Whine.

I tried to write a fun post today.  But then it sounded something like whine, tired, whine whine, terrible scary stormy weather, want to go home, whine, hungry, allergies, whine.  Whine. Whine. WHINE.

So I deleted it.  And that's what you get today.  I'll be back all bubbly and exciting tomorrow, I hope.  Right now? I'm hoping to go home and be a useless couch blob for awhile.

How to be an Insufferable Redneck, Part I

I can use that term because, let me assure you, I am one. You may have noticed that lots of days, the word "y'all" slips into my blog posts, and you may know that I'm from the South with a capital S. But I feel it's only fair to educate you about exactly what you're dealing with. I fear, you see, that some of you may have the idea that I'm the kind of Southern that means I was a debutante, that I sip mimosas in a sundress on Saturday afternoons, and that I talk through my teeth in that Chaaahrl-ston accent about the Junior Charity League.

No no. When you think of me, you need to think Ricky Bobby, the county extension office, Mustangs, and camo baseball caps. Now believe me, I know and love people who are even further down this path than I am. I'll tell you that I don't hunt and fishing bores me. But otherwise, there are lots of ways where you can fit me into your nice little stereotype. Watch the clip above and you'll understand better.

Today, I thought I'd give y'all a little guide to all things redneck so that it doesn't seem like I'm speaking a foreign language sometimes. And also so that you can realize what you're dealing with.

Let's start with NASCAR. I am not generally a huge NASCAR fan - you won't find me sporting a Dale Jr. sticker on my car or anything, but I do go to the All-Star Race every year. It's a short, fun, generally exciting race (meaning there are usually a lot of good wrecks, and isn't that why we all watch NASCAR?)

One thing that makes a NASCAR event beautiful is that, at least at the Charlotte Motor Speedway, you get to pack your own cooler, so long as it's within certain dimensions. Actually this past year, Mom went to Wal-Mart with me and we snagged a tape measure from the hardware department to go scope out regulation coolers. And like any good dad, mine helped me most efficiently pack said cooler before the race.

Another important part of any NASCAR event is the tailgate. You know, where you do things like play Stump.

You can find the official rules here, but basically how it works is that you barely tap your nail into the stump, as seen in this picture. Then you go around the circle, passing a hammer, and you get one hammer toss - throw it up, catch it on the grip. You do that, you get one whack of an opponent's nail. Catch it behind your back or under your leg, you get more whacks. The object is to have your nail be the last one standing. Another important rule - you must always have your beer in one hand.

In my experience, if you ask a girl to play Stump, she'll have more fun with the idea of always having a beer in hand. And then she'll get bored with Stump. And then she'll start walking around snapping pictures with everyone. And then when some deputies are sitting around on a golf cart, she'll decide she should include them in the fun.

Now once you've gotten your pregaming done, you head to the track with whatever's left in your cooler and you move from drinking games to gambling. Generally, you get a big group of people to make a pool. You pay a flat fee to draw driver numbers. Then you're hoping your driver wins, because that means you win the whole pot. At the end of the day, you generally go home with the beginnings of a hangover, a nasty sunburn and sore feet. But you're always ready to go back the next year.

Race week always brings a fun assortment of people to town. Now don't get me wrong, there's a high probability that you could go to Wal-Mart and take any picture found on peopleofwalmart.com at any time on any day. But race week? Race week brings really fun people. For example, this gentleman, standing in his shortalls in the automotive section. Just his shortalls.

That was your first lesson on How to be a Redneck: The NASCAR Edition. Learn efficient cooler packing, perfect your Stump game, and immerse yourself in full-on Wal-Mart culture. Stay tuned for part two, coming soon.

What I'm Loving Wednesday

Never done this one before, but I've seen lots of you lovelies participating - and, well, I was just going to make a list of things that were pleasing me today anyway {read: lazy}.  So here it is, my first What I'm Loving Wednesday!

1.  THE WEATHER.

I know, it's boring to talk about the weather.  But seriously, y'all, it affects my mood SO MUCH.  And lately, we've been having these amazing 75 degree days in the Carolinas and it has my mind screaming for spring.  Though I started thinking that the best thing about unseasonably warm weather in February is that it doesn't come with any of the negatives of true spring.  For example - none of the bugs seem to have gotten the memo that it's 75 degrees yet, so no mosquito bites or wasp stings.  Everything isn't covered in an abominable pollen smear yet and therefore, I still have a voice and am not addicted to Mucinex and Kleenex.  

2.  Common bonds.

What do I mean by that?  I've just been noticing the nice ways that people figure out ways in which they're similar, and give you a little pick-me-up because of it.  Example - I'm walking Peggy Sue down the street and an old lady drives by, with two wiener dogs on her lap, sticking their heads up to the car window.  She smiles and waves frantically.  And that's not the first time that's happened - people stop me all the time and say "I love your dog! I have one at home! Aren't they great?!"  Example #2 - I'm driving my bright blue FJ cruiser down the road, and I meet someone else in an FJ.  The driver smiles and gives me a wave or a thumbs up.  Example #3 - I'm wearing a UNC shirt to the grocery store on game day and someone yells, "Go Heels!" and waves from across the produce department.  I just love when folks are nice to each other, I guess is what I'm saying.

