I Had A Dream...

Very fitting for this week, but not what you may think. A couple nights ago, I had a dream about Jake Pavelka, you know the pilot guy who was once "The Bachelor"? It was pretty weird and I can't even remember what it was about, except that maybe the song "On the Wings of Love" may have been in it! But, after I woke up from that dream I kept going in and out of sleep thinking about how to write a blog on my love for the show. I did tell you I didn't feel good in the beginning of this week, right? haha One of my ideas was a list of how you knew you might be addicted to "The Bachelor/Bachelorette"... so I am just going to try that idea! Here goes...

• You have dreams about past cast members of the show! (obvious addition to the list!)


• You can't wait for Monday nights!


• You watched Miss America just because you love Chris Harrison!


• You follow Chris Harrison and Ben Flajnik on Twitter!


• You root for the girl (or guy) who is in your profession to at least not be crazy!


• You follow past bachelors/bachelorettes after their shows! For example: did you know that Kasey Kahl, you know the guy that wanted to honor & protect you, was arrested??? Click here to see his mug shot! Also, go here to see who will be the next Bachelorette!

That's all I could think of right now. Can you all think of anymore? Feel free to comment them to me, I would love to see what you think!

12 Goals for 2012

Happy New Year!!!

Hope everyone had a fantastic time last night! Phil and I decided to go out to eat then stay home for our first New Year's Eve as husband and wife! It was pretty great to be able to stay home and be an old married couple! haha

This year I am hoping to complete 12 Goals for 2012 instead of making any resolutions at all... I'm not too good at those!

12 Goals for 2012

1. Learn to quilt!

- one I didn't accomplish last year that I made sound more realistic as an overall just "Learn to quilt" instead of forcing myself to make 3!

2. Continue eating healthy and working out!

- this one may sound familiar too, but it is an important one to keep up with!

3. Make dinner and eat at home as much as possible!

- this is a new one for me & Phil since we have started living together, and we have done pretty good so far, but I would like to make it a goal.

4. Make tooth fairy pillows for my cousins/nephews!

- yes, another repeat but Alec is bound to lose his first tooth this year and I need to be a good dental hygienist aunt!

5. Read more books than I did in 2011!

- I changed last year's goal up a little bit this year! I only read 18 books in my busy 2011, and I just bought 3 new books a few nights ago, so I am bound to complete this goal!

6. Wish all my friends and family a "Happy Birthday" on their special day with either a card or a phone call.

- I am pretty bad about keeping in touch with everyone, and relying on Facebook and texting to convey my message just seems so impersonal.

7. Hang out with my friends more!

- they are special people in my life, and they showed up to the most important day in my life, so I need to be able to let them know I will be there for them!

8. To become full-time with my current job (or possibly another).

- It is hard to work only a few days a month, even though I understand our program is just starting out in my state. I just hope I will be thought of as an important member of the team enough to where they will pick me to work and rely on me!

9. Keep up with housework.

- now that we have our own place to take care of, I wanna make sure that I/we keep our house clean and organized!

10. Be a good wife!

- I want to be the best wife to Phil as I possibly can! I want to be understanding, listen to him, and make our first year of marriage go by as smoothly as possible! (they do say that the first year is the hardest!)

11. Pick back up some of my old blog followers and acquire more!

- during my absence from blogging last year, I feel like I've lost many followers and feel terrible I let them down.

12. Continue to blog!

- I know, another repeat, but I love blogging and hope to continue throughout this new year!

Well, there they are!

What do ya think?

What are your goals for 2012?

Accomplishments of 2011

This year was a totally crazy one! It went by so fast, yet played out in slow motion. I feel like I have accomplised a lot in this past year and want to share those moments with you! Here is my list of my "11 Goals for 2011" that I made at this time last year:

11 Goals for 2011

1. Find a DH Job!

- and I can check that one off the list! I just hope that it continues out to be a full time position and things pick up!

2. Find an apartment/house

- another check off the list! We are loving our new place and you can view it here!

3. Learn to quilt - Quilt a t-shirt quilt, a baby quilt, and a quilt for me & Phil

- I unfortunately did not complete this goal, but I kinda think I dreamed too high with this one with all the wedding planning going on! We did receive a quilt from Phil's grandmother and one from my friend Jeff's mother for our wedding!

4. Continue eating healthy and working out

- I did accomplish this goal until the latter part of the year! The holidays hurt me, but I plan on getting back on track! I will list this as goal complete because I did so well for 95% of the year! (that is a made up percentage so don't even try to calculate that!)

