U

U is for the new Colvard Student Union on the beautiful campus of Mississippi State.

I wish that I had other pictures besides the ones that I googled, but unfortunately, it was a bit rainy today and I didn't so much feel like getting
out and taking pics of it. I couldn't get these to get any bigger, so you'll just have to take my word for it...it's AMAZING.

If you're an alum and you haven't been on campus lately, you must. It's changed so much since I was a student. It looks fabulous and it makes me so happy to call it 'home'!

So--all you MSU fans out there--be proud!

And all you non-MSU fans--it's OK to be jealous. You have every right to be!:)

So, I'm getting close to the end of the alphabet and I'm a little worried about a few upcoming letters. Hmm......

Happy weekend to you all!

T

T stands for: Time to celebrate!

Unfortunately, since she and her hubby are now living in Lousiana, I won't be with my dear friend Sarah today as she celebrates her birthday. BUT I thought I'd at least give her a blog shout out! :)

Happy Birthday dear Sarah!

I miss you so very much!!!

Head on over to the Alford blog and wish her a happy one!

oh yeah...one more thing!

I failed to mention that today is my cousin Jake's 21st birthday! I just posted about my sisters, and while I don't technically have a brother, Jake might as well be!

Here's a picture of Jake (he's not always this hairy!) and Henry at Thanksgiving. Henry loved touching Jake's beard! :)

(I remember holding Jake when he was born. Weird.)

ANYWAY...

Happy Birthday Jake!

S

S is for sisters, 2 of the biggest blessings in my life!

I am the middle of 3--

Kristen is 2 years older and Heather is 2 years younger. Being so close in age, we share a lot and are more like friends. Those of you who know the 3 of us, know that we're probably about as opposite as 3 sisters can possibly be but that we have the best time when we're together.

First there's Kristen. She's always been the leader (a.k.a. "bossy one") of the 3. She's beautiful and very easy to get along with. She's also a doctor, which should be some indication of her intelligence. She loves being the center of attention and I crave hanging out time with her. She's good about making anyone feel good about themselves. She's a wonderful mother and the best big sister.

Then there's little Heather. Bless her heart. :) She's also very beautiful and completely hilarious (read her blog and you'll see what I mean). She's SO NOT SHY and, like Kristen, she loves being the center of attention. She's artistic and stylish, and looks good even without makeup (so NOT FAIR). We talk on the phone numerous times a day. She loves chinese children and old people. She's the best little sister.

me, Kristen, and Heather at Kristen's wedding...June 2003

me, Heather, and Kristen at Heather's wedding...June 2006

R

I must admit, choosing a picture for R has been more challenging than I thought. R is one of the most commonly used letters in the alphabet, isn't it? I don't know why it was so difficult for me.

I was talking with my dear friend MereMurHorn a little while ago and she mentioned that she was wanting my famous chocolate/peanut butter chip oatmeal cookie Recipe (yes, you read that correctly...these cookies contain chocolate chips, peanut butter chips AND oatmeal. THEY'RE FABULOUS.)

Hmmmm...recipe begins with an "r" right? Perfect.

Now, I don't want to toot my own horn here, but these cookies are good. Really really good. I used an oatmeal cookie recipe that I found in a cookbook, and I added the chocolate chips and peanut butter chips to make them even better. Leave the chips out if you prefer, but I can go ahead and tell you that you would be making a mistake.

ANYWAY...

Here's the yummy recipe:

Ingredients:

1 c. sugar

1 c. light brown sugar

1 c. vegetable shortening

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 c. flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. soda

2 1/4 c. oatmeal

1 bag peanut butter/chocolate chips (you can buy the bag that's got them combined. Of course you can also choose to use peanut butter OR chocolate instead of both of them).

Directions:

Combine sugars and shortening. Add eggs lightly beaten with vanilla. Add flour, salt, and soda. Mix well. Stir in oatmeal, and PB/chocolate chips. Spoon on cookie sheet and bake at 325 degrees for 8-10 minutes (you should eat some of the raw cookie dough before the last step).

It's super easy, and I promise they're some of the best cookies you'll ever put in your mouth!

Enjoy!

