Alabama 2015 (Part I)

I'm loving this going to Alabama every year thing.  But one of these days, it will probably stop happening.  I mean, it's pricey to fly with lots of kids.  And we now have to buy 3 tickets every time.  Plus, it's super-long days.  For us and the kids.  It's like we're carrying a ticking time bomb, ya know?  The kids could explode at any second.

But we haven't reached that point yet.  We went this year, and it rocked.  As always. 

We woke up bright and early (like 4 a.m.) to get going.  Truthfully, our alarms were set for like 4:15 or 4:30.  But Corbin is a good little alarm clock, and he woke us up at 4.  We got him fed and put him back down in our room to sleep while we got the rest of our stuff packed and then got Lynnaea up and fed.  She's such a little trooper.  She was super-excited.  My mom picked us up and dropped us off at the airporter.  It was still dark outside, and Corbin isn't known for doing really well in his car seat when it's dark outside.  But apparently he doesn't mind traveling, as long as he can be held.  Since it's not required that he be in a car seat on the airporter, I just held him.  He even fell asleep for the last half-hour of the ride.  Awesome kid.  Then we got to the airport, and Lynnaea was helping to roll one of our bags (the lightest one).  Such a cutie.  I wish I'd have gotten a picture.  But we were pretty heavy-laden with luggage and such.  We got checked in, got through security, and stopped at the play area in the airport to gather our wits about us, change diapers, use the restroom, and let Lynnaea burn off some energy.  Then we headed to our gate.

This was us right before boarding our first flight in Seattle.  It should speak to how we feared it would go.

But our kids are awesome.  Corbin got fussy once on each flight for maybe 5 minutes.  Then he fell asleep both times.  He enjoyed eating carrots and apples mid-flight from those squeezy pouch things (which are awesome).  Again, I wish I'd have taken pictures.  He was the happiest kid when eating those things.  Julie and Shayla picked us up at the airport.  We got Chick-Fil-A on the way to Julie's house.  Then we visited for a bit and then hit the hay.  The next day was Veterans' Day, so Julie was off work, and she fed the baby.  Look at that cheeser!

It was a relaxing day, and all I had to do was pick up the rental car and go to Costco and get formula.  Lynnaea spent the day chasing Julie's cats and playing with Callen and Shayla.  To say Lynnaea was in heaven is probably an understatement.  And that means we were too...  

Due to a mistake on my part, we didn't end up going to Tuscaloosa on Thursday as originally planned.  Instead we went on Friday.

 So that meant we just drove in and ate lunch with these two fabulous ladies, and then drove right back out, since we had a big shin-dig planned at April's house that evening!

 I love Annie and Virginia.  Love that they always make time to see me when I visit.  They are wonderful.  We ate at The Blue Plate so I could introduce Jeremy to the "Meat and 3" type places in the South.  Yum.  Corbin enjoyed mashed potatoes.

 Then we went to April's and started our plans for our 80s Cartoon party.  It is so cool when you have friends that didn't even know each other, and then, because they move within 10 minutes of each other and you come to visit frequently, they meet and they end up liking each other and now we all hang out!  And do awesome stuff like this.  So...  I was Rainbow Brite.  Corbin was a Ninja Turtle.  Lynnaea was supposed to be my Twink, but she refused to wear the costume and only would don the head-band later.  Julie was Jem and Shayla was Jem's sister Kimber.  April was an 80s gal, while Greg was a Nintendo Controller ;).  Bennett and Callen were Mario and Luigi.  It was so much fun!  We had themed food, of course.  But you'll have to check out my foodie blog for that, if you're interested.

 Here we are again.  All about the 80s.

 Aw, best friends.

 Here is little Twink.  That stinker.  She'd have made a super-cute Twink.  I guess when you're 2, you just don't understand the importance of the 80s and theme parties...

We spent that night at April's house.  Always such a nice time.  We got to hang out with two babies!  Then we headed to Dothan.  We stopped on the way and met up with a friend from Panama.  She was one of my Young Women leaders back in 1997/1998.  And now I look like the older one!  Heavy sigh.  But it was so awesome to see her again. 

 Spit-up on my shirt and everything ;).

We got to Dothan, did some shopping.  Then pretty much settled in.  We went to church on Sunday, but I had assumed all was the same as usual.  Well, you know what they say about assuming...  The times have changed.  You either go at 8:30 or at 10:30.  And we showed up at 9.  Yay us.  So we ended up attending 1st Ward meetings, and I was only able to catch a few people from 2nd Ward.  But still good to see who I was able to see.  And then I still got to hang with Stacy and Becky for a bit on Tuesday, and did Firehouse Subs with Karen on Monday.  All wonderful times!

We met up with Anne at the mall one day in Dothan and Lynnaea rode the carousel.  Twice, much to Jeremy's chagrin.  Anne totally gave Lynnaea the money to ride a second time.  Sweet Anne.  And sweet Lynnaea :). 

