-Boxing-

Last weekend I went to my first boxing match. It was at Fitzgerald's casino and it was AWESOME!! Since I have been doing kickboxing, I am starting to appreciate how HARD boxing really is. We do all kinds of punches and I am out of breath and dripping with swett hitting just a bag...I can't imagine how hard it would be to hit that hard and have to bob and weave and have another person trying to hit you back...
We sat in the press seats ring side..At first I was scared to death that I would get blood or a ton of sweat or spit on me, but we were ok. I was definitely freaked out-

There were 6 rounds and 2 of them were chick boxers. The first chicks were cute-ish and pretty feminine, but the second round...not so much. When the boxers enter for their fight they dim the lights and play "their song". Could be anything they want...When they dimmed the lights and played a sone for what I thought was supposed to be a chick round...I thought a guy entered...I was wrong...It was a chick, a TOUGH chick...I think it would be fun to learn how to box, but then I think about having to fight really TOUGH chicks and get blasted in the nose and I an just fine with punching a bag.

Nevis

We just got back from my company trip to Nevis. I cannot explain how beautiful it was. Definitely the most beautiful beach and place I have ever been. I added several pictures so you could get an idea of the island. Where is Nevis you ask??? Well here is a link to a map..http://encarta.msn.com/map_701515040/Nevis.html I have never done that before, so I hope it works. Basically we flew into Miami and got on another plane and went 2 and a half hours south... It is an island in the West Indies. I want to post a few more pictures, but they will be out of order so I might do another post for some snapshots.

No words necessary...

This was the view from our room. We were on the ground level. There was a pool in front then the ocean right after that.
View of the pool and the beach..Man I wish we were still there and not back in the real world..
The pool and the ocean. This was the view from the chair I was parked in all week. The staff would walk around and bring you fresh fruit and ice water.
This is what the outside of the rooms looked like. They were 2 story and covered with palm trees. There were 10-12 buildings like this.
The water was very calm and clear. I really wish I had taken more pictures. I don't think these pictures capture the beauty of this place.

This is the view from the front side of our room. The golf course was right there. For most of the trip that mountain was covered in fog. There were mountains and other islands all around.

These pictures are totaly out of order. We landed in St. Kitts and got on a ferry for about 45 minutes to Nevis. Thank goodness for motion sick medicine! Thanks Casey, my pharmacist!! This picture is looking back on St. Kitts. It was kind of overcast when we arrived.
On our way to dinner the first night we saw this rainbow. So beautiful. This is right by the 18th hole on the golf course.
The pool again...

This picture was taken at a local place called Sunshines down from the hotel. This local guy was trying to teach me some dance (and sell us cd's and jewelry). Sunshines is a shack, but is very popular. They have pictures of several celebrities on the doors of the shack. The food was fantastic and very cheap.
Ed and another guy from the trip playing golf.
Here is our roon. We stayed at the Four Seasons and let me just say we would have never been able to go on this trip if my company had not paid for it. We were treated like royalty. The service was great and the room was huge.
The bathroom-
Here is a view of our room on the outside. It doesn't look like much from the outside. We were the last room on the bottom.

We had a great trip. I wish I had more pics of Ed and me together. It looks like we were on our honeymoon b/c there is only one of us in the picture at a time.. Ha Ha.. I have got to be better about that.

Lately

I forgot to post this picture around Halloween, so I thought I would throw everyone for a loop and post it now...Ed looks so fly!! This is the first time in years I have dressed up. It was fun-I usually hate halloween...




We have been keeping busy. We celebrated our 4 year anniversary, time flies..Every anniversary my mom and I say to eachother "aren't you glad it is not 4 or 3 or 2 years ago when we were planning the wedding and all the nonsense that goes along with it..."

I went to North Carolina 2 weeks ago to visit my friend Becca, then went to Nashville on Friday to see Amanda and baby Will, then to Knoxville for Becca's baby shower. I worked every spare moment last week making her baby bedding. I will post pics soon..