5. Use my crockpot

- check! We have made a couple different dishes in the good ole crockpot, including a potato casserole, thai chicken, and chili!

6. Have fun planning mine and Phil's wedding!

- check again! Planning was definately fun, but also very stressful as well! I am glad it is over with, but it was truly the happiest day of my life!

7. Make tooth-fairy pillows for my cousins/nephews!

- this did not happen! Luckily noone has lost a tooth yet! haha I did make the ring bearer pillow for my nephew, Alec, to hold while walking down the aisle!

8. Get a kitty

- this hasn't happened either, but it can't while we are living in our new place cause we aren't allowed to have any pets except our fishies. We did acquire a kitty friend that most likely belongs to a neighbor that comes to visit us and we call Muffin!

9. Continue to read for pleasure as often as I can.

- this I did! Although I didn't read as many books as I did last year, I did read as much as I could with all the craziness going on! I read a total of 18 books and plan to read more next year!

10. Start paying off my loans.

- I started doing this! Big accomplisment here!

11. Continue to blog!

- although I've had some trouble, I have continued to blog as much as I could! I fear though that I have lost many followers due to my absence!

I am happy that I completed 8 out of the 11 goals that I have set for myself! Many of which you may see again for 2012! Come back tomorrow to see what they are!

...and have a safe and happy New Year's Eve everybody!

Excuses

So yeah, I know I've taken a VERY long break from the blog so hear is my list of excuses:

• What free time I have is on the weekends, and that is when I actually get to spend time with Phil... so it really isn't free time anymore.
  


• I am tired when I get off work and usually have to take my workout clothes to work with me so I won't have to go home to change beforehand. This doesn't give me the excuse to stay home and not workout. To tell you the truth, I haven't really got online that much at all except to occasionally check emails, job listings, and fb stalk... oh and there was this whole researching caterers thing...
  


• So the so-called wonderful caterer Phil & I thought we had called me once in a 5 month period. He had promised, when we had our tasting, to email me a list of things we had discussed (food, plates, glasses, silverware, etc.) with prices for each. That never happened. Phil went to the restaurant repeatedly and told him I needed that email. Never happened. I got the call about 2 1/2 months ago with a total price, he said he'd email me the breakdown. Never happened. Phil continued to visit him and the last time he said he'd email me that night. Never happened. The next day, I called myself and the guy that answered said he was working on it now and would email me in the next hour. Never happend. It never will now cause we got us a new caterer! I let that charade go on for much longer than I should have, but it is okay now and the new caterer is great! I was just a wee bit stressed about that one!
  


• I had been working for 3 months for a hygienist on maternity leave. The people there loved me (yes, I'm tooting my own horn) and the other hygienist is wanting to go part-time, but for some reason the boss man thinks it will be a lot of work for her to do this, so he is resisting... for now. I have an insider, a mole, who is keeping me informed of these details as they progress. It sure would be nice...
  


• That job ended 7/27, I had last week lined up for another hygienist going on vacation, and now I'm getting ready to start another maternity leave for 6 weeks in an office I never worked before! So that will take me up until around 2 weeks before the wedding! I just pray something comes from all this. I really, really need it!
  


• I am obsessed with watching tv. Yes, I watched The Bachelorette. I figured she'd pick JP, but was really loving Ben. I felt really bad that he was so confident. So yeah, tv/tivo has over ruled my online time. There is also Flipping Out, So You Think You Can Dance, Design Star, True Blood... omg I'm addicted again! I think I had mentioned here that I was not going to let the tv rule me, but sadly(?) it has yet again. Okay, I'm not sad about it! Judge all you want.
  


• I am still planning the wedding! And the closer it gets to the wedding, the more things that need to get done. I feel like I've been pretty well organized, but there are just some things that have to wait until the end.

Future excuses:

• more tv


• more wedding stuff - dress fittings, invitations, hair/makeup trial, meetings with other vendors...


• more work


• more tired


• more stress


• more working out

I apologize in advance to the few followers I have accumulated, and hope you'll bear with me!

And I have a small request: If anyone finds a cute pair of reasonably priced grass/kelly/clover green high heeled shoes for my wedding that are cute and preferably 2 1/2 inches or less, please send me the link/store to find them! It would be appreciated :)

Oh, and the last update to the blog I made wasn't even supposed to be posted cause I had planned to add more to it. Oh well!

Let's Play Tag!

