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Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Baby Mama..... Erin, not me, to be clear

Over Thanksgiving break I took some maternity pictures of BABY MAMA (aka Erin) at the park.  She is so. stinkin. cute. pregnant!  Carey was also there. Ditto on the so stinkin cute for him too (hi Carey). Here are some of my favorites -- the countdown is on for the arrival of Barrett!



This one made their Christmas card this year!!


Beeeaaauuuu-tiful!







small human ... riiiiggghhhttt over here.


love this little booger already
we got a hot one comin in

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Dove

Isn't it shocking how sometimes the most ordinary thing sparks a memory that is so clear, so distinct, so touching, that you feel it with all your senses? This has been happening to me every day for almost 2 months now, and I finally feel an urge to share.

For the past year I've been having trouble with insanely dry skin, so, I have been through every soap on the market trying to get some relief. Two months ago, after a failed attempt at another shower time soap regiment, I picked up a box of Dove soap...and hence my little daily walk down memory lane began...

Every day when I get in the shower I am surrounded by the smell of Dove soap...so simple, so un-newsworthy to most people, but not to me. That smell takes me back to my grandmother's house (Gran), & to so many times with a woman we are sadly losing a little piece of each day to Alzheimer's. My sister & I used to love to spend the night at Gran's house. She had shag carpet that creaked at the seams when you walked on it, a pair of fuzzy house shoes with a slight heel that clonked on the tile she let us wear after our baths, and a vanity dressing area with hundreds of shades of eyeshadows and one of those day/dusk/office lighted make-up mirrors. The bedroom Erin and I slept in had a 4 post bed with a comforter on it that looked like you could fall from 3 stories up and still land softly. She'd always have the heated blanket on when it was cold, and she kept a special night gown for us - an oversized Spud McKenzie dog t-shirt (whatever that was, I guess a big deal in the late 80's) that I was obsessed with wearing. Her bathroom had yellow carpet, an avocado green tub, and yellow and green wallpaper with flowers all over it. We took a bath in there....always with bubbles, and ..... dove soap. Gran always smelled like Dove soap at night, and her hands were so soft I can remember telling her that I hoped my hands felt like hers did when I got really old...lol.

For some reason, all these years later, after a Sunday night Wal-Mart trip for groceries and soap, I have come across such an amazing way to begin/end my day. I think it's a blessing actually, because there's not been a day go by in 2 months that she hasn't crossed my mind. I know one day soon she won't remember me, but it sure is comforting to know there are things I have that help me never forget her house, her touch, her smell, and .... Her.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

OMG I MADE PINTEREST!

Okay, so I accidentally hit a tab I had never explored -- the STATS tab, and it took me to the blogs that have viewed....just saw that someone saw my post on the STORYBOOK BABY SHOWER idea and posted me to pinterest -- so cool that I didn't even have to post myself. LOL.... PS - Erin should get total credit for this pin! :) 

Lately....

Let's seeeeeee.....maybe a little list of what's been going on lately will help:
  1. Work....a lot   and master's classes....a lot
  2. Crafting - you'll see all of it soon!
  3. HOG football!  Although we had a pretty embarrassing loss to LSU, I'm still SO proud of the season and have had a blast watching them this year (still hate the BCS system). 
  4. Hosted BUNCO at my house.  I cooked pizza and wine and my dress up theme was sweatpants and pjs....not exactly winning hostess of the year, but we still had so much fun! 
  5. My 6th graders are doing a "spare change angel tree project" this year....I'll keep you filled in on the details of our quest for spare change and great presents for a child in need.
  6. Hunting/Fishing season are upon us yet again...Nate killed a deer, so my freezer cannot hold anything other than deer meat and crappie at the moment.
  7. Teacher holiday breaks are AWESOME! I have never had breaks like this....I LOVED my time off during Thanksgiving (a full week), and Christmas 2 week break is around the corner.  What a perk! 
We went to see our  friends John and Liz for the Arkansas vs. Tennessee game, and had a wonderful weekend trip.  It made me really miss Fayetteville, and our amazing friends so much! Friday night we went to the Promenade in Rogers, and I spent a chunk of our life savings in Sephora...I mean, what is a girl supposed to do? Suffer through life without the new Urban Decay Naked eyeshadow pallett? I think not.  Tailgaiting Saturday was a blast -- thanks Abra and Zach for your AWESOME tailgaiting spot!  To top it off, Arkansas won!

miss this 'ole lady!

she likes to kiss my Dad, too....on the lips

Officer Flippo .... solving ALL the world's problems

LOVE this part!

