One of the hardest and most intimidating thing for me about writing a new blog is trying to decide how to start it. Just staring a blank screen is a very intimidating thing when you are just not sure what to write. But luckily, I do know what to write but was having a hard time starting.
Anyway, I had an amazing weekend. I went to AL and couldn't have had a better time. Friday night Alan and I had a regular date which, believe it or not, is hard for us to do. I can't explain it but when we actually go out a date date, I'm excited. So we spent the evening eating and watching movies. Splendid! Saturday we decided to spend the day on the lake. So about noon he picked me up and we spent the rest of the day at the lake. It was so much fun. I hadn't done that since I was a very little girl. Our family was never ones to go boating or fishing much or spend much time in the water. I wish we had now because it is so much fun. Now, one thing I had never done before was tubing. So Alan stuck me on one and he went very very v-e-r-y slow so I can "learn" how to tube. I don't think there's much learning to be done. You just lay on it and hang on for dear life. It felt like we were going at least 100 mph but I think we were only doing 20, which I learned that that is a very slow speed...like turtle slow. It didn't feel like it for me. So now that I've had my lesson I don't think he'll have mercy on me next time. These people in Alabama are serious about their tubing. It is their main goal so sling people off. I'm not looking forward to that. It was fun though and I can't wait to try it out again. Maybe.
Saturday night my sister (in law) spent some much needed girl time together. We went out for Mexican and then we went to see Letters to Juliet. It was a great movie!! I highly recommend it. It's funny and of course has a respectable amount of romance. It was filmed in Italy and the scenery is gorgeous. It made me want to go to Italy very badly. But anyway, it was nice to sit and talk girl talk and catch up on stuff that we hadn't had the chance to in a long time. I love my sister in law and am so thankful that she was the one chosen for my brother. I couldn't have asked for a better one.
Tonight I'm going out to dinner with a friend and we are going to eat at a restaurant that is participating in the flood relief efforts. Tonight many restaurants are participating in this "Eat Out For Nashville". Area restaurants are giving 50% or 100% of what they make tonight between the hours of 6pm and 10pm. I know it's not much in helping with the relief efforts after the major flood a couple of weeks ago but at least it's something. I'm telling you I'm so proud of the way this city has just pulled together and didn't whine and gripe and begging the government for help. They knew what needed to be done and just did it. Last week, Vince Gill hosted a telethon on a local channel and it raised $1.7 million for an organization right here in middle TN. Last night Brad and Kim Paisley hosted another telethon benefit concert on GAC. Tons of country music artists came out to the Ryman and performed and answered phones. They also raised $1.7 million. I know that Tim McGraw and Faith Hill will be hosting another benefit concert in June. It's just amazing how everyone is pulling together and just raising the money needed and its even more amazing that the money is going to stay right here in middle TN.
Happy Monday!
Monday, May 17, 2010
Friday, May 14, 2010
Country Music Hall of Fame
Last night I accompanied a friend to the Country Music Hall of Fame. She is a member there and was invited to go to an opening of a new exhibit in their museum. It was kind of swanky but yet very laid back. We walked in and they had the lobby area filled with tables and candles and rose petals. It actually looked like a wedding reception. It was gorgeous. They had two tables filled with appetizer type foods and it all was delicious. We ate ourselves silly. The dessert alone was worth going and the roast beef on a skewer. Yum! I'm so hungry now thinking about it.
Anyway, once we got there we found out that there was no formal presentation or program. It was more of eat, walk around the museum as long as you want and eat some more. So that's what we did. LOL! We had our dinner and then we walked the two top floors of the museum. It was pretty cool. I had never been to the Hall of Fame and I didn't know quite what to expect. They had clothing, CMA awards, Grammys, guitars and Elvis' car. That's right. His gold car and his golden piano are both there on display.
The new exhibit had pieces from Keith Urban, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, Jason Aldean, and Zac Brown Band. I really enjoyed, though, seeing the clothing and guitars from the earlier days. It made me very nostalgic. We started on the third floor and worked our way down. That is really the way to see it because the earlier stuff is on the third floor and then it goes chronologically down that way. They have a whole exhibit was Brenda Lee and an entire half floor dedicated to Hank Williams and Hank Williams, Jr. They also had a piece of the Hee Haw set there. It was very interesting.
