Hanna's Surgury

I just talked to the vet's office and Hanna's surgery went very well. I get to pick her up around 9 tomorrow. We will miss having her around tonight, but I am glad she is staying over there so they can monitor her!

Weekend Review and Hanna

I had a wonderful weekend with my friends, the Mexican lasagna turned out awesome and I will share the recipe soon. On Saturday we went to Boordy Vineyards where you can get a tour, tasting and a glass all for only $5. We brought a picnic and had a great time enjoying the beautiful farm/vineyards and drinking great wine. It was great to catch up and spend a weekend with the girls.


In other news...Hanna is getting spayed tomorrow. K will be dropping her off in the morning then she will have the surgery and stay over night. I am going to call out of work on Tuesday so I can pick her up and be with her. Please keep my little puppy girl in your thoughts! I know it is routine surgery and we have a very capable, caring and experienced vet, but I can't help but be a little worried.


Here are some pictures of her (and Gryffin) that we took at the beach:

Viva La Mexico

I let my excitement about my friends coming to visit this weekend take over and I got reaaallly into a Mexican theme for tonight....we are having margaritas, Mexican lasagna from Southern Living, homemade salsa, guacamole and maybe even some margarita...jello shots. Oh my. Or should I say Ole!

Now I just need a tiny sombrero for Hanna.

Hope you all have wonderful weekends!

Turning into my mother

As time goes on...and especially now that I live on my own...I have noticed that I am picking up more and more of my mom's quirky behaviors. It's ironic because a lot of these quirks totally annoyed me when I was growing up.

Case in point...some of my best friends are coming to visit this weekend and I have spent almost this whole week obsessing about cleaning, what to cook and getting everything ready. Poor K, who will be home tomorrow is going to be saddled with a huge list of what needs to be cleaned and put away---he volunteered, I swear. But, since I still must be in control I am coming home early to check everything and touch up. I used to get so mad when she would act like that everytime we had company.

I haven't yet hosted a party large enough where I needed to bust out one of her famous entertaining moves...labeling each empty serving dish ahead of time with a post it saying what food item is going in it.

Ladies, do you ever find yourself doing things that used to annoy you about your mothers? Please tell me I am not the only one.


***by the way...my mom and I are very close...she has actually become more mellow with age...while I have become more crazy. I guess when I get to be in my 50s I may calm down again.***

Bored At Work = Meme

Today is a super boring day at work (other then finding out my boss is getting promoted to another department) so I thought I would do this meme I have seen around.

I give you money and send you into the grocery store to pick up 5 items.You can only pick one thing from the following departments.. what is it?
1. Produce: Avocados (for some gauc)
2. Bakery: I am assuming I would go to Safeway since it is closest to my house...so I would get this awesome cheddar jalapeno bread
3. Meat: Ribs
4. Frozen: pizza (preferably California Pizza Kitchen's frozen pizza)
5. Dairy: brie

Let's say we're heading out for a weekend getaway. You're only allowed to bring 3 articles of clothing with you. So, what's in your bag?
1. Black dress from Old Navy (it is super comfortable and can be dressed up or down...I wear it a ton in the summer)
2. Jean jacket
3. Black gladiator sandals

If I was to listen in on your conversations throughout the day, what 5 phrases or words would I be most likely to hear? (I am on the phone all day at work so I say the same things over and over)
1. Thank you for calling______ this is Cee, how may I help you?
2. Definitely
3. Enjoy the rest of your day
4. Good puppy/girl Hannie (when I am at home)
5. I have no idea for a 5th one...so maybe just random songs that I sing around the house

So, what 3 things do you find yourself doing every single day, and if you didn't get to do, you probably wouldn't be in the best mood?
1. Talk to my mom
2. Play with Hanna
3. Hug K

We're talking a 3 hour block with nobody around. What 5 activities might we find you doing?
1. Watching TV
2. Blogging or Facebooking
3. Reading
4. Playing with Hanna or taking her for a walk
5. Playing games online...some of them are pretty addicting...like zuma...just google it...you'll see.

