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Sunday, December 5, 2010

Lazy Sunday

Today is a lazy day. We haven't had one of these in a while.

I think I'll try to do a quick little update on the past week or two!

SO Last weekend we were in Atlanta. The Packers played the Falcons at the Georgia Dome and we went down there Friday - Monday. It was some of the bestest fun I've had with my hubby and our kiddos in a while!
We drank a lot of this:

The girls went with us, and lounged around our room...
It must be SO HARD to have their life. :)

On Friday we got there and walked to the closest pub for dinner- it was ridiculous!! The food was a really strange combo of stuff that went perfectly together! Meehan's Pub had a "Holiday Hangover" menu that was only non-holiday food, so it was a pleasant surprise!
Saturday we decided to take 3 hours to find IKEA (I was not impressed. There were 79023281 people in there and you couldn't even take a deep breath without hitting someone. Maybe next time it won't be
so crowded and I'll see what all the fuss is about?) and then ate lunch at The Vortex. Good burger, great atmosphere. We then came back to our hotel to find that our room hadn't been cleaned yet, so we went for about a 13982 hour walk. Only to come back to see that they STILL hadn't gotten to us! Seriously? It was almost 5. DidI mention that we didn't take coats/jackets? Because it was supposed to be kind of warm all weekend. It was not that warm. In fact, it was down right FREEZING at times!
Saturday night, we met some of the people we had met on Friday night (the city was overrun with Packers
fans... it was like we were in Wisconsin!!) And hung out at the pub, then followed them to a 24-hour karaoke bar where they proceeded in drinking until 3 the night before the game... Don't worry, they're PROS. After we left the bar, we heard that one of the guys tackled the Karaoke machine and they were asked to leave. Not to mention they were yelling "FREE BEER! FREE BEER FOR ALL PACKERS FANS!" into the karaoke machine which plays on the street. hahaha They were so much fun, it was like we were with family or something!

SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY!
We got up (sloooowly), had breakfast in our
hotel and saw all the other Pack fans, and started our 1 mile trek to the stadium. Everyone had already beat us to tailgating (granted, we had nothing with which to tailgate), so we walked around and watched the crazies.
We then made our way into the game and it was SO MUCH FUN! This was our first Packers game... and it was a good one to attend. I just wish it would have ended with our team having the higher score.
This is the view from our seats. Not too bad, but not the best. Next time I'll pay the extra and we'll be MUCH CLOSER.



That's about all I got. Pretty boring post, I know, as I have nothing really witty to say today... but there's all the pictures from my phone that I took on our trip! :)




Thursday, December 2, 2010

I suck at blogging!

Check out how much I suck at this! I keep forgetting to blog stuff!
Oops!
I guess my month of thanks was only half a month! That's better than I expected.
Good thing I only have 1-2 people who read this besides me.

While you're here, please check out my fishies I added to the top of the page. They're cute, right? They're going to get fat because I keep clicking food into their box to make them move around.

Because I don't believe a post is complete with out a picture...

It's cold outside, which made me want to show this picture. This is Martini when is snowed one time last year. Look how cute she is! LOOK! :) She does have a slight problem with the white stuff, though...

Friday, November 12, 2010

OoPs! THanks Days 7-13!

So, We all know how wonderful I am at remembering to blog frequently... Right.
Here are my days 7-13 of Thankfulness!

7- I'm thankful for my parents and the fact that they would do anything for me to see me happy.
8. I'm thankful to have such a loving and gracious savior who loves me despite my almost moment-by-moment downfalls.
9. I am thankful to have friends who send me uplifting text messages or emails at just the right moment- without even knowing how they brighten my day.
10. I am thankful for my health. This one's difficult, as that's a day-to-day kind of thing with me. But- I am healthy and able to do the majority of things I want to do without issue, and for that I am thankful.
11. I am thankful for my freedom. So many people have given so much for me to be able to complete school, attend college, have a job, and live my daily life without constant fear of mortar attacks... or without seeing armed guards at every corner. I am thankful to the soldiers who have fought and given the ultimate sacrifice in order to ensure that I live this way.
12. I have today off... and for that, I am INCREDIBLY THANKFUL! :)
13. I am thankful to have clothes to keep me warm. I get up every day and lament that "I have NOTHING TO WEAR!" Then resolve to just go to work in my bathrobe, and give up on life because I don't like to wear the same thing over and over. The reality of it is, I have more than enough. I have plenty more than the majority of people with whom I work, yet I whine about it daily.

Maybe I'll do better with the next few.

Friday, November 5, 2010

Month of Thanks- Day 5.

Apparently November is the Month of Thanks. People post something daily for which they are thankful.
I am officially 4.9 days behind on this awesome trend... so I will have to catch up! I'll go ahead and do #6 since it's almost midnight.

Nov 1. I am thankful that I have a husband who loves me and accepts me for who I am. At all times. No matter what.
Nov. 2. I am so very thankful that I live in a land in which I can vote and at least feel like my voice is heard.
Nov. 3. I am thankful to have a job that I enjoy 99% of the time.
Nov. 4. I have an abundance of food, clothing, and material goods which the majority of the rest of the world does not, and for that I am thankful... and also humbled.
Nov. 5. I have parents who love me unconditionally and would do anything to ensure my happiness and help me with anything I need.
Nov. 6. I have in-laws who love me like I am their own child and treat me like I've been their kid for the past 24 years, not just the past 4.

That's it for the past week almost!
I think I like this "thankful" thing... it's good stuff to focus on!!
More later!
EM

Friday, October 29, 2010

New Car? No Car?


