I have to talk about blessings

Lately I have had ear aches and ear itches. This morning I actually woke myself up because I was itching my ear in my sleep. I was putting off going to the doctor because of finals and yesterday I hosted my work Christmas party. So this morning I went to the walk-in clinic at Walmart. Here are all the ways I pre-judged it.
~It's going to be full of dirty, sick people.
~The people who work there are going to be rude from having to deal with the sick people.
~It's going to be dirty.
~The doctor really isn't going to care about me.

This is how the visit went. First I got online to look up what these clinics were all about. And apparently Wuestoff Hospital (our county's main hospital chain) is putting them in all the walmart storefronts as a way for people (even with insurace) to be able to get a quick doctor's appointment even on weekends and evenings. It's not a state-run health clinic. It's a doctors office in walmart. And it was brand new!

When I got there I filled out the patient forms and handed them in and was followed by a woman who was there to get sea-sick patches for a cruise she was taking. We chatted while the very nice desk lady checked us both in, and within 15 minutes I went back and met the nurse practitioner. She looked in my ears, nose and mouth and felt my glands and asked me lots of questions. (I have a sinus infection)Then when she realized I didn't have insurance she gave me coupons for my nasal spray and ammoxacilin because it's free to fill! All for $49. (I called an E.N.T. and they said just for a first-visit consultation it would be $306)

I always thought having no insurance would be a major burden. That I would be unhappy with my clinic visits and go un-cared for by busy, underpaid care-givers. But these people were really helpful and caring. And it was so affordable. Other than the fact that in an emergency we would be screwed over by a high ER bill, having no insurance has not turned out to be a burden at all. In fact, I pay less for birth control than I ever did before. It's free, too!

All this to say, God is truly blessing us and today I felt very thankful for all the ways that He shows me He is watching out for me. He wants me to be healed and he wants Kyle not to be stressed about doctor bills. I will always be "the sickly wife" to Kyle, but with this cute little clinic, I won't cost much!

Instead of working on my finals, I'm doing this!

Here are my Christmas decorations. I came home tonight with every intention of doing some homework seeing as how classes end next week.

Nope. Santa can't wait that long.

Here are the Christmas village places that mom bought me. We have matching sets. From the left there is the Toy Shoppe, The (Southern Baptist) Church, The Court House, and a Blue House that belongs to the Judge/Pastor/ToyMaker of the town. His name is Santa.


Here are the twinkle lights around our massive window



Here is Thornton Santa. Mom bought him for us on Black Friday and said that he would be the santa that our kids will be excited about getting out each year. He's awesome. I don't think the kids will be as excited for Thornton Santa as we were for Sprite Santa.

And here's Sprite Santa in case you didn't know...


Here are our advent stockings. Kyle demands individually-wrapped twizzlers in his stockings so the search is on. *sigh*


Here is Marsh Santa. We had one like this when we were little and it disappeared so Grandma CC gave me hers. I love him the best.



Here is our nativity scene--Peanuts window pasties. I love how Woodstock is baby Jesus. So sweet.


Here are our stockings hung by the front door with care. With hopes that the tacks holding them up with do their job by keeping them there. (the stockings are filled with cotton)

Five-Day Weekend

From Wednesday until Sunday I had no school and only worked one shift Saturday night. In that time I did the following.

Wednesday I:
Cleaned my apartment from top to bottom. This includes but is not limited to, stripping the bed, cleaning the kitty litter, sweeping and vacuuming the floors, running the dishwasher, Mr. Clean Magic Eraser-ing the doors from Kyle's dirty handprints, scrubbing the tub, its tiles, sink and all house mirrors, and scrubbing the floors on my hands and knees using a pot of almost boiling water, pledge floor cleaner and a green scrubby.

Bathed the cat.

Did a minimal amount of homework because I got all of my major projects done last weekend so I could enjoy the holiday.

Got my hair cut again.

Baked 2 pinapple casseroles in preperations for my two Thanksgiving dinners (neither of which were eaten).

Made a brownie trifle (almost all of which got eaten).

Went to dinner with Kyle.

Saw a movie for free that sucked (Faster, some action film that Kyle's workout buddy invited us to).

Thursday I:

Went to Kyle's parents in Orlando at 9 to watch the parade.

Watched the whole parade with his sisters which was so much fun.

Helped in the kitchen, made the drop biscuits.

Ate at 1:00, left 30 minutes after and were slightly late for mom and dad's dinner, but still caught the tail end.

Played scategories with mom, grandma and neighbor glenna.

Cut coupons and planned black Friday.

Took picture for Christmas card.

Friday I:
Woke up at 2:30 to be at mom's by three. AM.

Shopped until 5 pm at Kohls, then Target, then a huge/awesome mall I'd never been to.

Ate Chik-fil-A, Subway, and Mexican as my 3 meals that day.

Learned how to Crochet while watching Garfield Christmas and The Grinch with mom and dad.

Discovered that the engine light had been on in my car because I had somehow driven off without my gas cap.

Got my windsheilf wipers replaced.

(I have to pause and say that I can't believe that after shopping for 14 hours and learning to crochet, I still was forced to go to Auto Zone and get diagnostics run on my car, buy a new gas cap and get my wipers replaced. I'm lucky my husband cares so much about my car's safety.)

Was asleep by 10

Saturday I:

Went to the flea market with Kyle.

Went to lunch at our favorite pizza place that reminds me of the place we went to in England as kids. (They use those dimply red plastic coke cups and have old arcade games in the back)

Saw a movie not that was good (Love and Other Drugs)

Went to work.

Went grocery shopping.

Sunday I:

Was late to church.

Did laundry while eating leftovers at mom and dad's.

Got a fourth row done on my scarf that I am crocheting.

Went out to eat with Kyle for the third time in one weekend (but all totalled it was technically my 6th time that weekend)--it was a new Mexican place and it was the best I have had since moving here.

Did homework.

Packed Kyle's lunch.

Went to bed.

This is what I have to say about weekends like this. They are wonderful. I did very little critical thinking--except when I was dominating scategories--and I was so tired every night that I was doing that weird laugh thing when your so tired you can't even groan and it comes out in bursts, like sleepy cackling. ?? The issue is that when you go back to the real world, you are so over all the writing and thinking you did the week before the holiday and you're so relaxed from the no-work holiday that you just want to take a nap every time you open the computer.

But here is a really funny knock knock joke I heard at work tonight and was hoping to use on Kyle when I got home but he is asleep. Alas, you will have to try it. Say the whole thing aloud:

me: Knock Knock
you: Who's there?
me: smell mupp
you: smell mupp who?

CRACK UP LAUGHING!

Please excuse this--I worked late tonight.

Enjoy

I don't have to ask you to enjoy this. You just will.

Like a Baby

This Sunday I got out the Christmas 1989 home movie. It is slightly less popular than the Christmas 1990 video because there is less fighting and more sweetness. But I enjoyed it just the same. One of my favorite moments was when Dad put the camera on the tripod to film he and mom opening gifts with Holly and Leah running back and forth bringing them their wrapped treasures--Holly mis-reading the labels, giving them to the wrong parent, and Leah correcting her. I mostly sat there and put things in my mouth. (The ten-month-old me, not the 21 year old me) But there was a moment where dad picked me up and kissed me and sat me on his knee. It made me miss being little. It made me miss being surrounded by my big sisters, mom's big hair and dad's mustache. It made me cry.

