Currently browsing: Ladies Night Out

I decided to go another way…

Had a lovely time at the Ladies Night Out meetup last night. Woke up with a splitting headache though … lousy bugger has stubbornly stuck with me all damned day. I put in a call to my Dr’s office, but the earliest I’ll hear back from her is Monday (if I’m lucky).

Jim and I were out most of the day. This morning I went by Merle Norman and got my first trial makeup run. Jim really liked what they did and I’m happy with it overall, but I don’t care for the color of lipstick they chose (was BRIGHT red) … I think I’ll definitely go darker on the next run to see how it turns out.

What can I say, I’m a sucker for a good burgundy or crimson!

We hit up several stores around town looking at various wedding supplies. We’re looking for a good photo album, but most of what we’re seeing either aren’t big enough or aren’t practical. We hit up the Hobby Lobby in Gardendale and perused the spacious crafts, paints, and so on … but not a whole lot of wedding stuff. (bummer)

We tried the local Wal-mart, and while they didn’t have a whole lot of photo albums, they did have a lot of other things. We looked at their silk trees and flowers section … I’m thinking of making my bouquet of those instead of real flowers. It would definitely keep longer! Still haven’t found a decent flower girl basket for Jessie yet. I take that back — there were several “decent” ones, but nothing I liked.

We booked around the Galleria a bit and I found my wedding jewelry:

I hate that I didn’t get those other earrings, but after seeing these I couldn’t pass them up! They were a bit more, but were nicer quality crystals and are much fancier.

What do y’all think?

Too tired to argue

Had a MEGA busy day today. Booked my ceremony site — and got lost on the way there, LOL! I took a ton of photos … the pictures up, but Zooomr’s smartset feature doesn’t seem to be up at the moment so you’ll have to maneuver around my pics manually, sorry! (Tip: Start here and use the navigation menu at the top to view each following pic to the right.) I seen a couple prospective reception sites. One I didn’t care for and will most likely send a polite “I think we’ll go another route but thanks for your time” email; the other I absolutely LOVED but am not sure we can afford. (ARGH!)

I’ve caught up on most of my RSS feeds, read about other friends who are marrying over the summer months. Caught up on my sister-in-law’s site and read about their recent dealings with a real estate agent who’s captivated her dogs. LOL!

There’s a Ladies Night Out meetup tomorrow night. I plan on going and quite honestly NEED the time away. Clients at work have been driving me batshit crazy all week and I think I am due at least ONE drink! ??:

Jim’s driving me batshit crazy right now because in his eyes WordPress is imperfect. He’s frustrated because WordPress is blog software instead of a CMS — uh … YEAH? :lol: I know he’s not frustrated with me, but he thinks I’m mad because he’s mad. I told him I’m not, but that I’m just too tired to argue.

Wedding planning is hard, but we have great friends

Over the course of the past year I’ve gotten invitations, brochures and all other kinds of printings for everything from bridal exhibitions to destination wedding packages to luxury home. We’ve firmed up the wedding ceremony spot and will probably have the time picked out tomorrow. I’ve got to go tomorrow to pay the deposit and finalize the booking. (as well as find out all of the particulars: how much time we’ll have for setup/tear-down, what’s allowed and what’s not, etc.)

Reception places are still being reviewed. The place I originally had envisioned wasn’t at all like we expected and wouldn’t meet our needs. I’m off to review two places tomorrow and am kind of excited. It’s a headache because it’s a lot of money we’re putting down, and it’s a LOT of hassle; but when I sit still long enough to think about it, I’m almost breathless with excitement because I think it’s just now hitting me that this wedding is FINALLY happening!

I’ve contacted several alteration places about having my dress fitted and one wants me to come in Saturday — which is good because they are just down the road from Merle Norman, where I’m having my makeover done this weekend.

