Mini Mind Dump

DH and I often ask the other one "What are you thinking about?" And usually the other person says "Nothing." I don't know about him, but I'm usually thinking about 9,267 unrelated items. So it's just easier to say "Nothing". When I consider blogging, I usually have a bunch of these unrelated items that I want to kind of dump on the page. But they rarely go together into one cohesive post. So tonight I pay respects to the tangled thought process that occupies my noggin.

Evie. Evie has developed a penchant for all items that are stringy or have strings or possibly could have strings if she drags them around the house enough. This means that she's fishing all manner of things out of the dirty laundry basket, off the makeshift drying racks and from the top of the dryer. Rarely does a day go by that I don't come home to find underwear, socks, tank tops, work out tops, bras or scrub pants somewhere in the house. Usually next to her food bowl. I'm not entirely sure whether she gets hungry from all the fetching and dragging or if she has given them all names and thinks our inanimate articles of clothing are hungry. It must be supremely confusing to her when they refuse to eat.

I bit the bullet and finally purchased some new foundation. I really hate the little expiration icons on make-up products. I don't use enough make-up to ever go through something completely before it "expires". And the time frame for some products is ridiculous. Mascara has a 3 month time limit. Um, not in my house. I have mascara, multiple mascaras actually, that are over a year old. And the majority of them are samples....I can't even go through samples in a year. There are not enough eyelashes in this house to use mascara in 3 months. Do people actually spend money on high end products and then throw them away when only a 1/4 has been used? Anyway, I digress...which is why I have so much junk in my mind. I went with Too Faced Born This Way foundation. The Porcelain shade is pretty much a perfect color match. But I have been so used to seeing a slightly too yellow shade in the Urban Decay Naked line that I feel washed out. See...the color wasn't even right in the Naked line but it was close and that crap is expensive so I was going to use it. Who cared if I looked a little jaundiced? Anyway, the Too Faced weathered a tough 9 rounds of 9Round tonight without smudging a bit. I'm not sure if I should be impressed or never expose my skin to it again. I'm just going to consider it a testament to the Wayne Goss method of foundation application. Thank heavens my primer is good for 36 months. It may be the only product I ever use completely.

I have a new author and blogger that I pretty much want to be. Except I'd rather she be her and I learn from her wisdom. By wisdom I mean actual wisdom and what it was to be cool in the 90's. I love when I randomly choose a book at the library/e-library and it speaks to me. Her name is Melanie Shankle and her blog is Big Mama. The first book I read was her newest one and it's about friendship. Y'all, yinz, you guys...it made me really think about my friendships that I've had and that I have. She has a way of writing that is both hysterical and thought-provoking. Anyway, I promptly bought all three books that she's written. I was laughing so hard while reading the one about marriage that DH asked if I was ok. It was gasping no sound tears down my cheeks with random bouts of sound laughter. The kind that sort of sounds like a farm animal dying, but is really laughter.

DH and I are officially at the top of the Popsicle Gang list....I know, we thought we were at the top also. I even wrote that blog post and everything. Well there was a snafu of sorts that's been sorted since and now we're at the tippity top (I couldn't keep the "s" theme going there)! This is simultaneously the most exciting news and the most petrifying news possible. This will all be over in the next few...four...six months. Ok, so we don't really have any idea when this will all happen. But it's closer to happening now than last week. And that means we'll either eventually be parents or we'll turn into Brandi Carlile roadies. Well, at least I will. I can't speak for DH.

I'd better end things while I can still move my arms. I lifted a total of around 1600 pounds over the course of my work out (in the form of a 12 lb med ball) - seriously, that 9Rounds is no joke. Which means I will be useless in about 10 minutes. At least I washed my hair tonight.

10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1

Erin at Shades of Gray and a Pinch of Pink inspired me today! I love a good list post and her's was easy and fun. It's almost reminicent of those notes that would go around Myspace and Facebook...you know, 26 things you don't know about me, or the ones that gave you a choice between two items/ideas/movies/etc.

10 of My Favorite Foods
Cheese and pepperoni - this was a staple at get togethers when I was growing up. I totally associate this combo with family
Homemade macaroni and cheese
Mint brownies - heaven in my mouth
Sonic diet limeade with pineapple - sometimes I add cherry and it tastes like fruit punch
Dark beer - nothing lighter than an ale...lager, brown, stout, porter. BJ's blonde and Leffe blonde are the only exceptions
Mashed potatoes - either lumpy or whipped!
Roast chicken
Rice Krispy Treats - DH made me a pan of rice krispy treats for Valentine's Day last year. I ate the entire pan over the course of 8 hours at work. The. Entire. Pan.
Chocolate covered coconut anything
Pumpkin pie - I've asked for it as a birthday "cake" before

