My Love Resolution

2010 so far has been crazy work hours-wise for The Hubs (usual) and me (unusual), so we haven't been able to see much of each other lately. When we do, we're often stressed and snippy.

Case in point: I ate the last burrito when I came home late the other night, and unbeknownst* to me, he had his sites set on it for breakfast the next morning. He was not. happy. with. me. (In my defense, it was mine to begin with. His reasoning is that I have 24 hours to eat something that was originally mine and then it becomes community property. Apparently I need to make sure I'm updated on the latest house rules. The committee must have voted on that one without me.)


We did get the chance to snuggle on the couch a little last night after I got home from volunteering and before he had to go to bed, and it was nice to reconnect. February won't be any better for him, but I'm hoping to take a breather and concentrate more on love instead of fighting about burritos in the coming month. A worthy goal, I think.

Just in time for Love Month, AT did a post on love prints, and I fell in love (ha!) with these city prints by artsharkdesigns. I think it would be so neat to have a collection of your most favorite places. Unfortunately, none of them are for cities that have special meaning to J & me (although we've visited quite a few together), so I'm eagerly awaiting new cities. Check out these lovelies!

We did go to Venice and had a grand ol' time, but we didn't do a gondola ride, so I don't particularly feel like this umbrella couple. More fitting would be us walking along the canals with me eating a huge cup o' gelato. I may have to get this one anyway!

I'm saving our pennies for an awesome trip this summer. Maybe London?

Love this one of the UVA campus. I'm crossing my fingers for a UT one! That would be so perfect. Maybe I should commission one?

Brooklyn Bridge

San Franciso...I'm dying to take a romantic trip here!

What's your favorite? Know any other good lovey-dovey artwork I should look at?

* Okay, so not totally unbeknownst to me. I knew we were out of breakfast food other than yogurt and dry cereal and I ate it anyway. It was sooo worth it.

Two Chances to Win My Dream Pillow

I want this chevron pillow so much that I almost don't want to share these giveaways for it because it could decrease my chances. But since there are two blogs hosting giveaways for it right now, I'm feeling generous. You'll win one and I'll win one, okay?

Enter here:

Sparrow's Nest - hurry, ends tonight!

Live Creating Yourself

If you win, let me know so I can be jealous of happy for your good fortune!

Know of any other blogs giving away this pillow from CSN Stores right now? I must enter them all!

Please Help

I was sent this email today from a coworker. After reading this, how can you not help?

Hello all, It is with deep sadness that I have to report the heart wrenching news that I have lost a younger brother in the earthquake in Haiti while he was in his law office. His car was still parked outside. The conditions in which he was found is too graphic to detail in this e-mail. Fortunately, about 2 miles away, my Dad and everyone else in the house (3 floors) made it outside, before it completely collapsed. Haiti is my land of birth. I left there when I was 19 to come and live here. I guess that you can only imagine my anguish right now.

On behalf of my people, I want to say that we truly appreciate all the support that we have received so far from the entire world and especially from the American people and Presidents Obama, Bush and Clinton.

I also value the fact that all of you kept in touch and offered to help in these devastating moments of deep sorrow and suffering. Please keep us the Haitian people and the people of Northern Malawi in your thoughts and prayers. If your friends and fellow parishioners feel the urge to donate, please tell them do so "only" through a well-known relief organization.

It makes me so sad that I am sitting here, healthy and comfortable with life's luxuries that I am lucky to have, when hundreds of thousands of people are facing devastation that I can't even imagine.

Please, please consider giving what you can to a recommended organization. Charity Navigator has provided a helpful list of organizations and tips. I just made a $100 donation to Doctors Without Borders. Normally $100 is a lot in my everyday, trying-to-be-frugal life, but it's definitely not enough. Who am I not to help others when I have the resources to do so? I hope to donate some more to other relief organizations as well.

Please, please, give today. Pick an organization, and do what you can. Even better, find a way to get your donation matched or supplemented. I truly believe that every little bit helps. For example, Money Saving Mom is donating $10 for each person who blogs about what they did to help those in Haiti and leaves a comment. There is wonderful stuff like this going on all over blogland, and it's amazing.

28th Trip Around the Sun

I'm 28 today!

And I've been so surprised by all of the emails, texts, and FB messages wishing me a happy birthday.

And by these nice surprises from coworkers:

"Happy Birthday, I bought you a Diet Coke."
(A joke in the office because the drink machine is now free.)

But hidden on the back were Lotto tickets...

and I won $7! Woo-hoo!

And some yummy cupcakes on my desk when I came back from (my free) lunch...so sweet!

(They came from the cupcake place down the street where my friend works, so maybe she even decorated them!)

I'm so thankful.

Ice, Ice Baby

Monday's my birthday. (28: eek!)

But I don't want to go out this weekend, as 14 degree weather does not equal celebration for me. (I know any Northerners reading this are rolling their eyes at all of us down here freaking out about the cold, but hey - I live in the south for a reason. Give me 100 degress any day.)

I was an ice baby, born in a Texas ice storm. Every year, my mom likes to tell me how the doctor stayed with them all day while they were awaiting my grand entrance into the world, as there was no use in going home, and how all of the family later braved the roads to come see me.