I was tagged by Stephanie from The Eclectic Girl to answer these questions:

1st - Four Places I Go

Phil's House

Hobby Lobby

Target

Random Dentist's Offices

2nd - Four Favorite Smells

Freshly Baked Cookies

My Banana Cream Pie Candle that is almost gone :(

Men's Cologne

Butterfly Flower by Bath & Body Works

3rd - Four Favorite TV Shows (as of right now)

The Biggest Loser

The Event (I know many don't like it, but I really like this show people!)

True Blood (always)

Property Virgins

4th - Four Recommendations

Laugh often.

Look for the good in all things.

Don't be too serious.

Smile!

I TAG:

Anyone who wants to play!

Pass it along once you've answered.

Week #32

Happy Monday everyone! I hope it is going okay for you so far! I hope some part of my week will make you smile!

Day 218: This Sunday, Phil and I sat around and watched our collection of Jack Ass movies and finally watched the newest one. In a lot of ways I cannot stand to watch these movies, but in part they are quite hilarious and I cannot take my eyes away! haha No matter what, it's always nice to be able to laugh together!

Day 219: Today, I went to the Y and ran! I also finished up watching the Square Pegs DVDs I got for Christmas. Has anyone else ever watched this TV series? It is like totally 80s, totally! I had never heard of it before I got it as a gift, but it was a lot of fun to watch! I believe this was one of Sarah Jessica Parker's first roles.

Day 220: Mom and I went to another florist's shop today to get a feel for how they would be for the wedding. The woman was really nice there and I have a feeling she is who we are going to go with! From there, we went to Hobby Lobby and picked up a few things including these (pictured) that we are going to use as table numbers. What do ya think?

Day 221: I spent the better part of this evening going over our gift registry and figuring out everything we still need to register for. I printed off this checklist and compared it to what we already have bought/registered.

Day 222: Today, I got called into temp work at a new dentist's office (that's #5)! Their dental hygienist hurt her arm which is so sad considering her line of work, but I'm glad I got an oppurtunity to fill-in somewhere new and meet new people. My aunt, uncle, cousin's wife & daughter (Asyra) left today to see my cousin graduate from basic training in Texas! This pic is Asyra and mom playing the 'scrub your ears' game she made up!

Day 223: I went to Phil's house this weekend. This evening Phil and I went to Point Pleasant to eat at a new place. Then, we went back to his house to relax. This pic is of Phil's mom's dog, Baby. Baby loves me and cuddled up on my lap tonight and went to sleep. I sure do miss having a doggy!

Day 224: Phil's nephew Alec turned 6 years old the day before, but today we, along with Phil's parents, took him to Chuck E. Cheese's to eat pizza, play games, and get prizes! He had a blast! After, Phil and I went to the bookstore where I finally got "Dead in the Family" by Charlaine Harris since it just came out in paperback! I cannot wait to go read it!

Have a good week!

Week #24

So I had a fairly good week, lots more wedding research and accomplishments were made! Enjoy!

Day 162: My parents and I went next door to my aunt & uncle/cousin's house to say farewell to my "little" cousin Zach before he was leaving the next day to go to basic training. This is a pic of me playing with his daughter, Asyra. She had me ride on her horse with her in the kitchen floor.

Day 163: Went to the Y today and Mondays are my meeting days. We talked about cholesterol today and I thought this little cartoon was pretty cute. If you can't see it, it is a vampire scaring a woman but the woman says "I'd better warn you - I've high cholesterol!"

Day 164: Went looking around for more options for the wedding ceremony and reception location. For the reception I'm liking the Ramada, but we'll see if this will be close enough to where we want the ceremony. This is a pic of the floor plan.

Day 165: Got another free wedding magazine in the mail! It has options for decor, invitations, favors, and gifts in it. It may come in handy!

Day 166: Went Krogering today! I love grocery shopping for the most part, but I especially love getting the Kroger sushi!

Day 167: Took my parents to the airport today! My mom and dad had planned this trip a long time ago so they could go visit some of my mom's relatives down in Florida. Although I would have liked to join them, it probably is for the best that I stayed here cause I ended up with another interview this Monday (today)! This pic is driving down the hill from where the airport is located. I also ran into my friend Jennifer (Crazy Shenanigans) there and it was good getting to catch up with her! After that, I went right to the Y and ran a mile without stopping for the first time ever!!!

Day 168: Phil and I went to Ashland today. We ate at the Cheddar's there, went to the mall where I got my Clinique freebies (pictured), then went to Burt's Pet Shop where we got our pet fix!

I am crossing my fingers that I will get some calls about jobs this week! I also have made a chore list for myself to complete... we'll see how that goes!

