just give me a facemask...

can i mention that i HATE strep throat?! last week, when i started packing things up and started to move my things to my new house, i started getting sick. it felt like strep. (i didn't go to the doctor - didn't have time. stupid i know. just assumed it was strep because of the symptoms and because i get it ALL of the time.) well, i got to move in the midst of this lovely sickness... whatever it was. i had no strength. no energy. i have always been pretty good at moving my own things (minus the big, heavy duty items). this time, not so much. it was unreal. i would lift something and it took just about all of me to just lift a normal box! i'm hoping it was just me being sick. ha!

well, finally by thursday night/friday i started feeling better. friday i was able to kind of get some things unpacked. saturday i felt more like myself. i was SOOO happy that i was able to go out saturday night to help celebrate one of my favorite friend melissa's 30th birthday. i lost my voice during the night but just thought it was just part of the festivities and the freakin' crazy cold, frigid wind. not so. by 4:00am i was awoken by not being able to swallow - or at least this horrible pain!! what?!?! not again. this time it was much worse. sigh. i can't do this again. by 7:30am, i checked and yep. looks like strep. this time i must go to the doc. off to the after hours clinic. yay. so the doc walks in...

doc: "so, you have a sore throat?" (lol. makes me sound like an idiot. i'm really not one of those people who just goes in when i have a little ailment.)
me: "i get strep a lot... just kind of think i may have it"
doc: "do you want me to do a strep test?"
me: (thinking) aren't YOU the doctor? "yes."
doc: "ok. it will take 5 minutes."

.... 15 minutes later....
doc: "you have strep"
me: (thinking) DUH

:)

so after 2 *fun* shots, i was on my way

thanks for reading my meaningless post about my LOVELY (read: sickly) week. and i'm supposed to be making cookies for my home group Christmas party tomorrow. don't think that is going to happen. i don't want to spread my curse!

by the way... (2 posts in one day!)

in case you are wondering, i should be finishing up packing. the movers come in about 4 hours. but what am i doing? procrastinating. i'm sick... don't have ANY energy... i'm tired... overwhelmed... and i'm really sick of looking at the remaining stacks of junk. you know what junk i'm talking about right? those things you have NO idea what to do with... they didn't seem to fit into any category while packing. plus, it doesn't help that i am moving just up the street. one of these days i will have to REALLY pack. (and really get rid of my crap!!)

luckily i don't have to techinically be out of this apartment until the end of the month so there will be some stragglers of junk left for next week. i just can't handle any more!! but i guess i need to at least make it where the movers can get to the furniture, right??

but then comes the fun part... UNpacking. heavy sigh.

ok. off to finish this. one last load to the house before the movers come!!

just cuz...

i saw this on my friend lori's blog and decided to post it on mine... LOVE it. :)

randomness...

not sure if anyone even reads this... but what the heck. it has been a while.

1. (this is for steph) a week from friday i will close on my house!! what am i doing?!?!?! ahhh! here is a picture of my future humble abode: (you can't see it in the picture but there is a SOLD sign on that "for sale" sign. woohoo!)

2. i need help with this UGLY kitchen!!!!!! HELP!!!!!!

3. i saw my house again today... and it seems smaller than i had thought it was! i need to hurry up and move in. this waiting is making the house get bigger and bigger in my imagination.

4. happy birthday keely addison! i can't believe it has been one year already since you were born. WOW. you are just the cutest little thing ever... you can always make me smile. i am SOOO thankful that i am your "aunt b"!! :) i can't wait until those little legs get to movin'... hehe. i love you baby girl. and oh yeah - i love your mommy too!!

5. does anyone want to come over and pack for me?? HA HA HA HA!

6. ok. just a random picture from the Memory Walk

alright.... there was no rhyme or reason to this post. sorry about that. just thought i needed an update! (that is, if anyone is out there..........)

Ok... I just can't resist...

My sister may get mad at me for this one... but she posted this on her website today and it just made me laugh for a long time. So - its on mine for your viewing pleasure!!! :)

Keep in mind that my nephew is almost 2 1/2 years old. He cracks me up! So here you go:

The clothes policeman

I no longer fear that I will be caught in the house or in public wearing improper attire. I now have my son to monitor and correct my clothing choices. Aidan absolutely does not like it when we are not fully clothed. He immediately tells us to ‘put shirt on’ or ‘put pants on’. Makes me feel like we are just too hideous for him to look at without being completely covered in clothing. And if that isn’t bad enough, this morning I am getting dressed, and he tells me ‘Mommy put other shirt on.’ I asked him ‘what’s wrong with this shirt?’ He replies, ‘it’s too tight.’ WHAT??!! Twerp.

And I just want to put up some pictures of sweet Keely just because. :)

I love them so...

What happens in Vegas...

Well, I made it. Whew. What I thought would be a week from hell turned out to just be a week in Sin City.