It's sweet, but it doesn't stop me from disliking cold weather, and therefore January, with a vengeance.


So maybe next weekend I'll do some celebrating, when it should be back to normal temps. This weekend, all I want to do is curl up with my new library books and do some home organizing.

Any exciting plans that don't involve a Snuggie for you this weekend?

Hook 'em!

These cookies look delish

I don't know if it's going to go our way tonight, but I'm excited!

Hook 'em Horns!

Hey, Bevo

Texas Fight!

Sweet Ride

Today is the first warm and sunny day at the beach, so I will be taking the afternoon off (I have been working remotely this week to conserve my vacation days) and enjoying the sun.

I'd like to be cruising down the beach in my very own beach cruiser. How sweet are these?

If I Were a Rich Girl:
Cynthia Rowley, $550

Most Awesome:
Schwinn Windwood, $200 ($164 for pink)

Best Bet:
Cruiser Style, $99

I'm on a Seafood Diet

...I see food, I eat it. (True, but this post really is about seafood. Note to self: standard New Year's diet starts Friday.)

Seafood, I love you so. I am so glad I have gotten to eat a lot of you lately.

Case in Point #1

On Christmas Eve, we were supposed to go to a get-together at my BIL and SIL's that was for her side of the family. (J's family had already done Christmas the week before since most of the siblings were going out of town for Christmas.) We set out, White Elephant gifts purchased in a mad dash that day all wrapped up in the backseat, but the roads were just so bad that we turned around.

You see, Dallas was having its first ever Christmas Eve snowfall, that while gorgeous, was horrible for driving since Texans don't know how to drive in snow and there was no sand down. (Or is it salt? See how much this Southerner knows?).

Instead, we went to the grocery store and bought 2 lbs. (!) of King Crab (!!) on sale (!!!), some quick veggie sides, champagne, and pomegranate sorbet. With visions of crab dipped in warm butter dancing in our heads (or at least my head, I love me some butter), we started to drive the two blocks back to our house when, driving downhill to a stop sign, our car would not stop and went straight into oncoming traffic on a busy road.

Thankfully (and maybe thanks to a little prayer I said the first time we set out that evening), both the cars in each of the lanes managed not to hit us. (As a side note, J's parents did go to the party, and had an even scarier experience sliding across 5 lanes on the highway, where luckily no one was around and they were fine.) That was my Christmas miracle.

source

So we gratefully made it home in one piece and enjoyed the most scrumptious meal, just James, me, and the pup. It was a great Christmas Eve, even if for the first time ever we didn't spend it with some family, and even though we didn't make it out for Midnight Mass, which I'm still bummed about.

Case in Point #2

Last night we went to a newly reopened restaurant on the island (hurricane damage), where we brought in some redfish that my FIL caught with a family friend as well as some fresh squid. They whipped up these off-the-menu items for us:

Calamari
You can't tell the size from the photo, but this is 1 of 2 huuuuge platters

Redfish Enchiladas
Redfish blackened and rolled in corn tortillas and covered with a cilantro cream sauce, cheese, and crumbled redfish, served with especially-yummy avocado and more blackened redfish

Since there were only 7 seafood-eaters there, we have a ton of leftovers. Can't wait to break this out again tonight!

What about you? Had any delicious meals lately? Or any close car accident calls?

Also, do you dislike the phrase "om nom nom nom" as much as I do? I feel like I see it used any time I read a blog post involving food, and for some reason, it just bothers me.

Oh What Fun!

Hope everyone had the happiest of holidays! I didn't realize quite how much we had going on, but looking back, there was a lot of wrapping, holiday partying, friend and family enjoying, and other general merrymaking in the last few weeks, and I didn't get the chance to post anything.

I did get a request to see which holiday card we ended up choosing, so here it is:

Front

(Our names are off-center since I deleted out the last name.)

Back

(I left some room so I could write a little personal message to everyone - hopefully everyone turned it over!)

Address Labels
(Left over from last year, but I still think they're pretty cute if I do say so myself.)

This photo (a result of playing around with the effects in Picnik) makes me wish it weren't over already. We're down with J's parents at their beach condo this week, and they just took down the Christmas tree and lights. I think when we get back I'll go lie under our tree and look at the twinkly lights for a little before taking it down. (Since I am lazy, it will probably not be put up right away anyhow.)

How was your holiday? Any exciting plans for New Year's Eve?

Help a Procrastinator Out

Statements:
1. I don't know why I wait until December 15th to order Christmas cards. One would think that since I looked at designs before Thanksgiving that I would not wait until weeks later to try and get a puppy to pose for photos. Who knows why I am such a procrastinator.
2. I don't know why I waste so much time picking out a design, photo, and adjusting fonts. One would think that it should be a pretty quick process. Who knows why I am so indecisive.

Questions:
1. Which one do you like better and why?
2. Is the message lame, cute, or too cute? (It won't hurt my feelings. And if you didn't think it could get even better, the non-religious option I just came up with is "Peace, Love, & Puppies". Preference?)

Option 1:
Option 2:
Option 2 with 1's photo: