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my email is brittneykbolt@gmail.com
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Thursday, December 29, 2011
Sunday, October 2, 2011
stayin alive
i was thinking... i need to keep this blog alive.. bc there are so many memories of our first few years of marriage on it, i don't want to just neglect. so ill start with a short and simple post on whats been going on lately.
matt went to San Francisco last week on a business trip. While he was gone, my lovely friends came over one night, we ordered pizza, and had a nursery painting party!! We didn't finish it all, but made a lot of progress so that Matt wouldn't have TONS to do to finish it when he got back. He's actually in there right now finishing up the "cutting in" and the corners. I love the color and I can't wait to get baby girl all set up in there!!! We are hoping to get hardwood floors and crown molding installed after Christmas, but for the time being we are going to set everything up in there as if its permanent. This is the room I chose for her nursery inspiration..
I can't wait to see how it turns out at the end! :)
Next, I am SO happy the fall weather is here!!!!! I feel like I'm finally back in a routine of some sorts. Today was the first day since, maybe April (??? yikes!) that I have sat down and made out a "menu" for the week, then gone to the grocery store and picked up all my
ingredients. A few things on this weeks menu: Crockpot Creamy Chicken and Stuffing, Bowtie Alfredo with Chicken and Broccoli, Homemade Chicken and Wild Rice Soup with Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, Lasagna and Garlic Bread. Yum. I'm so happy I'm able to eat again!!!! So is baby girl :) We've gained 5 lbs now!!
Cheerleading is going pretty well! Last week we had our first competition and we won!! Yesterday we had our 2nd competition and we got 5th out of 5. It's hard in competitive cheer because each set of judges have the same score sheets every week but maybe have totally different judging styles. We have a lot to work on before the next competition, but boy have they come a long way since last year!! :) Here's what they did the first week.... (the video is crooked at first but it'll straighten out! also the music is off with the action at the end of the film but you get the picture)...
As you can tell, Matt is becoming a "cheer dad" already. Yes, that's him at the beginning of the video, ARGUING with a woman who kept telling him to sit down. Haha. Gotta love him!!
Finally, Clemson is GOOD y'all!!!!!!! I haven't been this excited about Clemson Football in a long time. It kind of stinks that this is the first year we've been awesome and is also the first year that I am not able to go to every home game bc of cheer competitions, but still, i am thrilled!!! I told Matt if we go to the Orange Bowl, or heck, possibly the National Championship, I don't care how large and in charge this mama is, IM GOIN! SO SO Proud of my tigers!!!!!
I can't wait to go the the mtns. in two weekends to celebrate our 4 year anniversary and come home with some pumpkins and mums for the front porch!! Hope everyone is having a fantastic FALL!!! The holiday season will be here before we know it!!!!! I LOVE it : )
-B
Monday, September 5, 2011
new fans??
hello out there!!
just making sure all you folks have been following me on our new blog!!
sixlittletoes.blogspot.com
im not doing away with this one all together, but for now, im enjoying blogging about baby bolt :)
just making sure all you folks have been following me on our new blog!!
sixlittletoes.blogspot.com
im not doing away with this one all together, but for now, im enjoying blogging about baby bolt :)
Friday, July 29, 2011
the longest hiatus ever is due to....
http://sixlittletoes.blogspot.com/
We're going to be parents!!!!!!!!!! I've been blogging HERE for the past 2 months!!! So excited to FINALLY share the news with everyone!!! We're thrilled!!! Baby Bolt is due February 29th (leap day) 2012! :)
We're going to be parents!!!!!!!!!! I've been blogging HERE for the past 2 months!!! So excited to FINALLY share the news with everyone!!! We're thrilled!!! Baby Bolt is due February 29th (leap day) 2012! :)
Thursday, July 21, 2011
I AM blog series
Whitney tagged me in this lovely blog series and I promise to do it as soon as I get around to it... hopefully it'll be up by Saturday!! :)
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
wordless wednesday
sorry for being MIA. lots going on lately! here are just a couple pics from the beach last week :) will post soon!
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
the longest post ever... new york trip
i've been cleaning all day and when i clean i take frequent breaks (when i finish a room). everytime i get on i keep checking my blog list to see if anyone's updated recently and keep getting annoyed because no one has!!!! so i decided to quit getting aggravated at all you slacking bloggers and do something about my own slacking blog. finally... here's New York trip.
Wednesday night Jordan and I headed off to Charlotte.
We went to The Cowfish (an AMAZING restaurant in Charlotte, you have to check it out next time you're there!) with Ash and Katie and had a great dinner and great conversation. We made it back to Ashley and Matt's house, watched Modern Family, and headed to bed since we had to be up at 4:30 am the next morning.
THURSDAY:
We woke up at 4:30... and shimmied out the door around 5:00 am. Made it to the check in at the US Air desk around 5:35 am. They told us we were 6 minutes too late to check baggage on the flight (which was supposed to board at 6:15) and that we were gonna have to wait for the 8am flight. BOO!!!!!! we were SO TIRED!! But we trekked over to our gate and painted our nails while we waited on the restaurants to open. We were starving by the time 7:00 am rolled around. We hustled over to the Sbarro where jordan had pizza for breakfast and I got nasty biscuits and gravy...from an airport sbarro (which is ITALIAN) at 7am. Desperate much?? We boarded and were on our way to NYC!
We landed in Laguardia around 10am and made it to a cab. Destination W79th and New York Avenue. (aka: Upper East Side) The blocks around where we were staying is actually the third richest neighborhood in the US. There were Range Rovers EVERYWHERE!!!! Nannys pushing more strollers than we'd seen in our lives and cute moms with yoga mats. it was beautiful weather... but everyone was wearing black?? Jordan and I were stuck out on a street corner waiting on Brantley to get there with the keys... picture this: .. two blonde girls (in a brunette town) with GIANT suitcases...vera bradley bags... a pillow...and i HAD to be wearing a bright yellow rain jacked on that morning and both wearing rainbows. I dont think New Yorkers know what Rainbows are. We stuck out like two sore thumbs! Then Brantley met us and we got to where we were staying.... w B's friend Jonathan... thank goodness he's so hospitable!! We walk into his building and come to find that it's actually being turned into a Synagogue and everyone has been evicted... except Jonathan and the super. We walk up a teeny tiny curving staircase to the 5th floor (EXHAUSTING with all that luggage, thanks brantley for the help) into a tiny tiny apartment. This is where we stayed... i sent this to my mom:
We didn't skip a beat and headed out to the street to catch a cab with Brant. We went straight to NBC Studios at Rockafellar Center to try to get Jimmy Fallon tickets... We ended up with this:
A Standby ticket. They said to come back at 3:30 pm and see if we were going to make it to taping that day. By this time we were staving and Brantley thought it would be nice to take us on a walking tour of NYC on our way to lunch. we walked a very long...long...long way. about 3 miles!!!!! To the Upper West Side where we had lunch at a lovely little sidewalk cafe of a pub. We were SO TIRED... besides getting up at 4:30 am that morning...and walking 3 miles...and only eating a nasty sbarro breakfast that morning....and sweating our butts off...and our feet bleeding with blisters... we were having fun!! Just glad to finally be there. We let Brantley know we weren't avid walkers and we were gonna need to take cabs/trains/buses from now on! here we are at lunch:
Then we parted way with Brantley (he had to get to acting class) and were on our own in the big city. We headed to Times Square and shopped for a hot minute in Forever 21, then it was time to get back to 30 Rock to see if we were gonna get to see Late Night. We walked around for what seemed like an eternity. Finally we were in line and they let us know that numbers 1-60 were getting in!! We were numbers 67 and 68! Are you kidding me?! Dang it!!! I love Jimmy Fallon!! I watch every night. Oh well, let's go take a nap before heading back out tonight! We went out to the street to get a cab and NO ONE would pick us up. It was about 5:00 (rush hour) and everyone was off duty!!! Ughhh.. At this point we were nearly in tears and Jordan was telling me here shins were breaking in half. We got one of those little bike taxis to take us as far as he could... which ended up being Madison Ave... which is the financial district. Jordan and I are sweating and crying (basically) and are sticking out like sore thumbs (AGAIN) in the midst of all the Armani Suit wearing business men on Madison Ave. FINALLY we found a cab to take us back home.... I called Mom, had a mental breakdown, then tried to get some sleep. We woke up... got ready..and met meredith in Times Square:
We walked to a place called Rudy's in Hell's Kitchen which was offering free hot dogs and $6 beer pitchers! Perfect! It was also amazing bc Justin Timberlake's restaurant was RIGHT ACROSS the street and I really wanted to see him.. I mean, IT. Here are Mim and Jordan at Rudy's w hot dogs and beer:
We got a cab home around 1am and went straight to sleep!
