The Life and Times of Em

NEW BLOG

2010-05-13T07:12:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! I started a new blog!! check it out and update your blogroll and google reader :)

KICKING ASSPHALT

Allergic to My Hometown

2009-06-07T08:06:00.001-07:00

You know its time to move when you have an allergic reaction to coming home.

Let me just explain. Yesterday upon arriving back home my whole face breaks out in big red bumps all over! I have no idea what it could be, but its so weird. Except for the occasional zit, my face is usually pretty clear...and it was perfectly clear yesterday morning and all through the afternoon when my sister and I were driving home. When we got back home I ran to target to pick up some things, while I was there I noticed one big red bump on my face and by the time I got home my whole face and neck were covered!

I have no idea what it could be! I took some benadryl, because I am assuming it is some sort of allergic reaction, but I'm not sure to what. Maybe sunscreen? But why would it just now be appearing? What do you guys think?!

Moving on...

I have LOTS of informational pics from the past few days. Food, fun, fashion, etc., etc.

Lets GO!

Friday night my sister and I hit the town of Charleston for sushi, finally! We went to a restaurant called Tsunami.

I totally wanted to rock out the new shoes, so in true Jenny style, here is "what I wore"

Love the shoes, do not however enjoy the way they make my feet feel after walking in them all night!

Here we are at the sushi place, capturing the mood of the lighting:

My sister is new to the whole sushi experience, so I decided it would be best to share a plate of a few different rolls.

I started out with a salad with ginger dressing:

The came the Sushi! We got the white tuna roll, the great california roll, and the super vegetable roll:

Notice me in the background, ready to dig in with my soy sauce and chopsticks :)

After we ate we decided that since it was our last night at the beach we just HAD to get icecream. So we stopped at a frozen yogurt place called Fresh Berry.

It was so good we forgot to take a picture until we were almost finished:

The next morning I woke up and had my usual vaca brekkie:

All-Bran Flakes, Banana, Skim milk, and Coffee.

After eating a quick breakfast it was time to pack up and hit the road.

My sister and I drove the 5 hours back home. On the way we stopped for lunch at a subway (sorry forgot the pic).

When we got home I rushed to shower and get ready to go downtown for The Blue Plum Festival. It is a festival that we have every year downtown. They block off all the roads and all the bars serve drink outside and they are bands all over the place. It is sooo much fun and even though I was tired, there was NO WAY I was gonna miss it!

My friend lives really close to downtown, so we parked at her place and walked down. Which was good, because there are literally 1000's of people there and finding a parking place is like finding a needle in a haystack!

Some pics from the night:

The guy in the picture is one of my best friends, Ben. I was so proud of him, because he ran in the festivals 5K earlier that day, and clocked in at 21:50! I thought that was pretty impressive, def. better than me!

We pretty much spent the whole night talking about running and he agreed to start training to run a half marathon with me! Its in September and I am so excited. I am even more excited that I have a "running buddy" now.

Well, that is it for the pics...for now.

Tonight is wedding night with a few of my girlfriends! Should be fun.

Hope everyone is having a relaxing and fun Sunday!

Lots of Love <3 Ems.

AMAZING Run

2009-06-05T11:51:00.001-07:00

Across THIS:

It is the Charleston Cooper Bridge. I have been wanting to try running it since we got here, and today being our last day I decided it was time to go for it! The bridge has a pedestrian walk way and a bike trial going across it. One way is 2.5 miles.

I ran across it and back, making a total of 5 miles. Oh yeah, did I mention that it also has EIGHT lanes of traffic and it 200 feet above the ocean?!

Yeah, I felt pretty darn hardcore. Talk about adrenaline rush. It was AMAZING! And such a good view!

I wanted to take my camera while I was running, but I really didnt want to drop it into the ocean or anything. So i figured that it was probably best to just leave it in my car where it would be safe and sound.

I did take a video of me driving back across after the run, just so you guys could see how crrrazzyy it was! Im not sure if it is working or not, but I'll try:

This morning before the run I had my usual breakfast while I am here:

When I got home I got ready and we went to Fort Sumter. It is an old fort off of Charleston Harbor that was used during the Civil War. We took a boat to get to the harbor and spent a few hours there.

Here is me being VERY annoyed with my mom for not listening to me, but playing it off as a joke :)

paparazzi pic, captured by my sister:

Back on the boat on the way back:

Hiding from the rain:

We didn't end up getting back home until almost 230! So we were all STARVED. And I don't know about you guys, but every single person in my family inherited that gene that makes you really really cranky when your hungry.

I finally got some sandwich stuff, so I was able to fix up a pretty legit sammie for lunch.

Turkey on Wheat with Lettuce, Tomato, Cheese, and Mustard. All toasted up!

My sister and I had planned on going out for sushi last night, but the weather got pretty bad and I didn't really feel like driving all the way back into Charleston. So we went to eat with the parents instead. We plan on going for sushi tonight.

Here is me and Sister #1 all dressed up for dinner:

And sister's #2 and #3:

Now its off to soak up as much sun as possible on the last day! Tomorrow we go home!

Hope everyone is having a great FRIDAY!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

The Dress...and a Bit More

2009-06-03T14:41:00.001-07:00

Hello my lovelies! I'm still here in Charleston living it up. I swear you think of vacations as being relaxing, but I was thinking about it today and they are usually quite opposite! Or at least for me, I always try to take in as much as possible in the week that I am on vacation so I am worn out by activities every single day. But I like it that way, not complaining AT ALL!

Today I was up bright and early to fix up some breakfast before anyone else! We have been having a fight over the bananas (that I bought for ME) and I knew that there was only half of one left. Hey, you snooze you lose...especially when it comes to food, right?!

1 cup Special K, 1/2 cup skim milk, 1/2 banana. Along with a nice cup of coffee.

Here was my view while I ate:

Everyone was pretty much burnt to a crisp after three straight days of hours in the sun, so we decided that today would be an indoor shopping day.

We ventured over the bridge again into Charleston for the MALL!

When we got there everyone was ready for lunch. Luckily there was a semi-healthy option in the mall in the form of a Jason's Deli.

I had the Mediterranean Wrap under the "Real Choices" menu. It had oven roasted turkey breast, roasted red pepper hummus, cucumbers, purple onions, kalamata olives, roma tomatoes and organic field greens in an organic wheat wrap. I got the baked chips on the side as well.

The wrap was actually really really good! I needed the fuel for shopping so I ate it up!

Sooooo here is the moment you have all been waiting for. The KILLER dress that I got at Urban Outfitters. I think it just scream "PAR-TAY".

Did I mention that I am a total sucker for snake skin?! And short black dresses?!

Here is a close up of the detail:

And here is someone who is totally NOT me, wearing it. Just so you get the full effect.

I am pretty sure that I am going to rock it tomorrow night when my sister and I go out on the town for sushi and dancing!

Oh yeah...did I mention that I got some KILLER shoes to match too?

And they were buy one get one for $10 AND like I said, I am a sucker for snake skin...so I had to buy another pair in a slightly different style and different color.

Cute huh?! You girls like?!

After shopping for solid four hours, my sister and I headed back home. But not before stopping off at a little place on the way back...

Some of you might be familiar, not sure...

Thats right bloggies, I am no longer a Whole Foods virgin. It was my first time *blush*

Now the little sisters and the moms and pops are down at the pool. My other sister and I are about shopped out so we opted to chill out in the room and watch some tube-age.

Hopefully dinner is soooon! I really wanna go get some yummy seafood!

Hope everyone is doing grrreat! Im trying to catch up on blogs as we speak. Love you guys to death!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

FULL Day!

2009-06-01T14:58:00.001-07:00

I am EXHAUSTED girls and guys! Today has been quite the active day. Fun, but major tiring.

It started out at 7 this morning with another 4 mile run on the trail from the condo. I am really gonna miss this trial when we leave! When I got back to the condo everyone was up and eating breakfast.

My breakfast was a repeat of yesterday. All Bran Flakes, Banana, blueberries, and Skim milk.

Repeat Pic!

After Breakfast we all got ready and headed across the bridge into downtown Charleston:

We hit up all the shopping for a little while. I went to American Apparel and Urban Outfitters. I got the BEST dress EVER at UO. I'll get a pic a little later to show.

After doing a little shopping my sister and I decided to break from the fam and go have lunch on our own. Like I said, my family does not like anything "different", they like your typical chain restaurants. My sister and I just weren't feelin it, so we decided to go to Five Loaves Cafe, recommended by the wonderful Erica.

I got a Grilled Tofu sandwich with zuchinni, tomato, onion, and sprouts. And a salad with roasted red peppers, spinach, tomatos, and goat cheese.

YUM!

Here is a closer look at the sandwich:

My sister and I really enjoyed our lunch. We were both really glad that we decided to go off on our own and eat here.

Here we are, happy with our decision:

After lunch we met back up with the family and went to the market place in Charleston.

This is one of my favorite things to do when we come down here. It is an old market place that goes on for what seems like miles and it is just set up with vendors and hand made goods like jewelry, decorative things, etc.

Here is a pic of the entrance:

Here is my sister and I after going through. Hot and tired. I swear we probably walked about 10 miles in the 90 degree weather!

After that we walked into Charleston place were all the upscale shops are.

Made a stop at me usual shopping place:

YEAH RIGHT! I'm a recent college grad with no full time job yet...remember?!

We also saw a pretty fountain and I HAD to have a picture of all the sissies in front of it.

Notice how different we all look from each other. Or maybe just how different I look from all of them. I swear I must be the milk man's child!

After hours of shopping, miles of walking, and TONS of sweating we came back to the condo and chilled out by the pool. Now I am in the room waiting for everyone to get in from the beach so we can get some dinner!

I just don't think I EVER wanna come home. I think I may convince my parents to just leave me here ;)

Hope you guys had a good start to your week. Again, Im sorry if I am not on top of commenting. I am trying to read blogs and comment when I get the chance. DONT think I am forgetting about you guys at all!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Greetings from Charleston!

2009-05-31T18:51:00.001-07:00

Hello my dears. I am just sitting here in the condo chilling out after a VERY active day on the beach!

I woke up bright and early and walked out to the balcony to this lovely site:

I threw on my tennys and headed out for a nice run. We are staying in a gated community with a great running trial, so I couldn't wait to hit it up. The whole path is shaded with trees too, so it didn't get too hot. I ran from out condo to the end of the community and back. When I got back I hit up map my run and found out it was an even 4 miles.

When I got back to the condo I fixed up some breakfast. Here is the problem though, guys. It is REALLY hard to eat the foods that I like when I am with my family. Most of the food they like is not the healthiest, I had to get my own loaf of wheat bread for sandwiches, if that gives you any ideas. I want to just enjoy my vacation and not have to worry about it too much. I am trying to make the healthiest choices that I can, though. What would you guys do?

Anyway here is what I managed to rustle up for a healthy breakfast:

All-Bran Flakes, Skim Milk, 1/2 Banana, and Blueberries.

After breakfast we hit the beach for some wave riding, tanning, and swimming

AHHHH

We came back up around 1 to break for lunch. The best thing I could get was a turkey sandwich on wheat bread and an apple. It was sad, so I didn't take a picture.

Then back to the beach! It was sooo much fun. We stayed in the ocean and tried to ride the waves with the boogy boards. At one point I got dragged completely under and when I came back up my boob was TOTALLY out of my bathing suit. I'm not sure if anyone saw or not. OH WELL!

After that we came back up and spent wayyy too long getting ready. My sister and I got pretty and went down to Charleston for a while.

But not before watching the sunset:

Now its time for bed so it can start all over again tomorrow. Today was only day 1 peeps!

Prepare for WAY more pics! Sorry if I'm absent from commenting a lot this week. I have been living it up on the beach all day and haven't had too much time on the computer. I DO miss you guys though!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems

Beach Bound

2009-05-30T04:49:00.000-07:00

Well Kiddos Im off to the beach!

In just a few short hours (ok maybe after a 5 hour drive) I will be sipping my coffee here:

I am bringing my laptop, but Im not sure if I will have internet connection or not so if I am absent for a week you will know why :) I am hoping that I will have internet though, because I just think that I would miss you guys too much if I had to go a whole week without you in my life! And you KNOW I will be taking 30349023489 pictures, so be ready for those!

HOPE EVERYONE HAS A GREAT WEEKEND!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Hilarious Happenings

2009-05-29T05:24:00.001-07:00

Before I get to anything I just HAVE to share with you all of the hilarious things that I have seen over the past few days.

Ok, so its like two things really, but trust me they are GOOD!

The other day I was driving along, on my way to tan it up at the tanning bed and I get behind a car at a red light. Now, this is nooo ordinary car. The owner must be one hell of a creative mind...

Settle for having no rear-view mirror?! NO WAY! This guy just uses his GENIUS to tape a CD to fill in the space. Hey, its reflective right?! Wow this guy is smart. I just HAD to snap a pic of this.

Second thing, I was rummaging through the art teacher's marker stash yesterday. Mainly because I freakin LOVE markers...especially the ones that are "special" colors. You know the ones. Anyways I stumbled upon these markers mixed in amongst the others...

Thats right...a whole pack of markers filled with different color skin tones and labeled "multicultural". And just look at how happy those kids are on the box. FINALLY they have a marker to represent them!

Yesterday was my last day filling in for the art teacher. That was truly a blessing to have gotten that opportunity. It started out just randomly subbing for her for ONE DAY and turned into a THREE WEEK job! I am so glad that I got to do it. All of the kids were amazing and the other teachers and administrators were so nice! I even made a little BFF while I was there. And received this from him yesterday:

In case you can't read "3rd grader" it says "I will miss you when summer break starts and when I'm at Cherokee." Before he made it he asked what my favorite color was and I said purple. How cute is that?!

My vacation officially started last night when I got off work at Rave at 930. I clocked in 41.5 hours in FOUR DAYS! Needless to say, I think I pretty much died when I came home last night. I crashed in my bed at 1030! I woke up this morning pretty early. Damn you body clock! But, since I did go to bed so early I figured I still got some good sleep. Here are my "I Spy" oats. Notice its still early, but a little more decent :)

What else can you "spy" in the picture?!

Tomorrow I am hittin the road to go to Charleston for a whole week. Let me tell you...I am PUMPED!! I can't wait for the beach!

We are leaving early tomorrow morning and then tomorrow night I have a 5K on the beach! I have not done too much running on the beach, so hopefully I will do OK! Wish me luck!

Since I have basically been a non-stop work machine all week I have TONS to get finished up today for the vacation. Here is my list so far:

Clean out my car (It is a MESS)
Go to the grocery store for snack foods for the drive.
Do my nails and toes. (a MUST for the beach)
Hair Appointment
Tanning Bed
Run
PACK!

Im sure there is more. WOW I gotta get started!

Hope everyone is kickin their weekend off right!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

One Small Step

2009-05-27T04:08:00.001-07:00

Ok, so you know that crazy feeling that I said that I have been getting about something exciting happening?! Well, it has gotten even more weird!

I don't know how many of you really believe in "signs" or anything like that. But I sure do. So I have been getting that feeling for a few days now and then two nights ago I had the craziest dream!

It was about my ex boyfriend. And not just any ex...THE ex. Im not sure if I have mentioned him on here before. We dated for about 3 years at the end of highschool and beginning of college. This is the guy that I though I was going to be with for forever. And when we broke up I was devastated. I went though a really hard time with, and we even discussed him a lot in therapy as a possible trigger for my eating disorder (feeling out of control about the breakup and needing to counteract it with the control of my body). Not saying that he was the SOLE reason, but def. a part of it.

Basically my dream was about just letting him go. For good. I have hung on to that relationship for years, and compared every other boy to him. When I woke up I knew it was time for to move on. If I was going to go any further with my life, I had to let him go.

I have kept this box of notes and pictures from when were together for forever...yesterday I pulled it out, and without thinking twice about it, I threw it in the dumpster at work last night. I am moving on now, I have let that part of my life go, and I'm not gonna compare any more. Its time for something NEW!

Ok, I hope you guys don't think that I am absolutely crazy or anything now. haha. It is just one of those things that I had to deal with.

Onto EATS!

Of course I had my blogs and oats in the morning before going to school to be the art teacher.

I made sure to get several bits of info into one picture...banana oats, blogs on the laptop, fave flannel pj pants, early as HELL!, cup of coffee, and animal print pillow (of course). Its almost like a page out of I Spy!

Then it was my packed lunch at my desk

Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Peanut Butter (FAVE!), Blackberry Preserves, Banana, on Honey Wheat Bread, and some Honey Wheat Pretzels. With a little side of "Plans for the Sub".