We are going to the zoo. But, it looks like it could start storming, so it'll have to be a quick visit.What 3 exhibits do we have to get to?
1. Panda Bears
2. Tigers
3. Monkeys

You just scored tickets to the taping of any show that comes on t.v. of your choice. You can pick between 4, so what are you deciding between?
1. Saturday Night Live
2. Oprah (favorite things show would be nice)
3. The View (just because I would be hoping to catch them having a fight or something)
4. Martha

You're hungry for ice cream. I'll give you a triple dipper ice cream cone. What 3 flavors can I pile on for ya?
1. Lucky Charms (there is this ice cream place at the beach that has it and it is awesome)
2. Strawberry Cheesecake
3. Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Somebody stole your purse/wallet…in order to get it back, you have to name 5 things you know are inside to claim it. So, what's in there?
1. Coach Wallet
2. Coach Planner
3. Ray-bans or Marc Jacob's sunglasses depending on my outfit that day
4. BlackBerry
5. Burt's Bees Lip Gloss

You are at a job fair, and asked what areas you are interested in pursuing a career in. Let's pretend you have every talent and ability to be whatever you wanted, so what 4 careers would be fun for you?
1. Teacher
2. Actress
3. Oprah (talk show host)
4. Real Estate mogul

If you could go back and talk to the old you, when you were in high school, and inform yourself of 4 things, what would you say?
1. Keep in touch with some people when you graduate, it would be nice to have at least one high school friend (as of now I have no friends from high school)
2. Break up with A sooner.
3. Don't be intimidated by people you think are "cooler" or more "popular" then you.
4. Cut down on the self tanner before homecoming junior year.

Poor Susan

Of course we all know that Robin Williams is quite skilled at playing a woman.

*case in point*

However, I really hope for Susan Boyle's sake, that this is a joke. Hasn't the poor woman been through enough? Didn't she have a breakdown already? Being portrayed by a man may just push her over the edge.

Is it too much to ask that an actress be able to talk?

Maybe my frustration at this stemmed from the fact that it happened while driving into work this morning...on a Monday...to a job a hate...after a week at the beach. Or maybe it was because I find it totally insane that someone who is a professional actress, esentially talking for a (very good) living, is unable to string together a few sentences for a radio interview.

The morning show I listen to (only about 5 minutes each morning during my very short commute) was interviewing Alexis Bledel (cute girl, not a huge fan of anything she has done but whatever) about her new movie, "Post Grad," which looks girly and seems like something I could relate to.

It's not like they were asking her hard questions and the interview was probably under five minutes, but Alexis probably said "ummm...you know" at least 75 times. Now I have no problem with acting as a career, it definitely takes talent and drive, but it isn't rocket science. And being able to promote your movies in an effective way is a big part of being a successful actress. So come on now Alexis, getting rid of the "umms" and "you knows" are part of Public Speaking 101. A TV and movie star should know better.

Back from the beach...

Don't you hate it when vacations are over? Now I have no more trips to look forward to for the rest of the year...which is totally lame.

Spending a week at the beach however, was completely awesome and relaxing. Of course I ate too much, got a little sunburned and now have a ton of laundry and apartment cleaning to catch up on...but it was well worth it.

Right now I am catching up on my blog reading and facebook stalking!

Vacation All I Ever Wanted

Well...it's not exactly all I ever wanted but for now, it will do. And, yes I do enjoy the Go-Go's from time to time.

Starting tomorrow I will be at the beach for a week and thus absent from the blogging world. I'll be spending time with my family, relaxing, eating, tanning, boating and trying not to over think all of the big changes I will be starting to work towards when I get back!

Thanks for all of the book recommendations, I bought a huge stack of new books last night (including "The Help," which I got an excellent Barnes and Noble member discount on) so I am all set for loads beach reading.

Hope you all have lovely weeks, catch you when I get back!

Carbs, Glorious Carbs

The past few weeks I have not been as good with eating low carb; I haven't been losing any weight but then again I haven't been gaining either. After I get back from the beach I plan on getting back on the wagon. That being said...I may have gained weight after my dinner last night.

One of my favorite things in Baltimore is Restaurant Week and K and I try to pick a new place to try every time it rolls around. Last night we asked my parents to come with us to Saute since they had never experienced the joy of Restaurant Week.

How it works is you pay $30.09 (and at Saute for $45 you got wine pairings with each course which we totally did) and then get an appetizer, dinner and desert.

Personally, I think my choices were the best...I had these amazing mussels with fries for the appetizer. Don't know if the fries were needed but they were delicious. Then spicy sausage pasta, and finally chocolate covered strawberries. Yum. I haven't eaten pasta in forever and it was soooo good, but I don't typically eat fries, pasta and bread (they had excellent olive bread) all in one meal!

Most cities seem to have Restaurant Weeks so if you haven't already...check it out!

