Valentine’s Day

Sunday, February 14th, 2010
Family & Friends, Keith, Photos
15 Comments

I hope that everyone had a great Valentine’s Day! I almost cried when I opened my present from Keith. He created a wooden bobblehead of my kitty, Socks. It looks just like her down to her striped tail, and her extra white paw. She is now sitting on my desk so I can look at her every time I do my homework.

How can you NOT smile when you see something like that? My parents also gave me a beautiful jewelry box since I have been needing one for a while. I had some small ones, but nothing to keep my necklaces in. Can you believe I spent almost an hour organizing everything? I love it because it looks like a mini wardrobe.

It has little doors on either side and little hangers for necklaces. I put two on each hanger and used the drawers for some other chains and my rings. I’m so happy to finally have something to keep my necklaces in safe and sound without them getting tangled.

Keith and I were very low key this Valentine’s Day, celebrating on Friday night. We went to Chili’s since we had a gift card and watched “Carriers” which was decent until about the halfway point. We basically spent the evening making fun of the movie and how many plot holes it had. I purchased some Axe products and heart boxers for him with K’s all over them. Red, black, and with his first initial? It was a win-win situation!

I hope that everyone had a great weekend! Did you do anything to celebrate Valentine’s Day?

Just too awesome…

Wednesday, February 10th, 2010
Family & Friends, Photos
13 Comments

I had a pair of heart shaped sun glasses when I was just a little one. I remember loving them. There’s something about little kid accessories that just make you happy (especially when they’re made for grown-ups, haha).

Kathleen and I picked up these bad boys at Old Navy when we were out after getting our nails done and shopping for V-Day. And yes, I will be wearing these out in public. Five dollars for glasses that make me giddy? I say that’s a pretty good deal.

Hi, Denzel: Nice to meet you!

Saturday, January 16th, 2010
Family & Friends, Photos
17 Comments

On Wednesday my Mom, Kathleen, and her sister Joanna went to NYC to go and see the Regis and Kelly show. It was awesome. My mom picked the show with special guest Freddie Prinze Jr., Tim Gunn was also on the show, and they let us stay to see the taping of Friday’s segment as a surprise. The segment featured DENZEL WASHINGTON! I love him as an actor, and one of my favorite movies is “Fallen” which is one of his older movies in which he tries to catch this demon that passes through people. It’s really a great movie, so I give it a watch if you get a chance.

As we were exiting the show, I saw a ton of Paparazzi standing outside of the door and flashes were going off like crazy. At first I was confused and then my Mom said, “Denzel Washington is right in front of us!” Kathleen and I dove in and I whipped out my cell phone to take photos. I managed to get two decent ones.

The first one was the best one, but I really liked that happy lady with the hat. Denzel was tall as heck, and we were, as Joanna put it, “uncomfortably close to him.” Ha!

At the end of all of the excitement, my Mom asked him for an autograph. She realized all she had was her disposable camera. She handed it to him and he said, “Wow, this is a first, I’ll have to work on this!” and smiled. He was truly such a nice person and did not rush to get into his car, talked to people, and signed things for people too. It was truly an amazing day.

This is my Mom’s camera, haha. With Denzel Washington’s autograph!!

The day was completed by purchasing amazing cupcakes at Crumbs Bakery, which I’ve wanted to go to for a while now, and lunch at Junior’s. Waking up at 3:30 to catch a 5:12 train was totally worth it!

2009 Reflections

Friday, January 1st, 2010
Daily Grind, Family & Friends, Keith
13 Comments

First and foremost, I hope that all of you fabulous pals of mine had a safe, happy, and fun New Year’s Eve and Day. Keith and I celebrated at his house with some friends and his family like we usually do. We drank some Busch Light (light, so it’s healthy–right?), some green, and some xbox. We continued the celebration into today when we came back to my house to have a nice dinner and dessert with my parents. I thought it would be fun to reflect back on good ole 2009, and what I’m looking forward to for 2010.

I finally began shoveling. Before this year I never picked up a shovel to clean up the driveway after a snowstorm. When my Dad hurt his knee in February I stepped up to the plate.

I made some amazing new friends. People who were in my classes, but I never really spoke to have become some great friends to me. I’m so glad that this year I actually talked to more people.

