Grin and 'BEAR' it!

I guess it's baby animal day! This is a picture of a newborn panda (can you believe how little they are at birth?!)!!! How cute!! He looks like a little sesame street character - furry and huggable!

Maybe I'm on a baby animal kick because I talked to my Mom on Sunday and she said that she's taking a trip next month down to Minneapolis to the fabulous Minnesota State Fair and my absolute favorite thing at the fair (besides the huge pickle-on-a-stick) is the newborn/baby animal barn where they bring all of the currently very-pregnant animals and you can watch animals being born and then see the little tiny babies playing and sleeping when they are just a few days old. Usually there is a calf, baby piggies, lamb, goats, bunnies, chicks, etc. The last time I was there, there was a momma pig that had her newborn babies and their eyes weren't even open yet, so they were tumbling all over her. It was soooo cute! Any other Minnesota readers agree with me that this barn is awesome?!

Daddy's Little Girl

This is a picture of a 24-day old giraffe getting a little hug from Daddy - CUTE!!!

Brown Armed Girl

I am starting a challenge/contest with my co-worker Dennis as to who's arms are tanner (is that a word?? Maybe I should say 'more tan'). I have been working very diligently to lose the Norwegian pasty white girl look (using sunscreen, of course - safety first) in sunny Texas. It is pretty much sunny here every single day (even when a hurricane is hitting another part of the state!). So, needless to say, I have had lots of opportunity to get some color at my neighborhood pool.

I haven't been this dark since probably the age of 8 when I had no job and all the time in the world to play outside. It's awesome! My freckles are coming out and when I see them, I know I'm getting 'more tan'. I recently noticed that I'm actually about the same color as my co-worker Dennis who is from Mexico! He has vehemently denied it, but it's getting to the point where he cannot deny the fact that I'm getting darker than him! We are going to take side-by-side arm pictures and post them soon. This is a contest that I'm determined to win!

Dolly packs a punch!

It's amazing to me how BIG the state of Texas is. Yesterday a Category 2 hurricane hit this state and you would never guess it in Dallas! It's been sunny, no wind, no rain, nothing for days. Unless you read the news, we would have NO IDEA that the hurricane even existed! Ah!


Well, I still don't know if my Mom's RV made it through Hurricane Dolly, but look at what it did to another one!! The RV in the picture was on South Padre Island, which is about a half hour drive from my Mom (but it's also out on the front line of a storm coming into the mainland, so where my Mom lives probably didn't get hit nearly as hard as the Island).

Hello Dolly!

It looks like the center of Hurricane Dolly is expected to hit south Texas this afternoon - right where my Mom lives for half the year (she's not there now).

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080723/ap_on_re_us/tropical_weather

Here's what the radar looks like right now - SCARY!

Harlingen is right at the bottom tip of Texas, so pretty much right where the center of the storm is hitting! While I'm thrilled that my Mom is safe in northern Minnesota right now, her RV that she lives in during the winter is down in Harlingen in storage (outside storage). YIKES!!!

Thank you for being a friend.............

Well, it was inevitable, but yet it's still shocking to me........a Golden Girl has finally died. Estelle Getty, who played Sophia on one of the best shows ever on TV died this morning at age 84. Here's the article (thanks Claire):

http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/tv/25761069.html?location_refer=Homepage:highlightModules:3

So sad - I think Allison, Renee, Shauna, Claire and I will be in mourning for a while.....it's the end of an era.

Coastal Paradise!

Today I was invited to go on a trip in September to the Texas Coast for a long weekend. My friend from work Mayce (the one who's Dad is a cowboy) and her friends go every year (the weekend after Labor Day) and rent a condo on the Texas coast and hang out. I'm not sure exactly where we're going, but it's uncharted territory and I'm GAME!

PS - The pic above is in Galveston (where the hurricanes like to hit), but I don't know exactly where on the coast we'll be going. I secretly hope it's this place in Galveston!!

Ridin' the Rapids!/Tribute to the Toledo Girls

To the fabulous Toledo girls that I miss so much:

Guess what we were doing last summer?!?! Remember these pics??

I find it interesting that Beth and Holly look like they are having the time of their lives and I look like I'm holding on for dear life, praying that I wouldn't die that day! (But I did feel a little better knowing that nurse Beth was sitting next to me!) Miss you guys!!!!

An interesting Irish pub??

How would you like to be a dancer in this joint?? This bar is in Fort Worth - at the Stockyards. Anyone want to try it out when they come down for a visit?! :)

Leavin' On A Jet Plane

This weekend started out pretty rough, but turned out to be a fabulously fun time with Allison!! On Thursday night (just hours before Allison was going to get on a plane to come down here), it became very apparent to me that I had gotten food poisoning and was violently ill for the evening and throughout the night. I was able to hold water and pop down by morning (it was a long process) and I picked up Allison from the airport on Friday morning. I didn't feel great, but I wasn't about to let food poisoning ruin my first visitor weekend!!

After I picked her up, we went to my work to reunite her with her cousin Tammy (who I work with). Then we went to Sam Moon (awesome huge jewelry/purse store), lunch at Hard 8 BBQ (see pics and blog post from a couple weeks ago) and then to my house to hang out with Maggie and relax.