9 of My Favorite Movies
Sleepless in Seattle
Romeo and Juliet - Baz Luhrman's version
The House Bunny - DH loves this one too which means we can watch it twice as much
The Life of David Gale - as if Laura Linney wasn't enough, there's also Kate Winslet
The Hudsucker Proxy
Looper
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves with Kevin Costner
Singin' In the Rain
13 Going On 30 - I have a soft spot for Jennifer Garner and this movie makes me feel like my whole life is still ahead of me and I can accomplish anything I set my mind upon

8 Celebrities I Would Like to Marry (Sorry DH!)
Jeremy Piven - I don't know why
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Tom Hardy - c'mon, don't pretend you wouldn't want to marry him!
Paul Newman - 40 years younger
Hugh Jackman
Ryan Reynolds - but only if he's ever daft enough to leave Blake Lively
Brendan Fraser
Neil Patrick Harris - we could sing and dance all over the place

7 Things I Love Right Now
My day off
Henry - he's asleep and not destroying toilet paper or slamming doors. He's a cat, not a three year old.
My shoes for the wedding
Grocery shopping with DH. Seriously.
Planning for the Super Bowl party next weekend! Rather, planning for the food that will be eaten.
Not having a race to prepare for right now.
Fantasizing about our Scotland honeymoon!

6 Places I Want to Visit Someday
Tuscany and the original village of the family
Spain - they make such good wine there!
Ireland
The Maldives - I can't swim and I'm terrified of being surrounded by water, but this place is gorgeous
Alaska
Whistler, British Columbia

5 Games I Played as a Child
Contra on Nintendo -it was the only video game I ever won. In fact, when DH and I play Lego Star Wars I run against the wall the whole time while I think I'm his character beating everybody.
Hungry Hippos
Fashion Plates
Shrinky Dinks Rainbow Brite and Strawberry Shortcake
Mall Madness - my first lesson in credit card debt and what those little cards could buy a girl!

4 Things I Never Want to See Again
Casey Anthony on TV. She's not worth the time it takes to listen to the story much less actually read media on her.
Either of my brothers crying from grief. Crying because I've done something spectacular, sure!
Myself when I weighed my heaviest and was out of shape. I am 2 sizes smaller today even though my weight is close to the heaviest point in pounds. Thank heavens for running and weight lifting!
Jersey Shore - the Mtv show, not the actual Jersey Shore

3 Things I Want to Do This Year
Learn to swim
Explore Boston for a day with DH
Meet DH's New York family

2 Facts About Me
I really wanted to buy a zipline package for myself when I bought DH's at Christmas. But I'm terrified of heights.
I once gave my younger brother a black eye with a baseball bat. Totally by accident.

1 Meaning Behind My Blog Name
I am imperfection personified. And I'm ok with that. I will never be perfect while I am in this world. I can work at being better, but perfection cannot be attained.

Sunday Social: A Few Of My Favorite Things

Linking up with Neely at A Complete Waste of Makeup




What is your favorite ice cream flavor?
Hands down mint chocolate chip! But it has to be good chocolate - otherwise it's all weird and gets stuck in your teeth. Maybe it's the good quality ice cream that makes a difference? Hmmmm.

What is your favorite smell?
The way DH smells when he hugs me. Fresh cut grass. Vine ripened tomatoes. 

What is your favorite TV commercial? (Past or Present)
There was a Krave commerical that made me laugh to the point of not breathing but I can't find a link for but the empty Krave cereal pieces jumped out with little headdresses and spears and chased down the chocolate. It reminded me of the pygmy mummies in The Mummy Returns.

What is your favorite day of the week?
Saturday would win out. By Friday night I'm worn out so we usually do dates on Saturday. Sundays are church and running and grocery shopping. Definitely Saturday.

What is your favorite way to waste time?
Reading and Reddit

What is your favorite article of clothing? (Feel free to show a picture)
My flat brown boots.  

I've Gone and Disappeared Again

Oh chickens, I up and went AWOL again. Sorry bloggy friends!

I'm mentally exhausted lately. I come home from work and want to do nothing but veg out and cuddle with DH and Henry. They tell me it's winter here in Texas. In fact, it's almost Christmas. What? In this weather? With flip flops still able to be worn? And a perpetual state of bland green and brown everywhere.

We have a tree. Henry has unwrapped anything that comes close to being placed underneath it. We may have to buy him a ficus once we take down the Christmas tree. If I could figure out how to post video from my iPhone, I would. On a Henry-related note he had to have minor surgery on his paw for an infection. I felt like the worst fur mama ever when we found out he was sick. I guess he forgave me since he curled up with my last night for a 20 minute belly rub. We're pretty sure he's part dog.

DH and I are recommitted to the gym machine lately. Today I bench-pressed for the first time ever. I thought I might die but I didn't. I also tried a pilates-yoga blend class and was a little amazed at how good I did. My upper body strength was a wimpy little thing but it's slowly getting to be Arnold-sized.

