Update

Ok, so I hate it when my friends don't update their blogs in forever and here I am, the offender. I haven't blogged since we haven't had much going on, but the more I think about it, we have had some things happen the last few weeks. On Sunday, the wind was blowing 60 mph and it pushed our gate open and Spike got out. We looked all afternoon for him to no avail and that night it dropped to the mid teens, so I was wrecked with worry that he would be a Spikecicle by morning. The next day we made signs and I went to the pound just so I had covered all the bases and lo and behold, there he was scared to death in a cage. He was picked up 10 blocks from our house across a major street. The person who brought him in was very worried that something was very wrong with him because of his hair (or lack thereof), then when we checked him out, the guy who worked there asked if the vet had diagnosed his "condition". I told him it was his breed and he just laughed. He must look pretty bad, I guess we are just used to his hairlessness. Needless to say we are so happy to have him home and he seems quite happy to be home as well.

I also cut all my hair off, I think it is pretty cute, thanks mom! Garth Le got a cute haircut too, mom left it kind of long on the top so as not to upset GiGi who LOVES his hair long and HATES it buzzed, which I love, so it was a compromise, but is also pretty dang cute.

I am pretty much finished Christmas shopping and I actually sent our Christmas cards this year, but I am pretty sure I forgot a lot of people. I suck at cards.

Garth got his Christmas present early because the country club sent a letter in the mail welcoming us as new members. He was really excited, but he hasn't had a chance to play because the weather has been so bad. I am excited too even though golf is not my favorite thing, I think it will be great for us as a family and Garth Le and I can swim in the summer too. I think it will be awesome.

Garth started training at CVS, he is really excited about what is in store for him and I am really excited for his paycheck.

I guess that is all for now, I hope everyone has a great Holiday season. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Christmas Cards

Liza so generously volunteered to take some family pictures for us even though she was a lot under the weather. We went to Hobby Lobby and got some decorations and diddied up the fireplace, so here are the results. Hopefully I will actually send the cards this year.

Garth really has issues with smiling for pictures, I think it is a man thing, even Garth Le has a little bit of a painful expression in this one.

Oh so cute and cozy by the fire.

Aren't we the happy couple.

Out of Order Holiday

Here are some belated Halloween pics I thought were good.

My scary little ninja (wha ha ha).

Autumn was the cutest princess/missionary/environmentalist at trunk-or-treat.

Aunt Sarah LOOOOVES it when I take pictures of her eating.

Little scary ninja with pumpkin face paint (shudder).

All of the cereal boxas are pierced with knives, so she is a "cereal" killer...get it? It took me a while.

Thanksgiving Holiday

The Clements came to spend Thanksgiving with us and we always have so much fun, especially the kiddos. Liza and I got a night out thanks to Garth watching all of the kids for us, we went to Target (see picture), and we went out to eat and took in another showing of Twilight (which was much better the second time around).

A possible love match?

Laura's Shower

The newest member of the Thomas family is Laura (formerly Allred) who married Neils November 22. It was a beautiful ceremony and I wish them all the best!

Twilight: The Movie

So we went to the theater around 10pm and stood in line for an hour and a half before they let us get seats and they also let people who had just walked in go ahead of those of us in line, so I was already kind of in a bad mood. The radio station today said there were over 1200 people at the theater we were at last night. First of all, the previews before the movie started were terribly inappropriate for the movie, definitely not PG or PG-13. As the movie started, I was pretty sure that I was going to have some issues due to the way it was filmed, it looked really low-budget, grainy, not crisp like we have come to expect of movies, especially blockbuster movies. Kristen Stewart does a great job of playing Bella, but let me just say that I am now officially over Edward, poor Robert Pattinson was so awkward and puny looking, nothing like Edward should be. I was embarrassed when he was on screen because he was just so uncomfortable to watch. The entire storyline hinges on the reader/watcher falling in love with Edward right alongside Bella and he sooooo did not do it for me. I was honestly surprised to hear that people liked it. Even the movie review guy that was on the radio this morning loved it. There were so many times that I rolled my eyes and laughed when I am pretty sure we were not supposed to laugh. When Edward first smelled Bella in Biology class, he looked like he was going to vomit. Carlisle's make-up was horrible, his face was powdery white and his neck was tan, you could practically see his make-up line. I don't even want to go into Jasper, anyone could have played him in this movie since all he did was stand there, not move his neck and bug his eyes out as much as possible. One surprising element that I enjoyed in the movie was Charlie, he was a good comic relief and he added a lot to the story. When Edward was sucking James' venom from Bella's arm, it was just too much, I just wanted to hide my face I was so embarrassed at Pattinson's 'acting'. I guess I am hard to please and I know that the movie never lives up to the book, but I was sorely disappointed. I will go see it with Liza and hopefully see it through her eyes and appreciate it. Right now I feel like I need to read Twilight again to cleanse my brain of the putrid movie Edward. Maybe I am just tired and cranky, not that that is something new for me.

