That's How You Know He's Your Love

Disclaimer: The following post reaches new levels of cheesiness for this blog. So cheesy that Nate is embarrassed that I'm even posting it.

It's that special season of the year! You know, the one that everyone looks forward to and young girls dream of at night. No, its not Christmas.....it's PROM SEASON! Its that time of the year when you can spend a ridiculous amount of money on an outfit you're never going to wear again, you wear a flower around your wrist even though it annoys you the whole night, you take a million pictures of "the best night of your life", and dance to a cliche love song under the stars, the moonlight, the sea, or whatever overused theme it may be.

Since Nate and I obviously didn't know each other in high school, we had never been to prom together. We certainly couldn't miss out on a once in lifetime experience such as this night. We tossed around the idea of crashing the local high school prom, but upon further contemplation, realized it would be lame to be the "old chaperons" of the party. The only logical solution was to go on a prom at home date!

You could say Nate was less than enthusiastic about attending the prom and perhaps wished it really was a ONCE in a lifetime experience, but my sweet husband couldn't say no when I went to all the effort to ask him to go with me.

 

He answered Yes by making me a cd of love songs and leaving me a love note in the car. I know we're cheesy and some of you are throwing up in your mouth, but I'm in love and I don't care who knows it. Prom was lovely! We had a fancy dinner, got dressed up, and danced the night away. Well, it would be more accurately stated to say I danced the night away while Nate stood there looking awkwardly toward the window wondering if anyone could see us. I quickly realized that I was a bit ambitious when I created a playlist that was 1.8 hours long when after 1.8 minutes, Nate asked "Where are the punch and cookies?" Apparently, that's the only reason he ever went to dances.  A poor oversight on my part.

Here's Nate hand-making my corsage

I already owned this dress and just had to have my mom ship it to me. Nate bought a new studly purple shirt because it's my favorite color. However, he returned it the day after the prom.

We had a fun night (or at least I did and my wonderful husband indulged me). Thanks Baby!

Nate's Brush with the Law x 2

Scene: Dark road in a small town 4:00 AM

Characters: Me, Nate, local law enforcement

Background: Nate and I were flying out of Tulsa at 6:45 AM. We'd gotten a later start than planned (as per usual, cough, cough, Nate) and we were rushing to make sure we would make our flight.

Lights, Camera, Action: Nate, “Oh crap! That was a cop I just passed, and he whipped around and is following me now.” Me, “Don't speed!” Nate carefully obeyed all traffic laws but the cop kept following us. Next thing we know, we see the flashing lights in the rear view mirror. Officer, “You sure were hugging that yellow line...Where you coming from tonight?” Nate, “Bentonville.” I wanted to nudge Nate at this point and say, “He doesn't care what city you're coming from. That's code for are you coming from a bar tonight and driving drunk?” Officer, “Have you ever been arrested?” Just as I suspected, he's hoping for a DUI tonight. After Nate explained that no, he'd never been arrested and that we were on our way to the airport for a flight he was making us miss, the officer put a little skip in his step and hurried to check the license and registration and send us on our way. Fortunately, he didn't send us with a souvenir. We can't afford another ticket! I think this was just a case of a small town cop on the midnight shift who hadn't seen another car for hours and got a bit overeager for some excitement.

Several Days Later....

Scene: Dallas Airport 2:00 AM

Characters: Me, Nate, TSA security guard

Background: Due to a 4 hour delay in Newark, we missed our connection home. We ended up being rerouted to Dallas where we arrived well after midnight. Our flight home was set to leave at 6:00 AM, so we determined it would be best to make use of the lovely airport accommodations. We found a quiet corner and settled into that oh-so-comfy row of chairs for a much needed slumber after a long day of traveling.

