Friday Favorites!

For some reason this has been a REALLY long week and I have just been super tired all week. BUT there are still a lot of good things that happened :D

1) Furry Paws- we decided to look into taking Carter to doggy camp every now and then. We had our first test run this past Sunday and he did SO well! The first hour he pouted near the door :( and this broke my heart (we could watch via webcam). I wanted to back and get him immediately  But after awhile he warmed up and he had SO much fun. He was exhausted when he came home. He even fell asleep in the car, which he hasnt done in awhile. So this is something we will definitely be  doing again. It's great exercise AND socialization :D

2) NC State Win!- We beat The Citadel this past weekend. A win is a win! I hope they are ready for the game tomorrow- otherwise I may not be able to come to work on Monday!! haha. I also made some yummy taco dip- fantastic!

3) Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest- Finally reading it and I'm a good chunk through it! SO GOOD! I also finally returned the other book I was holding hostage (Girl Who Played With Fire) so maybe the $75 replacement fee will be removed from my account now. lol

4) Beach/Abbey Brewery- After we took Carter to Furry Paws, we headed to the beach. Just in time for it to crazy storm. and I mean it was CRAZY! We ducked into the Abbey Brewery and had a few drinks, had amazing spicy hot dogs, and watched football. It was fun and spontaneous :D The weather was just awful and the streets were completely flooded- almost to the point where the water came in under the front door to the bar!

5) MY BROTHER!- he is 21 and came to visit for his birthday!! You'll get another post on that SOON!

6) MY iPhone 5 came today!- YAY! no more broken phone!!!! and it's pretty baller ;D

7) NC StateTent- John and I got a NC State Tailgating tent!! We have decided that each year in celebration of it being football season, we will get one new thing for our tailgating activities. This year it was a tent! and it came JUST in time for the game tomorrow :D SO PUMPED!

Happy Friday Y'all! and GO WOLFPACK! BEAT THE 'CANES!

Friday Favorites

HAPPY FRIDAY!!! :D

1) I AM OFF DUTY!- This week has been an AWFUL duty week. A lot of calls and a lot of them were serious mental health issues. I am not sure what is going on with these students. So, emotionally I am drained. But thrilled to be off duty.

2) Girl Who Played With Fire- SO Good. I am almost done. I just need to find time to finish it!

3) Breaking Bad-Did it seriously end that way? And now I have to wait a year to see the rest?! A YEAR?! AH! It's so good.

4) Andre Brown- He had an AMAZING game last night. No, I dont like the Giants. blah! but NC State players doing well is always a great thing! Plus, he's on my fantasy team :D

5) Bark Box- Krystal told me about a groupon not that long ago for something called a Bark Box- it is $10 a months, for 3 months and they send you all sorts of treats and toys for your dog. SO WORTH IT!  We got the box yesterday, and I swear I was more excited than Carter was to open it. Haha. This month it had:

- Zukes Z-Bones in Clean Apple Crisp Flavor 

- Whole Life Organics Sweet Potato Treats 

- Whole Life Freeze Dried Chicken Treats

- A Crinkit- Carter played with this for 2 hours straight last night! It was awesome!

- w.a.g. Wash & Go bath wipes 

 (I totally stole this from you Krystal!- Thanks!)

Again, totally worth $10! I feel like I ripped them off. haha. My guess is that the company who does the boxes gets samples from companies and that is what is sent to us. Great way to advertise! and great deal for us!

6) New Glasses- I have needed new glasses for some time now. My prescription isnt that different, just slightly, but my old glasses are SO scratched. With all the mold issues, I have to wear my glasses more often because it makes my eyes hurt and wearing the old ones was becoming a problem. So I finally ordered some new ones- they are red and black and look awesome :D SO excited :D 

The Dentist

Oh, the dentist. Guess which two lucky people got to visit the dentist this week? oh the joy. 

haha. Really though, I LOVE the way my teeth feel afterwards. I am just not a big fan of the actual cleaning. Luckily, I have a really good hygienist who explains everything she is doing and talks to me most of the time she's cleaning my teeth. The report this time: no cavities! and I'm doing a much better job at flossing. She explained this meant there was a lot less bleeding than last time. So that's good! I do however have to start using toothpaste for sensitive teeth.

Why? Well, I didnt really go to the dentist until I was almost in high school. Which means I never got the fluoride that most people get when they are younger (more on this in a minute). I also used a "hard" toothbrush because to me it made my teeth feel cleaner. So by brushing my teeth for years with a "hard" toothbrush, I managed to damage some of the enamel on my front teeth. Also, in a few spots in the back of my mouth, my gums are receding slightly.