My favorite review so far from MSN:

""Twilight" can't fail. Even if it had scenes of naked men doing interpretive dance or sad clowns singing German opera, the screen adaptation of the hit Stephenie Meyer novel would slay the box office competition.
Sadly, the humor from "Twilight" doesn't come from interpretive dance or singing clowns.
Like a taco burp, it arises unbidden at all the wrong moments.
When Bella stumbles, as she does at least three times, it's funny. When the vampires first appear, looking anemic, unblinking, and impractically coiffed, it's funny. When Edward catches a whiff of Bella in biology, it's downright hilarious.
But don't blame director Catherine Hardwicke ("Lords of Dogtown" and "Thirteen"). The movie is faithful to the novel. All of those scenes and images, right down to Edward's glittering skin, come straight from Meyer's utterly adored world. Fans might laugh, but they're also going to love this movie.
(Confidential memo to Robert Pattinson, who plays Edward: Next time, wax your chest hair. Edward is supposed to look like he's carved from marble, not lambs' wool.)
"Twilight" is about a teenage girl named Bella (Kristen Stewart) who moves from sunny Arizona to rainy Forks, Wash., after her mother marries a minor-league baseball player. It's a self-sacrificing move, because Bella is all about self-sacrifice. She even tells us so in her opening lines of narration. Could she be any more perfect?
So it's no wonder that Bella is warmly (and comically) welcomed by the teens of Forks, except for one of them, Edward Cullen, who just happens to be the campus hottie. Little does she know he's one of a coven of so-called vegetarian vampires living nearby.
The mysterious Edward seems repelled by her very presence, even trying to switch out of biology so he can have a less offensive lab partner. But soon it is revealed that he likes how she smells. No, he loves it. And, like Antony and Cleopatra, like Romeo and Juliet, like peanut butter and chocolate, ~*Edward*~ and Bella must be together.
Wouldn't it figure that as soon as they get to kiss, something has to come along and wreck things? Without giving it away, one might wish Bella used a more effective deodorant. It would save all sorts of problems.
But it's like that Shakespeare guy said: The course of true love never did run smooth. If Shakespeare could have known Edward, though, he would have edited himself. The course of true love never did run smooth (darned chest hair). But it runs fast, even with a girlfriend on its back. Swoon."

Tonight is the Night

I am a little nervous and a lot excited about the movie premiere tonight. I am so excited because I am obviously obsessed with the Twilight series, but I am nervous that the movie won't be great. It is hard to go into a movie when you LOVED the book, knowing that the movies never live up to the hype. There are 8 screens showing in Lubbock and they are all sold out. I hope to have a happy excited post tomorrow after I see the movie.

Oh yeah, drumroll please..........

Garth has decided that he is going to work for CVS. We are actually both really excited about the decision. We have been weighing options of several different places and CVS really has stood out from the rest and they made us an offer we could not refuse. Today Garth and I both had lunch with the regional pharmacy supervisor and the pharmacist that will become Garth's partner when he graduates and we had a great visit. Garth will start interning after Thanksgiving and we are home free as long as he passes his licensure exams. Yay!

Merry Christmas, Happy Birthday, Happy Graduation and Father's Day Honey!

Garth got a pretty awesome present today, thanks to some awesome wheeling and dealing by myself and Grandpa. I am so happy for him and I am pretty excited about the purchase myself. It is going to be hard to not get to drive it since all of our new vehicles up to this point have been 'mine' and Garth has graciously taken to driving the 'old' cars. But this one is his and I am thrilled for him. He will probably let me drive it sometimes (maybe). It is really roomy and just what he wanted.

It's Really No Big Deal...

