I'm Gonna Be Famous!

Today I had my first hair cut since moving to Nashville. Ya'll know how I feel about my hair...I can't just trust anyone. Being the "thrifty" person that I am (hehe), I decided to try a Beauty School here in Nashville. Laurie and I made appointments for this afternoon to get trims. Naturally, my time at the Redken Salon would be comical. First, Mason is the GUY who will be cutting my hair- no need to get into details, you get the idea. After he washed my hair, I asked him to show me how to fix my hair curly without the frizz. FOUR hair products later, he is "fixing" my hair. (P.S. I weighed 3 pounds more from all the product in my hair.) I received a few compliments from others and then the big whammy happened. Mason asked me if he could take pictures of me! Being the cautious person that I am, I asked what he would use them for. He then explained to me that he wanted to put them in his portfolio and that he would ask his manager's permission to take the pictures. I agreed. This would be MY moment- my chance at fame! For all we know, Mason could be the next Ken Pave (For all you non-celebrity magazine reading fans- that's Jessica Simpson's BFF and hair stylist to the stars) Mom- aren't you proud? If I don't make it as an accountant, I can always fall back on my hair modeling!


The place where it all started!

I Need A Sign!

Here's something that's been bothering me since I moved to Nashville. How do you know if someone is flirting with you or if they are just really good at their job? I've had to make the rounds setting up 'new everythings' and I've experienced some really great customer service. At one of my stops, I was helped by a REALLY cute guy (forget the fact that he messed up the order, causing me to have to return and be helped by ANOTHER cute guy!). With both of these guys, I thought they exemplified great customer service. After the first visit, I was able to ride the "high" of meeting a really cute guy (who had a real job) for 3 days. Now that I have had a second visit, I'm hoping that high will get me through the rest of the week.

This leads me back to a statement I made long ago. I believe we should all wear signs- they could say things like "Available", "Taken", "Looking for ___", etc. It would clear up much of the confusion between the opposite sexes. One never knows if someone is interested in them or just being really nice. When did being 'nice' become such a pain?

Another frustrating point: I've spent over 20 minutes looking for a cute image to add to this blog. I can't seem to find any websites that show good images! Am I not typing the right words in the search box? Anyone who has some experience with this, please feel free to share!

P.S. I'm currently wearing the "Looking for a cute, nice, funny, guy who has a real job!" sign.

Everything New

I made it through my first full day of work at my new job! My drive to work takes exactly 6 minutes. Definitely setting the alarm back a bit for future mornings. I added a few personal touches to my cubicle- pictures, quotes, and vase. I'm so lucky to be working for such a great firm!

I am also settling into my first new place. Laurie and I are living in a 2 story townhome off West End Avenue. It's super cute! I'm slowly decorating my room and adding decor to the living room and kitchen. Who knew that can openers, plastic spoons, and sandwich bags would become my top items to get at Wal-Mart??

So far, nothing too exciting has happened. The highlight of my first week here was having a cute guy open up my new bank account!

Arrivée de bébé

As most of you probably know, Nicholas Ryan Lee joined the world last night at 8:31pm, October 12, 2009. One of the reasons I started this blog was so everyone could get a laugh out of the inner workings of my crazy mind. And I'm sure you're all waiting on pins and needles to hear my thoughts about the birth.

I had just finished eating an early lunch when I got the call. I ran upstairs to "get ready". That means two outfits later, I was finally ready to head to the hospital. (Think of all the pictures people.)

Now, most of you know that I'm kinda squeamish about the whole birthing process. Throughout Lacey's pregnancy, I have been keeping tabs on all the pros and cons of being pregnant. Let me tell you, it's not all tubs of ice cream and foot rubs. I've been scarred by TV and my sixth grade teacher. I KNOW too much. The OB-GYN is on my Watch List. Anytime a nurse or doctor came in to check on her progress, I was the first one out the door no matter what my position was in the room. I JETTED out of the room pretty fast- didn't want to take a chance and see something that I didn't need to see.

Thankfully, I was absent during the more painful contractions, I returned to the hospital (had to make a McAlister's run) as she was getting her epidural. (OH THE NEEDLE!!! AGH!!!) After that procedure, Lacey was all smiles. From the time she actually began to push, it was only 20 minutes until Mom heard the first cry. And let's be real- who wouldn't come out screaming bloody murder after they had been pushed through a lemon sized canal and subjected to harsh, bright lights? And let's not forget all the stuff the nurses and doctors must do- slapping the butt, giving shots, and basically invading the baby's personal space. Life as he knows it, has drastically changed.

