It's time for tights...

I'm ready! It's time! I hate winter and all but I miss my goofy green tights and my purple wool hat. I LOVEEEEEE fall fashion and yet, the 90 degree temps prevail!!!!

Kate Spade, Southern Proper, Old Navy...They are calling to me. They want desperately to redeem themselves from the "in between seasons" headache they caused me at the beginning of the month. It's time to go shopping :-)

So c'mon cool breezes, help me out. I want to enjoy my Pumpkin Spice Latte in a new pair of suede boots. I just can't do it when it's above 70 outside!

Love and Peace to you all!!!

2010 BG vs Warren East Highlights

Two post in one day...I know, Holy Cow. However, I just changed my background in honor of the BG vs. Trinity game that is coming this Friday and it reminded me that I never wrote about the INSANITY that was the Warren East game. I will let the video do most of the "talking" for me but I want you all to know that it was MONSOONING!!!!!!!

Sunday is NOT Funday :-(

My routine during the week consists of getting up at 5:30am everyday and heading to work at and Elementary School about 20 minutes from my apartment. At 8am on Tuesdays & Thursdays, I head home to dress up and drive over to Job #2 of the day; a fabulous children's boutique called Little LuLu's (the place is AMAZING!-I'll share more next blog!) and then at 2pm, every day, I head over to another Elementary School just outside of town for job #3 of the day. I get off at 6pm and I'm home by 6:30. On M, W, F when I'm not at the Boutiques, I get in my office hours for my school job...So while I'm not teaching in my own classroom this year, I am EVEN more busy than I have ever been.

Now in the evenings on Monday nights and Thursday nights, Ben has JV & Freshman games. This means he doesn't get home until 8pm. I try to attend as many as I can, but really people, you can only expect so much from me! Then of course on Friday nights are varsity game nights and I have been attending ALL home games and as many away games as I possibly can. Saturday mornings at 9, Ben goes to football and I try to work at Little LuLu's as many Saturdays as I possibly can. And when I'm not working Ben and I try to make it to WKU home games, UK games and even a couple of UofL games if I can BEG him for long enough.

Please do not misunderstand-I am not complaining about my life- I LOVE working and I LOVE Ben and it's Football season so what is written above is simply the nature of the beast. I am extremely glad I don't have children right now, Jeremiah-the cat- is all I can handle. Here's where I AM complaining: SUNDAY- a day of rest- a time for family- good food- relaxing....As the Judd's would say "WHY NOT ME???"

By Sunday morning my home looks as if and F5 has come through obliterating everything in it's path!!! When I want to be watching Sunday Morning and Meet the Press I am forced to skim my Martha Stewart Weekly & Monthly Cleaning Lists in an attempt to put my inside-out, Alice in Wonderland, Tornado Stricken apartment back in order. I'm pretty sure my exposure to cleaning product fumes is exactly why I work so slowly on Monday morning. My excessive inhalation of Lysol HAS to be toxic! How does one woman and one cat make such a mess is 7 days??

1. HOW DO I SOLVE THIS PROBLEM??

2. WHAT THE H-E-DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS AM I GOING TO DO WHEN I HAVE A HOUSE TO CLEAN?

3. AND WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN WHEN I HAVE CHILDREN???

HOW DO PEOPLE DO IT?????

HOW DID MY MOTHER SURVIVE??

Perhaps I should just let it all go. Maybe I should simply allow myself to start living like those people on "Hoarders: Buried Alive" I'm pretty sure if I just gave in, after about 2 weeks I would be eligible for the show. Jeremiah would probably run away and Ben would want to kill me but at least I could go back to Hazelnut coffee and Charles Osgood....

Just to prove that I am, for once, not over exaggerating I have included below a picture of my bedroom floor.

However, to keep you all from judging me forever, I have also included a picture of my spotless kitchen- perhaps this will save me from ridicule :-)






LOVE AND PEACE TO YOU ALL!!

Forget it, I'm going NAKED!

WHEN DID IT BECOME IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO GET DRESSED FOR FOOTBALL GAMES?!?!?!

When I was in college I think I had 25 different outfits to wear on game day! 25!!! And now, between the hunt for purple (BGHS) attire, and this weeks charade to find something for the UK/WKU game, I HAVE HAD IT!!!!

Target, TJ Maxx, Old Navy- YOU ARE LETTING ME DOWN.

