**Edit** Just had to share....Change.

This is an actual billboard in my town.....seriously. It needs no explanation!

He's balancing on a piece of what??

So, I have no idea why I thought this was so funny. But I guess it is because I like Dirty Dancing. Or maybe it is because it has Channing Tatum. Or maybe because he says he is balancing on shit. Or maybe because nobody puts Baby in the corner.

Enjoy.

Just sayin....

Well, today is Wednesday, it is the middle of the week and by the end of the day, we will be on the down slide to the weekend! Finally! I love my weekends. Anyway, I am getting ahead of myself, because it is still only Wednesday. So, last night, after I got home, I decided that I was in a cleaning mood. I got home and opened the porch door so I could enjoy the rain and so Scout would go out and lay on the porch so he wouldn't be scared when I got out the vacuum. I didn't waste any time getting down to business (I had to be done with everything by 9 so I could watch the "After the Final Rose").I even looked like a 50's housewife with the apron and pearls cooking and cleaning, only 1. this isn't the 50's and 2. I am not a wife. I did the mountain of dishes, cleaned the kitchen, living room, bathroom and my bedroom (I even put on fresh, clean sheets). I had the movie "The Breakup" playing in the background, and I forgot that I actually kinda liked this movie. Oh well, I am getting off track. I meant to tell you that after I did the dishes, I cooked myself a healthy dinner: grilled chicken and hearts of palm salad. I saw this recipe in Rachael Ray and was curious, so I decided to make it, and it was actually good. I added a few of my own twists like instead of lime juice, I used freshly squeezed lemons (only because I didn't have limes) and added a few capers. Then I finished cleaning. Now that I have said all of this, I will tell you the real reason I took to my blog was to complain. I don't like doing dishes without gloves! I don't like my hands to be wrinkly when I am done with the dishes. With that said, I always wear gloves. (I don't have a dishwasher, so everything is done by hand) Now, I am a petite girl and I have small hands. I KNOW I am not the only one with small hands. But when I buy gloves at the store to do dishes I have to find the ones that come in S, M or L because they are the only ones that come close to fitting. They should make them in super small for people like me so my hands won't still get wet because my gloves are too big! Also, having small hands and having to squeeze a bottle of dish soap is difficult. Last time I went shopping I got "green" soap. The only one they had was in a cool bottle however, it lost all of its "cool points" last night when I had to literally use two hand because the bottle was too big for just one!

Dear people who make dish washing supplies:
Usually people who wash the dishes are either women and/or kids. It would be nice if you would make things smaller to accommodate these two demographics when thinking about your products. I would buy more gloves and more dish soap if I could actually use them. Sure, your bottle is pretty, and the gloves are pink, but it would be better if the gloves fit properly and the bottle was easier to use. Just sayin.... K? Thanks.

Until this situation is remedied or I grow bigger hands, I guess I will just have to deal. Have a great Wednesday!

P.S. For the After the Final Rose show, I was only a tad disgusted that they could not stop kissing each other and that they couldn't get enough of each other "in the bedroom". This is ABC and Jillian needs a filter. I hate when they bring the rejected people back to "confront" the one that let them go. Seriously, is this needed. The person didn't like you, you were rejected, please move on. There is no explanation besides the fact that you signed up for it, they were dating multiple people and you weren't the one that she/he picked. Sorry to be mean, but I don't want to see that, and there is nothing to say. I felt bad for Kip because he wouldn't stop looking at her ring (he was probably thinking, the one I picked out was much prettier). But like I said, had he not been there, he wouldn't have had to face that. Again, just sayin....

Your name is what???

Well, it is now Tuesday and I didn't update you yesterday on my weekend...I was just really busy yesterday! But before I begin, please pray for baby Stellan (or click on the button on my sidebar)!! If you haven't already heard, he isn't doing very well, and he and his family needs all the prayers they can get.

On to my weekend.....my step-dad has been in Rome (Italy, not Georgia) for work the past week, so my mom has had the house to herself all week. Well, I decided to go to Huntsville and keep her company for the weekend. I went to Huntsville on Friday and we ended up going to my favorite Mexican restaurant, Phil Sandivals, and ate, drank, and laughed our butts off at each other. We decided to then go get one more drink before we went home. We were funny, sitting in the corner of the place people watching and looking at what some of the people were wearing. Wow, some people must not own mirrors, because if I wore some of the things that these people had on, I can't imagine what would happen!

