Thursday's Ten: random things you may not know about ...

me!

(ok that sounds self-centered.  there really IS a reason though...read below :)

please join me for this one!  i think i'm going to make it a once in awhile thing (random things about...potatoes.  or penguins.  or random things that start with the letter "p" since i already have 2 on the list ;)

today i'm combining my thursday's ten with accepting a blog award from the lovely casondra

here's the specifics for this particular award:

Rules for accepting this award are:
1.  Thank and link back to the person who gave you the award

thank you Casondra!

2.  Share 7 things about yourself.
done below.  with 3 bonus things :)

3.  Pass this on to 15 other great bloggers you recently discovered.
15 RECENT?  hmmm...

4.  Contact the selected bloggers and tell them about their awards.

So 7 things about myself...

1. pretty much if you offer me chips i'll take you up on that.  huge weakness of mine is crunchy or savory snacks.

2. i can give myself a mean french manicure if all the elements are right.  but i can't for the life of me paint my toenails without getting polish everywhere.  i'm not sure if it's thinking i don't have to pay attention, or a subconscious way to convince myself i should get a pedicure.

3.  i love, love, love my friends.  they're pretty amazing.  

(casondra, my things are looking an awful lot like yours but i SWEAR i didn't mean them too!)

4.  i own like 2 lamps.  i don't know why -- i MUCH prefer lamplight to overhead.  i should probably fix that and ask for a lamp or two for christmas.

5. i love telling people i teach at a studio on music row.  if you lived in nashville you would know that's not really a HUGE deal, although the studio being there is quite convenient for industry contacts and the like...but it sounds pretty cool to out of towners.  except you, if you are reading this and didn't know that.  now you won't think i'm cool. oops

(please, if you're a regular reader of my blog you know i'm a big dork anyway ;)

6. my girl crush is olivia benson (mariska hargitay's character on law and order: svu)

7. i can take a good shower in 3 minutes flat (which came in handy during our month of water rationing after the floods in may) and can get ready in less than half an hour.  you would think this would make me early to places.  instead, it means that i literally wait until the last.possible.moment to step into the shower, and i'm ALWAYS running out the door.  i'm getting better about being it, but that fast shower and getting ready bit most definitely works against me.

8. *  i'm kind of jazzed about my new tab at the top -- a link to every.single.recipe i've ever posted on the blog.  it's broken into categories in alpha order, naturally.  there will be many more added, and i'm going to definitely keep it up to date.  honestly, this is going to make it a lot easier for me to direct people to recipes they ask for, or for me to find it and copy/paste :)

9. *  i have discovered strawberry milkshake poptarts, and pretty much i love them.

10. *  i can't WAIT to have a few hours in the kitchen this weekend.  how i've missed cooking!

*bonus tracks ;)

mmmkay, 15 new(ish) blogs.  well, in no particular order (except alpha) here they are!

a heart of alabaster (jackie) 

(oh how i love this blog :)  the song that starts when you visit is an old favorite of mine!)

absolute narcissism (sandra)

(funny, funny, funny!  and satire.  and sarcasm.  and funny.)

always on my mind (jamie)

(a fellow nashvillian, and coupon lover.  plus she has a separate blog just for recipes.  do love!)

bare feet on the front porch (stephanie)

(an online friend of mine for ages...military wife and mom doesn't even begin to sum it up!)

beyer beware (leah)

(reading her profile, i can SO see mine reading similarly in a few years.  awesome new blog friend!)

blessed chick (ashlee)

(i'm a sucker for anyone who puts "blessed" in their title and means it, and she is wonderful!)

bossy betty (betty)

(cheeky, fun and smart, this is a woman i could sit around and talk to for hours!)

dilly dally (vanessa)

(i met her through our friend casondra, and she's such a sweet, amazing new friend!)

laundry hurts my feelings (joann)

(don't you love the name?!  and the blog is just as good)

lucky in love (jenny)

(one of those like-minded in so many ways bloggers...and she's expecting her first sweet bebe!)

mrs southern bride (heather)

(i love love stories, especially ones like theirs, which is so marked by the Father)

my alabaster heart (erin)

(ahhh, another crazy liberal christian.  see?  we DO exist!)

teach*tea*travel (nicole) 

(this is one of my oldest and dearest friends...and she has a brand new blog!) 

the human race 600 (lisa)

(fresh perspective, got her stuff together kinda girl :)

the kenningtons (nicki)

(what a fun life they lead!  so full of adventure and inspiration -- she's an awesome runner!)

i'll be notifying my winners as the day goes on...but if you see your name here, consider yourself served.  in a good way, of course!