During my second visit with Nicholas, he left his mark on me in a way I can never forget. I was holding him in my arms, and I began to feel warmth on my stomach. I didn't think anything of it until Lacey mentioned the need to possibly change his diaper. ALERT! I quickly informed Lacey and Ryan that I smelled pee and that I believed the diaper change was necessary and immediate. Ryan and I tackled this job together. As I put Nicholas in the bed, I saw a massive wet stain on the hospital gown and on my shirt beneath it. As Ryan and I took the diaper off, we were in for a surprise. Lacey's book calls it the "brownie poo". I will probably never look at a brownie the same way again.


Diaper backward spells repaid. Think about it. ~Marshall McLuhan

Wedding Palooza Part 2

I just got back from my very last wedding of the summer. For those of you counting (or those of you who have LOST count), that's 8 weddings total that I have been to this summer. From strawberry, vanilla, almond flavor with raspberry filling, to red velvet, Italian creme, and cheesecake- I've loved them all.

I mentioned in my previous post that I had my last wedding to attend as a bridesmaid last weekend. This wedding was for my friend Mallorie in Laurel. It was an outside wedding- so that meant bug spray and SureDry- at the Rogers Green House. The ceremony was lovely and thankfully short. The reception was where things got funny.

Most of you know my feelings about the "bouquet toss" at weddings. I think it's a fun tradition, but it's one that I would much rather watch than participate in. When it came time for the Bride to throw the bouquet at every wedding this summer, naturally I got elbowed and nudged out of my chair/corner by all of my non- single friends. I find this somewhat embarrassing that all the 'single' ladies must identify themselves to everyone at the party- there's a fine line between being a good sport and looking desperate, ya know.

Now over the summer, I have developed a few strategies for avoiding the bouquet. #1) When there is a large number of single ladies, stand as far to the side/back as possible so as to hopefully mix in with the rest of the crowd. Chances are, at least one of the other single girls will grab the bouquet before it comes anywhere close to where you are standing. #2) If you are being pushed into the center of the group, go for it. When the bouquet is tossed, you can duck down in the center and no one will be the wiser. (Remember, this can only work if there is a large number of single girls out there.) #3) When there are only 6 single girls out there, it becomes much more difficult to hide in the back or to the far side. If the bride has somewhat decent aim, and she wants to throw it at you, you might be forced to catch it/pick it up off the floor or risk looking rude when you just stare at it on the floor like it's a dead bug. There can be no side-stepping in this case. You're best bet is to stand with the other single girls in a small huddle and cross your fingers that one of the other girls will be so eager to catch it that even if the bouquet comes near you, they will kindly reach over and grab it.

Now for Mallorie's reception, I followed strategy #3- stood in a small huddle with the other single girls and crossed my fingers that she would have bad aim. With my hands clasped in front of me, I waited for the dreaded toss. No warning, no indication that Mallorie was even thinking of throwing it to me. Apparently, she had been practicing, because the bouquet came right to me. It sailed over the fingertips of the girl in front of me. As my head turned to the side as if to say, "No, not me!", the bouquet hit my forehead. At the last second, my brain sent the message to my hands that if I wanted to avoid being smacked on the forehead by flowers, I better put my hands up to catch it! I guess it was only fair that those flowers would catch up to me at my last wedding...one can only avoid it for so long! lol

Wedding Palooza

Ok so its been awhile…let me try to fill in the gap from my last post. As you can see from the title and pictures, this has been a summer full of weddings. The first wedding was for my friend Jennifer in Natchez. The sky threatened to storm the day of the wedding, but thankfully, the rain held off until after the reception. The wedding party owned that small dance floor and even managed to get the bride out there for the Cupid Shuffle! You can see in the picture below that the sky looked crazy that day.

The second wedding was for my friend Christin, who now lives in Houston, Texas. The weather was perfect the entire weekend. I had fun with the photographer at this wedding because she told us to “Vogue” it for every picture. I haven’t received any pictures from this wedding, but when I do, I will post a picture.

