I’m On a Boat

 Just a disclaimer:  This was my first cruise, so for all you seasoned cruisers out there please pardon my gushing about things that quite ordinary in the cruising world!

Since it is like an 8 hour drive to Port Canaveral, we headed down there on Friday.  For everyone that is thinking about taking a cruise that leaves from Port Canaveral, stay that the Four Points Sheraton.  Its right by Ron Jons, has a Starbucks in the lobby, and you can park your car there for the week for only $35!  Saturday (after our Starbucks) we made our way to the ship.

That ship was HUGE!! We were on the Carnival Dream which I’m told is the largest in their fleet.  It holds around 5,000 people—we were on a boat with a small town!!  The ship’s décor was a bit too Vegas for my taste but it certainly was sparkly!  While waiting for our luggage to be delivered we made our way to the lido deck and the restaurant up there.  After a delicious meal we explored the ship a bit and went to our room.  It was a small space but designed quite efficiently!  We also had a lovely little cove balcony which was a great place to read!

Let me just go ahead and make the blanket statement that the food ROCKED!  I was beyond stuffed at all times just because I wanted to try everything!  I had escargot, lobster, seafood pasta, filet mingon, lobster bisque (a new favorite food), and sushi just to name a few.  This is also the first time in my life where I have had a serious dessert every night.  They also had frozen yogurt 24 hours a day.  I believe heaven will be a little bit like a cruise… only you won’t gain weight.  Our waiter, Juan from Honduras, was fantastic!  If we didn’t clean our plate he was always very concerned that we didn’t like it and would try to get us to order something else!  No Juan.. we were just stuffed.

That first day at sea, I was selected to mix a cocktail that I had submitted a recipe for on the lido deck in front of everyone.   It was a little nerve racking but so much fun!  I made Ocean Water which tastes just like Ocean Water from Sonic!  For those of you that I know want to try it here is the recipe from yours truly.

Ocean Water
Coconut Rum (a lot or a little depending on how strong you want it)
Triple Sec
Pineapple Juice
Sprite
Blue Curacco (just until it’s the right color blue)

We spent the rest of the day in the Serenity area (the adult only area) reading on their big comfy chairs.

Perfection.

My Mother is Always Right.. Most of the Time

That next weekend was Jamie’s wedding, but before the wedding I had to go to a planning session for YTC (Youth Training Conference for those non-Y Clubbers out there).  I’m on College Alumni Staff for Y-Club and was psyched that I was able to help plan.  The conference is going to be AMAZING!

My friend Sandy was also going se we decided to ride together despite my mom’s warnings that I might be pushed for time.  The planning session was is Macon and I had timed it out so that when the planning session was over at 11 I could make it home by 1 to drop Sandy off and then make it to Jamie’s wedding by 4 (It started at 5).  Well the traffic gods were not shining on us that day.  First issue was that we left Macon about 30 minutes later than expected.  Then while we were no more than 20 min down the road we hit a parking lot traffic.  By the time traffic finally cleared up I knew that my mother was right…there was no way I was going to be able to go home, drop Sandy, and make it to Chota Falls even by 5.  Thank goodness my wonderful mother was there to save the day!  She met us in Atlanta, delivered my dress for the wedding, and took Sandy home—all without an “I told you so”.  My mother is an angel.

I changed in the bathroom at Target at Atlantic Station and did my hair in the bathroom at a Zaxby’s somewhere in Habersham County.  I made it to Jamie’s wedding with time to kill.  Chota Falls is BEAUTIFUL as was Jamie.  I don’t throw this around lightly but in my opinion, it was about as close to a perfect wedding as you can get!  Maybe it’s just because I love the couple so much!  The reception was ridiculous!  Great food, beautiful cake (though I’m still bitter about the fact that I was too busy dancing and forgot didn’t get any!) and really fun DJ. They had all these props for the photo booth (that bless her heart didn’t show up), so instead we just all wore them while we were dancing.  Crazy good time!

Love you Jamie and Jeff!  I hope Baltimore is great!