It is due to rain for almost all of Saturday's Lexington activities, so keeping that and the fact that I HATE wet pant legs in mind, I am at a loss. I bought the most beautiful DKNY sweater today and yet I am forced to return it because I just can't get an outfit together.

So here I sit at 12.44 am on 9/11, after making 16 chicken salad sandwiches and 20 chocolate covered pretzels, and still NO idea what I will be wearing in 8 short hours.

Hopefully the rain will keep people from judging my last minute outfit...whatever outfit it may be.

Love and Peace to you all on this rainy Kentucky...morning :-)

Here it is:

"Many of the greatest achievements of the world were accomplished by tired and discouraged (wo)men who kept on working"

I am feeling discouraged tonight. I am feeling tonight as if "life" is winning.

"All in God's time" is what I keep telling myself and yet I feel lost.

What exactly is my purpose? Am I really making a difference in anyone's life? Really?

But, I'll keep working. I'll keep trying and eventually things will even out. God is so good.

Love and Peace to you all on this almost Autumn night.

Turn, Turn, Turn...

To everything...turn, turn, turn...there is a season...turn, turn, turn.... Can you hear the music playing in your mind? I sure can...It's all so true you know? Everything has a season and around here the season of choice is football season. I think it's only natural that as children we are immersed in the passions of our parents. At my house growing up it was shopping with my Mother and music lessons and pageants. With my Dad it was shooting hoops and batting cages. Both of my parents are highly educated educators so we spent lots of time at the public library in the summer and taking trips as a family to places like St. Augustine and Washington D.C. My parents did it all. And it was really quite amazing. It gave my sister Amanda, and me the time and opportunities to choose our own destiny, pick our own interests and find our own hobbies.

In Ben's house the mood was a little different. You see, bred into Ben and his older Brother, Andy, was not the natural, child-like quest for hobbies...oh no people...It was football. They live it, eat it, breathe it. On EASTER WEEKEND Ben and Andy will sit and watch an Ohio State game from 2001 as if it's LIVE!!!! Ben and Andy talk about helmet color, sock choices, sideline passes and game tape like it's a matter of life and death.

This is no "love for football"

This. Is. A. Lifestyle.

Ben and Andy are blessed with a father whose love for football is very strong. Ben's Dad was the Kentucky state Referee of the year in 2009. It's a fabulous honor and something of which to be very proud. He is a well respected expert of the game and it's nice to know that Coach Faust (Ben) has been trained for 20+ years but such a fine example of football at its best. So I guess I could say that Ben and Andy did have their parents influence but I don't really think they were dipped into their parents interests, I'm pretty sure they were both held under the football holy-water until they were within an inch of their lives and then brought up for air only after they had been so deprived of oxygen that they could see nothing but football....it gives new meaning to the phrase, "brainwashing." You know I shouldn't give them such a hard time, B's passion for excellence is a huge reason I fell in love with him. Before Ben I had never met anyone else who could get really fired up over something they really cared about in a matter of seconds....not like Ben does anyway.

He loves football for all the right reasons; the pusuit of excellence, the commitment and intergrity it takes to survive 2-a-days in August heat, the mental and physical toughness that men find in themselves when they play, and most of all, the pride and understanding that young men experience whether their band of brothers has succeeded in win or not. Football is timeless, it is something one never forgets and when coached correctly, it can mold a boy into the man you were born to be. It is so important for strong, steady and smart men like Ben to coach, they are the excellent examples to boys who, otherwise, will never meet a man who loves and respects his girlfriend or wife, a man who does what is right even when noone is watching and a man who never says die. Ben is the finest example of a coach. And a really fine man.

The first thing I said to Ben this morning was "Happy Game Day, Coach!" and he glowed. He simply lit up. I took this moment to remind him that he needs to look like that on our wedding day and the day our children are born ;-)

Love and Peace to you all on this cool Kentucky weekend!

*Rafferty's Bowl is tonight at 8pm at the WKU stadium. The Purples play some small Kentucky school I've never heard of. BUT I will be there, selling programs and wearing Purple! And most of all, Cheering on the Coach in HIS season.

Gratitude.

I so often find myself over taken by life's challenges. I try to look for the good in every thing, every day but all too frequently I find myself forgetting to "let go, and let God." The last couple of months have been fairly tumultuous, between the move back to Bowling Green, adjusting with Ben and the start of new jobs for both of us I haven't been spending enough time really praising God for everything that has gone so smoothly! I have also realized that not so long ago, things in my life were stressful in a very different way...