The Country Music Hall of Fame was damaged by the recent floods in Nashville. Their basement was flooded and the Ford Theater had water in it from the stage up to the third row of seats. The rotundra was closed also. The rotundra is where they have the plagues of the artists who have been inducted in the Hall of Fame so I was a little bummed that we couldn't see but thankful that none of that was destroyed. It was great to hear that none of their artifacts from the different eras of artists were not damaged since all of those are on the second and third floors. After we toured the museum we found the dessert table (I didn't eat any before the tour) and sat and ate and talked. We stayed for a little while longer then headed home. I won't talk about how Tammy almost killed us on Music Row. That's for another day when I blog about bad drivers. LOL! Just kidding, Tammy....not really. I am going to blog about it someday. :)
I'm working a half day today because I'm headed down to T-Town. I wasn't going to leave until around 3pm but Nashville and northern AL are supposed to get storms and I'm not fond of driving in them so I'm leaving a little earlier to avoid the storms. I'm excited and can't wait to see Alan or my brother and his family. It's been two weeks since I've seen Alan and three weeks since I've seen my family. Normally that wouldn't bother me so much but since I'm constantly down there I miss them when I go a few weeks without seeing them. My niece and nephew are growing so fast and they are as cute as can be and quite hilarious. I'm so thankful that I get to see them more so I don't feel as if I'm missing to much of their growing up years.
Have a great weekend!
Anyway, once we got there we found out that there was no formal presentation or program. It was more of eat, walk around the museum as long as you want and eat some more. So that's what we did. LOL! We had our dinner and then we walked the two top floors of the museum. It was pretty cool. I had never been to the Hall of Fame and I didn't know quite what to expect. They had clothing, CMA awards, Grammys, guitars and Elvis' car. That's right. His gold car and his golden piano are both there on display.
The new exhibit had pieces from Keith Urban, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, Jason Aldean, and Zac Brown Band. I really enjoyed, though, seeing the clothing and guitars from the earlier days. It made me very nostalgic. We started on the third floor and worked our way down. That is really the way to see it because the earlier stuff is on the third floor and then it goes chronologically down that way. They have a whole exhibit was Brenda Lee and an entire half floor dedicated to Hank Williams and Hank Williams, Jr. They also had a piece of the Hee Haw set there. It was very interesting.
The Country Music Hall of Fame was damaged by the recent floods in Nashville. Their basement was flooded and the Ford Theater had water in it from the stage up to the third row of seats. The rotundra was closed also. The rotundra is where they have the plagues of the artists who have been inducted in the Hall of Fame so I was a little bummed that we couldn't see but thankful that none of that was destroyed. It was great to hear that none of their artifacts from the different eras of artists were not damaged since all of those are on the second and third floors. After we toured the museum we found the dessert table (I didn't eat any before the tour) and sat and ate and talked. We stayed for a little while longer then headed home. I won't talk about how Tammy almost killed us on Music Row. That's for another day when I blog about bad drivers. LOL! Just kidding, Tammy....not really. I am going to blog about it someday. :)
I'm working a half day today because I'm headed down to T-Town. I wasn't going to leave until around 3pm but Nashville and northern AL are supposed to get storms and I'm not fond of driving in them so I'm leaving a little earlier to avoid the storms. I'm excited and can't wait to see Alan or my brother and his family. It's been two weeks since I've seen Alan and three weeks since I've seen my family. Normally that wouldn't bother me so much but since I'm constantly down there I miss them when I go a few weeks without seeing them. My niece and nephew are growing so fast and they are as cute as can be and quite hilarious. I'm so thankful that I get to see them more so I don't feel as if I'm missing to much of their growing up years.
Have a great weekend!
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Music or No Music?
