tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58904744365232706152024-03-18T16:16:00.271-05:00A Gurley GurlAllenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.comBlogger2589125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-76606429160193786132024-03-18T16:15:00.001-05:002024-03-18T16:15:17.884-05:0025 Questions (Questions 1-5)<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Natasha started answering these questions and I thought they looked fun and would also be good to do while things in Gurley-land were running along smoothly.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">1. <b>What does your ideal day look like?</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">My ideal day would involve being on vacation with a chai and a good book! A little sight-seeing, some yummy food, and good time with our family {who this magical trip would be with}.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This wouldn't be a bad view on my perfect day!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpbfc2nVwi3WHyyuZJ4N2KCQpBMEhPATjcq22G-sF2eyTDENrhkB0_3nC8f9Ysec5pWOXyflPRSqR0ErbNiKEXw7Wd9iOMaUoNLL1FqEfS97sHFPWZKZmQ1tYnYdmgofZCDC8dESjQjBxqHM2Vom4H2WkqevcLhy-IOeP7vS-_vv4PEOLkPZZzzhtQ/s1600/honeymoon%20068.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpbfc2nVwi3WHyyuZJ4N2KCQpBMEhPATjcq22G-sF2eyTDENrhkB0_3nC8f9Ysec5pWOXyflPRSqR0ErbNiKEXw7Wd9iOMaUoNLL1FqEfS97sHFPWZKZmQ1tYnYdmgofZCDC8dESjQjBxqHM2Vom4H2WkqevcLhy-IOeP7vS-_vv4PEOLkPZZzzhtQ/w640-h480/honeymoon%20068.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />2. <b>What did you want to be when you were younger?</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I always imagined I would be a teacher. My parents were teachers and 3 of my grandparents were teachers, and I loved playing school with my sister. We had old gradebooks of our parents and would raid the lockers at the H.S. on the last day of school and get to take home binders and notebooks and had a blast playing school. Absolutely ridiculous to think about now, I would be a terrible teacher!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">3. <b>Who are you most inspired by? Why?</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">My mom! Growing up, I didn't realize how hard everything she did was [and now as a working mom, I know!]. I always felt loved and cared for, and she made our life look relaxed and easy. She worked a full-time job {while my dad worked 80 hour works for a good chunk of the year as a football coach in Texas ha}, kept our house running and clean, cooked meals for us, played with us, did it all! And now she is the most amazing grandmother - the kids love being at her house and spending time with her. She is definitely my role model for the mother I strive to be and the grandmother I hope to be someday!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The best Babs!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAJeXT2myFNE5w1KMKLYwUnSRqt-JhqKYAfshdBxwE3GKA0V-e77LE4VtfULEhOaqEhcOlYxMwaRORNA29G1o9Q31Rkq23CWDflmGE8-zVcQLlflLaWYwkEA7FRdWGACxolpJHtWL5qIMI7_ljD82yJ5XiKfZOuD87fol7-WXIHDQWwPBDnWNuVMaS/s4032/swope7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAJeXT2myFNE5w1KMKLYwUnSRqt-JhqKYAfshdBxwE3GKA0V-e77LE4VtfULEhOaqEhcOlYxMwaRORNA29G1o9Q31Rkq23CWDflmGE8-zVcQLlflLaWYwkEA7FRdWGACxolpJHtWL5qIMI7_ljD82yJ5XiKfZOuD87fol7-WXIHDQWwPBDnWNuVMaS/w640-h480/swope7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />4. <b>Who would you love to meet? What would you ask?</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This question would be very different if not for where my brain has been the last few weeks, but right now, it's Kate Middleton! Ha! I am SO curious as to what surgery she actually had {I think facelift if she actually had surgery} and what the heck is going on. Are she and William fighting? Did she have a nervous breakdown? Is his supposed mistress pregnant?!?!?! WHERE IS SHE?</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">My all-time favorite look of hers!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqdsoaFakHnDWGlQVznjZfP_tUYXJXHepF5LkuqBzfFnV-45Mlbn6oBa4dzZFUaxHvdX5PFZYziqm3_-lMbtWAN8zRpXQwsi8TRWGDgtriSnSeiDTuCgJXr-6ZD4A9628rZShUP2BIKz2lRP4IeuLmCvz04CoNgNcqqQSwW18BviiEi0BhddY99Rt4/s1200/kate-middleton-gold-dress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1200" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqdsoaFakHnDWGlQVznjZfP_tUYXJXHepF5LkuqBzfFnV-45Mlbn6oBa4dzZFUaxHvdX5PFZYziqm3_-lMbtWAN8zRpXQwsi8TRWGDgtriSnSeiDTuCgJXr-6ZD4A9628rZShUP2BIKz2lRP4IeuLmCvz04CoNgNcqqQSwW18BviiEi0BhddY99Rt4/w640-h360/kate-middleton-gold-dress.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />5. <b>What habit would you most like to break? What habit would you most like to start?</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>BAD HABIT</b>: If you know me at all or have read my blog for any amount of time, I would love to change my relationship with food and especially sugar! [Typing this as I drink a coke!]