I saw lots of Steven in Leah, sliding on her belly across the kitchen floor and sticking her tongue out at the camera every chance she got. And it made me think, maybe it's not just boys who are obnoxious at that age. I saw Nolan's serious face in Holly when mom had to tear her from her nap for her own party. Kyle asked mom why she had me drinking formula at only 10 months and she said, "Cara just didn't want to nurse after 8 months. She had to be with her sisters." I still see that in me. I used to think it was cool to live in Florida--until it wasn't. Now I just feel shut out. And the more I watched that video the more I looked forward to Christmas, and not Christmas 2010 in particular. Maybe Christmas 2018--when we have a little baby (who I hope is as chubby and red-headed as I was) and a family of our own. I want so much out of life and the more I live the more I learn that God wants me to want it. He gave me life to live it and I feel every day that I am living closer to my dream.

Friday night Kyle and I were talking about how much we love being married and he said, "In just a few more years I will be exactly where I've always wanted to be." And to that I replied, "This is all I ever wanted so I'm doing pretty good." But the things I want develop. I used to want a husband, now I want a real job and then a baby. (or 2 or 3) I don't call this being unsatisfied. If all I ever wanted was a husband and after that I let things come and go as they pleased, that would be called being complacent.

The more I desire what God wants for me, the more joy I find in life. I hope the same for anyone reading this.

Video of Apartment

Remeber when you saw our apartment for the first time on THIS post back in February? Well, here is the new and imporved Thornton household. So have at it!



Complete with a blooper reel!
Your viewing pleasure would be much-improved if you had smell-a-vision. Because it smells very homey up in here.

A Moment

Saturday morning we slept in until ten. I made pancakes, sausage, eggs and cinnamon rolls and we watched a move, 8 seconds. (It's the true story of the champion bull rider of the world.) It was so nice to sit with Kyle and enjoy time not thinking about school, talking about money or worrying about the future. These moments are rare around here.

I know I am still learning to be a wife and I was reminded this weekend.

Kyle is a perfectionist and is super hard on himself when he doesn't get a concept right away or get the grade he wants. And I hate, hate, detest to see him down on himself because I know I am the same way with my own school-or I used to be.
Since we've been married, I am still the same student. I work hard, expect perfection from myself and hate criticism. But since being married, God has changed me into something better. I don't stress out about grades and beat myself up over every sore and score.
And I know that's because I am meant to support Kyle throught these times. I am so thankful for the strength to encourage him but I wish I had a little bit more. When he sighs and looks dejected and disappointed, I get so upset because I don't know how to react. I want to convince him that he is perfect but he doesn't believe me. It takes so much out of the both of us when he has a hard time on an assignment. I try to convince him that it's a small step in the big picture, but I could tell myself the same thing about this struggle.

All this to say, I cherish the moments of peace in our lives and thank God for the strength to get through the rough times. And I also thank God that this semester is flying by. My perfect husband needs a break.



This is Kyle and I out to his first lobster dinner with his dad and Mary. Just thought a blog is more fun with a picture.

Top Ten Tuesday

I haven't done one of these in a while because I have been running out of things by about 5 and by ten I am grasping at straws. But this one came pretty easily seeing as how my mind has been in a foggy fog for the past few weeks.

So here they are--The Top Ten Things I (ooh la la!) do on Autopilot.

1. Turn left out of my apartment whether or not I truly and desperately need to be turning right.

2. Type in google.com at the top of my browser before ever realizing that I do not need to google anything at the moment.

3. Put the toilet seat down. Since my cat has taken to drinking toilet water (which is blue and full of disinfecting chemicals) I have gained an excellent habit...and excellent confindence in his immune system. Because he is not even close to being dead.

4. Condition my hair. I can always remember if I have washed my hair. But every night for the past week I have had an inner dialogue with myself upon wondering whether or not I have conditioned.
"Did I condition yet?"
"No, you didn't."
"Yes I did. Remember it came out in a long snake and I swirled it up like whipped cream in my palm?"
"Oh, yes that was fun. You definately conditioned."

5. Dial Kyle's phone every.single.solitary. time that I attempt to place a call.

6. Give my customers the rundown of our new items. The other day, I listed our new items so fast and with such precise emphasis that they both stared at me and the wife said to her husband without blinking, "She's like a robot." Darn.

7. Say, "Have a good night" no matter what time of day it is.

8. Go straight to my old room when I walk into mom and dad's house. Once I get there I always just stand there wondering what I'm doing. But Sunday I decided I would leave my shoes there so I wouldn't feel so dumb.

9. Sing. This is more of activity I do while on autopilot. I just always hum or sing while at work to the point where I don't realize I'm doing it unless someone acknowledges it.

10. Correct grammar. I edit Kyle's papers every Monday and have become quite efficient and can do it while watching The Office. (The Office Starts This Week)

Ghost Clocks

In the happy Marsh home there was always one clock on the living room wall that chimed every hour. It was subdued, soft and sweet enough to go unnoticed most of the time by the happy family. And it never interrupted their thoughts or caused them discomfort. It belonged.

Then Grandpa made another chiming clock for the house which already had its own clock. The living room clock did not understand why it was being replaced by this new clock that stood on its own two legs and had shelves for little statues and glass figurines. "You're not being replaced, chimed the new clock. But soon you'll be forgotten." It's chime was sweet and unsettling. But the living room clock did not respond, for it was getting close to the hour. It's chime was strong and humble. But the new clock yet persisted. "You chime every hour. And so do I. But can you chime on the half-hour? On the quarter-hour? I can. And I will."

And so it did. But the living room clock was not soon forgotten. The family still remembered to change its batteries and set it at daylight savings times. It still belonged. Meanwhile, Grandpa donated yet another clock to the house that already had two clocks. This one sat on its own like the new clock, which was now the not-so-new clock. But this new clock was short, and was what is called a mantle clock. It sat on the mantle where it belonged. But there was a problem with this mantle. This mantle was located in the living room, the same room from which the living room clock hung--the same room from which the living room clock chimed its chimes. "This will not do," said the living room clock--the real living room clock that is.

But before the real living room clock could hatch a plan to get rid of the clock that sat on the mantle that happened to be in the living room, something was discovered about the clock on the mantle. When the living room clock and the not-so-new clock that chimed on every quarter-hour, half-hour and hour were chiming on the hour, the mantle clock was not chiming. And when the living room clock and the not-so-new clock were not chiming, the mantle clock was chiming. It chimed loud and was very proud to also chime every quarter and half hour. "It is your kind of clock," said the living room clock to the not-so-new clock. "Tell it when to chime." But the not-so-new clock refused. "I cannot help that one. It is so old, that it must be wound in the back and there is no one to wind it."

