2nd Friend-Face Post...

So I sent an email a minute ago to a bunch of girlfriends about a recipe swap.

My best friend from my best-friend-from-high-school's college emailed me back this:

Best Friendsies Casserole

1/2 a beer in the shower
6" of chip'n'dale twiffie
10 mile walk to the Rio for a shitty cheeseburger and a demonstration
2 nights in a row hanging out over Thanksgiving (told ya I saw her then!)
1/3 of most days spent on Gchat

Combine ingredients and bake in Atlantic City for a weekend. It works every time.

The first 3 are references to the 3 days we spent in Vegas in 2007 where our friendship blossomed and bloomed. Our Gchat conversations are generally variations of "OMG!!! WTF?!!! NO WAY!! GIRLLLL!!! YOU'LL NEVER BELIEVE IT!! Guess what I ate yesterday?" And now that she is back in Atlanta, we really do see each other as often as 2 nights in a row.

Some girls gush about their boyfriends or husbands, so don't mind me, I'll just sit here and gush about my girlfriends :)

Friend-face

I talk about my friends a lot. I'm well aware of this. But the week of and weekend after Thanksgiving made me realize just how lucky I am. I spent time with some of my best friends from college, my best friends from high school, and friends that we have all picked up along the way.

Seeing friends from high school wasn't like a blast from the past - it was like picking up where we left off. One friend even brought up a night that I had completely forgotten about during which we drank apparently way too much Southern Comfort. I didn't remember that part, only crying drunkenly on the floor because my boyfriend of 3 weeks wouldn't tell me he loved me. Guess what? Said boyfriend broke up with me on Valentine's Day so he could go smoke weed with his best friend, so I think I really lost in the I love you war.

But seriously, seeing these friends, being able to spend time with them even when we were cheering for opposing football teams, is what this time of year should be about. We reminisced, we talked about life, work, friends, boyfriends and lack thereof, family, and the future. We encouraged each other, we supported each other, we listened, and when the day was over, we went our separate ways. But that's okay, because I know I'll see them again, and again, and again, for the rest of my life, because they're that kind of friend. The kind that you have forever.

Some of the friends I saw last week, I probably won't see again for a really long time, and others I'll see on Friday night, but the best part of these friends is that it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter that I see my best friend from high school maybe once a year, because it's like nothing ever changed, and my mom still says, "Kate, have you been hanging out with Sydney again?" I'm not sure if it's the increased level of silliness or the addition of "-face" to every noun that tips her off, but either way, she knows. And I like it, because it just reminds me that she is my best friend, and she always will be.

I'm one of the lucky ones. While I was writing this, I kept having to erase the word "best friend" because I have so many of them. I have my best friend from high school, and my best friends from college, and my best friend from my best friend from high school's college and my best friend from here and there. And none of them are any less best friend-ly than the others.

Friends are the one thing in the world that I couldn't live without. I've turned to my friends and depended on them when I really thought I couldn't depend on anyone, and they've supported me. Don't get me wrong, they've let me down too, but 9 times out of 10 it was really me just letting myself down and blaming someone else. My friends aren't perfect and neither am I, but seriously, I hope I never complain about not having friends again, because the ones I've got are pretty damn awesome.

Reminder: Change Your Life Challenge

Finish up the turkey leftovers, because starting tomorrow you can't eat them! The Change Your Life Challenge Week #1 starts tomorrow - who's participating with me? I invited another friend to join me and he agreed, and I'm excited to have somebody else holding me accountable. We all know I can't do it myself!

If you want to receive the Change Your Life Challenge email updates, leave a comment here or email to sign up! I'm really excited, and I even have my menu already planned out!