Ben has been in Louisville this weekend so I have had a lot of time to myself. One of the things I did was organize my computer. While I was skimming through pictures, I came across a couple of scary photos from the summer of 2008. I had been diagnosed with Cancer almost 4 months earlier but by July I was looking really rough. Dad and I had gone up to Chicago and Lake Geneva. We also took some time to shop on Michigan Avenue, my favorite place. My dad and I make this trip every summer (present summer excluded) and this was my 9th trip. I remember the trip vividly. I felt terrible the entire flight and when we got to our family friends lake house I was so sick to my stomach that I knocked an entire bottle of prescription medication into the running bathroom sink. I didn't eat very much and I was exhausted. I felt like a terrible guest because at that point we hadn't even told my extended family what was going on, let alone our family friends. I tearfully explained the situation to my Dad's family the next afternoon and my Mom's family a few months later.

These pictures reminded me that I have so much to be thankful for. My family has been forever changed by this illness and for many other families the results were not as good. I encourage you all today to thank God for the blessings in your life, no matter how small.

2 years in remission today :-)

Love and Peace to you all!

This Picture is from a Relay for Life event in Bowling Green. The banner says it all!

Fabulous Treat!

I know that I just blogged about food but let's just be honest, it's my favorite thing EVER. So on the 4th of July Ben and I went up to Louisville for his family party. I made these treats and they went over really well so here is the recipe :-)

Love and best dishes, from Paula's Kitchen to yours!!!!!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/blueberry-cream-cheese-tarts-recipe/index.html

Birthday Meal!

Well if you're thinking that August is a little early to be celebrating my 24th birthday, you're right. However, the meal Ben and I had tonight was the stuff my dream birthday meals are made of! Football season Friday nights are pizza night. This is because I sit, alone, in the stands and watch a game I don't really get. And because pizza is my favorite thing in the world, Ben rewards me with it after a long night of spectating. It's exhausting people, exhausting I tell you.

Anyway, back to the meal. Ben's first scrimmage was tonight (He even call some defensive plays- a big deal for a man who just moved from Offense after 3 years) he and I went for Pizza a place called PizzAroma. It's really the only local pizza place in Bowling Green and we've been wanting to try it for months. During our 16 inch race around the pizza pan I notices a picture of Italian Cream Cake and I started to drool. I stopped eating pizza almost immediately in a half-assed effort to save some room for cake. When we found out that they were in fact OUT of Italian Cream Cake, Ben offered to drive us through Dairy Queen to split a Blizzard. Half way to Dairy Queen the dessert sadness set in...I didn't want ice cream, I wanted cake.

"RAFFERTY'S"

I yelled as we zipped past the parking lot,

"Ben! Let's go in and get real dessert!!!"

Ben reluctantly turned around only to lament in the process that he had a gift card back at the apartment. And just when I thought my dessert dreams were dashed, Ben spotted a neighboring TGI Fridays. As soon as we were inside and scouring the menu I noticed a desire for Green Bean Fries slowly taking control of my senses.

That's right people, We ordered Green Bean Fries and Vanilla Bean Cheesecake at Friday's after devouring 8 inches of out 16 inch pizza. How ridiculous!!! I must say we made it home with a plethora of left-overs but could we have been any more off-the-wall tonight? Needless to say, Ben and I are beat. Food Comas for us both.

Goodnight all, and Happy Friday Night Eating!

The Sunshine State.

Ben and I are driving home to Tampa today. We've made it to northern Georgia and I've made it through all of New Moon (the movie, not the book) We are at a Panera 4.2 miles off the highway, charging my computer so that I can watch Matilda from here to Gainsville. Ben is less than thrilled by the distance between Panera and the highway but, hey...

what are you gonna do?!?

Jeremiah has been awesome in the car. He is so friendly and cuddly anyway, the car ride just makes him even cuddlier.

I'll keep you posted!

Routines of an 83... I mean 23 year old lady.

I spent all of the spring semester rising for the day at 5:30am. With a 40 minute drive from Nashville to Springfield I had to leave my apartment by ten after 6. I was usually at school until about 4:00 (the kids left at 2:45) and with the Nashville traffic I wasn't home until almost 5:00. By the time I decompressed from my drive and tossed something into the microwave, graded a few papers or typed up some lesson plans it was time for a quick shower and into bed by 10pm. It was always so amazing to me how quickly my 5 hour evenings FLEW by! Needless to say this bland and unhealthy routine did a number on my body.