FRIDAY:
We slept LATE, as you can imagine. We were zonked. It was raining so we put on bummy clothes and caught the bus to the Mueseum of Natural History where our friends, Brantley and Jonathan were. We found things super cool things like a giant oyster and a replica of a blue whale:
Then we went to a place called Shake Shack in Hell's Kitchen which was like NYC's version of Fuddruckers then we shopped til we dropped. Urban Outfitters, a few weird shoe stores, Trader Joe's, American Apparel, the Apple Store, Zara, etc. Then we went a really cool movie theater in Times Square to see Bridesmaids which was HYSTERICAL. After the movie we headed down to Lower Eastside to meet Mim and her boyfriend, Enri at a quaint little Italian restaurant. We had to walk down St. Mark's street which is like the College Avenue of Clemson, in NY. Its where all the coked out NYU students are and there is just bar after bar after bar.... pencil thin college girls in solid black.. ripped panty hose, sky high heels, painted on skirts, long black hair, everywhere. And here come Jordan and I... in our jeans and old navy t-shirts with tennis shoes. YIKES!!!! We were so embarassed. But it was worth it when we finally made it to Mim. We ordered dinner (at midnight) and I swear the restaurant was as crowded as the Ale House in Greenville at 7pm on a Friday. Had the BEST PASTA i've EVER had!!! At only $9 for a giant bowl of it, it can't be beat!!!! We got Pasta Carbonara, omg. my mouth is watering as i type. We sat in once of the window seats... it was a restaurant like you'd see only in the movies. amazing. if you're ever in the east village you MUST go there!!!
We caught a cab home around 1:30 and went straight to sleep!
SATURDAY:
We woke up and got ready and headed off to the Staten Island Ferry to ride by the Statue of Liberty. It took us a while to find exactly where we were supposed to be going. We also made a pit stop at a nearby drug store and picked up some materials to make a poster for Callie's class in Australia! The Statue of Liberty to them, is like the Sydney Opera House to us. a landmark they know the US by. Here we are in the middle of the port working on the poster:
And here we are holding it in front of the Statue:
After that little venture we took it back to the "house" and got ready for a night out. We headed back out and went to Brantley's friend's improv show where we met up with my friends Hoyt and Meredith from Clemson. After the show we went to a little pub and had drinks with even more friends :) Then we went down the street and ate at Brother Jimmy's a southern type place in NYC ... with the best mac n cheese ever!! I also rekindled my love for Natty Light.. I usually dink a Blue Moon or a Shock Top so I forgot how light Natty tastes :) Heres a clan of my Clemson friends that all live in NYC now:
Also, I literally bumped into Hoyt on a street corner walking to the train one day!! CRAZY! Hoyt was one of my best guy friends in college.. I haven't seen him in 2 years, at least! He ended up hanging out with us the rest of the weekend!! Good times :) Later after Brother Jimmys we all bar hopped around and ended up at a place in the East Village called The Dark Room:
We made our way home around 2 am, got some quesadillas from the deli next to our apt then headed inside and went to bed.
SUNDAY:
We packed everything up and had it waiting at the door then headed down to Union Square to do some last minute shopping and grab brunch with our friends. We were in H&M for about 2 hours, it was awesome! Then we went and got brunch at a little place called the coffee shop bar. it was a perfect little diner style brunch restaurant with sophistication. again, i felt like i was in a movie! check it out here: http://thecoffeeshopnyc.com here are some friends at brunch:
We hustled back to the apt and got our suitcases and taxied off the the airport. no delays this time. we flew back into charlotte and drove our EXHAUSTED selves back home :)
and that, my friends, was mine and jordy's trip to new york citayyyyy! Hopefully, I will be going back with Matt this fall/winter. I've always wanted to see NYC at Christmastime and Matt's never been, I really want to go! We'll see :)
next stop Isle of Palms on Friday with Matt, Grandy & Mimi, Dad & Susie, Sam & Twila, Ashley & Matt, Tyler and his friend Ryan (wish you were here Janey!)
I <3 Summer!!
Wednesday night Jordan and I headed off to Charlotte.
We went to The Cowfish (an AMAZING restaurant in Charlotte, you have to check it out next time you're there!) with Ash and Katie and had a great dinner and great conversation. We made it back to Ashley and Matt's house, watched Modern Family, and headed to bed since we had to be up at 4:30 am the next morning.
THURSDAY:
We woke up at 4:30... and shimmied out the door around 5:00 am. Made it to the check in at the US Air desk around 5:35 am. They told us we were 6 minutes too late to check baggage on the flight (which was supposed to board at 6:15) and that we were gonna have to wait for the 8am flight. BOO!!!!!! we were SO TIRED!! But we trekked over to our gate and painted our nails while we waited on the restaurants to open. We were starving by the time 7:00 am rolled around. We hustled over to the Sbarro where jordan had pizza for breakfast and I got nasty biscuits and gravy...from an airport sbarro (which is ITALIAN) at 7am. Desperate much?? We boarded and were on our way to NYC!
We landed in Laguardia around 10am and made it to a cab. Destination W79th and New York Avenue. (aka: Upper East Side) The blocks around where we were staying is actually the third richest neighborhood in the US. There were Range Rovers EVERYWHERE!!!! Nannys pushing more strollers than we'd seen in our lives and cute moms with yoga mats. it was beautiful weather... but everyone was wearing black?? Jordan and I were stuck out on a street corner waiting on Brantley to get there with the keys... picture this: .. two blonde girls (in a brunette town) with GIANT suitcases...vera bradley bags... a pillow...and i HAD to be wearing a bright yellow rain jacked on that morning and both wearing rainbows. I dont think New Yorkers know what Rainbows are. We stuck out like two sore thumbs! Then Brantley met us and we got to where we were staying.... w B's friend Jonathan... thank goodness he's so hospitable!! We walk into his building and come to find that it's actually being turned into a Synagogue and everyone has been evicted... except Jonathan and the super. We walk up a teeny tiny curving staircase to the 5th floor (EXHAUSTING with all that luggage, thanks brantley for the help) into a tiny tiny apartment. This is where we stayed... i sent this to my mom:
We didn't skip a beat and headed out to the street to catch a cab with Brant. We went straight to NBC Studios at Rockafellar Center to try to get Jimmy Fallon tickets... We ended up with this:
A Standby ticket. They said to come back at 3:30 pm and see if we were going to make it to taping that day. By this time we were staving and Brantley thought it would be nice to take us on a walking tour of NYC on our way to lunch. we walked a very long...long...long way. about 3 miles!!!!! To the Upper West Side where we had lunch at a lovely little sidewalk cafe of a pub. We were SO TIRED... besides getting up at 4:30 am that morning...and walking 3 miles...and only eating a nasty sbarro breakfast that morning....and sweating our butts off...and our feet bleeding with blisters... we were having fun!! Just glad to finally be there. We let Brantley know we weren't avid walkers and we were gonna need to take cabs/trains/buses from now on! here we are at lunch:
Then we parted way with Brantley (he had to get to acting class) and were on our own in the big city. We headed to Times Square and shopped for a hot minute in Forever 21, then it was time to get back to 30 Rock to see if we were gonna get to see Late Night. We walked around for what seemed like an eternity. Finally we were in line and they let us know that numbers 1-60 were getting in!! We were numbers 67 and 68! Are you kidding me?! Dang it!!! I love Jimmy Fallon!! I watch every night. Oh well, let's go take a nap before heading back out tonight! We went out to the street to get a cab and NO ONE would pick us up. It was about 5:00 (rush hour) and everyone was off duty!!! Ughhh.. At this point we were nearly in tears and Jordan was telling me here shins were breaking in half. We got one of those little bike taxis to take us as far as he could... which ended up being Madison Ave... which is the financial district. Jordan and I are sweating and crying (basically) and are sticking out like sore thumbs (AGAIN) in the midst of all the Armani Suit wearing business men on Madison Ave. FINALLY we found a cab to take us back home.... I called Mom, had a mental breakdown, then tried to get some sleep. We woke up... got ready..and met meredith in Times Square:
We walked to a place called Rudy's in Hell's Kitchen which was offering free hot dogs and $6 beer pitchers! Perfect! It was also amazing bc Justin Timberlake's restaurant was RIGHT ACROSS the street and I really wanted to see him.. I mean, IT. Here are Mim and Jordan at Rudy's w hot dogs and beer:
We got a cab home around 1am and went straight to sleep!
