A Bit Obsessed

As we were driving home from my mom's this weekend, a wolf suddenly ran in front of our car. My first thought?

We almost hit Jacob Black.

Twilight

Today, Jason took me to see Twilight. We decided to go to the earliest showing of the day - at nine-forty-five in the morning - hoping to avoid the crowds - and the teenagers. It worked - the theater was pretty empty.

Overall, I loved the movie. There were a few things that disappointed me, mainly the way that Edward sparkled. I pictured him emiting rays of light, but he just looked like he was covered in glitter. Bummer. I was happy that it followed the book as closely as it did and can't wait to see New Moon... too bad they just started the screenplay.

A Letter To Starbucks

Dear Geniuses at Starbucks,

I love you. I really do. All summer long I drink your wonderful Shaken Iced Teas, rotating between the Passion Tea and the Black Tea. If you read my blog, which I'm sure that you do, then you would know how much I am longing to sip down something from the Pumpkin Spice family. And today should have been the day I satisfied my craving. I pulled up to the drive thru menu and there it was... Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino! I practically shrieked with joy as I gave my order to Jason to give to the nice lady on the speaker - A Grande Decaf Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino. My husband repeats the order to the nice lady on the speaker and suddenly the nice lady becomes my worst enemy. "I'm sorry sir, we no longer make a decaf base for the Frappuccino's" My eyes widen, horrified and then they start to fill with tears. For you see, Dear Geniuses, you have broken my heart. Crushed my spirit. Taken away one of my simplest pleasures in life. I can never again indulge in a Frappuccino - not just my beloved Pumpkin Spice, but also my Caramel Mocha one, and well... all of them. For you see, Geniuses, my body simply can't tolerate caffeine from coffee - I get the shakes and feel dizzy and get nauseous to the point that I want to throw up, well, actually, I feel that way now, from this devastating news. I doubt that I am alone. All you Geniuses are trying to come up with new ways to increase your sales, like your new fancy schmancy breakfast options, but yet you have the brilliant idea to take away my drink. If you knew just how often Pumpkin Spice calls my name, multiple times a week, you would see how much money you are going to loose by your ingenious decision. Now, I am down on my knees begging, pleading with you to bring back my drink. How am I going to survive the Fall without quenching my thirst for Pumpkin Spice? Oh, woe is me!

Sadly,

Rachel

a.k.a. the girl who actually cries over lost Frappuccinos

And I Thought I Loved Twilight...

Overheard conversation at Target between two employees - one of whom was pregnant: "I'm trying to convince my husband to name the baby Renesmee Carlie"

What Happens In Vegas Goes On The Blog

Over the weekend we went to Las Vegas to celebrate my brother-in-law's birthday. Truth be told, I wasn't really looking forward to going (it was my first time away from Dillon for more than one night), but I ended up having a great time! We did a little bit of gambling and a lot of sightseeing.

On Friday, we did a bunch of shopping at the outlet mall at stateline and I picked up some new serving bowls at the Williams-Sonoma Marketplace that I hope to be able to use one of these days. Friday night we hung out at the Hard Rock Casino since it was right next to our hotel (which didn't have a casino and was except for a floor or two smoke-free). It was really cool to see all the guitars and drums and clothing items that they had on display. There were two neat chandeliers - one was made out of saxophones and the other out of cymbals. Even a few celebrities were there: Willie Nelson, Gene Simmons and Vince Neil.

Saturday we had breakfast at the Venetian hotel. I ordered the french toast and it was amazing. After breakfast we wandered around the shops and then went to Paris. Susan and I strolled through all the shops and the boys played video poker. Next we took the monorail from Bally's to MGM Grand and walked from MGM to New York, New York. We had a snack and some drinks at The Nine Fine Irishman and then went back to our hotel for a few minutes of R and R. After our little break, it was off to the Hofbrauhaus, which is a recreation of the place in Germany where they have Oktoberfest. This was the place where Dale wanted to celebrate his birthday and the whole point of twelve people going to Las Vegas (and it was pretty much the only time we were all together).

Friday night at the Hard Rock, Jason got us hooked on Deal or No Deal slot machienes. We had to search for them at each and every casino we went to. It was nice because generally they were penny slots. I was so used to playing one cent slots, that I didn't even notice when I sat down at a five cent slot. Saturday, while walking through the MGM Grand, Jason gave me five dollars to play with and on my first spin, I got to play the suitcase bonus game. The banker offered me fifteen-hundred credits and I, not wanting to be greedy, decided that sure I'll take fifteen dollars. I didn't stop to think that I was actually nickels, not pennies and I had actually won a lot more than fifteen dollars - I cashed out with ninety-three dollars plus change! I was so excited because I never win on slots. So, on the way home from Vegas, we stopped at the outlets again because there were a few things there that I saw on the first trip there that were calling my name.

me taking a picture of Susan...

taking a picture of me!

Jameson... yummy!

Playing Deal or No Deal:

A Few Of My Favorite Things

Jeannett did a post of her favorite things and I really liked the idea. So, here are a few of my favorite things...

~~My iPod~~

I love having all my music with me. If I feel like listening to Christmas music in July, I can. My favorite thing is that I can shuffle my five thousand plus songs and not hear the same song for months. Plus, it's great that I can hear a song by MercyMe, followed by Metallica, followed by Muse, followed by something from a musical. I love variety!