Saturday, we decided to get up and go to a few places we wanted to visit. (But not before a trip to the Farmer's Market, I think I do this every Saturday no matter what city I find myself in) We wanted to go to this place in Mooresville for lunch. It is the cutest place ever, they even rent the whole town out for weddings! It is just so cute and pretty! Well, we actually talked to the man outside (owner) who said they were getting ready for a wedding that night. He introduced himself and I think I choked on my breath and laughed out loud at the poor man. He introduced himself as J.G. His name was the same as J!! First and Last! Then, the man said, well, at least he doesn't live in Nashville, because that is where I work. I said, funny you say that because, he does. It was very funny! Then, we left and drove over to Decatur and found this shop that my mom was looking for to get a new purse (that was the goal of the weekend, and it never happened). We didn't get a purse, but we found a new shop we liked! We also went to this place in Decatur called CF Penn. It is a hamburger place downtown. They have been open for over 80 years, so we assumed they must be good. Well, the burger wasn't what we thought it was going to be and we just couldn't bring ourselves to eat much of them. The onion rings were good, but they didn't have a single napkin in the place! And we basically had grease dripping down our arms, it was an experience. But I must say, not that I have been, once is probably enough for me. We left Decatur and drove back to Huntsville and went to Bridgestreet for some shopping. I got some cute stuff from a new shop called Papaya. Then we went to my grandparents to shuck corn and shell peas for our lunch the next day. We ended the night with people watching, sushi and martinis. And lots of laughter!

Sunday, we did the mountain of laundry I brought home, and cooked for our lunch with my grandparents. On the menu: ham, fried okra, fried green tomatoes, corn, peas, and homemade peanut butter ice cream!! I also got to see my new baby cousin, Abbie and play with Gracie! It was a great Sunday! Then, we picked up my dad from the airport, home from Rome. (But not before murdering a bird with the Tahoe on the way....HAHA) We had such a great weekend with just the two of us! We needed that! Here's to a great week!

Side note: I am very glad that the Bachelorette is finally over. I don't think Jill and Ed will stay together. And I think ABC needs to make the people who leave or get sent home stay gone. Don't come back people, you only make yourself look like an idiot. And the thousands of people who were going to seek you out since you were single, aren't going to anymore! I am anxious to hear about the "After the Final Rose" tonight.

Remembering

Well, this morning, Jessica tagged me in a blog award where you have to name 7 things about yourself, and I can't think of 7 things that I haven't already told you. (I will post and participate when I think of some) Until my brain starts working I will tell you about my day!

It has been a day of remembering. It has been kind of weird.
1. Some guy in my building at work got on the elevator with Abercrombie and Fitch cologne. I really don't like this smell, and it brought back memories from my high school days!
2. There is a cute little man and his grandson that have a hot dog stand at the corner of my street where I work and I decided since I didn't have much time I stop by and get a hot dog (I am not a big fan of hot dogs BTW, I have to be in the mood, but it was close, cheap and I had no other real option). Anyway, it reminded me of living in DC when we would get hot dogs on the weekends when we would go out and about exploring.
3. La Grange by ZZ Top just came on my Pandora mix. When I was in college, my roommate Heather and I had this deer that she bought and we hung on the wall (first in the sorority house, secondly in our apartment) and it was the kind that sang and talked and moved its head. Yeah, it was funny. So, he sang that song and I laughed out loud thinking of all the fun we had with that thing!!
4. The lobby of my building has a funny smell. It is a familiar song and I could never remember what it reminded me of. Well, today, it came to me! It smells like my friend's apartment (on-campus) from college. No matter how much spray, cleaning stuff or anything we used, it always smelled the same, weird. Like the lobby of my building. Great.

Well, it is Friday! I hope you all have a great weekend! I will report back on Monday with some sort of adventure, I am sure!!!