I didn't do pictures of it, but I also hung out with Donna a bit at Troy Dothan and helped make a Christmas Book Tree.  And talked mosaics.  Donna can still make me laugh a lot. 

Okay, I think I'm going to split this post in 2.  I wasn't originally planning to, but I have decided I will.  I get too wordy, and then the time flies.  But it's good.  I want to record stuff.  So, I'll post more later (who knows when :/...) about the rest of my awesome Alabama Trip!

It's Gonna Be a Good Good Life

Yeah, I’ve really been slacking on my blog. I know, I know. Life has been busy, and I haven’t had internet access. I pretty much changed my plan of going to my mom’s to do laundry. The reason is because that is a lengthy process. And so the Laundromat is so much faster. Thus, that is my new plan. And I don’t know if they have wi-fi at the Laundromat. I guess I could find out.

And so I have a long list of catch-ups. And several pictures. Some of which are food :). And since it has been so long, I can mostly just give a brief sentence in most cases. So here goes a Nilla month in review.

I dressed up 80s for Halloween. Yes, I went to work in jelly shoes, a jean skirt and jacket, leggings and leg warmers (which was handy, since the weather here has been so cold! We’ve already had ice 3 days that I know of). And I crimped my hair right after I got to work. Two other ladies in my office also dressed up. I work pretty closely with them, since we are all at the front. It was fun to be dressed up and do something different on a work day :).

I have been steadily working on my little house. And I’ve enjoyed plenty of fun little experiences even within this first month. Feel free to peruse the pictures below which will show how much I have done so far. The bedroom remains a work in progress, but it will get there. I don’t have a real bed right now, so I don’t feel especially hurried as far as getting it squared away. Thus it is a last priority. I have quit sleeping on the couch. I did that for 3 weeks, and apparently that’s my body’s limit. I have entered the age of back aches and that was not fun. I felt like a really old lady when I’d sit at work and lean forward to answer the phone and have to cringe from the pain in my lower back. So I inflated my self-inflating air mattress, and it’s been much more tolerable ever since :). Of course, the other sad fact that comes from all this is that I know there was a time when it didn’t matter where I slept – it didn’t affect my back. Consider those kids who fall asleep with their head hanging all over the place in their car seat. They bounce back as though nothing happened. Not so for me. And I guess 31 is when things start really falling apart ;). Because somewhere in the last month, I turned 31. This past year went fast and was jam-packed with life-changing events! Like getting my own place…

…And like Jeremy. Yep, we are still dating :). And here’s a few pictures to show you the smiles :). We’ve been dating 6 months now. Somehow that doesn’t seem possible – in both ways. The fact that it’s been 6 months when it seems to have gone by so fast; and the fact that it’s only been six months when sometimes it seems like we’ve known each other for much longer. It’s been pretty amazing. He’s smart and handy (he replaced my radiator a few weeks back) and wonderful and fun and handsome… :). And I’m sure, if he ever gets around to reading this post, he’ll be most appreciative of that little list of some of his many great qualities :). I’m one blessed gal. And believe it or not, the time is quickly approaching when we will be jetting to Alabama. Let the fun begin! That’s this Friday, by the way. Yep, time flies. And so lately, he and I have enjoyed relaxing quiet evenings at my house where we study scriptures, have Family Home Evening, drink hot chocolate, he hangs my pet net (for my stuffed animals), I unpack and put stuff away, and we cook and eat dinner together. We have cooked and eaten taco salad, home-made pizza (see the mountainous pictures below), and we had our Chinese night with orange chicken, cabbage ramen salad, and Sweet and Spicy green beans. So much fun! Unless you do something dumb. See below. And on other nights, I have cooked and he has joined me. I love it. I love cooking and sharing meals together. It suits me :).

Please note we are not drinking hot chocolate in this particular picture... That's honeycrisp apple cider ;). Warmed up.


Ah, here's the food :).


Chinese food night.

Awesome Nilla moments you can laugh at:

-I learned why the recipe on the Hershey’s Cocoa container for home-made hot chocolate warns Do Not Boil! Here’s what happens if you happen to leave the milk heating on slightly too-high of heat and then walk away from it: at first, nothing. You sit there sipping your hot chocolate and feel pretty cozy and happy. And then Jeremy will look in the bottom of his jack-o-lantern mug (which for some inexplicable reason you couldn’t seem to pass up last year when they were on clearance at World Market – even though you already had a MILLION mugs…) and notice that his hot chocolate is starting to become quite pudding-like in consistency. And you say, “Well mine is okay.” But alas, that is only because you haven’t gotten to the point where yours has cooled enough to do the same thing. And now you see the texture and taste the bitterness of it, and it’s pretty grueling to finish off your mug of cocoa and it’s even worse to think about having to drink the rest of what’s still on the stove tomorrow morning on the way to work… But then you have a sweet Jeremy who “takes one for the team” and finishes off the other stuff so you won’t have to and so it’s not wasted. And you understand now why you don’t let the milk boil. Because that was easily the most disappointing hot chocolate experience of my life. And I had been seriously looking forward to that hot chocolate!