3.  That I got our honeymoon upgraded!

I could tell you a long, boring story about how we are going to Disney World for our honeymoon, booked it through US Airways vacations, and then I found out we couldn't use any of the Disney gift cards from our honeymoon registry toward the hotel price because it's booked through US Air, but I won't.  Ha, see how I just tricked you into reading the boring story anyway?  But I called Disney, cancelled our trip through US Air, and re-booked with the sweetest guy named Ashby.  We talked about The Bachelor and how it's such a ridiculous show, I gave him suggestions for planning his parents' 50th anniversary party, and we both did a lot of giggling.  I'm sure it was all just part of how he is trained to be a magical Disney elf, but I felt special, we had a fun conversation, and he ended up getting us a room with a private balcony and a fireworks view at the Boardwalk Inn.  FOR LESS MONEY.  I could not be more excited.

Here's where we'll be in September!

4.  My new Kindle sleeve!

I know I've blogged about it before, but this thing is so much better than the bulky leather book-style one that I was using before.  And I made it myself!  I'm thinking of making another in a more fun yarn, since this one just got made as something of an experiment with some yarn I happened to have hanging around.  

5.  That my cute little neighbor came around with her wagon full of Girl Scout cookies.

Girl Scout cookies are just magic.  I think they taste better because you can only get them at certain times of year.  Our inventory at the moment includes Tag-a-longs (my absolute favorite), Lemon Chalet Cremes, and Samoas (PB's favorite, that he knows I don't really like/won't eat).   

6.  And finally, MY NEW MACBOOK!

My old dinosaur Sony Vaio finally bit it, and it took Best Buy forever to tell me that they were going to "junk it out" and give me a replacement.  But last night, it happened!  So I decided to get a MacBook as my replacement and I love, love, love it so far.  I've already had to do some Google searching and get some lessons from Lia as to how to do things like, oh, right-click - but I love everything about it.  It's official, I'm a complete Mac convert now.

What are you loving on this glorious Wednesday?

Ten on Tuesday!

As always, thanks to Chelsea at Roots and Rings for hosting - and today's questions are by one of my very favorite bloggers, Nora from Walking with Nora!

1. What are your thoughts on Valentine’s Day. Do you love it? Hate it?
I don't necessarily have strong feelings about it. I love pink, red, hearts, and glitter, so I always decorate for it, and my parents always get me something sweet {you can read about this year here}. But I don't like to put a lot of pressure on V-Day. We have Christmas, and then my birthday a month later, so I don't generally have a long wish list by February - maybe that's why I'm a no-pressure kind of girl when it comes to Valentine's Day.

2. What is your favorite romantic comedy?
Sweet Home Alabama

3. Meg Ryan & John Mellencamp: what’s your first reaction?
I don’t know the gossip here so my first reaction it this: (blank stare). {Same as Chelsea!}

4. All time favorite poem or quote?
Do song lyrics count? I love the lyrics to an old hymn my great-grandmother used to sing when she cleaned the house. It's called "Brighten the Corner" and it goes like this:

Do not wait until some deed of greatness you may do,
Do not wait to shed your light afar;
To the many duties ever near you now be true,
Brighten the corner where you are.

Brighten the corner where you are!

Brighten the corner where you are!
Someone far from harbor you may guide across the bar;
Brighten the corner where you are!


Just above are clouded skies that you may help to clear,

1. Let not narrow self your way debar;
   Though into one heart alone may fall your song of cheer,
   Brighten the corner where you are.
2. Here for all your talent you may surely find a need,
   Here reflect the bright and Morning Star;
   Even from your humble hand the Bread of Life may feed,
   Brighten the corner where you are.
3. 
   

5. What’s the longest amount of time you’ve gone without sleep? (like consecutive hours).
Gosh I know there have been times when I haven't slept in 24 hours, but I'm pretty sure that hasn't happened since middle/early high school sleepovers. I never felt the need to pull any all-nighters in college or even in law school. I just need sleep, so I always figured they'd be more counterproductive than helpful, even if I really did need to study more.

6. What color ink do you prefer to use?
Usually black - I'm obsessed with the Sharpie fine point pens.

7. Share with us a blog that you recently found and fell in love with (and link us!)
I've been loving Bicoastally lately - and Alisha & Brandon - she has her first photo shoot up today (with a cute baby!) Also, I almost forgot to tell you about J's Etsy Swap! I just started following her and love her blog, and it looks like her swap is going to be a ton of fun, so go sign up!

8. If you could be on a reality TV show which one would you choose?
I have seriously always wanted to be on Amazing Race. I think me and PB would be pretty good at it, for one, and mama needs a million dollars, but also, I've never had the chance to go to any other continent and I would LOVE to be able to travel like that and see everything those contestants see.

