Augusta, GA

It's been a week since we came back and I am finally finding time to sit down and tell yall all about our trip. We had such a great time! It was so hard coming back last Monday! I wish we could visit every month but that would require lots of money and vacation time; two things we don't have much of.

Breaking the trip up into two parts on the way down was perfect. The traffic was great Tuesday night and the last leg down went by quickly on Wednesday. Auburn refused to lay down because she was so excited! I finally got her to relax on a pillow in my lap but every time we passed a truck she would pop her head back up. Ha! The hotel was a nightmare! She pooped on the bed, growled all night, and escaped out the door the next morning (chasing her down the hall was a circus!). We were exhausted by the time we left.

(Side note: if you need a tattoo removed, go to the Red Roof Inn in VA. The water pressure in the shower will take care of that for you. And any unnecessary skin or body parts!)

I did good and packed everything we needed. Only forgot one thing... shower curtain rings. Easy fix thankfully! Once we got there and unpacked we went over to the old neighborhood to see our neighbors Andrew, Kylee, and Jordan. It was so good seeing them again. (Thanks for letting us hang out at your house all weekend!) Jordan drew us another picture to hang on our fridge. We cherish her art! And yall know where the next stop was... MONTERREY! Oh yeah! I was nervous that it would taste different but it was exactly how I remembered it. DELICIOUS! After that we went and hung out with Ray and his family at Logan's then back to Andrew & Kylee's where the "Buzz" (video trivia game) battle begin. We got to meet our renter and see inside the house. Man was it weird. It was our home but with someone else's stuff in it. Hard to explain but it was strange. By the time we got in bed we were exhausted. And it was like that the rest of the weekend.

Auburn LOVED the big empty house and fenced in backyard. She would run and play, sniff and eat. Ha! I can't wait to get out of the apartment up here and back into a real home for her.

Thursday we got up, ate some Hardee's, and went by and saw my old boss at his new job. It was so great catching up with him and seeing how better our lives were now that we were not working at First Bank. I am so happy I left and am thrilled for all the others who followed suit. It's amazing how much stress weighs you down and how much better you sleep. We did a quick trip to Kroger for supplies then headed to lunch with Ray at Mellow Mushroom. I went just for the Greek Salad and it was amazing! We then went and picked up Andrew and Jordan and headed to meet Robby & Mandy at Academy. We did a little shopping then hit up Pizza Joint for happy hour. I had to leave early to get my hair cut (blog coming soon) and then we went home to get ready for Monterrey (2nd trip).

I invited everyone we knew to eat with us at Monterrey and we had a great time! It was so good seeing our old co-workers and great friends. The time passed too fast and I did not get to visit with everyone. Thanks to everyone who came! It was so good getting to see you and we can't wait to see you again! After dinner we headed back over to Andrew & Kylee's to hang out. The tradition of hanging out outside lasted until the mosquitoes came out. Then we headed inside to play Buzz!

Friday we hung out at the house for a little while and then I met Ashley, Michelle, and Joyce at my favorite burrito place, Barbaritos. (I forgot to take a picture which pisses me off so much!) The spicy chipotle ranch sauce is the BEST! We use to meed there almost every Friday for lunch. It was great bringing the tradition back and catching up with everyone. After that Ray met up with us to do a little shopping and then we headed to Adventure Crossing for some hot, sweaty putt-putt with Andrew, Kylee, & Jordan. We played a (long) quick game then headed into the A/C to win some tickets so Jordan could get a prize. After all our hard work we rewarded ourselves with some Monterrey (yeah I could eat it everyday and never get sick of it)! We picked up Auburn and took her over to Andrew & Kylee's that night so they could see her and Jordan could play with her. Auburn DID NOT like the big doggies or her butt getting sniffed. She sat in Brandon's lap for most of the night. Such a wanker. She needed a dose of "You ain't all that!" Ha!

Saturday I woke up to Nathan cutting grass. Man do I not miss yard work! We got ready and met Brandon & Jessica at Cracker Barrel (no toll or 2 hour drive to get there!!!). The food was amazing like usual and so was the company. I rarely get to talk to Jessica so it was great catching up with her and talking about wedding bells! From the sounds of it we will be visiting Augusta two times for weddings (maybe next year??!! for Robby & Mandy and Jessica & Nick). To kill some time we went to Target and I found the cutest orange and blue dress with an orange cardigan to go over it. I am so excited to wear it in October to the game!

