Wednesday, February 28, 2007

A new minty, tingle to my hair. Can this be?


During my lunch hour yesterday, I got my haircut by my friend Gail. I absolutely love getting my haircut....actually I love having someone else shampoo my hair. It's blissful!
I have naturally red curly hair. My hair is beautiful. I am very blessed to have my hair. God gave me this hair, b/c I do not have the patience to sit in a salon chair to have my hair permed, or colored. Since my hair is curly, I have to put lots of products in my hair. I use mouse and hairspray everyday to manage my wild hair. With the use of all these products, I have product build up in my hair. It's gross. I'm very self-conscious about it. It's embarrassing. Gail suggested Paul Mitchell's Tea Tree shampoo & conditioner. Oh my Goodness, it's fabulous! My head was very tingly this morning. On top of the tingle, my hair looks Great! Thanks Paul Mitchell.......and Praise God for the Tea Tree (wherever you might grow)!

Monday, February 26, 2007

Wild, Fast, Not-Long Enough Weekend.

My weekend was Great with my Family. Here's the run down on the weekend:

Friday Morning, I picked up my Parents & PawPaw at the airport at 9:15a. We went back to my house to drop off their luggage. We went to lunch with my friend, Deb. We picked up my NEW SOFA. HipHipHooray! The sofa is beautiful. It's also a sofa bed! Praise God. We went shopping a little. I purchased 2 new pair of shoes, and my Parents purchased a new bbq grill for me for my birthday! I am so excited about the sofa & grill! I need to learn how grill and then I will invite my friends over for dinner. Please pray I do not blow up my apartment! Friday night, we went over to Karla's house for her famous Chicken & Dumplings. It's my PawPaw's favorite. PawPaw fell in love with Abigail who is almost 15 months. It was so sweet to see PawPaw hold & rub Abigail's back. Since my Dad's birthday is March 5th, I surprised my Dad with a cheese cake (we all sang happy birthday) & a gift card to Bass Pro Shop.

Saturday morning was a lazy one. We woke up a little late. I cooked breakfast & we ate. We all got ready to do a little more shopping. We went to the Bass Pro Shop, and some other stores to shop. Saturday afternoon, the weather was bizarre (even for Texas). Saturday evening we were dressed & ready for my Sweetheart Ball. I had to give a speech to accept my Sweetheart award. I did not know that until it was time to present all the Sweethearts. I was NOT happy about it either. If I would have known ahead of time, I would have at least had something written down to say. And I simply do not like speaking in front of a large crowd I do not know. I said Thanks and I was honored to be my Chapter's Sweetheart. After my short speech, we had a great time dancing. (I promise pictures will be posted within a week!) At the Ball, we had a silent auction and raffle for the Susan G. Komen foundation. My PawPaw kept bidding on a blanket! I kept wondering why was he bidding on this blanket??!!! In the end, he really wanted me to have it. He WON the silent auction! I am now the proud owner of a beautiful blanket! I will cherish the blanket all the days of my life. I am the luckiest Granddaughter in the world. My PawPaw is absolutely adorable!

Sunday morning, we went to church & lunch. Then we went home to pack my family, and then to the airport to drop off my Parents & PawPaw.

It was a great, fun, short trip with my family. Right now, I am a little homesick. I wish I had a longer weekend with my family. I am very blessed to have my family. Praise to my Lord for a family who supports & loves me.

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Thursday 13: My Dogs.

Thursday 13: Dedicated to my Crazy Dogs.

1. Abby is my little escape artist (aka Houdini)

2. Abby is figured out ways to get out of every crate I have purchased (except the plastic one--she just chewed the plastic one). Do you have any ideas on what type of crate I can by now?

3. When Abby was in her plastic crate as a puppy, she would move the plastic crate all over my apartment.

4. Last Night, I came home to Abby out of her crate sitting by the patio door, barking to anything that moved outside & Phoebe was still in the crate (they share a crate). Abby lost a huge clump of fur on the crate.