But the living room clock knew that all was not lost. The young girl of the house was always very unsettled by the chiming of the not-so-new clock. So the living room clock waited patiently for the young girl to grow weary of the loud mantle clock on its irregular schedule. And she did. She tried moving it to the counter. "But I am a mantle clock," it would say. "A counter-clock is a direction or movement, not a proper name for a clock of my stature." So, the proud clock was moved back to his mantle. The living room clock grew restless but the young girl did not disappoint. She found a way to stop the mantle clock's chiming once and for all. For by tipping the clock forward and placing under it a stack of tissue, half a deck of playing cards, or a packet of post-it notes, the pendulum would fall forward, thus disabling the mantle clock from chiming loudly and obnoxiously and all times of day and night.

The living room clock was satisfied. "You were always my favorite clock," said the girl to the living room clock at 2:15 one afternoon. Just then, the not-so-new clock chimed in. After all, it was the quarter of the hour. "And you," said the young girl, holding up a stack of post-it notes to the not-so-new clock, "you're next."

This story is purely fictional. Any resemblance of names, faces, pendulums or living rooms living or dead is purely coincidental. By Cara Thornton.

Author's note: I was inspired to write this story by the chimes I think I can still hear when my apartment is quiet. These are the Ghost Clocks. They make me miss that living room clock, and only that living room clock.

Quick Question

Since I began writing seriously, I have had a fear of fiction. I don't trust myself to make up a story, tell someone's life or perhaps end someone's life and not somehow screw it up. But this fall I am taking a fiction-writing workshop--a requirement for graduation. And tonight I am starting on my main character and the two supporting ones. One of the interesting "rules" that my professor gave is to love your character, but not to cuddle him. At first I had been thinking, 'I'll just write someone like me and it will be easy to understand them.' But that's not brave. This is college--the only time where I will be able to challenge myself and no one can tell me I'm wrong. So then I thought, I'll write about a terrible person who deserves nothing. But my professor reminded me that it will be impossible to write about someone who I don't like. If I try that, I will only end up driving this character further and further into the ground before killing them or giving them a terribly disfiguring disease.

Gosh.
Writing is powerful stuff.

So here is my quick question.
As a Christian, I have a witness. But in my writing, I want to create a character who isn't me. Maybe he's a mercenary or maybe she is an illegal alien trying to make it by any means necessary. She's not me. So should I still not use cuss words, even when I am trying to create a real character? If writing is so powerful, what is powerful about not making your ex-marine character who took shrapnel in Vietnam talk like a softy when some liberal gets him all riled up? Would he say something like, 'gosh darn it you big jerk!'? Probably not.
It's not me saying it...but then again it is--in the end, anyway.

Food for thought. Chew away!

What Are We?

I didn't have any scripture read at my wedding, but if I had, it would have been this verse from Genesis. "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh."

When my dad read this verse at my sister's wedding, his version used the words "cling to his wife," and I think those words are more apporpriate for the way I am feelig today.

When we're single, we are self-sufficient. We have friends, family and maybe a boyfriend around. But there is something about marriage that is an earnest need for one single person. That's what has caused these words "cling to" to pop up in my head.

It's funny how people coming into our lives can both add to who we are as people when they're with us, make us feel less-human when they're gone. Suddenly we can't sleep unless he's next to us. Everything we do seems a bit more dull unless we can get his opinion or reaction. How did we get here? What are we without our husbands?

Put your torches away, feminists. I'm not saying we are helpless or hopeless without our husbands--maybe just, less. In marriage we can finally admit to one person--I may have lived before I met you, but it's nothing worth talking about.

Sometimes when Kyle tries to correct me on things like working out or eating healthfully, I jokingly say, "I survived quite well for 20 years before I knew you existed so don't try to change me now." There are still some things that haven't changed.

And if I have learned anything in my years of writing, it is to never apologize for something you write. But I just hope I am not coming across like one of those women who would disintegrate without a man in her life. God made me strong but he also made me to love one man forever.

And I will tell you exactly what I told my best friend when I was a theatirical and expressive 14 year-old--"I think I was just made to be in love."

Thick Skins

As a girl who grew up having a stay-at-home mother always cooking or cleaning something, there is a lot of pressure on me as a new wife to know what to do with things like beef bullion and chicken carcasses. I am supposed to know if .88 cents per pound is good for grapes and how long birthday cake will stay fresh in the fridge. But, alas, I hardly knew much about any of these things when I returned from my honeymoon. I half expected mom to slip a manual to me as I left the wedding reception or at least to find it on my doorstep when I got home. (Maybe my next-door pot-head, I mean neighbor took it).

But I am learning that it's all about time. It's not like mom had anyone to teach her these things--that I know of. So it just took her a few years to learn about prices and the like. So the point of all of this introduction is to say, I learned something. When we returned from our honeymoon my caring sister, Leah had bought us plenty of groceries to last us a while and included in her grocery list was a 5-lb. bag of potatoes. Now, these scared me, quite honestly. The only thing I know how to make from a raw potatoe is mashed. But I already have instant mashed potatoes in the fridge. So for the past (counting in my head...) 9 weeks these potatoes have layed dormant in the crisper where she put them. I was imagining they had grown moldy and soft in strange places so I was not only put off by the pressure but by the regret of having not performed any starchy miracle with them.

But it's Sunday and every good Marsh girl knows that there's one thing that happens on Sunday, and one thing that doesn't. The thing that does--nap. The thing that doesn't--dinner. This second half of the concept I have yet to explain to Kyle, so he somehow forces me to make dinner every Sunday. But since the beginning of Marshdom, no Marsh man or woman has eaten a real dinner on a Sunday. It's always cereal or the ever-famous wings and fries. (A variation of which I was hoping to replicate tonight). But darn, there were no french fries in the freezer. So I took out the potatoes and inspected them thorougly. No smell, no mushy parts or mold. Wow! These potatoes waited for me! After thanking each one individually I looked up a homefries recipe online and found that they're made the same way I make frozen homefies. Fry 'em up! So as they sizzle in the pan, the chicken fingers bake in the oven, and Kyle finishes our Sunday nap, I am proud to stand in my kitchen blogging about this small triumph.

And oh yeah, in case you are confused like I was, I happen to know that .88 cents/lb for grapes is an excellent price and you should take advantage.

Dreams Change

Do you ever find that you do most of your retrospective thinking at a certain time? Mine is when it's raining and I'm watching the night fly by out the car window. Okay, this could have been a one-time dramatic moment but I must confide in you, dear reader that in retrospect of my retrospection I was feeling quite deep.

I started thinking about the things that I want. Selfishly I pushed past the years that are soon to come of job-hunting, degree-chasing and marriage-making and started to think about what will really matter to me in, let's say five or ten years.

But before I divulge my five to ten year dreams, it would be best to explain why they are worth writing about.

As a child I thought everything about my life could be a movie. When my mother would turn of my favorite '90s show (there were so many) when it was only half-way through and tell me to clean up the giant dog droppings in our back yard, I would lean my head against the cement wall of our carport--in one hand the little blue shovel and in the other a crap-encrusted milk gallon cut in half--and I would imagine being an orphan forced to do labor and to have only buttered bread and water to look forward to for dinner. (for some reason that was the worst thing I could come up with) I wanted to act and sing and star in feature films that would obviously revolve around me and my dramatic life. I wanted to marry someone famous and hire someone else to clean up my dog's droppings. I can't remember the day I lost those dreams. But one by one I laughed them off.