Who wants to treat me to a shopping spree?

I am loving the new Kate Spade dresses...amazing, especially paired with bright colored tights. Now if only I had a couple extra hundred dollars around. *sigh*

Beach Books

For now let's take a break from all my jabber about life changes and my job (there will be lots more to come) and focus on something totally different...vacation!

I am leaving for the beach on Saturday and since I read pretty fast, and all day when I am at the beach, I need to make a pilgrimage to Barnes and Noble to stock up.

So here is where I need your advice...any books or authors I should check out? I like a lot of different kinds of books especially historical fiction, scary stuff and chick-lit (as long as it isn't completely vapid) but nothing too deep for beach reading, please..save that for the winter!

What should I buy?

Inspired to Make Changes

Over the weekend my great-uncle J came to visit my parents and my brother. He has never met any of my siblings before and wanted to come meet us (my brother specifically) and give him some advice on college since my brother is interested in theater and Uncle J has spent his entire life as a professional dancer.

He is 80 years old and was raised in a farming community in Ohio, yet he followed his dreams and danced in ballet companies, musicals, operas, and on television all over the world. Listening to his stories I got to thinking about the importance of doing something that you love. Uncle J had times where he only had 25 cents and two suitcases to his name, times when he couldn't afford to eat and once had to live with his entire bankrupt dance company in an abandoned barn in France. Howerver, through it all he was following his passion and has lived a very full and exciting life.

Looking back at my own life so far, career-wise, I am disappointed. I changed my major in college to something I thought would be more exciting, then changed my mind again to something I thought would let me make more money. Now, I am unhappy with what I am doing but have been resisting going back to school because I am worried about taking out student loans. K is going to have a lot of student loan debt from law school and I don't want to add to that but, I don't want what he does to keep me from going for my own dreams.

So now I am taking Uncle J's advice, writing things down and doing some planning. Big changes are on the way for me, and hopefully they will be good ones.

This morning's emotional roller coaster, brought to you by the letter K

For some reason when I woke up this morning, I thought it was Monday. Depressing since I thought about what I had done over the weekend and couldn't remember anything. K mumbled something about pressing snooze and that he didn't care if he was a little late getting to work...I mumbled back: "is it Monday?" Obviously, he told me it was Friday, which made me very happy, especially since I can wear jeans on Friday and I am supposed to be in training all afternoon...so much better then actually working.

I showered, got dressed, etc...and K left for work. A few minutes later my phone rings. It's K, just calling to tell me he saw a dead fawn by the side of the road...and it was so sad he just had to share. Way to put a damper on my morning.

Thank you boyfriend, for cheering me up then brining me down all before 8 am. (hehe)

Hope you all have lovely Fridays!

A Silly Question Meme

I stole this week's meme from Adventures in Newlywed, it's some pretty silly, random, questions. Play along if you wish!



What is your salad dressing of choice? all time favorite is Cardini's original Caesar.

What is your favorite sit-down restaurant? that's hard...but probably this little Mexican place near my parent's house.

What food could you eat for 2 weeks straight and not get sick of it? cheese! (does that count)

What are your pizza toppings of choice? my favorite local pizza place has this amazing white pizza with chicken and spinach on it. It is fab!

What do you like to put on your toast? I never really eat toast...but if I did I would put butter on it.

How many televisions are in your house? 2---one in the living room and one in the "study"/"guest bedroom." If it were up to me we would have one in every room...including the bathroom!

What color cell phone do you have? black...and it has a black and sliver case thingy

Are you right-handed or left-handed? right

Have you ever had anything removed from your body? I had a mole removed...and some baby teeth before I got braces...and my wisdom teeth...and I guess splinters?

What is the last heavy item you lifted? I have no clue.

Have you ever been knocked unconscious? nope.

If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die? I don't think I would want to know...it would be depressing. Maybe if I was really really old...then I might want to know, but for now, no.

If you could change your name, what would you change it to? I wouldn't change my name, I am ok with it now, but when I was younger I wanted to change my name to Justine.

Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000? Absolutely! Show me the money!

Last run-in with a cop? I got pulled over probably a year and half ago because I didn't have a front licence plate on my old car...I told the cop it just fell off and got a warning...little did she know that I had just never put it on because it looked ugly on that kind of car.

Last person you talked to? a client at work...I talk to them all day.

Last person you hugged? K, this morning when he left for work

Favorite Season? fall...but I love summer too.

