Thanksgiving

Clifton and I spent Thanksgiving with his mom and her husband, Clint in Austin.  We won't get to see them for Christmas, seeing as we'll be spending it with my family in Pennsylvania.  We got there on Wednesday evening just in time for some home made dinner!  We spent the evening hanging out, chatting, attempting to open a bottle of wine without a wine key, looking at pictures, etc. 

After the evening had ended I told Clifton that I had a really good time and that I felt very much at home.  He said he felt the same way with my family when he first met/hung out with them.

I'm grateful that both of us feel this way about one each others family.  I'm also grateful for a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

Clint, Lela (Clifton's mom), Clifton and Me!

Rylee bear

I don't have any kids of my own and my siblings don't have any either.  So when my cousin Tasha got pregnant I immediately told her that I wanted to be upgraded to aunt!  She of course had no problem with it, not that a title really matters but Tasha and I are more like sisters then cousins anyways. 

On August 28th of 2009, Rylee Ann was born.  She was without a doubt (no lie) the cutest baby I have ever laid eyes on (I know some close seconds)!  As she gets older she only gets cuter!

 Bear and I last Thanksgiving playing

My first gift to Rylee was a pink pair of Chuck Taylors (hey, I've got to teach her).  Now it's become a thing between her and I.  I will not let her parents or anyone else buy her Chucks.  She's on her 4th pair.  I told Tasha that I'll be buying her Chucks until she graduates college!  Last pair I bought her she was so excited she showed them off at day care the next day!  I can't wait until her and I can design them together!  I hope that this is what she has one day...

She turned two this year and I didn't get her chucks but I did get her pink cowboy boots....

So I'm grateful for Rylee bear, she can always put a smile on my face (even just through a picture) and I'm grateful for our Chuck Taylor bond.  I look forward to watching her grow up and spending more time with her in the future.

Flexibility

We rented Horrible Bosses this weekend.  If you haven't seen it there's this part where the guy is getting yelled at by his boss for being 2 minutes late, yes two minutes.   While I was watching this, I thought to myself "Wow, I'm so glad my boss isn't like that!"  I'm pretty lucky when it comes to my work schedule.  I used to be a sales representative and with that your schedule is a lot more flexible and you in a way make your own schedule.  When I was promoted to the Retail Operations Analyst it meant that I would work out of our Region office, mostly working a 8-5 gig.  I recall my first year with the company, I was almost always the first one in and last one out.  I didn't know how things worked and I didn't want to make a bad impression.  We don't clock in or anything, but you never know who's "watching."  I've been working out of the office now for just over 2 years and you come to find out that our schedule has some flexibility. 

Most days of the week I'll come in about 7:30 and I won't take a lunch, unless I have errands to run.  I asked my boss a few weeks back if it would be ok that a few days a week I leave about 20 minutes early so that I could get a run in outside before it gets too dark.  He replied with "yeah, that's fine."  So I'm grateful that I am allowed to make adjustments to my schedule to better fit my needs.  Not many people are lucky enough to have this.  I'm not only grateful for that but for a boss who treats me well and a job that I enjoy!

21 more days!

Twenty one more days and Clifton and I will be jetting off to the great north, or Pennsylvania, take your pick!  We didn't think we'd be making it in to see my family this year (you may have already read about it in an earlier blog titled "The Decision") but I happen to find an awesome deal and felt that it was "fate" telling us to go!  Not to mention everyone who offered a monetary contribution, transportation service, moral support, etc.

So I'm grateful that we get to spend Christmas at home in Pennsylvania with my family!  I'm grateful that the airlines didn't take all our monies and I'm so very grateful to all those who offered help (even if it wasn't taken, you have no idea what the gesture meant)!! 

I hope that everyone gets to spend the holiday with their family, friends and loved ones!