So when things seem tough I tell myself to think about what will matter in five or ten years. In five years, I'll be wanting a baby, to plan our dream home with lots of land, family that live no further than a day's drive, a job where I can write or read or do whatever it is God wants me to do with all these words in my head, with all these dreams and facts and everything I've learned. I thank God that one day I can pour my life into my children, and not into myself. I'll show them why Yogi Bear and Bugs Bunny are hands-down the best cartoons to walk the television screen, why peanut butter makes absolutely anything edible and why even if they want to pretend to be abandoned orphans with no food to live on, they will still have to pick up after that dog they begged for.

I will play the guitar for them and hope they're more like Kyle than like me--workers with patience who like to go to bed early. And I'll try to always understand them. But if they choose to be litte drama-machines with a daydream fantasy always up their sleeve, chocolate perpetually on their face and fingers and a temper set off by as little as a breeze, then I will understand them all the more, because they'll be just like me.

Survive

I have no central theme to this blog. Which is why I'll never make it as a blogger extrodinare.

~When mom and dad got stuck in Houston on their way back from Abilene, they had to stay in a hotel and this is mom's recount of the experience. "We had to sleep in a hotel and dad had to scrounge for food at Jack in the Box."
Our reply? Sounds like a vacation to me! Hotel room with real AC and those cute little soaps and JOTB for dinner? In Texas? I'm there!
We seriously went home and were like, "One day we'll be able to do something like that."

But alas, they were less thrilled about the idea.

Kyle once said to me, "Do you know why I whistle all the time rather than sing? I've never told anyone this. It's because I don't know the words." Pretty innocent, and I already knew he couldn't remember many lyrics so it came as no surprise. What did surprise me however, is that THIS song came on the radio the other day and Kyle new EVERY.SINGLE.WORD. Not so surprising considering the subject matter, but still. Every word. And he sang them with conviction. Typical of my husband.

My car was picked up from the shop today but we were told that it needs a new timing belt which is going to be between 400-700 dollars. There goes my possible Texas trip this summer. Stupid German engineering. Das Auto my behind!

I'm a Fan?

This goes out to all the wives who've ever asked, "What color are we rooting for, honey?" This is for all the girls who've said, "Hey Dad, which team do you want to win?" and been completely perplexed by his answer--"I'm not really a fan of either team." What do you mean, "not really a fan"? And why even watch if not?


This is for any man, woman or child who has ever asked--what does it mean to be a fan?

Yesterday I was driving down a tight city street and the Mercedes in front of me had a silver Longhorn decal on his bumper. Not only did it strike me as a classy way to express one's fan-ism. (I find the flags and bumper stickers a bit gauche) but it got me thinking, why do I get excited when I see...ya know...


Am I a Longhorns fan,or do I only like them because they're from Texas? I mean, in any given game between the Longhorns and--anyone, I would root for the Longhorns. But I don't know who any of their players are. Same goes for Dallas.

The other day I waited on a guy with a tatooo of the state of Texas on his arm and I said, nice tattoo. Then he took off his Dallas hat and asked if I liked his hat as well and of course I said, "Oh yeah! My husband's a big fan! We love them." But why did I say that? I don't like to watch sports on television. And I spent much of my teenage years denying that fact because I thought guys would think it was attractive that I would watch sports with them. However, I can say now with a sudden rush of clarity that I never really watch sports--even if I'm looking at a television screen where sports are being played. I look at the players, the fans, the ground--but I can safely say that nothing about the way they are moving a ball interests me.

So you may be thinking, "No, cara. Give it up. You're not a fan."

But wait one minute there. If the Longhorns lost to the Gators, I would not be happy. But then if the Gators lost to the Seminoles I would not be happy either because I think FSU has a boring logo. See! There are no sports in my head when I think about football or basketball or anything else. There are only colors and players.

Take the Yankees. Of course I'm a Yankees fan--born and raised. And I will admit that if you take me out to the ballgame I will watch in rapture for at least 10-15 minute intervals. I like the Yankees because my dad likes them. So I want no other team to win, even in a game between the A's and the Braves. But I digress.

I feel like a fan because I like the team. Can it be left at that? Do I have to watch the games and keep the stats and wear the colors? (Well I do have a Longhorns tank top that I bought at HEB in San Antonio) Once I wore it to school and a girl had the nerve to ask me if I worked at the popular food chain, Longhorn. "No! This is my team! Longhorn has no S and no football. It's just a restaurant!" Okay, I didn't shout at her but, come on. I'm a fan no doubt about it.

Things You Should Know

For the past 3 weeks I have been working every day but Sunday. It really takes a toll on your people skills when you're in the same place 6 days a week and it gets you thinking about things you wish you could tell your customers. I know a few (okay, most) of these things will seem nit-picky, but what else do I have to do 6 days a week if not nit-pick. I cetainly refuse to enjoy myself. Ha, just kidding. But here we go.

Don't grab the plate out of my hand unless you can see that I am handing it to you because I can't reach you. So rude. I am presenting you with your meal, not passing out an exam. It's not a race to see who can get started first.

Don't let your kid draw on the table with crayons. Realize that the next person who sits down will ask me to come over and clean the table twice before they finally believe me that it is crayon and it will not come off without chemicals.

Please don't repeat someone's order as if I didn't hear them. I heard them, let them do the talking. Yesterday I waited on a grandmother and a grandson who must have been 17. He said, "I'll have the frisco melt with fries." Grandma says, "He'll have the frisco melt with fries." Yeah, I got that.

Please don't try and be my buddy by saying, "Oh how rude of that lady to tip you in change," then leave me two bucks. That old lady tipped me in change but it added up to $4.48. More than you were willing to give.

If you're over the age of 11, we hate singing happy birthday to you more than you hate being sung to. Trust us.

Please don't make me wait to get your order because you're "busy" putting your child's cardboard cars together. Cardboard isn't worth waiting for. Oh and your kid will NEVER remember to take that stupid car home and I will end up having to clean it up along with the stickers they decided would look better on the table than on the car.

Please don't ask to be put far away from the air conditioning vent. As if there isn't one pointed in every direction no matter where you sit. As if the building isn't cooled evenly. I am going to seat you here and tell you it's the warmest spot in the restuarant. And you'll believe me. Bring a sweater.

Please don't complain about your food if you refuse to let me fix it. I know you just want to make me feel bad. Don't pretend you really "just wanted to let me know." If you don't want a new meal or a free dessert out of the deal, don't say anything. "Hon, I asked for no cheese on my burger." "Oh, I'm sorry. I'll get a new one right our for you." "No. It's fine. I just wanted you to know."

Finally. Do not tell me I was an excellent server and that it was a pleasure meating me I look just like you granddaughter and have a great smile and make that bowtie look good and have a graceful presence...then leave a bad tip. It's sad, but servers all have one thing in common. If you're not going to tip, hold the small talk. We're here to make money.

**There are exceptions to most of these rules but it's more fun to just say the rules and make you wonder if you've every done any of these things. I know none of you have done the last one. It is far to shameful and is usually saved for old men and teenagers.

