This is such a busy time of year, but I have put this off long enough, and it is not fair to the handful of you who actually subscribe to my blog. I really do enjoy blogging, but I am just so busy! One of my top New Year's Resolutions is to blog at least twice a month. It's a risky resolution, lol, but I think I can do it!
Let's see, what has been going on??
1.) I LOVE my new job. Going on 3 months with Schneider and I really, really like it! I love the people, and my manager. I love the way the sellers and the brokers are divided up...but yet still work very closely with one another. The one and only thing that sucks really bad is my commute. Commuting frustrations are like none other! I remember calling Jason on my home from work, I believe on my 3rd day, and crying because traffic was so horrible. For those that don't know, my office is in Dallas, almost 40 miles from my house! I leave for work at 5:45am and get home around 6pm.
2.) Which leads me to my next update. We are moving! Not today, or tomorrow, or 6 months from now. We want to go into 2010 on a strict financial diet and save all that we can so we can put a good down payment on our 2nd home. We are thinking either Richardson or Carrollton, not quite sure where, but just farther south. Jason works in Addison, so it would be best for both of us. There is no reason for us to stay in Corinth as neither of us have family here, so wherever God leads us is where we shall go!
3.)Elmo! Elmo! Elmo! Jaxon is an Elmo fanatic! He was Elmo for Halloween, he has Elmo pj's, Elmo books, Elmo toys, Elmo movies, an Elmo jacket, and a tickle-me-Elmo!(Which was supposed to be a Christmas gift from Santa, but Daddy had to go and give it to him early! lol) Needles to say, he is getting more Elmo stuff for Christmas. Whatever makes him happy! He is doing so well, and is such a joy to be around. I ask myself daily how I got so blessed with such a funny, sweet little guy. I love both of my boys (big and small, lol) very much, and wouldn't trade 'em for the world.
4.) November 22nd marked a very special day for me. No more Mr. Blackberry! I said hello to my new iphone!!! All of my friends have one and they just rant and rave about how wonderful they are, and how they will never have another phone, so I made the big switch. Can I just say that I AM SUCH A FAN!!! There is nothing my phone can't do! My sweet husband got me a gadget that plugs into the cigerette lighter in my car, it holds my phone and plays my music through my speakers, AND, if I get a phone call I can talk totally hands free and the sound comes out of my speakers as well! Perfect for driving in traffic! I use it everyday and I love it!
5.) I tend to get new car fever very easily. There is just something about a new set of wheels that is just so much fun! When Jason bought me my brand new Accord in 2006 I was in heaven! I had always wanted one, and I just think they are really good cars. I am very, very good about keeping it maintained. So much so that I only take it to the dealership to get the oil changed so they can sign my little maintenance book that came with my car. The past 2 months or so a salesman has been calling me about my Accord trying to get me to trade it in for a newer model. He insists that he wants to buy back my car at a really great price because they are desperate for used Accords. It has been so tempting. We had talked about trading in Jason's truck and getting an SUV (we love the GMC Acadia's) or trading in my car, but we smacked ourselves back into reality and we both realize there are so many other things we want to do (like move!) rather than start all over with a new payment. So, since I put almost 100 miles a day on my car I got new tires and new brakes, and I'm keeping 'ol Tilly until she falls apart! She just hit 60,000 miles and has plenty of pep in her step to go 60,000 more!
6.) I love my husband. As much as I try not to, I take him for granted sometimes. We both took today (Friday) off to go and get Jaxon his "Santa" presents. Neither of us had ever stepped foot in a Toys'r-us until today. We got Jaxon lots of goodies, and I can't wait to see his reaction on Christmas! We also finished up our other Christmas shopping, and had a nice lunch date together, just the two of us. We laughed a lot today, and just had a great time. Once you have children you have to really cherish those alone times, as they are few and far between.
Well...I'm sure if I sat here long enough I could come up with more, but I'm pooped after shopping all day, and we are headed to Corsicana tomorrow for Jason's cousins wedding.
Merry Christmas to you all and may God bless you and keep you safe.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Sunday, November 29, 2009
My Apologies
I do intend to get back into a blogging routine of some sort. Super busy around here, and by the time I sit down to relax my brain is so fried I'm afraid of what my blogs might look like, lol. I do however, check in regularly and read your blogs and LOVE what is going on with everyone. I promise I have lots of fun things to blog about and will do so soon!
Happy Holidays to you all!
Happy Holidays to you all!
Saturday, October 10, 2009
God's Plan
I'm not sure where to begin since I have so many wonderful things going on! First, I will start with the greatest news of all......We finally joined a church!!! Yep, we joined Crossridge Church in Little Elm. We love it! We are so happy and excited about what God is doing in our lives, and trust me, He is doing some pretty fantastic things!
Some of you may know that I lost my job at the beginning of September. What a trying time it has been. I am so grateful for my supportive husband, family, and friends. I have spent the last month looking for a job, going on interviews, and trying to network. There were actually 2 jobs in Denton (SallyBeauty and Titus Air Ride) that I felt I was VERY qualified for. I went on 2 interviews and thought they went really well. After weeks of waiting I found out that I didn't get either one. I was bummed. A few days later an old co-worker of mine emailed me and wanted me to send him my resume. He works for Schneider National in Dallas and told me that he would see what he could do as far as helping me out. I was very reluctant as I had NO desire to drive to downtown Dallas everyday. I sent him my resume praying that nothing would come of it. A couple days later I got a phone call from Schneider wanting to set up a phone interview. *Sigh* I really was not wanting this job....because of the commute. In the back of my mind I kept laughing at God saying, "There were 2 great jobs for me right here in Denton (and I wouldn't have to pull my child out of his fantastic daycare) why are you going to make me drive to Dallas knowing I don't want to?!?!?!??!!" I just knew in my heart that God was going to put me with Schneider. After my phone interview the lady told me that she would send my responses to the manager of the brokerage dept. and if they liked me they would call me for a personal interview. Yep, you guessed it, they called me the next day. I drove to Dallas (took me 45 min.) last Thursday and interviewed with 4 people. I left there knowing that the interview(s) went really well. Friday came and I got a call from Beth at Titus Air Ride (the first place that I interviewed at) telling me that she had an available position that she thought I would be interested in. I could not believe it....another opening in Denton!!! I got so excited while talking to her that I couldn't contain it. We talked about benefits, job details, and of course money. I told her that I wanted to be completely honest, and that just the day before I had interviewed with Schneider and I told her what they offered me. She was very kind, and after talking and negotiating she came very close to the salary that Schneider had offered me. I gave her deal a lot of thought, considering I wouldn't have to commute. I told her that I would talk to my husband over the weekend and I would let her know by Monday. Thirty minutes after I hung up with her one of the guys that I interviewed with at Schneider called me to tell me that after deliberating they all decided that I would be a great addition to their team!! Holy cow!! I talked to him for a bit about the benefits, and job details, and I also talked to him about my commuting concerns, as I have never had to drive that far to work before. He was kind and very flexible! He told me that the hours would not be a deal breaker and we would work it out. I also talked with him about the salary that I had previously discussed with the lady that I had the phone interview with, and he told me that he was going to offer me more! I just couldn't believe it. Everything just fell into place so nicely....I accepted the job.
I have shed lots of tears (poor Jason, lol) regarding the commute, the job in general (if I had made the right decision or not), and the fact that I have had to pull Jaxon from his daycare. (Jaxon's daycare has been like a second family and they love Jaxon just as much as he loves them. Those ladies will never know how much they mean to me or how grateful I am for them. I will miss them tremendously.) Through all of this the constant verse I kept hearing in the back of my mind was this, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 I wanted that Sally Beauty job so bad I tasted it. However, God had different plans. I am so thankful and very excited about this new opportunity and pray that I kick some butt!
Some of you may know that I lost my job at the beginning of September. What a trying time it has been. I am so grateful for my supportive husband, family, and friends. I have spent the last month looking for a job, going on interviews, and trying to network. There were actually 2 jobs in Denton (SallyBeauty and Titus Air Ride) that I felt I was VERY qualified for. I went on 2 interviews and thought they went really well. After weeks of waiting I found out that I didn't get either one. I was bummed. A few days later an old co-worker of mine emailed me and wanted me to send him my resume. He works for Schneider National in Dallas and told me that he would see what he could do as far as helping me out. I was very reluctant as I had NO desire to drive to downtown Dallas everyday. I sent him my resume praying that nothing would come of it. A couple days later I got a phone call from Schneider wanting to set up a phone interview. *Sigh* I really was not wanting this job....because of the commute. In the back of my mind I kept laughing at God saying, "There were 2 great jobs for me right here in Denton (and I wouldn't have to pull my child out of his fantastic daycare) why are you going to make me drive to Dallas knowing I don't want to?!?!?!??!!" I just knew in my heart that God was going to put me with Schneider. After my phone interview the lady told me that she would send my responses to the manager of the brokerage dept. and if they liked me they would call me for a personal interview. Yep, you guessed it, they called me the next day. I drove to Dallas (took me 45 min.) last Thursday and interviewed with 4 people. I left there knowing that the interview(s) went really well. Friday came and I got a call from Beth at Titus Air Ride (the first place that I interviewed at) telling me that she had an available position that she thought I would be interested in. I could not believe it....another opening in Denton!!! I got so excited while talking to her that I couldn't contain it. We talked about benefits, job details, and of course money. I told her that I wanted to be completely honest, and that just the day before I had interviewed with Schneider and I told her what they offered me. She was very kind, and after talking and negotiating she came very close to the salary that Schneider had offered me. I gave her deal a lot of thought, considering I wouldn't have to commute. I told her that I would talk to my husband over the weekend and I would let her know by Monday. Thirty minutes after I hung up with her one of the guys that I interviewed with at Schneider called me to tell me that after deliberating they all decided that I would be a great addition to their team!! Holy cow!! I talked to him for a bit about the benefits, and job details, and I also talked to him about my commuting concerns, as I have never had to drive that far to work before. He was kind and very flexible! He told me that the hours would not be a deal breaker and we would work it out. I also talked with him about the salary that I had previously discussed with the lady that I had the phone interview with, and he told me that he was going to offer me more! I just couldn't believe it. Everything just fell into place so nicely....I accepted the job.
I have shed lots of tears (poor Jason, lol) regarding the commute, the job in general (if I had made the right decision or not), and the fact that I have had to pull Jaxon from his daycare. (Jaxon's daycare has been like a second family and they love Jaxon just as much as he loves them. Those ladies will never know how much they mean to me or how grateful I am for them. I will miss them tremendously.) Through all of this the constant verse I kept hearing in the back of my mind was this, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 I wanted that Sally Beauty job so bad I tasted it. However, God had different plans. I am so thankful and very excited about this new opportunity and pray that I kick some butt!