Dr. Seuss was a wise man

Who doesn't recall something Dr. Seuss gave us? You have either learned to read by way of The Cat in the Hat, you know The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, how about red fish and blue fish. Anyone ever had Green Eggs and Ham or received/given Oh the Places You'll go to a recent graduate? Even if you are hidden under a rock and never read a single book, surely you have seen the obnoxious hats that are sold at amusement parks and worn at sporting events in a variety of colors that were inspired by the cat in red and white?

Anyway, with all of that said, one of my favorite things that came from the Dr. was this quote:
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."

That quote is truer than I used to imagine. But lately, I have realized that remembering this, in a variety of situations, can be very beneficial. Now, I have always been a pretty outspoken person, and usually when you asked my opinion, you would get a pretty straightforward answer. But since I have entered the workplace and grown up a little, I think that proves to be truer than ever. No matter if someone agrees with you or not, it is important to let your voice be heard, if someone doesn't want to hear it, they either a. shouldn't have asked or b. don't matter anyway. So, I think this little quote, that has always been one of my favorites, is going to become some sort of a mantra for my day to day. It is Friday eve finally, so here's to holding out for the weekend for one more day!

Inspiration

Have you ever had someone in your life that really made an impact? Well, I have. And the most impact I have had from someone (not related to me) is a teacher I had in high school. Now, my brother and I are 6 years apart, but we graduated from the same high school and had a lot of the same teachers. One teacher that he had that influenced him a lot was Mrs. S. He LOVED her and her classes and all of the fun stuff he got to experience while in her classes. I couldn't wait to get to be a high school senior so I could have her as well.

When I was a senior, I got to be in her class both semesters (we had a 4 period schedule, so classes were different each semester). I had her for AP Government and Economics. We had a very competitive government team that participated in We the People, which is an academic competition based on the US Constitution and court cases that have been decided based on interpretation of the Constitution. I have NEVER learned as much in another class through out every level of education I have had (including undergrad and grad school). I have always used what I have learned in her class. She is a perpetually positive person, and even though we may have given her some trouble when she took us to Washington, DC for a government team competition, there was never a dull moment and I never saw her lose her patience with us. She is the main reason I do what I do today! She got me involved in politics and helped foster my passion for political science, government, and civil service. When I got to college, I changed majors from Communications to Political Science because I couldn't let go of the huge impact her classes had on me. Then, I interned on Capitol Hill just so I could get back to Washington, DC and be right in the middle of everything that I had grown to love. She even let her students have a hands on experience when she ran for office and was elected. Even though it has been over 6 years since I graduated from high school, she still asks about me and remembers exactly what I am doing. (I work in politics now too!) Although the fate of her future lies in the hands of a judge today because she was convicted of using her political connections to obtain a job with Alabama's two-year college system and then rarely showing up for work, her character, to me, has never been compromised. I am forever in debt to her for helping give me the drive to get to where I am today! Thanks Mrs. S! You are one great lady, no matter what anyone says! (Just ask her students, I don't know any of them who would have one bad thing to say!) See for yourself at this! And now, they just handed down her sentence, 30 months in prison, which I disagree with.

867-5309

Well, it is Monday again and I am SO exhausted! I had a very productive weekend though! Here is a quick little recap:
FRIDAY: I traveled to Nashville by way of Huntsville! This is a long trip to make after work!! I left Montgomery at 5:30 and headed to Huntsville to drop Scout (my dog) at his grandparents. He needed a little straightening out because he hasn't been listening very well this week and he always does better after a trip to the grandparents! HAHA I FINALLY made it to Nashville and picked up J. He was out with my brother and Tommy Tutone (you know, The one who sang the song in the 80's, Jenny, who's number is ingrained in our heads: 867-5309), yeah, that one. My brother has become friends with him and they were all out. He approved of my hair (I got 8 inches cut off) and offered me a Cheeto.