I have been kickboxing 4 or 5 times a week and I LOVE it!!! I get the best workout I have ever done and all I have to do is show up...the instructor is so good that he makes a 50 minute class fly by meanwhile we are all pouring with sweat and exhausted.




Ed and I are going on a company trip that I won in less than a month. We are going to Nevis, island in the West Indies...I don't know that much about it, but it is an island in the Carribean, about 2 hours south of St. Thomas (my grandmother showed me where it was in her encyclopedia one Wednesday after lunch.)

Bye Caroline!!!

One of my best Freinds in Memphis moved to Costa Rica on Sunday. It was bittersweet...Caroline and I met a couple of years ago at the gym and became instant friends. The kind of friend that doesn't come around all the time. We have so much in common on all levels. We would go to dinner at least once a week at Bonefish...(our favorite) and get sushimi tuna and salads. She had been in pharmaceutical sales for 6 years and was ready for a change. Her retired parents moved to Costa Rica for a year and a half to teach at a school where missionaries in training send their kids. There was an opening for a science teacher and Caroline decided to go. Although she has never taught science and doesn't know much about it..haha. She had 2 weeks to quit her job, pack up her entire apartment and have it put in storage, pack 2 suticases and move.

It has been a whirlwind.... tons of "last dinners" and events, but I am so happy for her. I know God puts certain things on your heart and this was definitely one of those situations... God has been with her every step of the way...I was not sad (until Ed and I took her to the airport) at all because I know God is in control and this is a great opportunity in her life. You can only grow from quitting your corporate job and moving to a foreign country and feeling peace about it. Caroline loves to travel, is great at meeting new people and will eat at a restaurant by herself...that says a lot- I don't know many people who will go to a restaurant and eat a meal alone. She can totaly move to a foreign country and be fine. Well, Those were my thoughts until we were sitting at the airport and Ed starts saying that he is not sad b/c he feels like this is a spiritual journey and that she will do great and so on...then I start to tear up and so does she. Friends like that do not come around all the time and I know we will always be close, but I will miss going to her apartment and hanging out, or going to a fun new restaurant together because she loves to try new things,or going to our weekly Bonefish dinners, or sitting on her patio and talking..I will miss her. I know we have email, but it is not the same. Eventually email will be normal, but it may take a few weeks...I will definitely be planning a trip to Costa Rica this spring...can't wait!

She moved last night to a house where she will be renting a room. Her parents found this place and it is very nice compared to all the other options. (hot water, nice place, privacy and so on). She is renting a room from a lady who has a daughter who moved to the U.S. We found out that she also has another daughter who is living there. She said the lady only speaks Spanish and her daughter speaks both. It will be very interesting to see what all happens while she is there. They cooked her a great Mexican meal last night- I hope she remembers all the recipes so she can tell me. She will be there for 5 months, then will decide what she will do next. Today was her first day of teaching (EVER) so I am curious to see how it went.

I am very proud of her and can't wait to see what God has in store for her!!!

Christmas and New Years!

We had a great Christmas. We usually have dinner at my parents Christmas eve, but this year, since my mom was so busy, we had the dinner at our house. I fixed appetizers and dinner. I loved every minute of it. We finally broke out our wedding china and it was so pretty. I am kind of mad at myself for waiting so long to use it. I will definitely not be afraid to use it again. I kept thinking it would be this huge ordeal, but it wasn't. Here is Ed snacking on the spinach dip and crap ragoons.
I can't believe how much I enjoyed setting the table. For years, I would cringe when my mom would ask me to setthe table, now I enjoy it.

My uncle took this picture sitting at the table. It is my grandmother and him!


My cute dad opening a gift.
The last time I was at my grandmothers I got out her broom to sweep up some leaves I tracked in. Her broom had seen better days, so guess what she got for Christmas!!??!!

I only put up a small tree this year. It worked out great. Here is my mom and sister in law chatting. I was so glad my mom got to relax this year and didn't have to cook.

Christmas day we went over to Ed's grandmother's house. This is Ed's sis, Anna. Ed must have gotten a lump of coal as a gift...that is the only reason he would have such a somber look on his face.