My Car has been making some noises, so I finally got it in to the mechanic yesterday.
His words were as follows, "Yep, it's going to cost more to fix her than she's worth... I'd get it to a dealer who'll offer you $4000 on a trade in- ASAP."
You see, I have been driving a 1999 Altima since I turned 15. My parents drove it from 13-15, as they bought it new for me, but I wasn't old enough to drive it yet. I never named the car, but I somehow feel that was the right thing to do. It has been wrecked twice- once into a ditch, where the only damage was to the alignment and the tire; and once into a curb... where there was $1500 worth of damage, broken shank (Whatever that
is), rim, etc. So, it really hasn't been mistreated- never even hit another car (that had to be reported)! All repairs done on time, oil changed, tires rotated, etc. But apparently that was not enough. I was in for a new axle, as the one I had on the front was starting to creeeeeeeak when I turned- apparently that's normal to need replaced at this point. So, I had been driving it until that got louder- which is what the mechanic told me to do. Then last week, it got louder- but ALL KINDS OF CRAZIER, too!
Anybody ever heard a car that sounded like it was pulling cans on a string behind it? When it's not moving? Apparently that's a TIMING CHAIN. And
replacing that would be more than my car is currently worth, according to KBB. Especially since there are sparkly things in my oil now- which must mean it's ground some metal off of something and is not coursing that through my car's veins at a quick pace.
So I got home and looked up my car on www.KBB.com in the "fair" condition. Just to see what it is worth. $640 TRADE IN VALUE. Crap. No one will sell me a car for that! (At least not one that will run... so, one like mine!)
Now we are faced with the following decision:
-Buy a new car? One that loses 1/2 of its value the second you
turn the key and put on your seat belt? But I could get $5000 for my trade in... and possibly my mom's Nissan Discount?
-Buy a used car? I'm talking Certified Pre-owned, people! I'm thinkin Rogue, Murano, Equinox... Apparently those run about the same as a used one with $5000 off would- except they already have miles on them and butt prints in the seats.
-Buy no car and save up for a new(to me) car? That wouldn't work... would it? I'd have to go in to work much earlier and get off earlier (kind of). But I think we could swing it- with the exception of days that I would have home visits that las
ted past 4, or days that I have to work Support Groups, or Enrichment is later... eh- it wouldn't work for long.
-Buy a beater and save until we can buy a real car? This one probably sucks the most. This is the reason I currently will tell you I hate my husband for brainwashing me. My car needs to be moderately reliable- as I drive 50-150 miles in it per day, and am often in neighborhoods (for work) in which I would like for my car to ALWAYS WORK, ALWAYS turn on, ALWAYS be able to drive quickly away from a potential drug deal or shoot-out... You think I'm kidding. This option would leave me driving Donnie's car, and him getting the crap car once we come up with the $3000 to pay cash for it. I know what you're thinking: Oh, you get the newer one, and he gets the junker! No, I'll be getting his 4-year old, 100,000+ mile car, while he will be getting something that is $3000
or less, but still not ridiculous. He is getting a new (to him) car. I keep getting screwed here! :)

His/My car with E & Das Boot

I hate this plan
I hate not being able to get a brand new car (yes, I am 4 years old!)
I hate being an adult and having to make "responsible decisions"
I hate our lack of social life for the next 6-8 weeks while we "save up" money... UGH!
I hate* my husband.
I hate* my husband for the following reasons:
- His vehement refusal to purchase a new car and put us $27,900 in debt
- His ** belief in not financing stuff (including a VS Angels Card- but that's another story for another day!)
- HIS insistence to drive my car until it croaks so that we can "save up" enough money to purchase a $3k car for him to drive

* By hate, I really mean LOVE. I mean love love love love love for being the kind of man who is willing to make the sacrifice now and withhold gratification in order to have something better later. By HATE, I mean love- for helping me understand the importance of not putting ourselves (and eventually our children) into massive amounts of debt that we wouldn't be able to afford if something happened to one of our jobs. By Hate, I mean love for being willing to let me drive his nicer car while he drives mine that might explode at any minute---just until it won't drive anymore- driving my car until we have the money saved up to purchase a beater for him. By hate, I mean LOVE for being smart enough to present this in a way that I kind of thought it was my idea so that I would agree to it...

** By HIS, I mean "Ours" (due to the aforementioned "brainwashing")

WHAT. A. JERK.

I will update on ways that we intend to save some money later. Right now- I have to get ready for work! :)

♥ Emily

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Para-diggem


I try to come up with some good stuff to blog about, so that the one other person besides me who reads this is entertained. Every time I think of something good, I get distracted and/or am not home and forget. I keep getting these awesome witty ideas and funny stories to tell, but then they float away before I can get a good grip on them.


Look at my sweet sweet sleepy babies! Yes, Martini is in her Packers Jersey... and that's a TMNT shirt on Mellow.

SO,
I have this friend who has been urging me to read this book for a while. It's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey. I don't know if she's trying to get me to read the book because it's good, or just because she wants to ensure she has a job by pumping up Covey sales... I'm just kidding, I know it's a good book! The other day I hurt my back and I haven't been able to do much movement since then... so I thought to myself, "What could I do that might be a good idea and make me feel better?" You see, I'm not good at this whole "relaxing" thing. I get antsy when I have to sit still for very long and I start getting anxious that something's not getting done if I hang out too much. SO I decided- some people like to take a bubble bath and read- I'LL TRY THAT!
Heads up, though-
Bubble Bath+Music+Relaxing+Wine+Reading= Wet Book.
It has since recovered, but I only got through the first 45 pages before this tragic event happened and I decided to get out and dry off. So far, I'm liking it! I'll let you know how it goes.
I'm starting to think that the book is going to do this horribly mean thing by telling me that I'm the problem. Since I know that can't be it, the book must be flawed. :-) I'm kidding, but really... the book is definitely showing me that it's me that is the issue. Not my job or my clients; not my coworkers (whom I adore) or my hours; me. It's the paradigm from which I am viewing the things that I do that is making me unhappy and overwhelmed; nothing else. I had begun to come to this conclusion after I was talking to someone I know one day about what we want to be when we grow up. I was asked the following question: "If money was no object and you could do any job you wanted, what would it be?" I couldn't answer it. That either means that I am supposed to do just that- nothing, (I think I can go for that idea!!) or that I have begun making myself miserable to the point where I can no longer come up with anything that I would be happy doing. So- it's me! And, please don't think I'm saying that I'm in any way miserable- I actually really enjoy my job 98% of the time- I had just started focusing so much on that other 2% that I was convincing myself that was how it is all the time.
Since I have started the book and actually made a slight dent in it, I am going to do my best to follow through. I'm going to stop telling myself that I'm too busy (because I'm not) or that I'm too tired (because I'm not too tired to stare at the TV for 2 hours per night) and do this stuff! I think that if I can read just 30 pages per day I can finish the book by the middle of next week. I know that's a small goal, but I've talked myself out of reading for so long that I have to start small!!

Also, I stepped on the scale today and realized that I have gotten back into fatty status. As of tomorrow, I am never eating again.

I'll let you know how that goes.

EM

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Busy, good, super fantastic day.

We went to Arrington Vineyards last week- forgot to tell you about that...
here are my favorite pictures from that day...