Holiday? Christmas

Day of the week? Saturday...because it's the weekend of course!

Month? I have no clue...maybe June since it is my birthday month?

First place you went this morning? outside to walk Hanna.

What's the last movie you saw? K and I watched "The Memory Keeper's Daughter" on LMN last Sunday...it wasn't that good.

Do you smile often? I guess.

Do you always answer your phone? Nope, but then again I don't get a ton of calls.

It's four in the morning and you get a text message who is it?My friend, E, most likely asking me how to get rid of her hiccups.

If you could change your eye color what would it be? I wouldn't, I like having blue eyes.

What flavor drink do you get at Sonic? Alas, I have never been to a Sonic...there are none near me. I am planning to go on the way to the beach because that is the closest one...last year it was waaay to crowded but this year I am stopping no matter what!

Do you own a digital camera? Yes, I just got a new red one and I love it!

Have you ever had a pet fish? I have had several...Miriam, Frank, Chuckie, Sparkle...Frank was killed by my mom who dropped him down the garbage disposal while cleaning his bowl...then turned it on...or maybe that was Chuckie?

Favorite Christmas song? "Do They Know It's Christmas?"...seriously, it isn't the holiday season until I hear that song.

What's on your wish list for your birthday? since I just had one...I have no idea what I will want next year.

Can you do push ups? No, even when I was in really good shape I couldn't do them. It could be a mental block.

Can you do a chin up? I don't think so...but I haven't tried since middle school.

Does the future make you more nervous or excited? a little of both

Do you have any saved texts? Not intentionally, just the ones I haven't deleted yet.

Ever been in a car wreck? yes, my high school bf hit a telephone pole with me in the car.

Do you have an accent? actually not at all, I think it is b/c I have lived all over the place.

What is the last song to make you cry? I have no idea. Songs don't normally make me cry. Just TV commercials

Plans tonight? cook dinner, watch Top Chef Masters from yesterday, go to Petco, attempt to stay up to watch Real Housewives, drink some wine, think about the fact that I have completely slacked off on working out.

Have you ever felt like you hit rock bottom?no

Name 3 things you bought yesterday? I actually didn't buy anything yesterday!

Have you ever been given roses? yes

Current worry? finances...now and in the future.

Current hate right now? my job

Met someone who changed your life? yes, I feel like everyone I am close with has changed my life in one way or another.

How did you bring in the New Year? party at a family friend's house, dinner with K, Sissy and her bf, R, then hanging out at our apartment.

What were you doing 12 AM last night? I was fast asleep.

What was the first thing you thought when you woke up? why is it not Friday?

Fortunately/Unfortunately

Fortunately I have a job that pays the bills.
Unfortunately I am really getting burned out from working at a job I don't enjoy.


Fortunately I am going to start looking for a new job soon and am now open to looking outside my current company.
Unfortunately the prospect of job searching scares me.


Fortunately I got my beloved Jetta back from the body shop yesterday and it looks as good as new.
Unfortunately I had to pay the $500 detectable, so I am $500 poorer today.


Fortunately I leave for the beach in 11 days.
Unfortunately that means 7.5 of work to get through.





(as a side note...my little brother is part of several different improv groups and this is based on one of the improv "games" they play...seemed like a good way to sum up my life right now)

Friend's of the Housewives

Please don't say I am totally lame, but I really have trouble staying up to watch shows that are on from 10-11. Hence, I didn't watch "Real Housewives of Atlanta," until Saturday. I know, I know, I am so behind.

Personally, some of the funniest characters on that show are not the housewives, but the random supporting characters of their lives.

Take for example, NeNe's husband, Gregg (love the double g's by the way), how funny are the faces he makes at his wife? He obviously knows she is nuts and thinks it is funny.

Then there is NeNe's "gay boyfriend," Dwight. It's like Prince and Ivana Trump had a baby together then sent him to be raised by a high class call girl in Atlanta. And I mean that in the nicest possible way, Dwight is fabulous.

Kim's suburban psychic, Rose, also made an appearance in the premier...and Kim is going to have a little boy! How exciting. I wonder if Big Poppa will come back into the picture or maybe Dallas Austin will be the father.

And finally, we met a minor character with a major personality. Sheree's "party planner"/"business executive"...I have no clue what his name is...but, yikes. Sheree is by no means a favorite of mine, but who talks to a paying client like that? I don't see him getting much business from now on but I sure hope he shows up on the show again!