Gifts
Um...read about my shopping trip. Enough said.
Today, I was thankful for:
1--Destiny. She makes me so happy. It is completely impossible to be around her and not be happy.
2--Joel and CD. Nothing makes me giddier than seeing my boys after a long day.
3--RAIN.
4--Being able to email my mom and Grannie Annie. I LOVE it. It makes my days.
5--Last night, as Joel was falling asleep, and I was wide awake for the first of many hours, and we were snuggling, he said, "this is my favorite part of every day."And, for that, I am thankful.
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Girls Just Want to Have Fun...And SHOP!
The title of the post was almost "Today was the Greatest," but I'm starting to worry that you all might think I live in a sort of La-La Land with all of my awesome-day posts, and also I know how jealous you all might be getting at how amazing my life is. Fear not, though, there will be days were I'm miserable and days where I'm beyond miserable, and you read my boring, tearful posts and think, "today, I'm thankful for not being that Casi Clark girl." Also, I didn't get a chance to write this post last night, which is another reason why it's not called "Today was the Greatest."
So, as you know, we leave for our house boat trip soon, and there is much to be done before we leave. The first three days of this week are going to be crazy in our house, because Joel is working like a mad man getting ready for his upcoming Fourth of July event, and because I--for some strange reason--scheduled myself to be crazy-busy with work as well. In this time, someone is going to have to shop for the things we need for the trip, do all of our laundry, clean our house, have a few staple groceries bought for when we come back exhausted, pack us up, and load our car. Who, you ponder, might be expected do to all this? Why, me, of course.
When I woke up yesterday, with all my huge To Do list staring in the face, I did what most normal people would do--lie in bed until I could no longer justify an extra minute of rest, then get up and wander aimlessly around the house, unaware of where to start. No one kicks my ass into gear quite like my good friend, Destiny, so I called her into action. She--as always--was ready at moment's notice to head to Owensboro for a joint office day to help me get some things done (and I may or may not have lured her here with the promise of a shopping trip when we were finished).
So let's fast forward to that part since the other stuff is boring. (Side note: I introduced her to the Big Dipper, and she's now a believer. I, proudly, did NOT eat a banana split while we were there.) Destiny and I decided that when it comes to shopping for us, you go big or home, so instead of a simple trip to Target and TJ Maxx, we drove to Evansville. I had a handful of coupons and special offers and a long list of things Joel and I needed for the trip. We ended up going to Express (twice), The Limited, Victoria's Secret, Forever 21, Old Navy, and Target. We drooled over many, many more stores, but resisted spending more money than we already had.
There are few things I love more in this world than bargain shopping, and your life would be way less exciting if I didn't share with you the amazing bargains I got yesterday. So here's what was purchased: (I'm excluding the Target stop. Who cares about sunscreen and boxed wine? Yes, Eville's Target sells boxed wine!!)
For Joel: 8 shirts, 1 pair of shorts, 1 pair of pants, 1 pair swim trunks
For Casi: 7 shirts, 1 dress, 2 pairs of shorts, 1 pair yoga pants, 2 pairs of sunglasses, 7 pairs of undies, 1 pair of flip flops, and a sun hat (oops, the scales were maybe tipped in my favor)
This would have totaled $775. Because of my bargain abilities, it actually cost: $275. AND I got $80 worth of "cash" to spend at Old Navy and Express when we get home. Yes, friends, I'm shocked and amazed at myself too. And, yes, I will go shopping with you anytime!
Finally, when my credit card started getting declined (I'm not even kidding, I spent so much money in such a short period of time in a different state that my bank thought my card had been stolen, and they cut it off. BB&T, thank you for protecting me from thieves. Please stop protecting me from myself), we decided to head back home only to be met with the biggest storm we've had in months (also the only storm we've had in months). After driving 20 mph back to Owensboro, Dee decided she probably shouldn't venture back to Bowling Green just yet, and came in to hang out a while.
We spent the rest of the evening lying in bed, drinking wine, eating turkey and cheese wraps, and watching Girls. (We also made the decision to only refer to text messages as Word Alerts from this point forward. Thank you, Jessa from Girls.) After hours of laughing--and me generally holding her hostage--she headed home to her boys, and I headed out to the tiny lake on the outskirts of Owensboro to pick up my boys (Joel and CD) because our car is stuck in the mud down there. Awesome.
