2012

I only have a few words for 2012-- see below.

WILW: Products + 2

I took a short blogging break, but I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things! This week's WILW will be the products that I'm loving right now! It's winter in MS and that means today can be a toasty 74 degrees and tomorrow will be more like 34! I'm not the type of person to get my 64oz of liquids in a day so add that to the weather plus the fact that my office is freezing year round so I keep a heater blowing on me all day and what do you get? DRY SKIN.

I'm loving this lotion for my dry hands!

This small bottle of lotion sits on my desk and gets used frequently. The scent isn't strong and it isn't a greasy lotion so it's definitely a lotion that I'm loving!

I'm loving this lip balm!

I am not a loyal lip balm user. I'll try just about anything, but this is my new favorite. It goes on and stays put for a while so I'm not constantly reapplying.

I'm loving this body wash!

My skin stays super dry, but this body wash does a great job helping with that! Plus the scent is a favorite of mine. I'm not a fan of flowery, strong scents and this one is light.

I'm loving this moisturizer!

I use this moisturizer! It's not too think or oily/greasy. It's great for wearing at night. Plus Dr. Oz gives it two thumbs up!

I'm loving in-shower body lotion!

I've probably used this one before, but I'm still loving it! This is a must-use product after shaving your legs!

Enough with products! It's TV time now...

I'm not a huge fan of Oprah (I know, I know, but...), but she is producing a new show: Married to the Army, Alaska and it is great! I am also not a fan of reality TV (other than Big Brother and The Voice), but this isn't your typical reality show. Its follows 7 women that live in Alaska and are married to Army men. For the first time EVER, the Pentagon is letting cameras get close to families and on base to show how Army life really is. Most reality shows seem staged to me, but NOT this show. It's real life and how the wives really handle it. I love this show! Plus I've always wanted to travel to Alaska and this show makes me want to go even more!

Episodes air on the OWN channel on Sundays. Watch it; trust me!

Now, it's time for Duck Dynasty! Who doesn't love this show? I actually watched this show 10+ years ago when I was in high school (and my boyfriend at the time was a huge fan). It was the only hunting show that I didn't argue about. Phil (the Duck Commander- top right) had his own hunting DVDs (The Duckmen) and that's what I watched. This family is so funny and the things they say will have you rolling! Plus it's clean?! Who knew shows on TV could be clean anymore?! Plus they end every show with a family meal around the dinner table and Phil saying the blessing!

Do yourself a favor and check out A&E. Plus Friday nights are rerun nights so you get hours and hours of the bearded men!

That's all that I'm loving today. What do you think about my loves? Let me know! Are there any other products I should be trying for dry skin?

Birthdays!

I realized I never posted pictures of mom and Courtney's birthday cakes! Mom turned the big 5-0 this year (in August!) and we had her a surprise party. The cake tasted even better than it looked!

My sister, Courtney, turned the big 3-0 this year! One of the ladies that works with mom is starting to get into the cake business so mom had her make a cake for Courtney. It turned out great! The bow did get a little out of whack, but we made it work.

If you'll notice there are NO pictures of the birthday girls. I stink at taking pictures! I'll try to do better the next time we're together!

Girls Night Out!

October 6th started out like any other Saturday, BUT I had plans lined up and that seems to be something new lately! That afternoon two friends came over and we headed west to Tunica! Our plan was to check in the casino hotel (Sam's Town) and then make our way to a bull riding event. Cowboys? Yes, please! These are pictures taken that night!

Whitney, Kelly and myself

It took several tries to get this picture!

Us with the clown. Dusty went to school with me and Whitney so it was fun to run into him!

All in all it was a great night. The bull riding was absolutely pitiful though; we felt bad for the guys! I guess it was just an off night for them?! After the cowboy looking, we made it back to Sam's. We ran into some people Whitney knew and ended up hanging out at the bar/band area. I'm too old to be staying up so late, but it was fun! We got up bright and early, met up with Dusty and found our way to a Huddle House! YUM. The three of us girls had a small lunch on Saturday and that was it other than a small snack. We put away all of our food- I think Dusty was stunned. He was like "no way y'all are going to eat that". Oh, but yes! Back to home we came. I think it's time for another trip!

I'm so thankful that in this season of life I have discovered my true friends. The ones willing to go out of their way to help, talk, listen, help you forget, get your mind off things, etc... These two will take time whenever I need them. Yes, they both have their own lives (Whitney is a single mom to a 5 yr old and Kelly is working full time plus is working on her Master's and driving to Oxford twice a week), but they still make time for me and I make time for them. That's how friendship is supposed to be, right?!

We're already working on our next trip!

Chloe Turns 7?! 7?!