So yesterday, October 16th, was a very busy day in the McKee household.
Wanna know what was on the agenda?
- Surprise birthday breakfast (consisting of cake and ice cream) at my brother's house at 7:45 am.
- Pink Panther volleyball games at 9am and 10am.
- Naptime... lol
- Amy's Wedding at 4pm


- Bat Mitzvah at 7pm

So, written down, that doesn't look like as much as it felt like yesterday.
Let me break it down, though.
- My brother's bday was yesterday- but we all had a bunch o
f stuff to do, so my mom and I decided to surprise him in the morning! D and I left the house at 7:35 to get there at the same time as my parents- cake, ice cream, presents! He was not up yet, so we got to surprise him with a wake up party!!!! It was fun. I love ♥ having cake for breakfast.
- I'm helping a friend coach a volleyball team of sorts. It's
a "rec league" sort of thing, and half the kids have never played a sport before and/or are home schoolers, so it's "Non-competitive; Just to learn the basics." I don't know if you've met me, but I'm what some would call "slightly intense" or "very competitive." I don't know the meaning of the term, "non-competitive." I believe that if it's a sport, there is a score, and my team needs to have the HIGHER score. I don't believe in the kids games of soccer or t-ball where they don't keep score; I keep score in my head when attending these games. I hate LOSING. I even dislike ugly winning. I don't know how it happened, but somewhere along the line (I'm going to blame my HS Volleyball coach), it was instilled in me to play sports like each play is the game point, like each and every thing you do is what the game hinges on, never surrender a point without the other team EARNING it. This, you see, is why "non-competitive" is a challenge for me. I've coached before, both for a club (travel- highly competitive) team and for a HS team. I've been the one on the sidelines with kids who think the same way as me about playing. I've broken clip boards, instructed children to run suicides/do wall-sits/push ups/etc. for consequences of not playing in the manner of which I know they are capable. I now have to sit and be mannerly and clap with a "you'll get it next time" when balls hit the floor. This is probably the biggest feat of self-control I have ever exercised. And, I know, that sounds crazy. But I'm crazy, so it shouldn't be a surprise. Our girls yesterday played OK the first game and we lost it in 2. We then played a team that only had 4 players and had to take it to 3 GAMES (we play 2/3 instead of 3/5). I thought I was going to have a heart attack. It was ugly, but we somehow pulled it out. haha I just have to keep reminding myself that these are kiddos who aren't as concerned with winning as much as having fun; they like being out and hanging out with their friends and playing. They aren't competitive, it's a game. Eh, maybe I'll master that when I have my own kids...
Probably not.
- Amy's Wedding- Donnie and I agreed that it was a good thing we are already married. This was the most beautiful wedding I think I've ever attended. From the colors and decorations to the spirit of the two people joining together. It was perfect in every way. The two of them are clearly made specifically for one another... and I don't even know him that well! (Well, technically... I read his blog a lot, but don't know him face-to-face, you know). To see how he very obviously is every single thing that compliments her, and how pure the love between the two of them is... it's refreshing.
(my favorite image from my camera...)

Every time we/I attend a wedding, I think of all the things I would have done differently. We would have paid more for a photographer who knows more about weddings; we probably would have had the ceremony in a church... or maybe it would have been outside. Would we use the same colors? No. I would want to do it this time of year because chrysanthemums are my favorite flower, and we would have had the entire place filled to overflow with mums of every color and size. My bouquet would be a million spider mums. It may have been more formal, maybe. Or maybe we would just go to the beach (like my original idea) and get married in the sand at sunset... nah. Probably not. But these are all the things I think about when we attend a wedding. It's enough to make a girl go crazy (not to mention possibly $25k into debt!)
Then I think about this: we got exactly what we wanted out of it. There are a thousand things we could change (and probably would if we could go back in time...) but the general goal was accomplished... We're married- all these other things are just details. Pretty, colorful, well-photographed details. :-)
- Bat Mitzvah- I've never been to any type of Jewish celebration, but this was fun! We weren't able to attend the morning ceremony (although I wish we had had the time!) but the evening party was super. I really enjoyed hanging out with some of my co-workers and getting to know them outside of work! It was also really fun to see how much fun the kids were having. It was wonderful! I highly suggest future Bat-Mitzvah attendance to any considering it. :)

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

SUCK DAY


I got bit by a dog today. What kind of dog, you ask?
It could have been a big, "scary" Rott or Pit or Doberman or Chow.
It could have been a nice family dog, like a boxer, heeler, or a golden.
It also could have been a precious little fluff ball like a Martini dog or Pompom.
NO.
It
Was
A
Chihuahua-Weener Mix.

It almost made a chiweenie-sized hole in the wall, as I contemplated punting that little dog through the dining room.

But I was the bigger person (both literally and figuratively) and just yelped loudly and tried not to cry, as it got a good piece of skin.
I then laughed as it's momma chased it through the house with a fly-swatter.

Stupid dog.

♥ Emily

Because no blog is complete without a pHOto...
This is the barn at my great grandmother's house. Mom and I went up there a few weeks ago. She's currently in the hospital bc she had a really bad infection and her son wouldn't take her to the Dr... so her great nephew had to take her to the ER where they found out that her infection was incredibly worse than they thought and they have forced her to stay since then. She's 96. And still 100% Fireball! ♥

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

TOO LONG!!

It has been tooooo long since I last blogged... :)
SO so sorry to my one whole person (besides me... 50 times) who reads this!

Since last blogdom, a lot has happened- I guess. Nothing too big, really. We've gotten about 1593 invitations to weddings and baby showers. I guess that's exciting.

Monday, August 23, 2010

My day off!



SO, I was off Thursday and Friday this past week, then today! It has been lovely, but I can't really tell you that I've done much that has been productive!
The plan was for me to be off in order to prepare for, then clean up after, our fence party. Said party was moved to this next weekend (8/28), so my time off was kind of worthless. I no
w cannot take off this friday before the party because I have to attend a day-long tr
aining with work on Fri... so, what do you do?

Thursday- I don't really remember what I did, but I'm thinking I did some house-work. ??
Friday- I went to the Dr., came home, thought I was dying, and then took a nap. I then proceeded in Happy Houring my way around Nashville with friends from my work, then friends from D's work, and then Ihop with Evan & Carol after that!
Saturday we didn't do anything all day until we went to Amy & Wes's Wedding shower...
Sunday, D & I mulched the front yard and redid part of the flower beds... we are now PROS at mulching!

Today, I haven't done much of anything. I had my alarm set for 8:20 so that I would get up and get going... didn't happen. Martini spent the evening puking again last night, and Carmen then threw a fit until we let her sleep with us... I got up at 10:20. I then decided to do some laundry and make a grocery list. This turned into me sitting in the floor for two solid hours watching Jerseylicious and coupon clipping to no avail. I did, however, make a pact with the dogs that Jersey is the ONE STATE I will never consider living in... mostly because of the hair, makeup, and complete insanity of that show (as well as Jersey Shore) it's like this place is a completely different PLANET!
At some point, I cleaned the front porch and moved all the rocks that we took out of the flowerbeds.... I went to the grocery store and spent $101 on fresh fru
its and veggies and veggie meats and free-range chicken. I then came home and decided I was going to make lasagna for dinner. I had Rice-Lasagna noodles already here, and I had purchased the fresh stuff to make spaghetti sauce to go with it. I just decided that the sauce tastes too good to go IN something and needs to be the star, so D has to get rice-spaghett
i noodles on his way home. Love him!
OK PICTURE TIME
I am really slow at uploading pictures from my camera... so these should have been put up here about 2 weeks ago. Rachel's Surprise Baby SHOWERRRRR!!!
...
This was (obviously) the second she walked through the dooooooor


Aaron, so proud to have pulled off a surprise for the un-surprise-able

Opening my present... she loved the shoes!
...
Crap. Neighbor's internet is not holding up. I'll put more up later when other people aren't stealing internet at the same time as me. :)


Monday, August 16, 2010

Monday... not to be confused with Funday

Picture of the day: My great grandmother (96) and "Elvis" (my uncle Larry) at my and Donnie's wedding.