SATURDAY: We got up early to get busy. We unloaded box after box and threw away LOTS of stuff. I think guys could live out of boxes if they didn't have someone helping them unpack. J called me a "slave driver" because I had to keep him on track. Who wants to unpack boxes all day when there are other things that can be done you know, like playing with your iphone or the guitar sitting next to you! Anway, we got shelves put up in the studio and some boxes unpacked. We then met my brother at the Farmer's Market for lunch and a little shopping. We got the BEST homemade bread (Zucchini) and some fresh from the farm chocolate milk! It was SO good! Then, we went home to drop off the milk and start the dinner which needed to cook in the crock pot for most of the day (yummy Indian food, did I mention J is a great cook?). Then, we went shopping for a TV and groceries and about 4 hours later, we were back to enjoy said Indian food and a movie on the new TV!

SUNDAY: We finished unpacking boxes!! (There are no more boxes full of stuff!) Then, J cooked lunch (tacos!) while I swept and mopped the floors! I left Nashville about 7 and headed back to Huntsville where I met my mom and brother at Mellow Mushroom for dinner. Then home to bed! I got up this morning about 4 to drive back in order to be at work by 8! Whew, now, I am exhausted, but ended up having a good weekend! I hope yours were all just as great! Here's to another week, I hope it goes smoothly!

Friday!!

Well, I couldn't leave for the weekend without telling everyone to have a great weekend!! I will be traveling to Nashville, so I am sure I will have a fun-filled post for you on Monday! In the meantime, because people are being so negative lately, my challenge (inspired by Jessica) is to tell a pregnant lady she is "cute" instead of "huge" and to thank a soldier for his/her service (or their family, they make sacrifices as well).

Have a happy weekend! Let me know if you complete the challenge!!

Here's mine: Jessica, you are so cute, and I can't wait to meet Baby Martin, and thanks to you and Adam for his service and your sacrifice to our country!

Exhausting day......

.....and it isn't even over yet!

So, today has been one of those days! Sure, I have a job where I have an office, sit at a desk, on my butt all day and don't move. But today has been mentally exhausting! I can't wait to get home and put on some comfy clothes, have a glass of wine and relax (maybe I will try to throw in a workout, but that may be pushing it)!! Wow, just thought I would share, I don't have much else to say. Other than I am SO glad tomorrow is Friday and I get to go to Nashville and see J! It has been a long two weeks, with today making up the longest part of it!! I hope you all have a great night and I will try to wake up happier tomorrow!

Weekend Recap

Well, I was so busy yesterday (Monday) that I didn't get to catch you all up on my weekend. I pretty much assumed it would be pretty uneventful since I was staying home and not traveling, but I actually got a lot done. I did remember to take a few pictures to document so I wouldn't have a boring post if just words and clip art, but real pictures so you can have some accurate visuals.

I guess I will just start from the very beginning. Friday, I was so excited all day that the weekend was actually upon me, that I couldn't contain my excitement and went to bed by 8:30. Oh well, I guess I was getting myself ready to wake up at 6 am for the Farmer's Market, errands and cleaning all before noon on Saturday! Yes, I woke up by 6 Saturday and decided to go ahead and get things done so I wouldn't waste my day out in the heat! I was at the Farmer's Market by 7 am and it was packed! But I got some fresh lemons and onions and tomatoes and a pineapple and even some homemade treats for Scout. I then went to the grocery to get the rest of the things I needed that I couldn't get there. I bought a book so I would have some entertainment for the weekend, and dropped off some new jeans to be hemmed. They were too long and since I can't grow as my brother suggested, I had to get them to cut off about 5 inches!!

After I was back home (yes, before noon) I did the dishes in the sink so I could get ready to cook and cleaned up the kitchen and the rest of the house. Then, I chopped my onions and tomatoes and grilled some steak to chop so I could have the ingredients to have homemade tacos when I wanted. I also bought some chicken to fix with the tacos but I decided to wait until I ran out of the steak to fix the chicken! I decided to take a nap (I did this a few times this weekend) and when I woke up I read a bit. Then it was time for dinner and I ended up making tacos for dinner. I then decided that since it was Saturday night and I was by myself I would make sure that everyone else in the neighborhood knew what a loser I was, and I went for a run. Now, I live in a "trendy" type neighborhood with a few restaurants/bars that have lots of al fresco dining. Of course, my running route takes me right past all of these nice lovely dining patrons (mostly young couples) and made myself look like a loser. Of well, at least I will be the loser who is in shape and not the one with the extra 10 pounds of guacamole dip sitting on my hips. After I was home and showered, the TV miraculously ended up on MTV and I ended up getting stuck on watching the most ridiculous show ever: "Sixteen and Pregnant." I am so ashamed to even admit that I sat there and watched as many episodes as I did (it was a marathon getting ready for the season finale on Thursday). By the time I couldn't take it anymore (or the marathon stopped, I can't remember which) It was after 11 and I decided to go to bed.

