Day 155

February 5, 2010

Did you read my post below my pictures? The pictures were not my post for the day. The post below is the one for yesterday! Some didn't realize this, so I just want to tell you to read the post following all of the fun photos! The M&M things is cool, huh? It's really fun! First of all, the M&M Store is two or three stories tall, full of fun, color, entertainment, etc. It's right in Times Square! This machine is in the middle of the room, on the second floor. You step onto the simulated foot pedals and it starts talking to you. It made me do the hokey pokey before it read my color! ;) It was fun! They have every color M&M you could think of!!! And the christmas tree...forget about it! Pictures don't do it justice! It's beautiful!! Not to mention, the lights are as big as my head! 

Side note: As I was looking at M&M's website, I saw that you can personalize M&Ms for Valentine's Day! How cute is this?? I recommend this over flowers, or a box of chocolate, or a store bought card! Any one can buy those things! You can put your guys' favorite quotes you always say to each other on there! Check it out! Ugh...if I only had someone to get this stuff for me. Or, if I had someone to buy them for...that would appreciate them! They're a bit expensive, but totally worth it--so much fun! 

What's the first thing you think about in the morning? It varies from day to day, I'm guessing. Well, this morning, my first thought was: whoever made the alarm clock is a genius! Weird, I know. My following thought: I do NOT want to get out of bed yet! If it wasn't for my alarm clock, I would have probably not woke up today. I actually need to invest in a real alarm clock and not rely on my phone. 

Speaking of my phone. Lately, I feel like all I do is yell at the stupid thing! I'm walking down the street, holding the phone out in front of my face,yelling at it! I don't get missed calls, nor do I sometimes not receive text messages. The best is when I'm talking to someone on the phone and it hangs up on me. Nice. My advice, ONCE again: never get AT&T! They just suck something awful! 

My sweet tooth got the best of me again today! First of all, lately I've been craving a cheeseburger and fries! So, for lunch I get one! BUT! I get a turkey burger, to be a bit more healthier! Nice, huh?! ;) Yes, I did get fries, which didn't help, but I figured the turkey made up for it a little bit! Then on the way home, I stop by The Little Pie Company to get the best red velvet cupcake ever! Mmm...it's so good!!!! It's right up the street from my apartment! They have the best stuff! 

I think I'm officially dubbing Friday as dance party night! Tonight, it's kind of a mom, dance party night for me. I'm by myself, deep-cleaning my apartment, and dancing to early 2000's songs! ;)The rest of the weekend is going to be busy, so one night in will do me some good! 

Have you heard of Ibiza? If not, apparently it's a great "hot spot." I feel like I've been hearing about it all the time lately! It looks like a blast! Check out their website!  

Fashion Week's coming up! Next week starts clothing mayhem! I'm debating on whether I want to stand outside again and see more movie stars. I really want to, but it's so cold outside! Which, by the way, I guess we're suppose to be getting snow. They said it was going to start today...nothing yet. I even wore my rain boots to work today, just in case! Watch...it will snow like a mother tomorrow, since I will be outside, walking around. Damn. 

The rest of my evening is going to be spent in my bed, watching a movie, and hopefully getting to bed at a decent time. I just thought about this. My Friday nights are like most people's Tuesday or Wednesday nights. Nice and quiet, with not a whole lot going on. Maybe a Monday, or something. My week's always crazy, so Friday is a night relaxer day! 

Note to self: Watch "The Hangover." I know everyone who's awesome has seen it, but watch it again! It's one of the funniest movies I've ever seen. My neighbor e-mailed me tonight and told me they were watching it. So, I decided to YouTube some of my favorite scenes in the movie! Enjoy! ;)

Video One

Video Two

Video Three

Video Four

Video Five- This one's a combo!

Day 113 - Day 119

December 26, 2009 to December 31, 2009

My remaining days during my Iowa vacation were fantastic! I can not tell you how nice it was to sleep in and not think about anything, except what I was going to do that night. I didn't stress about work, money, nothing! My following blogs are going to put my vacation in a nutshell. Kind of. You know how I love to talk!

