A New Trick

This week was sloooowwwww.  Like good grief it’s the week before Thanksgiving and I can’t stop thinking that I only have to go to work three days next week slow.  Like I’m definitely not getting enough sleep and can hardly keep my eyes open to drive home at the end of Friday slow.  That kind of slow.

At about 11 yesterday morning during my prep period, I sent my husband this email:

Then, a little later in the day, during lunch, I sent out this little number (I’m not concerned at ruining any surprises here…LK knows this is part of her gift):

And about 45 minutes later, I received this beauty in my inbox, and the world was good:

And that, my friends, is how to achieve the world’s most perfect Friday night.  Target + Sushi + My husband + a bag of candy cane kisses = One of life’s greatest small joys and an evening to be thankful for :)

And I have a discovered a new trick.  When I want something, I appeal to my husband’s never-ending desire for rolls of raw fish :) (it’s kind of a never ending desire for me too, to be honest.  It’s no sacrifice for either of us)

Bargain Hunting

Sometimes I forget how much fun can be had inside of a mall.  There is something about finding that perfect deal in the mall that you just can’t be beat.  We spent the day in Louisville yesterday with Jon and Carrie, and I remembered a bit of that thrill.

My first deal of the day was this bag at Macys:

It is a Fossil bag that lists at 88 dollars.  I paid 32.  And I am in love with it.  It has the perfect pockets and I LOVE the different patterns.  It’s totally funky, but really neutral.  It’s the perfect winter purse :)

(I am also totally in love with these pants from Macys.  I would have never bought them on my own, but Andy’s mom gave me a pair for Christmas last year and I wear them CONSTANTLY.  They are my go-to work pants.  I want them in every color…but I decided not to buy any yesterday.  I feel like there was more selection in store than online, color-wise, though).

Then at Von Maur, I struck gold with these great casual shoes from Merrell.  They were originally 80, and I got them for their second markdown price of 40.  They are still listed full price just about everywhere I looked on the internet.  So I’m way excited.  I put them on, and it felt like a glove wrapped around my foot saying, “Welcome home.  We are dying to be your new brown weekend shoe.  Do you see how cute we look with your jeans?"

And if these go on sale at Dillard’s, they are coming home to me:

The Weekend Ahead

This week was good.  Long.  But good.

It was finals week at school.  I got all new classes yesterday, and I’m still working on adjusting to my new schedule.  Today one of the kids in my class last trimester came into my room and said, “Man, Mrs. Cook, you should have done the assignment Mrs. J is having us do.  We’re like taking a song and explaining how it’s poetry.”  I wrote that assignment.  Two weeks ago.  My classes are doing it right now too.  Cracked.me.up.

I became reacquainted with the gym and what Andy affectionately calls “the birthing machine.”  You may know it as the hip/thigh abductor/adductor.  I call it torture.   And pain in your hips and thighs on Friday.  But we are official card-carrying members of a 24 hour gym.  I love that we can go whenever we want. 

This weekend is jam-packed with fun. 

Tonight I’m doing this with a friend:

Then later tonight, we’re having other friends over to watch this:

And tomorrow we’re going to Louisville to hang with J&C Harris and do this:

What We’ve Been Up To: A Photo Essay

Here is a photo essay of the past week of our lives

We learned to make California rolls

And ginger salad and gyoza

We made up some dessert sushi

We went for a hike in the woods with some friends

We broke down and bought a Neti pot (my new BFF)

We ordered take out sushi and nearly fainted from the joy of eating a spicy tuna roll in our home

We got Andy’s new glasses

We hung out and relaxed late Friday night

We rode ATVs

Kitchen (about 90 percent finished)

Kitchen Before:

Kitchen During:

Kitchen After (as of 10/24/09 with painter’s tape up, wrong curtain, no decor, old countertop still in):

Living Room

Before (Way before)

 

Living Room After:

An array of emotions

Sometimes I definitely feel like my emotions are out of control.  Last night was one of those times.  We went to see “Where the Wild Things Are” (which left me ridiculously depressed and quite ready to slit my wrists—okay, so that’s an exaggeration).  But we did see the preview for the new Sandra Bullock movie, “The Blind Side.”  And I can tell you that I was nearly sobbing during the preview.  I have never cried at a movie preview—but I could not get control of myself.  Andy looked over at me and said, “Are you crying?  Are you crying a lot?  At a preview?”  But seriously…watch the preview.  See if you join me.  I think the trailer starts at about 32 seconds in.  This isn’t the exact one we saw, but only a little bit is different.

 

 

 

 

Then we came home and watched “The Soup.”  And I laughed so hard I couldn’t breathe.  And this commercial came on and I fell off the sofa.  I feel like the one we saw last night kept repeating “25x bigger” a lot and that was really cracking me up.  Because we all need a cupcake that’s 25 times bigger.  It seemed funnier last night, but I’m going to include it, just so we can get the full range of emotional experiences—sad tears to falling off the sofa laughing.  All in a day’s work.

Side Note: I will get pictures of the house posted later.  My camera had been stolen by Andy a person who had left it in his car and not returned it and I just got it back.