WREATHS
I got inspired by Pinterest (shout - out Krystal Harris for showing me this very addictive site a few months ago) and made some wreaths for gifts -- L.O.V.E.!

Christmas wreath for my mom



Bunco gift


rAnDoM.... random picture, I know, but we went to our friends Amber and Holland's birthday parties at Northridge a few weeks ago. Somehow the only picture I came out of there with was one with Haley Rae - my oldest friend in the world!

Monday, October 10, 2011

No Worries, I'm Alive

Do not fear. I am alive, just horrible at keeping up with this blog since school started.  Here's a re-cap with a few pictures I've managed to take:

School Has Taken Over My Life.  I'm not kidding. Between going to school to get my master's and teaching school, I feel as if I might be the smartest I've ever been in my entire 29 years.  I know it will pay off (or that's what I keep telling all my friends who think I've fallen off the map) that I'm putting in this much time my first year....next year will be SOOO much easier....if I say it enough it starts to be more believable.

My 6th Graders Are Legit.  I feel like I've hit the jackpot when it comes to getting great students.  The 100+ little gems I have this year are SOOO good and I'm really enjoying them (disclaimer: most days)!

Lunch before 11am Should be Illegal.  One of the biggest adjustments of teaching young kids is our schedule.  We eat lunch at 10:45am.  I mean, really?  10:45am?  I'm barely hungry for breakfast by 10.

I'm In A Bunco Group. And I'm finally awesome at it.  I won a swwwweeeeetttt wallet last month for rolling 6 buncos in one night. Unheard of. I'm like a dice rolling phenomenon. Don't ever bet against a girl who won $2,100 playing craps her first time to a casino.  Just sayin.

Still <3 the Hogs.  Nothing new here, except that college football season has started and I'm in heaven.  I am so excited for the Hogs this year, still hate the ranking system, and get overly mad if we lose.  Basically, the same news as last year around this time.

Arkansas vs. A&M.   Now I can say been there, done that. Went to watch the Hogs beat A&M (ugly, but got the job done I guess) at Cowboys Stadium.  Let me just say, WOW that place is amazing. Had a great weekend with friends, and a LOT of pregnant people!  I also made a few of us gals some HOGS shirts to wear...pics below




and here we are wearing these little doozies at the Arkansas vs. A&M game



LOVE this rug I made John and Liz as a little surprise

Friday night pre-game outing to Amelia and Mason's


We Have Pep-Rallies. And boy do 6th graders love a good 'ole yelling screaming dressing crazy pep rally.  Of course, there is a theme every week and I stepped out for NERD DAY with my awesome mentor teacher Julie.


Countdown To Baby Antoon:  Just an update, the official due date is January 10, 2012.  Erin is doing great, but it's starting to look like Mitzi is going to have to take a second job as a greeter at Wal-Mart during odd hours to make ends meet after all the shopping for this baby is said and done. 


I Still Have Cute Dogs.  "Obvi"  This is my new favorite saying via Snooki, who probably isn't smart enough to know the entire word "obviously," so she shortened it.  I'm digging it. Obvi.  Here are the aforementioned cute dogs.

   






Tuesday, August 23, 2011

exhaustion has set in & it's only tuesday

Helllo exhaustion, I knew you'd be paying me a visit around this time.  It's that time of year -- the beginning of school -- and I need to get teacher conditioned.  I feel like my feet are about to dislocate at the ankles.  It's okay though because I can't feel them anyway. 

It's been quite a busy couple of days!  These sweet little 6th graders are venturing into the land of middle school, and boyyyyy are they a nervous wreck.  Remember those days?!?! They're actually adjusting quickly, and I'm spending my days being part teacher and part mamma, at least until they figure out what the heck an "A" day vs. a "B" day is. Another new thing comes along with teaching 6th grade -- brunch.  They officially call it lunch, but when they serve it at 10:45am I have a hard time getting on board with a turkey sandwich and putting my feet up. 