</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>NEW HABIT</b>: I have made big strides in being less of a clutter person, but I would love to get even better with this! It makes me feel so much better when my house is organized, so I've really been trying to put things away right away and/or taking little breaks throughout the day to clean. </span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-25590341931778797992024-03-14T09:58:00.000-05:002024-03-14T09:58:02.368-05:00Soy Sauce<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I got scolded by my mother for my lack of blogging...but life is just rolling along and there isn't much exciting happening! I think that's a good thing though - just not creating a lot of content. {grin} We did see Sawyer yesterday for a LONG time at my parents' house - they had 'Cousin Camp' for a few days this week since we are on Spring Break. We hadn't seen the Patnodes in a bit because the last time we got together...the next morning both girls were sick, and I felt so terrible that we might have exposed Sawyer to 2 different viruses! Luckily they were all ok! But now I present...an afternoon with Sawyer a.k.a. Soy Sauce.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">When I got there, I immediately took my baby. And everyone laughed because this was predicted. Blair said '<i>Babs said they better hold him quick before Aunt Allena gets here.</i>' Yup! He was sleepy so I got him down for a nap.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiq0zAMBE37LQ5yHC8JzWoJD4KtyBWspYis_tCPw1kM53DhQkLA_XLvTSzvUhchTyuGouAs_OdW3EH2Emjm4upRKUVe92zy36_Ry42ZrB8KXk2SEHHiGMZNOp7WtXaotfEBTp0m3JOcJ_rCD9lZXXEZYJj39rDybeWHyjhC3E1FwNJIwAZhPivv1VK/s3088/sawyer1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiq0zAMBE37LQ5yHC8JzWoJD4KtyBWspYis_tCPw1kM53DhQkLA_XLvTSzvUhchTyuGouAs_OdW3EH2Emjm4upRKUVe92zy36_Ry42ZrB8KXk2SEHHiGMZNOp7WtXaotfEBTp0m3JOcJ_rCD9lZXXEZYJj39rDybeWHyjhC3E1FwNJIwAZhPivv1VK/w480-h640/sawyer1.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Then he woke up and I kept monopolizing his time.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4lCoVu4TPOmmVMah5GGuMXf-vHgLpt_d87b6CycTGrnENpS1Ax5XdULm3XINVluDufrS4h61ce89mg2ExGuesj67JbmfM6VK5bJ8pZa0TMczLbyR_NTMVcT9Z7a1sJp2YVtKsBOZjw9YvSxuROgkORyfehz10Ksd0BWOboeyr3szoDEFzPGRftOTv/s3088/sawyer2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4lCoVu4TPOmmVMah5GGuMXf-vHgLpt_d87b6CycTGrnENpS1Ax5XdULm3XINVluDufrS4h61ce89mg2ExGuesj67JbmfM6VK5bJ8pZa0TMczLbyR_NTMVcT9Z7a1sJp2YVtKsBOZjw9YvSxuROgkORyfehz10Ksd0BWOboeyr3szoDEFzPGRftOTv/w480-h640/sawyer2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Then he was tired again and I put him down again for another nap.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I don't know what Drew and Miles are doing in the yard, ha!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiXNSok3lr3xwQVu1GvMUje5qNXJ58qklFKAyC1hIGsD2p6Z1gGFtCLmSa6565hXiMXT04J2Vj4RZS7f1rQ8ibL8UlU99PZmGMSkj_041LE0FUTyEQtAzxwyHjtXJwHq8n4ep3za5G9uCZ0e3ojrIKD5csJYlxTblESeZSd8lD71HvM92dsWMyRxDJ/s3088/sawyer3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiXNSok3lr3xwQVu1GvMUje5qNXJ58qklFKAyC1hIGsD2p6Z1gGFtCLmSa6565hXiMXT04J2Vj4RZS7f1rQ8ibL8UlU99PZmGMSkj_041LE0FUTyEQtAzxwyHjtXJwHq8n4ep3za5G9uCZ0e3ojrIKD5csJYlxTblESeZSd8lD71HvM92dsWMyRxDJ/w480-h640/sawyer3.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I let Pops hold him for a minute!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">He's so fat!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHyQiVc0RAJFt3txcm44HF5_0reqoFCTA-5yBIMSCmduwwQ8HSmWOwpdHgmrDrfrlQnJfSkUG2gBMp_qvytEkUvKxCXS__j_FaV7FhXF_hCNqk1g1butZ5OQWwcsVVA1ntHFj98Bq4RM5648Bo5B_A7gw4OBzIcfFu-IcI5DtdmvR0UNfhs6TJTVKL/s4032/sawyer4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHyQiVc0RAJFt3txcm44HF5_0reqoFCTA-5yBIMSCmduwwQ8HSmWOwpdHgmrDrfrlQnJfSkUG2gBMp_qvytEkUvKxCXS__j_FaV7FhXF_hCNqk1g1butZ5OQWwcsVVA1ntHFj98Bq4RM5648Bo5B_A7gw4OBzIcfFu-IcI5DtdmvR0UNfhs6TJTVKL/w480-h640/sawyer4.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">And Drew needed some snuggles.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinZ5es8I5UvkGr5jiXN7R33o0mtOJOEK-JtJsoe9bMGGJNAKEMTzmHFsutrqPjYCKYTQaZ32y-VYiRB0XxCsPznRhNKOzDElscb-uz7SS6KX9PIgVUIuWrN7dPX4-Ks_CTIbWwhrUS6Uree9OxOxWWt4zbfd7WdcJDNcoLM_05y2QW0ficYuWUKw7d/s4032/sawyer5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinZ5es8I5UvkGr5jiXN7R33o0mtOJOEK-JtJsoe9bMGGJNAKEMTzmHFsutrqPjYCKYTQaZ32y-VYiRB0XxCsPznRhNKOzDElscb-uz7SS6KX9PIgVUIuWrN7dPX4-Ks_CTIbWwhrUS6Uree9OxOxWWt4zbfd7WdcJDNcoLM_05y2QW0ficYuWUKw7d/w480-h640/sawyer5.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">David went to run some errands, and Patty forgot all the pacifiers were in her car, so he didn't nap great and was hard to get to settle without a boob or a pacifier in his mouth. When David got back, Patty put him in a wrap with a paci and he was OUT. I told him he was really rude to make me work so hard for his naps, ha! But seriously being an aunt when all my babies are pretty self-sufficient is amazing. