Turkey!

Thanksgiving really can't be just a few short days away, it doesn't seem possible, time could not have flown by so quickly. But, it has. Last year my holidays, starting with Thanksgiving, were a little shooken up and took a different course than usual. This year, while I'm not getting back to the usual schedule, I am getting to celebrate the holidays in a more normal fashion and I'm very excited about it. Last year, I never really got into the spirit until right before Christmas so it was hard for me to enjoy things- there were a lot of issues going on, none of which will be discussed on this here blog, so hopefully with many of those things behind me I can get back to a slightly different, but more normal routine.

I'm going to help my mom cook Thanksgiving supper on Thursday morning (after I wake up early and go for a nice run since it's going to be like 75 degrees outside). I'm really excited! Since I haven't had Thanksgiving at my parent's house in a while, and she hasn't cooked it in a while, we're trying some new methods. Rather than a huge bird for the three of us we're just doing seasoned turkey breasts and some of the usual culprits for side dishes. I'm also going to roast some of my favorite veggies and make cilantro/lime black beans to mix with them. I know you're thinking "what tha?!" but I love veggies and black beans together and we're just having fun this year. Rather than making desserts, I ordered a pie from my little buddy Jayce when his baseball team was doing a fundraiser with Pie in the Sky Pies in Conroe. They were so sweet to deliver the pecan pie I ordered on Saturday (plus I got to visit with Tami and little Miss so it was a win win). I can't wait to try the pie, it looks super delish! My boys are playing Thursday night against the Jets, so I'll be watching that while I'm being lazy from eating all the food. I'm pretty excited. I'm sure the parents and I will get a game or two of scrabble in there somewhere, it's what we always did on holidays. :)

Something not holiday related, but that I'm also looking forward to, is seeing Breaking Dawn Part 2 on Wednesday night with Isabel. We've been holding out waiting for the crazies to get their fix so the theater is less crowded and ridiculous. I'm kind of over the whole series, but I do have to see the movie just to see it. I know, that sounds silly. I have heard they changed some stuff, specifically the ending so I'm looking forward to that. I'm kind of hoping someone dies or something just to really change things up. We shall see!

I'm working through Wednesday, although the students don't have class Wednesday so it's kind of silly for the University to be open, but oh well. I will be the only one in the office that day so I can play some Christmas music and really enjoy being in the holiday spirit this year. The guys in the office aren't really the holiday types. Anyway, I usually get my fix with the music on the way to work, so I'm kind of stoked to be able to listen to it all day long in the office!

What are your Thanksgiving plans? I am very thankful this year, for many, many things so we'll just leave it at that. I am very thankful. My goal this holiday season is to try and spread some holiday spirit/awesomeness whenever possible. I'm going to start carrying Christmas cards with me and anytime I'm at the store (or anywhere really) and someone seems like they could use a pick me up, the cashier looks entirely overworked, or maybe just another patron who seems overly stressed I will give them a card and hopefully brighten their day just a little. I've thought about even putting a little Starbucks card in a few, for someone who seems like they could really use it. Nothing too fancy or expensive just a little something to let people know there's someone out there that cares. Hopefully this will inspirse some of you to come up with your own "holiday spirit spreaders" or you can even use this one, I don't mind! (plus it's not like I invented it or anything hehe) I think we should all focus on getting back to the holiday spirit rather than just shopping and not really focusing on family/friends and what the holidays really mean.

Sorry, didn't mean to go off on a tangent. Talking about the holidays makes my head spin into so many different directions... maybe I have ADD. haha. Anyway, hope you all have a very fabulous Thanksgiving with your family, friends, volunteering, by yourself, or however you choose to spend this holiday. Just remember to be safe, especially if you have drinks!

xoxo,
kris

Toes in the Sand

Sorry for the lack of posts, I've been uber busy lately! I know that's no excuse, but there ya go. The first weekend in November I spent running errands and finishing up a wreath that was ordered. And by running errands, I mean running around like a chicken with my head cut off getting everything ready for my vacation/destination wedding in the islands! I was so pumped. Obviously, I was so extremely stoked to be part of Dev's wedding but also to go to Grand Cayman and stay at the Ritz? Who would not be ready to shoot out the door for that?! The weather was perfect, other than a front that brought in some major wind for the majority of our trip. But, the sun was shining the entire time and it was beautiful. The ceremony and dinner following it were both held directly on the beach at the Ritz so it was very fabulous, especially with the sunset in the background. Definitely the most beautiful scene I've come across in real life. The rehearsal dinner was on a deck overlooking the water as well. Everything was really just perfect. We spent the days laying on the beach being waited on with drinks and yummy food. The only thing I wish we could have done was visit Stingray City. It was so windy that it didn't work out for snorkeling over there. Oh well, I'll just have to go back in the near future ;)

 

Laying out at the Ritz

The hotel (just one little part) it was HUGE! It went across the street with a sky bridge and everything.