Anyway, I've got a GREAT group of students, and I'm counting my little blessings everyday...even the days I want to go to bed at 7:15pm.

Thursday, August 11, 2011

football season, please hurry up

A fellow HOG fan at the middle school sent me this.... makes me sooooooo excited.




drumroll please......

SOOOOO over the moon to report I'm going to be Aunt Whit to a beautiful baby GIRL January 11th!

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

T minus 16 hours 15 minutes

The countdown has begun for baby ???? Antoon!  This is how long until I find out if I'm going to be buying bows or baseballs for my new neice or nephew!  I'm getting so excited -- one thing is for sure though, Erin and Carey will undoubtedly make one BEAUTIFUL baby!   I'm just glad to be finding out so I can stop calling the baby "it." 

If it's a girl Lord help us all, she will be spoiled rotten to the bone.  Just in case it's a boy I've already sent up a few requests to the big man upstairs that he will like either golf or baseball, preferably both, so that Carey doesn't go into daddy depression.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Ohhh, Facebook: poor poor pitiful me, lord have mercy on me

Remember this little jewel from 1996? She even rocks a cowbell.  MORE cowbell!!  FLASHBACK alert!!


 
 Yes, this is the song that comes to mind when I look at facebook some days.  I've noticed an influx of people who get on facebook JUST to complain....allllll the time, just complaining.  Every day they have a new ailment, one day they complain 3 times about how busy they are, then the next day they are whining about being soooo bored. These people really get on my nerves I feel really sorry for them, so I came up with some tips: 

1) Sick (again, for the 10,000th time since January):  go to the doctor. there's a good chance you are a hypochondriac

2)  WAY too busy today, not enough hours in the day!!:  get off facebook complaining about how busy you are, you'll get a lot more done

3)  Today you're bored:  get a job. it takes up a ton of time.

4)  Someone did you wrong and you are venting on FB but refusing to name names: okay, first, this is not CSI.  i'm not a detective, so stop posting ridiculous paragraphs about "phony" people and really wanting everyone to guess who you are talking about but refusing to just flat out say it.  just because you are FB friends, doesn't mean you are actual real life friends. just de-friend them on FB and in real life. 

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

ohhhhh teen mom

Just thought I'd share a few thoughts on tonight's episode of Teen Mom . . . mainly because I'm stuck in a 3rd rate Best Western in the manure capital of the world, a.k.a. Hereford, TX and I have nothing better to do.
1. Farrah:  in the same episode is needing social security and a loan for a breast augmentation.  funny how those two should NOT go hand in hand.  as long as it's for "sophia's future" i guess it's totally okay.  i can definitely see how farrah's size Cs will help sophia in life.  and to top it off she is sooo mean to her sweet dad who is trying to help her . . . .  okay you little diva . . . i guess being a teen mom star puts you above the help . . . i mean your parents.

2.  Amber:  WHAT a heartbreaker!  i mean if i had only known 10 years ago that overplucked eyebrows, half a can of white rain in a slicked back high ponytail, refusing to buy sheets for my mattress, and punching my chubby easter bunny boyfriend in the face every few days would get me 2 guys fighting for me i would have been MAJOR in my high school years.  ahhhh well, hind sight is always 20/20. 

3.  Maci:  ohhhh Maci, there are just some things you don't EVER tell your boyfriend.  for example, that your baby daddy thinks he's "slow" . . . just a little helpful relationship advice, i think dr. phil would agree.

4.  Catelyn and Tyler:    this says it all . . . . .  
Catelyn:  "omg mom someone tried to break in my window."
Mom:  "so."
Catelyn:  "can you come look, it's like really scary?!"
Mom:  "so what do you want me to do?  like freakin protect you or somethin?"

hmmmm wellllll, that would be quite a marvel idea - to protect your children.

Monday, July 4, 2011

Happy Birthday America

Thanks to my friend Bekah, I was reminded of the perfect way to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to America this evening.  Most of all you fellow Americans need to be thanking Rachael Parnell for reminding you how proud you are to be an American tonight, and here's the reason why....  Call me crazy, but I <3 karaoke.  When Nate and I decided to have a small wedding on the beach in Destin with just family and a few close friends I couldn't think of a better way to make it more redneck  casual and fun than to find a DJ that also offered karoke.  This was, perhaps, the best decision I made.  See the proof below.

