Have you ever had a perfect day?

This is a post about one of those perfect days. My hubby planned a weekend away for us. The only thing I knew beforehand was that it was a few hours within the Baltimore area. That leaves a lot of options available. Last year, we had a great time in Chincoteague for my birthday weekend.

It turns out we were headed to St. Micheals, MD. The town started as a shipping village and now thrives on tourism. This is the also quaint little town where Wedding Crashers with Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson was filmed.

Inn at Perry Cabin

We stayed at a very cute Victorian bed and breakfast, right on the main street. Not the Wedding Crashers inn, that one was a tad out of our price range. We were able to walk to all the restaurants and boutique shops. One of the restaurants, Ava's pizzeria was the winner of the weekend because I found a Louisiana beer on tap at their bar.

Abita Amber on tap

My hubby had brought the scooter (this was pre-accident) so we spent the rest of the time shopping, eating, and scooting around the area. The weather was gorgeous all weekend. We visited the Maritime Museum:

Maritime Museum

We also rode the ferry to another small town called Oxford. We were the only scooter on the ferry, when a dozen motorcycles joined us. Turns out they were "Women on Wheels." I missed a pic of them, but here's the beach just off the road where we wait for the ferry.

And no celebratory weekend is complete without a couple of pina coladas.

It was a perfect, relaxing, lovely weekend.

Sorry, I was hibernating...

Of course Blogger would be down the first time in six months I wanted to post!

I was trying to think of a way to summarize my fall and winter, but it would look like this: work,eat,sleep, workeatsleep, work,eat,sleep with the occasional holiday sprinkled in. Pretty boring, I know, but consider yourself updated. Actually, I did try snowboarding for the first time ever and I thought that was pretty fun. It also made me feel like I had been attacked by ninjas in my sleep the following day. Maybe it's the Southern girl in me but I usually do not enjoy frigid temperatures.

But then spring comes with its sunshine and cool breezes and I come out of hibernation like a big hungry bear. Exciting things within the past couple of weeks: my lil sis got engaged, I crashed my scooter, and we celebrated our one year anniversary.

My scooter crash was not that bad at all, it was actually a little closer to a spill in the parking garage. I was trying to turn and must have skidded on the yellow hatches they put on the end of a line of parking spots. My poor Vespa and I slid across the ground. We are both healing and will be up and at 'em shortly.

My worst injury

Vespa's worst injury

I hope all of you are enjoying the un-hibernation as well. I'll have more on the first year anniversary celebrations to come...

Gleek for a day

With all due respect to everyone who faithfully watches every Glee episode, I am not a Gleek. I know I admitted to watching SYTYCD, but really, I'm more of a scary thrills and chills and shoot-em-up spy kind of girl. That being said the inner Bam is freaking out over the "Britney" Glee episode that is coming up next Tuesday. Fr-Ea-King Out. I can't help it. I love Britney. Not "head-shaving-two-months-in-rehab-you-can-see-my-Britney" Britney. I love "down-South-i-love-cheese-grits-happy-pop-queen" Brit-Brit.

I get super excited over all the teasers.

From Perez.

From Entertainment Weekly.

By the way, when I told my hubby that we were watching the Britney Glee episode, He said "I don't have a problem with that." Boys love Britney too.

worst hangover ever...

One of the reasons I haven't posted in so long is I accidentally had one of the worst hangovers ever over Labor Day weekend, or possibly the flu, or both. I was off of work, so I slept in, then had a girls day. We went to see a cheap midday movie with the senior citizen set, followed by mani-pedi time and a late afternoon lunch with wine. There's nothing that makes you feel like a lady of leisure aka "ladies who lunch" more than the occasional weekday you can drink wine with lunch. From there, a decision was made that one of my friends and I should then plan a wine and cheese night to finish off the day.

I was feeling very tired and full from my leisurely day, but I wanted to rally and make the most of my day off, so I slurped back a jumbo sized sugar free red bull and went shopping for the prerequisites, wine, cheese, and bread. It all seems like a benign beginning for events preceding my worst hangover ever...