 

Our travel agent was awesome and requested for my room to be near Dev's, and since they received an upgrade, I did as well! We were all supposed to be "garden/resort view" across the street, but we our upgrad got us beach side with ocean views. (and a living room!) :)

 

Dev had the cutest little bags waiting in our rooms for us and they included this super awesome potholder that her mom quilted. Love it!

 

The ceremony was literally right on the beach. They did a great job with simple, classy decorations.

 

Here comes the beautiful bride!

 

Her flowers were gorgeous! (and there's me holding my dress down in the wind lol)

 

The table cloth blew up right when the picture was being taken, after 3 tries, we gave up haha.

 

More amazing beach. Look at that water! :D

 

I have been converted to a beach person after this trip, however, only clear/blue water beaches. So pretty.

 

The last day I drove around with a couple people that were on my flight to tour the island before heading to the airport. The water/beach was so different on different sides of the island.

 

The water was still clear, but not as deep of a blue and no white sand. We definitely had the best beach at our hotel!

 

Here's our little rental car. It was actually very roomy on the inside. The Caymans are Brittish Isles so we had to drive on the left, so different! I don't think I could have done it, thanks Roger! :)

 

While driving around, we stopped at Rum Point for lunch.

 

They had this hilarious sign hanging at the bar, LOVE IT! Having been in the food service industry for many years, I wish I could have said smartass things like this to people often!

 

 

 

Well that's all the pics I have for now. I still have to load my camera photos to my computer, these are just from my ipad. I really loathe loading my outdated point and shoot photos. Maybe Santa needs to bring me a new big girl camera? haha! Anway, hope you're all doing well and fall is kicking off with a bang for ya. I can't believe Thanksgiving is less than a week away! I mean really, where does the time go?

 

xoxo,

kris

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



running running and running running.

First off, who is not absolutely loving this cold weather we are having?! Unfortunately, it looks like we'll be back up in the 80's by the end of the week, but this first real cold spell has been marvelous! Now onto the part where the cold weather was not my friend....

A few of you already know this, but it's been a goal of mine this year to run a race. Not just run a 5k or anything like that, but something with a little more distance. Well, Saturday my friend and I ran the Huntsville Half & Quarter Marathon! We did the quarter, as this was the first race I have ever been in and his first in a long time. So yeah, the cold Saturday morning was BRUTAL! I can't run in pants, leggings/spandex are included in that category. So I was out there in the 41 degree weather with my shorts on. I did wear an Adidas version of Under Armor with my t-shirt, so that added a little warmth. I also sported a very stylish headband for my ears, circa the 80's. This was my first official race (even though I've been running on and off for years now) and I wasn't about to let some silly weather ruin it! For those of you that don't know, a quarter marathon is 6.55 miles. We ran all through campus and the surrounding area, so there were plenty of hills! :/

I didn't set any crazy expectations about times or anything. I just wanted to finish the race without walking or having to use my inhaler (I have Asthma). Due to the cold, I went ahead and used my inhaler before we started since my lungs were already burning, but it worked out well! I didn't need it again and I really didn't have any trouble breathing throughout the course. There was an initial big hill by the stadium that my legs don't even remember climbing, they were numb from the cold, and then it was kind of rolling with nothing too big until we reached University Ave. There was a long steady incline and it was brutal since it was more than halfway through the course. People were dropping like flies on that thing! Everyone around me was stopping to walk up it, but I just kept repeating to myself (and possibly aloud like a crazy lady) to just keep running. Even though it was more like a jog on that hill, I got up without stopping and was able to resume my pace at the top. I was so proud of myself and knew that I could finish the rest of the race without stopping. Well that, and Bon Jovi came on my iPhone singing "It's My Life" and that accompanied with my happiness of getting over the hill pushed me to keep running for the rest of the race. You know, Bon Jovi is very inspirational. =D

I really had no idea what to expect for time or anything, like I said, my goal was to finish without walking I had no illusions that I would somehow become The Flash and crush everyone. But, I actually ended up getting 5th place for my age group, so I was happy with that on top of meeting my original two goals! After the race we headed over to McKenzies and chowed down on some delicious BBQ! I have been loving their chopped brisket sandwiches, even though I rarely eat them. It was mighty tasty on Saturday!