FRIDAY:
We slept LATE, as you can imagine. We were zonked. It was raining so we put on bummy clothes and caught the bus to the Mueseum of Natural History where our friends, Brantley and Jonathan were. We found things super cool things like a giant oyster and a replica of a blue whale:
Then we went to a place called Shake Shack in Hell's Kitchen which was like NYC's version of Fuddruckers then we shopped til we dropped. Urban Outfitters, a few weird shoe stores, Trader Joe's, American Apparel, the Apple Store, Zara, etc. Then we went a really cool movie theater in Times Square to see Bridesmaids which was HYSTERICAL. After the movie we headed down to Lower Eastside to meet Mim and her boyfriend, Enri at a quaint little Italian restaurant. We had to walk down St. Mark's street which is like the College Avenue of Clemson, in NY. Its where all the coked out NYU students are and there is just bar after bar after bar.... pencil thin college girls in solid black.. ripped panty hose, sky high heels, painted on skirts, long black hair, everywhere. And here come Jordan and I... in our jeans and old navy t-shirts with tennis shoes. YIKES!!!! We were so embarassed. But it was worth it when we finally made it to Mim. We ordered dinner (at midnight) and I swear the restaurant was as crowded as the Ale House in Greenville at 7pm on a Friday. Had the BEST PASTA i've EVER had!!! At only $9 for a giant bowl of it, it can't be beat!!!! We got Pasta Carbonara, omg. my mouth is watering as i type. We sat in once of the window seats... it was a restaurant like you'd see only in the movies. amazing. if you're ever in the east village you MUST go there!!!
We caught a cab home around 1:30 and went straight to sleep!
SATURDAY:
We woke up and got ready and headed off to the Staten Island Ferry to ride by the Statue of Liberty. It took us a while to find exactly where we were supposed to be going. We also made a pit stop at a nearby drug store and picked up some materials to make a poster for Callie's class in Australia! The Statue of Liberty to them, is like the Sydney Opera House to us. a landmark they know the US by. Here we are in the middle of the port working on the poster:
And here we are holding it in front of the Statue:
After that little venture we took it back to the "house" and got ready for a night out. We headed back out and went to Brantley's friend's improv show where we met up with my friends Hoyt and Meredith from Clemson. After the show we went to a little pub and had drinks with even more friends :) Then we went down the street and ate at Brother Jimmy's a southern type place in NYC ... with the best mac n cheese ever!! I also rekindled my love for Natty Light.. I usually dink a Blue Moon or a Shock Top so I forgot how light Natty tastes :) Heres a clan of my Clemson friends that all live in NYC now:
Also, I literally bumped into Hoyt on a street corner walking to the train one day!! CRAZY! Hoyt was one of my best guy friends in college.. I haven't seen him in 2 years, at least! He ended up hanging out with us the rest of the weekend!! Good times :) Later after Brother Jimmys we all bar hopped around and ended up at a place in the East Village called The Dark Room:
We made our way home around 2 am, got some quesadillas from the deli next to our apt then headed inside and went to bed.
SUNDAY:
We packed everything up and had it waiting at the door then headed down to Union Square to do some last minute shopping and grab brunch with our friends. We were in H&M for about 2 hours, it was awesome! Then we went and got brunch at a little place called the coffee shop bar. it was a perfect little diner style brunch restaurant with sophistication. again, i felt like i was in a movie! check it out here: http://thecoffeeshopnyc.com here are some friends at brunch:
We hustled back to the apt and got our suitcases and taxied off the the airport. no delays this time. we flew back into charlotte and drove our EXHAUSTED selves back home :)
and that, my friends, was mine and jordy's trip to new york citayyyyy! Hopefully, I will be going back with Matt this fall/winter. I've always wanted to see NYC at Christmastime and Matt's never been, I really want to go! We'll see :)
next stop Isle of Palms on Friday with Matt, Grandy & Mimi, Dad & Susie, Sam & Twila, Ashley & Matt, Tyler and his friend Ryan (wish you were here Janey!)
I <3 Summer!!
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
NYC coming soon!
I will blog about NYC as soon as I get caught up on rest, sleep, my tv that i missed, and all this cheerleading stuff :)
Until then, I was just browsing around at recipes and trying to make my grocery list/dinner agenda for this week and realized I dont have Noble Pig on my blog list!!! I am adding it right now. I get recipes from here ALL THE TIME and I've never made one that was bad!!!
Some of my favorites: Maple Mustard Glazed Chicken, Cheesy Shell-Stuffed Shells, Potato, Bacon, and Sour Cream Frittata , Baby Bow-Ties with Peas and Ham , and many many more!!!!!
Check it out!! :)
http://noblepig.com/
Until then, I was just browsing around at recipes and trying to make my grocery list/dinner agenda for this week and realized I dont have Noble Pig on my blog list!!! I am adding it right now. I get recipes from here ALL THE TIME and I've never made one that was bad!!!
Some of my favorites: Maple Mustard Glazed Chicken, Cheesy Shell-Stuffed Shells, Potato, Bacon, and Sour Cream Frittata , Baby Bow-Ties with Peas and Ham , and many many more!!!!!
Check it out!! :)
http://noblepig.com/
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
i still got it?
i can't believe im actually putting this up for the world to see .. but i guess im a little proud of myself for still being able to "move" :) we did this dance our senior year at a pep rally and LOVED it and sweet Katie gave me the music for it last week so I am teaching it to the girls this year for them to do at the homecoming pep rally. filmed myself doing it at practice to put it online for the girls to use as a resource... they still dont have it down yet, so dont judge. it's gonna be great! :)
in other news... jordan and i are leaving for new york thursday morning at 6 am!!! its only my 2nd time going... things im looking forward to:
-going to late night with jimmy fallon (i watch it EVERY NIGHT) so i cant wait to be there!
- staten island ferry to see the statue of liberty
- visiting the Top of the standard hotel (aka the boom boom room where celebrities are spotted)
- shopping!!!!
- going to southern hospitality (jt's restaurant)
- meeting all of my great friend, Brantley's friends
- visiting the MOMA, the met, and the museum of natural history
- running around times square
and last but not least.... for all of you who've known me since middle school, you understand how huge this is...
JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE is hosting SNL this weekend with musical guest Lady Gaga... that means they will BOTH be in town. I am GOING to find him, I just know it :) We may get into the SNL After Party Saturday night (brantley used to work for SNL) AND we're going to justin's restaurant one night... i think my chances are pretty good, folks!!
anyone have any other suggestions of MUST-GO/MUST-SEE places or things to do in NYC?? Cant wait!!!
-b
in other news... jordan and i are leaving for new york thursday morning at 6 am!!! its only my 2nd time going... things im looking forward to:
-going to late night with jimmy fallon (i watch it EVERY NIGHT) so i cant wait to be there!
- staten island ferry to see the statue of liberty
- visiting the Top of the standard hotel (aka the boom boom room where celebrities are spotted)
- shopping!!!!
- going to southern hospitality (jt's restaurant)
- meeting all of my great friend, Brantley's friends
- visiting the MOMA, the met, and the museum of natural history
- running around times square
and last but not least.... for all of you who've known me since middle school, you understand how huge this is...
JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE is hosting SNL this weekend with musical guest Lady Gaga... that means they will BOTH be in town. I am GOING to find him, I just know it :) We may get into the SNL After Party Saturday night (brantley used to work for SNL) AND we're going to justin's restaurant one night... i think my chances are pretty good, folks!!
anyone have any other suggestions of MUST-GO/MUST-SEE places or things to do in NYC?? Cant wait!!!
-b
Sunday, May 15, 2011
teaser
sorry for the hiatus, people! i havent even come up for air this week. i have some fun pics to post... along with some cheer videos...and some stories to tell.. but right now im going to sleep!
i just got home from Augusta. i was down there with my friend Lauren, who is a photographer, helping her shoot a wedding (more on that later) and i am so sleepy!!!! hopefully i can get on here and catch you up before I leave for NEW YORK CITY on Wednesday night!! :)
i hope you all had a great week!!
thought of the week - -
* before you speak ask yourself three things: is it true? is it kind? is it necessary?