Customer service isn't dead

I NEVER wore make-up in high school, anyone who went to school with me can attest to this.  I didn't get into wearing make-up probably until my sophomore year of college.  However, eventually I did and about 2+ years ago I came across bare escentuals, bare mineral product.  I had heard some great reviews about it and they had a great starter kit.  I was sick of liquid foundation and ready for a change so I bought it.  That purchase will go down in history as one of the best ones ever made!  I fell in love with it immediately, even introduced a couple people to it!  The product is a bit pricey BUT lasts a LONG time and does NOT EXPIRE!  Who could ask for more!?!  

I don't need product often but I don't always realize when I'm running low and finding a near by bare escentuals boutique is not easy.  My other options are Ulta or Sephora but they don't have the selection a boutique does.  So yesterday knowing Clifton and I had mall errands to run I asked if we could make a trip to the North Park mall instead of the one literally less then a mile from our apartment and he said "yes!"  So off we went.  My first stop was bare escentuals and luck would have it, it was right there when we walked into the mall!  I should have known that was a good sign.  So I went straight to the store while Clifton got us some coffees.  I was immediately greeted and asked if I needed help and I went right into it..."Yes, I need foundation, but a lighter color then I have, I need mineral vail and a new blush, please!"  She was like of course let's see what color foundation will work best for you so she had me sit down and she washed my face, applied 3 foundations to pick from.  Then she washed them off, applied a new layer of the foundation I had chosen and then it was on to blushes.  I was unsure at first about the one she put on me so we tried a second one but turns out she knows her stuff cause I went with the first one.  She was so nice and so patient with me.  Then as I was checking out she said I got a free make-up bag and I got to choose a free gift.  I picked a card and I got a free full size eye liner!  I was so excited!

That little trip made my night!  That's what I call good customer service (even without the goodies)!  So I'm grateful for employees like that who take care of you and for surprise goodies, it's nice to get free things once in a while, even nicer when they're things you'll use!

If you haven't tried or don't own Bare Escentuals, Bare Minerals I highly recommend it!

http://www.bareescentuals.com

Life's little treats

I find it funny how the things that annoy you or ruin your day one day can do the complete opposite another.  I have a couple instances of these.

First:  I can be a very organized person at times and at others when things get crazy and I'm always on the go, things get scattered.  Sometimes my purse will be so clean there's barely anything in it and other times it'll be full of everything and anything under the sun from a piece of fruit, to a million receipts, books, etc.  So I was looking for something in this current black hole (my purse) and I stumbled upon 5 dollars!  Now that's not a lot of money but it is 5 dollars!  I remember in college one time we needed an extra $5 for pizza we had ordered and no one in the house had it so I was like "give me a minute let me check all my pockets" and I ran upstairs and checked every pocket I had and I found that $5 we needed.  Or another time when I was walking on campus wearing my black vest and put my hand in the pocket and pulled out $29 dollars, yup $29!  That was awesome!  So sometimes I'm so annoyed at myself when I'm this unorganized and can't remember where I placed things and other times it's a blessing in disguise. 

Second:  If you read an earlier blog I wrote titled "Laughter really is the best Medicine" then you'll recall the Friday I woke up and ended up being to work an hour and a half early because of my phone changing the time on it and I didn't realize it til later.  Well it happened again but this time it was different.  Thursday morning my alarm went off as usual and I hit the snooze a few times until it was time to get up.  As I sat up in bed I looked over at the alarm clock sitting on our dresser (I didn't look at this clock last time) and it said it was only 5:04!  Wow what a treat, I was like a kid on Christmas morning (Clifton can attest to this).  My phone had changed back an hour so the alarm went off an hour early and I had a whole other hour to sleep!

So I'd just like to say that I'm grateful for life's little treats, no matter how small they may be or that I may have caused them myself and some days they don't go as nice as others but when they do, I appreciate them!