When I say accidentally, I do acknowledge that I drank quite a bit in total that Friday. A total of three bottles of wine were split between the two of us. Plus that one shot we had later. I was feeling tipsy and social, but I was good, drinking water between glasses, eating carbs with my manchego and coffee encrusted goat cheese. I will also say that I have, allegedly, consumed far more alcohol in a shorter amount of time, with much less food, and have been far more than tipsy than I was that night. So when I woke up to a slight headache, I was a little surprised, but figured I had drank enough to feel some effects.

A portion of drinks allegedly consumed on another girls night. From right to left, appletini, key lime martini, and guavatini. Yes, I take pictures of cocktails with my cell phone.

I got up, walked the doggies, started to do some chores, then to my surprise began to feel nauseated, tired, and ached all over my body. I decided since it was a holiday weekend, to try to eat a grilled cheese sandwich and take a nap to see if I could sleep it off. An hour and a half later, I get up, try to do more chores and about twenty minutes later feel even worse than before. I lie down and watch TV for an hour or so before nausea hits again. This time I had to visit the ladies room to relieve my nausea if you know what I mean. Uh-oh. About an hour later, a second wave hit. My husband at this point gave me some medication for nausea.

How I felt. Ugh.

Before I continue, I want to tell you about the one time I took Nyquil three or four years ago. I had a cold and couldn't sleep for a couple of nights so decided to purchase and use Nyquil on a Friday night. I woke up SUNDAY AFTERNOON. No joke.

Back to the hangover story, the medication he gave me totally zonked me and I could barely keep my eyes open for the rest of the night. I did keep down some chicken soup and crackers. Sunday when I woke up, I didn't have nausea, but was dead tired and ached up and down my spine. I was pretty lazy, did a few things and took another long nap. Monday I still felt a little off, but acted like a semi-normal human being. We stayed in and played video games. By Tuesday I felt my normal energetic self and actually went for a run.

Three day hangover? Flu? Both? I don't know. All I know is that I am getting too old for those kind of shenanigans.

I need a ride or die tattoo now.

First, I'm sorry it has taken so long for me to let y'all know how motorcycle class went. Second, I GOT my motorcycle license!!! I cannot believe I rode a motorcycle for the first time two weekends ago. I have to say the class was fun. Anyone who is nervous or a little bit scared of getting a motorcycle license should take it. The instructors go over how to do everything on the most basic level, stopping, accelerating, turning, swerving, etc. then have you practice all the test exercises just before you have to do it for the test.

Undercover photo of Motorcycle class.

I got points off on the final test for the stupid figure of eight exercise, but passed everything else and got my certificate. With the certificate, I just had to go to the DMV, wait in line, take a vision test and get my class M license!!

Filling out papers at the DMV, or as the lady said when I told her I was there for a motorcycle license, "Go on, girl!"

Look out Baltimore, I'm on two wheels now! I have driven my Vespa, nicknamed "Black Betty" to work every single day since (very fun). I try not to grin like a lunatic the whole way home. I don't want to scare people.

In closing, here is a picture of the gorgeous sunset I took with my cell phone on the way home the other day.

Photos by moi.

Motorcycle class

Hi peeps! I wanted to tell you about my experience in motorcycle school so far. As y'all know, last weekend we bought a Vespa LX 150, which requires a motor cycle license to drive. Which I do not have. There are two ways to get one in the state of Maryland. You can take a written test then pass a driving test which includes things like swerving between cones, making two U-turns within a box, etc... Or you can take a Basic Riders Course through the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. I chose motorcycle school. Mainly because I have not had a ton of experience driving scooters and am not that confident about my abilities to tear it up at the DMV.

Not me yet, hopefully me this weekend. source

I signed up for the class at a local community college. It's four days total, two days of classroom (which I've finished), and two days of "riding." The two days of classroom covered motorcycle laws, concepts and basics, like what all of the buttons and controls do and how to work them.

Just a hint, if you go to motorcycle school and tell everyone that your goal is to get a license so that you can legally drive your scooter, you will probably be made fun of. It was all good, everyone else was also just trying to get a license, so I took it in stride. --Oh, and I think there were a couple of die hard bikers who were court mandated to be in class for one reason or another.

