Baby Cousins

I spent part of the weekend in Memphis with my family. We always have a Memorial Day BBQ, and the entire family gets together. This year my cousins were there with their kids. Five babies ages three and a half to about a month old. The four older kids are all about six months apart, so they can all play together.

It amazes me how smart they are, and how much their speech has advanced every time I see them. They are the sweetest kids, and they fight and cry, and it's just adorable. It amazes me to see how each one has this special thing they are more advanced in than the others.

The oldest, a little girl, is so smart. She can remember names and faces, and it's just amazing to me. She always asks me if I'm brining the "apple head", meaning Louie V. Before the age of three she knew that my dog was of the apple head breed. She always remembers all of her cousins names, and she always uses them when she is talking. She will say, "Anne, please, please can we go down by the water, please." It's so cute.

The second oldest is all about sports. At just over three years old he plays basketball just barely missing a shot on a 10 foot goal. He loves to play every sport, he even sits through an entire televised golf tournament. He has a wonderful vocabulary, and knows lots of sports terms. I played basketball with him this weekend and was amazed at how coordinated he was. It's just amazing.

The third oldest, a little boy, is so mechanical. He drivers his motorized tractors all over the yard, weaving through parked cars, and never bumping into anything. He even goes out to the farm with my dad to drive the tractors. Dad lets him steer in the fields, and he does a great job. He is mesmerized by anything that is mechanical or motorized. Last Thanksgiving he snuck up on our cat and scooped him up in his front end loader of his tractor. He was so careful about it as he snuck up on the cat. All the while he had this mischievous look on his face.

The forth oldest is so sweet. He just loves on people when they hold him. He has the best temperament and the sweetest demeanor. He is so smart to be so young. I ask him what has on his shirt this weekend and he said, in the cutest little voice, "alligator". That's a big word for a little boy. He is also very mechanical, he loves to ride on the 4 wheeler and play in the boat.

The youngest, a little boy, is very special. His parents waited a long time to get him. He is very young, just about a month or so, but he is all smiles and he rarely ever cries. He is a joy to be around, and it shows how much his mom and dad love him. They are so happy to finally be parents.

We have two more babies on the way. One will be a girl, the other a boy, more than likely the boy will be born first. I can't wait to have more babies in our family. When I was growing up my cousins and I were so spread out that I didn't really have anyone to play with besides brother chef. So I am really excited about all of these babies being so close in age, it's going to be really fun playing with them all at holidays.

Now just because I'm bragging on my newest sweet cousins does not mean I want babies any time soon. Lets not be ridiculous! I am VERY happy with just Louie V. In fact he is the only thing I plan on being responsible for, for quite a while. I'm just amazed at how smart and funny my little cousins are at such a young age. Good genes I guess!

How To Stop A Bank Robber With Panty Hoes On His Head

I'll never forget that day. It was a Friday, I was swamped at work, and it looked like there was no way I would get home by 5. My rent was a day late because I had been working long hours, and I was poor. I had just gotten paid that day, so I needed to deposit the check so I could then sign it back over to my landlord. I had a work related errand to run at a down town office building, which just happened to be two blocks from my bank. Of course I was going to take this opportunity to run to my bank. I thought I could sneak in this personal errand, no such luck.

I whipped my car up to a curb side spot on a one way street. As I jumped from the car, I realized the back end of my car was going to be out in traffic and more than likely hit on the busy street if I didn't parallel park it. But there was no time, I had to make my transaction and haul ass back to work. As I turned one last time to see just how bad my parking job was, I noticed something. There was a man getting out of the car just two spots behind me, he was tall, and dark skinned. He was wearing jeans and a red hooded sweatshirt. He was wearing panty hoes over his face.

I just kept walking towards the bank. I was reaching for the handle of the bank doors when it hit me. I grew up in a one back town, but I know that wearing panty hoes on your face can only mean one thing. This man was going to robe the bank. I stopped dead in my tracks. I turned back around and looked at the man, he was frozen in his tracks, half out of his car, and still watching me.