Sunday, I got up and was so lazy!! I woke up early, ate fruit and made and iced chai for breakfast, and then went back to sleep! I ate tacos for lunch, and got some supplies for my picture hanging project and then read and fell back to sleep again. By the time I woke up, it was time to start thinking about the awesome dinner I was about to fix and also see what I could do about the said picture hanging experiment. The pictures were hung, and they look great (especially after hanging for a few days). And then I started on my awesome dinner of Chicken Scallopine that I got from Pioneer Woman. After that, I was absolutely exhausted and decided to read a little more and fall asleep. Did I mention that I had to charge my phone almost twice everyday because I was on it so much?? As you can see, it was an eventful weekend even though I was stuck here and didn't get to travel. I guess those are the necessary evils of life. Hope you all have a great week!

It's the Weekend!!!

Happy Friday again! It is time for the weekend to be here already! This week has been very eventful! Maybe one day I can share. :) I am staying home this weekend to get some things done around the house! It needs cleaning and the refrigerator needs to be stocked, so I am (unfortunately) going to be by myself and not going to travel and see J. :(

I am trying to stay kinda healthy this summer, and well, working out isn't really working for me because it is so dang hot! I am trying to do a few ab workouts, but I am just so lazy when it is hot! HA HA Anyway, I have found a few recipes that I am going to try. I am ready for Saturday morning, because that is the best time to go to the Farmer's Market. Granted, my farmer's market isn't as good as the one by J's house, but at least there are still some fresh veggies! I think this weekend I am going to make a lemon and caper pasta dish, some fresh salsa and tacos, and who knows what else will come about. Maybe something will hit me while I am shopping. I will try to take some pictures and let you know how the cooking/cleaning goes! :)

I have also have some cute black and white pictures that I used to have framed and above my bed. (I got the inspiration from Pottery Barn) Well, where I live now, the walls, that were put up in the early 1900's, are plaster with layers and layers of paint (almost like J's wall), and you can't hang things on them very well. So, I am going to see what I can do to get those up. (I may ditch the frames and see about adding a cable system with clips, just so I can get the pictures up and on my empty wall). So, if I have a productive weekend, I will let you know how it goes and try to document it on film. Hope everyone has a great weekend, and I can't wait to hear about them on Monday!

07-08-09

I love sushi! Yesterday, I went to a place called Wild Wasabi for lunch! They have all you can eat sushi lunch buffet, and it was so good! i can't stop thinking about how good their sushi was! I ate SO much sushi, and it left me wanting more! I am blogging about it because I can't stop thinking about it. HAHA

In other news, I have a new baby cousin, Abbie Lynn. She was born yesterday on 07-08-09 (what a cool birthday) and was 6 lbs. 6 oz. 19 inches long (6 on789). She (and mom) is doing well, and her big sister Gracie couldn't be happier! Here is the cutest picture of her that I have seen so far:

30

Well, this post marks my 30th post since I started blogging, so for something fun, I think I will list 30 things you may or may not know about me. Here we go.....