Thursday, September 17, 2009
We love Lucy
I can very clearly remember the day we got Lucy. After a couple of weeks of searching the local paper for a miniature Schnauzer we came across a breeder in Decatur TX who had puppies for sale. After making an appointment to go and see the puppies we both agreed that we were just going to "look", and we weren't going to buy one. We purposely left our money at home so we would not be tempted. I remember the long drive out there and discussing with Jason how fun a puppy would be! The breeders were a very nice older couple who only bread Schnauzers. We drove down a little dirt road, and set back away from the busy highway was their sweet little home, and a separate house behind it that housed the puppies. I had never seen a kennel so clean and nice before! When we got out of the car they greeted us immediately and started to walk us back to their kennel. They had us wait in the little fenced in area and said they would go get the puppies and would be right back. Moments later the lady opened the door and out ran the sweetest, most precious little puppies you ever saw. I will never forget for as long as I live, Jason looked up at me and said, "Sarah, we need to go back home and get the check book." If my memory serves me correctly we hadn't even picked out a puppy yet, but we got back in the car and made the long drive back home to get our check book to turn back around and go pick out a puppy! Jason and I both agreed on the sweet, all black little girl. The breeders thanked us and gave us all kinds of information on taking care of a new puppy and sent us on our way. On the long ride home I remember holding this precious, tiny little puppy, and the excitement between Jason and I. Since I had a pretty decent I Love Lucy collection at the time Jason suggested that we name her Lucy. I loved it, and it fit her perfectly. Lucy was our pride and joy. We took her everywhere. She slept with us. We took her to the dog park. When Jason and I went on our honeymoon for 7 days we left her with his parents and when we got back she was so mad at us for leaving her she wouldn't even look at us! There are so many memories we have of our sweet dog that I believe we will cherish forever.
I must admit that after the birth of Jaxon, Lucy has slowly faded from being anywhere near the center of our attention. After bringing Jaxon home from the hospital we have ignored Lucy's emotional needs. We feed her, we let her outside in the back yard, and frequently give her a pat on the head, but its not the same. She used to be our whole world, and now she has been replaced.
I recently was laid off from my job. Dealing with the stress that comes along with that, and amongst other things this has definitely not been a good week. While I was home yesterday Lucy got sick. Throughout the day I believe she threw up in the house 6-7 times. She hadn't eaten anything and had barely had any water. I wasn't super concerned as I thought maybe she had eaten some table scraps that Jaxon had thrown at her, and they didn't agree with her stomach. Late last night, around midnight, Jason woke up to her going to the bathroom in our bedroom. It was all blood. By 7am the next morning she was still having bloody stools. After Jason went to work I watched her for a bit and then called the Vet. She was just not acting like her usual hyper active self. The Vet of course wanted me to bring her in immediately. I called Jason and he left work to come meet me. After filling out the paperwork I waited for the nurse to come in. She asked me all kinds of questions about Lucy's history and her diet. She asked if there had been any kinds of changes to her diet. I told her that prior to Jaxon coming along she was a dog food only girl! NO table scraps! If you have a toddler then you know that more food ends up on the floor than in their mouth! LOL Slowly but surely Lucy started eating all kinds of table food. The nurse took her temp. and examined her, and she gave us some ideas of what she thought might be wrong with Lucy. She asked us to wait just a minute and the Dr. would come in and see her. While we were waiting Lucy laid on the table and looked so miserable. I gave her lots of kisses and kept petting her and telling her everything was going to be okay. After the Dr. came in she told us that Lucy was dehydrated and they would need to draw her blood to see if they could find out what the problem was. If that didn't work then they would need to do some x rays. Jason was very upfront with the Dr. and told her that we did not have thousands of dollars that we could spend, especially now, if it were to be something serious, we would have to put her down. I tried so hard not to cry....I lost it. I know that a dog is just a dog, but in that little room I was reminded of the saddest movie in all of history, Marley and Me. Lucy had been through so much with us, we could not just give up on her. We were told that she needed to stay overnight so they could keep her hydrated, and they would give her some medicine to calm her stomach. I felt so bad for her. I felt so guilty for all the months of not loving her like I used to. She has been far more loyal to us than we have been to her. Its been pretty lonely tonight without her here and I've been thinking about her a lot. I miss her and I hope she gets better soon.
Lucy,
Even though you can't read this I want you to know that we miss you. We are sorry for putting you on the back burner. We love you with all of our hearts and we are ready for you to come home!
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Random Thoughts From Labor Day Weekend.
1.) Watching my husband crawl through the McDonald's playground makes me laugh hysterically.
2.) Airports are my favorite place to people watch. Northpark Mall is my second favorite.(There are some very interesting people that shop there.)
3.) I LOVE Crossridge Church, and so does my husband, which makes me super happy.
4.) Trying to change myself, and my child in the locker room of the YMCA and the lights going out is NOT a good time!
5.) It makes me happy when Jason goes grocery shopping with me. It makes me happier when he slips a People magazine in the cart at the check out line because he knows it will make me smile.
6.) The show Hoarders on A&E is unreal!! It's my new Monday night show.
2.) Airports are my favorite place to people watch. Northpark Mall is my second favorite.(There are some very interesting people that shop there.)
3.) I LOVE Crossridge Church, and so does my husband, which makes me super happy.
4.) Trying to change myself, and my child in the locker room of the YMCA and the lights going out is NOT a good time!
5.) It makes me happy when Jason goes grocery shopping with me. It makes me happier when he slips a People magazine in the cart at the check out line because he knows it will make me smile.
6.) The show Hoarders on A&E is unreal!! It's my new Monday night show.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
My socks have been blessed off!
What a week! I have lost count of all the things that have literally blessed my socks off this week. Tuesday, I got a sweet postcard from Angela, the lady who works in the children's ministry at Crossridge Church. (Jaxon's first Sunday did not go well, but the past two Sunday's have been great!) Wednesday, I got to have a fantastic dinner at the Olive Garden (my favorite) with a few of my BFF's, Marissa, Courtney, and Traci. Thursday, we got a letter from Pastor Marc thanking us for coming to church and telling us how good it was to see us.(I understand that these are small tokens of appreciation that they share with us, but I still thought it was nice none-the-less.) Then came Friday. Aside from it being a payday Friday, it was a great day. All week long I had contemplated about what our plans were going to be as far as our family was concerned. I had actually RSVP'd to a "meetup" family event at Chuck E Cheese's in Grapevine, but after my dinner with the girls on Wed. night I thought it might be fun to maybe have them over and just hang out at the house. So on Thursday morning I had just decided that I would cancel the Chuck E Cheese thing and just have the girls over. Well, Thursday at 5pm my cell phone rang. What is really strange is that whenever there is a number that I don't recognize I ALWAYS hit "ignore," and I figure if it is important enough they will leave a message. This time I didn't do that. I answered my phone and it was Kim Farnell, Pastor Marc's wife. I stepped out into the lobby at my office and chatted with her for a bit. We talked about my family, and she was saying how good it was to see us the previous week at church. Mainly, she called to invite me to the Women's Ministry Kick Off dinner that was to be held Friday night @ 7pm. Even though in the back of my mind I knew that I had already made plans I told her that I would try to be there. She said that she totally understood if I could not make it, but wanted to extend the offer. We hung up and I packed up my stuff and was walking out to my truck and I called my husband. (Prior to Kim's call another big event occurred, but I won't be able to discuss that until later on this week.) Needless to say, I was giddy, and full of excitement and I needed to share it with him right away. I told him about my phone call with Kim, and about how she had invited me to the Women's dinner and I told him that I really wanted to go, but childcare wasn't going to be provided. I wanted to make sure he would be able to be home in time to watch Jaxon so I could go. Of course, he had no issues with that and told me I should definitely go.
Friday could not have been over fast enough! We were busy due to the end of the month, and Friday late afternoon I was informed that I would have to work Saturday morning. (Please don't misunderstand my complaining for ungratefulness. I am very thankful for my job.) Anyway, knowing I had to work Saturday put a damper on my mood for the rest of the afternoon. Once 5 o'clock hit I hurried to go pick up Jaxon, hurried to the bank, and got home by 6pm. I played with Jaxon for a few minutes, freshened up and hurried out the door. (It takes me roughly 20 minutes to get to the church from my house since the new toll bridge has recently opened up). I didn't get nervous until I pulled up to the church. Typically, I don't have a problem going to functions like this by myself, but for whatever reason I was a little bit anxious. I walked in and paid my money (for the dinner, which was Italian, my favorite!) and I was given a name tag with my name and table # on it. I stuck my name tag on, and walked down the hall, and (thankfully) ran into Kim. She gave me a hug and told me she was glad I made it, and walked me into the room where the dinner was going to be held. She noticed that I had the #3 on my name tag and she began searching for the lady who she had made hostess to my chosen table. (Each assigned table had an assigned hostess.) Kim spotted a lady and waved her over to us and introduced me to her. Her name was Tami and she was super sweet! I knew right away that I would like her. She was very bubbley and had a very friendly smile. We chatted for a minute, and she told me she was a new Christian and that her and her husband loved it at Crossridge. She was the mother to two older boys, and she also told me that she was an avid Harley rider! I told her that my husband and I lived in Corinth, and she told me that they frequented the Harley store there, lol. After I got something to drink I sat down at our table and was only by myself for just a second when more people started to join us. Once everyone got settled Tami got out a sheet of paper that had a list of questions on it. Kim had given each table these questions to help sort of break the ice and help the ladies get to know each other. (I thought this was a great idea!) Kim got up on stage and gave a short introduction about the evenings plans and then asked a new member, Vanessa, to come bless the food. Vanessa gave a short testimony of how her and her family came to Crossridge, which I thought was so good, and then she blessed the food. One by one the different tables got up to go and get their food. While our table was waiting our turn Tami started to ask the questions. We started with Janet who was sitting to my right. She was an older lady, married for 34 years, and her husband serves on the parking team. Then of course there was me, and to my left was another older lady named Cecelia who works for Bank Of America and is a very proud Grandmother. Next to her was....gosh....I really want to say her name was Wendy....this was the only name that I could not remember. Anyway, she was a loving mother of 4, and also a newcomer to the church. Next to her was Nicki. Nicki was the funny one at our table, or atleast I thought so. She, like myself, said that Olive Garden was her favorite place to eat, and after exchanging emails she gave me the recipe to my favorite soup there! Then there was Debby, who got married the same year as Janet, to her high school sweet heart. She enjoyed rodeos and had actually gone to the Denton fair 4 times so far this year! Next to her was Robin who was the mother of one son who was in the 6th grade and played football. She was happily married and just loved hanging out at home with her boys. (Like me!) Finally, there was Tami, our sweet hostess. About 2 years ago she married the love of her life. She has been a nurse for the past 20 years, and I sort of got the impression that she was a survivor of some sort of cancer. Some of her answers to the questions were very touching and she said that she was just thankful to be alive. The last questioned that was asked before I got up to get my dessert was, "What is something that you are grateful for tonight?" My answer was simple. I told them that I was thankful that my husband was able to watch our son, and I was thankful that Kim had invited me. I was glad that I had went, and I was glad I got the chance to meet those ladies. Kim was right, God had picked out a specific chair at a specific table just for me which led me to meet that fantastic group of women who blessed my socks right off!
