Reality Show Boo hooing...

Did y'all think I was ever coming back? My sincerest apologies for being gone for so long and the blogging hiatus...I will blog about our trips soon, but for now...

I watched the Biggest Loser night before last. I'm not a huge fan meaning I don't watch every week, but I was flipping channels and started watching and then a couple of the girls started telling their "stories" and why they had turned to food. I was boo hooing like a little baby. So touching...I can't imagine facing what Abby has faced losing her ENTIRE family.

Needless to say I will probably tune in next week.

So, I hope you've all had a fabulous couple of weeks! What are your Halloween plans and what are you dressing up as?

Many Thanks...

You ladies just amaze me! Thank you for your sweet comments on my last post!

I am VERY excited today! We leave after work for my old college town to take part in the homecoming festivities with at least 5 of my best friends and their spouses and/or significant others! I know That said my blogging may be slightly limited over the next week. Tyke's birthday is Monday (and I didn't end up having throwing the puppy party for him because we've been so busy) and I am making him a cake I found online. I'll try and share the recipe with y'all on Monday. I have meetings in a nearby city next Tuesday and then the hubs and I leave for Ft. Worth for the TML conference on Wednesday. We finish up Friday morning early and then are staying in Dallas for the weekend just to play. So, I have a lot to do around the office before then. Now if I only had a new wardrobe to go with my upcoming travels, I'd be set.

The Wife from The Cobia Family was sweet enough to nominate me for the "Over The Top" blog award. I greatly appreciate it! Again, you are too kind!

RuLeS...

1) You can only use one word.

2) Share this award with 5 of your favorite bloggers.

3) Alert them that you have given this award.

4) Have fun!

1. Where is your cell phone? Desk
   
2. Your Hair? Clean


3. Your Mother? Work


4. Your Brother? None
   
5. Your Favorite Food? Italian
6. Your dream last night? Nope
   
7. Your dream/goal? Career/Family


8. What room are you in? Office


9. Your hobby? Running


10. Your Fear? abandonment


11. Where do you want to be in 6 years? successful


12. Where were you last night? (Book) Club


13. Something that you aren't? conceited


14. Muffins? Blueberry


15. Wish list item? furniture


16. Where did you grow up? Texas


17. Last thing you did? run


18. What are you wearing? ORANGE


19. Your TV? off


20. Your Pets? adorable


21. Your Friends? FaBuLoUs


22. Your Life? busy


23. Your Mood? excited


24. Missing Someone? friends


25. Vehicle? Edge


26. Something your not wearing? necklace


27. Your Favorite Store? Express


28. Your favorite color? red


29. When was the last time you laughed? yesterday


30. Last time you cried? (last) week


31. Your Best Friend? several


32. One place you go to over and over? Colorado


33. One person who e-mails you regularly? Christie


34. Favorite place to eat? Crush
    

And my apologies, but I don' t have time to nominate and tag some of you other lovelies today, but I will try to next week. Have a wonderful weekend!

Silent Victories???

Y'all, I keep reading things that say sometimes it's better to keep your accomplishments to yourself and not share them...and to an extent I agree with that, but I completed my first ever 10 mile run yesterday and I just have to share it with someone. You'll still love me, right?

I was SO not looking forward to this run because a) it was my longest to date and b) my running partner wasn't able to run at the same time so I was going at it solo. It's SO much harder to pace myself and push myself when I'm by myself. I had dreaded it ALL DAY LONG, but when I got off of work the weather was perfect. Mid-50s, hardly any wind...I always run better in cooler weather than warmer weather. So I started out on a familar route and ran 6 miles before my first water break. I stopped for a few minutes and grabbed my knee band because my knee had started bothering me around mile 5. After my break I set out on a undetermined route and ran a mile around our turfed football field, which relieved my joints immensely. By the time I finished it was dark and sprinkling. But, I finished and I felt pretty good. I was a little slow from my goal pace time, but I can live with that.

Now that this has become my "hobby" I find myself wanting the latest gear, workout attire, etc. I think it's just the girl in me. Hope y'all are having a wonderful Tuesday!

Quotable Friday and Another Blog Award...

Loving the difficult people in our lives has really been on my heart a lot lately. Here's a point from a sermon that I wanted to share for Quotable Friday. "Be creative in your hospitality; look for new ways to make others feel accepted and valued and loved." A good one to apply to the workplace or anywhere for that matter that I also try and live by is "Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully."

Y'all are just too sweet to me! Ashley at Ramirez Family gave me the Your Blog is Fabulous Award.

The rules are as follows.

1) Thank the person who nominated you for this award. Thank you so much, Ashley!

2) Copy the logo and place it on you blog.

3) Link to the person who nominated you for this award. (How do I do that again?) 4) Name 5 things I am obsessed with. 5) Nominate 5 FaBuLoUs bloggers.

Things I am obsessed with...

