Wednesday Ramblings...

Wow, I haven't done one of these posts in a long time (I think the last one was in 2013). I love when I can just ramble on and on and my thoughts don't have to make sense (although that is what my blog is the majority of the time). Lol.

First of all, thank you for all the sweet texts and messages about my blog post from yesterday. I really appreciate it. And I promise to work on being better about being honest when I'm "not okay". :) Love you all for being so concerned!

Oh, I can't post today and NOT wish a very happy birthday to The Karate Kid himself, Ralph Macchio. Yes, I'm totally using this as an excuse to post (AGAIN) the picture of me with Ralph a few weeks ago at the Dallas Comic Con. 

So, since I canceled my cable (suck it, Time Warner), I've been watching my shows online. Thanks to two sweet friends, I can stream a lot of my current shows with one's Hulu password and the other's Direct TV password (they are too good to me, I love them both. Okay, I would love them both even WITHOUT the passwords). I should have canceled my cable a long time ago. :) Although I'm behind on most of my shows. I've been spending more time in the evening reading (I know, I owe you more book reviews). I was texting my best friend last night and joked that I needed a day off work just to catch up on shows. That's tempting. :)

I've gotten back into working on craft projects. I really need to organize my craft closet, but that is an all day project, and I just don't have time (meaning I haven't MADE time). I'm working on one project right now, but it's for a friend's birthday, and he claims to read my blog, so I won't post anything about it until after his birthday next weekend. :) I'll try to remember to take pictures of it. :)

I'm really excited that I've blogged three times this week. I might try and blog tomorrow, just to say I blogged FOUR times in one week. That's a record for me (lately at least). 

I've had several people compliment my blog this week and say how much they enjoy my posts (even when it's just pictures). That means so much to me. I know some people have fancy blogs and post important information. It means a lot that people care what weird stuff I ramble on about. Seriously, thank you.

Hang on, the weekend is getting closer!

XOXO!

Weekend Update!

I'm taking a little break from What I'm Loving Wednesday. If you came to link up, please comment below so I can go check out your link! :) Don't worry, it will come back, it's not going away for good! :)

First of all, Happy Back to the Future Day! Even if you have never seen the Back to the Future movies, I'm sure by now you are all aware that today, October 21, 2015, is the future date that Marty goes to in the second film. It's not QUITE what they predicted (still bummed that we don't have flying cars or hoverboards). It's strange to think that after today, all of Back to the Future will have taken place in the past. Yes, I'm a nerd. :)

I started a weekend update post on Monday, and never got around to posting it, so you will get that today!

I had a pretty busy weekend, which started on Thursday afternoon. Some friends and I went to the great State Fair of Texas one more time before it shut down for the year. If you live in Texas and have never been, I highly recommend going at least once. It's worth the trip! I went earlier this month too (you can check that out here).

Yes, this sculpture is made completely of butter

With my friend Allan. We have known each other since elementary school!

The famous Fletcher's corny dogs. Yes, corny dogs. That's how we say it here. Lol

I started a great debate on social media after admitting that I put ketchup on my corny dog. I'm not a fan of mustard. I also put ketchup on my hog dogs (which started an even bigger debate). Lol.

Riding the Texas Star, the largest Ferris Wheel in America

Until next year Big Tex!

Friday and Saturday I attended Dallas Comic Con Fan Days. You might remember I attended "the Con" back in May (where I met Dean Cain). My main reason for going this time was to meet Ralph Macchio and William Zabka (from The Karate Kid). William played Johnny, AKA, "the bad guy" (although after meeting him, I'm gonna be so conflicted the next time I watch the movie, he's really a sweet guy). :)

I ran into some friends I met back in May at Comic Con. My friend April and her son were there, it was so good to see them again. We have kept in touch on Facebook and Instagram since May. Last time her son was dressed in a Superman shirt (he told me he would be my Superman). This time he was dressed as Jimmy Olsen (the photographer from Superman). He's so adorable!