We're getting closer and closer to the wedding. Only a handful of months to go. We still have to make centerpieces, bouquets, set up the rehearsal dinner, make welcome bags, I need to find shoes and then decide whether the price is worth the heel height versus the cost of hemming a wedding dress (yikes on the hemming prices and why in the world are there no cute comfortable wedge heels that don't cost as much as my dress?), figure out how the heck we're getting between venue and hotel, make a packing list for the honeymoon and start looking for bargains, find someone to do my hair and make-up and clutch what's left of my sanity.

Tonight I'm watching old school Grey's Anatomy because somehow this makes my day better. I'm not sure why. But it does.

I'm Back!

Blogging friends, I'm SO excited to finally be able to type again! We went to Care Now and they x-rayed my finger, said I was good to go. No splint, no more fracture, no more poking kids in the eyeballs while trying to put insert earphones in. I celebrated by spinning around on the doctor's stool until I was dizzy.

So here's a couple things that I wanted to share.
1. Turn signals are not optional and I don't have ESP. I am not Kreskin. I am not Madam Cleo. Please don't get sore butt when I choose to NOT let you merge into the side of my car without warning. This goes for all of you minivan driving moms - do you drive like that with your KIDS in the car?????

2. Dear FW ISD bus driver who was one her cell phone, it is never a good idea to pull a school bus into on-coming traffic. I realize that you have a route to keep and a schedule to run on time. This would be easier if you would hang up your cell phone. This will be infinitely harder should you ram the bus through my car. I will be upset and may physically harm you as soon as the jaws of life release me from the scrap metal my care will be reduced to.

3. Big Bang Theory and How I Met Your Mother are on with new episodes! That is all.

4. Henry loves the laser pointer we bought him. But he is perpetually confused about where it goes when we stop playing. I'm convinced he's going to start losing (more) fur and attack anything that moves.

I promise that I have a ton of post ideas but I just needed to blog about not much of anything to get started. When I started this blog I had no idea I would miss this so much!

Actually Road Tripping

It's the long awaited road trip post! You were waiting, right? Nah, probably not. But I'm gonna talk about it anyway. Cause it's my blog. 

DH and I agreed that this road trip would be a test of whether we have looong road trips in our marital future. The trip from the Deep South to the Deeper South (Knoxville TN) is roughly 13 hours. We broke the drive out into 2 days to make it a little more do-able. Of course Hurricane Isaac came through the night we arrived in Little Rock. It was a drive full of fried pies - y'all....to die for!...and zipping past tractor trailers at high rates of speed in very wet roads. I white knuckled a bit, not gonna lie. 

DH loves fried pies enough to sing about them! And the pecan pie was worth singing about.

The next day we sprang out of bed, well maybe slowly rolled, and hit the road. We met up with a great friend of mine in Nashville and had lunch, did some shopping and talked wedding stuff for a couple hours. Way too soon it was time to get headed onto Knoxville. Not that we weren't excited to get to Josh and Rachel, but I was sad to leave my Nashville friend.

It was our first trip to Knoxville and we loved it! It has such a small town funky feel to it. There's a little of everything there. We were so excited to see some of Josh and Rachel's favorite places....

Brassiere where I had my first frog leg and was introduced to salmon to die for.

Chez for breakfast

And we also tried a new place that DH and I pretty much would DIE to have here in the Deep South.

Dead End Bar-B-Que. Y'all, if you are ever within a couple hours of Knoxville, take the time to detour and go eat. It was a-freaking-mazing. DH and I are totally jealous that we don't have BBQ anywhere near this in the Deep South. 

*Before y'all start leaving me hate mail about how Texas has great BBQ, we agree. But this place is way better. Truth, y'all.*

My beef brisket, cheddar and fried onion sandwich. I could eat this every day.

And there is Yuengling on tap. On. Tap. 

Let's all take a moment to reflect on the lovelieness that is Yuengling.

The thing with Yuengling is that Tennessee is the closest state you can get it in to Texas. Unless Florida is closer than Tennessee. Then that statement is wrong.  We brought back a couple cases to Florida and it will be drank like the liquid gold that it is. It was only a couple cases because the place we went couldn't sell more than that without shorting their own stock.

When it's gone DH and I will look like this...

But until then, we'll look like this.

And when we got back to the Deep South there was a Henry who was very happy to see his Momma.

Road Tripping

Hey all!

So DH and I have been traveling and then some stuff at home cropped up...including two broken AC units. Which made us look like this...

But I promise to be back soon with a long post - and some pictures - in the next couple days.

I'm just spending my time trying to catch up and get blogging again! Next time, I'm totally writing posts ahead and scheduling them to post for me.

Sunday Social: The Internet/Technology

I totally missed Sunday Social last week and I'm so glad to be back. It has been one of those weeks. I'm just happy that usually I only have one of those weeks rarely! Now on to the topic of the week

Technology/Internet...um, yeah. I am not the first person in the know when new things come out. But I'm not the last either! I lament the changes that Facebook forces upon us along with my friends. But I wouldn't necessarily know how to make it better either. And when my computer at work doesn't do what it's supposed to my first instinct is to throw it out the window. Luckily our windows don't open wide enough, or I would be out of a job by now.

