Ruidoso: a review

We took a weekend trip to Ruidoso, NM and arrived home last night. Ruidoso has been a place of lots of fun and funny memories. I spent lots of time there in the summer when I was a kid since my nana owned an antique store. Ruidoso was the first trip Micah and I took about a year into dating. We both ended up with food poisoning; we were so disgustingly sick there was no sort of modesty. I thought if he stills likes me after that, then everything would work out! This was five years ago so it did work out!

The opportunity arose for us to go back to Ruidoso for free! We were off, packed and ready to go with Dodger! We get to the timeshare and realize pets are not allowed. I'm a rules followers--this make me very nervous! Luckily, Dodger was very good and no one said anything to us! We went to a favorite restaurant Michelina's on Friday night. If you have been in Michelina's you put your picture under the glass top table, but sadly I went to peek in the booth with our picture, it appears we have been rotated out, and a new crop of pictures is there now. Exhausted, we went back to the condo. The people above us must have been throwing a dance party or doing a cardio workout so we nicknamed them "bailamos" from the Enrique Iglesias song. They "bailamosed" up and down the stairs, above our heads, dance, dance, dance party! Saturday, after little sleep, we woke up go hit golf balls. Off to Farley's for some delicious grease. Then, to the ponies we went! I love, love, love horse racing! It's not the gambling so much, it's the whole atmosphere! I like watching the horses and people watching at the track is always very interesting. I got a nasty sunburn, but we won a little money! We went and grabbed Dodger for a fun walk around the Ruidoso recreation park. Hungry and tired we went on our way to Casa Blanca where we ate on the patio...so delicious and romantic! Sunday we woke up and watched the British Open, but quickly left after the air conditioning went out quickly becoming steamy! Lincoln County Grill got our business to finish watching the Open in a cooler place. Time to walk around mid-town. No purchases, except my favorite chocolate place at Sweet Retreat (unfortunately, they didn't have any chocolate covered strawberries). Back to the ponies, remember, I love the races! We lost a little Sunday, but still had fun. Then, it was time to come home. I love coming home to my cozy bed!

Here's some of the pictures from the trip!

We call this the "parrot." Dodger perches on my shoulder...not comfortable!

This is Nana's old shop. It used to be white and blue and called Finder's Keepers.

Saturday at the driving range. I hit a few good shots, but Micah is pretty incredible!

Saturday at the races studying the program and a winning ticket!

Dinner at Casa Blanca...sweater in July!

Sunday at the track

Driving home. Dodger is "parroting" and giving me a mustache! Dodger drives! Earth, TX.

Much love,

Day trippin' to the Lbk

We have been trying to get our Texas Tech football season tickets online for the last couple of days. However, you do not get to pick your seats only the price point at which you are willing to spend. Time and time again we kept getting put in a section we did not want to sit. I decided I would go to Lubbock and talk to a real, live person and see with my own eyes a seating chart all with Micah on speaker phone to ensure that I wouldn't screw anything up. Off to Lubbock I went...Micah had a 12:45 appointment so I went to Taco Villa for a quick bite (oh how I miss bean burritos with extra cheese!). I get to the ticket office after by bite of food at 1:15...note on the door says "Due to computer system upgrades, we will close at 1:00 on Thursday, July 17." Seriously, Tech?!? So I call 742-TECH...only a recorded message saying the same thing the note on the door says. So this is a hyped season, and I want decent seats. I seem crazed, but let me explain. I have married the ultimate Tech fan...I don't think anyone can top him. Normally a mild mannered guy (less so as he gets older), something snaps when he enters any sort of sporting complex. Since our season tickets are on the east side and are cheaper than some, often people will buy these seats to come to the big games but will sell for the other games. One t-shirt fan and Micah got into a verbal fight which led to me physically holding him back (granted, these people were idiots and referred to us at Hitler). Oh, and Micah's sister,who I love dearly, but she's also a feisty fan sits with us(love them, but put the two of them together and well, I can't hold both of them back!). They make my game watching experience, which is looking at the game intermingled with watching the cute baby dressed in Tech gear, more spiced up! I must admit, I get more and more into it each year thanks to my very enthusiastic husband and sister-in-law. One season right after I graduated, we stood almost the whole time at some games. Standing in 95 degree heat= no bueno. My grand plan is to upgrade us to another section where maybe we won't sit next to random spectators!

