It's OK!

It's OK...

...that I possibly watch Rangers Spring Training games on my phone while I'm at work. Unless my boss is reading this- then that is NOT OK and I would NEVER do that. (Please- she knows me too well, she knows it's probably true). Lol. I'm the queen of multi-tasking.

...that Tony Romo is leaving the Cowboys. Okay, that is NOT OKAY. I refuse to listen to Romo haters, I'm an unapologetic Romo supporter. Granted, we've had issues in our relationship, but all relationships hit rocky moments. Lol. I wish him the best of luck in whatever he does next (whether it be that he plays for another team or he retires).

...that I've found yet another silly teen drama to watch- Riverdale (stop judging me). Yes, it's cheesy, but I enjoy mindless TV. Are you officially old when heartthrobs from your childhood are playing parents of teenagers? Both Luke Perry and Skeet Ulrich are in this show. I must say Skeet has improved with age. Hmm....

...that I haven't read in the past two weeks. I did so good a few weeks ago and read like three books in a week. I am going to make time this weekend and read at least one book. Maybe two. I don't want to get behind on my reading challenge.

...to take time off work but not tell anyone because you specifically took the time off to sit at home and do nothing.

XOXO!!

What I'm Loving Wednesday!

We are back for another week of What I'm Loving Wednesday!! Hope you will link up with us. :)

You know, when it's after midnight and you haven't slept well all week, it's hard to find a lot of things that you are loving, but I'm gonna do my best. Lol. 

I'm loving...

That I got to see my friend Erick last week. He moved in just down the road from me last month, and we've only managed to see each other twice. That's crazy. We need to get together more. An Erick hug makes any day better.

I'm loving...

That I was able to make it to my great-nephew C's birthday party last weekend. My sweet boy is already SEVEN!! I can't believe it. He's so fun to be around. He's silly, fun, and insanely smart (pretty sure he's smarter than me). Lol. Love this kid so much!

My little Rangers fan!

I'm loving...

That I got to see my niece Miss K last weekend. I haven't seen her in forever. 

I'm loving...

That I have seen my friend Keva TWICE in a MONTH. We sometimes got a year or longer without seeing each other. Hopefully this is starting a new trend of us hanging out more

I'm loving...

That I got my Always Keep Fighting shirt that I ordered from Supernatural's star Jared Padalecki. If you don't know anything about him or this campaign, click here to read about him. I think this campaign is for a very good cause, one that I can relate to. I'll do a post about that eventually, not today though.

I'm loving...

That I got to hang out with some friends at the Rangers game last night (sadly the outcome of the game wasn't that good), but still, it was a fun night at the Ballpark. Professional golfer Jordan Spieth threw out the first pitch. And thanks to my friend Monica, we got a hook up and were able to move down close to the field. :)

I'm loving...

That it's going to be cooler tomorrow (we have been dealing with triple digit temperatures for weeks now.) Anything in the 80s is considered a cold front. In fact, one of our local stations made fun of it. 

I'm loving...

That football season is around the corner. Don't get me wrong, baseball is still my first love, but I do love football as well. Before you ask, I'm am an unapologetic Tony Romo supporter. And yes, my nails are ready for the Cowboys season. :)

Hope everyone is having a great week!

XOXO!

Weekend Recap

Happy Monday!! Hope everyone had a great weekend. I spent Friday night at home watching baseball (I don't want to talk about the outcome of that game), and I also worked on my novel a little (well, short story, I don't think I'm ever gonna have enough written to call it a novel). I'll never complain again when my favorite authors take time getting their next novel published, this is hard to do!

Saturday I pretty much stayed in bed all morning and most of the afternoon watching college football.

For some reason, my TV looks really tiny in this picture. It's a 32 inch flat screen, so it's not that small.

I also had college football discussions via text with my nephew James.

If Baylor running back Lache Seastrunk ends up winning the Heisman, this is proof my nephew and I thought early he was a good candidate! :)

Saturday evening I finally pulled myself out of bed away from the television (for a while at least) and met up with my friend Theresa. We went to college together and hadn't seen each other in about 13 years. She and her husband were in town for the weekend so we met up for dinner. It was great seeing her, we have promised it will not be 13 years between our next visit!

Theresa's dog Tux insisted on being in the center of the picture

After I got home, I spent the rest of Saturday evening watching baseball (again, don't want to talk about the outcome of THAT game either) and college football. I wish the Texas Tech game was available on my cable (and I'm not just saying that because I think the Texas Tech coach is good looking- which he is). That game would have been been better than the UT game or the Notre Dame game (I have two friends who are Notre Dame fans, I seem to keep up with the Irish now when it comes to football. The things I do for my friends). :)

Random picture of Texas Tech football coach Kliff Kingsbury. See, told you he was good looking. Wreck 'em Tech. :)

Sunday morning I was up earlier than usual, so I decided to get a breakfast taquito from Whataburger before church. I wasn't the only one with that idea.