Lights, Camera, Action: I'm dreaming of being home in my own bed when I hear a gruff voice. I must be dreaming. Who in there right mind would possibly be trying to talk to me at 2:00 AM in a nearly empty airport when I am clearly sleeping? I ignore the voice, but alas, I hear it again. Are you kidding me? Stop talking to me! I open my eyes to give the voice a piece of my mind but have to swallow my words when I realize there is a security guard standing menacingly over me. His mouth is moving, but in my sleepy haze, I don't have a clue what he is saying. Finally, I realize he is telling me we have to leave. I think ok, we'll just go find another bench to sleep on but then it becomes clear that we are being kicked out of the terminal completely! Nate is still ignoring the guard, so Mr. Let Me Ruin Your Night Even More For You goes over and gives him a shake. Uh-oh. I know from experience that waking Nate up at such an hour is like poking the sleeping dragon. Nate gets up with fire in his eyes, glaring at the security guard, and I realize I'm going to have to intervene to make sure he doesn't get arrested for assault charges! I take him by the hand and pull him away before it is too late. We are forced to spend the rest of the night in baggage claim waiting until they open the terminal again at 5:00 AM to go BACK through security. So ridiculous! Needless to say, when we finally arrived home, we were exhausted and grumpy but still had to go to work! I feel sorry for our coworkers.

You may be asking, what was all this for anyway? A getaway to New York City! While the journey was shall we say, eventful, both there and back, it was worth it for the great trip we had!

Nate's parents met us there and we spent several days seeing all there is to see in NYC. (Well, at least all we had time to see.) We did the bus tour and a harbor tour, saw the Statue of Liberty, went to the 9.11 Memorial Site, walked through Central Park, went across the Brooklyn Bridge, saw a musical, watched the street performers, went to the Original Soup Man from the soup nazi episode of Seinfield, ate some delicious food in Little Italy, and just walked the streets and explored.

Yummy food in Little Italy!

 My top three highlights were: 

3. Eating at a little taqueria owned by Aaron Sanchez (one of the judges on our favorite Food Network show, Chopped.) 

Loved that they cooked the tacos in an old VW van!

 2. Strolling through the beautiful Central Park (yes, we got a hot dog there from a stand. We also bought some delicious Gelato!)

1. Newsies! This was such a fun musical to watch. The dancing and singing were amazing. Also, Jess, from last season of So You Think You Can Dance, was in the play so that was cool to feel like we “knew” somebody on stage.

By the way, this is NOT Jess.

Nate's favorite part was Chinatown. He was fascinated by the two roasted ducks hanging by their feet in the store window at room temperature awaiting purchase. Apparently the FDA doesn't exist in Chinatown. It was a fun getaway that we were glad to share with Stan and Lisa. Where will our travels take us to next?