My Neicephews

Saturday morning Kyle and I walked over to Steve's Diner across the street for breakfast. We got to talking about how Gabby and Steven might be doing while missing their daddy. That lead to our whole breakfast conversation being about the kids--my neicephews. (neice + nephews) I brought up the time that I came to visit Leah and she had promised to take Steven bowling, but the bowling alley had been closed, or my flight had come in early so they couldn't go. So that whole day he had been wearing his bowling shirt and was so excited and kept asking when we were going bowling and pointing to the little ball and pin on his shirt and he was just so cute and concerned about bowling. It made me miss all the kids so much that Kyle asked me if I was about to cry. I guess my eyes were burning a little. But I didn't cry and we ate and had a good talk but then I found out that mom and dad were going to visit and it made me so sad. I know I just saw the whole family and it was awesome but it really wasn't the same and I wasn't sure exactly why. Then I realized it's always been just me when I visit my sisters. When Nolan was 6 weeks and I went to visit, I hardly put him down except when he ate and it was the same way when Jack was 6 weeks and I went to visit. There were so many people in the house around the wedding time and I still feel like I regret being so frazzled that weekend because I didn't get to give them baths or play with Gab's hair or take goofy pictures and do all of the things I usually get to do. I love different things about each one of them and I miss my family so much. I'm so thankful, even when I'm sad. I would rather be sad with my heart full than be happy and have nothing to love and look forward to.

Do you know what this class is about?

Summer classes started on Monday. A year ago this week I walked into a classroom and sat behind Kyle and we checked each other out but wouldn't speak until the last day of class. Anywho--I'm taking Spanish at BCC and an online class through UCF. The online hell--oh, gosh I meant to say class-- is called Theory and Tech of Literary Criticism. What does that mean to you? I asked mom and she said, "Learning the theory of literary critics? Am I right?" To which I replied, "How should I know? I was asking you!" So I must go off of the assignments we are given. So far I have read 20 pages by Plato on why art is just imitation. What I took away from it was a horse knows all about a bit, because it's in his mouth. The maker of the bit only knows how to make it, and the artists who paint horses with bits in their mouths are the furthest from the real knowledge--which is embodied in the horse. Get it? Here's another way Plato said it. A flute player knows how the flute is supposed to feel on his lips, and if it's all wrong, he'll tell the flute maker to do this or that to make it better. The artist painting a picture of the flute player is an IMIATATOR of true knowledge, because he doesn't know how to make a flute and he definately doesn't know how to play one. Today from Artistotle I learned that the best way to make a tragedy is to have pitiable situation happen to people who are half way between good and bad and have terrible things happen to them that are in no way their fault. Wow, Stot--that sounds truly tragic. So what I'm saying is I have no idea what this class is really about. My favorite part of the class so far is the guy who sent a mass email to everyone in the class. "Can anyone help me? Tell me where to get the text book? What are the subjects of our assignments? What is this class about? Help." I feel you, man. I almost wrote back to him but I thought, odds are this whole class is like the blind leading the blind. I cannot believe I have written 9 pages on Aristotle and still had the energy to blab incessently in my lame attempt to let you know how I feel. Moment of reflection over--to bed to think myself to sleep.

My Husband is Funny

My husband. He has always been pretty funny and cute. But lately, I am pretty surprised by the funny things he says and does. One day I asked what had gotten into him. "Why are you doing this goofy voice? I have never heard you be so silly before!" I was surprised by his reply. "I guess now that we're married I just know you're not going to judge me anymore so I can be myself." Well if this is yourself then that's okay with me. So yesterday morning, Kyle, my earlybird hubby, woke up at 5:30 for work and I peered out from under the covers to see what he was doing. He was using his cell phone as a flashlight (a poor one at that) to find his work clothes in the closet. So I sat up and told him he could turn the light on, I wasn't sleeping anymore. But he just kept looking with the tiny little cell phone light. So I turned on our bedside lamp and the room lit up, letting me see little Stoney helping Kyle look for his clothes, and I saw Kyle freeze up and grab Stoney. "Quick, we've been discovered! Take cover!" He yelled and ran into the bathroom. I laughed so hard! Kyle is also known for being a little clumsy sometimes, like any of us. But the other night we were walking out of our movie theater and the long dark channel leading to the hallway, you know, movie theaters always have carpeted walls once you get into the screening room. So Kyle was walking very fast and nerdy to make me laugh and hit his shoulder really hard against the carpet wall. Instead of just laughing at himself, he bustted his chest up against the wall and pushed against it like it was a person and he yelled, "You got beef? You wanna go?" I ran up to him and grabbed his arm laughing but he was still in character. He shook me off and said "Jerk, did you see that guy back there? I should've knocked him out." I think I laughed more in the parking lot than in the whole movie. I love my funny husband.

Shallow thoughts

A blog is a great place to get out your deepest thoughts and get feedback. It's also a good place to share those surface-floating thoughts that you can't help but get out because you want to know if anyone else has ever thought the same thing.

Have you ever wondered what your cashier is typing away on her keyboard for when all you bought was a little something not worth much? You never wanted to lean over the counter and crane your neck to see why the heck it takes so much finger action to ring something up?


I went to Things Remembered yesterday to order an engraving on a necklace to thank Dominique, my made of honor for everything. She bought us dinner gift cards, zoo passes with special treats like Giraffe encounters and kayak adventures included (which we're using tomorrow) and she even bought us gift cards to Disney World! So I wrote down what I want the engraving to say, then I went to cash out at the register.

And have you ever seen that episode of the Simpsons where Bart calls Australia or somewhere and he is dialing the same number for about 3 minutes and eventually you can't help but laugh, like, "Are you kidding?" I wish someone had been with me to laugh.

The cashier just kept hitting the down arrow then enter. Down, enter enter enter, down down down down down, enter enter, backspace, down down down down. For like 5 minutes.

So then today I went to CVS and was astounded after all I bought were some digital prints and I was handed this reciept.



Okay, I admit. I also bought some silly bands. If you don't know what silly bands are, they seem to be a craze sweeping tweens and restuarant workers. Everyone at my work shares them and I had none! So I found these knock-off brands called Shaped Rubber Bands, but they're cowboy shaped so how could I resist?





Didn't mean to start by posing a question and end with silly bands but, I admitted this was a not-so-thought-provoking post.

Not Quite

Yesterday was like any other special Sunday. We sat in the same row in the same order as always. Dad, Mom, Kyle, Me, Mom's friend. Then we went to mom and dad's to get all the food to take to Grandma's for the Father's Day celebration. Ah, but first Dad and I started work on a project we have been planning for years. It's called The Many Do's of Sue and will pretty much be a walk through the years of Mom's hair. We made a file appropriatey called Sue's Do's and put every hair do available on mom and dad's computer in it. Then we all watched it as a slide show. It was most fun to hear Kyle's reaction to some, especially the one I call the Jim Carey.





He would say things under his breath like, "oh.no." But it was fun and dad said that the real work will begin with scanning pictures from old albums. Then we went to grandma's where uncle Jeff was an hour late and uncle Don came a half hour after that. But we enjoyed talking and all the dad's thanked their families and Kyle thanked me for not letting him be a dad yet. So I slowly rose from my chair and said, "On that note, we have an announcement." To which everyone laughed (and then I realized what a mistake that had been because all night I dreamt that I was going into labor.) So when we finally ate it was time to leave for dad's gift from Kyle and I. We took him and mom to see Toy Story 3! It was hilarious and so much fun! Dad loved it, as we knew he would. Then Kyle and I went grocery shopping and I wasn't sure how he would do because he was tired but it was so much fun. He always reads the small price labels to see how much they are charging per ounce depending on the packaging. For instance it was much smarter to buy raisins by the jar than by the little boxes. He's so cute about groceries. What a nice father's day.