1. What is the first website you log on to each day?

It's a tie between Facebook and Blogger. 

I know, what could have possibly happened on Facebook in the 8 hours I was asleep? Sometimes A LOT. But most days not much in Facebook world. 

Blogger, though, is always hopping. I think I must have a good mix of blogs that post in the morning and in the evenings with a sprinkling in the middle. Usually there is something new to read whenever I check Blogger.

Pinterest is closing in as a bronze medalist though. I've been in the Pinterest mood this week. I blame it on all the awesome tug at my heart fall pins.

2. Give us some funny websites you visit that we need to know about

If DH was posting this he would say Reddit or CollegeHumor. I don't check anything funny other than the blogosphere. Sigh. Does this seal the deal that I have no idea what's cool anymore?

3. Pinterest or Facebook? Why?

Despite what I said in #1, Pinterest might win out. And here's why. I love Facebook for keeping in touch with my friends. But I despise Facebook in an election year. And then you add in all the posts that are from Pinterest? I might as well just go to Pinterest. At least then I can look at the pictures and pins that interest me without having someone else's political or social views shoved in my face in an offensive way. I'm all for free speech, but be respectful people! Don't put it out there if you would call me intolerant for having the opposing view stated in the same manner. I actually have to block friends because I can't STAND the constant barrage of opinion that is really inflammatory. After November I'll unblock them and we can all talk about Christmas.

4. Twitter or Instagram? Why?

I'd have to go with Instagram because I don't have a Twitter account. I know, I know. I'm living in the dark ages! 

5. Favorite youtube video...post it!

Hands down.....

6. Biggest online pet peeve?

This is a hard one...the fact that no one has invented the scratch and sniff screen? Think of it....look at the picture of that amazing dish and be able to smell it. Yep, that's my biggest pet peeve, something that is impossible.

Next week's questions:

What was your favorite trip/vacation/activity this summer?

Favorite outfit look of the summer/clothing item?

What is one thing you wish you had gotten to do this summer?

Favorite Song of the Summer?

Favorite movie/tv show of the summer?

Where I Come From

Erin at Shades of Gray and a Pinch of Pink is one of my newest blog obsessions - Erin, I mean that in the least stalkerish way possible, pinkie promise - and she had the fantastic idea to learn more about where we all came from instead of where we are now. Behold, the Where I Come From link-up! That should be accompanied by trumpets and revelry. Commence, please. 

What are the biggest attractions in your area?

My hometown doesn't even have a red light, so "attractions" don't really exist.  We do have stop signs, so there's that. There are 2 traditions where I'm from that really does make me love my hometown. I'd consider them attractions. The first is the county fair that happens every September - the Big Knob Fair. It's small and the rides are probably riddled with tetanus. But you'll see everyone you grew up with while you eat an elephant ear and sip a lemonade. 

The second attraction is one that happens on graduation day. All of the graduates who are farmers or who's parents farm drive their tractors to the high school when we have graduation practice. These are not lawn mowers but impressively large and immensely expensive tractors. It's a sight to see, for sure. 

What's the average Saturday night like?

In the hometown, hanging on the front porch with friends. If it's during the summer months then the yard sparkles at times during early evening. It's the lightening bugs, you see. They don't exist here. I miss them every summer.

What sports teams does your area root for?

Seriously? Near Pittsburgh? The only NFL team to have six rings, that's right....the black and gold. The Steelers! But even more near and dear to my heart are the Penguins. My boys on the ice. Who needs that stuck up Ovechkin???? Not us, we have Sid the Kid and Malkin. My heart is broken that Staal has been traded  to the Hurricanes. I'll wear my jersey until it falls apart.

*I think there's a thing called a "baseball" team, but I have no idea. The Parrots maybe? Oh wait, it's the Pirates....yeah.*

What kind of home-cooked meals are served?

Pierogies, which are pockets of dough filled with mashed potatoes and cheese. Then you fry a ton of onions and bacon, fry the pierogies in the grease and it's heaven in your mouth. 

Haluski, a noodle/cabbage/onion deal that's all fried in butter. 

Um, we like fried meals? It's the Eastern European heritage that runs rampant through the hills.

Do you have restaurant chains that aren't anywhere else?

King's and Eat-n-Park. Typical diners where you can go 24 hours a day. But the place I miss the most is Sheetz. At Sheetz you can get shmuffins, shgas, shbananas and shcoffee, to name a few things. Seriously though, I miss Sheetz. It's a gas station chain that also has made-to-order everything. They're open 24 hours a day which means that when you have a 2am craving for an english muffin sandwich, otherwise known as a shmuffin, it magically appears!

What's the scenery like? Mountains, desert, beaches?

It's very green, hilly and curvy. The kind that makes DH a wee bit carsick. Not the green part. Yep that sums it up.

What kind of activities did the kids in your neighborhood play?

My brothers and cousins used to play War at night. They'd ride their bikes and sneak through the woods with air rifles trying to mangle one another. I was the only girl. I stayed inside out of the line of fire.