We’re going to be doing a lot, IMO. Part of me wishes we could do a lot more, though. We’re skipping (and skimping) on so many things so we can focus just on the really important parts. For instance, neither Jim nor I will be having attendants. As much as I would LOVE to do this, we simply can’t afford it. Also, we’re not doing a rehearsal dinner … which I don’t know if that’s a bad thing or not yet. If anything, we may just meetup somewhere with our folks and Brother Carl and go over the details if it’s REALLY necessary. We’re doing wedding favors, but will be skipping the groom and bride cakes. I don’t plan on having a luncheon or a bridal shower (unless someone insists on it).

We aren’t renting a limo or some fancy car service like many people do for the send off. (Jim has a VERY nice new sports car, but I don’t think I can fit me AND the dress in it! LOL!!!) We won’t be doing the “wedding night” thing, but if things go according to plan, we will be on our way to Disney World that night or the next morning. A lot of the things we are skipping will be to pay for that too.

We have a friend who’s agreed to DJ for us. We have a couple of friends in mind for the photography. Another friend has expressed interest in videotaping the wedding for us. Jim’s mom is helping me with the decorations and will be planning a “party” for helping me put the wedding favors together with a group of friends and Jessie. My very wonderful friends in my Ladies Night Out meetup group have already “threatened” to throw me a Bachelorette Party, so how I could I say no to that? *grins widely*

We really ARE blessed to have such great friends.

Wait … what’s this wet stuff falling from the sky?

It’s been so long since we’ve had actual rain, it’s almost as if people here have forgotten what it is! (Which probably explains why traffic STOPPED when the rain started at lunchtime today. *bangs head on dash repeatedly*)

So it’s Friday, and most everyone is pretty laid back at the end of the week. Me, I’m sitting here watching online videos of the Sowing the Seeds of Heath (health care programs for Latinas). Not the most intellectually stimulating stuff in the world, but I guess it could be worse. Heh, someone here suggested auto air conditioning system tuning tutorials as an alternative … uh, WTF? LOL! (he was once a mechanic, go figure! )

Actually, I’m letting these videos play and plan to log out of the system after each one. One of our users has reported getting “a blank screen” (empty HTML contents) or “weird characters” (ASP error message) when she logs out after watching the videos, so I’m sitting here trying to recreate the error(s).

Oh the joy! LOL

My day started off pretty shittily, Jessie’s mother was late picking her up this morning, which in turn made me late for work. Oh well, what can ya do?

(Nothing, except pray that she one day grows a brain … )

We have Jess for the whole weekend this weekend, so I’m definitely looking forward to that. I was supposed to be going to a Ladies Night Out meetup tonight, but that’s been canceled.

Oh well, at least I was fortunate to have lunch with my charming friend, Glas. We met up over at the Mushroom and had a few laughs and some delishioso grub!

I’m looking forward to a weekend of family togetherness (trapped inside by the rain, YAY! LOL!) and perhaps a little more mucking up of my website.

I’m a goober, lol

For whatever reason, my WordPress Day post didn’t go through and I was so out of it Saturday morning that I never noticed. LOL! I had a horrible headache that day and that afternoon, had laid down to take a quick nap before my Ladies Night Out meetup and damned if I didn’t sleep right through the alarm and on through the night! :shock:

So yeah, I’m a big ole goob. :oops:

Had a pretty decent weekend otherwise. Jim and I went to see Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End. It was pretty good, but I didn’t care for the ending. It left an opening for another sequel, and I think that if Disney is smart, they’d better do it and make the ending “happier” than this last one. ??:

We also watched Pan’s Labyrinth and while I am a huge fan of Guillermo del Toro‘s works, I did not care for this movie as much as I thought I would. But then again, considering I had felt kind of crappy and moody Sunday anyways (it’s a full moon, what can I say?), my mood also affects how much I like or dislike a movie the first time I watch it.

Imagine that!