So the main purpose of my sixty minute trip blown, I had to make it a worthwhile journey. Back to school shopping! Off to purchase foundation pieces, a pair of jeans using Oprah's tips for a cute tush, and a book to put all of my saved cards in. I also stopped by my landscapers to find out why I have black "spots" on my leaves, on no, I have aphids. Sick.

Okay, off of here! Oh, and Hopkins comes on tonight! If you haven't tuned in...it's a good one!

Much love,

Making it feel like home...

Some people drive luxury cars, travel to exotic lands, and wear only name brands. Not me. I drive a Honda Accord, I've never been out of the country, and if I like it, I buy it, which usually means I shop at Gap-like shops. What I've always wanted was a home to feel like home. I like being at home. I like curling up on the couch with Micah and Dodger and watching movies. I love sleeping in my own bed...it is the most comfy place I've ever rested my head. When we bought our house, I loved the neighborhood, the layout, the french doors, the open floor plan and the tray ceilings. I didn't love the floors, counter tops, bathrooms, light fixtures, and window coverings. All fixable, but with enough funds. Then, after looking at the existing paint color with the sunset, it began catching my eye in a bad way. The open plan has me thrown about painting. I needed help so I called a local shop owner to my house for consultation work. She helped me pick colors, gave me names of painters (we are terrible painters!), and we are going to begin on our house to make it a home! I'm so excited about her plans (so excited that I followed Micah in the bathroom when he stopped in and began blurting out look at this, at that...he isn't as excited as me, but this isn't surprising--oh well, he was coming by to pick up my card to call in football season tickets). She really cared about what I liked. I created a "look book" for her to help explain what I like in pictures instead of words. Here's my problem, I like almost everything. I like lots of colors, styles, but I wasn't sure what I loved. Her analysis was that I like a contemporary clean, crisp look with white woodwork, but I also have a traditional flair in furniture using mahogany toned furniture. We are going to repurpose and rearrange and paint and build (all in my budget which was my gas money I used to spend to drive!), and I'm tickled pink!

Much love,

What I know...

Oprah writes about what she knows for sure. I don't have anything deep, but I do know a few great things I've discovered recently.

Kashi Organic Cereal
I heard about this brand on a morning show talking about healthy options to eat in the morning. I like the Cinnamon Harvest flavor, but I haven't tried the others. It's super yummy! I'm a breakfast girl, nothing big, but I do eat a little something to get me going! I eat my cereal dry, and it's still really tasty!


Cutter Bug Free Backyard
Since we live outside the city limits, we don't get the city services like spraying our neighborhood for mosquitoes. We had significant rainfall in May so those mosquitoes multiplied...it was miserable going outside. I should also mention, I am supposedly allergic to DEET and cannot spray bug spray on myself. I found this product which attaches to a water hose. I sent Micah outside to spray the yard. One month later, I've had one or two bites since...that's it! Before that, I would be covered, the windows were covered at night in the pesky bugs! No more!


Army Wives
I love this show! It airs on Lifetime in it's second season on Sunday nights at 8 or 9...I think the new one comes on at 9 the previous week at 8. It's about women and their friendships, relationships, jobs, etc. It has a Grey' s Anatomy feel to it; I think they have some of the same people producing or something. Micah even comes in and watches with me!


Much love,

Sun after the storm

Yesterday, we attended our first Sunday school class. We really enjoy the pastor's lessons in "big church" and decided to attend Sunday school. Most of the people in the class are around our age and there's been quite a baby boom in the class as there are six babies under the age of one and I think I met nine couples. Two of the ladies in the Sunday school class teach at the elementary I've been hired to teach at so that's an instant connection. They were very welcoming and the whole group went to lunch after they invited us to sit with them in "big church." The class just started on a marriage book and are discussing marriage and God. I love those relevant lessons! To me, it was like after the storm(my week) you see a break in the clouds and there's the sun. Thank you God.