At the end of the two classroom days, we were given the written test. This test was incredibly easy after being in class where we were basically told the answers. I got a 100%. Actually- i think most of the people at my table got a perfect score too.

This weekend is the last two days where we ride actual motorcycles and they take us through what we need to know to become licensed riders. They supply the bikes, we only have to bring a helmet, long pants, leather gloves, and sturdy boots. I'm nervous! Wish me luck...

Vroom vroom!!

So, I bought a Vespa LX 150 yesterday. I think they are an adorable means of transportation. We also rented a scooter to travel around during our weekend getaway to Chincoteague, and we had a blast. We started looking around various scooter dealerships, narrowing down what we wanted and how much we wanted to spend. We ended up at the Vespa dealership, they were having a sale and a great deal on one, so my hubby bought it after getting them to throw in a top case.

Me at the dealership.

Here's the catch. I have little to no experience driving a scooter. My hubby has a motorcycle, so this is to be my two wheeled mode of transportation. We got it home and off the truck and I took my first ride down the alley behind our house. To paint a picture, he was holding the back of the scooter, telling me to give it a little gas and get my feet off the ground. It was not pretty.

Similar to my learning experience, add my husband following behind holding the scooter up.

Here's another catch: You need a motorcycle license to drive this Vespa. I don't have one. I have NEVER ridden a motorcycle. The good news is that I have enrolled in a Basic Rider Course that starts Monday. If I complete this course successfully, I will get a certificate that I can present to the DMV for my "Class M" license. Wish me luck. I'm nervous. I'll let you know what happens.

Sometimes you take the wrong way...

I drove an entire 11 miles in the wrong direction on my way to work today before I realized it. Who does that? I got off the interstate onto the route I normally take, congratulating myself for being twenty minutes early, cruising, singing along with my morning jams, when I see a sign for a city that is in the other direction. Mother eff. You would think I would have noticed I was going east, not west, on my gps. Or possibly that the six or seven exits I passed along the way, all landmarks for going the opposite direction might have clued me in.

(Source)

So I get off the route and get back on in the other direction. I made it into work at 8:00 am on the dot. In my defense, I only just started going to this site once a week, the rest of the time I go to the main site downtown. Oh well.

On another note, I went to the gym for the first time in a month yesterday. That trip to the gym calculates out to $80. Maybe if I can get my butt in there once a week, it'll only cost me $20 a pop.

How was your morning?

Weekend getaway to Chincoteague

As promised, I wanted to get to tell you all about our weekend getaway. We went to Chincoteague Island, a small town on the Delmarva peninsula that is both a wildlife refuge and national seashore. Chincoteague is definitely quieter than the better known Ocean City and Delaware beaches in the area, but I guess I'm at the point where I prefer that type of experience. However, If you wanted a beach party experience Ocean City may be more your thing.

Ocean City can be so crowded!

The most popular time to go is during pony penning, where they round up and auction off some of the wild horses as a form of population control, as well as to raise money for the Chincoteague volunteer fire department. We went after this happened, but the fire department was still holding its annual carnival. I had a clam fritter sandwich and hubby had a softshell crab sandwich. I loved my sandwich, but I don't know about that crab sandwich. Besides being allergic, I wouldn't want to eat a sandwich that has legs sticking out. Isn't that a little weird?

I tried to crawl away, but this bread is so soft!

We stayed in a bed and breakfast right off of Main St. called the Channel Bass Inn. Neither of us has ever stayed in a bed and breakfast before. We loved the experience. I guess beforehand I imagined staying in a B&B like staying in some stranger's guest room. This felt more like a little boutique hotel with a little English garden off to the side. The rooms seemed private, we rarely heard and never saw someone in the hall. It was very quiet also. The best part by far was the breakfast. Let me tell you, the breakfast was an event! It took at least an hour to eat, but didn't feel that long. Barb, the co-owner made several different fresh breads (zucchini, cranberry, nut, ginger) and we usually had some type of fruit course and a main hot course.

Source

To add icing to the cake, Barb happens to be British and serves a four course Saturday afternoon high tea. This was also quite an experience, complete with tomato & cheese and ham & cucumber sandwiches with the crusts cut off, warm fresh scones (the candied ginger were my favorite!) and a pecan tart. I had to turn down the fresh-baked cookie that she ended with, I was in a food coma by that time.