-When you put more coolant into your radiator reservoir, make sure you replace the cap. It’s just a good thing to do this. Otherwise, you’ll be driving around to the Laundromat and to pick up Jeremy and go to the store to do some shopping together and you’ll notice that your car is over-heating and you’ll think, “But I just filled it up this morning! Why is it over-heating!?!” (I used to fill it up daily because the radiator was leaking as well as wherever else along the line it is leaking into the head gasket – yes, I know what this eventually means, but I’ll drive it til it dies – but since Jeremy replaced the radiator, I only refill about once a week… And usually these aren’t the results, since I usually remember to replace the cap…). And then, the next morning, you’ll have had the thought come to your mind that maybe you hadn’t replaced the cap, so you’ll check it and sure enough… Ugh. I hate when I do stupid things. Thankfully there is a car part store a block from my new home…

-When you turn on the wrong burner to heat up the sauce for orange chicken. And the only reason it’s discovered that you turned on the wrong burner is because Jeremy is in charge of browning the chicken and he has his assembly line going with the raw chicken waiting to be floured and egg-dipped on your plastic cutting board which is sitting on the stove. On the burner you turned on. And suddenly you smell the plastic melting (or rather he does, because you’re busy making the dressing for the cabbage salad). And now you’ll always know which side is up on the cutting board, since the other side has the eye of the burner etched forever into it :). Yep, good times! Burning plastic stinks, by the way.

-Always keep the genius statements coming. A la “It’s only fun when it’s fun” (which I’m considering hanging my banner behind my door at the entrance to the house. It sets the mood ;)). My newest one was uttered to Jeremy the night we made taco salad. We had bought two cans of black olives – two different sizes. We decided to only use one can, so Jeremy said, “Do you want to keep the extra can here or do you want me to take it home?” And I said, “It doesn’t matter to me. If it stays here, it will just sit there until it gets used.” Hahahahah. Genius. You can call me Princess Obvious :).

So in all my unpacking (yes, I somehow segued back to my house stuff…), I discovered that I have a million kajillion books. I got rid of about a box full, since I am positive I won’t be reading them anytime soon – if ever. And if I decide I want to, then there’s something called a library. Go figure! I also got rid of about 6 boxes of other stuff. It’s amazing what I’ve been holding onto for so many years. I do have to share this little tidbit. I came across a thing I filled out in 4^th grade called an “interest-alyzer.” That thing was full of little gems, let me tell you! One of the questions was, “If you were involved in a play, what role would you want to have (ie scenery, actor/actress, sewing costumes, etc). My number 1 choice was actor or actress. Hahaha! So not me! I have no desire to be front and center! But that wasn’t the best part. The best part was the question about if I could have a famous person come visit my school, who would my top three choices be? I will give them to you in reverse order, because my number one is the most hysterical ever. Number 3 was Rod Stewart. Okay, laugh, because I am. And yeah, I do think that’s pretty funny. But I can actually excuse it, because during that time in my life, he had a song called Forever Young that I really loved. So, okay, I can logically understand that. My number 2 was Debbie Gibson. Also understandable for me. I still have her CD that came out around that time (her 2^nd one, not her first one – it was one of my first CDs ever). But, drum roll please… My number 1: Jane Fonda. Yes, blink and re-read and it will say what you thought you saw the first time. Jane Fonda!?!? For all my life I cannot imagine why I would list her as someone I would want to have come to my school. Not now as an adult, and especially not then as a 10 year old! That one still baffles me. Oh, I laughed so hard when I saw it. I laughed so hard. I have to share that here, because it will be worth remembering one day, I’m sure. Cracks me up. Oh yeah, so I started this paragraph to say that I bought myself a tall bookshelf. And Jeremy quite kindly put it together for me :). I told you he’s handy and nice. And what would have taken me 3 hours took him less than one. But I put together my lamp that Lea got me as a house-warming gift. It’s a lamp I wanted to buy about a year ago when it was on sale at Target, but they didn’t have the wood one, and I didn’t want the black one. So now I have my functional lamp (it has shelves :)). You can examine all these things in my pictures :). And so Lea and I hung out Tuesday night so I could get the book shelf and she could get the lamp. We went to Target and the mall and we had fun laughing about nothing. I stayed and hung out at her house for a bit afterwards and met their new dog Petie.




See the bedroom still needs the most work. But the stuffed animals are in their spot :).
Well, I’m sure there is more that has happened. But that’s the gist of it. The high-lights. I mean, it’s life. There have been some really yucky days. There have been some really awesome days. And there have been plenty of in-between days. It’s just life. And I’m just rolling with it. Because it’s gonna be a good, good life :). It already is.