Flash Bulb Friday

I always suspect everyone sees the new year as a new beginning. A pathway into something fresh and clean, that can be transformed into any type of sucess we wish it to be.

For some reason, the new year this year seemed to bring a sort of peace to my heart and soul. Perhaps the baby growing in my stomach has me crazy anxious and really hopeful for 2012? Maybe that has a little something to do with it. So, today's photo isn't the best of quality (because of taking it on a film camera in 2001 and subsequently scanning it and copying it and resizing it over the years) but it is just peaceful.

It was taken on a whirlwind girl's trip through Europe at Vimy Ridge in France. It was en route back to the dreaded ferry across the English Channel back to Dover, England. It's a Canadian War Memorial dedicated to soldiers who died in WWI. It seemed like a bit of a random stop, but it was a gorgeous day and it was a somber moment after all the chaos and lights and scandal of the big cities we had just passed through over the previous 2 weeks. It was a fitting end and a calming, peaceful, moment to cherish with good friends, both new and old, as we wrapped up our tour.

 

 

Here's hoping everyone can find their peace in the new year... no matter the size or shape it presents itself in.

Year in Review

Here's this year's recap of all the interesting (and non-interesting) adventures from 2011 in the lives of Gail & Puff.

January - Spent my 29th birthday cleaning Puff's vomit off my car door. And I decided I still hated boats, but that was the last time I'd ever have to hate them in person.

February - Traveled to Atlanta and Columbia to hang out with our very dear friends, followed by a day and a half of suffering from a gnarly stomach virus. We sure did become good friends with the porcelain throne in 2011.

March - Turned up the romance on a weekend getaway to a swanky spa in the mountains of North Carolina. Turned down the romance the next weekend when Puff's dad made the pilgrimage from the Great White North to remind him what spring feels like.

April - Tailgated in dresses and sportcoats at the Carolina Cup horse race. Repurposed that same tailgate dress a few weeks later for Easter with the MIL.

May - Celebrated one year of putting up with each other's crap with dinner at a steak restaurant, where a sweet couple bought our meal for us. Then we spent the rest of the month counting down to our big whirlwind anniversary trip (the most important part of an anniversary, right?) and jetted off to Copenhagen, Denmark, to gorge ourselves on pastries.

June - Continued to gorge ourselves on pastries, only this time it was in Stockholm, Sweden. (I think we skipped pastries in all those other countries in between!)

July - Spent a week combining visits to The Fort and the Great White North to see our respective families. I learned you could not pay me enough to live in Michigan. There is no price worth losing my sanity.

August - Puff treated me to a weekend at a swanky golf resort in Charlotte so I could sip pina coladas and lounge in their pool.

September - Puff's company sent him to Germany while I went to the shooting range for the first time. I basked in the sun at the pool overlooking the ocean in Folly Beach, SC, with the girls while learning I was finally PREGNANT!

October - I got to hang out with a rock star, sip daquiris on the street at 10am, experience a prison rodeo, and expose Puff to the wonders of tacky souvenir shops in Myrtle Beach.

November - Monumental morning sickness. Epic temper tantrum from the MIL. (Which I believe has become a running trend for Novembers in our lives, if you look back at last year's recap HERE) Super uncomfortable Thanksgiving weekend. Yup... still pretty much hate November.

December - Great "Hell Week" at work, except I never would've thought it would be my last. Got some devastating news, had to make a really hard decision, turned our lives upside down, and had to muddle through Christmas pretending like everything was fine and dandy. (Oops... haven't posted about that drama here yet? Saving that for after Puff's had a chance to fill in his family!) On the bright side, my family is totally full of rock stars who love me and Puff super much. They showered us with love, support, and baby gifts for Bimmer. We are so blessed to have them in our lives!

So... our NYE plans are non-existant. We're trying to save our pennies. And Bimmer kinda nixes the martini or rum-fueled evening I would normally enjoy. Plus, a pregnant woman's bedtime is somewhere around 8:30pm. That's a good excuse for not seeing the ball drop this year. What was my excuse for all those years from 2003 until now???