-B
i just got home from Augusta. i was down there with my friend Lauren, who is a photographer, helping her shoot a wedding (more on that later) and i am so sleepy!!!! hopefully i can get on here and catch you up before I leave for NEW YORK CITY on Wednesday night!! :)
i hope you all had a great week!!
thought of the week - -
* before you speak ask yourself three things: is it true? is it kind? is it necessary?
-B
Friday, May 6, 2011
first week...over!
first week of practice is complete.
PHEW!!!!
i can BARELY hold my eyes open as im typing, i am so exhausted. but i am happy to share a couple pictures with you and let you know... i am really excited for this year!! We're already making leaps and bounds from the horror stories i've head about last year and i am so excited for these girls. i dont even know them all that well (yet) but i can tell you that the passion is there. they are pumped! it's great to see :)
here's our first team picture:
here's little C and me after a LONG three days of tryouts and the "you made it!" party:
here's after the first practice:
can you tell thats the only shirt we have right now? dont worry. i didnt make them wear it every day this week. only monday and thursday :) the rest of the shirts are ordered and should be in next week! cant wait for yall to see them! they are fun. Cathleen and I have been having the best time picking out everything. We're getting TWO new uniforms this year (which is incredible) we got to pick those out tonight and the girls had their fitting. We're super excited about the uniforms.. one is bringing back old school Eastside like we're trying to do! woot! We've also been having a hay day picking out shoes, poms, bloomers, warmups, and everything in between!
OUTSIDE OF CHEERLEADING:
You long time followers will be happy (and proud of me, i hope) to learn that i have been SLOWLY but SURELY weening off the ambien! it has been a long and difficult process but for two weeks i managed to take only half a pill. Then Saturday night I didn't take one at all, and since then I've only taken 1/4 of a pill, which is a teeny tiny nibble of a pill. Go Me!!! I will feel so relieved to rid that of my lifeeeee! speaking of... maybe right now i will close my computer, and not take one at all, bc i can feel my eyes closing on their own! i'll let you know if i succeeded tomorrow!
<3 and cheer! :) (im so clever)
b
PHEW!!!!
i can BARELY hold my eyes open as im typing, i am so exhausted. but i am happy to share a couple pictures with you and let you know... i am really excited for this year!! We're already making leaps and bounds from the horror stories i've head about last year and i am so excited for these girls. i dont even know them all that well (yet) but i can tell you that the passion is there. they are pumped! it's great to see :)
here's our first team picture:
here's little C and me after a LONG three days of tryouts and the "you made it!" party:
here's after the first practice:
can you tell thats the only shirt we have right now? dont worry. i didnt make them wear it every day this week. only monday and thursday :) the rest of the shirts are ordered and should be in next week! cant wait for yall to see them! they are fun. Cathleen and I have been having the best time picking out everything. We're getting TWO new uniforms this year (which is incredible) we got to pick those out tonight and the girls had their fitting. We're super excited about the uniforms.. one is bringing back old school Eastside like we're trying to do! woot! We've also been having a hay day picking out shoes, poms, bloomers, warmups, and everything in between!
OUTSIDE OF CHEERLEADING:
You long time followers will be happy (and proud of me, i hope) to learn that i have been SLOWLY but SURELY weening off the ambien! it has been a long and difficult process but for two weeks i managed to take only half a pill. Then Saturday night I didn't take one at all, and since then I've only taken 1/4 of a pill, which is a teeny tiny nibble of a pill. Go Me!!! I will feel so relieved to rid that of my lifeeeee! speaking of... maybe right now i will close my computer, and not take one at all, bc i can feel my eyes closing on their own! i'll let you know if i succeeded tomorrow!
<3 and cheer! :) (im so clever)
b
Monday, May 2, 2011
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
random and funny videos from my phone
i LOVE this video of matt trying to play "Minute to Win It" on Wii at Christmastime...
My tiny she... in bed... being spoiled..
Jordan blowing out her bday candles..to early :) at our monday night dinner celebration...
My tiny she... in bed... being spoiled..
Jordan blowing out her bday candles..to early :) at our monday night dinner celebration...
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Sunday, April 24, 2011
marital exchange of the day
im SO glad Cathleen is blogging yall! :) im stealing all her ideas.
Me: (sitting in the car in the driveway) Lamb, what if i just got out of the car right now and squatted on that bush and peed?
Matt: silence. smiles. bursts into laughter. Hahahaha! That's why I love you so much, baby. Because i think the SAME things all the time! Like, earlier at the restaurant I was thinking like "what if that waiter just came over here and put his butt on the table and farted? Like, right at our food??"
Me: haha!! that's weird!
i cant wait til we have children. they will probably be the quietest. shyest. sweetest. most modest little things on earth, with parents like us, who they will be TOTALLY embarrassed of! *ps i just had to google how to spell embarrass*
Me: (sitting in the car in the driveway) Lamb, what if i just got out of the car right now and squatted on that bush and peed?
Matt: silence. smiles. bursts into laughter. Hahahaha! That's why I love you so much, baby. Because i think the SAME things all the time! Like, earlier at the restaurant I was thinking like "what if that waiter just came over here and put his butt on the table and farted? Like, right at our food??"
Me: haha!! that's weird!
i cant wait til we have children. they will probably be the quietest. shyest. sweetest. most modest little things on earth, with parents like us, who they will be TOTALLY embarrassed of! *ps i just had to google how to spell embarrass*
Thursday, April 21, 2011
one of the best purchases ive ever made
for the love of cotton candy.. PLEASE go buy this baby from your local bath and body works. you will not be sorry!! i have been drooling all night! it smells AMAZING!!!!
i also got three super cute shirts from free people @ belk. they are having a sale that starts next wednesday so they let me shop the "presale" and i got the 20% off!! the catch: i have to pick up my purchases next thursday. so i couldnt come home and show matt my pretty things right away. but for the extra 20% off its worth the weeklong wait!
also!!! i went to the new Sephora that we FINALLY got!!!! it's inside JC Penny (how funny) but it is divine! I stayed in there for an hour sampling the perfumes and make up and left with a new NARS blush and a mini perfume from philosophy for my purse.
i hadn't smelled perfumes since christmas ya'll!! that is a long time for me!!!! some of my new faves are listed below.
Also, I included the "note pyramid" of each fragrance. It's always interesting to hear what they are and then start comparing your favorites. they usually have similar base notes. you can look up your perfume on fragrantica.com and it will tell you the notes! :)
Ange ou Demon by Givenchy ...Jamie Ball!! thanks for trying to get this to me.. i now know why you were so set on it! I hope you're still mailing me the sample bc i loved it!
top notes: mandarin, saffron, thyme
middle notes: lily, orchid, ylang-ylang
base notes: tonka bean, vanilla, brazilian rosewood, oakmoss
Vanilla Grapefruit by Lavanila for Sephora - delicious!
notes: vanilla, patchouli, lime, grapefruit, heliotrope, bergamot
Eternal Grace by Philosophy. This is the one I got the "mini" of. My sister gave me the shampoo/body wash for my bday last year and I LOVE it so I had to get the cute little mini for my purse. If i love the perfume enough, I think this will be my "go to" summer fragrance. It's fresh, light, and feminine.
notes: bergamot, citrus, neroli, geranium, lavender, violet, passionfruit, sandalwood, musk, amber
I've never posted my favorite men's cologne for yall... so here are my favorites, get one for your man:
Lacoste Challenge - this is their newer fragrance. love it.
top notes: tangerine, amalfi lemon, bergamot
middle notes: ginger, lavender, violet leaf
base notes: ebony wood, teak wood
Lacoste Red. I love this one, too! It's similar to the Challenge but a little more bold.
notes: patchouli, apple, cedar
Curve by Liz Claiborne. Ok ok ok I know im going back to 7th grade with this one, but everytime I smell this I swoon like a teenage girl. A classic :)
Top Notes: lavender, juniper berries, pineapple, neroli, and lemon
Middle notes: coriander, ginger, violet, cactus, sage, bergamot, cardamom
Base notes: sandalwood, amber, musk, vetiver, cedar, mahogany, pepper
Hugo Boss in Motion- Dear Lord. this is my absolute favorite. This is what Matt wears (because I bought it for him..he doesn't care at all what he smells like, haha) I LOVE this! Just typing this right now made me get up and go in the bathroom and get it out of his dopp kit to smell it. ahhh
Top notes: Orange, Basil, Bergamot, Violet Leaf
Middle notes: nutmeg, cinnamon, pink pepper, cardamom
Base notes: Sandalwood, Musk, Woodsy Notes, Vetiver
Sunday, April 17, 2011
sunday hymns
im copying cathleen today.