After I subbed I had to work at the Rave last night. I will be doing this for the next three days!! That is a total of 40.5 hours of work in 4 days!!! But after that I leave for the beach, so I will have plenty of time to recuperate.

When I went into work I noticed that we had gotten in the cutest new top! I figured since I have been straight workin my ass off, I deserved a new top...the best part?! It has a unique back (of course!) :)

This is a picture of the back of the shirt. OH SO BEACHY!

Alright guys...gotta JET! I am a teacher by day and a raver by night! haha. WISH ME LUCK!

Hope everyone has a Happy Hump Day!

Lots of Love <3 Ems.

Field Day!

2009-05-25T16:54:00.001-07:00

Im pretty sure that this picture accurately describes my day:

Or maybe this:

TONS OF KIDS
TONS OF WATER
TONS OF FUN!

I am still filling in for the art teacher at the elementary school, because she broke her foot and today was FIELD DAY! Do any of you remember field day from the good ol' elementary school days? I remember it was the best day EVER! Def. one that everyone looked forward too.

Today was sooo much fun even on the other side of the spectrum as a teacher. The event that I had to run was called "Finding Nemo"...the kids had to run down to a huge bucket of water, fish out plastic fish into a small bowl, and then run back while trying to balance the "fish bowl" on top of their heads. The kids were SOAKED!

Of course, in the spirit of fun I let the kids dump the big bucket of water all over eachother after they were done with the game. They all kept saying that my event was the most fun :) And the scary fifth graders may have gotten me a little soaked too! I didn't care though, it felt sooo good because it was HOT out there!

My internet was out all night last night, it was getting late so I just gave up on it and assumed that by this morning it would be all fixed up so I could do my normal routine of oats and blogs in the pjs. Well, no such luck...

Don't you just HATE that when the little "address not found" window comes up?! Ick! But, at least my oats were good :)

1/2 cup of oats
1/2 a Naner
1/2 cup of skim milk
CINNAMON!
Maple Syrup
Kashi Flax Cereal

After I finished that up I hit the road to go to school. Lunch was packed, of course.

2 Slices Whole Wheat Bread
Deli Turkey
Spinach
Tomato
Spicy Honey Mustard

I also MAY have stolen some pretzels from the regular art teacher's stash. Hey, I'm filling in for her for THREE WEEKS, I think I deserve some of her pretzels. haha.

When I finally got home OH MY GOSH I WAS DEAD TIRED!!! I swear, I can usually never ever take a nap. As hard as I try I just can NOT sleep during the day. Well, today I got home, walked straight to my room, threw down my purse, and landed face first on my bed. I woke up about an hour later with my tennis shoes still on and my sunglasses still on top of my head! haha. Good stuff.

After I woke up from my much needed nap I took a shower and ran to the grocery store for just a few essentials. Nothing too exciting because I am leaving for the beach on Saturday, so I'm trying to not buy too much food until then.

I got home and fixed up some dinner.

Veggie Burger on Arnold's Sandwich Thins with Spinach, Mustard, Ketchup, and Tomato. Also, on the side some steamed Broccoli, Cauliflower, and Carrots.

One thing that totally made my today...when I FINALLY got logged on to the Internet I found this little award that the beautiful Megan had given to me!

I think this award was just great because it is soooo fitting. Everyone in this community is just such a great support! I was so surprised at how sweet everyone was when I first started blogging and there have been some of your girls that I feel like I have really built a great relationship with! I LOVE every single one of you and think that you are all amazing, beautiful girls. I am going to pass this award on to a few girls that I feel I have really gotten close to and who have been a great support to me.

Love you girls <3

Ok I have two hours to get my stuff ready and packed up for my day of art teaching tomorrow, so gotta jet!

Did everyone have a good memorial day?!

Lots of Love <3 Ems.

Diaper Shower and More Fun Adventures

2009-05-24T07:08:00.001-07:00

One of my very best friends (and boss at Rave) had a diaper shower last night. She is nine months preggers with her third baby girl!

I told her that she absolutely CAN NOT have the baby while I am at the beach. I leave on Saturday and will be gone for a whole week. Oh I hope I don't miss it.

A bunch of the girls from work got together to throw her a little "diaper shower" last night after work. Here is the whole group. I know I have said this 10000 times, but I just LOVE the girls that I work with. I am so blessed :)

And even more showed up...who is that kid in the background?! CREEP!

We provided cake...

And diapers...

And got my manager drunk...just kidding guys, she had one drink :)

After the diaper shower ended, some of the girls decided "hey, we are all dressed up...LETS GO OUT!" So of course we did. We partied for Tanya, because she can't. ;)

Here's the party girls I went out with, Tina and Kelli

And here is them later on in the night...

And I got to break out the LITTLE BLACK DRESS!

We danced until we just had to sit down, its what we do...

Last night was a blast! I woke up this morning with my legs and feet KILLING me from dancing all night and craving something along the lines of...

OATS! Duh!

Today is going to be the definition of RELAXING SUNDAY. I plane on heading down to the pool shortly and spending the rest of the day:

soaking up the rays
catching up on my celebrity gossip
listening to the new albums that I downloaded (Dane Cook, The Dream, The Sounds, and Steve Martin's new bluegrass album...quite the variety...I think my ADD comes out in my music choices as well)
catching up with my sister on her weekend
planning my Charleston beach trip activities...6 days!!
going for an evening run

Let's get this day started! I have a feeling its going to be good.

Which also reminds me...I have been getting the weirdest feelings that something exciting is about to happen. It will just hit me at random times. Do you guys ever get feelings like this? I just feel like something is on the brink of happening. We shall see my friends, we shall see :). Ill keep you updated on that one.

Hope everyone else is having a relaxing Sunday!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

P.S. That sucks major butt that the joke didn't really seem to work. I think you are supposed to try and say it fast...and when you do your supposed to get tongue twisted and say "he smelt farts", I swear to you it's funny when someone does it without knowing! WOW I have no idea why I even posted that. LAME!!!

Birthday Celebrations

2009-05-22T07:23:00.001-07:00

So the majority of the night can be summarized pretty nicely by this little hilarious video. I'm sure some of you can relate. I know I sure as hell can.

Don't you just hate those guys that won't take NO for an answer and insist on hassling you until you just have to be a straight up bitch to them to get them to leave you alone?! But yet the cute guys NEVER do that. Story of my life.

Anyway, I didn't get too many pictures because like I said before...once I get a couple of drinks I have a hard time keeping up with anything. So I usually leave my phone and my camera in the car, because I would be devastated if I lost either of those.

Here are a few though. I had a minor wardrobe change and decided on another dress. The birthday day girl and I semi-match.

Standard "getting ready pic"

Britt has an obsession with those kinds of handbands. I think they are very unique and not everyone could pull them off, but she looks great with them on :)

Full body shot. I am loving these types of dress (you can see I have another similiar one hanging in the background). Both are from the store that I work at MaxRave. They are soo comfortable and cute.

We had a really great night and danced the night away! She is still asleep and I'm updating my blog. I may or may not be a complete loser. I just can't help it, I love blogging! There I said it.

I leave you guys with this little joke. Not quite sure if it will work via writing. But I'm curious to see if it does. Ok say these three sentences OUT LOUD (its crucial to the joke that its outloud).

One smart fellow he felt smart.

Two smart fellows, they felt smart.

Three smart fellows, they all felt smart.

Im not gonna tell you the punch line YET. If it worked, you will know. If not...ask someone else to do and see if any funny results emerge. OH I HOPE IT WORKS!

Ok time for a little breakfast!

Hope everyone is having a great long weekend kickoff! Anyone doing anything amazingly fun, or even just semi-fun? I have nothing planned so far.

Lots of Love <3 Ems.

AHHH...

2009-05-21T06:09:00.001-07:00

So the majority of my day was spent like this:

In front of this:

Hangin' by the pool in my STUNNA SHADES. Just can't beat it.

It was the perfect "Me Day". I started out with my favorite breakfast...eaten slowly and in my PJ's and in front of the computer with my beloved cup o' joe.

Oh yeah I may have had this little gem of a show playing in the background for an hour straight.

FUN FACT: My little sister is named Kelly because I begged my mom to name her that. I thought that if she was named Kelly she would grow up to be as pretty as Kelly Kapowski. ohhh the innocence of youth.

Also I would like to take this time to confess that I am breaking from the norm and saying that Slater is WAY hotter than Zach. But then again, I always go for the "tall, dark, and handsome" men. I mean cant argue too much with this hunky image:

YES, PLEASE!

After breakfast and a good solid hour of acid wash jeans and teased hair I headed out for a little shoppage with the momster.

I picked up a cute little sundress (to add to the collection) and a little pair of white shorts, that are OH-SO beachy. :)

Did I mention that I am going to the beach in T minus 216 hours?! (Thats 9 days for those of you who do not possess the impressive math skillzz that I do) Totally kidding, its called a calculator kids.

After tearin up the mall, my mom and realized that it was nearly 2:00! Which means we needed LUNCH! One of the only places that my mom and I can agree on for lunch is Jason's Deli. I had the "build-your-own" sandwich with turkey on whole grain and a side of fresh fruit. Sorry dears no pic!

Later in the day (after the stunnin and sunnin time) my sister and I hit the town again for more shoppin. Where did we go?! uhh TARGET...of course! She filled out an application and I browsed the bathing suits. I really think they have the best bathing suits EVER! Unfortunately I am too low on the cash flow at the moment, so they had to wait. I said a tearful goodbye and we headed on to the next stop.

I had to pick up some party favors for this little babe:

ITS THE BFF'S BIRTHDAY!! Isn't she just sooo sweet and innocent?!

What party favors did I pick up you ask? Ill give you a hint:

We are planning on a SUPER celebration that I have been resting up and preparing for all week. I picked up one of these:

Little Black Dress Merlot. The wine of choice. Love it.

I also picked up a REAL "little black dress" to rock out tonight.

SUPER PUMPED ABOUT ROCKIN OUT IN IT TONIGHT!!

After picking up these "party favors" I went back to the familia's casa to watch this little know show:

I haven't really watched the show at all, but my family loves it. I didn't really have any opinion on who I wanted to win but I just don't think that it matter anyways...if you are in the top two you will be famous, end of story.

After that it was time to head home, get in the pjs, and wrap up the "Me Day". It turned out to be quite the success and I fell so much better now!

Today will be more laying out by the pool, working hard the RAVE, and then really ravin it up for the BFF's birthday celebration.

Hope everyone has a great day!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

"Me Day"

2009-05-20T05:48:00.001-07:00

Good Morning Loves! I am so sorry that I have neglected my blogging duties. Juggling two jobs is TOUGH! With substitute teaching and Rave combined I will work 45 hours this week! Yesterday was the busiest day so far. I subbed in the morning until 330, went to tan, went into Rave at 5 and didn't get to leave there until MIDNIGHT! Whew!! I decided that today was going to be a "Me Day". I need the break for sure!

Fun activities that I have included for today you ask?

Farmers Market with the Moms...first time of the season :)
Target Trip
Fun run with the sissy
Breaking out the new sundress that I have not had a chance to wear yet...Its gonna be sunny and 80 today!

Oh yeah...and did I mention the best thing of all?!

OATS AND BLOGS!

I took a picture of my "desk lunch" yesterday too. I just think its too funny to pass up. I really do not feel like I'm old enough to be a "teacher", I honestly still feel like I'm 18...is that a bad thing?! I just don't think that I will ever really grow up. But I think thats OK, I think everyone should be that way. People that take themselves too seriously are a bore! And I think teaching is the perfect profession to get in touch with your inner kid!

Hummus Sandwich on Honey Wheat with hummus, spinach, cucumbers, and tomatoes.
A few pretzels...that I end up putting inside the sandwich
Cheddar rice cakes
Glamour Magazine :)

And a HUGE thanks to my girl Jenn for entertaining me via text while I had the dreaded 5TH GRADERS yesterday. I love ya for it dear and I hope your knee gets better!! You better be icing that thing like crrrazzzy!

I have some infomercials on in the background and for some reason now I REALLY need one of these:

I seriously may look for this during my outings today. We have "as seen on TV" store here, so there may be a chance! With all my crazy back shirts, I could put it to good use.

Ok kiddos, I'm off to start my "Me Day". I leave you with this little blast from the past that I found on my computer while cleaning up my pictures. It is me at Disney World in 2006. Check out the Punk Rock Hair cut...that me on the left. It was SUPER short in the back and BRIGHT RED! Ohhh I was quite the rebel!

And here is me and the sissy from Disney the same year. I love this picture. Kelly's face just says it all. It was about 105 degrees and we were crammed in a hot bus rubbed up against sweaty strangers.

Hope everyone is having a HAPPY HUMP DAY!

Lots of Love <3 Ems.

Livin' the Life...

2009-05-15T16:57:00.001-07:00

Of an Elementary School Art Teacher, that is. In bed by 10, up by 530, packed lunches, rowdy kids, hands blue from markers...and funny thing is...I'm kinda liking it. Alot.

Not to say it hasn't been rough, but a good kind of rough...ya know? The kind of days where you come home feeling like you have been hit by a train, but somehow in a good way. A way that you know you put your time in today and you DID something worth doing. Because easy things aren't even worth it, its the hard things that make you stronger and make you who you are.

I have to admit, I was getting discouraged with the job search and losing touch with the part of me that really wanted to be a teacher in the first place. I was starting to question if it was even something that I wanted to do with my life. But now I see that I was only questioning it because it was hard, not because it wasn't what I wanted. Now I want it more than ever. I LOVE being a teacher, I LOVE the kids, I LOVE the school. It fits. Its me. I can't wait to have my own classroom.

So I know that I have missed a couple of days of blogging, but that is because I have been dead tired for the past three days. With being sick and still working every morning, I pretty much come home and crash! BUT I did take pictures of what its like to eat breakfast and lunch as a "teach".

Breakfast #1:

Banana Pancake Oats...eaten atop my flannel pj's while sitting on my bed reading blogs on the laptop.

Close-Up/Break-Down:

1/2 Cup Oats
1/2 Cup of Skim Milk
LOADS of Cinnamon
1/2 Banana
Tbsp. Maple Syrup
Kashi Flax Cereal

Lunch Day #1

Turkey Sandwich on Wheat eaten atop my desk, with my caffeine fix (gotta have it), a note that says "your the best", and a grade book to the right.

Breakfast Day #2:

Apple Cinnamon Oats eaten atop my leopard print throw. Includes:

Chopped Apple
1/2 Cup Oats
1/2 Cup Skim Milk
LOADS of Cinnamon
Kashi Flax Cereal

Lunch Day #2:

Hummus and Spinach Sandwich, Pretzels, and an Apple (oh the irony)...eaten atop my desk with all kinds of good teacher-y stuff up there!!

So there you have two breakfasts and lunches in the life of a teacher. Pretty exciting right?...ummm...

Also, like I said before, me being sick gave me an excuse to relax and rest a little. And also to catch up on my cinema. I watched Twilight...which was good, but nothing GREAT. Sorry guys, I know a lot of you are big fans. Then I watched The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Let me just tell you, if you have not seen this movie...GO NOW! It was AMAZING. I seriously loved every minute of it. I laughed, I cried...it was great. There was one quote that I loved in the movie and when I was at school I looked up the exact wording because I could not get it out of my head.

I jotted it down, and when I was bored during my "planning" period I made it all pretty.

"You can be mad as hell at the way things went. You could swear, curse the fates...but when it comes to an end, you have to let it go."

This just hit so close to home for me, because I have a really hard time letting things go. Especially things that did not turn out the way that I had wanted them to. Sure I could be angry at how things turned out. But when its over its over, and keeping those angry feelings inside only make it worse and won't turn back time. When things end you just have to let them end and learn for next time. I think the practically reminds me of relationships that I have had in the past.

Now, I am off the enjoy the weekend!!!....uhhh...tomorrow, right now I'm ready for SLEEP!

Hope everyone has a fun and exciting weekend.

Lots of Love, <3 Ems

What a Pain in the @$$!!

2009-05-13T17:25:00.001-07:00

Well, its official. Not two minutes after I had taken the test, the nurse peaked her head into the freezing cold run that I was sitting in and whispered the words "positive for....

STREP!!!!".

Blah.

Ick.

Ewwww.

Why me?!

