Cool on a Wire Rack

This cracked me up so much.

I was at my friends house and she was baking cookies.  I asked her why she was putting them in the pantry and her response was, "it says to cool them on a wire rack."

Day 90

Work from Home

Ally's helping me get caught up on some work tonight.

Day 89

Morning Commute

Ally rides on my shoulder.  I know it's not safe.  But she's so cute!

Please ignore my grossness.  I'm not a morning person.

Day 88

Happy Anniversary

Today is our 3rd Anniversary!

Some days it feels like 3 months...

Some days it feels like 300 years.

Day 87

Irish Souvenirs

Sister handed out souvenirs today from Ireland.

I loved my scarf and wine stopper.

She got Patrick a shot glass from St. Patrick's Cathedral.

Thank You Elizabeth, We love them!

Day 86

Therapy

Sometimes you just need to talk to someone who isn't your spouse or parent.  Sometimes you just crave that person (or persons) you know you can vent anything and everything to and they'll love you just the same.  I have the best friends a girl could ask for.  They keep my grounded and help me to see the bigger picture.  I have a tendency to think and dwell on things till they are almost to overwhelming to handle.  These friends are always there to help me sort through my overwhelming thoughts and help me realize that this to shall pass.  If it doesn't pass they'll be there to help me deal with it.  There's no need to worry about the future when we don't know what it holds. 

Last night, I got to meet up for dinner with two of my best friends.  They are a voice of reason when I tend to be unreasonable about things.  We talked about anything and everything.  Lorie filled us in on all things pregnancy related.  We laughed till we cried about Lorie's husband and the many {hilarious} questions he's asked about babies. {Like when will his/hers eyes be open?}  Kristen and I showed Lorie the fabric we'd picked up that will be perfect for Little Ellie's nursery {If it is in fact a girl}  We told Lorie that it probably didn't matter what she and Joe decided to name her if it was a girl that Kristen and I were going to call her Ellie and when she was older it would make for a really funny story to tell her.  She's going to think we're nuts anyway!  Lorie loved the fabric, which we knew she would.  I so hope it's a girl so we can use it.

Isn't it precious.  It has a great grey in it as well as pink, purple, teal and turquoise to make it girly!

  She won't find our for another 3.5 weeks.  The suspense is killing me and Kristen.  I'd be lying if I said we haven't already found tons of stuff to buy for the baby.  Once we've got a confirmed gender I'm afraid we're going to go nuts!  There are so many cute things for babies out there.  I find myself constantly browsing etsy for anything new and cute.  It's a good thing I got my car paid off so I have some extra cash to spoil this baby rotten. 

Kristen and I shared about the goings on in our lives but for some reason the baby was way for fun to discuss than my recent big wheel accident and Kristen's search for a husband.  While I'm sure Lorie is a little more worried, the idea of the baby is so exciting and fun to me.  It's all the things I'm most excited about with a child, decorating a nursery and really tiny cute clothes.  It's fun for me because I don't have to worry about carrying a child for 9 months, doctors appointments, cleaning out the room for a baby, child care and saving for college.  I don't have the pressure of raising an upstanding citizen.  I get to be "Aunt" Maggie again and I couldn't be more excited!

We had such a great time.  After dinner we went back to Kristen's house and laughed with Brittany about some of the crazy things we did in college. {Like when Kristen and I set up an Eharmony account for Brittany}.  I love that I can see these girls everyday or once a month and it's like no time has passed. 

Last night was just what we all needed.  I may not be a real therapist but I've decided that there's nothing that my girlfriends and a good glass of Sangria can't fix!

Feeling Refreshed

This is the latest I've slept in a really long time.  And it feels so good.

Day 85

Bloom

The one Azalea that survived the great round-up incident of 2008 bloomed this week.

It has white and pink blooms.  Maybe it's actually 2 bushes.

Day 84

Day 83

Her haircut is looking cuter!

Day 83

Not Looking Good

Is it supposed to get worse before it gets better?

Cause it's definitely looking worse!

Day 82

Dinner NOt as Planned

Be glad you couldn't smell it.

It was supposed to be BBQ meatballs.

It ended up being burnt, smokey nasty mess.

Day 81

Foggy Start

Day 80

Kids at Heart

This is why I love my family.  For Patrick's 30th birthday he wanted to have a Big Wheel Rally.  He and my little brother have been riding them for months now and love it.  I, for one, thought they were crazy.  Then I rode one.  Let me just tell you...it was like I was 4 years old riding my plastic big wheel  down the big hill at the end of Hand Lane again.  I did a few laps by myself then challenged my little brother to a race.  I don't remember if I won or not.  If I did it was because he let me.

{FYI: Shorts and wedge sandals are not proper uniform for Big Wheel racing}

Then the birthday boy challenged us to a siblings race.  So I threw the big wheel over my shoulder and headed to the starting line with my two brothers.  I have to admit it was a lot of fun...we were at the line and

Dad counted 3...2...1 (I took off) Go!

