Gifts

Gift-giving is a weird thing. It comes with so many expectations. I LOVE to give gifts, as I'm sure we all do. But there are many things that factor into this simple act of kindness.



1) Money - "I would love to buy _____ for my mom, but it's just too darn expensive."
2) Relevance - "Will he/she like what I'm giving them? Or will they think it's useless and stuipd?"
3) Fairness - "Well, I didn't get something this nice for his/her spouse, so I need to find something cheaper."
4)...and my all-time favorite...Do they already have it? - "Does my dad already own ____?" No matter what the item is, the answer to that question is usually YES. He does own it. But this question also applies to other people.



The month of October is a big gift-giving month for me. I have 4 birthdays to support this month. Not to mention, Christmas is right around the corner. (Have you started shopping yet? Because I have!)

Anwyay, the whole point that I wanted to make is that buying gifts can be stressful even if we have the best of intentions.

My sister-in-law Emily is one of the easiest people to buy gifts for. For starters, I know her very well (and I'm married to her brother, so that gives me an advantage). If you are close to Emily at all, you probably know everything there is to know about her, as I do...and this makes it very easy when shopping for Emily. Actually, I never have to make a specific trip to the mall for Emily. Usually, I'm already out shopping at a store, and I'll see something very "Emily-ish" that catches my eye. She is always the first person I check off my Christmas shopping list every year because I pack away gifts for her all year. In fact, we already have 4 presents waiting for her in The Christmas Closet. She is always WAY ahead of everyone else. (Sorry, other relatives. I wish you were all this easy to shop for, but you just aren't...)

The Easy Gifters (like Emily) are a blessing and a curse at the same time. You see, I find so many things for Emily that I actually have to STOP myself from buying gifts for her. During Christmas season when we're out hunting for the Dad gifts (which are by far the most difficult to shop for), I'll spot yet another gift for Emily! It's very distracting and frustrating, and not very fair to the dads or to anyone else.

October 9 is Emily's birthday, and like I said before, we already have a pile of gifts packed away for her. I also had a few gift ideas tucked away in my brain. But for some reason, I thought to myself "Oh goodness...what if she HATES everything that we give her? And what if she dreads our presents every year?" Poor thing, we have never stopped to ask her what she actually WANTS. And so that's exactly what I did this year. I asked her what she wanted, and she kindly told me about a necklace that she found on Etsy.com.


**Sidenote** If you haven't been to Etsy.com then please do so IMMEDIATELY. Give yourself about 30-60 min to browse the website. The site offers handmade gifts from crafters and artists all over the country. This stuff is way better than anything you'd find at Target. Think of your favorite boutique on Main Street, and then multiply it by 1,000 and put it online. Voila! You have Etsy - a site full of brilliant, beautiful arts and crafts. The items are reasonably priced, and if they aren't, you can simply ask for a discount. The beauty about buying directly from the artist is that you can make custom requests and hopefully negotiate a price. And readers, this isn't the kind of crap you find at the flea market. These handmade items will blow your mind! I've found gorgeous dresses, jackets jewelry, pottery and pictures that are all one-of-a-kind. I also love the idea of supporting starving artists (mostly because I wish that I were one myself...) It's a comfort to me knowing that I'm paying someone directly rather than giving my money to a big corporate mess.



So, here is the necklace that I purchased from ChellasCollection.etsy.com. It's a chain with 2 map pendants. The one for Emily had a map of CMCH, New Jersey (where Emily was born) and one of Chicago (where she lives now).




Not only was the gift perfect, but my online transaction with the artist behind Chellas Collection was spectacular. We sent each other messages using Etsy's online messaging system, and Julie was so responsive and thoughtful. She personalized Emily's gift, handled the shipping and timed it with her birthday, and included a personalized note. She even sent me a follow up thank you note in the mail! For someone who shys away from online shopping, I truly enjoyed this experience, and I was glad to give Emily a gift that she really wanted.