I of course being the "let's take the quickest way possible out of things" opted for the shot. I'm not sure at what point I regretted my decision the most...the point where the oh-so-flamboyant male nurse told me that he passed out from the same shot just last week, the point where he told me that now I had to lay down there for 10 minutes to make sure there were not "bad reactions", or the point where I could barely walk out of the doctor's office and starting bawling/laughing from the pain/tickling in my butt when I sat down in my car.

Now I am armed with my PJ's, a bottle of Advil, and two movies rented from "the red box" (how cool is that thing?!).

Twilight has successfully been watched...now onto The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I am usually so A.D.D. that I can never sit still long enough to watch a whole movie. When I'm sick (and usually only when it has been confirmed by a doctor), will I allow myself to "chill out" and sit still. Tonight is that kinda night.

Of course I did substitute today...and I already committed myself to subbing for the same teacher tomorrow and Friday because she broke her foot yesterday. I'm hoping that the shot will kick in and I will feel better by tomorrow.

Oh yeah! One more thing...Just check out this drawing that I received today...from a first grader who said I was "hott".

gotta love it.

And also a boy update. Mike called last night while I asleep...of course I woke up to talk to him. I have talked to him in 10 days because he has been in Costa Rica camped out in a tree house in the jungle with his friends. Yes. He is THAT kind of guy. Why I think he would ever settle down is beyond me. I had been waiting for him to call and was happy that he did. But we will see about that one. I think it may be a lost cause. (for those of you who do not know the "Mike" story check here.)

Alright kiddos, just thought I would fill everyone in on my very eventful series of events today. Back to some Brad Pitt and NyQuil to lull me off to sleep. Its bright and early again tomorrow!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Go Go Go Gurrl

2009-05-12T06:43:00.001-07:00

Good Morning my loves! I was def. a girl on the go yesterday and I could not be happier about that. Don't you just love it when you get those things that you have been putting off FOREVER done?! I know I do.

So my day started off with some breakfast and the writing/research for my last post.

Cherry Yogurt with Sliced Banana

Whole Wheat Toast with Apricot Preserves...notice the outline for my post in the background...yes I make outlines, yes I am a teacher!

After breakfast I did some MAJOR remodeling in my house. My roommate and I are turning one of the rooms downstairs into an office for me. Because currently my laptop-ing is done on the dining room table. I wish I had a before picture of this room because it was HELL! But after literally HOURS of work, look at it now:

Here are some key points to notice about this room:

I displayed my first book that I recieved from student teaching for my classroom library on the shelves. It is Curious George and the Fire Truck, because I did a unit on fire trucks for the whole six weeks of student teaching!
The drawers on the shelve are animal print...so is just about anything else in our house.
My diploma is meticulously placed on the the table. I need to frame it.
For now I am doin it Japanese style and sitting on the floor at the table, but today my mom is supposed to be bringing me a desk.

So there you have it. The fruits of my labor!

After I finished that up it was time for some FOOD!

Turkey Wrap on Italian Herb Flat-Out

After lunch I got ready and went to work to check out a new shipment of dresses that we got in!

Which reminds me...a lot of you asked about my shirt from a few posts ago (the one with the back cut-out) and I got it from the clothing store that I work at...MAXRAVE. Currently I don't think that you can order online, but you can go to maxravestores.com and find out where the closest store to you is.

When I got done with lunch I sat down to download some new music for my runs. I had been listening to the same songs over and over for way to long. I don't know about you, but music is everything when it comes to my workouts. If I am bored with the music, I usually get bored with the workout and quit sooner. If I have something fun and upbeat to listen to and hold my attention, I can go WAY harder and longer. (thats what she said!...right Brooke?).

So here are some of the new songs that I downloaded.

Madcon - Beggin'
The Dream - Walkin' on the Moon
Mario - All the Above
Keri Hilson - Knock You Down
Jennifer Hudson - Spotlight (Remix)
Ciara - Never Ever
Metric - Gold Guns
Lil Wayne - At War
Lupe Fiasco - Real
The Decemberists - Oh Valencia

There are lots more, but that is what I have currently been playing. Quite the mix. I never just listen to one genre of music. There is so much good music out there...why limit yourself?!

Last nights dinner was spaghetti at the parents house. My mom makes the BEST spaghetti, but like they say on Sesame Street "Its a SOMETIMES food". But I think that may be just about every meal eaten at the parents. haha.

This morning I am enjoying a bowl of "Banana Pancake Oats" and a laptop full of blogs.

For those of you who were wondering "Banana Pancake Oats" is just a simple recipe, but it reminds me of banana pancakes.

1/2 cup Oats
1/2 cup Vanilla Soy Milk
1/2 Banana
1 tbsp. Maple Syrup
LOADS of Cinnamon

I plan on a run later...gotta rock the new jams! My 5k is coming up and I really wanna run it in less than 28 min. My friend Ben has challenged me, but he claims he can run it in 22 minutes. I can't hang with that...but I think he may be lying ;)

Hope everyone is having a MARVELOUS day!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

5K Tips From the Pros

2009-05-11T07:29:00.001-07:00

By "pros" I totally mean you guys! A lot of you gave some great tips a couple of days ago when I asked you to tell me some of your best advice for running a 5k. I will be running my first 5K in June (I have only ever ran 1oks) and Emily and Sam will be as well. So we all appreciate the tips! Also, for those of you who don't know, and I'm sure most of you do, Runner's World is a great website and one that I read frequently for advice and articles about just about anything you could think of involving running. So here we go...

TOP TEN TIPS FOR YOUR FIRST 5K:

1. FIND THE RIGHT SHOES:

Everyone is different, everyone has special needs when it comes to their running shoes. I know for me, a new pair of shoes made all of the difference in my running. Finding just the right shoe will lower your risk of injury and just plain make you feel better when you run. Many sports stores will have people and tools on hand to find you the perfect shoe. Take advantage of this! Check out this article for more info on finding the right shoe for your foot.

2. PLAN WHAT TO WEAR:

To avoid being stressed and rushed in the morning, you should go ahead and lay out your entire outfit (plus anything else you will need) the night before. Amy gives some good advice by saying that you should consider something different than the race shirt that they provide and I agree. Something that you know will be comfortable, fit you perfectly, and feel good on is what you should plan to wear. Also don't forget to make sure that what your wear won't get too hot (or cold) and won't cause any other major malfunctions during the race.

3. REST UP!

Of course getting good sleep is important for anything. And it is especially true for the night before running a race. To make sure that you run your best and that you are as alert and energetic as possible for the race you should take it easy the night before. Plan to take a rest day from training to prepare your muscles for the run the next day and get in bed early to ensure the right amount of sleep before the race.

4. EAT A GOOD BREAKFAST:

What you choose to eat before the race is going to be your fuel for when you run. Because of that, it is important that you fuel up properly. Exactly what to eat is completely up to you. Find what it right for you and what you think gives you the most boost in the morning. Carbs are always good before a race. My race morning breakfast of choice is just toast with peanut butter and banana. Check out THIS article on the top 15 foods for runners to get some ideas that may work for you!

5. HYDRATE! HYDRATE! HYDRATE!

Staying hydrated is a really important thing to consider when you are running ANYTIME and especially for a race. Make sure you drink plenty of water before hand. 5K races will not typically have "water stops", so it will be important to make sure you drink enough before you start running and that you will have water on hand after the race is over.

6. ARRIVE AT THE RACE EARLY:

This is another thing to do to avoid being rushed and stressed on race day, which can cause you to not run your best. Arrive at the race with plenty of time to get your number, find out where the start and finish are, and to check over the course. Also arriving early allows for time for #7...

7. STRECH AND WARM-UP:

Stretching and warming-up before the race is SO important to avoid injury. A lot of people will get so hyped up about starting the race that they will forget these two things all together. Again, this is totally customized and will vary from person to person. Know your "trouble zones" and make sure you stretch properly for those. Also know your limits...don't do so much of a warm-up that you are ready to give out before the race...but don't do so little that you jet out at the start of the race. HERE is an article about some stretching and warm-up routines that may work for you.

8. PACE YOURSELF!

This is one of the most common mistakes that first time runners make. When you are at the start of the race you just want to jet out in front as fast as you can. But this can leave you worn down after the first mile. Now your pace and keep it...even from the start. Unless you are my man Ryan Hall and can run the mile in under 4 minutes, there is no need to sprint at the start. You may see other people doing it, but believe me, you will be passing up those people later when they have given out and you are holding steady!

9. FINISH STRONG:

If you have been keeping up a nice steady pace and are not too tired by the end, you will be able to finish strong. This is where you will pace all those people who are just too tired to work harder. Again, KNOW YOUR BODY! If you are on the last half mile and you feel like you can do it...full on run that thing. Even the last quarter mile...just finishing strong in the last little bit will shave off tons of seconds in your final time.

10. MOST IMPORTANTLY...JUST HAVE FUN!

Whether its your first race or your five hundredth race. Have fun with it. Remember why you wanted to run in the first place. TO HAVE FUN AND FEEL GOOD...not to stress and worry about times and things like that. Don't worry about your time, your place, or the other runners around you. DO IT FOR YOU and have a BLAST!!

I really hope that this helped some of you girls...I know that it helped me a lot and I had a lot of fun getting tips from you guys, researching some tips, and writing this for you! Any questions are comments feel free to e-mail me!

Hope everyone is having a great Monday!

Lots of Love <3 Ems.

It's Friday!

2009-05-08T06:56:00.001-07:00

Please watch this video as many times that it takes to get you PUMPED about the fact that is Friday. It should only take one. Unless you are a SUPER stiff, then maybe two.

I had some requests to see my SUPA-CUTE detailed back shirt actually on. And since I did party it up last night and broke out the new shirt...and had to wait HOURS for my friend to get off work, I decided it was the perfect opportunity to snap a pic!

I just love it. And those little red "dots" on my back are not birthmarks, even though thats what they look like. They are hearts. haha.

Me making the MOST serious face ever. Seriously?! I think that I was concentrating more on getting the front of the shirt then on actually smiling. haha

I'm feeling pretty good about my day/night yesterday. I worked hard and played harder! FOR REAL! Here was my day;

9-1030: Job Interview at a Preschool...totally rocked it!
11: Quickly came home packed up a Sammie and an apple for lunch and headed out the door.
12-4: Work shift #1 at the ol' Rave
415: Back home, quick snack, quick change into gym clothes, out the door!
430-530: 7 mile run at the gym. No pain in the knee. Kicked the treadmills ass!
545: Back to work at Rave for shift #2. Kept my sweaty gym clothes on, just piled on the deodorant and Love Spell. rocked it out.
6-930: Rave shift #2. Sold some clothes, took out the trash, swept the floors like a pro, gossiped with my manager/best friend.
10: Home for a quick dinner of mac and cheese and broccoli and carrots:

1030-1230: Showered it up, prettied it up, waited for the Britt-ster to get off work.
1: Roll up in the club. Rock star parking, no lines. Thats how we roll.
1-3: Danced the night away. Techno style.
3-9: CRASHED OUT!

And now I am sitting here with a lovely cup of coffee and some awesome blogs to read. WHEW!

Hope everyone is having an awesome Friday...and if your not, watch the video again. :)

Lots of Love <3 Ems.

You Suck Internet Provider.

2009-05-06T06:51:00.001-07:00

I'm not naming any names (for fear of some sort of big corporate reparation), but my Internet provider is slackin' as of late. Can you believe that I have not been able to connect to the Internet in TWO days. AND this is the second time this month this has happened...AND when I called them they said they didn't see that anything was wrong. WHAT THE HELL?! Come on guys, I'm paying you for this. You best be giving me what I'm paying for.

Ok enough ranting, its back now. I feel like walking on egg shells though, like any false move and I will get kicked off again.

Currently I am enjoying a lovely bowl of "banana pancake" oats. And catching up on all the blogs that I have missed the past couple of days.

YUMMMSSS!!

I have been busting my butt with the substituting gigs lately! Monday I was a Kindergarten teacher and yesterday I was a fifth grade teacher...Friday is 1st (my favorite grade). Gotta make that money!!

Also, I have been taking every precaution to treat my knee. After a week off from running I tried it again on Monday. I ran 4 miles...came home iced it for 30, heated it for thirty, rubbed pain reliever creme on it, and wrapped it for the rest of the day. Tuesday there was NO PAIN! But, I still wanted to take it easy so I just worked out on the treadmill for 45 minutes. Today I'm going to see how it goes at the gym before deciding what workout I want to do.

Yesterday at work I purchased the cutest little shirt. I have this sort of "theme" with my outfits. If they have some sort of unique back to them I HAVE to buy them. Everyone now associates me with these types of shirts, it kinda like an "Emily staple". I just think that a womans back is one of the most sexy parts of the body. Its seductive, but not skanky. haha. Don't you agree? Here is the latest addition to the collection:

While catching up with the blogs, I was stoked to see that I had received an award from one of my FAVE bloggettes Dulcie. I was super excited about this award, because I just think its great!

The Renee Award is one of the most meaningful awards in blog world because it honors someone who is incredibly inspirational in her intelligent and witty writing. And by doing so, this award celebrates women’s smart, strong and inspirational spirit! It honors women who spread joy and love like an Acorn……a small package growing into a tall and sturdy oak tree which gives more acorns…………..

First of all let me just tell you guys that each and everyone of you inspire me by your witty and funny antics and also with your strong spirits. There is not one blog that I read that doesn't make me laugh or smile every single day. And all of the blogs that I read inspire me and add to my life from day to day. I just love every single one of you guys. So if I comment on your blog at all, just know that you are AMAZING and that I am passing this award onto you as well!

NOW I HAVE SOME SUBJECTS TO ADDRESS FOR SOME OF MY READERS!

First of all Sam had asked what my drink of choice was. And I just have to say that it all depends. I really like to drink red wine at the house while I am getting ready to go out or if I am just chillin with friends in a restaurant or something. If I am out partyin' it up with friends...and trying to keep up with the boys (not that I can or anything, my boys are pretty extreme) I will take shots. My favorite shot is a yagerbomb, with sugar free red bull....because regular red bull with all that sugar mixed with alcohol just isn't a good idea for the ol' tummy. Funny story...one time I got asked by a guy at the bar WHO WAS ORDERING THE SAME DRINK, if I was on a "diet"...I looked at him, then looked at his drink and said "No, are you?!" nice pick up line. Ok back to the drinks...if I want to just not really drink much and just sip on something I will order a vodka cranberry or a light beer. My favorite beer in Yuenling light.

Ok, now I feel like an alcoholic. Don't judge! But, I feel like knowing the appropriate drink for you and where you are and what you are doing is important. I know EXACLTY how much of each of those drinks I can drink without going over bored and keep track meticulously throughout the night. Because I have such a god "game plan" as far as drinks go, I hardly ever get hangovers or regret anything the morning after...except maybe the texts...umm...still working on that one.

Next order of business Miss Emily is running her first 5K and she needs our help! She asked me for some tips about running and I can think of a few AND I know there are others of you out there that have a few tips as well. In the next couple of days I wanna do a post of running tips. SO PLEASE E-MAIL ME SOME OF YOUR BEST TIPS FOR TRAINING OR JUST RUNNING IN GENERAL. I'm going to put them all together, along with some research and tips of my own and make a post for her...and anyone else that can benefit from the tips.

Now I'm off to the gym!

Hope everyone is having a happy HUMP day!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Shake It Like a Polaroid Picture

2009-05-03T10:51:00.001-07:00

Oh man! This weekend has just been crrazzzyy! I feel like I have pretty much gone non-stop. But I kept getting invites to do things, and if you know me you know I am always up for a fun time and when one of my friends wants to go out, I rarely say no.

Last night my friend Tina wanted to go out on the town, so of course she didn't have to twist my arm. Do I feel some pics about to go down?! I do think so.

We met up with some friends at a local bar downtown.

We laughed sooo hard at this picture because Josh failed at every attempt to take a decent picture. This was his worst shot. haha he is actually pretty cute, but he looks like a creep-o in this picture. Here are several more attempts.

Then I had to show him just how a great picture is taken:

As the night went on several more people showed up to hang out and I saw a lot of old friends. I tend to put the camera away after a few drinks though, because things tend to get a little difficult to keep up with after that. haha.

P.S. Aren't the little Polaroid cool? My friends told me about this program that you can find and download here. I just love it! Its so cool, this little camera pops up and all you do is drag and drop your pictures into the camera and out pops your Polaroid from your camera. Of course, you have to wait for the picture to develop. No shaking!

Today is a catch up day for sure, after that wild weekend. I woke up and fixed up some blueberry waffles with sliced banana and strawberries and maple syrup.

Then for lunch I was craving something just warm and good and comforting. What did I come up with?!

