Sorry Laura

I tried really hard not to bruise myself before Laura's wedding. I knew when we were moving, I would probably bruise myself moving stuff. And I knew just as long as it was my legs, I'd be okay. Well, as hard as I tried, my arms are looking pretty beat up. I have some old bruises on my left arm that are healing but I noticed a particularly nasty one forming on my right arm (on the left in this picture) tonight. Not quite sure how it got there but it is blue and knotted up. There is not much hope that it will vanish before Saturday. So, I'm sorry Laura. I will bring makeup to conceal my bruises so no one thinks that I am abused or do drugs.

Today Andrew worked and Tillie and I went back to the apartment to continue on in the process of moving out. We should be done tomorrow. I cannot even express to you how badly I wish this was already done. I am so over it.

We rented that movie, Ghosts of Girlfriends past today. It wasn't bad. Pretty cute. Worth the dollar we spent renting it anyway. I don't know that I would have paid to see it in the theater. But then again, there are very few movies that I feel are worthy of that.

Andrew and I threw around the idea of auditioning to be in movies this afternoon. Wouldn't it be fun just to audition for movies or even just extras or something. And then there is our old standby dream of voice acting. It wouldn't be something that we did for a career, just something fun on the weekends or something. We both need a hobby.

I can't think about anything but sleep.

Today was another crazy day.

Andrew had an exam, a practical, and a quiz. And he kicked all of their butts. He is doing really well in school this semester with his new major. He really enjoys it. And I'm very happy for him. I know he's happy to finally find an area of study that he really enjoys and is very comfortable with.

I went to the apartment and attempted to make some sense of the mess we had created over the past few days. We painted the computer room yesterday but I need to put another coat on over the boarder. Looking back, I wish I had never put that boarder on there. It is a beast to cover up.

Andrew joined me at the apartment when he got back from class and we loaded up the truck and took a ton of stuff to the storage unit. The apartment is looking really empty. There isn't much to do now.

I finally got my shoes back for Laura's wedding. They are the right color but a little big. It doesn't matter though. You won't be able to tell under that dress. And it is going to look really good. The wedding is coming up so soon! 4 more days! Hang in there Laura, you'll make it.

We finally got the router working. Well, it works on and off and it's really slow. I can't upload any of my pictures because it times out. I'll try to get them uploaded as soon as I can.

Huge update

Here is an update of the past few days. Sorry for the delay.

Sunday

Today we spent the entire day being busy. Andrew worked the ENTIRE day. All day. Seriously.
I went to the apartment with my mom and Tillie. We got the entire thing painted. And everything is packed. The only thing left to do over there is to clean and get the last few boxes out.

We came home, had lunch, worked on prepping the floors for the new hardwood, and played video games. And we took advantage of Sonic Happy Hour. When Andrew came home, we went out for Chinese.

And when we came home from dinner, the wireless internet was mysteriously working. Go figure.

Andrew has an Nutrition exam tomorrow. Wish him luck.

Saturday



We spent the entirety of the day painting the apartment, cleaning, and packing the last little bit of things left behind. I almost wish we could just throw it all out and start over. I hate packing on a large scale.

Andrew and I made dinner. We made homemade pizza (even the crust was from scratch). It is our very favorite way to enjoy pizza. We love pizza. I cannot believe how much we love pizza. If I were on a desert island and had to pick one thing to eat for the rest of my life, it would be pizza.

Still no news to report about the whole router situation. Still not working. Boo. I have to update while I am over here at the apartment painting.


Friday



Tyler has really enjoyed having us around lately. He has really enjoyed having Andrew around to play with. After a game of some super secret army agent type, I went upstairs to find this note waiting for me on my door.

We picked up a new router today after we returned the old one. The guy at Best Buy said it was the one he uses and that he's never had a problem with it. We took it home and installed it and everything seemed to work fine. We set it up, went to dinner, and when we came home, it didn't work anymore. Andrew has to mess with this one now. And he is incredibly frustrated about it.