9. Mountains or Beach?
Mountains are fun, but I love the beach. Love love love the beach. Have serious beach fever right now, actually.

10. With the Oscars around the corner, what’s your pick for best picture?
It's so sad, my ADD kicks in after about an hour of any movie, and so I never go see any. I don't even know what's nominated. Pitiful.

Full Moon Friday

Holy dear sweet Jesus, it has been a crazy 24 hours.  I had such a nice little relaxing Friday planned yesterday.  It was 76 glorious degrees here in the Carolinas, and I was LOVING it.  Peggy Sue got spayed a few days ago, and I've been trying to keep her from cutting backflips, chasing the cat, and running so fast her back end tries to pass her front.  But she kept looking out at me from her crate like, "Come on, man.  Why you so mad?  I'll be good.  Don't hate me."  So I broke down and let her hang out around the house with me while I flung open all the windows, turned on my ceiling fans, drank peach tea, and pretended it was May.

Well, Pegs got left alone for about 3 minutes while I was switching out laundry.  And in that amount of time, her little sneaky butt got into my big canvas lawyer-school-bag and dug out a whole pack of Orbit wintergreen.  And further, she demolished said wintergreen gum into 948593 teeny tiny pieces.  Pegs gets into enough stuff that I generally shrug my shoulders, think to myself, "Ehh, the [cat poop/squirrel bone/leaf/newspaper/rock/stuffed animal] will come out in the wash eventually."  But for some reason, when I caught her with that gum, I just sort of automatically reached for the phone and called the vet.  Really, I expected them to reiterate my initial come-out-in-the-wash thought, but they panicked.  Which caused me to panic. So I drove like the devil was after me to get her to the vet, and they made her throw up a whole lot of minty goodness.  And then they made me take her to the emergency vet to stay all night so that her blood sugar could be monitored. Fortunately, she didn't eat enough to cause her to go into liver failure, so thank goodness for that.  And this morning, she is wide open, not a bit sick.  It was a rough night though, and I hope we don't have to have another emergency vet trip anytime soon.

That whole long story was to tell all of y'all that if you have a dog - keep them out of your sugar free gum!  Apparently it's worse than chocolate for a dog, and I sure didn't know that before this happened, I just got lucky because I happened to call the vet. Scary stuff.

After all that, I woke up this morning to find that my power was off.  That didn't seem like a big deal at first, even though I was supposed to be at a divorce clinic at the law school all day, helping folks fill out their paperwork to get the big D.  I just figured I'd go with scrungy hair (I know, scrungy isn't a word, I made it up) and shower later.  Call me gross, but it's Saturday, and being at the law school on a Saturday when it's going to be 70 degrees and sunny will likely cause me to break out in a rash immediately.

However, then I realized that my car was in the garage.  And oh, right, the garage door works by electricity.  Which I don't have.  At that point, I did what any girl in my situation would do - I called my dad.  He said, "Well you can probably get the door up, just pull on that rope hanging down from the garage ceiling and use it to pull the door up."  Right.  So that ended up with me literally grabbing onto said rope, dangling from it with all my weight off the ground, and the garage door not moving.  Not even a centimeter.  I kept thinking someone had intentionally cut my power and set up a candid camera just to watch me attempt to get my garage door open.

I moved onto option 2, which was grabbing onto one of the metal slats on the back of the garage door and muscling it up.  Well, then I realized I'm not tall enough to get it all the way up.  Once I got a step ladder, I got the door all the way up, and then I realized it wouldn't stay.  So I'm standing there, holding the garage door up, wondering what in the world to do next.  I finally ended up propping the door up with a flat metal rake, and backing the car out.

That sounded really simple.  What it really involved was me holding my breath while I backed the car out under the door that was supported by JUST A RAKE.  And I forgot to mention that I had my mom's Cadillac XLR because my car was in the shop. Her brand new Valentine's/anniversary present XLR.  Oh. My. Lord.  I can't believe I made it out.

But anyway, that's what's up with me.  I made it back to the emergency vet to pick Peggy up, and got her crazy self over to my parents' house so that she could hang out with Mom while I came to divorce clinic.  And now our clients are one step closer to be happily divorced!  I really loved that we had a question - "What if you don't know what date you got married?"  I'm thinking that if you need to ask that question, I'm pretty sure that I now understand why you're getting divorced.

What you've been waiting for - mountain recap!

I've been trying to muster the strength to write a post-mountains recap, but it just hasn't happened yet.  Lately I have been so exhausted, I just haven't been able to really get anything done.  For example, last night I slept for 9 hours, then I drank 20 ounces of coffee and 24 ounces of Diet Sundrop, and I still don't want to do anything but lay my head down on my desk and just start snoring and drooling.  It all stems from how I'm that girl who goes and whines to her doctor (I hate those girls, I don't know how I became one) - but hopefully I'm gonna get this body straightened out soon.  And then I will have energy to do something more than lay under the electric blanket and watch Teen Mom 2.