I love music. I love to sing it and I love to listen to it. I wish I had kept up with piano lessons but I took two years and quit when I was in elementary school. I do regret that decision now. I can play a little bit but I have to really work hard at it. But music has always been a big part of my life. If you know my family at all you know that it is a huge part of our lives. I grew up listening to Southern Gospel. We always went to concerts anytime that they were around. My parents were always a part of some type of singing group while I was growing up. When my brother and I were old enough they started having us sing with them. I was not a good singer when I was younger. Not at all. Ask anyone in my family. I basically had to teach my self how to carry a tune. My family really worked with me as well. My brother, on the other hand, is pitch perfect, the jerk. :) Just kidding. He is pitch perfect though. He's incredibly talented and is now doing a great job as the music director at his church. His wife can also sing. She is a soprano and has a beautiful voice. I love singing with Chad and Jenny. Sometimes when I visit their church the three of us will sing together and there is just something about family harmony. I love it! Before you ask...no, Alan can not sing. Bless his heart, he's tone deaf, I think. Don't worry he knows it and admits it to anyone. He tries though and I think I'm the only one that is blessed to hear him sing when we are jamming in the car to the radio. But I love it. I don't mind listening to his tone deaf self. I just sing along with him.
There's something about music though that just makes things so much better. It speaks to the heart and can minister in ways that otherwise seems impossible. When I found out that I could add a playlist to my blog I was pretty excited and so it's been on there pretty much from the beginning. I try to add a new song every time I post a new blog. I try to find a song that has to do with something that I've written. Sometimes I just add a song that I really enjoy or a new song that I had just heard on the radio or pandora.com (love that website). I recently took the playlist off because I was trying to add a video to a post but ended up just using a link but I kept the playlist off. Sometimes I'll leave it off if I have a video on here so it's not overlapping the sound of the video. I didn't put the playlist back on because I just forgot but it got me thinking...do you all enjoy the music playing or is it too distracting when you read the posts? I would love to know your thoughts.
Happy Wednesday!
PS - Today is Day 1 of my new life change way of eating and I've had so much water today that I literally have been in the ladies room around 10 times. No lie. I'm sure the buildings receptionist thinks I either have a bladder infection, UTI, or am stopped up. (Isn't that a lovely vision?) :)
There's something about music though that just makes things so much better. It speaks to the heart and can minister in ways that otherwise seems impossible. When I found out that I could add a playlist to my blog I was pretty excited and so it's been on there pretty much from the beginning. I try to add a new song every time I post a new blog. I try to find a song that has to do with something that I've written. Sometimes I just add a song that I really enjoy or a new song that I had just heard on the radio or pandora.com (love that website). I recently took the playlist off because I was trying to add a video to a post but ended up just using a link but I kept the playlist off. Sometimes I'll leave it off if I have a video on here so it's not overlapping the sound of the video. I didn't put the playlist back on because I just forgot but it got me thinking...do you all enjoy the music playing or is it too distracting when you read the posts? I would love to know your thoughts.
Happy Wednesday!
PS - Today is Day 1 of my new life change way of eating and I've had so much water today that I literally have been in the ladies room around 10 times. No lie. I'm sure the buildings receptionist thinks I either have a bladder infection, UTI, or am stopped up. (Isn't that a lovely vision?) :)
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Weighty Issues
Bunco was a lot of fun last night. Of course, it helps that I actually won a prize for most wins. I had 13 out of 20 wins. I was rolling double sixes left and right. Naturally, if you don't play Bunco you will have no idea what I'm talking about but I was excited. I've never had such a good night. But it was such a fun night with the girls...well, mainly girls. We had a few who couldn't make it and we couldn't get any subs to take their place so a couple of the girls had their husbands fill in and they were quite hilarious. It definitely made things interesting. Our hostess made the gifts a theme and her prizes were various work out items. I got two hand held 3 lbs weights and a travel mug. Other prizes were yoga mats, an exercise ball, push up bars (I said b-a-r-s. Some girls were a little dyslexic last night if you know what I mean. lol!) and I can't remember what else. But I love it when the gifts are a theme. It's so cute and creative. Anyhoo, it was a lot of fun. I look forward to these groups each month. Again, I suggest if you are looking to start a monthly girls night out...Bunco is a fun and easy way to do it. Don't play it by the instructions...that's boring. If you want to know how we play it drop me a line. I'll explain it. It's so easy.
