The Best Christmas Presents Live and Breathe

  So one of my favorite friends gave me the best Christmas present ever--he let me keep his dog for a few days. Now I know that sounds more like a favor than a gift, but he has the best dog ever. I always beg Benjamin to let me keep the Pete-ster when he goes out of town and whatnot. Unfortunately, we've never been able to line up our schedules to make that possible.

  A couple of days before Christmas, I got a text from Ben saying he was possibly coming to Alabama for Christmas and asked if I'd be down for keeping Petie when he left to go back to Nashville. I was coming to visit for New Years so I would just bring Petie back with me. Of course I immediately said yes.

  We had a great time! We lazed around watching television, went for walks around the town, and played in the yard. Everyone in my family got to meet Sweet Pete and fell in love! How could you not love a sweet, lazy, well-behaved, three-legged dog wearing a Scooby Doo t-shirt?

Lazy day with Petie

 How can you not love this face?

 I came home from dinner and he had arranged the pillow like that and was watching E-news.

 Mom and Petie

 

Goodbye 2011, Hello 2012!

We celebrated the arrival of the new year in Nashville. We had so much fun! Jenna had to work Friday evening so we departed late Friday night and arrived sometime around 3 am.

  We started the day with a lovely breakfast (okay, by the time we got up and got out it was lunch time) at the Pancake Pantry. I wish I had this little restaurant in my kitchen because they make the best pancakes ever! We then walked off the calories with a little shopping in the cute boutiques.

  We went downtown to celebrate NYE. I have never been around so many people in such a tight little space in my entire life. A little scary! But we had soooo much fun! Lynyrd Skynyrd (yes, I did say LYNYRD SKYNYRD) played a street concert! It was amazing! We watched the music note drop and then listened to Free Bird. I cannot express just how happy and excited I was to hear them play. I love, love, LOVE Lynyrd Skynyrd!

  After the concert we payed tribute to ol’ Auburn by going to Bourbon Street Blues Club. It was so much fun! They played jazz and blues and we danced and danced and danced!

  It was a great new years, to say the least.

  We went to the Grand Ol’ Opry on our last night in Nashvegas and looked at all the beautiful  Christmas decorations! 

  Of course, the hardest part is saying good bye!

The Proof is in the Pudding

   I'm keeping my goal for 2012 on a very practical level. I decided to just stick to one resolution. Keep it simple. In other words, keep it doable. But for real, it's probably going to be the hardest one for me to keep. It's a real doozy.

   My resolution is to start answering my phone during 2012. Okay, pick yourself up off the floor and close your mouth. Anyone who even slightly knows me knows this is BIG. No, more like HUGE. Most people who aren't middle school teachers simply do not understand the mental exhaustion incurred in a day's time. By the time I walk off the school's campus, I just do not want to talk anymore. In fact, I've gotten so used to not talking on the phone that I rarely ever know where my phone is once I come home from work. It usually doesn't even cross my mind until it's time to go to bed and that's only because I use my phone as an alarm clock.

   But no more! I'm going to get out of my social rut and pick up the phone. Maybe next year's resolution will be to start actually calling people.....I may need a year to be ready for that. ;)

   So if the saying is true and the proof is in the pudding, then here's the pudding.

Oh, by the way, it's corn pudding that's on the menu today.

To Tweet or Not to Tweet

   After much avoidance, I joined Twitter last week. Why has it taken me this long, you ask? Because I find Twitter to be intimidating. All the codes and Twitter-jargon left me confused and ready to give up before I've even begun.
   As ridiculous as it is, I joined because I want to read celeb's Tweets. I think Twitter is super cool in that it really lets you see that celebrities truly are just regular people (with better clothes and way more cash flow). And so, I gave in to the temptation and am now updated on Kim K's every move. (Yes, I really do follow her on Twitter. I love to hate her and hate to love her. It's complicated.)
   My internal conflict is that I feel it's incredibly narcissistic. I have trouble coming up with something to say that "the whole world" (aka my 6 followers) could possibly care about. I mean, how narcissistic to think that people care that you are baking cookies, or leaving the store, or it's raining at your house. Celebs? Sure, it makes you feel like they're just another person living a regular life. But a regular person tweeting about regular activities that they do in their regular life? Not as cool.
   I guess this is going to give me new incentive to lead a more interesting life. We'll see how long that (and my Twitter account) lasts. ;)



Image obtained from mediafunnel.com

The Walking Dead: Shane vs. Rick

Like most of our pop culture, I love the Walking Dead. Something about the goriness, the awesome camera shots, and the fascinating story line reels you in from the first episode you watch—no matter which you start with.