1. I have a dog named Scout. (He is a rescued Lab/Shepherd mix and is the cutest thing EVER!)
2. I could eat dill pickles all of the time. (But they either have to be Mt. Olive or in the bag at a gas station)
3. It is hard to make me laugh. (If you do, you're good)
4. I was born 3 months premature and had to take growth hormone shots until I was 15 years old.
5. I LOVE Christmas! Starting from Thanksgiving, I love the season that Christmas brings starting the Friday after Thanksgiving.
6. My favorite color is Green. (My room at home is lime green and when we painted it, my dad said it glowed like alien's had landed in it.)
7. Speaking of aliens, I am terrified of them!
8. I like living in the city and visiting the country.
9. I could live at the beach.
10. I love snail mail. I like to find any excuse to send a card.
11. I like to sing at the top of my lungs in the car (even though it doesn't sound great).
12. I love to travel and I want to go to Europe.
13. I LOVE to cook.
14. I am a huge football fan. (Roll Tide)
15. I was in a sorority in college (Eta chapter of Alpha Delta Pi)
16. I make my bed everyday, and if I don't, I make it before I get in it.
17. I love pictures.
18. I like reality shows (like The Bachelorette) but my favorite part is talking about the people the next day with co-workers like we know them!
19. I like meeting new people. I think I could talk to anyone.
20. I could eat mustard on everything.
21. I am not a fan of feet.
22. If I could redo my career, I would have chosen something in the medical industry.
23. I love kids.
24. I can't swim.
25. I have some kind of frog item in every room of my house.
26. I like washing dishes by hand.
27. I am infamous for starting gross conversations during mealtime with my family.
28. Sundays are my favorite day of the week.
29. I can be sarcastic and brutally honest.
30. I like to give speeches. (I spoke at my high school graduation, and have always wanted to be on the news.)

Well, those are 30 things you may not have known (or wanted to know) about me. I will see if there is anything else that I can come up with, until then, have a great Tuesday!

Monday

****Update**** Ladies and Gentlemen, the wall that I told you about below has now been repainted in flat paint and looks absolutely fabulous! It looks like it was done by professionals! There are no streaks, no touch-up spots needed. We are proud of ourselves, even if it did take 4,726 coats of paint!

Original Post below:

Well, I hope everyone had a happy 4th of July weekend!! Mine was pretty busy, and I am definitely not excited that Monday is here again! Have I ever mentioned how much I despise Mondays? Well, in case you weren't aware, I am NOT a fan of Mondays! I don't really have much on the "Not Me! Monday" front, but here are a few:

- I did not get so excited about going out of town that I did not pack my bags beginning on Monday for my trip on Thursday! Not me, who would do that?
- I did not paint a wall in J's house only to learn that what we thought would work didn't, and it has to be redone (more on that story below). Never!
- I did not have withdrawals from blogging that whenever something happens now, I think "I could use that for my blog."
- I did not discover a new favorite pair of camo capris and wear them on more than one occasion this weekend because I loved them so much.
- I did not get soaking wet watching fireworks on a friend's porch this weekend. I would have gone inside and watched them from a window. Surely. Not me!
- I did not turn down an invitation to an "office outing" to a movie so I could hurry and get out of town on Thursday. (Said event was eventually canceled because apparently, I was not the only eager one to get out for the long weekend)
- I did not drop my beloved Blackberry this morning and crack the screen! (only slightly) Nope! I would be more careful than that!!


I spent the LONG holiday weekend in Nashville! I got off a little early on Thursday and drove to Huntsville to drop Scout at the grandparents house for the weekend. He stayed there while I went to Nashville to help J get settled into his new place! It is a LONG drive! but, I made it finally and am glad I did! We had a nice dinner that was waiting on me when I got there and started planning our weekend of all the stuff that had to be done!

Friday, we got up and ran some errands, went shopping, and worked on organizing the kitchen. He has a pretty long bar in the kitchen, so we decided that a few place settings would make it cute. So, we had fun playing around and organizing things, and this is what we came up with:
It is hard to find places for things when there is little storage, so we had to get creative with a few things.



















Saturday, we went to the Farmer's Market and had so much fun!! We got so much stuff for just about $20 and it was great! A new fun thing we discovered we really enjoyed! Then, we began painting one wall in the bedroom. We found a great color and painted the wall. We thought we would paint the wall and then go back over a few spots that needed to be touched up after it dried. I won't even go into the ordeal that has come out of the painting project, but let's just say that eggshell finish paint is not conducive to the aforementioned method of painting and retouching. I guess we live and learn huh? Oh well, I guess that just means it is more appreciated when it is finally all said and done. And I guess it gives us something to look back on and laugh one day, and anytime something else is painted in the future, we will probably think back to the painting fiasco that is the gray wall in the bedroom.

