Pumpkins with my Punkins

Fall is just the greatest. This weekend was joyous. I got off work 30 min early Friday. Great start to the weekend! Andy and I had a "date night." While dating ... we used to go on dates frequently (hints why it is called dating), but now they are few and far between. So Friday was really fun and special.

We went to dinner and a movie. We saw Taken 2 ... I thought it was good! Very action packed, but alot similar to the first one.

Saturday Andy didn't have to work until 3:00. So we had the morning together. I love mornings. We got up and drank coffee and made pancakes! Yum. Pancakes are a frequent thing for us. We ran some errands and dressed our dog up like a pumpkin. Precious. She wouldn't move in it. I think she thought she was being attacked. We were just practicing for Halloween. We are going to be a Pumpkin Patch as a family :) 

Then we ate lunch with Andy's family! After that we got our PUMPKIN! Ahh... I love fall. I love pumpkins! I can't wait to carve this beauty!

Saturday night I got ice cream with some of my very best friends. A great way to end a wonderful Saturday!

Sunday was an adventure. Andy and I have decided to take up a new hobby. Tennis! Sunday we started our new hobby. It went better than I imagined. I haven't played since I was little, so I was a little rusty! Andy was very patient in helping me regain my mad tennis skills.

My parents came and met us and we played doubles. I don't know if you know this but my dad almost went pro in tennis many moons ago. Then he got tennis elbow and took up baseball instead. He went on to play baseball for the Volunteers ... He was an incredible athlete in his day.  The teams were a little uneven given that I was a total newb ... but still very fun!

We ended our Sunday with a warm bowl of Veggie Soup! I let it simmer for 10 hours. The flavor was AMAZING!

Well thats all folks! Happy Monday

Oh to be little again

A woman from the office had her 10 month old son with her. I reallllllllllllllly miss being around kids everyday so I freaked at the opportunity to spend time with this precious little boy! I got down on the floor with him and crawled around, I made funny faces at him, and I tickled his belly. I had SO much fun. It got me thinking about being little. Sometimes I miss being a kid. Do you? So what is so great about being a kid???? I started making a mental list of all the things I miss about being a kid ...then I decided I should share my mental list.

I miss...

Playing all day everyday

Not having to match my clothes

Picking my nose and eating my boogers and not thinking a thing of it

Friendship necklaces

Boys having cooties

Playing beauty parlor (but always getting stuck with dads short hair because Calli wanted mom)

Eating peanut butter and jelly EVERYDAY

Holding mom and dads hand and having them count to three and then pick me up and swing me

Watching Nickelodean. Hi there. Face here.

Playing organ trail

Pigtails

Climbing trees

Playing capture the flag... SPUD and ghost in the graveyard

Dress up clothes

Making my parents pay to come watch me perform a dance in the living room

Baby bottle pop. Enough said

Jellies and Keds (my two fav shoes when I was little)

Overalls. Oh wait I still wear those sometimes

The great news is when you have kids you get to relive all the fun things about being little (I think) because you walk through it with your children. How fun. Can't wait.

S'more pleaseeee

We went camping this weekend! By we I mean a whole group of people, not just Andy and I. We went Up to Max Patch. The leaves were changing and it was beautiful.

We had cold/rainy weather ... but it really wasn't too bad!

We roasted mallows, sat around the camp fire, and slept on the ground. Yup. Sounds like camping to me!

I really enjoy camping. I like to think of myself as a mutt. No not a dog ... but in the human sense! I like to dress up and do "girly" things, but I also like to be sporty and get dirty and be outdoorsy. See. I'm a mutt.

I went for just one night, which was the perfect amount of camping for me :)!

I really love all the people we were with, which just made it so fun. My fav part about camping is that you just get to sit around and talk. Ah I love it.

The Smiley Faces :)

Meet my best friends from college ...

How did this happen? Nobody really knows. The four of us are so incredibly different it is funny. Ok lets be honest. Chi Omega was what brought us all together. (Hi le hi low hi lep lep lep those Chi O girls have pep pep pep) We all met our first year at UT, but it wasn't until living in laurel that the true bonding began :). I'm not sure if it was the endless amount of trips to Menchies in Farragut ... or the countless Friday nights we spent on our couch together ... but somehow we all became friends.

Let me introduce you to my friends:

Rob. Robin is a Diva. She is a fashionista, and loves to look good. She won't like you until you give her a reason to. Yup. Diva.

Laine. Laine is the funny one. Just being around her will put a smile on your face. She is such a joy to be around, and always the life of the party.

Lauren. Lauren is a souther bell. There is no better way to put it. She is as sweet as can be ... and can make a simple story 3 hourse long (love you Lauren!).

