Archive for November, 2008

It’s the last day in November folks! Which means, I have successfully (more or less) posted every single day this month! I have completed NaBloPoMo this year! YAY! I have to admit, I was rather dubious as to whether or not my life was interesting enough to write something every day. Thank goodness that’s over! I do feel it was a good experience as a blogger. Perhaps I may even start to post more often…but most likely, I’ll go back to once a week updates. Sorry!

Carrie and I went shopping today at Grapevine Mills Mall. Andy was THRILLED that he got to remain at home and be a bum all day. He dislikes malls normally, but absolutely hates them during the holiday season. Even I have to admit, I was rather irritated today squeezing between two giant strollers with moms on their cell phones and their kids running every which way. The hoards of people, the incredibly long lines, the good items being snatched up before your very eyes, made for a long afternoon.

But regardless of the negatives, Carrie and I still had a lot of fun. We were both looking for things to get us through the parties/functions that the holidays bring. I managed to find several items that I absolutely love: dark jeans that fit well, slouchy brown boots, and a sparkly party dress in purple. There’s nothing quite like the thrill of a good purchase at a phenomenal price. Banana Republic Outlet Store was having an additional 50% off sale! I love it!

In the evening, Andy and I put up all of our holiday decorations. The house looks and smells like Christmas. I looked at my calendar, and it’s going to be a crazy busy month! I’m prepared, excited, and off and running!!

With Thanksgiving over (in case you missed it, click here for the photos), now is the proper time for the Christmas preparations to begin. We will be putting up our tree, decorations, and lights tomorrow. Why not today? Well, truth be told, we’re a little exhausted. The trip back home was rather tiring. I-35 was completely stopped, so we had to weave our way on back roads to get back to Fort Worth. After unpacking, getting dinner on the table, and getting settled, we’re a little drained. So we’ll just save the holiday stuff for tomorrow.

I’m very excited! I love putting up Christmas decorations! I love making and receiving cookies! I love Christmas food! I love buying gifts! I love Christmas stationary, cards, and pictures! I even love wrapping presents! So much so, that I volunteered to wrap presents for Cook Children’s Hospital. US Oncology raises money all year so we can buy presents for the kids that have to be in the hospital during the holidays. We end up raising quite a bit of money, as I learned. So, when they asked for people to help with packaging and wrapping, I was all too happy to offer my time…work time, but time nonetheless.

So, here’s wishing you luck, sanity, and warm spirited cheer this holiday season! It promises to be a short amount of time to get prepared! Brace yourselves, Christmas is almost upon us!

Th day after Thanksgiving, a day where we recuperate from the massive amounts of food we ate yesterday, avoid the shopping areas like the plague, and try and find new ways to make the leftovers disappear. After a leisurely lunch, the family headed to City Lights Theatres to see the new Bond film, the Quantum of Solace. No worries, I won’t spoil the show. First off, I love the theme song. After a quick google search, I discovered it’s called “Another Way to Die‘ by Alicia Keys and Jack White. This will be an itunes buy for me when I get home.

The movie itself was pretty good. It wasn’t my favorite Bond film, but it’s hard to beat some of the classics. I think my favorite of all time was either Tomorrow Never Dies (Pierce Brosnan is lovely) or Live and Let Die (Roger Moore‘s pretty hunky too). Any way you look at it, I had a nice relaxing afternoon at the theatre. Plus, when we got home, we discovered three very happy puppies waiting for us. It was the first time we’ve left all three dogs out of their kennels while we’re gone. Thank goodness there were no accidents, nothing broken, nothing missing, just sweet puppies.

After the movie, Andy and I headed to the San Gabriel Park with both little baby Turner and Puppy Jabberwocky. Andy ran a few miles, while I took the puppies on a nice fast paced walk. I tried jogging with them, but with my squirrel chasing, short attention spanned, hyperactive, side undecided companions, it made it difficult for me to concentrate on anything but puppy wrangling. However, it was a beautiful day outside and we all seemed to enjoy the brisk exercise.

We just finished a very tasty dinner of hot browns (turkey, tomato, and bacon piled on a slice of Texas toast doused in a delicious cheese sauce), steamed broccoli, and chocolate pie for dessert. Now we’re just hanging around the living room lazily watching Ratatouille. What a fun filled day (and turkey filled too)! The puppies are tuckered out from all the excitement and activity.

Oh my goodness, I think our entire continent probably just sunk a little with the weight we’ve all gained eating our American Thanksgiving meals. As always, we had all the traditional dishes: smoked turkey, roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, broccoli casserole, rolls, deviled eggs, 2 kinds of gravy, smashed yams with marshmellows, green bean casserole, stuffing, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, marshmellow salad, chocolate pudding pie, pecan pie, and apple pear crisp with vanilla ice cream.