here are some of my FAVORITE hymns :) and by favorite i dont just mean i like them at church... i have each one of these on my iPod and listen to them, frequently :)
first up, River in Judea, good time in concert choir at Eastside. this is literally the exact same rendition and sheet music we performed. im sitting here singing along to my alto parts ...
next.. "My Jesus I Love Thee." my best friend, Megan, walked down the aisle to this song. i still cry everytime i listen to it. it's so beautiful. Also, when I was eight years old, my Papa died. Although I don't remember everything about him, I do remember how much he loved Jesus towards the end of his life. He was a diabetic and amputee (when he passed away he only had one leg) and right after he died, I always pictured him having his "glorified body" in Heaven. I had this image in my mind of him being so perfect and happy in the presence of God and the last verse in this song just reminds me of him so much. I can't wait to see you again one day, Papa! :)
"In mansions of glory and endless delight
I'll ever adore thee in heaven so bright
I'll sing with a glittering crown upon my brow
If ever I love thee, my Jesus 'tis now"
followed by my favorite from my whole life... "Come Thou Fount of Ev'ry Blessing"
This one is my current favorite, played on His radio all the time and we sing it at Newspring a lot... "Our God." All the time, in my head, i repeat "And if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us? And if our God with with us, then what can stand against?"
last but not least (and not the only one.. i have a lot more favorite hymns) but i love "In Christ Alone." and i can't listen to it without getting emotional.
Hope you all enjoy your Sunday!! :)
B
here are some of my FAVORITE hymns :) and by favorite i dont just mean i like them at church... i have each one of these on my iPod and listen to them, frequently :)
first up, River in Judea, good time in concert choir at Eastside. this is literally the exact same rendition and sheet music we performed. im sitting here singing along to my alto parts ...
next.. "My Jesus I Love Thee." my best friend, Megan, walked down the aisle to this song. i still cry everytime i listen to it. it's so beautiful. Also, when I was eight years old, my Papa died. Although I don't remember everything about him, I do remember how much he loved Jesus towards the end of his life. He was a diabetic and amputee (when he passed away he only had one leg) and right after he died, I always pictured him having his "glorified body" in Heaven. I had this image in my mind of him being so perfect and happy in the presence of God and the last verse in this song just reminds me of him so much. I can't wait to see you again one day, Papa! :)
"In mansions of glory and endless delight
I'll ever adore thee in heaven so bright
I'll sing with a glittering crown upon my brow
If ever I love thee, my Jesus 'tis now"
followed by my favorite from my whole life... "Come Thou Fount of Ev'ry Blessing"
This one is my current favorite, played on His radio all the time and we sing it at Newspring a lot... "Our God." All the time, in my head, i repeat "And if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us? And if our God with with us, then what can stand against?"
last but not least (and not the only one.. i have a lot more favorite hymns) but i love "In Christ Alone." and i can't listen to it without getting emotional.
Hope you all enjoy your Sunday!! :)
B
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
lose it
So, there's this app on my iPhone called Lose It! I used it for a while when we were in Raleigh and it really worked. Last week I went to dinner with my mom and Travis and they were telling me how they were following a similar app called "My Fitness Pal" available on andriod phones. Trav has lost something like 27 lbs. following it and I think my mom's lost 4. So, I started it yesterday and I'll keep you informed on my progress.
Basically, it's a calorie counter. You enter your current weight, your goal weight, and how soon you want to reach your goal weight. You can do "I want to lose: 1/2 lb a week, 1 lb a week, 1 1/2 lbs a week, 2 lbs a week." or "I want to maintain my current weight." I started off trying to do the 2 lbs a week but its WAY too little calories/day for me to start out with.
Here's what you do: You LOG what you eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and exercise. You simply "search foods" and usually the nutrition facts are in there. they even have brand names, under the "supermarket foods" tab and also a "restaurant foods" tab.. so i can enter a "chicfila sandwich." if the food isnt in there, you just look at the nutrition label and enter in the calories. You also can "browse exercises" and choose what exercise you did that day. It then adds back the calories you burned off that day. (in other words, you can eat more if you're working out). by the end of the day, your log looks something like this:
Anyway, try it out if you have the iPhone ... or get my fitness pal if you have an andriod :)
in other news, today was the parent meeting for cheerleading. anyone who wants to try out had to have a parent there. we had 50!! that was a great turnout compared to last years 20-something. It went really well! :) i was a lot better at "public speaking" than i thought i'd be. i'll credit that solely to my "how to avoid a shark attack" speech from public speaking ( COMM 250) @ Clemson :)
Also. last night matt went downstairs to feed the dogs and Annie wasn't coming in the dining room. Which is VERY VERY strange bc she is a food monster and she's always hungry and jumping up and down in the room when we're about to feed her. Matt went in and noticed that she looked like a whale. It took him a while to figure it out, but I'd just bought a new big bag of dog food earlier and he put it in the floor instead of up in the chair. Needless to say, my she had chewed a hole in the bottom of the bag and ate to her hearts content. So wonder she didn't blow up and die. she was HUGE!!!!!! she's in BIG trouble bc she's been on a diet and had lost 3 whole lbs (which is like me losing 20) so we were proud of her.. and now it looks like we're back at square one. here is the miserable bean...
happy humpday!
-b
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
delicious turkey wraps
i wish i would have taken a picture!!!
i am trying to eat healthier before our family beach trip coming up in june!! after all, all this working out and personal trainer stuff isnt going to work if im not following a good diet.
so i bought lean ground turkey instead of ground beef with the intentions of making turkey tacos. while the meat was "browning" (it should be called "whitening" when its lean turkey) i changed my mind midway through.
being a STRICT recipe follower, i was a little nervous. i always have a recipe and usually follow it to a T (or tee, or tea, what is it??) lately, i've been a little more adventurous and branched off from the original recipes, but tonight was a total WHIM.
instead of taco seasonings, i added a little bit of "i can't believe its not butter," some salt and coarse black pepper, and my two favorite seasoning blends, Cavender's and Montreal Steak Seasoning. made sure the seasonings had enough time to marinate the turkey and then made wraps. On fat free tortillas (that were for the tacos), shredded cheddar, spicy ranch, and lettuce.
oh, my word. they were SO GOOD! and i was so proud of myself for making it up on a whim. quick and easy. i think i'll make them more often. if i'd have used fat free cheese and fat free ranch, each wrap would have been about 2 grams of fat, total!! however, the ones i made were only about 6 grams of fat a piece. NOT TOO SHABBY at all! :)
whip 'em up! you wont regret it!
and if you don't know what Cavender's is... i recommend you find out. I put it on everything!! chicken... vegetables (like when i make zucchini and squash), ground turkey (obviously), red potatoes that i bake in the oven, green beans! everything! it's awesome.
-B
i am trying to eat healthier before our family beach trip coming up in june!! after all, all this working out and personal trainer stuff isnt going to work if im not following a good diet.
so i bought lean ground turkey instead of ground beef with the intentions of making turkey tacos. while the meat was "browning" (it should be called "whitening" when its lean turkey) i changed my mind midway through.
being a STRICT recipe follower, i was a little nervous. i always have a recipe and usually follow it to a T (or tee, or tea, what is it??) lately, i've been a little more adventurous and branched off from the original recipes, but tonight was a total WHIM.
instead of taco seasonings, i added a little bit of "i can't believe its not butter," some salt and coarse black pepper, and my two favorite seasoning blends, Cavender's and Montreal Steak Seasoning. made sure the seasonings had enough time to marinate the turkey and then made wraps. On fat free tortillas (that were for the tacos), shredded cheddar, spicy ranch, and lettuce.
oh, my word. they were SO GOOD! and i was so proud of myself for making it up on a whim. quick and easy. i think i'll make them more often. if i'd have used fat free cheese and fat free ranch, each wrap would have been about 2 grams of fat, total!! however, the ones i made were only about 6 grams of fat a piece. NOT TOO SHABBY at all! :)
whip 'em up! you wont regret it!
and if you don't know what Cavender's is... i recommend you find out. I put it on everything!! chicken... vegetables (like when i make zucchini and squash), ground turkey (obviously), red potatoes that i bake in the oven, green beans! everything! it's awesome.