Stoney

Stoney is our 8 week old kitten and he is learning so much about the things he likes and dislikes.



He likes underwear








He likes to get into strange places








This is after he hopped on the counter as I was scooping myself some delicious brownie trifle and I plopped some on his forhead by accident.



He hasn't quite got the bathing thing down yet. He pretty much cleaned his face for 10 minutes until I helped him out.



He likes silk flowers






Other than that, he likes cheerios in milk, the sound of food in his tin bowl and me--so far.

It's a Tenant Thing

I have been many things in life. Daughter, sister, friend, dog--yeah. Being a tenant is a new and excrutiating experience. To get something repaired, such as our air conditioning unit which blows out air that is 59 degrees yet only cools our studio apartment to a toasty 85, I have to make a phone call to my landlord whom I have never met. He lives in Miami. He tells me he will call a repairman. The repairman doesn't call him back so my landlord calls me to tell me this. Then finally I get a repairman who tells me 3 things.

1. I have never seen a hotel air conditioning unit stuffed 7 feet up a wall before and used to cool an apartment.
2. I can't do this alone. I'll come back tomorrow,
3. I've never seen anything like this before.

"Yeah, I heard you mention something about that."

I heard a joke recently.

"I live in a studio apartment. It kind of puts me in a weird situation because on any given day I'm only one room away from being homeless."

After Repairman Steve made his exit, I called Miami Landlord to tell him the not-so-newsy news. He told me three things.

1. It's hot out, so the air conditioning is just working hard.
2. That air conditioner is brand new out of the box and has never had any problems.
3. Cold air falls. So...eventually...that cold air up there will fall down.

So I told him 3 things. I quickly got off the phone and told myself I needed to pray from him.

1. It's hot out, so if the ac is working so hard, why is it 85 degrees in here?
2. If the unit is "brand new out of the box" and this apartment has "never been lived in" like you told me, then how could you POSSIBLY know if there had every been any problems with it. (This one I did not say, because I don't like confrontation).
3. "Right, so I just have to sit here and wait for the air to fall. It will fall eventually right? It's just sitting at the ceiliing so I'll just wait a few more days, right?"

I don't like being sarcastic to strangers, so I stopped the nonsense and made chicken salad for dinner.

Sunday

Yesterday was Sunday--the morning after our first night in our apartment, mom and dad's first day back from Guatemala, and the first time that we would have family over to visit our new home. Mom, Dad and the grandparents brought lunch over after church and Kyle and I presented a honeymoon slide show. Our new kitten, Stoney was dressed to the nines in his new neck




tie and showed off his hunting skills for 4 hours straight while we ate and caught up on the happenings of Guatemala, Grandma's health and the Thorntons being Thorntons. After they left I had one and one-half hour to prepare a meal for Kyle's Dad and step-mom who were coming over for dinner. Stoney crashed on the bed the ENTIRE time they were here, laying on his back, feet in the air while I made Holly's oven-fried chicken, Aunt Karen's mashed potato bake, asparagus and her brownie trifle for dessert. I just love the cookbook she got me. Let's just start with the fact that kitchen was a wreck. Their arrival was posted for 6 pm. At 430 I read directions to my planned meal. The chicken said, marinate in buttermilk for SEVERAL HOURS. HMMM, and hour should do. The trifle said: refridgerate for 8 hours, then serve. HMMMM, I could try to lengthen dinner conversation. But everything went great. I used all of my new serving dishes from B, B and B, the chicken was crispy and delicious and everyone had thirds of the mashed potato bake. Then we played a fun game that his parents brought, I served the trifle, which is huge because I served it in my new punch bowl--but Mary calmed my worries by saying "Don't worry, you've got two fat people here to help you eat it." Plus I packed a bunch in Kyle's lunch for today. Now now today I am off to work out then hit the Social Secutiy office for a little name changing action. I am afraid to make any other plans after that because mom said it will take all day. So I am grabbing a book and debating on taking Stoney with me. He loves car rides, and the bank drive thru. 6t5----And that is what happens when kittens crawl on laptops while I'm on the phone. I also see that he labled this post "qq0oooooooooo."

The Wedding Hair Cut from Down Under

Last night I gave Kyle his final haircut before the wedding just long enough in advance for it to grow out a little before the big day. Before we began I took extra care cleaning up the kitchen after our first dinner with all of my new kitchen stuff--to gain my composure. On a side note, chicken fried steak, mashed taters and zuchini were on the menu. Note the glass. Yep, 8 of em. With grandma cc, re-gifts are never a negative.





Anywho, before we began, Kyle said. "You mess up on this...and..." I like to think he paused there because he couldn't think of a big enough threat. To which I replied, "No pressure, though. Right?" And despite the fact that half-way through the trim I managed to get more of his ear than hair in my scissors, he admitted that it was the best haircut I'd ever given. Then, as usual, he styled it. But this time he asked me to take a picture.





And I thought, awww he wants to save a photo of his wedding haircut for posterity. But then he turned to the left, right and even made me take a picture of the back of his head. Necessary? I think not.











Then he studied them. And still decided that it was the best haircut ever. And he WAS NOT just saying that because he yelled so loud when I nearly clipped his ear off that I started crying. Definately NOT. hahahahha

The way things are

The wedding is practically here. And while I am sure that I will pause to reflect once more before the wedding, I would like to do so now as I think about how things have changed for me and for Kyle and I as a couple over the past year. One year ago, I was in a transition of a different sort. I was dreading UCF but very excited to have finished the milestone of BCC by getting my AA. I was also dating and hanging out with all the wrong people. And though I had stopped being friends with all the people I knew were bringing me down, the quest for new and better friends was one mistake after another. Then my two wonderful sisters gave me a bit of advice each that I feel may have helped turn things around. Holly have me Psalm 37:4 when I told her I felt like I was doing everything wrong and getting no closer to what I felt I needed. Delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. The difficult part of that verse is not just saying, "okay, that's how I get what I want," but truly remembering to DELIGHT in the lord, not just do enough to get your way. Then Leah reminded me that there is nothing I can imagine or dream up for myself that is better than what God has for me. And I am a dreamer and a planner by trade, so that was hard to swallow. Ever since I was ten and started watching A Wedding Story on TLC, I have dreamt up my perfect relationship and never managed to create it. But God did. But the real reason I am writing this is because of my dealings with the changes in a relationship.