I think we're going to try to run a 10k, which is just slightly shorter than the quarter, in December. I'm hoping to get to the half by early spring. It's really hard for me to run outside in the warmer months in Texas with the crazy humidity we have and my Asthma. We shall see, it's definitely on my list of things to accomplish that's for sure!

On a much different note, I had several projects I was going to work on Sunday but I had a water pipe bust Saturday night and water was leaking out of THREE different walls! That was definitely not fun. Neither was going without water of any kind from Saturday night through Monday morning. The plumber got me all fixed up though, so now I have water. I need to fix the gigantic hole in my bathroom wall, but that's nothing as long as the water is back! ;) 

Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend and enjoyed the little taste of cold weather!

xoxo,
kris

One Week to Halloween!

I cannot believe that Halloween is one week from today. Time sure is flying by! Last year I didn't get to carve a pumpkin (one of my all time favorite things of all holidays) and it's not looking so great for this year either. I guess that's ok since I'm probably not going to be handing out candy or anything either. My neighborhood has just gotten really cranky with the holiday spirit. Annoying right?! Last year I went over to Heather and Ryan's to dole out the goods and it was a blast, but with Miss E getting older they're hitting up a carnival this year. I'm thinking it will be an order pizza and watch a movie kind of night. Maybe a little Hocus Pocus? LOVE that movie. What are y'all doing for Halloween? Working with college students and hearing about all their costumes makes me miss the days of dressing up, kinda. It's always fun in theory, but then I can never come up with a super AH-mazing costume like everyone else seems to have. So yeah, pizza and a movie sound fabulous!

I have been so freaking busy lately! Life just seems to be flying by at an exceptionally fast pace and it's pretty crazy. This past weekend I was back in good 'ol CStation for my dear friend Erin's birthday festivities. It was so much fun seeing her and all the other Cheddar's girls we used to hang out with (and eating at Cheddar's!) we had a blast. Sometimes it's fun to pretend you're still 20 and hit up Northgate and all the old haunts like Gatsbys. We did run into Von Miller outside Gatsbys when we were leaving, that was pretty awesome! Our night wouldn't have been complete without an Aggie football player run-in/hang out... Martellus, Reggie anyone? ;)

A few of us here in the Ville have started a book club, which I've always wanted to be a part of so I'm super excited about! We are meeting Thursday night to discuss our first book, Gone Girl. I had heard so many good things about this book and it's been on the best seller list for a while now so I figured it would be a good book to start with. Let me just say this book is totally CRAZY. The characters are like insane in the membrane out of their mind crazy. Which in some ways is good, it was definitely not very easy to anticipate the direction of the book (which I'm usually really good at doing) but it was also a little hard to follow sometimes with all the twist and turns. I'd say if you like mysteries and are down for a little psychotic twist, then this would be a good book for you my friend. I'm really excited to see what books the other girls pick each month. I'm sort of a book nerd if you haven't been able to figure that out yet. I'll have to start doing a review each month of our books on here, although it'll have to wait until after we meet, just in case some of the lovely ladies are procrastinators with their reading. (not everyone can be as nerdy as me and finish the book in a couple days just because they need to haha!)

 Anyway hope everyone is having a great week, only two more days to the weekend!

xoxo,
kris

Tuesday.

First off, let me just say how extremely excited I am that today is Tuesday and it's time for another new episode of Sons of Anarchy! Can't wait to watch it tonight :D

Ok, now on with the good stuff. Well, I obviously survived Fair on the Square! I was a very long, super awesome weekend. I'm so glad I did it. I slept for about 3-4 hours Thursday night and then didn't go to sleep again until 9:45pm Saturday night. Let's just say I was really realllllly tired. But, it was most definitely worth it. I had a great spot, the vendors around me were totally awesome (for the most part) and there was a steady crowd throughout the day. I was a little nervous as to what to expect, but I ended up doing really well- sold a little more than half my stuff! My neighboring vendors said their first times they barely made enough to cover the booth (which is $150) so I was pleasantly surprised Saturday night when I tallied everything up. If you're interested in anything, check the Facebook page as there are still a few items left (several wreaths, some pillows and a few birdfeeders). It was so much fun, I will definitely be doing it again next year. I would really like to try and make the Christmas Fair this year, I just don't know if I'll have enough time to get things done before then. (I'm booked pretty much every weekend through Thanksgiving) But we shal see!

