, toilet, vanity, sink, etc. Yeah. So the cost of our remodel just doubled. We're quite ambitious, I suppose. The thing is, nothing in our house is really old. It was just done improperly. So we're getting it done to our specifications. You know, where things are lined up properly and the tile isn't coming up already because of the half-assed job they did. Afterwards, we went to price out vanities and found one we LOVE:

It's really the cool sink that we love most, but the vanity is really nice too. After that shopping trip, I was exhausted. So we went home and I napped for 2 hours before Dave left for some D&D. Then I spent 2 hours trying to figure out what to eat, and ended up with a pork chop casserole. The pork chops got a little overdone, but I loved the gravy, so i dealt with it. At about 9:30pm I decided to go work out (yes, on a saturday night) and get a Frosty from Wendy's on the way home.Sunday I went to lunch w/Babe & Gertie. It was such a great time. Just hanging out, talking about life, and being ourselves. I love my friends! For dinner I decided I wanted sushi, so i called the local place for take-out. YUM! i've been craving it for a while, so it was nice to finally get it. It was a good weekend, and i'm looking forward to getting some good rest over the next few days so I can enjoy my trip to Memphis. Last year about this time (actually late february, but close) i was supposed to go to NY and ended up missing my trip because I was sick. I dont want that to happen again!

More about ME

I found this on Gertie's blog, so I thought I'd steal it!

Firsts, Lasts & Evers

10 Firsts
First Best Friend: probably sarah
First Screenname: karino1
First Pet name: Bacca (dog)
First Piercing: ears
First Crush: joel hartmann
First CD: i don't remember
First School: frank allis
First House Location: same one my parents are still in

9 Lasts
Last Time You Smoked: don't remember...that's GOOD!
Last Food You Ate: Wendy's Frosty
Last Car Ride: about 10:30 pm on my way home from the club (when I stopped for a frosty)
Last Movie You Watched: I started watching 9to5 while working out. Otherwise Sahara
Last Phone Call: someone at work
Last CD You listened to: Sugarland
Last Bubble Bath You took: sometime since june, but i can't remember
Last Song You listened to: 9to5 during opening credits of the movie

8 Evers
Have You Ever Dated a Best Friend: dated? hmm. i don't think so.
Have You Ever Been Arrested: No
Have You Ever Skinny Dipped: nope
Have You Ever Been on TV: a couple of times. once for standing in line to meet Eddie Haskel when I was in 7th grade
Have You Ever Eaten Sushi: Yes! I was so tempted to get some take-out tonight but I didn't!
Have You Ever Cheated On Your B/F or G/F?: nope
Have You Ever Been on a Blind Date: Yep
Have You Ever Been out of the Country: Mexico

7 Things You are Wearing
1. shorts
2. was missing...
3. t-shirt
4. towel on my head
5.
6.
7.

6 Things You've Done Today
1. worked at 6am
2. took a nap
3. made pork chop casserole for dinner
4. went to the gym
5. fed Sami & Blu
6. shopped for bathroom decor

5 Favorite Things (not in any order)
1. My lifer friends
2. My family
3. Sleeping
4. the benefits of water
5. Netflix

3 People You Most Trust (not in any order)
I'm lucky to have more than three. I have some blanks leftover from the "what are you wearing" question, so I'll use them here!
1. Sarah
2. Lisa
3. Dave
4. Julie
5. Dena

3 Choices
1. Vanilla or Chocolate: Chocolate
2. Hugs or Kisses: kisses
3. Pens or Pencils: Pens

3 Things You Want to do Before You Die:
1. have kids
2. get out of debt
3. go on a trip with Gertie to the Ocean!

2 Things you got for Christmas:
1. gift cards
2. iPod

1 Person You Want to See:
can this be two people?? cuz i really can't wait to see baby tatum in february and baby what's-it's-name in July (sorry Babe, I don't know what else to call it!)

Weirdo!

I got "tagged" by Jen (ok, she didn't really tag me. she got tagged, and i stole it!) So, here goes with 5 weird things about me:

1) my feet are claustrophobic. seriously. i can't sleep with socks on, in a sleeping bag, or in a bed with the sheets tucked in. aaahhh..it makes me crazy just thinking about it!

2) good, bad or ugly: i cry. Seriously. Did you see the Biggest Loser: Special Edition? Yep, I cried. And if i'd have been watching the Rose Bowl, I probably would have cried then too.

3) I'll wait to do what I need to do if one of the cats is sitting on me. i don't want to disturb them. (i KNOW i'm not the only one guilty of this!)

4) i'm constantly envisioning a car accident. a guy came up from behind in the lane next to me going about 90 last night, and i thought i'd die. or if i'm passing a semi...i think he's not going to see me and i'll be the next statistic.