Speaking of exercise, I have been wanting to start trying to lose some weight for a very long time. I had lost almost 40 lbs a few years ago but I ended up putting it all back on. I have always had trouble with my weight. I do believe its genetic. Looking at back at my family and extended family I can tell that it does run in the family. My brother isn't heavy at all. He's always nice and trim but he also works out and watches what he eats. He's always done that. He's always stayed active in school by playing sports now he goes running everyday and has a home gym in his garage. I think that if he didn't work at it he would be in the same boat as me and my family. My boyfriend is a workout junkie as well. He works out almost everyday and is trying to watch what he eats. He's a big guy. He's around 6'2" and has a little weight on him but not much. I quite honestly don't know how I snagged him looking the way I do but I'm so grateful that he looked past my weight when we met. He's so sweet though. He's all the time telling how beautiful I am. *Swoon*. I'm so in love! :) Anyway...I'm just tired of being big. Now, I'm not the two ton whale or anything like that but I do have a lot more weight than I should and I'm starting to tell how much I actually have physically. Which, I know doesn't make sense but in my head it does. :)
My dad goes and works out in the gym most days and my mom is wanting to lose weight as well. When she got sick last year and couldn't eat she had dropped a gobs of weight but unfortunately once she got her appetite back and her health issues went away he pounds came back on and then some. We both had gone to Weight Watchers and loved it. But this time around we don't really want to go each week to a meeting nor do I really have the money to go each week. It can get expensive. So this past Saturday I made a proposition to my parents and they both agreed. So starting tonight we are starting our own unofficial Weight Watchers meeting. We are going to weigh ourselves each week at the same time on a scale my dad bought today (isn't that funny?) and then probably talk about it for a little while. It's just like they do in the meetings. The only difference here is that we are paying money if we can gain weight. If we maintain from week to week we have to drop 50 cents in the jar. For every pound gained that week we are adding a dollar. Then at the end of the month whomever lost the most pounds gets the money to do with whatever they want. Mom and I realized that money was a huge incentive last time in losing weight and we thought we had to factor that in this time. Money wasn't the only incentive to lose weight but when you weren't losing weight or gaining weight and still paying that money each week it made you feel like a not good steward of your money. So why not change it up a little and actually get that money back...maybe. So we are trying this and seeing how this goes. Of course no one will see how much I weigh nor do I really want to see how much they weigh so we are on an honor system there but I don't think I'll have a problem with cheating. :)
So do any of you have weighty issues or had them in the past? What worked well for you in losing weight and keeping it off? I would love to hear ideas and plans that worked.
Happy Tuesday!
Speaking of exercise, I have been wanting to start trying to lose some weight for a very long time. I had lost almost 40 lbs a few years ago but I ended up putting it all back on. I have always had trouble with my weight. I do believe its genetic. Looking at back at my family and extended family I can tell that it does run in the family. My brother isn't heavy at all. He's always nice and trim but he also works out and watches what he eats. He's always done that. He's always stayed active in school by playing sports now he goes running everyday and has a home gym in his garage. I think that if he didn't work at it he would be in the same boat as me and my family. My boyfriend is a workout junkie as well. He works out almost everyday and is trying to watch what he eats. He's a big guy. He's around 6'2" and has a little weight on him but not much. I quite honestly don't know how I snagged him looking the way I do but I'm so grateful that he looked past my weight when we met. He's so sweet though. He's all the time telling how beautiful I am. *Swoon*. I'm so in love! :) Anyway...I'm just tired of being big. Now, I'm not the two ton whale or anything like that but I do have a lot more weight than I should and I'm starting to tell how much I actually have physically. Which, I know doesn't make sense but in my head it does. :)
My dad goes and works out in the gym most days and my mom is wanting to lose weight as well. When she got sick last year and couldn't eat she had dropped a gobs of weight but unfortunately once she got her appetite back and her health issues went away he pounds came back on and then some. We both had gone to Weight Watchers and loved it. But this time around we don't really want to go each week to a meeting nor do I really have the money to go each week. It can get expensive. So this past Saturday I made a proposition to my parents and they both agreed. So starting tonight we are starting our own unofficial Weight Watchers meeting. We are going to weigh ourselves each week at the same time on a scale my dad bought today (isn't that funny?) and then probably talk about it for a little while. It's just like they do in the meetings. The only difference here is that we are paying money if we can gain weight. If we maintain from week to week we have to drop 50 cents in the jar. For every pound gained that week we are adding a dollar. Then at the end of the month whomever lost the most pounds gets the money to do with whatever they want. Mom and I realized that money was a huge incentive last time in losing weight and we thought we had to factor that in this time. Money wasn't the only incentive to lose weight but when you weren't losing weight or gaining weight and still paying that money each week it made you feel like a not good steward of your money. So why not change it up a little and actually get that money back...maybe. So we are trying this and seeing how this goes. Of course no one will see how much I weigh nor do I really want to see how much they weigh so we are on an honor system there but I don't think I'll have a problem with cheating. :)
So do any of you have weighty issues or had them in the past? What worked well for you in losing weight and keeping it off? I would love to hear ideas and plans that worked.
