What I'm Loving Wednesday!

I'm loving...

That I was able to attend Dallas Fan Days last weekend. I wasn't going to go until they added Bruce Boxleitner to the guest list. When I was six, I would watch Scarecrow and Mrs. King with my sister Mary, so I HAD to meet him. He was so nice. I even got a hug. And yes, I even bought Scarecrow and Mrs. King off of Amazon Prime instant streaming so I could reminisce. :) I also met Ruth Connell from the show Supernatural. Her character Rowena is so horrible but she's really super sweet in person. She's also very soft spoken (her character is very loud). 

Ran into my friend Matt while I was there!

Mandy and I met at my first Comic Con back in 2014- we were so excited that we got to see each other again!

I'm loving...

That I don't have to have shoulder surgery (at least the orthopedic doctor doesn't believe I will have to have it). Last month I started having a pain in my shoulder and when it didn't go away after a few days, my primary doctor recommended that I see an orthopedic surgeon. Two office visits and one $500 MRI later, it was discovered that I have subacromial bursitis. I got two cortisone shots in my shoulder and have been doing at-home physical therapy to see if that fixes the issue. So far the pain has gotten better, so I'm hoping it's a good sign. I have one ugly looking bruise from the shots though (see photo below. If bruises gross you out, keep scrolling). 

Before my MRI. I couldn't wear any clothing with metal on it, so I wore this

This is 10 days after receiving my shots. I assume this is normal?

I'm loving...

That some friends and I got to go to the Lone Survivor Foundation celebrity softball game a few weeks ago. It was a lot of fun and we got to meet several celebrities, including former NFL player Jermichael Finley, former MLB pitcher Roger Clemens, and country super star Toby Keith. Matthew McConaughey was also there, but he didn't come over to take photos or sign autographs (so we tooks pics from afar).

Fun times with friends!

More celebrities who have had the honor of meeting me

I'm loving...

That some of my siblings and I were able to work on our folks house a few weekends ago. Their house is over 100 years old and was in need of some work, including painting the front door and window panes. Guess which youngest, tall sibling got to stand on the ramp railings and paint the window panes? And this is all WITH a shoulder injury. You can't say that I'm not a trooper. Lol.

My sister Martha added this decal to their front door windows, which makes it look so much better!

Window before

Windows after

I'm loving...

That I got to see my BFF Brandy last Saturday. We sadly don't see each other too often (despite living only an hour apart). We spent the morning and early afternoon in downtown historic Grapevine. We just walked around and shopped, it was fun to just hang out together.

I'm loving...

That my church's Trunk or Treat is this Sunday evening. I was nominated again by my class to work on the decorations for our trunk. I chose a Dr. Seuss theme and have been busy the last two weeks trying to finish it all up. Here are some of my craft creations.

I'm loving...

That I got my James Avery Whataburger charm a few weeks ago. It was only available for a limited time and I think I ordered it within the first hour. Lol. 

I'm loving...

That I'm finally trying to cook more at home. Part of my 40 by 40 challenge is to learn one new recipe a month. I guess as long as I learn 12 new recipes by May, that will work. I've decided to catch up on the past months, so I've learned two so far this month (so we will count that as June and July). It's my challenge- I make the rules. :)

Teriyaki stir fry

 I didn't get an after photo of my food, so I took a photo of the seasonings (I took a before photo but I decided y'all probably didn't want to see raw chicken). I tried a new baked chicken recipe. It called for a garlic seasoning but I decided to try four different seasonings out instead: Lawry's Seasoned Salt, lemon and pepper (I forgot to take a photo of the lemon), Sesame ginger teriyaki sauce (THIS STUFF IS AMAZING), and Roasted Peach Whiskey sauce. I didn't like this one as much, I don't think I liked the roasted peach flavor, but it was still okay.

I'm loving...

That I was able to attend the State Fair of Texas before it closed last weekend. I went last Thursday and had a blast meeting up with friends. And I caused WWIII on social media by putting ketchup on my corny dog. Lol. Haters gonna hate.

What are YOU loving today??

XOXO!!

What I'm Loving Wednesday

I'm loving...

That I was able to go to the Cowboys game on Sunday (even though they lost). The ticket was a late birthday gift from my bestie Zach (we usually celebrate my birthday in September at a Cowboys game). :) I've been a Cowboys fan for so long that a loss doesn't even hurt anymore, I'm kind of numb to the pain. Lol.