Goals for 2011

I've decided to make goals for myself for the new year. They really can't fall under the category of "resolution" since they aren't really things I need to change, although I do have few resolutions too.

11 Goals for 2011

1. Find a dental hygiene job!
2. Find an apartment/house for me and Phil after finding that DH job!
3. Learn to quilt - by year's end I would like to have finished at least 3 quilts: My t-shirt quilt, a baby quilt (for my new little cousin due May 1st!), and a quilt for me and Phil.
4. Continue eating healthy and working out.
5. Use my crockpot.
6. Plan mine and Phil's wedding and have fun doing it!
7. Make tooth-fairy pillows for my little cousins/nephews.
8. Get a kitty.
9. Continue to read for pleasure as often as I can.
10. Start paying off my loans.
11. Continue to blog!

Resolutions

• Begin going to sleep earlier and waking up earlier - This will be a hard one to start and I'm afraid that it won't happen until I find a job I need to get up for.
• Start writing down what I eat everyday - I was doing this really well for the first part of my weight-loss program I joined at the Y, but lately I haven't at all.
• Be more patient.
• Hang out more with my friends!

Last year my resolution was to call my family/friends more often and get over my phone phobia. This resolution didn't turn out too well cause I never did. Bad Mariah! I hope this year's goals/resolutions turn out better than last year's!

I've also added the 11 Goals for 2011 to the left sidebar so you can track their progress with my other lists!

• Do you have any goals/resolutions for the new year?
• How did you do with last years resolutions?

I Didn't Know I Was Stylish!

I want to thank my friend Miranda over at Hanging Loose With The Tucci's for this award! I didn't realize I was considered stylish, but I'm glad to find out that I am (just don't go through my wardrobe!).

There are 4 duties to perform to accept the award:

1. Thank and link back to the person who awarded you this award:


2. Share 7 things about yourself.


3. Award 15 recently discovered great bloggers.


4. Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award

So here are 7 things about me:

1. I technically have gone to 3 different colleges: Marshall (B.S. Biology), WV State (just for 1 class - Organic Chemistry II), and WVU (B.S. Dental Hygiene).


2. I'm getting married on October 15, 2011!


3. I love to scrapbook, but don't think I have actually finished any one project.


4. I need to find a DH job soon!


5. There was a huge spider in my laundry room today and thankfully my parents found it before i did. I wanted to vomit after seeing it and was scared to use my toilet after dad flushed it.


6. I've lost 10lbs. since I have started my weight-loss program at the Y. It seems like it has taken a long time, but I consider maintaining my weight during the holidays as an accomplishment!


7. I got a Christmas card in the mail today! haha

Now I'm going give this award to 15 bloggers I've recently (or not-so-recently) discovered. They may or may not be a follower of mine.

1. The Country Chic Cottage
2. A Girl In Pearls & A Boy With Toys
3. Apothecary Fox
4. Be Awesome Instead
5. Color Me Katie
6. Crazy Shenanigans
7. I know, right?
8. In Between Laundry
9. It's Blogworthy
10. Knock Knocking
11. Lavender, Leopard, & Lace
12. Making Stuff Is Fun
13. Princess & The Blog
14. The Fickle Nickle
15. Thoughtful Day

The Year I Read 35 Books

On this special edition of "The Day...", I decided since it is that last day of the year that I would entitle this post "The Year..." and give you a run down of all the books I read this year. I quite honestly don't think I've ever in my life read this many books for pleasure, or for really anything, in a single year. Here's to hoping I can do it again!

1. Grave Sight - Charlain Harris
2. Grave Surprise - Charlaine Harris
3. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
4. An Ice Cold Grave - Charlaine Harris
5. Shakespeare's Landlord - Charlaine Harris
   
6. Always Looking Up - Michael J. Fox
7. Animal Farm - George Orwell
8. Shakespeare's Champion - Charlaine Harris
9. Shakespeare's Christmas - Charlaine Harris
10. Dead and Gone - Charlaine Harris
11. Shakespeare's Trollop - Charlaine Harris
12. Shakespeare's Counselor - Charlaine Harris
13. Honeysuckle Summer - Sherryl Woods
14. The Inn At Eagle Point - Sherryl Woods
15. Flowers On Main - Sherryl Woods
16. Harbor Lights - Sherryl Woods
    
17. About That Man - Sherryl Woods
18. Ask Anyone - Sherryl Woods
19. Along Came Trouble - Sherryl Woods
20. The Last Summer (Of You And Me) - Ann Brashares
21. True Colors - Kristin Hannah
    
22. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
    
23. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson
24. Stealing Home - Sherryl Woods
25. Real Murders - Charlaine Harris
26. A Slice of Heaven - Sherryl Woods
27. Feels Like Family - Sherryl Woods
28. Welcome To Serenity - Sherryl Woods
29. Home In Carolina - Sherryl Woods
30. Grave Secret - Charlaine Harris
31. Sweet Tea at Sunrise - Sherryl Woods
32. A Bone To Pick - Charlaine Harris
33. Three Bedrooms, One Corpse - Charlaine Harris
34. The Julius House - Charlaine Harris
35. Dead Over Heels - Charlaine Harris

To group these together I have read:

1. The whole Harper Connelly Series by Charlaine Harris
2. The whole Lily Bard Series by Charlaine Harris
3. One book of the Sookie Stackhouse Novels by Charlaine Harris (Because the previous year I had read the books leading up to it and there are no more in paperback yet.)
4. The Chesapeake Shores Series by Sherryl Woods (that's so far in paperback)
5. The whole Trinity Harbour Series by Sherryl Woods
6. The Sweet Magnolia Series by Sherryl Woods (that's so far in paperback)
7. Part of the Aurora Teagarden Series by Charlaine Harris (I'm finishing it up first thing in 2011!)

My least favorite book would have to be The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson and my favorite would probably be The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins because it is really hard to pick a favorite out of a series. And it is really hard for me to pick a favorite series. There was a book that I began reading but just couldn't finish and that was the classic book The Lord of the Flies by William Golding. I will try really hard to finish this one in 2011! And there was one book that I read twice which was Honeysuckle Summer by Sherryl Woods, because I started out reading her books at the end of one of her series so I had to go back and read it again after I read the previous ones! I didn't count it as an extra book though!

I owe finding out about Sherryl Woods to my friend Jennifer over at Crazy Shenanigans. We ironically have the same favorite and least favorite of the year! Maybe next year I will branch outside of Charlaine Harris and Sherryl Woods, but if they keep producing books then I know I will read them!

Do you have any book suggestions for me for 2011?

What was your favorite/least favorite book of the year?

My Blog's 1st Birthday!

Today marks 1 year of my blog's exsistence! I really can't believe that it has gone by so fast and so many things have happened in this year.

• My very first post.
• I've shared with you some of my quirks.
• I passed my Dental Hygiene National Boards and [finally] passed my DH Regional Boards.
• I got a couple of bloggy awards!
• I graduated from Dental Hygiene School.
• I've been planning my wedding.
• Phil and I celebrated our 5th Anniversary of being together.
• I've started my Pictures, Poetry, and Quotes (PPQ) Posts, my "The Day..." Posts, and my Pic-A-Day Challenge Posts!
• And so much more!

I want to thank all my faithful followers who have lifted my spirits with kind words and encouragement this past year, and also to those silent followers I know I have that mean so much to me! You all make me smile so often!

I Got Tagged!

My friend Miranda over at Hangin' Loose With The Tucci's tagged me with her little question/answer thingy! Here they are:

1. What is your daily routine like? What time to you get up, go to bed, dinner routine, etc.

• You all probably don't wanna see this, but during the week I usually get out of bed around noon. I was going to lie and say around 11am, which is sometimes true I guess, but more than likely it is noon. I love my sleep and I don't usually have anything to do early anyway. I am a night creature and looooove staying up late and go to bed around 2am. Obviously this will chance once I have a job! During the day I am usually looking for a job, planning my wedding, going to the Y, and/or hanging out with my mom. On the weekends, I am with Phil since we don't get to see eachother during the week very often. And believe it or not, it is the weekends that I get up fairly early (for me anyway) cause Phil and I like to go go go!

2. What are things you do with your family for fun. And for those of you with children, what fun things to you like to do with your kids?

• I love to travel with my family. My fondest memories are ones that involve the beach, skiing, or going on any trip! Family birthdays always turn out to be interesting too... my Aunt Marcia has seriously used the same wrapping paper for presents my entire life and most likely longer! Thanks old Lazarus!

3. What are your FAVORITE holiday traditions?

• My favorite holiday traditions are: carving pumpkins with Phil, going to haunted trails/houses/hayrides/places for Halloween with friends, decorating the Christmas tree, waiting (or trying to wait) until midnight on Christmas Eve to open a couple presents with my mom, dad, and Uncle Abbie, eating and filling up the living room with wrapping paper with my entire family on Christmas Day, and dying/hiding/hunting Easter eggs.

