City Dog

My dog is seriously cool. Well, most of the time.

I decided to take Jake for a little walk last night. It was later in the evening, so I decided to stay along Monticello where there were street lights the whole way.

I was about a mile from home when I decided to start jogging because it was getting a little too dark for my likings. It was my rest day so I didn't really want to job, but I sucked it up.

Brian always lets Jake off the leash when we are on walks, but I typically don't like to because I'm scared he will see a squirrel or a rabbit or a bird and take off running.

I'm not quite sure why I was feeling like a nice mom on this walk/run, but the leash came off. We ran up Monticello (running north), as Jake kept darting in and out of the trees that line the road. He stayed right next to me the whole time. I couldn't believe how great he was doing!

Keep in mind, Monticello is a pretty busy road out in our neck of the woods.

We come to our first turn, which is crossing Monticello to go into our neighborhood. Normally, I would have leashed him well before the stop so there was NO way he could get confused with me stopping and run into the street and get hit.

Well, there wasn't too much traffic so I decided to wing it. We briefly stopped together at the cross walk...all I had to say was "Jake, wooooaaaaaahhhhh", and he stopped. Then, we both crossed the street and continued running. We then made our next turn together to head down to our street.

You should have seen all these cars passing us by on Monticello, gawking and looking amazed that he was just running right along with me. In the neighborhood, one guy out in his front yard even said "wow, he's trained well."

So, today I decided that I have a really, well-behaved, out of the ordinary dog. And that I am super lucky to have this guy in my life. I guess bird dog/obedient school (he went two times!) really paid off!

Just chillin' in our front yard

His favorite sitting position. Just like a person.

Reject hunting dog turned City Dog that can be trusted without a leash. Simply awesome.

Teeny Bopper Crushes

Do you remember the days when you had teeny bopper boy crushes? You know, those deep infatuations you developed with young boy bands, celebrities, singers, TV and movie stars?

Think J.T.T., Taylor Hanson, Andrew Keegan, New Kids on the Block, Devon Sawa. These were some of my major crushes. How about Topanga from Boy Meets World, Tiffani Amber Thiessen and Jenni Garth for the guys. Ringing any bells?

Taylor, however was the apple of my eye in 1996. I. was. obsessed.

Literally, I just couldn't get enough of him. His high pitched "Ohhhhhhh yeahs" in mmm bop just really got me going.

Oh and his hair flips, can't forget those.

This is what I fell in love with. The one on the left. Sooooo dreamy. I seriously thought I was going to marry him someday.

I would sit and watch the music video I taped from our VCR over and over and over. And after each time, I would press rewind and wait a full 4 minutes for it rewind and watch it again. My brother loved having an annoying little sister:)

So, my former teeny bopper crush got me thinking about the boy crushes of today.

Here's a few that come to mind. The Jonas Brothers, Zac Efron, Taylor Lautner, Rob Pattinson

And, we must not forget -

JUSTIN BIEBER!!!!

He is such a little cutie. He just might be my scared to admit, but way too cute celebrity adult boy crush.

A local radio station here in KC has been doing a giveaway for weeks now to make it onto the "Bieber Bus" for his concert tonight. I found myself almost picking up the phone numerous times to try and be the 9th caller. Is that sad I kinda want to go??

Yes, it is. But I just cant help it. I have Bieber Fever. HA HA.

Who were your teeny bopper crushes?

Uh-Oh

Oh crap. I have a big problem.

Tonight, I tried Nutella for very the first time.

I think I might have just died and gone to heaven.

I have always heard this stuff is great to spread on toast, pancakes, graham crackers or pair with a banana. I have just never tried it.

Brian helped me out by going to the store tonight and Nutella was on the list for the Protein Pancakes I plan to make Saturday morning before the Triathlon. It's a recipe I got from another Tri participant.

Apparently, these healthy pancakes are really yummy and her kids even crave them. I know Nutella isn't all that healthy, but it's all about the good fats, right?