Much love,

Yea Amy!

Micah and I went to Amy's wedding reception last night. Amy was my next door neighbor teacher and our school's instructional specialist. She has a really fun spirit and would do anything for anyone. She got married in Jamaica a few weeks ago, but had her reception here in town for everyone to join her celebration. She chose the American Wind Power Center. I had never been there and it was a really cool place to watch a beautiful West Texas sunset. The inner history nerd in me was wowed by all the windmills! Good food, good conversation, and good people made for a great Saturday night! We closed down the party because we were so busy chatting it up! Congratulations, Amy!





P.S.: Monica, I saw pictures of Mr. Braidy. He's a precious little boy! What a blessing to your little family!

Much love,

A little of this, a little of that...

I suppose each law grad is on the mailing list for the Texas Tech Lawyer magazine since we began receiving it lately. Micah was flipping through yesterday when it came to the house and notices his name in the contributors list even though he's not in school any longer. Then he finds he had a full page article published he wrote about over two years ago! I'm so proud of him! Pictures below!

In other news, here’s what's been going on around the house...

FROGS...we have them! A LOT of them! We didn't know we had so many until we pulled out of the driveway and our headlights lit up the front yard and exposing the little hoppers. As we were driving we looked for them in other people's yards...nope. Just ours. Oh, and in our house...we found two! I thought it was funny. Micah was grossed out! I read they eat mosquitoes and bugs and don't hurt yards. We are having to be careful with Dodger and his curiosity.




It looked like at one time our garage had hanging shelving units, but the old owners had taken them out leaving large holes. I went on a hole filling mission and washed the walls. They were so nasty from all the spring dirt storms. They still looked gross so I decided to paint a dark color. We now have a blue wall in the garage. I may keep painting the other walls, but I'm still letting my eye switch from the white to the blue.


I bought chairs for the back porch this week since we spend more and more time outside in the evening. I love that lawn furniture is on sale this time of year!


My wave petunias have taken off the last couple of weeks!



Much love,

Oprah seconded me!

So I made my Friday post somewhere around 1:30 AM. Now, a mere fourteen hours later Oprah (I only get to watch the reruns in the summer, so I'm sure this aired a couple of months ago) and a rabbi on her show are saying the exact same thing as my post today!

On another note, just got back for my class in Lubbock, and after two days it's all cleaned out for the new person moving in, and man, I've written a lot lessons and learned so many life lessons in that classroom. I left my mural, and took my files and books. I was going to keep my bulletin board fabric, etc. but decided instead to make a fresh start.

Back to watching Oprah and the rabbi to tell these people like it is!

Much love,

I'm on my soapbox

Oprah got me on my soapbox the other day so here goes--money. If you ever want to experience awkwardness, there’s a topic to bring up. I think I read one time where it’s the number one cause of divorce, too. I was talking to a friend the other day about money. See in our mid-twenties we are all at different places in our lives—some friends are still in graduate school, some single, some new parents, some homeowners, some renters, and we all have varying salaries. Our candid money discussion came to consensus that some people spend a lot of money on things we would not spend it on (I wish I could go on, but I don’t want to divulge her chat with me). She has always been thriftier than me. I’m pretty good, if I say so myself.

Continuing on about money, I was watching Oprah this week about a woman who was in denial about debt. They had an adjustable mortgage about to increase over 2k a month and hundreds of thousands of dollars in credit card debt. I don’t want to judge them, but it makes me so sad for that family. Here was the point of the show: people all over live like this. I also believe this is a generational problem. Take my grandparents…depression era folks. The mantra on money was that they always thought tomorrow could bring a rainy day. Everything was paid in full, in cash. Weary of banks, distrustful of the government and stock market. Take my parents; on the tail end of the baby boom generation…this is really a mixed bag of folks. However, many of people my parents age watched their parents take advantage of the G.I. Bill to complete higher educations, move to the cities, and provide their families with more. I am a product of Generation Y. I have been disappointed by a sense of entitlement my generation seeming to flaunt a "Thirty Thousand Millionaire" attitude. In fact, I have even heard a lecture or two about feeling something is owed to me by my own parents. I think parents want to give to their children what they lacked, but sometimes when you give and never make your children “own” anything you wind up with a lazy, ungrateful byproduct. Ownership makes you value what is yours. It makes you work hard and take pride in your hard work I could go on and on about this, but parents please stop, you are doing a disservice to you kids. Do you really want to end up with children going on the MTV hit "Sweet Sixteen" where teens demand luxury cars, celebrity entertainers, designer threads all with snarly attitudes?