Monday: peanut butter sandwich for lunch; tomato soup & bread for dinner
Tuesday: peanut butter sandwich & vegetable pesto soup for lunch; Veggieland for dinner
Wednesday: leftover Veggieland for lunch; roasted brussel sprouts & quinoa for dinner
Thursday: peanut butter sandwich & a small salad for lunch; cheese pizza OR slow cooker lasagna for dinner
Friday: lunch is catered at work; dinner will be out with friends
Saturday: macaroni & cheese for lunch; salad beast for dinner
Sunday: cheese pizza for lunch; dinner will be at church

Hopefully I'm able to stick to this calendar pretty closely - I plan my meals out every week anyway, so this wasn't any different or more time consuming, although I did have to get a little creative with my lunches. I don't love re-heated vegetables! I may also get some minestrone soup, depending on the weather.

Happy Vegetarian eating, and good luck! k

Christmas Gift Woes

I posted earlier this month about my Christmas gift-giving woes. Since then, my sister has repeatedly requested a tiger cub. Am I missing out on some funny YouTube video or movie or something? Because I don't understand why in God's name she wants a tiger cub? Or is she just weird? Could be a combination of both, knowing her.

Anyway, I've had quite a few friends chime in about what they are getting their families after admitting to reading the blog. (HI FRIENDS! Please refer to this post about blog commenting etiquette, although I'll continue to accept your gchat & real life conversations regarding what I should and shouldn't write about.)

I thought I'd compile what everyone has said and include them here so you can have ideas for the special people in your life.

Mom
a homemade quilt
a homemade tote bag to carry work supplies
an e-decorating session with an interior designer
a citrus juicer (this was my own mother's contribution to my list, not mine!)
fancy olive oil or other cooking product
set of pajamas
family picture session with a local photographer (could be a double gift for mom & dad)

Dad
a boxed movie set
books on CD for the traveling pops (would also work for siblings or grandparents!)
college gear (my dad can't ever have too much GT paraphernalia)
grill tools
an 8x10 portrait of yourself
an XL remote so he can actually see the buttons

Sister
shot glasses
a nice bottle of wine
a cute pair of shoes
business professional sweater/shirt
a new wallet

Grandparents
nice set of playing cards
flowers (mailed or delivered)
gardening gloves (or winter gloves, depending on where they are)
a scrapbook of family pictures (if you're the crafty type and have access to pictures!) -- when I did this for my parents 25th wedding anniversary I also had friends & neighbors contribute letters and memories. Instant winner!

Other (could apply to significant other's parents, a sibling's significant other, you get the idea)
tickets to a sporting event
monogrammed bath towels
homemade cake in a jar with the recipe attached and wrapped up all cute a la ohsheglows

So those are the ideas I've gotten so far. Anybody want to contribute? It's okay if you don't want to leave a comment, we can talk about it in some other forum, and I'll come back and periodically update this post and let ya'll know it's been updated.

I'm Thankful For

I am thankful for:

heroes

best friends

a sense of humor

my faith

old friends

 

new friends

being silly

love

beautiful weather

ugly weather & pets

technology

and freedom

There is so much more to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Airing My Dirty Laundry



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I'm not sure what is more pathetic - the fact that I am about to dedicate an entire blog post to my laundry, or the fact that I haven't done laundry in a month and my closet still looked like I hadn't made a dent in it. Probably a little bit of both. I've been avoiding my laundry. It piles up in the corner of my closet, and just keeps piling. Don't misunderstand me - I love doing laundry. It's one of those things that once you do it, it's done. I've been known to do my laundry in my bathrobe so that there are no dirty clothes left. I just haven't wanted to do this laundry... mainly because I just let the pile get out of control. 

So last weekend, I knew I had people coming over on Thanksgiving and I knew I needed to get a head start on my cleaning. Then tailgating and way too much tequila happened and my laundry didn't. Neither did my headstart on basically anything, considering I spent the better part of Sunday jamming out in my bed to the sweet sounds of Moulin Rouge. Then, on Monday, my parents were here and laundry didn't happen. And then last night, well, my parents were still here, and laundry really almost didn't happen. And then I realized that it was in fact Tuesday, and Thursday was in fact the day I was having company, and well, if I didn't start my laundry on Tuesday night then there would be no laundry starting, because it takes me no less than 36 hours to finish doing laundry. And usually it takes a solid week before the remnants of my laundry doing are actually put away.