               Not since Lost has a show provoked so much thought in me. I find myself thinking of the show often. I can no longer step out on my porch after dark without quickly glancing around for Walkers. If I hear leaves rustling, I automatically think “Walker”. I’ve gotten to where I lock the door to the bathroom when I get in the shower. Yes, I absolutely know these are irrational fears, but aren’t those the best kind? There’s something fun about being scared.

               I’ve heard a lot of people speak of their dislike, and even hate, for Shane—especially after the mid-season finale. Most people are usually pro-Rick who leads with his heart, but I am not settled on my decision to dislike Shane. You have to look a bit deeper than to say he’s a heartless villain. You have to look at the deteriorating world around them and remember their world is no longer our’s. Has Shane lost his humanity? Yes, or at least, it’s rapidly fleeting. But in a world where the vast majority of the population has turned into heartless, mindless zombies who want nothing more than to tear your flesh from your bones and feed on it, your best bet for survival requires losing your humanity. You can no longer live by a lost world’s laws and moral code when you’re on the endangered species list. Shane has two things on his mind: Lori and survival. Ignoring the first, I’d say Shane is dead-on (pardon the pun) for the second. When it comes to Walkers, you have to kill them—even if it was once your loved one. The key word is once. We saw in the CDC that the person that once was is no longer after being bitten. You cannot think of them as a person.

               Aside from his slight obsession with Lori, most people focus on the fact that Shane killed Otis as their main reason for disliking him. In our world, yes, that is wrong. But when it comes down to survival, I have to say Shane did the only thing he could. If he still had his humanity, Shane would have died right alongside Otis, and consequently, so would Carl. There was only one bullet left. The smartest and most humane thing to do would be to shoot one of them while the other gets the medicinal supplies back to the farm. Shane was in the best shape and was the obvious choice to be the runner. I’m not saying what he did was right. He could have shot Otis in the head so that the shot would have killed him instantly. He didn’t have to shoot him in the leg and beat a dying man off of him. He didn’t have to let him be eaten alive by zombies. But we’re looking at this with our humanity. And in a world gone zombie, you have to exchange your humanity for your life. Your actions should have only one motive: survival. And that’s why Shane is a survivor. Hate him if you want, but I’d say he’s the smartest of the bunch.

               Most people prefer Rick because he makes important decisions using his conscience and heart. In our world, yes, Rick is definitely the better man. But when the zombie apocalypse is taking place, using your heart will take your survival rate from 100% to 10%. By the close of the mid season, we start to see a change in Rick. Some say for the worse; some for the better. Rick is starting to step up when it comes to making hard decisions. He chooses to ignore the fact that his best friend started a relationship with his wife because punishing them both would do no good. Even if they hadn’t thought he was dead. What’s done is done and splitting the group would do no ultimate good; there’s safety in numbers. In the last scene of the last episode, he shoots Sophia in the face. Again, looking at this from a humane point of view, that would be terrible. What if Hershel is right and they’re really just sick people in need of a cure?!?! But, again, you have to remember looking at it in a humane way is no longer an option because the world that we live in is not the world these people live in. Someone has to step up and do what has to be done—in this case, shoot Sophia in the face. I have to admit, I fully expected it to be Shane. I felt nothing but pride for Rick when he was the one who did it. I really think we’re going to see a shift in the way things are handled when the show returns in February, and I have to admit I’m very much looking forward to it!

A Hero Returns

  I am so happy to say that a good friend of mine, Terry Henley, is home from deployment. He married his bride, Mehgan, this past October and they have collectively spent about a month together since their wedding. Mehgan orchestrated a surprise dinner party for Terry and his family. The event was a double surprise. Terry's mother, sister, and grandmother thought they were meeting Mehgan for dinner. Terry, not knowing his friends and extended family were there, thought he was going to surprise his family when they showed up for dinner. It was perfect!

   Though Terry has not seen battle first hand, he is the epitome of a hero. He knew his job could lead directly to a grave. He knew he would have to give up the freedom to live his life the way he wanted to for the next four years so that his family, friends, neighbors, and fellow Americans could. He knew he could possibly see things that would change him forever. He knew he would have to leave the wedding planning up to his wife and show up the day before the wedding and leave town two days after. He knew he would have to leave his new bride for months while he was deployed. And he did all of these things willingly--for us. For his country. For our freedom. For our way of life. For our security. For our future.