High tea (picture from Channel Bass Inn)

We also rented scooters to get around. I am hooked and now want one for everyday use. How can you possibly be in a bad mood while zipping around on one of those things?

I'm a nerd.

We visited the Chincoteague national wildlife refuge and saw some of the wild ponies grazing feet from the road in the wetlands. I'm sorry I didn't get to take a picture of that, our camera was packed at the bottom of our beach bag and jammed away in the little scooter trunk. We scooted all the way to the beach in Tom's Cove where we frolicked in the waves and sand. After some beach time, we visited the Assateague lighthouse and climbed up the steps all the way to the top.

Lighthouse

178 Steps. Made me a little dizzy and a lot out of breath!

View from the top back inland.

All in all, I recommend visiting if you are looking for a quieter, less crowded beach day. It's only a three hour drive from the Baltimore area. I wouldn't mind getting a beach house there so that I could go every weekend.

Cheesin' it up with some fake gang signs.

Where's your weekend getaway?

I love weekend getaways.

Hi peeps! I just got back from a lovely weekend getaway. I don't know how many of you are in the mid-atlantic area, but people looking for a little beach time often go to Ocean City or the Delaware beaches. This weekend, for my birthday, my husband took me to a bed and breakfast in Chincoteague Island. I looooooove this place. It's a little quieter, more laid back, sleepy beach town. The beach is actually in a national park on Assateague Island, famous for it's wild horses. As soon as I get the camera and find the freaking cord for it, I'll put some pics up to show you.

(Source)

Until then, Here is my weekend in ten words. Food, carnival, food, beach, scooter, lighthouse, high tea, horses, food.

The next person who asks if I'm pregnant will get punched in the face.

(Source: www.nataliedee.com)

I know it's a slight over-reaction. Here's a piece of advice, although most of you reading this already know this. Don't ever ask someone if they are pregnant. EVER. If you have to ask, just keep it to yourself. The only exception to this rule is if you are the kind of friend that she talks to about her sexual escapades and her birth control use/mishaps with, then you can ask. You will also probably know when not to ask because she's complaining about all the other dillholes that have been asking and making her feel fat. Otherwise this is a no-win situation which may earn you a punch in the face if she's been asked one too many times.

If you are correct in thinking she's pregnant, and she hasn't told you directly, then it isn't any of your business you're not that close of a friend so you shouldn't be asking. If you want to be that close of a friend, you could always wait until you see her with an infant nine months later and say "Holy crap, I didn't even know you were pregnant!" New BFF for life.

If you are incorrect in thinking she's pregnant, then by asking you have now made her think two things. Number one, you are a huge asshole. Number two, she is a huge fat chunkster that needs to lay off the cupcakes and ice cream. Fail on both counts.

Over the past three months, I have been asked several times if I was pregnant. At first it was a little funny. Yes, I know I've gained the newlywed fifteen. Or maybe because I'm a newlywed in my early thirties, you think I need to procreate immediately. Yes, haha. The next couple of times, it became a little embarrassing. OK, everyone seems to notice my love pudge and that my pants don't fit anymore. Today and yesterday I got asked by co-workers if I was pregnant. No, just fat. Thanks, i'll be starting that diet now.

Why do people do this and how do I stop it?

I got punked.

The other day my husband totally punked me and wasn't even trying to*. I got home from work and a couple of packages had been delivered to our house. This is a pretty common occurrence as both my husband and I are internet shopping freaks. I took the packages in and noticed they were both for hubby so I put them aside.

Hubs calls to let me know when he'll be coming home, so I let him know he got two packages.

"OMG, DON'TTOUCHTHOSEPACKAGES." he says.

"Ummmmmmm, okay, I won't." i say. My b-day is coming up so I'm guessing one or both are for my birthday.

So later he gets home and asks if I want to open one of my birthday presents. This makes me think they are both for me. I love presents! Who doesn't? My husband and I are really really really bad at waiting for actual birthdays before we give each other presents, btw. So yessssssssssss i want to open it.