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">So basically no one likes him and he's super neglected. {grin}</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-47493939047186411282024-03-01T06:00:00.001-06:002024-03-01T06:00:00.249-06:00February 2024 Book Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It's book review day! I read 9 books this month - I said in my goals I was trying to read a little less to do more with Brent, but I'm not sure I know how to do this, ha. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjPo0RYynLSzD5YwCO6TXnjmsUCvoqzCfibo0ASw8UCL7pLgpWnPOc4JEM7EZdWyWIyXPMoORDHlliunXw5WmZ53vHi8HYAGV8Mbo5QdJx3MiQsQwextksQn0h3KV_OFqA2M3UsKWBjdoeScgTYPqMLxPKWLcesJuO-EWROxu4L948P_PDpIfUq93u/s659/Allena's%20Recent%20Reads.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="659" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjPo0RYynLSzD5YwCO6TXnjmsUCvoqzCfibo0ASw8UCL7pLgpWnPOc4JEM7EZdWyWIyXPMoORDHlliunXw5WmZ53vHi8HYAGV8Mbo5QdJx3MiQsQwextksQn0h3KV_OFqA2M3UsKWBjdoeScgTYPqMLxPKWLcesJuO-EWROxu4L948P_PDpIfUq93u/w640-h428/Allena's%20Recent%20Reads.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">I had my usual assortment of light and fluffy and then some meatier books. So let's jump in!</span></div><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghKpdtEHWWXAmv7EeUICnpugj2Vmp_q6BTgtprdu-sd0-i6WpIalj4lTENj2QRdlrWSKl_p8vk71UfdxKWDwGNyJD16ldo17Wc70J72GCAhc-9K9_sdw_3-2CuDy8UMRxMWxuoNIs5HYdVRSIomOqg-8oOg92nnC7_RvzZg6u2tW63n5Zdq3igvpDn/s2113/master_slave_husband_wife_9781501191053_custom-5f919a6744c2fc0f59bff86abdb1515aea552288.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2113" data-original-width="1398" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghKpdtEHWWXAmv7EeUICnpugj2Vmp_q6BTgtprdu-sd0-i6WpIalj4lTENj2QRdlrWSKl_p8vk71UfdxKWDwGNyJD16ldo17Wc70J72GCAhc-9K9_sdw_3-2CuDy8UMRxMWxuoNIs5HYdVRSIomOqg-8oOg92nnC7_RvzZg6u2tW63n5Zdq3igvpDn/w424-h640/master_slave_husband_wife_9781501191053_custom-5f919a6744c2fc0f59bff86abdb1515aea552288.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br />Master Slave Husband Wife</i> by <b>Ilyon Woo</b> [audiobook] - This was so interesting! It is nonfiction story about an enslaved husband and wife where the wife could pass for white and pretended to be a man and her husband was her slave and they escaped the south! I was on the edge of my seat - this could have been fiction! I do feel like it got a little long-winded (too much detail about the minor characters and events), but it was FASCINATING!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN1GlQO5cCsVeavgMyoPPwhY88D1IsvJ35yd5Yq6Z0_Y7QTbyXw9Qw4cEuV6Q6FAg6gxFPzv0yl9aWZ9-Ezt8f0po3ZaddXxU-C3FJU2Ie8mBhrNrxJHTISSsJXAycYrLl1H9iIrph1VSys7z-J3TQ7mvRIvR-d3iodPY2Q2K-glt0MhOTbT84yT_R/s2113/shark-heart-9781668006498_hr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2113" data-original-width="1400" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN1GlQO5cCsVeavgMyoPPwhY88D1IsvJ35yd5Yq6Z0_Y7QTbyXw9Qw4cEuV6Q6FAg6gxFPzv0yl9aWZ9-Ezt8f0po3ZaddXxU-C3FJU2Ie8mBhrNrxJHTISSsJXAycYrLl1H9iIrph1VSys7z-J3TQ7mvRIvR-d3iodPY2Q2K-glt0MhOTbT84yT_R/w424-h640/shark-heart-9781668006498_hr.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br />Shark Heart</i> by <b>Emily Habeck</b> - Erika picked this for Blog Friend Book Club, and I LOVED it. It's a fantasy story - people end up with genetic mutations where they turn into animals, and this follows a newlywed couple where the husband is turning into a great white shark. It was so weird and such a unique premise, but I loved it! I finished it and thought '<i>Well, that was beautiful.</i>' This book was pure poetry.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEhP6OBb5OHJxWb0_degO6DrP_5neNPaKO4MPEwTNEcJnJv2ocX3Si7Qj5rEZOEw9SI9NfYQZYvfD5QQoQ4JWO7lDbVmrnzHtyLLG3cpQmFtr5Xrb-JIKU4xmQj3DnNK6Jj4u2z8HnKZb3jJEzC-xuRDoyUVck_fTEIfA6lG5ayrsurLFgZ-yVZ2yb/s1000/bride.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="666" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEhP6OBb5OHJxWb0_degO6DrP_5neNPaKO4MPEwTNEcJnJv2ocX3Si7Qj5rEZOEw9SI9NfYQZYvfD5QQoQ4JWO7lDbVmrnzHtyLLG3cpQmFtr5Xrb-JIKU4xmQj3DnNK6Jj4u2z8HnKZb3jJEzC-xuRDoyUVck_fTEIfA6lG5ayrsurLFgZ-yVZ2yb/w426-h640/bride.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><br />Bride</i> by <b>Ali Hazelwood</b> - Ali Hazelwood is a goddess! I LOVED this! I already thought Ali Hazelwood wrote the cutest STEM rom-coms {and yes, I recognize they are also very similar with the tiny female who has no clue the giant man has been pining over her, I don't care, I love them}, but this was a paranormal love story about a Vampyre who must marry the Alpha leader of a Werewolf pack to protect the peace between their species. Yes, that sounds totally ridiculous but it was AWESOME!!