1) My Garmin Forerunner 305. I don't know what I'd do without it on Sundays when I do my long runs. (10 miles coming up this Sunday morning and it's gonna be cold! The high for the day is only 42 degrees and it's supposed to get down in the 20's during the night. So, I'm guessing at 6 a.m. it's still going to be pretty chilly!)

2) My iPod Shuffle. Yes, it's only a shuffle, but again, I use it every time I work out. I chose the San Antonio Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon because there is a band set up every mile of the race. And since you're not allowed to use any type of mp3 player, this was VERY important to me! I don't see how people run without listening to something.

3) My cameras. I have a Canon Digital Rebel and a Canon Elph and I typically carry at least one of them with me EVERYWHERE! (Too bad I haven't printed off any of my pictures from the last year. That's my only complaint with digital photography.)

4) Earl Grey Lattes. Since it's gotten colder I have one every morning and sometimes in the afternoon. Yummy!

5) Our Fireplace. Growing up I always wanted a fireplace so when we bought a house that was one of my requirements. We light a fire EVERY evening we're home in the fall and winter!

I nominate the following Fabulous Bloggers...

1) Confessions of a Domestic Goddess

2) Courtney at Starting Out

3) Mrs. Guru at Off the Beaten Path

4) Heather at Step Inside

Y'all have a wonderful weekend! I think it's going to be quite chilly in the panhandle!

A Manicotti Recipe

Ok, I have GOT to get better about taking pictures of what I cook because I pick recipes sometimes based on the little picture above them, but I never think of it until later.

Monday night I got home and had set out all of the stuff for stew and I thought, "that sounds boring". So, I pulled what I had and made crab manicotti. My friend, Laura, made manicotti ALL THE TIME in college and it was always so yummy! I was nervous about how it would turn out, but the hubs LOVED it! So, I thought I'd share it with you all.

Crab Manicotti

Ingredients:

8 Manicotti Pasta Shells

3-1/4 cup your favorite spaghetti sauce (I used Progresso.)

1-15oz container of Ricotta

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan

1/2 can spinach (I would have preferred fresh, but I went with what was on hand.)

1/2 small can of chopped black olives

1/2 pkg of crab meat (or imitation crab if you are landlocked like us and 45 miles from a store big enough to offer the real thing)

A sprinkle of salt, pepper, Tony Chatcheres (spelling?), Parsley

Directions: Bring water to a boil and add Manicotti Shells. Cook for 6 minutes and then removed from water and lay on foil to cool. Shred crab meat and combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Pour and additional 1/4 cup of spaghetti sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch pan, stuff shells with mixture and lay in pan, cover shells with remaining mixture, add another 1/4 cup of spagetti sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake for 20-30 minutes on 350. Enjoy!

Family Birthday Fun...

Let me just start off by saying, I LOVE MY FAMILY...

Friday after work we headed south to my parents'. It had been awhile since we'd spent an entire weekend at their place so I think we were all having withdrawals. Here's Marty expressing his love for my fur baby.

Saturday, Mom and I were lazy, but we finally got around and went to lunch and a local arts and crafts show. I got some cute blingy bracelets (you can see a few of them in the below picture on my right hand). This picture was taken Sunday after church.

Sunday I got up EARLY and met Tamara and we ran 9 miles. Again, it was rough. For some reason mile four was hard for me and then I was fine until about mile 7.5 and my knee started giving me fits. The weather was perfect, though. Cloudy, wet and cool. I was so glad to have our long run out of the way before church. My Gma and JoePa met us at church and we all went out to eat for Gma, Mom and Joe's birthdays that were all last week and then they came back to the house for a while. It was a lovely time. I am so blessed to have these people in my life. Mom and I watched Ghosts of Girlfriends Past after my grandparents left; it was really cute! I was not ready to come back to C-town and work on Monday morning.

Marty and Me

My house is in serious need of attention after being gone all weekend, but it was worth it. M has softball tonight and I'll be tuning into The Hills and The City...I know what you're thinking, but I love them both!

Quotable Friday...

This picture was taken by our dear friend, Robin, one Fall in East Texas. It seems we never make it back in time to see the colors change like this...

I know I missed 'Quotable Friday' last Friday, but this Friday, I'm back so the quote for the is one from my personal quote collection. It makes me think of Fall, nostalgia and it is hunting to season; to which means my husband has caught the fever and cannot wait to enhale the crisp fall mornings before sunrise.

"All things on Earth point to home in Old October; sailors to sea, travelers to walls and fences, hunters to field and hollow and the long voice of the hounds, the lover to the love he has forsaken." - Thomas Wolfe

Hope you all have a beautiful, blessed weekend! We are celebrating the birthdays. My grandmom's birthday was Wednesday, Mom's was yesterday and today is JoePa's. So we are headed South to spend the weekend with my parents and celebrate with everyone on Sunday. Sunday is also my long run (9 miles), so wish me luck. My knee and ankle have been bothering me lately. I think it's all the pounding on the treadmill and street, but it makes me feel old to admit that I have joint pain!