We stayed busy setting things up and trying to figure out how we things to look.

I'll post pictures when it's all done.


Thursday



The entire family came over for dinner. I helped my mom make chicken and dumplings from scratch. I love her cooking. It is incredible. I messed it up a little but Andrew said he thought it tasted incredible which is reassuring for me. This picture doesn't do it justice -- it was in the middle of cooking and the dumplings are not done yet.

Andrew spent 2 hours on the phone with our wireless router's IT people. Basically they told us to go get a new router.

I might go crazy getting there.

We literally stayed busy the entire day.

Andrew had school and work. I helped move furniture. And we moved Andrew's beast of a TV. And if you've ever lived in an apartment with Andrew or helped him move, you know what a feat that is. I don't anticipating that TV being with us for much longer.

I finally had some free time after dinner & ANTM to unpack and set some things up. And the canvases I painted for the bathroom now have a new home above our bed. I am missing our accent pillows (still at the apartment) but it looks cute, wouldn't you agree?

We did some major work today: hauling, lifting, carrying, and pushing. Our backs are hurting. Our arms are sore. Our fingers are smarting. And I have so many buises, I look like an overripe banana. And its not over yet. Tomorrow we tackle cleaning, painting, and damage control back at the old apartment.

So, sorry if it seems like we have fallen off the planet lately. We are still here. Our posts might be short (still haven't figured out the whole wireless router thing yet) but we are always available by phone. That is unless of course we don't want to answer.

Life at 3104

We're at the rents'. Our bed moved this morning so we moved with it. So I guess the name of the blog could technically change to "Life at 3104". Whatever.

We got a wireless router today so we can have internet access upstairs but we are having connectivity issues so we might be MIA the next few days. Bear with us as we get this all worked out.

We are tired, sore, bruised, and grumpy. Today was a long day. We are going to call it a night early.

Oh and Rim, sorry about yesterday's picture. I realize you were not in it... technically. But you were there in spirit. And your Order of the 4 bracelet is coming. As soon as I get your address. Email immediately, please.

Goodnight.

Order of the 4 ever.

Got up early this morning and had breakfast with Kat and Krit before she left for Delaware. Sad to see her go but I'm very glad her plane was delayed and that we had the chance to see each other this morning. Now if only we can figure out a way to delay her return flight over Thanksgiving break so she will have to stay indefinitely.

My mom took my nephew to the doctor today because he had been feeling bad for the past couple of days. He has swine flu. Eww. Andrew and I have been hanging around with him this weekend too. Andrew woke up this morning not feeling so hot. And my stomach has been feeling strange all day. Great. Just great. We better not be getting the dreaded pig flu.

I had some library books delivered to the Sanders library today. My current read is "Mr. Darcy's Daughters" -- a continuation of the story of Pride and Prejudice.

Oh and some of the pictures from Laura's bacheloretter are up on Facebook now. Have a look.

The morning after

We woke up this morning later than we anticipated but in not too bad of shape after last night's bash. Everyone had a fantastic time. Look for photos on Facebook soon.

We checked out of the hotel and Laura and I went to the mall to shop for outfits for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. Then we had lunch @ Purple Cow -- cheeseburgers and triple chocolate malts are the perfect combination for bouncing back after a long night of partying. That and a nice long afternoon nap.

Kristin's flight was delayed and she ended up staying until tomorrow afternoon. This is very good news considering I wasn't going to get to see her to say goodbye. We are having breakfast tomorrow.

Andrew had a hard day at work today. He helped with the Sunday brunch and did office work. I'm so proud of how hard he has been working.

Georgia beat Arkansas last night. Got to love them dawgs.

It's finally party time.

Got my hair done this morning. My roots were looking disgusting so Kat did me up real nice. And since tonight is Laura's bachelorette party, she went ahead and fixed my hair for it. Its cute and ready to go. Thanks so much Kat!

Andrew just got off and is headed home. Hopefully we'll have time to run by Sonic for some Happy Hour drinks. Today is going to be hectic -- I am going to need the caffeine.

