A..B..C..D..Emily!

I've seen this A-Z survey on several blogs and seeing as how I kind of have a lull at work right now, I thought I'd play along.

A - Age: 27
B - Bed size: King
C - Chore you hate: Cleaning the bathrooms
D - Dog's names: Abe (10 month old Lab); Dixie (7 year old Brittany Spaniel)
E - Essential start your day item: Shower
F - Favorite color: Pink
G - Gold or Silver: Gold
H - Height: 5'6"
I - Instruments you play: none, but I used to be able to play the piano
J - Job title: Assistant Director of Stewardship & Special Events (it's a mouthful!)
K - Kid(s): Zero and the jury is still out on whether I ever want them!
L - Living arrangements: With WEG
M - Mom's name: Jenny
N - Nicknames: Em, Emmie, EmmaSue, EmmySusan (and no, my middle name isn't Susan), EmilyO, Pearlee, EmmyLou, EOR- Clearly, I have a lot
O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth: None- knock on wood.
P - Pet Peeve: Bad drivers
Q - Quote from a movie: "You can't ride two horses with one ass, sugarbean"- Sweet Home Alabama
R - Right or left handed: Right
S - Siblings: None
T - Time you wake up: 7ish- sometimes a little before, sometimes a little after during the week. The weekend it depends on what I have going on
U- First word that comes to your mind for "U": USC- Go Cocks!
V - Vegetable you dislike: Beets (are those a veggie or a fruit?), Brussel Sprouts
W - Ways you run late: wake up late, lollygag around while getting ready
X - X-rays you've had: my head & neck when I fell off the top bunk at a camp; dental x-rays
Y - Yummy food you make: Pork tacos- so easy, but so good!
Z - Zoo favorites: monkeys, giraffes, penguins

Well, isn't this just lovely?

Emily B. over at One Preppy Day has given me the One Lovely Blog Award.

Here are the rules:

1) Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link.

2) Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you’ve newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

So, without further ado, here are 15 blogs that I have newly discovered (newly in my opinion is the last 2 or 3 months). I apologize in advance if you have already received this award, but consider yourself that much more loved if you have :-)

If you haven't checked out these blogs, make sure you do:

CAC Muffin at Shortbread

Jane at Moonflowers, Mojitos, and Me

LuLu at Life with LuLu and Pete

Megan at Magnolias and Mimosas

Miss Monogram

CTB at Well, Bless Your Heart

Emily at Health and Hartsville

Katie at A Thrifty Girl's Guide to the Kitchen

Ashley at According to Ashley

Preppy Bumpkin at Confessions of a Preppy Bumpkin

Barefoot in the Park

Running in Stilettos

Life of a Savannah Bride

Coastal Belle

Gamecock Queen at My Chihuahua Wears Sunglasses

Prayers for Evan

Hi y'all! I'd like to ask everyone to pray for a family that has just had a little baby boy who is currently in the NICU due to breathing problems. They have not been able to pinpoint where the problems are coming from, so, of course, they are uneasy and just having to wonder- which many of you know is worse than knowing what is causing the problem.

Little Evan was born on Friday to John and Amy (Amy is from Elloree, too- her dad is our mayor!) and is the little brother to Thomas and Sarah. If you'd just say a little prayer today for Evan and his family, I'd really appreciate it!

You can visit the blog that Evan's aunt has created to read more or leave a comment:
http://www.prayersforevan.blogspot.com/

Thank y'all so much!

They see me rollin'

**ETA: I ended up NOT getting the tires yesterday. PepBoys deal was a crock of royal crap. They failed to tell WEG on the phone when he called that in order to get the 4th tire free, you have to buy the $200 alignment and road hazard plan. Which ends up meaning that you have to pay $70 dollars more to get the "free" tire than if you just bought 4. Because one tire is $130 so it doesn't really compute- especially when I don't need an alignment and could care less about the road hazard plan- especially if it's going to cost me $200. WEG knows we can find cheaper tires somewhere that includes everything. So, beware- PepBoys is a rip-off!!

I have to get new tires this afternoon. Not just 2 new tires...nope, all 4....for an SUV. Um, yes, I have the worst luck with timing. Like I don't have enough to pay for over the next few months with everything that is going on. Now I have to have new tires, as well. Thank goodness PepBoys is offering a mail-in rebate for one free tire when you purchase 3. So, I guess it could be worse.