The third wedding was for my friend/s Nicole and Brett. Once again the sky threatened to storm and this time it did! (I’m talking tornadoes, people) But luckily, on the day of the wedding, it quit raining about 3 hours before the ceremony began. This wedding was a lot of fun because I was able to see some friends that I had not seen in over a year! (Shout out to the Entourage!)

The fourth wedding is for my friend Mallorie in Laurel. It’s actually 2 days from now so I will post a picture from this wedding later.

The weddings mentioned above were only the ones I attended as a bridesmaid. Two of my guy friends from High School got married (not to each other) this summer and they were both a lot of fun. Kinda like mini- HS reunions. My neighbor also married one of my exes. There have been several more weddings that I’ve gone to (and some I did not). I also want to mention some of my friends who have recently become engaged. Congratulations to Rebecca and Josh (5/1/10), Neil and Anna (summer 2010), and Ryan and Marissa (summer 2010).

While one can have too many bridesmaid dresses, one can never have enough wedding cake!

Best Laid Plans

Someone famous once said, "The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry." No kidding. Within the last two weeks, my emotions have taken a roller coaster ride. (Need I mention that I don't particularly like roller coasters?) I received a call from Horne that they were closing their Nashville based office in June. They planned to place me in one of their other locations- none of which I wanted to be. In one phone call, my dream for the past 4 years was yanked away from me. My pot of gold at the end of the rainbow was gone. After the shock wore off, I naturally began searching for options. I'm not one to sit around and wait for things to be handed to me- life doesn't work that way for me. I heard of a job opportunity in Washington, D.C. and it actually sounded really exciting. I've always loved the idea of our government (conspiracies and all) and I think it would be really cool to work there- right in the middle of everything! The opportunities to advance and meet amazing people are limitless. Naturally my life is not that simple. Last week, I received a call from an old boss offering me a position in his new firm in Nashville- working with several of my old colleagues from my internship. After getting my head wrapped around the idea of living in D.C., Nashville comes back on the radar. More details will come soon, but how in the world am I to make a decision?! My plans are most definitely awry.

Notice to the Public

To Whom It May Concern:

Inmate #237654 was released late last night. On her first day of freedom she arose at the awful hour of 7:15 am...and then promptly rolled over, pulled the covers over her head, and forced herself back to sleep. Much later, around 11 am, she woke again, leisurely watched the Racheal Ray show, made herself a sandwich, and then headed to the pool to soak up the beautiful sunshine! Her sister, Liza, joined her poolside, then they participated in Happy Hour at Sonic before returning to the pool. She came in around 4 pm, watched an episode of Gilmore Girls and Bones, then headed to the park for a nice brisk jaunt around Lake Patsy. Now she's showered and getting ready to eat dinner with friends at a restaurant she's never been to. What a wonderful day. Freedom is such a beautiful thing.

Baby Chick in the Oven!

Holy Cow! Lacey is pregnant...with... a BABY. I can't believe this day has finally come. Am I old enough to be an aunt?!! Shouldn't there be some legal age limit on when a person can become an aunt?
I love seeing how everyone in the family reacts to this exciting bit of news. Liza called me barely an hour after I talked with Lacey and couldn't wait to tell other people- she had a LIST of people to call within the hour of discovery. She also asked me if I cried because she did. Me, crying? I think not...she is just like Dad in that respect. lol
I'm so glad I will be home (somewhat) this summer so that I can see Lacey get big! The timing couldn't be more perfect! Decorating the baby room, buying baby clothes, and attending baby parties/showers...those activities are all right up my alley. I will move to Nashville at the end of August...so for those last few weeks AND delivery I will be MIA...works out perfectly. I can just get a phone call and 7 hours later....see a CLEAN baby wrapped in a blanket, and hopefully with a name. Lacey and Ryan have yet to find a boy name...cross your fingers for a girl until they do!

I made a deal with my roommate Mallorie. For the rest of the semester, every night we promise to do 50 crunches- in order for us both to get in better shape (she is getting married this summer and I'm a bridesmaid in 4 weddings). I can remember the days of High School and our workouts for cheerleading- back then I was able to run a mile, do 100 crunches, 20 push-ups, and a variety of dances, jumps, cheers, and stunts-all under the blazing hot sun. I no longer run(unless something or someone is chasing me), I now prefer walking at Lake Patsy. Hopefully, this plan to do crunches every night will be a permanent fixture in my calendar. So here's to a new year, and eventually, a new and improved body!