-B
Monday, April 4, 2011
our weekend and yogurt mountain
in the words of nimbus meade, "hai guyz!"
i dont even know what to write about tonight. hmm. how about just an update..
friday night, mom and i went to the stein mart 12 hr sale and i got my sweet little hubby two really nice spring shirts :) a long sleeved button down to wear for Easter and a short sleeved golf polo. then we went to this new restaurant in greenville, Harry & Jean's. It was pretty delish!! matt had to work late so i brought him home something from there. then we watched Dateline from last week that we'd tivo'd.
Saturday I had to work and then came home and took a cat nap... then Matt and I went on a date night to Adam's Bistro and Yogurt Mountain!
PS- have you BEEN to Yogurt Mountain yet???! Now i know why I see so many cars with YM stickers! OH. MY. GOSH. It is probably the best thing i've ever tasted and 90% of the frozen yogurts are fat free! I encourage you to click on the link i just posted and then check out the MENU tab. Holy toldeo.
You walk into Yogurt Mountain and get your own cup.
then you fill it up with whatever your heart desires... since it was my first time, i wanted to try a few different flavors... so i got Cake Batter, Orange Sorbet, Blue Cotton Candy, and German Chocolate Cake... i know that sounds gross, dont worry, i did NOT mix them all together! the cup was big enough to get little spurts of each. they were all AMAZING and tasted so good!!! ... so there's a whole wall of THIS ...
then toppings...
then you take your cup up to the register.. where they WEIGH it at $0.45/once. Ours cost $13 and mine was only $5... that tells you how crazy matt went. he got peanut butter and cheesecake! :) and his looked heavy! i can tell you one thing... YM is making a lot of money! Heaven knows how many kids we saw going through the line without parent supervision and PILING their cups up with all KINDS of stuff! :)
anyway, it's amazing.
then sunday we went by starbucks to get matt a coffee because he was out at home, headed to church @ newspring, stopped by costco to pick up a few things, went to subway for lunch, came home and took the dogs on a walk, watched the college basketball slam dunk contest, took a nap, did some laundry and cleaned the bathroom, and then met matt's mom at California Dreamin' for dinner. They have the BEST entree salads! Yum! We ended up staying for two hours just having great conversation. Then came home and I watched Army Wives... WHICH by the way was a great episode last night! I'm so glad I finally got on the army wives train, great show!
So we had a really fun and happy weekend!! This week i have a lot of cheerleading stuff going on. Wohoo!! Gettin' closer to tryouts people!! can't wait for cathleen and i to pick our team and get these girls to work! Have a great week!
-B
i dont even know what to write about tonight. hmm. how about just an update..
friday night, mom and i went to the stein mart 12 hr sale and i got my sweet little hubby two really nice spring shirts :) a long sleeved button down to wear for Easter and a short sleeved golf polo. then we went to this new restaurant in greenville, Harry & Jean's. It was pretty delish!! matt had to work late so i brought him home something from there. then we watched Dateline from last week that we'd tivo'd.
Saturday I had to work and then came home and took a cat nap... then Matt and I went on a date night to Adam's Bistro and Yogurt Mountain!
PS- have you BEEN to Yogurt Mountain yet???! Now i know why I see so many cars with YM stickers! OH. MY. GOSH. It is probably the best thing i've ever tasted and 90% of the frozen yogurts are fat free! I encourage you to click on the link i just posted and then check out the MENU tab. Holy toldeo.
You walk into Yogurt Mountain and get your own cup.
then you fill it up with whatever your heart desires... since it was my first time, i wanted to try a few different flavors... so i got Cake Batter, Orange Sorbet, Blue Cotton Candy, and German Chocolate Cake... i know that sounds gross, dont worry, i did NOT mix them all together! the cup was big enough to get little spurts of each. they were all AMAZING and tasted so good!!! ... so there's a whole wall of THIS ...
then toppings...
then you take your cup up to the register.. where they WEIGH it at $0.45/once. Ours cost $13 and mine was only $5... that tells you how crazy matt went. he got peanut butter and cheesecake! :) and his looked heavy! i can tell you one thing... YM is making a lot of money! Heaven knows how many kids we saw going through the line without parent supervision and PILING their cups up with all KINDS of stuff! :)
anyway, it's amazing.
then sunday we went by starbucks to get matt a coffee because he was out at home, headed to church @ newspring, stopped by costco to pick up a few things, went to subway for lunch, came home and took the dogs on a walk, watched the college basketball slam dunk contest, took a nap, did some laundry and cleaned the bathroom, and then met matt's mom at California Dreamin' for dinner. They have the BEST entree salads! Yum! We ended up staying for two hours just having great conversation. Then came home and I watched Army Wives... WHICH by the way was a great episode last night! I'm so glad I finally got on the army wives train, great show!
So we had a really fun and happy weekend!! This week i have a lot of cheerleading stuff going on. Wohoo!! Gettin' closer to tryouts people!! can't wait for cathleen and i to pick our team and get these girls to work! Have a great week!
-B
Friday, April 1, 2011
indecisive because i can be
if you haven't noticed... every night this week, i've revamped my blog. i dont know why. i have been really indecisive lately. im fine with it. :)
also, way back when i was changing our blog name, 4 or 5 different people told me my blog should be called "the nuts and bolts" ... so i am trying it out for a few days, or permanently. it kind of make sense considering my blog is pretty "nutty" and im talking about how our life works.. the nuts and bolts of it all.
i was just talking to my sister about how i feel like my blog isn't as "serious" or "deep" or "intuitive" or "well written" as a lot of you guys' are! i was feeling inadequate until she assured me that it was very entertaining and she loved that i write things exactly how i would speak them. i love reading yall's though!! suzy, i can never imagine being as eloquent as you! everything i read, that you write, i am just like... wow. its beautiful! and SO well put. im so happy for baby dover to arrive. :)
a lot of you others out there are such an encouragement to me with your posts and insights. thanks for that! i know my blog is probably not doing the same for you, but i hope that it at least adds some cheer to your day :)
this video DEFINITELY will... one of matt coworkers sent it to him the other day with the caption "this reminds me of my mother-in-law" ... i cannot stop laughing when i watch it and think of the poor guys crazy mother-in-law at thanksgiving dinner.(sidenote: thank goodness i was blessed with an AMAZING mother-in-law)
happy friday boys and girls! :)
-b
also, way back when i was changing our blog name, 4 or 5 different people told me my blog should be called "the nuts and bolts" ... so i am trying it out for a few days, or permanently. it kind of make sense considering my blog is pretty "nutty" and im talking about how our life works.. the nuts and bolts of it all.
i was just talking to my sister about how i feel like my blog isn't as "serious" or "deep" or "intuitive" or "well written" as a lot of you guys' are! i was feeling inadequate until she assured me that it was very entertaining and she loved that i write things exactly how i would speak them. i love reading yall's though!! suzy, i can never imagine being as eloquent as you! everything i read, that you write, i am just like... wow. its beautiful! and SO well put. im so happy for baby dover to arrive. :)
a lot of you others out there are such an encouragement to me with your posts and insights. thanks for that! i know my blog is probably not doing the same for you, but i hope that it at least adds some cheer to your day :)
this video DEFINITELY will... one of matt coworkers sent it to him the other day with the caption "this reminds me of my mother-in-law" ... i cannot stop laughing when i watch it and think of the poor guys crazy mother-in-law at thanksgiving dinner.(sidenote: thank goodness i was blessed with an AMAZING mother-in-law)
happy friday boys and girls! :)
-b
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
just where she wants to be
matt sent me this today and said "how am i supposed to work all day with this thing lurking under my desk..."
ohhhhh my she! she likes it under there bc that's where matt's PC is and its all warm down their by the cords :)
ohhhhh my she! she likes it under there bc that's where matt's PC is and its all warm down their by the cords :)
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
cheerleading and a very small amount of other things
i have been eating, sleeping, dreaming, and breathing cheerleading every since i was thrown into this whirlwind a couple of weeks ago. and i love it!! it is a lot of hard work but i have had fun working!!! between planning, scheduling, registering for coaching and rules clinics for SCHSL, creating a facebook group for tryouts, recruiting (including heading to a girls soccer game and begging them to try out bc we need athletes & facebook messaging middle schoolers), writing out a cheerleading constitution, practice rules and guidelines, try out score sheets, parents meeting info, flyers to go out to the middle schools, and a conditioning workout regimen for the next several weeks, i HAVE had a tiny bit of extra time to go out and do some fun things :)
matt and i went to myabi on friday night for date night. that's always fun. we love us some japanese food ! the saturday i went to work, then headed out for girls night dinner! :) we went to liberty taproom (who actually revamped their menu and got a new head chef and had some amazing food!) then headed to the ale house for a beer, and then finished up at Corner Pocket and had a lot of fun..