Over the weekend, I also ran into another friend I met at my last Con, Mandy. Her costume was awesome!

My first photo op was with William Zabka. Like I said, he was so sweet. I had asked him on Twitter for a hug, and when I told him that, he gave me a big hug and kissed the side of my head. When I picked up my picture afterward, everyone was joking that it looked like an engagement picture. I swear we didn't dress the same on purpose. Lol. 

My friend Monica and I went by his booth later for autographs. He took a picture with us and even asked for another one with just me. I got another hug (and kiss on my cheek). :)

It looks like Marty Kove is pointing at my butt in the background. Lol.

I loved how he signed my picture! :)

I also had the pleasure of meeting Ralph Macchio. Talk about a childhood dream come true! He was also super nice. When I went to his booth to have the picture of us signed, he told me if he had been a girl, his name would have been Rachel. We talked a little baseball (imagine that) and he said he was cheering for the Rangers a few years ago in the playoffs. 

The Karate Kid himself!

I honestly had only planned on getting pictures with those two, but of course, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to meet some other actors who were there (it's what I do). :)

C. Thomas Howell. No, I did NOT call him Ponyboy

James Marsters (Spike, to all you Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans)

John Rhys-Davies. He's been in so many things, including Indiana Jones, Lord of the Rings, and the TV show Sliders. For the record, he was tickling both of us when we took this picture. He's a flirty old guy.

Shawn and Aaron Ashmore. Both were so sweet. Shawn was Iceman in the X-Men movies and Aaron played Jimmy Olsen in Smallville. The camera that Aaron is wearing was knitted by my friend April. She and her son were only there on Friday, but Aaron wasn't able to attend that day. They gave the camera to Shawn and he promised he would give it to Aaron. I happened to notice that Aaron was wearing the camera at his booth on Saturday. I noticed during our photo op it was by his backpack. I told him my friend was the one who made it and asked if he would wear it for the picture. He said he loved it and to thank my friend.

Michael Rooker (Walking Dead, Guardians of the Galaxy, Days of Thunder). He was funny and very friendly. Maybe a little TOO friendly. He had been playing with my hair before we took the picture.

I finally got to meet some of my Twitter friends while at Comic Con too! :)

John and I have been Twitter friends for several years now

Was so happy to finally meet Devin!

I was also glad I got to see a few of my friends who I don't see all that much these days (life gets to be so busy).

Jonathan and I have been friends since college

My friend John, who happens to be married to my BFF Brandy (I introduced them). :)

Saturday evening I met up with a few members of my Sunday School class for "Supper Club". Since I'm new to the church and the class, I enjoyed getting to know some of my class members. And the food was amazing! I somehow didn't get any pictures of our group though, I was too busy talking and eating (not at the same time though). :)

Sunday I went to church and then spent the afternoon working on crafts for the Trunk or Treat Event my church is hosting next Sunday evening. I suggested a theme for my Sunday School class's "trunk" and that somehow put me in charge of the decorations. I'm having fun with it though, I'll post pictures next week of it! :)

Hope everyone is having a great week!

XOXO!

2014 So Far...

So my plan to blog more in 2014 hasn't worked out so far. I've had a few friends mention to me that I needed to blog, so I decided to do a post of "What I've Been Up To So Far in 2014". Prepare to be amazed (or bored). :)

I went to my second Stars game of the season...

I hosted my first baby shower where the guest of honor wasn't able to be there. My BFF Brandy and her newborn son got very sick the day of the shower, and it was too late to cancel it, so we Skype chatted with her (we had already postponed the shower once since Baby M decided to make an early appearance). I opened the presents while she watched from the hospital. Isn't modern technology wonderful? She and Baby M are thankfully doing much better. I'll hopefully post a picture of Baby M soon, it's late as I'm writing this and I want to get her permission before I post anything (I always get permission from parents before I post pictures of their children on my blog). :)

Holding up the gifts so Brandy could see them via the iPad.

