Thank You

Thank you to those of you who prayed for me a week ago for my prom stress.  Things went great and my anxiety really did go away.  And to the people I came in contact with that week, thank you for your encouraging words.  :)
Last weekend we celebrated our 1 year house anniversary.  I can't believe we have been here a year already!
That's it. I still have house posts to do, but this is all I have tonight. :)
Have a happy week!

Side note: Cory & I are watching American Funniest Videos and it's making me mad.  Babies(or anyone for that matter) puking/spitting up is not funny on any level.  Why do they show that and, more importantly, why do people send that in?  I wish they would put a warning before they showed those videos...sorry for the rant.

ANOTHER side note that I just saw: Florence, AL made the The Huffington Post "Top 11 American Small Towns".  Check it out here

My Night

Warning: this is not a great post.  I'm just trying to stay current and post something at least once a week.
Tonight while I was shopping for groceries I discovered these gems:


Yes, it is Triple Double Oreos.  They probably have been around for a while but I just now found them.  Of course I had to purchase them to try them out.  I'm apparently a glutton and have no self-control because moments after I put the cookies in my cart I found the Easter candy aisle and saw my beloved Cadburry Eggs and Reese eggs and had to grab some of those too (they won't be back for a year!)...and I wonder why I can't lose weight.  Don't worry, I bought real & healthy food tonight as well. :)
I was so happy about my find and couldn't wait to tell Cory about my trip to the store but when I pulled into my driveway my mood totally changed. I saw the animal that I loathe the most: an *armadillo! I have never seen a live one and I must say it did NOT change my opinion of them.  If any thing, I dislike them more because it didn't even care to run away when I pulled up.  Like it felt like it had the right to hang out in my yard.  Of course, I called Cory to come and rescue me, hoping that when he came out it would run away.  Wrong!  It just waddled around like it owned the place.  Not until Cory shone the flashlight on it did it go off into the woods.  I really don't like that it's hanging out in my bushes...grr.
* I also really dislike opossums too, but in a list of awful animals, armadillos top the list.
See? This is a pretty lame post.  If you have read to this point then you rock!  Also, would you please do me a favor and pray that I make it through this week?  I'm in charge of prom this Saturday and I'm nervous/stressed about things.  I know that people have much bigger problems than this and this isn't a huge deal but since this is my first year at the high school I really want this to be great.  I would really appreciate it. :)  Thanks!

Also, Happy Birthday to my sweet 4 year old niece, Kate!  I can't believe she'll be four tomorrow.  It seems like only yesterday we were waiting for her to arrive.

Christmas Cheer

I've been waiting for this Christmas for a while.  Not necessarily Christmas 2011, but a Christmas where I was a homeowner.  It was even more fun decorating this year since last year we didn't decorate because we were moving.  I didn't go all out and deck every hall or anything but I did enjoy putting up some of our decorations.  Here's our tree in our still furniture-less living room.

I

I made a new tree topper this year.

 I put the Nativity scene on the mantle this year but I have the perfect place for it whenever we find the piece of furniture I have in mind...maybe next year?

 Our house from outside.

 You can't really tell that we have bows on our wreaths, but we do.  They're just light green.

 I put some faux apples on a fir wreath that I ordered for a school fundraiser.  Since the wreath is real it is a little harder to work with and my apples keep drooping.

I have a few more small items around the house in other rooms but didn't take any photos.

Random story:
The other day while I was buying the green apples for the wreath I thought I was going to see a real life flash mob (if you don't know what that is then check an example out here, here, or here).  I was waiting in line behind a little old lady who was checking out and chatting with the cashier (who was another little old lady). While the cashier was waiting for the old lady to count out her change she began to sing "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" and looked up at me and smiled.  Then before I knew it the little old lady stopped counting her change and started singing as well and smiled at me.  I started looking around waiting for someone else to chime in but they didn't.  I just got serenaded by two older women.  I contemplated joining in but then I realized that they were trying to out sing each other.  It was kind of like watching Divas Live (remember that show?)  The song ended and nobody else witnessed it but me.  They looked at me for approval and I said, "Good job.  You sound really good together."  I think I let them down by not singing.  To make up for it I walked the little old lady out to her car.  The end.