What about style - prim and proper, casual country?

Farm casual? Is that a style? We're very rural. Funnily enough, I never felt like I fit in, even when the "look" was jeans and sweatshirts in high school. You can't get more laid back and yet I still felt uncomfortable.

What animal gets hit on the road most frequently?

Deer and skunk are probably tied. The smell of skunk actually makes me homesick, that's how often it happens. I'm weird though - it's genetic...my grandfather had a pet skunk that lived under the porch when he was a kid. If deer had a smell then maybe I'd be better able to determine the roadkill ratio between the two.

What kind of music blasts through local radio stations?

Country. Country. Country. And some pop. But mainly country.

I hope y'all enjoyed learning a little bit about my small (not kidding y'all) hometown. Link-up and learn me something about yourselves!

Liebster! Liebster! Liebster!

The fantastic Heather at Cookies for Breakfast has gifted me with the Liebster Award! Per Heather (and she knows everything, fo' realz) "The Liebster award is given to upcoming bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers. The meaning: Liebster is German and means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing and welcome."- Adrian (Adrian Loves Owls)" So maybe Adrian is the know it all? Hmmm...anyway, I'm so freaking honored to be given this award. I'd like to thank the Academy...oh, wait, er.

So the way it works is I nominate 11 blogs and ask 11 questions.






 I also have to answer the 11 questions that Heather came up with. Oh, and I pulled the Liebster graphic from google images and it linked me back to http://bettesmovieblog.blogspot.com/2012/08/liebster-blog-award-that-is-how-you.html.

Heather's Questions....I feel like I'm on Inside The Actor's Studio!!!

1. If you could hang out with one reality TV star, who would it be?

Ooooh. This is a hard one. I want to say Snooki because she needs some edumacation about things. Like peeing inside. But then I’d feel like I had to “mother” her. Or Khloe Kardashian? Except Kris really gets under my skin. It’d have to be just Khloe and I.

2. What is your current goal as a blogger?

To be who I am in real life in my blog. It’s easy to cultivate this uber cool girl who has it all together, but that’s the biggest load of hogwash ever. See, I just proved it. Who says “hogwash” that’s cool?

3. McDonald’s or Wendy’s?

Wendy’s for sure! I ate a lot of McDonald’s in undergrad. It was the hangover food of choice. I think my roommates and I kept their stock pretty high, especially Junior year. It wasn’t my finest year, but it was full of greasy goodness. Now though, I can’t eat it much or it makes me a little sick. Psychosomatic maybe? I ate it when hungover therefore my body thinks it’s hungover whenever I eat it?

Plus Wendy’s makes great chili.

4. What’s the craziest thing you’ve done on a night out (alcohol-induced or otherwise)?

My college years are restricted since my fam reads this here blog. Probably the last tattoo I got. I went with the BFF and picked out what I thought was a small tattoo of a Celtic sun with a star between the points. The thing ended up being much bigger and I’m pretty sure I swore like a sailor while he was inking over my overies. If my future Wee Ones come out all tatted up, you’ll know why. And then last year I was informed that it’s the Pakistani flag symbol if you take the celtic knots out of the sun design! So now I’m inadvertently supporting specific Middle Eastern countries???

5. If you could pick a new name for yourself, what would it be?

Arabella. I don’t know why. She sounds like a woman with long legs and impeccable style?

6. Favorite Saturday Night Live skit/character? 

There is an old skit called The Leatherman with Jimmy Fallon and Brit Brit – that’s Britney Spears for those of you not in the know. I don’t know why I loved that skit but I think I may have sprayed something out of my nose when I saw it. Nothing has lived up to it since. In complete honesty though I don’t watch SNL very often. I feel like growing up in the 80s I got gypped. All the great comedians were before I was old enough to understand, or at least my being allowed to stay up late enough to watch. Then when I was old enough SNL kinda sucked. C’mon, y’all were thinking the same thing!

7. Share a link to your favorite recipe of all time!

I don’t have a link to my mom’s brain or that’s what I would do! Some of the things she made that I love are chicken braid, ham and potato rosti (she uses cubed potatoes and farmers cheese with the ham), her homemade mac and cheese, potato soup, salmon patties, dilled cucumbers and her biscuits.

8. What’s one thing you are dying to add to your wardrobe right now?

A pair of gorgeous Frye knee high leather boots. Oh, can I also have the legs to go with them? Arabella does.

9. What is your best quality (personality/physical/whatever)?

My eyes are my best physical feature. I’ve always loved my eyes, which cannot be said for my other features. I didn’t really feel comfortable with who I was until I was in my mid-20s. But my eyes were always something that I thought was pretty darn good about me.

10. What is your guiltiest TV pleasure?

Keeping Up With The Kardashians. I know. I’m hanging my head in shame over here. If it makes any of you feel better, I consider them the shining example of how not to have a life, except for Khloe and Lamar. I really do love her!

