Baby Owls

My lil sis (lil sis = sorority, little sis = blood), Angela, is due to have her little boy, Andrew, this month! Her and her husband, Matt, were high school sweethearts and got married in 2008. They are the sweetest people you will ever meet and I miss them! 

..at a random mixer..

Her wedding - February 2008

Since Angela and I were in Chi Omega, I wanted to give her/Andrew a gift that had an owl on it and I have been all about some Etsy lately. 

Here are some cute finds, but I won't say which one I've decided on since she may read this post..

PrettyBabyBowtique

 

 

 

 

Janey Mac Press

Ambernee Crochet

Purdy Things

Sweet Pea Kid Prints

BWinks

Lovelyfriend

Chloe's Closet Boutique

Daydreams and Mudpies

Couch & Movie Night

I'm really excited about doing absolutely nothing tonight! After a party-hard Labor Day weekend and a football filled tomorrow, all I want to do tonight is cook dinner (chicken already in the crockpot!), sit on the couch and watch a movie with the BF and the pup.

Tomorrow, like I mentioned, will be full of college football! Carolina plays Georgia at Noon and I will be stuck watching the Clemson vs. Presbyterian game at 3:30pm. I hate to say it but I have a slight (like, VERRRRRRY slight) liking for Georgia. Only because one of their best players, AJ Green, is from my hometown. Unfortunately for Georgia and fortunately for the Gamecocks, AJ has been suspended for 4 games and won't be playing tomorrow. All because he sold his Independence Bowl jersey. The biggest issue for me in him not playing tomorrow is that when we beat Georgia, all of the Georgia fans are going to say "well, we would have beat yall if AJ played.."

Anyway...on to Five Question Friday..

1. Do you feel guilty spending money on yourself?

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Let me explain. 

No, because I'm not married, have no kids, pay all of my bills first then use my left over money for "play."


Yes, because that "play" money can go towards a CC balance or into savings. I would like to say that I've been really good lately and have not shopped in a LONG time. I'm starting to get that itch though since a new season is coming up..

2. How well do you know your neighbors?

Not very well. When we moved in we could not STAND one of our neighbors..the dad was super nosy and the kids would harass our dogs and even called the cops when they wouldn't stop barking! They have calmed down and long conversations have been reduced to just saying hello. Which is totally fine with me. 

3. What age are you looking forward to being?

Whatever age I will be when I'm happily married with kids. That's what I'm looking forward to.

4. Do you get excited when the mail comes? Why?

Yes! It won't be a bill because those come to my email. These days it's usually an invitation to some type of party, shower or wedding, which are always fun! If it's a box, it's even more exciting!

5. What is your earliest childhood memory?

Gah I have the worst memory! I can't even remember what I wore yesterday.

But I do remember playing a practical joke on my Grandaddy Al on his sailboat..tap dance recital to the song "Red Red Robin"...playing with my first dogs Penny & Belle..getting Bo as a puppy..hating to wear skirts/dresses and my shorts could not be above my knees..playing with my BFF's Andrea & Lyndsay..Christmas parties at Boo Boo's house..the *awesome* cars my parents used to drive (lots of sarcasm in that one)..convincing my friend Leslie that Aerosmith (Aero-first name, Smith-last name) was my uncle..being OBSESSED with NKOTB..


I could go on and on, but I'll stop. That was fun though! 



Thank you to everyone who left sweet messages about Brady! I'm going to wait until Monday and if he is still acting weird, then I'm going to take him in for an xray. 


Hope everyone has a great weekend and GO GAMECOCKS!!

Sick Pup

When I picked Brady up from my parents house on Monday (they stayed with them while I was in the mountains) my mom told me he had been acting weird the past few days. Not wanting to get off the bed, and when he did jump off the bed he whined, not wanting to go outside, not eating very much, etc. Just not his happy self.

I didn't think much too much of it, thinking he probably just missed me or was sore from running around with Boomer (parent's dog). Boomer is an extremely hyper Australian Shephard who annoys Brady from the moment he walks in the door.

Tuesday night I went to go take him outside and he whined when he jumped down from the couch. I let him outside and when I went to go let him back inside I didn't see him. He usually sits on the top step, up against the door. Put my shoes on to go look around the yard and I found him sitting on the side of the house, up against the fence. This is VERY odd for Brady because he HATES that tiny yard. 

Cameron's friend, Justin, is a vet so I texted him asking for his advice. Asked me what his symptoms were and told me to call him the next day if  he wasn't getting any better.

Woke up yesterday morning and he wouldn't budge from my bed when it was time to go outside, no matter how hard I pulled or how much I tried to trick him with an imaginary "cookie" in my hand. So I decided to call into work and let them know I wouldn't be coming in because I had to take care of my sick child AKA take Brady to the vet. 