Pumpkins and Stuff

Hello, again! How about those Vols, huh? I couldn't believe their win over Georgia this weekend.. More importantly, I can't believe I'm talking about football like this. But, it was EXCITING to see one of our teams WIN! (You hear that, Titans? W-I-N? Let that word sink in for a while, Collins....) I was also glad to see Tebow back at it this week, cleaning up some tiger blood in Death Valley. Poor baby bonked his head...but I think he's better now.

Saturday was cold and cloudy. I started off the day by going to Jessica's baby shower. It was a really nice shower, and I was glad to see Jess and her baby bump. They drove down to Tennessee for the weekend. Jessica's mom and Ryan were at the shower, too, so that was a nice treat. I am so happy that Jess and Ryan are expecting. I think I've mentioned this before, but I don't usually care when people are pregnant (I'm sorry, that seems so heartless...but true) So, I actually care about this one! Also, seeing Jessica during her pregnancy makes it seem a little less terrifying to me. She is happy, healthy and carefree - just like her normal self! (only with a little guy in her tummy). I still didn't work up the nerve to touch her stomach.

After the baby shower, Sean and I had ZERO plans. None. Nada. The afternoon was ours for the taking, which never really happens to us. We were thrilled! We ran errands around town, shopped for our Halloween costumes, and even got a milkshake! Sean has chosen to be the zombie version of Billy Mays (the OxyClean infomercial man who died earlier this year), and I will be going as Edward Scissorhands (one of my favorite Johnny Depp characters). Both costumes will require a great deal of makeup to create that "living dead" look, so we'll have to do a dress rehearsal one night.

In addition to costume shopping, I also pulled out the decorations and started transforming our home into a creepy haunted mansion. Ok, not really...I only DREAM about turning our house into a haunted mansion for Halloween. Maybe one day it will happen. For now, I'll have to settle for this cute little tablescape.

We were lucky to have my brother Trey spend Sunday afternoon with us. In addition to the decorating, we carved pumpkins and baked some delicious gingerbread snaps.

Trey's pumpkin is on the left. Look closely and you'll see that it's a pumpkin chomping on a smaller baby pumpkin. Sean's is the while pumpkin with the evil, toothy grin. And mine is at the bottom - the skeleton silhouette.

Check them out in the dark!

What a Wonderful Week!

So many great things happened over this past week, and I can't wait to share them with you. For starters, the weather has been gorgeous. (A teeny big chilly at times, but I can't complain...) It's hard to be in a bad mood when the sun is shining and there's not a cloud in the sky.

Sunday I enjoyed the weather by going on a 3 mile jog. I ran by my Nonnie's house and had a nice visit with her. She had been to Gatlinburg for a weekend retreat with her church group, so she shared some old-people travel stories with me.

I felt energized all week, and even made it into work super early one day. I've been challenging myself to stay away from sugars and dairy. I'm not a sweets person, but just having a piece of bread, cereal or even salad dressing can secretly add a lot of sugar to your diet. So, I'm choosing things that have no sugars or just 1 or 2 grams. Remember when I did that insanely healthy Gwenyth Paltrow diet? Well, I noticed that throughout the entire week, I never got shaky. By "shaky" I mean that feeling I get when I haven't eaten in a while. I was eating very little during the diet week, but never once did I feel like I was going to pass out. My guess is that I felt OK because I wasn't crashing - my blood sugar level was perfectly consistent (meaning ZERO). So, this week I focused on no sugars and no dairy in hopes that those elements would keep me feeling good. And I think it worked! Well, it worked until Thursday...but I'll tell you more about that in a minute.

First I want to tell you about our softball game. Tuesday night was frightfully cold. I think it got down to 42 degrees, and I was NOT in the mood to play softball. I had been spoiled by having 3 weeks off in a row (1 vacation and 2 rain-outs). We play 2 games each week, and this week was at 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. I really just wanted to go home, clean house, hang out with Sean, knit and go to bed early. We lost the first game 16 to 6, but came back in the 2nd game for our FIRST WIN of the season. I don't know how it happened, but it was kind of exciting. Thank goodness I decided to stay for the games because otherwise our team would've had to forfeit!

