Baseball. LOTS of baseball...

Well, I was asked to be the "Team Mom" for Taylor's baseball team! It is a much bigger job than I ever expected, and I've literally been doing nothing but baseball for about 2 weeks now! It's okay though, I'm glad I get to be such a big part of Taylor's life before I move in October. I'm going to miss him terribly. We went to the Auburn vs. Alabama baseball game tonight at the Biscuits stadium, and we had a lot of fun! Auburn won 8-7, but we still had a good time. I can't wait to see Taylor wearing that crimson and white uniform. I have high expectations for him, but that boy was born to play baseball!

I haven't had much time to work on wedding stuff with all this baseball going on, but invitations are picked out!! WOO HOO! David's mother has graciously offered to make our invitations for us, and they are EXACTLY what I've been wanting. I personally think her talent could put Martha Stewart to shame!! :)

I couldn't have picked anything out of magazine that I would have liked better than these! I just love them! I'm so grateful that my future mother in-law is crafty (and sweet)!! Well, that's all for now. I'll update more next week - hopefully more wedding news! Goodnight!

Extreme Makeover Home Edition

Well, it's 4:00 in the morning, and I'm WIDE awake. Earlier today, I was asked to volunteer for the Extreme Makeover house, and I gladly accepted. My co-worker Heather and I had the midnight - 4 am shift, and it really wasn't too bad! And now, thanks to 4 cups of coffee, I can't go to sleep!! We were in charge of the food/catering. We lovingly named it "The Westside Grill". We fed all the volunteers and the Home Makeover team hamburgers, hot dogs, polish dogs, grilled chicken, baked beans, mac & cheese, and LOTS of sweets and goodies. Everyone was in very good spirits!! We also got a sneak peek at the house, and it is GORGEOUS. Keep in mind, this neighborhood is not the best in town, so the house looks a little out of place, but I'm sure the family will be more than pleased. I wish I would have brought my camera, but instead I'll steal a pic from the Montgomery Advertiser's website. This was taken around lunch Saturday, and believe it or not, by the time I got there at midnight MUCH more has been done. All the siding is up, and almost everything is painted.

It truly is amazing how quickly a house can come together. The floors were being finished when we left about 3:30 am, and the sod was also being layed. Mostly all that's left to do is landscaping, cleaning, and getting furniture moved in. I'm so glad I got to take part in helping out the Jordan family, and I can't wait to see the finished product. The show will air on ABC on April 18th, so tune and you might get to see me on TV!! :) I'm going to try to catch some zzzz's now, and hopefully get up in time for church tomorrow. Goodnight!

The Wedding Date

We have picked a new date! We will officialy say "I do" October 17th, 2009. We decided we didn't want to wait until January, and October was just a better fit for us. They honeymoon is going to be a little cheaper in that month, as well! We are staying 7 nights in the BEAUTIFUL Couples Swept Away resort in Negril, Jamaica. Here is the link if you want to look...

http://www.couples.com/12sw/index.html

I CAN'T WAIT!!! It's going to be so wonderful. We have put down the deposit to hold the date at the church, so now we get to start our counseling sessions. Time is really flying by! I'll update more after work with some more details. Have a good Friday!

David is home!

What a wonderful past few days I've had!!! David came into town Thursday night, and we've been inseparable. I just can't get enough of him. It feels like when we first started dating and I never wanted to go home because I just was so content sitting next to him. It's like that all over again!! We had a little speed bump in the wedding planning come up yesterday. During our meeting with the preacher, he informed us that December is OUT. No December wedding. Actually, he said if we were just dead set on December, he would try to find a way to work it out. But I don't want to make the preacher go out of his way. He seemed pretty adamant that December wasn't going to be happening for us. So now we have to decide if we want to push the wedding forward or backward. January might be nice, but I just don't want to wait ANY longer. I was really trying to avoid football season, and any sooner than football season would be in the BLAZING heat of summer. I am a little disappointed about this. Luckily, nothing was really set in stone yet. No vendors have been booked, no invitations ordered, etc. What a nightmare that would have been!! So, we are just going to spend the next few days enjoying each other's company and trying to figure out what the NEW date will be. I'll update when some more decisions are made. We are off to meet with the photographer this morning, and try to work on the guest list AGAIN! :) Much love to all. And Happy Monday!