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So last night I get home from my 2nd trip to Target (first one was alone and I spent $20, second time was with my mom and we spent $75... and they say kids are expensive!), and I decided it was now or never on the laundry. And since I'm working, surely a lot of it will be things that can be dry-cleaned, right? Psh. Wrong. 4 GIANT piles of laundry later, and I was in business.

Now we're getting to why I'm writing this in the first place. For the first 18 years of my life, my mom did my laundry. I'm not spoiled, she just didn't like anybody messing with her laundry room. I may actually be spoiled, but that's not why she did my laundry. And she always separated lights & darks. But that's as far as she goes in the separation process. Then, when they come out of the washing machine, most of the clothes automatically got put out on our clothes line to air dry. Just like in 1922. My family preferred to live like pilgrims. Just kidding. Kind of.

So, back to my laundry last night - I decided I was going to out-smart my mom's laundry capabilities, and I was going to separate into 4 piles: dark, goes in dryer. dark, doesn't go in dryer. light, goes in dryer. and lastly, light, doesn't go in dryer. No more of this searching through wet clothes to figure out if they go in the dryer or not! No more shrunken shirts! I'm so pleased with myself.
Now if only there was as foolproof a plan for tackling the kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, living room, & dining room. Good thing mom's coming over, I'm sure she has one, and if she doesn't... well, she's as good a duster as any. And I'm thankful for that.

Tweet to Win

I've been a winning machine recently, and I'm not really sure how this happened. I have the worst luck in the world. Up until a few months ago, I could honestly say I had zero luck when it came to winning things. I remember at the Girl Scouts Father Daughter Dance when I was in 2nd grade my dad asked if I wanted a raffle ticket and I basically told him "What's the point?" That's basically been my mantra with raffles & drawings since then. So, imagine my surprise a few months ago when I won a writing contest. So what if it was 100 words or less? I still won! And then, shortly thereafter, I won tickets on Twitter for the Battle of the Burgers!

Just last week, I found out I had won a prize package from the Fox Theatre. Wanna know what I won? 2 tickets to see Messiah Rocks! at the Fox, 2 tickets to the Fernbank & iMAX, $75 in restaurant giftcards, and a night's stay at the Hyatt Place. All for following them on Twitter and letting my followers know that I follow them. My mom and her friend thoroughly enjoyed the show, and I'm really excited to use the giftcards, hotel stay, and Fernbank tickets. I LOVE the Fernbank, seriously!

And now, I've won tickets to go see RENT at FabreFaction. I'll be 100% honest and say I had never heard of Fabrefaction before White Provisions tweeted about it, but now I have the chance to check out a new place, see a show I love, and it's such a personal victory for me when I win something.

I can't WAIT to tell you guys all about RENT, either. I'm taking a girlfriend and maybe we'll even use one of thsoe giftcards beforehand...!

So, in case you are like 3 years tardy to the party, hop on over to Twitter, get yourself an account, and start your following. You'll never know what you could win until you do it! And PS - if you need some good people to follow, check out my list of people I'm following to get some ideas!

Tweet Tweet!

Christmas Spirit

I know this is 2 Christmas-related posts in a very short timespan, but I'm a girl on a Christmas spirit mission. My roommate shot down my suggestion of putting up our decorations on Sunday (watch out roommate, they'll be out in full force by this Sunday!) and I'm already plotting and planning as many Christmas extravaganzas as I can fit into my already jam-packed calendar. I've sent my mom my Christmas list, and then about a gajillion follow-up emails with other stuff I think of that I want, which I claim are just "mental reminders to myself" that I just casually copied her on. I consider it helpful, she rolls her eyes and probably reports me to spam.