Laura is getting here around 3. We're going to check into the hotel and then go shopping before the party. Should be a good time.

We are a little early on the whole Halloween thing.

Andrew didn't have to work today so we woke up early and hit up Shipley's for some donuts with Chad before he left for Jonesboro.

Picked up some last minute stuff for Laura's bachelorette.

Then had lunch with Andrew and mom and hung out with Tyler.

Then Andrew and I moved some stuff into the rents'.

We met Kat, Gary, and Kristin for dinner @ American Pie Pizza. It was delicious as always. Then we went next door to Party City and checked out the Halloween costumes. They had some pretty entertaining masks. And we took our time trying them on. I know you wanted me to delete this picture Krit, but I couldn't. It's too hilarious.

Andrew and Shuck are hanging out now, like always on Friday nights. And as always, they are very entertaining.

Chad comes to visit!

Today I took Tillie with me to my parents' house. I think she may be stressed out from all the boxes and things that are disappearing from our apartment. I think maybe she was abandoned when she was younger by a family that was moving or something. She definitely does not like the boxes. She has become even more clingy than normal and incredibly destructive. Keeping her with me not only calms her nerves and reassures her, it keeps her from destroying more stuff right before we move.

Andrew and I cleaned and then Chad Beckwith came to visit. We ate @ Texas Roadhouse and then hung out. And enjoyed Bloody Marys.

We got to watch the season premiere of The Office tonight. It was good. I'm glad it's back. Oh Office, how I have missed thee.

we are naturally boring people

The highlights of my Wednesday:
did some packing and moving
Marketfresh sandwiches with mom
Sonic happy hour
a delicious meal prepared by Andrew
getting to hang out with Kat & Krit
listening to Krit jam out on the piano
spending quality time with Andrew & Tillie
discovered just how many books are inspired by Pride & Prejudice (I am going to read them all)
Toddlers & Tiaras

Andrew's Wednesday in a nutshell:
aced Advanced First Aid practical (yay!)
finished a mountain of paperwork at work
discovered new and healthy dinner choices
saw Meghan and loved her
fell in love with Lord of the Rings all over again


I'm a pretty picky eater. I don't eat much meat, not because I think it's wrong or anything, but because I just don't really like the way it tastes. The only meat I really eat is chicken. Until today. I saw this video today and it literally made me sick. I will no longer be eating much chicken and very picky about the eggs that I eat. Prepare yourself if you decide to watch it. It will make you very sad. Now we are actively seeking healthy ways to add things like tofu and soybeans into our diet.

Rainy days make my soul grey

Now don't get me wrong. I enjoy rain on occasion. It waters the plants and keeps things from getting too hot. But everything in moderation. I do not enjoy when it rains for days. It keeps me inside with the gloom. The sun does not wake me up to say good morning. I cannot open the windows to let in the air that smells distinctly of fall. I cannot get much of anything done. And Tillie won't even attempt to go to the bathroom in the rain. It just throws everything off. And it makes me sad.

Due to the rain, I have spent countless hours on the computer today. I feel as if I almost have not existed except in cyberspace. I spent a few hours working on details for Laura's bachelorette. I have made a pretty incredible playlist for the weekend, if I do say so myself. And I have caught up on some pretty interesting websites that keep me entertained on days like this.

I braved the rain for a few hours this evening and went for coffee with Kristin and Kat. Well, I had tea, but you get the idea. We wandered around Barnes and Noble and as always, I found about 500 books that I wanted. I wish I had a job where I could just sit around and read books all day long and get paid for it.

Here are the websites and things around the Internet that I am digging on this rainy Tuesday:

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies -- not sure if I've ever talked about this before but it really is hilarious.

thisiswhyyourefat.com -- a hilarious website dedicated to the monstrosities of the food world -- guaranteed to make you never want to eat again.

peopleofwalmart.com -- Kat turned me on to this site dedicated to the absurdities you often observe at your local Wal Mart.

failblog.org -- always a good laugh when you've got time to burn

fmylife.com -- we stumbled upon this book today at Barnes and Noble and it reminded me just how much this website makes me laugh. Its proof that no matter how bad your day sucked, it could always be worse.