5. Phoebe follows me from room to room.

6. Abby never eats her food out of her food bowl. She always grabs some food with her mouth and brings it to where I am & then proceeds to eat.

7. Abby & Phoebe hate baths.

8. When the weather is beautiful outside, they are both feisty little girls.

9. They both LOVE cheese.

10. Abby is very clingy, needy. She demands a great deal of attention. She is afraid of strangers especially men. Abby thinks she really a big dog trapped in a little body. She barks at other dogs in the complex b/c she wants all the space to herself.

11. Phoebe is very excitable, loves everyone (especially children), and always has to have a treat immediately after I put her in the crate. At times, Phoebe thinks she a big dog too, but soon realizes she is small when a big dog comes to close.

12. Phoebe does marathon races between 9:30p & 10P every night. Abby tries to keep up with her.

13. Abby will bark at the TV if she hears a dog barking. Phoebe just looks at me (it always looks like she is thinking--Mom, did you just hear that too?)

Monday, February 19, 2007

Exhausted=Birthday Girl

I had a wonderful weekend! I love getting together with friends for dinner especially on my Birthday. I am very blessed to have such wonderful friends in the Dallas Area. New Orleans is my home, but Dallas is where I live. I absolutely loved spending time with new & old friends over the weekend.

On Saturday, I went to spend some time with my friend, Heather, who had been in the hospital. Heather, I had a wonderful time with you & your family. I pray you regain your full strength. You look amazing. Praise God for your continued healing. I am so very blessed to be a part of your life as well as your family (Luke & Jason Rock)! I look forward to you wearing me out when you are 100% again! I love you!

Saturday night, I went to eat dinner with some of my amazing friends. We had a wonderful time. We went to Cozymel's. Yummy Mexican food.

I have a busy week ahead of me. I am busy almost every night this week. My Parents & PawPaw are flying into Dallas for the weekend. I have to find time to do Spring Cleaning before my family comes to visit me! Does anyone want to come help me clean? PLEASE! My Sorority Sweetheart Ball is Saturday. My PawPaw is my date........Isn't that cute?! I will post pictures of the Sweetheart Ball sometime next week! I promise!

Friday, February 16, 2007

Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me..........

My Fabulous Birthday is in 2 days! I am so very excited! I will be celebrating my 4th 29th birthday! Wow, time flies when you are having fun!!! My weekend is going to be so very busy!
Here's the run down on my Birthday weekend:

Tonight, Chili cook off at church. I made white chili for the cook off! It's one of my favorite meals.

Saturday morning, Breakfast with my Sorority Sisters. I want to go to a movie on Saturday afternoon..........Who wants to go with me?
Saturday night, dinner with Friends to celebrate my birthday.

Sunday, is my actually birthday!!! HipHipHooray! I am going to Sunday School, Church, and Lunch at my friend Deb's house (I asked her to make me brisket--YUM). I will probably go to Youth Groups, and then to our evening service. I absolutely love our evening service!

Heavenly Father, I thank you so very much for blessing me with your great gifts this year. I am truly grateful for your love and commitment.

P.S. Our Youth Minister just gave his notice..........if anyone is looking to be a Youth Minister please contact me!

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Foods To Calm You Down Fast

7 Foods that help your Stress-level:
Berries, any berries:
Eat them one by one instead of M&Ms when the pressure's on. For those tough times when tension tightens your jaw, try rolling a frozen berry around in your mouth. And then another, and another. Since the carbs in berries turn to sugar very slowly, you won't have a blood sugar crash. The bonus: They're a good source of vitamin C, which helps fight a jump in the stress hormone cortisol

Guacamole:
If you're craving something creamy, look no further. Avocados are loaded with B vitamins, which stress quickly depletes and which your body needs to maintain nerves and brain cells. Plus their creaminess comes from healthy fat. Scoop up the stuff with whole-grain baked chips-crunching keeps you from gritting your teeth.