Anyways, I opened it up to try it on a piece of toasted bread. OMG. It is to die for. It's like a chocolate, nutty surprise in your mouth.

I proceeded to eat two spoon fulls after my slice of bread. Oops.

It is so tasty! Such a yummy goodness that it is taking everything out of me to not march up to my kitchen right now and devour the entire jar.

Here's the fine print:
Nutella: 2 tbsp., 11 g fat, 200 calories
JIF Peanut Butter: 2 tbsp., 16 g fat, 190 calories

The good news is that both are good fats. The bad news is the "in moderation" part.

Uh-oh, I think I'm in BIG trouble...

The Ugly Truth

I start sentences with the word "and". I use the word "like" when I talk. I sometimes have spastic outbursts where my husband asks 'who are you?'. I frequently dance when nobody is watching. I always over analyze and worry. I am extremely gullible. I'm not very laid back. I like to plan everything. I'm pretty blunt and will tell you what I think. And I do a lot of things that people might not understand.

I also watch reality TV.

Like, a lot of it.

It's the truth and I don't try to hide it. Honestly, there probably aren't too many reality TV shows I don't watch. I love the drama, the craziness, the crying, the fighting, the immaturity and everything else that comes with it.

I just can't help it. I can't pull myself away from watching these overly addictive programs.

So, I thought it would be appropriate to blog about the upcoming, newest reality TV show to hit your screen Aug. 9. I will definitely be watching.

It looks freakin' awesome!

The Bachelor Pad

Nineteen of the most unforgettable former contestants reunite in the Bachelor mansion to compete for $250,000 and perhaps a second chance at love (errr, yeah right).

Each week, they'll square off in head-to-head challenges to compete for immunity and the opportunity to go on a date with the contestant of their choice. The winner of the challenge will then grant immunity to one of his or her dates via the presentation of a rose (so original).

At the end of each episode, the contestants will vote amongst themselves to determine which cast members will be eliminated from the competition.
 
Multiple crazies are returning including Michelle from Jake's season and Wes from Jillian's season. There are also some other well-knowns including Jake himself (boo), the Weatherman, Tenley, Gia and Kipton, just to name a few.
 
I'm sure it will packed full of drama and excitement, excessive hook ups, emotional roller-coaster outbursts, backstabbing and let's not forget...falling in love.
 
Thanks ABC, just another one to add to the list.

When It Rains, It Pours

NOTE: I must apologize in advance for how incredibly whiny this post is. It has an uber complaining tone to it. Maybe it's just because it's Monday and I'm feeling exhausted, but I needed to get it all out.

When it Rains, It Pours
This common saying fits my life perfectly right now. Actually, it fits the whole month of July and August to a perfect T.

It has been raining for quite some time now. Pouring to be exact. So much that I feel like I can't breathe.

Just to give you a little idea of how crazy my life is right now, I'm going to complain. A lot.

I can't believe it is the end of July. Better yet, it's almost August. Does anyone else feel like summer just started? Seriously? Where did it go?

Brian and I have been out of town every weekend since July 4 and will continue to be until our first free weekend on August 14. That's 6 weekends in a row. Don't get me wrong, I love that we planned all these fun weekend trips with friends and are staying busy with exciting adventures, weddings and other events, but I simply cannot keep up with the home life.

Our master bathroom is so disgustingly dirty right now, I was embarrassed when a friend stopped by last week. It is that bad. I am scared to see how much dog hair our vacuum would pick up because it has been that long since I turned on the Bissell.

FYI, I am a total neat freak. I can't stand things to be dirty. There is definitely something wrong if the house isn't clean. Luckily, Jakey Boy received a bath last night. Up until then, he was receiving mexican baths. AKA, getting sprayed with Febreeze and then rolling around on the carpet like a freak trying to get it off of him. He hates the mexi-baths.

For the past three weeks, I have worked way too many hours for my own good. It's weeks like these I wish I was paid hourly. I had two important proposals due with very tight deadlines. I was also dealing with other work-related issues that I will choose not to exploit on the world wide web. All this, coupled with extreme stress. My job rarely stresses me out beyond belief, and last week was one of them. I have never cried over work. Can't say that anymore. Thank God this week is going to be stress free at work.