11. What is your guiltiest food pleasure?

Snowballs. The Hostess kind that are full of sugar and chemicals. I heart them. DH surprises me with them when I’m having a really really bad day week.

OK, so now I need to nominate 11 fabulous bloggers!
1. OliePants
http://oliepants.wordpress.com/
2. Shades of Grey with a Pinch of Pink  - Erin has more than 200 followers but I absolutely love her blog!
http://shadesofgrayandapinchofpink.blogspot.com/
3. Blog by Bre
http://blogbybre.blogspot.com/
4. The Baby Is Fine - Mo makes me crack up and wish I were wittier with my words.
http://thebabyisfine.com/
5. A Day in the Life
http://cgcavallaro.blogspot.com/
6. Because My Life Is Fascinating
http://hilljean.blogspot.com/
7. Life According to Amanda
http://lifeaccordingtoamanda.com/
8. A Little Something For Me - I know that Kristen has way more than 200 but since it's not actually listed on her site, I can pretend that she's just this hidden awesome jewel that you should know about!
http://www.alittlesomethingforme.com/
9. We're Living a Full Life
http://werelivingafulllife.blogspot.com/
10. MaMe Musings
http://mamemusings.blogspot.com/
11. My Life as a Chic Country Cowgirl Bride
http://www.chiccountrycowgirl.com/

Sorry about all the links! Blogger is trying to sabotage me and it keeps linking my websites to the graphic at the top. Sigh. And right after I was given an award. Go ahead, Heather, take it back.

Ok, so now my questions...duhn duhn duhn.
1. What's your favorite cereal to eat either as an adult or when you were a kid?
2. What was your undergrad degree in or what did you want to get a degree in?
3. Which season is your favorite?
4. What sound do you hate (I had to sneak some James Lipton in here!)
5. What is your least favorite thing about an election year?
6. What is one item of clothing that you love that you own?
7. If you were stranded on an island what are the three things you would want to have with you?
8. What is your favorite part of the day?
9. Did you have a security item as a little kid? 
10. If you could only read one book ever again, what would it be?
11. If you've ever lived with a roommate, what is/was the best thing about it?

Alright you spunky showkids, go knock 'em dead!

Sunday Social: Handbags

Sunday social this week is all about handbags....something I grew up not caring about a whit. But since then...I care. I don't always know what exactly I care about, but I care. It has my life in it after all!

Favorite handbag you've ever owned

My current Kenneth Cole Reaction bag. I found it at Ross Dress for Less and man did I snatch that up! I tend to use bags for months at a time, so whatever I pay for it I totally get my money's worth. Case in point? The bag before this one was a $25 dollar bag from Charming Charlies and I kept that one for almost a year before finding my favorite cornbread colored arm candy!

Dream handbag you lust over

I don't have one really! There are bags I see that I think are amazing, but they usually just jump out at me while I'm shopping or on Pinterest. The latest was a green leather bag that had a woven effect that was a Steve Madden...again, at Ross. I didn't need it since I'm in love my current bag so I left it for the person who was meant to find it!

Daily essentials in your purse or work bag

Cherry carmex. Work badge and keys. iPhone. Signo pens.

What's in your purse(with pictures)

A bag of liquids from when I traveled last - almost three weeks ago! Just about everything in there is lip stains, glosses and balms. Another bag of meds for traveling - sudafed, cold and flu, water pills, and a random tea bag. Kleenex. Swatches for the wedding. Turquoise and gold bracelets from HauteLook, my iPod. Ralph Lauren sunglasses that are 8 years old...if I lose them I will cry for days.

And my lovely yellow-gold Kenneth Cole Reaction wallet...also from Ross. Sorry, Heather, I know I'm killing you!!!

I'm Thankful

So the fantastic Stasha is once again giving me something to think about with her Monday Listicle. This week it's thanks. Wow. It's so easy for us to forget what we can have to be thankful for and focus on the what isn't working for us.

10 Things to Be Thankful For

1. Sculpt class this morning at the gym. People, there was grunting, heavy breathing, sweating, and almost tears. I yawned at one point to try and pop my ear and the instructor caught me. That earned us some extra bicep work. Sorry classmates!!!! Seriously, after Zumba last week I was thinking group classes were not for me. But these women were encouraging, all sizes, laughed and got after it. I can totally do this type of class! As for how hard I worked, it's a little uncomfortable just to type and when I talked to DH earlier, it hurt to hold my cell phone by my ear.

2. DH. I am so thankful that God brought my perfect mate to me in His perfect timing. I had a mini-meltdown yesterday and DH wasn't sure what to do with me, but he knew to ask me what I needed and to reassure me when I confessed some of my fears to him. How amazing is it that I am marrying a man who makes me feel complete, even in the face of my insecurities.

3. Fresh basil and tomatoes on pizza. I made one for lunch and it pretty much rocked my face off. The only way it would have been better was if I had the time and knowledge to make my own crust.