Speaking of my mom, did I tell you her birthday is Christmas Eve? Yup, it has been for my whole life! So we always celebrate her birthday before dinner on Christmas Eve complete with presents and some sort of dessert. Then we have dinner. Then we do family Christmas presents, and Christmas morning Santa brings presents. Still. And it even gets held over my head.

Me: Damnit Mom what the hell?
Mom: Do you want Santa to bring you presents this year? Behave yourself.
Me: Sorry.
Mom: Well?
Me: Yes I want Santa to bring presents.

I just hope that those conversations take place in the privacy of my own home instead of say... on the MARTA bus during the afternoon commute. I bet some of those super fly businessmen think I'm pretty freakin' ridiculous. What else is new?

So, now that I've shared more background than you ever could have wondered and I still haven't found a good way to segway into this, I'll cut to the chase. WHAT THE HELL DO I GET MY FAMILY FOR CHRISTMAS? AND IF I CAN'T EVEN COME UP WITH 1 THING FOR CHRISTMAS, HOW AM THE HELL AM I GOING TO FIND 2 THINGS FOR MY MOM??? (Sorry mom, and yes I still want Santa to bring us presents).

My sister is 21, almost 22, and she & I are as opposite as they come - I wear Polo sweaters to the bar and she wears 5" heels & 2" skirts. Not even exaggerating... My dad has so many tchotchke things that I would be doing him a disservice by buying him something else, and my mom just likes to melt glass & string beads. Really awesome melted glass & gorgeous beaded necklaces, but still. You get my point. They are difficult to shop for if I am going to buy anything with any real purpose. The picture frame thing is overdone, I gave them a scrapbook for their 25th wedding anniversary... I'm out of ideas. I'm stuck.

So now what? You can't even have wine delivered in Florida, or you can bet your bottom dollar they'd be getting a bottle of wine a month for the next 12. Hmph.

Help! Although I think a little trip around the mall and into a few specialty shops is calling my name... I'll report back on what I find.

Change Your Life Challenge

I don't think I'm in a rut, or that I really need to change up much considering my life just went through a GIANT change, but I have a serious FOMO and therefore just HADDDDDDDDDD to participate in this. No such thing as too much change, says the girl who really hates change a lot. Just ask my mom, I usually just kind of hibernate until life settles down again. But no more, I've started embracing change for what it is, an opportunity to better my life and the lives of people around me.

Plus, some of my favorite blogger friends are the brains behind the operation and I do whatever they say. And maybe we'll like be famous or something, who knows. It's worth a shot, right? And PS, guys, can I get credit for helping by contributing hilarious tweets?
Every month I will feature a different week-long challenge, encouraging everyone to participate.

So, without further ado, I introduce to you the start of:

Each month a different challenge will be featured and I will be calling on you, my lovely readers, to join me and blog (if you have have a blog!) about your progress.

Our first challenge:

Who: YOU (and anyone else you want to encourage to participate!)

What: Eat vegan or vegetarian (your choice), every meal for a full week (ahem...that's seven days, not five!)

When: November 29th, 2010 through December 6, 2010

Why: I understand that the holidays are coming up, which is why this challenge starts after Thanksgiving. The idea is to challenge yourself to eat differently for a week.
Where: Anywhere and everywhere you eat!

How: I will be posting ideas and recipes (feel free to comment with your own ideas, as well), tips and local restaurants to help make this as easy as possible. I may even venture to some veggie restaurants around ATL that I haven't tried yet. Hello 101 in 1001 goal! Most importantly, it's about incorporating the changes into your life, instead of trying to change your life to suit these changes. Don't try to go too over-the-top. Make it feasible and, more importantly, make it enjoyable!


If you are ready to participate in this challenge, then comment on this entry with your email address and expect a challenge email update soon. Emails will be sent out within 24 hours of you leaving your comment to give you details about the challenge, and you will have ample time to ask questions, share inspiration, anything and everything.

Got questions about the "Change Your Life Challenge"?

Email me or Change Your Life Challenge with any questions or concerns you have.