Here are a few pics from the weekend. If you came out, thank you so much for stopping by and supporting me!! :)

Hope everyone's week is starting out great!

xoxo,
kris

Finally!

Well it's finally arrived. Fair on the Square is tomorrow! Can you believe it?! I'm so excited, tired, and little nervous, but mostly excited. I've been working like crazy to get things ready for you guys and hopefully everyone that stops by the booth enjoys it. Today, work has basically been a blur. You may be asking yourself "Why the HECK are you at work today?!" Welllll, I was planning on taking off, but with the car trouble recently I had to leave early several days and with Dev's wedding coming up soon I just can't take that much time off. So yeah, I'm in a zombie-like state today. I'm going to try to get in a super duper power nap before I continue working this evening, but we shall see! I am definitely pulling an all-nighter, since I have to be up at the square unloading and setting up in the wee hours of the morning (ie 3-4AM) it works best for me to not go to bed than get a couple hours of sleep. Regardless of the sleep deprivation, I'm still so freaking excited!

On another note, I'm going to let you in on the best little secret snack for October. Really, the best ever! Are you ready for this? Candy Corn and unsalted peanuts! Mix them together in a container and eat them at the same time. It. Tastes. Like. Snickers. Seriously, y'all! Give it a try and tell me what you think. I'm not a huge candy corn fan, and by huge I mean I really can't stand it. But, in this combo it really works! I've already turned several of my coworkers into addicts. It's simple and easy to make, festive for the season, and super deslish. Oh, and it's cheap! You can't beat that.

Anyway, just wanted to share that little candy corn tidbit with y'all. Hope everyone is having a fabulous Friday! I'm going to go ahead and get back to work so I can try to cut out a little early so I can get back to work at home. :)

Have a great weekend and if you're in the area, come see me at the Fair on the Square! (I'll be near the Facemaker!)

xoxo,
kris

ps. sorry for the lack of pics, more to come next week of the booth and awesome fair stuff, I promise!

Sneak Peeks!

In case you haven't noticed from the 5,000 times I've mentioned it, Fair on the Square is THIS WEEK! eeeeek! I'm so excited! This Saturday we'll be out all day, so come by and see us while you're busy shopping and enjoying all the awesomeness the fair has to offer each year. The weather looks like it will be amazing, so it should be a great weekend to be outdoors.

I've been working my fingers to the bone getting things ready, hopefully it will pay off and everyone will love our stuff. I have so many things left to do on the list before Friday, but I did make a last minute decision to add some Halloween crafts to the list too. (I know, I may be a tad insane!) I cranked out several of them Saturday and I'm really loving how they turned out.

Don't mind the shelf or random greenery in the background, I just hung them up for a quick pic in the middle of working Saturday night. I have a couple more that couldn't fit on the rod for the pic, but you can get the idea. I'm going to make several more so there will be a decent amount available for this weekend. On a non-Halloween note, I'm also planning to make some Christmas hangers as well... That is, if I don't run out of hours in the days before Friday night!

Here's another sneak peek at a Fall wreath that will be at Fair on the Square.

Please excuse the messy carpet, my shadow and the teeny tiny stem of a flower stem at the top of the pic, oh and the horrible lighting. yeah, I probably should have mentioned the lighting first. I should really learn to take pictures in the day, and not after I've been working for a gazillion hours straight.

And just because it's Monday, the boss it out, and I'm feeling great (all be it exhausted) I'll give you one more peak at another Fall wreath.

Again, don't mind the messy carpet or the edge of the Ruffle Wreath in the top corner or the horrible lighting. I'm making a mental note to take pictures in the daylight hours and only AFTER the wreath is completely ready to hang. HA!

I just get so excited and then once I've moved on to something else, I forget to go back and take another picture. Oh well, we live learn!

Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend. It's October 1st y'all! Here's to a great week and an even better month, loving this Fall weather!

xoxo,
kris