Monday, October 31, 2011

screw blog hoppin'. turns out i'm dream hoppin'

Apparently I'm creepin' into peoples dreams lately!



I got this e-mail from Katie last week:

You were in my dream last night. Creepy, no? But you were!! We were traveling of some sort and having a blast ! Ok love ya let me know! :)


Then, on the very same day, I got this e-mail from April:

Kate - don't think I am weird, promise?!?!?? Okay so I dreamt the other night that I met you and Sweet Bef. I swear I am not a stalker! Just excited for our get together I guess. :) am I straaaaaange?!?? Tell it to me straight. HA!


Two days go by, I hop on Twitter and see that Beth has been dreaming about me too. She text me and explained this hilarious dream of hers:

We were in Vegas for I think my birthday and my presents were all stuff from Toys R Us - stuffed animals, a doll house and black baby dolls. All the toys were unopened and I didn't know who got me what. We had to try to sneak into this guys VIP party.


Have I crept into your dreams yet?
Because apparently I'm dream hoppin'!
And if I haven't been in yours, I'm on my way..... See ya tonight!

***

Oh, and because it's Halloween I thought I would confess that it's not my favorite holiday. I don't hate it, but I don't care about it. At all. Bryan can't stand it. Bryan and I have been on the road working and away from our friends for every Halloween that we've known each other. We have never celebrated or dressed up. Fine by us. I'd die if I married someone who loved Halloween... he would too! I swear, we were made for each other!!

Friday, October 28, 2011

"i bet you hardly even remember home"

Last night at work the GM (of the tv station filming the football game we were at) came over to me, inquired about our job and concluded "this is a pretty cool job you have."
He and I chatted for a while when he asked "so you can't have a dog or a home life can you?"
Funny enough, I told him that I have a dog, a husband and a home. He was puzzled and I had a good laugh. My life puzzles a lot of people, so his questions and reaction were standard and crack me up every time!
Then he said "I bet you hardly even remember home."
And you know what? He's right!

I originally posted the below post back in late August, just after we had moved into our house. I've been really missing home a lot lately and realized last night that I don't entirely remember what home looks like, as we only lived there for 1 week. With that being said, I've decided to repost this to jog my memory... and because I love our home!

***

We moved in on a Monday and 8 days later, on the following Tuesday, we had to leave town for work. We needed to accomplish the majority of our unpacking, furniture placement and decorating in that short week. And we did. Mission accomplished!

Formal Living Room


Formal Dining Room (totally incomplete/unfinished)


Family Room


Downstairs bathroom


Guest Room #1


Guest Room #2


This year Ralph is celebrating his 10 year anniversary as my 1 and only plant!


Laundry Room


Master Bath


Kitchen


Family Room & Kitchen


We worked really hard and had a blast putting our house together. A freaking blast! So much is from our travels or pieces we've collected along the way. And much of it is brand spankin' new too! We absolutely love what we've done so far, but it's not even close to finished.

***

Next steps:
kitchen table
furnish our bonus room upstairs
install plantation shutters & roman shades
put a fence up for Cali
A kitchen table, window treatments and a fence will our next purchases... small fry needs to be able to run free!

***

We're so close, but are going to take a break for a few months to dive back into our careers.
Gotta make money to spend money, yo!

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Oklahoma City - The Cinderella City

Oklahoma is a special place to me for 3 reasons:
(1) Because I have been going there since I was in college
(2) Because it's one of the only states that I've been to and my dad hasn't!
(3) Because it's home to Carrie Underwood and Toby Keith


Back in July, I spent an evening eating sushi with a friend in downtown Tulsa, OK. This time Bryan and I found ourselves working in Norman at OU the weekend after the big upset to Texas Tech. OU is such a beautiful campus in their quaint college town, just 20 minutes south of Oklahoma City.

We were only in town for 1 day, so after work we cleaned ourselves up and headed to Bricktown - the entertainment District in downtown Oklahoma City.

A lil history:

Due to the Oklahoma River flowing through the outskirts of the city, back in the late 1800's and early 1900's four railroad companies had operations in Oklahoma City. Years later this is where the NAACP originated. Then the Great Depression hit and wiped out the whole area, leaving every warehouse vacant.

To revitalize the city, construction began on the Bricktown baseball stadium, the canal and shopping district in the early 1990's. This is my favorite part of Oklahoma City!


From the sidewalk to the steps to the building itself, everything is brick.

He loves ducks... Ducks love him!

A wall of art depicting OK City's growth and changes over the last century

Minor League Baseball Stadium

Mickey Mantle is an OK native


See this place? The roof top Skky Bar. Oh man did Renee and I have a crazy night there back in the day. It started out so fun, and then we put ourselves in the worst possible position I've ever put myself in. Crazy memories of that night....


After Bricktown, Bryan and I ventured over to the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial. This was my 4th time there and our 2nd time going together. It's sad, moving and an absolute must when in the area.

Reflection Pool and Chairs (there is a chair for each person who lost their life that day)

A piece of the original building

Chairs

Two of the chairs here are smaller than the others... because they represent a child who's life was stolen.

This tree is the only thing that lived/was saved after the explosion. It was around before that day and still stands as a beacon of hope.

This grass was the on site daycare's playground
I'm already looking forward to the next time I'm in town...

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

da bubies

That is what we call our angel. I'm not sure why, but I think that "the baby" slurred into "da bubies" when I whine for small fry. Now Bryan and I both refer to her as that when we're really missing her... which is every minute of everyday!

Cali is spending the fall in California, just like she did last year. She loves it there. I mean, it is her namesake after all!

Every errand my dad runs, Cali runs with him. 2 days ago I got a text from my dad saying "Cali and I are looking at Jaguars today." I'll spare you my smart ass response, as I don't think it went over too well on my dad. Yesterday he caught this adorable yawn while they were out and about.

She's his grand-dog. His little buddy. His side kick. His chick magnet!



Don't you just love the collar my parents bought her? It's Angels baseball red with little heart studs -- so incredibly perfect for my sweet tomboy! My mom put it perfectly - "she needed some quiet bling"

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Kansas: Lawrence and Kansas City

Kansas is one of those states where, when mentioned, people say "how boring" or "I'm sorry you have to be there for a whole week," but those who make those comments are generally people who've never been. Those people have no clue how fantastic Kansas can be!

Over the past 7 years I've spent a decent amount of time in Wichita and Kansas City, both of which I look forward to each time I see them listed on my schedule!

We spent last week working in front of the KU student union and at the Kansas State @ KU game. We stayed near KU in Lawrence for part of the week and then in a suburb of Kansas City, Overland Park, the remainder of the week. Both locals provided much activity for us, as Lawrence is your typical college town and Overland Park is one of my favorite suburbs.

**

The Plaza is a large outdoor mall with swanky restaurants flanking its high end stores. Our Friday night consisted of seeing Footloose, dinner at RA Sushi, sake bombs and then a night cap at a dimly lit, romantic wine bar. Date was a complete success!


Lawrence has a distinct tree lined "Main St." called Massachusetts St. Mass consists of unique boutique's, chain shopping stores (such as Gap) and an unGodly amount of restaurants/bars -- this is where the college students spend all of their free time! Sara's husband is from Kansas City and is a KU alum, so when looking for a good lunch spot on Mass, I looked no further than Todd. Quinton's did not disappoint!

Kansas State @ KU Football Game


Back in Overland Park, Bryan and I spent Sunday afternoon glued to a sports bar tv and then headed back to RA for dinner that night.


I loved calling Kansas home for the week, but am ready to pack up and head back south...