It makes me sad that we are all so far apart now. But that makes being reunited oh so fun. I got to see Robin this past weekend, and I am so looking forward to seeing Laine and Lauren at Amy Beth's wedding.

So thankful for these sweet friends.

My Current Obsessions

Yup. It is that time again. I know you are all just dying to know what I am currently obsessed with :)

1. Magic Bullet.

I LOVE my Magic Bullet. It can take on any challenge. I use it to make hummus, cut veggies, smoothies, etc. I make smoothies the most in it! Then I freeze them and take it to work with me for lunch. You should try it.

2. Fall Decorations.

DUHHHHH. Who doesn't love fall decorations in the fall! I got these cute little things at Trader Joes for $0.65! What a steal. I smile just about every time I walk by them. Happy Fall Ya'll.

3. Hair Curlers

I am old fashioned. These are the actual curlers I use. Hot curlers. I let them get really hot and them put them in and leave them until they are totally cooled. It is just about the only thing that will curl my hair and actually stay.

4. Crockpot

Crockpots are the greatest thing in the whole wide world ... especially for working women. It is so great. You can just put an entire meal in and turn it on in the morning ... come home from work and ... TADA dinner is ready! I want to give the person who invented the crockpot a hug.

5. Almond Butter

It is like peanut butter but better ... and better for you. Don't get the already mixed kind that comes in a jar. Go to Earthfare or somewhere like it and grind it yourself! I like to add honey to it too. Have it on a sandwhich or an apple. Delicious.

6. Chargrilled Chicken Sandwhich and a Baked Potato

YUM!

7. Today Show

I have always loved the Today Show. But how fun that KLG and Hoda came to Knoxville. :) Good ole Rocky Top. Wooh! I turn it on in the mornig while I am getting ready and get little clips here and there about what is going on in the world. Thanks Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie for waking me up every morning.

8. Colored Skinny Jeans

I recently got these mint skinny jeans from Jcrew. They are really comfortable! I can get away with wearing them to work if I wear them with a nice top.

9. Post-it Notes

Aren't they just the greatest? I have always loved these ... but now that I am working I use them ALL the time. No joke. I probably use a stack a week.

10. Recycling

Last but not least. Recycling. This is new for me. I have never been a recycler before. My parents never recycled (oops ... sorry environment), but Andy grew up recycling and my office recycles. So now I recycle. Why not recycle? It is an easy way to help out.

Well ... thats all i've got. Until next time.

Happy Heart

Meet my small group (minus our leader Lauren) ...

From left to right: Me, Kyle, Becca, Becca, Jenn, Chelc, and Meghan.

These girls know me well.

We have cried, laughed, and walked through the past few years of life together.

There is nothing better than feeling comfortable.

I feel comfortable with this group.

Last night I had dinner with these girls (minus Kyle because she is no longer in Knoxville). Lauren opened up her home, and welcomed us all back with a very yummy meal. My heart was happy being back together as a group. We took a break over the summer, and decided to reconvene as of yesterday. I could not be more excited to walk through this new season of life with these people right by my side. In all the newness and change that has been going on in my life recently it is nice to have the something so familiar, this group.

Old friendships. New beginnings. I can't wait.  

Update

Once again weekends are great. I feel like I say this every week ... but it is true. Working has made me so appreciate the weekends.

Friday after work Andy and I ate dinner in. We had a crockpot chicken meal that was delicious. I'll share the recipe sometime. After dinner we had good intentions to get out and do something fun :). We were going to go downtown and walk around and then go see that new baseball movie. Halfway through dinner we both realized how tired we were, so we opted out of going downtown and rented a redbox instead. We watced Men of Valor. Great movie. Intense though.

Saturday Andy opened. While he worked I got caught up on housework, and went on a walk with my sister. Later that day Andy's twin (Ben) and his wife (Grace) came over to watch the UT game. Grace had this cute little thing with her ...

He is her Godchild. He is 4 months old and PRECIOUS. He is so calm. I have never met a baby like this! I had fun holding him, playing peekaboo, and making him laugh. Babies are great (don't want one yet though). Colbie was so into the baby! She couldn't get enough of this little creature!

We finished the last quarter of the game eating with my parents. I was sad the vols couldn't pull out a win. Boo.

I spent Saturday night with friends in market square. Isn't downtown Knoxville just the coolest?

Sunday day was nothing out of the ordinary. Church, lunch, and spending time outside while it is still warm enough to. Sunday night we went to dinner with the Fennell clan to celebrate Andy and Ben's Birthdays. We went to Chop House! Yum! So Andy is officially 23 and his birthday week is OVER.

Now back to the work week. Happy Monday everyone.