Anywho, I digress.  Back to the mountain vay-cay from this past weekend.  There's something about the mountains that makes me want to put on sweatpants, crack open a beer, build a fire, and not do a-ny-thing. So that's pretty much what I achieved this weekend!  We drove up on Thursday to a cute little cabin with a big wrap-around deck, a wood-burning fireplace, and a hot tub.

We busted out of the car, ready to get the weekend started, but then everyone was hit with a big, terrible disappointment when we realized we had bought hot beer and didn't have even one measly cold can.  Never fear!  I busted out some of my gained-from-TV knowledge and filled up the sink with ice water, and started chucking cans in it.

That's J, demonstrating our cold-beer technique.  Win!

This was pretty much my view all weekend.  I really wanted a wood-burning fireplace after we had snuggled in front of that fire in sweatpants all weekend, until I got home and realized that everything in my duffel bag stank like I had been smoking a hog all weekend.  Also, I'm not sure I'd have been nearly such a fan if I was the one having to haul my butt outside to get more firewood all weekend.  

About the only thing of substance we did all weekend was dyeing my hair.  No joke, went to Food Lion, bought the stuff, did it.  I've been growing out my hair for what seems like forever, because it needs to be long for the wedding.  But I haven't colored it in probably two years, and my hair tends to get these crazy highlights.  Not always crazy good either - lately the back of my head has been pretty much orange.  No. Me. Gusta.

So here it is before - all undyed and such.

And here it is mid-process - we were a little freaked out about how dark it was looking, not to mention the fact that when I rinsed it out, it turned the bathtub RULL purple.

But not to worry - here's how it came out!

I was pleased that it didn't take away all of my highlights exactly, but it darkened it up and I don't feel like it looks quite so Bozo the Clown anymore.  I might still get the color tweaked a tad next time I finally get my hair cut (probably sometime in March or April) - but I'm loving how it looks for now.

All in all, it was a nice, relaxing weekend.  We all took turns cooking, and we had some amazing food.  Night one was L's delicious spaghetti and garlic bread, which produced enough leftovers to eat all weekend.  Night two was H's amazing vegetable beef soup with every kind of veggie I could think of.  Really need to hound her for that recipe.  Of course J and I were responsible for breakfast one morning (eggs, grits, livermush, bacon and biscuits - heart attack on a plate).  

The last night we went all out.  We marinated steaks, made baked potatoes, and had a delicious salad.  The guys plus H had also gone out to a trout farm and caught some fresh trout!  It was weird for me to think that I'd never had trout before, but I really don't think I had - and I liked it!  Though really, I'd probably like anything if you battered and fried it, put ranch dressing or butter on it, or served it over pasta.  Not kidding.  I don't discriminate a whole lot. 

And there's your mountain recap.  I know y'all were probably expecting something a lot more exciting, but the truth is that I can't say I put in contacts or real pants more than maybe once all weekend.  But it was lovely!

Ten on Tuesday!

1. Any vacations you are looking forward to this summer?
Sigh, no.  I have to take the bar exam during the last week in July, so that means no traditional 4th of July beach week for me, no fun trips after graduation, nothing except going to BarBri and studying my face off, and probably growling at people.  But J and I talked about maybe doing a beach weekend for my bachelorette party after the bar, and then of course there's our honeymoon in DISNEY WORLD in September!!  So maybe I do have some vacations to look forward to after all.

2. What is your favorite article of summer clothing (shoes are included)?
Rainbow flip flops.  Can't live without 'em.  Worn the soles out of probably 10 pairs over the years.

3. What is your favorite summer drink (alcoholic or non)?
Love a Bud Light Lime in the summer, especially with a fresh grilled burger, or some chips and salsa.

4. Do you tan or burn?
I hardly ever ever ever get a sunburn and tan pretty well.  But that means that when I do get a sunburn, I am a Stage 5 Whiner.  I will be standing naked in front of a fan with a 6 inch layer of aloe on me until it goes away.

5. Any goals you are working toward this summer?
PASS THE BAR!!  That's it.

6. What is your favorite summertime food?
Fresh seafood - just makes me think of the beach.  Mmmmm really needing some fried scallops right now.

7. What song most says “summer” to you?
Pretty much anything Jimmy Buffett or Kenny Chesney.  Sometimes I'll turn that stuff on when it's 20 degrees outside just so I can pretend the sunshine outside my car window means it's actually 85 degrees.

8. Any home improvement goals planned for this summer?
I would really love to get my kitchen backsplash and floor FINALLY replaced to match my countertops.   I have black and white tiles that totally clash with my brown granite countertops (which I adore).  Really want to achieve that, which will hopefully happen if PB has more time this summer to do such things (fingers super crossed for that).

9. What is one thing you hate to see at the beach?
Parents who think that sending their kid out on a noodle/float/boogie board is an adequate substitute for being within arm's reach of your child.  Flotation devices like that make kids too confident, and over my several summers as a lifeguard, I saw too many kids get themselves in trouble because they got out in water where they couldn't touch the bottom and then accidentally flipped out of the float or lost the noodle.