My goal is to one day participate in a flash mob.  I've been talking it up to some of my students.  ;)

Random Tid-bits

Well, I haven't posted in a while because I have been pretty busy.  I will post more house pictures soon. Right now I'm procrastinating.  I decided I would revisit a facebook note that I did a few years ago.  It was one of those "tag 20 people with 20 random facts" kind of things.  I'm going to post 20 new random things about myself.  I'll warn you that this is pretty lame so if you want to leave now, I'll understand.  
1. Many times when I'm texting somebody I type semi-"ghetto" and have to erase and rewrite messages before I send  them. (ex: "Fo' show, girl! That would be dope.") sometimes this happens when I'm on facebook too.
2. I now like the bubble gum pop music that I hated in high school
 3. I ruin my apologies with excuses.
4.I use to be friends with a guy who I believe thought he was in a movie by the way he talked.  He was real big on the dramatic repeating a line (ex: I just don’t know…….(wait for a bit)  I just don’t..know. (and then stare off into the distance)
 5.I watch corny television shows and get embarrassed when the dialog is cheesy.  I guess that’s because Cory can hear it and I think he’s judging me…which he should be doing.
6.Once someone told me that I could do a self-test to check if I had the West Nile virus by holding my head back (where I would be looking up to the ceiling).  I would do many of these self-tests at different moments where others could probably see me and think I was crazy (like in my car at a traffic light). I later found out that this person had fooled me.  Sometimes I still check, though.
 7.  I eat chocolate every day, even if it's just a chocolate chip.
8.Two things you can always find in my purse: lotion & gum.
 9. As much as I love little puppies I don’t want to own one.  It’s too hard to see them go and I really don’t want the responsibility…
10.I put CD's in my car and playlists on my ipod on random shuffle all the time.  I like the surprise part of it. .Although, many times I will skip a lot of songs to get to one I want to hear.
11.I have clothes from high school and still wear them sometimes…lame!
12. I can’t stand the Journey song, "Don’t Stop Believing".  I know people think I'm crazy for that.
13 Growing up I had a bad reoccurring dream about a character from the game "Guess Who"...It was Tom and it was scary.
14. II'm not really digging  this getting older thing. I feel like I should still be in college still but I could have gone trough a 4 year college two times now!  
15.Sometimes I feel sorry for Cory on road trips because I sing just about every song I hear on the radio.  It's a lot like this clip from Heartbreak Kid.

16.   I like to narrate animals and babies.
17 I stay up entirely too late on most nights.
 18.On trips I put earplugs and eyeshades in my pillowcase in case of a sleep emergency (someone snoring)
  19.I pick out random Independent films and they’re never good.  Cory still lets me pick them out, though. :)
20. I’m really ready for Christmas time!



I guess I need to get back to work.  If you read to here, then I hope you enjoy your weekend.  

Perks of a Yard Sale

A few weeks ago I cleaned out my old bedroom at my parents' house. This room was lived in by me for about 14 years so it had accumulated quite a bit of things that never made the journey with me when I moved out.  I cleaned out every nook & cranny and trashed quite a few items.  I had tons of clothes, jewelry, toys, etc. that I didn't discard though.  I usually donate my unwanted (still good condition) items to Good Will but this time I decided to try and make a buck or two.  I had motivation for making some money because of an old window that I had found at an antique store a while back that cost more than Cory wanted me to pay for it.  When I suggested that we have a yard sale he said if I made a good enough profit he wouldn't mind me purchasing the old window.
Our parents joined in on the sale to get rid of some things as well (we color coded the items so we knew where the money went to).  We had a great turn-out and made out pretty well.  I kind of wished I had priced my items a little higher but I put them pretty cheap because I wasn't sure if they would sell.  We only had a few things left over that we took to the Salvation Army.
Now, on to the "perks" of this yard sale.
Now, don't be jealous but while I was cleaning and getting ready for the sale, I found my old Jem & the Holograms paper dolls!  Does anyone else remember Jem?...I know you do, Ashley ;)

I remember playing with these dolls at the first house I lived in.  I thought they were so cool.  Do kids still play with paper dolls?  Here were my favorite outfits.