This would be in Honor of the King's Death... RIP Elvis, 42 was too young...
There's your little pep for the beginning of this blog :)

SO today was OBVIOUSLY monday.
I'll spare you all the details, but let's just say it blew.

I can't particularly pick out a certain moment of suck, it just seemed to permeate the majority of the day somehow!

Now, I don't typically like to be a downer, but I just thought I'd share.

I came home and tried to decide what to do to make the day better. I ended up deciding to put on workout clothes so I could pretend I was going to go work out. Instead I cooked- how is it that I usually feel better after cooking something?
OH PS- I made AWESOME cupcakes for my mom's bday. I'll PROBABLY post some pictures soon.

OH!! I had a coupon for $1 off a MorningStar meal thing, so I got the Sweet N Sour Chick'n one (for real meat-eaters, that's fake chicken)... Uhm, how about TASTY! I now love fake chicken. lol

Yes, the highlight(s) of my day have revolved around food.
Tell me again why I don't weigh 135? Do you think these things are related?


So, tonight's dinner: Rice noodles, diced tomatoes, jalepenos, Meatless Ground (Have I told you that I FREAKING LOVE vegetarian food? LOVE LOVE Meatless Ground!!), and Velveeta cheese. It was quite deeeelicious, really! Check it out!

Looks like vomit a little bit, but it tasted awesome!

Friday, August 13, 2010

FRIIIDAYYYYY!


Today is FRIDAY!!!
Do you know what this means?!!?! Fun day at work, then no work for the next 2 days!
And this particular friday is extra special-
1. It's Friday the 13th
2. It's my momma's Bday
3. It's FRIIIDAAAAY!


In honor of my mom's Bday, I thought I'd put a cute little picture up of how unfortunate their life was before me the 80s can be on ones' sense of style.

(she'll most likely never see this since she doesn't follow my blog... wait, only 2 or 3 people follow my blog... Crap. No one will ever see this!!)
I love my momma and her hair and her tan.
She's 35 today. (which means she had me at 11?? Hang on a second...)

Saturday, August 7, 2010

SURPRIIIIIISE!!!!!


Terri Beth and I drove to Louisville today for a surprise baby shower for Rachel... it was probably the best 2 hours of my week!

More pictures coming soon, once I take a little nap and then upload them.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Just a couple of pictures


I love this man...

Just thought I should let you know...
The picture is from our trip to Rock Island... here's a couple more to enjoy!



Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Scary Scary Dreams!!

So Martini is laying beside me on the couch whimpering in her sleep, which makes Donnie think she's having nightmares... I think she's having fun!
WHO KNOWS?!?


This is a picture of my lovebugs with Memaw and Papaw McKee in Athens, TN.
We went there a few weeks ago to visit bc Papaw was in the hospital again and the news we kept getting kept getting less-good. The rest of the pictures on here will be from this trip, although not in ANY WAY related to the post. They're just silly :)
Like THESE!!!!! :)



















I don't have much to write about today, but I felt the need to do so.
Just a few things I'm thinking about today:
1. It is ONLY TUESDAY
2. My back hurts
3. I CANNOOOOOT WAAAIIIIIT To get the PICTURES I ordered from Kate Whitmore
4. I am excited for the weekend
5. I need to take a few days off to do nothing but sleep!!!
To break these down:
1. Apparently, Tuesday is not the same a Friday. You are still expected to work 3 more days in the week. What is this all about?
2. We played Volleyball at Brad's hous
e on Sunday- I played the first couple of games shoeless... it was not too bad until I felt like part of my back cracked in half, then I took a break and put my shoes on. Still, though. Back=Hurting. Wore my back brace yesterday because I couldn't stand up straight without it... today, I tried to be tough, but it didn't really work out.
3. I ordered pictures last night from Kate Whitmore... if they had come an hour before I ordered them, it would still be too slow for me. I'm just THAT excited. I have since cut out paper in the sizes that I ordered (plus the mattes and frames) and taped them to the wall in the design I think I want these things hung. I don't think that's crazy. Do you think that's crazy?
4. Stuff is happening this weekend, but some of it isn't stuff I can tell you til after it happens... then I will post pictures! There is a bday party.. and I think the Nashville Rollergirls have a Roller Derby game we're supposed to attend, and I think we might go to the movies... and lots of fun times.
5. I can never seem to get enough sleep. One of these days I will, but I have a feeling that day will = retirement. Suck.


One of the pretty places we passed on our way home from Athens.




Thursday, July 29, 2010

The "G" stands for "Greatness"

I'm sure you remember that our anniversary was actually a little over a month ago (a month and 8 days, actually), but today the present was completed!
Well, it will be in 4-7 days, according to ticketmaster.com :0)
I do not remember what all I included as to what I got for him, but I think I'll give you a quick rundown. If it's still on this page of feed, suck it up- or just skip to the next paragraph! I gave him the following things (and in this order): Reservations to a hotel in Atlanta, a walking map from the hotel to the GA dome, and faux Greenbay tickets that I made myself (since they weren't for sale yet) for the Falcons/Packers game on 11/28/10. In case you didn't know, D is a big Packers fan. I'm pretty sure I've mentioned these things before!
Single-game (non season-ticket holder) tickets for the Falcons home games went on sale today at 10am EST. So NATURALLY, I had 2 alarms set and a giant post-it note stuck to my computer screen with the time, what sections are OK, and the maximum amount I need to spend on the tickets written on it.
8:55 hits, I log on to Ticketmaster.com (just in case their clock is fast)
nothing.
8:57 I decided to waste some anticipation by doing a little work- I wrote up two families service plans...
8:59 I went back to Ticketmaster.com and following took place:
REFRESH REFRESH REFRESH REFRESH REFRESH REFRESH
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
BEST AVAILABLE *CLICK*
BEST AVAILABLE *CLICK*
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Are you KIDDING me!??! NO- There ARE results to find. YOU FIND THEM, INTERNET! That is your JOB! There ARE NO MORE RESULTS POSSIBLE!
So, I tried again... I did not put any search criteria in at all, and got the same thing two more times, then I tried all possible combos of the options... SAME STINKIN THING!