How did we figure this out? You know that awful machine that cleans your teeth and the one that polishes them? It hurts my front teeth pretty bad. In the past, I have always just sucked it up. I thought that was supposed to happen. This time I flinched and she asked me about it. So, I finally told her. She was like OMIGOSH! you have to tell me these things. And upon a closer look she could tell that some of the enamel was gone. Sad day. But she did stop using the tools!

I freaked out when she told me about my enamel. Then she calmed me down and said if I didnt feel pain when I ate or drank that it was very minimal loss. If I start to use sensitive toothpaste and a very soft toothbrush, I wont lose anymore and it will protect what I do have. So good news/bad news I guess? I'm just glad she wont use those awful tools on me anymore! and that of course, my teeth are good. The dentist took a look and said they were great and there was nothing to worry about. Thank goodness! 

I mentioned earlier that I didnt get a lot of the fluoride that most kids get when they go to the dentist. This also caused me some problems growing up as I'm more prone to cavities. womp womp. So I have a good few fillings in the back of my mouth. I've also had a root canal :(. OUCH. Those are NO fun and I'll take super good care of my teeth until I die to make sure I dont ever need another one those. Not to mention they are very pricey.

Anyway, the story of my root canal is a story all in itself, but I bring it up because I realized something while I was getting my teeth cleaned this week. While she was cleaning my teeth, I realized that I was holding out one of my hands like I was holding someone else's (i'm not crazy, I promise). Then I flashed back to the time I was getting my root canal and I was terrified. I decided that day, while I was in the chair and the drilling was taking place, that maybe if I asked Jesus to hold my hand, I wouldnt be so scared. So I did and I prayed to Him the entire time and I was FINE! (There was still pain. But I wasnt scared anymore).  I've done this ever since that day too, even just for cleanings. Oh, faith like a child. I do believe He is there with me because whenever I'm in that chair, I remember back to holding His hand that one time and I feel His comfort.

So, as I was thinking about this, I started to wonder why I dont do this all of the time? why dont I just let Jesus hold my hand every day and help guard my heart, thoughts, speech, fears, happiness, decisions, etc? I really need to remember to let Him do that all the time! Not just when my teeth are getting drilled.

Anyway, it's something to practice and pray about for sure! And YAY for my teeth being A-OK!

Friday Favorites

I feel like this week has just flown by! That's good I guess. The weekend usually goes by fast, so I guess it's nice the week did too this time. lol. 

1) Iphone 5- I am SO excited that it has been announced. My phone is broken and after 2 years it's on it's last leg. I've been trying to hold out for the new one and yay! it's finally here. SO blessed that UM is buying it for me! Since I've had mine for so long and it's broken just from wear, they said they would. HUGE YAY! Plus, the phone is going to be AMAZING!

2) Pumpkin Spiced Latte- THEY ARE BACK! and delicious. and a few too many points than I care to spend on coffee, but one every now and then really makes it a little bit more fall-y down here:D

3) The Girl Who Played With Fire- SO GOOD! All I want to do is sit and read. :D 

4) Pumpkin Beer- (you know fall is approaching when two of my posts are about something pumpkin ;D). Anyway, we bottled our pumpkin beer this week! It should be ready in a few weeks :D Just in time for my birthday! woot!! We also brewed our oatmeal stout- YUMMMMMY. 

5) A Wolfpack win- DUH.

6) Treadmill- I LOVE having it. I have seriously used it every day since we brought it home except for 2- one was a rest day and the other we kayaked for 3 hours and I didnt have energy. It's so great to be able to go home and jump on it and be done. I have also discovered that I love to watch TV while running. I wasnt sure at first, but it's great. 

7) Fantasy Football- I kicked some booty this week! meaning, I'm in first place! YAY! Hope I can keep it up.

Now, I am on duty so I expect to get less sleep than usual (i got calls about every 2 hours last night). Oh well, I cant complain. We really are not on duty that often. Here's to hoping this weekend is good even with all the calls. Or by some miracle there are not any? ha! yea, right...

Happy Friday y'all! Enjoy your weekend!

Monday? Already?!

I feel like the weekend FLEW! It was a great one though :D 

Saturday, was of course full of football! John and I got up, ate some breakfast, and then got ready for some Wolfpack ball. During the game I prepared some fun tailgating snacks which included buffalo celery, jalapeno poppers, and mac and cheese bites- YUM! all of course were weight watcher friendly ;D. After a great WIN (we didnt play the best, but a win is a win!) we watched MORE football. haha. Really Saturday was very relaxing and great time spent with the hubs. 

