Word Verifications

Does anyone else get tickled by these things? Stressed? Annoyed?

You know, you go to your friends blog and want to comment on their recipe, their babie's leg rolls or their new haircut and before you can leave your two cents, you have to type one of these un-natural combination of letters. I am usually pretty quick on the keyboard, but these things slow me down to the point where I am pecking at the keys like a chicken pecking corn. I am so afraid I am going to mess up the word and then I'll get a harder one with caps and numbers in it!

Well, I decided to "collect" these things a few weeks ago, jotting the good ones down when I came across them and I have come up with definitions for them. Because, I just can't compute meaningless words. I was a language major. They NEED to have meaning for my universe to continue spinning. I hope you find them humorous and are able to ingnore the scary peek into what makes me tick.

insiest- OK, I am pretty sure it's illegal and I prefer not to discuss this one further. This is a family blog. Ha! Family blog, ins- Oh, nevermind!

jouker-Duh! This is Batman's number one enemy in France.

anduc- as in anduc ancover

psinger- the vocalist in the pband

prolute- I am pretty sure it's bad for the environment

decones- you want to avoid hitting these with decars when you are driving near deconstructions

These were all fun, but I am stumped on the one I used for illustration above: chigog. Any ideas?

Flashback Friday is Back! (FBF 10: short hair)

I cannot believe how long it has been since I have posted an FBF! I am ashamed. I apologize. I promise to dig up more embarassing photos, wipe the dust from them and scan them soon. But for today, I am posting this for my friend Tracy who said she couldn't picture me with short hair and wanted to see a photo. Here you go, Tracy!

If you have known me for any real length of time, you know that I have never been one to shy away from a haircut. I pretty much left long hair behind when I went off to college and experimented, though pretty conservatively, with cuts and color for years. AND I happen to be married to a man who loves short hair...on him and me.

Right before I got pregnant with Aron I cut my hair the shortest it has ever been and kept it spiky and highlighted for a while. It helped that I had a phenomenal stylist who was also flexible with her schedule and resonably priced!

Here I am in January of 2004 with some gals I used to work with:

(I'm the one in the black sweater if you can't tell)

And here I am 6 months later in my sister's wedding:

Her wedding was in June, in TEXAS and I was 5 months pregnant. I was pretty darn happy to have short hair, let me tell you! Living in Las Vegas made short hair pretty appealing, too. I kept it that way right up until Aron was born:

But, after that, I let it slowly grow out. Mostly for budgetary reasons. I stopped working and didn't have the extra cash to spend on highlights and trims. And now that it is as long as it has ever been, I am torn. Of course, I am not even thinking about a short haircut until it gets a little warmer around here! I know a lot of people who have chopped off their lenght for Locks of Love and I am contemplating doing it, too. What do you think?

Flea Interviews Me

My blog-friend, Flea, did this on her blog last week and I thought it would be fun to play, too!

She emailed me 5 questions to answer in a post on my blog. I had no idea what she'd ask, but she's a pretty smart cookie so I knew they'd be good.

1. I just saw on your blog that you like Celine Dion. You even posted a photo of her in some crazy boots. Where can I get a pair of boots like that? And for real? Celine Dion? It's because the tickets were free, isn't it? You can be honest.

I love that you asked me this question! HA! Yes, it was because the tickets were free. At first, anyway. AND it had a little something to do with the opportunity for a girl's night out. But, I have to say that she is one of the few performers I have heard that sound better live than they do recorded. I didn't buy the T-shirt, but I am a fan now.

Oh, and I can't help you with the boots.....I am sure she got them when she was in Vegas.

2. You've moved around a bit. Where is you favorite place to live and would you go back and why?

The reason I talk so much about my moves is that it is one of the most obvious ways I have seen God at work in my life. He always has something for us when we move.

My favorite place would have to be Austin, though. It's where I went to college, where I met and married my husband and where I ate lots of Mexican food and weighed the least- ha!

But, I don't know if I would go back. Austin was great for me at that time, but it has changed so much....and I have, too. I will always have a special place in my heart for The Heart of Texas and would love to visit and eat there, for sure.

