Bunko

I spent Friday night playing Bunko with a bunch of really cool ladies. And it was Natalie's birthday. Good times. To top it all off, I actually won last night. Very cool. Here is a pic of all the Bunko girls. 

The Ring

So I can't figure out how to take a good photo of this ring. But here it is. And may I just say my lovely future husband picked this out all by himself. I am totally in love with him and this ring. And we chose a date, October 24, 2009 at the Fig Garden Swim and Racquet Club. Now I just want to enjoy being engaged for awhile with no wedding planning. 

Happy New Year

Happy New Year! I too cannot believe that 2008 is over, though I am glad that it is. This was not really a great year for me or my family. There were really good times but there was also a great deal of loss and pain. So I am really glad that this stupid year is over. I hope that 2009 will bring good things to everyone. We have a new president, I am getting married and I have good people in my life. 

I already have a huge list of resolutions. Sometimes I actually keep them too. Here are a few that rank at the top of my list:

-Learn how to be an amazing cook: I can totally read a recipe and I am not afraid to try one that looks intimidating. But this year I want to learn how to cook without a book. (Go brother for getting me the book Learn to Cook Without a Book). I want to be able to go the store and know what essentials I need. On busy weeknights, I want to be able to look in the fridge and find inspiration. I'm thinking my cooking adventures will make for good posts in the future. 

-Hand in hand with learning to cook comes my next resolution, eat out less often: Over the past 3 months I have lost 32 pounds on the Weight Watchers Plan (for anyone who is thinking weight loss and better health as a resolution, I highly recommend the WW program. It is amazing). The cool thing and the bad thing about the plan is that you can eat out and still lose weight. But as we all know eating out is really expensive and not always tasty. 

-Exercise: I say this every year, let's see what happens.

-Be more stylish: So since I have lost all this weight I have a strange attraction to anything girly. Shoes, dresses and cosmetics have never seemed all that important to me. With the weight loss, I gained incredible self-confidence. It has caused me to want to take care of myself and I think looking good feels good. Now I won't be going overboard. I won't wear pearls for house work and I won't wear stilettos to the grocery store. Or maybe I'll give that last one a try. 

Well these are a good start. What are your resolutions for 2009? Here is our we just got engaged photo. YAY!

Finally

Ryan proposed to me yesterday. I couldn't have asked for a better Christmas present. I love him more than anything and I am so excited for what our future holds. We have been together for a little over 4 years and since we live together, I didn't think that getting married would feel any different. I was wrong. Just being engaged has taken our relationship to a whole new level. This Christmas was the happiest of my life. 

Happy Holidays to everyone. Wishing you all joy, peace, love and good cheer. 

I will post some photos soon. 

Christmas Tree

I finally got my Christmas Tree up. I really love the way it makes our apartment smell. But I think I need a lesson on proper ornament placement. I try really hard to spread the ornament love, but they all seem to end up clustered together. Oh well, I think it is pretty.

Christmas Tree Lane

I just got done walking Christmas Tree Lane with my lovely family. I'm pretty lucky to live at the beginning of the Lane so I don't have to venture out to find parking.  It was so pretty and the lights and people really helped me get into the Christmas spirit. I heard through the grapevine that Sarah Marie P of Sarah said would be out walking the lane tonight as well. Hope she had as much fun as I did. One of the coolest things about Christmas Tree Lane is looking for all 8 of Santa's reindeer. This task is best done on a walking night, as it is hard to see those sneaky creatures from a car.

We all went to Hoover High School, so we thought it would be cute to take a picture with the Hoover sign. Pretty cute right. 

This is one of my favorite displays on the Christmas Tree Lane. My momma says its been around since she was a kid, and I think that is totally rad. I am not really religious per say, but I just love the way this Nativity Scene looks. 

It was a wonderful evening that really helped me get into the spirit. What traditions do you have to kickoff the Christmas (or other Holiday) season?

Bringing Back the Music

I just left Ryan's band practice. It was so exciting to see the smile that only playing music can bring. I guess I need to go back to the beginning of this year and tell you the sad story, so this post about a band practice will make sense. 

On March 21 of this year Ryan's best friend and fellow band-mate died. Nate was only 21 years old and there has not been a day since, that Ryan and I haven't missed him. He was a brilliant musician, truly talented beyond his years and one of the smartest young men I have ever known. Ryan and Nate played in a band together called Amongst the Missing.

For the last four years I enjoyed many shows and late night practices. And I really miss it. After Nate died, Ryan threatened to sell all of his equipment. He didn't of course, but he also didn't play for several months. It broke my heart because music is his passion. Thankfully, Ryan did start playing again, and after a few major purchases from Guitar Center, the band is back on. YAY! 

Tonight, Ryan and Mondo (the original drummer from Amongst the Missing and the reason Ryan and I met) are playing with some old friends. I hope this practice is all they hoped for (they have been really excited) and I hope Nate is watching us from wherever he is. 

RIP Nathanael Bridges 1986 - 2008