If you accept the challenge, post the challenge logo on your blog and encourage more people to scurry over here and sign up for the challenge, too!

Grab the link for the logo: http://i54.tinypic.com/28rfe6a.jpg and check out the hashtag on Twitter.

Feel free to copy and paste (and post) this entry at your own blog. Just give credit and share the love!

Can't wait to see how this first challenge goes! Sign up and let's do this!

The 4 Emotions of Men.



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A friend said to me recently, "Men have four emotions: happy, mad, sad, and hungry." This wasn't a jab at men, but an attempt to console me when I complained that certain men in my life "don't appreciate me." Whatever that means, because as the complainant I'm not really sure I even understand. Our conversation continued from there into a wide variety of other topics, but her vast generalization about the emotions of men really leaves little to be desired, right? But, this friend is pretty wise, and has never really led me astray, so I took what she said and accepted it for the generalization that it was - pretty true in most cases, but as with anything else, not always.

Imagine my surprise when shortly after that conversation, one of my other-gendered friends shoots me a gchat that requests an answer to a "slightly strange, random question." My first thought was, "OK, what are you happy/mad/sad/hungry about now you unappreciative little monster?" I was clearly rational.

He then proceeds to ask about a particular night when he & I went out on the town. More specifically, he asked what he was wearing on said particular night. Uhh, ok? Just kidding, I knew exactly why he was asking me. 1, I am resident photographer so I might have photographic evidence, and 2, he showered and got ready at my house that night, so it would only make sense that I remember what he wore.

Just a tip, but I can't remember what I wore yesterday, let alone what you wore 3 weeks ago. Except, I did. And I told him, and he agreed even though we weren't 100% positive. As an afterthought, I asked why in God's name did he, a male, a person who only got mad, sad, happy & hungry, need to know what he was wearing on a random Saturday night 3 weeks ago?

Because he has a date with a lovely young lady he met that night, and he didn't want to show up wearing the same shirt as the night they met, because obviously that would be a dating faux pas. Instead we decided the proper shirt & shoes for him to wear and I demanded that he notify me where he was going to take her as soon as he decided, and that he should probably call me afterward so I can find out how it goes. I thought about offering to come over and take pictures before they left, but I thought that might be a little to high school prom-esque. I'm really regretting that decision right about now.

I guess wearing the same thing twice explains my lack of 2nd dates. If only I could figure out how to explain away my lack of 1st dates... maybe the other gender is too busy feeling 1 of 4 emotions to hang out with my unappreciated self.

Christmas Cards

Every year for as long as I can remember, my dad has sent out Christmas cards with letters inside. Then, a few years ago, my mom got tired of his rambling delightful cards and decided to send out her own. So now, my mom sends her card to her friends & immediate family, and my dad sends his card to his friends & the rest of our family. I'm pretty convinced that my mom's friends think I'm the spawn of Satan and my dad's friends think I'm God's Gift To Earth. Have I made it clear which parent I most closely resemble yet? My dad dedicates a paragraph in his letter for each member of his family: one for my mom, one for me, one for my sister, and in recent years, a few sentences about mine or my sister's significant others. Let me tell you how well that one went over... In each of these paragraphs, my dad proceeds to highlight each of our accomplishments and accoutrements. My dad's a pretty clever guy, so these tend to be fairly insightful and clever, and usually have some sort of reference to his favorite quote, "All I'm good for is writing the check, what can I say?"

I am telling you all of this because for one, I am clearly becoming more and more like my dad, rambling on and on and on. And for two, I'm wondering what the socially acceptable thing to do is. I am a grownup. I have a grownup job, I live 600 miles from my parents, I am (kind of) financially independent. So do I still let my parents send my Christmas news for me to family members and friends who only know about me via these Christmas cards? I mean, my dad's a horrid speller so I always get to proofread his letters, which is how I was able to eliminate the paragraph about my then-boyfriend a few years ago. And really, I have my own news to share! Maybe my parents don't know everything! Although the reality is, if I haven't told my parents, the chances of me wanting it to be revealed to extended family are slim to none. But bear with me for argument's sake.