I want to start off talking about things I've missed. Number one: cable! I can't believe how behind I am on Keeping Up With The Kardashians! I love that show! I feel like I don't even know a thing about them anymore! Since when did Bruce and Kris get a new house? And Scott? Please. He needs to go! I would have smacked his stupid ass too! She should have Tiger Woods' him! He's too "pretty" for my liking! Who lays out, at your baby mama's, mother's house, when you know they don't like you; all the while, your baby's mama is at work?! Get a job!!!! Okay, and the Jersey Shore?! OMG! The funniest thing I've ever seen! The fist pump is now my favorite dance move! Hahahaha! Those people are something else! The sad/funny thing is...my first date in NYC was with a dude like this! LOL! Go figure, right? Total "Guido" or whatever they call themselves. Beautiful man, dummy for a personality! Remember me telling you about the Greek goddess? It was him! ;)

I miss Nick at Nite! Shows like, The Nanny, Roseanne, Fresh Prince. These are the shows I used to fall asleep too as a teenager/young adult! ;) I also missed radio. Although 107.5 still plays the same ten songs they did four months when I left, it was nice. Okay, so they now play the new Britney and Lady GaGa songs, but they did a segment on the number one song in 2000. C'mon Des Moines! Really?! It's 2010. No time for reminiscing. If people in Iowa only knew about the songs they were missing out on--the songs I hear play at clubs here in the city, you guys would be so mad! KISS needs a serious upgrade and maybe a possible rearranging of who's in charge!

The day after Christmas was spent shopping. I went to Von Maur, my all-time favorite department store ever! They typically have the best sales! However, I was highly disappointed with the selection. The shoe barn didn't disappoint. It never does. Needless to say, I walked out with, I think, five new pairs of shoes. But the clothes weren't that exciting! It's time for spring wardrobe. I need to see some color! I did buy my first Burberry handbag at Von Maur! One of the best days of my life! ;) It was on sale, of course! Do I ever buy anything full price? Heck no! I'm way too cheap for that! It was a ridiculously good deal, plus it's what I need to carry to and from work!

After much sleep, Wii Mario Brothers, and a couple watchings of "The Hangover," Monday finally arrived! Okay, Wii Mario is awesome! If you have a Wii and don't own it...buy it! It's like the old school version, but better! My family was sitting in our family room, yelling at the t.v., yelling at each other, and yelling at ourselves. It was great! You forget how intense you get when playing. My palms were slightly sweaty! And "The Hangover." I don't even have to say anything. It's one of the funniest movies I've ever seen! This brings me to my next point.

So, while home, my brother invites me to Vegas with him and his buddies in May. One condition: I have to bring a friend. Okay. Can do! Have you ever heard the Carrie Underwood song, "Last Name?" Well, when it came out, my mom always told me this is something I would do. Okay, mom. You're probably right. I would do something like this, just because I can get a little crazy sometimes! You're in Vegas, you have to get married! Why wouldn't you?!?! What a great memory! This was my thought: since I'm going with my brother and his friends, I'll marry one of them, then get it annulled the next day! Brilliant! Because if they don't annul the marriage, he'll kill them! It's like it never happened! Hehe! I would prefer to just not sign the marriage papers, but I'm pretty sure they'd make you. So, I already have my husband-to-be and we decided on a "Cops and Robbers" themed wedding. He said he'll marry me under one condition: he gets to be the robber. And my brother said we have to get the ultimate wedding package like in "The Hangover" because he wants a keepsake hat and coffee mug! LOL! Now that I've created this huge story, let's see if I can even afford to go! But if I can...I can already hear wedding bells! ;)

So, throughout the week, I had several dates. My first date was a breakfast date with my long time friend, Greg. We always meet at Hy-Vee in sweatpants, looking like we both got hit by a truck the night before, and eat pancakes, eggs, and bacon. It's tradition! Later that evening, I have a dinner and drink night with Tim; probably one of the nicest guys I've ever met. He will make some lady very happy one of these days! We went to Brick House; a new restaurant in town, then to Court Avenue Brewery for a drink. I'm always guaranteed a good laugh with both of these guys!

My Tuesday is jam-packed with things to do. I met my friend Emily at McDonald's. I was so happy I only had to pay $2.50 for a coffee AND a cinnamon roll! That's practically free for me! Fantastic! And it never tasted so good! In New York, I pay like $5 for the same thing and it tastes like they just picked it up off the floor! ;) Then, I met my friend Renee and went to Granite City for lunch! I love that place! It's so dang good! Then, I met Maddie at the funeral home for dinner and a movie! We go see "The Blind Side" with Sandra Bullock. Amazing movie! I'm not a big movie-goer, but lately, I feel like that's all I've wanted to do is watch movies! If you haven't seen it, you must go! We ate at Ranallo's in Ankeny. Delicious! Again, if you haven't been, go! The service was fun, the atmosphere is nice, and the food is great! Not that pricey either, considering everything you get with it.