Deciphering my first professional massage

So I had an experience this week and I need help processing how I feel about it. Not sure if it was a good experience, a bad experience, or just a bizarre experience. I had my first professional massage. I've said for years that I wanted to get one but could never talk myself into forking out the money to have a stranger lather my body in essential oils. Fortunately, Alyssa gave me a gift certificate for a one hour massage at a local spa, so at long last, I could try out this whole massage business. Well I tried, and as I mentioned I'm not sure what I think about it, so let me just walk you through the appointment. When I got to the spa, they offered me a glass, no a goblet, of water with lemon and lime slices. Very refreshing! One point to the good experience. They also called me "Miss Laurel" which I'm sure was intentional to make me feel pampered and special or something. I guess I did kinda like that so another point to the good. Next, I'm walked back to the "Quiet Zone" where suddenly everyone is only talking in whispers. I assume this was to promote a peaceful, serene feeling, but it was more of an eerie feeling to me. I think I have too loud a personality for tranquility. Minus one point. Next, I'm shown to the restroom and asked if I need to go. Weird. I've only had 2 sips of the fancy water. It didn't go through me that quickly. Maybe they were being thoughtful in asking me since I was to spend the next hour lying on a table. But come on, I'm 24 years old. I think I can take care of my own bodily functions. Minus one point. The next room, is the robe room. I walked into this room a little hesistant. Am I supposed to be naked under this robe? Why are the only instructions on the wall "Use your spa voice" and "Turn off your cell phone"? Those of us who are new to the spa world are left with the dilemna to wear or not to wear? Minus one. Next, was my consultation. This involved soaking my feet and getting them rubbed while small talking. Plus one for the lovely foot massage, minus one for the small talk. I'm not very comfortable small talking with a stranger while naked. Then, I'm asked if I have a favorite oil I would like to use. Ummmm….. olive? Apparently, that wasn't a choice, so I was brought three options to smell and pick from. The first one smelled like a wilted dandelion. (Pass) The second smelled like moldy berries. (I don't think so.) The third one had a delightfully subtle, citrus smell. (I'll take that one) Minus one for the odorous oils but positive one for the frangrantly acceptable oil I chose. Next, it was time to disrobe and crawl into the sheets. Thankfully, I was left alone for this part. Plus one. And then the main event: the massage! It was great for about a minute and then I realized it was a full body massage! I thought is was just for my back. Immediately, I'm embarrassed to realize I haven't shaved since…..well, since I don't know when! I tried to console myself by rationalizing that the room was dark so she couldn't see how bad it was, but honestly, who needs to see it when they have to feel it? So I spend the first fifteen minutes of the massage ashamed of my bushy legs. Minus one. Thankfully, we moved on to other body parts and I was able to relax more. The mood music being played made me think there were probably people doing Tai Chi right outside the door. This was neither good or bad, merely an observation. The back, neck, and shoulder massage was excellent! Just the right amount of pressure in just the right places. I thoroughly enjoyed that aspect. Plus 2 points! While that portion was fantastic, the face massage was a little strange to me. I generally don't have aches and pains in my ears and eybrows. I would have prefered the time spent on my face to be used to continue that blissful shoulder massage. Minus one.  At the conclusion of the massage, I am AGAIN shown to the restroom and asked if I need to go. Still weird, and still the answer is no. Minus one. However, all day today, my muscles have felt so good. Plus one. As I look back through my musings and tally the points, it appears to be a tie. Eight points for each. (That is, if I did my math correctly!) And so it is up to you, the reader, to help me decipher was this a good experience or a bad experience?

A Secret Society

There is something so exciting about being a part of a clandestine organization. I love the adrenaline rush that comes from being sneaky and feeling like I know something you don't know. However, what's the point of a secret if no one knows you know? So I've decided to let you all in on the secret. Geocaching!

For those who have never heard of this we'll go straight to horses mouth (aka geocaching.com) for the definition. "Geocaching is a real-world outdoor treasure hunting game. Players try to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, using GPS-enabled devices." My family came to visit back in January and we decided the best way to show them around town was through geocaching. My uncle Clint is an experienced geocacher (is that a word?) so he inducted us into the secret world of geocaching. He explained how to play and gave us strict orders not to let "muggles" see us. With GPS unit in hand and a list of coordinates around town we were off on our treasure hunt. I was amazed at how many caches I had walked right by in the past and had no idea were hidden there. We found all of the treasures except one. We searched and searched to no avail. That part was frustrating but 7 for 8 isn't bad for novice treasure hunters. Despite our efforts to be discreet, a few geomuggles did stumble upon us. We tried to appear very casual, like it was natural for us to be hanging out in the brush, bushwhacking. I am sure they did not suspect a thing especially in situations such as the one depicted in this picture....

Some muggles were walking by and Nate decided freezing in this pose would draw the least amount of attention

Our New Addition

The other day I was singing Justin Bieber's "I Just Need Somebody to Love" (hey, don't hate on the Biebs) and I realized it was true: I do just need somebody to love. This epiphany lead me to the conclusion that we needed a dog. That very day, I saw on Facebook that a family from church was needing to find a home for their dog. I of course interpreted this to be a sign that this dog was meant to be mine. Now to convince Nate. As I'm sure you can guess, I'm the spontaneous one and he's the responsible one in the relationship so the key was tricking I mean enlightening Nate so he would know that getting a dog was the responsible thing to do. After all, happy wife equals happy life. :) After plenty of research, he reached the same conclusion and agreed to a "trial run" with the dog. Little Ollie quickly won us both over making it impossible to say no to keeping him. And so I'm pleased to announce that we've officially adopted the cutest schnoodle you ever did see!

For all you Harry Potter geeks out there, his full name is Ollivander! I wanted Hufflepuff but Nate said that was embarrassing.