Grilled Peanut Butter and Banana DUH!

And just to show the ooey gooey goodness of the sandwich I present to you evidence #1

mmmmm

Also, this morning I was surfing the web for some owl tattoo ideas and check out what I found!

Its the tattoo that I described! An owl with the text "carpe diem", except I want "carpe noctem" and I want it a little smaller...and def somewhere less noticeable than smack dab on my arm. But other than that, thats it! I kinda thought it was an original idea, but guess not. haha. I still like it though...what do you guys think?

Ok Now its time for cleaning, running, tanning, and shopping with the sis. Then I gotta get up early to substitute teach for a Kindergarten class. AHH!!!

Hope everyone is having an awesome, relaxing Sunday.

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Confusion Control

2009-05-02T07:22:00.001-07:00

Good Saturday morning! How is everyone this morning?! Wild night last night? My night was pretty fun. One of my friends owns a vintage clothing store called Betty Janes. And they had a fashion show last night at this local club and it was sooo much fun! They got really crazy and threw out T-shirt and stuff. I totally picked up a yager shirt that my friend Brad threw out. haha. Here are some pictures from it:

The stage all set up

Theres Brad!

My friend Aaron

We were also celebrating the return of my friend Ben back to the states from his 4 month adventure back packing through South America. I just love this guy.

Josh is happy that he is home too.

OK NOW FOR THE STUFF YOU GUYS WERE WONDERING ABOUT!! I know that if you have just started reading this blog, you were probably SUPER confused by my last update. SO I will get you peeps back up to speed.

Boys - A lot of you were wondering who Mike is. Well, to make a long story short Mike is a guy that I had been long-distance dating for about a year. We met when he was traveling through my town for his work. He is a motorcycle mechanic and he was traveling with a group of Motocross guys while they competed all over the U.S. He was here for about a month, we hung out everyday...he left, immediately bought a plane ticket to come back here when he was finished working, and then later I went to visit him in California. (reference here). We talked on the phone everyday and then about a month ago he just disappeared. I knew that he was going through a lot of stress with his job and some other stuff, so I just left him alone. Yeah, I was hurt because I liked him a lot. But I knew the best thing to do was just to let him do his thing and not bug him and just move on. Well, like I said...he came back into the picture about a week ago. Not sure how much he is back into my life, but I care about him so much that I know I want him to be there, even if it is just as friends. But we will see.
The Interview - My phone interview for the school in Charlotte was yesterday morning. I was soooo nervous!! But I think that it went OK. I really feel like I tend to ramble on in interviews and not really get to the point of what I am trying to say. I need to work on that.
Sam had asked me in a previous post to share a picture of my punk rock days. Most of my old pictures are on my old computer, but I did find one:

Thats me on the left, short black hair, gauges, and all! haha.

Sam also asked me where I grew up and where I have lived in my life. Unfortunately, there is nothing too exciting there. I was born in the place that I live now which is a small town in Tennessee and have lived here all my life. Which is one reason that I am SOOO ready for a new place and a change in my life right now!

Now its back to my favorite part of the day...oats and blogs...and COFFEE

I decided to call these my "banana pancake" oats. They have oats (of course), banana (duh!), maple syrup, and cinnamon. I wanted to make real banana pancakes, but the milk was out of date :(

Hope everyone is having a great weekend.

Anything fun going on for you?!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Whhhatt??!!

2009-04-30T05:37:00.001-07:00

Have I really not posted since Monday?! I knew that it had been a couple of days, but geez. I'm so sorry that I have been such a slacker.

I am still resting my knee because I don't want to mess it up even more by running on it too soon, so I'm gonna wait until its 100%. Me (being the stupid, stubborn girl that I am) decided that it would be a good idea to run 3 miles on Tuesday and on Wednesday at work, I was almost in tears by how bad my knee hurt. I have been icing it, wrapping it, resting it, giving it some good ol TLC. I just hope it gets better soon!!

Honestly, I have nothing really of interest to post...which is why I guess I have been avoiding it. But here are a couple of key points that have happened over the course of the week:

Mike came back in the picture...sort of...in the form of some weird and confusing texts.
Lucas went out of the picture...mainly because of the above mentioned...and because he is staying at school for the summer to play ball and attend summer school.
I got a call for a phone interview tomorrow from a really awesome school in Charlotte, NC!! Im going to be brushing up on my interview questions all day today.
I played pool last night, totally killed the first game...then got slaughter for the next two.
Got tatted up

haha. just kidding, its fake. I got WAY to bored yesterday. But my sister pointed out that that would be a cool place for a tattoo, and I think I agree. I have always wanted to get a tattoo of an OWL (because that is the symbol of education) and possibly the words "carpe noctem" (thanks for the heads up Mica, yes thats what a meant...typo! haha) which is Latin for seize the night. I liked the phrase "carpe diem" but thought that was too cliche...and night goes with owls, so its perfect!

Of course I made some wraps:

My mom bought me some groceries, so I got the good expensive kind of pickles, that I would never buy on my own :)

Since I really have nothing else to post and I just did the 25 things about myself...I thought it would be fun to do an "interview" type post next, but with different questions from you guys. A "FAQ" post, if you will. Hey, everyone else has done it...ITS MY TURN! So ask me anything! You can e-mail me or leave me a comment with your question if you would like. Whatever floats ya boat.

Time for breakfast and another cup-o-crack...errr...I mean coffee.

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Birthday Celebration and 25 Things

2009-04-27T06:44:00.001-07:00

Last night was my friend Justin's birthday, so of course we had to celebrate. Here is a pic re-cap.

For some reason Justin just HAD to have everyone do a thumbs up...cheesy?! I think so.

Wait...thats not right...

There we gooo

I love taking random laughter shots

Sarah even brought her dog to help us celebrate

Dinner last night before the bar:

Veggies Burger on Arnold's Sandwich Thins and Steamed Veggies

So the wonderful Emily tagged me to tell 25 random things about myself. This could be the point were my "inner weirdo" is revealed, so try not to judge too hard.

I am a morning person FOR SURE, my favorite part of the day is first thing in the morning, sipping coffee and Internet surfing in my flannel pj's.
I only buy movies that I absolutely love, I currently only own about 6 movies.
My first crush was David Bowie.
Sometimes when I am driving I like to sing really loud and pretend that I am a rockstar.
I went through a "punk rock" stage in highschool and dyed my hair black and had 1/2 inch gages in my ears.
My child hood is defined by Nickelodeon game shows. Name a show, I'll tell you the host...and probably be able to quote an episode or two.
Charleston is my favorite place in the world, it has been my life goal to one day move there.
I HATE oreos just plain, but they are my favorite topping for icecream. :)
I still have not fully gotten into the "high heels" thing, although I should because I am only 5'4".
I am more of a dog person than a cat person.
I am currently terrified of this "swine flu" epidemic. WTF?!!
I LOVE grocery shopping. I go up and down every isle, even if I dont need anything in that particular isle.
Guys confuse the HELL out of me and I'm not sure if I will ever figure them out.
My middle name is Dru...I wish it was my first name.
Ok, Baylee here is my OCD habit...I can only get out of bed when the clock reads an even number. I feel like if I start my day out at an "odd" time, it will be an "odd" day. haha
My favorite thing about myself is my dimples, even though when I was little I HATED them and would sit in front of the mirror for hours puffing out my checks in an attempt to "blow them out".
I love pictures...taking pictures, looking at pictures, etc.
I DO NOT want to grow up, and refuse to.
I think conditioner is WAY better than shampoo (Billy Madison anyone?!)
I have a crush on our local weather man.
My favorite color is purple.
If I could travel to any place earth it would be Australia or Japan.
My least favorite part of the day is when I have to blow dry my hair. It is pure torture, and I try to avoid it any way possible.
I have a round tooth. I could have gotten it fixed, but I think it shows character.
In the summer time my face gets COVERED in freckles, and you know what?! I like them!

WOW. That was hard. Someone else give it a try! I tag:

Amy and

Now, Im off to do some grocery shopping...maybe I'll see my club hoppin produce boy ;)...and then working all day.

Hope everyone is having a great start to the week.

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Meeting the New Man...

2009-04-26T04:47:00.001-07:00

Thats right, I met a new man in my life yesterday, and he is one handsome man at that!

One of my very best friends in the whole world just had this HUGE bundle of joy yesterday and I could not be happier for her. I freaked out when I got her message that her water had broken yesterday morning at 6 A.M...he was almost 2 weeks early! But everything went great and mom and baby are doing wonderfully. Pretty much my whole day yesterday was spent hangin' with the new man. I just couldn't get enough.

The proud Daddy

And the beautiful Mommy.

I just could not be happier for her and I know that her and Chris will make awesome parents. I can not wait to see what the future holds for them! Happy Birthday Lincoln Maddox!!!

So like I said before, most of my day was spent in the hospital. I stayed there until right before work at 5. I did run home to make some lunch before work though.

You guessed it...a WRAP!

I didn't get in a workout because of all the excitement today, but thats OK because my knees are still hurting a little. I think I may ice them up again and rest one more day. Any advice or tips on helping my poor knees?!

Today I am up bright and early. Why? I have no idea, but there has to be SOME reason that I wanted to get up and start the day this early. So, lets see what the day brings!! My horoscope is telling me that today I will have a brilliant idea. hmmm.

Hope everyone is having a relaxing Sunday.

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Another Be-a-u-tiful Day

2009-04-25T07:47:00.001-07:00

I did it again! Another spelling lesson for everyone, that is how I have to say "beautiful" when I am trying to spell it. I think I must have slept through English in elementary school, not quite sure.

However, as the title suggests, it is another FREAKIN' GORGEUOUS day today. I may just have to break out the shorts.....or umm maybe get tan first THEN break out the shorts...yeah that sounds like a better idea.

Although today pretty, its already promising to be pretty darn hectic again as well. I HAVE to go to the hospital to see Jenie's new baby. I woke up this morning and had a text from her saying that he was born around midnight last night, and I could not be more excited to welcome the new little man into the world!

I have been trying to take it a little easy on the running this week, because my knees have been hurting a little. Nothing too bad, but I def. don't want to push it. I have been icing them and going on short runs, or just working out on the eliptical. But I do have exciting running news! On May 30th (when we are due to go to the beach in Charleston) I signed up for a 5K right on the beach! I was searching for a race that I could do while I was down there and that is the only thing going on the week. I have never ran a 5K, and honestly I'm kind of intimidated. Sure, I can run at a steady pace for a long distance, but at a fast pace in a short distance?! Im not sure. But, if nothing else, it should be really fun. Its right on the beach and it is in the evening. I also have something else exciting planned during my beach trip...but I'm gonna keep it a SURPRISE! haha.

This morning for breakfast I had some Honey Greek yogurt, with half a banana, some strawberries, and some All Bran Flakes mixed in...oh yeah and a few raisins, too.

This was nice and refreshing for the warm weather that we have been having. Did I mention that I am LOVING the sunshine?!!?

For lunch, I decided to mix it up a bit and NOT have a wrap. Instead I made a sandwich...I know, I know...big stretch right?!

Close-Up/Break-Down:

Whole Wheat Bread
Red Pepper Hummus
Deli Sliced Turkey
Spinach
Cucumber
Spicy Mustard

Now its time for a quick 3-mile run (outside, of course) a shower, and work. Busy, Busy Day! I do have some pretty big updates in the personal life area of Em. But, I think that will have to wait for when I have more time ;)

Hope everyone is enjoying their Saturdays and soaking up the sun!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Crazy Night/Day

2009-04-24T12:42:00.001-07:00

So sorry that have missed my regular blogging! I have been in such a panic because I totally pulled a "clumsy Emily" move and dropped my cell phone in the toilet last night. Now, I do know a trick to fixing phones that have gotten wet, that has worked for me every single time. All you do is take a bag of instant rice and put your phone and the battery in there over night. The rice will soak up all of the moisture and it will be fine by the morning. This has worked for me every other time, except for today. Last night, I put it in rice...this morning I woke up and it was worse than ever! Now, I dont know about you guys, but I feel totally lost without my phone. I mean, I dont even have a landline, so when I don't have my cell phone I have NO form of communication. So long story short I have been in a mad dash around the town trying to get a new phone for the least possible amount of money. It took a couple of different places and a flash of the dimples, and now I have a new Blackberry Curve! I like it even better than my old phone, so I guess things turned out for the better after all!

Now I just feel like my whole day is "off", and to add to the craziness, as soon as I got my new phone I got a text from my friend Jenie who had the baby shower, saying that her water broke this morning! What a hectic, crazy day this has been! But, thats what makes life fun and interesting, right?! But I just wanted to fill you guys in on the drama that is my life. haha. I will get caught back up tomorrow, hopefully.

For now, it is a lovely 86 degrees with not one cloud in the sky so I'm gonna enjoy the day outside. Maybe find a pool to jump into.

Hope everyone is having a great day! Its FRIDAY! Anyone have big plans?!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Wed-Nezzz-Day

2009-04-22T06:03:00.001-07:00

Good Morning Loves! FINALLY its Wednesday right?! Does anyone else feel like this week has gone by ULTRA slow?! When I was little (as in last year) I could never remember how to spell Wednesday, so now everytime I write it I say to myself "wed" "nezz" "day", because that's how its spelled! haha. Hey, whatever works right? It the same with the word "beautiful"...that's a hard one too.

Anyway, no news yet on the job thing. But, I'm thinking its still too early. Most of the schools said they would call within a couple of weeks, and my Aunt said that sometimes she doesn't get calls until a couple of weeks before schools starts. But I am still hot on the job trial. I have been putting in applications ALL OVER!

More exciting news...I have a beach trip planned! OH YES! We are going to Charleston (my favorite place ever) from May 31st until June 6th. Only 39 more days...let the countdown begin!

Yesterday I got in a really good run. I decided to just start running and let my body tell me how far it wanted to go, I ended up doing 6 miles so I was happy with that.

Can I just tell you guys how much running has really helped me with my food issues?! It has been so good for me, because I am looking at food in a whole other way. During my ED I would look at food as something to be "scared" of or something that would make me gain weight...etc, etc. But now I look at food as something that fuels me for runs and makes my body stronger. I look at it as something that is working with me to make me a better running, not working against me. This is totally a new revelation and a HUGE step in my recovery. I have been so happy with what running as done for me. Because I want to be a better runner, I want my body to be stronger.

Still on the subject of running...how awesome is it that my roommate's new boyfriend is a rep for athletes, especially runners...and he just so happens to be a rep for Ryan Hall, the 3rd place finishers of the Boston Marathon! Maybe I could meet him! haha.

Speaking of food...I used the last of my Flat-Out Wraps yesterday! Time for a Wal-Mart trip today, I suppose.

This HAS to be my favorite lunch:

Italian Herb Flat-Out
Spicy Mustard
Turkey
Spinach
Tomato
Salsa
Side of Soy Crisps

I had dinner over at the parents house last night because it had been a while since I visited. My mom made crab cakes and salad. Why is food always so much better when your mom makes it?!

This morning I fixed up the usual fruity oats.

1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup vanilla soy milk
Chopped Strawberries
Blueberries
1/2 Banana
Cinnamon

Today plans are either running or cross training or maybe yoga...I haven't quite decided yet. But it looks like it may be a pretty day, so I will probably have to take advantage of that. Thankfully there are only a few days left of this rainy month. Then of course tonight is pool night.

Hope everyone is having a great Mid-week! Lots of Love

<3 Ems.

Back to Blogs!

2009-04-20T07:12:00.001-07:00

Man! Not having the Internet all weekend is rough! Especially when I want to read all of your awesome blogs! Lets just say that last night and this morning was def. spent catching up with everyone that I missed sooo much. I also want to thank everyone for wishing me good luck this weekend, it really means a lot.

So I left big JC on Friday afternoon and set off on the 5 hour drive to Nashville. I didn't really mind the drive there though, because it was SO pretty the whole way and I had my IPOD jammin' on shuffle. I snapped a couple of pics just so I could show you how gorgeous it was.

Not a cloud in the sky!

On the way there I saw a whole row of these old time-y bugs traveling together. I thought that it was pretty amusing seeing them all together in a little group. So I snapped a pic of that too.

I made pretty good time because of the weather and arrived in Nashville to meet my Aunt around 6. I don't know how many people heard about this, but there was a HUGE tornado in Nashville last week (which is pretty rare for Tennessee). Anyway, it hit about a mile from my aunt's house. I have never been in a tornado and I sure have not seen anything like the devastation from the aftermath! My aunt took me around to show me where it hit. I have never seen anything like it! It made me really sad about all the people that lost their homes and businesses. My Aunt told me that the volunteers have been great with helping out all week though, and there were still tents and things providing water and food.