See? Amazing, right? If it makes you feel better, it's not all rainbows and butterflies. I didn't sleep a wink and have a huge day of work ahead of me... Unless, of course, I can convince Destiny to come back and go on a Coozie hunt with me!!
So, as you know, we leave for our house boat trip soon, and there is much to be done before we leave. The first three days of this week are going to be crazy in our house, because Joel is working like a mad man getting ready for his upcoming Fourth of July event, and because I--for some strange reason--scheduled myself to be crazy-busy with work as well. In this time, someone is going to have to shop for the things we need for the trip, do all of our laundry, clean our house, have a few staple groceries bought for when we come back exhausted, pack us up, and load our car. Who, you ponder, might be expected do to all this? Why, me, of course.
When I woke up yesterday, with all my huge To Do list staring in the face, I did what most normal people would do--lie in bed until I could no longer justify an extra minute of rest, then get up and wander aimlessly around the house, unaware of where to start. No one kicks my ass into gear quite like my good friend, Destiny, so I called her into action. She--as always--was ready at moment's notice to head to Owensboro for a joint office day to help me get some things done (and I may or may not have lured her here with the promise of a shopping trip when we were finished).
There are few things I love more in this world than bargain shopping, and your life would be way less exciting if I didn't share with you the amazing bargains I got yesterday. So here's what was purchased: (I'm excluding the Target stop. Who cares about sunscreen and boxed wine? Yes, Eville's Target sells boxed wine!!)
For Joel: 8 shirts, 1 pair of shorts, 1 pair of pants, 1 pair swim trunks
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| NEW CLOTHES!! |
This would have totaled $775. Because of my bargain abilities, it actually cost: $275. AND I got $80 worth of "cash" to spend at Old Navy and Express when we get home. Yes, friends, I'm shocked and amazed at myself too. And, yes, I will go shopping with you anytime!
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| The storm was so bad, at one point, we saw this. |
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| Me and Dee |
See? Amazing, right? If it makes you feel better, it's not all rainbows and butterflies. I didn't sleep a wink and have a huge day of work ahead of me... Unless, of course, I can convince Destiny to come back and go on a Coozie hunt with me!!
Monday, July 2, 2012
I'm Sailing Away
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| What the boat looks like in my head |
Alright friends, the excitement in our house is building because we leave for a house boat trip in T minus four days. (I have to note that when I say the excitement is building,I mean for me. Joel rarely gets excited about much. We were once on an airplane flying to Costa Rica for an 11 day trip, and I was so excited I'd already peed four times and my face hurt from smiling. When I turned to him and squealed, 'aren't you excited?!?' he replied, 'sure, babe.' That's it. Sure, babe.)
So in a few days, we leave for our house boat trip with several other couples, and I'm both nervous and excited about it. Nervous? You might ask. Let me explain.
First, I'm nervous about my tolerance. I know that you all think I'm this young whipper snapper who can hang with the best of them, but you'd be wrong about that. You see, my alcohol tolerance has declined drastically in the last few years. In and right after college, I had quite the impressive ability to drink whatever I wanted whenever I wanted and still appear to be somewhat normal. You can google this condition, I think it's called alcoholism. But now I underestimate how much I can drink and still be normal. Let me break it down for you.
So in a few days, we leave for our house boat trip with several other couples, and I'm both nervous and excited about it. Nervous? You might ask. Let me explain.
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| What the boat really looks like |
First, I'm nervous about my tolerance. I know that you all think I'm this young whipper snapper who can hang with the best of them, but you'd be wrong about that. You see, my alcohol tolerance has declined drastically in the last few years. In and right after college, I had quite the impressive ability to drink whatever I wanted whenever I wanted and still appear to be somewhat normal. You can google this condition, I think it's called alcoholism. But now I underestimate how much I can drink and still be normal. Let me break it down for you.