 He is a year and a half so he's still young and playful. He has a lot of energy but also likes to sit and snuggle. We haven't had Ollie very long, but we're already finding many hidden benefits to having a dog:

1. Having an indoor pet encourages me to keep the house cleaner because a) I don't want to leave things lying around that Ollie will chew on and get into and b) I refuse to have a house that smells like dog. I will be busting out the vacuum and the mop much more frequently.

2. Dogs like to be walked much more than husbands do! I love going on walks but Nate never saw the point of it. Now, I take Ollie for walks every day and he loves it. Nate even willingly joins us some days because there is a point to walking a dog.  

3. I am actually on time to work. Normally I hit the snooze at least three times, but I wake up on my first alarm now because I feel bad that Ollie is waiting to be let outside. I let him out and play with him for few minutes and still have more than enough time to get ready for work. Amazing how waking up 15 minutes earlier makes a difference.

We've also discovered that Ollie was on his best behavior for his 3 day trial period and his "true colors" are shining now. Today,  Nate called me during his lunch desperately looking for the breadsticks we'd had the night before. Turns out while we were away, Ollie ate the nearly half a pan of leftover breadsticks and a bowl of marinara sauce! No wonder he had no interest in his bowl of food last night or this morning. I suppose I should be mad, but really I just thought it was funny especially since Nate was frantically searching the kitchen for them. Who knows what other surprises Ollie has in store for us.

When in Rome

Now that we've been in Arkansas for over a year and half, Nate decided it was time to make a drastic move to better fit in with the culture. He realized that he wasn't nearly redneck enough to consider himself an Arkansan. So........

He decided he needed to get rid of his front tooth! For those of you who know my husband well, you know he knocked his two front teeth out as a kid and has had fake ones every since. Over Thanksgiving, in a not very friendly match at the church turkey bowl, he chipped his fake tooth. He finally went in to get it fixed a few weeks ago. The dentist outfitted him with a temporary tooth as the lab creates a new one for him. The only problem, or not problem if you live in Arkansas, is the temporary tooth doesn't fit properly and keeps falling out. Bryson, Alyssa, and Derek were over for Sunday dinner the other day and Nate's tooth fell right out into his bowl of soup! He didn't notice at first and nearly slurped it up! Once he fished it out of the bowl, he casually put it back in without anyone noticing. Shortly thereafter, while eating his cheesy sandwich the tooth fell out again and he completely crunched it! He had to get a new temporary the next day. Being toothless has come in handy at times. Last night Nate had taken his tooth out to eat dinner (he learned his lesson after the soup incident) when the doorbell rang. Nate answered it forgetting he didn't have his tooth in. He scared that darn salesman right off! My favorite tooth incident happened one night while sitting on the couch. Nate had a giant sneeze that propelled the tooth out of his mouth and across the room where it bounced off the wall! I think Nate is more than ready to get his new permanent tooth, but I'm certainly enjoying all the funny moments in the meantime.

YouTube Rag Quilt

A couple of weeks ago I declared I was going to make a rag quilt. Nate laughed. I don't think he thought I was serious. I've never made one, but after watching a video tutorial on YouTube, I was confident I could. I got all excited to make it and then remembered I broke my sewing machine the last time I had a crazy crafty thought. Oh well, it was a nice thought while it lasted. Guess I'll continue living my happy non-crafty life. Just kidding! Well, not about breaking the machine (I really did that) and not about living a happy non-crafty life (crafts stress me out and I prefer to live stress free); I was only joking about the giving up part. Fortunately, my mom was in town last weekend and she fixed my machine, sort of. At least enough to get through the quilt without too many more mishaps than would be normally expected when I attempt a craft. My mom helped me buy the right amount of fabric and cut the squares, but I did the rest all by myself! I know I sound like a child who has just tied their shoes for the first time, but I consider myself a toddler crafter so this was quite the accomplishment.

 

Perhaps you noticed this appears to be a baby blanket, and perhaps you are guessing this means I am making an announcement? Well I am.... someone who is pregnant is going to be the lucky recipient of this blanket! If  you'd like to be considered for the role of the lucky recipient, feel free to leave me a comment.