I then followed the link to the right to NFLTicketexchange through Ticketmaster... I proceeded in ordering two tickets in the section I had previously picked out for $10 each cheaper than I expected to pay. They will be delivered by 8/4/10 (supposedly)!
I'm pretty excited!


The view from our seats:
Yeah, that's right. (haha I say that like it's close... it's not. It's not really close, but the stadium isn't very big, so it really IIIIISSSSSS close!!)






This evening, I looked up PackerBacker clubs in GA, as there are a couple here in the Ville, so we expect that there MUST be such a thing in every major city.
I didn't find too much that was current for Packer Backers in ATL, however, I did find out that there is ONE MORE Packer Backer club in Nashville than we knew of. As far as D and I knew, the official meeting place was in Franklin @ the Franklin Family Entertainment Center (Bowling Alley). They go there and watch all the Packers games during FB season... D used to be the server for this freak show weekly display of cheesehead devotion, and I would occasionally go to watch the crazies games. HOWEVER, there is apparently another such place. We will have to check this out. Nashville Packers is the other PackerBacker club in the Ville area... found the site, looked at it, and saw some familiar faces. Most notably "Greenbay Mike"- Bet you can't guess which one is him in the pictures- Two hints: Green and Yellow Contacts, FACE PAINT. I also saw that their summer party just passed, which makes me very sad. I wonder if they watched the Packers Fan Forum on NFL network tonight? Crap we should have DVR'd that stuff!!
- Just a little secret- I tend to talk about D being crazy and how he yells at the TV and everything.. and how he's a big fan, but since being in this family, I have learned a whole lot about the Packers... and I now can discuss such things with random people. And, I actually enjoy watching the games and I know many of the players' names (so I can join in the yelling at the TV since they can hear us if we yell together), and... you'll be proud, I requested to NOT work support groups the night of September 28th... BECAUSE THE PACKERS PLAY THE BEARS ON MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL. I CANNOT WORK THAT NIGHT! HELLO!
I have learned not to wear any of my Packers gear unless others in the party I'm with (Namely Donnie or Don) are also outfitted in such a manner, as random out-of-towners tend to come up to me and tell me how they're a Bears fan... or that they Hate Brett Favre (which I don't mind hearing one bit), or how Aaron Rodgers became the first NFL QB in history to throw at least 4000 yards in each of his first two seasons ... They also like to ask what part of Whisk-ahhhnsin I'm from... Nashville. That's the answer. Nashville, Whisk-ahhhnsin, Tennessee.

So, yeah- I'm pretty excited about our trip to ATL in November... and if anyone else is going to this game, let me know. PS if you need a place to stay, we may have an extra bed- I might have booked a room that sleeps 6, I don't know.
I'm just really excited about getting the tickets... and getting to wear my Clay Matthews Jersey to a REAL GAME... and Tailgating with the cheeseheads... and not getting shot in Atlanta... and taking Donnie to his first ever live Packers game... and watching my first real live Packers game... (!!)

Oh sweet baby Jesus, I'm becoming one of them...

Monday, July 19, 2010

Got to work on this Day/Date thing...



OK, so apparently I need to work on this whole "knowing what day it is" thing.
I know.
It sounds weird.
Mostly because I write case notes all day and have to sign and fill out the date... then STILL don't know what the date or day is. I say this because I spent half the day thinking today was 7/26 even though I knew it was 7/19. I even talked Donnie into going to dinner to an event that is planned for NEXT MONDAY NIGHT. Holy moly. You'd think they'd have some kind of contraption that could tell you what the day/date was so you didn't have to keep up with it in your head. Someone should invent that... and name it something crazy- like CALENDAR!
(the name is still in the works, not too sure that's the right word for the idea...)

(There is no point to this picture, it's just pretty.)

I'm thinking that it may have something to do with the total of 8 hours of sleep I got this weekend? Or maybe something to do with the amount of work that I feel like I have left to do this month and the lack of time I have in which to do it.
Who knows?
Anywho, my weekend:

Saturday, we "slept in" (9 am) and bummed around alllll day until about 3 when we started getting ready for a photo session with Kate Whitmore.
We met her in Mboro and she took a bunch of pictures of us being all lovey dovey and stuff... the couple she cheated and let me see on the back of the camera looked SO GOOOOOD! (Check out the sneak peek here) I can't wait to see the rest of them!! I have never had someone take pictures and get so excited- I loved every second of it! She definitely made it easy to feel comfortable and pretty and stuff with her excitement she radiated from behind the camera.

We then went to eat with the free meal tickets that we got the last time we ate at Ryan's (it was disgusting... but this time it was better...) Then to Wall Street, where we sat for about 5 hours. Apparently they sell Long Islands for $4. Ginormous. We came home (with an additional passenger) about 2. Donnie and I were going to bed at 3:30, heard Screeeech, POP! Yeah, someone lost control, skidded through a yard, and slammed into the side of our neighbor's house. So I called the cops, and we had a neighborhood block party in our jammies until about 4:30 am. Everyone is fine- house not really hurt, truck pac-man shaped, but driver was fine. He "wasn't drunk" but admitted to drinking previously in the evening. Apparently was just mad and lost control of the car, then you know what happened- bc I just typed it 3-4 lines ago.
(Did you forget already??)
We met several neighbors that we hadn't met yet, so that was exciting! And found out about the people who lived in our house before us. Mom & 2 sons; good kids, joined bad group of kids and then potentially began breaking into houses. One day, truck shows up, never see 'em again. The kids have been seen a couple of times, and probably were the little crapbags that broke in to the house between our first and last contract and smoked stuff in the bathrooms. Whatever.
So, that was fun. Then woke up at 8:30. Couldn't go back to sleep.

Sunday we spent most of the day trying to fix our washer (yeah, overflowed again. Sweet.) and cleaning camping supplies to give back to my bro.

Mostly best part- Saturday evening. LOOOOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVED it!
If you ever need pictures for something, I would HIGHLY SUGGEST using Kate Whitmore.
She's super fantastic! But be prepared to listen fast, because she talks as fast as I do when I get excited! I had forgotten how fun it was to talk to other people at speeds most individuals just hear as buzzing. :o)

I don't like picture-free posts much, so I had to add something.
This, my friends, is Donnie's favorite female-restroom-graffiti.
In anticipation of football season...
GO PACK GO
(Yes, that's green nail polish on the side of a bathroom stall)

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Another reason...






Another reason that I should be a stay at home dog-mom...
Yes, this one also revolves around food.

That's Rice Penne with chicken, asparagus, and (extra)tomatoes in vodka sauce.

And the dinner table:


And that's what our dining room/area looks like for those who wonder. :-)

(OH! And PS I had that horrible craptastic day the other day and STILL came home and made an AWESOME dinner- Ask D!)