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBTDdtM6TViILhJFLqGG48rm37Hdip6TpkDvncq0g2ojga0qlFFWplvt-1Ts8AT0s-TexAWSEqFZwNOyXW6rJMSQiTr2VC7xaYSRRVKE6s5_j53q66iFngDp-J7aQrYUfs21PAZzNL1_fpEGrDobuLDGU-wTWl-2f5dUFLvQTXZ1yo3XbUdUKCYl_5/s1000/bgd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="664" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBTDdtM6TViILhJFLqGG48rm37Hdip6TpkDvncq0g2ojga0qlFFWplvt-1Ts8AT0s-TexAWSEqFZwNOyXW6rJMSQiTr2VC7xaYSRRVKE6s5_j53q66iFngDp-J7aQrYUfs21PAZzNL1_fpEGrDobuLDGU-wTWl-2f5dUFLvQTXZ1yo3XbUdUKCYl_5/w424-h640/bgd.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br />Brown Girl Dreaming</i> by <b>Jacqueline Woodson</b> - This book of poetry was just lovely. It was like the stories just poured from the author. So beautifully written but you could FEEL the little girl in them. Just beautiful.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibCQkgvkI3VEegGnU98ChNECDG1QJucPBxiFfklcUiZ56XNb2GI2i3rTVKYvG8YWbJAdIPr26vxHCgKEEjg3iixUOOECsNwfg4ecCPnu3Px9PrZrL3Ji3WXhx30wA-ortfyR4jASyB-q7S2rRusqjF6iz5LmQIg-BIXjoou0aj7WFFdOELerxBDEZa/s1000/doneanddusted.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="625" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibCQkgvkI3VEegGnU98ChNECDG1QJucPBxiFfklcUiZ56XNb2GI2i3rTVKYvG8YWbJAdIPr26vxHCgKEEjg3iixUOOECsNwfg4ecCPnu3Px9PrZrL3Ji3WXhx30wA-ortfyR4jASyB-q7S2rRusqjF6iz5LmQIg-BIXjoou0aj7WFFdOELerxBDEZa/w400-h640/doneanddusted.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />Done and Dusted</i> by <b>Lyla Sage</b> - A librarian I follow on Instagram wrote about this book, and I wanted to pick it up. She wrote about it being a little silly {the woman is called '<i>sugar</i>' a lot ha}, but it sounded fun. And it was! It isn't going to win awards, but it's cute, and it's the start of a trilogy and I can't wait to keep reading it.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilGgLGXvENNC31wt42JBe4EnSgzlVUV7wBkOUHsHmhyphenhyphenBpfLk9S5wGwCxR1lpbYXn4naUiUWZkWSx-y5D8U2xj8HUo_UXE_PD8MrI6LzLoiSbkgZiR6UTqC-hH6I8R68J0zrF1TFBAZb5dhQLbPrllVZS-j2WCOk9UjbryHKZy6Wn4yZx9AbZcRdGqc/s1000/court.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="625" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilGgLGXvENNC31wt42JBe4EnSgzlVUV7wBkOUHsHmhyphenhyphenBpfLk9S5wGwCxR1lpbYXn4naUiUWZkWSx-y5D8U2xj8HUo_UXE_PD8MrI6LzLoiSbkgZiR6UTqC-hH6I8R68J0zrF1TFBAZb5dhQLbPrllVZS-j2WCOk9UjbryHKZy6Wn4yZx9AbZcRdGqc/w400-h640/court.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />A Court This Cruel & Lovely</i> by <b>Stacia Stark</b> [audiobook] - Yes, this is another fantasy series! Will I read a million of them before I do? Yep, happily! In this world, people are born with power but it is drained of them to give to the Gods and a small amount is given back to them when they come of age. However, Priska retains her power, which is illegal, and she must escape and figure out how to survive. SO GOOD!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhELHlfOYqUIVZjwiARjE870zd6eOTCpyGyJxgM-UP1Y_6kl2-U7SdO0Ro_qP38j8aHRDpkKPmdU3OS53XnfVJYewEv6GP589fEAvbZ-mLsKofYigCSWkY_XeqHo1nLflD7rcJ2tLNi09vtEglxJfV1PpvjA6rA6FCi72Eob1VVQC_MsfsvOjaHNFDe/s500/scat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="321" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhELHlfOYqUIVZjwiARjE870zd6eOTCpyGyJxgM-UP1Y_6kl2-U7SdO0Ro_qP38j8aHRDpkKPmdU3OS53XnfVJYewEv6GP589fEAvbZ-mLsKofYigCSWkY_XeqHo1nLflD7rcJ2tLNi09vtEglxJfV1PpvjA6rA6FCi72Eob1VVQC_MsfsvOjaHNFDe/w410-h640/scat.jpg" width="410" /></a></div><br />Scat</i> by <b>Carl Hiaasen</b> - Drew and I are continuing to read this animal series by Carl Hiaasen. They are so goofy, but she enjoys them, ha. Definitely for elementary readers.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgik2zsHdAwg9y6-x2oAinvsUxBmDa5mXzkaaYJSjo9z1Ic6UtL-cOgtDznIxfg1I3VB9Ie1sQck-icycDqIJJGIsXa2lMFDI2O7OG8DG_wjxYjJBGB9IyV_MQmYOqvFlKPdr8wXdlKJohHqbH1AeRQc12lkuc1_n8wCRmZKPPNI_zEt6ECYN9g-hgV/s1000/trayvon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="707" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgik2zsHdAwg9y6-x2oAinvsUxBmDa5mXzkaaYJSjo9z1Ic6UtL-cOgtDznIxfg1I3VB9Ie1sQck-icycDqIJJGIsXa2lMFDI2O7OG8DG_wjxYjJBGB9IyV_MQmYOqvFlKPdr8wXdlKJohHqbH1AeRQc12lkuc1_n8wCRmZKPPNI_zEt6ECYN9g-hgV/w452-h640/trayvon.jpg" width="452" /></a></div><br />The Trayvon Generation</i> by <b>Elizabeth Alexander</b> [audiobook] - Well, this just broke my heart. It was a beautiful story about our broken country. I teared up multiple times. The writing was incredible {there is a poem at the beginning by Clint Smith called Your National Anthem that was both beautiful and tragic}. Just absolutely excellent.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM3BPOnQZIuBYsmnEA4NJND9JFulC6JdYjMJkiOynIjspattDX3UQVcG3ycunIwVtwiBYEVtj30Qe0Davgk9zIHRsU2rzVJphdhdxk49eZMo4pqV5vXcWSP3Z6CQVUeVlauC9nzEtOPIYWsYNVPbVUKR0XJmtLdzq39Nj_8hqKpDiMnwcfo84enXtS/s630/destroytheday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="418" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM3BPOnQZIuBYsmnEA4NJND9JFulC6JdYjMJkiOynIjspattDX3UQVcG3ycunIwVtwiBYEVtj30Qe0Davgk9zIHRsU2rzVJphdhdxk49eZMo4pqV5vXcWSP3Z6CQVUeVlauC9nzEtOPIYWsYNVPbVUKR0XJmtLdzq39Nj_8hqKpDiMnwcfo84enXtS/w424-h640/destroytheday.