Wii Fit Parody -- thank you Kristin for telling me about this video. as ridiculous as it is, I still love using the Wii Fit.

Kristin's music video -- Krit and her brother Brent created a pretty awesome music video featuring Brent's mad videography skills and Kristin's beautiful face and voice. And enjoy the great views of Little Rock and the Natural State.

Ghost like Swayze

Today was just one of those days. A terrible Monday for sure.

Mom went with me down to the unemployment office to get some stuff straightened out. We waited forever. Again. It was really crappy. I hate that place. I never want to go back there.

Also been thinking about that job @ Stephens a lot lately. I was thisclose to getting it but lost to this other girl just because she already had the licenses needed. I was a better fit. Everyone wanted me. But they went with that girl. I know all this. And I know how awesome they thought I was. And I still didn't get it. Knowing all of that still doesn't make it any easier. In fact, I think it might make it harder because I know how close I was and how I lost to something that I had no control over. Boo.

And Patrick Swayze died today. Very sad. There is a really good article about his life on MSN.

Today was rainy and grey. That didn't make things easier.

I'm just tired. And my head hurts. I feel very discouraged and disappointed in myself. If my resume looks really great and I do really well on interviews and everyone likes me, then how come I don't have a job yet? How does that work?

On a happier note, I went this afternoon to go get some stuff for Laura's bachelorette this weekend. Get excited, Laura. It's gonna be awesome.

Oh and Andrew has been training Tillie to do some tricks. It's good to see him so dedicated to it. Soon she'll be tap dancing down the hall.

Shut it down!

Got some more packing done today. Our stack of boxes is getting bigger.

Schuck came over again today and the boys played more of that video game.

Tillie chewed her harness in two and has spent the day in trouble. She is learning (slowly) to lie down though, so that's something positive.

Bringing home some of the chocolate cupcakes I made yesterday proved to be a bad decision. The Wii Fit is not happy with me.

I am wishing for 30 Rock on DVD. I love Liz Lemon.

Home Improvements

Today Andrew didn't have to go in to work so we got to spend the entire day together. It was nice.

We took Tillie to Petsmart, got Sonic drinks, and had lunch.

Then we went by the rents' house to help with some home improvements. My parents are getting hardwood floors installed in a few weeks but before they could do that, they needed to rip out all their nasty carpet. So Andrew helped my dad do that and removed the sub floor. My mom and I did some work upstairs: moving furniture, preparing for our move-in, and talking about things that needed to be done.

Then we watched some TV with Tyler and had dinner. I made chocolate cupcakes. They were delicious.

And we discovered a new favorite show: Hoarders. Real. Disgusting. Fun.

Now we are in for the rest of the night. We're going to take some showers and just veg out.

Hope your Saturday night is as fun as ours.

9/11

This isn't my picture, it was the find of the day on foundmagazine.com. But it's better than anything that I have and captures a lot of what I've been thinking about today. Can you believe it's already been 8 years since 9/11? I still remember exactly where I was when I heard about the first plane and actually saw the second -- Ms. Higgin's (now Ms. Sisson) Algebra II class my Junior year of high school.

We didn't do much today. I went grocery shopping with my mom. Andrew went in to work early this morning to get a head start on paperwork. He got off early and I made him some lunch. We did some cleaning and a little playing of video games. Schuck came over and we went out for pizza. We hit up Blockbuster on the way home and they were having a sale on all their previously viewed DVDs -- $3.99 each -- so we got a bunch of them. A lot actually. Cheap previously used DVDs are one of my favorite things. I can never buy a new DVD ever again.

The boys rented Silent Hill Homecoming and we are all sitting in the dark watching it. This is my favorite game to watch them play. Maybe the only game I really enjoy watching. It's scary.