I was cooking for one, which meant pre-packaged meals and I was so darn tired that the gym became a place from my undergrad past.

Now that Summer is half way over my life has taken on a new routine. I'm working as a special needs aid at a teacher-run camp here in Bowling Green. My hours thus far have been 12-6 M-F and it's worked out fabulously. I'm able to sleep until 9am, lounge around my messy apartment and then shower and head to work. In the last 3 weeks I have started adding an uphill 20 minute walk to my morning and I'm loving it!!! I'm cooking with Ben almost every night which means I'm more likely to eat my veggies and we're walking together at 7:30pm (most nights) This all sounds so lame when I write it down but it's motivating me to do SO much more! It's amazing what a few little steps can do. I have been fighting with my weight since junior high and I'm over it. I want to feel really good about being 23 and not waiting for tomorrow to start a new diet. I am starting a new lifestyle today. I'll keep you posted on my progress. Including some new vegan recipes I plan to try when I get back from Florida next week!

Until then, happy walking my friends!!

It's Relay season!

Since August and September communities and schools around the nation have been preparing for Relay for Life. The incredible night of walking and sharing and community togetherness has been around for almost 20 years and it's the perfect time to honor those loved ones you have lost and join the fight for those still living.

Visit the America Cancer Society Website for more info :-)

Get involved, people!

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/home/index.asp

Oh yeah, that's mine...

I enjoy camping, when the weather is nice. And I enjoy venison when it's covered in taco seasoning and squished between the sides of a hard shell taco. I also enjoy Thanksgiving. I eat Turkey, I eat stuffing, potatoes etc. I also know where my food originated..at least generally. However, I am a city kid. I lived in the suburbs of Anchorage Kentucky until I was 9 and now my family lives about 15 minutes from Downtown Tampa Florida. I know more about L-trains and trolley, bus passes and parking meters than most people know about their own siblings. So let me reiterate, I am a city kid.

This morning after my 40 minute drive from Nashville to the small Robertson County town in which I teach, I was startled to see- in the parking space next to me, a small gray pick-up truck. Through the passenger seat window I could see feathers. Not a few multi colored synthetic feathers you might find in my Kindergarten craft box, but in fact a full fan of brown, tan, reddish colored feather.

"Whoa!" I thought, "What the heck is that??"

I hopped out of my SUV such that I was now a little above eye level with the passenger side door of this truck. And OH DEAR LORD it wasn't just the feathers, it was the WHOLE FREAKIN' BIRD!!
People, I was stunned. Instinctively, I said, "Oh my God!" (a little louder than I intended) and the 3rd grade teacher parked on the other side of me kindly popped her head around the front of the car and asked me if I was alright.

"This truck has a WHOLE turkey, in the PASSANGER SEAT...not the bed of the truck but in the cab, in the passenger seat....You know, like the place where his girlfriend sits!!"

And as if it was nothing at all the other teaching simply said, "oh yeah, it's turkey season." It was as if I had said nothing at all, she was not surprised or alarmed or even amused by the dead foul in the truck cab! I bolted into the building and into the cafeteria where the other teachers on my team were waiting for morning meeting to begin and while panting and laughing and shaking, I re-told the story (hoping for a better reaction the second time around) and as the story came to an end, Mr. B, one of our subs said, "Oh yeah that's mine!"

!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!!?

"What I said?!?!?!?! WHAT??? BRANDON, why is there a dead bird in your passenger seat, in the parking lot of our elementary school????"

Much to my delight, the tables of teachers began to laugh, and honestly at this point, so did I. It seems so normal to them and for me this was TRAUMATIZING!

"Elizabeth, it's just my decoy" he said
"What??"
"Well, it's a decoy, it's plastic. It's not like I shot it on my way to school this morning and through it into the cab so that the dogs couldn't get it..."

At this point I about died. The school resource officer was rolling on the floor laughing. The Principal was watching my arms flail wildly and most of the students were observing my melt down with perplexed expressions.

Listen people, in Tampa, Florida people do not drive to work with GIGANTIC turkey bird in their passenger seats. Plastic or Real! Welcome to northern Tennessee I suppose!

**As a side note, if you know my Mother, visualize this...Terri drives to downtown Tampa to Rampello Downtown Partnership School, she parks her little blue car in the parking garage across the street from the Bank of America building. And next to her is a DEAD TURKEY in a Mercedes?!?!?! It would just never happen, never.

Happy Hump Day.

My "must have" list for the spring and summer of 2010!