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br />Destroy the Day</i> by <b>Brigid Kemmerer</b> - This was the conclusion to a trilogy I started last year {the 2nd trilogy I've read by this author}, and I really enjoyed the conclusion! I would say this is YA and was just great!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">So that was my month in reading, it was pretty darn good - my average rating was 4, up for me, yay! </span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-83657797734155898072024-02-27T17:00:00.000-06:002024-02-27T17:00:02.040-06:00Currently: God Bless Texas<div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;">Current Book</span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpu3TNBDECXes5jHLxFGwHD6HNNN-4HdKX00mcUj7HJA-pYWvcpnPsd3Gr0k-amF9ruQPqdY8ZwbHS3a9gMQ6hhn_eFpWNJXZUqPuFCfkMLzRk994AhYwp2UEc5QUm7CtKtFSINE0t-baJKLRLAxIlk6KMwhH2EsTXcYkcvScsnPO2LyS_9zPgFCRN/s630/destroytheday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="418" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpu3TNBDECXes5jHLxFGwHD6HNNN-4HdKX00mcUj7HJA-pYWvcpnPsd3Gr0k-amF9ruQPqdY8ZwbHS3a9gMQ6hhn_eFpWNJXZUqPuFCfkMLzRk994AhYwp2UEc5QUm7CtKtFSINE0t-baJKLRLAxIlk6KMwhH2EsTXcYkcvScsnPO2LyS_9zPgFCRN/w424-h640/destroytheday.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br />Current Song</span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Morgan Wallen <i>Last Night</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bO5OS0mEmxg" width="320" youtube-src-id="bO5OS0mEmxg"></iframe></div><br /><i>Current TV Show</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Just finished...and I have a lot of questions.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8WPIPjGXZRematPtjuAofUQ_RruARHqw6B3TKOYf7AgvFsyh2UVA_SURuwEW8uUi8kc2hkJRxpTnrYi0BBv85pI5jIVhZj8wF7Zg5etRQfnSUF-XQQa1qmzErUrQy31cHdsRPvomRvI4ypHi6EFt78Tpa2_3KJHhtNMwTfmDqQ-sIflulIUwBvUO-/s2880/ajlt2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2880" data-original-width="2160" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8WPIPjGXZRematPtjuAofUQ_RruARHqw6B3TKOYf7AgvFsyh2UVA_SURuwEW8uUi8kc2hkJRxpTnrYi0BBv85pI5jIVhZj8wF7Zg5etRQfnSUF-XQQa1qmzErUrQy31cHdsRPvomRvI4ypHi6EFt78Tpa2_3KJHhtNMwTfmDqQ-sIflulIUwBvUO-/w480-h640/ajlt2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><br /></div><i>Current Audiobook/Podcast</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqEkuX37qinAq0dw3o5muvFatQyH15or7onuswHTefymlmbiRKF0dzcxBUaCd_tBKQ2NQcYZFEANfSku-UNb2EankDAoekP79K21_F37CmvIKKocDdno2p6P8RA6fXm7zUNfP0kEXG3-IXTtXqBz1WHJbrWfGmQLEO7DFNxJe1kEV1WImXV0AEKqEj/s1000/theireyes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="664" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqEkuX37qinAq0dw3o5muvFatQyH15or7onuswHTefymlmbiRKF0dzcxBUaCd_tBKQ2NQcYZFEANfSku-UNb2EankDAoekP79K21_F37CmvIKKocDdno2p6P8RA6fXm7zUNfP0kEXG3-IXTtXqBz1WHJbrWfGmQLEO7DFNxJe1kEV1WImXV0AEKqEj/w424-h640/theireyes.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br />Current Drink</span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I'm going to a happy hour tonight with the other AmpedUp instructors.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">On the menu is a drink called The Texas Peach. SIGN ME UP.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;">Current Food</span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I might have bought this over the weekend. YUM.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrZnDlhnpE6c55aF7hH0nd3xOnPcoHXbQ8muL62s6bSgQDKVsS52iRnVX5ekXKAC2Q227T2fZIKo6uayxJoiQ8dbcQcNSEvM7-KHsfvUyZS9VMJfvvObVgq9Gzfq5uGOZ-NDno6TosZazhXUQrK0tYnIfOIeX5kjFcoY2MSXZxNjwYV81ELZGDC6eA/s4855/cremeegg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3393" data-original-width="4855" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrZnDlhnpE6c55aF7hH0nd3xOnPcoHXbQ8muL62s6bSgQDKVsS52iRnVX5ekXKAC2Q227T2fZIKo6uayxJoiQ8dbcQcNSEvM7-KHsfvUyZS9VMJfvvObVgq9Gzfq5uGOZ-NDno6TosZazhXUQrK0tYnIfOIeX5kjFcoY2MSXZxNjwYV81ELZGDC6eA/w640-h448/cremeegg.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Shame-Inducing Pleasure</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Y'all. The amount of Girl Scout cookies I've consumed.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I am BEYOND excited we are DONE selling cookies - </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">although, if you still need some, I've got a handful left, ha!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;">Current Outfit</span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This was from a couple of weeks ago, </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">but I am obsessed with my Valentine's headband!