Q

I bet you thought the letter Q would have me stumped. Think again. I created a quiz for you last night (too much time on my hands? Possibly, but I PROMISE this takes little to no time to create!). So, go ahead and take the quiz and see just how well you know me! Feel free to humor me and take the quiz even if I do not know you personally! Maybe it'll inspire you to create one too! :) Enjoy!

Create your own Friend Quiz here

P

Ok, so I have 2 things for P.

First of all, I must sing praise to my sister who introduced the blog world to the "Ped Egg," which, according to her, is like getting a pedicure! Claire, as well as my mom, have both purchased one since Heather's post and they both agree that it is fabulous! It was on my list of must-haves (I'm kinda needing a pay check right now!), but my mom actually got one for me this weekend. I haven't used it yet, but I look forward to hopefully having smooth heels for once in my life!

HJTS-the Ped Egg company probably appreciates your ad!

Moving on to my second "P"...my parents! These are 2 amazing people! They are the most optimistic and encouraging people I know, and I'm so very proud to call them my parents!

Aren't they cute? :)

O

Please forgive me for being a little late for my next letter. My 4 1/2 year-old laptop has been acting up a bit lately. I'm hoping it'll make it with me a little while longer because I most definitely can't afford to buy a new one any time soon!

Since "N" was the last letter that I posted, I think that means it's time for o which stands for "The Office"! (duh!). This geniusly (is that a word?) written and phenomenally casted TV show is, in my opinion, the best sitcom on TV today, and quite possibly in the top 2 TV shows of all time. Many who know me would suggest that I am a bit obsessed with this show, as I own (most of these given to me as gifts): an Office calendar, coffee mug, multiple refrigerator magnets, post-it notes, pens, notepads and 2 seasons on DVD (hoping to get season 3 sometime soon!). MSKS and Claire would disagree with the accusation of me being obsessed, since they seem to think that only they can diagnose my obsessions. Whatever.

I was super excited to receive the 16 month calendar. Each month features a picture of one of the characters and a quote from that character. Hilarious.

I'm sad to see February coming to an end, because it's the month of none other than Dwight K. Schrute. It's my favorite page. Here's what it says: "Here's my card. It's got my cell number, my pager number, my home number, and my other pager number. I never take vacations, I never get sick, and I don't celebrate any major holidays." I'm pretty sure I'd think that was funny even if I wasn't an Office fan. =)

I hope your weekend is great so far.

I'm not sure anybody loves Saturdays as much as I do!

N

N is for the Next American Idol! Who will it be??

They've narrowed it down to 24 contestants (4 of which will be voted off tonight!) and in my opinion, this is when the show starts getting really good! I haven't picked my favorite yet, although there are several that I really like. Click here to read a little about each contestant--it's quite a diverse group!

A few of my favorites so far (my favorites seem to change week to week!!!) are: Jason Castro (the dreadlocks guy), Michael Johns (the Australian hottie), Brooke White (I think she's adorable), Carly Smithson (her talent is effortless), Amanda Overmyer (very Janis Joplin-like and completely different from any other contestant), and Syesha Mercado (fun personality and a great entertainer!). These are just the ones who have stood out to me so far, but who knows? I may have a completely different opinion soon!

Who's your pick for the next American Idol?

M

I'M BACK and ready to continue my alphabet journey! Thanks for allowing me to hit the pause button for a few days while I was loving my life in San Antonio!

Now we have the letter M, which is going to represent My San Antonio pics (please let it count!)!

I started my trip by spending the night with Kristen, Rob, and Henry Saturday night. I was able to spend some one-on-one time with Henry, which I'm honestly not sure has ever happened before. He's such a happy child and I'm the proudest aunt. Look at his face.
AND MOVING ON TO SAN ANTONIO!
It is an absolutely gorgeous place. I looooooved it! It was a lot different than I expected, but I can't really explain exactly how it was different. We stayed in a hotel on the Riverwalk, and all of our free time was spent shopping, exploring, and dining along the Riverwalk. We never once had to take a cab to go anywhere else! It was so relaxing and super fun. If you look closely at the collage above, you can see several of the scenery pics I took while I was there. We took a ferry tour up and down the river the first night we were there, and I learned a lot about the great city of San Antonio!
Moving on to more pics...
Here's the group that went! 10 teachers representing the Starkville School District!


me, Heather, and Mandi while on the ferry ride!

above pic...THE BOTTOM OF OUR CLOSET! I roomed with my friend Heather, who I absolutely adore. We were in S.A. from Sun.-Wed. and she brought 11 pairs of shoes! I knew my blog readers wouldn't believe it, so that's why I'm posting a pic. to PROVE it!! ELEVEN (including the glamerous boots below)! Aren't they fabulous and completely appropriate for Texas?!
Here are a couple of pics of me and Heather. The bottom pic is for you Mere! Yee-Haw cowgirls!!