I was shocked by all the damage that the tornado did, like I said I am just not used to that kind of thing at all. I don't think we have ever had a tornado, or at least a bad one, in East Tennessee.

Moving on...Saturday morning was the job fair. My Aunt and I arrived there early and ready to go. There were sooo many people there. It was kind of overwhelming and discouraging to see all of these people trying to get the same job as me. What would make me stand out from the rest?! But, I handed out my resume to a bunch of different schools and talked to a lot of principals and assisstant principals. So now all thats left to do is just cross my fingers and hope that the phone rings soon. I'm desperate for a teaching job right now!!!

I also LOVE the Nashville area. It is so nice and there is so much to do. Also, running is a HUGE deal there, so there are plenty of places to run and TONS of running groups to join. My Aunt told me that there is even one especially for teachers who run! Oh how I would love to move there.

After the stress of the job fair, my Aunt and I had a "girls" day to de-stress. We went to the hair salon, TWO different malls, to the movies to see Seventeen Again (umm when did Zac Efron get so freakin' hot?!), then out to dinner, and more shopping. Yep, by the time we got we were drained. But it was great spending time with my Aunt in an AWESOME city. Did I mention that I LOVE it there?!

Unfortunately, the drive back to JC on Sunday did not go as well as the drive there. It was pouring the rain the whole time! At one point it was raining so hard that I could not even see in front of me. Therefore, I missed my exit and ended up about an hour of track somewhere in Kentucky. I'm pretty sure that this would only happen to me. I was so glad when I finally got home and could relax.

All in all it was a great weekend. I'm really hoping that something comes out of it, but we will see. Thanks again everyone for your good luck wishes, thoughts, and prays. You guys are the best and I missed you all this weekend. I'm glad to be back!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Quick Update Before I Hit the Road

2009-04-17T06:20:00.001-07:00

Ok., I have soooo much to do before I leave for Nashville today. I don't really have to be in too much of hurry, because the job fair is not until tomorrow but I was going down tonight because its at 8 a.m. tomorrow!

I am trying to update my Ipod right now, but it is not going too well. I can always think of tons of things that I want to download, and then when I sit down to actually do it I can never think of anything!! I am however, currently in the process of downloading the top 100 alt rock songs of the 90s. Ah, nostalgia!

Also, the wonderful Kristi at Sweet Checks tagged me to do a survey, and I just couldn't let that slide a whole weekend. So here it goes:

8 Things I’m Looking Forward To:

(Hopefully) a new job
Going to the beach
Shopping in Nashville
Running my next 10k
Bonnaroo this summer
Flip flop and tank top weather
Fourth of July!!
Summertime in general

8 Things I did Yesterday:

Visited the parents
Worked at Rave
Went to the gym
Watched the T.V.
Packed a little
Read Blogs
Chatted with the sis
Cleaned

8 Things I Wish I Could Do:

Be invisible
Makes tons of money doing something that I absolutely love
Travel
Live in Australia
Be a talk show host
Be a professional runner
Win the lottery
Be a superhero!

8 Shows I Watch:

Tough Love
Nitro Circus
Fantasy Factory
Running in Heels
The Hills
The City
Anything on food network (right Jenny?!)
No Reservations

No time to tag! Hope you understand. I gotta get movin!!!Thanks everyone for the good lucks and prayers, I love you all sooo much!

Hope everyone has a great weekend, I'll be back on Monday!

Nashville Tomorrow!

2009-04-16T07:37:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow I am leaving for Nashville for the weekend to attend an education career fair! My aunt teaches down there and she got hired at this same career fair last year, so I'm really hoping that this could be my big break! I really really really need this, a good job, a new city...it would be GREAT! Everyone please say a pray for me and wish me luck, I need all that I can get!!!

So yesterday was filled with prep work for tomorrow. I printed of a zillion copies of my resume, cleaned out my car, checked my oil, pumped up my tires, and filled up my gas. Everything is a GO!

I am also excited because Lucas goes to school in between where I live and Nashville, so I will be stopping by to see him on my way there tomorrow. He has been really sick since last weekend, so I am glad that I will get to see him for a little bit. Why is it that guys convert into a 2 year old state when they are sick?! haha. I swear they would not know what to do without their moms/girlfriends/wives/sisters/etc. Women just know how to take care of sickly people! haha. I'm going to put together a "get-well kit" for him.

After yoga on Tuesday, my legs and muscles were feeling really good and stretched, so I was ready for a run! Ok, I'll be honest my legs and arms were freakin SORE from yoga!! Everytime I do yoga I get more sore than any other exercise that I do. I guess its all that bending and stretching. So I warmed up a little on the eliptical and then moved to the treadmill. Here was my workout:

35 Minutes on the eliptical
4 mile run on the treadmill at an east pace.

I got in a pretty good workout, so I was happy with that.

Yesterday for lunch I made what is becoming my favorite wrap combo:

Italian Herb Flat-Out Wrap
Swiss Laughing Cow Cheese Wedge
Sliced Cucumber
Sliced Tomato
Spinach
Dijon Mustard

After my day of preparation I hoped in the shower and got ready for POOL NIGHT! Yep, the Wednesday night tradition. I am really starting to sharpen up my pool skillzz.

Just look at that form! haha.

Opponent #1

Opponent #2

Opponent #3

We got beat, maybe next time.

Fast forward to this morning where I once again sacrificed my chances of living to be 130 by eating cottage cheese everyday in order to mix up my meals. But, it was worth it!

1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 Banana
1 tbsp. maple syrup
Strawberries, chopped
A Few Cinnamon Mini Rice Cakes crumbled on top.

Oh yeah! And check out these awesome card that I got in the mail yesterday from Foodbuzz

They are little mini cards for my blog, and on the back are pictures of all kinds of foods and drinks. I LOVE THEM!

Alright, I still have a lot to get done today before I leave tomorrow. I am soo excited about my trip. Is it weird that I actually like driving long distances by myself?! Its a five hour drive...so I am off to update my Ipod, vacuum my car, go for a run, then workin it at the mall.

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Internet Outage!

2009-04-14T19:54:00.001-07:00

I have felt so out of the loop all day because my Internet has been down since LAST NIGHT! It just now came back on. What the heck?! Way to be on top of things, Charter. The cable was out too, so today has been a very quite, boring day around the house. On top of that it was rainy and gray outside all day, so needless to say, it has just been "one of those days".

I really wanted to get an outdoor run in today, but with the rain and cold I just wasn't feelin' it too much. I couldn't go to the gym and run on the treadmill either, because my sister has my card to get into the gym. So I just decided that a nice rest and stretch for my muscles would do me some good, so I did an hour of yoga instead. It was very relaxing and helped me de-stress from the week.

Operation "get-out-of-the-food-rut" led me to a new breakfast. I don't know though, I was really hoping that eating cottage cheese everyday would keep me kicking all the way up past the 100s. :)

Blueberry Waffles
1/2 Banana
Strawberry Preserves
Blueberries
Maple Syrup

Keeping with the "get-out-of-the-food-rut" theme, I fixed up a mixture of things that did not include a sandwich OR a wrap. I get so indecisive when it comes to my meals that I always end up just putting a little bit of random things together to make a meal. Why can I NEVER make up my mind?! haha.

Here is lunch:

HUGE SALAD!

Spinach leaves
Romaine Lettuce
Cucumbers
Green Pepper
Tomatoes
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Celery
Light Italian Dressing

Mushroom Burger
Cheddar Quacker Oats Mini Rice Cakes

I may or may not have had a couple of pieces of Easter candy from my basket after that as well. ;)

After that I got ready and went to work. Work went well, we spent the whole night rearranging the store to look pretty with all the new spring clothes we got it. I was doing some hard physical labor in there! Climbing ladders, hammering in shelves, putting together wall displays. I felt pretty bad ass. But, now I am exhausted! Time to catch up on blogs, make some dinner, and call it a night.

Goodnight! Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Family Fun (Ultra Cheese Alert)

2009-04-13T15:33:00.001-07:00

This Easter was so much fun. I pretty much spent all day with the family, going to church, eating an Easter worthy lunch, and going Easter egg hunting. Also, about and hour of that time was spent taking funny (and SUPER cheese-y) pictures with the fam. Ch-ch-check it!

ok. this was posed. But she was DETERMINED to get that egg.

My little sister, Tatum, was ruthless. She was pretty much in full on sprint the whole time trying to get to the eggs before everyone else.

All of the sissys. Notice how out of place I look. haha.

Here's were I started thinking of funny, cheese-y poses for us to do.

Heres another

AND ANOTHER! haha

My sisters fell backwards off the bench when I thought it would be a good pose to put their feet up in the air. oops.

She was OK!

Action Shot!

My parents. Aren't they just the cutest?!

Fast forward to today. I was SUPER ready to get back into the swing of things after pigging out on Easter candy and Ham yesterday. So I was happy to have my usual breakfast when I woke up.

Half a cup of fat free cottage cheese with Blueberries mixed in and a sprinkle of cinnamon on top.

Whole Wheat Toast with Blackberry Preserves AND Apricot Preserves. Unfortunately my indecisiveness extends past the breakfast table and into my regular life.

After breakfast I FINALLLY got to the grocery store. I was kind of anxious to go to the grocery store because of a funny story that happened this weekend. First a little back story the guy who works in the produce section of the grocery store is super CUTE, I had a class with him in college, so I know him and everytime I go to the grocery store we usually talk. Ok got that?! Good. Now the funny part:

Saturday night my friend Brittani and I hit up one of our favorite dance spots. We usually just dance by ourselves and generally are bitches to any creeps that try to come hit on us. Anyway, there was this guy that kept trying to get my attention while I was dancing, but I kept giving him mean looks and blowing him off. He didn't stop, so finally I look over to say something......and realize it is my produce boy!! Me being a little "braver" than usual (if you catch my drift) ran over and gave him a big hug to say hi. Now we have made small talk in the produce section of Kroger before, but NEVER took it as far as physical contact (just a hug!) in a CLUB before. hahaha. I guess you could say I was a little embarrassed to see him again in the grocery store.

Well, I successfully made my grocery trip, saw the produce boy, smiled, made small talk, and went on my merry way. Geez, that was awkward. haha :)

Came home from the grocery store, unloaded, chopped, bagged, and stored the groceries. Then made up a quick lunch. I tried a new wrap combo!

Italian Herb Flat Out Wrap
Swiss Laughing Cow Cheese Wedge
Sliced Cucumber
Sliced Tomato
Spinach
Dijon Mustard
Quacker Oats Cheesey Mini Rice Cakes

YUM! I really liked this combo alot! It was very fresh and just plain good.

After lunch I went to a meeting about proctoring for standardized testing in the elementary schools. It is volunteer and not paid or anything, but it would be fun.

Then I went over to the gym to get a little run in.

I wasn't sure if I wanted to do a long run or a short run, so I decided just to hop on and see how I felt. After a miles I set my goal at 5 miles, but after I finished 5 I wanted to do one more, so I ran 6 miles in all. The only that SUCKS about doing long runs at the gym is that the treadmills are automatically set to cool down after 30 minutes, so I had to constantly reset it to keep it from slowing me down. Oh well.

Now I'm off to cook up some dinner and probably lounge around for the rest of the night. I hope everyone had a good Monday. I know, Mondays generally are bad. But, its almost over!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

100 Posts!

2009-04-11T07:27:00.001-07:00

I forgot to mention that the last post was officially my 100th post, but I wanted to recognize this momentous occasion, so I'm writing about it on the 101th post. Remember in elementary school when you always had to bring in 100 pennies (or whatever else could easily be separated in 100) to celebrate the 100th day of school?

Last night was the second weekend in a row that Lucas has come into town. I would like to think that it is all for me, but I guess I will have to take 50% of the credit and give the other 50 to the holiday. He did come over last night to hang out after he got into town, and I managed to get a pretty funny picture. Like I said before, he is a foot taller than me. Now, I'm not tall...but I'm not extremely short either. I am 5"4' and he is 6"4'. He's a pretty big guy. Anyway, my roommate has a mini laptop that he was playing around on. The second I walked in and saw him I was laughing hysterically.

It really looks like its just a normal sized computer and he is a giant.

In other news, I wanted to thank everyone for their kind words about my last post. I had a long talk with my boss at Rave and I just really needed a kick in the butt. She wants to see me look for a career in education (which is what I work towards for 4 years of my life), and doesn't want to see me sell myself short. So I'm going full speed ahead towards that. Next weekend I am going to Nashville for a education career fair. My aunt is a teacher down there and she got hired on the spot at the fair last year, so cross your fingers!!! I really need this!

Also, one of my all time favorite bloggers (and person in general) Jenn gave me an award!

Thanks girl, this made my day :)

FRIENDS… comes with the following description to be added & passed along: “These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated.” It also says : “Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award.”

So I pass this wonderful award onto the following:

Love you girls and all the other blogger friends out there! I wish I could pass it on to everyone, because this whole community is just awesome, and I feel so lucky to call all of you friends.

Today, I need to go grocery shopping BAD. I feel like I am in such a food rut. I only eat pretty much the same things everyday. I need to "spice up my life" (spice girl reference, anyone?). Any suggestions as something new to try out for lunch/dinner?

Well, I hope that everyone is having a great Saturday. Im pretty excited for Easter tomorrow! What does everyone have planned for Sunday?

Ch-ch-ch Changes

2009-04-09T10:35:00.001-07:00

So, as you guys know the past couple of days have really been a struggle for me, well heck we will go ahead and say the past couple of months have been a struggle for me. Im caught in a cross roads at a very strange time and have been hit with the harsh reality that I have to make a decision, things have to change. As much as I would love to stay in the routine of what is comfortable and "safe" for me, it is no longer possible to do that. And that happens sometimes, its life and if there are not bumps in the road and hard decisions to make, then you are not fully living it.

It hit me hard during my run today. My mind just started to wonder and I started trying to work everything out in my head. I came to the conclusion that most of the things that I am struggling with are a result of one thing : fear of the change, of something new. It has been something that I have seen around a lot of the blogs lately too, and it definitely is a major theme in the road to recovery from ED. Fear of the unknown, its always gotten to me. Im afraid of new relationships because I have been hurt in the past, I am afraid of new jobs because I might not like them, I am afraid to step outside of the comforts that I have worked so hard to build up in my everyday life. But here is what hit me, just out of now where today while I was pondering all of this - sometimes things just HAVE to change, sometimes its for the better and sometimes not...but things will always fall into place. I can not hold on to something for forever, what good would that do? I have to let go of the past and start on a new road. Sure, things were great on that old road that I have been on for so long, but some things weren't. Now there is a new road, a new chapter that I have to embrace and leave the other one behind. Yes, it could have its bumps as well...but I am fully confident that it will have its smooth spots too.

Then, just like I was meant to find this, one of my friends sent me a quote on my phone that I just so happened to read right after my run. It hit so close to home that I was almost in tears while reading it. From what I have been reading in a lot of other blogs about fear of change, I thought that a lot of you may be able to relate. So here it is:

"Change. It can be the most amazing thing, or the worst heartache. So much is different since last week, and then I think back to last month... And I see a picture hanging up from last year. I see me and my friends laughing and I miss them, I miss then. Then I think about how great life is now and I wonder why I miss back then. I think the uncertainty of the moment right now and wondering whats next can be fearful... But aren't you excited to think about the potential of tomorrow? The anticipation of looking back a year from now at the pictures you'll take next week is worth waking up for. No matter how miserable a situation may seem, you can always find hope in the fact that it too will soon change. And although you might miss a moment or a feeling from the past, you still always have the chance to feel it again. Take advantage of your chances, there are some things you don't want to regret."

Everything about this just fit my situation to a tee. I have been afraid to leave my old job because of the fun times and the people that I love there, but who is to say that I wouldn't experience all new great things in a new place? I have been afraid to start a new relationship because I am afraid that I would never fell love again like before and that I would be hurt again, but I have to break down that wall and realize that there is a chance to feel that again, if I don't hold myself back from it. I have been so scared of this change that I have let it just eat at me, but why? change is scary, but its good. It means that my life is GOING somewhere, not just sitting still.

So I'm going to face this change head on...I'm going to go down this new path full speed ahead. I want new experiences, new people, new places, ect. I'm ready...lets see whats down this road...bring it on.

THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD., originally uploaded by EDWARD DULLARD.

Change of subject...ask and you shall receive...wanna see the new boy?!