It's only our future. So Garth and I are having a great/stressful week this week following his job interviews and the election last week. He essentially has 4 offers on the table and is still waiting to hear from another. When I was looking for a job it wasn't that big of a deal because I knew that it was temporary, I mean I will probably be here for 5 years or so when all is said and done, but in the overall scheme of things, that is really not that long, but hopefully (for the sake of retirement and benefits) where Garth signs will be where he will be for the life of his career (that is if we still have jobs in healthcare). It is so difficult to wade through information about benefits, insurance, etc. for all of these companies while also trying to factor in our country's next administration and what may happen with all of that. I won't go into it, but it is a source of major concern for me and my family. We are very fortunate for Garth to have so many choices, but we also went to college for 8 years for me and 10 for Garth and paid and are still paying for it ourselves, so call me crazy, but I feel like we have earned what we make, but some people think differently, obviously they think we don't deserve it. Oh, I forgot not to go into it. ANYWHO, we are excited for the possibilities despite the dark cloud hovering around them and we hope to have a decision and a job by week's end.

Photo Catch-Up

So here are some pictures that I should have posted a long time ago, most of them are from our trip to Colorado, but some are just random pictures that I love, enjoy! Obviously, I enjoy the sleepy shots, I truly believe that pretty much anyone is a lot sweeter when they are asleep.

Proof That I Am Dull:

I copied this from Emily's blog and I have seen it on a few others, so here I go, let's see how boring I am...

So here’s a list of 100 things. All the things I’ve done are highlighted in orange. Copy this list on your own blog and come clean on everything you’ve done. Do it. You know you want to.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100.Visited Italy

Only 42 of 100, and the ones I have done are pretty boring.

Tagged

Liza tagged me to post the picture that is in my 3rd file, 4th picture so...drumroll please...














Here is the 4th picture from my 3rd file of pictures. Looks like this is Christmas of '05 at my mom's house with Garth Le playing with his favorite present that year.

Kinda fun to look back. I don't really have anyone to tag so I hope I am not blogger cursed for letting the tag die with me.

Count Your Blessings

I received an email from my sister-in-law today about someone who I was actually pretty good friends with when they lived here in Lubbock, Geoff and Amy Johnson. At the time, Geoff was going to school to become a CRNA and Amy was hard at work having and raising their first 2 children. They were both very quiet people, so it took a while for us to get to know each other, but Amy and I became pretty good friends once we opened up to one another and Garth was their home teacher.

Geoff passed away yesterday in Iraq. Amy has 4 children.

A while back, I read some blogs that Torrie had links to on her blog and I remember thinking, what a horrible shame that people have to go through these things. We had a lesson yesterday in RS about weathering the storms of life, that Heavenly Father will not put upon you more than you can bear. You may think that you can only bear so much, only to find out that you can bear much more when it is thrust upon you.

I am an enigma when it comes to mindset, I am a person who generally will think "why not me" rather than "why me". I am constantly looking around the bend, looking for that horrible thing that is going to happen without a moments notice, which is no way to live. I try so hard to look at the good things in my life and not expect something horrific to happen just because it's about time for something. Things like this make me even more scared of the endless possibilities of trials that we will have to face in this life, but they also remind me to count my blessings. I need to spend more time revelling in my wonderful blessings than disregarding them, expecting only the worst.

My heart is broken for Amy and her children, also for Geoff's family. I pray that this time will pass swiftly for them and they will be comforted and will be able to feel the prayers that are for them and that they will be uplifted by them. I also pray that they will remember that this life is but a blink in eternity that they will be together again and for eternity. I hope they find comfort in that knowledge. I know that I do and I hope that if I am ever faced with something similar to this that I will be strong enough to remember these things and that "thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment" (D&C 121:7).

How would you pronounce this child's name: 'Le-a'??

Leah?? NO
Lee - A?? NOPE
Lay - a?? NO
Lei??

Guess Again.

It's pronounced 'Ledasha' Oh yes...you read it right. This child attends a school in Livingston Parish, LA. Her mother is irate because everyone is getting her name wrong. SO, if you see something come across your desk like this please remember to pronounce it correctly. When the mother was asked about the pronunciation of the name, she said 'the dash don't be silent.'

...She probably works in the bakery department at Wal-Mart:

Some of My Favorites

Thanks Liza for her comment that reminded me of some of my favorite funnies by Jim Gaffigan. As you can see, he really loves food, especially cake but definately NOT Hot Pockets:

• Whenever you go out you gotta get the appetizer. Cuz the appetizer's just an excuse for an extra meal. You're always like "Lets see, I will start with the 80 buffalo wings...and do you have a low-cal blue cheese? I don't wanna fill up too much." But it would be kinda embarrassing trying to explain what an appetizer is to someone from a starving country though. "Yeah the appetizer, that's the food we eat before we have our food...No no you're thinking of dessert, that's food we eat after we have our food."