1. Every girl needs a gorgeous ballet flat. I picked a floral print from J.Crew that could easily go from day to night with its adorable gold interior and its brightly colored exterior. These J. Crew babies are $298. So if you're really wanting a high quality splurge, go for it! However, Target is selling a strikingly similar flat for $12.99 (that's a little more my style!)


2. Dell has recently begun creating Laptops in color! Even now I am using my gorgeous "breast cancer" pink Inspiron to share this list with you! The come in a huge array of colors so if the pink princess computer isn't exactly your style there are many more from which you may choose! These little computer lolliepops start around $599.




3. Bath and Body Works has been creating out standing smell goodies for years now. And I have been a fan of their C.O. Bigelow(c) line for quite sometime. Every girls needs a shiny, sexy pout so why not "gloss organically"? This line of lip savers comes in a variety of shades, from the clear gloss you want to lather on at the gym to a raspberry mint that acts as a midnight reflector, drawing all kinds of attention when you're out on the town.
The product acts as a breath freshener while it heals your cracked lips with a gentle tingle. Best of all, the glosses start at $7.50 but are regularly on sale!



4. Chunky jewelry is all the rage today, and I have to admit, I'm a HUGE fan! I love the way a bangle looks with a classic cardi or how a multi strand necklace can dress up a fitted T! Target carries this pretty peal multi-strand fashion necklace. I love it, and at only $39.99 any girl can make this an accessory staple. Click the link below and you can order online!
http://http//www.target.com/Fashion-Jewelry-Womens/b/ref=sc_fe_l_2/188-2053108-4002954?ie=UTF8&node=13330751

5. Finally, my 5th Spring and Summer must have.... Tickets to your local minor league baseball games!! Nothing says warm weather like "take me out to the ball game" it's the perfect excuse to slip on some cuffed jeans and your cute new floral flats and drink a beer at the ball park. I'm a huge fan of the Bowling Green Hot Rods but you should find the team nearest you! It's worth a few dollars a game for some quality time with your Summer Beau or Bestie!






Tomorrow: Relay, Broken Feet, and my very own Prince Charming!

A new purpose...

Trapped at 20-something!

I have decided recently, that there are no real lifestyle blogs for girls my age. So often the 20 something woman is drowning in her career, her classes, her marriage or her beer. I am none of these women. I am sitting, waiting and wishing somewhere in the middle. I am unmarried but committed, out of college but still working toward a career, and simply sipping on a weekly glass of wine. So I have decided that Day of Inspiration needs a greater purpose. One that is specific to the needs of women who are keeping their heads above water! I'm planning (key word is planning) to update the blog a little more frequently, and blog about my favorite things; my work (teaching), my hobbies (weddings, crafting, cooking and shopping), my family and my love life.

Starting with some of my new favorite blogs! Check out a few links, and do a little reading, it's surprising to me how much insight one can gain by reading someone else notes :-)

1.) http://www.thefootballwife.com

This blog is written by Sara, the wife of Davidson's head football coach, Tripp Merritt. She is sensational. She writes like a pro and yet, is easily relateable to all kinds of women. The Football Wife (or the FW as she calls herself) prefers a bit of anonymity but still keeps you feeling connected and up to date on her adorable, everyday life. GREAT new mom and wife give-a-ways as well! (something I'm working on myself!)

2.) http://www.mclaypool.typepad.com/rabbitinthemoon

Rabbit in the Moon is this fabulous little mommy & me boutique in Louisville Kentucky. The store is located in The Summit off the Crestwood exit and it is owned by Meagan Claypool, a Sorority sister of mine. Meagan runs this blog about all things adorable. She shares her favorite design ideas and new products in the store. Her taste is impeccable and the products she shares are just to die for!

3.) http://www.ohdeedoh.com

"Home-Design-Children" is the tag line to this fabulous blog. It's linked to a number of other great pages so check it out!

4.) http://www.collegelifestyles.org

My good friend, Sara Puckett, is one of the writers for this 20-something college blog. Her features are pretty specific to sororities but the other posts are wildly diverse. With tabs on Nutrition, Fashion, Etiquette & Careers this blog is great for the college girl on the go. It's age appropriate without being overly campy and dorm room focused. Share it with a 20 something you know!

I'll be back on tomorrow! I'm hoping to share some new photos of my favorite things. With J.Crew and Old Navy releasing their new summer lines, I can hardly make a "top 5 must have list"...it may HAVE to be 10! ;-)