Everyone's favorite principal Mr. Belding replied to me on Twitter. Yes, that Mr. Belding. If you don't know who that is, I feel sorry for you (hint: Saved By the Bell). :)

I went to Austin to meet Baby A...

Baby A is my BFF Mandy's son (yes, I have more than one BFF, don't judge me!) :) Mandy and I have been friends 25 years. It was also her birthday weekend so I got to spend that with her. :)

Went by my old high school and was very upset to see the empty spot where they had cut down MY tree (it was the tree my friends and I would sit under during lunch). Tree killers...

That bare spot is where our tree once stood...

Was sad to see my friend and coworker Yolanda move from Dallas (she got a job out of town). She will be missed around our office!

While watching The Karate Kid (the original one), I sent out the following tweet. It was favorited by William Zabka (who played Johnny in the movie). I know, I have silly giddy moments when stuff like this happens. :)

So, my goal in 2014 is to read 52 books. So far I'm on track and have read four. If I can stop being so lazy, tired, busy, I'll try to do these book reviews on a weekly basis. :) I'll get you caught up with the four I have read so far (I tried to keep the reviews short). Click on the name for links to the books on Amazon.

The Travis Club by Mark Louis Rybczyk 

(5 out of 5 stars)

I seriously couldn't put this book down- in fact, I stayed up until 2am reading because I HAD to see how it ended. Everything in this novel works- the characters, the plot, and the writing style. The author does a great job of making the characters seem real and believable. I love the historical facts that he includes-even readers with no interest in San Antonio will enjoy this part of the story. I hope that the author will write another novel using these characters, I feel they have more stories to tell. Great job!! I read the paperback version, but it's also available in e-reader form.

Love Me To Death by Allison Brennan

(5 out of 5 stars)

Allison Brennan is one of my top five favorite authors. I can't believe it took me SO LONG to start the Lucy Kincaid series. The only good thing is that I don't have to impatiently wait for the next one to come out since I'm so far behind. Although at this rate, I'm sure I'll catch up in no time.

I love the Kincaid sibling novels. We first "met" Lucy in the novel Fear No Evil when she was in high school. Now she is older and determined to apply to the FBI. I don't want to give away too much of the plot so I won't go into a lot of detail. You can read this novel without reading Fear No Evil (although to fully understand Lucy's story, I recommend you read Fear No Evil first). If you don't, Brennan does a great job of recapping the past events to get the reader caught up, so it won't take anything away from the story.

This is a great mystery novel (with a little bit of romance thrown in- although it doesn't distract the reader from the mystery portion of the book).

Love Is Murder by Allison Brennan
(4 out of 5 stars)

This book is more of a novella, and the story takes place between the events of Fear No Evil and Love Me To Death. It was a good story, but I wish it would have had been longer (to give more of a background on some of the characters). But overall, it was a very good read! Oh, and even though it's a prequel, it doesn't HAVE to be read before Love Me To Death, (I read it after the fact and I don't think it took anything away from the story). The only reason it didn't get five stars is because it was too short. :)

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult 
(3 out of 5 stars)

"In nineteen minutes, you can mow the front lawn, color your hair, watch a third of a hockey game. In nineteen minutes, you can bake scones or get a tooth filled by a dentist; you can fold laundry for a family of five....In nineteen minutes, you can stop the world, or you can just jump off it. In nineteen minutes, you can get revenge." This is taken from the description on the back of the book. This was all that I knew going into the book, but it didn't take long before I realized what the story was going to be about. KINDA SPOILER ALERT: Although I don't consider this a spoiler, because the reader will discover pretty quickly that this story is going to revolve around a school shooting. The author goes back and forth in her chapters describing the events leading up to the shooting and the aftermath of the shooting. This is done in such a way that it's not too confusing to the reader. 