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI8WJbvOLib3iZvafKVsauzDyDymckzsBK_3boKyNa9b0mOkf4ZAQdajUmk1NUlbccEtLtFKDzVKYFZ_1koHU23YIlWg-wVIoLrNAHdf2-j26hg-6SIG6J_zpijFLlcJwkv_iRY2nGsLM5NnMEUDBbQKJDDZo05wk0VJvxTE7rsnToXPQfzuJChhMx/s4032/Cyber%20Austin%20RMs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI8WJbvOLib3iZvafKVsauzDyDymckzsBK_3boKyNa9b0mOkf4ZAQdajUmk1NUlbccEtLtFKDzVKYFZ_1koHU23YIlWg-wVIoLrNAHdf2-j26hg-6SIG6J_zpijFLlcJwkv_iRY2nGsLM5NnMEUDBbQKJDDZo05wk0VJvxTE7rsnToXPQfzuJChhMx/w480-h640/Cyber%20Austin%20RMs.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Celebrity Crush</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">How cute are the boys in <i>Masters of the Air</i>? Brent and I started this too!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiipbKjDZ4NkfAAOWuBeaZ5ONPrpHtMIL98iuJaDqdILCeu5Ys2eIMRx2dxaDDEaqJNuaTbT1sc6v_fC0iecstHNnqFR1z_ZAYxllCy0mtWiaAOI2fOFU66q1u4hcXLmv5VSyqHmze8Exbe7iUdVvzt3qhZqgOeodlcghlDrn0xhLuNB0l6pxdzN3N-/s1280/masters-of-air-the-cast-and-characters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiipbKjDZ4NkfAAOWuBeaZ5ONPrpHtMIL98iuJaDqdILCeu5Ys2eIMRx2dxaDDEaqJNuaTbT1sc6v_fC0iecstHNnqFR1z_ZAYxllCy0mtWiaAOI2fOFU66q1u4hcXLmv5VSyqHmze8Exbe7iUdVvzt3qhZqgOeodlcghlDrn0xhLuNB0l6pxdzN3N-/w640-h360/masters-of-air-the-cast-and-characters.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Mood</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We just booked 2 summer vacations in the last 2 weeks - </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I am getting <b><u>EXCITED</u></b> for what's on the horizon!!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;">Current Anticipation</span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Spring Break is in 2 weeks, I'm very excited!!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;">Current Wishlist</span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">So many things for the house decorating project!</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- living room rug</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- bedroom rug</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- cabinet for living room</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- bar stools for kitchen</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- ACCESSORIES GALORE</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;">Current Movie</span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Okay this isn't current at all, </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">but Drew and I screamed when the <i>Wicked</i> trailer came out!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/C7yexjc2ALA" width="320" youtube-src-id="C7yexjc2ALA"></iframe></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;">Current Picture</span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Hello, my beautiful lady!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_mdirtFf-thQXcvjjWFeu1Tq3VI0KjF56maiQ_tk3SChAX0PD_FGwiHvJ2rSz8h3R4c21gyltls080oPiEaW5AOj9vC2zDeuJNyFkPp7Ejkysvm6WuwE3jD7FDLhmmUhSTqc_0CRD-2RBmyDEcnQBuuPk7khNX-_chqdwwQoFNIN_rcDoXh002yTX/s4032/bb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_mdirtFf-thQXcvjjWFeu1Tq3VI0KjF56maiQ_tk3SChAX0PD_FGwiHvJ2rSz8h3R4c21gyltls080oPiEaW5AOj9vC2zDeuJNyFkPp7Ejkysvm6WuwE3jD7FDLhmmUhSTqc_0CRD-2RBmyDEcnQBuuPk7khNX-_chqdwwQoFNIN_rcDoXh002yTX/w480-h640/bb.jpg" width="480" /></a></div></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-76610747698673416432024-02-23T06:00:00.002-06:002024-02-23T06:00:00.546-06:00Five on Friday<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I had several bits of randomness to share, so I thought it was high time for a Five on Friday!</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>NEW COUCH</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">After talking about it for over a year, we finally bought our new couch to start our living room redecorating! We've had our previous couch for 16 years, so it was definitely time.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt_9PFkogp_yUiX4NQS-QXRAxPBmbRMl6Ol-w-L477pwgOw5wfoPasQh068nnlsJGcdIleMtdtUA6XTHZqxUd7bMY1DFmQ2XWo8ud04atvxT2g4taxSDtZplY_WGpNtjFs5sushvGnG1BT_6OYHIPFPbfG576_GnepjtV-gd9Lmfk5-FxRVeDhZyK4/s4032/couch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt_9PFkogp_yUiX4NQS-QXRAxPBmbRMl6Ol-w-L477pwgOw5wfoPasQh068nnlsJGcdIleMtdtUA6XTHZqxUd7bMY1DFmQ2XWo8ud04atvxT2g4taxSDtZplY_WGpNtjFs5sushvGnG1BT_6OYHIPFPbfG576_GnepjtV-gd9Lmfk5-FxRVeDhZyK4/w640-h480/couch.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">There is still a lot to do to totally revamp the living room - nothing is staying! And with it we're redoing the playroom to 'mature' it up a little bit - it was still very toddler/young kid focused and not a space for teens and pre-teens. It's a little overwhelming but also very exciting.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>PERMANENT JEWELRY</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I went to a Galentine's party and got my first permanent jewelry! I got 2 bracelets and am loving them. I wear 90% silver-toned jewelry but do throw some gold in there so wanted to have a little of both. I think I want to do a necklace too!