Wednesday night we received an email that the rental house was in need of more repairs. The fridge wasn't cooling properly, and there's a NEW leak (separate from the one we repaired earlier this year). Wasn't I just saying that there's always something to spend money on??? One of us - either me or Sean - has done something to offend the Rental House Gods. We have GREAT tenants, though, so at least we aren't having to deal with collections or damages.

Thursday was Sherri's 30th birthday, and about 20 of us went to Dan McGuinness to celebrate with her. No sugars? No dairy? HA - I blew it. Cheeseburger, french fries, 4 beers, 1 lemon drop, and a bite of chocolate cake. By the end of the night I was bent over in pain from intense indigestion. And need I say, I did NOT feel good on Friday either...

Friday was busy at work, and don't forget that I had to leave the office to go meet the refrigerator repair man (who was 30 min late). But thankfully, he fixed the fridge while he was there, and we don't have to buy a new one. I worked late that night, and then headed home to my hubby where we shared a delicious dinner and had a fire in the back yard. We sat outside for about an hour. I was knitting, and we talked and stared at the glow of the flames. All of a sudden, the fox appeared! Sean and I looked at the fox, and he (or she) looked back at us. It was quiet for a moment while we sat there in anticipation of his next move, but then he quietly popped back into the woods. He never made a peep or a sudden move. It was haunting in a way, mostly because we could only see him by the firelight.

This morning the alarm went off at 6:50 a.m. Too early for a Saturday, I know, but not if you're going to a GARAGE SALE! Yes, we did it and I'm so proud of us. There's a sickeningly fancy neighborhood called Westhaven just up the road from where we live. They were having a multi-family garage sale, so it seemed like a good opportunity for our first garage sale go-round. I mean, who doesn't want to rummage through rich people's stuff? Westhaven is perfect...almost too perfect. With it's charming streetscapes, perfectly manicured lawns and quaint neighborhood shops, you feel like you've entered a Hollywood movie set. Their website actually says, "...it looked out of a storybook." No kidding! Go here if you don't believe me...but be warned: you'll end up feeling like a piece of shit. But hey, maybe I'm being too hard on ole Westhaven. Nice homes, nice people, nice garage sale...I'd probably live there if I could afford it. WHO AM I KIDDING!? OF COURSE I WOULD LIVE THERE! The garage sale ended up being a success - we scored a pair of lamps for $10, which we needed for our bedroom. We spotted lots of other great buys, but we just didn't need them: like-new strollers, couches that looked un-used, fashionable dining tables, rugs, Pottery Barn dishes, curtains, and table linens, Coach bags, designer clothes (all too small for me)...It was the most surreal garage sale I've ever been to. One of the sellers was dealing change out of a Coach fanny pack.

Sherri's Top 30

Since Thursday was Sherri's 30th birthday, I thought I should give her a little shout out. After all, she is one of the greatest friends of all time. I've known her for 6 years, but it seems like we've been buds since forever. I'm bummed that I forgot to take pictures at her happy-hour birthday party, but I'm sure you can visualize the pink silly string that was stuck in her long brown hair!

Thirty Things About Sherri:
1. She has a great laugh
2. Her handwriting is really small
3. She can never remember how old her younger brother is
4. She's allergic to foods that resemble private parts (melons, nuts, and cucumbers)
5. She likes chocolate cake
6. She appreciates good linens
7. She has pretty hair, which she meticulously styles every morning
8. She doesn't like to call people on the phone
9. She has a giant umbrella. No really, it's the biggest one I've ever seen. People call it a tent.
10. She likes Neal Diamond
11. She does not like concerts
12. She has the TV guide memorized
13. She is missing her gallbladder
14. One time she licked my face
15. One day she decided to quit smoking
16. She also stopped biting her finger nails
17. And she lost 50 lbs.
18. She was born in Wyoming
19. She loves the beach
20. Her dog is Mobie
21. Her 2 best friends are named Jennifer
22. We share the same middle name
23. She is a good listener
24. She loves white cheese dip
25. She's very tidy
26. She's a great storyteller
27. She is loyal
28. She hates Vincent
29. She went to a David Hasslehoff concert
30. She's addicted to peppermints

New season, new things...