Friday could not have been over fast enough! We were busy due to the end of the month, and Friday late afternoon I was informed that I would have to work Saturday morning. (Please don't misunderstand my complaining for ungratefulness. I am very thankful for my job.) Anyway, knowing I had to work Saturday put a damper on my mood for the rest of the afternoon. Once 5 o'clock hit I hurried to go pick up Jaxon, hurried to the bank, and got home by 6pm. I played with Jaxon for a few minutes, freshened up and hurried out the door. (It takes me roughly 20 minutes to get to the church from my house since the new toll bridge has recently opened up). I didn't get nervous until I pulled up to the church. Typically, I don't have a problem going to functions like this by myself, but for whatever reason I was a little bit anxious. I walked in and paid my money (for the dinner, which was Italian, my favorite!) and I was given a name tag with my name and table # on it. I stuck my name tag on, and walked down the hall, and (thankfully) ran into Kim. She gave me a hug and told me she was glad I made it, and walked me into the room where the dinner was going to be held. She noticed that I had the #3 on my name tag and she began searching for the lady who she had made hostess to my chosen table. (Each assigned table had an assigned hostess.) Kim spotted a lady and waved her over to us and introduced me to her. Her name was Tami and she was super sweet! I knew right away that I would like her. She was very bubbley and had a very friendly smile. We chatted for a minute, and she told me she was a new Christian and that her and her husband loved it at Crossridge. She was the mother to two older boys, and she also told me that she was an avid Harley rider! I told her that my husband and I lived in Corinth, and she told me that they frequented the Harley store there, lol. After I got something to drink I sat down at our table and was only by myself for just a second when more people started to join us. Once everyone got settled Tami got out a sheet of paper that had a list of questions on it. Kim had given each table these questions to help sort of break the ice and help the ladies get to know each other. (I thought this was a great idea!) Kim got up on stage and gave a short introduction about the evenings plans and then asked a new member, Vanessa, to come bless the food. Vanessa gave a short testimony of how her and her family came to Crossridge, which I thought was so good, and then she blessed the food. One by one the different tables got up to go and get their food. While our table was waiting our turn Tami started to ask the questions. We started with Janet who was sitting to my right. She was an older lady, married for 34 years, and her husband serves on the parking team. Then of course there was me, and to my left was another older lady named Cecelia who works for Bank Of America and is a very proud Grandmother. Next to her was....gosh....I really want to say her name was Wendy....this was the only name that I could not remember. Anyway, she was a loving mother of 4, and also a newcomer to the church. Next to her was Nicki. Nicki was the funny one at our table, or atleast I thought so. She, like myself, said that Olive Garden was her favorite place to eat, and after exchanging emails she gave me the recipe to my favorite soup there! Then there was Debby, who got married the same year as Janet, to her high school sweet heart. She enjoyed rodeos and had actually gone to the Denton fair 4 times so far this year! Next to her was Robin who was the mother of one son who was in the 6th grade and played football. She was happily married and just loved hanging out at home with her boys. (Like me!) Finally, there was Tami, our sweet hostess. About 2 years ago she married the love of her life. She has been a nurse for the past 20 years, and I sort of got the impression that she was a survivor of some sort of cancer. Some of her answers to the questions were very touching and she said that she was just thankful to be alive. The last questioned that was asked before I got up to get my dessert was, "What is something that you are grateful for tonight?" My answer was simple. I told them that I was thankful that my husband was able to watch our son, and I was thankful that Kim had invited me. I was glad that I had went, and I was glad I got the chance to meet those ladies. Kim was right, God had picked out a specific chair at a specific table just for me which led me to meet that fantastic group of women who blessed my socks right off!
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Crossridge Church of Little Elm TX.
My favorite memories of high school were not the football games, the teachers, or even the drill team which I was a member of. The best part of my high school career was being a part of the youth group at FBC Corinth. Marc Farnell was the youth minister there along with his wife Kim. I didn't realize how good we had it of course until I was older. Marc and Kim are about the nicest most genuine people I have ever met. The four years I served in the youth group we went on mission trips, we were locked in bowling allies with unlimited amounts of pizza, and we even went on ski trips. Looking back I have no idea if Marc really knew what he was getting himself into when he took a group of 50+ teenagers out in public, let alone out of the state! I made so many wonderful friends and I am still blessed by some of the relationships I have with them to this day. Needless to say as time went on after graduation I drifted from FBC Corinth. In 2003 I joined Crosstimbers Community Church in Argyle. Mainly, I joined because that is where my Mom, Dad, and brother were going. Jason and I actually got married at that church and I was thrilled when Marc (who was now pastoring is own church, FBC Little Elm!) agreed to marry us. Jason and I did the premarital marriage course with Marc prior to getting married and I was excited for Marc to get to know Jason, as he had been such a big part of my life. (I wanted to make sure I had Marc's approval, LOL) After my family made the big move to Charlotte NC. Jason and I periodically attended Crosstimbers, but deep down I knew we were not going to continue going there. I had taken Jason back to my old stomping grounds at FBC Corinth a few times hoping to rekindle some old relationships, and even in the back of my mind thinking we might rejoin that church. Well, I thought wrong.
Fast forward to two Sundays ago we decided go and visit Marc's new church. We had heard about them building a new facility (with a new name, Crossridge Church) so we thought that since the new toll bridge had opened up near our house it wouldn't take us long to get there. My friend Courtney (who was in Youth with me) lives in McKinney and said she would meet us up at the church since she loves Marc and Kim as much as I do, and she lives so close. Our first visit was great. Despite the fact that Marc and Kim were on vacation in Florida and weren't even there, LOL. We were greeted ecstatically by sweet Marion and her huge smile (she was once a member of FBC Corinth as well). I was nervous about how Jaxon was going to do in the nursery as it was a new place and lots of new faces. Marion led us back to the children's wing and we got Jaxon all signed in and dropped off (we sort of snuck out) and headed to the sanctuary to get our seats. We were told when we dropped Jaxon off that if they had any problems they would show "J. Miles" on the screens in the front of the church and we could step out and go get him. Jason, Courtney and I joked before the service started that it wouldn't be long and we would see giant red letters with arrows flashing saying, "Jason and Sarah Miles come get your child!!" LOL. Well, always remember to be careful what you say! Two songs into the service, clear as day, "J. Miles" popped up on the screens (just small tiny black letters though!) I stepped out and was met by the same lady who had helped us sign Jaxon in, Angela, I believe was her name. She said that he was crying hysterically and they didn't know what to do. I knew he would be scared, poor guy. (Jaxon goes to daycare 5 days a week so I knew the issue was just getting familiar with all the new faces.) She took me back to his room and sure enough he was crying his eyes out. I took him into the "cry room" and sat with him for awhile until he calmed down, and then I took him back into the room he had been in and sat in the floor and played with him and the other sweet babies for the rest of the sermon. After we left I knew I wanted to return the following week, one, to actually hear the the sermon, and two, I wanted to get to see Marc and Kim. We did go again this past Sunday and Jaxon did wonderful, and the service was GREAT!! It was so evident that Marc was on fire for God. I enjoyed getting to visit with them for a few minutes and getting to see some more familiar faces. Mainly I was just glad that Jason seemed to enjoy himself. I want more than anything to join a church and I would love to serve wherever God sees fit. I am looking forward to going back next Sunday as Marc is preaching on Spiritual Warfare and he says that "it is the most important sermon he has ever preached." I am very excited about what the future holds for our family as far as finding a church home is concerned. As long as we have a place to learn, serve, and call "home", I will be happy.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Books and Music
I got two new Cd's for my birthday, Brad Paisley's American Saturday Night, and Darius Rucker's Learn to Live. They are both excellent!! I do not buy Cd's unless there are 3 or more songs on the album that I like. The Brad Paisley CD was a gift from my wonderful in laws, and if you like country music you should own this CD. I have always LOVED Brad and his music, and I feel that this CD is totally worth owning. I purchased the Darius Rucker CD with some birthday money from my Grandparents. "Don't think I don't think about it," "Alright," and "It won't be like this for long," are three songs that I constantly hear on the radio and I love them! "It won't be like this for long," makes me tear up every single time I hear it. I think the CD is wonderful, and I think that Darius has a very unique sound. Also, in case you didn't know Darius Rucker was/is the lead singer for Hootie and the Blowfish.....whom I also like =)
As far as my reading goes, I did finish The Shack, as previously stated in one of my recent blogs. I feel that everyone should read this book. Its a quick, easy read and totally worth it! My husband even read it, and he said he liked it. I am currently more than half way done with the second Harry Potter, "The Chamber of Secrets." I hope to finish it by this weekend so I can move right on into the third one. Jason joked last night and told me I had, "millions more pages to go!" (He has already read them all.) I am very proud of myself so far and am looking forward to completing them so that I can move on down my list of other books I want to read.....like, The Travelers Wife and The Pact by Jodi Picoult. She wrote My Sisters Keeper and that was FABULOUS!!
Always looking for new suggestions as far as books go, so please share if you have read something wonderful!
As far as my reading goes, I did finish The Shack, as previously stated in one of my recent blogs. I feel that everyone should read this book. Its a quick, easy read and totally worth it! My husband even read it, and he said he liked it. I am currently more than half way done with the second Harry Potter, "The Chamber of Secrets." I hope to finish it by this weekend so I can move right on into the third one. Jason joked last night and told me I had, "millions more pages to go!" (He has already read them all.) I am very proud of myself so far and am looking forward to completing them so that I can move on down my list of other books I want to read.....like, The Travelers Wife and The Pact by Jodi Picoult. She wrote My Sisters Keeper and that was FABULOUS!!
Always looking for new suggestions as far as books go, so please share if you have read something wonderful!