Happy Tuesday!
Monday, May 10, 2010
Shopping, Food, Bunco...Oh MY!
***Disclaimer*** If you are a male reading this (which I doubt there are any), you may want to just come back another day. This is all about shopping, curtains and food. :)
Since today is Monday I've challenged myself to blog every day this week. So we will see how it goes. :) This weekend was a pretty good one. Our family gave mom her Mother's Day gifts early because we all got her gift cards or money. We have a family vacation planned for the end of this month and she wanted to get some new clothes. Since I decided to stay home this weekend we decided it was a weekend of shopping. Saturday Mom and I made a run to Cool Springs to shop, shop, shop. It was a pretty fun day although we both got depressed shopping, but doesn't all women? NO? It's just us? Anyway, she found some cute clothes perfect for the trip.
We then made our way to Bed, Bath, & Beyond so I could finally buy my living room curtains. I have been dreaming of this day for so long and it finally happened. I was stoked. It took me forever to pick the perfect ones. Why does there have to be so many choices? But boy, does it get expensive. You have to buy the curtains (which only come one panel per package), the valances, the rods, etc. It all adds up. But it was so worth it. My parents came over Sunday afternoon and we hung them up and they look so good. I can't believe how different a place can look just by adding curtains. It changed the look of my house and it feels so much cozier and homey. I'm very pleased.
Saturday while shopping I was telling mom how I made some homemade pizza the other night. I usually make a BBQ Chicken Pizza but decided to make something different. Mom decided she wanted me to make a pizza that night so we made a quick trip to the store and got the ingredients. I usually buy the pizza dough in a can (who has time to make their own dough...not me). I usually get the classic kind of crust, you know the hand tossed or deep dish. But mom wanted to try the thin crust. It was so good. I'll never buy another type of crust. It was the perfect amount of dough. The pizza turned out great. It was just you're regular pepperoni, mushroom, bacon bits and black olives. It was very tasty. That's what I love about homemade pizzas. You can put whatever you want on it and it usually costs less than one you get from a chain store.
It was a nice weekend and it was fun spending some time with my mom. On our way to the mall Saturday we passed some damage left over from the flood and we both commented how we felt guilty not spending that day helping someone or anyone with the flood clean up. We know of some FWBs that have lost their homes or received severe damage. My heart goes out to all them and I pray for them daily. Luckily our church is just about cleaned up. They have all the carpeting and glue up from the floor and they are planning on picking the new flooring tonight. We are hoping it will all be done before next Sunday. We realize how very lucky our church really was. Just a half mile up the road there is a church with a huge whole in it from the floods and another one has lost everything and has been completely gutted. We have offered up our building on Sunday afternoons for one of the churches and I believe they will be taking us up on the offer once our floors are put in.
I've got Bunco tonight. I love my Bunco group and have lots of fun. If you ever are looking for a once a month girls night I do highly suggest you start a Bunco group or some type of game night. It's nice to step away for a couple of hours. A friend of mine and I are planning on starting another type of girls night with some college friends. We probably wont' do Bunco since Bunco is pretty committed type of game. But we do want to start some type of get together each month so if you are interested in this please drop me a line.
Happy Monday!
Since today is Monday I've challenged myself to blog every day this week. So we will see how it goes. :) This weekend was a pretty good one. Our family gave mom her Mother's Day gifts early because we all got her gift cards or money. We have a family vacation planned for the end of this month and she wanted to get some new clothes. Since I decided to stay home this weekend we decided it was a weekend of shopping. Saturday Mom and I made a run to Cool Springs to shop, shop, shop. It was a pretty fun day although we both got depressed shopping, but doesn't all women? NO? It's just us? Anyway, she found some cute clothes perfect for the trip.