GO PACK!

 MMMmmmm...

 Next time, I'm gunna add bacon to the bites. They were really good though!

Sunday, we slept in again and after lounging around the apartment we decided to try out our kayak! We drove two blocks down, parked, inflated the kayak, and set out south down the canal. A few years ago we never would have dreamed of doing something like this- just goes to show how much we have grown while living down here. 

The weather was beautiful and it was really cool to kayak behind the houses on the canal. They were ridiculous. These houses were seriously gorgeous and most had boats docked out back. One of the houses had lights set up and I couldnt really see what they were for, so I got out and walked up the walkway and saw a tennis court! and next to it, a huge covered pool. Seriously, I need some of these peoples incomes! haha. The houses kept getting bigger and bigger and some of them were just breathtaking. I am trying to convince John to find out which houses are for sale and have open houses so we can check them out. haha. 

Anyway, we were having so much fun that we kept wanting to see what was around the next bend and then the next and then the next. haha. After awhile we just knew the ocean had to be close so we kept going and then boom! the ocean was there. It was beautiful. We could see Key Biscayne, downtown, and one of the big bridges. Just so pretty. After enjoying the view for a bit and resting we decided to turn back and make the long journey home. In total we went about 5 miles and it took us just about 3 hours. We were/are exhausted after that trip! Next time we are going to bring more water and snacks. oh and sunscreen. If I had known we would have been out there for so long, I would have put some on. The original plan was to be out there for about an hour. whoops. lol. We had SO much fun though. And the kayak held up well! when we were done we deflated and walked to our car. It was pretty neat. I am so glad we bought it!!!

We are going to take Carter next time to see how he likes it (we definitely wont be gone for that long though, he would get bored). I will also remember to bring my camera next time. I am SO mad I forgot it. :( I guess that just means we'll have to take that route again;D.  Hopefully, it wont rain this weekend so we can go. SO MUCH FUN!

WE ARE DEBT FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes, you read that right!!!! As of August 31, 2012, 

WE ARE DEBT FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

John and I finally paid off all our debt! No more student loans!! We dont owe anyone anything! It feels very surreal still. I am BEYOND proud of us. We really sacrificed and paid as much as we could towards them each month. I'm not going to lie- paying that much money off made me want to puke a little. I'm still waiting to get the final total that we paid, but it was close to $27,000. We could have done SO much with that money!! But, I am thankful for my education :D We are very blessed to have been able to pay off the loans so quickly too!!

To celebrate, we bought a kayak and a treadmill!!!!! The kayak is inflatable, so it's really easy to store. Unfortunately, it's rained ever since we bought it, so we havent been able to try it out yet :( We actually got it a few days before we paid off the loans because we wanted to try it out before football season started, but then Issac happened. Sad day. So hopefully this weekend!

 Our Kayak!

 Even Carter is excited! We are going to get him a doggy life vest, so he can go too :D

The treadmill was actually purchased this past weekend on our way home from our trip! We assembled it on Labor Day and have it all set up :D I've used it every day since (3 whole days! haha)- GO ME! We decided to purchase a treadmill (a cheap one) as the gym is pretty expensive and we knew we would actually use it more if it was so convenient. It. is. AWESOME. I am already in love with it :D I can watch friends and run in my own home. Wonderful :D And now there really isnt an excuse to not work out- unless of course for sickness or it's a rest day. SO EXCITED!

Yes, this really happened...;D

Happy Friday y'all! 

Atlanta Trip!

First of all let me say that I am STOKED football is back in season! We kicked off this season by making plans to travel to Atlanta for the Chick-fil-a Kick-off Game :D

Wednesday I worked a half day (which ended up being NUTS! but why wouldnt it be when I'm trying to leave town?). When John got home from work we loaded up the car and started on the first leg our trip. Our plan was to stay in Gainsville for the evening and visit with the Chase's. We also really wanted to see The Swamp!

 Ricky's Birthday was  a few days earlier so we brought him a present too 

He was TOO cute opening it..

 Touring the stadium- they keep it open all the time! You just cant go on the field

We had some fun ;D

 TIM TEBOW!

 

 GO PACK!

 The Swamp.

 :D

 We ate dinner at a place called the Swamp Restaurant. The food was delicious!

 Love these people!