5) i think the paparazzi suck....but i look at their pictures religiously. in other words, i'm a gossip junky, but i wish it wasn't so intrusive. hypocritical? i think so...

so that's that. what's weird about you?

Love a good deal

I went and got my hair re-did today. The highlights I got in September (for the first time in my life) needed a little help. I went to a different place than I went originally. Julie at Mane Squeeze styled my hair for a recent event, and did an awesome job. I went to her for the color. I paid $105 less than the original time. HOLY CRAP! Thanks Julie! You just earned yourself a new customer!!!

Year-In-Review

I wish I had a blog going back to January 2005, because I don't remember much of what was going on. Here's what I have:

January-ring in the new year at Dave's brother's house. Saw Crush live for the first time with my friend Kory as the keyboard player.

February-instead of going to New York, I call in sick to work for the first time in over 2 years and stay home. Dena was sick too. Wouldn't have been much of a vacation.

March-Um...did March actually happen? I don't know...I probably saw Crush again.

April-enjoyed my first Bridal Shower compliments of Gertie. It was a Pampered Bride Shower, and it was awesome! Oh yeah, and we put in an accepted offer on a house

May-closed on our first house! also planned a surprise 60th birthday party for my dad

June-did a LOT of painting to ready our house. moved in and started to get settled. had party for dad and 2nd bridal shower, thanks to my sisters-in-law. again, bunches of fun and great gifts. Saw Kory play with Madison County and met his girl Shari.

July-what'd I do? Oh yeah. GOT MARRIED! 7/16/05. Honeymooned in DC for a week. also said goodbye to my friend Kory and his girl Shari who moved many miles away.

August-relaxed a little bit. tried to get house organized. welcomed my cousin's baby Gabrielle into the world.

September-baby Matthew was born...my cousin's son. The first boy in our family in over 30 years. baby Henry P was born 9 weeks early. he's doing well. Also held Dave's mom's 70th birthday party at our house. It rained all day!

October-Drove to Oklahoma and back for a wedding. also attended Babe's bachelorette party...what can I say? A ton of fun, regardless!

November-watched Babe walk down the aisle. finally! :o) was told "the first year of marriage is the hardest" from someone married to a controlling asshole. huh...so far it's been easy as pie for me.

December-welcomed baby Tatum to the world...congrats Sarah & Scott. found out Babe's pregnant. woo hoo for you Babe! had a great christmas with family and friends. found out we are getting sued by our former landlord. set a nasty letter saying "screw you. we don't owe money. if you don't settle this out of court, we're counter-suing." in those exact words. (ok, not those EXACT words. but close)

I guess when you start thinking back, it's easier to remember! I'm sure there is stuff I forgot, but I did the best I could! I hope 2006 is another good year...lots of celebrations and very few roadblocks.

More Good Times

Blu enjoying one of her favorite pasttimes...carrying a twist-tie. She kept doing this...we'd throw it, she'd run and play with it, then bring it back. Yep, she thinks she's a dog. Hey, at least she's comfortable with herself!

Damn car wouldn't start tonight. Just love when that happens. Can't wait for the next couple of days, when i actually have things to do!

Good Times

Dave and I went to Nicole & Justin's new house for a housewarming party. There were a few people there; Bill & Amy, Scott (?) and Scott D. We drank wine, had good conversation, and after Scott (?) left, we played Cranium. Boys vs. Girls. The guys went ahead right away, but we staged a great comeback. We did lose in the end, but had a fun time doing it. The best was my attempt at being Marilyn Monroe. I basically twisted my hips, pretended my "dress" (i was wearing jeans) was flying in the air like this:

and before the guys could even start their impression of MM, Nicole guessed and we won that question. They couldn't believe how we'd get it so fast. Girls rule, that's why!
I made a really good dinner and we watched a couple movies. First was Requiem for a Dream. Really disturbing, but pretty good. Then it was Sahara. If you ask me, not quite enough of this:

but it was good. Funnier than I'd imagined. With Matthew McConaughey, Steve Zahn and Rainn Wilson (from The Office)...they should really do another movie together!
Sunday we watched the Packers WIN!

Media and fans speculate that it's Favre's last season. I think NOT. He'll be back for one more year...they'll win more than 4 games, he'll go out on top, and it'll be great.
Then we had mac n cheese for dinner and I watched The Life Of David Gale. I really like Kevin Spacey. Good movie...highly recommended.
Tomorrow (well...today now, since it's 1:10am) we're off to Gertie's for lunch and to watch the Badgers play in the Capital One Bowl.

Hope you had a good weekend!