I think for a second I looked like this:

I estatically rip into the package using keys, scissors, and a sharp kitchen knife to get through the offending cardboard box to the contents within. Shreds of packaging, paper, and plastic shipping bubbles start to float in the air. I finally get to the goods and what do I find?

A hunting rifle scope.

I am not a hunter. My husband is. He starts laughing maniacally. Gasping for air because he was laughing so hard, he pants "I didn't... know... that's... what... that was. I... really... thought it... was your present." Once he gets his ability to breath normally back, he asks if I want to open the other one and try again. Ummmmmmm, no. As much as I love presents, I don't want to get punked again. I'll wait until my bday.

* Edit: so I just talked to hubby and he says he totally meant to do it. He thought the scope I was opening was actually something ELSE that he had ordered. So yes, he is Dr. Evil.

Why my husband is the bees knees, pt.1

1. He likes when I text him and call him dude. Recent example: "Dude. Still waiting for the effing bus." I was supposed to get home from work an hour earlier than him and waited for the bus for 45 minutes before it came. He texted back that he was leaving work five minutes after I got on the bus. Yeay for public transportation and trying to save the environment.
2. He quotes The Zombie Survival Guide as if it were peer-reviewed, research driven scientific literature. As in we're watching a C minus zombie movie and one of the characters shoots the zombie in the chest, it keeps moving, but the head shot does them in and my husband explains. According to my husband, "Because the virus Solanum allows the brain to continue functioning without blood circulation from the heart. Shooting their chest doesn't do anything, you have to shoot their brain." HAHAHAHA he's a nerd too.
3. He encourages my ridiculous sense of humor. Like my obsessively quoting my current most favorite scene from a movie. I am constantly asking "Guys, you ready to let the dogs out?" See below.

Where did the summer go?

I ran across this post about how it can seem like you have no free time in the summer. This summer it is true. Don't get me wrong, I love summer. But right now, I feel like summer's half gone and I haven't done all the things I wanted to do (be lazy). I'm still at the beginning of my summer reading list, and It's almost August!

My weekends have been filled with short trips, occasional work, baby showers, BBQ's, and family meet-ups (double time now that we're married.) Longer days mean a push to get more projects, chores and errands done. As a result, the leftover free time hardly feels adequate enough to enjoy the usual summer pastimes like frozen drinks, poolside lounging and being lazy.

I know my husband feels the pressure too, because we have a cabin up in the mountains that we (by we I mean he) completely gutted and is rebuilding into our little private hideaway. His deadline is to have a bathroom installed by Labor Day. There is an outhouse now. Not kidding! Once it is done, we'll be able to hole up there, snuggle, enjoy cozy fires in the cooler months and cool off in the awesome nearby lake in the summer months. So he spends all of his extra time trekking up there to git 'er done.

Cabin above, Garden below

This weekend we don't have anything planned, so I'll catch up on the housekeeping and some work, Hubby's going to work on the cabin. I did look ahead on the calendar, and aside from a weekend trip for my birthday, we don't have much planned, so maybe I'll be able to ease out of summer and sneak in a lazy day or two. How's your summer been so far?

Guilty pleasures vol 1

I have a confession. My current guilty pleasure is So you think you can Dance, or sytycd, for those of you in the know. Also for those of you who don't watch it, this show is a reality TV contest where amazing dancers tackle two or three routines a week and perform them in order not to get kicked off the show. Omg, I know! I'm such a nerd. I DVR the show and make my husband watch my favorite routines. Sometimes three or four times in a row. I think this show rocks mainly because I get to watch amazing talented athletes seem either push their bodies to the limit or take some off the wall routine that a choreographer threw at them and nail it? I wish I could do it. Also, not all of the contestant's dances are awesome, but most are even better than the professional routines they hire as fillers for the result show.

I could not even begin to attempt this (all pics from sytycd gallery)

Second confession. Last year, my husband took me to see sytycd on tour. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I have to say I don't think I'll get tickets to the live show again. I like watching the routines on TV where I can see everything up close and pause and repeat it as much as I want.