And below are the few paper "earrings" that came with the dolls.  They resembled the characters' earrings and  had a hole cut in them that you could tie a string in and loop it around your ear.  The pink star was like Jem's magical earring.  

 I was stoked to find those old dolls.
Another good thing from the yard sale was I got two new-to-me picture frames.  Mom was getting rid of two rose prints that she had for a while and I wanted them.  Since I'm her daughter she gave them to me for free:)
I really liked the frames because they matched a mirror hanging in my dining room.

I replaced the rose print and matting with new matting and some bird prints that I got from an old calendar.  Here is one of the bird prints.

 Now on to the main perk from the yard sale: the old, overpriced window (which we got the lady to come down on the price-whoo-hoo!)

I had been looking for something unique to go over my mantle since the day we bought our house.  I searched online and many stores but never found anything that I really loved.  Well, when I found this window in July I knew that it was exactly what I wanted.  Last year I saw this blog where a lady turned a lead glass window into an antique looking mirror.  I really liked it and looked for cool windows for a while but never had any luck until I ran into this one.  I just love the circles!

 I decided to try the blog's tutorial for my window.

I got this Looking Glass spray paint from Hobby Lobby.  It's rather pricey for spray paint at $11.99 but is cheaper than replacing the glass from the window with a mirror.

After Cory & I cleaned the window we then taped the edges with painter's tape.  

Then my handy, sweet husband spray painted it for me.  

And here's what it looks like now.

The spray paint doesn't give a very clear mirror appearance but I wanted the look to be cloudy and old looking.  If we ever get tired of the mirror look, then we can easily clean off the paint.  It wiped off with some Windex when we had a little mishap.  The window is only sprayed from behind so don't worry I can clean the front of the window/mirror without taking the paint off.
As for the wooden frame I decided to leave it alone for now.  I cleaned it and scraped a little flakey paint off but thought it would look more "shabby chic" if I didn't paint it.  Who knows, I may change my mind one day.
Anyway, those are a few of the good things that came about from our yard sale last week.  It always feels good to get rid of things and to make a profit on it is even better.  Although I am pleased with these results it will be a while before I have another sale.  They can be a lot of work!
I hope everyone has a pleasant week. :)

The End of an Era

Last night for me was an end of an era. No, I didn't go see Harry Potter. I finally finished watching Beverly Hills 90210. I am talking about the old 90210 that came on television from 1990-2000. When I was younger I remember my mom not really wanting me to watch 90210. I didn't know her reasoning but I was in elementary school and I probably wouldn't have understood it anyway. When I got older when she wouldn't have cared if I watched it I wasn't really interested. Fast forward to the summer after Cory & I got married and I got hooked. That summer Cory was doing an internship in Muscle Shoals & Huntsville so we moved back (from Tuscaloosa) to the Shoals to stay with my parents for the summer. Since I was out of school I could sleep late in the morning which would make me not want to bed until later. Cory, on the other hand, was working and needed/wanted to go to bed rather early. At first I would hang out in the living room and then when I got tired I would make my way to the bedroom but would end up waking Cory up and then he didn't sleep well afterwards. This surprised me because Cory can sleep through LOTS of things but for some reason me getting into the bed did the trick. I then decided to go to bed at the same time and just watch tv until I got sleepy but that didn't work either. Cory (at the time) was used to going to sleep in total silence and the noise from the tv was distracting. I guess I should've changed my sleep schedule and got up earlier but I didn't. Instead I came up with the idea to watch Netflix Instantly on my laptop and use my ear buds so as not to wake up Cory. It worked like a charm! I watched a variety of shows and one night decided to try 90210. That night I got hooked. I watched season 1 in no time. Which a season was usually 24-30 episodes that were each at least 45 minutes long. By the time I was finishing season 1, season 2 became available on Netflix Instant watch. After I finished season 2 though, I had get the dvds sent to me. Yep, Cory was a dear and let me get a cheesy television show shipped to me each week. It worked out alright, though, because we get two discs at a time. I watched pretty regularly but had a few periods where I put it on hold. After three years I have finally completed the ten seasons!
It's been a good run. :) It kind of stinks that I watched this way past it's prime because MANY times I've wanted to talk with people about what was going on in Beverly Hills but couldn't because they wouldn't have a clue what I was talking about. I also would relate what was going on with the show with situations in real life with Cory quite a few times. I know he's probably celebrating the show's end. He was a sweetheart and took me to get ice cream for the last episode. I had to make him promise not to make fun of the cheesiness (because we would make fun of dialog throughout the seasons) and if I got emotional before I watched. Unfortunately something was wrong with my disc and it skipped two scenes! YouTube saved the day, though. It is done and I can move on now. I will have to restrain myself from getting sucked into anymore teen dramas that's available online. Sorry that this post was pretty boring and strange. I'm just dealing with my end of an era. :)