I don't remember thinking anything at this point. I calmly pulled my cell from my purse and walked back to my car. I dialed 911 and locked the doors. I gave the operator a full description of the car and it's passengers. The operator alerted the building security and ask that I leave my car and walk to another entrance area, she assured me that the authorities would be waiting for me. So I left my purse in the car, stayed on the phone with her, and walked around to the other side of the building. The man with the panty hoes on his head was sitting back in the car watching every more I made. When I was on the other side of the building I saw the car pull away from the curb, and slowly drive down the street. Then I was inside the building, surrounded by Marshals and FBI agents.

Apparently my bank is housed in one of the most secure buildings in Little Rock. This building houses offices for a former President, as well as several other prestigious people and companies. I described the details of what had happened twice to the authorities. By this time the bank had been evacuated. I was then walked to my car so I could get my check and make my deposit. An armored truck pulled up to the bank as I was being walked to my car, and after a few short words spoken by an agent into the cuff of his shirt the truck pulled away and continued down the street.

Then it hit me. Had I just interfered with a possible bank robbery? Could I have been in danger? Does the bank award me money for this (kidding)? After I made my transaction, I gave my contact information to one of the agents, and I went back to work. I had been gone for almost two hours, and my boss was not at all happy.

I told him what happened, and shortly it was confirmed when a high ranking employee at the bank called by boss to inform him of what I had been involved in that afternoon. Needless to say, I didn't get to leave work before 5, but I didn't catch any more hell from my boss either.

The next Monday when I got to work, I received a huge vase of fresh cut flowers and a note, not from the bank, but from one of the agents. The note said he was amazed at how calm I remained and how I handled myself, blah, blah, and he wanted to know if I would like to go to dinner with him. I was so surprised by his gesture. I called and thanked him, but declined on dinner. After everything that had happened, I didn't think it was appropriate, not to mention, I couldn't remember which agent he was.

And that my friends is how a southern girl stops a bank robber with panty hoes on his head.

Fight Or Flight

There is a theory that says when an animal is threatened it either fights the threat or gets the heck out of there. Well, I've been dealing with this theory myself. And as is my history, I've thought about running the hell away.

It started last week, when the reality that I was about to introduce the boyfriend to the family hit me. For me, this is a huge deal. I've lived in Little Rock for almost three years, and never in that time have I dated anyone that was actually family worthy. So, the fact that the boyfriend met them this past weekend has freaked me out a little. It's made me realize just how much I like this boyfriend, and just how much that scares the hell out of me.

So why does it scare me? Why do I get all ba-jig-ity? I'm not afraid of getting hurt. If I do, I'll live, not many people die from a broken heart. It's more than that, it's more than the thought of losing him. I'm scared and I want to run because I like him. I really do, and I think this like will turn into something more, something bigger. That scares the hell out of me.

I talked to the boyfriend about this. I was hesitant, but he knew something was bothering me, and I would want him to talk to me if he was feeling funky about something. So, I told him, I told him exactly how I felt. I even got a little emotional about it (I know, as tough as I act, I still sometimes have my girly moments). I think deep down I also knew that I would only feel better if I talked to him about it, only he could ease my mind. He did exactly what I would have wanted him to do, he didn't give me compliments and he didn't try to pump me up. He told me that there was no reason for me to be scared, and that he was happy I told him how I felt. He said this was a good thing, it showed I cared. (I mean seriously, how good is he?)

So, I could run like hell, realize down the road that I ran away from something that was great, but could have been better than great. Or I can stay, stay and fight my fear, and not only become a stronger person for it, but keep a great boyfriend too. I think I'll fight it out, I think it's worth it.

Meet The Family And Meet Their Approval

The boyfriend met my family this past weekend. Mom, dad, brother chef, and my favorite cousin, he met them all and he met their approval.

As I've mentioned several times, I don't have many long term boyfriends. In fact I haven't really had any to speak of since moving to Little Rock almost three years ago. So introducing a boyfriend to my family, well it was a big deal for me.

Brother chef drove in from the coast early Friday morning. The boyfriend and I stayed the weekend at my cousins house, and partied with brother chef on Friday night. Then Saturday morning, hung over and tired, I went to get breakfast for everyone, and we got ready to meet mom and dad downtown. Thankfully dad understood the reason for Bloody Mary's, and was more than happy to order me one. We hung out at the hotel, had some drinks and snacks, and then moved on to the riverfront for BBQ Fest 06.

Mom and dad have never been to BBQ Fest, so they got to take it all in. We had drinks and food on the deck of my cousins booth. Dad had cigars for the guys, and they all sat around and bs'ed until late in the evening. It was wonderful. The boyfriend didn't get much conversation in, as we were all busy telling stories and laughing. But he sure learned a lot about my family just by listening.

I met his family a few weeks back, and I told him that I thought we were both raised in the same kind of atmosphere. Both families are very close knit, they are both Catholic, and they both believe in a cold beer or a stiff drink, good food, and lot's of laughing.

So the family tests are over, and I think we both passed (well I know he did). No one called the boyfriend by the wrong name (which has happened before, but that's another story) and no one peed in their pants. We ate, we drank (a lot actually) and we were merry!

The Princess And The Pee

I'll never forget the afternoon my first real college boyfriend took me home to meet his family. I was so excited, it was the boyfriends birthday, and I was going to meet his parents, and lots of his hometown friends. I was twenty, and he was turning twenty-two.

We went to his grandmothers house for lunch, then we were supposed to be at his dads best friends house that evening around six for a fish fry and drinks. We had about four hours to waste before the fish fry started, so we decided to get a couple of bottles of Boone's and a thirty pack and hit the back roads. It was mid March, and it was still really cold outside (I was wearing jeans, black boots, and a heavy wool turtle neck sweater), but it was warm in the truck and the Boone's and beer tasted great. It wasn't long before I had a buzz and desperately had to pee.

Being from a small town, it's understood that you learn how to pee on a dirt road. It's just part of life. So I wasn't shy at all about announcing that I had to pee and jumping out of the truck. Problem was, I was pretty tipsy. His huge lab was bouncing around in the back of his truck, and I was trying my best to hold on to the bumper of the truck, stay out of the mud ( we were out in the middle of a field), and breath since my face was about level with the tail pipe. There is no doubt that I was at least two pounds lighter when I finished. It was not the easiest situation, but I came through it pretty good, or so I thought.

When I stood up and buttoned my jeans something didn't feel right. I looked at the ground, and the reality of the situation hit me. I was out in the middle of nowhere, I was with my fairly new boyfriend, I was an hour from my house and clean clothes, and I had just peed inside of my jeans. That's right, the entire contents of my bladder was now soaked into my Luckies. I was mortified. I didn't know what to do, I had to think fast. I considered slipping and falling into some mud so it wouldn't be so obvious. But I didn't want to wear muddy jeans all day, not that the alternative was any better. So, I did what any quick thinking girl in my situation would do. I jumped my now sober self back into the truck.

I rolled down the passenger window (I could have sworn I could smell pee) and I chain smoked for the next two hours while I leaned in towards the boyfriend. I was hoping this angle would allow for the cool breeze blowing in through the window to dry my jeans before the fish fry started and I had to meet all of this home town friends. I wasn't that lucky.

When we got to the shop were the party was taking place my jeans were still soaked, I smelled like a giant ashtray, and I was freezing. So I put my heavy coat on, thankfully it was long enough to cover the back of my wet jeans, and opened another beer. Oh but things were about to get worse.

The fish fry was in a very nice shop in someone's back yard. It was fully furnished and had a very good heater. I had sweat dripping down my face in a matter of minutes. But I had to keep my coat on, at least until my pants dried. So I did just that, for the next three hours. I probably sweated off 5 more pounds, but it was worth it. No one ever knew! Of course months later I had to tell on myself, the story was just to good not to share.

And that my friends is the story of the princess and the pee!