Good grief! Even with a nice walk after lunch, I think I’ve actually sunk into a food stupor! But what tasty food it was!

Now, we’re all just sitting around falling asleep to the soothing sound of the Dallas Cowboys football game. Not exactly my favorite activity, but it’s the activity of popular choice. After that! It’s the University of Texas game! Woohoo!! Okay, not so much, but it’s nice being with family. I hope everyone else is having a fantastic time and are as fortunate as we Trommers are today. Wishing everyone happy eating!

Update: As you can probably tell, I’ve finally added photos. Click here for the link to all our Thanksgiving 2008 pictures…but I’ve posted most of them.

Must write quickly today! My entire day consisted of me running around like a crazy person. I suddenly had a lot of issues to take care of today at work. So, while everyone else was semi-relaxing and getting ready to leave early (yes, we got out of work at 3pm while still being paid for the whole day), I was being incredibly busy. Several new studies are getting ready to open for enrollment. This means I have a LOT of stuff and kits coming in that I have organize and set up. Figures they would all show up the day before Thanksgiving! Yikes!!

I managed to finish all the urgent matters by 3 pm. No, we were not allowed to stay late. I actually think my manager was out the door before me! I rushed to Southlake to return a dress that I bought online. It looked so cute on the Gap website’s model. However, as most online splurges go, it looked absolutely ridiculous on me. I wish I could pull off the girly ruffly look…sigh. So, that had to go back to its Gap home.

After that, I rushed home to start preparing my Thanksgiving meal contributions. I decided upon Alton‘s broccoli casserole. However, due to popular demand, I decided to make a dessert as well. After thinking hard as to what would be tasty, yet Thanksgiving appropriate, I thought Ina Garten‘s apple and pear crisp would be pretty terrific. I hope everything turns out okay. The dishes are all prepped and ready to go, just waiting to be baked tomorrow.

A quick dinner was cooked by Andy, thankfully, because I was covered in apple peels and brown sugar. Now that the food is done, I have to go pack. This is always a difficult task for me. I haven’t had time to make my packing list, and that makes me nervous. The only time I forget to bring necessary things is when I don’t make a list. Either way, we have to be on the road in one hour and 15 minutes. All my outfits, shoes, make-up paraphernalia, and hair doohickeys have to be ready to go. Sigh…I’m tired, but have no time to rest. I disenjoy days like this…yes, for today, “disenjoy” is a word.

I hope your Thanksgiving is bright, cheery, and full of presents. Wait, wrong holiday…full of turkey. There we go! Enjoy yourselves! With that I’m off running to find my suitcase!

I was reading Something To Say last night after I blogged and came accross an entry called “100 Things I Love“. I thought it was brilliant and terribly sweet idea. In this day and age, it’s easy for me to forget the simple things that make me happy. So, I thought I would give it a shot. I hope there are 100 things out there that I love, otherwise, I may have to shorten the list…which would be pathetic and sad.

In no particular order, just as they pop into my mind…

1. Waking up at 3 am/early on the weekends and realizing that I still have several hours to sleep.

2. Getting unexpected letters/packages

3. A heart breaking, incredibly sappy, girly movie that can make me cry (which is not an easy feat)

4. Dancing around my office and singing (when not busy and no one is looking) to Ace of Base

5. Finding that one pair of jeans that make you look amazing on the CLEARANCE RACK!

6. Finding anything on clearance…

7. When Jabber is being sweet and comes to cuddle next to me.

8. When Jabber lays down my on cold feet, it makes them so toasty warm!

9. Laughing so hard that my sides hurt.

10. Knowing my friends understand and will never judge me.

11. Feeling like my job helps those who suffer and are in pain.

12. Helping others because I want to, not because I have to.

13. Wonderfully delicious pina coladas, calories be damned!

14. The smell of homemade cinnamon rolls baking in the oven.

15. Cheese

16. Getting dolled up for the evening, just because I can.

17. When I can make others laugh, even when it’s unintentional.

18. Knowing that I look beautiful. No, not trying to being stuck up or vain. Every once in a long while, I know that I look and feel good.

