My Valentine!

AJ, my prince charming, was the most wonderful Valentine a girl could ask for this year!

Usually on Valentines Day AJ and I get dressed up and go out somewhere good to eat and maybe see a movie.  He always plans wonderful evenings for us no matter what the occasion, so I decided this year I wanted to do something for him! So I decided to take my cooking skills for a test drive and cook a Valentines Dinner for him!  I have never cooked for him before in the 3 years we have been together so I was pretty excited about my idea.

  So I set out with the idea to make filet mignon, mashed potatoes, green beans, and a homemade chocolate cake!  My journey in the kitchen started with the chocolate cake.  It was pretty simple and I got it done and out of the way, and it turned out WONDERFUL! So dessert CHECK! Then I marinated our little steaks and put them away, and was feeling pretty confident about myself!

 I whipped up some mashed potatoes, and took off to get myself ready! At this point I am fully dressed, hair fixed, heels on, and now I have to grill..When I planned on making steaks I didn't actually think about having to grill them seeing how I have NEVER done anything with a grill in my life! Thank goodness my Step-dad Jeff was home or there would have been no hope for those beautiful little steaks I marinated 6 hours earlier! So this Valentines I got a little bit of Grilling 101!
We need charcoal,  I grab an apron and head for the garage to retrieve a bag.  After I find it I lug the thing (in heels) to the back porch where Jeff does the rest.  He gets the grill going and tells me to bring the steaks.  We get the steaks on, and I now have the wonderful perfume of smoke in my hair, and I forgot about the green beans.  So i run inside, throw them in a pan put a little olive oil, and some seasoning on them, and return outside to my steaks. Just when i'm getting the hang of grilling I remember the green beans! I get to my green beans and they are burning! So I douse more olive oil on them, give them a stir, and into the bowl they go, an oily.. burned.. mess!
  Finally, steaks are done, thanks to Jeff, and I am ready to serve at last.  At this point i'm sweaty, smoky, frustrated with my green beans,  praying everything else tastes edible, and just not feeling so excited about this plan anymore...

  Then AJ arrived at my front door... decked out in Suit and Tie, flowers in hand! The sight of him all dressed up for me completely turned my night around!! He was so sweet, and looked so handsome it made all the chaos of cooking worth it!  

The steak was amazing! The mashed potatoes were great, or at least AJ thought so because he ate the whole bowl:)! The green beans ended up in the trash.  And the chocolate cake was DELICIOUS!!! Over all it was probably the best, and definitely the most memorable Valentines we have ever shared together! 

Puppy Snow Day!

Last Thursday a little piece of Alabama got a dusting of snow!  So, whenever Alabama gets snow it means get outside and take advantage of this once in a million years opportunity! However, here lately we have been getting our fair share of snow causing spring fever to kick in a little earlier than normal! But you never know when we will get snow like this again so i'm trying to take it all in while I can...and the puppies loved it!

Gipper loving my lap more than the snow!

My sweet Marley!

Snow with Marley Girl!!!

What Do Women Want?

Everyday when my dad and I go to lunch we listen to Rush Limbaugh on the radio in the car.  Rush talks about Politics and the latest going on in Congress, and there are always various people calling in to give there opinion and ask questions.  Usually questions revolve around Obamacare, and government, or debates with Rush, and as always Rush has answers for everything and usually always puts people in there place...However, today was interesting.

As we were headed back to the office a man called in to Rushes Radio Show and had an interesting question.  "What Do Women Want?" Rush pondered the question, "hmmm what do women want?" he proceeded to say that he was trying to wait for a good answer to come to the front of his brain, and struggled to come up with one.  I found this so funny that these men who seem to have a solution for the bad economy, the problems in the White House, and every bad decision made in Americas Government, can't decide what a woman really wants.  When it comes to what women want they are speechless with no solutions that come to mind.   They finally concluded that they think what women want is, a choice in everything, they want there way, and to have the final word.  Haha Men! Stick to saving the world and solving economic crisis's, those things are easy to figure out, but the ways of a woman will never be completely understood.  I guess this is why they say "Men are from Mars, and Women are from Venus.

Muddy Marley!

I walked out the door for work this morning ready to face the cold and rain in my new J-Crew pants, white sweater, and anthropology boots!  However, what I was not ready to face was the wet muddy puppy across the yard when I walked out the door, Marley.  Our new golden retriever puppy is a sweet heart no doubt, and never passes up an opportunity for a proper greeting!  I walked out and immediately noticed her rolling around in the yard soaked and covered in mud from head to tail!  But it was too late I had been spotted.  She popped her head up and looked at me tail wagging, "Marley NO!" I shouted and with that there was no turning back. Here she came, a muddy streak tearing across the yard ears flopping and tail wagging ready to give me my morning greeting!   I ran for my car with Muddy Paws hot on my heels! I dove in the car and shut the door and watched Miss Marley jump up and finger paint the side of my car door with her muddy paws! Thank the Lord it wasn't the new pants and boots!

 P.S. She is now 10x the size she was here! Where did my little baby go!?

You Live You Learn

  All my life I have been in love with performing! Singing, dancing, acting, you name it I wanted to do it! So after my 15 minutes of fame in high school Theater, reality set in, and I began to think about chasing my dream beyond the stage of Huntsville High, and out onto the stage of The World!  So after graduation I set out with a plan, one year dedicated to following my dreams. Then it would be off to college with no regrets or "what ifs" in my mind.

However, God had a different idea for how this year of my life would turn out, and as always His way is the best way!  I discovered that, while i still love music and performing, it is not what I want to make a life out of.  This year I have learned so much about what I want for myself and my future, and what God wants!

  So this year I got pursuing a career in music out of my system, for now;), and I am SO excited to be attending the University of Alabama this fall, with a major in Broadcast Journalism, and a new dream of replacing Erin Andrews on ESPN:)  In the meantime God used this year to better my relationship with Him and with my family!  I have started to discover the kind of life I want to have, and what is really important to me.  I want to go to college and have "the experience of a lifetime!" I want a life that revolves around family and the Lord! I want a home with lots of children,  I want to be there for every Holiday gathering with my family, I want to be an aunt to all of my wonderful siblings children, and a million more simple life blessings!  I realized that the life of an artist, whether starving or successful, has to give up some of those things.  I am not willing to give those desires up because our time here is short, and we have to make the most out of the things we want.  So we live and we learn, one day at a time!