Are you going to send your own Christmas cards? Let Mom & Dad continue to write diatribes about what happened to you in 2010? I'm seriously at a loss here. For fun, let's say I do write my own Christmas letters, stuff them in cards, sign them, and mail them on their way to the refrigerators of my nearest and dearest. I'm all for it. Here's my biggest dilemma: WHAT PICTURE DO I INCLUDE?! There is no significant other (hence the occasional then-boyfriend references) and I don't even have a pet to take a Christmas portrait with. And aren't pictures like... basically the whole point? I'm at a loss.

Friday Confessions

I claim the South as home, but I really have to admit that I am a midwesterner by blood. That being said, never have I been much for southern cuisine. Breakfast gravy? No, gravy goes on turkey at dinner.  Grits? More like gross. And collard greens?  I'd rather shove bamboo shoots up my fingernails than even smell them.

So when the chef at Rosebud did a demonstration at the Peachtree Road Farmers Market, and he served up a hefty portion of biscuits & gravy and stone-ground grits, I really didn't have it in me to say no thank you. After all, he slaved over a hot stove all morning & I watched him personally whip up this culinary masterpiece. Plus I think he was eyeing me and my "dontcha know"s the whole time, trying to size me up. Was I really going to say no to his food to his face? I couldn't.

AND OH MY GOD I WISH I HAD BELIEVED IN SOUTHERN BREAKFAST FOOD SO MUCH EARLIER IN LIFE. 

I now find myself ordering grits on the side at brunch, and requesting extra gravy on the side. I am the epitome of health, I know.  So when I found out they were catering The Flying Biscuit for lunch at work today, a little part of my soul died. And so did half of the catering size dish of delicious, creamy grits. THEY WERE SO GOOD. Different than Rosebud's, but so freaking awesome.

I'm now going to crawl in the corner and attempt to not run back to the kitchen any more. Or fall asleep at my desk in peaceful slumber. I might ask if I can take the tray home and eat it for dinner though. Too much? Yeah, I didn't think so either.

Top Ten Thursday

I am so guilty of being a ghost-reader on many of the bajillions of blogs I follow. Especially with some of the more popular blogs, I feel like my comment is just one in a million and will the owner really notice my measly little comment? But what a crappy way to look at it! A few months ago I challenged myself to comment more on the blogs I read and enjoy on a regular basis. The ones I look forward to seeing an update from, and the ones I find myself thinking about over the course of a day. I've made pretty good on my promise, though I definitely have some room for improvement. My objective was simple.

I told myself that if I found myself commenting out loud or thinking something, I would leave that comment on the entry. Otherwise, I'd move on.

Kind of like a conversation, if I had something to say I'd contribute it, otherwise I'd keep my mouth shut. I'm really good at keeping my opinion to myself, just ask my friends. Especially when it comes to their chosen person to date. FYI, this is a public apology. You know who you are.

So now, I pose that same challenge to you. Not just to comment on what I write, but comment in whatever other corners of the internet you are lurking. Do you creep around on sports message boards? Leave a comment, be a part of the conversation. Maybe mommy blogs are your thing? Kids or no kids, you like them for a reason, so let them know what you're thinking!

In case you needed more persuading... I present you my best skillz of persuasion in list form as to why you should comment on a blog. Any blog. To be clear, not just my blog, but all blogs around the world. Big ones, small ones, boy ones, girl ones, new ones and old ones. Just do it.