10. Did you ever go to a summer camp?
I never went to summer camp per se, but us country kids did 4-H over the summer.  It was always a big deal when the 4-H bulletin came out in the spring and you got to pick out what classes and activities you wanted to do.  It was always really fun stuff - making kid-friendly recipes, tie-dying shirts, going on a farm day and learning to milk cows and collect eggs, going roller-skating, making beaded jewelry, pottery, you name it.  I even learned about periods and deodorant at 4-H when they had a "Just for Girls" class with Planned Parenthood.  Seriously.

Etsy love

Etsy is really my favorite - there are always amazing things to be found there.  So today, I thought I'd share some of my Etsy favorites with y'all.  Sometimes it can be tough to sift through the frightening things (Yanni nail tips, anyone?), but there are some serious treasures.

I bought this purse from Monday Morning Studios and I just love it!  It's big enough to hold all the essentials (you know, iPhone, Kindle, lotion, gun) - but it's not so big that it looks like a "mommy bag," as PB calls them.

I bought some of these adorable onesies for my friend S, who is crossing her fingers for having a Valentine's baby today!  I hope he makes his appearance before the calendar flips to February 15th!  The onesies are  from Jack and Chloe - they have precious, adorable things!

I got this adorable collar from Peggy Sue from Arlee Bee - I have a matching leash and it's just perfect with her black fur.  Very fancy.

This stamp from My Rubber Stamp is on the back of all of our save the dates - though I wish now that I had gotten the self-inking one.  Definitely would have been worth the extra $7!

I got this sign in black for my friends T and J when they got married.  I thought it turned out great, and it looks amazing sitting on their mantel!  You can find them at Mr. C Wood Products - perfect for a wedding or anniversary gift!

I also got them these coasters with their wedding date in green.  Love them!  They're from Meadow Tea, and they have lots of lovely stuff.

I got one of these for my sister for Christmas before last from The Ritzy Misfit and I just LOVE all of their stuff.  I am a softie for monograms of any kind, but these are just my favorites.  I can't believe I haven't ordered a silver one for myself yet.

I got this apron for Lia from Boojiboo for Christmas two years ago as well.  I just love a good apron - perfect for upping your confidence in the kitchen (in my opinion) as well as keeping cake batter off your jeans.  Everybody needs a good apron!

{Just so you know, these aren't ads and I wasn't perked or paid for any of these - I just wanted to share what I like with y'all so that you don't end up with a Regretsy.}

Happy Love Day!

We're home from our mountain vay-cay! Updating on that later, but right now, I just felt compelled to do a Valentine's Day post. Lots of folks have strong feelings about Valentine's Day, and I supposed my position is that I don't love it OR hate it.

Candy hearts are fun, I love pink and red, and I love treats. Am I one of those people who feels like I have to have a new pair of diamond earrings on February 14th? No. I was just happy that PB and I got to go out for a little Valentine's dinner last night, probably the first time we've gone out to dinner alone in three or four months.

Isn't that crazy to think about? Our schedules are so awful that we haven't been on a date in three or four months. Unacceptable. Last night was nothing fancy, because that's not my thing. I wanted a giant bowl of pasta and some sangria from Carrabba's, but they were packed and the lady was rude to me on the phone about call-ahead seating ("We don't DO call-ahead until 7:30, but you're more than welcome to come in and wait just like everybody else.") So we ended up at Longhorn, with a raspberry firefly tea for me, a Texas tonion, and some delicious grilled salmon, sweet potatoes, and salad with their amazing spicy ranch.

After we got home, our doorbell rang, and it was our sweet neighbors with rice krispie treats wrapped in tin foil to look like Hershey's kisses!

My parents left for the beach this weekend because Valentine's Day is also their anniversary, but before they left, they dropped off some valentines for me and PB!

(Notice that one has wiener dogs!)

My mom always gets me something for Valentine's Day, and this year was no exception - she got me some precious things!

I got that adorable heart wreath aaaaand these amazing giant peanut butter cups!

I'm going to be sad when I have to take down my Valentine's Day decorations tomorrow.

How are y'all spending Valentine's Day? Hope you get lots of love (and candy)!

Happy Thursday!

I'm sitting through one final class before we take our little mini winter vay-cay to the mountains!

Here's what I'm loving today:

+All of my stuff packed and up and ready to go as soon as class is over!

+This stuff is amazing.  And it was just what I needed this morning when I woke up to the smallest dusting of snow in the backyard.

+One Born Every Minute on Lifetime.  If you haven't watched it, go catch up.  I have no idea why this show fascinates me so much, but I just love it.  My mom, who was a nursery nurse/baby whisperer for approximately forever, says that it's incredibly true to life (unlike a lot of reality shows, I suspect).

+That J just texted me this picture of Peggy Sue with the caption, "The recliner is one wiener dog long."  I dropped her (and all that stuff previously pictured on my bed) at J's house before I came to class so that we can hit the trail running as soon as I get out.  Yay!