We saw the Alamo!

Julie Fancher (my assistant principal), Melanie McCarter (Kindergarten rep.), me (2nd grade rep.) and Heather Simmonds (1st grade rep.). Wondering why we're all wearing similar jackets? We bought them on our trip for $7 each! They're Columbia fleece jackets, and were originially $50!!! Almost everybody in our group bought at least one! You can't pass up something like that!

Bottom pic: same group as above. We're at the Rainforest Cafe, where we ate one night. Look at the stools we're sitting on. SO cute!


As you can see, my trip was a blast, and I look forward to going back there one day!!
I'm heading back to work tomorrow! Good news: It'll be THURSDAY!! YAY!!!

L

L is for "Luggage"....MY luggage!

Yep! I'm packing my bags and heading to San Antonio! (Confused? read here).

I'M SO EXCITED!

Tomorrow afternoon my friend Heather and I are driving to Jackson. She's going to spend the night with her parents and I'm driving to Clinton and staying the night with Kris, Rob, and Henry. I'm looking forward to spending the day with them Sunday before driving to the airport Sunday night to catch the plane to Texas!

I'll be there until Wednesday, so it looks like my little alphabet game will be put on hold for a few days. Think you can make it? :)

I'm pumped about having a break from school for a few days! Stay tuned for, what I'm sure, will be some fun San Antonio pictures!!!

Enjoy your weekend!

K

K is for "Kids!"

Not my OWN, of course, but the 21 little 2nd graders I spend 8 hours with every day. Well, as you probably guessed, they were W.I.L.D. today. Do you remember when you were in 2nd grade? It was such a big deal to pass out valentines to all of your friends and eat all of your candy as fast as you can. They were so excited they could hardly stand it. I waited until the end of the day to have our party at school. I thought this through well--I sugar them up and send them home. Perfect for me, but their parents probably hate me for it! :)

Many of my students, being the sweet little angels they are ;), brought me ALL KINDS of sweets today (see bottom right picture in collage). The problem: I CAN'T EAT THEM! This Lent thing is so hard. I wouldn't even lick the icing off of my fingers after passing out their valentines cupcakes! I'm blaming my kids for this PURE TORTURE, but I'm proud to say I made it the whole day without caving. GO ME!

Top L: me and my friend Bambi

Top R: me and Heather

Bottom L: THE BEAUTIFUL BOUQUET OF TULIPS THAT A CERTAIN SOMEONE BROUGHT ME TODAY! Yep, he HAND DELIVERED them to me at school. Tulips are my favorite. He did so good!

Bottom R: see for yourself...these are all of the sweets that were given to me today. Wondering what's inside the cups and bags? More sweets. I could've consumed it all today if I had allowed myself!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!

J

Time for the next one!

J is for jewelry!

OK. I'm a sucker for jewelry...anything from simple stud earrings to big flashy necklaces. Love it all! People always tell me that I'm easy to shop for because they know they can pretty much get me any kind of jewelry and I'll love it. SO TRUE!

Here are some fabulous websites where you'll find a variety of jewelry-all different colors, styles, etc. If you have some time to kill and you're in the mood to browse, take a look. You might just stumble upon something you have to have.

-Tonya Barlow (see picture)- I had never heard of this fantastic brand of jewelry until Christmas when my cousin's wife April gave me a necklace that she ordered from T.B. The necklace she gave me is made of wood (so unique!) and it has my monogram on it. The string is brown leather. I absolutely love it! It's so different and I get compliments on it everytime I wear it! Oh, and another interesting fact about this jewelry--it's made in French Camp, MS! Gotta support my fellow Mississippians!