It's come to my realization...

I have realized that I post cute animals or animal related stories a little too much.

I have also realized that I compare many animals (mainly dogs) to Falkor from The Neverending Story.

I also have on many occasion compared very cheesy pizza to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle pizza.

The pizza on that show always looked really cheesy and delicious to me. Which, why were turtles eating pizza anyway? And while I'm pondering about this show, isn't it a very specific title (teenage mutant ninja) and also strange that a city welcomed these "mutant" turtles and relied on them to save their city from Shredder (and BeBop and Rocksteady)?

Wow, I think the paint fumes have really gotten to me tonight. I hope everyone is doing well. :)

Totally Cute

You may have seen this video already because apparently it's been on the news but I wanted to share it anyway. My sister, Angie, came in town tonight and showed this to me and I totally melted. Supposedly the kitten was having a nightmare and the mommy cat gave it a hug. People have negated this theory but you can't deny that this video isn't so sweet. Enjoy! (at around the 30 second mark is where the hug happens)

A Tale of Two Dogs

Do you remember me gushing about this cute little fellow?

Well, today something sad happened to my little bud, Cocoa/Rascal. No, he's not hurt or worse(dead) but it's still gloomy. Today as I was leaving the house and after I gave Cocoa/Rascal a good pat on the head, I thought to myself, "Man, I love that dog. I'll be so sad when he's not around one day." Well, tonight as Cory & I pulled in the driveway from getting dinner I saw little Cocoa in his yard but with a collar on and he was chained up. I looked at Cory and told him what I saw and he said in a soft voice, "Yeah, the Animal Control people came for him today." I was shocked. Cory told me the sad tale of my little friend being in the back of the dog catcher truck today. He saw the people get him as he was leaving for work and went over to tell the people that he knew the owner and such. Cory said that Cocoa was just chilling in the back and looked up at him. He probably thought he was just going for a ride. He's so naive. The Animal people also had my neighbor's other dog that is always chained up in their truck. The man told Cory that dogs in this city have to be chained up and to be within walking distance of shelter and water or they take them. The dog that was chained up was momentarily in the front part of the yard (away from the dog house) at the time. My neighbor lets the dog sit in the front sometimes and it's perfectly fine....Anyway, I seriously got teared up when I saw little Cocoa/Rascal raise his head up and bark once when we walked up the path to our house. I guess I'll have to go and visit him from now on. :( I know this may sound silly, but having him roaming free was like having the benefits of owning a dog but not having to feed it or make sure it had a place to stay when we aren't around.

On a happy dog note, the other dog that I'm obsessed with is coming out with a book this summer! You can pre-order the book here. I can't wait to read about little Boo.

(Photo via Chronicle Books Blog)

School's Out for Summer!