The next day was Susie’s shower.  I made it home in time to change and make it to that one! =) Susie and I cheered together forever!  She and her fiancé, Corey, are pretty much the sweetest couple ever!  Susie has picked my favorite color scheme for the wedding (yellow and blue) which she says isn’t because Corey went to Tech, but I’m not so sure.  Just kidding.. those are great colors!  She got a ton of great gifts.  Her china is beautiful yellow fiesta ware with a blue and white toile patterned salad plate on top.  I may or may not be stealing that idea in 10 years when I get married.  I made them a plaque with their last name (Coats) on it that I of course forgot to take a picture of!  It was a great shower except that I forgot to didn’t get cake there either.

All in all it was a great, love filled weekend!  I love wedding season!  Next time, the cruise...

Moving Out and Redecorating

I’m bad at this..  I’ll get y’all caught up at some point.   Promise.

After we survived the New Orleans trip (our concerns were not dying of alcohol poisoning or sketchies.. they were flash floods and the apocalypse), I came back to finish out post planning.  The lovely team that I work with hosted a goodbye breakfast for me and the other guy on our team that is retiring.  They are all truly special people that I am going to miss dearly.  I couldn’t have asked for a better group of people to work with!

At the end of the week Mama and Daddy came to move me out of my classroom and the apartment.  Usually I get to a point when I’m designing or decorating when I say to myself was it really that bad before?  I couldn’t I have just left it?  It took me about 12 hours to put my classroom together and about the same amount of time to pack it all up.  However, looking at the before and after really made it worth it for me.  I am so glad that I was able to personalize the space for the short period of time that I was there.  It felt like home.  I was comfy, the kids were comfy, and they learned better because of that—or at least that’s what I’m telling myself. 

It was the same for my apartment.  I’m kicking myself for not getting many before and after shots, but when you’re in the zone its hard to remember to stop and take pictures.  New goal.. take more pictures of my work.  I don’t think I’ve explained the decorating of my apartment so let me take this opportunity to do so.  When Megan and I lived in the house, Meg kinda gave me free reign for the design.  I chose a beachy nautical look that really looked great with the hardwoods and white trim, but it was a bit more grown up looking.  When we decided to move into the apartment, Megan requested that we incorporate some brighter colors that would make the place a little more lively.  I was happy to oblige because while I loved our ‘beach house’ it was a little.. blah.

Our apartment came furnished with some lovely pleather couches, metal and glass tables, scuffed desks, and white, WHITE walls.  We decided when we did the walk through that we definitely wanted to used my furniture instead of theirs, so my sweet, sweet parents hauled all the furniture from Betsy to the Exchange and hauled the Exchange’s furniture back to our house.  That in itself made our place more unique.  In the common area (we will call it the living/dining/kitchen/laundry area) we painted two walls teal and one wall yellow.  I got a new cover for the futon and made a bunch of new pillows to incorporate our new, brighter, color scheme.  In the end I would say that our apt still looked beachy, but a brighter beach house for sure. 

My room was kind of an experiment.  My color schemes have gone from green and orange to incorporating yellow to incorporating navy and trying to fade out the green, to yellow and grey.  Only one problem… my bedspread that cost bank is green and orange.  Don’t get me wrong.. I love my bedspread but its kind of limiting.  I’ve gotten to the point where I do what I want with the rest of the room and then throw in a few little green and orange accessories in other places to tie it in.. Oh well, next time I’ll go for this one a cheaper, neutral one.  I painted two walls yellow.  On one of these walls I stenciled a damask pattern in grey.  L. O. V. E.  Well worth the time it took!  There was a little nook for my desk so we painted that wall grey and my dad made a whitewashed shelving unit to go above my desk.  It was perfect! 

However, all good things must come to an end.  That weekend we painted over all our walls and moved out all my furniture and moved the Exchange’s furniture back in.  My apartment now looks like every other apt in the complex.  It’s a little sad, but it makes all the hard work that went into making it a home worth it.  THAT is why I decorate! 

Bringing it all home, however, was a challenge in itself.  We had to merge two households worth of furniture into one.  It seemed like a perfect time to redo my bedroom (which hadn’t really been changed since middle school—man I wish I had before pictures!) so that we could incorporate some of my furniture from the apartment.  Here are the after pictures. 

And because I"m proud of this too, my bathroom (sorry I didn't close the toilet. Gross..)

My Ikea chandys for $30 each!

and just to make you smile...

Dooley loves 'her' new room!