So anyways, yesterday was pretty quiet. We laid around the house and I piddled with a few things on my website. Last night we met Jim’s mother at Jim ‘n Nick’s (“our restaurant”, LOL!) for a quick bite of dinner. Jessie is fully enjoying her summer now that school is out, but is a bit disappointed because her mother did not want to continue her karate lessons over the summer. Poor kid, I promised to make it up to her and Jim has already supplied her with several very large activity books/kits so she’ll have new things to do every day.

I think I might swing down to Hoover during lunch. I want to look for a new address plaque to go on our mailbox (the little sticker things we have now are horrid, lol).

How was your weekend?

Can I get an ‘Amen’?

UCLA eggheads find out what most of us knew all along:

UCLA study shows that women keep each other sane

Apparently the Beatles were right when they sang “I get by with a little help from my friends”. Well, as far as women are concerned at least. As shows like Sex and the City have shown, women tend to turn toward their girlfriends when they’re having trouble with work, kids, boyfriends, husbands and anything or anyone else out there that adds stress to their lives.

I know when I’ve had a bad day the only thing that I really want to do is get together with friends for a chat. We don’t even have to talk about the cause of my troubles. Just having those girls to joke and laugh with makes all the difference. I imagine that most of you ladies out there also have a great group of women friends, or even just one best girlfriend, who you turn to for support and comfort on a regular basis.

Have you ever wondered why we girls gravitate toward each other for emotional support? According to a study by UCLA — which is reported on here — when a woman is feeling stress her brain releases chemicals which counteract the typical “fight or flight response” that is prevalent in men, and instead encourages her to stick around and congregate with fellow females. According to the article, the effects of the hormone oxytocin, which is responsible for this reaction, is enhanced by estrogen and diminished by testosterone. So while men would often rather work out problems on their own, women are programmed to go to each other for support.

Like I’ve said before, I don’t know what I’d do without my friends.

Doggies and Kitties at Do Dah Day, Do Dah, Do Dah, …

I’m in a silly mood today.

I’m leaving work early today. Jim and I are going car shopping after lunch, so he’s picking me up and we’re going to ride around for a bit. I’m hoping he finds something he likes, and with any luck I’ll have my car back to drive next week (I’ve been carpooling with a couple friends who work here). Let me tell ya, I’ll be *SO* happy to have my car back! :lol:

I’m really looking forward to Do Dah Day tomorrow. The weather is supposed to be nice, and so Jess and I have already started packing things up to take with us. Jim’s mother, his brother and family, the lovely Teresa, and my Ladies Night Out meetup group are meeting us over near Caldwell Park to kick off the festivities tomorrow.

Any local readers going? Feel free to drop on by if you see us!

So, how was your weekend?

I had a horrible headache Friday afternoon. Actually, I’ve had several really bad headaches lately (has anyone else’s allergies been acting up as much as mine?). On the ride home Friday evening, I was dreading my usual greeting of “Hi honey, how’s your day? What’s for dinner?” LOL!

In my head, I was cursing the fact that I had meant to (and forgotten to) call Jim before he left work and ask that he pick up something for dinner on the way home because I felt lousy and most likely wouldn’t feel like cooking and pretty much just wanted to go straight to bed. I got home and was greeted by a realization …

… I have a very good man.

Jim had taken it upon himself to pick up my favorite frozen lasagna dinner (Sam’s brand 9-layer, with a creamy Béchamel sauce) and had it already cooking when I walked through the door. In fact, he had it timed so that it would be done cooking just after I got home.

What a man.

Saturday I went shopping with my mother and grandmother. Picked up a new pair of sneakers (my old ones were literally falling apart at the seams!) and a few things to wear to work. I got a little hassling because I hadn’t planned on going over to Mom and Dad’s yesterday for Mother’s Day. ??:

I can’t please everyone, so why bother?

Or at least that’s the attitude I had yesterday. I’m not usually one who avoids something or someone, but yesterday was the day I wanted to be left alone and refused to deal with anything or anyone. I was feeling a little down, and it being Mother’s Day didn’t help. For the last couple of years Mother’s Day has had an entirely new meaning … Jessie had made me a Mother’s Day gift at school and her mother saw it and had a fit. Ever since then, Jessie has avoided making me anything or wishing me a Happy Mother’s Day because of her mother’s actions.