Thursday's Ten: Oscar's Edition

So we're totally having a Red Carpet party for the Oscars this weekend...complete with dressing up. SO, I'm asking you. If you were actually walking the red carpet...or if you're like me and fake-walking the red carpet...what 10 things would be high on your list to get ready?

Here's mine:

Oscar Prep List

1. A killer dress
(or a cheap dress. I found one at Goodwill for less than $10. Yes, there will be pictures)
2. Hair in an updo
(this one will be difficult for me. shall have to experiment)
3. French manicure
4. fresh pedicure
(both of these will be done by me...just not in the budget for me to go to a salon)
5. great little evening bag
6. awesome shoes
7. an eyebrow wax
(I may go to the beauty school to get this done on the way cheap...IF I get around to it)
8. smokey eyes. just because I've been waiting for an excuse to try this.
9. a loss of approximately 50 pounds. I'll settle for 2 for this party since it IS in 4 days.
10. and finally...great lipstick!

Pictures will be forthcoming. What are you doing for the big night?

Link up if you will...

Takin' Care of (some more) Business

Long, long ago
(like maybe Septemberish)
Shanda gave me these awards.

"those who receive this award are of the sweetest nature. they are kind, friendly, funny, loving, eager to share their love for Jesus with others, and brave in their efforts to reflect Him to this darkened world. they are the kind of folks you're blessed to know, even if it's only in the bloggy-sphere."


I'm passing these awards on to some of my most loyal commenters/followers!

Brooke
Bethany (happyascanB)
Caitlin
Bethany (striving to be bold)
Katy and Ross
Amanda
Megan
Heather
Mattie
Tabitha
Jenny
Steph
Heather
Sassy Chica
Aleta
Yonca

I love them all--they're SO supportive and wonderful. Go visit them please and leave them some love :)

It's a Great Day to Take Care of Business

(join here)


Busy weekend: another 5K, Colts play!

Good morning all! Weekends are becoming crazy around here--this morning I'm out for another 5K! You may remember that I did the Zoo run a mere 2 weeks ago...and twisted my ankle less than 24 hours following that. Unfortunately my ankle isn't all that much better so I may not match my (awesome) time of 48:36 walking...especially since I hear there are some major hills on our route this time around. But I will NOT be discouraged! I'll be good to finish, happy coming in under an hour...thrilled to make 50 minutes or less, and estatic to beat last 5K time. We shall see!

Thankfully, I have a massage scheduled later this afternoon, which I shall savor. And THEN I get to babysit for 2 of my good friends--4 sweet kids total, all of which I adore (and who, thankfully, adore me right back)

Tomorrow our youth group is 'invading' another church...kind of. The praise band/choir has been asked to lead worship for their service and I am going to lead the choir. It's going to be fun!

And then...

and THEN

My boys play...

:)

Ok, for those of you not into football, you can start reading again. The next little bit is about awards and blogroll and all that housekeeping stuff I really need to do around here!

First of all, I've been given 4 awards that I haven't posted about. At least. There could possibly be more, and for that I apologize! I'm going to give one of them today, and the other 3 will be intermittently given over the next week or so. I feel a little overwhelmed giving them all out at once!

First up is the makes my heart smile award from Brooke. Brooke is one of my absolute favorite bloggers. She is partially (a big partially) responsible for me even DOING the 5Ks that I find myself involved in lately, so it's only fitting that I FINALLY award this one on a day that I'm 5King it :)
(i may possibly have received this award in june. just maybe)



I'm supposed to give this to bloggers that make my heart smile. Well...there are SO many of you. I really hate choosing favorites. So for that reason (and this sounds like a copout but it's SO not) if you're a follower you automatically get this award from me. I can't even express how much I appreciate that people actually want to read what I have to say here.