After all the rain we've had for the past 2 weeks, the clouds finally moved on and the sky is clear once again. The air is crisp and clean, and was actually CHILLY when I left work tonight. I had on short sleeves, and I definitely could have used a sweater. Hello, Fall...I guess you've officially arrived...and I'm ok with that.

Sean and I took advantage of the cool evening and had our first backyard fire of the season. It was the perfect end to our wonderful weekend (except for the Vols and the Titans BOTH losing...) Other than the losses, we had a fun and productive weekend.

Here are a few of the things we've been up to lately:

#1. Watching our budget. There's always a repair, a need, a gift...something to spend money on, but we've been doing a pretty good job of managing our funds. It helps that I'm mildly obsessive about balancing our checkbook and updating our budget spreadsheet (at least twice a week). Thanks for the finance gene, mom! Sean and I know that we're blessed to still have 2 incomes (unlike some of our friends and neighbors), so we try to be as responsible as possible. Some days I fear that we're going to lose everything all at once. I tend to get caught up in worrying...so much so that I keep myself awake at night, and my stomach stays in knots. But, I need to remember that we're doing well and that all of our needs are met. It gets tricky when your wants outweigh your needs, which is pretty much 100% of the time. Right now I'm trying to avoid my WANT for a new washer and dryer, pretty home furnishings from Pottery Barn, curtains and blinds, new carpet, patio furniture, professional tree trimming, and new clothes. I'm sure that Sean has a full list of his own WANTS. I guess the good thing about 'Wants' is that when they don't come to fruition, you're not exactly screwed. You're just stuck with your old crappy stuff, and that's ok.

I recently stumbled across this blog which inspired me to start second-hand shopping. I've got to overcome my need for instant-gratification. I'm good at exercising "delayed-gratification" (as in, saving up, or only shopping when we have extra funds), but my delayed-gratification eventually becomes instant-gratification once I'm ready to pull the trigger. Make sense? I've got to start training myself to find those bargains! My new mantra has become: I can always find it cheaper. I'm trying to drill this into my brain. My biggest challenge will be waking up early on Saturdays to scour the garage sales. I only have a couple of more weeks left before it becomes too cold. Wish me luck!

A final note about budgets...I've also been trying to keep the grocery bill as low as possible (a never ending challenge). Well, this week we only spent $90 on a week's worth of groceries. SCORE!!! I have meals for every night of the week...except Saturday...and I'm hoping one of our family members will feed us for the night. If not, we can treat ourselves to eating out!

#2. Friends & Events:
- Last Thursday we attended An Evening of Reflection featuring designer Van Hoang from O'More College of Design. What an amazing designer! I just know that Tim Gunn would have the biggest fit over her gorgeous dresses if he ever met her.
- We were also able to stop by The Franklin Bridal Ball at The Factory to see Bonnie's booth.
- Saturday we hosted a dinner party and invited Sherri & Keith and Bobby & Crystal over for spaghetti and meatballs. I had never made meatballs before, but was inspired to give them a try since hearing about the new movie Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. YUM YUM! The recipe was a hit, and Keith said they were the best meatballs he'd ever had. Now, I don't know if that was a true statement, but I sure appreciate the compliment. The 6 of us had a lovely time. The boys watched football while the girls gossiped in the living room. It was very "grown up" of us.
- Sunday we stopped by dad's bachelor bad to watch the Titans game with him and Trey. We snacked on some good game-day food, and watched the boys lose big time. It sucked, but it was fun visiting with my dad and brother. Trey has been taking guitar lessons, and he played a couple of chords for us. He also got his spacers to make room for BRACES. He's really growing up, and I can't believe he's going to be 11 in less than 2 months. Baby brothers grow up fast.

#3. Knitting. I'm working on 2 projects, with about 3 more in the hopper. I can't reveal my projects because they're all gifts so I can't spoil any secrets for anyone. Sometimes I worry that people dread receiving gifts from me because they're probably thinking "ugh. another damn scarf or hat."