-Layla Grayce - Heather actually has this site linked to her blog. I've never ordered from here, but there are so many great pieces of jewelry and it seems reasonably priced. You'll also find clothes, purses, shoes, stationery, and home decor on this website. Check it out!

-Ayala Bar- LOVE LOVE LOVE this jewelry! One of my dear friends Shannon gave me an awesome cross necklace by A.B. several years ago and I still wear it a lot. It's the kind of jewelry that, in my opinon, doesn't go out of style or get that "worn" look. Spend some time on this site and you'll fall in love with it. (In fact, I actually just spent some time on this site myself and it was quite a mistake! I found quite a few items I wouldn't mind having!)

-Wigtwizzle- If you're at all familiar with the quaint little town where I love, you've probably shopped at the "Giggleswick Village" and been to Wigtwizzle. I like the jewelry here because it's inexpensive and there's quite a large selection from which to choose. Unfortunately this site doesn't offer online shopping, so you'll just have to take my word for it. Next time you're in town, you'll have to stop by and see for yourself!

Happy Shopping!

I

I is for InStyle Hair Makeover! This is a fun one...

I saw this idea on this blog not too long ago. Basically, all you do is upload a picture of yourself and choose a celebrity's hairstyle to fit your face. Super easy! Oh, and after playing around with it, I've officially decided....I'll NEVER go blonde!! :)

Go here and give it a try!

Do I look like Eva Langoria OR WHAT?! :)

H

Is it any surprise what (or should I say who?) this letter is going to represent?...my nephew of course!

H is for Henry's "funny face!" Here's the story about that in case you missed Heather's blog post about it. A few months ago, Kristen gave Henry the lemon from her water. You can probably imagine the kind of face he made after tasting it! Kristen and Rob were laughing, and once Henry realized they were laughing at him, he continued to make the face. Adorable! So now, whenever you say "Henry, make your funny face," this is what he does. I'm glad I got a picture of him in action. :)I absolutely love it.

G

I hope some of you are enjoying my little alphabet game thus far. I must admit, it's been kinda fun for me too. I'm impressed that I've been able to post everyday so far and anxious to see how much longer I'll keep THAT up!

Anyway, moving on to the next letter...

G is for gift card! I think gift cards of any kind make the most fantastic gifts. I give them to people a lot. Not because I'm too lazy or impersonable to buy something, but because I know how much I love to get them!

For Christmas I received 2 Ann Taylor Loft gift cards-one from my Nana and the other was left by Santa. If you're a faithful blog reader of mine, then you should know that ATL is my fave. I've been anxious to use the gift cards, but I wanted to wait for the spring arrivals. Well, yesterday my mom and I headed to Tuscaloosa for a day of shopping! Have you been there lately? They've always had decent shopping (including one of the most fabulous Super Targets I've ever been to!), but the shopping has gotten even better, my friends. In November, they opened an ATL store in a new shopping center, which also has some other really great stores. You can imagine my excitement when I realized that I didn't have to drive to Jackson or all the way to Birmingham just to go to ATL. It's fabulous.

Well, needless to say, I had lots of luck! I got some really cute spring items that I'm excited about wearing (it almost makes me excited about go to school tomorrow--weird!). It's been quite a while since I'd gotten new clothes, and it really is amazing how good a couple of new outfits can make you feel! I'm actually in the process now of getting together some more of my older clothes to take to Mint!

I also got a really cute purse from Target. It's rather large (aren't big purses stylish??) and I really like it. When JR saw it, he said (hopefully jokingly) "You can fit an entire person in that thing. Do not use it anytime when we're together." A little harsh I know. I mean, is he really going to make me choose between him and my cute purse? :)
Mom and I had a great day together. I always enjoy good hanging out time with her, and in my opinion, shopping is the best way to spend good quality time with someone!

I hope you have a fantastic week. This is my last full week of school before I head to San Antonio for 3 days for a conference! Woo hoo!!

F

F is for "FLASHBACK!"