I am starting to get really nervous about this Triathlon this weekend. Whose idea was this!? I know I did it last year and know what to expect, but really, it aint going to be easy.

More to complain about in reference to the home life: The long never-ending list of home improvements.  I can't stand that some of these items have been on the list for more than a year. Finish the trim, install trim border around master bath mirror, hammer in nails that are popping out of our walls then spackle and repaint over them, the list goes on and on...

I should probably refer to the list as a honey-do list. Let's be real here, Brian mostly takes care of anything involving a hammer, drill or paint. Not because I don't like to paint. Because I don't do a good enough job for him. He is super particular. I got banned after we painted our guest bedroom.

To top it all off, I am sitting here at my desk with a damn ThermaCare self-adhesive, disposable heat wrap on my lower back. Yep, my back hurts that bad from water skiing over the weekend. I am like an old freakin woman. It hurts to walk, sit down, bend over or lift anything. Lucky for me, I had some leftover ThermaCare pads from my neck injury to use this morning.

So could August 6 just get here already? I am greatly anticipating this weekend for two reasons. One, it's my last out of town weekend and I can finally get back to relaxed home life, and more importantly, it's a bachelorette party lake weekend with all the girls! Should be full of shenanigans and too much fun as usual.

Two weeks later, I'm off to the Big Apple for a girls trip. I can't wait.

Long Lost Love

Weekends at the lake are seriously the best mini vacays ever.

Sunshine, relaxation, cold beer, boating and good company. What more could you ask for?

Other than the fact that I feel like I need a vacation from our mini-vacation, our weekend at Tablerock was a blast.

Megan and Jeremy invited us to his parent's lake house so we took off Friday and headed down Thursday after work. This was our first lake trip this summer.

We seriously drank more beer and ate more food than I think is physically possible. I feel like a beached whale. An injured one at that, because I am so sore from water skiing. Not so good considering my Triathlon is only 5 days away.

Not to mention we had to make multiple beer runs because we kept running out. Or maybe we should call them Bomb and Ice runs. UV Vodka and Smirnoff. What a great idea at the time. Not so sure all of us felt that way in the mornings.

A few highlights (with way too many pictures to follow):

- I forgot how much fun it was to play drinking games with cards. It has seriously been way too long. Waterfalls, hockey and golf were the lucky winners.

- We also busted out Sorry! and Apples to Apples.

- Don't try to go on a run after an intense night of drinking in 95 degree heat. I almost died.

- I hate Busch Light, but it slowly started to taste good after a couple hours on the boat. Summer Shandy and Corona are still my drink of choice in hot weather.

- Everyone except Megan got ICED. It was my first ever. Doesn't go down so well. It was in the dryer when I went to wash towels. They got me good. If you don't know what Icing is, google it. It's the newest drinking game/prank out there. Pretty funny.

- Boys and fireworks are never a good idea.

-Don't ever catch yourself in the line of the minimal smooth water on the lake while pulling a tube behind your boat. You might get a few hand gestures from Brian.

- Hit up the gas station on the water near Kimberling City at Tablerock and you will run into a Taylor Lautner (aka Jacob in the Twilight Saga) look alike!! What a cutie (see pic below).

 

UV bombs.

Hey Brian, can you grab me a glass? BOOM!

Brian had the cooler by him all night which means he had to hand out all the beers. It was bound to happen.

Margarita Ice Pops called The Shark Attack. Best. Idea. Ever. 

Manny was an awesome co-captain.

 Taylor Lautner look-alike! LOL! He loved us. I kept telling him to imprint on me and not Bella:)

The Soon-to-Be Mr. & Mrs.

We went to a couples shower last night honoring good friends of ours - Julie and Tommy.

The Bowens hosted and it was a great Luau-themed party with wonderful, yummy food and drinks.