We then made our way to Bed, Bath, & Beyond so I could finally buy my living room curtains. I have been dreaming of this day for so long and it finally happened. I was stoked. It took me forever to pick the perfect ones. Why does there have to be so many choices? But boy, does it get expensive. You have to buy the curtains (which only come one panel per package), the valances, the rods, etc. It all adds up. But it was so worth it. My parents came over Sunday afternoon and we hung them up and they look so good. I can't believe how different a place can look just by adding curtains. It changed the look of my house and it feels so much cozier and homey. I'm very pleased.
Saturday while shopping I was telling mom how I made some homemade pizza the other night. I usually make a BBQ Chicken Pizza but decided to make something different. Mom decided she wanted me to make a pizza that night so we made a quick trip to the store and got the ingredients. I usually buy the pizza dough in a can (who has time to make their own dough...not me). I usually get the classic kind of crust, you know the hand tossed or deep dish. But mom wanted to try the thin crust. It was so good. I'll never buy another type of crust. It was the perfect amount of dough. The pizza turned out great. It was just you're regular pepperoni, mushroom, bacon bits and black olives. It was very tasty. That's what I love about homemade pizzas. You can put whatever you want on it and it usually costs less than one you get from a chain store.
It was a nice weekend and it was fun spending some time with my mom. On our way to the mall Saturday we passed some damage left over from the flood and we both commented how we felt guilty not spending that day helping someone or anyone with the flood clean up. We know of some FWBs that have lost their homes or received severe damage. My heart goes out to all them and I pray for them daily. Luckily our church is just about cleaned up. They have all the carpeting and glue up from the floor and they are planning on picking the new flooring tonight. We are hoping it will all be done before next Sunday. We realize how very lucky our church really was. Just a half mile up the road there is a church with a huge whole in it from the floods and another one has lost everything and has been completely gutted. We have offered up our building on Sunday afternoons for one of the churches and I believe they will be taking us up on the offer once our floors are put in.
I've got Bunco tonight. I love my Bunco group and have lots of fun. If you ever are looking for a once a month girls night I do highly suggest you start a Bunco group or some type of game night. It's nice to step away for a couple of hours. A friend of mine and I are planning on starting another type of girls night with some college friends. We probably wont' do Bunco since Bunco is pretty committed type of game. But we do want to start some type of get together each month so if you are interested in this please drop me a line.
Happy Monday!
Thursday, May 6, 2010
We Are Nashville
As most of you know Nashville received the biggest flood they had ever seen on May 1, 2010. It really is an undescribable feeling knowing and seeing your town almost completely under water. It's so sad to see places like Opryland Hotel, OpryMills Mall, The Grand Ole Opry House, and Downtown Nashville all completely submerged in water. Several of our FWB churches, including my own church, has been damaged to the rain and floods. Many of our FWB families have had their home completely destroyed or severely damaged. Even though the waters have started to recede the clean up will take months.
There has been huge frustration that the national media outlets like ABC, CBS, and NBC have not given us the attention that we needed or deserved. Thankfully, word is spreading slowly to people outside of Nashville. This video has made its way all through Facebook and gives you a pretty good picture of Nashville and it's spirit right now. (side note: when you see a pile of cars near the beginning of the video...that's a half mile from my church.)The wording in the video was taken from a blog. You can read the entire article here. I do have to say that I'm very proud of my town and the way that everyone has just pitched in and has helped each other. We are Nashville!
There has been huge frustration that the national media outlets like ABC, CBS, and NBC have not given us the attention that we needed or deserved. Thankfully, word is spreading slowly to people outside of Nashville. This video has made its way all through Facebook and gives you a pretty good picture of Nashville and it's spirit right now. (side note: when you see a pile of cars near the beginning of the video...that's a half mile from my church.)The wording in the video was taken from a blog. You can read the entire article here. I do have to say that I'm very proud of my town and the way that everyone has just pitched in and has helped each other. We are Nashville!
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