Monday, August 03, 2009
My 28th Birthday
Last Thursday (July 30th) was my 28th birthday. I didn't expect it to be as eventful as it was as I had to work and we all know that is never how you want to spend your special day! First, while checking my twitter I was surprised by my friend Courtney who asked Blake Shelton (a country music singer) to wish me a Happy Birthday! He did, more like Happy F@#&!$* Birthday, but still fun none the less! I thought for lunch I would treat myself to some yummy Wendy's (my favorite of the fast food chains close to my work) and get a Frosty for dessert and sit back at my desk and read my book. Turns out, I had some wonderful friends text message me asking what my lunch plans were and asking about meeting for lunch at Fudruckers. So along with friends, and Erich and Miles (my co workers) I had a wonderful, not- so -lonely lunch. I had every intention of cooking dinner that night just like normal, but my sweet husband took me and Jaxon to my very favorite place, Olive Garden, instead! I only get to go there with friends, which isn't very often because Jason is not a fan of the Olive Garden. (I know, crazy huh!?!?!?!)
Jason had special dinner plans for Friday night and the only thing I was told was to dress nice. Jason's parents drove in from Corsicana after they got off work and were at our house by 6pm to watch Jaxon so that we could make our 7pm reservation. I was very excited as I had no idea where we were going! We got in the car and headed toward Dallas and ended up at Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steakhouse. (http://www.delfriscos.com/) I cannot even begin to describe how good it was. The service was excellent. For every bread crumb I dropped they were right there to clean it up. Our drink glasses never got even close to being empty, and when I returned from using the ladies room my napkin was folded nicely and placed back on the table. I had the filet mignon, and Jason had one of their specials which was a trio of 4 oz steaks each topped with a different sauce. We each ordered two sides to go with our steaks which they served family style. I picked the creamed corn, and Jason chose the spinach supreme. I don't even like spinach, but whatever it was that they did to theirs was wonderful!! After we ate we considered dessert but we were so full, we declined. When we left we couldn't stop talking about how good it was, and Jason could not figure out how someone could cook a steak so incredibly tender. Heading home I checked out some local movie times for Harry Potter since I had really been wanting to see it. Neither one of us realized how long it was going to be and felt bad when we got home at midnight as Jason's parents still had to drive back home. They were very nice about it though and said they didn't mind one bit. All in all it was a wonderful birthday. Oh! I almost forgot! I got to get my hair done too! That was what I had been wanting since it had been awhile and I was in desperate need!
Jason had special dinner plans for Friday night and the only thing I was told was to dress nice. Jason's parents drove in from Corsicana after they got off work and were at our house by 6pm to watch Jaxon so that we could make our 7pm reservation. I was very excited as I had no idea where we were going! We got in the car and headed toward Dallas and ended up at Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steakhouse. (http://www.delfriscos.com/) I cannot even begin to describe how good it was. The service was excellent. For every bread crumb I dropped they were right there to clean it up. Our drink glasses never got even close to being empty, and when I returned from using the ladies room my napkin was folded nicely and placed back on the table. I had the filet mignon, and Jason had one of their specials which was a trio of 4 oz steaks each topped with a different sauce. We each ordered two sides to go with our steaks which they served family style. I picked the creamed corn, and Jason chose the spinach supreme. I don't even like spinach, but whatever it was that they did to theirs was wonderful!! After we ate we considered dessert but we were so full, we declined. When we left we couldn't stop talking about how good it was, and Jason could not figure out how someone could cook a steak so incredibly tender. Heading home I checked out some local movie times for Harry Potter since I had really been wanting to see it. Neither one of us realized how long it was going to be and felt bad when we got home at midnight as Jason's parents still had to drive back home. They were very nice about it though and said they didn't mind one bit. All in all it was a wonderful birthday. Oh! I almost forgot! I got to get my hair done too! That was what I had been wanting since it had been awhile and I was in desperate need!
The Shack
I finished The Shack by William P. Young last Friday. It was the best book I have ever read. I borrowed it from my friend Marissa, and I will be going to the store to buy it for my very own as I know I will be reading it again. I don't want to give anything away as I think everybody should read this book! It is completely life changing and makes me look and think about things a whole lot differently.
"Not only is this a compelling and provocative story, but it has a literary quality to it that distinguishes it as a special gift. It offers one of the most poignant views of God and how he relates to humanity that has been written in our time. It will not only encourage those who already know him but also engage those who have not yet recognized his work in their lives."
Monday, July 20, 2009
S.E + S.B = FRIENDS FOREVER
You never forget your very first best friend. I met mine in the 4th grade at McNair Elementary School. Stephanie Edwards. I thought she was the funniest person I had ever met. She was tall, like me, and she had brown hair which I remember to be curly. We hit it off instantly. Most Friday and Saturday nights were spent at the Lewisville skating rink. I can remember her Dad dropping us off in his red Porsche and I thought we were so cool! I also remember numerous sleep overs. We used to prank call people out of the phone book late at night. I remember calling one old man who thought I was his little Grandson. We chatted with him for a bit before finally telling him I needed to go to bed, lol. Sadly, I only got to spend 2 school years with Stephanie before she moved. We still talked on the phone, and occasionally saw each other, but over time we drifted apart.
I remember about 4 years ago, shortly after Jason and I bought our house, I was up one Saturday morning and I decided to search for Stephanie on myspace. I came across many matches and found one in particular that was in Lewisville TX. There was no picture so I could not identify her. I decided to send her a private message asking if this was the Stephanie that had attended McNair Elementary with me. Months later I finally got a response and it was her!! We exchanged emails and chatted via myspace. After seeing pictures of her she was just like I had remembered! She was GORGEOUS, and I was jealous!
Fast forward to today, just this past Friday night I enjoyed dinner with Stephanie at Johnny Carino's. (This has been our 3rd dinner date so far this year.) I cannot explain how cool it is to get to catch up after all these years. I remember our very first dinner at the Olive Garden, almost a year ago, and I was so anxious to get to see her after all this time. We chatted about our families and what we had been up to. She told me she had just graduated from nursing school and was working full time as a nurse in the Dallas area. (She had sold her race car to attend nursing school full time! how cool is that!) She told me about this guy she had met, named Grant, and she told me how she thought he might be "the one." Well low and behold not long after our first dinner together her and Grant were engaged! I was so happy for her. It was very obvious how much she loved him just by the way she talked about him to me. They had plan to marry in early June of '09 in Las Vegas, and I was so excited when she had sent us an invitation. Jason and I had talked forever about going to Vegas and this wedding was our chance!! Sadly, after the economic downturn, and the big lay off scare at my company, we decided that it was in our family's best interest to save that money just in case something bad were to happen. I had thought about Stephanie a lot on her wedding day and was so sad we were not there. Once she got back she posted a video of the ceremony and I watched it twice, and cried both times lol. It was beautiful and she was GORGEOUS!!! I was so thrilled for her. When she got back from her honeymoon we had made dinner plans to eat at the Olive Garden, this time she wanted me to bring Jaxon. I was very nervous about this as any mother of a toddler knows how dining in public can sometimes be VERY embarrassing. Of course I was right. Jaxon was a TERD!! (In his defense, it was way past his bed time!) I was bummed as I did not get to hear about all the fun wedding details that I had so desperately anticipated. I cried all the way home because I felt like our dinner was cut short. Thankfully 2 weeks later (this past Friday) we had a child-free dinner and we chatted for 3 hours!! It was wonderful.
I can't tell you how awesome I think it is to have been able to reconnect with Stephanie. Life gets so busy and hustled from time to time and it is nice to know that we can get together every couple of months or so and have dinner and just catch up. Unfortunately, I have not had the chance to meet Grant yet, but I can tell you that he is a lucky, lucky man.
I remember about 4 years ago, shortly after Jason and I bought our house, I was up one Saturday morning and I decided to search for Stephanie on myspace. I came across many matches and found one in particular that was in Lewisville TX. There was no picture so I could not identify her. I decided to send her a private message asking if this was the Stephanie that had attended McNair Elementary with me. Months later I finally got a response and it was her!! We exchanged emails and chatted via myspace. After seeing pictures of her she was just like I had remembered! She was GORGEOUS, and I was jealous!
Fast forward to today, just this past Friday night I enjoyed dinner with Stephanie at Johnny Carino's. (This has been our 3rd dinner date so far this year.) I cannot explain how cool it is to get to catch up after all these years. I remember our very first dinner at the Olive Garden, almost a year ago, and I was so anxious to get to see her after all this time. We chatted about our families and what we had been up to. She told me she had just graduated from nursing school and was working full time as a nurse in the Dallas area. (She had sold her race car to attend nursing school full time! how cool is that!) She told me about this guy she had met, named Grant, and she told me how she thought he might be "the one." Well low and behold not long after our first dinner together her and Grant were engaged! I was so happy for her. It was very obvious how much she loved him just by the way she talked about him to me. They had plan to marry in early June of '09 in Las Vegas, and I was so excited when she had sent us an invitation. Jason and I had talked forever about going to Vegas and this wedding was our chance!! Sadly, after the economic downturn, and the big lay off scare at my company, we decided that it was in our family's best interest to save that money just in case something bad were to happen. I had thought about Stephanie a lot on her wedding day and was so sad we were not there. Once she got back she posted a video of the ceremony and I watched it twice, and cried both times lol. It was beautiful and she was GORGEOUS!!! I was so thrilled for her. When she got back from her honeymoon we had made dinner plans to eat at the Olive Garden, this time she wanted me to bring Jaxon. I was very nervous about this as any mother of a toddler knows how dining in public can sometimes be VERY embarrassing. Of course I was right. Jaxon was a TERD!! (In his defense, it was way past his bed time!) I was bummed as I did not get to hear about all the fun wedding details that I had so desperately anticipated. I cried all the way home because I felt like our dinner was cut short. Thankfully 2 weeks later (this past Friday) we had a child-free dinner and we chatted for 3 hours!! It was wonderful.
I can't tell you how awesome I think it is to have been able to reconnect with Stephanie. Life gets so busy and hustled from time to time and it is nice to know that we can get together every couple of months or so and have dinner and just catch up. Unfortunately, I have not had the chance to meet Grant yet, but I can tell you that he is a lucky, lucky man.