I'll also give a shout out to 5 specific bloggers who have made me smile in the last week

LolaB - Kasey has some of the best picture stories in her blog, and she's just amazing. I think she had me at her love of all things Parisian, but I just love the way a story unfolds from her fingers. Plus I always like the music she has playing when I visit :)
Marin - this chick is always posting recipes that make my mouth water, and though I follow quite a few foodie blogs...she is one of the few whose recipes I consistently try.
Lemonade Makin' Momma - I love how honest and fun this woman is. I enjoy every post she writes, and I don't say that about most blogs with 'mom' in the title, believe me! :)
Catholic Teacher Musings - perhaps it's the 'teacher' connection, but I often find that her posts strike a deep chord in me. Funny, serious, profound...she runs the gamut and it's all GOOD
Jasmin Loves Coffee - I think this is my most recently followed blog, or pretty close to it. Jasmin is fun and fresh and I may be a tiny bit jealous that she lives in California...right now I'd love to see that gorgeous state!

Last thing (wow, this is quite the novel of a post here!) is...blogroll. I've toyed around with removing it completely, but that doesn't seem quite fair. So...scroll down. If you're not on my blogroll but you WANT to be, please leave a comment and let me know. Simple as that. If you are and don't want to be, please comment as to that or just email me.

There are more housekeeping things to be done in the next week or so, but that's enough for one post! I'll see you all later :)

Sunday's Song: Grammy Thoughts Edition

*disclaimer: this is most likely going to "spoil" a couple of the awards for you, namely Album of the Year. So don't read if you haven't watched and want to. That is all.

Most of these are either random thoughts I had while watching, or texts I sent to Anthony...

Lady Gaga and Elton John...I heart you.

Pink eyed green peas!

Dear Taylor Swift: Please stop looking so shocked when you win.

(however it was a nice and coherent speech. Props for that)

Simon Baker makes up for it though. Yummy.

(I still like you better though. No worries :)

Nice crotch hold, Beyonce.

Oooh, Seal!

Holy shit P!nk! Ok, that's pretty stinkin impressive. Pretty sure I could never sing while I was doing that!
I'm kind of terrified she's going to electrocute herself with the mic and the water...
I've always loved her...now even more.

Why have I never heard of anyone in the best new artist category?! Do I live under a rock or what?

I gotta admit. I'm kinda digging the Black Eyed Peas. Hey, new workout music!
But what in the world are the dancing robot things? Or dancing...stereo speakers?!

Ewwww, Jonas Brothers.
And I can hear a fangirl screaming in the background. At the Grammys. Klassy.

Dang. Serious competition for Best Rock Album.

I remember thinking Chris O'Donnell was soooo cute when I was a teenager.

I can't tell if Taylor is really off key as much as she sounds or if she's just being a whiny teenager. My money's on pitch problems though.
(and I think she's cute and a good songwriter. She just...doesn't do well live. When she sings. Speaking she's good.)

Maybe I'm just callous, but I'm SO.TIRED. of hearing about MJ.

Ahhh, Bon Jovi. That's the way it's sung. I've gotten used to the rock band version and I almost forgot. :)

Placido Domingo and Mos Def...wow. Lots of funny phrases are trying to create themselves in my head. I must restrain myself.

Wait...I'm on a Boat is a song besides the SNL version?!

What an ADORABLE child! I also like his speech the best. "do you wanna say anything?"
"No Thanks!"

Wow. Andrea Bocceli...Mary J Blige...David Forrester...wow.

I'm so glad they're plugging music education. Do you think maybe that means that maybe I'll be able to start teaching again?!?!?!?!?!?!? It would require music teaching positions to be OPEN...

Quentin Tarantino are you fo'real?!

Ok, with all the other nominees for Album of the Year...I don't agree at all that TS won it. Are ya kidding me?!

All in all, a fun show.