Way back in September my niece turned the ripe age of seven years old. I know the saying "time flies" is true, but it really does fly!  On, Saturday, September 29th we had her birthday party at the park. It's pretty new and very nice plus the weather was perfect for an outdoor party!

These were the only two pictures I took from the actual party! I was a  busy bee the whole time!

 After the party we took her to the mall to get her ears pierced and to Build-A-Bear!

Her "before" shot. She was so nervous it would hurt and she wouldn't look like a big girl!

And the "after" shot! All smiles afterwards (until we got in the car!)

 Our little tye-dyed friend was getting stuffed at this point. She was SO happy with her birthday present.

Now she's being sewed up!

The finished product!! Chloe and her bear :)

Whew! It had been a looooong day at this point. I think we were all exhausted and tired and hot and ill and Chloe was starting to hurt. You can't tell it here, but keep going!

By this point you could see she was done with faking it! That little stinger came out after this!

"Little Bit" is in 1st grade and loves it (for the most part). She has several friends and one is even our next door neighbor. She is so smart and tall so we're working on that basketball/sport scholarship! HAHA

My First Yard Sale Experience

No, this wasn't the first time I had ever been to a yard sale, but it was the first time I had ever been to a HUGE community yard sale! Kayla and her mom have gone the past few years and this year I got to tag along with them. We left out Friday morning and our first stop was at a donut shop. YUM. I may or may not have had two.

Then my eyes were opened to this whole new world. It was crazy to watch these people. Most were like us: nice, easy-going shopping people, but some were "professional". I am almost certain I didn't hear a "please" or "thank you" or "excuse me" while we were there. We shopped til we dropped Friday then ate at Chili's and did a little Target shopping. Oh, how I love Target. We rested up and began bright and early on day two. There were several more people in that neighborhood on Saturday. People were everywhere! Everywhere!

I think all three of us lucked up with our finds for the trip! I'll let the pictures do the talking...

Our make-up score! These were all new and around $1 each!

This was my half!

Ignore the messy background. I know it's hard to see, but it's purses, shoes, a wallet, several books, tops, etc...

 

The books I found for Jenessa and baby James!



A close-up of some...

Love these!

I miss Little Golden books...

And of course, he'll need to start learning early!

I was super excited about all of the deals I found and I'm pretty certain I'll go back next year. It's heaven for people-watchers like myself!!

Another Day, Another Dollar

Ok, so not the best title, but that's just about how I feel at work today! Yesterday was an unexplainable event. From the time I got to work until the time I left I can honestly say I screwed up every.single.thing.I.did. I'm normally not that type of person, but it all caught up with me yesterday.

For the record, I am working on:

• Christmas Club checks
• My GL accts were all out of balance (just pretend you know what I'm talking about)
• I was preparing for a meeting today for the bank association
• I am in charge of the toll-free line and emails this week (customers/bank employees call/email questions, need help, etc...)
• I am getting ready to be out all next week-  banking conference
• I am in charge of balancing both banks this week after they finish for the day
• I am printing out all paperwork needed for the conference next week
• I'm trying to get prepared for 5 days in Dallas, TX!
• I have cut out caffeine and started counting calories (not a good time for this)
• I'm working on getting caught up with all of the EOM and EOQ reports
• Cleaning up past employees info on system
• Listing and editing all disputes in the last month
• Getting re-registered with the Fed
• Updating my computer system and adding new programs- thus slowing me down and disrupting my day
• I could list about 5 more but they would be even more boring than what I've already noted.

So, basically my small brain was on overload and it only half-@$$ed each job rather than doing any of them correctly.

Today, I came a little more prepared!

Snickers: Breakfast of Champions

Caffeine! Caffeine! Caffeine!

Today will be even busier than yesterday, but I hope and pray I am more prepared today! Of course, I have something to look forward to---


Gaylord Texan

 This is where I'll be spending my time next week!! Yes, I'll be in class most of the time, but I'll still have free time and you better believe I'll find something to do!

My Best Friend's Wedding

It all started with this cute couple.... Let me rewind for a minute. Mathieu and I met in 8th grade. We quickly became friends. One, Mathieu is a likable guy and two, I tend to have guy friends. We both had Mrs. Rhodes class at the same time; that's how it started. Our friendship grew from there. His family moved to Alaska (Soldotna) a year later but we stayed in touch with MSN Messenger. Who remembers that?! Ugh! My family had dial up (this was 1999 after all) and his did too, so it took forever, but we messaged whenever we could. There were a lot of "are you on?" messages, but that's the fun with messenger. It's instant {who wanted email? not us two}! 