The bestie- he has put up with me for 24 years

The Cowboys gave out American flags

Obligatory selfie at the Cowboys game

A view from our seats

I'm loving...

That I attended the opening of the exhibit, The Nature of Things: Daphne Prairie, at the Botanical Research Institute of Texas over in Fort Worth. I was able to meet the artist Deborah Paris as well as the gentleman who owns the land in Daphne's Prairie, BF Hicks. The paintings were beautiful. Mr. Hicks even gave me a book that has photos of all the paintings (and the artist signed it for me). 

The artist, Deborah Paris 

Me and Zach with BF Hicks (Mr. Hicks is a good friend of Zach's family)

This was one of my favorite paintings from the exhibit

I'm loving...

That I had a much needed night out with friends on Saturday night. I've had a rough few weeks and it was nice to be out with friends who love me no matter what and who make me laugh. A great time was had by all.

I'm loving...

That I've been dog-sitting for my neighbor's sweet dog the past week. Miss Holly and I have had fun, but I think she's ready for her momma to be back tonight. 

I'm loving...

When I'm able to have dinner with friends I haven't seen in a while. My friend Julie and I have both been busy all summer and finally had dinner together on Friday night!

What are YOU loving today??

What I'm Loving Wednesday!

Sorry for missing last week! Thanks to everyone who had a post ready, regardless! :) Sorry we didn't have a link up for you!

I'm loving...

That I just discovered they have published Richard Castle's books. Richard Castle is the fictional author in the TV show Castle. It seems whenever his character writes a book on the show, they (the people at ABC) actually publish that book. I read the first one, it's pretty good. I'm interested in checking out the others. 

I'm loving...

Going to Rangers games when they actually win (although I still support them when the lose). I went last Saturday with a friend of mine and we saw a great game. This roller coaster season isn't over yet, we shall see if the Rangers make another postseason appearance. Regardless what happens, it has turned out to be a better season than I thought it would be. #NeverEverQuit

I'm loving...

Free catered lunches. My department had Macaroni Grill catered in last week. I'll shamefully admit that this was just my first plate. I went back for seconds.

I'm loving...

That I have a three-day weekend coming up. 

I'm loving...

That the good folks over at Jolly Rancher have finally realized that some people only like the red flavors and now offer packaging with only those flavors.

I'm loving...

That I got some time in at the gun range this week. I haven't been since March, so it was good to get back.

I'm loving...

That I actually posted some book review yesterday! If you missed it, check it out here. 

What are YOU loving this week?

XOXO!

Billy Joel Concert Recap

Last night my friend Monica and I went to see Billy Joel at the American Airlines Center (AAC). It was awesome. I have liked Billy Joel since I was five (thanks to my Bubba) but until last night, I had never seen him live in concert. I was kind of "nerding out" about going to the concert. Lol.

The opening act was a guy named Jamie Cullum. He had a great performance. Honestly- I didn't know who he was before last night, but I like his style of music. Looks like I'll be downloading some new songs for my iPod this weekend!

When Billy Joel finally took the stage, I was beyond excited. It didn't matter that I was up in the nosebleed section (hey- even those tickets were NOT cheap), I was seeing him live and in person. And yes, I was singing along with all the songs (I apologize to those around me who had to hear my terrible, off-key, tone deaf voice). Lol. 

  One thing about going to a Billy Joel concert, you know he's going to play songs you know because he hasn't put out an album in almost 22 years (as he said last night, this has been by his choice). I found his Dallas setlist on this website, so I thought I would post it here so you would know the songs he played.

Yeah, there are some big hits not on there, like "We Didn't Start the Fire" and "Uptown Girl", but that's okay. I was a little sad that he didn't play "Uptown Girl" because Innocent Man is my favorite album (probably because it's the first one I remember listening to with my Bubba). But if he played all his hits, we would have been there all night (I would have been okay with that). He played over three hours as it was. Hey, the man is 65 years old and still had some good moves. Although we were worried he was going to fall and break a hip or something at one point. Lol.
The crowd was pretty much singing along the whole time, but of course, "Piano Man", got the biggest reaction. I like how he let the crowd sing by ourselves at the end of it. :)

After the concert I met up with my good friends Pam and Scott. Before I moved two years ago, I used to live down the street from them. I definitely miss hanging out with them! Scott was my Cowboys game watching buddy!

