Monday, November 29, 2010

Thankful

What did we do before this sweet little guy came along?
No one willingly let him go.
Even in group shots, his parents (front, to the left) weren't the ones holding him. Nope. That was me. ;)

What did we ever do on family holidays without babies in the family?

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Let the challenge begin!

Thanks to Brooke, I have become a member of Tinsel Vixens, a Sisterhood of the Shrinking Pants team determined to keep weight off during the holiday season and to keep up with a regular exercise schedule. My main goal through this is to eat better. My old joke is that I run to eat (which is clearly displayed by many nights at Maggie Moo’s ice cream after four-mile runs), but I want to train better for this halfie coming up, which means eating better.
Honestly, I can’t remember the last time I ate a vegetable. I remember the last time I ate fruit…last week.

So I’m hoping to put away the chocolate pecan pie (tear!) and hot chocolate with marshmallows and ice cream (gasp!) and eat sweet potatoes, winter squash, apples, pears, and more.

Of course, it really didn’t help that I forgot to go to the grocery store and stock up on fruits and veggies last night.

Therefore, this morning, after a very brisk (aka super cold) and short run with the hubby, I headed to the Student Center at work to grab fruit for breakfast. It was pricy, but I’m fairly lazy (so says the person who woke up at 5:30 a.m. to run, but I digress – I am fairly lazy).

Our team goals this week are to exercise three times a week for 30 minutes, eat 3 fruits/veggies per day, and no negative self talk. Frankly, as I’m in the best shape of my life since I was married, that last one is going to be the easiest. Granted, I did not feel very skinny this morning, but I am usually fairly pleasant when it comes to my weight/dress size. It’s really due to the fact that I’m wearing the size I wore in college now. That makes me super happy.

The workouts this week will be rough. I foresee possibly one more 5:30 a.m. run and several late night runs in my future. And very fast runs. Ugh. I like enjoying my run, not clock-watching (at least not until the end).

I’m heading to the grocery store at lunch to grab some veggies (oh, snap, I have lettuce in the fridge – hooray!!!) and fruit to last at least until Saturday.

At any rate, if you want to join in on the fun, head on over to the ‘Hood and join up!!

Friday, November 12, 2010

Christmas culturalization

Is “Ghost” a scary movie? A.C. told me it wasn’t and said we need to watch the movie, but I don’t want to watch it if it’s scary.

One of my students needs to be “culturalized,” we’ve decided. This came after determining that she didn’t know who Cassius Clay was….she’d never watched “The Sandlot” (and therefore did not know who the Sultan of Swat was), and didn’t know why The Great Bambino was part of Red Sox lore. However, recently, we also determined that her culturalization lacks for Christmas movies as well.

I watched that Christmas movie, you know, the one with Scrooge.

This child (and I say “child” loosely, as she’s only six years younger than me) has never seen “Elf.” She’s never seen “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” She’s never seen “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” I’m certain she’s never seen “Ernest Saves Christmas.”

So I made a list of Christmas movies she needs to watch over the Thanksgiving holiday to prepare her for the Christmas season:

“A Christmas Story” After all, when I start quoting, “You’ll shoot your eye out!” I want her to get the joke.

“Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” She told me she’d never watched this one because her mom said it was sad and that all of the other reindeer made fun of Rudolph. Well, DUH! But didn’t you sing the REST of the song?

“Elf” She doesn’t know about syrup. Or “Smiling’s my favorite.” Or that singing brings Christmas cheer. Or that you shouldn’t hug raccoons!!!!

“It’s a Wonderful Life” I’m more of a comedy person, but this is a classic everyone should see.

“Frosty the Snowman” Plus “Frosty Returns,” “Frosty’s Winter Wonderland,” The Legend of Frosty the Snowman” and whatever other straight-to-DVD Frosty they make.

Thinking about all these Christmas movies makes me want to watch some, too! Curl up with a blanket…drink hot chocolate…oh, wait, but it has to get cold first. I’m wearing boots…and the high’s going to be 79 degrees today.