+That I just made this Kindle case with some leftover orange yarn I had lying around yesterday.  I haven't done the button yet because I didn't happen to have any of those lying around, but it's so adorable!  If you're a knitter, you can find the pattern from Haramis Knits, and if you're not a knitter, you can buy this one for a mere $15 from her Etsy shop.  {Just so you know, I wasn't paid or perk'd for this - I just love her pattern and how it turned out!}

Hope you're all having a great Thursday (or day-before-Friday)!  What are you loving today?

Wordless Wednesday: A Pictorial History of Me & PB

  

I rounded up some old pictures of me and PB - sort of an evolution of us, if you will.  It was weird, all of these pictures came from facebook, and then I realized that a good chunk of our relationship started before Eff Bee even existed.  Or at least when you had to go to a certain college and sign up with your .edu email to have one, and well, we weren't in college when this stuff all began.  Oh, and now, it's somehow become Wordy Wednesday as opposed to Wordless, but whatevs.

  So here's where it really all started.  Prom 2005.  Notice my sweet updo.  Also you'll notice that I've been throwing up for about an hour prior to this picture.  And NOT because I was drunk, though a lot of people thought I was, which probably upped my cool points.  At least helped make up for my crazy hair and Cinderella dress.

And here's PB and his cousin - I found these pictures on an old disposable camera (yes, those were also the days where a 2 megapixel camera was like $500 and most of us didn't own one).  PB is pretty much doing some variation of this pose in every. Single. Picture.

Look!  It's the big time, where we get to pose in crappy dorm rooms!  This was before one of my sorority formals (bet you didn't peg me as that, did you?  Good, because I was pretty crappy at it).  Somewhere circa December 2005.

Here we are on the way to a Kenny Chesney concert (hence our awesome outfits) in summer 2006.

Me and PB, out for his first legal beer!

Halloween-before-last

This past summer at the beach!

So that's where we've been....right now, I'm crazily packing for the mountains and I'm convinced I'm going to need a U-Haul trailer.  Fingers crossed that a) we fit all the crap into the car and b) we don't get snowed in (which is looking more and more likely around these parts.)

Ten on Tuesday!

1. What’s your favorite kind of donut?

I have had a long-standing affair with Krispy Kreme.  

This would be when I went to visit Lia in DC and the hot sign was on at Krispy Kreme.  And I snarfed a hot donut while standing in the store.  And then left with a pumpkin spice donut AND a jack-o-lantern donut.  

And let's not forget the time I lived in Winston-Salem for six weeks for a summer nerd program in high school and religiously ate a dozen donuts every week.  How I even did that in July when it was 90 degrees and we lived with no air conditioning, I don't know, but  I did.

Oh, and not to forget the time I bought six fund-raiser donuts from the football team before I ran a track meet.  Let me just tell you - that's an epic fail.

2. Do you use the snooze button?

Oh my Lord, I need to find a way to remove the snooze function from my iPhone.  I'm serious, it's like something I really need to work on.  I'll set my alarm for 8am and then I have literally hit the snooze button for an hour and a half.  It's RIDICULOUS.

3. Do you write in cursive, print, or a combination of the two?
Almost always print unless I'm feeling fancy.

4. Tell us a joke.
This is one of the jokes my dad always, always tells - and we always, always groan - 

A duck walks into Walgreen's, gets a tube of Chap-Stick.  He goes to the register and says, "Just put it on my bill."

5. How many languages do you speak?
English and a bit of Spanglish. (Same as Chelsea.)  Don't think it's really fair to call it actual Spanish anymore.

6. Why did you start blogging?
I used to have a LiveJournal wayyyy back forever ago, and I just always liked writing it. I liked going back and reading my own posts and reliving the memories - I never cared whether anyone else read or not, but it was fun to see my own state of mind at the time.

7. Do you use bar soap or liquid body wash?
Bar soap freaks. Me. Out.  I can't be having anybody else getting in my shower and rubbing my bar soap all over them - ew ew ew.  Body wash.  Always.

8. Do you buy bottled water?
See, I feel like that's unnecessary money spent.  I grew up on city water - it hasn't made me grow a horn yet - I don't really like water in general (big soda junkie) so the tap stuff is just fine whenever I do want some.

9. What did you think of the Super Bowl Half Time Show?
It wasn't life-changing or anything - but I did have a really intense desire to be one of those people dancing their butts off in the glow suits.  

10. How do you feel about Steve Carell leaving The Office?
Is anyone happy about this?  I feel like if you are, you aren't really an Office fan anyway.  I mean he makes the show - I have no idea what will happen when he leaves.  Probably the number one effect will be that it goes off of my top priority list on the DVR.

As always, these are from Chelsea over at Roots and Rings!

Superbowl Sunday = Epic Case of the Mondays

I am SO not into Monday today.  Can we please go back to the lovely weekend?  Hope Green Bay was your favorite team for the Superbowl, or at least that you drank lots and had a good time anyway if you're a Steelers fan.  Personally, I don't have a "team" per se because I just really don't give a crap about football.  Generally, I pick teams to win based on whose costumes I like better.  Yes, I call them costumes.  Mainly because I did it once and it really got PB's goat, so (naturally) I kept doing it.  Really, I liked the Steelers' costumes better, since I am not such a green fan, but I gave the Packers extra credit due to their association with cheese, and who doesn't love cheese?  If you don't, I don't think we can be friends.