I was peddling as fast as I could and my brothers were neck and neck about 5 big wheel lengths behind me. I started to take the curve into the driveway but it was to late, I was going to fast and starting sliding...across the asphalt...on my side. Thank God they made me put on a helmet. Once I stopped sliding I curled up in a ball because I was afraid they were going to run over me but they were already crossing the finish line when I look up to see everyone running at me to make sure I'm okay. Mom brought the camera!

I've got some pretty bad road rash on my elbow and foot.  This morning my hip and neck are pretty sore.   

Sharing the moment with my brothers was totally priceless.  Sure it hurts and we could have been hurt worse, but we laughed a lot.  My face hurts from smiling!  I know it seems crazy but it seriously made my big brother's night that we all raced.  We had such a blast!

Showing our battle wounds.

Kristen came to celebrate. 

If this photo doesn't scream "One Big Happy Family" I don't know what does!

Battle Scars

Big Wheel race against my two brothers.  Totally worth the wipeout!

Day 79

Happy Birtday Big Brother!

Today my big brother and my husband's best friend is 30 years old.  Although he looks about 23 and acts 12.  He is the hardest worker I've ever met!  I'm not sure where he got his work ethic but I totally missed that gene.  He has also done a pretty good job at making some pretty cute babies (he had some help in that department)!   He loves his family more than anything in the world and he'd do anything for them.  He was a total pest to grow up with but I credit him for making me so tough! 

Happy 30th Birthday Patrick!

I hope it's the best one yet! 

Ready for Spring

I got my nails done today.

I chose a bright spring color to celebrate the first day of spring tomorrow!

OPI Dutch Tulips

Day 78

Single Girl Friday night

I'm not single but since Patrick's at work I'm enjoying a glass of wine, a good book and some March Madness.  (My bracket didn't fair as well today!)

Day 77

March Madness

I don't really like basketball. I watched Bama sometimes but mainly just so I could converse with my fellow Bama fans that actually enjoy basketball. I think I went to one basketball game in my 4.5 years. One year I convinced my friends parents I was dating one of the players. They were huge basketball fans. This year Rachel over at Grasping for Objectivity is having a little contest. Not having enough things to waste time on, I filled out a bracket. Then I redid it. Then I tweaked it one more time and submitted it. I have to say it is making this whole tournament thing a lot more interesting! I'm upset with myself because my first bracket had Moorehead St. beating Louisville but I changed it and woudn't you know they won! I picked BYU to win it all! Once again I don't know a lot about basketball but I caught an interview with Jimmer something or other from BYU and he was such a cutie I had to pick his team to win!

You can check out my bracket here.
ESPN - Tournament Challenge - MMHorton08 1

Luck of the Irish

Happy St. Patrick's Day from Ally.

She's jealous she's not in Ireland with Elizabeth celebrating.

Oh wait maybe that's me ;)

Day 76

Being a Grown-up

I have been an official grown-up for a little over 3 years now.  I considered myself an official grown-up in December of 2007 when I graduated from The University of Alabama.  I was a pretend grown-up for most of those 4.5 years.  I had a job and I payed bills.  I spent most of my time going to class and complaining about how unfair it was that my parents made me work and pay bills when all these other kids were just handed wads of cash and had no worries of how the payment on their cute little BMW was going to get paid.  Daddy would make sure they had the cutest dresses for football games and that they always had a place on the beach for Spring Break.  (I mean my Daddy had to sell our condo on the beach to buy my house in Tuscaloosa. I can't believe I was such a brat!) 

I got a car when I turned 16 (1990 Geo Tracker with a rag top).  It was a great car for driving around Gardendale as a teenager but it didn't handle so well on the interstate.  To say I hated driving that car to college would be an understatement.  I didn't exactly hide my feelings about it either.  My mom got a new car for Christmas my freshmen year.  I was okay with it.  She needed it badly.  My sister turned 16 the summer between my freshmen and sophomore years at Bama and she got a "new"car.  It was a few years old but compared to my tracker it was new.  I was jealous.  I was angry.  How could my parents give her this nice "new" car for her to drive 2 miles back and forth to school and let me drive a death trap 120 miles roundtrip from Tuscaloosa to Gardendale.  It was like they didn't care at all that my little car nearly blew over if an 18 wheeler passed me on 20/59. To add insult to injury, they went to great lengths to surprise her which included a personalized airbrushed tag and giant red bow!  I mean, yes I got a car when I turned 16 but it was a car my dad bad bought two years prior and it evolved into my car.  There was no bow involved.  {Can you imagine how bitter I was when it was happening?  I mean we're talking 6 years ago!} 

In my defense I really was happy for her to have a dependable vehicle in fact I'd told my parents if they were going to buy her a car to buy her something that will last through college.  I just thought they'd get me something more reliable first.  I've always been the selfish one. I'm not proud of it but it is a fact.