To her credit, her mother is a lot easier to deal with nowadays and wouldn’t have reacted that way today, but that one incident still affects Jessie’s behavior — and still affects me. I know I shouldn’t let her get to me, and I know Jessie loves me, but it hurt. And so yesterday I wallowed and sulked about. I had a good couple cries and am feeling a lot better today.

I’m really looking forward to this upcoming weekend. My Ladies Night Out MeetUp group is getting together for Do Dah Day. The lovely Teresa is going as well. Plus, I found out this morning that Jim’s brother and his family are coming in early this weekend because I had told Jim’s mother about Do Dah Day and they wanted to come too … so we’re going to have a HUGE gathering. :mrgreen:

I’m planning on calling Jessie’s mother tonight to see if she’ll let us have her for the entire weekend, as I’m sure she’d LOVE to go to Do Dah Day with us; and Jim’s mother is planning a big to-do Sunday to celebrate “Grandma’s Day” (belated Mother’s Day, but happier, LOL). So unless she already has big plans, I figure she’ll be pretty accommodating, which will be cool and Jess will have a ball. :cool:

Weekend wrapup

Had a fun weekend and a pretty good birthday overall. We spent most of yesterday with friends. Then headed to Jim’s mom’s house and spent the afternoon and evening with his brother and his family. We all got together and swung by the bowling alley in Fultondale and had a good time there. I realized something about myself — apparently bowling is like playing pool: I play better when drinking. LOL! The kids all played one game and we adults played two … I never broke 100 in either. LOL! Oh well, so I suck as a bowler. ;P

After that, we went back to Jim’s mom’s place for pizza and movies then came home. My brother called to wish me a happy birthday right as we were walking in the door, so it was great hearing from him. I think my dad is supposed to swing by my house tonight to drop off my card. I missed a Ladies Night Out meetup Friday night, but luckily we are having another in a couple of weeks.

A quick reminder: The Birmingham & Huntsville Bloggers meetup is this Wednesday!

So far Jessie is enjoying her Spring Break. We’ve watched Animal Planet all morning. She’s really looking forward to the A-Day game this weekend. I’ve got to start stockpiling a few things to take with us Saturday: a cooler, drinks, blankets, snacks, etc. At some point I’ll need to pick up a kit with emergency supplies (just in case).

The job search still goes on … my thanks to those who’ve had me in their thoughts and prayers. Just about everyone I talked to this weekend asked if I’d heard from <prospective hopeful> — not yet, but I’m hoping it’s SOON!

Before I forget!! B’ham/Huntsville Bloggers Meetup next week

The Alabama Bloggers meetup is next Wednesday, April 18th. If you haven’t already, be sure to drop by the Google Group and sign up to get the event details, directions, carpool info, and to RSVP.

Alabama Bloggers

Visit this group

I’ve been really excited about attending this group. I’ve had to drop a couple of other MeetUps just because they didn’t meet often enough (or at all), or the conversation topics were so … um … lame. I kid you not, for one social group, during my first meeting there, they talked for over 2 hours about furniture. ORDINARY furniture. Not even anything like you’d find at Pier 1, the Club Home Furniture site, or other nice places … just ordinary “stuff.” I swear, one girl went on and on about her favorite bean-bag chair — don’t get me wrong, I love ‘em too … but I won’t ramble on for a freakin’ HOUR about them! :shock:

The next time I went, they talked about something else (I don’t remember what now, I think it was band-aids … seriously!), and bored the pants off of me (Ok, not literally, but you get the idea!), so I dropped them. ;P

Anyways, so I’m pretty much down to web design, ladies night out, and alabama bloggers (which after this month won’t be on MeetUp.com anymore!). As long as those keep up pretty steady, I should be pretty well covered. :mrgreen:

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