Did I mention that he is a foot taller than me?! haha. Also, this picture is from a while back, not from the games yesterday...but i just had to show a picture of him! :)

The game was fun. My sister came with me, so I got to spend quality time with her as well, which is always good. Obviously since I had to put up an old picture I didn't steal of pic of Lucas yesterday. But I did get a shot of him playing:

He's the pitcher ;)

And me and the sissy

Now, time for lunch, shower, work...and hopefully Lucas is coming in for a SECOND weekend. Can't get enough of me?!....perhaps....or maybe its just Easter. haha.

Hope everyone has a great day! Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Good News and Bad News

2009-04-08T07:29:00.001-07:00

Oh yes everyone it is officially Hump Day. For those of you lucky enough to have a Monday through Friday job you are half-way there! For me however, I havent even started this week yet! I have had Monday through Wednesday off this week, but starting tomorrow I work everyday until Sunday. That is if I still have a job!! The conflict STILL has not been settled between my two jobs. I have really only talked to Rave about this, but if Stir-fry doesn't wanna work with me on the scheduling, then it will have to come down to a choice between the two. I was literally in tears yesterday trying to work it all out. Its such a hard position to be in because one job (Rave) I'm absolutely in love with and love all the people, but make no money...and the other job (stir-fry) I'm not even sure that I will like, but will make more money. What do I do?!!

I do have some more positive news however. Today I get to go see Lucas! He is playing a baseball game at a college that is only about 30 minutes away, and he gets to pitch this game, so I told him that I would definitely be there. I have never gotten to see him play before, so it should be fun. PLUS I might just get to sneak in a pic or two, Jen! ;)

Yesterday for dinner I decided to try one of the new Healthy Choice meals, after hearing Katie talking about them on her blog.

I tried the Portabella Marsala Pasta, Here is the box:

Here's the Nutrition:

Serving size: 1 Meal (9 oz.)

Calories: 270
Calories from fat: 70

Amount/Serving %DV*
Total Fat (7 g) 11%
Saturated Fat (2.5 g) 13%
Trans Fat (0 g)
Cholesterol (15 mg) 5%
Sodium (550 mg) 23%
Vitamin A 0%
Calcium 10%

Total Carbohydrates (38 g) 13%
Dietary Fiber (5 g) 20%
Sugar (4 g)
Protein (12 g)
Vitamin C (0%)
Iron (6%)

And here is what it looks like all plated up:

Review:

It kind of reminded me of a stroganoff, which I love. But I just didn't really care for this one. There was a layer of cheese on top that just sort of got this super weird texture after you cooked it. You know the type that just adheres to your fork and won't let go?! The one thing that I did like about this was that they did not skimp on the mushrooms. At first, I was going to add a little more of my own, but after seeing the meal I decided that it looked like it had plenty! Very rarely do you see a microwave meal that has plenty of any ingredient. I will probably not purchase this one again, but I do want to try some of the others. I give it a 6 out of 10.

The salad I had on the side however, is a solid DIME!

I always stick to the "colors rule" and try to incorporate lots of different colors into my salad. Nothing is more boring then a salad full of all greens. And I am just lovin the purple cauliflower as of late.

Backtracking to lunch I had my "pre-workout" fuel. I still swear by it:

Grilled Peanut Butter and Banana with Strawberry Preserves, and a few Honey Twist Pretzels on the side.

Note: While the sandwich def. gives me the fuel that I need for a workout, I would not recommend eating pretzels with it before working out. The saltiness of the pretzels made me more dehydrated during the run, and I had to drink about 3 bottles of water in one 30 minute run! haha.

I got to the gym late, which is one thing in life that I try to aviod at all costs. Because it is a college gym the later you go the more people and the less serious they are about actually working out. I had to wait for an ET, wait for a treadmill, wait to fill up my water bottle, etc, etc. But it actually turned out to be a good thing because I got in a pretty killer workout!

35 minutes on the eliptical
10 minutes on the squirrel thing?? - i did this to occupy my time while waiting for a treadmill, but this burned almost 150 extra calories!
3 miles on the treadmill, average pace was about 10 minutes a mile, but I bumped it up to 9 minutes for the last mile.

Speaking of workouts, I have to go get in an early one before coming home to shower and go to the baseball game :) So, Im off!

Hope everyone is having a good "Mid-Week" Lots of Love,

<3 Ems.

Overbooked

2009-04-06T11:59:00.001-07:00

I totally think that I have a problem with thinking that I can do more than I really can. In this case it I would be talking about being two places at once. Why do I think this is even possible?!

Im sure you are wondering what I am talking about. Well, I just got off the phone with my manager from Stir-fry about my schedule for this week. Of course every shift she asked me to work I responded back with an enthusiastic "SURE!", then when I get off the phone and look at my planner I realize that I have prior commitments to my other job! I have no idea what I am going to do, I am kind of freaking out right now. Hopefully I can get something worked out.

It is such a crummy day today, so I will probably just head over to the gym and cross train instead of going for a run today. Like I said before I ran 9 miles on Saturday, and then on Sunday I did an easy run of 3 miles. I decided to time myself on the first mile, just to see how I could do. I ended up doing the first mile in 8:54!! I was pretty happy with this, even though I wasnt really pacing myself, it was just an experiment. I read in Runners magazine that you should time one mile and then add 1:30 to get your ideal 10-k pace. So my 10-k pace would be around 10:30, but I really wanna do it in less so we will just see how my improvement goes throughout the training.

I woke up this morning and had a great breakfast of some VERY fruity oats. I basically just threw every kind of fruit I had in the fridge in there.

1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 Banana
Strawberries
Blueberries
1 tbsp. Maple Syrup
Cinnamon

For lunch I had a nice melty, grilled sandwich

Whole Wheat Bread
Turkey
Mustard
Tomato Slices
Cucumbers
2% Milk Cheese
Spinach

So, I guess I just can't be mysterious with you girls because everyone is asking for details on my cute little baseball player. Well, I saw him every day over the weekend. Including being his last stop before leaving to go back to school last night :). Like I said before I dont really want to rush anything and get my hopes up. But I really like him and what girl can resist a guy that tells you how happy he is everytime he sees you and makes sure to open doors, tell you how pretty you are, and send sweet texts randomly throughout the day?! I'm pretty sure I have had a big goofy smile on my face all weekend. BUT! I dont want to jinx it, we will just play it coooolll! haha. I wont get to see him a lot until he comes home for the summer because of his baseball schedule, but its only a month away :)

Alright girls, time to get going on this day...I feel like I have gotten nothing accomplished but conflicts! haha.

Lots of Love, <3Ems.

Grocery Goodies, Reviews, and Runs

2009-04-04T12:08:00.001-07:00

Ok, so I'm pretty sure that today actually is Saturday as opposed to yesterday, when I tried to declare it Saturday morning, when in fact, it was Friday. So, I hope everyone is having a great Saturday! So far, mine is going great. Its sunny and warm outside and I just got done with a great run and a great lunch for fuel!

Lets back track to yesterday though. Before work I went to the grocery store for some essentials. We were practically out of everything, so I picked up some basics.

Fruits:

Bananas
Blueberries
Strawberries
Grapes
Mangos
Fuji Apples

Veggies:

Roma Tomatoes
Purple Cauliflower! I couldnt resist :)
Cucumber
Salad Mix

I found a new flavor of flat out wraps that I have not tried yet. Sundried Tomato. I had it for lunch, so I will give my review.

Miscellaneous Items:

Oikos Greek Yogurt in Vanilla and Blueberry
Annie's Mac and Cheese (on sale for a buck!)

After the grocery store, I was ready for some lunch. So, like I said I had to try out the new flat out wraps. Usually when I make wraps I put lots of "condiments" such as spicy mustard and salsa and then heat it up, so its kinda gooey and spicy. Today I was feelin' more of a fresh, clean, cold wrap. Heres what I came up with:

Sundried Tomato Flat Out Wrap
Regular Hummus
Turkey Slices
Chopped Tomato
Sliced Cucumber

On top of this I added tons of spinach and rolled it up to create this:

Totally hit the spot :)

Review of Sundried Tomato Flavor Flatout:

This was the first time that I have tried this flavor, and I was pretty let down. Don't get me wrong, it wasnt BAD...but I thought that it was gonna be AMAZING! Maybe I built it up too much, but I was not impressed. The Italian Herb flavor is 10 times better, so I think I will stick to that. I will not buy this flavor again. It was my least favorite of the three flavors I have tried.

After lunch I got ready and went to job #1 (Rave) until around 930, when my cute little baseball player came and picked me up and took me to the movies. We saw I Love You, Man. And it was hilarious. I have been in love with Paul Rudd ever since he was Josh in Clueless. haha. The date went really well...and I even think that I am going out with him for date #3 tonight! He is leaving to go back to school tomorrow, so we are kinda "speed" dating.

This morning I woke up to a beautiful sunny day, just as my favorite weather man had promised. I ate breakfast (cottage cheese and toast) you know, you know. Then headed over to my favorite trail for a run. I was ready for a long run, because I had taken the past two days off after my 7.5 mile run two days ago. I DID 9 MILES!! This is a new record as far as distance for me, and I was happy with it. I finished in a little over 90 minutes. Heck yes, my endurance is building...I never thought it would happen!

I have said this before and I will say it again, in my totally not back up by any scientific evidence opinion , Peanut butter and banana are the PERFECT combo for energy and fuel after a long run. Or at least thats what works best for me. So of course I had to have this little number for lunch after my long run.

Grilled "Gourmet" PB&J:

Whole Wheat Bread
Naturally Nutty Peanut Butter (2 tbsp.)
1/2 Banana
Cinnamon and Raisins mixed into the peanut butter
Strawberry Preserves

Blueberry Flavored Oikos Greek Yogurt

This is the first time that I have tried the Blueberry flavor and WOW! This stuff is freakin' amazing. It had little blueberries in it and everything. I think so far it is my favorite!

Now I have to book it to get ready for work, so I'll catch you gals later!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Sushi Lover's Heaven

2009-04-03T05:56:00.001-07:00

Good Morning and Happy Friday!

I woke up yesterday to go take the GRE (graduate exam). It lasted for 4 HOURS and they were freakin' hardcore! They made me take off my hoodie, spit out my gum, and they even said they had a take a "digital picture" to prove that it was me taking the test. Geez. I think I did pretty good though...and now I can start thinking about applying to some Grad schools.

Lunch yesterday was delicious:

Italian Herb Flat-Out Wrap
Garlic and Artichoke Hummus
Turkey Slices
Loads of Spinach
Salsa
White Wine Mustard
Quacker Cheddar Mini-Rice Cakes

I just love the mini rice cakes as substitutes for chips. They are so much better...and only 60 calories for 11!! So that means I can eat like 300, right?!

Last night I also worked my last training shift at stir-fry. For the last night of training they always want you back in the kitchen helping to prep the food. This was sooo much fun! Can you imagine?! I got to see all the yummy food and how it was made...and even got to sample some of it :). The manager was quizzing me on what some of the food was, and I may not have known all the food, but I knocked her socks off on the sushi. There was a big tray of like 10 rolls, and I named off all of them like that. Sushi is my favorite food, of course I know about it :) It was a sushi lovers heaven <333

I didn't get off work in time to go see the movie that Lucas and I had planned to see, but he did come over and we are planning to see the movie tonight instead :). We are going to see I Love You, Man. Which I have heard mixed reviews on, so we will see. I just hope its not one of those awkward funny movies that you feel uncomfortable seeing with a guy. you know what I mean? Has anyone seen it yet?

In other random news the past three mornings, for no apparent reason I have woken up singing the theme song for "salute your shorts." Anyone remember that show?

Gotta love 90s Nickelodeon. Am I right?!

Currently, I am enjoying a nice big cup of coffee and contemplating what to have for breakfast. It may just be some toast with cottage cheese...I'm pushing that 130 years. haha.

Oh yes, and you just KNOW I have pool night pics to share.

Grant snapped this picture because he said that all I did all night was text. I think some of it was checking blogs, though. hehe

We lost...we were sad.

Alright girlies, time for brekkie! I hope everyone has a great start to the weekend...I have work at the ol' Rave and then a cute baseball player is picking me up for date #2 ;)

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Extra! Extra!

2009-04-01T16:59:00.001-07:00

Ok a couple of topics to be addressed in this post! I feel like I have gotten so behind and been such a tease with all of my posts! So this is like a full newspaper-esque report on what has been up!

First things first: Mommy tries POM Wonderful:

As you know, I have been sharing some of my healthy food with my mother to get her back into healthier eating. I have recently got into oats for breakfast, flat out wraps, and now POM Wonderful. She refused to let me take her picture, BOO! But here is her review anyway. Like I had said before I am a pretty big fan of cranberry juice, and my mom is too. She also compared it that but said that it had a more "tart" flavor. She said that she liked it a lot and wanted to try some of the recipes that I showed her on the website. She was most interested in trying the POM Jelly because she has been talking about wanting to make her own jelly. I gave her about half of my supply, and she loves trying new recipes...so i cant wait to see what she come up with. And I'll def. keep you guys posted!

Second: LUNCH!

Im calling this my Gourmet PB and J. Just because, its awesome. It includes:

2 Slices of Wheat Bread
2 Tbsp. Naturally More Peanut Butter
1/2 Banana
Raisins
Strawberry Jelly
Real Strawberries chopped up.

OH YUM! This hit the spot! And I swear that peanut butter and banana are the perfect combo to fuel up for a run, because I KILLED it today...which brings me to my next topic...

Today's Run: 7.5 miles!! woo hoo! I was super bummed today because when I woke up it was rainy and crappy outside. I had pretty much settled on the fact that I was just gonna have to go to the gym. But after i had my lunch the sun had decided to show its beautiful face...and I knew I just HAD to go run on my trial. One thing that I love about running is how everyone seems to be best friends that runs on the same trial. Whether you know the person or not, its almost like there is some sort of connection with them and people always smile or wave or say something as you run by. Today I had the hugest smile on my face because everyone I ran by was so friendly! I decided to just run until I got tired and I ended up going 7 and half miles. I was happy with this...my legs are not. I guess I can look forward to being sore tomorrow!

Next Topic: The Boy: I had mentioned something about this in an earlier post and a couple of you had asked me about it. One of the reasons that I didn't really go into details is because its a SUPER long story. But I'll sum it up. Things did not work out with Mike. I didn't say anything about it on here, because I just didn't wanna really get into it, but its been over for a couple of months. Anyway, two weekends ago an old friend that I have known for a couple of years just popped back into my life (funny how things like that happen huh?) His name is Lucas and he pretty much told me that he had liked me years, but didn't say anything because of Mike. We are taking things slow, so I'm not going to get too worked up about until I see how things go. He plays baseball for a college that is about 2 hours away, so I have not seen him since that weekend. He is coming home tomorrow and I have a date with him tomorrow night AND Friday night. We'll see how it goes. :)

I feel like there was more I needed to share...was there?!

Well, tonight is Wednesday and you know what that means...POOL NIGHT! So I'm off to get ready, eat dinner, and then go KILL some boys in pool...cause thats how I do.

Hope everyone is having a great night! Lots of Love <3 Ems.

Laughable Discoveries of a Tuesday Morning

2009-03-31T09:51:00.001-07:00

So there have been a series of things that have made me laugh today so far and I just HAD to share these funny moments of the morning with you guys. Here they are in bullet form for easier reading.

According to Google Analytics someone apparently found my blog by goggling the term "Amazing race butt shot". I dont know if I should be more disturbed that someone is actually searching that term, or that my site was linked with it.
I get a text from my friend this morning alerting me to this alarming news story. Thats right kids...who knew he was so spastic?...oh wait, I take that back, I just watched his infomercial.
After telling my mom the other day that I eat cottage cheese nearly everyday, she calls me this morning to tell me about a report on the news about a lady who is 130 years old. What does she say helped her to beat father time?...eating cottage cheese everyday.
My roommate is offically off her "500 calorie a day INSANE diet". Proof? I open the cabinet this morning to find that she has gone through two BOXES of Special K in two days.

So much entertainment today already!

I am currently headed over to my mother's house to bring her some POM Wonderful and get her review of it. She called me this morning to tell me about a new "healthy" recipe that she was trying for lunch. We will get her to love healthy foods yet! :) I packed up the camera, pen, and paper, and will be writing up her review in the next post.