Stroken' and BBQ, There Is Nothing Better

Growing up in a small southern town I learned at an early age that there is not much better than a nice day, a cold beer, and anything cooked on a charcoal grill. That's why I'm so excited about this weekend. It's BBQ Fest time again in Memphis, and of course I'll be there to eat, drink, and be merry all weekend! This will be the forth year that I've gone, and I will have to say that every year has been more fun than the one before. And I think this year is going to be the best yet.

My favorite cousin is on a BBQ team, and since I've been going for so long, I've sort of become the team mascot. I would join in a second, but it's pretty expensive, and since I live in LR, it's not really feasible. So I'll go party all weekend with the S. Smokers, and eat as much BBQ as humanly possible. Oh, and people I am not just talking about some chopped pork and a rib or two. This team does it right, bacon rapped shrimp stuffed with cream cheese and hot peppers, duck rapped in bacon and stuffed with pepper cheese, ribs that fall off the bone, pulled pork that will make you want to slap someone, Bloody Mary's that are guaranteed to make the worst hangover disappear, a DJ, full bar, and a deck that overlooks the entire park. Not to mention, Clarence Carter is playing on Saturday night, which means all of BBQ Fest will be "stroken".

The boyfriend is going with me this year, this is significant for a couple of reasons. First, it will be the first time he has ever been to BBQ Fest. He's in for a treat! Second, this will be our first out of town trip (it still counts, even if it's just a two hour drive). Third, he will get to meet my favorite cousin. This is going to be great because the cousin is going to love him, and they are going to have lots in common. And finally, and most importantly, the boyfriend will get to meet my brother, who coincidentally, is also a BBQ Fest virgin. So, I'm super excited about this weekend.

The boyfriend and I are taking off early on Friday, and heading north (but not to far north)!!! We will meet my brother and my cousin, and we will eat, drink, and be merry all weekend!

The Mother

I didn't get to go home to my small southern town to see my mom this weekend. I did, however, mail her mothers day gift to her last week. She loves her new IPod Nano, and I’m sure she will get a lot of use out of it, as soon as she figures out how to set it up. Just because I didn't go home though, doesn't mean I didn't see the mother this weekend, because I did, and she was a real bitch.

I went on a float trip on Saturday down the Big Piney River. This was just my second canoe trip ever, and I must say I did pretty good. The boyfriend and I, along with a couple he is good friends with made the trip, and it turned out to be a lot of fun. The day started out with a surprise gift from the boyfriend, a distressed straw Miller Cowboy hat that I just loved. The operative word here being loved.

The river was very green and the scenery was beautiful. The weather was perfect, and the water conditions were ideal (very cold, but still fun). We had our Miller on ice, I had my Miller hat, and we were ready for a great float. I made it through the first few sets of rapid unscathed. I was starting to get the hang of it, and the boyfriend was good to give me some direction. We were having a blast, that is until we started discussing "The Mother". I had heard rumors of her, and I had even seen pictures of her that morning at the outfitters we stopped at along the way, but nothing prepared me for her.

"The Mother", a fairly treacherous section of river that is almost sure to make you tump over, did just that to me and the boyfriend. I knew it was going to happen when I saw her, she was big, and mean, and she kicked our asses. And to boot, the bitch stole my new Miller hat. After we tumped over, we held on to the canoe and each other for about 120 yards, until the current slowed enough for us to get our footing. But that 120 yards seemed to last forever. The boyfriend suffered some major cuts and bruises. I had some scratches and bruises, and my perfectly manicured toes didn't survive the rocks and boulders we were drug across, but I was basically okay, just really scared. The boyfriend was right beside me when I surfaced, and he helped me hold on to the canoe and keep my head above water as we were swept through the rapids. He was great, I was scared to death. When we finally got to shallow water, I was shaking pretty bad. It was a rough wipe out.