 Fast forward another year and his family moved back. We picked right up where we left off. I remember one night he and our friend Leland {his name is Lee, but Leland is the nickname he earned when we became friends :)} were coming to my house to pick me up and we were going to eat. They drove back and forth past my house about 17 times before they finally made it up the driveway. Leland stayed in the Jimmy while Mathieu came to meet dad. That was fun {oh, being a teenager...} Moving on... we were always close. He got a girlfriend and I had a boyfriend and you know how high school is. But we stayed friends. Then comes junior college and we hardly saw each other. Then I moved to Oxford for my BA and he moved off. I mean across the country! He has lived in Louisiana, Wyoming, Colorado, Illinois and now New York! I'm missing a state, but I cannot think of it at the moment. We talked some while I was at Ole Miss, but not that often.

When I moved back we talked more and in the last few years we have become even closer. He went through a really difficult time while he was living in Illinois and I spent many nights on the phone with him (talking or texting). Then, one night while we were texting he met this cute little blonde, Kelsey. As they say {whoever "they" are}, the rest is history.

The cute couple!

 So, Friday, August 3rd, we loaded up and drove to Illinois. Everyone of his groomsmen were friends of his from high school except one guy that he met while working. All five couples plus me made the 9 hour drive. Illinois is a beautiful state. It was so sad to see that most of their crops were dead. Their crops, income, it was all just in the fields fried and crispy. Thousands and thousands of acres of useless crops. The draught was tough in MS, but it seemed much worse in IL. Closer to Dwight {where we were} the crops were actually green! I was in awe of those windmills. They were HUGE. I need to do a little research for more info, but I do know that if you allow the power company to put windmills on your property, you get around $20,000 per windmill. Yes, you read that right. The power that's generated is SOLD to CANADA. Interesting? Yes!

The rehearsal dinner was held in this new restaurant in downtown Dwight. The bride's mother is the manager there. It's such a cool place. They really put a lot of thought into every.single.aspect. of that building. That firetruck you see used to be a big heep of rusted metal in someones pasture, but the restaurant owner bought it and restored it. They also wanted to pay their respect to the firemen that were lost during 9/11 and they actually have real helmets, flags, etc in the building to showcase. We must never forget that day.

Wedding Day! Us girls decide to do a little shopping before the afternoon wedding so we hit up the nearest mall and shopped, ate, walked until time to get ready. We ended up stuck on the interstate with very, very heavy rain. Everyone had their flashers on and were completely stopped in their lane. We were so worried about the wedding because everything was already decorated and set up! Luckily, the rain stopped and the fields dried up! Matt & Kelsey were married in front of this barn {isn't it awesome?} Such a simple backdrop but a huge statement.

I snapped this picture of the guys waiting on the girls to get ready. The man in white is Mathieu's dad. Mathieu is the taller one to the left of him. Look at those blue skies, green fields and huge windmills!

The groomsmen left to line up so Mathieu and his dad are all alone. Keep in mind these pics are taken with my phone! And no editing!

I told him to NOT put his hands on his hips... such a good listener. Not!

Ralph Lauren shirts, dark Levi's and boots... ahhhh :)

Bridesmaids!

I'm not a frilly, girly person, but I was IN love with her dress. Totally not like me at all, but I loved it. She was such a beautiful blonde bride!

Mr. & Mrs. Mathieu Segerson Vansandt!

From the reception tent looking back at the barn. Love it.

Their first "dance"... haha Matt is not a dancer. At all. This was the best she could get until the very, very end of the reception!

On our way home, we drove through St. Louis. We didn't stop (or slow down) but it looked like a nice place to visit one day!

Nikita put her foot down said we were going to Lambert's. She had never been and wanted the experience. If you've ever visited one then you know the experience I'm talking about! Such good food (HUGE portions) and great tea, but those rolls?! Those rolls and molasses?! This girl could gain some serious weight eating those! We had a 45 minute wait so Nikita and I made ourselves presentable and then snapped a picture or two. Or four. :) You'll have to ignore Dustin. He was such a trooper!

Dustin not only rode in the back seat the entire trip to IL and back from IL, but he also tolerated not only his wife but me in the hotel room. One tiny room, one tiny bathroom and two women! He said "you know you're staying with two women when you use the hotel soap and shampoo then the next thing you know there are 47 bottles of junk in the shower!" Hahaha Dustin has NO idea what he's getting into.... their twin girls turned 3 that weekend. 3 going on 13!

It was a great trip (minus the two speeding tickets and a few detours thanks to the GPS and road construction). I'm so happy for Matt and Kelsey. They are starting their married life in close to Buffalo, NY-- just minutes away from Niagra Falls. I'm jealous! They've invited everyone to come visit and you better believe I'm trying my best to plan a trip!