So, I came across this picture in a desk drawer recently. This is definitely a picture of me with 3 of my good high school friends. L to R: Ashley Crawford (Jones), Mary Straton Karatassos (Smith), me, and Alexa Harris. (Please don't kill me MSKS!). This lovely snapshot was taken nearly 10 years ago (wow) at the big homecoming dance our senior year of high school. Just to let you know how 'big time' our alma mater was back in the day--- several of our dances were held in the cafeteria. The odd thing: we thought nothing of it at the time. Good ol' SA.

Anyway, I thought this would put a smile on some faces today! :)

E

E is for EGGS!! It's that time of year again! Have you ever tasted one of these sinful delights? They are, what I like to call, HEAVENLY. They're not the Cadbury Eggs with the cream in the middle. Nope. These are way better. Next time you're at Wal-Mart and you see this purple bag calling your name, grab one and treat yourself. They're FABULOUS.

They're only available around Easter, so I'm just now seeing them around. I've been thinking about them for days now.

BAD NEWS: It's Lent and, as you know, I've given up sweets! WHAT AM I GOING TO DO? (This whole 'no sweet' thing is much harder than I thought!).

GOOD NEWS: Lent is over on March 23, which, coincidentally is Easter AND my birthday! So, you better believe I'll be indulging in them on that glorious day. In fact, I'll probably just go ahead and buy the family size bag. I probably will share them with no one.

My stomach is growling just thinking about them!

TGIF!!!!

D

My choice of picture for the letter D is no surprise. D is for my dog Max. He is hands down, without a doubt, the best thing I've ever done for myself. I can have a bad day, be sad, mad, sick, etc., but Max can always make me feel so much better. Cuddling with this little guy is such therapy for me. Sure, he's slightly on the protective side, drives me CRAZY every morning when he chases my feet (putting holes in every single pair of socks I own) and doesn't always do well around certain people, but I still love him. :)

If you're single (or even if you're married!!) and debating on whether or not to get a dog, COME TALK TO ME. Or better yet, spend a few minutes with my Max and you'll be sold.

Dogs are a man's best friend. I promise.

C

C is for "cookies, chocolate, candy"...take your pick! These are a few of the items that I'm giving up for Lent, which started TODAY (see recent post for details).

Ummmm...am I going to be able to do this?

Man, those cookies look good...

B

B is for "Bad Weather," which is what I'm potentially facing tonight. No, this picture was not taken in my backyard. It is, indeed, another googled picture. Unlike my precious sister, bad weather has never really freaked me out. I'm cautious and do whatever I need to do to be safe, but I don't get all upset and lose control when it thunders.

Most of you probably know that I live in the same town as my parents. I don't live with them of course, but I live very close to them, which I LOVE. Who WOULDN'T want to be able to see their parents whenever they want? It's great. Well, my dad (a.k.a "Tommy T"), is quite the weatherman. He even possesses a weather alarm, which sounds if there's a raindrop 100 miles away. Growing up, my sisters and I knew that whenever there was even a chance of a bad storm, we'd head to the 1/2 bathroom with pillows and a flashlight. It was just understood. As I've gotten older, he's still good about keeping me aware of storms. I love my dad.

Well, I just got off the phone with him and he said there's a good chance of tornadic (is that a word?) weather after midnight, so he's "inviting" me (he's not going to "make" me--he knows I'm a big girl and I make my own decisions!) to come stay at home tonight. If he's going to sleep better with me being under the same roof with him, then I'm there. I mean, if it DOES get bad tonight, do you think I want to be here by myself? I think not.

SO, I'm off to spend some time with my parents. Hopefully my dad will sleep peacefully.

am I CRAZY or what?

You've seen pictures of my friend Heather, and heard me mention her name several times recently. Well, she's the reason behind the first half of this blog post. Heather attends a Catholic church here in town. This Wednesday is Ash Wednesday, which marks the first day of Lent. I am not Catholic, therefore, there's a lot about Lent that I don't understand. What I DO know is that during this 40-day period, you are to give up something that you love (what things besides types of food are given up for Lent? I'm just curious...). It's NOT supposed to be easy. Anyway, Heather has a major sweet tooth, as do I, so she decided to give up sweets entirely for Lent. At first I told her she was crazy and that I could never do it. After a little thought though, I decided I actually wanted to give it a try and do the SAME thing. Do you understand what I'm saying here? I'm CHOOSING to do this. Have I lost my mind? Here's my reasoning. Heather and I see each other on a daily basis, so we could help hold each other accountable. PLUS, we're planning a beach trip in a few months, and if I'm going to get my body ready for the beach, something's gotta give. So starting Wednesday, no more candy, ice cream, desserts, etc. for me for 40 days (Katey, I know what you're thinking...this means no "TCBY-wannabe" yogurt for us! We will discuss this later!)