and the rain didn't stop us!! thank goodness for valet parking :)
i love my friends! :)
tomorrow is the first day of CONDITIONING for anyone who is interested in trying out for the squad the last week of april... i plan on them being able to stretch like THIS by the time i'm through with them :)
then HOPEFULLY in a few years time.. win state like we did in this video (this is Eastside in 2004-2005, the year after cathleen and i graduated... we drove down to columbia from clemson to watch and they won.. ahhh the good ol days. i'd show you our video from winning state but it was in 2002-2003 and youtube was nonexistant)
matt and i went to myabi on friday night for date night. that's always fun. we love us some japanese food ! the saturday i went to work, then headed out for girls night dinner! :) we went to liberty taproom (who actually revamped their menu and got a new head chef and had some amazing food!) then headed to the ale house for a beer, and then finished up at Corner Pocket and had a lot of fun..
and the rain didn't stop us!! thank goodness for valet parking :)
i love my friends! :)
tomorrow is the first day of CONDITIONING for anyone who is interested in trying out for the squad the last week of april... i plan on them being able to stretch like THIS by the time i'm through with them :)
then HOPEFULLY in a few years time.. win state like we did in this video (this is Eastside in 2004-2005, the year after cathleen and i graduated... we drove down to columbia from clemson to watch and they won.. ahhh the good ol days. i'd show you our video from winning state but it was in 2002-2003 and youtube was nonexistant)
Sunday, March 20, 2011
no barking
my mom always tells about how when i was a baby she had the hardest time learning to let me cry myself to sleep. she says the pediatrician told her that it would be hard at first and she would feel terrible, but ultimately it was the best way to get me to start sleeping through the night and discipline me. she says for those first two nights she just sat outside my nursery door, crying just has hard as i was, and feeling like the worst mom ever letting her baby scream bloody murder for up to an hour after she put me down. but finally, after a few nights, my tiny human self realized it was time for sleep and wouldn't cry when she left.
today, i feel my moms pain.
our dogs are our children. we love them more than anything. we would do anything for them. including disciplining them :( they are terrible barkers. they bark when they see someone in the cul-de-sac, they bark when they hear a neighbor rolling their trash can down to the street, they bark when the doorbell rings, they bark when matt is on important business calls, etc. So the other day, when Whitney talked about her boy, Nimbus, having a bark collar. I thought, maybe we should try it?? So I texted Whit about it and she said that it was great! They got it for when Baby L was sleeping and Nim was barking and that it has worked! So today I ventured out and bought these..
oh my gosh. i swear, me and matt were breaking out into a nervous sweat as we opened the packaging and read the instructions. i've always been totally against them, thinking they weer "inhumane" but after researching them all day yesterday i realized, it really isnt. it's not a "shock" like a lot of people think, it's just an intense vibration. still, we were sad to put them on our dogs bc they were sitting there so sweetly looking at us.. not even barking. then two seconds after we had that thought, they were darted out the doggie door barking at the neighbor's kids. so we called them back inside and put them on. Cooper was ok, he went back out in the yard, barked a few times, and then suddenly stopped. Annie got hers on, barked once, and turned around real quick and looked at us like we'd just spanked her or something... then she barked again. and let out a squeal (she's a bit over dramatic) but the poor little thing broke my heart!!! she looked so confused and sad!! Like, "how could you let someone hurt me like that, mommy??" i felt SO BAD, but i can tell it's working!!! there's a dog barking outside right this second and my babies would normally be at the door barking but my house is as quiet as can be. It was sad a few minutes ago, when Annie woke up, she heard something and barked, then immediately yelped again! Poooooooor angel!!! I went up and loved on her and said "It's ok my sheeee, you are being SO GOOD! You're gonna learn not to bark!! Good girl!!" She doesnt seem sad or upset so I hope she's ok. pooooooor sheeee!! :(
Cooper hasn't had another encounter, yet. But at least if he barks, he doesnt cry after the jolt, he just stops. Annie shrieks like a tiny human "Brittney" in her crib..and I act like my mother, crying along with her and hoping she learns. Thanks for doing that Mom, it sure is hard!
here's to hoping the house stays quiet. the collars of course, will be taken off at night, and we will not make them wear them all the time, every day... they will learn after just a few weeks of wearing the collar not to bark and hopefully won't have to wear it as much. but i do think it's important to let them be dogs and go outside and bark sometimes!
today, i feel my moms pain.
our dogs are our children. we love them more than anything. we would do anything for them. including disciplining them :( they are terrible barkers. they bark when they see someone in the cul-de-sac, they bark when they hear a neighbor rolling their trash can down to the street, they bark when the doorbell rings, they bark when matt is on important business calls, etc. So the other day, when Whitney talked about her boy, Nimbus, having a bark collar. I thought, maybe we should try it?? So I texted Whit about it and she said that it was great! They got it for when Baby L was sleeping and Nim was barking and that it has worked! So today I ventured out and bought these..
oh my gosh. i swear, me and matt were breaking out into a nervous sweat as we opened the packaging and read the instructions. i've always been totally against them, thinking they weer "inhumane" but after researching them all day yesterday i realized, it really isnt. it's not a "shock" like a lot of people think, it's just an intense vibration. still, we were sad to put them on our dogs bc they were sitting there so sweetly looking at us.. not even barking. then two seconds after we had that thought, they were darted out the doggie door barking at the neighbor's kids. so we called them back inside and put them on. Cooper was ok, he went back out in the yard, barked a few times, and then suddenly stopped. Annie got hers on, barked once, and turned around real quick and looked at us like we'd just spanked her or something... then she barked again. and let out a squeal (she's a bit over dramatic) but the poor little thing broke my heart!!! she looked so confused and sad!! Like, "how could you let someone hurt me like that, mommy??" i felt SO BAD, but i can tell it's working!!! there's a dog barking outside right this second and my babies would normally be at the door barking but my house is as quiet as can be. It was sad a few minutes ago, when Annie woke up, she heard something and barked, then immediately yelped again! Poooooooor angel!!! I went up and loved on her and said "It's ok my sheeee, you are being SO GOOD! You're gonna learn not to bark!! Good girl!!" She doesnt seem sad or upset so I hope she's ok. pooooooor sheeee!! :(
Cooper hasn't had another encounter, yet. But at least if he barks, he doesnt cry after the jolt, he just stops. Annie shrieks like a tiny human "Brittney" in her crib..and I act like my mother, crying along with her and hoping she learns. Thanks for doing that Mom, it sure is hard!
here's to hoping the house stays quiet. the collars of course, will be taken off at night, and we will not make them wear them all the time, every day... they will learn after just a few weeks of wearing the collar not to bark and hopefully won't have to wear it as much. but i do think it's important to let them be dogs and go outside and bark sometimes!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
a post a long time in the making!!!! (and it's actually long)
as most of you know ... i was a cheerleader in highschool. and not just any cheerleader, a State Champion cheerleader at a 5 time state winning school to be exact. see below:
Eastside meant so much to me, and it still does. I might be the only person I know who frequently says "I would love to go back to high school.. even if it was just for a week or two." I literally had the BEST time in high school. I loved every minute of it, and most of every minute was spent doing something related to cheerleading. Despite being state champions, we loved cheering for sports. football and basketball. and we had more school spirit than we knew what to do with. making banners, sponsoring football players, making them "signs," decorating locker rooms, performing at pep rallies, i lived for it all! cathleen and i would even go back to cheerleading competitions throughout our time in college. who am i kidding? we went back to one last october. we love it.
ANYWAY. you get the point, i think. so over the past few years i've been hearing that eastside's cheerleading program has been going down the tube. ever since my former coach, Kelley Robinson and my great friend and fellow cheerleader, Katie Ross Aughtry resigned three years ago from coaching, the program has been on the decline. I've felt so bad for the team. After you work so hard to build and keep traditions, it's really sad to hear about them being totally trashed. and it's not the teams fault really. its probably just been the fact that they havent had a coach who went to eastside, and knows the "standard." after all, Kelley came in and "saved" us after having a bad coaching experience. they hired her because she was a former Eagle and had won the state championship when she went there in 1998 and knew what it took to get there. She brought back "old school eastside" and took us back to where we needed to be.