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXFxQ65jntDFi1u5q75UiLenokyf5HEkYNFaxaOq8gGTIuMRZ0KO8FyqmU_m9JPSY8tPskoZrmVXivGEHc_VZQ4kxjaoJkUq0Evxct9B53QW9WCIXu13SHjI_VaMQ8_6k8NJng5wyTrItylrq8TYxM9EGxrwnFE9Efx7HaDzMOSuNwON92mtkZq59X/s4032/bracelets.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXFxQ65jntDFi1u5q75UiLenokyf5HEkYNFaxaOq8gGTIuMRZ0KO8FyqmU_m9JPSY8tPskoZrmVXivGEHc_VZQ4kxjaoJkUq0Evxct9B53QW9WCIXu13SHjI_VaMQ8_6k8NJng5wyTrItylrq8TYxM9EGxrwnFE9Efx7HaDzMOSuNwON92mtkZq59X/w480-h640/bracelets.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: verdana;">STANDING DESK</span></b></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I've been hearing for over a year now that 'sitting is the new smoking' and have felt really bad about how much I sit every day. We've only had our office furniture for a few years, so we aren't in the market to revamp the office, but I wanted to find a way to stand more throughout the day. So I bought a little contraption off Amazon that enables me to stand and work during the day. I'm aiming for 30 minutes out of every hour and some days are better than others, but I'm definitely standing more throughout the day, yay! {Writing this post standing too!}</span></p><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_TCN3ACKb4IXKurs3C5fTC-2Lsktev0BkhPY2ktR3Du8hIrTJbRp15hJREJ1wHF3a9i712Vq_WxjhHyo3SwC7dlkSHDBNk7tsnpy_PK8et2XFAWBGec9hlNhI8Mdlo5cC-KLl9Q0qDwhPqLMpknLeOHiW5_1M-k45BJK3GwKSvHj9sOI1S4PSNGHu/s4032/STANDINGDESK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_TCN3ACKb4IXKurs3C5fTC-2Lsktev0BkhPY2ktR3Du8hIrTJbRp15hJREJ1wHF3a9i712Vq_WxjhHyo3SwC7dlkSHDBNk7tsnpy_PK8et2XFAWBGec9hlNhI8Mdlo5cC-KLl9Q0qDwhPqLMpknLeOHiW5_1M-k45BJK3GwKSvHj9sOI1S4PSNGHu/w480-h640/STANDINGDESK.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: verdana;">TRIFLE</span></b></div><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">You know what's super fun when you're selling over 1,000 boxes of Girl Scout cookies? Driving over a case of them!</span></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Crushed boxes, ugh.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8oyDD0yGcQ2Kw37fK8vEqI1ZWTXiN3R1gWGg6EpD3Iz5bmK4TB2Q-0aFePEyMQdfwV7BCIbCOnfUitaRWdP_RFNnmbvsCU-iyS6_0QwtAsU6pbugWfF-ywCVaT-CA1NLwSTDhLdCFOJQJEAIFl9XOrydlQwlK1Z9ARXMhUIY7OCCxlyBILnswMcNT/s4032/crushedcookies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8oyDD0yGcQ2Kw37fK8vEqI1ZWTXiN3R1gWGg6EpD3Iz5bmK4TB2Q-0aFePEyMQdfwV7BCIbCOnfUitaRWdP_RFNnmbvsCU-iyS6_0QwtAsU6pbugWfF-ywCVaT-CA1NLwSTDhLdCFOJQJEAIFl9XOrydlQwlK1Z9ARXMhUIY7OCCxlyBILnswMcNT/w480-h640/crushedcookies.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">But when the world gives you lemons, make lemonade...or a trifle with cookies! I googled recipes made with Girl Scout cookies and found so many options. I made this to take to book club, and it was absolutely delicious!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOfD7S1HvUbXyeNLaafbZA8g7BgrL-PVQ4TMPLhyphenhyphenfxyRp0kBmtZBoOf2VIMDsYIeYOiOP2Bm8rLMXg-jmw8398WyTlMsa_m42fcempbuPkhfNtZR9PkvzDwAG-zrwEOFB0PnQxqjk2j0MzZkwlRZ4tQ3S09nHpoFoPc1d1C2DsJfdkfwFP7iRUzD81/s4032/trifle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOfD7S1HvUbXyeNLaafbZA8g7BgrL-PVQ4TMPLhyphenhyphenfxyRp0kBmtZBoOf2VIMDsYIeYOiOP2Bm8rLMXg-jmw8398WyTlMsa_m42fcempbuPkhfNtZR9PkvzDwAG-zrwEOFB0PnQxqjk2j0MzZkwlRZ4tQ3S09nHpoFoPc1d1C2DsJfdkfwFP7iRUzD81/w480-h640/trifle.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: verdana;">SMILING SAWYER</span></b></div><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Guess whose youngest nephew started smiling?! And is turning into a butterball like all of his siblings? You guessed it, Sawyer! He is so sweet, and we all love him so much.</span></div><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: left;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6A4FaSqIIRh7PuN8SneFTUQKXz38QTCS-yDblZpiGH9ni-A2QnUMZZO9lP6wlZpA44_TA5szaXsKIvbb2Z9_MVssTRtgBqpwE-N0DFvA6rPtlMkXeefGa7fRfk2Kfr-JoZhc69axJGQRCAheu2cE1aKZ7IGz7jiy7tEaE2qWOpvABO8JsqfZ612aK/s4032/sawyersmiling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6A4FaSqIIRh7PuN8SneFTUQKXz38QTCS-yDblZpiGH9ni-A2QnUMZZO9lP6wlZpA44_TA5szaXsKIvbb2Z9_MVssTRtgBqpwE-N0DFvA6rPtlMkXeefGa7fRfk2Kfr-JoZhc69axJGQRCAheu2cE1aKZ7IGz7jiy7tEaE2qWOpvABO8JsqfZ612aK/w480-h640/sawyersmiling.jpg" width="480" /></a></div></b></div></span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-30204748088623364852024-02-20T14:06:00.003-06:002024-02-20T14:06:45.044-06:002024 Book Goals<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I blogged earlier this month about my goals and mentioned I would have a separate post for books, so here we go - I always have goals for my reading!!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">1. <b>100 Books</b> - I read 130 books in 2023, so this goal might seem underwhelming, but it's actually strategic for me to read less and spend more time with Brent in the evenings ha.