Busy Girl

2009-03-30T12:10:00.001-07:00

Wow people! I have been BUSY the past couple of days! I'm so sorry that I am letting my bloggin slack. But I'm trying to keep up because I just cant get out of the loop :)

So like I said before Saturday one my very favorite people in the world had a baby shower...Nutritious is Delicious asked me what I finally ended up getting (after four stores!). I wish I would have taken a picture because I got the cutest pack of about 10 onsies, some matching bootie socks, and two big furry soft blankets. Here are some pics of the party though

Here Jenie is reading the card I got her.

The Miss Preggers and I

After the shower I had to jet off to job #1 (Rave). After work me and three of the girls that I work with went to the movies to see The Haunting in Connecticut. Now, for those of you who have not heard of this movie, it is based on a true story. I have seen the documentary with the real people on Discovery and some of the story of course was played up in the movie. But it was pretty good...and really scary!

After the movie the girls and I wanted to go get a drink. Well, everyone except for my manager, because she never stays out late. She had rode with me to the movies from work, so the girls and I thought it would be funny to pull up to her car and then drive off before she could get out. haha. We kidnapped her and forced her to come have fun!

She didnt mind too much after we got a drink in her.

The two on the ends are my managers, and Tina is a co-worker in the middle.

Yes, that girlie drink in the corner is mine. Its a Pomegranate Martini.

She cleared the drink!

Then she attempted to kill Tina...

And strangle her.

Im so unorganized with all my pictures so here are some random eats throughout the past two days:

The people from POM Wonderful were nice enough to send me a care package of their yummy pomegranate juice. I finally got around to trying and LOVED it. As an avid supporter of cranberry juice, I think I may actually be making a switch! I liked this juice ALOT and it has TONS of nutritional value. I'm sending over some to my mom (who we are trying to get healthier!) And I will have her review up of it as well.

Also, for those of who are interested the new job is going great so far! I feel like I may jinx it by saying that so soon, because I have only worked two shifts so far. Today I'm working a double...I finished my first shift around 2 and I'm going back for the dinner shift around 6. The people are really nice so far, they play awesome, hip music, and I still get to wear whatever I want! I'm hoping it continues to go well. We shall see!

Hope everyone has a great Monday! I'm hoping that this week goes by pretty quick because I have a pretty exciting weekend planned...hint: it involves a boy ;).

Serving My Favorite Food

2009-03-28T08:16:00.001-07:00

Oh my gosh! Last night was totally crazy. Starting out at a popular weekend hangout on a Friday night was def. overwhelming, but I actually liked it. I get bored so easily, so I need a job where I keep moving and always have something to do. It makes the time go by really fast, and I was done with my first night before I even knew it. I'm gonna break down the night just so I dont have a huge block of writing for you all to read through!

We can wear whatever we want as long as it is a black top, other than that anything goes. Even with the top as long as its black it can be a t-shirt, tank top, whatever. That is AWESOME! You can even chew gum, wear your hair down, and wear whatever kinda jewelry you want.
I get 1/2 off sushi, 1/2 off meals, 25% off alcohol, and free admission to any of their events. They have some really HUGE events like rail jams, "white" parties, magazine launches, and they have a band every Friday and Saturday.
I got to sample all of the great food that I have never tried before!

The only bad thing is that the menu is so CONFUSING! They don't just serve sushi (which is hard enough to remember all those different rolls) but they have a full grill too AND a full bar! My trainer gave me a to-go menu and wrote little notes all over it for me to learn, just look!

Im def. going to be studying that all weekend. And probably goggling pictures of the food so I know what they look like :)

Ok anywho, before work I had to do a TON of running around, because my friend Jenni is having a baby shower today and I wanted to get her something great. I ended up going to four different places before I found a gift! After all that I came home for some lunch!

Turkey sammie, celery, broccoli, and cauliflower.

Close-Up/Break-Down:

Wheat Bread
Garlic and Artichoke Hummus
Turkey
Spicy Mustard
Spinach
Cucumber

When I got home from work last night I was starving, so I fixed up something quick and easy:

Kashi Pilaf
Bit o Hummus
Sauteed Spinach
Salad (not pictured)

Now on to the fun part...the fearless and fabulous Miss Jaime tagged me! Here are the rules:

The rules are as follows: List 7 things that you love, and then pass the award on to 7 bloggers that you love! Be sure to tag them and let them know that they have won. You can copy the picture of the award and paste it on your sidebar letting the whole world know…you are Kreativ! Soooo here goes:

1. My Family:

I truely am so blessed to have the BEST sisters in the world! We are all so close and whenever we get together you can bet we are laughing and having the best time. My sister Allie (middle) is 19 and we have a great friendship. We hang out together and she was one of my biggest support systems when I was going through my hardest times. She went to group therapy with me, talked to me, and was there when I needed her, more than anyone else.

And of course my parents, who are THE BEST. I am also so lucky to have two loving parents that do everything that they can to provide and take care of us all. My mom is my best friend and my dad is my hero :)

ALSO HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

2. My Second Family (AKA Rave Co-Workers)

This was when my manager Stephanie got married and that is all the girls. I know that I have talked about them before, but I can not say enough about how much I love them. I feel like I really found my place when I got a job there almost two years ago. I really clicked with every single one of the girls there and now they are my best friends. They also were HUGE supports when I was at my worst time with my ED. They helped me through it and they still are the first people I talk to when I have a problem or need good advice. I make sure that I tell them all how much I love them every time I see them.

And when we all get together and go out on the town?! You can BET we have fun and are the life of the party! We know how to do it right!

3. My Best Friends

First of all let me just say, I'm picky about my friends. I have had alot of friends come and go because they just are not good people for me. The friends that I surround myself with now are only the BEST. They are all the greatest people you will ever meet. They are kind, fun, and would be there for me in a flash if I needed them...and they know that I would do the same.

Thats one of my best friends, Jenie and her boy Chris. They are having a baby in less than a month! I am going to her baby shower today! She is from Korea and one of the sweetest, most interesting people that I have ever met.

Did I mention that we also have a freakin' blast together?!

4. Running

Running has also been something that I have been so lucky to discover. It really is therapeutic! It helps me think through my day, blow off steam, and energize me for all those fun times with the friends. Oh yeah, and its also freakin awesome bragging rights that I recently ran a 10k. Next up?! Half marathon!!

5. The Beach

I have been to both coasts! Above: Venice Beach, CA. (West Coast). Below: Panama City, FL (East Coast) During MTV's Spring Break last year!

No where else on earth could make me feel more relaxed and wonderful then the beach. Charleston, specifically has been like a second home to me and I hope to one day live there. Its my life goal. :)

6. Teaching

I have always had a special connection with children (maybe its because I am just a huge kid myself) And I love the rewards of teaching children something that they did not know before. Seeing their faces light up because of something that you taught them is one of the most wonderful experiences that I have ever had.

haha. Cracks me up everytime!

7. Shopping

Clothes shopping, grocery shopping, housewares shopping, shopping, shopping, shopping, I LOVE SHOPPING. Ever heard of shopping therapy?! Um yeah...its what I do.

AND OF COURSE I LOVE EVERY SINGLE ON OF YOU! I FEEL SO BLESSED TO BE A PART OF SUCH A LOVING AND SUPPORTING COMMUNITY. I HAVE MET SOME GREAT FRIENDS THROUGH BLOGGING AND HOPE THE FRIENDSHIPS CONTINUE TO GROW. :)

Wow! This took me a good hour to complete, hope you enjoyed it! Now I gotta get ready for the baby shower!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Addin to the List

2009-03-27T13:37:00.001-07:00

Thats right I'm adding another onto the "list of firsts" tonight. I am starting my new job as a SUSHI server!! There is an up and a down side to this. UP SIDE = I have a job at my favorite little hip sushi hangout. DOWN SIDE = I hope working there does not spoil my love of the place. I know I have posted about this restaurant several times, because it is my absolute favorite place to go. Its called Stir Fry Cafe, I'm pretty nervous/excited about starting tonight. I just hope that all the other servers are nice, I know how things can be with "the new girl" so I'm a little scared. But we will see!! Wish me luck, I go in at 6 tonight for the Friday night dinner crowd...AH!

I have so much to blog about later...hint: more firsts! But I am running late to get ready for the new job so I gotta run. Don't worry, Ill update later for sure!

Hope everyone has a great Friday night!

Two Down, One To Go...

2009-03-25T14:21:00.001-07:00

Well peeps, I have made it through two interviews this week and now I'm waiting for my last one in about a hour. I'm telling you its been so rough and discouraging. I'm not really doing as well on the interviews as I would have hoped, and then when I do think that I do good I don't get the response that I expected. Yesterday's interview was just horrible, so I'm pretty sure I messed that one up. And then the interview that I had today I thought went really really well. Both while I was waiting to be interviewed I was listening to the guy that was being interviewed before me, and they hired him right on the spot. But me? they said they would call me next week. So, I dont know about that. The interview tonight is my second interview so I'm thinking that's a good sign. But its just a serving position at this little hip restaurant downtown. But a jobs a job, I guess and it is a really cool place. I probably won't be finding a teaching position until the beginning of the next school year, since summer is coming up soon. So, I need something to bring in the cash flow while I wait. ;)

Keeping with the warm weather theme, I wanted something cold for brekkie this morning...so I had some cereal!

1 Cup All-Bran Flakes
1/2 Nanner
Cinnamon
Blueberries!

For lunch I wanted something for my sweet tooth. Whenever I get a sweet craving for lunch I always fix up a yummy grilled peanut butter and Jayjay.

Grilled Honey Wheat Toast
2 Tbsp. Mighty Maple Peanut Butter
Other half of the 'Nanner from brekkie
Blackberry Preserves
Cinnamon

I wanted to try Chobani flavor #2. I have heard rave reviews of the blueberry flavor, so I decided this was the one for me today.

I added some chopped up strawberries, just cause.

Ok guys, I know that you all LOVE the Chobani, but I must say that while I do like it a lot, I think that I like the Oikos better. Its just thicker and creamier. But then again, I haven't tried the plain Chobani, so it might be a little thicker since it doesnt have the liquid fruit flavoring at the bottom. I think that if you were trying to ease someone into greek yogurt that Chobani would def. do the trick. But for someone who has been eating greek yogurt for a while, I have kind of built up a taste for the thicker kinds.

Now I have to freshen up and head out for my THIRD interview in the past 36 hours. This whole "job hunt" thing is really starting to wear on me. I feel like I have definitely at this really hard cross road in my life right now, and I still haven't decided which way I want to go. I have a lot of options that I have been considering and have made steps towards all of them, just to see what pans out. I need everyone's prays and support right now, its a pretty hard/confusing time! Right now my options include:

Grad School for my Masters in Education

Steps towards this: I have signed up to take the GRE (which is like the ACT for grad school) and I take it next Tuesday. I have also applied for scholarships and financial aid.
Pros: It will help me build up my credentials for a better chance at scoring a teaching job when I graduate with my masters. Also, the economy will hopefully be better when I get out of school
Cons: I'm not sure if I want to continue with education, or do something else. I'm not sure if I would be able to pay for it.

Pursuing a second degree in Nutrition:

Steps toward this: I have met with the nutrition director of my old college and reapplied for admission to ETSU for a 2nd degree.
Pros: Nutrition is something that I am way interested in and would love to pursue it. Also, I think that with 2 degrees I will have more of a range when looking for a job.
Cons: I'm sort of ready for a change of scenery and don't really want to go back to the same school I just graduated from.

Continuing in my job search for a teaching position:

Steps towards this: Put in multiple applications and gone to interviews. Also, I am attending a job fair in April in Nashville for teachers.
Pros: Well, obv. its what I set out to in the first place and it would be nice to be settled with a career (and steady paycheck).
Cons: It's so hard to find and job with the economy how it is and nothing is guaranteed. Also, I'm not 100% sure that I am ready to settle into a career just yet.

So there you have it. This are the issues that have really been weighing on me lately. I know that everything will work out the way that they are supposed to, but it is just so hard and confusing! Any advise?!

Woah! I wrote way too much...I gotta RUN! I'll let you guys know how this interview goes when i get back!

Lots of Love <3 Ems.

Edited to add: I just got home from my last interview and I got the job! I start on Friday. Its just that job as a server at that little resturuant, but it will have to do for now. I need some cash flowage, so hopefully this will help while i decide what the HELL I wanna do with my life! Thanks for all the postive comments guys, you always put a bright spot in my bad days, it is much appreciated. PLUS, it totally made me day to hear that Katie thought I looked like Elisha Cuthbert :)

Interviews, Veggies, and Excitement in the Yogurt Aisle

2009-03-24T11:28:00.001-07:00

Man guys! That interview was intense!! I spent all night "studying" for it and putting together a portfolio of my work that I did during student teaching. I didn't feel 100% prepared, but I don't think you ever do for these kinds of things. I was extra nervous because the school system that I was interviewing for is BIG TIME, I mean its hard to even get an interview much less an actual job. But, this morning I woke up...put together my new cute outfit that says "I'm professional, but still have a fun side", and had a little breakfast. I stuck with my usual, because I was limited with my morning time and I didn't want to do much experimentation.

Whole Wheat Toast with Apricot and Blackberry Preserves. Sorry, I was nervous and took a bite before I remember to take a pic.

1/2 cup fat free Cottage Cheese with Cinnamon

I, of course, threw down several cups of coffee as well. Hey, I'm trying to sell myself as "energetic" I need it! haha. So I get to my interview and see that I will be being interviewed by two women. Which was really intimidating! So,I had studied all night on how to answer questions that I thought that they would ask and the VERY FIRST QUESTION completely threw me for a loop! They asked "What do you think are the three most critical issues facing teachers today?" I completely blanked. I have no idea what I said, but I know it wasn't good. When I got home and was talking to my friend about it I could think of so many things to say, but I guess I was just nervous. Oh well, if anything it was good practice. But we will see what happens! I dont think I did horrible, but I def. didn't kill it.

For some reason today all i could think of for lunch that I was craving was celery. How weird it that?! Sometimes I just crave the weirdest things. But then I thought it would be yummy to make a big huge veggie plate. So I stopped by the grocery store to pick up some veggies. Im walking out of the store, past the yogurt aisle....and what catches my eye?! THESE:

Chobai Greek Yogurt. This is the first time I have ever seen it in the stores, so I of course excitedly put all four flavors that they carries into by basket! :)

When I got home I prepped my veggies while listening to some Lil' Wayne. Doesn't everyone listen to rap music while they chop up celery?! Here is my lovely plate o' veggies (With hummus for dipping)

Baby Carrots
Grape Tomatoes
Celery (of course)
Cucumber
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Garlic and Artichoke Hummus

And I of course could not wait to try the Chobani. I decided to go with the strawberry and mix in some fresh strawberries as well.

My first timer Chobani thoughts: YUM! Now I know why everyone seems obssessed with this stuff. It is def. my favorite greek yogurt that I have tried so far. And I cant wait to try the other flavors. It was very creamy for greek yogurt too and had a very nice strawberry flavor.

I swear, when it rain its pours...because I got calls for TWO more interviews tomorrow. One is at 145 and the other is not until 6! I'll be gettin the practice in, thats for sure.

Now, time for a run and maybe some shopping! Hope everyone is having a great day!

Lots of Love <3 Ems.

Interviews, Florals, and Awards

2009-03-23T11:55:00.001-07:00

Happy Monday everyone! I know this is everyones least favorite day of the week, but I hope that it has gone well so far for all of you! I cant believe that I totally missed yesterday! I had spent some time over at my parents house and then my friend Lucas came to visit because he was in town for the race, so I didnt get much time to post anything.

Today has been soooo hectic too. It started early this morning when I got a phone call from a number that I did not know. When I answered it was an elementary school that I had applied for asking if I wanted to come in for an interview tomorrow morning! AHHH, I had to rush to get ready and head out to accomplish the #1 most important thing for an interview.....what to wear! Of course I got a little sidetracked and might have bought a couple of other things. But you girls know how it is when you step into a target ;).

Here is the shirt that I picked out for the interview:

Im gonna wear it with some black pants and heels. I think that its fun, but still grown-up looking. I want my fun, bright personality to show though! And I'm not going to give up my fashion for some boring plain interview suit!

Of course I just could not resist some summer time dresses. It is spring now you know! Keeping with the floral theme I scored this cute dress:

its long and strapless, and I can NOT wait to wear it!

I also picked up this little dress for summer:

Now I better hope I get this job, because I spent all my money I made working at the race. :)

All that shopping made me mighty hungry, so I came home and fixed up some lunch.