I'm doing better about the whole blogging more than once a month thing! Hooray!

The past two days at work have been crazy- I've been WORKING.
ALL.
DAY.
While at work.
I KNOW!
It's insane.

Yesterday 9-7 (I took about a 10 minute lunch break to go get my food)
and today 8:40-4:30 (no lunch break bc I forgot)

Tomorrow we have a record review bc we have an audit coming up, so I went through all my charts that will need to be reviewed (almost half) and, naturally, had to go through them and pre-review them so that when they're reviewed I don't get pissed and bombarded by the mistakes other people may potentially find in these things that I might have overlooked.
And, since one person was let go, the other three of use have had to absorb her caseload, so I've been trying to integrate the 8 I took from her into my caseload and my swing of how I do my visits/charts... and it just so happens they fit right in! I'm so glad she did her job, and did her job well... I would have probably just sat in the floor, played candyland and cried if it were any other way.

Time to go sit in front of the TV and zone out to whatever is DVR'd for the day... Ahhhh Satan, your devices are so entertaining. Thank you for the invention of the DVR.

(PS, as I type this, my wonderful husband is cleaning
up from the delicious dinner I just made... and I didn't even ask. Isn't he super?)


Sunday, July 11, 2010

C is for Camping


We went on our first ever camping adventure this weekend.
What an adventure it was.
I have not uploaded any pictures or anything yet, other than this one:

Martini was WOOOORN OOOOOUT After our morning hike yesterday.

So, yes, our first ever camping adventure was just that.
D, the girls, and I went up on Friday afternoon as soon as we got off work to make sure we could get a campsite since Rock Island only takes reservations 1 week out, and none had been made for the group of us yet. We left and it started raining... it rained the entire way, until it stopped raining for a few minutes to begin POURING. We eventually made it in about 2:15 (It was supposed to be 1:28 according to google maps), and tried to figure out how to set up this tent... you know, in the rain. It stopped for about 10 minutes, which was just enough time for us to get the tarp down, tent up, rain cover on, and run back into the car for the next downpour. Then it quit for a few, and we had made a list of things we didn't bring but would like to have (i.e. playing cards, massive amounts of liquor, gigantic rainwater-powered wind fans, 100-foot in diameter umbrella, etc.) and D went to the market, while I took the big plastic bin and blew up the air mattress, then put the fitted sheet down, made the bed, fluffed the pillows, put the dogs' beds in the tent... and OH YEAH THAT IS ALL THAT FIT IN THE TENT! hahaha

---> We borrowed this tent from my brother and his fiancee'. We've never been camping before, so we didn't have one, and didn't feel like buying one if we didn't LIKE camping, so we borrowed. Didn't realize that tents aren't all the large ones that you can basically walk around in and sleep 10. Oops.

SO, I get all this crap set up, he gets back... with cards and candy. NO massive amounts of liquor to entertain ourselves, no industrial-sized rainwater-powered FAN to keep me cool, or 100 ft diameter umbrellas... Nothing to do, 80 degrees and humid/still kinda raining, what can we do? We sit in the tent and talk about playing cards... we then laid there for the next 5 hours and covered and uncovered the tent with the rain and listened to the crazy lady across the way talk to someone LOUDLY. Her children also kept getting things out of their car, which made the Jeep's lights TURN ON and shine right into our tent all 5 times they did this. Saturday 5 am sunup time was incredibly pleasant for me.

---->Apparently, tents also mean you wake up when the sun comes up bc it shines in them!
WHO DOES this for FUN?

We did some hiking, then went back to our campground and waited on Shannon, Blaine, and Carolyn to get there while we played cards.

I don't remember a whole lot more stuff because I'm so tired, but eventually we made hot-dogs and veggie burgers, had dinner, and played Rummy... which we had to work on some people learning, and I got told that I am apparently "intense" and "high strung" and that "it's just cards" and all this crap. Whatever. It's a GAME, which means there has to be a WINNER and a LOSER and I need to be the WINNER and if I WIN I get to GLOAT. Seriously. Where is the issue?

So I'm a little competitive.

After that was S'MORES time, where we all demonstrated our inability to build a fire. Thank God that one of the other campsites' people had diesel fuel, and they dumped it on our logs to start our fire. :o)
I then proceeded to get S'more remnants all over me. As in Chocolate all over my mouth, arms, chest, clothes, etc. Because I like to make my S'mores differently than most people. I like to heat the mallows, then put them on top of the chocolate on the graham cracker, and then hold that open-faced s'more over the fire so it allllll melts together... Seriously. Try it.


Today, up at 5:30 (SLEEPIN LAAAATE)
Picked up after ourselves
Packed up tents and crap
Made breakfast (leftover hot-dogs on sandwich bread)
Went hiking/rock climbing/tried to kill our less-experienced friends in the gorge
Went to the "beach" and played ball with the dogs/tried to drown Carmen by throwing two balls in the water at one time and she couldn't figure out which one to get... and laid in the sun, got sand in all cracks and crevices, etc. and then came home.

So incredibly tired.

It turned out to be a great weekend for camping- with the exception of Friday night. The weather was perfect- sunny, hot, crazy hot, but then pretty nice in morning and night (at least Saturday), and waking up to the sunshine in the morning gradually is a very gentle way to do it. Much easier to get up at 5:30 that way than 5:30 to the alarm or 5:30 to a LIGHT TURNED ON haha It was nice.
No shower. No hair brush. Dirty feet. Smell like firewood. Exhausted. Almost sunburned.
Overall- I think we'll do it again... with a bigger tent, better cooler, battery powered fan and radio, and tethers to tie the dogs to so we don't have to keep up with them/their leashes constantly. And in the end of September... when it's cooler at night!!!

Maybe I'll post pictures one day when I upload the suckers. :)

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Emily and the Horrible, Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

So, Alexander's day I believe started off something like this:
- "I went to sleep with gum in my mouth and now there's gum in my hair and when I got out of bed this morning I tripped on the skateboard and by mistake I dropped my sweater in the sink while the water was running and I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day."

