The Movie That Traumatized Me

Seeing as how I haven't been around these parts too much lately, I thought I'd at least give you something to laugh at while I try to get myself back into my bloggy pants.

Circa 1999 right around the time I turned eight, my mom took me and my cousins to see a movie on a hot summer day. The movie in question? Inspector Gadget. Yes Ferris Bueller himself had robotic arms, legs, and fingers and an annoying ass niece also known as Georgina Sparks.

We got the the theatre and grabbed a bunch of seats in the middle of the very last row. We were the only people in the whole place which was actually pretty exciting to a bunch of kids. So fast forward to the previews and I'm sitting with my feet on the seat to keep my toes warm with the dress I was wearing.

The next thing I know there's a gigantic woman sitting on me. Yes, you read that correctly. The lady with the world's biggest tush is flat out flattening my eight year old self. Someone should've put a wide load sign and blinkers on this thing.

I probably wouldn't be saying things about her size in any other context, but the lady's butt was so big that she didn't know she sat on me. HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW YOU JUST SAT ON A SMALL CHILD? I'm flailing my arms and groaning for this lady to get off of me and no one even knew what was going on until the woman's son said, "uhh Mom, you just sat on a little girl!"

SWEET RELIEF - the lady finally got her ass off of me, turned around and apologized. Yeah lady thanks. You had the entire theatre to sit in any seat you wanted and you chose to sit on me.

Moral of the story: Don't sit on kids.

What traumatic experiences did you have as a kid?

And because it's the Friday, linking up with Miss Yoga Pants!

Because I haven't listened to my favorite band in a really long time.

That Time I Wrote a Post About Shoes

I'm not writing a weekend recap because my weekend was about as exciting as watching paint dry. I cleaned my disaster zone bedroom on Friday night and threw out 2 trash bags worth of stuff and went dress shopping with my cousin for a little bit on Saturday before going to Kris's house and falling asleep on his bed...yet again (I blame the memory foam). 

Anyhoodles, as I was cleaning my shit up on Friday, I finally decided to let go of my favorite pair of boots. I haven't been able to wear them in months and they were just collecting dust in my closet.

This year one of my goals is to simplify and I knew that getting rid letting go of my boots was a step in that direction. 

I begged my sister to buy these for me as a Christmas present and I was so happy when my Forever21 box arrived with them in it. They instantly become my favorite, and I hadn't had a  pair I liked more than these until right before this Thanksgiving. These boots have seen everything that's happened to me in the last 5 years. They were with me when I finished my first year of college. They saw me get my acceptance email to Temple. They were on my feet at my first rock concert and they were there 3 years later when I met my favorite band. These boots have been stepped on, rained on, and worn until they had holes in the bottom and the snow was seeping in. These boots were loved. 

This post is completely random and I know it's a weird way to start your week, but I just wanted to show someone before I let them go completely. If you're still with me, thanks for reading. I'm sure you think I'm a nutso by now, but thanks anyway.

Sh*t Men Say

Today I'm basically gonna make fun of Kris and the goofy shiz he says. Mostly because I can't help but laugh when he's talking to me, but also because I'm linking up for Shit Men Say.

This post could be a lot better written than this, but it's 12:22 and I have to get up for work in 6 hours. Since it's a monthly linkup, (as far as I know) I'll have the chance to redeem myself with some amazing material collected from the boyf. Let's face it, he's not gonna stop saying redonkulous things and I'm not gonna stop writing them down.

So here it in in all it's bulletpointed glory:

• Me: My chapstick isn't smooth anymore. Kris: Why? Cause I molested it with my mouth?
• Me: I don't want to know about (treasury) bonds. Kris: Why can't we ever have grownup conversations?!
• For the night is dark and full of swag.
• Those 3 girls have no butts whatsoever...that's what you get for not being American.
• I haven't seen Coburn hit anybody since Nam.
• I feel like if he was a dog, he'd chase his tail all day.

I guess I should come to expect things like these from a man who hangs around with guys like this all day.

They say weird shit. Gotta love'em anyway! Make sure you link up with these ladies!

Work B**ch

S/O to Britney for the post title. OH IT'S MY 100TH POST.

Hey Blogland! How was your weekend?

I wanted to write this post on Friday, but I didn't quite have the words yet. After Amy took me out to my favorite restaurant on Friday night and I told her all about my first week, it finally started to sink in that I have a grownup job in my field. And now I can tell you all about it.

It. Was. Awesome. 

But really, I can only try to put into words how amazing it was. My bosses are the nicest people I've ever met (dude they took us out to lunch our fourth day on the job) and I felt like I was learning from the very minute I walked into the door. The patients are so sweet and very welcoming.