But I always watch the Superbowl, if only because it's a great excuse to eat a whole lot of fatty fat snacks.  Such as bruschetta, hot dogs, banana pudding, french onion dip, 9402942093 pita chips, red velvet cake, battered and baked olives and a whole lot of chili.  It's possible I ate all of those things yesterday.  Whoops.

My parents had folks over and it was a fun little garage party.

Yep, there's me facebooking/texting/something during the game.  Imagine that.  And there's Peggy Sue with J - we played a lot of pass the weenie.  And the weenie ate a whole lot more popcorn than I would generally have approved, but hey, it's the superbowl, right?

Anyway, all of the Sunday night hanging out is making me very averse to Monday and its mandate to come to class and be a human.  I've often thought we should move the Superbowl to Saturday.  Superbowl Saturday still has alliteration - in fact, I think it works even better than Superbowl Sunday due to the same number of syllables in each word.  And my insides could have a full day to recover in sweatpants.  Or at the very least, we need to make Superbowl Monday a national holiday.  National Pajama Pants Day, at the very least.  Or maybe I should just invest in a pair of pajama jeans.  I think the only reason I've avoided buying a pair thus far is because I know I'd wear them all the time, whether they looked good or not.  

Let's switch gears.  I'm inordinately excited about this weekend, because we're going to the mountains!  There are going to be about a bajillion of us and we're also taking Peggy Sue.  I hope she doesn't behave like a demon terror the whole time.  J and I made a huge shopping list last night, and maybe if I share some of my favorite items from that plus our "we have it already, let's not forget to bring it" list, you'll get a good idea of what I'm forecasting for this weekend.

1. Steaks
2. Pretzels/Dip/Snaaaaaacks
3. Latenight food (frozen pizza, bagel bites, anything else we can yank out of the freezer section at Sam's Club)
4. Beer
5. Wii + the Just Dance game
6. Bathing Suits for the hot tub 
7. Snow clothes!
8. Sweatpants
9. Kindles/Nooks
10. Knitting

See why I'm excited? Any weekend involving all of those things has got to be a good weekend.  Expect awesome pictures!

Oh! And I almost forgot - this week, I'm participating in Mingle Monday which originates over at Life of Meg.  So if you're here from Mingle Monday, welcome!  I hope you'll poke around. :)

Vote please!

Dear Jesus, I have been in class since 9:30 this morning.  And this junk doesn't end until 4:00.  I may go crazy.  I have officially caught up on my Google reader (which, mind you, has been sorely neglected and had over 500 unread items.)  I bought a little trinket for PB for Valentine's Day (tell you about that post-V-Day), I read on Kindle for PC, I shoe browsed, I stared at the wall.  It's just one of those classes where she's not really saying anything.  She's a sweet lady, but she's not saying anything of real substance.  So that's where I am right now.

I have no real weekend plans, besides going to Amici's Pizza to hear a band tonight.  And probably also eat a large pizza by myself and drink 29 beers.  Don't judge me.  I still have not solved this computer dilemma I told you about the other day.  The plan right now is to ignore it and pretend that will fix it.  I solve lots of problems that way.  Good plan, huh?

Time for some wedding drivel - you realize by now that this a hodgepodge post by now, right?

About the only thing I really have to left to decide about is invitations.  Well, and programs, but those will probably come post-invitations and maybe match?  Probably?  My first whine moment is - WHY ARE THE DARN THINGS SO EXPENSIVE?  Everything I like is seriously $3.75 a set.  Or at the very least, $2.00.  When you need 175 invitations, that turns into a lot of money.  And I just can't see myself spending that kind of money on paper!  Paper!

Anywho, I've been cruising Etsy, Magnet Street Weddings, Wedding Paper Divas, and emailing local companies to see if they can replicate what I like (answer: they can, but it really won't save me any money.)  So here's what I've been loving:

Ok, so there's option numero uno.  Obviously the names, wording, etc. would be changed - but there's the general idea!

There's numero dos.  Obvs not with the yellow - the color would be closer to option numero uno.  I like that it's a little fancier, but it's also more expensive, so I'd have to look into getting someone local to produce it and see if I could get them down on price.

Here's option numero tres.  The only reservation about this one is that the color is a little different and might be too light.  I *think* Wedding Paper Divas will customize it for me though.

Though I feel like this one is too much teal - I'd probably change the text color to black.  So there you have it - what I've been looking at!  

The other problem with wedding invitations is that there are just too too many to pick from.  Give me your votes!  Thoughts?  Hate them all? Let me know!

I am a Computer Murderer

I am always the girl with the Computer Drama.  In undergrad at UNC, they talked us all into buying IBM Thinkpads, and told us horror stories about how if we didn't get THAT PARTICULAR ONE, that nothing would work with the UNC network, that we would be lost and helpless sans tech support, and basically that evil gremlins would come out of your Mac, Dell, HP, whatever and attack you in your dorm room. 