Dude. I don't even know what they are doing here. (all pics from sytycd gallery)

The reason it's a guilty pleasure? I'm pretty sure I'm not the demographic they are aiming for, I don't vote, and sometimes, it's totally cheesy. The cheese? The weepy contemporary dance routines some of you may be a fan of. I'm not. Nigel Lythgoe, former dancer and current executive producer and judge? Super cheeseball and total dance nerd. Cat Deeley, the show's beautiful leggy MC? Even bigger cheeseball. She also inexplicably cannot seem to pronounce the word judges. (She says jidges, and usually covers it up by making the audience scream the word judges whenever she is supposed to say it.) Lastly, Mary Murphy, former judge who used to express her pleasure at a routine by literally screaming at the top of her lungs for a solid twenty plus seconds. That's also why I DVR the show. I can FF through all the cheeseball parts. Any other SYTYCD fans out there?

I forgot to bring my lunch to work today.

I want you all to know that I'm craving a good grilled cheese sandwich right now (croque monsieur if you're French) Mmmmmmm...Warm crispy creamy cheesy goodness. Can you just smell it? It will be the first thing I make when I get home.

Found this picture in googleland, but this is pretty much the face I make for grilled cheese!

My favorite variety lately involves two slices of wheat bread, brushed or sprayed with butter spray, Muenster cheese, and sliced tomatoes sprinkled with garlic salt, on the griddle, crisped to a warm gooey perfection.

closeup

I'm hungry! Any other grilled cheese lovers out there?

My Husband's Hissy-fit

This is more a story about how you can have one of those mornings where nothing seems to go your way. Do you every have one of those mornings?

Well, My husband had one yesterday.

Yesterday, my husband gets up in the morning to walk the dogs as per our usual routine (because you know how I am in the mornings) Our dog who actually has continence problems is visiting grandma for the week, so he thought he could make it a week without hosing down the garage*, right? WRONG. We had run out of dog food, so I had grabbed a small bag at the local pet store until we could grab an industrial sized bag of our usual stuff over the weekend.

Why is it that dogs can eat spoiled food and garbage and grass and cigarette butts, but you feed them one meal of a different dog food and they have an intestinal meltdown?

You get where I'm going with this.

Poor sick doggie.

So after hubby finishes hosing down the garage, he comes upstairs to try making a homemade frappucino with the new toy I got him for his b-day.

Cafe Frappe

Truly, The Cafe Frappe machine works great and makes frappucinos that taste like the real thing! It's awesome, and if you like a morning cold coffee beverage, I highly recommend it. However, it turns out that if you put the lid on backwards, when it gets into blend mode, it will spray chocolatey icey coffee mix all over your clothes, kitchen counter, floor, wall, fruit bowl and curtains. It also turns out that if it is a little difficult to lock it in place, you probably have the lid on backwards. Expletives ensued. I threw the curtains in the wash and tried not to make it worse by enduring his foul mood in a tense silence while we made it to work. Thankfully, when our workday was done, I had my normal hubby back. Poor guy. Just one of those days I guess.

* We park our cars in the driveway. Our garage is actually our weight room, storage, doggie hangout room, and my hubby's workshop.

Tubin'... tubin'.... tubin' down the river...

So this post is actually about what we did last weekend to stay cool. I'm sorry it's a week late, but it's hotter than a cat on a hot tin roof out and my brain cells are working at an appropriate Southern pace to accommodate the weather. And I just now found the cable to get pictures off of my camera. Anyhow, I highly recommend DIY tubing if you have the necessary ingredients.

Ingredients:

1. tubes & life jacket (state law)
2. river
3. friends
4. at least two cars

So you guys ready to let the dogs out?

We started off the morning waiting for our peeps to assemble. My hubby took our tubes (these are actually tire tubes from big truck tires) down to the gas station to fill them with air. Once everyone was assembled and the cars were packed, we drove about an hour and a half west to Harper's Ferry where we normally go tubing. We had a couple of pit stops along the way for coffee, breakfast and to re-secure the tubes stuffed into the back of the truck so they wouldn't fly all over I-70.