I haven’t had time to do any stenciling yet but I would love to do some gray stenciling on one of the khaki walls.  My desk chair is the chair that I got at TJ Maxx for $50.  Daddy fixed the leg and it’s good as new (and super comfortable I might add!)

That is all for my room redo.. Next time I’ll talk about YTC Planning, Jamie’s wedding, and why you should always listen to your mother.  

NOLA 2011

 This last month has certainly been full of adventures--adventures that I need to update you, my nonexistent readers, on!  I expect that it is going to take a few posts to get all caught up, so make sure to check back regularly!

As expected my last week of school was emotional, but we all survived it.  I think I handled it better because I had Jamie’s bachelorette party to look forward to!  (Big ol’ sorry to everyone at school who thought I was going to the actual wedding…)  It was bachelorette weekend in New Orleans!!

Thursday night I headed to Norcross.  Jamie and I did some shopping and then taste tested some of the options for the signature cocktails for the wedding.  I still say that the Moscow Mule would have been a hit!  The next morning we were ready to GO!  We loaded up the car, picked up Laura Smith, and then…got rear ended by a transfer truck.  Everyone was okay but it definitely caused us to get a later start than expected.  After we got all that cleared up, we made it to Jill’s and got on the road. 

8 hours later…

We arrived in New Orleans, changed quickly, and made our dinner reservations at Jaques-Imo’s.  Yummy jambalaya and mashed sweet potatoe!!  Jill (MoH of the year!) also gave us presents!  She ordered t-shirts for the weekend and got us super cute buttons!  James also got a lovely veil to wear for the weekend (which I maintain got her more beads than if she had actually shown well.. you know what..)

After dinner we headed to Bourbon.  That first night we just walked through because we were going to a bar past Bourbon called DBA where a local swing band was playing.  The last (and first) time I went to New Orleans was on a mission trip freshmen year of high school.. very different kind of trip.  Bourbon St was ridiculous…like Amsterdam, but I wasn’t expecting it! 

The next day we went to ‘the fly,’ which is a grassy park kind of area by the Mississippi River, to lay out.  We had stopped at a gas station to get po boys and had ourselves a little picnic out there.  However, it was super hot, so we didn’t last too long!  We went back to the house to get cleaned up and ready for dinner.  That night we went to dinner at Domenica (the John Besh restaurant at the Roosevelt Hotel).  Very fancy and posh, but relaxed at the same time.  I got squid ink pasta with crab meat and a lemon butter sauce.  Out of this world!! 

After dinner we headed to Pat O’Breins Piano Bar.  What a good time!!!  Best part of the whole trip.  We requested the Georgia fight song (that got more than a few boos from the LSU fans in the room), Family Traditions, and Wagon Wheel.

In line for Pat O's.. Jamie, Laura, and Jill copying the picture behind them.

After Pat O’s we went to a few more places to dance and then we somehow ended up at a bar that had a bull.  Oh my.  That was when I knew that the night needed to start wrapping itself up. 

Jamie on the bull!

Ashley's turn on the bull.

While everyone slept it off the next morning, I met up with Britt to have some coffee and catch up.  For those of y’all that don’t know, Britt was my first boyfriend way back in high school.  We met through Y-Club and even though we lived 3 hours apart we dated for about a year or so.  It was a great first relationship, but we lost touch so it was great to get to catch up!  After that everyone was STILL asleep so I went to Café du Monde and got beignets for the sleepy heads!  What a great end to a great trip!

Busy, Busy

What a busy week its been!  The problem with blogging is that half the time I don't feel like I have anything going on that is worth blogging about, but then when I do have stuff going on, I don't have time to blog about it!  This past week was the latter.  

5.9  

I knew that it was going to be a long day in MadCo so I woke up early and went to the BodyPump class at BodyPlex.  Ow!  So. Much. Pain.  After school, we had the first day of cheerleading try-outs.  Even though I'm not coming back next year, part of my cheer coach duties include holding try-outs.  I taught them some Bremen cheers substituting 'devils' and 'blue' for 'Mustangs' and 'red'.  After practice I stuck around for 8th grade honors night.  What a special 8th grade class we have this year!?  I love those kids!  