When dating starts, it's all about eachother. Your thoughts are consumed by him, and his by you. You will do anything to please him, make him laugh, happy, full or whatever. Then when you're engaged, all of that is amplified. I think being engaged has been the happiest time in my life. But once the engagement turns into planning mode, for me anyway, I began to feel pushed out of my own relationship. Suddenly I wasn't the bride, but the planner. Not the love interest of my groom, but the food taster, music picker and whatever else needed done. And not all the time, of course. But enough to make me want this wedding to get planned quick fast and in a hurry. What I'm saying is, tonight my parents' small group prayed for Kyle and I. They made a circle around us and each one that felt close to us prayed for our marriage. And I felt this huge rush come over me as my excitement came back. For a month I've been wearing blinders. Now I just want to breathe and think about marriage, not just the getting married part. You know what I mean? I want to imagine again, and dream things up. Then I will be happy to do what Leah told me, and watch God do it in his own better way. And I will be happy to delight in that plan, like Holly told me, and watch God give me what he knows I desire. I am so excited for my wedding, and the honeymoon, and especially for my family to be here. And this whole planning part has been a lesson in patience and the ability to look past what seems close and to accept what seems too far. If you are reading this, you must really love me. Becuase you just finished a really long reflection by a really over-tired bride-to-be. And if you're reading this, I love you too!

Top Ten Tuesday

I love my little apartment. But I just realized...You know your apartment is tiny if...

10. You often sit down on the couch and remember that both remotes are in the kitchen, because that is where you watch most of your tv from.

9. Half way through any movie you watch (because if you could afford a bigger apartment you could probably afford cable and not watch movies all the time), your fiance gets up and brings his bed into the living room to lay on it. Then you do the same, because it is so much more comfy that way.

8. At the end of each evening, you can spray one paper towel with fabuloso and wipe from the top left corner of your kitchen to the bottom right hand corner with that same paper towel, then throw it away and have a perfectly spotless kitchen floor in about 15 seconds.

7. While your fiance is in the shower, you can have perfectly normal converstaions about his day while making his dinner.

6. But if you try to run water in the kitchen while he showers, you will get in big trouble.

5. You laugh at yourself when you catch yourself calling the door, "the front door" as if there were a side door, or a back door or any other door other than the bathroom door.

4. You often get into tiffs with your fiance when he refuses to leave the kitchen because until he does that, you can't open the dishwasher or the oven.

3. You can say, "goodnight, I love you, sleep well" to your fiance from the hallway, and he'll say it back. Because he heard you loud and clear.

2. Once, the first and only time you had someone over for dinner, you let her have her own chair at the table, and you ate dinner in your fiance's lap.

1. All of the pictures from your old bedroom fill up all but 2 walls.

Not Me Monday

I love it when Kyle says I have sick breath. Sick breath makes me feel sexy.

I am not looking forward to my wedding shower next saturday, and I am not scared that no one will show up.

I did not just finish the second season of Army Wives before even leaving my bed this morning.

I did not give my shift away tomorrow because I do not have to try on my wedding dress for the last time. I definatley would have been too busy to go to work, really.


I am not at all excited to the point of no sleep that my family will be here in a week and 2 days. That does not sound too far away and close all at the same time.

I certainly do not need to get all the junk out of my room this week.


The tux shop did not decide to be closed the entire weekend of the wedding and is not making me feel guilty for them having to come in and give my out-of-towners their tuxes the Saturday before the wedding.

Kyle and I did not watch the first 45 minutes of Avatar in black and white this weekend before we guessed that there was something wrong with the tv, because isn't Avatar supposed to be the most visually stimulating movie of our time? Nah, black and white seemed totally normal.

Last night, I did not cry in the cat adoption center of PetCo. I do not think that our landlord can suck it if he thinks we're not gonna get a cat after he gave us an apartment that is a giant debt-hole.

Kyle did not promise to get me a kitty after the honeymoon. I do not think that is too far away.

We've got hobbies!

Friday night we stayed up until 12 doing homework, then until 2 watching Jungle Book. Will I ever do that again?--stay up late when I know Kyle's an early riser and is going to wake me up at 9 no matter how early we go to bed? Probably. So since we were up so early we went out for bagels and a little trip to the flea market. There we found a used robins-egg blue beach cruiser for $23 being sold by an Asian woman whose pink lace thong came up way higher than her khaki shorts would allow. Kyle talked about it for an hour. We somehow got the bike into Kyle's backseat and spent all day taking parts from a bike we found and replacing, painting, waiting, painting, oiling...and so on. I still need a basket for it, but it's pretty much honeymoon ready. We're gonna buy Kyle one that doesn't need quite so much love. But we're very proud of it. And may I just say, I have yet to hand Kyle a peice of machinery that he doesn't know how to disassemble and reassemble. Have you ever seen the inside of a bicycle? Cool!





Here it is being taken apart already. Very rusty and scratched up. And the spokes were corroded and needed replacing. (i think that's what you call the part that attaches to the pedal).





Being painted. We also painted all of the silver parts with a metallic glittery silver.





Ready to ride! You can see the mountain bike in the back that we used for harvesting parts. The spokes were black and we sanded them and painted them, and the pedals were also from the mountain bike. (which we found in the trash 2 weeks ago). Even since this picture was taken, Kyle has done some more painting and detailing. He even went riding with me yesterday. He rode mom's pink bike with the streamers. He said, "confidence is everything!"

We really do have hobbies now. Fishing and biking. It's great!






This is from a recent night-fishing trip at one in the morning. I caught 3 babies and Kyle caught the big daddy!






And here's kyle sleeping in "our bedroom" soon enough I'll have everything moved in.
Off to take my last final! Finally!

Top Ten Tuesday

Here are the top ten things that Kyle and I talk about A LOT.

10. Math. Kyle's math class is hard for him, but he's getting a B, so I don't see the big need to talk about what grade he'll get if he gets a 16% on his final. We.Spend.Hours.
9. Food. We are only at the apartment Monday-Thursday, then we stay at mom and dad's Friday-Sunday. So food is really difficult to keep around (not spoil) at the condo. We are constantly like, "hurry up and eat that pudding, it's almost the weekend!"
8. Working out. Kyle really wants to get buff again, but has no time to work out. He's lost about 15 pounds since we met because he used to be on a high-calorie diet but we can't afford it anymore. Plus he has a job now and doesn't have time to eat and pump iron 24/7. So we always have this convo-"If you didn't know me, how would you rate my arm size?" "If I didn't know you, I wouldn't care." "Cara Joy, this is serious." ugh.
7. Wedding stuff. I just would rather keep it all in my head than talk about it. Too stressful.
6. Tank Tank Tank. Tank is a new guy at Kyle's work. And he's big, black and sassy. I won't say I hear about him too much, but Kyle really thinks he is hilarious so I always get a good Tank story in the evenings. "Tank was really jealous of that sandwich you made me with the bacon. His girlfriend likes bacon. Did you know you can buy bacon with foodstamps?"
5. Bikes. This really happened-Kyle saw a boy on a nice pink beach cruiser. So he yelled out his window, "Hey, I'll give you $100 for that bike!" The kid responds, "But how will I get home?" Kyle says, "Oh, I'll drive you home, man!" Kid says, "I can't ride with strangers." Kyle realizes the kid is probably younger than he looks and drives away feeling like a creep.
4. Jewelry. Kyle insists that we need to send in my ring to have it attached to the wedding bands and re-dipped. But I don't wanna be without it for so long. We also bought his ring on Sunday. It took about 30 seconds.