Rachael told me on my wedding night that she forgot to bring me a gift.  I told her that her presence was all that I could've hoped for.  Then I changed my mind.  I wanted a gift.  A REALLY good gift.  And there's nothing I wanted more than for her to sing us a song.  The DJ didn't have my first pick, and her ALL TIME best performance to date, "Daddy's Hands,"  but he did in fact have the song "Proud To Be An American." 

Eat your heart out Celine Dion.  There's a new star on the horizon.

Happy Birthday, America.  This is for you.

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Red Light Revival

If you saw my post after New Year's Eve, then you know that I'm a new fan of the band Red Light Revival...just some hometown country boys who really know how to put on a great show.  Friday they played at the Colliseum and a few of us went...had a great time! 

Check out the band  http://www.reverbnation.com/arklatexredlightrevival



Sunday, May 22, 2011

Front Porch Spruce Up

I forgot to post these pictures a few weeks ago when I did my front porch spring cleaning.  I made some new cushions for the rocking chairs, the wreath, and of course have planted some flowers/hanging baskets, just waiting on them to bloom a little better.  Love our little front yard!!





Bam. Birtday gift.

My sister, Erin, came in this weekend and brought me my birthday present...let me just preface these pictures by making sure you all know that she MADE this gift for me -- like started with just a trunk full of wood and a couple of power tools (see 2 posts below for stories on this :))   

This is the answer to project messiness!!  It's a project table with storage in the middle for my sewing machine and foldable sides with legs.  When I need to hide the mess in the closet I fold down the legs, when I am ready to work on a project I roll it (yes, she even thought to put it on rollers) out in to the room and expand the legs while I work.

Bam.

Genius. 

Thank you SO much sister!!!


Tuesday, May 17, 2011

My Heart Hurts

My heart actually hurts. Is that possible? Our wonderful friends moved this morning. I'm so sad they're leaving that I am having a hard time finding joy for them and their new adventures in life that they deserve.  I know, what a terrible friend I am being!  

I realize that this is selfish, but I can't help it. I'm sad to be losing friends that live 4 miles from my house.  I'm going to miss Tuesday nights when it's 6:00pm and we randomly decide on a girls night with pizza, sweat pants, and trashy reality TV. I'm going to miss pool side Saturdays in the summer, marathon football watching in the fall, Thursdays at BWW, homemade guacamole, and the company of 2 of the best friends a person could ever ask for.  So there. I admit it.  I'm selfish.  I'm sad for me, for my loss, which is keeping me from being as happy FOR them as I know I should be. I'm a selfish bad friend.  So sue me. 

Birthday, Birthday, Birthday, and Mother's Day

Let me start by saying that the marathon weekend I mentioned a few posts ago was a WONDERFUL weekend - I loved every minute of it, but we couldn't have squeezed one more thing into that weekend if we tried.  The word busy doesn't even do it justice.  I needed a vacation from my weekend off work. 

It started out with the baby shower (last post) which was preceeded by the 10:00pm trip to Walmart the night before the shower (see post referring to the trainwreck that happens when you reveal WAY too much skin at your 10pm to Walmart and top it off with white sandals). 

Anyway, we had 4 more reasons to celebrate that weekend:  Erin's birthday, Tucker's birthday, Reese's birthday, and Mother's Day.  And there was a party for each and every one of these.  That's a LOT of cake people.

Let's start with Erin.  Erin likes to celebrate her birthday month, not just the actual day, so to say she's been on top of her wish list is putting it mildly.  Good thing Carey is an EXCEPTIONAL gift giver and always on top of letting us know everything she's dropped hints about.  (I do in fact realize I just ended that sentence with a preposition.  Calm down Mitzi).   But I regress. 

Back to Erin.  My sister has two obsessions:  make-up and power tools.  You're thinking what a weird combo, right?  You wouldn't be thinking that if you were hustlers like Carey (her husband) and me. We are busy scheming ideas on how to make money off her many talents.  I'm thinking she should have her own show on HGTV because they really struggle to find hot women carpenters/designers on that channel who can actually build stuff, and her show would be a huge hit. She's going to have to dress up while she's elbow deep in sawdust, wear boots with heels, and her hair down.  She's probably going to give me a little trouble with that one, but she'll have to take one for the team.   I'm going to be her manager.  Well, maybe I'll have to leave that for Carey.  Most likely I'll be on the crew that does all the crappy work behind the scenes when the cameras aren't rolling and the designer comes back into the house with NOT ONE paint drop on their clothes and the walls are miraculously finished.  I'll head up that crew.  But who cares, I'll get to travel with the fam, won't have to ever cook, I'll get to boss people around, & have a famous sister.  It's a win-win. 