5.10  

Another day of cheer practice.  That night my FCCLA kids were recognized at the school board meeting. After that I want over to the HS for their FCCLA award banquet and I got to see my favorites that I took to Nationals last year!  Love them!  It was a late night but worth it!

5.11  

I took a mental health half day off of work (honestly, not having to deal with those 7th graders would be good for anyone's mental health!) and went kayaking with Megan, Jonathan and his roommates, and some people Meg met in class.  As always, kayaking the Broad was a good time.  It took us FOREVER to get down though--there were some people in our group acting a fool! 

5.12  

Megan came to school with me!  She taught my 6th graders how to do sign language and talked to my 8th graders about how to get into a good college and how to succeed in college.  Apparently Meg's and expert.. lol.. After school were the actual cheer try-outs.  I'm so happy that so many of my FCCLA babies tried out and made the squad!  

5.13 

UGA graduation.  Ashley, Kelly, Chelsea, and Jill all graduated (and Jamie graduated from nursing school!)  I wasn't emotional at my own graduation probably because I knew that not much was changing.. I was still living with Meg, still in Athens with all my friends.  Sure I was starting a new job, and that was a transition, but I still had all my friends around!  This graduation was emotional.  We (including me) are all going our separate ways.  Chelsea is getting married, Ashley is moving back to Canton, Jill is going back to Norcross, Jamie is getting married and moving to Maryland, Kelly is getting married and moving to Florida, Katelyn has another semester left in Athens, and I'm moving to Germany!  Its the end of all of our college experiences.  These girls are truly some of the best friends I've ever had, and I'm really going to miss getting to see them whenever!  BUT, as Mama put it, its not like we are never going to see each other--it will just mean more when we do.  It does help a little knowing that we will be reunited for lots of weddings this summer--lets be real.. next weekend! 

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I'm ready for next week to be pretty emotional as well.  Lots of lasts.  Throughout all of this though, I haven't really had second thoughts about Germany which tells me that I know its right.  Its what I'm supposed to be doing at this point in my life.  I know that I will miss everyone (friends, family, students) terribly, but I have to live my life according to His plan.  I remind myself that this (just like my MadCo job) is a God thing.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 

Jeremiah 29.11

Glucklich Mutter's Tag

...which (with known typos because I can't figure out how to make an umlaut on my keyboard) means Happy Mother's Day!!  I promise I will write more when my life is more exciting.. This blog is supposed to be about my personal adventures and well.. there haven't been many recently.. =) There has been LOTS going on in the world that I should probs write about so that when I'm old and randomly find this blog again I can remember when..

4.27  Tuscaloosa, other parts of Alabama, and north Georgia were destroyed by a tornado...

This is just one of the heartbreaking images I've seen.  It used to be the Krispy Kreme.  What a force of nature a tornado is?!  Its wind, just wind, that can turn someone's life upside down.  My prayers have definitely been with everyone that was impacted by the storm. I am extremely lucky that it bypassed Bremen and Athens!  My roommates and I tried to come up with a game plan if we needed to go somewhere.  We live on the 2nd floor (top floor) of our apt. building.  Pretty much every room has and exterior wall.  We decided that my closet would be our best, but thank goodness we didn't have to resort to that.  It would have been me (human), Dooley (dog), Jenna (human), Emmett (dog), Megan (human), Jonathan (human), and Roo (cat) in my tiny, tiny closet.  I don't think that would have worked out very well.  Athens did have a tornado warning.  Megan woke me up and let me know.  What I meant to say was to let me know if we needed to get in my closet, but what I said (in my half asleep stupor) was "Let me know when it gets here!".  I guess I would have heard the train.. 

4.28  The next day was my birthday.  We celebrated my 21st +2 birthday with a nice low key dinner at the Royal Peasant, an English Pub at Five Points in Athens ( you know, to prepare ourselves for the next day's festivities) and dessert at Yoforia!  

4.29  William and Kate got married!

We celebrated by waking up at 5am to watch it.  I made blueberry and lime scones and Megan and I watched it until I absolutely HAD to go to work.  Once at work I pulled it up on Media Cast and my 1st period watched it!  (psh... Its in our standards)  

Her dress was breathtaking.  Simple enough to suit her, fabulous lace embellishments and SO classic.

  Everything looked perfect!  Those trees in the Abbey were amazing!  Genius!  