Also, Kristin got her hair chopped off -- 10 inches for Locks of Love. Go check out Kat's blog.

And congrats Schuck on buying a house! Can't wait to see it.

Moving on up

Did some pretty major packing today, can you tell? I'd say 5 boxes is good for one afternoon.

I'm watching Must Love Dogs on TBS and it is terrible. One of the worst movies I've ever seen, no doubt. I do like Diane Lane though.

Has anyone seen Bon Jovi lately? He looks different. And not in a good way. Rough. Really rough. And somehow, his mouth looks bigger. I didn't think it could look any bigger. Impressive.

Order of the 3

Had lunch with Krit and Thurm. And while we were dining, we got a phone call from Rim all the way from Korea. We had a little speaker phone action which is as close to the Order of the 4 as we can get.

I also finally got over to David's and got my shoes ordered for Laura's wedding. I had to get an 8 because they didn't have my size. They are too big but I can make them work. It's getting so close!

Tonight we made dinner and caught up on old episodes of the Office and Toddlers and Tiaras (don't laugh, you know you watch it too). Then I went by Kat's and hung out with her and Krit some more. We had a good time.

Mom brought me a bunch of boxes and I actually got a few packed tonight. I figure I may as well go ahead and and get a head start on it now so I don't have to do it all at once. It's also a great way to kill a few hours.

Krickletooth

Kristin is rocking the Natural State once again. She got in this past weekend, but since we were in St. Louis, I didn't get to see her until this evening. We hit up the Larry's Pizza buffet, looked at old pictures, caught up, and watched some of season 5 of the Office on DVD. It is really great to have at least half of the Walker duo back. I missed her face.

I had an interview with Stephens Inc. this afternoon. I feel like it went really well. I felt comfortable and like I got along with everyone really well. The job sounds like it actually might be kind of cool. A lot of hard work but tons of awesome perks and lots of room to grow. I think it's a really great place to work also and the fact that these jobs don't come up very often says something about the company. I don't want to jinx anything by saying too much. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed. And I hope to hear something by next week.

Andrew is studying for a nutrition exam tomorrow -- the first of the semester. This is probably the first time I have seen him really sit down and study the material maybe ever. So, that's saying a lot.

Home again

I apologize for the late post but we literally just got home. It won't be much of a post either. We are tired, dirty, and grumpy. And we've both got big days tomorrow. We're not even going to attempt unpacking anything tonight. We are just going to bed.

Here are some highlights of our Labor Day though:

I spent the day @ Six Flags St. Louis with my parents and nephew (who also spent the long weekend exploring St. Louis). We had a lot of fun. The weather was nice and the lines were relatively short. Tyler had a blast and said he really enjoyed St. Louis. He was intrigued by the Arch and even more so once he found out you could go inside. When we move there (notice I said when, not if) we will have to bring him there.

Andrew spent the day hanging out with his brother. I'm glad he got a lot of quality time in with Ben -- it's always something he looks forward to but rarely gets to do. I wish we could make it more of a regular thing.

We didn't get to bring our new cabinet home because it wouldn't fit in my car. So for now, it resides in Ben & Heidi's front room. But when we come up for Thanksgiving, we are bringing Andrew's car and will pick it up. I will just have to dream about it until then.

Off to bed we go. Tillie has already got a head start. She is worn out from the weekend's activities.

I have an interview tomorrow. Wish me luck.

Our new cabinet

Today was Heidi's birthday. So, happy birthday Heidi! We went to lunch @ the Tin Can and picked up our new cabinet. Isn't it incredible? I am so excited to get it home and put stuff in it.

We also wandered around Cherokee Street and perused old antique stores. It's a really cool part of town.

After all that, my parents got to come and check out Ben & Heidi's new digs. And my dad found another house around the corner that he loved. He got that look in his eye that says we haven't heard the last about this house. He's got plans for it, I can tell.

For dinner, we had some pizzas delivered, watched Hot Fuzz, and messed around. It was fun. If you knew how much fun we had, you'd be jealous you weren't a part of it.