Why You Should Comment

1. "Meet" & get to know people (other commenters or the blogger themself) who have similar interests or opinions to those of your own.
2. You probably have something intelligent, witty, or otherwise appropriate to contribute
3. Most bloggers intend their topics to be conversation starters. I already know what I think. I want to know what you think!
4. Sometimes there are contests, and you could win something!
5. I think 99% of bloggers, big or small, read every single comment they get. You are noticed.
6. I/We want to write about what you want to hear about, but I/we can't do that without your help.
7. I like to know who's reading! Although I can't cater everything I write to my audience, if I know that I have 50% male readership, well then I'll probably ix-nay the ampon-alk-tay. Kapeesh...ay?
8. It's a way to judge the number of people reading, too. I mean, I get 2 comments but 100+ page views. I went to Georgia Tech, I can add, and that doesn't add up.
9. It might strike a chord with you, and next thing you know, you'll be blogging away too.
10. I just want to be really clear - this is not some sort of plea for more people to comment on my blog specifically. I know (for the most part) who reads & I am quite pleased with the way things are going in my not-so-secret-life.

It is just a general request on behalf of the "blogging community" and a little bit of a pay it forward. I also wanted you to know that even though I blog, I also feel a lot of the same things I mentioned above, and find myself not commenting because I figure the author won't notice or care. Well, I think wrong, and so do you! This is your chance to tell the world what you really think, the only chance you'll ever get in a hundred million years so damnit what are you waiting for?

No? That didn't work? Alright then, I rest my case :)

Willy's

Back before I actually considered myself a blogger, but I really was, but I wasn't, I wrote about how much I love Mexican food. Except I didn't use as many words as I do now. How unfortunate and unlucky for you - I could have been rambling on that whole time about stuff no one cares about and I didn't even take advantage. But lucky you, I wasn't lying when I said I ate Mexican food legit 5 times a week. I'll never tell a lie. So I'm really glad to report that I no longer eat Mexican food 5 times a week.

So now, as I wait for my nice, kind, precious, generous, fabulous, entertaining, hilarious, fantastic driver of a sister to come over bearing Willy's, I figured it was as good a time as ever to let you know that my obsession has yet to subside. It's still chugging along. I've transitioned from Moe's to Willy's, a wise decision if I do say so myself. I prefer the cheese dip, and the spicy chicken. THE SPICY CHICKEN. Moe's does not have spicy chicken. Hey Moe's, step up to the plate! The people have spoken, and the people want spicy chicken!

Is 4 times a week too many times to be eating Mexican food? No? Phew, I'm safe.

GAME NIGHT

You know how you have 2 groups of friends, and you are totally hesitant to have those friends meet and interact because you're not really sure that they'll get along? Right, that's not what I was worried about for game night. I knew these 2 groups of friends I was merging would not only hit it off, but would immediately request to hang out with each other in the future. I love it when I'm right! We had more fun than I really had imagined even though I knew that Quelf would not disappoint us. We ate the ridiculous amount of food I made, we laughed until we peed ourselves, and then we laughed some more. My words cannot do justice do the fun we had, but the pictures kind of do.

prosciutto & nectarine pizza with fresh mozzarella cheese and homemade sauce

chicken alfredo pizza with spinach

homemade guac

baked brie

spinach artichoke dip that i may have also eaten for breakfast this morning...

trader joe's black bean dip

vino, lots of vino 

quelf!

did you know that your thumb is the same length as your nose?

move backwards 1 space if you put your thumb to your nose to test that theory.

he's smiling so this is clearly not when he had to pretend

he was riding an ostrich while looking at a beached whale

you must snort like a pig when you laugh.  

 

 

beyonce. he's got all her dances memorized.

 

 

the captain speaking

 

channeling what little inner ballerina i have

human pretzel. each foot on another person, hand on another person's knee,

grab someone else's foot, and rest your head on someone's shoulder.

dude, i gotta use your knee. i swear though, i'm straight.

accesorizing. 

We also played a rousing game of Apples to Apples (I'm still baffled at some of the choices) which was equally as exciting, but at that point I'd had my fair share of wine and opted to put the camera away. I love when I make responsible decisions, although mr. bowtie probably would have continued posing all night. Thanks friends, for such a fun night! Can't wait to do it again!