It's tungsten. Never scratches (that is a weird word to spell) or bends and if your finger swells up, they have to freeze it a shatter it with a hammer to get it off. Very hard core. Weighs a lot too. I don't prefer the black, but it's his ring.
3. Married life. The other day I told kyle to put on his wedding ring and pretend to be married so I could see what it would look like. So he put on an impromptu skit grabbing a glass off my dresser. "Yeah, my wife's gonna kill me if I keep doing these guys night out at the bars. Especially when she finds out it's a titty bar. Yeah, I gotta get my son to football practice. And my pain in the neck daughter spends all my money." I was like, "Never do that again."
3. Addresses. I lost all of the addresses I got when I sent out my save the dates. So now I am starting all over. It made Kyle very mad to have to call everyone again. hehehe
2. Fishing. Enough said.
1. Babies. The other day I ordered Kyle a credit card on my account so he can pay bills online and I don't have to do it all. I gave him clues to guess what it was. This is what he came up with after putting all the clues together. "Ok, it's valuable, but free. And someone could try and take it from me...A baby!" "Kyle, You forgot the clue about it coming in 4-6 business days..."

Not Me Monday

I did not have to hand wash a pair of boxers and a pair of work socks for Kyle. Because we definately do know how to use our weird washer at the apartment. And we definately don't use mom and dad's washer to wash all of his clothes. We didn't have too much fun this weekend to remember to do laundry.


Kyle was not passed out cold by 10:30. I did not spend all day sick at school just wanting to spend time with him to only get an hour of seeing him awake. I am not ready for school to be over.


I did not just realize I forgot to bring his dirty laundry home tonight. I do not suck.


I did not just finish Emma by listening to it on cassett tape in my car. I read the whole book. I did not feel a twinge of anticipation every time I got in my car, wondering what would happen next.


I did not go an ENTIRE 2 weeks without the radio. I am not impressed. When the tape was over, I did not continue-and still don't continue-to get in my car thinking of how excited I am to listen to my story, only to find that I already finished it.


I did not LOVE the reader's voice. I did not think to myself, "she sounds young, and pretty. I bet her friends are jealous of her awsome job. I bet she lives in London and is super cool."


I did not pack all of this in Kyle's lunch.
~PeanutButter and Honey sandwich
~Turkey, bacon and cheese sandwich
~Orange
~Baby carrots and celery with ranch dressing
~Fruit roll up
~Three whole wheat easter egg M&M cookies-fresh from the oven
~Pudding cup
~Whole Wheat Cheeze-its
~Peanut-butter crackers
~Lemon Bar
~Bottle of lime-aid
~Bottle of water
I am not worried that he'll still be hungry. Because he won't be.
I do not feel guilty for loving Rhianna's new song-Rude Boy.
Even my friends at school were not like, "that song is bad, I miss when she was innocent."
I was not quietly humming it to myself. It is not a horrible song that does not get my toe tapping.
I did not have a group project meeting that began with us laughing at how the professor wears cat sweaters followed by EVERY SINGLE person NOT taking out their phones and passing around pictures of their cats and not telling cute stories about our cats.
Last night at dinner I did not say to Kyle, "If you want to order salmon, you need to say it right. Don't pronounce the L." To which he did not reply snidely--"I have always pronounced it SALLLmon."




Cute Baby Kyle--just thought I'd share cuz his stepmom gave me a TON of pictures of him.

I did it

So today I finally did it. I ordered my cake. I don't know why I was putting it off so much. I guess I just felt that the fact that the publix I am ordering from didn't answer their phone was a sign from God. Then today when I was like, "ok, do it!" it said their number was disconnected. So I went to my local Publix and got the exact price/size of what I wanted and found out that the publix was re-built (since the last time I was there?!) and for some reason they were like, "new look, new number." So I got the number and drove out there and picked it out. I am going to bring them ribbon to put around the bottom of the cake and it will be delivered a half hour before the reception starts because nobody wants them delivering when everyone is there in their way and whatnot. So here is the picture I chose from, but mine will not be fondant. (because it is 50% more expensive) It will be white with a little bride and groom on top with black ribbon around each tier's base.


I also bought a cheap garder today to throw. It's blue. I bought a bikini to wear on my honeymoon and not until then. I bought a giant frame to put a giant picture of Kyle and I on the eisle in the entrance of the hall. So today was productive.

Then I went to work and found out someone had given me the wrong schedule and I was supposed to work 12-4 not 5-11. So to make up for that mistake, I was forced to work drivethru until 1030. People are so rude. So rude. I do not have the strength to do it. I cried when I got home just because I had to let out all of the pent up "Gahhhh! I am not the stupid one! Why do you hate me?!" that I had built up. School tomorrow. Then next week is the last before finals!

I Love You!

when im hungry you cook. When im sad you cheer me up. When i need a hug your there with open arms. When im tired you take naps with me. When i need help with home work you teach. When i need you your there. When the house is dirty and im tired you clean. i looked for a best friend and there you were. You do so much for me and i am so greatful for all of these things. I Love you now, ill love you forever. First United Methodist at Cocoa Beach 7 weeks 3 days 17 hours 10 minutes See you there. ill be waiting :)

Strange Monday

What a strange day this has amounted to. It all started with the shuttle lift-off and 6:21 am. Actually is started last night when I ate too much Easter Candy and could not fall asleep.

Let me make a brief side-note about how our family reacts to shuttle lift-offs/landings. When a shuttle leaves the earth, it shakes everything within 20-30 miles. Shakes, like that weird feeling you get when everything is quiet and your phone vibrates on the table and it's loud and shocking and erks you. When it comes BACK intot he atmostphere, 3 loud booms occur. That is the sound of it passing through the...atmostphere. Last time the shuttle came back, it was scheduled for 10:21 pm. I was not prepared and had little-known of its return until earlier that evening. So at 10:21 on the button, 3 loud booms shook the windows. I jumped up and yelled, "William, William, William!" (Because that is what I call him when things get serious)and he said, "Get me a knife, I need a knife!" While he swept the perimeter of the house, mom came out all befuddled from having been awoken by the banging and insisted that it had been a teenager (because she hates teenagers) banging on her window. I argued that it had been on the livingroom window. Eventually we looked at the clock and went back to our lives.






This morning, however, I was very-well prepared for the shuttle to lift-off. (or so I thought) Kyle was planning to wake up early to watch it since the apartment is across the river from the station. So, at 6:21 I was awoken from death by the house shaking with a terrible fury and the sound of a giant freight truck in my bedroom. I ran into the kitchen yelling, "Daddy, Daddy!!" Brinkley walked in and looked at me. Then I remembered the shuttle and assured her that it was ok. (to which she probably thought, yeah I know) and I went and called Kyle. He said "It was amazing!! There were 1000 people in the feild next to our apartment! So I stuck my head out the window and said, 'Hey! When does this dang thing liftoff?!" It must have been amazing because it was the loudest I think we've ever had. Anywho, on my way to school this morning, I was 30 minutes late because of all the tourists and their dang traffic. I cannot understand for the life of me why so many people from Ontario and Connecticut drove allll the way down for 19 seconds of entertainment. Nope. I got counted absent even though I showed up and did my presentation on less sleep that normal.






Strange Monday indeed.