If I have more than three drinks, I will most certainly wake up the next day thinking, 'did I honestly say that last night???' and have to avoid one or more of the people I embarrassed myself in front of for the next few days. If I have more than four drinks, I will likely dance inappropriately--music or no--and demand some sort of greasy food before bed. (I will, I warn you, talk about this desired food until I annoy someone into getting it for me. Ask any of my friends.) And any more than that, and I will absolutely puke. (Joel got to witness this about a month ago. Honeymoon=long over.) I also am a hangover expert because I almost always have them. So you can imagine how thinking about a house boat trip with people younger than myself might make me terrified that on the very first night, I'll have a few too many, say something ridiculous, booty dance with myself, and vomit everywhere making everyone regret inviting me in the first place. The only good thing that can happen at that point would be if I stumbled overboard. At least I wouldn't have to look those people in the face the next morning.
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| What I think I look like when I'm dancing |
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| What I actually look like |
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| Casi, post-sunburn |
I'm also a little nervous about motion sickness. (For the record, if this does happen, motion sickness will be the excuse I have for barfing on, off, or around the boat.) The only other time I've been on a moving vessel for a prolonged amount of time was a day-long dolphin siting trip my family took when I was in middle school. My mom, as a preventive measure, fed us all Dramamine for breakfast that day, and we boarded the ship. I had--and still have--an unusually low tolerance for medicines and proceeded to lay down for a minute in my grandfather's lap until I felt better. The next thing I know, they were waking me up to get off the boat. I'd slept through the whole trip, and my sweet grandfather had missed all the action, because I was drooling all over him the entire time. So, honestly, I don't even know if I get motion sickness because my mom roofied me the one and only time I had the chance to find out.
I'm terrified of getting sun burnt as well. When most people will be carrying on cases of beer, I'll be carrying on cases of sunscreen. And reapplying every five minutes just to make sure. I am the whitest white girl alive; I make Lindsay Lohan look like a native American--don't let my fake tan fool you--I'm part albino and have been known to burn going from the car to the house. And there's nothing more miserable than being sun burnt on a trip. Except, maybe, for being the girl who won't stop puking.
Now, aside from being a little nervous about my tolerance, my paleness, and my feared motion sickness, I'm utterly and completely excited about the trip. I can't wait to spend time with good friends away from work (the bat phone stays home!), near the water, and miles away from anything I can worry about. And at least if I throw up and act inappropriately or have vertigo the whole time, I'll have something good to write about when I get home.
I'm terrified of getting sun burnt as well. When most people will be carrying on cases of beer, I'll be carrying on cases of sunscreen. And reapplying every five minutes just to make sure. I am the whitest white girl alive; I make Lindsay Lohan look like a native American--don't let my fake tan fool you--I'm part albino and have been known to burn going from the car to the house. And there's nothing more miserable than being sun burnt on a trip. Except, maybe, for being the girl who won't stop puking.
Now, aside from being a little nervous about my tolerance, my paleness, and my feared motion sickness, I'm utterly and completely excited about the trip. I can't wait to spend time with good friends away from work (the bat phone stays home!), near the water, and miles away from anything I can worry about. And at least if I throw up and act inappropriately or have vertigo the whole time, I'll have something good to write about when I get home.
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Gifts and Thankfulness Vol. 4 and 5
Saturday gift:
ANOTHER banana split. Seriously, I have to stop.
Sunday gift:
Another hour of sleep. It was amazing.
Saturday I was thankful for:
1--Being able to be spontaneous. When we want to grab our stuff and head to the lake at a moment's notice, we can.
2--Joel being attentive when we're out places--like the lake--and grilling me hot dogs (I refuse to say how many) when no one else is hungry, because I'm about to starve to death.
3--Coming home after a long day and plopping down in bed. There's nothing better.
Sunday, I am thankful for:
My family. They're crazy and sometimes they drive me nuts, but they're mine. And I wouldn't trade them for anything!
ANOTHER banana split. Seriously, I have to stop.
Sunday gift:
Another hour of sleep. It was amazing.
Saturday I was thankful for:
1--Being able to be spontaneous. When we want to grab our stuff and head to the lake at a moment's notice, we can.
2--Joel being attentive when we're out places--like the lake--and grilling me hot dogs (I refuse to say how many) when no one else is hungry, because I'm about to starve to death.
3--Coming home after a long day and plopping down in bed. There's nothing better.
