Weekend wrap-up

I'm back to work, after my two days off...great off days for the most part.  I'm still congested, this is getting old.  And, yes, dear husband, I've taken my antibiotics twice daily as prescribed.  And, shockingly, I haven't missed one dose!  I've been on antibiotics for exactly one week now, and the congestion stays.  Can you say, OLD?!

Church on Sunday was nice, I love seeing the church in all of it's decorated glory.  There's really nothing commercial about it, because let's face it: Christ hasn't been born yet, it's not Christmas yet!  It's simply Advent.  The church was done up with greenery, but that's it.  Beautiful!  Episcopal churches are typically gothic in decor and architecture anyway, add some greenery to it...

After church we had a family dinner for my mother-in-law's birthday, then we went to wonderful family friends' house to visit with them since we won't see them for Christmas.  They are J's second parents.  They have known him since elementary school, and are just incredible people.  So, that was very nice.

My honey and I after church

Uncle J & little Miss Amelia

Yesterday we went out with J's mom.  She took us by a house whose light show is amazing.  You drive by and set your radio to the radio station they have it programmed to and just sit, watch, and listen.  It was awesome!  I attempted to get a few videos to show you guys...bear with me, they're from my cell phone, inside the car!

 I'm tired...I'm ready for Christmas, even though that won't be any less tiring!  I work Christmas Eve all shift (2nd shift), then we're getting up Christmas morning and going to see my family in Kentucky.  Sadly, we only have time to stay for the night, we'll get moving and leave some time Monday afternoon.  It's only about a 3 hour drive.

One week until we hit our one year wedding anniversary.  I'm more in love today than I was a year ago.  I truly married my very best friend.

Finally starting to feel better

Just a few randoms from my life...

I've  been sick for the past week with one of the worst sinus infections I've ever had.  Isn't that enough, you little germs?  No, had to give me an ear infection too.

I have sneezed more in the past week, than any other week of my entire life.  Maybe sneezed more this week than my entire life...

This brings me to my own personal world record

6 sneezes

in a row

this morning.

Can you say, sucks?!

Still, kinda funny

During this sick week, I have subjected the dear husband to whine, whine, and more whine.

Because that's what I do when I'm sick.

Oh, and pout.

I'm pathetic.

More pathetic?

I got excited over this: 

Yup, I broke 1,000 views!  Yay!

And, I think the most pageviews I've ever had in one day was 12?

Excitement!

But, explain to me why I only have 11 followers?

I can see where the same people view, every day!  Follow me folks!  Please? 

Pretty please?

lol

J and I went to our favorite little hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant today for lunch before work

He was eating his Mexican rice and I ended up with a pea in my lap!

Let's just say we got some looks because:

"Get your pea out of my lap"

sounds just like

"Get your pee out of my lap"

Ooops

I've decided to revoke my husband's driver's license during the holidays, I think he needs to repent after he drives during the holidays.

It's ugly folks.

He will call other drivers everything but a Son of Mary

And, oh boy, don't forget to turn on your blinker...I think in his book, that's one of the commandments

Sadly, I'm guilty of not turning on my blinker...but only sometimes

We made the mistake of going to Target, which is where most of this cursing occurred

We had to get ingredients for what we're making this week:

From Betty Crocker, this is the best recipe

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I've always enjoyed baking, and have always just used recipes my mother gave me

I used the Betty Crocker recipe from Mommie's cookbook

And Mommie always made the gingerbread cookie dough, but it was from some old cookbook she had.

I called her today and asked her to email me the recipe,

thinking it was some wonderful, passed down through generations, recipe.

WRONG

What does she say?

"Don't you have a cookbook?  The recipe is in any cookbook"

WHAT?!  

I told her she was such a dissappointment in the magic-generations-old-recipe department

why?

All my life, I have been picky, she has always made me a delicious chocolate pie with whipped cream topping, not meringue.

So, a few years ago, I called her for the recipe.  How I lived all my life and never saw her making them I don't know.

"Amanda, you just buy a pie crust, and fill it with instant chocolate pudding"

WHAT?!  

Yup

Extreme dissapointment.

I can't even explain it

Just can't.

Speaking of disappointments, 

I remember Santa always had familiar handwriting

Often looked just like Daddy's

I think I was about 8 or 9 when I finally put it all together

That was also the Christmas we got a trampoline

So, it all worked out ok

I'm nervous that Christmas is 9 days away!

I'm making most of our gifts that we're giving, so I'm pretty much covered in glue before work everyday!

And, we're going to have to start baking soon for more of the gifts!

ACK!

Why can't Santa be real and do all of this for us?!

Thursday Randoms

Just a quick catch up on life...in pictures

Mother-son love

Watching TV

My guys are too too cute

Little Amelia is getting big

Little girl wanted my ice water, Uncle J gave her some

Blogger Ornament Swap! (& the blogger I met IRL)

The sweet Megan from Mackey Madness sent out a tweet saying she needed a few more people for her 

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 so I signed up!  I was one of the last 3 to join

I got Brandy (sweetly stolen moments), she got Kaycie (redhead memories), who got me!