So it all starts on Tuesday. I head to the airport from work. I get there a little too early so I sit there... and sit there. All of a sudden, I look up from my seat and see a man that looks familiar walking down the terminal with a couple of other men. Hmmm... he looks famous... well, kind of famous. Its the blond Brooks & Dunn. I'm not sure (not a big country fan, but at least I know he's one of them) but for some reason Ronnie Dunn sticks in my head. I look over at the guy sitting close to me. He's probably in his 20s. We both kind of do the "its him, right?" look. When its time to board, I decide to make a pitstop to the ladies room. When I get back, its time for me to board. I end up getting right behind the guy that was sitting next to me. He informed me that our friend, Mr. Dunn is on our flight to Vegas. Woohoo..

Once I arrive in Vegas, my work buddies pick me up and we head to MGM Grand for dinner. Eat at Wolfgang Puck's restaurant. Eh... it was ok. Once dinner is over, time for craps. Man... thats hard to catch on to. (And definitely after some wine!!) I didn't take any money to lose so I just spent my time watching everyone else lose!!

Next day we head to the the client but don't have to be there until about 12:30. Man this is a hard trip so far. LOL. The day goes ok... nothing major breaks. Just some things here and there. That night we head to "9" at The Palms for dinner. Sit at a table next to Mark Cuban. Again - Woohoo... Haha. We meet up with some other people from our company that are out in Vegas and again, I watch everyone gamble their $$ away! But this time, one of the guys gives me $10 at the roulette table. My friend and I get it up to $120... but then end up losing it all! But it was fun while it lasted!! We were out until 2:30am. YIKES!! I'm too old for that.

Next day, another day at the client... but we were all WIPED out. Got back at the hotel to watch the Aggies get killed by Miami. OUCH. Took a nap and then we headed out to the Venetian for dinner. Ate at Mario Batali's restaurant. I think it was too frou frou for our group. Think they would have been happy with a chicken sandwich!! Oh well.

Friday, last day at the client... and counting the hours until I head to the airport. I am so ready to be home!!

All in all, it was a good trip. Our customer turned out to be pretty accepting of our buggy system - at least so far. Had time to have a little bit of fun. Glad its over... Of course, its not REALLY over. There is plenty more to do.

God definitely stretched me this week... and showed me to just trust Him. And I'm so thankful for home.

letting go...

i wanna let go
i'm weary and bound
i'm giving it up
and laying it down

take it away
out of my hands
out of my reach
and safe in your plans

cuz i need to know
that you can hear me

feel me with your peace
and cover me gently
like only you can

so take me
hold me
break me
mold me

i want to let go

cradle my hands
knuckles so white
open them up
say its alright

show me your plan
call it your own
make it a journey
leading me home

cuz i need to know
that you can hear me

feel me with your peace
and cover me gently
like only you can

so take me
hold me
break me
mold me

i want to let go
i want to let go

(let go by lindsay mccaul)

Grumpy Gus...

The last month has been an interesting one. Man has God shown me my junk.

It started off with the cancellation (for the second time) of my trip to NYC. (The first time I was supposed to go to NYC, it was cancelled at least a couple of weeks before. This time, just a week. I thought I was in the clear!!) Obviously, this was a HUGE disappointment to me. I have never been there before and was really looking forward to it. It was kind of my birthday present from my parents. Let the grumpiness begin.

Oh yeah... did I say birthday? Yep. I turned 30. Yikes. It kind of hurts to write it. I don't feel it. I definitely don't feel wiser yet. Maybe its because I have been wallowing in my self pity.

My birthday weekend - I have such sweet friends. They put up with me and my junk. (and they still are...) Here are a couple of pictures from my birthday weekend. I wish there were more. There are many pictures that were not taken unfortunately. :(

Me & Hollie at Mercy:

Me & the girls at Breadwinners:

... insert pics of me & Lacey, Melissa here :( ...

Me & my sister, Amy at Mac Grill:

So far my 30s haven't started off too great and have been heavy on the tears but I know that Lord has great things planned for me. And as far as my grumpy mood, its got to go! Life is full of disappointments... I have been holding on too tightly to "things" in this world, to wanting things to go one way, my way. I am praying that the Lord will show me what it looks like to fully trust in Him alone... and to experience true joy despite what happens. And also, as the song says... "Happiness is found in less of me and more of you..." Oh may that be my song!!!

8 Random Things You Probably Never Wanted To Know...

I was tagged by my friend Hollie to give 8 random facts/habits about myself.

The Rules:

1. I have to post these rules before I give you the facts.
2. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write their own blog (about their eight things) and post these rules. (**if you’re a non-blogger, you can email them!)
4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
5. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

My eight random facts and/or habits:

1. I graduated #5 in my class of 350. I actually spent years thinking I was #4. My mom unfortunately corrected me in front of my new boyfriend at the time. Thanks mom. What helped get me in the top ten was my junior year when I had all honors classes. How do you have all honors classes? Honors BAND. Yes... you can somehow get honors credit for band. All you have to do is go to some artsy thing outside of school... write up some paper... turn it in... and there you go. Honors credit!! Beautiful. Oh yeah. Speaking of band - I was Flag Captain my junior and senior years after my sister Lacey was Flag Captain her jr/sr years. (They were SO ready to get us out of there! Haha!) And I dropped my flag EVERY UIL competition. I was also band chaplain. I was told I was the fastest prayer this side of the Red River. Guess I just wanted to get it over with!