4. What do you do when you want to relax and have some "me time" ?

• I usually get online (here), watch some TiVo, or read a book.

5. What is one of your favorite books you've read so far?

• This is sort of a hard question. My answer I always have given before has been "Every Living Thing" by James Herriot as my all time favorite and I'm pretty sure that still stands true. His books could be counted as a series but I like that one as it stands on its own. My favorite series would have to be the Sookie Stackhouse Series by Charlaine Harris. I could also say my favorite mystery book is "And Then There Were None" by Agatha Christie.

6. What is your biggest guilty pleasure?

• Ice cream. That was an easy one :-)
  

Now I have to come up with my questions for 6 lucky readers:

1. What is your favorite book(s) of all time? <- I liked this question courtesy of Miranda :-)

2. Do you have any pets? If so, tell me a little about them! If not, is there a pet that you would like to have?

3. What is your favorite color and why? <- kinda lame but I'm curious!

4. If you are not blogging, what is your favorite website you like to visit?

5. What is your favorite vacation destination or one you'd like to go to?

6. Do you have any wedding planning tips for me??? <- anyone can comment on this one!

The 6 lucky readers I am tagging are:

Kelsey Claire @ Lavender, Leopard, and Lace

Jennifer Fabulous @ I know, right?

Hutch @ Be Awesome Instead

Sarah @ Princess & the Blog

JMJE @ Making Stuff is Fun.....

Not Quite Awake @ Reality Faker

Do this only if you want, and anyone else who wants to do it, please do!

You love me! You really love me!

I got a new award thanks to Jennifer at Crazy Shenanigans!

With this award I am supposed to list 10 things that make me happy:

1. Being home in Huntington.

2. Being able to sleep until my body makes me wake up.

3. The thought of graduating in 22 days (and leaving Morgantown)!

4. Being able to be with Phil for an extended period of time.

5. Children smiling :)

6. Memories of my Sunshine!

7. Sushi with friends.

8. Going to the beach with my family.

9. Audrey Hepburn movies.

10. Autumn

Now I am supposed to tag 10 people to give this to, so I am tagging all my followers yet again since I only have 13 people to give it to and don't want to leave anyone out!

Another update about my life at a later time!

Feeling A Bit Bookish

So inspired by my friend Jennifer's recent blog, over at Crazy Shenanigans, I've decided to blog about the different books I like!

I realized today that most of my favorite authors create a book series, not just one individual book that stands on its own. When I like a character, I don't want to quit reading about them! I just wish the series would go on and on and on... and knitting and knitting and knitting... just channeled PeeWee Herman for a sec but you get the picture. That is sort of what's going on for me with Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse novels. I love all the characters in these books (and True Blood on HBO!) and the series is continuing, but I always wait for the books to come out in paperback and she can't write fast enough for me! I'm impatient! So I started reading some of Charlaine Harris' other series and have found that I like them quite a bit too.

Continuing with the vampire theme, I have read the Twilight Series multiple times (except for the last one I've only read a borrowed copy once cause its not out in paperback yet). I feel like a teenager reading those books but I just love them. I was in Blockbuster a couple days ago and I saw a 6 year old boy go up to the display of fake movie boxes that advertised the New Moon movie. This is where I overheard him telling his mom that Jacob was better than Edward! Really!? For one thing, Edward is definately better than Jacob! ...and secondly, why is a 6 year old watching this movie?! Okay I am going to stop now cause there may be some Team Edward/Jacob arguments going to happen but that is just my opinion! And also that the books are way better than the movies. And Bella Swan is a pretty crappy character anyway, so ya gotta love everyone else in the movie & books.

And the first vampire series I fell in love with is Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. My love of these books started with the movies, which is pretty much the safe route to go so you won't go getting all mad and riled up like I do when the movie doesn't measure up to the awesomeness of the book. But anyway, I still think Interview With The Vampire is a pretty great movie; Queen of the Damned, however, not so much. I am still working on this series too, but need to get caught back up since I haven't read them in a long time.

My favorite author of all time is James Herriot. He was a veterinarian that wrote books about his times being a vet in Yorkshire, England. He introduces you to different characters he encounters, his family, friends, and the various animals he took care of as a vet. Very good reads for people of any age!

Mystery novels are my favorite genre of reading material. Agatha Christie is the Queen of Mystery, in my book and lots of others. I have read so many of her books and still have a ton before I could even fathom being finished! I was even played Mrs. Boyle in the play The Mousetrap in middle school! ha ha ha This is where my love of her books began anyway, not my acting career. This is not considered a series, but some of the detectives and their backgrounds are used many times throughout her work.