Yesterday I went to Hobby Lobby and got slightly disturbed when I saw workers putting out pumpkins and pilgrims. I know Hobby Lobby gets a head start on the seasons (and I totally appreciate that) but it’s May! It made me feel like they are trying to skip summer. My summer officially starts tomorrow. If you teach or have children you know that the end of summer is drawing near when loose leaf paper and pencils start filling up Wal-mart’s front aisle. When that time approaches it is very bittersweet. It’s always nice & exciting to start a new school year but it is so so sad to see the summer end. This feeling came to me when I saw those pilgrims looking at me. Sure, I was put slightly at ease at the nice smell of pumpkin spice candles but seeing the fall décor made me want to scream, “Let me enjoy the summer!” I then hurried out of the fall section to the clearance aisle and saw something else kind of disappointing: a painted rock. It was seriously a pet rock. It wasn’t even painted that nicely. I really wish I would have taken a picture of it although I’m sure it will still be there for the rest of the summer. There were quite a few in stock. In my opinion, if you want a rock to resemble the ones I saw, then go outside and get a stone and have a child paint it. It will save you $5….wow, I didn’t mean to rave and rant on the Hob’s. I love that store so I will stop my complaining.

Anyway, the reason I would love to have a long summer this year is to 1. Continue to work on the house and 2. Work on/in my new classroom! Yes, that’s right I got a new job. I’m sorry if I have not mentioned it to you but I am not even sure who knew my little situation. My current job at the junior high had to be closed because of funding. This is something I knew going into it though. Well, come April I knew for sure that the high school’s Family & Consumer Science teacher was retiring and that her job would be available. I interviewed for the position and waited for what seemed like forever to find out that I got the job! So, a big thanks for those of you who knew about my situation and prayed for me.

I hope everyone is doing well and hope you have a great summer!!!

Life Lately

Wow, it feels like forever since I've blogged. We have been without the Internet (and cable) for almost a week and really not been "on it" for a month now. Cory & I have been with out because we've been working on the house. Even though I felt slightly disconnected from the world without the Internet (not being able to check email, read friends' blogs, browse facebook, and read the news) I have come to enjoy the time away. We have gotten so much done and have not been glued to our computers. It's been nice...

Here are some some small, random, & fun things that have made me smile in the past few weeks.

First, a little raccoon came in our home's backyard for a visit.

Cory & I were painting the sunroom and when I looked up I saw him just browsing around looking for some grub. I've seen a few raccoons in real life before, but they've always been running quickly and hard to see. This little fella was taking his time.
After a while he scooted up the fence and was gone.
But then he came back two more times that night. (It could have been two different ones but I think it was him)

Another thing that's been putting a smile on my face is my little dog friend neighbor that I have called "Rascal". I have found out his real name, which is Cocoa, but I'm still calling him Rascal. He has greeted me and Cory many times as we've gone to the house to work. He's so sweet and likes to lay in our yard sometimes. He's such a ham. He was looking at the street and every time I tried to take his picture he would turn around, as if to pose. To me it almost looks like he's smiling. He also does this little "scooting on his belly" trick that cracks me up every time.

Yesterday I finally made it out to the real world. I have not been out in public except to go to work, church, Lowes, and Wal-mart for the past month. As I went into Target yesterday I found Otter Pops!
I used to LOVE Otter Pops and even wrote a paper about my love for them before. I think I was more in love with the packaging because each pop had a little cartoon otter on it with a clever name such as "Alexander the Grape" and "Little Orphan Orange". I'm a sucker for that kind of stuff. I didn't purchase them because I was semi-afraid that they wouldn't live up to my fond memory of them and also I was in a hurry and the line was long. Maybe another day...

Oh, and by the way, as of Saturday Cory & I have officially moved into our house!!! We still have lots of work to do on the house and still have things boxed up but we're in and couldn't be happier! I seriously love waking up in our new room and coming home from work to it each day.
I hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful weather. I promise I'll be posting some interior pictures soon. Also, if you're in the area feel free to stop by. :)

A Few of My Favorite Things

I have had a few people asking me to post pictures of the interior of our new home but I'm not quite there yet. I would love to post pictures of the rooms when we have an "after" shot to go with it. I promise we're working on it but it's taking a while....silly "paying jobs" that require us to go work everyday and not devote our full day to house projects.