Merry & Bright

Puff and I have been back from The Fort for a few days, but the time spent with our family and friends for the holiday was sooooo theraputic! It had been since July since I had spent any quality time with them and I missed them so much. Not to mention, I'm a total Christmas fiend and was uber-pumped to hand out the gifts I had gotten for everyone.

Here is me and my dad showing off our respective bellies in front of the ginormous gift pile at their house. Hey... at least I have an excuse for my ever expanding stomach!

It was baby gift overload from my parents this year... including a Graco car seat and stroller! We are so beyond blessed to have my family. They are over-the-moon excited for Bimmer's arrival and also loaded us up on bibs, receiving blankets, onesies, and other toys too. But they didn't forget the new mommy and daddy either... I got a camcorder (to take video of Bimmer, of course) and Puff got a giant case of his favorite beer!

Christmas Eve, we got to head over to Granny's house for this gift extravaganza. This was the part of Christmas we missed last year, because of the pending snow storm in the mountains of TN and NC. We stuck it out this time (no inclement weather of any kind... yay) and were able to spend hours with my mom's family, opening gifts, partaking in some bourbon slush (non-alcoholic for me this year), and catching up with everyone. It finally felt like a real Christmas. And I was so excited to share it with Puff... but even more excited knowing that little Bimmer will be there with us next year!

I hope everyone had a wonderful and merry Christmas with their families and friends. Just so hard to believe the holiday has already come and gone. Don't worry... I hit up Target's after Christmas sale yesterday and have already started stocking up for next year!

New Tunes Tuesday

I recently bought two new CDs (yes, I still buy CDs since I've never figured out how to buy stuff on itunes) and have been rotating their airplay in Ozzy (my new car) the past week or so. One of those albums is Nickelback's "Here and Now." I've been a huge fan (as embarassing as that might sound) since about 2000 or 2001. I've seen them in concert 3 or 4 times and they're a total guilty pleasure. So I was uber-pumped to hear they had a new album coming out. I typically love to rock out and play some air guitar to their songs. They're good stress-releasers in the morning on the way to a rough day at work. And on the way home too.

 

However, I was terribly disappointed. The sound is different than usual, in a way I can't quite pinpoint. And there aren't any crazy awesome songs like "Photograph" but I'm sure they'll find at least one or two to overplay on the radio in the coming months. (Thankfully, I avoid the radio like the plague, so I'm kinda out of that loop these days.) However, after the first run-through, I decided I could totally latch on to the last song on the album, called "Don't Ever Let it End." It's the most radio-friendly of the bunch, which doesn't always appeal to me, but it did this time.

All told, I give the album 3 out of 5 stars. It's good enough to listen to, but not good enough to obsess over. However, I give this song 4 1/2 stars, since to me, it's the standout on the disc. Happy listening!

 

Don't let it end. Don't let it end. Don't ever let it end.

Well, I got two tickets to the game.

It would be great if I could take you to this someday.

Well, I'll walk you home when the whole things done.

If you're there, I don't even care which team won.

We could stop at the coffee shop.

And make fun of the cops in the parking lot.

We could laugh as we both pretend that we're not in love and that we're just good friends.

Well, I'm tired of pretending, but I'm terrified of it ending.

I know if not for you there's nothing I could do to ever let it end.
And I know you feel the same way, because you told me drunk on your birthday.

And as you pulled me near, whispered in my ear - don't ever let it end.
Don't let it end. Don't let it end. Don't ever let it end.

Saturday I'm gonna take her out.

Because her favorite band is gonna play downtown.

Gonna sing the song we've all heard, about those two young friend who should have fell in love.

Later on we'll cut through the park.

And she can hold my hand because she hate the dark.

And we could laugh as we both pretend that we're not in love and that we're just good friends.

Well, I'm tired of pretending, but I'm terrified of it ending.

I know if not for you there's nothing I could do to ever let it end.
And I know you feel the same way, because you told me drunk on your birthday.

And as you pulled me near, whispered in my ear - don't ever let it end.
(Please promise me that this won't end) Don't let it end. Don't let it end. Don't ever let it end.

Greatest times we ever had, was crazy nights just looking back we can laugh.

You never know where life's gonna go, because we're the only ones who will ever know.

About Sunday night, just her and I.

Sitting side by side in the full moon light.