Okay, I'm running out of steam on this post so I'll just end it with the book I'm currently reading: Animal Farm. I really dislike all things political but Phil got me this book cause it's one of his favorites, so I decided I could get through it. I am finding that I am actually enjoying this read! It suprises me a lot, but I am looking forward to relaxing and reading this book right now! It's pretty fitting too with all the politicallyness stuff going on right now... but I don't want to get into that!

Happy Reading!

My Worst Break-up Ever

I have been a little preoccupied lately. A very big event happened in my life this past Saturday, and it took up most of my time and thoughts preparing for it: March 13th, 2010 was the fateful day that SRTA broke up with me.

Let me give you a run-down. SRTA stands for Southern Regional Testing Agency. Instead of having a National Clinical Board, someone has decided to divide all the states into their own testing regions, and they even overlap states to make it more confusing. Anyway, I decided to take this test with the mindset that if I ever moved away from West Virginia that it would be somewhere to the warmer South. Like you all know, I was pretty worried about my patient showing up for the test and qualifying. These were my main worries… And here is how my time spent with SRTA was like a relationship:

• A relationship starts off with a hope, just like me preparing for this test and hoping for success for my future career.

• In the beginning of a relationship there is always a little worry that the guy doesn’t like you as much as you like him. This is like my worry that my patient wouldn’t work out.

• In a relationship, there should be butterflies in your stomach whenever you see that special someone, just like I had on my “date” with SRTA that March 13th.

• In a good relationship there are times when there is smooth sailing and everything is happy, as it was when my patient arrived the day of the board exam AND qualified!

• In a relationship there are ups and downs. One such down in my relationship with SRTA was that I had forgot to fill out part of a form, but it was nothing that I couldn’t apologize for and correct. And this had no bearing on my final score.

• At the end of a date in a relationship, there are those butterflies and questions like “Did he think it went as well as I thought it just did?”. This is how I felt after my clinical board.

• There is a time in a relationship where you are comfortable with the situation and who you are with. After I took the clinical part of this exam, I also had to take an electronic portion. I came out of this part thinking it was ridiculously easy.

• In a not-so-good relationship sometimes the person leads you on. Monday morning I checked my SRTA account to find out I had a big ole “PASS” typed out on the screen before me. This just confirmed my previous feelings of comfort.

• In a relationship you can be dumped. This is what SRTA did to me Monday evening when I found out I failed my clinical portion of the exam. My heart was broken.

This is me after I found out SRTA dumped me. Like what I've done with my hair?

• At the end of a relationship you can be sad and sometimes mad at who broke up with you. I was mad! I feel like SRTA lied to me and about me, and also sold me false promises of hope during my time with it. I was also sad because all the hard work I put into the relationship was now null and void. I talked to my girlfriends about this exam and they backed me up like good friends do. There were 6 of us in the same relationship and SRTA broke up with 4 of us and kept its 2 favorites (sort of The Bachelor-ish). We came together and shared our stories after the final rose, I mean after the exam was over. It makes me feel better to know I have people to go through this with me, but that also makes me feel really bad cause I don’t want any of us to fail. We all are good at what we do and can’t help that the judges grading us couldn’t see the same thing. It doesn’t help that I added up my score and found out I got a 74.75%, only 0.25% away from passing. Another girl got the same score, which makes us a little skeptical.

So now it’s time to start a new relationship with a SRTA in a different school. I have to pay another $915 (ridiculous! SRTA is only dating me for my money!) not to mention go through the turmoil of finding another board patient that would be willing to come to WVU to be screened and then be able to go to Bridgemont Community & Technical College in Montgomery, WV on April 30th. And so my life continues to be stressful for at least another couple months, and I feel bad for Phil having to put up with the moods I have during this process. He’s a trooper though, and at least I know he is my everlasting relationship.

A Cat Jumped On My Face!

I was thinking I was going to actually blog all this Sunday evening after Phil left, but he is not feeling too well tonight so I sent him to bed with Ibuprofen at 7:30pm! I hope this means he'll feel better in the morning and will want to get up earlier than usual to do something fun!

Since you all read about how bad last week was, I tried to be very optimistic this week! And it did make a difference... I found a board patient Thursday! This makes me feel a million times better! I just hope they are reliable and will show up! It would be nice to have a back-up patient too for just about that reason alone, because I am almost 100% certain they meet all the requirements to be my board patient.