Mixed nuts:
Just an ounce will help replace those stress-depleted Bs (walnuts), give you a whopping amount of zinc (Brazil nuts)-it's also drained by high anxiety-and boost your E (almonds), which helps fight cellular damage linked to chronic stress. Buy nuts in the shell and think of it as multi-tasking: With every squeeze of the nutcracker, you're releasing a little bit of tension.

Oranges:
People who take a 1,000 mg of C before giving a speech have lower levels of cortisol and lower blood pressure than those who don't. So lean back, take a deep breath, and concentrate on peeling a large orange. The 5-minute mindfulness break will ease your mind and you'll get a bunch of C as well.

Asparagus:
Each tender stalk is a source of folic acid, a natural mood-lightener. Dip the spears in fat-free yogurt or sour cream for a hit of calcium with each bite.

Chai tea:
A warm drink is a super soother, and curling up with a cup of aromatic decaf chai tea (Tazo makes ready-to-brew bags) can make the whole evil day go away.

Dark chocolate:
Okay, there's nothing in it that relieves stress, but when only chocolate will do, reach for the dark, sultry kind that's at least 70% cocoa. You figure if the antioxidant flavonoids in it are potent enough to fight cancer and heart disease, they've got to be able to temper tension's effects.

Thursday 13: It's all about LOVE

My 13 favorite "Romance" movies:

1. Legends of the Fall

2. Notebook

3. Dangerous Beauty

4. The Family Stone

5. Dirty Dancing

6. Walk the Line

7. Notting Hill

8. Steel Magnolias

9. Pretty in Pink

10. The Family Man

11. Shakespeare in Love

12. The Wedding Planner

13. Sweet Home Alamaba

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

The Power of Loneliness VS Happiness.

Happy Valentine's Day, My Friends.
On this day of Love, it always amazes me the reaction I get from people when I tell them I am Single at 32. At times, I get the "I am so sorry for you" look, or the "poor dear" look, or better yet "the fat girl is not married" look. When I get one of these looks I always think, I am very blessed in my life. However, I do want to get married and have a family. I am happy because I am truly loved by my family, friends, and pets. I have not "settled" on someone. I did not follow my plan and marry someone who was totally wrong for me. I am waiting on God's Perfect Man for me.
I have the Power to let Loneliness take over or for Happiness to grow in my life. The choice is really simple, but Life is complex. At times, I am lonely, extremely lonely. During these times, I struggle with being Single. I pray & ask God to lead me to the man He has for me. I try to focus on the many blessing God has given me. As a child of God, I am very blessed. I have a family who loves & adores me....Friends who keep me around even after they truly know me.......I have a roof over my head, a bed to sleep in, a car to drive, a church I love, food to eat, a job I like, and the greatest gift of all......the love of Jesus Christ.
I have a choice to make. Do I want to be Happy or Sad? Do I want to look at the positive or the negative in life? My choice is Happiness. Thank you, Lord, for all my many blessings.

Monday, February 12, 2007

The Scary Night Time.

On Friday night, I woke up to one of my dogs barking, such a deep bark for her 11 lb body. I could hear her jumping up and down on the sofa or chair.......and her bark processed to get worse, and then my other dog decided to chime in. At this point, I started to panic.....I thought someone was in my apartment. I get out of bed, walk quickly into the hall which leads to the living room or bathroom. Before I make it to the living room, my bladder had a different plan. I had to go to the bathroom so very badly, I thought if someone was in my home trying to do harm to me, he could just kill me on the toilet. Praise God, I did not die on the toilet!