Have I mentioned yet that the weather was beautiful all weekend? Well, it was just gorgeous. That is until Saturday when it is time to grill out these wonderful kabobs and watch the fireworks over the downtown skyline. Yep, it decided to rain really hard while the fireworks were being displayed (even though they moved them up an hour hoping to avoid the rain). But, it was still a very fun evening. Nothing a little Arnold Palmer (made with Firefly vodka) and a bunch (and I mean a BUNCH) of kabobs off the grill can't fix!! :)

Then, I had to (sadly) end the weekend and drive back to Huntsville to pick up Scout and then home. :( It was a great weekend, as usual, but the worst part is always seeing it end! Lots of lessons learned and memories made! I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th as well!!

I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free.....

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. (excerpt from The Declaration of Independence)


This weekend is one of my favorite holidays! In college, I worked on Capitol Hill and lived in Washington, DC. There is nothing like celebrating your nation's Independence in your nation's capitol! That is something I will not soon forget! (the picture above is really what things look like). I love anything that celebrates the history of the United States. (Reminder: I am a political science major and I was on a government debate team in high school). I will be out of town (in Nashville) and won't be doing much blogging or Internet using. But I wanted to remind everyone to have a wonderful 4th of July! Be safe if you are traveling and remember those serving our country today (One in particular, Jessica's husband, Adam.) and in the past to get us where we are today. Do you even know what happened to the 56 men that signed the Declaration of Independence?
~Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.
~The vote for the United States to become independent of Great Britain actually occurred on July 2, 1776 by the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Congress formally approved the document, the "Declaration of Independence" on July 4, 1776. This declaration was the final break with Great Britain and expressed the united view of all of the colonies to become independent.

Cookies!!

After finally catching up on my sleep (I think), I feel like I am pretty much back to normal. Maybe even better? (Maybe.) I am going to Nashville for the 4th of July weekend! I spent the weekend cleaning the house and running errands so this week I could focus on packing. Because as every girl knows, when you are leaving town (even if only for 4 days and 3 nights) you have to have clothing options. It will take a while to decide, so I decided to get everything around the house done this weekend (I can't leave town with things out of place, thanks to my mom always being that way) that way I could devote my Monday through Wednesday nights laying out clothes and packing. Well, last night I decided that since I am going to see J, I would make him his favorite cookies, White Chocolate Macadamia Nut. I found a recipe and headed to Publix to get everything I needed. Do you know how long it takes to find Macadamia nuts? I ended up having to call my mom and ask her where to find them (they are by the popcorn/chips, not with the walnuts and slivered almonds where they should be). When I had everything I needed and a few other things of course, I headed home to make the cookies. This took all night because recipes never allow you to make just a few cookies, they always yield about 4 dozen!! When you only bake half a dozen at a time because you don't like your cookies to touch when they spread out, that takes a while!! But, it was fun, and as the ladies at work can attest to, they turned out good! :) Success. I told J I had to make other people try them before I would bring any to him in case they weren't any good. I am not a fan of white chocolate or nuts, so I didn't try them! On a little side note, do you know how many calories and fat are in Macadamia nuts??? A TON!! It is crazy! I am glad that I didn't eat them for fear of getting addicted. A lady I work with said that these cookies are ones that you can't eat just one, and it was good I didn't bring a lot to work. I can't eat them for fear of not being able to eat just one. I do have to wear a bathing suit at some point this summer. HAHA! Anyway, now that the house is clean (except for the dishes from making cookies) and the cookies have been made, I can now finish focusing on the task of packing! It is gonna be a long night! :) Just kidding, I am not that picky! ;) Here is the recipe for the cookies in case someone you know (or you) likes them, because as I have been told, they are pretty darn good!










White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
(Makes approximately 4 dozen)

1 cup butter or margarine (softened)
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups white chocolate morsels
1 cup chopped macadamia nuts (I used 1 1/2 because it was the whole bag)

Preheat oven to 375'

In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat until combined. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add butter mixture, beating until smooth. Stir in white chocolate morsels and nuts.

Drop by rounded teaspoons onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes. remove from pan and cool completely on wire racks. Enjoy!

**I had a picture of everything while I was making them, but it isn't letting me add a picture, so maybe I will add it when it decides to work!**