#4. Work. I have some busy times ahead of me, and a lot of responsibility to tackle. Work has been great though, and I still LOVE my new boss. LOVE LOVE LOVE. Sean says that I'm a new person because of her. She makes me want to be the world's biggest suck up, and I have to stop myself from hugging her every day and screaming "THANK YOU! YOU ROCK! YOU'RE THE BEST BOSS EVER!" Otherwise, she might think I'm crazy. Anyway, I have some upcoming travel, but I think they'll be nice visits. I'm probably heading to PA the first week of December, so I hope the winter weather holds off for me.

what a day...

Tuesday. A harmless day, right? No more 'case of the Mondays,' but not yet burnt out from a week full of work.

Surprisingly, this unsuspecting Tuesday has been quite entertaining for me. My day started with an invitation to join a local college's advisory board. I know, right??? That never happens! Well, at least it doesn't seem to happen to people like me. And in case you're wondering...no, I don't have any qualifications. But, someone out there believed in me enough to reccomend me to the president of the school. I'll hear from him in the next couple of days. I'm quite nervous about it, but also very excited about this opportunity.

Then, while I was talking to Sherri at work (probably gabbing about the advisory board thing) my high heel broke right off my shoe! I tossed the spare high heel on to her desk, and we both shared a good laugh. I spent the rest of the day awkwardly limping around the office.

And for those of you who know me well, this next item won't really come as a suprise -- I spilled food on my brand new shirt. I picked up some new fall clothes from Kohl's a couple of weeks ago, and decided to wear one of the shirts today. I got lots of compliments on it, but then I trashed it by spilling some healthy-GwenythPaltrow-Cleanse dressing crap all over it. I sure hope the oil stains come out!

After lunch, about 1:30, a helicoptor started circling our office building. Come to find out, the Franklin and Nashville Metro police were searching for a bank robber. Yes, a robbery in Franklin in the middle of the day! Gasp.

Speaking of robbery, I am positive that Sean and I spotted a would-be car theif on Sunday afternoon. We were walking back to our car after church, which was parked in the Franklin parking garage on 4th ave (across from Puckett's grocery). Some punk with AWFUL acne (seriously, it was the worst case of pizza face I have ever seen in my life...) was suspiciously walking through the garage. He was alone, and I couldn't help but stare at him #1. Because of the acne, and #2. He's too young to drive, so why is he walking through the parking garage, and #3. He kept his right hand stuffed in his right pocket the entire time. It just wasn't a natural walking stride. I've spotted people stealing stuff from the mall before simply because they were walking awkwardly. Anyway, back to the car theif...I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt, thinking "Well, maybe he's meeting his mom in the parking garage???" But no, that was not the case. I should always trust my instincts - and my instincts were telling me that this kid was up to NO GOOD. He disappeared behind a black BMW...but then someone spotted him, so he quickly came out from behind the car and waved at them. It was really bizarre. Clearly, the BMW didn't belong to him. Like I said, he wasn't old enough to drive. After he was spotted, Pizza Face sped up his pace and quickly walked out of the parking garge. His plan to steal stuff out of fancy Franklin cars was ruined by the hundreds of church goers picking up their vehicles in the garage. Next time he sets up a job, I'm sure he'll check the local church schedules first.

So...where was I? Oh yes, weird things that happened today. I think I shared everything with you. Of course, the day isn't over just yet. I still have a softball game at 8:00, and another one at 9. I'm hoping that the games are rained out. I've had a mild headache all day (probably because the rain is moving in), and I just don't feel like playing. I never really feel like playing, but I especially don't feel like playing tonight. A 9:00 game? That shouldn't be legal. It's way too late for old people like me.