Sunday, I am thankful for:
My family. They're crazy and sometimes they drive me nuts, but they're mine. And I wouldn't trade them for anything!
Swimming Back in Time
I wrote recently about what my life was like growing up with two older brothers. And, today, we somehow, suddenly traveled back in time to those moments.
My family is always making up excuses to get together and eat and talk about funny stuff. At Christmas, even after the holiday celebrations have come and gone, we have Christmas in January and all get back together and do it again. We have joint birthday celebrations twice a year to celebrate the birthdays that have passed in the last few months. We cookout for Memorial Day, Labor Day, and sometimes even Arbor Day (okay, that last part isn't true). We just love hanging out with each other.
Also, when we get together. It's all about making fun of each other, pulling some kind of pranks on each other, and somehow, some way, the discussions inevitably turn to poop. I can't explain it, but it's like clockwork.
So, today was our fourth of July celebration. We all got together, grilled, drank beer, and swam. We're in a bit of a drought, and so there was thankfully no mention of fireworks. No one wore corny USA shirts, and there was no birthday cake for America. But there were plenty of Clarks and plenty of antics.
A few weeks ago, the boys purchased an above ground swimming pool. Again, not everyone gets to live in the lap of luxury like us Clarks. I know how jealous you are. But it's perfect for family gatherings when it's 106 degrees out.
(I should take this time to say that Kevin and Chris live in the same house. Kev and Em have lived there for years--upstairs--and Chris, April, and Jack moved into the downstairs about a year ago. They wanted me to move in next door, and I replied, "You people are crazy!")
It was as if as soon as our feet touched the water, we were back to being kids again. Kevin was using the noodles to blow water rockets into people's faces or, in my case, into my crazy crack eye. Everyone was making inappropriate comments about the phallic-like noodles, and anytime anyone could pants Jack, there was at least an attempt. At one point, Kevin and I challenged each other to an in-water crab race, but soon realized we'd need the function of our arms tomorrow and stopped. People were getting startled by a blast of freezing cold water from the hose, and I think Chris successfully sprayed every person in attendance in the tookus with a spray bottle. It was nothing but fun.
We, of course, had enough food to feed a small army, and Jeff and Joel joked the whole time about needing more hot dogs (because the 45 we grilled simply weren't enough).
It may be America's birthday we're celebrating or our independence or the people who graciously fight to give us that, but when the Clarks get together, it's always a celebration of each other. Young or old, big or small, related or not, no one is immune to wise-cracks, practical jokes, or discussions revolving around poop. We are the Clarks: party at your own risk.
My family is always making up excuses to get together and eat and talk about funny stuff. At Christmas, even after the holiday celebrations have come and gone, we have Christmas in January and all get back together and do it again. We have joint birthday celebrations twice a year to celebrate the birthdays that have passed in the last few months. We cookout for Memorial Day, Labor Day, and sometimes even Arbor Day (okay, that last part isn't true). We just love hanging out with each other.
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| How we are in pictures |
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| How we really are |
So, today was our fourth of July celebration. We all got together, grilled, drank beer, and swam. We're in a bit of a drought, and so there was thankfully no mention of fireworks. No one wore corny USA shirts, and there was no birthday cake for America. But there were plenty of Clarks and plenty of antics.
A few weeks ago, the boys purchased an above ground swimming pool. Again, not everyone gets to live in the lap of luxury like us Clarks. I know how jealous you are. But it's perfect for family gatherings when it's 106 degrees out.
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| The ones who aren't technically related learn to fit in quickly |
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| Jack was ready to begin the entertainment at a moment's notice |
We, of course, had enough food to feed a small army, and Jeff and Joel joked the whole time about needing more hot dogs (because the 45 we grilled simply weren't enough).
It may be America's birthday we're celebrating or our independence or the people who graciously fight to give us that, but when the Clarks get together, it's always a celebration of each other. Young or old, big or small, related or not, no one is immune to wise-cracks, practical jokes, or discussions revolving around poop. We are the Clarks: party at your own risk.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Gifts and Thankfulness Vol. 3
Friday's Gift to Me Was:
Sugar. Sugar, sugar, and more sugar. Those of you who know me know that I try hard to limit the amount of carbs and sugar I eat. Yesterday, however, I bought and ate a square of pistachio nut fudge--awesome, had several drinks of Joel's Chocolate Banana Malt, and shared a banana split with him. Mmmmm. Totally worth it.