Anyway, I have decided to post some of my favorite things about the house. Now, what I'm posting were not criteria for buying a house. We had a list of what we realistically needed/wanted in a house and they were met. The following items were icing on the cake. They are small details that made me fall a little more in love with the house.

First up: Every door has a little lock on it. With each lock there is a skeleton key. I absolutely love skeleton keys. They remind me of watching "The Secret Garden" and hidden treasures. You can even peep through the holes which I think is kind of fun too. :)

Second, there are three screen doors to our house. Since the weather has been so pleasant lately I've had the doors opened each day. I know when it gets warmer this summer we'll need to keep them closed during the day but I'm really enjoying the fresh air and the sunshine.
Next is an old school refrigerator. If you know me well, you know I love antiques/vintage stuff. This fridge is right up my alley. Unfortunately we're not keeping it in the kitchen because 1. we couldn't get it to cool and 2. it's rather small inside. We have installed a new refrigerator but I'm still hoping we can fix this one up and have it as a second fridge in the garage.
The next picture has two favorites in it. The picture has also been put in black and white because the walls look pretty shabby brown. I love that we have a fireplace and the two french doors on either side of it stole my heart. I think they're adorable.
On the other side of the wall (beside each french door) are built-in cabinets and shelves that I cannot wait to decorate. Each cabinet holds a speaker and in one of them there is a turn table and stereo system. Fingers crossed for it to work.
Now, on to a small door that is on the exterior of the house right beside an entrance door to our kitchen. We've been told that this door was used for either the milk man or the ice delivery guy. That may be totally made up, but I'll take it! What else would a little door be used for? (please note that this picture was taken before we bought the home. It has since been cleaned)
Now the next item is kind of silly but it sealed the deal for me. After our realtor showed us the house we chatted in the front yard for a while. As we were talking I noticed a little fury friend spying on us in one yard over. He was eager to run over but was restraining himself. I bent down to show him he could come over and he ran up to me and gave me a lick. I just had to have a house with such a cute and friendly dog neighbor.
He's had a haircut since this picture and I have yet to figure out where he lives. I found out that the yard he was chilling in had a dog tied up so I don't think he lives there. I've named him Rascal. I love that he just hangs out in the neighborhood and greets me when I go outside.

Warning: The next favorite thing about the house is sappy but true. It's that I get to share it with this guy.
After going through the house I could tell that Cory was totally in love with the house (even more than me). To see him so excited about fixing it up and calling it ours was so attractive to me, how could I not want it?

Sorry for the cheesy post. I promise I'll post inside pictures....sometime. :)

Exciting News!!

Cory and I are now homeowners! We've been going through buying this house process for a while now and it's been hard not to talk about it with folks. That's one reason I've been missing from the blog world lately. I didn't want to mention the house we were making offers on until we actually had the keys in our hands.

We are so super pumped about owning a house of our own. It's a cute little gray house and it has it's faults and warts, but we love it. It's a great starter home for us and it has some work to be done, which is one of the reasons we love it...you know how I (we) love a project ;)

The house was built in 1941 and had the same owners until last June when the 99 year old lady that lived there past away. The couple that built and owned the house was a lawyer and a homemaker who hosted fun gatherings. I think it is so neat that Cory & I are a modern day version of them. Instead of me being a homemaker (which would be cool) I teach kids basically the skills of one...maybe it's a stretch? Anyway, I've enjoyed learning about the past owners and the history of the house in the last few weeks. They kept the house in good condition, but it's somewhat outdated. Tonight as we were cleaning things out we kept finding small remnants of their lives. We found old recipes, keys, nice watches, and postcards that make me love the house even more. We also found a box with the blueprint of the house and a detailed sketch from the architect that is really neat. I can't wait to post pictures! I accidently left my camera at the house tonight. Speaking of pictures, this blog may turn into "house posting central" soon because I love before and after pictures.

Thanks for letting me ramble. I must go to bed now because I have some house work to do tomorrow.