Well worth the wait...

Church went really well on Sunday. I got to sit by a buddy of mine (we both discovered recently that we attended the same church-it's a big church, it's easy to miss people in the crowd). After services, I had a great lunch with one of the lovely ladies from my Bible study before we met up with the rest of our group. It was kind of what I needed after my week last week (I might have mentioned I was feeling blah last week).

I finally went grocery shopping (we won't say how many weeks I've been eating out because I've been to lazy to go to the store). I actually cooked dinner last night. Boom!

I wonder if my back left burner feels like a red-headed stepchild. I never use that burner. Am I the only person who only uses the front right burner?

Last night the Cowboys were the Sunday night game of the week. I know, there are a lot of Cowboys haters out there. I can't help it, I've been a fan too long, why give up now. I'm also an unapologetic Romo supporter. I think he gets the blame for a lot of things that are not his fault (not saying that he doesn't deserve SOME of the blame- he's not perfect). But alas, I can't help but love the man (although he breaks my heart every year). Last night I had a range of emotions during the game (that usually happens when I watch Cowboys football). I didn't get a picture of all of my facial expressions, but here are a few. I was entertaining a friend during the game by texting him. He thought it was funny I was throwing things (my brush possibly went flying across my room at one point. My college roommate will verify I do throw my brush if I get frustrated during sporting events).

The picture to the left is how I looked whenever the Cowboys couldn't take advantage of a Giants turnover. The picture on the right is a happy Cowboys fan after they held on for a 36-31 win.

Yes, I did take a picture of my TV during Romo's postgame interview. Don't judge me.

I'm looking forward to this week. I'm going to three Rangers games (I cannot believe the regular season is just a few weeks from being over- where did the season go?) The Rangers BETTER hold on and make the playoffs this year. I spent an un-godly amount of money on post season tickets (I have no self control) and I want to use them. My folks are also coming to town this weekend- they have never seen my new apartment. I'm actually taking them to the game on Friday night. I bought them new Rangers shirts for their anniversary. I'll post pictures of them next week- they are adorable. :)

How was your weekend?

XOXO!

DID YOU MISS ME??

No need to adjust your computer/phone screens, you are seeing what you think you are seeing- I'm actually posting on my blog! I hate that it's been so long. I've missed y'all. I could bore you with the details to explain my absence, but I won't. The "Cliffs Notes" version is that a lot has been going on at work and in my personal life, so blogging has taken a backseat. I hope to be back to posting on a regular semi-regular basis now!

I thought I would catch y'all up with a Thursday 13:

13 things I've been doing since I last blogged 

(which was in August. Sheesh- where did September go??!)

1. I hung out with Al Capone. Okay, not really (duh-he's dead), but some friends and I went on vacation to Memphis and made a detour through Hot Springs, Arkansas where we visited the Gangster Museum of America. This is really a must see if you visit Hot Springs, it was so interesting! After the tour, we even got to hold a replica of Al Capone's gun (that sucker was heavy, I'm used to a Glock 19 myself). ;)

Chillin' with Al Capone

Say hello to my little friend...

More of our Hot Springs adventures (we got there late in the day so we only had time to tour a bath house and the gangster museum).

2. I FINALLY made it to Graceland!! This was the main reason my friends Aaron, Mel, Monica, and I made the seven hour drive from Dallas to Memphis. It was awesome. The tour was cool. They gave you an audio guide so you could go through at your own pace. If you go visit, I recommend getting there first thing in the morning. We got there at 9am (when it opened) and there were already a lot of people. It just got more crowded as the day went on. You can only tour the first floor (the second floor is roped off out of respect and privacy for the Presley family), but it was still cool. I'm only going to post a few pictures here. I took about 1500 of my whole Memphis weekend trip (sadly, I'm not lying). If I upload any to my blog's Facebook page later on, I'll post a link.

I loved that Elvis had a pink Cadillac. I wonder if he sold Mary Kay?? :)

What can I say? I'm a rebel (and don't follow orders well). :)

3. I stood on the exact spot where Elvis was standing while recording songs. Well, at least according to the guide at Sun Studios. :) It was still cool to think that at one time Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis were all in this exact room just hanging out.

4. I learned how to make a guitar. Well, I took a tour at the Gibson Guitar Factory in Memphis and I know the process they follow. It takes three weeks just to make one guitar. We couldn't take pictures inside on the actual tour, only in the lobby and in the gift shop.