Sunday's Song and an Award to Give

Usually if I post a Sunday song it's one with a worship feel, since that's the mindset I've been in. However, tonight I'm sharing with you one of my favorite Irish pub songs. Ok, so the song's actually from Scotland, but it's haunting and beautiful. I've included Celtic Woman's version of the song as a youtube...as usual you'll have to turn the music off on the lower right hand side to hear it well. Sorry about that :0)

The words that resound with me so much in this song are found in the second verse: I have moved and kept on moving, proved the points that have needed proving. I've lost the friends that needed losing; found others on the way.

In so many ways that describes my life to a "t".



Caledonia

I don't know if you can see
The changes that have come over me
In these last few days I've been afraid
That I might drift away
I've been telling old stories, singing songs
That make me think about where I've come from
That's the reason why I seem
So far away today

Let me tell you that I love you
That I think about you all the time
Caledonia, you're calling me, now I'm going home
But if I should become a stranger
Know that it would make me more than sad
Caledonia's been everything I've ever had

Now I have moved and I've kept on moving
Proved the points that I needed proving
Lost the friends that I needed losing
Found others on the way
I have kissed the ladies (fellas) and left them crying
Stolen dreams, yes, there's no denying
I have traveled hard, sometimes with conscience flying
Somewhere with the wind

Now I'm sitting here before the fire
The empty room, the forest choir
The flames have cooled, don't get any higher
They've withered, now they've gone
But I'm steady thinking, my way is clear
And I know what I will do tomorrow
When hands have shaken, the kisses float
Then I will disappear


Finally, I've been given another award! This one is from Bethany, and she graciously awarded me the Lemonade Award.

The Lemonade Award...

The lemonade award is for showing great attitude and/or gratitude.

The Rules:

1. Put the logo on your blog, nominate at least 10 blogs, which show great attitude and/or gratitude.
2. Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.
3. Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
4. Share the love and link to this post, and/or to the person from whom you received your award.

And the nominees are:

Lucy
Amber
Jaycee
Brooke
Lynnette
Shanda
Sara
Laura
Cathy
Megan

Awards and Such...

Shanda is such a sweet and wonderful friend who I've really enjoyed getting to know. She hosts Titus 2 Tuesdays, and leaves so many encouraging notes and comments to my blog and others. She was the deserving recipient of 2 awards lately, and has honored me by selecting me to receive both of them!

Here they are:

For this award you are supposed to list 7 random facts about yourself and pass it on to 7 other people.
(just 7? of each? you'd think that would be easy...ok, I'm making myself not repeat any of the blogs that I awarded the other day even though they're all so deserving!)

1. I have to eat my m&m's, skittles, starburst, etc separated in colors...I save the best color for last...and I prefer even numbers of ANY type of food because I must chew evenly with each side of my mouth. Yeah, I'm slightly ocd...
2. I have nieces and nephews that are older than I am.
3. I was seriously petrified of Santa when I was little. For YEARS I would run past his office at Santa Claus Land (now Holiday World)
4. I have a dog magnet. I have never considered myself a "dog person" although I like them and will probably have a few more over my lifetime...but seriously everyone I know who has a dog has a dog who loves me. Even the dogs who hate most people. Go figure :0)
5. I love to cook...not so much bake. Or clean. I enjoy the results of all 3 though. :0)
6. When I find a new song that I love I'm obsessive over it, and I will not stop listening to it until I have learned every word and nuance of it. I actually miss the days of buying CDs all the time, because the jacket lyrics made that a lot easier, and sometimes I buy a new CD instead of downloading just because of that.
7. I can't stand cornbread. I keep trying it, but it's just not good.

Recipients this time around.
I picked all of you because of your candor, honesty and ability to be "real" with your readers. I love reading each and every one of your blogs!

Jaycee @ Married Without Children
Megan @ Infertile Myrtle
Sunny Mom @ Cole Family Mission
Wolf @ Musings
Bethany @ Striving to Be Bold
Caitlin @ Go-Go Gadgett:Gidgett
Amy @ Sweet Home Amy



For this award, you are supposed to: 1. Confess 5 things you are addicted to. 2. Pass the award on to 5 deserving bloggers

Ok. For this one

1. Sweet tea, San Pelligrino water and coffee. If you see a drink in my hand (during daylight hours that is) it's probably one of those!
2. facebook. It's a tab that's always open in my browser.
3. my dvr. what did I do before it???
4. Trader Joe's. Joe just moved in a few months ago, but oh has he made my life better.
5. Mint chocolate oreos. Not found at TJ's, unfortunately but omgosh. Yum.