That brings me to today, well last night too, cause Adam came to visit me! We spent the day together today and went to eat Indian food for lunch! It was so great to be able to just talk and have someone listen and to know they care! Not like I don't have anyone else around me that cares, but Adam has been my #1 best friend for a very long time and he just understands me, and I him. Out of our talks came the title of today's blog, in case you were wondering! Adam told me this and it cracked me up, but also made me want to start my cat farm more than ever!

While Adam was here, he started talking about making a Bucket List. I had actually considered it before, and have made my "Things to do before I'm 35" list, but he made me excited to actually start this new list. I also LOVE watching that show on MTV called "The Buried Life". So I thought that when I come up with an idea, I would just add it to a list on the side-column on this page! Go look for the beginnings of it now!

Almost 5 minutes after Adam left today, Phil pulled in. He wasn't himself really and it concerned me. He said he hadn't felt good since yesterday but just thought it was because he was having a hard day at work. But he still doesn't feel well. We did end up going to the mall to see "Alice in Wonderland" and he made it through. Once we got back to my place though, he went to bed like I stated above.

Now with my review of "Alice in Wonderland"! I thought it was great! We went to see the 3D version, but to tell you the truth I would like it just the same in 2D. The story is the same one we grew up knowing, but the special effects and acting was great! Johnny Depp was, of course, amazing! The acting made me forget they weren't the actual characters. I would recommend that you go see it. Very colorful. There was only one questionable part of the movie that made me think "why did they do it that way?" and seemed kind of out of place with the time period of the movie. I won't ruin it for you though!

Have a great weekend everyone!

My 1st Award!

I got my first award from my friend, and fellow blogger, Amanda at It's Blogworthy!

Amanda I met a few years back when I worked at an animal ER back home. We have kept in touch online ever since! If I could I would give her this award right back!

So now I have to write 7 facts about myself and give this award to 7 other bloggers!

7 Little Known Facts About Me

(you can find out more here)

1. I cannot stand to wash lettuce.

2. When asked what my favorite thing was when I was young and at bible school, my reply was “Bourbon”. What they didn’t know was that was my dog’s name.

3. I was a legal 21 when I first got drunk.

4. Phil and I met online and now we are engaged!

5. Some of my “husbands” include, but are not limited to: Randy Travis, Donnie Osmond, and Harrison Ford.

6. I like to hold onto my paper towels after I use them to dry my hands. You will most likely see them laying around my house when I finally let them go. It’s a bit of an obsession I don't realize I'm doing.

7. I wish that I was born with red hair so it would look good on me.

7 Bloggers

These bloggers are ones I have been following for the longest!

1. Daily Musings From Yours Truly
- this is Rachel who I got to start up a blog the same time I began mine. Rachel is a great friend who I met while in dental hygiene school and later found out we were the oldest in our class together and actually lived near eachother back home! Go check out her page :)

2. Tucci Times Three
- Miranda is a friend that I was in high school band with back in the day! I love reading her blog and seeing the changes her blog goes through. Amanda actually gave this award to Miranda already, but I felt the need to give one to her as well!

3. Bitch Cakes
- Every time I read this blog I am inspired to keep up with WW! She gives awesome recipes and takes you through every step of her weight loss.

4. Daniel McQuade Photography
- Daniel is a friend I met while attending Marshall. We were in some organizations together like the X-treme Fear Club! Daniel is a very talented photographer and shows his pictures on his page.

5. Chronicles of My Momdom
- Michelle is a friend I met in high school band as well! She now has a little girl who she blogs about in a rather hilarious manner! I always want to read more!

6. Our Little Corner of the World
- Carri is my best friend's sister! She is a beautiful woman who has a beautiful family who she enjoys blogging about!

7. Life Around Shepherdstown
- Adam is my best friend. I don't get to see him much, but it is nice to be able to see what he is doing through pictures on his blog! It's almost like his laugh comes through the page to me :)

In other news, WVU is actually closed Monday! Truly a miracle! Now to figure out to do all day long besides staring at this computer!

Idol Night Traditions

Starting last year (The Year of Anoop), my friends and I have started the tradition of watching American Idol together every Tuesday and Wednesday. I thought I would share some of the traditions we have started during this time.

Taking pictures with the TV

Drinking wine and eating goodies Making fun of the judges and celebrity guests (this is the Randy Travis look)Voting!Rewinding and rewatching past performances over and over again!Being nervous waiting for results!Drinking RC

And finally, finding a new musician (or group) to follow!

I am excited to see what this season brings and what new traditions will develop!

Stay tuned...