I talked my parents into getting me the big super-deluxe model with the fingerprint swiper instead of the regular log-in screen....whiiiiich pretty much never worked.  And it was fine for awhile until the big terrible moment when it started acting slow, I took it IT services and dropped it off and then got a voicemail saying, "Uh, hey, this is Justin from ITS...if there's anything important on this computer, you should call us, because your hard drive is junk." 

I still dragged the IBM dinosaur with me when I started law school, and it would sit there and whine like it was going into orbit while I tried to take notes on it.  There's dead silence in the room while the professor asks a question no one knows the answer to and everyone is desperately trying to be invisible (me most of all), and my computer is going, "EEEEEEEEEEEEE," like I'm blowing a dog whistle.

So when the IBM went from whining and being embarrassing to just not really booting up anymore, I decided it was time for a new laptop.  PB was still in the I-hate-Macs-because-they're-stupid-and-gimmicky-and-overpriced camp, and he talked me out of getting one.  I got a Sony Vaio instead, and it was fine for the first two weeks.

Fine until The Incident of the Palmetto Bug.  I have spoken often of these, I know.  But I swear I still have PTSD from living in a house full of them for a whole school year.  In fact, one night, in the throes of my first semester of law school stress, one of them dropped off the ceiling and ONTO ME.  I had my giant casebooks spread out all over the couch and my brand new, week-old laptop on my lap.  Nearly dying because there was a giant roach on my leg, making his way toward my pajama shorts, I jumped up from the couch, screamed bloody murder, and tried to set the computer down on the floor, rather than throwing it across the room.  But in such a state, I only got the computer about six inches above the ground before I just dropped it, and it was over. 

After I spent 20 minutes trying to chase the big nasty thing out from under the couch to kill it, I went back to my computer to watch the whole screen slowly freeze and then fade to black, like Leo DiCaprio's face fades away into the ocean at the end of Titanic.  Thankfully, I took it back to the store and got a new computer, a replacement identical Sony Vaio. 

So that's the trilogy of my laptop usage, until this morning.  I woke up, turned my computer on to get my reading assignment for the day, and this is what I was greeted by:

Sigh.  Hard drive busted again.  You'd think I beat my computers with a hammer or used them for target practice. For now, I'm using my dad's laptop that we got him for his birthday in April with the hopes he'd figure out how to use it, which, well, hasn't quite happened yet.  What I really, really want is a shiny new MacBook.  What I really, really need is approximately one million dollars in the bank.  Sooooo, long story short, I don't think either of those will be happening anytime soon.  Compaq netbook it is!

Ten on Tuesday!

It's that time again...Ten on Tuesday! As usual, these come from Roots and Rings and this week's set was written by Lyndsey.

1. What is your favorite childhood memory?

Oh man, so many good ones. Probably eating dinner in front of the tv in my cozy coupe. Mom used to set it up in front of the TV and serve me meals in it like I was at the drive-in movies. Remember cozy coupes? Mine had about a million miles on it.

2. What is your favorite quality about yourself?
I’m loyal and sometimes I can be funny. (That's Chelsea's answer, but I agree, so I'll stick with that).

3. What is your favorite thing that your child does?
All of my children are furry...so I'll answer about them.  I love that Tallulah scratches at her water bowl every time she drinks, like she's digging it out of the ground.  I love that Twyla fetches even though she's a cat.  I love that Peggy Sue burrows in the sheets every night.  I do not love, however, that she brought me what can only be described as a squirrel mummy this morning.

4. What is your favorite thing to do to relax?
I love to get my Kindle out, sit on the porch if the weather is nice, have a glass of wine, fire up the Netflix instant...any combination of the above will work.

5. What is your favorite restaurant? And what is your favorite thing on the menu?
Gosh this is really tough.  I love food.  Love love love food.  I could eat Nothing but Noodles every single day.  I love the Stag and Doe for a good steak and some homemade ranch dressing.  I love Carrabba's for Italian, and I love The Seafood Hut in Calabash for delicious seafood.  And of course, Sogo for Japanese. 

6. What is your favorite piece of jewelry (besides your wedding ring)?
I love my swirl necklace with diamonds that PB got me once upon a time. 

7. What is your favorite night of the week M-TH? And why?
Wednesday nights are my favorite TV nights (The Middle, Modern Family).  Also it's date night with PB and sometimes our friends T and J!  And as of late, puppy class night, where we get to watch Peggy Sue play with all her puppy friends.  

8. What is your favorite dessert?
CAKE.  Strawberry or coconut.

9. What is your favorite item in your make-up bag?
My bare minerals - for sure.  I was out for awhile and I just hated my life while I had to go back to using liquid makeup for a week or so.  Hate hate hate.

10. What is your favorite smell?
Hmmm.  Lately, cocoa butter.  I've been slathering it all over myself lately to fight the dry skin and it kind of makes me smell like hot chocolate.