Saturday night was our most anticipated night of the trip, dinner at Sara & Wes's! For those of you that have been with the blog since the beginning you know she is the one who started my blog, has two children (Trenton & Addison), and became my bestest friend. I found out she was pregnant with Addison right before we left so it was my first time meeting her (she is the one I had the Tennessee outfit made for). Wes made us a Low Country Boil which was amazing! I would write on about how great it was seeing them, how it was just like old times and not awkward, and how much I love her but I think Sara did it best in her blog
http://wessaraellis.blogspot.com/2012/07/heffer-and-who-that-other-man-trenton.html

Sunday Mom & Dad came over. I owed Dad a trip to Shane's BBQ (his most favorite place to eat besides Jim Bob's) for Father's Day. We got a chance to visit but poor Doug was on the phone the entire time with our renter and property manager because the air conditioner was messing up again. After our big lunch we headed to the mall to walk it off. I was so excited to find my Auburn coasters I had been looking for.

(Side Note - I saw more Auburn shirts & decals than I did GA or SC. Watch out! We are taking OVER! War Eagle Baby!!!)

They had open house all afternoon so Ray took Auburn (thanks again) and we bee bopped until it was over. Then we went back to the house to start packing and hang out. This gave Auburn and Dad some great play time. Mom is getting much more use to Auburn and is playing with her more. Auburn loves her Grandpa Nathan. I really think she would leave us for him! For dinner we went to T'Bonz and stuffed our faces. It was so good! And then we headed to Mom & Dad's hotel to hang out. It was a great day spent together. Before we went home we stopped by Andrew & Kylee's to say goodbye. Just like last time, Jordan cried and made us feel horrible for leaving.

Monday was a long day full of driving. Auburn did better and slept on her throne of pillows in the backseat. I think we were all exhausted from an eventful weekend. Once I took over driving we hit storm after storm after storm. They were so bad I could barely see the car lights in front of me. After we hit the third storm, Doug made me pull over to switch back and we made it home safely after that. Figures! It was good to be back but we missed  our friends. Going down I felt like we had been on a long vacation and were going back home. Coming back, it was more like going to our temporary home. It does not feel like we were gone for a year! It was more like a month. The best part about the trip was how little "catching up" we did. It was like everything just fell into place like old times. Our normal routine, our normal routes, our normal nights out, and our anything but normal friends. The trip was amazing and we can't wait until the next one. And we are holding everyone to their promise of coming to see us! I will plan your perfect vacation, give you a free place to stay, be your chauffeur, and cook you dinner almost every night. How can you say no to that?!

(please see Facebook for pictures as there are just too many to post in the blog)

Whatcha up to?

So lately all my attention has been on work and packing. Of course I get super busy at work when it gets closer to my vacation time. But that is ok. Keeps me busy and keeps my mind off craving time with friends and Monterey.

About a week ago Doug, his Mom, and I went out for dinner in Columbia. I wanted to swing by Bed Bath, & Beyond while we were over there and boy am I glad we did.I scored two cute chairs for our balcony that were on clearance for $20 each! Plus I had a 20% off 1 item. I love them and they are exactly what we were looking for. Now I have to find a table to match. Can't wait for the weather to cool down so we can enjoy eating dinner out outside.
 

The second thing I bought at BB&B is my new obsession, Stemless wine glasses! Now I do not drink wine but they are perfect for mixed drinks. I got a set of 4 for less than $10! I may have to go get more!
 

Doug is done with the semester. He got two A's for a 4.0 GPA for the semester!! His overall GPA is 3.727! Such a smart boy! He will be registering for Fall classes soon. It will be here before you know it.

And you know what that means! Football time! Doug and I were talking about it last night. I am so excited. I hope to go to the Auburn vs Arkansas game when I go home in October. Keeping fingers crossed! I need a good dose of Orange and Blue (and so does my wardrobe!).