4. My mom who will tell me what I need to hear, not what I want to hear. I called her last night very frustrated about something and she let me vent, let me tell her my thoughts, and while she was sympathetic, there was a mom instinct that kicked in. She told me what she honestly believed was in my best interests both short and long term. She was loving but not condescending. She was honest and didn't talk around the issue so that my feelings were not hurt. I'm so thankful for her.

5. I'm very thankful that even though I forgot to add water to the stuffed peppers, I think I'll still be able to eat them. Just saying.

6. Henry. I love him. This is him in his new crinkle toy. Puppy doesn't know what to do with this.

7. Ross Dress For Less, I am eternally grateful for you keeping me elegant for very little moola. And my SIL for loaning me the killer earrings that were perfect. I'm a little less thankful for the new wedges that were pretty comfortable and then weren't.

8. Cheap nail polish. Wet n wild megalast is pretty amazing for only a couple bucks. I love me some OPI, but at almost $10 a bottle, I generally don't splurge on it for myself.

9. Money in the bank. I know that might seem like a silly thing to be thankful for, but when you go from not knowing how you'll make ends meet every month to being blessed with enough and then even a little extra, dang. That is something I try to thank God for every day. That I don't have to choose which bills to pay or to choose between electricity or food.

10. Lists, links and blog friends who keep me writing, expand my ideas of what my blog can be and how real I can be online. Thanks to many of you.

Sunday Social: TV!!!!

I woke up this morning, not so long ago, and thought "I can go write my Sunday Social post!" I'm sitting in humid PA and our homestead air conditioner is on the fritz, so what better to do than link up with Neely and Ashley for the Sunday Social??? At least when I'm typing I can pretend that at a hazy 7:49 this morning my skin doesn't feel sticky, my hair isn't curling up around my ears,and I most definitely did not wake up sweaty.

Unlike last week's topic of fashion, which I know almost nothing about, this week is TV. Oh Thank You! TV I know, TV I can talk about, TV I love....to an embarrassing degree. Ask DH...we both love certain shows, but sometimes he shakes his head and wonders what he's gotten himself into from here until eternity.

Favorite TV show of the past?

 It's hard to pick one, but the first that comes to mind is Alias. Jennifer Garner goodness. That girl could run in heels. I always loved that she did all of her own stunts those first couple seasons - I think I read years ago that after a couple seasons someone decided it was too risky? Ironic, no?

 

I loved not only her but mostly all of the characters. I always wanted Jack to just shoot Sloan already! And was Sidney really that great of a super double agent that Dixon didn't trust himself to believe she was crossing them? I still think I need a Marshall in my life. DH comes in a very close second, but not quite Marshall. 

There were a few characters though that I absolutely despised. To the point of almost not watching until they were killed/escaped/whatever allowed them to no longer be on my TV screen. Lauren was the worst of these. Melissa George may be a great actress but I can't stand to watch her. It's like she's talking through a mouthfull of cotton balls! Couple that with her stealing Vaughn and I couldn't do it. I get all riled up just thinking about that story line!

Favorite TV show currently?

Breaking Bad. Breaking Bad. Breaking Bad. You may have no idea how excited myself, DH and my brother are about this starting next week!! This is the final season though rumor has it (Adele anyone? Now it's stuck in my head.) that they are breaking the full 32 episodes into 2 seasons via a very loooooooong break. I have theories and thoughts about how it will all end.

 

How I Met Your Mother and Big Bang Theory, no explanations needed.

I'm also a sucker for reality shows like Teen Mom - I often think of my own teen moms on a continuum from Maci to Janelle...what kind of technology are they capable of keeping on their kids ears, knowing how to use and not losing. Intervention is also a great show! I get all into the stories of how the people ended up where they are and I always try to figure out if they'll stick with Rehab. I've got about a 50% success rate. Which goes to show that you never can tell what will motivate a person to succeed!

 

Which Reality Show would you NEVER do?

Anything involving eating gross things, jumping from bridges, planes, using ziplines, or any sort of swimming challenge - I cannot swim which is a constant source of derision.

Which Reality Show would you LOVE to do?

The Bachelorette - not because I don't love and adore DH - but because it seems like a no brainer to get some world traveling in for free. The rest of the show is ridiculous, like an 11 on a scale of 1-5 ridiculous. Who the heck falls in love with one person enough to marry them and have it succeed after dating 30 other guys simultaneously in something like a month and a half? Emily, just focus on seeing the world. Even the good guys on this show end up cracking or looking very bad at some point...although apparently this current semi-finalist lot paid attention to the show and related fall-out in the past because they are a very tight lipped bunch. 

TV personality/character that you feel is most like you?

 This one is hard! I don't normally feel interesting enough for TV although sometimes I am too twisted for color TV - what movie is that from?? Maybe Monica from friends. I'll a wee bit anal about my kitchen too.

TV character you'd want to date?

Booth from Bones. 

 

I've always loved their dynamic - she doesn't need him to protect her but he wants to while still letting her be independent. He loves her quirks even when it drives him nuts. 

Sleeping is Dangerous

This one time I was sleeping and...