P.S. Some other exciting news that we've had in our family is that Cory & I are going to have a nephew in the fall. Laura & Benjamin are expecting and we couldn't be happier for their family. :)

Home Sweet Home

My posts have been pretty sparse the past few weeks. I have a few recipes that I've been meaning to blog about but they keep moving to the bottom of my "to-do" list. Today I'm just going to write about my thoughts/feelings lately.

Cory and I have been back home (together-since he moved a little earlier) for 3 months now and we couldn't be happier. I absolutely love living back in the Shoals. I've always had fond thoughts of the Shoals area and never intended on leaving until Cory decided to go to law school. I don't regret living in Tuscaloosa. I actually ended up liking it and do miss aspects of it and people from there but it was never "home" to us. Living there for 4 years (I moved before law school started and a few months after it ended) made me really appreciate my home town more. I guess the saying is true: "You've gotta get away, to want to come back home again."

I'm so glad that we're home again. I am constantly telling Cory, "Isn't it nice being here because...(insert some good thing). I love that I get to see my parents and mother-in-law on a weekly basis and get to have them over for dinner. I also enjoy seeing my grandparents at least once a week. I love that when my sister comes home or my other relatives come in town that I'll more than likely be here. I enjoy going to my home church and seeing people that I've grown up with. I love that I can see my best bud and not be hurried because I have to make it to all my relatives' houses before I head back to Tuscaloosa. I have also really liked catching up with old pals from high school and college. Just this week I had two dinner dates with some girlfriends and had a blast and I'm getting to meet up with another friend next week. I love it! I'm trying to soak up these times before everyone (including me) starts expanding their families because it's harder to shuffle things around to get together. Cory and I also REALLY like saving time and gas on the weekend not having to drive back and forth to Tuscaloosa. I love that after church we can go to our own place and just relax or enjoy going places and not having to rush back to Tuscaloosa. Sorry to ramble on and on but I really am happy to be back. Now, there is a list of some people that I would love to move here that would make me happier, but I'll settle with talking with them on the phone or seeing them on facebook.

If you've read to this point I hope you have a great weekend! Thanks for letting me ramble. :)

Feel Better, Little Buddy

You all should know by now how much I love cute little puppies (or any animal-minus opossums or armadillos). Today I found this book at ModCloth and couldn't help but "awww".

The book features many animals wearing little casts. They also show some after photos of the recovery. It's weird because I don't like seeing animals suffer at all, but I do think they're ever-so-adorable with wee casts and helpless looks.

Look at this momma sloth chilling with her cast and taking care of her baby. So sweet!

I'm sorry if you feel like you have wasted moments of your life reading this. I'll try to come up with something better soon! :)

Has anyone seen or heard of this before?

I just visited cuteoverload.com and saw an animal called Pudu. I've never seen this before but it's like a mini deer. It has stolen my heart. Seriously, how cute?!

Strawberries on the Knees

So I'm posting this picture from Halloween a few years ago because I couldn't find any other picture of me with my knees in them except for beach pictures and I didn't feel like posting that on here. I'm sure if I looked longer I could find some more but don't really feel like it...

Anyway, I haven't blogged in a while so I thought I would tonight. I don't have any crafts to post or recipes to share right now so this will have to do.

Today we had monitors coming to our school to look around and I wanted to look extra nice/professional so I wore some my nicest pair of pants that I rarely wear because I have to wear taller shoes with. I picked out a favorite "teacher" shirt and headed out the door with my apple juice in hand. Do you know those days when you feel you look nice or important? Well, wearing this outfit made me feel pretty cool. As I walked down the steps of our apartment I felt like I was playing a part in a play, like a business woman. I noticed Mustang man (an older guy who smokes in the morning) propped on his car (as usual) and he looked up at me probably thinking that I was an important business lady and so I had to walk with a purpose and look cool all the way to my car. I made it all the way to the side view mirror when I found myself falling to the ground landing on both knees and my apple juice flying in the air. It happened so quickly that I'm not sure what caused me to fall. I don't think I tripped over anything. Well, off course I pop up quickly and check my pants, which are black on both knees, and pick up my empty apple juice cup and run back into the apartment...very non-businesslike. I run to the bedroom and that's when it hits me that my legs are throbbing. As I grab some new pants I see that both my knees have the skin scrapped on them. I put my new pants on and head out the door again, this time walking with a limp and my head held down. That is what I get for thinking I was "all that". I'm clearly not and got humbled very quickly this morning. I wish I could see a recording of how it all went down this morning because I'm sure it was hilarious.