2. I worked at Kwik Kar Lube & Tune in high school. No... I didn't change the oil. I was the cashier. :) I HATED it. My step-mother's cousin owned it and he needed help... so thats what I did. Blah.

3. I'm obsessed with gum. I must have some at all times. And it usually is the dark blue Extra kind. And there IS a way to pull it out of the package. You have to pull out the first piece where the flap faces out.

4. I have an unhealthy obsession with greeting cards, gift bags and pens. Almost everytime I go to the store, I will see if they have any fun "new" cards or gift bags. There have been times when I have been known to have a "low" day at work where I will run to the huge Tuesday Morning (the main one by the Galleria) and pick up some of their fancy gift bags. What is weird is I have a hard time parting with them because they are so cute. I have so many... but because they are so "special", it takes a lot of talking myself into actually putting a gift in them and giving them out!! Weird. I know. I'm starting to get better with the pens though thank goodness. (or maybe my addiction has just shifted to another thing!!)

5. Ok. I'm almost embarassed to say this. I'm an Aggie and I have never been to the Chicken. Ok... there. I said it.

6. I can't go 2 days without shaving. I can't STAND being underneath the covers and feel my unshaven legs! My future husband will love me...

7. A couple of years ago, I blacked out on a treadmill at 24Hour Fitness. (don't worry... it wasn't even moving!) Ambulance/firetruck came. Got a staple in the back of my head. SO embarassing. Didn't go back there for a while.

8. When I was in 4th grade, I wanted a spiral perm and my mom was cheap so she got my aunt to give me one. Well, the curls were definitely "spiral shaped" but lets just say that she left the chemicals in a little longer than she should have! I came out looking like orphan Annie! Seriously. Not a good time... Plus, was that around the same time as my Sally Jesse Raphael glasses?? No. That was 5th grade.

I'm not sure there is anyone left to tag!

Mexico!

Thought I would post some pics from my Mexico trip...

The girls arriving... Maura, Lacey, Melissa & me

Family portraits anyone??? LOL...

Yes... we did hit the beach.

Last night goofiness... :)

Daddy's girls...

I just got back from my dad's house for the weekend. On Friday, my sister, my nephew Aidan, my niece Keely and I loaded up my sister's Honda Element and headed to East Texas. That Aidan LOVES trucks and will point out every one that he sees outside of the car window! (Ok... when he says it, it doesn't quite come out as "truck" but sounds more like some other word that rhymes with "truck" but one you don't want repeated!! Pretty funny.) And that Keely.... I don't think she could get any cuter.

We had 3 goals for the trip. 1) a quick stop in Athens to visit my step-fathers parents who had yet to meet sweet Keely who is now 8 months old 2) spend some time with my dad's parents who are ailing quickly and 3) spend some daddy/daughter time with dear ol' dad.

Goal #1 - check. Really good visit. Kids did great... although delirium started to kick in at the end for all of us! :)

Goal #2 - check. What a sweet time. (My grandfather has a tumor on his pituitary gland. He had surgery a while back to remove it but they did not get it all. I am not sure if this is affecting his memory/mind or if it is early alzheimer's or just age - I have heard conflicting reports - but some days he doesn't recognize people/family) Well, on Saturday, he knew us! I walked in and the first thing he said to me was "Hi Brookie!" :) And, he played with the kids! It was so precious. I don't know if he "studied" before we got there, but it still was so neat. (He has a tendency to look at pictures and names and study them so he can remember them.) I know that growing older is part of life but this is the first time I have seen it affect my dad. You see, my grandfather is my dad's hero. There has never been anything that my grandfather couldn't do... and now he almost seems helpless at times. And my dad has been there to help him through it but my dad has also seen his weakness. My dad is definitely not ready to let go... none of us are - but it is definitely hard to see my dad go through this. I'm just so thankful to the Lord for the beautfiful day we had with Gramma and Gran-Gran!!

Keely and Gramma...


Aidan playing with one of the many cars and trucks with Gran-Gran...

Goal #3 - check!! My step-mother Susie is in Florida until tomorrow with my step-sister Lacey and her new baby girl Willow so it was just Dad and his girls (and Aidan/Keely of course) for the weekend. It was kind of fun being in charge of all of the meals and all of the kids for the whole weekend (meaning no Susie to keep things going). It has been a LONG time since it was just Dad, Amy and me. The kids were great... and we made sure that dad had all of the time he wanted with them. If he ran an errand, one of us went with him. We just were together. Thats all I can say really. Most of the time after a family weekend, I say it was "too much family". Well, not this time. This was just what I needed. And I think it was just what Dad needed to... Thank you Lord for my wonderful sister!! Thank you Lord for my Daddy!!

Here's a pic of Keely checkin' out her silly aunt on the floor... :)