Needless to say, I was sad to hear about their recent struggles. Cathleen and I went to the State Championship in November and Eastside hadn't even made it. A few weeks later I ran into some of my former teachers at a wedding. I talked to them and they told me more about what's been going on and I felt really bad.. so i drafted this email:
"Dear Mr. Feltz,
My name is Brittney *****. I was a part of the State Champion Cheerleading squad in 2002 and cheered under Coach Kelley Wilson Robinson from 2002 until I graduated in 2004. I was, and still am, very passionate about Eastside, and cheerleading. Kelley instilled in us the values of teamwork, reputation, and prestige.
Since I've graduated I've kept up with both, EHS and Cheerleading. With my younger brother and sister attending from 2004-2008, I've had a lot of inside connections with the squad, and remained close with Kelley and Katie up through their resignation. Recently, it's broken my heart to hear about the struggles the squad has gone through in the past few years.
I know you currently have a coach, and I certainly don't want to step on anyones toes, but I just wanted to let you know that I would love to do anything I can to help; be it, helping out with Varsity, a JV Squad, football only, basketball only, etc. If anything ever comes up, I would love to meet with you and discuss this further. Coach Susan Meadows and Coach Scott Erwin are good friends of mine, if you'd like to speak with them about me.
Also, my best friend, Cathleen *****, who cheered with me as well, would love to help. She is a first grade teacher in Greenville. She cheered at Clemson University, where we were roommates, and we still attend a bunch of local cheer competitions during the fall.
My email is ****and my phone number is ****. I live less than a mile from the school and could come meet with you whenever, if need be. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Brittney"
i drafted that in december. sent it to my mom for proofreading. she was like "thats good, send it!" but i never did. it was sitting in my draft box for two months. just kind of iffy about it. Then a random night, about 3 weeks ago, Scott Foster (our competition coach) who now owns and operates the VERY VERY successful Rockstar Cheer in greenville... facebook messaged me "call me." which was pretty random. so i called him and he's like "what are you doing now days? eastside needs a new coach. im close with the A.D. over there and he called to ask my opinion and I really think it needs to be someone who went to Eastside.. that Kelley and I coached...who knows what needs to happen. Bring tradition back. I was like, so caught off guard. I think i said "That sounds amazing, but I dont know how to be a coach??" He's like "I'll help you, you have so many resources, they need you, you can help bring them back, come on!" I said, "Ill at least meet with the AD I guess. Scott, this is SO WEIRD bc I wrote this email to him a few months ago but I never sent it!" He was like send it to him now, I'll let him know it's coming! So I did...
I went in for an interview, 2 weeks ago. I met with the new principal, the athletic director, and his assistant, who also happens to have a daughter on the squad. They told me everything. the good the bad and the ugly and we talked for over an hour. i left feeling pretty confident and they said they'd be in touch.
oh i almost forgot, after Scott called me. I immediately called Cathleen, who is my tiny bff and college roommate... did i mention she is awesome... look at the beauty ...
anyway, i coerced her into being my assistant coach. probably end up being more like co-coaches :) hip hip, hooray!! that is, if i got the job.
so tonight... after a LONG and stressful two week wait.. i got the call. and i got the job.
I'm the new Varsity Cheerleading Coach at Eastside :)
i know it's going to take a LOT of work. blood, sweat, and tears. time. dedication. heart. you name it... but i think this is a fantastic opportunity and i cant wait to get my hands on this team (not literally) but you know, i cant wait to help bring back tradition. try outs are in april. i cant believe I am in charge of picking a team!?! whoop whoop!!
Go Eagles! <3
Eastside meant so much to me, and it still does. I might be the only person I know who frequently says "I would love to go back to high school.. even if it was just for a week or two." I literally had the BEST time in high school. I loved every minute of it, and most of every minute was spent doing something related to cheerleading. Despite being state champions, we loved cheering for sports. football and basketball. and we had more school spirit than we knew what to do with. making banners, sponsoring football players, making them "signs," decorating locker rooms, performing at pep rallies, i lived for it all! cathleen and i would even go back to cheerleading competitions throughout our time in college. who am i kidding? we went back to one last october. we love it.
ANYWAY. you get the point, i think. so over the past few years i've been hearing that eastside's cheerleading program has been going down the tube. ever since my former coach, Kelley Robinson and my great friend and fellow cheerleader, Katie Ross Aughtry resigned three years ago from coaching, the program has been on the decline. I've felt so bad for the team. After you work so hard to build and keep traditions, it's really sad to hear about them being totally trashed. and it's not the teams fault really. its probably just been the fact that they havent had a coach who went to eastside, and knows the "standard." after all, Kelley came in and "saved" us after having a bad coaching experience. they hired her because she was a former Eagle and had won the state championship when she went there in 1998 and knew what it took to get there. She brought back "old school eastside" and took us back to where we needed to be.
Needless to say, I was sad to hear about their recent struggles. Cathleen and I went to the State Championship in November and Eastside hadn't even made it. A few weeks later I ran into some of my former teachers at a wedding. I talked to them and they told me more about what's been going on and I felt really bad.. so i drafted this email:
"Dear Mr. Feltz,
My name is Brittney *****. I was a part of the State Champion Cheerleading squad in 2002 and cheered under Coach Kelley Wilson Robinson from 2002 until I graduated in 2004. I was, and still am, very passionate about Eastside, and cheerleading. Kelley instilled in us the values of teamwork, reputation, and prestige.
Since I've graduated I've kept up with both, EHS and Cheerleading. With my younger brother and sister attending from 2004-2008, I've had a lot of inside connections with the squad, and remained close with Kelley and Katie up through their resignation. Recently, it's broken my heart to hear about the struggles the squad has gone through in the past few years.
I know you currently have a coach, and I certainly don't want to step on anyones toes, but I just wanted to let you know that I would love to do anything I can to help; be it, helping out with Varsity, a JV Squad, football only, basketball only, etc. If anything ever comes up, I would love to meet with you and discuss this further. Coach Susan Meadows and Coach Scott Erwin are good friends of mine, if you'd like to speak with them about me.
Also, my best friend, Cathleen *****, who cheered with me as well, would love to help. She is a first grade teacher in Greenville. She cheered at Clemson University, where we were roommates, and we still attend a bunch of local cheer competitions during the fall.
My email is ****and my phone number is ****. I live less than a mile from the school and could come meet with you whenever, if need be. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Brittney"
i drafted that in december. sent it to my mom for proofreading. she was like "thats good, send it!" but i never did. it was sitting in my draft box for two months. just kind of iffy about it. Then a random night, about 3 weeks ago, Scott Foster (our competition coach) who now owns and operates the VERY VERY successful Rockstar Cheer in greenville... facebook messaged me "call me." which was pretty random. so i called him and he's like "what are you doing now days? eastside needs a new coach. im close with the A.D. over there and he called to ask my opinion and I really think it needs to be someone who went to Eastside.. that Kelley and I coached...who knows what needs to happen. Bring tradition back. I was like, so caught off guard. I think i said "That sounds amazing, but I dont know how to be a coach??" He's like "I'll help you, you have so many resources, they need you, you can help bring them back, come on!" I said, "Ill at least meet with the AD I guess. Scott, this is SO WEIRD bc I wrote this email to him a few months ago but I never sent it!" He was like send it to him now, I'll let him know it's coming! So I did...
I went in for an interview, 2 weeks ago. I met with the new principal, the athletic director, and his assistant, who also happens to have a daughter on the squad. They told me everything. the good the bad and the ugly and we talked for over an hour. i left feeling pretty confident and they said they'd be in touch.
oh i almost forgot, after Scott called me. I immediately called Cathleen, who is my tiny bff and college roommate... did i mention she is awesome... look at the beauty ...
anyway, i coerced her into being my assistant coach. probably end up being more like co-coaches :) hip hip, hooray!! that is, if i got the job.
so tonight... after a LONG and stressful two week wait.. i got the call. and i got the job.
I'm the new Varsity Cheerleading Coach at Eastside :)
i know it's going to take a LOT of work. blood, sweat, and tears. time. dedication. heart. you name it... but i think this is a fantastic opportunity and i cant wait to get my hands on this team (not literally) but you know, i cant wait to help bring back tradition. try outs are in april. i cant believe I am in charge of picking a team!?! whoop whoop!!
Go Eagles! <3
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