Italian Herb Flat Out Wrap
Artichoke and Garlic Hummus
Turkey
Salsa
Spinach
Cucumber
Spicy Mustard

With a juicy pear on the side:

The artichoke and garlic hummus was a new find for me. Upon opening the container, I thought "The name sounds like it would make my breath scare away vampires, and the smell smells like it would make my breath scare away boys." But hey, I'm not too worried about either one today, so I gave it a try. And it was pretty good. Not my favorite flavor, but still pretty good. You could definitely taste the artichoke in it.

Also, I was so excited today because I received an award from the wonderful Jenny. She always knows how to brighten up my day :)

It makes me so happy to think that I am helping anyone with anything! I love to make people happy and help out in whatever small ways that I can.

Now, its back to shopping and getting my portfolio ready for tomorrow. Oh man, I am so nervous! But I can do it!!! Keep your fingers crossed guys, you always send me good luck :)

NASCAR, Baby!

2009-03-21T17:37:00.001-07:00

It is currently 8:03 P.M. and I am just now getting home from when I left my house 6:00 A.M. to go work at the races. Wow! I am exhausted, but it was a great experience to add to my folder of "firsts". And since so many of you requested... I decided to take each and every one of you with me, and do a picture documentation, just for you! Seriously, the whole time I was like "I have to take a picture of this to put on my blog!"

Anways, like I said the NASCAR race around is HUGE, people come out by the millions with their trailers and coolers of beer and park it here for a weekend full of sunglass tan lines, beer at 9 in the morning, and loud cars driving around a track an obscene amount of times.

We arrived just as the sun was rising on the trailer park:

They didnt get us parking passes in time, so we had to park SO far away and walk down the highway!

Theres the race track in the deep, dark distance:

Arriving at the track, notice the difference in the lighting? Yeah, thats because by the time we walked all the way there the sun was fully up!

My beautiful friend and bartending partner for the day, Jess:

We got to go into the track while all the race car drivers were setting up in the morning. And we got to watch the qualifying laps.

Here are the cars getting all ready to go in the pit:

Jess and me inside the track waiting for them to set up our booth. We were "Jack Daniel's Girls" and got to stand in a booth looking pretty and handing out drinks. haha

More of the stadium in the morning, before it was FULL:

AHH! There was a crash!

Jess sitting in the stand while we waited for our booth to be set up. It seriously took them until 12 to get it all set up. But hey, that whole time we were sitting there waiting we were getting paid! oh yeah. :)

One of the camp grounds for the race:

The view from the back of our booth, we were set up in one of the tower of the stadium:

Me bartending. Yes, we were serving mixed drinks in mason jars. It was THAT redneck.

It was such a fun experience and I am really glad that I did it! Thanks to everyone who gave me confidence to do it, by your encouraging comments. I can't tell you all how great it has been for me to step out of that confront zone that I talked about before. Lately I have done so many things that I didnt think I could do, just because I pushed myself out of that "safe zone", and for that I have added so many experiences to my life. And its doing things like that that build you into an individual person with unique experiences. There have been so many things that I have done lately that I DID NOT want to do, because they were out of my "routine" (this modeling thing, running a 10k, substitute teaching, the interview in charlotte). And even though everyone of these things took pushing and alot of effort, I am always so happy when I can say "yeah, I did that". It makes me so much stronger in my fight with ED, because he does not define me anymore, all of these new experiences are defining me now. And I am happy with that, I'll take it. I want to encourage everyone to step outside of their routine, and do something crazy that might pop up that you never thought you would do. I promise, you will not regret it. And what doesn't kill you just makes you stronger, right?! :)

I hope everyone tries something new to add to your list of firsts this weekend! Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

First Day of Spring!

2009-03-20T12:04:00.001-07:00

Heres a little Spring Trivia to start off the season:

What are the two most popular spring activities?

Go ahead take a guess!

So I woke up bright and early this morning in preparation for the "Hooray Spring Six Miler" that the Miss RunningLaur was putting on. I wanted to run outside on my favorite trail since it was so nice outside. I went a little camera happy documenting this monuments day (WINTER IS GONE!).

Driving to the trial. Do you see any clouds? Good. I dont either, thats because its SPRING!

Wait, I think I may see one...oh nope, its spring.

Stopped at a red light, I get behind THIS guy who drives surprisingly slow considering he is "z boss"

Here is my reaction to this:

Finally i get to my trial. Just look how perfect of a day it was!

As you can see on the right there is a small skate park that I run by. Well, today I was running by and there were two little kids on bikes. They were MAYBE 14, so I didnt really think anything of it as I ran by. I noticed that they were watching me as I ran by though so I paused my IPOD, but kept it in my ears so they didnt think I could here. One of the boys said to the other "wait a second, she has a nice butt and I'm trying to enjoy it". hahahaha. I turned around and waved as I kept running by.

More of the gorgeous spring day.

Done with my run, getting a refresher with my lovely water bottle courtesy of Emily.

I used the stopwatch on my ipod and clocked the 6 miles in 1:05:43. I walked some it because there are some ROUGH hills on the trial.

When I got home I fixed up a nice lunch complete with peanut butter, bananas, blueberries, and apples. WOAH! fruit overload. For some reason I always eat all my fruits for lunch and all my veggies for dinner. I dont know why I have that stereotype.

All grilled up and gooey and melty. YUM!

Ok now its time to watch some college basketball. GO BUCS!

Hope everyone is having a great start to spring and the weekend! Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Looong Day at Work

2009-03-19T19:59:00.001-07:00

Whew! Nine hours later I am finally back home from my killer all day shift at the mall. The thing that makes it sooo bad is that NO ONE want to shop these days, so the day goes by sooo slow. We did get some excitement towards the end of the night by catching a couple of shoplifters. It is so surprising to me how often this happens. At least once a day someone steals from us, we only occasionally catch them. I just was so unaware of how much this occurred until after I worked in retail.

So this morning I woke up bright and early so I could get ready and have breakfast before work. If I dont eat at home my only options are greasy biscuits from the food court! So I had my usual wheat toast with two kinds of preserves and cottage cheese. I always put the cottage cheese on top of the toast and eat it like that, I promise its good. Just another weird food thing that I like. :)

Two Slices of Wheat Toast with Apricot Preserves and Blackberry Preserves
1/2 Cup Fat Free Cottage Cheese with Blueberries and a Sprinkle of Cinnamon

I packed up my lunch for work in an attempt to eat healthier/save money, but I did not get a pic! It was the usual Mighty Maple and Banana Sandwich with some Okios (for dipping). haha

When I finally got home I was completely exhausted and pretty hungry, so I made some spaghetti with some leftover roasted zucchini and squash that they had on sale at the grocery store yesterday.

1 cup Whole Wheat Spaghetti Noodles
Hunt's Basil and Mushroom Pasta Sauce
Chopped Zucchini and Squash
Broccoli
LOADS of Pepper and Basil

Now I am ready to take a nice hot bath and hit the bed! But first let me just tell you what I am doing this Saturday, that I am kinda excited/scared shitless about. Im working as a model for Jack Daniels at the NASCAR race this weekend!! haha. My friend called me the other day and asked me if I wanted to do it with her and I said yes! I dont know how many of you are familiar with NASCAR, but it is HUGE around here. I personally do not follow it and have never even seen a race. But I live about 30 minutes from Bristol, where they have the Bristol Motor Speedway and the Food City 500. My city is always PACKED with people during race weekend. Im talking bumper to bumper all weekend long. Anyways, they always hire tons of girls to work at the sponsor booths and I'm gonna do it this year! I have no idea what to expect and I will be working there from 630 in the morning until 7 that night! It should be good money, but I am SCARED! Everyone cross your fingers that it goes well and that I do not die!

ALSO, everyone needs to tune into the ETSU/PITT basketball game tomorrow at 245. Its the first round of the NCAA tournament and it just so happens to be MY school against the lovely SAM"S school. And we may or may not have a small bet going on for the game ;). Personally, I have a feeling I am gonna lose, BIG. But I still think we win when it comes to cutest players. Just look at these our boys!

Hope everyone has a good start to their weekend tomorrow! Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Asheville!

2009-03-18T17:51:00.001-07:00

Well, I just got home from the Asheville trip with the fam. It was fun, but slightly annoying because my mom refuses to go walk around to all the cute little shops downtown, and instead sticks to the mall. Now, I am all for shopping in any type of setting, but I just LOVE downtown Asheville, and I only got to wave at it as we sped past on our way to the mall. Oh well. Heres a pic recap.

My sister and her friend, Anothney.They look excited huh?!

My littlest sis Tatum (I call her Taber)

I think someone mentioned on another post how I look nothing like my sister, and its true. I actually have three sisters, all with curly black hair, dark skin, and blue eyes. Me? Blonde, straight hair, pale as a ghost, and brown eyes. I MAY be the milk mans baby.

Back to the pics:

Beautiful scenery on the drive up

Gorgeous mountains of Tennessee/North Carolina

Arriving in Downtown Asheville

Apparently someone is REALLY proud of their name, and sub-par graffiti skillzz.

Pilot + Co-pilot

Going through the infamous tunnel. Its like 5 miles long, but we always try to hold our breath all the way through. If my mom feels like being a jerk, she'll drive about 10MPH through it.

Old lady jammies make me jump for joy!

In other news, I was completely exhausted when I got home. Shopping does it to me everytime! But I really wanna to stick with my training schedule, and I knew tomorrow would be my rest day because I have to work 9 hours tomorrow! So, right when I got home I threw on my running gear and went for DAY #3 of training. Today called for a tempo run for 35 minutes. Since I just had a time to stick to and not a milage, I decided to run on one of my fave trails today. I have no way to track milage yet, so I have to stick to the treadmill if I have a milage goal. Anyways, usually it takes me about 30 minutes to get around the trail once, but today I was struggling to get in 30 minutes after TWICE around! I really surprised myself, because it is VERY hilly too. I walked the last 5 minutes and made it twice around in 35 minutes. I was so curious as to what the milage was, so I decided to drive it in my car for a rough estimate. Roughly, it was about 1.5 miles around...and I did twice, in 35 minutes, AND it was hilly!! I even took a pretty easy run since I was so tired. So I was pretty happy with this!

Ok...I was planning on taking a shower and getting in bed. But I just received a text from my friend saying I better come play a game of pool ASAP. And who would I be to disappoint?! So I'm off!

Hope everyone had a great day today! Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Checkin' Off the To-Dos

2009-03-17T17:56:00.001-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! I hope everyone is having a good one, and celebrating with lots of green and maybe beer?! Or not...whatever floats ya boat ;) Today has been pretty busy and successful! I started out just NOT motivated to do anything, but I turned off that negative voice and started about my day.

FIRST something new, I went to the college that I graduated from in December and met with the head of the Nutrition Program there to possibly re-enroll and get a second degree in dietetics. Not 100% sure yet, but it is an option that has come up and I was just looking into more info about it. It is definitely something that interests me, and I think that I would have more success in the career path if I had more of a range (and having two degrees is a good range). The lady was super nice and super encouraging. The next step is to talk to admissions and finical aid and see what my options there are. Its something to consider at the very least.

SECOND, I got day two of training for a faster 10K out of the way. My training schedule had me at running an easy 3 miles today, so I ran it in about 35 minutes, and then cooled down for 5 minutes. After that I did 20 minutes on the eliptical. I kept the eliptical very low paced though, because I dont want to wear out my legs. Tomorrow I am just scheduled to run for 30 mintues. Its supposed to be a nice day, so I'll probably be doing that one on the running trial that I like.

THIRD, I came home and made lunch. For the first time since fall started I was not in the mood for a warm sammie, I wanted a cold one. So that is what I had. With the last apple on the side. MAN it is time for a grocery trip. guess I didnt get everything done!

Close-Up/Break-Down:

Wheat Bread
Turkey
Spinach
Greek Style Hummus
Cucumber
Sprouts
Salsa
Spicy Mustard

After I gobbled up my lunch I went BACK to the gym for a yoga class that I noticed they were having at my gym tonight. It said it was a beginners class, so I thought it would be nice to just go and get all stretched out from my running. It was a pretty good class...but it was TOTALLY for beginners, people were not taking it too seriously and they were laughing and falling all over the place, so it was sort of distracting. I liked the teacher though, so Im going to see if she has a more advanced class that she teaches. At the end of the practice she said something SO good. It was a story and it went something like this:

"One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided the animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway; it just wasn't worth it to retrieve the donkey.
He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement he quieted down. A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well. He was astonished at what he saw. With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up.
As the farmer's neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of theanimal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and happily trotted off!"

MORAL: Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. Each of our troubles is a steppingstone. We can either let those troubles bury us alive or use them to get ahead, never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up.

I really took this to heart. I think that a lot of times I let things get to me and I get angry or upset when troubles come my way. But instead, I need to see those troubles as stepping stones and shake it off and use the experience to get ahead!

I just got home from yoga and now I am gonna shower and get ready to go an irish pub downtown with Britt to celebrate the holiday. Nothing too crazy tonight though, she has class tomorrow at 9 and I'm taking an Asheville trip tomorrow morning with the fam. Pics to follow!!

Everyone be safe and have fun tonight if you are celebrating!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Rain, Rants, and Running...

2009-03-16T17:56:00.001-07:00

In honor of the first day of spring break (not that I am still in school...but I do sub, so that counts right?) I made up a wonderful breakfast, worthy of a saturday morning, except it was monday...and there is nothing wrong with that in my book. ;)

French Toast with Blueberries and Maple Syrup

After breakfast I hit up the gym. There is a story behind this girlies. I have FALLEN in love with running, ok I have always loved running, but after running my first 10K and seeing that I could do it, I have gained confidence to really get serious about running! SO, I am starting a training program to help me run a faster 10K. I ran the first in just over an hour, so I want to aim for less than an hour next time. Anywho, today I started day one of the eight week training. I was scheduled to run 3 miles today and add some strength training as well. My workout today included:

3 miles at a 10 minute mile pace, then a 5 minute cool down.
Series of arm workouts on the machines, 3 sets of 10 reps each.
30 minutes of yoga (to stretch and cool down)

Ok, I have a question for all you runners out there. I know that it is important to not overtrain and to start out slow, but I am used to getting in more of a workout than this. Can I add another form of cardio, as long as its low impact on my legs? Or is it important to only stick with the running schedule when your training? I know when I do long runs I will only do that, and I do have days on the schedule for cross training, but when I only run 3 miles, I feel like I could still do more of a workout. So what is the protocol on that?

When I got home from the gym I fixed up a quick lunch:

I was craving peanut butter BIG TIME today! This sammie includes:

Mighty Maple PB (as seen hangin' in the back)
Whole Wheat Bread
Strawberry Preserves
Sliced Granny Smith Apple
Blueberries

And some fat free pineapple yogurt on the side:

Weird food confession: I think it is DE-LISH to dip my PB & J in my yogurt. Think its crazy?! try it!

After lunch I met the mom and little sissy to see a movie starring these boys that you may or may not be familiar with:

I must admit that I have never really been a big fan (I think I'm a little old) haha. The movie did remind me of the Beatles movies, but that kind of pissed me off. haha. I DO think the youngest one is a cutie, though. And that creeped me out a little, when I learned that he is only 17.

I came home and have been taking it easy all day! It is soooo rainy and gloomy outside that all I wanna do is stay inside with some hot tea! The only thing about staying home is that the roommate situation is growing more and more annoying with every second! All she does is pace the floor and pop a strawberry or something like that every time she gets hungry! I want to yell at her "JUST EAT SOMETHING STUPID!!". Some of you asked me if it was triggering, and it is not, just annoying. Actually it is almost the opposite of triggering, because I love coming home from the gym and eating a nice big PB & J and feeling HEALTHY and GOOD about my body, while she paces around waiting for her scheduled time to eat an apple, or like 5 shrimp. GEEZ! Also, some of you asked if she knew about my struggles and she does. actually I remained silent for a while, the whole time she made little jokes such as "Im glad im bulemic" while eating a big piece of cake, or after eating a big meal out saying "after this im going anorexic", until I finally could not take it anymore and I told her what I had gone through and that jokes like that made me very uncomfortable and offended. She stopped joking about it, but now its this! And it wouldnt be SO bad, if she would just shut the hell up about it! She wants to talk to me about it everytime Im home, and it makes me just want to leave! Right now, Im in my room with the door closed. haha. I have told her that I do not think it is healthy, but I dont think it helps. I guess I'll just have to ignore it and go about my healthy, happy lifestyle.

Sorry for the rant, I promise thats all I am going to say about it! Im off the make dinner, take a shower, and watch The City.

Tomorrow is St. Patricks Day!! I hope I have something green to wear! Anyone have plans?!