Mine was just a little more like:
- "I got ready for work and was looking real cute, then walked into the laundry room to put the clothes in the dryer and the floor was flooded, so I took the NEWLY CLEANED TOWELS out of the DRYER and put them in the STUPID floor to dry up the water from where the washer had overflowed, and then I worried that the house would burn down from a short in the wire/water on the electric cord on the dryer and so I cleaned it all up and made 20 trips outside with all the soaking wet towels and got water all over ME and the kitchen floor and then I took the dogs outside to potty and locked myself and the dogs outside; my phone was inside with
my keys and my dignity as I spent the next 20 minutes trying to weigh which I would rather do: wake a neighbor to use their phone or bust out the back door to get back into the house and then pay for it later? I tried to wave down Hector (across the street neighbor) as he left and he just waved "Hi!" And drove off so then I tried to escape the back yard to no avail as I am
apparently not
strong enough to get the best of our ghetto gates- which are made of screwed on plywood and I
eventually got one broken so I could escape and went to our neighbor Miller's house, called my mom who was busy and doesn't have a key so I called D and he didn't answ
er and I left him a message but didn't know if he would ever listen to it before his lunch break and so I got myself back in the back yard and prepared myself and the dogs to bake to death in the boiling hot sun and so I sat down on a lawn chair and THEN noticed the pervert 12 year old next door (above the garage) had his
binoculars out trying to get a good upskirt shot so I walked over towards that side of the yard and flipped him off and then turned my chair around and then I could tell that it was going to be a horrible, terrible, no good, very bad day."

D showed up 15-20 min later, walked outside, and almost laughed, then I just looked at him and said, "I've had a bad day already." (I may have started crying at this point and the next words MIGHT have been unidentifiable, but at this point, he was hugging me and I was just mumbling/crying into his clean work shirt... with my nasty sweaty nasty nasty self)

This was 8:20.

My hair was SO pretty this morning, too. But at this point, it looked as though I had sat in a sauna for 5 hours, since I had been outside in the morning heat for about 1 hour and 13 min by normal people standards; by my standards: 8 FREAKIN HOURS and 79 MINUTES!

So, I RE-got ready for work, left, and half way there, my oil light came on.

I almost turned around and came home.

But I stuck it out, it was ok the rest of the day, got home super tired, was almost finished making dinner when D got home and he had a DOZEN ROSES in his hands! :-)
What a sweeeeet peeea!
That's them up top :)

So, now we've finished dinner, I'm stuffed to the gills, and thinking of doing some jumping jacks so I can make some room for some ice cream... lol

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

DVR is of the Devil

Serviously.
It disguises itself as super-duper awesome, but deep down, it's evil.
I could totally quit my job just to watch the things I've DVR'd.

And, no, I'm not talking about the wonderful workouts I've DVR'd, I'm talking about all the other stuff.

Must... get up... shower... have to bathe today...

Then I have to go back to work tomorrow...
OH! GET THIS!
I thought I had a Dr. appt at 11 today, so I took off work today (and yesterday, just for fun)...
I look at my phone calendar, TURNS OUT July 8 is TOMORROW, NOT TODAY.
So, I have to go back to work tomorrow, but can't leave for 3 hours to drive to mboro and go sit on a table for 2 hours. I guess I'll have to reschedule it... haha CRAP! Must work on this!

(2 blogs in a row- YES!)
Martini Enjoying herself in our newly fenced backyard...

Pictures- just for fun!
Carmen likes it, too! :)

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Why I should be a stay at home dog-mom

As I continue my trend of posting monthly, I would like to share with you why I should be a stay at home dog-mom.
Not just plain stay at home mom, mind you, because then I would have to have HUMAN children, which I do not. I just have dog children.
So-
Exhibit A

That would be Wasabi Seared (Left side) and Sesame Seared Tuna, with special sauce, steamed rice, and hand tossed salad.

I did it all by myself.
And it cost a grand total of about $12 for both of our dinners...

Exhibit B-
Tomorrow night's dinner menu:
(Rice)Penne Rigata with Cubed chicken in a Vodka Sauce, with Steamed (or maybe grilled?) Asparagus and salad
OR
Mexican dinner in a pan! Rice, Tomatoes, Fake Ground Beef, Jalepenos, and stuff all mixed up - kinda like a casserole, but on the stove top!

Exhibit C-
Donnie's Lunch today:
Ready for him when he walked in the door!
(I hadn't gone grocery shopping in about 6 weeks, so this is pretty much all that was left in the house)
-Grilled Turkey and Cheese Sandwich
-the breakdown:
Bread
Super thin swipe of EVOO Mayo
Cheese
Egg w/Fake bacon bits
Cheese
Turkey
Cheese
Super thin slice of EVOO Mayo
Bread
HAHA I know, it sounds terribly unhealthy, but our Mayo is really low cal, and I put is on so think you hardly know it's there, the bread is 100% whole grain, 35cal/slice, the turkey is all natural organic stuff (only 1 1/2 slices), the butter it's cooked in is all natural healthy stuff, and the bacon is fake. The only unhealthy thing really is the cheese- but according to the Kraft people, it's good for you! :)

Other reasons:
-Got all the grocery shopping done today
-The children and I went outside to play 5 TIMES!!
-Finished the laundry
-Finished the dishes
-I got to sleep in (that's more my reason...)
-Got the dog's grocery shopping done today, and everything I bought was on sale

Here's pictures of the prep of dinner, enjoy!
Ground Wasabi Peas, Special Sauce, and Sesame Seeds


ASSEMBLY LINE------->



OK so Recipe for the Tuna- (It's RIDICULOUSLY easy!)
- 2 1/2 lb Ahi Tuna Steaks, cut into strips- about 1- 1 1/2 inch wide 2- 2 1/2 inches long
(This should give you about 12-16 pieces)
- Juice to put them in before rolling them in topping
-I used Soy Sauce + Sriracha Sauce + Wasabi and stirred with whisk until it was evenly mixed
- Topping-
-For the wasabi stuff, I put about 1/2 cup wasabi peas in food processor and made them powder, otherwise, white sesame seeds are really good on the tuna!
Here's how it works:
- Pan on stove @Medium, Sesame oil in pan (just enough to coat the bottom)
you have to have these things all ready to go before starting, because they do not wait on you!
The assembly- for all 16 pieces while pan is heating, before putting oil in pan and starting to cook tuna-
Tuna->Soy mixture, coat it well-> then roll in sesame seeds or wasabi peas, coat all over->move to side (Of that plate or new plate) repeat until tuna is all covered
THEN, when you've done all pieces, start with tongs, 4-6 pieces at a time cooking.
Place tuna in pan, then get next piece, etc. until you get all 6 in there, then immediately roll to next side. The tuna should be seared- meaning still pink/cold in middle, so basically it's cook, 1, 2, turn, 1, 2, turn, 1, 2, etc. So, I have to do the 6 pieces at a time, and basically just turn, turn, turn, turn until they're all turned 4 times, and flipped on end, then put them in a paper plate lined with paper towels.
Repeat!
(This should be the last thing you do, because the tuna should basically go from skillet to paper towels to plate-table with minimal time in between.)











Monday, June 21, 2010

Voluntary-Mandatory Reading List

Yeah! 3rd Post! Wow... Each post in a different month. I would consider myself a bad blogger if I cared a whole lot more... :o)

SO-
Today is my and Donnie's 2 Year Wedding Anniversary! (Go ahead, cheer!)
It's pretty cool... if you're into that sort of thing.