We are almost packed to head to GA. I have bags everywhere! It is driving Doug's OCD crazy! Thank goodness for all those 31 parties I attended. I am putting all those bags to good use. And it makes we want to buy more! Besides the stuff we can't pack until the day we leave, I think I have everything. If not, we will just have to buy it when we get there. Auburn is so wound up and misbehaving. She knows something is going on but has no clue on what. I keep asking here "Are you excited to go visit your family in Georgia? See your Uncle Ray and Uncle Brandon? Cousin Jordan? And Grandpa Nathan & Grandma Debbie?" Her ears perk up, she tilts her head to the side, and she smiles. I think that means yes! Hopefully she will make it in one piece. Today she pooed on the floor after Doug took her out and she refused to go. Then when I got in the shower she stole my panties and chewed holes in them. She knew she was in big trouble then! I put her in timeout on the couch and she stayed. I think she knew if she got down she was going in the crate and she will do anything to not go in there. Mean ole' Mamma!

While I am in Augusta we will have very limited access to the internet so I will probably blog when we get back. So look for tons of fun and exciting stories from Georgia soon!

Yall be good now, ya here! (So excited to be back in the South!!)

Auburn saves the day... Kind of....

So Saturday I was home and Doug was working. I was in the bedroom dusting when I hear auburn growling and barking in the living room. Since this is a normal, everyday thing I didn't think anything of it and told her to hush it. Well she just got louder so I went into the living room to see what she was carrying on about. I found her standing at the edge of the hallway, barking at the door. I turned to look down the hall to see and hear the door knob jiggling. Now here is the moment when the sane person runs into the bedroom, locks the door, and calls the cops. Me, I run down the hallway towards the door with the dust cloth in my hand and press my body up against the door. Cause, you know, my bulked up body is going to keep the door from opening. Yeah... So as I am holding the door shut I look out the peephole and see a group of people standing outside my door. They stand there for a second and then go down the stairs. I waited for a few moments to make sure they were gone and called the office. Turns out, they hired a new girl and she got lost trying to show a family an apartment. I called doug and asked him if he had locked both the door and the dead bolt when he left and he said yes. When I was at the door, I locked the bottom, door lock. So the door did get opened and what I heard was the new girl locking it back. If it was not for Auburn barking, I would have never known they were there, opened the door, and possibly in the apartment. She got rewarded with treats and lots of loving. New house rule, she can bark all she wants. Better to bark at everything than to not bark at something important.

Orioles Game Pictures

Beetch

So it's my birthday, it's 6 pm, and I had not heard from my mom. Now, as you read in my previous blog, Saturday was a rough day for me and I did very good to hold the pieces together and not fall apart. So not getting a happy birthday from my mom, the woman who made this day possible, was weighing heavily on me. She eventually called me that evening but was very short which is not like her.

So yesterday evening she calls me again. She starts the conversation off by saying, "I didn't want to tell you on your birthday because I did not want you to be upset on your birthday..."! Really, mom? Haven't we had this conversation before?

She continues on saying she was trying to help dad out with the grass cutting. She was mowing areas of the lawn with the push mower that dads riding lawn mower could not get to. She ran the mower over an empty ant bed (they just had put ant killer on it and got rid of all the ants inside) and a bunch of bees/wasps/hornets/yellow jackets (she is not sure on which exactly) flew out and attacked her. It's one thing to have a bunch of stings, it's another to be allergic to them.

Dad was at work so she put the lawn equipment back up (crazy, I know!) and headed to her doctors office. They told her she needed an iv and they could not administer it so she had to go to the hospital. They wanted her to go by ambulance but she refused and drove herself. By this time she was broke out all over and swelling. She got there and they started her on the iv. They let her go later that evening but she had to call my dads brother and his wife to come get her because my dad was not able to leave work in time. She is feeling good; tired and sore but good. I told her to hire someone to cut the grass from now on but she will never listen. The hospital prescribed her an epi pen to have in the future. I felt bad for being upset that she had not called me on my birthday but I understand why she didn't. I would rather her focus on her health than wish me a happy birthday!