3. Aron is the cutest little thing ever. How many parenting books/classes have you been through over time and which do you find the most valuable?

Thank you! I happen to think he is pretty cute, myself. (that's why he makes up 80% of the content of this blog!) I have never taken a parenting class, per se. But, I have read a few books. The one I am reading now is Bringing Up Boys by Dr. James Dobson. I would recommend it to all parents of boys AND/OR girls. It gives wonderful insight into the design of the sexes and since I grew up with a sister and felt clueless about boys it has helped a ton.

4. What was your favorite subject in school and why?

Spanish. It was new and different and came really easy to me. I credit my early exposure to a foreign language (the 3 yrs we lived in Okinawa, Japan) for turning on the language part of my brain. And I had a HS Spanish teacher who made it fun. I had to take two years to graduate, but opted to take 3 years. In college I changed my major 3 times and ended up taking a break (dropping out, if I am honest). I worked for a while, then Rudy and I got married. I wanted to go back and finish and when I asked myself what I really enjoyed, the answer was Spanish. So, I have a BA in Spanish Language. I hope to teach someday, too.

5. Where and how did you meet your husband?

In May of 1996 I went out looking for a job waiting tables. I was going to take a few summer classes, but also needed to make some cash. I walked into a restaurant in downtown Austin, Texas called Spaghetti Warehouse. I had remembered eating there a few times and it seemed like a fun spot. I filled out an application and the hostess asked me if I could stick around and do an interview. Rudy had just been promoted to manger the month before and he came out in his khaki's and tie and did my first interview. He later told me that he didn't want to hire me because my schedule wasn't flexible enough. No matter, though. His boss called me in for a second interview and I started working there about a week later.
We were friends, at first. But, it was a little awkward to date your boss. So, I found another job and he asked me to marry him that November!

That's it. Hope you all enjoyed getting to know some obscure and maybe interesting things about me. If anyone else wants to play, shoot me an email or leave a comment and I'll interview you!

Sign me up!

I want to be the newest member of the Celine Dion fan club. Seriously! She is amazing!

She's the reason I am blogging at 12:40 a.m. I just saw her perform at the Sommet Center in Nashville tonight and I am too wired for sleep just yet.

I think I only own one or two of her CD's and they are not recent, but when my friend Marcy asked if I wanted to go, I figured, "Why not?". I am so glad I did! She gave an amazing performance and I was surprised at how many of her songs I knew the words to. Power of Love and her cover of Alone were my favorites, but there were so many others.

I found this picture on her website:

She actually wore this outfit tonight. You should see her move around that stage in these boots! I had a blast singing and dancing with Marcy and the other girls we went with and it was a night I will not soon forget. And did I mention the tickets were free and we had box seats?

Oh, Nuts!

That's an exclamataion, not an exasperation. I opened my front door today and found this:

Yahoo! See, I knew what it was right away. A few weeks ago I entered a contest over at Dlyn's place (she has the prettiest photos and the most amazing recipes- go check her out) and I WON! I never WIN! I couldn't believe it. I kept thinking of A Christmas Story, "It's a major award! I won it!"

Then I get an email from Sam at Oh, Nuts! He asked me to check out his website and choose 3 things. Now, that's my kind of prize! Wanna see what I picked?

By the way, do you know how hard it is to open a box and take a picture of it? I don't advise actually trying to do it. Just pretend you are opening it and snap the shot. For your safety's sake!

But, can you blame me for tearing into that box so quickly? Whole Georgia pecans, Cappuccino Fudge Gormet Coffee, and Dark Chocolate Hazelnuts. Hallelujah!

I can tell you right now that the Hazelnuts are divine. Mmm-mmmm! And I will be partaking in some of that coffee very soon. I haven't decided what to do with the pecans yet, but they are huge and the possibilities are endless.

Hope you've enjoyed drooling over my spoils. I am just so tickled to have recieved this wonderful stuff. Be sure to check out Oh, Nuts! for yourself. Sam and his crew have lots of yummy things over there. You'll wonder how I ever chose three!

I'm not one to brag....

...not frequently, anyway. But can I just say.....

HOW 'BOUT THOSE LONGHORNS?!