The next day we got up and headed to Atlanta. We got there the same time Josh and Krystal did (even after a short detour to the wrong hotel. lol). We cleaned up, got some Bojangles, and headed off to SweetWater Brewery for a tour. We ended up getting there super early, so we took some pictures, reserved ourselves a space ;D, and went to burn some time at a local watering hole. When it was finally time to do the tour, we drove back and our spot was still reserved! haha. The tour was mediocre but the beer was good. It was a great time to catch up with Krystal and Josh. After the tour we headed back to the hotel and decided to take the MARTA to find some dinner. We ended up in the touristy part of town. We were not much fans of the area, but by that point it was so late we just chose a spot. The food was just okay- but again- at least it was fun with Kyrstal and Josh!

  Our "reserved" spot....haha

Friday was GAME DAY! We got ready, went and got supplies, and took the MARTA out to tailgate. We met up with Megan Eure and her family. It was BEYOND hot. We were on black asphalt too, so it was just that much hotter. We had a ton of fun though. It was so great to be surrounded by NC State people and southerners! I sure do miss the south. lol. Towards game time we headed into the Dome and found our seats. It was nice to be in air condition for the game! Unfortunately, we lost :( But at least the entire experience was fun! Here's to hoping we play better next weekend.

The gang

 Me and hubby! it was really bright out!!

 Inside the dome

 Our band!

Saturday we slept in a little and then headed to my Mawmaw's and Pawpaw's! John and I havnt been to their place since we stopped down on our move, so I was excited to visit them. Of course Mawmaw made a huge delicious dinner with an amazing dessert to top it off. Then we went to the tv room and talked some. We decided to watch a movie and ended up stopping it a little way through and talked for hours instead. It was so neat to talk to them about their past, working and living in Miami, my mom, etc. We went to bed kind of late (oops!) and had to get up real early for church the next morning. Mawmaw and Pawpaw were excited for us to go to their sunday school classes (they both teach!) and visit their church. They are always talking about their classes, so it was neat meeting the people they talked about so much. Mawmaw would introduce me as her first grandbaby that was born on her birthday and named after her :D I could tell she was proud and it made me feel really good. After church we went to lunch with them at a southern buffet place. SO. GOOD. I was literally in pain when we left because I was so full. haha. On our way back to their place, they showed us where they used to live and a little around the area. We REALLY enjoyed our time there. It really made the amazing weekend we already had, even better :D 

We were super lucky that it was a 3 day weekend and we had Monday off too. We just relaxed all day. I always say I need a vacation after vacation and it was sorta like we got it this time! haha. 

Issac

Tropical Storm? Hurricane? We really had no idea what it was going to entail. Luckily, it was hardly anything but a lot of wind and rain.

Secretly, I wanted it to be a hurricane 1 and hit us- just to say that I have been through one as a professional. However, I also wanted it to disappear quickly afterwards so it wouldnt ruin our trip. 

I really couldnt have it both ways. BUT WAIT! I did! No, it wasnt a hurricane when it hit, but the university took precautions as if it would be. I think I'm a little crazy for having been excited.So when the storm got close, we went into lock down mode. We had emergency meetings, answered lots of questions from concerned parents, made students sign out if they left, and prepared for the storm. We even took the students to the dining hall in shifts to get breakfast and a boxed meal (which later we learned consisted of 2 apples, a poptart, 2 granola bars, and a jello cup- FAIL! it was supposed to cover two meals!). I thought the residents would go crazy. But, they were pretty tame. All we really experienced was leaky windows. So that was good. AND the University was closed for Monday- which meant  NO WORK! I guess that makes up for working on the first full weekend I had off in awhile?

And then the storm took a hard left and it was out of our way for our trip! YAY!. Carter did freak out every now and then when the winds would howl. He would run to the window and try to figure out what happened. lol. But other than that, we bunkered down and watched TV.

I believe this was the weekend I finished Desperate Housewives? I LOVED that show. I am seriously sad it's over. I did start Breaking Bad during the storm. I like it a lot too- a little slow, but a really good show!

After the lockdown was lifted- Carter and I attempted to go running Monday. And let's just say I'm pretty sure Monday turned out to have the worst weather. We were about halfway through our run when the sky opened up and poured down on us. The winds were so strong that it was literally raining sideways. I had to stop and wrap my iphone in a poop bag (dont worry it was a clean one!). After that I couldnt even look up because it was so bad. Carter kept trying to run away from me to find his own shelter. Poor dog. At one point we tried to duck down behind some trees, but it wasnt really helping. We had to tough it out. The streets were flooded and we were SOAKED. But- we made it home alright. And Carter got some exercise- right?! lol. 

Crazy wind!

 and rain...

 look at how much water there was!

 so cute..

 Notice a trend? lol

Thanks Issac, for not being too terrible :D