Thursday, July 09, 2009
Dinner with Diva's
About of month ago my cousin Crystal (who works at Affirmative with Jason), organized a social gathering which she appropriately named "Dining with Diva's." Like a girls only club, anyone is welcome to join for good food and good conversation. Once a month one of the girls is asked to host (I think we have our line up for the next 6 months! I get to host in Sept!), which means she provides her home and dinner. Last night was our first meeting. Marissa (who also works at Affirmative) was our very first hostess. She made us some delicious cheese sticks, ordered yummy pizza, and we ate some pretty cookies. We sat around the table and chatted about the on going's in every one's lives. We laughed. We talked about work frustrations and told stories about our kids. We watched some pre recorded episodes of ABC's "Wipe Out," which apparently all the girls are fans of. (me, not so much, but it was still fun.) Crystal took order and got out her handy notepad so that we could organize the future dinners. She collected our addresses and verified which month we would all like to host. I believe my favorite quote of the night came from Marissa. Kimberly (who also works at Affirmative) volunteered to host the dinner in December:
Crystal: "Okay, Kim is going to do December."
me: "yay!"
Marissa: "Can we dress up?" (And what she meant by that was dressing up in costumes.....not dressing up in fancy girly outfits! LOL)
me: *gives Marissa a weird look.
Kim: "Ummm, no."
I think it was one of those, "you had to be there moments," but it was super funny nonetheless. We laughed about that for a good while, and joked about dressing up as reindeer and elves, lol. So, our first dinner was a great success and so much fun. I really enjoyed hanging out with these ladies and I hope they had as much fun as I know I did!!!
Crystal: "Okay, Kim is going to do December."
me: "yay!"
Marissa: "Can we dress up?" (And what she meant by that was dressing up in costumes.....not dressing up in fancy girly outfits! LOL)
me: *gives Marissa a weird look.
Kim: "Ummm, no."
I think it was one of those, "you had to be there moments," but it was super funny nonetheless. We laughed about that for a good while, and joked about dressing up as reindeer and elves, lol. So, our first dinner was a great success and so much fun. I really enjoyed hanging out with these ladies and I hope they had as much fun as I know I did!!!
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
Summer Reading
I forgot how much I enjoy reading. I'm either too busy or dog tired by the end of the day to even consider opening a book. About 6 months ago I tried to get back on the reading bandwagon and bought, "The Friday Night Knitting Club," by Kate Jacobs.....and I never finished it. I've done that twice now....not finished a book. I started the Harry Potter series when it came out and never finished them either. I know, I know, I look really bad for that! I can say that I DID finish the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. I actually read them all before the first movie came out. So, I pat myself on the back for that. I've decided to make a resolution. I will read ALL 7 of the Harry Potter books. Now, don't get overly excited. This is going to be a process. I'm jumping in slowly. By doing so, I've begun reading, "My Sister's Keeper," by Jodi Picoult. I know this has nothing to do with Potter, but this will help get me back into my reading routine. I've only read about 120 pages of my new book since my sweet husband brought it home last Sunday. I've tried to read a little everyday. It really is good so far and I am thoroughly enjoying it. A few of my friends have read this book and have read other books by Jodi Picoult. I was excited to know that she has several other books out, and have already considered my next read. So, I'm going to read 2-3 non-Potter books to get me in my groove. Potter is SUCH a commitment that I have to get into a good reading habit so that I can read them the way they are meant to be read!
Monday, June 22, 2009
Our Wonderful Anniversary Weekend.
This blog wasn't on my list either....but, I had such a WONDERFUL weekend that I thought I should share.
Let me first say how strange it was Friday to go directly home after work instead of going to the daycare to pick up Jaxon. It was also very strange coming home to no baby. Anyway, once I arrived home we went to Pappasito's for dinner and it was AMAZING!!!! I just LOVE their fajitas!!!! (this is the ONLY place I eat beef fajitas.) Jason and I shared a giant fajita platter stacked with beef, shrimp, and ribs!!! It was delicious! After dinner we went to The Grand and watched The Hangover, which was HILARIOUS!! Jason doesn't typically like comedies (I know, weird!) but he thought it was good. We went home after the movie and enjoyed the fantastic luxury of sleeping in the next day. We both kept waking up periodically Saturday morning because it was such an adjustment NOT having Jaxon in the house. After getting ready we went to the Nissan dealership to try our luck at winning a new car. You know how they send you those dumb keys and tell you to come test it to see if it unlocks the door to a brand new car? Well, Jason insisted that we go try it, even though I told him that they only send you those kind of things to get you in the door to look at their new cars. He said he knew that is why they did that, but he still wanted to go try it because on the brochure it said there was a "guaranteed winner." So, our key didn't work, but I did get a free Wal Mart gift card out of it so I guess I can't complain. After we politely declined to hang around and look at their other cars we headed to brunch. Jason hadn't told me where we were going to be having brunch until we got there. Sadly, his plans did not go as he had intended. He had planned to take me to Breadwinners, but after driving by we noticed that they had a VERY long line of people waiting to be seated. Our massages were scheduled for noon, and we didn't figure we would have enough time to wait for a table, eat, and get there on time. We parked the car in the parking garage and walked around the shops for a bit trying to see if there was some place to maybe get a small bite. We were not successful. Either the places weren't open, or it was something that neither of us was in the mood for. So, we settled on Starbucks! LOL We both got frapaccino's, and I got a tiny overpriced sandwich, and Jason got a cheese danish and a rice crispy treat. We sat at a tiny table and played on our phones and ate while we were waiting to go next door for our massages. (Can I just say that there are some VERY interesting people in Uptown Dallas!! I do enjoy people watching, and there was no better place to do it than at that particular Starbucks!)
After we finished our drinks we went to the bathroom (we were told this would be beneficial to do so before we went and had the massages) and headed over to the Spa Habitat. It was a very cute place, and once we told the lady that we had an appointment she took us back to a quiet little room and had us fill out a form. When we were done with that our therapists came out to introduce themselves and took us back to a cute little room with two massage tables side by side. The room was dimly lit and there was relaxing music playing. Once we were tucked under the blankets the therapists came back in and worked their magic. It was the most relaxing 80 minutes of my life! This was a first massage for both of us, and it was very nice to get to do it together. I must say that before going in I felt like 80 minutes might be a little long, but OH NO, it went by very fast! I was shocked it was over when it was. After our massages we did some shopping and walked around for awhile. We decided to head back to the house to shower as we were really greasy! They used organic oils for our massages and I had it in my hair....I was DYING to wash it out! After we showered, I ironed our clothes and packed for our one night at NYLO. Once we got checked in we went to our room and rested for a bit, and freshened up. We had dinner at Chaucer's and I ate sushi.....and I liked it!! I have tried sushi 3 times in an effort to enjoy it as ALL my friends do, and I have never liked it. Jason had ordered a Louisiana Roll and it was really good. He did make fun of me for having to cut it in half with my fork and knife though. I think that was my main problem with sushi. I just feel like it is such a mouthful! It always made me want to gag! Turns out, all I needed was silverware! ha!
Once dinner was over we went back to the hotel to get changed as we had a big group of friends coming to hang out with us. NYLO has a very pretty courtyard with wonderful outdoor furniture and a cute pool and fireplace, and they also have a very nice bar area. Once everyone got there we had an absolute blast! It was so nice to get to talk to everyone, hang loose, and have all my friends there. We stayed up until 2am! We knew that was okay as the check out time was at noon. Once we did check out we headed to get some lunch at Chili's and then headed to Corsicana to get Jaxon.
Even though I was a little skeptical about leaving Jaxon for 2 nights it was totally worth it. Jason and I talked about how much fun we had all the way to Corsicana. I felt rested, and rejuvenated after my weekend of not having to do chores, change diapers, cook, or worry about anything. It was a very nice, much needed break. I feel like we absolutely need to start doing it more often and make sure we take time out for each other. It was so nice getting to spend alone time with my best friend, and it was a great way to celebrate our 5 year anniversary. I most definitely fell in love all over again and am looking forward to the next 5 years!
Let me first say how strange it was Friday to go directly home after work instead of going to the daycare to pick up Jaxon. It was also very strange coming home to no baby. Anyway, once I arrived home we went to Pappasito's for dinner and it was AMAZING!!!! I just LOVE their fajitas!!!! (this is the ONLY place I eat beef fajitas.) Jason and I shared a giant fajita platter stacked with beef, shrimp, and ribs!!! It was delicious! After dinner we went to The Grand and watched The Hangover, which was HILARIOUS!! Jason doesn't typically like comedies (I know, weird!) but he thought it was good. We went home after the movie and enjoyed the fantastic luxury of sleeping in the next day. We both kept waking up periodically Saturday morning because it was such an adjustment NOT having Jaxon in the house. After getting ready we went to the Nissan dealership to try our luck at winning a new car. You know how they send you those dumb keys and tell you to come test it to see if it unlocks the door to a brand new car? Well, Jason insisted that we go try it, even though I told him that they only send you those kind of things to get you in the door to look at their new cars. He said he knew that is why they did that, but he still wanted to go try it because on the brochure it said there was a "guaranteed winner." So, our key didn't work, but I did get a free Wal Mart gift card out of it so I guess I can't complain. After we politely declined to hang around and look at their other cars we headed to brunch. Jason hadn't told me where we were going to be having brunch until we got there. Sadly, his plans did not go as he had intended. He had planned to take me to Breadwinners, but after driving by we noticed that they had a VERY long line of people waiting to be seated. Our massages were scheduled for noon, and we didn't figure we would have enough time to wait for a table, eat, and get there on time. We parked the car in the parking garage and walked around the shops for a bit trying to see if there was some place to maybe get a small bite. We were not successful. Either the places weren't open, or it was something that neither of us was in the mood for. So, we settled on Starbucks! LOL We both got frapaccino's, and I got a tiny overpriced sandwich, and Jason got a cheese danish and a rice crispy treat. We sat at a tiny table and played on our phones and ate while we were waiting to go next door for our massages. (Can I just say that there are some VERY interesting people in Uptown Dallas!! I do enjoy people watching, and there was no better place to do it than at that particular Starbucks!)
After we finished our drinks we went to the bathroom (we were told this would be beneficial to do so before we went and had the massages) and headed over to the Spa Habitat. It was a very cute place, and once we told the lady that we had an appointment she took us back to a quiet little room and had us fill out a form. When we were done with that our therapists came out to introduce themselves and took us back to a cute little room with two massage tables side by side. The room was dimly lit and there was relaxing music playing. Once we were tucked under the blankets the therapists came back in and worked their magic. It was the most relaxing 80 minutes of my life! This was a first massage for both of us, and it was very nice to get to do it together. I must say that before going in I felt like 80 minutes might be a little long, but OH NO, it went by very fast! I was shocked it was over when it was. After our massages we did some shopping and walked around for awhile. We decided to head back to the house to shower as we were really greasy! They used organic oils for our massages and I had it in my hair....I was DYING to wash it out! After we showered, I ironed our clothes and packed for our one night at NYLO. Once we got checked in we went to our room and rested for a bit, and freshened up. We had dinner at Chaucer's and I ate sushi.....and I liked it!! I have tried sushi 3 times in an effort to enjoy it as ALL my friends do, and I have never liked it. Jason had ordered a Louisiana Roll and it was really good. He did make fun of me for having to cut it in half with my fork and knife though. I think that was my main problem with sushi. I just feel like it is such a mouthful! It always made me want to gag! Turns out, all I needed was silverware! ha!