Fast Forward about six months...I'd been having trouble with the battery on my car so I took my car to AutoZone and had them test it.  They told me I need a new battery.  I called my dad and I thought I understood him to say if the AZ guys thinks you can make it home to bring it home and he'd get the battery.  He, in fact, said to get a new battery before I come home.  Well I headed home with the old battery broke down in a not-so-great part of town right at dark.  My dad and brothers came to the rescue and got the car home and fixed.  A few weeks later the car dies, I had to be jumped off twice on the way home from work.  My dad had to come down and tow it home.  My mom declared I was not driving that car back to school.  I had a job waiting tables and made a little money. I knew my parents couldn't afford to buy me a car, they had just bought 2 cars in a year.  They said they could help me if I made most of the payment each month.  So the very next day my mom, sister, and I headed out to buy my sister a dress for something and we stopped in the Honda dealership.  I just knew I wanted an accord.  My roommate had one and I loved it.  Then I went into the Used Car showroom and there was my future car.  A 2003 Nissan Altima.  It was green though and I didn't really want green but it had a price tag we couldn't walk away from.  I drove it home to show my daddy and he thought it was a good deal and would be a great car for me.  He wasn't wrong.  I have loved it.  It's made numerous roadtrips.  It's the car the boys decorated at our wedding and the one we took on our honeymoon.

 And as of Today

...it's paid for. 

It has taken me forever but I've never been more proud.  I know my parents paid a lot of it when I was in school but I wrote the check every month.  It is one lesson that I am so grateful to my parents for.  The value of a dollar and the fact that money doesn't grow on trees.  I'm also thankful for my first car, the Tracker.  I learned a lot about taking care of cars.  I learned how to check the oil, transmission fluid and power steering fluid. 

Being a grown-up has its ups and downs.  I'm not going to lie..I'd go back to waiting tables if it meant I could still be in college whining about how I had to pay for everything.  I've never been prouder to be a grown-up as I was today dropping that final payment in the mailbox.

Thanks Mom and Dad for not giving me everything I thought I needed!  Can you imagine how bratty I'd turned our if you did? Ha!
Sister, it's no secret I felt that way about your 16th birthday.  Looking back, you deserved that car way more than I did. (Even if you didn't know you had to check the oil for the first year you drove it!)  I needed to learn that I wasn't the most important person in this family. 

My little brother actually drove the Tracker when he turned 16.  He eventually got a nice truck and never looked back.

Signed, Sealed, Delivered

Final payment!

Day 75

Family Time

We had a little family night tonight.

Porter was proud of this pinecone.

Day 74

The Final Rose

We had a girls night to watch Brad's decision.  I was thrilled!

Day 73

Happy Birthday Kristen

Today is me best friend Kristen's birthday! 

Day 72

Ireland or bust

Ally with my sister before I dropped her off at the airport this morning.  She's going to Ireland for Spring Break.  She's so excited and I'm so excited for her!

Day 71

At the airport waiting on the other girls. 

Sister with Kindall.  I should have gotten one of all four of them. 

Longer Days

5:40PM The days are getting longer...and will be even longer this time next week.

And we couldn't be more ready for it.

Day 70

I'm off to help my sister get a few last minute things for her trip to Ireland.  We're having a little spend the night party and I'm taking her to the airport in the morning.  I had a really bad dream last night that she went missing.  It was really odd, in my dream I was visualizing her being swept away by water but no one ever said thats what happened.  It made me a bit uneasy.  Then I woke up to the news of the tsunami in Japan. My heart is broken for these people. 

Proud...

or Pathetic.  I'm not really sure.

Yes, that's a 847 game winning streak since Jan. 1.

Day 69

Snug as a Bug

Day 68

Before & After

Before (So cute but oh so matted)

After (Not nearly as cute but no mattes!)

Actually, I always think she's cute.  Maybe I'm biased, maybe.

Day 67

Happy Birthday Drew & Grandmother

We celebrated Drew and my Grandmother's birthday's yesterday with lunch at my parents house.

Day 66

15th Annual Mardi Gras Party

Friday night was the 15th Annual Mardi Gras Party at our church.  I've been attending for the last 5 years (I think) and it's always such a fun time.  (You can read about last years here.)

My best friend (and former roommate at UA) Kristen went with me.  It was her first Mardi Gras party.  I think she had fun!

My sister and me.

Sweet Ally!

Two of my favorite people.  It's weird because people have thought my sister and I were twins for the better part of our adult lives.  Like they get us confused out in public.  We don't really think we look that much a like but others do.  Well when Kristen and I lived in the dorm freshmen year, the girl that worked in the store at the dorm asked us all the time if we were twins, or sisters.  Last night people kept getting us confused.  I think it's out hair.  It's a very similar color and style.

She was so excited about her ticket.

My cousin got to come I was so excited.  He was my dance partner since his girlfriend in currently in NYC working on her Masters degree!  We had a blast!

Amy came when she got off work!

Sisters!

Me and my Daddy.

I love this shot.  We had a ball!

Preciousness

Day 65

I heart shoes

Day 64