On Saturday, we took a tour of Texas Stadium where the Cowboys play and then had lunch up in Flower Mound with Tammy. After that, it was off to Fort Worth for the 'cowboy' experience! We went shopping in the cool stores at the Stockyards, witnessed the cattle drive, had dinner at Cattlemen's Steakhouse (it was AMAZING food) and then off to the largest honky tonk in the nation - BILLY BOB'S for some pool, drinks and a Chris Cagle concert. I LOVED watching the people 2-step and do all their fancy dancing. I want to take lessons so I can do that!! It's a great place with lots to do and see.

Here are some pics of the stadium tour, the Stockyards, Cattlemen's & Billy Bob's:

On Sunday, my dream of meeting a real live cowboy was realized. Strangely, this meeting occurred at an IHOP in the center of Irving - corporate America. Allison and I met Mayce (from work) and her rancher/cowboy parents Dwight and Terri Nanny for brunch and it was so much fun! They said "fixin' to" and all kinds of 'southern-isms'. It was awesome. I made Dwight take a picture with me when we left (see below). Woo hoo!

Later on Sunday, we took a trip to the JFK assassination site and museum in Dallas. After that, we went home and relaxed, then went to a movie.

Monday was pool day in the sun (see pic - credit to Iris for the photo idea)! We had fun playing in the pool and both of us got some color. Woo hoo! :)

Overall, we had a whirlwind fun weekend and I'm so glad she made the trip to Big D! Miss you already, Allison!! (And Maggie is pretty mopey and sad since you left. She misses you too.)

PS - Make Jason download that George Strait song from iTunes!

I Want To Know What Love Is

A (female) co-worker sent this email to me and it is something that finally can give words to how I feel about dating and where I'm at in my life, given the things I've experienced, dealt with and and gone through and what I am looking for in the future.

Check it out - what are your opinions and/or feelings about it (especially the single ladies out there - you know who you are):

What Can You Bring to the Table?

In a brief conversation, a man asked a woman he was pursuing the question 'What kind of man are you looking for?' She sat quietly for a moment before looking him in the eye and asking,'Do you really want to know?'

Reluctantly, he said 'Yes.'

She began to expound.... 'As a woman in this day and age, I am in a position to ask a man what he can do for me that I can't do for myself. I pay my own bills. I take care of my household without the help of any man...or woman for that matter. I am in the position to ask, 'What can you bring to the table?'

The man looked at her. Clearly he thought that she was referring to money. She quickly corrected his thought and stated, 'I am not referring to money. 'I need something more. I need a man who is striving for perfection in every aspect of life.'

He sat back in his chair, folded his arms, and asked her to explain.

She said 'I am looking for someone who is striving for perfection mentally because I need conversation and mental stimulation. I don't need a simple-minded man.

I am looking for someone who is striving for perfection spiritually because I don't need to be unequally yoked... believers mixed with unbelievers is a recipe for disaster. And even if he is a believer; he needs to believe as I do.

I need a man who is striving for perfection financially because I don't need a financial burden. I am looking for someone who is sensitive enough to understand what I go through as a woman, and strong enough to keep me grounded when I do go through changes.

I don't need a man who is going to purposely bring me grief. I am looking for someone who I can respect. In order to be submissive, I must respect him and he must respect me. I cannot be submissive to a man who isn't taking care of his business or who is 'messy' in his personal affairs. I have no problem being submissive...but he has to be worthy. God made woman to be a help mate for man. I can't help a man if he can't help himself. If he can't help himself then he definitely can't help me.

When she finished her spiel, she looked at him. He sat there with a puzzled look on his face. He said,' You are asking a lot.'

She replied, 'I'm worth a lot.'

Extreme Shrub Makeover!

Well, today I worked from home so that I could have some landscaping done to the front of my house. I met Pedro and his helper friend (who didn't speak a single word of english) at Home Depot at 6:55am (store opens at 7am) to pick out my shrubs and stone edging. Let the fun begin! Pedro had all the answers, so it didn't take very long to pick out everything and formulate a plan. We then headed back to my house and they got to work. They just now finished the job around 4pm, so that's not bad time - considering they had to trim a bunch of 2-story dead branches off my trees, cut them up, load them on their trailer and clean up the yard too. I'm happy with my new front landscape and I need to diligently water the shrubs every single day for 2 weeks and then I can go to every other day after that. It's so hot here, that I want to make sure the plants get a good drink of water daily.

Here's a pic of the glory of working from home - 2 laptops going at the same time!

And while I was working upstairs, Pedro and the mystery helper were transforming the front of my house!

Here are the BEFORE pictures:

And as of a few minutes ago, here are the AFTER pictures:

It will take a while for the green Buford Hollies to grow to their mature height - up to a year, but then I can make them into a pretty square, boxy shape. Right now they are just babies, so I have to be patient and gentle with them.

Somehow, the transformation just doesn't seem official unless Ty Pennington screams in a megaphone "MOVE THAT BUS! TAKE A LOOK AT YOUR NEW HOME!" (But really, Maggie's ears wouldn't like that anyway....)