Once dinner was over we went back to the hotel to get changed as we had a big group of friends coming to hang out with us. NYLO has a very pretty courtyard with wonderful outdoor furniture and a cute pool and fireplace, and they also have a very nice bar area. Once everyone got there we had an absolute blast! It was so nice to get to talk to everyone, hang loose, and have all my friends there. We stayed up until 2am! We knew that was okay as the check out time was at noon. Once we did check out we headed to get some lunch at Chili's and then headed to Corsicana to get Jaxon.
Even though I was a little skeptical about leaving Jaxon for 2 nights it was totally worth it. Jason and I talked about how much fun we had all the way to Corsicana. I felt rested, and rejuvenated after my weekend of not having to do chores, change diapers, cook, or worry about anything. It was a very nice, much needed break. I feel like we absolutely need to start doing it more often and make sure we take time out for each other. It was so nice getting to spend alone time with my best friend, and it was a great way to celebrate our 5 year anniversary. I most definitely fell in love all over again and am looking forward to the next 5 years!
Friday, June 19, 2009
Anniversary Festivities!
This particular blog was not planned. You see, I keep a mental note of all the things I want to blog about and this is not on my list. However, I feel that if I don't note all of my current feelings at this exact moment them I will EXPLODE!!!!!!!!!! (LOL)
Today is our 5 year anniversary. For some reason I am as excited about this day as I am about....oh, let's say, Christmas or my birthday (National Sarah Day)! Jason took today (Friday) off so that he could take our sweet Jaxon to Corsicana to stay with his Nana and Papoo. (Yep, that's right, Jaxon calls Jason's Dad, Papoo). After I get off work Jason and I are going to dinner (Pappasito's I believe. Due to my request!) and then we are going to a movie (The Hangover). The last movie we saw together was Twilight. I have forgotten how much I enjoy seeing new movies since Jaxon has come into our lives. Shoot, I have forgotten how much I enjoy time with my husband since Jaxon has arrived! Tomorrow's agenda consists of brunch, and then an 80 minute couples massage!!!! I have never in my life had a massage and I am so looking forward to this! I'm not sure about the rest of the afternoon as I think Jason has some things up his sleeve. Then, we are staying the night in a beautiful room at the Nylo hotel (nylohotels.com). I am so excited I can hardly stand it!
This is a huge leap for me to be able to be away from Jaxon for this long. It took a lot of convincing on Jason's part. I think that my issue is that I don't feel that anybody can take care of my son better than I can. I realize that 5 days a week he is being cared for by his sweet daycare ladies, but that is different. I never thought it could be so hard to let go just a little bit.....but it is.
The past couple of weeks I have learned that you can't be a good parent unless you take care of yourself. Taking care of yourself means making time for just YOU! Jason was telling me that he wants to start making it a regular priority to take Jaxon to his parents house once a month or once every two months......and .......I believe I can do that. My marriage is very important to me and so is my sanity. I got off track for a bit, and forgot that I was a person too. I am not JUST Jaxon's mother.
I am VERY giddy and anxious for our anniversary plans, and although I will miss my boy terribly, I will enjoy spending quality time with my husband.
Today is our 5 year anniversary. For some reason I am as excited about this day as I am about....oh, let's say, Christmas or my birthday (National Sarah Day)! Jason took today (Friday) off so that he could take our sweet Jaxon to Corsicana to stay with his Nana and Papoo. (Yep, that's right, Jaxon calls Jason's Dad, Papoo). After I get off work Jason and I are going to dinner (Pappasito's I believe. Due to my request!) and then we are going to a movie (The Hangover). The last movie we saw together was Twilight. I have forgotten how much I enjoy seeing new movies since Jaxon has come into our lives. Shoot, I have forgotten how much I enjoy time with my husband since Jaxon has arrived! Tomorrow's agenda consists of brunch, and then an 80 minute couples massage!!!! I have never in my life had a massage and I am so looking forward to this! I'm not sure about the rest of the afternoon as I think Jason has some things up his sleeve. Then, we are staying the night in a beautiful room at the Nylo hotel (nylohotels.com). I am so excited I can hardly stand it!
This is a huge leap for me to be able to be away from Jaxon for this long. It took a lot of convincing on Jason's part. I think that my issue is that I don't feel that anybody can take care of my son better than I can. I realize that 5 days a week he is being cared for by his sweet daycare ladies, but that is different. I never thought it could be so hard to let go just a little bit.....but it is.
The past couple of weeks I have learned that you can't be a good parent unless you take care of yourself. Taking care of yourself means making time for just YOU! Jason was telling me that he wants to start making it a regular priority to take Jaxon to his parents house once a month or once every two months......and .......I believe I can do that. My marriage is very important to me and so is my sanity. I got off track for a bit, and forgot that I was a person too. I am not JUST Jaxon's mother.
I am VERY giddy and anxious for our anniversary plans, and although I will miss my boy terribly, I will enjoy spending quality time with my husband.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Connie
I am patiently awaiting for an email to arrive. I keep these special emails in a folder in my inbox so I never lose them. Sometimes I get them really early in the morning, and sometimes they come in the middle of the day. Never the less, they come monthly, and sometimes weekly.
My biological father was married before he met my mother and had 3 children, Connie, Christy, and Jimmy. He later married my mother, and of course came me! I have no memories of my time with my half brother and sisters, just a few family photos which I believe my mom has. I was very young when my parents divorced and after that I never saw them again. Many years later as a young adult I had a few phone conversations with my father, catching up and what not, and I remember him telling me about Christy, and how she was very sick with cancer. I felt so bad as I knew she had a husband and 2 little girls. Some time had passed and I received a phone call from my father saying Christy has passed away. I can remember exactly where I was when I found out. Even though I didn't know Christy I felt so bad for her family, her mother, her sister, and her brother. I had only heard good things about Christy and what a wonderful spirit she had, and I knew she would be missed my many.
Fast forward to almost 2 years ago. Somehow, I had gotten Connie's instant messenger name, and email address. I remember one of the first times I had chatted with her online. It was the night before I went to the hospital to deliver Jaxon. I was up because I couldn't sleep due to nerves and excitement, and she popped online and we chatted for awhile. She was so sweet in saying how happy she was for us and how excited she was. She said we were in her thoughts and prayers and she would be thinking of us constantly. From then on we haven't stopped talking. Sometimes time gets the better of us and we go 2 to 3 weeks between emails, but we know we are thinking of each other and the second we get a free moment we send the other an email. Connie has two sweet kids, Shannon her oldest daughter, and Patrick her son. I love hearing all the stories about their birthdays, school, and their family vacations. About 6 months ago she sent me a big packet full of old and new pictures. Some pictures of her kids, her vacations, her wedding, and Christy's wedding. They were wonderful. I enjoyed getting to know them through all those pictures. I enjoyed seeing the pictures of Christy's 2 girls and how much they looked like their mother. I was so glad to know that Connie was very much involved in their lives as I know they miss their mother terribly.
I have come to learn that I depend on Connie's emails more than I thought. (She listens to my parenting concerns and gives me great advice based upon her experience.) I care about her family and love hearing about what is going on in their lives. I am excited to hear about her recent anniversary trip that her husband surprised her with to Florida. I am excited to hear about how the kids are enjoying summer vacation. I laughed out loud when she told me about her husbands "alcohol free" trip to Aruba! I love hearing about the shannanogins that little Patrick gets into! We share different stories about what is going on in our lives, and even talk about remodeling different rooms in our homes. Even though we are thousands of miles away I feel so unbelievably connected to her. I know that her husband has a new job where he gets to travel a lot, and there might be a possibility that she would get to come with him should he have to come to the DFW area. I sure hope so as I would LOVE to see her!
So Connie, I would like to say thank you. Thank you for your kindness, your advice, your love, and your concern. It is always nice to know that you care. Most importantly, thank your for your continuous emails.
My biological father was married before he met my mother and had 3 children, Connie, Christy, and Jimmy. He later married my mother, and of course came me! I have no memories of my time with my half brother and sisters, just a few family photos which I believe my mom has. I was very young when my parents divorced and after that I never saw them again. Many years later as a young adult I had a few phone conversations with my father, catching up and what not, and I remember him telling me about Christy, and how she was very sick with cancer. I felt so bad as I knew she had a husband and 2 little girls. Some time had passed and I received a phone call from my father saying Christy has passed away. I can remember exactly where I was when I found out. Even though I didn't know Christy I felt so bad for her family, her mother, her sister, and her brother. I had only heard good things about Christy and what a wonderful spirit she had, and I knew she would be missed my many.
Fast forward to almost 2 years ago. Somehow, I had gotten Connie's instant messenger name, and email address. I remember one of the first times I had chatted with her online. It was the night before I went to the hospital to deliver Jaxon. I was up because I couldn't sleep due to nerves and excitement, and she popped online and we chatted for awhile. She was so sweet in saying how happy she was for us and how excited she was. She said we were in her thoughts and prayers and she would be thinking of us constantly. From then on we haven't stopped talking. Sometimes time gets the better of us and we go 2 to 3 weeks between emails, but we know we are thinking of each other and the second we get a free moment we send the other an email. Connie has two sweet kids, Shannon her oldest daughter, and Patrick her son. I love hearing all the stories about their birthdays, school, and their family vacations. About 6 months ago she sent me a big packet full of old and new pictures. Some pictures of her kids, her vacations, her wedding, and Christy's wedding. They were wonderful. I enjoyed getting to know them through all those pictures. I enjoyed seeing the pictures of Christy's 2 girls and how much they looked like their mother. I was so glad to know that Connie was very much involved in their lives as I know they miss their mother terribly.
I have come to learn that I depend on Connie's emails more than I thought. (She listens to my parenting concerns and gives me great advice based upon her experience.) I care about her family and love hearing about what is going on in their lives. I am excited to hear about her recent anniversary trip that her husband surprised her with to Florida. I am excited to hear about how the kids are enjoying summer vacation. I laughed out loud when she told me about her husbands "alcohol free" trip to Aruba! I love hearing about the shannanogins that little Patrick gets into! We share different stories about what is going on in our lives, and even talk about remodeling different rooms in our homes. Even though we are thousands of miles away I feel so unbelievably connected to her. I know that her husband has a new job where he gets to travel a lot, and there might be a possibility that she would get to come with him should he have to come to the DFW area. I sure hope so as I would LOVE to see her!