I found out at the salary/benefits meeting that they were actually hiring two of us which made me super nervous because I'm always terrified to meet new people. As it turns out, my coworker is really cool and we've already discovered that we work pretty well together! We're also similar in a lot of ways so it's awesome to have a new friend. And nothing brings two people together faster than looking inside each other's ears. P.S. - She likes Game of Thrones AND Harry Potter. Obviously, we're soul mates.

I got new work clothes. (someone remind me to do an ootd pic puhlease) I don't have to scan groceries anymore. I get to help the people. This is great.

In case you care what my eardrum looks like.

Here's to another awesome week! See you tomorrow for Sh*t Men Say with Amanda from Voyage of the MeeMee and Danae from Duh! Danae!

Resort Food (Mexico Recap Part 2)

Welcome to Mexico vacay recap: part 2!

So I'm sure your wondering if I was a "good blogger" who took pictures of all her main dishes on this little ol' vacation of hers. Guess what, I DID (I know, I'm so proud). Kris was even a good blogger boyfriend who reminded me to when I forgot at every meal.

So at Grand Occidental Xcaret, you get a certain number of dinner reservations for the gourmet restaurants depending on the number of nights you stay there. We booked a 6 day stay so we were given 4 choices of dinner reservations at any of the restaurants. There was a seafood, Mexican, steak, Italian restaurant, in addition to a breakfast/lunch beach buffet and an all meals buffet (which you didn't need a reservation for). We aren't the biggest seafood people so we opted for 2 different nights at the steak place.

Feelin' like locals...hah!

fajitas. mmm.

I have no idea what this is, but Kristo loved it

dessert squares? kinda weird, but still decent

mojitos!

pastel de tres leches... mi favorito!!!! I must've had this like 4 times

and last, but most definitely not least...TEA!

The food at Grand Occidental Xcaret was really really good overall. It was easy to find something you liked at the buffet, no matter which meal you were eating and the reservation restaurants were fantastic! 

Hola! Grand Occidental Xcaret (Mexico Recap Part 1)

"Can I get a hoohah two times Tuesday?!" (Anyone remember that commercial? Nope? Just me? Okay then.)

I hope your Monday was awesome! Who am I kidding, you people hate Mondays. Today is the first of my three, count'em THREE Mexico recap posts. They'll mostly be photo dumps, but I'm sure you'll be so mesmerized by my amateur photography skills that you won't even care about the uneven ratio of wordage (did you know that's a real word?). 

So the theme for Mexico recap: part 1 is the resort. We stayed at Grand Occidental Xcaret in Riviera Maya. We were upgraded to the Junior Suite which had a king-size bed and sitting area with a private deck. Since we stayed for 6 days, we were allotted 4 reservations at the gourmet restaurants (coming in part 2). 

The resort was built on a site that had ancient Mayan ruins and there was a ton of wildlife. There were red macaws in the lobby, lizard-iguana-scaly things everywhere, and there was even a pen that had a bunch of flamingos in it even though I neglected to take a pic of them.  

There were 4 pools, a beach, and an an a cross between beach and pool for adults that sat right on the water (ie - where we spent most of our free time). There were waiters that brought tequila shots drinks down to the water and I drank a lot.

Anyway let me get back to the photo dump. Enjoy!

Hasta luego.

She Believed She Could

Happy Monday! (Yes, I said happy. You read correctly.)

Today I see no traces of the Monday blues. Not only because I start my new job today (holy crap yay!), but because I’m linking up with Rachael and Heather for Monthly Motivational Monday! On the first Monday of every month, these awesome ladies are hosting a linkup to kick start the month off right. So pick your favorite quote, song lyric, or whatever motivates you most and write about it!

I truly believe that this job was meant for me. I’m scared to death to start something new and completely unknown, but I know I will do my best and I will accomplish everything I set out to do. That being said, I’m glad I found this quote to motivate me this month. I might even print it out and hang it next to my desk.

What quote or saying motivates you?

Happy Birthday, Boyfriend!

Happy Sunday Y’all!

Sunday is my favorite day of the week and I’m not quite sure why. Maybe because it’s a day of rest, maybe because Kris has off from work every Sunday and I get to see him, or maybe because it’s the beginning of a brand new week and I get to start it at church. This Sunday is a combination of all three and it’s especially awesome because it’s Kris’s 23^rd birthday! Every year near his birthday, I joke that I probably shouldn’t be dating an older man. It’s lame, but it always makes him laugh.

So today is dedicated to Kristo. I’m going to church and then helping his mom cook his birthday dinner that we’re sharing with some friends. Then he’ll be in charge of the remote to watch the Bengals playoff game (booo!). It should be an awesome day surround by all his favorite people.

Kristo, I love you more than anything. You can always make me laugh, whether it’s reminiscing about when I thought you were just the weirdo that sat in front of me in 10^th grade chem class or when you’re just being incredibly quotable. I hope you have a fantastic birthday and I can’t wait to spend the next 80 with you.

Times Are Changing!