As we were leaving the AAC, Monica noticed a guy who looked like Babe Laufenberg. It turns out it WAS Babe Laufenberg (if you don't know who he is, click here). He ended up holding open the door for us as we walked out, so I thanked him and we made small talk. He was very nice and took a picture with both of us. Because of course only I would go to a concert and end up taking my picture with a former NFL player. Lol.

Thanks for reading! I hope everyone has a great weekend! :-)
XOXO!

Another 101 in 1001 Update!

I want to thank everyone for their emails, tweets, and texts regarding my last post (click here). I'm doing a little better. I've been working at getting things better for myself (it's hard for me to put myself first, but I'm learning that I have to do that sometime). This has included making some changes in my life, but they are for the best. I really do appreciate all the concern and prayers, they mean the world to me. XOXO.

I decided to give another update to my 101 in 1001 list (since my last update was three months ago).

5. Visit three Presidential Libraries that I've never seen before (1/3)

I can finally add to this goal. I went to Kansas City last week and while I was there I forced bribed begged asked my friend that I went with if he wouldn't mind going to the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library while we were in town. He was very sweet and agreed that we could go. It was very interesting. I learned a lot about Truman, it was fascinating. I'm now in the process of reading a biography about him. 

The biography that I'm currently reading. It's interesting so far! The author was very thorough. 

Just a few pictures I took at the museum (we won't mention how many I took in total- it's a lot)

A replica of what the Oval Office looked like when Truman was president. Truman was still alive when the library was built, so there is a recording of him speaking to you when you enter this room. I thought that was kinda cool.

Outside the museum 

9. Visit five states I've never been to before (5/5)

I'm now done with this one! My trip to Kansas City took me to Missouri, which was my first trip there. I went to Kansas City to see my friend Brian, we went to the Monday Night Football game between the Chiefs and the Patriots (yes, I flew hundreds of miles to see a football game that wasn't even being played by my team, don't judge me). I have to say, I'll be a Cowboys fan until I die, but Chiefs fans were amazing. They were energetic, friendly, and very loud. We stood the entire game. It was awesome.

Our view

A Dolphins fan and a Cowboys fan cheering for the Chiefs

49. Learn to cook ten new meals (2/10)

I tried a recipe for roasted cauliflower that was AMAZING. I never had cauliflower before, I now love it. For those wondering, I basically used the same recipe as the roasted broccoli I posted about in July, I just substituted cauliflower. Oh, and I only cook it about 13 minutes instead of 15. I noticed 15 minutes was a little too long. Click here for the recipe. 

50. Try out ten restaurants that I've never been to before (6/10)

Last Saturday some friends and I went to The Social House in Uptown (making new restaurant number six for my challenge). It was really good and the prices weren't outrageous (I've been to places in Uptown that were a little pricey). The atmosphere was really nice too. And there were TVs showing college football games (which my friend Aaron and I enjoyed). We saw Ole Miss take down Alabama and TCU take down OU. It was awesome. :) Except for the OU fan at the table next to ours, he didn't appreciate me getting really excited when TCU won. :)

Birthday dinner at The Social House for my friend Mel

68. Spend the day at the Dallas Art Museum

I did that this past Saturday (my friends and I did that before we went to dinner).   

I don't get modern art (the top two pictures), but I did like the bottom two pieces, especially the Van Gogh (bottom right). He is my favorite artist. :)

No joke, this was a piece of art at the museum. I was like, this is the part of the horror movie where the museum pieces come to life and kill everyone. We quickly walked away from this exhibit.

76. Make a monetary donation twice a year to a charity (doesn't have to be same charity) (1/6)

I did this back in August towards a friend's charity. I plan to make another donation before the end of the year to another one.

91. Buy myself a nice gift twice a year (1/6)

Last month I finally broke down and bought myself an iPad. I love it. 

I use my iPad a lot for the Kindle app and social media. BUT I also use it to multi-task and watch a football game while I'm recording multiple movies on my DVR. :)

98. Decide about getting an iPad.

I think we just covered that one! :)

That's all for now!! Thanks for keeping up with me! :)
XOXO!!