So Connie, I would like to say thank you. Thank you for your kindness, your advice, your love, and your concern. It is always nice to know that you care. Most importantly, thank your for your continuous emails.
Friday, June 12, 2009
"16 and Pregnant"
MTV has a new show out, "16 and Pregnant." It premiered last night, so after Jaxon went to bed Jason and I watched it. I have seen several adds for the show over the past few weeks and sort of felt indifferent about it. Surely MTV isn't trying to make teen pregnancy look cool, right!? I can only hope that the reason for this new series is to show how incredibly hard it is to be a parent. Let alone a TEEN parent. I was 26 when I had Jaxon and I felt completely clueless! I can't imagine being 16 and knowing what to do with a baby! This episode followed the end of Maci and Bryan's pregnancy, and the first few months of their life after having their baby boy, Bentley Cadence. (Not a name I would choose for my son, but that is not important.) The camera's followed them around their school, their home, and a couple of doctor appointments giving us viewers a glimpse of what their life is like. Nothing out of the ordinary as far as teenagers go. They hung out with their friends, were involved in school functions, and seemed to get along well with their parents. They actually lived together in a small apartment near Maci's mother. Just your typical teenage couple......but pregnant. Maci would get a little upset because Bryan was not acting very interested in the pregnancy, instead he was more concerned with hanging out with his friends, and partying. I don't guess I really know how Maci wanted him to act. I'm sure he acted uninterested because he regretted getting his girlfriend pregnant in the first place! As the show went on I found myself so full of all different kinds of emotions. I got mad, sad, mad again, and then just really angry!! I could literally feel my blood pressure rising! It was one of those things, like a train wreck, where you just can't stop watching. A few things really irritated me about Maci and Bryan, well other than the fact that they were WAY to young to be having a child. The morning after Maci gave birth her mother came into her hospital room to see her new Grandson, and one of the first things out of Maci's mouth was something like, "He gets up so early, it really gets on my nerves." I don't even know what to say to that! It is going to be a LONG time before she will ever get to sleep in again. Another thing that really irritated me was at Maci's high school graduation, her family was taking pictures after the ceremony had ended, and posing between her friends and family she was holding her son, and she starts to whine, "Ugh, Mom he's ruining the picture!" I didn't know if he had a dirty diaper, or if he had maybe spit up on her gown.....whatever! In my book, babies don't ruin any pictures!! The show continued on, showing how they were getting along with the new baby. They bickered, went days without speaking, and Bryan continued to party with his friends. It was clear to me that the relationship probably wasn't going to last much longer.
I believe that this show stirred up so many emotions because I struggled with getting pregnant. I can remember how much it would hurt to see any woman pregnant, especially a teenager! I can also remember being out to dinner one night with Jason, and I saw a very young pregnant girl step outside to smoke while she was having dinner with her family. It just killed me! It hurt my heart so bad. Knowing that I wanted a baby so incredibly bad, and to watch her go outside and puff away on a cigerette like it was no big deal. I just don't understand how some people don't care?? I tend to be really naive at times, and I choose to see the good in everybody, but sometimes it's almost impossible.
I suppose the reality of it is, teenagers ARE having sex. I can only pray that in the future I don't have a teenager who makes me a Grandmother sooner than I am ready to be one.
I believe that this show stirred up so many emotions because I struggled with getting pregnant. I can remember how much it would hurt to see any woman pregnant, especially a teenager! I can also remember being out to dinner one night with Jason, and I saw a very young pregnant girl step outside to smoke while she was having dinner with her family. It just killed me! It hurt my heart so bad. Knowing that I wanted a baby so incredibly bad, and to watch her go outside and puff away on a cigerette like it was no big deal. I just don't understand how some people don't care?? I tend to be really naive at times, and I choose to see the good in everybody, but sometimes it's almost impossible.
I suppose the reality of it is, teenagers ARE having sex. I can only pray that in the future I don't have a teenager who makes me a Grandmother sooner than I am ready to be one.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
To be of service....part 2
In case you didn't already know, Loop 288 in Denton TX is (still) a nightmare! I believe the last I heard was that construction would be completed in 2011! So, you can imagine how busy it gets over there during the lunch hour rush. Since I work very close the Loop, I frequent the fast food chains that are located there. For the most part, its quick and easy.
Today I went to Chick Fil A. I had to swing into Target and get a birthday gift, so I thought I would drive through there on my way back to work. I have eaten at this particular location, with my friend Courtney, more times than I can count. (Especially when I was pregnant! I CRAVED their "ice dream" cones!) However, I had never been through their drive thru. Each time we would go we always noticed how busy their drive thru was. The line is always wrapped around the building during the lunch hour. Something else we noticed was that they had a couple of employees standing outside with clipboards taking customer orders as they drove up. Courtney and I didn't understand how they kept everything organized. You all know how a drive thru works, right?! You go to the speaker, you place your order and then you go to the window, pay, and they give you your food. After several visits, and watching their routine, we noticed that they would take the customer's order, write it down on a special ticket, and then give that customer their ticket (order). We were still confused by this. I just didn't see the point?? I just didn't know how they were keeping all the orders straight??!! Having worked at a fast food joint in high school, I was very familiar with the drive thru and how it worked! During all of our drive thru observations at this Chick Fil A I would always joke with Courtney and say, "One of these days I'm going to walk over to one of those guys with a clipboard and ask them how exactly they are staying organized!"
I wiggled my way out of the chaos that is the Target parking lot and drove over to the Chick Fil A. As always, the line was LONG. When I pulled up a little high school boy approached my window and said, "Hello there! What can I get for you today sir?" I could tell that he was trying not to sound rushed, but he had a job to do and he was trying to do it as quickly as possible. So I ignored the "sir" and told him I would have the, "#2, no tomatoes, and a diet dr. pepper." I then also explained to him that I had never played this drive thru game and needed him to tell me what to do. And so he did. He told me that they feel that it is a better way to service their customers by doing so face to face. He gave me my ticket order and told me to proceed forward to the manager, who was standing by the speaker box, and he would give me my total. I could tell that he was in somewhat of a hurry to take the next customers order, so, still confused, I drove forward. The manager approached my window and politely asked for my ticket. What happened next clarified everything for me!! He had on his little headset, and pushed the button to talk to the person inside. He told the person my order and they gave him my total, which he then gave to me, and told me to drive forward to retrieve my lunch. That was it! I understood it! To avoid all the confusions and hassles of ordering your food at the speaker, you are able to talk face to face with an actual person, like you would if you went inside, and then they have someone who is verbally capable relay your message to one of the people inside who then punch it into the computer. Genius! I really thought that this method took more time than doing it the "old fashioned" way, but NO! It was so fast!! I was totally shocked and very glad I finally learned about the Loop 288 drive thru at Chick Fil A!
Today I went to Chick Fil A. I had to swing into Target and get a birthday gift, so I thought I would drive through there on my way back to work. I have eaten at this particular location, with my friend Courtney, more times than I can count. (Especially when I was pregnant! I CRAVED their "ice dream" cones!) However, I had never been through their drive thru. Each time we would go we always noticed how busy their drive thru was. The line is always wrapped around the building during the lunch hour. Something else we noticed was that they had a couple of employees standing outside with clipboards taking customer orders as they drove up. Courtney and I didn't understand how they kept everything organized. You all know how a drive thru works, right?! You go to the speaker, you place your order and then you go to the window, pay, and they give you your food. After several visits, and watching their routine, we noticed that they would take the customer's order, write it down on a special ticket, and then give that customer their ticket (order). We were still confused by this. I just didn't see the point?? I just didn't know how they were keeping all the orders straight??!! Having worked at a fast food joint in high school, I was very familiar with the drive thru and how it worked! During all of our drive thru observations at this Chick Fil A I would always joke with Courtney and say, "One of these days I'm going to walk over to one of those guys with a clipboard and ask them how exactly they are staying organized!"
I wiggled my way out of the chaos that is the Target parking lot and drove over to the Chick Fil A. As always, the line was LONG. When I pulled up a little high school boy approached my window and said, "Hello there! What can I get for you today sir?" I could tell that he was trying not to sound rushed, but he had a job to do and he was trying to do it as quickly as possible. So I ignored the "sir" and told him I would have the, "#2, no tomatoes, and a diet dr. pepper." I then also explained to him that I had never played this drive thru game and needed him to tell me what to do. And so he did. He told me that they feel that it is a better way to service their customers by doing so face to face. He gave me my ticket order and told me to proceed forward to the manager, who was standing by the speaker box, and he would give me my total. I could tell that he was in somewhat of a hurry to take the next customers order, so, still confused, I drove forward. The manager approached my window and politely asked for my ticket. What happened next clarified everything for me!! He had on his little headset, and pushed the button to talk to the person inside. He told the person my order and they gave him my total, which he then gave to me, and told me to drive forward to retrieve my lunch. That was it! I understood it! To avoid all the confusions and hassles of ordering your food at the speaker, you are able to talk face to face with an actual person, like you would if you went inside, and then they have someone who is verbally capable relay your message to one of the people inside who then punch it into the computer. Genius! I really thought that this method took more time than doing it the "old fashioned" way, but NO! It was so fast!! I was totally shocked and very glad I finally learned about the Loop 288 drive thru at Chick Fil A!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
To be of service
Today, I emailed a company regarding the poor customer service I received while shopping in their store. Let me just say, this is something that I NEVER do. I am still not quite sure what provoked me to send the email, but then I received such steller service today at a fast food joint, and it made me want to share.