Once I was calm I realized that my new hat was gone, it didn't survive "The Mother". I was pretty upset about it, it meant a lot to me that the boyfriend thought to get me that hat, and then I lost it the first day I wore it. But, he assured me he would get me another one. He was great about the whole thing. He kept asking if I was okay and telling me he was sorry he was that we tumped. All the while he was the one bleeding and walking around barefoot on the rocks. (The Mother also got one of his flip flops)

I regained my composure, and we finished the last mile of the float. All in all, we floated 10 miles on the Big Piney River. We drank about 20 beers between the 4 of us, and lost 5 or so. We ate 4 turkey sandwiches, smoked about a pak of cig's, lost two left foot flip flops, one ankle sock, a lot of skin, and one distressed Miller Cowboy hat.

"The Mother"--1
Us--0

I will take on "The Mother" again, and this time that bitch won't steal my hat.

{I've included some pictures of "The Mother" I found on the Internet. We didn't take any pictures of her. I was to mad at her after what she did to us. But I hope the bitch enjoys my hat!}

A Missed Past

Things are happening, changing, moving, pulling me, and it's making my life a little unharmonious. It's making me tired and sad and confused. I've always said I wouldn't chose a guy over my friends, and I never have. I still don't think I am, but I'm afraid not everyone shares this opinion about me.

I think she feels like I don't have time for her. I think she feels like I would rather hang out without her, and I think she feels like she's not in the loop any more. I think she's lost friends this way before, and I think she's scared she's lost her partner in crime. She sorta has, I think. I haven't really spent time with her lately, our schedules are different, and I spend a lot of time with him now.

I like spending time with him, and he never asks me to chose, he always says, go with her, be with her, do ya'lls thing. But it's not that easy sometimes. Why do I feel like I'm being pulled in two directions even though neither one of them is really pulling me, they are waiting on me to make the decision. I know why I feel this way, because my heart is being pulled.

A good friend of mine told me that this would happen when I reached a certain age. She said that at one point in my life I would look for something more than just friendship, and that my friends would understand because they would also deal with this at some point. When she told me this, I thought, not me. But how I was wrong, this friend is very wise, she knew I was going to deal with this eventually.

I hate that I might hurt someone's feelings. Especially a someone that is so dear to me. While she may get angry, I just get sad, and my heart hurts a little more. I do miss her, but I think I miss the way we used to be more than anything.

Hook, Line, And Sinker

We had our forth fishing trip together on Sunday. It was great! We caught lots of fish, drank a few beers, talked, and enjoyed the weather and each others company. I love Sundays spent fishing, and I like just he and I time.

Trolling around in the water, me getting hung up on everything in a 10 foot radius, and him laughing at me made me realize even more how much I'm starting to care about him. We've been seeing each other for almost two months now, but it seems like longer. We spend time together just about every day, we sit outside and enjoy the weather, we cook dinner, we play with the dogs, or we go fishing.

Sunday he taught me how to take the boat off, and drive it back on the trailer. I've always wanted to learn how to do this. As a country girl, I can't believe it took me this long to try it. I also caught a monster bass ( 4 lbs. in fact), another first for me. It was a very exciting moment when we got it in the boat, and it was the biggest we caught that day!

He's definitely caught me, maybe more than just my attention.

Anxious, Not Nervous

"Hey, it's nice to meet you," no, that's not it.
"Hello, very nice to make your acquaintance," no, to formal.
"Hi, it's so nice to meet you," huuuuum, that could be it.

I'm practicing in the mirror and trying to mentally run through my closet at the same time. What am I going to wear? I’m not nervous, definitely not nervous ( I sound like rain man), I'm anxious. Yeah, that's it, anxious. So back to the perfect outfit. I have it narrowed down to three things.

1. My white eyelet skirt, black stretchy tank and black beaded flip flops, with the black flower next to my ponytail. (Although I was saving this to wear to his brother in-laws concert next Saturday night)
2. My next door neighbors borrowed brown, ankle length knit skirt with a salmon stretchy tank and my brown flip flips.
3. Calling in sick and staying home.

It's a tough decision. It's just a BBQ, it's casual, it's can beer. There is no reason to be concerned about my appearance. But to me, there is. I want to make just the right impression, I want it to be great.