Friday & Saturday

Saturday:

We woke up to rain and our Six Flags plans were cancelled. So we spent the day with Andrew's family. We had lunch @ Crepes in the City. Then we hit up the Soulard Farmer's Market -- really huge and really cool. Nice people watching too.

Then we went to this really great old architectural salvage store that Andrew's brother turned us on to. And we found the coolest cabinet. We haggled the price down to a decent amount and will probably return tomorrow to pick it up. It's pretty large however, so we still haven't figured how to get it back to Arkansas yet. Anyway, this store was located in the old Lemp Brewery building and we got to go up in a part of it and take a look around. It was incredibly cool. I wish I could have explored the rest. Apparently there are some underground tunnels that used to house a theater, swimming pool, and bowling alley.

It seems like there are lots of secrets hidden in this city. Maybe we'll get to explore more tomorrow.




Friday:

We left LR @ 10a and drove forever. We discovered that Tillie doesn't do so well in the car over long distances. She just couldn't seem to calm down enough and relax. She was very concerned about what was happening. She did lay down for a little while but never really rested. We stopped a few places -- gas in Blytheville, lunch in Cape Girardeau, etc. We made it to St. Louis around 5p, right on schedule. We chatted, had a very delicious dinner, and ate gelato and walked around Washington Ave. Then we shared some of our Ireland pictures and went to bed.

Meet me in St. Louis

Our bags are packed. We are ready. More than ready. We have been looking forward to this trip to St. Louis (our future hometown) for a long time now.

I was pretty productive today. I got all Laura's bachelorette/lingerie shower invites made and mailed out. They are cute. It's going to be a fun party.

I also took Tillie to the vet today. We have a friend that adopted a dog (like we did with Tillie) and even though they said she was heart worm free, it turns out she had massive amounts of heart worms and it killed her. So I wanted to have Tillie checked out. Plus, this past weekend, she was kind of sick and it concerned me. They did a blood test and it turns out she doesn't have heart worms (thank God) but she tested slightly positive for something called Ehrlichia. They went ahead and put her on an antibiotic as a precaution. So, for the next 10 days, she has to take a pill twice a day. But she's being a good sport about it.

We're going to bed early tonight -- gotta be rested for that long trip up tomorrow. Seven hours in the car with Tillie -- should be a fun time.

Today we are loving:
Market fresh sandwiches from Arby's
Tequila sunrise nail polish
People who grow up to be vets
Wii Fit

Wii Fit!

Today is the best day ever. Serious. We got a Wii Fit today. It is amazing and super fun. I did yoga, strength training, aerobic exercises, and balance exercises. Fun. It was FUN. If you have never played with one, you should. And if you don't own one, go buy one now.

Got the invites for Laura's bachelorette party done and ready to mail tomorrow. It's going to be a pretty fun time if I do say so myself.

Also, Tillie got a bath, claws clipped, and ears cleaned in preparation for her trip to the vet tomorrow and our upcoming St. Louis trip.

Ahh Video Games

We've had about 600 Wii points on our Wii for a few months now and we have just been waiting for the right thing to spend those points on. Finally they put Super Mario Bros. 3 on there and we downloaded it immediately. This is a great game, great mechanics, cool flying tail action. Very nostalgic.

Tillie's health has improved but she looks thinner to us.
For dinner we had Subway. We are still hoping to win that Hybrid in the Subway Scrabble game.

I'm not sure how it has been in the rest of the world but the weather here has been off the charts. Have you ever wanted to strip your clothes off and run free across the beautiful grassy plains just because it felt so nice outside? Well I have and it almost made for an interesting trip to the dumpster the other day. It has been wonderful here. The high around 88 degrees and the low is around 58 at night. Perfect.

I am thinking about swimming with the LR YMCA in their competitive league. It has been so long since I have swam like that but I do love to compete. (and win!) I'm not sure if I'll actually do it but it is fun to think about.

Today I worked Meghan cleaned and Tillie played. That kid can't stop playing.