This is the reason that I'm blogging today- NO, not to talk about how much I love him and how he's my best friend and I'm so blessed to spend the rest of my life with him and build a family together and go through everything together... or to talk about how he somehow loves me even though I have days where I flat out just CHOOSE to be mad, or days that I don't bathe and refuse to get off the couch, or times where I'm consistently negating his every word. And I'm not blogging today to talk about how I have daily/weekly/monthly realizations that I am so incredibly blessed and lucky to have him in my life, and I have no idea what my life would be like without him (other than incredibly boring and unfunny...)
I'm blogging today about presents! :) You like that? How I snuck that lovey dovey crap in there?
He got me the following:
-Zac Brown Band CD
-My Horizontal Life, by Chelsea Handler
-The Lovely Bones
-3 Movie Johnny Depp DVDs thing- Benny & Joon, Edward Scissorhands, and From Hell
-Purple Daisies/other assorted flowers
and a super sweet card. :)

BOOKS! I LOVE BOOKS!
This feels funny to say, but for the first time EVER, I have made myself a VOLUNTARY Summer (and probably on into Fall and winter...) Reading List.
I am currently working my way (ever so slowly) through Lewis Carroll's 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' and 'Through the Looking Glass'... LOVING EVERY SECOND OF IT!
then, I think I'll try to knock out the following:
- 'The Lovely Bones' -So I can see the movie
- 'Charlotte's Webb' -My dad found the book @their house recently and sent it home w/me bc I haven't read it since I was wittle wittle
- 'My Horizontal Life' ---Chelsea Handler is hilarious- I loved Are You There, Vodka?
- 'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People' -Because I need to pick up some other habits besides nail-biting
- 'The Time Traveler's Wife' -So I can see the movie...
- 'Parenting the Hurt Child' - No, I don't have children, but I want to read it anyway!
- 'A Paradise Built in Hell- The Extraordinary Communities that Arise in Disaster' by Rebecca Solnit
- 'Yours, Jack' By C.S. Lewis
- 'Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang' - To complete my series of super-serious Chelsea Handler books
- 'The Shack' by William P Young
- 'Bitter is the New Black: Confessions of a Condescending, Egomaniacal, Self-Centered Smartass, Or, Why You Should Never Carry a Prada Bag to the Unemployment Office' - by Jen Lancaster

Annnnnnd that should do my til my 26th birthday.

PS- I've decided that I know what I want to be when I grow up:

A professional candy bar/junk food buster-upper... I mean, really- I would LOVE to be the one who works for DQ and breaks the Oreos and Heath Bars up to put in the Blizzards... I think I've found my calling!

-EM


Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Apparently I watch a lot of TV...

So, apparently I must watch a lot of TV. I don't think I do, but lately all the stuff I've been talking about or referencing has been related to a show I've seen recently.
Tuesday night was a night of wonderful TV. There was the Biggest Loser where everybody looked crazy different and the transformations were nuts. Even the people I didn't like turned out on this episode to be worth clapping for! It was Great! haha
2 shows really stuck out...
I'm thinking I'll talk just about one of the two tonight... we'll see how that goes.

SO, on gLee...
First off, it was the Lady Gaga episode... after the Madonna episode a few weeks ago, I was anxiously awaiting this masterpiece. While it was less Gagalicious than I was hoping, it was incredibly fun and costumes were impeccable.
So, I watch the show, but not so religiously that I remember every single person's name. I typically refer to them as "dude with mohawk," "pregnant girl," slutty cheerleader," "stupid and innocently slutty cheerleader," "guy in wheelchair," etc. I'm sure anyone who watched (or is my friend on FB) remembers the part that I'm about to talk about...
SO, Kurt is the flamboyantly gay kid on the show, and throughout what I've seen this season, his dad has had some difficulty with this. Obviously, it would be difficult to initially deal with the fact that your son, who you want to take to ballgames, talk about girls with, burp-fart-drink beer together, etc, is gay. Not just gay, but no-questions-about-it-this-kid-is gay, Gay. Well, I've felt bad for Kurt and his dad while watching them deal with this, and I have to give it to his fake-TV dad, he's doing a great job! The past few episodes, though, he has been spending a lot of time doing "man" stuff with Finn. Finn is Dad's GF's son. Finn is also Kurt's current crush. Dad asked GF and Finn to move in with him and Kurt, Kurt was excited, Finn was very unhappy. So at some point, Finn and Kurt were down in their room arguing about "decorations." I say that with "s because the argument was about much more, but that's what the surface argument was about. Finn went on to tell Kurt what he didn't like about the room and referred to something (several things, actually) as "faggie." "Faggie" in itself was something that would have probably just awkwardly slid on by were it not for the fact that Dad had been walking down the stairs at the time and heard it. (Keep in mind, this is the dad that didn't seem to know what to think about his gay son, who had been spending time with Finn doing straight guy stuff, and who wears FLANNEL in almost EVERY episode)
SO, Dad walks in and asked Finn what he said. Finn had a little difficulty explaining, so Dad spelled it out for him. The word "faggie" isn't ok. It's something that people use a lot and completely disregard the meaning behind it or the emotional weight that it carries. Dad goes on to ask if Finn uses the "N" word- No? Because it's disrespectful and hateful? Really? Does Finn call the little differently abled- precious as can be girl on the Cheerios a Retard? No? because that would be mean? Because it would be hateful and shameful to call a girl with downs syndrome a retard? Really? Where is the difference? Obviously, I'm throwing in a little of what I think, but in a nutshell, this is what Dad did- only I'm pretty sure he made Finn feel much much worse about it than I probably would have been able to do on a network TV show.
I just thought this was so great because the past few weeks, we've been watching dad interact with Finn like Finn was his son, and Dad has been kind of ignoring Kurt while doing so. Kurt has been obviously bothered by this. I thought that scene was a great display of this Fake-TV father's love for his son. Although his son is not what he had originally thought, he loved him and stuck up for him. Although his son is the complete opposite of himself and dad isn't able to fully understand how/why/etc, he stepped in and took up for him. Although his son is flamboyantly over-the-top with his sexuality and it makes his father moderately uncomfortable, he still stepped in when someone was saying something to his son that was hurtful and hateful, and made sure that person knew it was wrong. Although he has had difficulty figuring out how to connect with his son, he stepped in- and in that one moment, it was perfect.

Exactly where a daddy is supposed to be when someone is intentionally hurting their child .
Exactly what a daddy is supposed to do when something like this happens.

It was just a show, I understand, but it was a great illustration of a Father's love for His child. His child.
A child He loves no matter...
who he is,
where he is,
what he is.

You just don't see stuff like that on TV every day...
especially not surrounded by the wonderful music of Gagaloo :)

Next TV show: Parenthood.
This is a GOOD ONE! lol