“I’m dreaming…..of a white….Christmas….”

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

I bet you think this blog is about you, don’t you?

I’ve had a hard time recently with writing. Not because lack of ideas – I’m chock full of ideas. As Bobby Hill once said, “My best ideas come to me in the tub.” Of course, he was talking about plagiarism, too.

No, my issue is with privacy issues. I’ve learned that a certain individual who hurt me greatly has somehow stumbled across my blog. That’s the price I pay for not making my blog more anonymous, I suppose.

Granted, I use a nickname instead of my real name, and I don’t post my whereabouts. That’s more for safety issues than anything else, though.

So my first thought was, “Do I privatize my blog?” This would mean that many people, mainly relatives who I know read, would not be able to see it, or at least would have a harder time viewing. That’s not fair to them. Plus, I’m not a private person. I’m very open, brutally honest, and, then, here’s the kicker:

I don’t care.

Therefore, You-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named, read on. I hope it gives you some strange pleasure, as I don’t know why you would be reading my blog if you weren’t enjoying it.

As for me and for those reading, we’re going to talk about more fun items. Such as Thanksgiving. And now, without further ado, welcome to the inaugural Wednesday Hodgepodge, hosted by Joyce!!

1. Do you think you're more like your mom or your dad?
I’m definitely a mix. I talk and act like my mom, but a lot of my emotions are identical to my dad’s. Guess that comes from being an only child.

2. Do you like roller coasters?
Does this picture answer your question?



I LOVE roller coasters. Minus this one.





3. How did you name your blog and do you now wish you'd thought about it maybe another five minutes before you hit publish? Would you change your blog title if it were not a huge pain in the derriere? (French makes everything sound a little nicer doesn't it?)
I wish my blog addy and title were the same to make it easier, but I love both of those phrases.

“Thirsty Southern Soul” is me. That’s exactly what I am. I want to be a plant that soaks up God’s Word and His wisdom like rain.

“Fearfully, Wonderfully Made” came from Psalm 139, which is actually taped on my gradebook so I can see it before I go into every class. My favorite verse from that psalm is No. 14: "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” The psalm is a comfort on bad days.

4. What is the best wedding gift you received? Not married? Didn't get any gifts? Then what is the best wedding gift you've given?
I received a lot of memorable gifts, which I feel are the best. I love that something special, that keepsake you can always treasure. I can think of three: the first comes from my aunt, and it was a plate that had stick figures of me and Husband on it with our names and wedding date. Secondly, a sweet neighbor of my parents knitted a blanket. We didn’t know her well, but the fact that she took the time and effort to knit us a blanket means a lot. Thirdly, one of my mother-in-law’s best friends sent us Tiffany candlesticks. Every girl knows that blue box is special… =)

5. What is the one bill you most hate to pay?
Ha! I don’t pay bills in our household! Woo hoo!!!

6. Is the glass half full or half empty?
Ninety percent of the time, it’s half full. And, when it’s half empty, I stop thinking about the glass at all.

7. What is your favorite word? Okay okay. Calm down. How about one of your favorite words?
Oh, gosh, I love words. Some words I love because of the way they are spelled or sound, others because of what they mean.

Spelling/sound – tenacious, quiche
Meaning – grace, joy
However, I dislike enthusiastic because I can’t spell it, and Word Check can’t figure out what I’m trying to spell. You have no idea how long it took to spell it correctly this time.

8. Now, this is where you insert one random thought of your own...maybe something that struck you as funny, something that recently had you scratching your head in confusion, something that annoyed you a teensy bit, something on your to do list, something you are looking forward to, whatever. As long as it is in keeping with the friendly tone we've all come to know and love on Wednesdays then we're good. Don't make me get out my wooden spoon.
I'm working on two research papers right now, and I keep forgetting I have other items to attend to as well...such as completing this week's research assignment...and making out a final for my students...They'd be happy if I just said, "No final! You all get 100s!" Right?

Hop on over to Joyce’s and have fun!