Operation Re-Secure Tubes

The only bad part about DIY tubing is that it takes some time to drop everyone off upriver, drive both cars down river to the end point, and then drive the remaining car back up to the drop-off point so that the drivers can participate. **Tip- leave the car with the food and beer drinks downriver. That way you can chow down right away and not have to wait until the food gets back to you.** The good part about DIY tubing is that there are no release forms and if you should float a cooler to down the river, you can pack it with whatever items you so desire. Drinking alcoholic beverages in the state parks of Maryland and West Virginia is illegal, but you might just fly by the seat of your pants if you are a DIY tuber. Speaking of flying by the seat of our pants, We also usually pick some fairly flattish rocks to stop on and sunbathe for a little bit along the way.

Can you spot the cooler? And yes, my husband is wearing a shirt, baseball cap, and his shoes.

Doesn't this look relaxing?

Then when you are done, carry your tube up the river bank to where the "down river" car is parked, open up the trunk and inhale anything resembling food as if it were your first and last meal.

Lil sis and I. All cooled down. And satiated.

Once adequately stuffed, send someone for the "upriver" car, reassemble and trek home. It is a nice little day trip, and a great way to enjoy nature while cooling off a little. Any DIY tubers out there?

It's hotter than a cat on a hot tin roof...

Seriously?

Enough with this heat! I've been having trouble making to the gym. It's a combination of my love of sleep and lack of motivation to get out there in this heat. You'd think I wouldn't mind the heat having grown up in Louisiana where the heat in the air sticks to you like a thick swampy blanket. However, I also believe that is why Southerners have perfected the art of rocking in the shade of a porch, sipping on sweet tea or even better, a mint julep.

Yesterday I sucked it up and went for a swim instead. I was on the swim team when I was little(r). I can say that it has been a good eight years since I have been in a pool with any regularity. It was a little intimidating since the other three swimmers in the pool at the time were obviously well trained in competitive swimming.

But you've got to start somewhere. So I started, lap one went well, then holy cow, swimming is hard! My arms felt like wet noodles after about 40 minutes. But it was nice to finish a workout, feel the burn so to speak, and not feel like a big sweaty mess. I'll try again today. What do you do for exercise in the heat?

There's no place like home....

OMG, y'all! Only in New Orleans. Sometimes I miss it so much...

Posted by Lenny himself on his twitter.

(I'm such a nerd.) ♥

Pedal for your fruit

Hi peeps! I saw something cool at the farmer's market this weekend and thought I'd share. Sorry about the camera-phone photo quality.

Is that a blender on your bike?

Yesiree, That's a blend your smoothie on a bike machine! 50 cents off if you hop on and blend your own. I had to work this weekend, so it was a very focused trip through the market, but I think i may partake next weekend. Mango tango anyone? With a side of exercise?

What do you think?

If I were a smurf, my name would be Sleepy.

Ahhhhh, sleep. So peaceful, quiet, cozy. I am really good at sleeping. If sleeping was a job, I'd be a millionaire. Then I'd retire and do it for free.

I'd like to introduce you to a video analogy of my waking up routine every morning.

Sleepy Bear = Bam ~6AM every morning

I continue on in this manner for about an hour after the caffeinated beverage of choice has worked its way into my bloodstream, and unfortunately, this condition can last much longer if I have gotten less than a full eight.

I ran once this week, the day I lost my rings. It's so disappointing (the lack of exercise, not the rings), and I don't really have a good excuse. I'm not a die-hard exercise fan, I'd rather not do it if I didn't have to , but I definitely feel better when I manage to exercise regularly. It's something I need to make a bigger priority.

Where am I going with all this? My husband's solution is for us to wake up an hour earlier to go running or go to the gym. Help!

2010 Summer reading list

1. The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet- I started this a while ago, got a little bit into it then left off. It's long. I need to finish it. Plus my favorite book of all time is Les Miserables by Victor Hugo. I like epic.

2. The Omnivore's Dilemna by Michael Pollan- because I like food, and growing things in my garden. My husband has been reading this for the past year. I'm the reader in the family.

3. Watership Down by Richard Adams. My husband told me that this was his favorite book that he can remember reading and I've never read it.

4. The Help by Kathyrn Stockett- Because several people when they find out I'm from the South have told me to read this. I'll let you know.

What's on your reading list?

P.S. Remember when The Babysitter's Club was your summer reading list? I wanted to be in that club.