I'll keep you updated on my progress.

Changing the subject a bit...

I've come across a few blogs who are taking part in an "alphabet blog challenge." Allow me to explain the rules. You are to post a picture daily (that's the tricky part!) which

represents each letter in the alphabet, starting with A and ending with Z. I decid ed to give it a shot, since I do enjoy these types of things. I may be bending the rules a bit though. The pictures I post may not actually be pictures taken by me. I may be googling some of my pictures, but I think they should still count! Also, the whole daily posting thing might get me too. Having time to blog everyday could pose a problem, but I'll do my best. Forgive me if I skip a day here or there.

So, who else is up for the challenge?

Here's my first picture.

A is for "American Idol!" This show is big this time of year, and I'm one of the most loyal fans. I love the humor of the auditions, but I'm ready to pick out my contestant and move on to the real stuff!

Stay tuned for the remaining 25 letters...

much needed hanging out time with Candy!

My dear friends Chad and Candy were in town this weekend! They came in late Friday night and spent the night with me. Candy and I spent the whole day Saturday just hanging out (Tipico was included of course), and it was long overdue. Our original plan was to hit up Mint for the "Big Bag Sale" at 9 am. What a great idea this was-you pay $20, get a brown grocery bag and whatever you fill in the bag is yours! I knew it was going to be a big deal, but I had NO IDEA it would be as crazy as it was! We pulled up at 8:58 am, thinking we were smart and we'd be there before anyone else, but we were so very wrong! There was a line going all the way down the sidewalk! Candy and I decided that we just couldn't fight the crowd, so we didn't stay. :(

Sorry I didn't make it like I'd promised, Emily, but it looked as though it was a huge success!

Candy left Saturday afternoon to head to Carrollton to spend time with her family, and see her little Landon, who I GREATLY MISSED! Our time was too short, but as always, I loved loved seeing her!

I hope you had a great weekend! JR and I are heading to Heather and Tom's tonight to watch the Super Bowl. I care nothing about the NFL, nor do I care anything about the 2 teams playing. I don't like Eli Manning, though, so it looks like I'm pulling for the Patriots tonight!

BUNKO, BABY!

My friend Heather and I hosted Bunko Thursday night (yes, I was well enough to go!) and we had it at Heather's beautiful house. As I'm sure you can tell from the pictures below, we decided to have a Valentine's theme. Claire, you would have LOVED it! :) I didn't win anything, which wasn't a big surprise, but we still had tons of fun! I mentioned previously that my SAINT of a mother prepared the meal that I was in charge of (remember, I was SICK...I'm not lazy or anything) and it was D E L I C I O U S! We were short-handed one person for Bunko, so my mom actually came last minute and subbed! It was so fun for her to meet some of my "teacher friends" and she had a great time.

Allow me to share the fantastic recipe for "Light King Ranch Chicken" that we devoured that night. You will definitely want to jot this down because it is: a) EASY b) LOW FAT and c) YUMMY!

Here you go!

Ingredients:

1 large onion, chopped

1 large green bell pepper, chopped

cooking spray

2 c. chopped cooked chicken

1 can fat free Cream of Chicken soup

1 can fat free Cream of Mushroom soup

1 can rotel tomatoes

1 t. chili powder

1/2 t. pepper

1/4 t. garlic powder

12 (6 in.) corn tortillas

1 8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

Saute' onion and bell pepper w/ cooking spray in large skillet for 5 min. Stir in chicken and next 6 ingredients. Remove from heat. Tear tortillas into 1" pieces; layer 1/3 tortilla pieces in bottom of 13"x9" pan coated w/ cooking spray. Top w/ 1/3 chicken mixture and 1/3 cheese. Repeat layers twice. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 min.

Note: Casserole may be frozen before baking.

ENJOY!