The Decision

It's almost Christmas time which usually means that before long I'll be packing my bags and heading home.  Don't get me wrong Dallas is my home but Pennsylvania, Hamlin, will always be my home.  This blog is not easy to write because I'm not sure that I've even come to terms with the decision I've made.  Clifton and I have been planning for a while now to spend Christmas with my family and friends.  Everyone is going to be home this year (my siblings and their significant others), which is a big deal and we're even planning on having a Harry Potter themed Christmas (yes, you read that correctly).  You know you want one!  This has been a long time in the making, I'm waiting on my Hogwarts letter right now (not kidding).  However, I went to look for tickets this week, on Tuesday when prices supposedly go down and the cheapest was $750 for both of us to fly into Philly.  That means we still have to get a ride from Philly to Hamlin (approx. 2 hours away).  The weather conditions at this time are always unpredictable and it's not always easy finding a ride and it's an inconvenience for most.  To fly into Avoca the airport 30 minutes from home is about $500+ per ticket.  So we would be spending approximately $1,000 to $1,200 to fly home.  That doesn't include luggage costs, expenses while there, Christmas gifts, etc.

I'm not sure if it's the logic in me, the adult, or what but I decided that's just too much money.  That would make things extremely tight and we'd start the new year off struggling and I'm not ok with that.  There's a part of me that feels like I'm putting a price on my family, like I'm not willing to shell out the money to see them and I hope they know that's not the case!!  I have seen them a couple times this year.  We all flew in for my dad's surprise 60th Birthday party and we all flew in for my brother and new sister's wedding!  So we did get time together this year but it's Christmas.  I've been home for Christmas every year for 27 years!  It's a big deal to me, it's important to me.  I don't even care for presents I just love to be home with my family and friends! 

Clifton told me I could go myself (super sweet) but I want to spend Christmas with him!  My sister Carrie has offered to help pay, my best friend Reeney has offered to help or pay for it and my sister in law Abbey has offered a $200 voucher towards the trip and a ride from the airport!  I am ever so grateful for each and every offer that they have bestowed upon me!  I just can't accept them.  I'm not good at borrowing or taking money from people.  I love to give, I just struggle with the receiving especially something this big!

So it is with great sadness that I have decided that unless some "miracle" deal comes up between now and then Clifton and I will not be spending our Christmas in Pennsylvania.  I'm grateful for those of you I've talked to in depth about this (Clifton, Carrie, Tasha, Reeney) you have all been so supportive and understanding and I'm so grateful for that, for you all!  I know that to most this whole thing seems silly but if you only realized what Christmas at home with my family means to me (I'm literally tearing up right now just thinking about it).  My family and friends are amazing and I cherish and love every minute that I get to spend with them which isn't often because I live in Texas.  So I hope you all understand.

"...he always takes the best..."

I can't believe that this is happening again but Tuesday afternoon I found out that a friend I went to college with died.  I knew that he had been in and out of hospitals for quite some time and most recently had a surgery that had gone well.  His wife had posted this Monday, a week maybe week and a half after the surgery that prayers were needed because he was having some complications and was being re-admitted.  I said a prayer and hoped for the best, he seemed to be making a come back each time you never expect to see that he had passed.  But he did.

I met Joe my freshmen year of college when I started dating his friend Jason.  Jason and Joe lived across the hall from one another, they became quick friends and before long best of friends.  I spent a lot of my 4 years in college with Joe because Jason and him were for the most part inseparable.   Joe was a great guy, very laid back, always polite, family oriented, great friend, genuine person.  I have a lot of memories from back then.  Weekend lunch trips to the cafeteria cause who ever got up early enough for breakfast, partying "illegally"in the dorms, going out to the bars, senior homecoming, the list goes on. 

Joe and I graduated together and following graduation he moved back to Pittsburgh area where he's from and I stayed in the Erie area.  We saw each other here and there.  There was Geoff's house in Buffalo celebrating, Ryan and Gail's wedding, etc.  I remember one of the last times I saw Joe.  Jason and I met him and at the time his girlfriend Amber, (she later became his wife) at Olive Garden off of Peach St. in Erie for dinner.  We had a nice dinner together, catching up!  We always liked getting together with them!