• Cake's a powerful food. Cake can actually bring people together. You know... "It's Bill's birthday" "Yeah I hate that guy." "There's cake in the conference room." "Well I should say hello."


• My wife's gotten really lazy, or as she calls it, "pregnant".


• There is the vegetarian Hot Pocket for those of us who don't want to eat meat, but would still like diarrhea.


• I'm surprised we're still serving fish with the heads still on. What are we, barbarians? Don't you always think that eye's looking at you? "You don't mind if I watch while you eat my body do you? Don't be distracted if you see a little tear come out. You can just tell yourself its butter."


• You can't have cake for breakfast!...You're going to have fried cake with syrup for breakfast.


• I don't know why they still sell hammocks in the sporting goods section. "Yeah, my activity of choice is laying down. Yes I would like to combine my love of the outdoors with my even greater love of napping, could you help a sportsman like me?"


• When you go out to dinner they always try and improve the salad. They're like, "Would you like some fresh pepper on your salad?" Can anyone tell the difference between fresh and stale pepper? I can't even taste the pepper. They might as well be like, "Would you like us to wave this wooden wand over your salad?" "Uh, all right." "OK, enjoy your magic salad." "Ooh, I didn't know I was getting a magic salad."


• Lifetime, television for women. Yet for some reason women are always getting beaten on that channel.


• It is crazy how the internet and e-mail has changed our lives. Have you ever got a handwritten letter in the mail today, your like "What the hell? Has someone been kidnapped!?!" "I'm not opening it, its probably filled with anthrax or something." It's definitely made sending regular mail a chore. "What, I stuck it in a envelope and now I have to go outside!?! What am I a triathlete?" Ever have the friend that sends you a really long e-mail, you open it up and you feel like you have homework! "Can't read that dissertation now, I'll keep that as new." I don't even read them half the time, just hit reply "Sounds good, don't write back, ever."


• I didnt know hed be doing BEAR jokes...(you have to watch him to get this one)


• There's so many different kinds of cake. There's rum cake, which makes sense because we've all been eating cake and thought "you know what this needs-booze. shot of liquor. I don't have time to eat and drink. I only have two hands buddy and one of them's holdin' a cigarette. Meet me halfway will ya?"


• You ever call people on speaker phone? And they're stupid enough to not realize they're on speaker phone? "You sound like you're in a well. Are you in a well?" "Yes I am in a well, but luckily, there's a phone down here. I'm just down in a well, making phone calls. I was having people guess, but you knew right away, you're so good at the well guessing."


• I went to the gym the other day, saw a woman working out and you could see her ribs. And all I could think about was "I haven't had a McRib in forever."


• I definitely prefer the easy way in life: I see an escalator and I get excited. Sweet. All I got to do is keep my balance.

Soy Veggie Burgers Anyone?

I am getting pretty adventurous with my food choices lately looking for things that are tasty but most of all good for me. Actually I have gotten to a place where if I can choke it down I will eat it if it has lots of nutritional value. I am not a big meat eater, I am pretty sure I could be a vegetarian except I would be even fatter because I would eat a lot of donuts and bean burritos which wouldn't be the best. I bought some Boca burgers after being told about them through a blog friend of mine who has the same nutritional concerns as I do. I microwaved one and had it with a little ketchup and pepper and it was GOOD. You heard me, it wasn't tolerable or OK, it was actually really good! I like the texture a lot better than I like the texture of ground beef, it is kind of like a really really moist hamburger patty. Now I just have to figure out how I am going to slip this into a bun for my husband...Hey maybe when I go to Amarillo I can cook them for girl's night? How about it Liza?

The Good Life

We have a big house, there is just no getting around that. It is nice and all and I am EXTREMELY grateful to be so blessed in our lives, but it is A LOT of house to clean. We have been looking for someone to help clean the house but I have trust issues and some other hopefuls have fallen through the cracks or are not available.

I have several projects that I have been wanting to accomplish, but they never get done because any free time I have I spend it cleaning the house. So, after pimping the job to one of my technician's sister, she accepted the 'challenge'. I even brought her over to the house at the height of it's dirtiness to show her what she was in for and I promised that I would not do the 'clean your house before the cleaning lady comes' bit, that what she saw was what she was going to have to work with. Surprisingly she still accepted the position and we now officially have a cleaning person that will come weekly.