And that cake.  Oh. my. gosh.

4.30  I went to Ms Gray, (or rather) Mrs. Ferguson's, wedding reception up in Dahlonega.  So pretty!  The venue was in downtown Dahlonega.  It had beautiful whitewashed walls, natural wood floors and went perfectly with her beachy theme.  She and her husband had gotten married a few weeks before in Aruba, so they were having their reception so that everyone could celebrate their marriage with them!  The food was fabulous!  A wonderful spinach salad with tomatoes and cranberries, rolls, green beans, chicken, cheesy tortellini, and (my fave) shrimp and grits!  The cakes were tasty as well!  The wedding cake was yellow cake with each layer having a different fruit filling and a butter cream frosting.  The groom's cake (while extremely ugly because of the giant Tennessee T on it =P  ) was Mrs. Nave's recipe for blueberry cake with cream cheese icing.  Yum!  

5.1  Megan woke me up at 11:30pm to tell me that Obama was about to make a speech.. Something big had happened.  So I get up..  and you know what..

They got Osama.

For all those people who have written that they will not rejoice in someone losing their life, I have a lot of respect for you, but I'm sorry... my first reaction was joy.  That man has taken thousands, and thousands of lives.  He wanted you and me dead because we are Christians, Americans, whatever.. I think that the world is a better place without him.

5.4  I got on the scale.  I hadn't weighed in about a month, I'm gonna be honest.. I wasn't too happy.  Ironically enough, the Groupon that day was for unlimited access to Bodyplex gym and their classes for a month for only $19.  It was a sign.. I got it.

5.5  Cinco de Mayo!!  and my 1st day at Bodyplex.  I ran a mile, went to the Ab Attack class and then went to Zumba!  Then I came home and made fish tacos for my lovely roommates who were super stressed out about finals.  

5.6  I went to the cycle class at Bodyplex.  This was my first cycle class and I think I could get used to it!  My butt is still really sore from the seat but other than that I loved it!

And that brings us up to the weekend!  I went to Bremen for Mothers Day.  Saturday I went shopping in Carrollton with Mama and Memommy.  We ate at 302 South Street which I would give two thumbs DOWN if you are trying to eat healthy (I'm sure its super tasty if you don't care!  There is bacon on everything!)  After that we went to TJ Maxx.  Now, I've never been a Maxxinista, but this trip sold me!  Most that know me know that I have a few weaknesses.  Damask and the colors grey and yellow would be two of those weaknesses.. I found a beautiful chair that was upholstered in an amazing textured yellow and grey damask pattern fabric.  MUST HAVE.  It was originally $225.  The TJ Maxx price was $130.  The chair had a broken leg (which I, or my dad, could easily fix) so it was marked down further to $65.  After a little negotiation, I got it for $50!!!  Pictures to come once its fixed and in its place!

And that brings us pretty much up-to-date. 

  

An Extreme Emotional Roller Coaster...

...is exactly what this last month has been.  We have gone from the lowest of lows to extreme highs.

I haven't written because I knew that the next time I wrote it was going to have to be about Tyler.  I didn't (and still don't) have the words to talk about the absolute tragedy that everyone at Madison County has had to cope with.  On April 8th we lost one of the most kind, funny, cool kid I've had the pleasure of teaching and knowing.  Tyler was a great athlete, student, and club member.  He didn't care that it might not be cool for a boy to be an awesome sewer--he could whip up a pillowcase dress in no time (with perfect stitches I might add)..  He also didn't care that it might not be cool for a boy to be active in FCCLA--he made it cool.  He was all about some UGA so I used to give him a hard time asking him what frat he was going to be in.  Tyler Fortson Moon WAS a TFM.  I'll miss you kid!

But life has to go on.  We all had to find a 'new normal'.  That next weekend we had State Leadership Meeting and State STAR Event Competition.  The kids were fabulous!  3 of our 4 groups advanced to Nationals!!!

All my girls with the Falcons mascot

Life Event Planning girls with their visuals

Focus on Children girls in their costumes

All my girls and me before the Gala
(why yes, I did teach them the sorority squat)

My kids at Gnat's Landing on Friday night

Now time to figure out how we are going to raise the additional $4,800 we need to take EIGHT kids to Nationals!  Anaheim here we come!!