  Thank you Terry! We are so grateful to have you home!

Terry with his sister, mother, and bride



I'm Over October

   As stated earlier, I love the month of October. (If you wanna know why, click here.) And this October did not disappoint. Because I have not blogged about any of the happenings this month, I'm just gonna sum it all up in this one post. So here goes:

Main Event 1:   Words cannot describe how much I look forward to the Alabama National Fair's annual visit to Montgomery. I absolutely love rides that spin, and the vast majority of the rides at the fair go in some sort of circle. So I'm pretty much in a state of bliss the entire time I'm there.
     I went with a dear friend this year, and we had a blast! We exerted so much energy that I literally had to be carried to the car because I was so exhausted. And I didn't leave empty handed--I left with a HUGE pink pig. My students were so happy because the pig is now our class pet. (We named him Herbert.)

Herbert



Main Event 2: Daddy turned 50 the 19th of October. We got (almost) the entire family together at Kelly's house and threw him a surprise party. It was so much fun!

 Not the best picture, but it'll do.



Main Event 3: This is the first year that I have decorated the house for Halloween. I usually decorate the house with fall decorations but skip those decorations specifically related to Halloween. I really enjoyed trying to make the porch cute but scary at the same time.



Main Event 4: Tyler turned 11, and Kelly and Troy had the fam over to celebrate. I love that I'm considered T's family. I love him like the nephew I never had! :)



Main Event 5: Liberty set up a booth at Trade Day to raise funds for a mission trip to Haiti. My role was to paint faces. I can honestly say there was virtually no rest from 8:00 am-1:00 pm for me. And I'm not complaining! We raised a good bit of money for the mission team! I know they're going to do great things in Haiti this December!



Main Event 6: Kelly, Aunt Lynda, and I went to see Dracula at the Shakespeare Festival. We had so much fun! We had dinner at Bonefish that was absolutely delicious, and Dracula was fantastic! I already can't wait until April to go see a play about King Henry VIII. ASF knows how to put on a good show!



Main Event 7: Jenna and I went to Syrup Sopping this year. It makes me sad to say Jenna had no idea what I was talking about when I asked if she wanted to go. So we woke up early (Okay, that's a lie. We actually slept in crazy late for us, but I feel like I have to say we woke up early because you're supposed to on Syrup Sopping Day.) and headed to Loachapoka for some handmade goods and sugar cane syrup. We had a great time!



Main Event 8: We celebrate Homecoming Sunday at my home-church in October. While I do not attend Calvary anymore, I absolutely love my sweet church. You won't find a more God-fearing pastor and people. We heard a great message and had dinner on the grounds afterwards.



Main Event 8: I now have a second job. A friend of mine has 12 pecan trees on his land and offered me a job helping pick up pecans. With Christmas shopping in mind, I quickly said "yes." So I've been picking up pecans here and there when I can after work and on the weekends. I really enjoy it. We can't ever sync our schedules to pick up at the same time so we basically work in shifts. I have really, really enjoyed picking them up. With work, television, and the Internet, we rarely spend time just "being." I have enjoyed having some alone time with just me and the pecans. It's extremely relaxing!



Main Event 9: Halloween weekend! Ben came to town to play with My Two Wings Friday and Saturday night. So, of course, we made a weekend out of going to hear them play. We had so much fun! I didn't dress up Friday night (gasp, I know!). Apparently I missed the memo that you are only supposed to dress up Friday night because I dressed up Saturday night and wound up being the only person in a costume. Finally, after a couple of hours, people started filtering in with costumes. I'm not gonna lie, it was awkward for a while. I couldn't exactly play off my costume like it was a regular outfit--I was a crayon. Haha! It was still a good time!

My Two Wings playing at Blue Bagel

 Josh, Ryan, and "Razzle Dazzle Rose" listening to My Two Wings

Main Event 10: Because Halloween fell on a school day, we decided to have a party in each of my classes on Monday. I was very nervous on my drive to work that morning because I felt like I was really going to regret allowing the kids to be all hopped up on sugar while I'm trying my best to teach a lesson on congruency. I'm so glad that my worry was unnecessary because the students did a great job! We only spent bout 10 minutes actually partying (I know, that's not really a party, but my job is to teach them--not entertain them), and no one complained. Apparently we packed enough fun into those 10 minutes for them to realize they didn't have a lot of time. :)

I can't show pictures of the kids, but you can take my word for it--they had some great costumes!