Montgomery Living

I just almost fell out when I started sorting the mail at work Saturday. We subsrcibe to Montgomery Living magazine (which is basically all about "high society" people that live in the river region), and this month's issue is Brides of 2008. Just guess what was on the cover of the magazine... MY DRESS! The bride on the cover is sporting my wedding dress! I couldn't believe it! I wasn't going to post any pictures of it because I didn't want David to get nosy, but I just have to share the link to the picture. I'm crossing my fingers that he won't peek. This link is for Charles Smith Photography who took the photos for this particular bride. She looks beautiful, and I can only hope I will look half as good as she does on my wedding day!

http://csphoto.biz/blog/2009/01/29/we-made-the-cover-again

Owww!

Last night was the first time I think I've actually worked all my muscles like I'm supposed to at the gym. We took a "abs & lower body" fitness class, and WOW. It kicked my butt!! LITERALLY!! I've been so sore all day today - my legs, my butt, my abs...it all feels like I was hit by a truck! But apparently all my hard work is paying off because I was told numerous times today that I'm looking thinner! I tried on my wedding dress again today to show Jess and Amanda, and they both told me that I look like a different person!! That is so exciting to me!! I've been working so hard, and I haven't really felt any different. It's so nice to hear that someone can tell I've been trying! I would love to post some pictures on here of my wedding dress, but I have a fear that the husband-to-be would get nosy and take a peek. I can't have him seeing me in the dress before the big day!!

Taylor. AKA - the cutest kid EVER!

I just wanted to share how ADORABLE my brother is! He just keeps getting cuter the older he gets! I think he looks like the guy that sings on the "free credit report.com" commercials!! :)


Halloween! He was Harry Potter, and he did NOT want the sugar me and Jennifer were trying to give him! But he was just so stinkin cute!!

Jennifer and I took Taylor bowling at Bama Lanes. He had a wonderful time!

My Birthday!

These are just a few months late - my birthday was in August!! We took a ladies night out to Kabuki for Japanese food, and then a little karaoke at The Keys! We had so much fun! Thanks again girls for a wonderful birthday!

Jessi, Haley, Jessica, Jennifer, Me & Sonya at the Keys. Some of us have had a few here...

One Hot Fudge Sundae. SEVEN spoons. That was one delicious dessert!

This is Me and Jess about to partake in some HOT SAKE!! It was by far the most disgusting things I have ever tasted. I won't be doing that again!!

The Alphabet Game

Let's play the Alphabet Game! I got this from Trina... She tagged me with the letter "H". So here are ten things that I love that start with....

1. Home, Sweet Home. No, not my apartment - my Mama's house. They say home is where the heart is, and that is so true. My parents are a little kooky, but I love them. And of course my brother is the most wonderful person on this planet, and he has my whole heart. I love walking in the door & seeing his face light up like Christmas morning just because I'm there. He is so sweet. (Even though he looks a little angry in this photo - I think he'd just made a bad play in the game. hehe.)

2. Husband-to-be! He's close enough to perfect for me. He knows exactly how to make me laugh when I feel like crying. He thinks that I am beautiful, and lets me know all the time. He wants to provide a good future for us & for our future children. I am so proud of all he has accomplished. I couldn't ask for a more wonderful better-half.

3. Hammocks. I know it sounds silly, but what could be better than relaxing with a good book in a hammock on a beautiful summer day??