I pulled her close just to hold her tight and the both of us could tell it just felt right.

She looked at me in the sweetest way.

Like she could tell what the hell I was about to say.

Must have took a while just to find the words cause she cut me off and finally said it first.

Well, I'm tired of pretending, but I'm terrified of it ending.

I know if not for you there's nothing I could do to ever let it end.
Yes, you know I feel the same way, because I told you drunk on my birthday.

And as you pulled me near, whispered in my ear - don't ever let it end.
(Please promise me that this won't end) Don't let it end. Don't let it end. Don't ever let it end.
(Please promise me that this won't end) Don't let it end. Don't let it end. Don't ever let it end.
Don't let it end. Don't let it end. Don't ever let it end.

Flash Bulb Friday

Can you even believe that Christmas is almost here?!?! Puff and I are back in The Fort for the holidays and no matter the weather, we are sticking this year out. We can get snowed in for a week for all I care. There's no way I'm missing Christmas again with my mom's family this year.

 

NEVER AGAIN.

 

Right... so I will never forget when my cousin was in like 2nd grade (at his Catholic school, mind you) and they went around the room talking about their family traditions at the holidays. What was his tradition that he shared with everyone? Bourbon Slush.

Damn straight... it's not a Christmas in our family without a few tupperware containers of the stuff. One of these days, I'll learn how to make it myself. I will have to learn eventually... because for the rest of my life, the holidays won't be complete without a red Solo cup full of the stuff.

Merry Christmas everyone! Don't drink and drive :)

Light It Up

As funny as it sounds, the other day, a Publix commercial stopped me in my tracks.

They were talking about all the things people worry about and think they want at Christmas. Yet, if we look around us, we probably have everything we could ever need. That couldn't be more true.

 

The past few weeks have been really rough, but I'm not ready to elaborate on why. Instead, I need to take this cue... the cue from the grocery store commercial... to look around me and see that I pretty much have anything and everything I could ever possibly need. Sometimes we get blinded by outside distractions, while we have the world already in our grasp.

 

I have my health, my family, and my friends. I have a loving husband and a baby on the way. I have a roof over my head and food on my table. With those things in hand, I can muddle my way through any forthcoming obstacles. And as the holiday season engulfs us, I must find a way to set aside these other distractions and focus on what really matters. It is a time to celebrate life and love and to be happy and share with those who love us in return.

 

 

 

Puff and I have an annual tradition of going to a local suburb to a house where two gay guys go crazy over-the-top with their lights each year. We took Kimhead last year (HERE) and we are already getting excited about being able to take Bimmer next year. I am such a sucker for a Christmas peacock.

 

 

 

Puff and I also skipped the animal light display (HERE) with the giant mutant cow, in favor of a closer, more tame experience. It was, however, a bit disappointing. The lights were the same as they had been years ago when I went with The Ex. That point aside, it was still a great evening, because I was celebrating the season with the man I love the most, and who loves me more than anything. And isn't that what the holidays are truly about?

Motivate Me Monday

No, it's not new music today, but it's one of those albums I totally forgot I had and am remembering how much I totally loved it! I probably forgot about it because uploading CDs to my Ipod is a chore and I refuse to learn how to use iTunes. I'm ridiculous and I love it. I also occasionally like some alternative rock. Even the screaming kind. And for right now, I've got "Bleed it Out" blaring on my work computer and hoping the GM doesn't walk past when he's aimlessly screaming "Fuck."

 

 

Right... so this CD is "Minutes to Midnight" by Linkin Park. There was a song or two that got major airplay back in 2007/2008 when it came out. I haven't bought any of their music since then though. Do they even have any new music? Eh... I suppose maybe I'll look into some post-Christmas sales to beef up my CD collection. (Yup... still buying CDs. Still ridiculous.)

Every so often, I just need to tune out the rest of the corporate world and retreat to my head-banging, loud rock 'n roll jammin' by myself. It can definitely help with a shitty day. And there have been some days lately where the shit didn't just hit the fan, it looked like someone went snorkeling through an over-flowing septic tank. So for a brief, fleeting moment, let's all retreat into the music. Clear our heads, take a time out, and let someone else explain how we should feel for awhile.