~~ Bath and Body Works Hand Soap~~

I hoard hand soap from Bath and Body Works. It's a little on the expensive side, but when it's on sale - look out! - I have to stock up. My favorite is the Kitchen Lemon. I love how it really gets rid of all the nasty cooking smells from your hands. It banishes the onion and garlic smells from my hands like magic. Maybe instead of hand soap, it's really a magic potion.

~~Black and White Pictures~~

For the first year of his life, I got Dillon's picture taken at least monthly. I know - I'm a little nuts. But, being a scrapbooker, it was necessary (in my mind at least). He was such a good little picture taker. Some of my favorite were the black and white pictures. They just look so nice. The Angel picture is probably my favorite - it was taken when he was three weeks old. I also love the ones in the three picture frame and am proud to say that they were taken by yours truly.

~~Flip Flops~

I must have a million pairs. Ok, so not really, but at least twenty. I wear them all the time - even in winter, even in the rain. I have white pairs, light blue, navy blue, silver, pink, peach and brown pairs. I have ones with decoration and plain ones. I love the ones from Old Navy - they are so cheap that I don't have to worry if one gets dirty or I loose one - I can always replace them with a new pair.

~~Necklaces~~

I am rarely seen without a necklace on - I wear one almost everyday. I feel naked when I don't have one on. These are the ones that I wear most often. My two favorites are the snowflake and the Breathe one. I got the snowflake one at Epcot in the Norway Pavilion and the Breathe one is from Lisa Leonard. Lisa makes such beautiful hand made jewelry. I can't wait to buy another one from her.

~~Coach Bags~~

I admit - I'm a little obsessed with them. Susan and I used scrapbook with these ladies who always had to go out and buy the newest bags - we would always laugh at them. We couldn't imagine ever spending that much money on one hand bag. Then one day I woke up and decided that I wanted one. So, I dragged Jason to the store to look and being the wonderful husband that he is, he bought me one. (I will also tell you that I am not too proud to admit that I got the first one at the Coach factory store). I was so impressed with it's quality that I was instantly hooked. (I realize that they are a bit frivolous, but when I stop and think about how many times we have gone out to eat and the bill was more than my bags, well, at least I can keep my bags.) I now own the pictured bags plus a few accessories - wallets and such. And, I proudly declare that more than one bag was purchased at the factory store - they have such great discounts (one bag was originally priced at over three hundred dollars and I got it for less than one hundred)

~~Soup~~

I love soup - plain and simple. It is so wonderful to whip up a batch of homemade chicken noodle on a cold winter day - especially when not feeling so great.

~~Fire~~

There is nothing quite like a blazing fire. I love warming up in front of the fireplace wrapped in a soft, cuddly blanket. I love the smell it makes outside and the sound of the crackling wood. In fact, one of the reasons that we ended up buying our house was because of the beautiful fireplace.

~~Cooking Light~~

Hands down - my favorite magazine. I love cooking. Actually, I love, love, LOVE cooking! It's wonderful to be able to get new recipes each month that are healthy for you, easy to make and that taste amazing. I have been a subscriber for almost eight years and have yet to find a bad recipe. Everything I have made has been totally yummy! People always comment that I am a great cook - but it's largely in part due to my secret weapon - Cooking Light.

~~My Duvet~~

I love snuggling under my duvet. Since I am allergic to down, I got a synthetic down duvet and it is just a wonderful as a down one. It's so fluffy and cozy. When I feel sick, I feel instantly better just climbing under my covers.

So there you have it - my favorites.

Over The River And Through The Woods...

Last week was Jason's annual "men's trip." So, since I hate staying alone, Dillon and I went to visit my Mom and Grandma in Bishop. We had a really nice trip. So relaxing - I was able to read a whole book - and not just any book - a nice, long, fat book with 759 pages! It was great to not have all the everyday household chores hurled at me. I did cook two meals for everyone, but I do not consider this a chore - I love doing it!

Dillon had a great time following my mom around the house, feeding the doggies his food (and dropping the food on the dog's back), going for walks with Grandpa Steve, begging for food (taking after the dogs, I suppose) and sitting in the little chair that my brother made in high school wood shop. My mom also gave Dillon a bath in her laundry room sink every night - which he loved!

One day we drove up to Mammoth. It is such a pretty drive. I love seeing all the mountains and lakes, the cute little towns. We stopped for lunch at a little cafe called Tom's Place. We sat outside on the patio and ate lunch to the sound of the nearby stream. Up in Mammoth, we did some shopping and I went to one of my favorite stores. My mom added to my Coach collection with an early Christmas present! You gotta love Christmas in July!!

We came back home on Saturday and then it was rush, rush, rush... Saturday night - shopping. Sunday - Wedding Shower. Monday - kicked out of the house at the very last minute for contractors. Tuesday - hung out with my best friend... I need another vacation!

Dillon eating his Grammie's breakfast

Trying to get Nana's breakfast...

he got it!

My Birthday

Well, Wednesday is my birthday and the celebrating is already almost over. I've already had my birthday dinners and opened 99% of my presents (or I should say that I helped open my presents - Dillon wouldn't leave them alone). There is only 1 slice of cake left. But, so far, it has been a great birthday. I got to eat at 2 of my favorite places - Ruth's Chris and Lucille's Smokehouse. I got lots of wonderful presents: a new Coach purse and wallet, a bunch of goodies from Crate & Barrel, gift cards to Target (my home away from home) and some money (which will be spent at C & B). It was really cool - I got presents each day from Wednesday until today - it was nice to not open them all at once. I don't have much else to say about my "birthweek" except: Thank you every one!! and here are some pictures: