Typical Night

Most people my age get off work and go to happy hour, or go out with friends. I mean, I am 23 and all, and have a social life that is clearly booming! Well I typically get off work and go home and get my craft on. No no, I do not mean Craft Mayo! I spend most of my free time scrapbooking, painting or making something fancy :) Here is something I painted for a friend last week. Tipsy helped too!!

By this time, I had a little help from Tipsy under the table.

The final product!

Little Miss Muffet Can Shove It

Have you ever walked into a spider web and felt those long strings of spider silk in your hair? Or even better, have you ever seen that happen to someone else?
You could be walking around somewhere with a group of friends and suddenly one of your friends begins to wave his arms around like crazy at some invisible force and no matter what he does, he cannot free himself. Is he possessed? No, it’s just a spider web. That’s the thing about spider webs, they are invisible and feel extremely sticky and stretch so much that attempting to get rid of it makes you look like a mad person. Some people feel the need to make a scene and start yelling and running around in circles. Other people take it too far and start panicking and might even attempt the old-school Stop, Drop and Roll, but that’s in case of your clothes being on fire! . . Wait, would fire get rid of it? No, don’t try it.
Well I was one angry girl yesterday when I had my hands full of groceries and walked right into a spider web at the stare case walking down to my apartment. I immediately dropped my purse and a couple bags and starting swatting at what seemed to be the air at the people walking by me. I grabbed a stick from the ground quickly and got the rest of the web down before I walked downstairs. As I picked my bags back up, I realized one of my neighbors had been standing on his balcony smoking. I smiled up at him thinking that he must have just witnessed the entire freak show! He laughed back and said that he could have just won money if he would have had that reaction on video. I blushed and just waved with my hands full and continued downstairs. I laughed later thinking about how funny my face must have been with me swatting and spitting at nothing! I can only imagine it was a mixture between these three...

Me vs. The World

Moving to a new city, living by my self, making new friends, starting a new career, and adding more distance between me and Stuart are only a few of the reasons that I have been feeling pretty overwhelmed these past few weeks. I couldn't count the number of people who warned me that I would be feeling this way after a month of being away from my family and friends and LIFE, but I was sure they would be wrong. Well, like any other lesson learned, I had to do it for my self to understand.
 First off, I found out really fast that being in outside sales for a company is no easy matter. And then, when you are trying to sell someone radio advertising who thinks they A) don't need it or B) they work with other stations that suck, well then it's good riddens to them. I think I could sell snow to a dolphin easier sometimes than talking with some of these businesses I am calling on. I have NEVER in my life been shut down so many times. Not interested, NO way, I hate your stations, or just plan hanging up on me, are only a few of the reasons I failed at my job today. I can't get an appt with a client to save my life. After 39 calls, 21 voice mails, 2 wrong numbers & 3 rude men, I started to think it was me. What do I really need to do to succeed at this job?! Sometimes I find myself having to really take a reality check and realize that it's not me. I, of course, take all things personal and was really beginning to beat myself up over all the negativity with work.

The end of the day could not have come soon enough for me to run out of the office today and call Stuart. He always knows what to say to bring a smile to my face. That is when reality really sets in for me. I am human, and I make mistakes. I get knocked down, but I am strong enough to get back up again. I have faith that God makes all things happen for a reason. He has given me a wonderful life that I should be so appreciative of, and yet I forget how many things I am truly thankful for. I really believe that he put Stu in my life because we are meant to be together. He makes me a better person, and I could not be happier at the place we are in our relationship.

Weekend Recap

How is it that the extra long weekends always feel like they go by faster than a regular 2 day weekend?! In this case, it was probably because all the rain we have been getting in the upstate. I questioned my facebook friends to see if anyone had been instructed to build a boat recently... an ark to be specific! I recieved some whitty responses, but it just looks like this month of rain was just to fill up the lakes and ponds near by.

Stu drove home yesterday while I slept for most of the two hour car ride back (as usual). We got back to my house in Greenville, unpacked my part of the car load, and then we both headed to Chapin to see my family for a bit. Everyone was at Ma and Papa's putting up more hand rails in the bathroom and hallways so that Papa could get around a little easier. I wish I could have stayed longer, but the rain didn't seem to want to hold off long enough. I ran home, and quickly packed up Tipsy's stuff (from spending the week at her Gma's). Then it was time to get on the road again to head back to Greenville for another work week!

Tipsy, being her Diva self as always, has to ride on my lap during all car rides! Center of attention!