I felt the story was well written, especially since it's dealing with a sensitive topic (one that might hit too close to home for some readers). Some of the characters were pretty stereotypical: the jocks who are flat out mean to kids who aren't as popular; the unpopular kid living in the shadow of his older brother, thus making him an outcast and causing him to be bullied, etc. There were also a few characters who I thought were somewhat over-dramatized, but it didn't take away from the story too much. 

The author not only shows the reader how the victims' families handled the tragedy, but she also shows how it affected the family of the shooter. I guess most people don't think about the families of those who cause shootings. We forget that at one time, the shooter had someone who loved and cared for them, and that they too are upset and confused at why the shooting happened. I don't want to talk too much about the story, because I don't want to give anything away (once I start talking, I won't shut up). :) This is a good read- although it does deal with some sensitive topics (other than the shootings), so be prepared. This is the first book by Jodi Picoult that I have read and I plan to read some others.

Okay my lovely friends, there you go, 2014 so far. I know, it doesn't seem like I've been so busy that I can't update my blog. Pure laziness, and the fact that I'm reading more. Hey- that's a good thing, right?!! Hope everyone is doing well! 

XOXO!

I can't believe it...

I did something tonight that I told myself I would never do. It was something that went against everything that I believe in and stand for. It was something that goes against all morals that I have. I....I....I watched Dancing With The Stars. I know, I know, I'm ashamed of myself as well. The ONLY reason I watched it (and when I say watched it, I only watched a very small portion of it) was to see Ralph Macchio. Oh yes, the original Karate Kid himself was on it. **sigh** I must say, the man had some good moves for someone turning 50 this year (really, he's turning 50 this year, I can't believe it myself!) 

 

Not sure how long this will be up on Youtube, but here is his dance:

An ET interview about Dancing With the Stars

 

And of course, how we all remember him (hard to believe he was 23 when he filmed this). Sweep the leg!! ;)

Sorry for the lack of posts, I'm still really busy. Thanks for the sweet emails/tweets saying that y'all miss me. I feel so loved!

XOXO!!

Wednesday Ramblings...

I actually had planned on posting this one yesterday, but by the time I got home, started my laundry, and cooked supper, it was time for LOST (I'm a big fan of the show LOST- only 6 episodes left until the series finale- SO MANY QUESTIONS ARE LEFT UNANSWERED RIGHT NOW!!)

Anyways, back to my scheduled rambling. A friend and I were reminiscing the other day about our childhood and some of our favorite (and not so favorite) memories of the 80s. There are tons of "You Might Be A Child of the 80's" lists floating around the Internet (feel free to Google them if you want). Here are a few that I feel applied to me and I felt the need to share them with you.

How to Know You Are a Child of the 80's:

-You had a crush on one of the New Kids on the Block members.



 


 My favorite one was Joey. He was the youngest of the group.
(L) Me at age 12, wearing my NKOTB shirt (and holding my nephew James).
(R) A grown up Joey McIntyre (age 37 now)

-You owned a doll with 'Xavier Roberts' signed on its butt.

I did own a Cabbage Patch Doll. Her name was Patricia! She looked very similar to this one. I wonder what ever happened to that doll...I bet it would be worth something on Ebay today!

-You know the profound meaning of "Wax on, Wax off."

(L) The Karate Kid (I own the triology on DVD.) The first one is the best. "Sweep the leg Johnny!" I never liked the second one and the third one is almost painful to sit through. But I'll watch it, just to see Ralph. **sigh**

(R) Ralph Macchio all grown up. Oh yah- he'll be FIFTY next year. I'm not lying. He was 24 when he made The Karate Kid. Still looking good Ralph!

- You hold a special place in your heart for Back to the Future.

I remember that it ended with "To Be Continued..." and it took four years for the sequel to come out! And then a year after that, they released the third one. Again, the first one in this trilogy is the best one (in my opinion).

- You wanted to be a Goonie.

"Goonies never say die."

"Do the Truffle Shuffle!"

"Heyyyyy yooooou guuuuyyyys..."

- You've heard of Garbage Pail Kids.