Ownership can never come too late. If you need to own it by looking up your free credit score annually. I went to https://www.annualcreditreport.com. I recommend if you don’t have a clue how you measure up, take that step of ownership!

I'm hopping off the soapbox for some shuteye!

Much love,

A Rant

"This is the day...this is the day that the Lord hath made, that the Lord hath made...I will be glad, I will be glad and rejoice in Him and rejoice in Him..."

Remember that sweet song we used to sing in children's church? I do. Boy, do I ever need it. I'm just down today. It's cloudy, and it's been cloudy. I like the rain at night, but I'm a sunshine girl. And, this is a big one...birds have built a nest on my porch. I knocked the nest down twice with the hose since I cannot reach (not that I would touch it with my hands anyway), and those tenacious suckers came back and rebuilt even bigger. They aren't nice. They swoop and loom. I'm scared to walk out my front door. Then, yesterday Micah comes home for lunch and we run to bring back a coke (no cokes=Maloufs unhappy) and discover (along with the line of cars waiting) for the next 3 WEEKS the main highway road to and from our neighborhood will be down to one lane. This means as we exit our neighborhood we are stopped and we wait for approximately 30 minutes until a lead truck comes down the highway then someone with a walkie talkie tells us to go. The same thing happens as we try to reenter our neighborhood...another 30 minute wait in the car. Yep...no fun. I feel like a prisoner of my home. And, to top it off tomorrow is the day I go to clean out my room at school. I worked so hard on my room to make it a fun learning place, and this just makes it final. I'm really sad, and I stink talking about it because I either sound whiny or just start to cry. The other hard part about it is that I want to be excited about my new school, but I'm just not there...yet. I want to be...I'm just still so sad about my school. I know people probably think...it's a job, but it became so much more for me. I could go on and on and on, but suffice to say the clouds, birds, the construction, and my self pity over my job have got me into a funk.

Okay, I'll try to end on a bright note...tomorrow I'm getting my hair done (much needed) and a dress I've been stalking online from Ann Taylor went on sale in a big way so I'm going to pop in there tomorrow...I hope it works...it looks adorable!

Much love,

Backyard fun

Micah loves golf and is quite good considering the time he put into it growing up. I love it because on Sunday afternoons it lulls me to a fabulous nap if on television. However, my patience level for golf isn't great. And, I don't like to be bad at something and have people watch me so we practice in the backyard.

Showing off his Tiger-like skills

I'm in paint clothes...I painted the garage--the walls looked dirty after I washed them.

Dodger chasing the dog next door through the fence...notice both of his back legs are off the ground.

Dodger is tired so I pretend to putt him.

Much love,

Oh no she didn't...

I was on the phone with a dear friend this weekend (I would mention her by name, but I'll protect her identity) and someone stole her baby name. I should mention she could potentially be around this person for a number of years. She acknowledges she's not in a relationship or close to having children, but still you don't go around stealing baby names. SO...in order not to have my baby names stolen I'm posting my list (yes, I've had a list saved on my computer)! No, I'm not trying to tell anyone anything other than if you steal my names I will hunt you down! :)

Colby’s baby names

Boy
John Andrew (My absolute favorite boy name!!!)
John Patrick (second choice, apparently #1 is someone else in the family, but c'mon I can't help that they were a fruitful people and took the good names)
Landon (Micah doesn't like)
Micah (means who is like God, but Micah says no to naming children after him, but I like his name!)