Again, I regress.

Erin. Power tools, and lots of them.  Birthday.  Dinner at Zapatas. Good times.  Here is her getting overly excited about a tool I know nothing about (no, I'm not referring Carey, I'm talking about the actual power tool she's holding).  Get your mind straight people.



We also celebrated Tucker and Reese's birthdays that weekend.  I'm still sold on the fact that the only thing you should get a kid under the age of 4 is a wrapped cardboard box filled only with tissue paper.  That's the only part of any gift they like.  Instead, we got Reese a set of plastic golf clubs, which he then used as a weapon.  Definitely worth the 10bucks.

What is so stinking cute about a 1 year old smashing cake in his own face?  I'm not sure, but it is.


Mother's Day:  great day, but I didn't take a lot of pictures.  Everyone went over to mom's house, we ate some great hamburgers my dad cooked, and played some baseball in the backyard with my 8 year old cousin Kade.  This is not surprising though, considering my uncle (Kade's grandad) is 100% convinced the Rangers scouts are going to be calling any day now. Shout out Uncle PeeWee!!

 Tucker and his cute cute cute overalls! 



THE END.

Storybook Baby Shower

When Erin and I talked about throwing a baby shower for Annette we couldn't really decide whether to do a theme....that was until she came across the storybook theme.  We sent out invitations ("Once Upon a Time...") and asked guests to bring their favorite storybook with a special message to baby Amelia.  Huge hit - everyone loved the idea and the invitations.

I can't take any credit for the below pictures and ideas.  This was all Erin.  She was in charge of the food, and boy did she deliver!  CUTEST IDEAS EVER to carry out the theme with the food!





And the absolute cutest thing ever -- THE HUNGRY CATERPILLAR fruit tray!



Here is the canvas that my cousin Marci painted for Amelia's room.  SO talented!!


A cute little outfit with matching hair bow I made her


CONGRATULATIONS ANNETTE AND JASON!! 

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Cute Headbands and Home Remedies

Hello Saturday morning....I have been waiting on you!  I still have not updated since the marathon weekend, but there's always lazy Sunday for that.

In the meantime, I'm semi-obsessed with my new headband creations....check out one I made here on my sister Erin.


HOME REMEDY:
I'm not usually a home remedy kind of person....the whole thing gets a little sketchy for me. That is until I unknowingly got attacked by swarm of killer mosquitos Tuesday night.  Okay, slight exaggeration, but still, it was bad.  What is worse than itching feet?!  I was having to get up in the middle of the night and re-apply that pink itchy lotion (name is escaping me right now) just so I could get back to sleep. 

Enter Liz.  As I was whining to her over the phone over my insane itching, she says "oh, take a hot bath with a few tablespoons of Pine Sol added to it and soak."   HUH?  Pine Sol?  And should I wear panties in the bathtub because that just does NOT seem safe.

Well people, let me tell you, it works.  It takes the itch right out of those mosquito bites.  All I had was generic dollar store lemony pine something. I can only imagine the relief if I would've had the real stuff.


Until next time....enjoy cheap headbands, home remedies, and have yourself one of those "I refuse to put on make up" Saturdays.

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Marathon Weekend Preview

This weekend was packed to the max with birthdays, family, baby shower, mother's day, kids' parties, and weekend visitors!  I'm pooped.  Crazy tired.  I've got a LOT to share, but it's not gonna happen tonight.  However, I couldn't resist giving you a little preview.

Location:  Wal-Mart
Time:  9:51pm
Date:  Friday night  May 6th
Violation:  TMS.  TOO.MUCH.SKIN.  And white sandals. Always a bad idea.


Happy Sunday!

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

It's Just A Door....but it's cute dang it

Every spring, fall, and winter I get a new wreath for my front door.  Here is my creation this year....love it!