However, this means I will not be buying any unneccessary items for a while. Just the basics- groceries and gas- in addition to the millions of present I have to buy for various birthdays and events. I guess I will be having to put a stop to my current Hanky Panky buying addiction. I now have enough to last me through the week, so I guess it's as good a time as ever to curb that spending trap!

At least now my car will not shake when I hit 60 mph and I will not be afraid of a blow-out on the interstate due to thread-bare tires.

Man's (or Woman's) Best Friend

"A dog has no use for fancy cars or big homes or designer clothes. Status symbols mean nothing to him. A water-logged stick will do just fine. A dog judges others not by their color or creed or class but by who they are inside. A dog doesn't care if you are rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his. " ~John Grogan

I just finished watching Marley and Me for the second time and am once again in a puddle of tears. Marley reminds me so much of Abe- although Abe isn't QUITE so destructive ;-) I'm not sure why I thought watching that movie again was a good idea. Don't get me wrong, I love it, but sheesh- now I am an emotional wreck.

I'm sure there are many of us who have lost a pet at some time or another. What an emotional and heart-wrenching thing it is, especially if you have had the pet for a long time. Probably one of the saddest days of my life was when my first dog, Ben, died. You see, I got Ben when I was five years old. He was a Shetland Sheepdog and one of the best dogs you could ever ask for. Being an only child, I often called him my brother. Once, I even told a lady at the grocery store that I had a brother and my mother made him stay in the yard. The lady was horrified, of course, and my mom assured her that my "brother" was, in fact, a dog. Despite my mom's assurance, I doggedly claimed that "No, mama, Ben is not a dog, he is my brother and you make him stay in the yard." Needless to say, that lady didn't stick around much longer.

But that goes to show how close I was to Ben. By the way, his whole name was Benjamin Bunny after the Beatrix Potter series, Peter Rabbit- clearly, I loved Beatrix Potter! (I was only five, remember)

There aren't many memories I have of my childhood that don't include Ben. One of his favorite things to do was run up the sliding board as I was climbing up the steps. Then, he would slide down with me, and run back up to meet me when I climbed up the steps once again. Ben was not only our pet, but my playmate when I was young.

So, at the age of 18, one week shy of leaving for college, when Ben finally reached the end and passed away, I was devastated. It was like losing my best friend. His health had been failing and we were just before having to put him to sleep when he drifted away on his own. I still remember clearly my dad wrapping Ben in our favorite "snuggie"- a hand-knitted afghan- to bury him down at our farm, where he used to love to run wild in his younger days. I left for college with a heavy heart, knowing that when I came home Ben would no longer be there to greet me.

I often think back to the times I had with Ben and how special they were since he was my first pet. I feel lucky to have had a dog so faithful to grow up with and, to this day, I miss that little Sheltie.

And now that I have had quite the good cry, I'm off to bed to rest up for the 9:00 service at church in the morning.

Wiggle, wiggle little worm

I think I have a worm...a tapeworm, that is. I have been ravenous since I woke up. I ate breakfast- yogurt, a banana, and a Poptart (don't judge, it was one of the high fiber ones, at least!). Then at 11:00- yes, that early- WEG and I went and ate lunch....I had all sides- butterbeans, black eyed peas, mashed potatoes, and macaroni.


So why, now, at 12:35 am I hungry again?

I am trying to hold off on snacking, but I may have to opt for at least a coke or something. This water I am drinking is not helping!!

Do you think this has anything to do with the fact that I am feeling slightly rough due to last night's dinner & a few..er many... drinks? I thought the result of that was dehydration, not hunger. It's like I haven't eaten in days- and this girl NEVER misses a meal, so that's certainly not the case!

I definitely won't last until 5:00 (especially since this day is drrragggiing).

Happy Friday!

**ETA- I made it until 2:30 and just ate the other Poptart from my breakfast pack. And I am drinking a coke- shame on me, but at least I'm not quite so ravenous now!!

Queen Emily

Sweet Carolina Bride also tagged me as a Queen of Awe-Summmm! I didn't put the graphic up last time, so there you go :-) Thanks, SCB!!