4. HOUNDSTOOTH!! Of course, I had to find a way to sneak my Alabama Football into this list!! I love houndstooth! I love to see guys wear a houndstooth hat with Bama polo shirt, or girls wear houndstooth shoes with a red dress. I love to see the houndstooth print stand out in a sea of red on game day. I LOVE LOVE LOVE houndstooth. :)

5. Honeysuckle. Is that weird? I don't care if it's weird, I love it. You know how certain smells can just take you back to a place in time? And it's like the world just kinda stops spinning for a half-second, and you are right back where you were the first time you smelled that certain thing? Well, honeysuckle does it for me. the driveway at my parents house was lined with honeysuckle when I was a little girl. Every time I catch a whiff of the stuff, I'm right back there again riding my bike and playing in the yard. Oh the memories! :)

6. Hot Tubs! Don't you just love them? I think there is no explanation necessary!

7. Humor. And really, I mean a good sense of humor! I consider myself to be a pretty witty person, and I love it when people can keep up with my quick wit! I also love to watch humorous movies. I love to hear kids and babies laughing. And I absolutely love it when you get so tickled, you start belly laughing and just can't stop. I'm talking about the stomach-hurting, crying kind of laughing. That's the good stuff. This is me belly laughing on my birthday because the waiter got whipped-cream in my nose. It was quite funny.

8. Honey-BBQ Wings! Yummmmmy.

9. Hydrangeas! These are for sure my favorite flower! As you probably already know, I'll be using them in the wedding!

10. My "Homies"! Haha, Yes, it's a stretch to use that letter. I know. But I love my friends! These are my girls. Jennifer. Amanda. Jill. Jessi. Sonya. They are all a part of my favorites list! I can't imagine where I'd be now without these girls. They have all at some point picked me up when I was down, helped me dust myself off, and kicked me in the butt! They are the best! They have ALL also given me more belly laughs than one person deserves in a lifetime!

Now, you have my 10 things I love. Want to play along? Leave me a comment, and I'll give you a letter!

I do not have a case of the Mondays!

I just feel like this is going to be a good week! You know how sometimes if Monday morning is bad it just sets the tone for the rest of the week, and you just KNOW that it's going to be crappy every morning for the rest of the week until the weekend?! Well, that is not the case today, my friend! For the next few days I'm helping babysit a friend's kids. They live in East Montgomery, and have to be at St. James School by 7:15 every morning. Well, this is really a good bit earlier than I EVER wake up on a usual day, but it feels good to be up and not sleeping the day away! Normally on a Monday that I'm off work I will sleep until lunch & then be lazy till around 3. Not today! I got the kids to school on time, came home & took Shelby for a good walk around the neighborhood, and I'm about to go make some eggs & toast for breakfast. The rest of the day (AND the rest of the week) are looking good! Maybe I should start getting up early all the time! :)

Centerpiece Idea

I had this idea today! Well, actually I've seen it done a few times and I really liked it! The basic idea is to fill a clear vase with fruit. This picture shows Granny Smith apples, but I practiced today with limes and I really liked it! I only used limes because I don't have a vase big enough for the apples, but once it was done I was pretty impressed! This is what I'm thinking: fill the vase with fruit, then fill with water so they float. THEN place a floating flower on top! I bought the vase & the fake floating flower at the dollar store today - cost $2.00. Then I walked over to Winn-Dixie and bought about 10 limes for 30 cents a pc. Total cost for a very pretty centerpiece - $5.00!!!! I'm thinking this is definitely the way to go on a budget! I'm so excited!! :)

On a lighter note!

Well, I went to the gym and worked all my frustration! I'm feeling so much better now! It's hard to believe how much exercise will REALLY make me feel so much better on a bad day. I'm usually dreading it before I go, but once I'm there it's like I get in "the zone" and all that frustration is gone before I'm done. WHEW! It feels great! :)

Well, David and I had a good discussion last night about "the budget". The wedding budget has been shrunk. Again. But that's okay! I'm going to make the best of it with what we've got. We aren't doing things like you're "supposed to". Neither of our last names are Hilton, so our families won't be footing the bill for this wedding - WE will. I think it's kind of a good way to kick off our marriage, though. He is MAKING me stay on a budget, and I'm going to show him I can do it! That's gotta be good practice for our future finances, right? I just hope everything can be as beautiful as I had hoped. And hopefully nobody is expecting too much!! :) It certainly won't be the party of the century on the budget we are having, but I think that the people that truly care about us won't mind. I'm praying that everyone will just be glad to see us finally tie the knot after 7 years! I guess we could just forego all the cost of a wedding and head over to the courthouse, but it's important to me to say our vows in front of our friends and family. After all this time together, we want everyone to see us make it official! Well, I'm off to bed now. Goodnight to all!

RANTING! AND RAVING!

Please allow me to start this post by saying if you are a raging racist, you need not read any further. I will probably say some things that will offend you.



I will also start by saying that I did not personally vote for President Obama. I am not a Democrat, therefore I voted on the conservative side.



Having said that - I pose a question: Why must some people be SO small-minded that they cannot see past the man's color? All day today I have heard many crude and racist comments directed toward the First Family. Things that I will not repeat for fear that someone may scan quickly through this post and think that I would EVEN DARE to say such hateful and ridiculous things. Personally I thought President Obama's speech was moving. I felt blessed to be able to watch something so historical & amazing. For the first time in our nation's history a black man took the oath of office for President. I was moved to tears when I watched the clips of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I have a dream" speech. One particular person being interviewed this morning said that she woke her small children up the morning after the election and told them that while they were sleeping Martin Luther King's dream came true. I was so touched by that. But unfortunately some people can't seem to grasp the fact that the Civil Rights Movement was a GOOD THING!! Dr. King said that his dream was for every man to be judged NOT by the color of his skin, but by the content of his character. Unfortunately I didn't see that today. I saw far too many people judging President Obama ONLY by the color of his skin. I would hope that if someone didnt vote for Obama it was because they didn't agree with his views (i.e. the content of his character.) Not just because he is a black man. I'm not saying that everyone should like him, but I AM saying that I think everyone should respect him. Personally, I would have voted for a purple-polka-dotted man had he been that candidate that I shared the same views with. I am just disgusted by some things I have heard said today. I hope that the people who are so judgemental realize that they too will be judged one day, and the Good Lord does not care what color we are.

I have high hopes for the new President. I have hope that he can pull our country out of this economic crisis. I have hope that he will bring change to America. And even though I didn't vote for him, I'm proud of him.

PS - If I hear someone say one more time that the Bible says the Anti-Christ will be Muslim, I'm going to scream. It doesn't say that. If someone out there can show me the Bible verse that says that, PLEASE, by all means - send it to me. I am not claiming to be a Bible scholar by ANY means. But I'm 99% sure that the Islam religion wasn't even in existence when the Bible was written. But PLEASE feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

MLK Day

Well, most of today was spent running errands and playing on the internet! :) Jennifer and I did make it to the gym today, which was good as usual! We had another weigh-in yesterday, and I didn't lose anymore pounds. But that's okay! I did lose another inch off of my hips, so the overall goal is getting closer everyday! Hopefully, by the time this is all done I can look great in my bikini!!

Flowers

Don't you just love these flowers? The hydrangeas are so beautiful, and so are the roses. I'm thinking maybe a mix of both with green and white? I can't find a exact picture of what I want - I'm hoping I can do the flowers myself. I've practiced a couple of times and everything usually turns out pretty ugly. But they say practice makes perfect! I'll just keep trying!!

Just another day in paradise!

Today was truly just another day. Slept too late, was atleast 15 minutes late for work, didn't get my coffee until 10am. The usual hurry hurry hurry of every morning. I miss David a lot today. Some days are worse than others and I'm not sure why?!? I just wish he was here. We could just leave the dirty dishes in the sink and snuggle up and watch TV. That would be so nice. Instead I'm going to wash all the dirty dishes, sweep the floor, go to wal-mart, wash clothes, and do all the other crap that needs to be done. BLAH!! All I wanna do is cuddle - it's too cold for anything else!! I can't wait to be able to come home from work and just see him there. I'm sure it won't be "rainbows and butterflys" everyday, but that's okay. I'll be okay with just every once in a while if that's what I can get!! Well, I'm off to wash those damn dishes now...