My group looking awesome wearing the safety glasses required for the tour. I really liked that blue guitar so I snapped a picture of it. It cost about six grand so I decided NOT to buy it. :)

5. I met a man named Smokey on Beale St. while in Memphis. He worked at this record store my friends and I went into. He was so sweet and very funny. He hugged all of us and kept calling us "visions of beauty". I think he danced with my friend Mel at one point. He was so honored we wanted to take a picture with him!

6. I successfully completed a project I discovered on Pinterest. My nephew's fiancee is a first year teacher and I made this little "survival kit" for her. To see details on how to make it, click here for the Pinterest link. BTW, I mailed it to her and she loved it. :)

Teacher Survival Kit

7. I thoroughly cleaned my apartment (and got rid of about 7 boxes of clothes and unwanted items). I don't have a before picture (trust me, it was bad), but here is the after picture of my living room (taken from the upstairs loft).

8. I tried not to sink into a deep depression after the Rangers lost the AL West title. They still have a chance of being a wild card team if they can win tomorrow, but honestly, they've been playing like crap. I'm not getting my hopes up too high, BUT REGARDLESS, I still love my guys. Some of them a little more than others. We've been spoiled the past two years. I know they can't make the postseason EVERY year. I'm still a little sad though.

Remembering the good times with the Rangers this year...

9. I went to my nephew Peter's high school football game. It was a great game, they won 55-14. Go Cougars!!

Friday Night Lights.

Aunt Rachel's star athlete!

10. I was super excited to receive gifts from my friend Harrie. She used to live in London and bought me these during the Summer Olympics. I love them!!

11. I went to a Cowboys game at Jonestown (AKA, Cowboys Stadium). The game wasn't that good, but I had fun hanging out with my friends!

A view from our seats and hanging out with my friend Michael before the game!

My buddy Brian flew down from New York for the game (although I think he really flew down here because I lost a bet and owed him a steak dinner- which I paid for). Regardless of the terrible outcome of the game, we still had a good visit- it was fun!

12. I once again attempted to break up with Tony Romo after his less than stellar performance during the Cowboys/Bears game. I will never learn, this man is always going to break my heart. Sports are always going to break my heart. I tried to tell a friend I was giving up on sports, but he assured me it was an empty threat on my part (he was right). Why can't I be a normal girl who drinks wine and gets emotionally involved in shows like The Bachelor and Grey's Anatomy (BTW, no offense to any of you who watch those shows. I have good friends who love them!) :)

My Facebook status after the game. Yes, I am fully aware that I am a nerd. :)

13. I had a little too much fun on PicMonkey.com with their Halloween special effects. Seriously, it's addicting, y'all should check it out! You can upload pictures and create special effects (right now they have a lot of Halloween effects). Check it out here.

Vampire Ranger fans

Poster for the new movie: Night of the Living Dead Ranger Fans

That should catch you up for the most part on what's been going on. I really hope to get back to regular posting. Thank you for all the sweet emails, tweets, and texts asking if I was still doing a blog. It's good to know I was missed. Love y'all!!

XOXO!!

It's OK...

 It's OK...

...to avoid talking about my personal political beliefs. I'm so ready for this stupid election to be over so Facebook and Twitter can return to normal. I respect people for whatever they believe, but I am SO SICK of all the bickering and name calling going on in social media. Please don't tell people they are stupid or incompetent because they believe something different than you. And don't post something political and then act surprised when people disagree with you. Let's just agree to disagree and keep politics out of our friendship (whether it be real or online). You aren't going to change my mind, I'm not going to change yours. Some of my best friends and I disagree on politics, but we don't focus on that, we focus on what we have in common. **stepping off soapbox**

....to start my It's OK post by venting.

...that I skipped my workout last night because I didn't get home until after 8pm and was just too tired.

...to post this link yet again to help out my friend Brian's fundraiser for Make-A-Wish.

...that I think this is a cute picture of Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo and his baby boy, Hawkins.

...that I get bummed when I go shopping and can't find any of the cute outfits I see on Pinterest.

...that I'm kind of excited I won this purse at work. I've been told it's being shipped to me. I have lots of baseball purses, this will be my first football purse.

...that I possibly dance around my apartment whenever I hear this song.

...that even though I don't understand Craig Gentry's nickname of "Kittenface" (someone on Twitter gave it to him), I think he looks adorable in the "Kittenface" T-shirt he got this week.

He's doing the "duck lips" all wrong, I need to show him how to do it! ;)

...that I'm looking forward to the Brad Paisley concert on Saturday night but I'm also prepared to cry when he sings "Waiting on a Woman". (Andy Griffith was in the music video for that song, I know he's going to show it). I need to remember to take tissues.

...that in the past week I've spent an unspeakable amount of money on Rangers playoff tickets (I will hopefully need them) and tickets to a Cowboys game in October. Oh, the things I do for sports. :)

What's OK with you today??

XOXO!