No, I'm not changing my blog design or name. I not going to be writing about anything too different from what I've written in the past. The change I'm talking about is one of employment.

In the beginning of December, my mom found an ad on Craigslist for an open audiology assistant position. For those of you who don't know how to work the Google, an audiologist (AuD) is a hearing doctor - AKA what I want to be when I grow up. Seeing as how I wasn't prepared to apply to grad schools this year, my goal was to observe in a few AuD clinics while studying for my GRE so I could get some more exposure to the field and improve my chances of getting into the school I want.

Well this job would not only teach me what I needed to know, it would pay me to learn. It would be the income I needed to start paying off my student loans while I'm waiting to apply to grad schools. It would be the experience everyone expects you to have, but that no one wants to hire you without. It would be exactly what I need to use all the information I've learned in undergrad.

So I sent a reply to the ad and 3 days later they called me to schedule an interview. It was my first interview and I was terrified. This terror only became worse when I found out that the AuDs who run the practice both went to Temple and one taught there last semester. She had her previous students applying and didn't know me from Adam. They said they'd let me know either way within 2 weeks.

I prayed. And prayed. And prayed. I prayed every prayer I'd ever learned and I prayed new prayers that friends found for me. 

The 2 week countdown ended the day I got home from Mexico. And I didn't hear anything. Another week passed. I didn't hear anything. Christmas passed. And I didn't hear anything. I'd given up hope for this job. I figured that it wasn't in God's plan for me to have this job at this time. But then I got a voicemail on Monday. They wanted to hire me! Now it might not be normal to start bawling uncontrollably when you find out good news, but that's exactly what I did. I walked in to tell my mom and sister and they thought someone died. I don't think I've ever been so happy or thankful to God as I was in that moment. 

So today I went in to discuss salary and benefits (eep!) and the doctors put in the order for my lab coats(I feel so official)! In about half a year when I finish my training , I'll be seeing patients on my own!

I honestly can't wait to start learning everything and fully immerse myself in this field. So here's to new beginnings and answered prayers. 

It's Still Christmas

Posting 2 days in a row. Who the hell am I?

It's finally time for my Christmas recap! Since I seem to be the last person in the world who's still in the Christmas spirit (Still have 9 more days!) I don't feel bad about posting my recap so late. I took so many pictures this year that I can't possibly put them all in a blog post. So I'll only post about my favorites. Click over to The Empty Teacups Facebook page for the full album! ( <-- shameless plug )

This year was very low key and since I got the trip to Mexico as my gift there wasn't much under the tree. And I'm totally okay with that. It meant that I got to focus on the presence of Christ in Christmas. I spent time with my favorite people and it was freaking awesome.

Alright, let's get on with this ish. 

Personalized ornament my mom got for us. My favorite present.

Me and boyf dressed to the nines

My beautiful siblings

Our Lady of Grace, my favorite place to be

Pure awesomeness and holiday spirit. 
p.s.- the dude who owns this house is an electrician.

And that concludes my holiday wrap up! Did you see any crazy lights like these? What were your favorite moments this season?

Hello 2014

Happy New Year everyone!

I hope you all had a fantastic holiday and that you're not too hungover today. Haha, right. Pop some Advil, eat an egg sandwich, and chug some Gatorade. I'll wait.  I've been spending the last few weeks resetting and relaxing and I've missed you all. Following the custom for the new year, I'm writing out my goals for 2014. Hopefully I can use this post to hold myself accountable and maybe inspire a few people to stick to their own goals. Hey we can all help each other out, right?

SMILE
Apparently my bitchy resting face made too many appearances in 2013 because I constantly had people asking me if I was okay. No one ever believed me when I was I was fine. Time to smile more.

READ

Once upon a time, I read 104 books in a year. That year was most definitely NOT last year. This year I wanna get back to my first love: books.

STUDY
I have to retake the GRE before I apply to grad school in September I plan to do a few chapters a week until my scores improve.

EXERCISE
Even though I can eat whatever I want without gaining a pound, I can't walk up a big flight of stairs without getting winded (I'm actually an old man #geezer). This year, I wanna get back into some kind of shape.

SIMPLIFY
Yes, I stole Rachael's word of the year. Out with the old and in...nope. Let the old stay out. I don't need new stuff. Mostly because I have nowhere to put it. Also becauase I want to pay less attention to things  and more attention to everything else in life.

PRAY
I started to realize at the end of 2013 that I only find myself praying when I need something. My goal for 2014 is to pray in all situations because God is always around, not just when we need something.

BLOG
I also have a few goals for this little blog of mine for the coming year.

• keep to the "blogging plan" I've created for myself so that I'm not scrambling to figure out what to write at the last minute
• answer all emails in a timely manner
• sponsor at least 3 blogs (dolla dolla billz y'all)
• write a guest post
• update my design
• cohost a linkup...maybe?

What are your goals for 2014? Let me know in the comments!