I cannot begin to tell you how great it felt to come home to a clean house. It took her about 4 hours to do the main floor (kitchen, breakfast area, dining room, utility, utility bathroom, and formal living area), the lower level bathroom (a.k.a. Liza and Jerm's bathroom), the upstairs hallway and nook and Garth Le's bedroom and bathroom. This included sweeping, moping and vacuuming of approximately 4,000 sq ft of floor. She did a GREAT job and I am so excited!

When I got home last night I was able to take care of one of the projects that I have been wanting to do since I stole the idea from my sister-in-law. I took all of our DVDs out of their cases and put them into CD holder cases. We are horrible about not putting DVDs back into their right case or back in at all, so this way, they are all in one place and they take up about 90% less room.

I also cooked our lightest ham (16 pounds) we got from our pig and it turned out great. We will have ham sammies forever off that one ham.

My next project is our bedroom and bathroom. We have to go through clothes and throw out ones that we don't wear and I also want to create something on a wall in the bathroom for my jewelry. I don't like people in my room, so I am not having my cleaning lady do our room or bathroom and I am also making Garth Le take care of his play room, so those are the only areas of the house that aren't spic and span right now, making them the top of my current priority list.
The next job I want to tackle is the cabinets in the laundry room. There is so much random stuff in there and we need the room for food storage, so I will most likely work on that next.

Other items on my list are: clean garage, organize and throw away/store toys from Garth Le's playroom, clean and winterize the backyard and porch, move Foosball table to porch or garage, organize and decorate the office, organize the wet bar area (maybe get a popcorn machine), find a cool way to decorate Garth Le's playroom with his assignments from school, organize linen closet, organize cabinets in kitchen (throw away Tupperware without lids, etc.) and I am sure I will think of more things, but I am very excited at the prospect of having the time to do these things.

I am also going to go back to my 7 on, 7 off schedule starting the end of this month so I will have essentially every other week off of work to get various things accomplished. I am excited that my life is becoming more organized for a lot of reasons. I have come to realize that it really is important to have a house of order in order to do the things you need to do to serve your family and the Lord, so here I go in an earnest effort to be more orderly. Wish me luck! Thanks to Debbie for all of her hard work on the house, she did a great job!!!

D&C 88:119-120
Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God;
That your incomings may be in the name of the Lord; that your outgoings may be in the name of the Lord; that all your salutations may be in the name of the Lord, with uplifted hands unto the Most High.

I know that there is a lot involved in having your 'house in order', but I personally think that one of those things is to ACTUALLY have your house in order, so I am making this a priority for my family.

Another Day, Another ER Visit

Yep, we went to the Pedi ER last night with Garth Le. We were visiting GiGi and Garth Le was being silly (imagine that) and decided to put a blanket on his head and walk around (which I told him rather forcefully to NOT do, but what do I know) He got up on the couch and he fell and hit his neck on the coffee table. Right after, he was fine, I think he was mainly worried that he was going to be in trouble and once that adrenaline wore off, it started hurting. I really thought he was fine and just whining, but over the course of an hour, his tears were more and more earnest and he kept wanting me to rub his neck and he wouldn't move it. We met Garth at home after the priesthood meeting and he said, let's go to the ER, better safe than sorry. We got in pretty fast, took xrays, and were able to go home shortly after. When we got him into a room is when I noticed how horrible he looked, not his neck, but everything else. I just wanted to run out of there because I was sure that CPS would come take him away. He was shoeless and his feet were DIRTY, well, not just his feet, pretty much to his thighs were almost black with dirt. He still had icing stains on his mouth and shirt from his cousin's birthday party a couple of hours before that. He looked like a homeless kid. He has a contusion (a.k.a. bruise) on his neck and some muscle spasms, so he will be fine and we are just an ER copay poorer. The doctor did say there is a reason that pilots don't put blankets over their heads to land a plane...because they will crash. The parallel went over Garth Le's head, but I thought it was pretty funny. He is still stiff and hurting a little today, but all in all, everything is OK and that is what matters.

Welcome to the REAL Cutest Blog on the Block!!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Emily!!!!!!! I LOVE IT!!! You haven't even officially met me yet, but you seem to know me so well! Thank you so very much!

I NEED A BLOG MAKEOVER!!!!

I know I only have a couple of readers, but my 'blogstyle' is stressing me out! I never want to come to my blog because it is such a pain to read and I have tried to make it look better, but it just gets worse! Help me! I know so many other people who have awesome blogs and maybe they (or their sister who's name starts with an Em and ends with an ily) can help me? I really don't want to call anyone out to help me, because that would be rude, but maybe somebody (Liza), anybody (Liza) may find it in their hearts or PC's (or MAC, whatever the case may be) to ask somebody (Emily), anybody (Emily) to help me with this problem.