Friday, I was thankful for:
1--Having Jo and Destiny in my life. They are wonderful and amazing friends. They inspire me, make me laugh, and understand my crazy ways.
2--Having Joel to come home to. Spending our evenings together doing what makes us happy. Eating ice cream and watching movie previews, but not being able to decide on a movie.
3--Patrick O'Rourke. I am thankful that Destiny has him! Her car had a little glitch yesterday afternoon on the way home, and he didn't hesitate to jump in the car and drive two hours to help out his wife. I love that he loves her so much. She absolutely deserves it.
Sugar. Sugar, sugar, and more sugar. Those of you who know me know that I try hard to limit the amount of carbs and sugar I eat. Yesterday, however, I bought and ate a square of pistachio nut fudge--awesome, had several drinks of Joel's Chocolate Banana Malt, and shared a banana split with him. Mmmmm. Totally worth it.Friday, I was thankful for:
1--Having Jo and Destiny in my life. They are wonderful and amazing friends. They inspire me, make me laugh, and understand my crazy ways.
2--Having Joel to come home to. Spending our evenings together doing what makes us happy. Eating ice cream and watching movie previews, but not being able to decide on a movie.
3--Patrick O'Rourke. I am thankful that Destiny has him! Her car had a little glitch yesterday afternoon on the way home, and he didn't hesitate to jump in the car and drive two hours to help out his wife. I love that he loves her so much. She absolutely deserves it.
Playing Catch-Up
So yesterday, I spent many, many hours in the car and came up with several themes for the day's post. But, as you know, I get paralyzed when faced with decisions, so instead, I wrote nothing. Today, I'm playing catch-up and have decided to simply tell you about my awesome day. Because it was pretty awesome.It started by my alarm going off around 7:15am, me turning to Joel, and saying, "I don't want to get up." He nodded, and we both went back to sleep. An hour later, I finally get out of bed realizing I have to leave in 15 minutes, need a shower, need to take Joel to the farm, and have to get gas. See? Awesome. I rushed around and was ready to walk out the door at 8:35, when Joel decided he'd stay home and save me a 15 minute detour.
Leaving the house so quickly resulted in me not packing food for the morning, and so I was existing off of not-enough water and a cup of coffee while I drove the three and a half hours to Berea, KY to meet Jo and Destiny to tour campus. Because I didn't have time to stop and eat, by the time I got to Berea, I was dangerously close to having a seizure (you see, I need to be fed every couple of hours). Fast forward to the drive home when I was digging through my purse to find gum and found not one, not two, but three cups of peanut butter and two Atkins bars. I'm glad I almost died of hunger in the middle of nowhere.
After our meeting and sweaty tour, we headed to Boone Tavern for lunch, but upon realizing it was closed, we stumbled to Main Street Cafe--mostly because we couldn't muster the energy to walk any further. During lunch, we realized how lucky we are to have each other. We have become such close friends, but we talk about how we're grown-up friends. Not the kind of friends who expect too much or the kind of friends you feel self-conscious around or need to impress. Not the kind of friends who you can't be your complete and total self around. One day, I'll write a blog about our theory on grown-up friends. It's an amazing concept, and we're lucky we have each other.
After lunch and lots of stimulating conversation, we gave in (after an amazingly healthy lunch) and went to the ice cream/candy shop next door. We each decided to purchase pounds and pounds of sugary candy with a scoop of ice cream on top, but chickened out before we ordered and each settled for a morsel or two of sugar.
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| This is what I ordered. |
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| Two miles down the road, it was $2.97. |
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| Yes, that's my pillow he's so happy to take over. |
On the way home, we decided I hadn't had enough burgers and sugar for the day, so we got burgers and a banana split--in a boat, NEVER a cup--from the Big Dipper. We came home and snuggled with our sweet dog, who voluntarily got into bed and took over my pillow. Then we did our favorite thing ever--watched movie previews until we fell asleep.
Not sure what I've done to deserve it, but lately life has been pretty amazing.
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