Ok, wait. Y'all need to know the story of my friend first. When I was in undergrad I became fast friends with Sue. Her name's not really Sue, but I don't want to use her name without permission. Anyway, Sue was notorious for sleeping in until the very last second....usually the second after the last second. She'd roll out of bed, grab a Diet Coke and stroll out the door in scrub pants and a tank for class. It was my job to wake her butt up in time for class we had together one semester. Maybe a history class? I can't even remember, just that it was Freshman year.

I walk across the hall, bookbag slung across my shoulder, boy scout ready for class....book, notebooks, pencils, pens, band-aids, tape, stapler. I was a total nerd. I knock on Sue's door. No answer. Knock again. No answer. Knock again. Hear the loudest whomp of a body hitting the floor on the other side of the door. I'm pretty sure that Sue has up and had a heart attack at the ripe old age of 19 and I'm contemplating calling 911. Until I hear a weird scraping sound and the door opens. Turns out there wasn't a heart attack and she didn't fall out of bed. She woke up and her leg was asleep from the hip down, so when she stood up she promptly fell over. I don't think I had ever laughed so hard once I knew she was ok.

This one time I was sleeping and...

I got up to pee. One second I had one foot on the floor and the next second I was on the floor. My leg was asleep and I fell over like I'd been cow-tipped. I ended up with one leg in my trash can, wedged perfectly between the bed frame from hell (it kept my ankles bruised for many years) and the sharp corner of the dresser.

I laid there and laughed until I cried. Touche, Sue, touche.

This is my first week with Mama Kat.

Sunday Social: Movies

So I'm a little late to Sunday Social, but here goes.

Favorite movie of all time?

Sleepless in Seattle totally ties with You've Got Mail. The second is a nice revision of the first in terms of the Meg Ryan quirkiness meeting Tom Hank's insecure boy next door. Love!

Favorite movie quote?

"And only numbskulls think they know things about things they know nothing about!"  Five points if you know the movie! This closely is followed by "A ho! My dad's been captured by a ho!"

Best movie to watch for a girls night in?

The Hangover. I don't know why, it just is.

Best breakup movie?

Sleepless in Seattle. If Sam Baldwin can find Annie Reed after losing his wife to cancer, surely there is someone out there to soothe your broken heart.

Favorite celeb eye candy?

Jeremy Piven. I have no way of justifying this, but I think he's crazy hot stuff. 

Which movie stars closet would you want to raid?

Anne Hathaway, hands down.

A very inexcusably late Sunday Social.

Sunday Social: Blogging

I love reading Amanda's blog, Life According to Amanda. Check her out, she's fantastic! She writes for herself and shares all the bits of life, including the ugly that we sometimes try to hide from others. She found a great new linky called The Sunday Social through A Complete Waste of Makeup. I haven't had the time yet to check out this blog, but I have a great feeling about it!

I really love anything that allows me to blog with some structure. Some days I just need it. So here is the first Sunday Social and it's all about blogging! This is an awesome topic since the point of linkys is to meet other bloggers and get to make connections that can grow into very real friendships.

How did you come up with your blog name?
Well, there's this post that explains the meaning. I came up with it like many other new bloggers...sitting here, staring at a screen and attempting to create a name that is a testimony to what will be in the posts that are yet written. I have often felt defeatingly imperfect in the past. Today I know that while I will never be perfect, I am perfect in my imperfection. I am who I am meant to be.

What is your favorite thing about blogging?

That I can write things I would never be brave enough to say out loud to others. It's an outlet that I attempt to be honest about and yet aware of others impressions and views. I don't apologize for it, but it does help me think "what will this read like if my view was 180 degrees opposite".

What is one thing you have discovered because of blogging and now cant live without? 

YouTube. Seriously. In fact, I have a post in my head right now and the internet tab open for the YouTube link as I type. I never looked at YouTube before knowing that perfect movie or show scene that would get across what I was talking about.

Facebook or Twitter?

I have to go with Facebook because I don't tweet. Kristin with A Little Something For Me has asked me to get a Twitter account solely for when there are tornadoes here and I freak out and become manic...because it's really entertaining the things I consider at those times....like how much wind speed a brick wall can handle and how best to corral small animals into the bathtub with me.

If one celeb read your blog who would you want it to be?

Jennifer Garner. I heart her. I was, and am, an Alias addict. I want to be Sidney Bristow when I grow up. I want to be friends with her so she can explain the secret to running in heels. And how to hide firearms when needed. And how much fun it was working with Mark Ruffalo in 13 Going On 30....which is an all time favorite. She just seems so very down to earth for someone who is an amazing actress, who started on a stage and not in film, and from all appearances is a wonderful and involved mom and wife. Jennifer, I'm here. Let's be friends.

What is something you want people to know about your blog? 

That I love having a way for others to see into my life. That knowing I have followers keeps me motivated to write. 

So c'mon everybody! Link up!!! Just click on the icon and it will take you to the page to get the questions and link in!