Bring back the Sunshine

This weather is killing me! How about you?
As soon as I get used to a certain temperature, it violently changes and throws me into a tail spin.
This past weekend, here where I live, it got so cold that I just never could quite thaw out completely. I even dug my electric throw out of the bottom of the closet and put it under my comforter for about an hour before I went to bed. The only problem with this ended up being that I got scalded half way through the night and had to wake everyone in the bed because my fur baby,Austin, would not move off of it. Bless his sweet little heart because I think he might have been cold also.
These beautiful little tulips and hyacinths came up in our front yard that make me smile just looking at them, but now that the weather changed I find myself concerned that they will become "shocked" and shrivel up. I am slightly worried about them, which is funny because they are flowers...
So mother nature, if you would, please just give me back some sunshine because it has made me so happy and calm during a hectic time in my life.

The kingdom of God is within you.                                                                                    - Luke 17:21
I feel as thought I have somehow lost my way. My best friend Maggie used to say that a relationship with God is like being on a trail, which I always envisioned as a dirt walking path in the woods. She would say that sometimes people venture out into the woods for one reason or another looking for something or other. That first step they take into the leaves is enticing and thrilling knowing all the while that the dirt path is the right/ correct process. She would say that we needed to find our way back to the path. She has done this dance at several points in her life which is a helpful example to those of us that can't seem to live up. I need to shock my relationship with God. It's like exercising. If you fall out of the habit more and more eventually it only gets easier and easier to not workout. I think that prayer is a helpful tool but here lately I feel like God doesn't need to hear ever single trivial detail in my day to day. This started out small and now is to the point where I go an entire day without speaking to him. I am going to start re-reading the bible like my friend Becca does, a chapter at a time before reading the fun book of the moment. I need to instill some discipline into my daily schedule. I have begun to work out which helps my body. I have made huge steps in organization which helps my routine. I have completely opened up to love with Jay which has helped fill my heart. I need to spark something in my own spirituality.
Any suggestions on this out there?  I have several books and exercises in mind, but I wanted to get advice from my blog family.

Spring has Sprung

The one thing I LOVE about spring is all the color that comes to life when the time finally changes. In our quaint little flower bed there are few flowers, but the ones that come up are treasured.


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Sweetness

My mommy brought me the sweetest happy to work this week. How cool is this?


Two of my very favorite babies in the whole world. Love them.


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Bull Hockey

The Bachelor is not normally one of my "shows" that I keep up with, however; my coworker was very into the show and in order for me to keep up I have been watching it. For those of you that are fans of the show I have one thing to ask after watching the interview after the end and it is:

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

I just said out loud that this is concrete proof that looks trump all else when a guy chooses a mate. Emily Maynard is gorgeous. There I said it, and I mean it, but the word that keeps rising to the surface of my mind as I watch her speak incessantly about their flailing relationship is VAPID. She is such a little self centered, spoiled rotten brat that isn't going to be happy with anything it seems. Now, I am not really his advocate either but when she says that she felt like, "a dime a dozen" when she was watching the show unfold is absolutely ridiculous. Does she not realize that this is television? The show's producers were antagonizing this entire situation the entire time. Oh, wait I hope I didn't ruin anything for the people out there that think this is actually reality television. It's not. They are trying to sell the product. Why doesn't she get it? 

There are dozens of articles out there already saying that the relationship is on the rocks and now that I have seen this I am not surprised at all. She isn't being real or honest at all and it is apparent. I recently found out that she has been around the NASCAR scene for years after the death of her finance dating some of the drivers including Dale Jr. The media is portraying her as a gold digger. I can't say that I don't agree somewhat. 

Emily kept saying that they are already having "knock-down-drag-out fights" and that they have even broken up recently. Brad seem flustered and tired even. She wouldn't even consider moving to Austin, TX where he lives. Now, earlier in the show I thought this to be a deal breaker. Moral of the story, if you are a hottie then you can do anything in life. Utter crap...

My vote: They won't make it 6 months because the relationship is based on bull hockey crap!!! 