Friday, February 09, 2007

Nyquil is my New Best Friend

My doctor is wonderful. I was diagnosed with a sinus infection today. I was told not go home, take a hot shower, drink hot tea, eat lots of soup, drink lots of fluids, and relax. I told her I had to go to work, but I will do all those things at 4:30pm when I got off work. I have felt bad all week. Nyquil is the only over the counter medicine that helps me sleep. Nyquil has become my new long lost best friend........yep, Ladies, you have been replaced! I slept so hard the last 2 nights that I even had sheet marks on my face.

Have a Blessed Weekend!!!!!

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Thursday 13: New Orleans

Here are 13 reasons why I love New Orleans:

1. The People are incredible.

2. The accent is unique.

3. The food is the best on the planet.....My favorite restaurant, The Gumbo Shop, is located in the heart of the city.

4. It's my heritage, my home, my way of life.

5. My family still lives there.

6. The festivals are so much fun.

7. New Orleans is where I found Jesus.

8. My MawMaw is buried there.

9. The French Quarter is filled LIFE.

10. Beignets & Coffee at Cafe du Monde.

11. It's where I want to me buried.

12. It is under sea-level (this has always fascinated me).

13. MARDI GRAS with a side of KING CAKE--YUM!

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

Migraine's are NEVER fun!

Yesterday morning was not pretty in my house! I woke up with a migraine headache. The pressure & pain were unbearable, but at 6am I told myself I could go to work. So, I took the dogs outside. The headache got worse with the pressure from walking. I still told myself I must go to work. I turned on the water, stepped inside the shower, and instantly the water pressure (which is not very strong) put me over the edge. I became very sick.......washed off, called in sick, took medicine, and slept until about 9am. I called my Karla friend to get some sympathy, rolled over and slept until about 10 am! I still had a headache, but nothing near the pain it was at 6am. I watched a little tv, ate a little breakfast, took a shower, and went to Karla's house. I had a good rest of the day with Karla and her 15 children (okay, 4 children).
When I finally went back to bed, my allergies were in horrible condition. Benadryl is wonderful! It's not easy being sick with no one to take care of you!!! Today my headache is still lingering, but my sinus are the real problem. The pressure in my head is intense today! I am at work today, but all I want to do is go back home and sleep! Duty calls...........so I am at work typing my blog. Go figure!

Friday, February 02, 2007

A White Sheet.

I woke up this morning expecting to simply get out of bed, take out the dogs, and start my normal morning...........Until I walked outside to discover my yard was covered with God's beautiful snow. It was gorgeous. Praise God for a great blessing. I keep hoping it will snow the entire weekend so I can actually build a snowman.......or better yet have a snowball fight! Is anyone up for the challenge?

Thursday, February 01, 2007

Thursday 13: Yummy Foods!

My Thursday's 13 Blog is decided to 13 foods I can not live without. Life is simply too short to constantly be on a "diet". Last year, I lost 64 lbs. This year I have lost 5 so far! I still have a long road ahead of me, but it's these foods below which help me through the bad days:

1. Chocolate Cake with chocolate icing

2. Cappuccino Chunky Chocolate Ice Cream from Braums

3. Grandma Georgia's Banana Pudding

4. Sugar-Free Vanilla Nut Cafe Latte from Starbucks & Diet Dr. Pepper

5. Fried Chicken (Love that Chicken from Popeye's) or any one's fried chicken who can actually cook it

7. Breakfast foods: hard scrambled eggs, biscuits & gravy, grits with butter & cheese, bacon & sausage, pancakes

8. Karla's Chicken & Dumplings & Karen's lasagna

9. Po-boys (shrimp, catfish (blackened), or hot roast beef) OR any type of fried seafood platter

10. Rebecca's meatloaf with the the onions and potatoes in the center

11. French Fries, Pei Wei's Mandarin Kung Pao Chicken with no peanuts, Mr. Wok's Edamame, & Pizza (okay, so I added more on this one) :)

12. My Mom's Gumbo with Potato Salad

13. Tina's turtle brownies


Ladies & Gentlemen, This are the foods that I love! What is your Thursday 13?