Girl
Caroline Grace (Is this not the greatest name EVER?)
Isabella (we would call her Belle…Micah not fond of this one and I'm losing interest as well)
Evelyn (middle name...this was my Granny's first name and if my daughter turned out anything like my Granny the world would be a beautiful place)
Leigh (middle name...I love my middle name, especially since it lets people know I'm a girl!)
Kenner (middle name...I loved what it meant to be a Kenner and all that we stand for and Karli and I were girls so why not pass it on)

Micah’s baby names (He has a "thing" for M's)
Boy
Marshall (Anyone else want to shout, "We are...Mar-shall!")
Mason

Girl
Madison (It's not quite me, nice name, just not what I envisioned.)

Much love,

Happy 4th of July!

Since I love summer and grilled food, the 4th of July has always been one of my favorite holidays. Watching fireworks was always a must growing up along with family and friends meeting up somewhere for good times! This year Micah wasn't sure if he would have to work, and I had returned from camp in a zombie-like state almost forgetting about the 4th. Micah's sister called and wanted to know if we would like to attend the Lubbock Country Club festivities courtesy of their second cousins. Wow, how fun! Delicious food, good conversations, and fabulous fireworks. Our camera didn't capture the pictures as well as Ash's did, but here we are...






Much love,

I'm no longer a Lubbockite

Thursday afternoon it became official that I was no longer a Lubbockite when my resignation went into effect at 5 PM and I signed my new contract at 1:30 PM. I have mixed feelings, but I know that if I'm going to give the move a chance this is what the decision should be. I suppose my feelings can be summarized best in the email I sent my coworkers Thursday. Say a prayer for me...I had no idea I would be taking it this hard.


Dear Friends,

I got back from student council camp last night, and it was actually fun! You will have four great leaders at Evans next year in your student council program. Late last week I accepted a fourth grade position at Highland Elementary in Plainview. I cannot tell you how difficult the decision was to leave. I feel like I just now “get” middle school and how things work at Evans! I had chatted at Wayland about a few neat positions at the end of last year and at the beginning of summer, but decided I really wanted to teach. I received a call from the high school to coach (really, can anyone fathom this!) and teach history, but decided no, again. Highland Elementary had a first grade opening which later turned into a fourth grade job when the fourth grade teacher decided to move down. I won't lie...I'm scared out of my mind. I will be teaching all subjects at the oldest title school in town--a vast change from Evans. I randomly came across a Beth Moore devotional late one night mid-June talking about stepping out of our comfort zones. She went on to talk about experiencing God’s blessings by doing something you wouldn’t normally do. As I was groveling with the decision to leave, her sermon kept playing in the back of my mind. Evans is my comfort. I grew up in a school very similar to Evans. I teach Pre-AP, and I was the Pre-AP kids I teach. Now, I will be with children whose parents may not speak English and I will be teaching math, science, writing, reading, English, and social studies. This is far from my comfort zone. Evans has become a family to me. I cannot tell you how appreciative of the support you all have given me. I came into teaching and didn’t love it at first. It was much more difficult than I imagined it being, but you all gave me ideas and tips and were so encouraging. I now can’t imagine not teaching. On a personal level, you’ve been there during my engagement, wedding, and the turmoil when my mom was ill. It’s hard not to feel extremely sad since I feel like I’ve become an adult while at Evans. I just wanted to say goodbye and thank you since I didn’t have that opportunity at the end of the year.

Much love,

Student council camp

I got back home from student council camp last night. First thing on the agenda--shower and sleep. I have dreaded camp from year to year as there are some snappy sponsors that can make for negative energy floating around--not to mention community bathrooms aren't up my alley. I really had a great time. The kids were precious and adorable (they even bought me a present and a sweet card when they found out I wouldn't be back next year...really, would you want to leave them???). I found a group of really fun, funny positive sponsors and I laughed until my stomach hurt. During our free afternoon, LISD went to Frisco and I did some shopping! I can't show pictures of the kids, but here is the fun bunch who along with the kids made the trip a joy with their stories and transparent attitude about sharing our life experiences! Thanks girls!



Much love,