And I'm selecting for the recipients of this award...each and every one of my (checks list) 33 followers! I am humbled and honored by your desire to read my words on a regular basis, and appreciate you all so much. I was thrilled when I had 1 follower, excited when I had 5, and with each new one I have been so thankful for these new friendships.

Thursday's Ten -- Whatcha drinkin?

Thank goodness for San Pelligrino water. If it weren't for that fabulous green bottle (which YES I recycle!) I'd probably never get enough water in my system. Yes, I drink tap water most of the time, out of my fabulous Sigg water bottle...but San Pell makes me feel so...I don't know. Grown-up? Classy?

However, it has come to my attention lately that several other beverages often tempt me more than plain 'ol water. Anyone else noticing that? I am trying to lose a few pounds (especially now that my 10 year class reunion has been set for June--aaaaahhhhh!) and I have a feeling that I need to make sure that these drinks don't compose most of my liquid diet :0) But they're SO GOOD!

(I should put a disclaimer here that I really don't drink all of these--or even most of these--every day. But when given the choice of one of them over water...I often yield to the fantastic tastes offered here!)

1. Sweet Tea (with a lime...yum)
2. Coffee (hey, I've got to have something in the mornings!)
3. Diet Coke
4. Bloody Mary
5. Jones Soda (cream soda flavor, to be exact)
6. Stoli Vanil
7. Bubbly Irish Nut (Baileys, Frangelica, club soda...sounds odd but omgosh)
8. White Russian
9. Ocean Spray White Cran-Strawberry Juice
10. V-8 spicy (I know most people think it's disgusting...but it's the closest to a bloody mary I can have before 10 am and not feel guilty. haha)

So...what's holding you back lately from your healthier eating and drinking goals?

Oh and one little bit of housekeeping--if you're one of the winners of my giveaways I FINALLY found the cute little boxes that I always use for my jewelry, so your earrings should be on the way to you very, very soon! I actually was buying just enough for the giveaway winners and a couple of customer orders and Anthony pointed out that perhaps I should get twice that many...and he was right! I had another order yesterday from a lady at my church :0)

In the next 24 hours I'll be posting a couple more awards...

And sometime early next week, get ready for another giveaway! I was a lucky recipient of a giveaway at Lindsey's fabulous blog a few weeks back, received my stuff early last week, and have finally figured out what I'm going to give as my prize! I want to make sure my other packages get mailed out first though :0)

Finally, I hope to be back more regularly soon...this week's been a little crazy with guests, birthday remnants, and being "out" more with the lady I'm acting as a caregiver for. So not as much time to sit on my butt with the computer :0)

Randomocity

Why do cheerios smell like pee? No, seriously.

I wonder if screaming "SERENITY NOW" would defeat the purpose...

Keeping one's mouth shut is not always as easy as it may seem.

Oh, and Leslie very kindly presented me with another award over the weekend! Here it is:


The rules are:
1. Post the award on your blog, and link to the person who gave you the award.
2. List seven things you love.
3. List seven blogs you love.
4. E-mail or comment on those blogs to let the people know you've given them the award.

My 7 Loves (in no particular order):
1. The amazing people God has placed in my life -- Anthony, my girlfriends, old and dear friends, church family...
2. children
3. pictures -- taking, scrapbooking, finding cool ones, etc
4. Trader Joe's
5. animals
6. worshiping
7. technology

And 7 of my favorite blogs (this is REALLY hard! I'm trying not to repeat any that someone who tagged me chose, or that I have awarded to in the past, so that IS narrowing it down) are:

Catholic Teacher Musings
Grace Gets Greater
Happy As Can B
Looking for Something Deeper
Let Go Laughing
Snarky Much?
Highheels and Hairbows

And...it has come to my attention in the last few moments that I have been awarded 2 other awards--so it looks like I have another post coming up very, very soon :)