 The guys - Jason, Joe, Ryan and Geoff

Things have since changed.  I obviously am no longer with Jason (I even remember talking to Joe about this at the time), we both went in different directions and with that comes the loss of those friends in many ways.  It's not something you do purposely, it's just what happens.  Joe, Ryan, Geoff they were all Jason's friends before they were mine and a guy girl friendship is much different then a guy guy or girl girl so you say hi when you run into them catch up and then continue on your way.  I kept in touch with Geoff here and there on facebook, the same with Amber (which is how I kept in touch with Joe in a way).  It's not the same as the friends you make plans with and get together with but at one time that's what we had and I'm grateful for that time.  I was lucky to know and spend time with an amazing person who had to leave this world, his family and friends behind too soon.  He isn't in pain any more which is the only good thing to come of this.  So Thank you Joe for being you, It was a pleasure to be your friend.

A shot of Joe and I on the dance floor!

To his wife Amber I can't even imagine what you have gone through and are going through but I think you are one of the strongest people I have come across and I hope that strength will continue to carry you through this and one day you will find peace.

Joe and Amber

Please if you would take a moment to say a prayer for the family and friends of Joe, may they find peace in this tragedy.

God looked around His garden and found an empty place. He then looked down upon the earth and saw your tired face. He put his arms around you and lifted you to rest. God’s garden must be beautiful he always takes the best. He saw the road was getting rough and the hills were hard to climb, so he closed your weary eyelids and whispered "Peace be thine". It broke our hearts to lose you but you didn’t go alone, for part of us went with you the day God called you home.

Deal with the devil

Back in late August early September of this year I made a deal with the devil.  The deal:  No clothes shopping until my 29th birthday (February 28th).  The devil:  Clifton.  Now first I must tell you that this wasn't even Clifton's idea, it was mine and I had a couple margaritas...I blame the damn alcohol, not really!  Now just to clarify I am allowed to buy accessories, such as belts, scarfs, jewelry, things of that nature not to exceed $30 for any one item.

I thought this will be a challenge for me and anyone who knows me well, knows I love to challenge myself!  I also thought I'll revamp my current wardrobe besides winter is coming so I'll be changing most of my clothes over to sweater and jeans this will be fine.  Now around this time my sister had introduced me to Pinterest, for those of you not familiar with the website let me take a minute to give you some insight:  You know when you're browsing the internet and you see something you like (i.e. furniture, DIY projects, clothes, etc.) and you save the website to go back to or sometimes you forget to and that idea gets lost?  Well this site allows you to have virtual cork boards if you will and you pin these things to your boards so that you can refer back to them when you need inspiration.  So I have a board titled "I live to eat" and on it I pin recipes that I'd like to try or I also have a board titled "captured" which is different types of photo's so that when I want to take photographs I have some unique ideas to try.  Hopefully you get the point.  This ties together with my deal I promise...I'm getting there.  My favorite and probably most used board is the one titled "Dress the part" and on it I put anything I like clothing, style wise.  It has outfit concepts, dresses, shoes, etc. and whenever I have a moment of looking into my closet and think "I have nothing to wear!" I pull up my pinterest and find one of my pins and re-create it using what I have in my closet.  This has been a life saver.  I have done this probably closer to a dozen times!  So I'm thankful for a few things here.  1.  My sister for introducing/inviting me to this site.  2.  That I like challenges because I feel it makes me a better and stronger person.  3.  Pinterest, you are #2 on my list of greatest internet creations of all time, sorry but Google holds the #1 spot.  Thank you Pinterest for keeping my sanity through this challenge...only 3 months and 10 days left.  Wow, that's just scary thinking about.    

I heart you auto correct

I was on pinterest the other day just browsing through pins and came across an auto correct fail that had me laughing so hard I was literally in tears and not just a couple tears the rolling uncontrollably down my face tears.  The best part was my co-worker walked in to tell me something in the middle of this crying session that it made me laugh even harder, I could barely speak.  So today I'm grateful for auto correct.  I think it's the greatest thing ever and I hope it never gets fixed!!  I now know what I need to do whenever I'm having a bad day!

 This is the one that had me in stitches!