I will begin with our shopping trip to the Stonebriar Mall, a few weeks ago, in Frisco TX. This was just a mundane trip, we were not shopping for anything in particular....just a typical family outing. Jason and I passed by the Swim n Sport store and I sort of thought out loud, "I really need to consider getting a new bathing suit." Jason agreed and and we walked in to look for a bit. I didn't even really want to get one. (You see, my last swimsuit purchase was for our honeymoon back in 2004.) Since having a child I knew that my next suit would be a one piece. No more cute little bikini's for me!! I consider myself a very modest person, and while I'm not huge....I have some "mom" baggage, so I wanted something that covered me up and sucked me in!! We were immediately greeted by a very nice, cute sales girl and she asked what I was looking for and I told her. She picked out several things for me to try on and put me, my husband, and Jaxon in his stroller in the biggest fitting room she had. (I made Jason go into the fitting room with me as I did not want to walk out in the middle of the store with each suit I tried on asking if it looked okay!) After trying on all the different ones I finally decided on the pretty teal one. It made me look one size smaller and was such a pretty color on my pale skin. I very nicely put the swim suits that I did not want back on the hangers and left them in the room, and I got my boys and we proceeded to the register. I suppose I should also say that my swim suit was not a cheap purchase by any means! I look at it like an investment really. Something I plan on having for awhile. (coming from someone who has only purchased swim suits at Target and Old Navy) As I laid my suit on the counter and Jason pulled out his wallet, my sales lady asked if we would like to buy any of the $15 suit cleaner? I very politely declined, and was frowned upon by her, and the 2 other sales girls standing behind her. We were then asked again, "Are you sure you don't want to protect your investment?" My husband then politely said, "No, not today, maybe we'll come back and get some another day." I was already having a hard enough time spending what we just spent on the suit to even want to spend one more penny on anything else. Well, boy did the mood change! We went immediately from friendly customer chatting to....nothing. After they ran our card, and messed with their cash register for some minor problem, the girl bagged up my suit, put our receipt in the bag and we were on our way. No, "have a nice day", no, "thank you", no nothing! On our way out I looked at Jason and said, "Well, they were obviously upset that we didn't buy the cleaner."
Please understand, I really try to make a concious effort to be respectful of fast food employees, waiters/waitresses, and retail sales people. When placing orders at driver thru's, I try to always know exactly what I want, and I try to speak loud and clear. The same goes for eating at a sit down restaurant. Since having Jaxon, my husband has even gone as far as to pick up the food on the floor so that they won't have to clean it up! We always leave atleast a 20% tip when we receive good service. When shopping at a grocery store, or a department store, I always try to be ready at the register with my coupons or money or whatever the case may be, so that they can carry on and move to the next person in line.
So fast forward to today. I decided to drive thru Taco Bell on my lunch break. I don't frequent the Bell, but I was in the mood for something different today. I kept thinking about it in the hours leading up to noon, and was really hoping that it was going to be a good choice. It is either hit or miss with fast food chains. Either its great, or its awful! I pulled up to the speaker and waited for someone to take my order. A few seconds later this VERY chipper, enthusiastic female voice came over the speaker and asked, "Welcome to Taco Bell, how may I help you today?!" She was so overly friendly in fact that I kind of laughed out loud, and then told her what I wanted. She then asked me, "Are you sure you don't want a drink with that today ma'am?" and I told her no, that I already had one. There were 2 cars ahead of me, but I was only in the line for about a minute and a half when she politely took my card, swiped it, gave me my receipt, and then handed me my food, and told me to have a wonderful day. She was literally so nice, that I had forgotten about my bad morning at work. She put me in a better mood!
The same is true for the fast food chain known as Chick Fil A. Have you ever noticed that no matter what you ask for, it is always, "their pleasure!" If I get a refill, and say "thank you", they always respond with, "my pleasure!" EVERY single time! I am certain that if I were to dump my soda on the floor, and ask them to mop it up, they would respond with "my pleasure!" I think it is such a great concept.
So, to all of the fast food workers, waiters and retail sales people, I hope that you know that there are people out there that really appreciate and respect what you do. So, smile, be happy, and be polite, and you never know, you might just make someone's day.
I will begin with our shopping trip to the Stonebriar Mall, a few weeks ago, in Frisco TX. This was just a mundane trip, we were not shopping for anything in particular....just a typical family outing. Jason and I passed by the Swim n Sport store and I sort of thought out loud, "I really need to consider getting a new bathing suit." Jason agreed and and we walked in to look for a bit. I didn't even really want to get one. (You see, my last swimsuit purchase was for our honeymoon back in 2004.) Since having a child I knew that my next suit would be a one piece. No more cute little bikini's for me!! I consider myself a very modest person, and while I'm not huge....I have some "mom" baggage, so I wanted something that covered me up and sucked me in!! We were immediately greeted by a very nice, cute sales girl and she asked what I was looking for and I told her. She picked out several things for me to try on and put me, my husband, and Jaxon in his stroller in the biggest fitting room she had. (I made Jason go into the fitting room with me as I did not want to walk out in the middle of the store with each suit I tried on asking if it looked okay!) After trying on all the different ones I finally decided on the pretty teal one. It made me look one size smaller and was such a pretty color on my pale skin. I very nicely put the swim suits that I did not want back on the hangers and left them in the room, and I got my boys and we proceeded to the register. I suppose I should also say that my swim suit was not a cheap purchase by any means! I look at it like an investment really. Something I plan on having for awhile. (coming from someone who has only purchased swim suits at Target and Old Navy) As I laid my suit on the counter and Jason pulled out his wallet, my sales lady asked if we would like to buy any of the $15 suit cleaner? I very politely declined, and was frowned upon by her, and the 2 other sales girls standing behind her. We were then asked again, "Are you sure you don't want to protect your investment?" My husband then politely said, "No, not today, maybe we'll come back and get some another day." I was already having a hard enough time spending what we just spent on the suit to even want to spend one more penny on anything else. Well, boy did the mood change! We went immediately from friendly customer chatting to....nothing. After they ran our card, and messed with their cash register for some minor problem, the girl bagged up my suit, put our receipt in the bag and we were on our way. No, "have a nice day", no, "thank you", no nothing! On our way out I looked at Jason and said, "Well, they were obviously upset that we didn't buy the cleaner."
Please understand, I really try to make a concious effort to be respectful of fast food employees, waiters/waitresses, and retail sales people. When placing orders at driver thru's, I try to always know exactly what I want, and I try to speak loud and clear. The same goes for eating at a sit down restaurant. Since having Jaxon, my husband has even gone as far as to pick up the food on the floor so that they won't have to clean it up! We always leave atleast a 20% tip when we receive good service. When shopping at a grocery store, or a department store, I always try to be ready at the register with my coupons or money or whatever the case may be, so that they can carry on and move to the next person in line.
So fast forward to today. I decided to drive thru Taco Bell on my lunch break. I don't frequent the Bell, but I was in the mood for something different today. I kept thinking about it in the hours leading up to noon, and was really hoping that it was going to be a good choice. It is either hit or miss with fast food chains. Either its great, or its awful! I pulled up to the speaker and waited for someone to take my order. A few seconds later this VERY chipper, enthusiastic female voice came over the speaker and asked, "Welcome to Taco Bell, how may I help you today?!" She was so overly friendly in fact that I kind of laughed out loud, and then told her what I wanted. She then asked me, "Are you sure you don't want a drink with that today ma'am?" and I told her no, that I already had one. There were 2 cars ahead of me, but I was only in the line for about a minute and a half when she politely took my card, swiped it, gave me my receipt, and then handed me my food, and told me to have a wonderful day. She was literally so nice, that I had forgotten about my bad morning at work. She put me in a better mood!
The same is true for the fast food chain known as Chick Fil A. Have you ever noticed that no matter what you ask for, it is always, "their pleasure!" If I get a refill, and say "thank you", they always respond with, "my pleasure!" EVERY single time! I am certain that if I were to dump my soda on the floor, and ask them to mop it up, they would respond with "my pleasure!" I think it is such a great concept.
So, to all of the fast food workers, waiters and retail sales people, I hope that you know that there are people out there that really appreciate and respect what you do. So, smile, be happy, and be polite, and you never know, you might just make someone's day.
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
June Teenth
It is hard to believe that I have had a blogspot account for nearly 4 years and have never posted anything. With myspace, facebook, twitter, and Jaxon's totsite page I feel like I already put it all out there! I can't tell you how many times I have logged into my account hoping that something great will come to mind and I can blog about it, but it hasn't happened, well up until now obviously, lol. I've decided that my first blog would be about my husband, our relationship and our upcoming 5 year anniversary.
Jason and I are just shy of being together for 10 years, and married for almost 5 years. I find it so hard to believe, and laugh looking back at pictures of how much we look like "babies" when we first started dating. I was 18 and Jason was 21 when we became boyfriend and girlfriend. He was my boss at the good 'ol Catfish King in Denton. Don't think for one second that he treated me better than anyone else because I was his girlfriend! Oh no! He was MEAN! Very mean! I was a big girl though, I could handle it! Look where it got us!
I think that we have a very unique partnership with a great understanding of each other. Jason RARELY shows emotion. I call him a robot all the time! He is a thinker, where I tend to jump the gun a little bit. Regardless of how he shows his feelings, I know they are there. He is strong, smart, a little shy, mean, yet caring, and he makes THE BEST guacomole! I love him. I thrive on taking care of my family. I enjoy the sense of being needed.
There is one thing that Jason has to have to make it through each day, and that is sweet tea. He drinks atleast a gallon a day. One of the first things I do when I get home is make him some tea. He knows he can always count on having it every night with dinner, and take whatever is left over with him to work the next day. Its cold, refreshing, and not too sweet.
It might be a strange analogy, but I depend on Jason like he depends on his sweet tea. I depend on his loyalty to our family, and the way in which he provides for us.
That being said, to celebrate our 5 year wedding anniversary we are taking Jaxon to his Grandparents house (my first full weekend away from him) and going to enjoy a day at the spa and a night at the Nylo hotel. I am really looking forward to it.
Jason and I are just shy of being together for 10 years, and married for almost 5 years. I find it so hard to believe, and laugh looking back at pictures of how much we look like "babies" when we first started dating. I was 18 and Jason was 21 when we became boyfriend and girlfriend. He was my boss at the good 'ol Catfish King in Denton. Don't think for one second that he treated me better than anyone else because I was his girlfriend! Oh no! He was MEAN! Very mean! I was a big girl though, I could handle it! Look where it got us!
I think that we have a very unique partnership with a great understanding of each other. Jason RARELY shows emotion. I call him a robot all the time! He is a thinker, where I tend to jump the gun a little bit. Regardless of how he shows his feelings, I know they are there. He is strong, smart, a little shy, mean, yet caring, and he makes THE BEST guacomole! I love him. I thrive on taking care of my family. I enjoy the sense of being needed.
There is one thing that Jason has to have to make it through each day, and that is sweet tea. He drinks atleast a gallon a day. One of the first things I do when I get home is make him some tea. He knows he can always count on having it every night with dinner, and take whatever is left over with him to work the next day. Its cold, refreshing, and not too sweet.
It might be a strange analogy, but I depend on Jason like he depends on his sweet tea. I depend on his loyalty to our family, and the way in which he provides for us.
That being said, to celebrate our 5 year wedding anniversary we are taking Jaxon to his Grandparents house (my first full weekend away from him) and going to enjoy a day at the spa and a night at the Nylo hotel. I am really looking forward to it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)