I had a wonderful day with my grandma...we got pedicures! It was fantastic! My feet were disgusting and the spa treatment pedicure hit the spot! We go to Pella Nails in Pleasant Hill and the staff there is wonderful! I highly recommend it! Not that expensive either...it's about the same as NYC! After that, we got lunch for mom and Brett at Norwoodville Bar. It's a dive place, but I tell ya' what. They have the best food! Another great food joint, Hilltop! I went there with my friend Kristi on Wednesday! I love their pizza! It's a tradition Kristi and I have. A large onion ring and medium extra cheese pizza! Yum-O! After pizza, we meet a few people at The Lift. What's that you ask? It's only the best martini bar in the country! Two-for-one on Wednesdays! In all honesty, I have yet to find a place in the city with as good of martinis as this hole-in-the-wall place. If anyone can tell me a competitive place, I'm all ears! My favorite is the S&M. But I've come to find that the French Caribbean is quite tasty as well! My friends Holly and Crystal from high school meet us out; my friend, Jennifer; and Tim!

Continue on reading about the rest of my trip!

Day 112

December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas! And a white one at that! I love how it's snowing today! To me, a Christmas without snow, isn't really Christmas! I wake up super early because my body is still on New York time. I feel like a little kid, waking up super early, to see what Santa what brought me! Let's just say, Santa is very good to me this year!

We open presents, drink our coffee, eat some food, play some cards, then mom and I take naps. Mom's accident has really taken a toll on her. Her medicine makes her really tired, really quickly. You should see her scar! It's crazy! She is glad I'm home, though, because there is someone at home who can actually curl her hair right. My dad and brother tried, and it's a major A+ for effort, but it's nice to have another woman in the house who knows what to do! =)

My aunt Tammy, cousin Tyler, his girlfriend Sam, and their baby, Caleb come over! It's so great to see them! I can't believe how much Caleb has grown since the last time I saw him! He is so cute and the happiest baby you'd ever see! He opened some of his own gifts too! I think I am more excited about his toys than he was! He just wants to play with the boxes and wrapping paper! He got some Dr. Suess puzzles, where the puzzle pieces are oversized. Sam and I had so much fun trying to put them together. It took us longer than it probably should have, and Brett and Tammy were laughing at how slow we were and how our concentration was so intense! Hey! Although the box says for ages 2-6, or whatever, it still takes some thought! ;)

Dinner is great! We don't have the traditional food spread like normal. Instead, grandma makes her homemade spaghetti! So good! Not to mention all of the desserts people have been bringing over since my mom's accident! Yum! I ate all day long! A couple other family members come over to see us! My mom's cousin, Jeff, and his mom, Leonne! Jeff is hysterical! He keeps us laughing th rest of the day!

Once things start settling down, and everyone leaves, my family decides to watch "The Hangover." Oh my God! The movie is hilarious! I went to see it in the theatres when it first came out, but it's more funny the second time you see it! Then, we plug in the Wii. For Christmas, my mom bought my dad the new Mario Brothers game for Wii! It takes the old school version and puts it into a modern day Mario Brothers! Oh my goodness! It's so much fun! We play it for probably a good two to three hours! We are so intense about it too, which is hysterical! We are yelling at each other, yelling at the t.v., shaking the controllers, and have sweaty palms! I forget how intense video games are until I get sucked into them! It's somewhat similar to the original, but obviously has different twists to it! So fun! Takes me back to when we lived in Spencer, Iowa and all four of us would fight over who got to play Nintendo--mom and dad were obsessed with Testrus, Brett liked Super Mario, and I liked my Little Mermaid game!

It's been a great Christmas of relaxation, family, and laughs! It's so great to be home and I hope this time doesn't pass by too quickly!

Note to self: You never really realize what you left behind, until it happens. When your family used to irritate you about little things, now seems like nothing when you're home; or the slow paced lifestyle you once hated, now seems to be a nice change of pace; or when you so badly wanted to get out of Iowa, now makes you realize, it's really not that bad here! You do realize the move is necessary for career and personal reasons, but where you comes from, makes you who you are, and you need to appreciate your homeland and be proud to call it home. It relates to the saying, "When you lose someone, you realize just how much that person means to you, So maybe its a good thing they're gone. So you can see just how much that person means to you. " It's the same concept to leaving the place you called home for so many years!