Cakes & Colors

Well, I wanted to share with everyone the colors for the wedding! Black, White & Apple Green. I just love these colors! And this cake is very close to what I want. I'm not sure about the "damask" looking design on each tier. But just the white cake with black and green ribbon is PERFECT. I love it. So simple, just like me! The bridesmaids dresses will be black, and we will all carry the apple green flowers. Not sure which flowers yet. Maybe hydrangeas? I'll just have to wait and see how much $$ that will be. The budget is too tight to be wasteful! I hope everyone has a nice Monday - I'll post more ideas another day!

Results

Sunday was the first "weigh-in". I lost 5 lbs! I also lost an inch off my waist and an inch off my big butt! :) I am very proud of myself! Cutting the caffeine has been the hardest part, but I'm doing okay! Don't get me wrong - I am craving it REAL BAD. I had a dream last night that I drank the biggest damn Dr. Pepper you've ever seen, and it was soooooo gooood... Oh well, I guess I'll have to settle for dreaming about caffeine instead of actually tasting it. Maybe next week I'll have lost a few more inches, and I won't be so worried about what I can't eat & drink anymore! My goal is to have more proportioned measurements. Right now, my huge backside is about 10 inches more than I would like it to be, but not for long.... :) I'm also taking weekly photos to really view the progress. Don't get too excited...those pictures will NEVER be seen by anyone but me. And my wonderful sister, the photographer!

Feeling the Burn

In hopes of getting a totally rocking body before my honeymoon, I've started a workout regimen. Jennifer, Sonya and myself are hitting the gym in hopes of getting toned and tanned. Wish me luck! I'm starving. The Special K Diet sucks. And no Dr. Peppers REALLY sucks. I have had nothing but milk and water to drink for the past two days and I'm feeling the caffeine craving sooo bad.... Grrrr.... I can't wait to see some results!!

New Years

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE! I'm currently in New Orleans to celebrate the New Year. I got here Wednesday about 7:00 pm and David and I went downtown about 9:30 to enjoy the festivities. We payed a RIDICULOUS amount of money to park and I cut my finger before we ever made it out of the parking deck. Apparently there was some sharp plastic on the door handle that I didn't see and it sliced my finger pretty good. I had to wrap my hand in a Wendy's bag...it looked like some sort of crime scene. :) We finally made it down to Canal Street where I was able to get some band-aids and fix my finger. I have GOT to be the clumsiest girl on Earth. We walked all around the French Quarter for a while and we were SURROUNDED by Bama and Utah fans who were down here for the Sugar Bowl. Of course the redneck in my came out and I had to show my Bama Pride to everyone! We met up with David's friend Ronald and his girlfriend Blair, and we headed over to Jackson Square to watch the "ball drop". The ball was actually a 10 foot flour-de-lis on top of Jax Brewery. Then we watched an amazing fireworks show at midnight. Unfortunately the camera does not take good pictures at night so you just had to be there to enjoy the fireworks and the ball drop. It was mind numbing cold right on the water of the Mississippi River. I couldn't feel my hands by the time we left!!




Blair and I enjoying a Hurricane in the Quarter.



Dave and Ronald also enjoying the Hurricanes!



David and I before we left to go out.



Ronald proposed to Blair at the stroke of midnight! It was so sweet! The fireworks were so loud I couldn't' hear anything he was saying. She was so shocked she almost knocked the ring right out of his hand! And the poor guy was so nervous he put the ring on her pinkie! :) I'm so happy for the two of them, and I'm so glad Ronald asked us to be there for the big moment. They are such sweet people and I wish them the best!

After the RIDICULOUSLY long walk back to the parking deck, we finally made it home just in time to see a pretty bad car wreck in front of Dave's apartment. Luckily nobody was hurt. A girl was drinking and driving and passed out at the wheel. She crossed over into oncoming traffic, took out a light pole and a Mazda. THEN she tried to leave the scene. It was pretty scary stuff. New Years Eve held some exciting stuff for me! I hope all my friends had a fun & safe night, and I hope 2009 holds happiness for all!