Move over Maggie Valley

We spent the 4th of July up in the NC mountains with Stuart's family. Unfortunately our 4th was all rained out, so we decided to get out of the house today and take a trip to Maggie Valley's Ghost Town. If you ever get the urge to go here yourself, think again. You could find many others things to do that are less than $25 per person. The best part was definitely the chair lift rides up and down the mountain. Other than that, Ghost Town itself was not a hit. We ended the day with dinner at Butts on the River. It was delicious food with a great view of the river below! Over all, it was a great day spent with family!

 This was our ride up the mountain on the chair lift.

Finally at the top!!

 Gorgeous view on the way down!

The whole gang after dinner!

Baby girl is growing like a weed!

I can't believe how fast time flys! My niece, Rosslyn, was born at the end of November in 2012, and before I know it, we will be celebrating her first birthday! My brother and sister-in-law are really good about taking each picture by the month. Here is what they have so far...



20 Questions + More

I am probably one of the only people that you know that will start asking you 20 questions about yourself when I first meet you. I am just a very curious person, and genuinely enjoy getting to know new people! You can imagine my excitment when someone at work sent this survey to all the employees to get to know them. I jumped on the questions and filled them out! Here is a list of the questions and my answers :)

List Of Getting To Know You Questions

·         Do you have any pets? One cat named Tipsy

·         What was the last book you read? Think Like A Cat (how to train a well-adjusted house cat and not a sour puss) By Pam Johnson Bennet

·         Do you like to cook? Occasionally, I am more of a betty crocker with sweets than paula dean with meats

·         What's your favorite food? Hands down, OKRA! Cooked any way possible!

·         Do you have brothers and sisters? Two older half brothers; we all share a dad, but have different moms.

·         Which sport do you like?  Football

·         Do you live in a house or an apartment? Town house

·         Have you ever lived in another country? Sure haven’t

·         How do you spend your free time? Mostly doing something crafty like painting

·         What are your hobbies? Crafting, lake activites and baking

·         What countries have you visited? The Bahamas on a cruise, Canada and Dominican Republic on mission trips

·         What do you do on Sundays? Church, lunch or dinner with the family and then come back to Greenville! (family is in Chapin)

·         What is your motto in life? “When life hands you lemons, make lemonade and sell it for a profit”

·         What kind of food do you like? Country cooking! Meat and 3s J

·         Which languages do you speak? Mostly English. I took French for 9 years growing up, and can only speak very look now.

·         Who do you respect the most? My mother            

·         Who has had the most influence in your life? Mom and grandma

·         Would you like to be famous? Sure to an extent…

·         What do you think you will be doing five years from now? Having babies

·         Are you a 'morning' or 'night' person? Morning person once I actually get out of the bed

·         When do you feel best? In the morning, afternoon, or evening? Afternoon

·         What cartoon character best describes you? I grew up loving Alivn and the Chipmunks so I would say Alvin describes me because he is the leader of the group. He is enthusiastic, and fearless. And we both like the color red!

·         If you could live anywhere in the world for a year, where would it be? I would love to live in Dominican Republic for a year! I have been itching to go back, since I returned from my mission trip in 2010.

·         If you knew could you try anything and not fail, what dream would you attempt?  I would be Miss America

·         Would you rather take pictures or be in pictures? Take pictures

·         Are you a beach, country, mountain or city person? Definitely beach

·         If given a chance to choose your name, which name would you choose? I wish I had a family name and that I went by my first and middle name. I mean how many girls named Jessica have you met in your life!!

·         Which are the cities in which you have lived? Grew up in Chapin, went to school in Aiken, now in Greenville.

·         What are the jobs which you have worked on? I flipped burgers and made ice cream at Zesto, blew insulation in attics (with a machine) & also re-shingled roofs, worked as a manager at a small boutique, worked in a printing company on machines making sales papers & booklets, I was a courier/ legal assistant throughout college, worked on Nikki Haley’s campaign to become governer & Alan Wilson’s campaign to become attorney general, worked in the accounting department at a law firm doing refinances, AND now here!!!

·         What could you do as a child that you can't do now? Run for long periods of time

·         Who is the person whom you admire the most and why? My mom for being so courageous, strong willed, and faithful.

·         What are the things which make you crazy? People who don’t use their blinkers

·         Which was the last film which really moved or disturbed you? I watched a lot of movies when I first moved up here because I didn’t have cable. I would have to say that one that really touched me was Safe Haven. It is a chick flick!