John "Bad Dog" McCormack

For the Memphians that follow my blog:

Yesterday we lost a local celebrity that touched so many lives and helped so many families with his kindness and his charity. I know that he worked for Clear Channel and it was their charity that put on the Ronald McDonald House radio-thon every year but we all associated it with Tim, Bev, and "Bad Dog". I was deeply saddened to hear that he had finally lost his battle with cancer yesterday afternoon. I feel as though I grew up listening to his intelligent responses and his infectious laugh. Both of my parents were fans and supporters of the radio-thon as well as his morning show, so I guess it spread to my brother and I. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family on this sad day. He did write a note to his fans which was posted on Rock 103's website last night. It was so touching and I wanted to share it with you all here. 

The announcement below was copied from Rock103.com.

John 'Bad Dog' McCormack: 1955-2011

From Ken Van Vranken: Bad Dog asked me a while ago to post this in the event of his passing..written by him for you: 

"I have gone to be with God and he is holding me tightly and I am surrounded by many of the Ronald McDonald House kids. Do not say you  have lost a friend. One is only lost when you don't know where they are.. you know where I am.

I thank each and every one of you for your support and prayers. I love all of you and that will never go away. When you are having a bad day, think of my laugh or a Twilight Phone or the time we met. None of us is guaranteed tomorrow, make every day great, be the spritual leader of your family. May peace be with you. Your friend, Bad Dog."

4:45pm 3/10/2011  We are saddened to tell you that Bad Dog passed away.  This is a very difficult time for the staff here and, of course, for John's family.  John was loved by so many.  We will pass along arrangements as John's family wishes.

3:00pm 3/10/2011  As some of you have by now heard, Bad Dog took a serious turn for the worse was admitted to Intensive Care this morning.  The situation is critical.  At this time, that is all that John's family would like said publicly

Much Needed Success

Here lately I have been working my way through C25K's IPhone app(Couch 2 5K) in order to get myself in much better shape and losing some freaking weight! For several years now, I have wished I could take up running/jogging but never really knew where to start. In the past I have pushed too hard too fast and let go of it because I wasn't seeing desired results in a certain amount of time and I was sore all the time. This app takes you through a week by week process breaking up the workouts in a way that makes it easy and fun to pass the time as you run. At first I was a little bored because it had me running and walking in 1 minute intervals, but a few weeks into it the program stepped up notch by notch. I have stamina while working out that I haven't had in years. My sleep patterns have improved dramatically with the exercise and all the water consumption that has been going on along side of all the cardio. Yesterday, I crossed a threshold with weight loss and I am happy to be finally seeing much needed results. I was on cloud nine for most of the day yesterday about it and couldn't wait to tell... well... anybody. 

For anybody that is interested in getting up off the couch and beginning a running program, I would highly recommend this app. It has changed the way I workout and help me gain some confidence about this uphill battle. 

For those of you who already run, I am open to any tips I can get. Let me know about your success stories and struggles. I think it helps to have accountability and support. I will keep you posted on my progress.

Austin goes to the vet

Austin needed his annual shots today. He also hurt his leg last night so I knew that a check up was necessary. He did very well and didn't bite a single dog! He's on medicine for now and has been put on rest for days. Hopefully he gets much better in a very short time.


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Parts Plus on board

Congratulations to Clay Millican (my uncle) and the MPE race team on the sponsorship from Parts Plus!






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Delta White

Can not say enough good things about The Millington Winery! We have absolutely loved trying out new tastes and pairing them with our meals. So, here's to the winery! Love you guys.


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Water for Elephants

Last night I finished my most recent read/love, Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.
I actually saw this book on a shelf about a year ago in Target and was immediately stuck by the vintage colored artwork that was displayed all across the cover. It was beautiful to me. I recently bought it on my Kindle and dove into it. My co-worker had also read it and was telling me that a movie for it was forth coming so I hurried to finish in anticipation. It truly was so vivid and entertaining.
The book surprised me often by describing the horrors that came with being a part of the most "spectacular show on earth" as well as it's perks. I can only remember seeing the circus once as a child, but being completely enamored with it's magic. The animals, the food, the excitement  all came rushing back to me as I progressed through this amazing book even though the time period was so long ago.
Upon finishing the last chapter, I decided read the Author's Note. She went into the stories of her research and how some of the craziest tales that were depicted during this story were actually real stories that came from documentation from traveling circuses around the world. Fascinating.


Hopefully this will have intrigued some of you to give this dreamy book a try. Oh, and did I mention that Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon will play the leads in the movie. I have included the trailer for your enjoyment.