A blackout birthday

This year my birthday was a blackout… No, not the went out partying, had too much fun and to drink, and blacked out birthday. It was the half a million people without power blackout birthday…

Let’s start at the beginning of my memorable/miserable birthday…

Friday after work Doug, his mom and dad, and I went to the Orioles game. I had bought tickets earlier in the month and we were all super excited. Well, that is until we saw the weather. Game time temperature was 100 degrees! Yep. That’s not even with the heat index! Our seats were under the overhang so we were out of the sun but there was no breeze IN THE WHOLE BALLPARK! My clothes were even sweating. It was miserable. By the time we got inside the ballpark sweat was dripping down my back and face. And of course the place was packed being a night game with fireworks. After the sun set, the temperature fell some but not at our seats. Nope, the overhang trapped the hot air so we sat in a sauna the entire time. I kept looking around for fans but they had none. CRAZY! We tried to make the best of it and his parents were super nice, smiling the whole time. His dad spent most of the game by the concession stands, watching the game on the TVs. They insisted they were okay but I knew they were cussing me. Ha! I remember there being a game, players on the field and all, and I remember eating some bbq sandwich everybody kept talking about but all my attention was focused on how hot I was. They provided cups of ice to everyone but NOTHING could cool you off in that heat but an ice cold pool or an AC.

At the end of the 7^th inning I decided to put everybody out of their misery and head home. I was sad to miss the fireworks but turns out it was a good decision. I might have not even missed them. See, on our way home we noticed lots and lots of lightening. I mean, this lightening was constant and very bright. No thunder so I thought it was heat lightening and didn’t think anything of it. We pull into the parking lot and one by one we watch all the lights go out in the neighborhood. The wind kicked it into high gear, the rain started pouring, and the lightning and thunder began its show. An hour later it was over but the damage was done.

The first night was not bad. This house was cool from the air running all night. We had to shower in the dark at 11 pm after the storm ended because we were stank nasty from the game. We opened the window in the bedroom to let the cool air and breeze from the storm in. Auburn barked and growled at everything that moved all night. We got some sleep but not much. The next morning (my official birth day) I woke up at 5 to check the status of the power. It was then we realized how bad the storm was. My plans of shopping all day for my birthday were screeching to a halt. I went back to sleep while Doug went and got breakfast and helped his dad hook up the generator.  I showered at our house and then trekked over to their house to dry my hair. OMG! It took an hour to blow dry and straighten! I had to keep the blow dryer on low heat, low power. It was miserable. But I was grateful for the power.

So here it is, my birthday, and I had no power, a bad hair day, little sleep, and a few missing pounds from sweating my ass off the night before. All I wanted was Cracker Barrel for lunch and shopping for desert. And you guessed it, Cracker Barrel was closed for no power. Thankfully Chick-Fil-A was open. And everybody else in the city new it! My mom had yet to call me and tell me Happy Birthday and I was eating my grand birthday lunch at a Chick-fil-a. I almost broke down but I refused to let all the bad get to me. Plus I knew it would break Doug’s heart knowing I was not happy on my birthday and there was nothing he could do to make it better. The outlets and mall had full power so we headed to the AC! I spent half my birthday money (Everybody gave me money so I got to splurge!! It was great!!) and a slice of cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory. We got home hoping the power was back on but it wasn’t. So we fed the pooch and headed out for dinner at G&M (yeah the yummy crab cake place)! 

On our way home I checked the automated phone system with the power company for an update. They did a great job of keeping it and their website updated. When we called earlier it said the power was estimated to be on by 5. Then they changed it to 8:30. When I called this time, they gave no time... Umm...? The recording started talking about how it would be even the end of the next week before everyone's power would be restored and how they had hundreds of trucks coming from out of state to help. Umm...? I was fearing for the worst at this point. 

The second night of no AC was miserable. There was no breeze and Auburn was barking at everything. I slept for a few hours on the couch. And at 5 am (two days in a row my birthday weekend? Really?) I awoke to a beep, a click, and then another beep. IT WAS ELECTRICITY!!! I jumped up, ran into the bedroom, and turned the fan on. I shut the windows, cranked the air (it was 85 in house!), and woke up Doug to share the good news. Neither of us could go back to sleep (we were like kids on Christmas morning) so we got up and got to work. The laundry was backed up, the dishes needed to be run, and I wanted to clean the fridge before we put the food back in it (we stashed what we could at his parents since their fridge was hooked up to the generator and had to throw the rest out). Now Doug is off to work, I am finishing laundry, watching Sex & the City (cable & internet is out), pre-typing my blog, and planning my cheesecake desert and nap.  

So the weekend was not a total bust, but nothing like I had imagined. I made Doug promise for an extra good 30^th. You know, MD to Bermuda is a 2 hour flight… J