Meet My Boss

We had a fundraiser for the Diabetes Walk here at my work, and we had a contest to see who would wear a dress this past Friday. It was between a really beefy nurse, one of the RTs and of course the head administrator here. The administrator, Jeremy, won by a landslide (imagine that) and here are some SEXY pics of him. I am wondering if I really still have to respect him? It was fun and we raised a lot of money for a good cause.

I hate to break it to you Jeremy, but a pretty girl, you DO NOT make!

Dallas Weekend

Liza and her two oldest kids were raising money for the psoriasis walk in Dallas and I joined their team and we made a really fun weekend of it. Liza drove down Friday afternoon and we left Lubbock after I got off of work and were at our hotel by about 11 that night. We got up around 7:30 Saturday morning and went to the walk. It was fun and Liza won about $700 in prizes for raising just over $600 (pretty good deal). She was nice enough to share some of the loot with me and for that I am very grateful! We were very speedy 5k-ers so we were finished late morning and I decided it would be fun to go to Six Flags, and oddly enough, Jake and Riley thought that would probably be pretty fun too. We all agreed that it was the best/most tiring day EVER! Thanks guys for a really fun time!

This is a picture of part of the park that we were walking around, it was very beautiful.

The starting line...

The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders came to sign autographs and encourage other pretty girls to become cheerleaders too (see Liza's blog for story)

Riley decided 5k was a little much and rode for quite a while, I think Liza logged at least a mile with 50 or 60 extra pounds in tow.

After that long, hard "walking", Riley had to refuel with chocolate donuts

Liza winning her loot

I'm not sure...but I thiiiink that someone is a little excited here

There must not be too many to choose from because this was a horrible ride! I actually have bruises from the bouncing and jerking. My ponytail came out also, it's no wonder there was not a line.

The obligatory character pics

More character pics

We did get to see Bugs Bunny before leaving which was pretty great!

It was the "Best of Texas" weekend at Six Flags and as you walked in there was this really old couple singing old country tunes and the kids really enjoyed them and they enjoyed the kids as well and sang most of a Johnny Cash song per Jake's request. We really had the Best Day Ever!

Thanks Guys!!!!!!

Disney Break-In

...Not as in criminal, but as in shoes. Ok, so here is the abbreviated timeshare story: For my graduation from pharmacy school, my parents got Garth and I a trip to Ft. Lauderdale via my uncle and aunt's timeshare. Long story short we ended up becoming timeshare owners. It is something we had talked about previously to make sure that we made vacationing with our family a priority so we decided to take the plunge. We have just recently decided to really embrace it and we are taking LOTS of trips for "free" soon. In May we are doing our first big Disney trip with the family (which is where our timeshare's 'home base' is), my parents and Garth's as well as my cousin Jeni and her family are going together (also I think a few others are going to coordinate Disney trips at the same time as well). We have booked the presidential suite at our resort and Garth and I wanted to check it out before we all go in May. So last weekend we went from Thursday to Sunday and it was incredible!!! I didn't want to post a lot of pictures of the resort because I really want it to be a suprise to the family when we go. I have NEVER stayed anywhere as amazing and we are on Disney property and can see every fireworks show from our room, not to mention a water park on-site and numerous pools and a pretty awesome activities program for the kids (and adults). It made us very excited for May, it is going to be a LOOOOONG wait, but I am sure it will be worth it.

We stayed in pretty much the bottom rung of rooms and it was very impressive, this was the bathroom: jacuzzi tub for 2, there was this vanity and another vanity in the toilet room, which you can't see from this picture, but it was huge, all granite tiles and countertops. In May we have gotten the Presidential Suite that is the nicest room they have at this resort. We were able to see one and it was unbelievable.

This was our bed, it was very comfy!

This was the living area that was off of the kitchen and bar area, there was also a full sized dining table that had places and chairs for 8, out the window is the lake the resort is built on and a really awesome fountain.

We took one day and went to Daytona Beach, it was about an hour drive and it was very worth it. It did end up costing us more than planned, although the beach was free, a wave came and knocked my prescription sunglasses into the water and they were not to be found or washed ashore. Oh well, it really was worth it and there is probably a fish or lobster or something that can now see for the first time.

Garth and I had such a blast, we were there all day just playing in the surf. You can drive on the beach at Daytona and there were lots of families with coolers and umbrellas having picnics. I think this is something we will definately have to do when we come in May, but we are getting boogie boards next time, for sure.