Okay, I've got to make my famous BLT Cheese ball (actually my mothers famous BLT Cheese ball). Of course I'm not going to show up empty handed, and it looks wonderful on my chili pepper tray with crackers. So, the white skirt I think. I'm sure I'll drop something down the front of it, I'm sure I'll make a mess somehow. But, it's comfortable, it's cute, it's grill worthy right? And of course flip flops, I shouldn’t wear strapy heals to a BBQ right? Definitely the flip flops, I need to be comfortable. I don't know why I'm nervous, I mean anxious.

It's just his family, and they sound pretty normal. I'm just meeting his family.

100 Things 100 Thank You's

Today is my 100th post. So I thought I would link some past posts, and discuss how I've changed and what these changes have meant to me. Enjoy!

I don't think I necessarily have commitment issues any more, but I do think that I have trust issues. I think I used to mask these as commitment issues, but I have a very good feel for people, and I don't trust easily. This could have stemmed from the married guy I dated just about two years ago. Of course I didn't know he was married, therefore it was no fault of mine, but it messed with my head quite a bit. I'm sure the guy that I dated for three months, met the family, etc. then he never called again could have added to my trust issues. The funny thing about that is, it was just a year ago, and I've been friends with this guy since before the new year. Looking back on it, I can't believe I dated him, funny how that happens.

I've also come to realize that friends and family are the most important thing in my life. I have the absolute best family, and I know how lucky I am. I mean, some people's family suck, but mine doesn't suck most of the time! I have a younger brother, who I miss constantly, am proud of daily, and love more than anything. I've been blessed that my parents, who are still together and celebrating their 26th Wedding Anniversary this month, have raised both me and my little brother in a family rich with tradition. I have great friends who will do anything for me. We go out and party like rock stars, they make me feel better when I've had a bad day, and I'm always there to pick them up when they need it.
I'm stronger than I used to be. I'm settled and happy now, granted I'm not completely content, but I'm working on it. I've learned to relax and enjoy things. I've learned not to get so caught up in the petty things, but that being caught up in some things is really worth it. I'm keeping the important things in my life close to me (like Louie V), and I'm taking time to tell the people I care about the most that I love them. It's no secret that most of the people that read my blog are close friends or family, so thank you all for reading. I hope that I've entertained you, and I hope through my experiences, I've provided a little advice, a little laugh, and a lot of bad grammar!Thanks, love you all!

Crazy About Him

When he looks at me with those big brown eyes I melt. I could never have imagined I would care about him so much. I think about him all the time, I'm so crazy about him. I know my friends get tired of me talking about him, but I can't help it.

I never would have guessed when I first met him that I would become this attached to him. I look so forward to seeing him every day when I get off work. He always makes me smile, and he always does something to make me laugh. No matter how bad of a mood I'm in, or how cranky I am, he brings me around.

He kisses me constantly, and he always snuggles when we lay down to go to bed at night. Now if only I could keep him from pooping in the floor and humping my boyfriends dog.

Financially Strapped

I've always been so good managing my money. Granted when I have large unexpected bills my parents have always helped me out, but for the most part, I've always been a saver. I've always tried to watch what I buy, and spend smartly. However, I'm finding that I can no longer live the way I'm accustomed to, in fact I can barely live at all.

The worst part of this is, I am desperately searching for a house to buy. I am obviously not going anywhere outside of the LR area any time soon. There is no point spending so much money on rent when I could put it towards something, like a home to own. But this is easier said than done, and it looks as if I'm either going to be living in the ghetto, or quite a good driving distance from work. Either way, it's gonna suck. But, what's the point in pouring a ton of money into rent, I've done that for two and a half years.

Why do I have to move out of my cute little historic district house you ask? Because it's currently for sale, and an ex has decided he's interested in buying it. The ex is a nice guy, but I'm not real excited about the idea of him owning my house, having a key to my house, and basically being over control of my home. So, it's time to move.

So, while I'm looking for a new home for me and Louie V. I would much rather be strapped into a pair of sexy metallic sandals, instead of financially strapped.