Took Brady in to see Justin after lunch time. I looked up symptoms online and had originally thought that maybe all Brady needed was a big ol' fiber muffin (constipated). After Justin took his temperature (you know where), this was determined to not be the case. He examined Brady and seems to think he may have hurt his back playing rough with Boomer. He also said when dogs get hurt they "freak out" and don't eat as much, want to hide and are lethargic, among other things. He gave me some anti-inflammatory pills to give to Brady for now, hoping those will help. If not, we'll have to do some xrays. Hoping that won't have to happen though. 

This morning, once again, he didn't want to get off the the bed - had to physically pick him up. He whined. Which always breaks my heart. Wouldn't eat his food. Cameron went home for lunch (where Brady was) and when he went to pick up the leash, Brady started shaking like he was scared! And they only way Brady will eat food now is if we mix it with some yogurt. 

What is wrong with my poor buddy?!?! I hope this doesn't last much longer because I hate seeing him in pain! :(

Mountain Weekend Recap

Today at work was definitely hard to get back in the swing of things after being off since Thursday. I had a lot of emails to catch up on so it went by somewhat fast.

Now to reminisce about my vacation..

Friday - Arrived at the mountain house around 6pm and immediately claimed our room. The four of us pretty much planned the whole weekend so we felt like we deserved two out of the four rooms. :) Cooked dinner, played lots of games (the house had Rock Band!) and fit 15 people into a hot tub.

Saturday - Woke up bright and early thanks to there not being curtains or blinds on our window. The king size bed, however, was A-MA-ZING. Cooked some yummy breakfast, went for a walk and then prepared myself to sit through the Clemsonsux game.

a lot of ugly orange.

Sunday - Drove to Grandfather Mountain where we hiked a little bit, walked across the mile high swinging bridge and visited the wildlife habitats. We saw bears, cougars, deer, otters & an eagle!

He needed a Furminator.

All in all it was an AWESOME weekend with good friends and tooooo much food (and alcohol). Can't wait to do it again next year!

Restaurant Week!

Next Wednesday, September 8th, begins one of my favorite events in Charleston - Restaurant Week. I actually only found out about Restaurant Week last year, so I'm not sure how long it's been going on. It consists of a large number of restaurants in the Charleston area (other cities do this, as well!) who offer a 3 course dinner for $20 or $30. You can visit Restaurant Week's website to see which restaurants are involved and most already have their menu up!

Last year, Cameron and I went to Oak Steakhouse. For what would have cost us a pretty penny, we only spent $60. Well, plus wine. :) It was AMAZING and I definitely can't wait to go back.

 Yesterday after work, my co-worker, Jessica and I made the trek from Kiawah to downtown Charleston to meet with the Catering Manager of Tristan, Angie. Tristan is also involved in Restaurant Week, which I'm really excited about. We got to taste a few items off of their menu and O.M.G. was it good! I am a really picky eater so I was a little nervous at first. So I told myself to just suck it up and try everything. And I'm glad I did. 

From the specialty cocktail menu I started with the Watermelon Mojito. Thumbs Way Up!

Citrus infused Brazilian rum, watermelon, mint, lime, white balsamic

Next up was Roasted & Raw Beets. Beets?!?! Who eats those?? I do now. 

Whipped chevre, pistachio pistou, orange slices and vin cotto

Then it was on to the Beef Tartare. Raw Beef?? My favorite of the evening!

Seasoned with spicy Thai aioli, capers, pickled garlic, shallot and chives

For the entree we chose Lowcountry Carbonara. 

Manchester Farms quail over “impasta” of braised onions, bacon crème fraiche, poached quail egg

And as if that wasn't enough food, we also ordered the Savory Profiterole. 

Seasonal vegetables, gruyere, wild mushroom ragout

Annnnnd for dessert, we had the most delicious Passion Fruit Pudding Cake. 

Topped with Thai basil ice cream and lemongrass ginger ale

I apologize if your stomach is growling now. Can't wait to try more of the menu during Restaurant Week! Thanks for letting us come visit, Angie!

We Gon' Run This Town Tonight

I've got my garnet & black on!! As if I'm not excited enough about tonight's game, I remembered seeing this video last week that gave me goosebumps. Gamecocks fans will LOVE it, others probably won't care less.

 Tomorrow, bright and early, we'll be packing up the truck and on our way to Blowing Rock, NC for Mountain Weekend 2010!

Hope everyone has a safe and happy Labor Day weekend!

Wordless Wednesday: Gamecock Football!