Then HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! We went to a nice dinner with Casey and Justin at Folks Folly. It was so delicious.
I messed up the pictures, so I do not have one of the 4 of us.

It is so refreshing to start a new year. I think it is a great time to reflect over the past year and realize how blessed we all are. I am looking forward to 2008. I am not a fan of making new years resolutions only Jan 1, although I think it is good idea. I think we should constantly be thinking of ways to challenge ourselves and improve and make "new years resolutions" all year long.

Happy new year!

My grandmother, Granny Ida

I have been meaning to post this for a while. My sweet little grandmother passed away a couple of weeks ago. I say little b/c at 10 I was taller than she was. She is my dad's mom and had a stroke about a year and a half ago. She was almost 89 and lived a full life. I wasn't as close to her as my other grandmother until she had her stroke b/c she was always busy. We always had to schedule a time to see her way in advance b/c she was always booked! If is was not bowling, coordinating and attending meetings with her church groups, playing bunco or bridge, or working her volunteer job as a church secretary she was attending car club meetings with my grandad or shopping for clothes.

She loved to dress in style. I will never forget the time my mom and I noticed a pair of croks in her closet! What is a 87 year old woman doing with a pair of croks and where did she get them and how did she know they were the "hot item" at the time? She was so sweet and timid until she had her stroke, then she would say whatever she wanted, but she was still sweet..We all had to laugh! She was hard of hearing so it got to be a little embarrassing when she would think she was whispering and she would say very loudly "so and so is really getting fat" right when they were walking by. Strokes can change a person, she would have never said that before.



She lived the last year of her life in a nursing home. Her stroke paralized her entire left side so her life changed drastically. She went from super independent to not being able to do anything for herself. She made the best of it and still cared about her friends and family and fashion. I tried to keep her feeling as normal as possible by painting her nails every couple of weeks. She was one of the only ladies in the nursing home with her nails painted. She was so sweet and cute. I really got to know her more this past year and a half. I would go by a few times a week and visit her and some of the other ladies in the home. It has been a few weeks and I miss her. I miss stoping by during lunch and eating with her and doing her nails in the sunroom. Even though I know she is in a better place, I miss visiting with her. I learned a lot form her and will never forget it.



I want to encourage anyone who reads this blog to visit the elderly, they LOVE it! Take your kids to a nursing home and walk around and just smile and say hi. You will be surprised how much it means to them. There are so many people in mursing homes who never get visitors. True, some of the people have no mind at all and do not care, but they appreciate a hug or a smile. There are others, like my grandmother who loved her visitors. Her friends and family helped make each day there ok. It may be a little uncomfortable at first, but gets easier and it is amazing to see people's faces light up when someone gives them some attention.

Yes, I do remember that I still have a blog!

Where have I been you ask? Well, I have been busy with work, going to events with Ed for the magazine and decorating houses. I have also been frustrated with how I never read the directions on how to create albums and store my pictures on the computer and am having to learn the hard way. I sit at the computer for a while with every intent to blog, then get so tired of dealing with my pictures that I have to get up and do something else.

Anyway, back to decorating. Here is a house that I have been working on for a while...buying all the stuff for the built ins and arranging it, ordering new furniture and I finally was able to do something with the wall with the flat screen stuck to it and the components box. Here ya go!


Here is the BEFORE. This is what I was given to work with...or around. The t.v. was put on the wall and the little box next to it holds all the equipment...Those items had to stay... The client also wanted to keep the room green.





There were 100 cords behind that little box too, so it could not be moved!



These are out of order, again I am not good with the pictures. Here are the built ins. I got most of the items and displayed them. It was a lot of fun. My first time to arrange built ins. Also notice the new furniture....






This is the t.v wall. I tried to put new with old and I think it worked. The white spot will be covered with paint...the people who installed the t.v. made extra holes and they had to fill them in. I think it turned out great considering the challenge I was given. I had a blast doing it.


I also didn't put those pumpkins out..They are just holiday decoration!! I have been working on another house that I will post about later!