·         Which is the television show which you have seen and would like to watch over and over again and quote lines from it? America’s Funniest Videos, I can watch them over and over and still laugh just as hard!

·         If you can have an animal or creature, what would you your pet be? A tiger

·         What did you want to be when you were a kid? I was going to be a professional ice skater till I was in the 9^th grade.

·         Which is the next planned event which you are looking forward to in your life? My boyfriend’s second niece will be born in the beginning of August, so I am looking forward to meeting her!

·         If you are given a chance to meet anyone, living or dead, who would you, meet? John F Kennedy

·         If you could witness any event past, present or future, what would it be? I would be interested to see how my grandmothers grew up as kids in the 1930s and 40s.

 

Smiling BIG because I'm glad to have all my teeth in my mouth today :)

I hope there's still a Tooth Fairy!

We're told when we're kids that if we leave our baby teeth under the pillow at night, the Tooth fairy will give us money. Well I'm 23, and I hope that she can afford the whopping amount that my insurance didn't pay today! $$$

I came home for lunch like most other days, but had no idea that I wouldn't be going back to work today. I had just finished eating my left over burrito from Moe's, and was getting my things together to head back into work. Knowing me, and the sweet tooth I have (or don't have anymore), I had to grab a piece of candy to eat on the way! As I starting chewing away on that Werther's Oringinal soft chew, I all of a sudden heard something crack. I spit the globe of candy out that I had in my mouth, and was shocked to see this...

YES, that white thing on the candy wrapper is 1/4 of one of my back teeth! I kind of laughed at the situation,  like seriously... this is happening to ME, the person who is literally scared of the dentist. After calling my mom and Stuart, who both thought it was a joke, I quickly called the closest dentist office I could find and went right in!

I ended up having to get two teeth filled, but was very happy with the dentist that I ended up going to. After it was all over, I could have sworn the left side of my face looked like a balloon, but I guess that's just me over reacting. 

It's been 7 hours since I got home, and my face and tongue still feel a little numb. Looking back at my adventurous day now, its still a shock this happened! I will definitely say that it won't be 4 years till I see the dentist again!!

Bad Drivers of the world, UNITE!

If you have ever had the opportunity to take directions from me, God bless you! If you want to go to McDonalds off the Chapin exit or the nicer Wal-Mart in Aiken, then I can get you there. But if it's neither one of those, then sorry charlie, you're on you own! So I went to my first official meeting with one of my clients last week, and lucky for me, my boss wanted to come along. Little did I know that we would be in separate cars. I assured him that I could get us there with some help from Tom (handy dandy Tom Tom GPS, who hasn't been so loyal since 2008), and that it would only take 10 mins to get there! Well that 10 min drive turned into a 30 min site seeing trip to Piedmont from Greenville! After finally arriving at the law firm I was headed to, I quickly called my boss to see where I had left him in all the mess. He politely answered the phone with a "where the heck are ya?". I, of course, had no idea where I had lost him :( He then explained to me that he followed the law and waited till the lights turn green to turn left across major highways. "WOAH, did I hear him right?! I went on a red light?"  Apparently, when I had come to the stop lights, the two green lights that I looked up at were for the two lanes to my right. I, on the other hand, was in the far left lane turning across the incoming traffic. I looked both ways, no one was coming, so I went for it! "oh geeze, story of my life" At least I made it to my meeting on time right!! :)

If I had to RUN for my life, I would die

This past Saturday, June 29th, made 4 years that these two sweet angels passed away. It's hard to believe that it has been that long. Handsome little Parker would now be 9, and Sweet Haley bug would be 7. In honor of Parker and Haley, their parents put on a 5K race to raise money for their foundation. This was the first year for the race and there were 700 participants!! Shows you just how many lives this family has touched! GOD IS SO GOOD!

My mom, some of her friends, Stuart, and some of my friends only made up a small amount of those 700 runners! I told Stuart earlier in the week that I was going to run at least 2 miles. Well needless to say, I didn't even make it around the soccer field that we started on. Lucky for me, Stuart stayed by my side the whole time and finished the race with me! Its now 48 hours later, and I regret to say that my legs still hurt from my long walk!! I guess someone needs to get into shape :)


Angela and I before the race started. This little lady finished the race with her sister in 37 mins!

That is me and Stuart finising the race in 49 mins!

Mom and Mrs. Cheryl finished 5 mins later. Clearly you can see Sandra was glad to see the finish line :)