Keith and I attended three weddings, one of which we were both in, and started to realize that taking our sweet time on the engagement, wedding stress, and house buying is A-Ok!

Attended the sex museum and braved NYC without the guidance of my Dad who happens to know how to get EVERYWHERE! It was so fun to experience.

Said goodbye Keith’s dog, Royal. Keith’s golden retriever was one of my favorite dogs ever. In April he passed away due to cancer.

Learned how much work a puppy is–and how much of a cat person I am–when we babysat Brody, Keith’s new golden/chow pup for the first three days of him being home.

Realized that crying doesn’t mean you’re weak.

Learned from Kenny that “Showing No Weakness” is what you need to do, even if you want to crawl into a ball…and cry.

Kept off my 50 pounds that I lost–and have continued to reshape my lifestyle with health and fitness.

Realized that good people get screwed when the economy fails. Keith and I learned how to be frugal and still have fun when he was laid off. (He now has a new job!!!)

“Reinvented” (for lack of a better word) my relationship with God. It’s one of the most amazing things I have experienced.

Gave up shaving for 2 weeks ala Amanda Palmer, just to see what it was like. Liberating? YES! Doable for me? NOPE!

And my goals for 2010 thus far:
-Get a teaching job when I graduate in May.
-Survive student teaching–and hopefully love it!
-Work on my birthday notebook, so I can have everyone’s birthdays in order.
-Write in my journal more often. No more 3 month lapses.
-Continue filling my recipe box.
-Write more letters.
-Maintain my weight loss.
-Spend time with family and friends.
-Enjoy life, and try not to stress out as much as I do.

What are some of your highlights of the year? What do you hope to accomplish? Here’s to a healthy, happy, and prosperous 2010!

Things I Love: Wednesday

Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009
Beauty & Fashion, Family & Friends, Food & Recipes, Health & Fitness, Site Stuff, The Media
13 Comments

It’s the middle of the week, and though I began compiling this blog on the train ride home from NYC, I figured it was time to share with all of you the things that are keeping me cheerful this week.

Last Christmas was when I had the pleasure of trying out Philosophy’s bath and body products. My cousin got me Snowman Body Wash/Shampoo and it was great! This Christmas season they are featuring a “Recipe Box” including Red Velvet Cake and Sweet Creamy Frosting body washes/shampoos. The cool thing about Philosophy’s products is that you can wash your hair and your body at the same time. What a time saver! Plus these two products smell delicious. I purchased mine at Ulta for $18.00, and have been using them every day. My skin is soft, the lather is FABULOUS, and it feels like I’m bathing in cupcake batter. Definitely a great stocking stuffer or gift for your friends! It also comes with two real baking recipe cards!

Next up, Tom Perrotta! I was introduced to his books by my friend Kelly. She let me borrow a book called “Little Children” and I ended up buying it for myself and telling as many people as possible to read it. But this isn’t about “Little Children”, (though that’s a great read) this is about “The Abstinence Teacher.” This book kept me hooked from the beginning. One of the main characters is a teacher, and it just shows what teachers have to go through when the “man” steps into your classroom. The book also gives a look into the world of religion, and what happens when religion and public education mesh together. (It’s disastrous in my opinion–but that is a whole other blog post). To me, the characters were believable, and I loved the flashback style Perrotta used.

Going on with the book theme, my next obsession is Goodreads. I joined it because I’m currently compiling a reading portfolio/unit for a Sarah Dessen novel for my class. I was planning on creating a Goodreads project, but figured I should be familiar with HOW the site works, not just what I’ve heard from fellow bloggers. Needless to say, I’m hooked and I have tons of fun ideas for my future students to use and explore this website. You can add me and I would love that. I especially like the site’s trivia section. It’s infinite!

Finally, exchanging recipes is something else that I’ve recently gotten into. If you remember from Easter I received a recipe box and am currently working on filling it. At my Aunt’s house on Thanksgiving I planned to exchange recipes via snail mail with my cousin’s brother. I sent him a Manicotti recipe and my Taco Dip recipe. The art of letter writing is NOT dead. I love writing letters, and I love getting recipes. Do you have any favorite recipes?

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