19. Knowing that Andy always thinks I’m pretty, even when I’m not feeling it.

20. Having a long conversation with my dad until the wee hours of the morning.

21. The feeling after I’ve completed a particularly hard workout.

22. Getting so involved in reading a book that I forget where I am.

23. Completely building a piece of IKEA furniture on my own.

24. Shopping with my mom

25. My sister’s sarcastic-ness and individual point of view

26. Soft fluffy animals (bunnies, Pomeranians, baby pandas, wombats…etc)

27. A freshly painted pedicure in a fantastic OPI shade.

28. Dresses/skirts that twirl around me when I spin.

29. Junk food (yes, it’s terrible…but I love me some burgers, pizza, breakfast burritos, and french fries)

30. My Christmas socks (reindeers, snowflakes, penguins…etc)

31. Friday nights full of weekend possibilities

32. The sudden inspiration that my projects and homemade cards require.

33. Sleeping hamsters

34. Autumn weather (minus the allergies)

35. Reduced fat Oreo cookies.

36. Seeing the look of surprise and happiness when you give someone an unexpected gift.

37. Being nice and warm under the covers on a cold winter’s day.

38. The first snow, before cars drive through it and people walk in it.

39. The perfect smokey eye makeup

40. Getting messages on Facebook

41. Wedding planning television shows

42. Organizational supplies

43. A hot cup of Swiss Miss hot chocolate

44. Matching/coordinating ribbon and paper products

45. The smell of laundry fresh from the dryer

46. Pajamas

47. Using my awesome reusable grocery bags

48. Traveling somewhere new and feeling adventurous

49. Tinkering around on the piano

50. The way my face looks with fake eyelashes. They make me look like I’ve actually got eyelashes!!

51. Coming home to an excited puppy who is thrilled that I’m home.

52. A pair of killer high heels that make my legs look fierce.

53. Taking off said killer high heels at the end of the night.

54. Our teddy bear sofa

55. Crisp cool bamboo sheets on a hot summer night

56. Grandparents that share their experiences and wisdom

57. Genuine, heart felt compliments (who doesn’t love that?)

58. Candles

59. The fresh scent of evergreen trees (pine, juniper…etc)

60. Wrapping presents in a creative and pretty manner

61. Discovering that the gas station by our house has the cheapest gas price in Fort Worth

62. Checking off every item on my to do list

63. Making a complicated but extra tasty dish

64. My pretty little Toyota Yaris

65. Watching the ever s’marvelous Funny Face.

66. Being appreciated for the good work I try to do.

67. The Travel Channel shows (only Anthony Bourdain‘s and Samantha Brown‘s)

68. The sound of the Food Network (sizzle of a hot pan, chopping veggies…etc)

69. The amazing WB television show Gilmore Girls

70. Diet Coke with a slice of lemon

71. Playing Rock Band with our musically inclined friends

72. Spunky little Alexis from Jon and Kate Plus 8 on TLC

73. People who make an attempt to be green (recycle, buy renewable products…etc)

74. Trashy gossip tabloid magazines (it’s a guilty pleasure)

75. A girl’s night out filled with giggles and silliness.

76. Another guilty pleasure, the WB show Roswell

77. When Jabber has to give everything a good bop to signal her approval

78. Picture frames that are pre-matted

79. When Andy sings and dances, it’s goofy but lovable

80. Spending a night at the theatre, preferably watching a musical

81. Sparkly jewelery

82. Designer knock off sunglasses

83. The Pottery Barn catalog

84. Singing in the shower

85. When my photos turn out perfectly and suitable for posting, I have high standards

86. Spending a rainy afternoon in a bookstore cafe reading and sipping coffee

87. Crunching through the fallen autumn leaves

88. The smell of the old Herbal Essences shampoo/conditioner.

89. Playing a rousing game of Cranium with awesome friends

90. Eating french fries in Amsterdam at a sidewalk cafe

91. Having pride in my Chinese heritage, while being happy to be an American.

92. Star Trek, yes…I’m a bit of a trekkie.

93. Twinkly Christmas lights during the holidays

94. Grace Kelly‘s poise and beauty

95. The Nintendo Wii, what a wonderful gaming system!

96. Jon Stewart of the Daily Show (and sometimes Stephen Colbert of the Colbert Report)

97. The Soup on E, satire can be so much fun.

98. Browsing notcot.com for completely awesome but entirely too expensive things.

99. Project Runway, Tim Gunn, and Heidi Klum…what a wonderful combination!

100. A nice warm hug from people/puppies I love.

There, that took WAY too long. Hopefully this inspires you to remember what it is that you love in your life and what to be thankful for this coming Thanksgiving!

I received this link in my e-mail today from a friend. I do find it amusing (and slightly irritating) that some of the people that have a fierce pride in being American don’t actually have any idea how it works or a very limited knowledge of the country’s history. So, let’s see how you do…best of luck!

http://www.americancivicliteracy.org/resources/quiz.aspx

I surprised myself and actually did better than I thought I would. Civics, government, and history are definitely not my strong subjects.  No, I will not be posting my results. That is for me to know and improve upon. I hope you did your high school government teacher proud! (thanks Mr. Garaci, I was paying attention…more or less)