Also, I owe you an update on the diet. I haven't fallen off the wagon yet. Still no sugar, fat or dairy. I lost 5 lbs in 5 days. Keep in mind, I started with my "vacation" weight. I think that my body would've naturally dropped 1 or 2 lbs after vacation. But still, I feel really proud that I found the will power to eat so clean (even for a short amount of time). I was scared that depriving my body of so much food and junk would make me feel weak. Yes, I've noticed a difference in the way I feel (mostly hungry), but I was still able to do a decent workout last night. I haven't had any fainting spells due to a lack of eating. I call it a success.

Gwenyth Paltrow is trying to kill me

It's about 10 p.m. on Saturday night. Sean mowed the yard and spent the rest of the day watching football. I did a bit of kitting with my friend Bethany this morning. We went to Bliss Yarns in Brentwood - always a wonderful experience! I taught her how to knit, and I started working on a hat to wear this fall. I spent the rest of the day doing domestic chores (and Sean pitched in, too!).

Last night we went to see Trevor sing with his new band. He is a total rockstar, and really knows how to work a crowd. It's not really my style of music, but I enjoyed his singing. Boy's got a great pair of pipes!

Tomorrow will probably be more domestic stuff, like getting organized for the week, paying bills, finishing laundry, etc. We've been playing it low-key since we got home from the beach. We enjoyed the better part of last week sunning on the beach, gorging on delicious seafood, and doing a little bit of shopping. Because of our recent over-indulging (ok, maybe "recent" isn't the right word - we've been doing this all summer), I decided it was time to clean up my act. More specifically, I wanted to clean up up my eating act. While we were in Destin, I noticed that my jeans were snug, I was bloated and having indigestion (sexy, i know...) So, I made up my mind to go on a 7 day diet called Cleanse.

A few months ago, I caught a late night show with Gwenyth Paltrow as a guest. I really like Gwenyth, and I'd like to think we'd be friends if I, too, were a famous movie star. Of course, Gwenyth was perfectly lovely throughout the interview, and she was promoting her website Goop.com. She also recommended this Cleanse diet that she tried, and said it was successful for her. So, I don't know why, but I wanted to try it, and I thought now would be the perfect time.

First, you should know that I modified the diet to suit my taste and lifestyle. The 7 day menu requires lots of blender use. Instead of making a different soup every day, I decided to stick to 1 soup - homemade miso soup. And instead of the various "breakfasts" they suggested, I'm sticking to the Blueberry Smoothie. Other than that, the diet is basically lots and lots of veggies and liquids. No sugars, no breads, no animal fat, no fruit (except for the blueberries), no caffine, no added salt, and no dairy. The dinners each night are steamed tilapia and steamed greens.

Remember those scenes in I Love Lucy when Lucy would start obnoxiously crying? Yah, that's what I feel like doing right now. I'm not used to this dieting thing. I'm in detox mode, my body is craving EVERYTHING, and I don't like it. I've been hungry for 2 days. GWENYTH PALTROW IS TRYING TO KILL ME!!! No, not really. I've actually been eating a fair amount of calories, considering that this is a cleansing detox diet and everything...

I'm not expecting to lose weight - that's not the purpose of this exercise for me (although, a few pounds would be nice. I'll let you know the outcome). I was just feeling so icky on the inside that I wanted to rid my body of that feeling. I want to eat extremely clean food and get my focus back on healthy eating.

Day 2 is already over, and I know I can make it through day 3 tomorrow. As for days 4-7...those are going to be difficult.

I'll leave you with a few pictures from our trip to the beach. Ciao

Waiting to have dinner at Red Bar in Grayton Beach

Adrienne, Luca, and Sean are ready to dig into our homemade feast:
mussels, shrimp, steak, salad, risotto, and garlic bread

Hanging out at the beach -
we played frisbee, paddle ball (which we sucked at), people-watched,

and of course, worked on our tans

While getting 36 oysters at The Boat House, we got to hear a man play the saw.
yup - just a saw...the kind that cuts wood

View from our condo - Luau at Sandestin

Jordano's famous 3-inch-deep-toppings pizza. You want some?

Looking up at our high rise

The last sunset - it was sad times. We had a great time at the beach, and especially loved having Luca and Adrienne there with us to share in the fun.

And yes, even MORE oysters