I rarely get packages, or mail that's not bills lol, so I was excited when J came in and said, "You have some package?"

I opened it up to find two adorable ornaments

Put this one on J's stocking

And this one on mine!

It was exciting to get the package!

Since J and I went to Atlanta, and the fabulous Brandy lives near ATL, and our emails went on and on for days, I decided to not mail her package, but instead to meet her during our trip.

Read her sweet side here

It was great!  And, since we met, and I think I talked her ear off, we've text messaged daily, and I think tweeted every day too!  lol

I may be conservative, and she may um not be (lol!), but it doesn't matter at all...we can text for hours!

Thank you Megan!  You "introduced" me to a great lady!

Sadly, we didn't take any pics when we met for coffee...boo

What I'm Loving Wednesday

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I'm loving my wonderful husband, I am so very thankful for him.

No matter what, he always makes me laugh. If I'm in a bad mood, he does anything to make me laugh...

and it always works

He's amazing, and I couldn't ask for a better husband

Crafty Tuesday

Like most bloggers, and everyone else lol, I'm addicted to pinterest.  So, I decided to try out one of the oddest decoration ideas I've seen...making wall hangings out of toilet paper rolls!

I figure the pics are fairly self explanatory.

Toilet paper rolls, cut up into various sizes, hot glued together!  I used aluminum foil for a template, so I wouldn't go too wide or too long. 
If you have a fat cat, throw her in there too.  She obviously thinks she's helping...somehow.
This is a scheduled post, so I'm hoping to edit and add a pic of the finished product.  I'm going to spray paint it black!

Travel Woes, ATL part two

J and I were just bumming around town one of the days in Atlanta.  On a limited budget, we got excited when we saw a Moe's and decided that would be a great place for lunch.  It was yum, as always!
We ate, and I wanted to use the restroom before we left.  Well, we both carry (aka, carry guns, we have permits...yes, we are those people), and I had left my purse at the hotel, sticking my wallet in my pocket, holstered gun in my waistband.  The day before, I had my purse, and when I went to the restroom I had just stuck my gun in my purse while I did my business. 
Seeing that I had a problem, I didn't want to lay my gun on the toilet tank because it was rounded and I was afraid it would slide off and hit the ground.  So, I did my best to just steady it, still in the holster on my waistband. 
Can you say, FAIL?
Thank the dear Lord above, that bathroom was a one holer.  As if in slow motion, my gun flipped over, slid ever-so-slowly out of the holster and hit the ground, barrel first....then it slid a good 3 feet.  Had there been stalls, that gun would have hit the ground and slid under then next stall!  Thankfully, no damage to my gun.  HA, that was my worry.  I like my gun, she's pretty!  And, no, she isn't pink!

Our trip to Atlanta was fine, no problems at all, easy ride in. 
Packing, for me, was great.  Got plenty packed, a few extra outfits for mind changes (come on, you know you pack stuff and decide when you get there, that you don't want to wear it!).  J was in charge of his PT clothes, he runs, no matter where we are, I must get that motivation! lol
My darling likes to laugh and joke about me over packing...maybe I do, just a little:

That's for a 3 day trip...ha!

Someone informs me that he forgot his running shorts, remembered his running shoes, but forgot his other shoes.  Well, now we have to find an Atlanta Walmart and buy shoes!  Geez! 
See, over packing and being obsessive about what you pack isn't a bad thing!! 

Our trip home was more eventful that our trip to Atlanta.  We did just fine while J was driving on the interstate getting us back to Chattanooga.  When we stopped at the rest stop, we swapped drivers...and that's where I say it all went downhill.  J says it went downhill when I told him to take the interstate to Chattanooga instead of listen to the GPS when it told us to take highway all the way home. 
Sound familiar?  Yeah, remember I argued with the GPS when I went to get J from boot camp (post here).
So, off we go, pulled out of the rest stop and we were on our merry way.  GPS tells me I need to exit for the highway home in 0.2 miles, so I got over. 
Construction had another idea.  Oh yeah.  Fabulous.  Closed the entire exit, no other option but to keep going.  Thank goodness we had a GPS to begin with!  We would have been lost.
GPS tells me to keep going, another 25 miles to the nearest exit.  Yup,  we are that far out in Nowhere, TN that we have to travel 25 miles just to get to the next exit. 
I get there, take the exit.  What does the GPS tell me to do?!  Go back east another 10 miles to the next nearest exit!  Why couldn't I take the exit I had just used?!  Because it was Arnold Air Force Base.  So...of course I argued with the GPS and drove us right on to the Air Force base! 
We got turned around, back on the interstate for another 10 miles, to the highway exit. 
We drove through AMISH COUNTRY!  When I say Amish Country, I'm not exaggerating...as I may be known to do.  As far as I remember, we didn't see any red lights, one caution light, and about 3 cars.  No gas stations, nothing. 
It was beautiful though

J telling me to stop taking pics and pay attention to the road

We made it home in one piece...we loved having that time, totally uninterrupted, just the two of us.