The couple is getting married this upcoming week in Kauai, Hawaii! Lucky, lucky. They will also visit several other islands. What a beautiful place to tie the knot!!

Congrats to these two!

Sorry about the reflection from the TV

The girls

Me and Wiseman. She will always be Wiseman.

Getting ready to play the "question" game

Wiseman calling "Killer" out for saying their most memorable moment was meeting Tommy's mom during the game. If you knew the story, you would understand:)

Tommy trying to cover his ass, but Julie is always right! Tommy is such a jokester.

The soon-to-be mommy and daddy:)

Swamp

When did it decide to get so freakin' hot outside? It is literally miserable.

110 heat index today? Are you serious? I hate this weather.

So much I'm tempted to say I hate Kansas summers because of it. And that's hard for a Kansas girl to say because the summers are all we have to look forward to. The winters don't offer jack, it's all about the summers baby.

Days like today make me ecstatic I work in a freezing cold office. So cold that I still use my space heater at my desk almost every day. I know it's crazy, but it's freezing in our office. But I'd rather be freezing than have swamp ass.

Kansas weather truly makes me question why I live here sometimes.

Here's five things I hate about Kansas' hot and humid summer days:

Jake and his hair:
Hot weather means more shedding. Which means more cleaning for me. I hate it.

Big ball of hair after brushing him. Ewwwwww.

Breakouts: 
My face keeps breaking out due to the sweat and nastiness. Especially on my forehead and in my hairline where my bike helmet rests. 

Laziness: 
This heat keeps me from wanting to exercise. I know I can workout in the gym, but as of lately, I really need to be biking and running outside to get ready for my Triathlon. 

Droopy Plants:
My poor plants. They can't even stand the heat. This is what they look like every day when I get home. And yes, I am watering them. A lot.

Hot, Sweaty Mess:
Nuff said. You can't even run errands in this weather without having to take a shower afterward. The air conditioning in the house can't keep up either.

Boo.

Rollin' on the River

This weekend was all about rollin' on a river.

And lots of drinking, eating, Louisville Chuggers, and of course, sweating. Boy, do I love this Kansas heat.

We headed down to the Elk River for a float trip with friends. As with any true camping trip, we stayed in tents. Oh fun.

Actually, it wasn't that bad, just a hot, sweaty mess. We camped at a place called The River Ranch Resort. Ha, it makes me laugh that they call it a resort. But, surprisingly, I was impressed with the facilities.

The River Ranch will always be remembered for at least two from our group. Taylor and Laura.

The reason being is that Taylor proposed Friday night!! Laura was completely blind-sided and it was the perfect setting for these two that have been dating 5 and half years!

It all started with a group toast as Taylor jumped in to talk about how great of a girlfriend Laura is. It was semi-deep and cheesy, but intended. It was very touching to be a part of. Besides the fact that my dearest husband yelled out right before it really happened, "Whoa, is something serious about to go down!?" Leave it to Brian.

Congrats to these two! How exciting!

I was fortunate enough to experience my first Louisville Chugger. I have heard about these for quite sometime now, but didn't exactly know what to expect.

Here's how it goes down:
Two plastic bats, two beers, two balls (crushed beer cans), and two drunk players.

1. Each player fills their plastic bat with beer.
2. On three, each player chugs (aka beer bongs) the beer from the bat.
3. After chugging, each player must place their head on the bat and spin 3 times. OR how ever many times their opponent has challenged them to.
4. Dizzily, the player stands up to take a pitch.
The first player to hit the ball (crushed beer can), wins.

Pretty awesome if you ask me. And even more funny to watch. It was pretty much the life of the river. We were definitely that group. See documentation below.

Here's some pictures from our fun-filled river roll.

Table for beer pong, baseball and flip cups.

Celebrating a home run score in an intense game of baseball.

The most awesome koozies ever. Attached to a strap.

The boys

The girls

 Softball buddies

Getting ready for a Louisville Chugger

Chug the beer

Spin and hope you don't fall.

Swing and hope you don't miss.

Hope everyone had a equally great, hot and humid weekend!