Another thing that has happened lately that is slightly embarrassing and semi relates to the above picture is mistakingly buying a maternity dress. Right after Christmas, my friend Ruth Ann and I went on our traditional "shop for sales after the holidays" trip. I found the cutest dress at Target on the sale rack and when I tried it on I fell in love. Not only was it a nice color but it fit so well. It was actually a little past my knee length (which is hard to find now a-days) and was not clingy at all, which was surprising because it was a jersey knit. I bought it with no regrets or reservations...and apparently no knowledge. As I got dressed for church the next morning and ripped the tag off I noticed that it read "maternity". As soon as I saw the word I could tell there was a place for a pregnant belly to go. I asked Cory and my mom if it looked like I was suppose to be expecting and they both said I didn't so I kept it on. That day during lunch at my grandmother's house I let them in on my little mistake. I've worn the dress two other times since then because I haven't moved all my dresses to the apartment yet and also because it really is comfortable. I have also seen my sweet grandmother each time I've worn it and Sunday she made the comment that she thought I was going to make an announcement soon. I guess with wearing maternity dresses and gaining some weight because I have a huge sweet tooth has led my grandmother to think I'm expecting. I totally am NOT. I'm also totally not going to wear that dress for a while.

Oh well, I will stop for now. Sorry for the rambling. I will post a strawberry-ish dessert soon, though.

Change of Post

I was going to post a recipe tonight but instead I'm going to post a prayer request (I seem to do that a lot on here---but it sure helps) In the past two weeks I have heard of so many families going through tough times and it truly breaks my heart. The year has just begun and I have heard of many deaths, sicknesses, and misfortunes. One bit of bad news that I just learned about yesterday was a dear friend of mine's dad has been diagnosed with leukemia. He is actually a close family friend and such a sweet, sweet man. He would honestly do anything for anyone and has treated me like one of his own daughters many times growing up. He is also a very strong man and I'm confident he will overcome this obstacle with the support of his family & friends and the healing power of God. Please pray for Jackie and his family as he goes through this process. Thanks.

Spaghetti a la Philly & Hitler Cat

So since I've last posted, Cory & I have moved into a new apartment. We've been unpacking for a few days and enjoying the beautiful snow that God has given us.

Tonight I'm posting a super simple recipe that you've probably seen on the inside of a Philadelphia cream cheese box. It's called Spaghetti a la Philly and it's delicious. I confess, the first year Cory and I were married I made spaghetti quite often because it is inexpensive and quick. Now, we didn't eat it every week but often enough that we kind of got burned out on it (or at least I did). When I found the recipe I had to try it. When I did it blew Cory's socks off. He thought it was something fancy that took me a while to prepare, little did he know. :)

All you need for this tasty dish is:

1/2 lb spaghetti,uncooked

1 lb ground beef

1 jar spaghetti sauce

4 oz cream cheese, cubed (half a package)

2 TBS parmesan cheese (I left this out tonight)

Cook the noodles according to the package directions.

While the noodles are boiling, brown the meat.

After the meat has browned, drain it and return it to the pan.

Stir in the sauce and cream cheese and cook for about 3-5 minutes.
Or until it is heated through. The sauce will lighten up a bit and almost look orangey.
Drain your noodles and you are done! The next picture looks like Pac-Man going in for a bite. I didn't plan it that way.
And now for Hitler cat. While Cory and I were looking around for apartments/houses we met a little cat that I thought looked like Hitler. Therefore, for the brief moments that I knew this cat his name was Adolf.
Adolf didn't have a tail which made him pretty hard core.
Don't you see the resemblance?