Oh yes, I remember these two in particular making my elementary school days miserable!

- You remember Pong.

My brother and I were just talking about Pong this past weekend. My nephew was playing a video game and we were explaining that when we were younger (yes, we used the dreaded "back when I was your age" phrase), we didn't have fancy video games. We had Pong. And it kept us entertained for hours!

- You own any of the Care Bear Glass collection from Pizza Hut.

I believe we had the whole set (I think there were four). We also had the Flintstone kids and ET set.

- Partying "like it's 1999" seemed SO far away.

I remember thinking I was going to be sooooo old in 1999 (21). Oh, to be 21 again!!

- You ever mismatched your clothes in a vain attempt to emulate Punky Brewster.

Sadly, I don't think I was trying to mismatch my clothes on purpose. I just had no sense of style (I still don't!) ;)
(L) Me in my kindergarten class picture. I obviously dressed myself that morning. Like how I tried to "roll" my pants? And they had an elastic waist band. Awesome!
(R) Punky Brewster-yeah, she looked WAY cooler with her mismatched clothes!

- You remember when it stopped being fashionable to pull your socks up to your knees.

Holy high socks Batman! Sadly, yes, I did go out in public like that. WHAT WAS I THINKING?? Better yet, what were my parents thinking?

- Two words: Lite Brite.

Again, we had hours of fun with a Lite-Brite! I remember making my own designs after I used up all the pattern sheets that were provided.

 - You watched She-Ra and He-Man.

 

"By the power of Grayskull...I have the power!" Am I the only one who remembers they were brother and sister? I was talking to a friend about this just recently and he didn't realize that.

- You watched Kids, Inc. and had a crush on Ryan

Well, DUH, he was the cutest guy on the show! If you watched Kids Inc., you might also remember Fergie from Black Eyed Peas was on it (as Stacey) as well as Jennifer Love Hewitt (as Love). Oh yes, I'm a "well" of useless information!

- You remember when Saturday mornings were NOT all Disney TV shows.







Absolutely! My Saturday mornings consisted of The Incredible Hulk (the real live version, not the cartoon version), Muppet Babies, and Fraggle Rock.

  
- You remember watching the ultimate 80's movie: ET

I remember being 4 years old and crying my eyes out in the theater when I thought ET had died. Oh, and to this day, I still **heart** Henry Thomas! : )


- You had a crush on Zack Morris or A.C. Slater.

Team Zack all the way baby! Last year Mark-Paul Gosselaar went on the Jimmy Fallon Show AS Zack Morris. The man looks just the same! **sigh**

- You read the Baby-Sitters Club and Sweet Valley High books when they first came out.

Oh yes, I read them all. I even started my own "Babysitters Club". I think it's funny that the Babysitter's Club started when I was in fourth grade, and the girls were "so much older" and in the 8th grade. When the series finally ended when I was in college, they were still in the 8th grade. Poor girls, they never got to high school! Oh, and I remember the one book of Sweet Valley High where one of the twins started dating a college guy- and he had a mustache! (I know, it was soooo scandalous!!) : )

 - You walked like an Egyptian.

I remember always hearing this at the roller skating rink and trying to "walk like an Egyptian" while on roller skates. Not something a clumsy person such as myself should try!! :)

- You had a crush on Kirk Cameron.

What do you mean had?? :)

(L) An 80s picture of Kirk Cameron during his Growing Pains days

(R) A picture of me from last May after receiving Kirk Cameron's autograph at a Christian conference. Oh yes, my friend and I sat out in the rain for 8 hours that day. We even braved two possible tornadoes. Fun times!

- You can still sing the Toys-R-Us song.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJJ-ZLdrTwY

It won't let me embed the video here, you have to click on the link to see the video. "I don't wanna grow up, I'm a Toys R Us kid...". If you look at :25 of the video, I think it's the guy that played Urkel!

If you have a favorite memory from the 80s, feel free to leave them in the comments, I know there are a TON more out there!!

Be blessed!!