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">2. <b>Clean out 2020 from TBR</b> - I already got a jump start on this because I had the idea at the start of the year - last year I did my '10 oldest' but went a little further this time and decided to clear out everything I put in Goodreads in 2020. I finished <i>The Summer Wives</i>, <i>White Awake</i>, <i>Raising Worry-Free Girls</i>, <i>We Were the Lucky Ones</i>, and <i>A Black Women's History of the United States</i> in January - all 2020 books!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">What I have left:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Band of Brothers</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">The Nazi Officer's Wife</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">The Invention of Wings</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Well Matched</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">When We Were Young & Brave</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">How to Be Less Stupid About Race</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Under a Gilded Moon</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">I Found You</span></li></ul></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">3. <b>Physical Books</b> - I did a good job cleaning out physical books last year but am still struggling to let go of books - even if I have had them for years and haven't read them. I'm supposed to have 1 basket of books but it's majorly overflowed and there are also books in our closet. So I would like to get this back to just 1 basket.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">4. <b>Read 2 Classics</b> - Kind of self-explanatory but want to get back to this goal.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">5. <b>More Diversity in Authors</b> - I've had it be a conscious goal to focus more on diversity in my reading, but last year was on the lower side for me. I usually have about 30% diversity and this past year it was only 21%. Definitely want to get that back up again.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">And I think this is a good list of goals for me!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-5506825604628766142024-02-13T12:15:00.000-06:002024-02-13T12:15:00.743-06:00Shut Up and Mine With Me!<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I had 2 funny things happen in the last few days that reminded me of when Trent and Drew were young, and it felt like the universe was telling me to write them down so I would never forget them...and both have to do with Minecraft {grin}.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Brent and I are redecorating the living room, and I was walking through a furniture store getting ideas [I do so much better when someone brings me 3 things and says 'Pick between these.' I am completely overwhelmed with choices. It is so hard decorating!!] and this song was playing and I recognized but couldn't figure out why I recognized. I kept listening and listening, and it was driving me crazy. And then it hit me. When Trent was hugely into Minecraft, he would listen to parody songs. One was called '<i>Hypixel Minigames'</i> and was a parody of a 5 Seconds of Summer song called <i>'She Looks So Perfect'</i>. And for full disclosure I just now knew the actual name of the real song! I literally have never heard the real song - only the parody. So it threw me off to hear the real song and try to place it ha.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">If anyone wants to hear the song ha</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ifHimiOvZuk" width="320" youtube-src-id="ifHimiOvZuk"></iframe></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">Then yesterday I was in Jazzercise, and we did a routine to '<i>Shut Up and Dance With Me</i>' and it reminded me of ANOTHER Minecraft parody called '<i>Shut Up and Mine With Me</i>'. And the time I was in the grocery store with Drew when she was 2 or 3 and she was singing AT THE TOP OF HER LUNGS '<i>shut up and mine with me!!!'</i> Top notch parenting right there that I never want to forget!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8t3SOvbgybA" width="320" youtube-src-id="8t3SOvbgybA"></iframe></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">I can definitely say I'm not sad the Minecraft days are behind us, but I hope to never forget these songs. {grin}</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-14976645611268851292024-02-08T14:03:00.000-06:002024-02-08T14:03:12.550-06:002024 Goals!<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Well, once again I'm posting some goals in February ha. I guess I just need extra time to marinate on them and decide! I think I did a good job on my 2023 goals, so it had me energized to try again for a new set.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNW_cYEbXTGHU7VYmpcp2Ueh9lY_dFD9ryDvTnqRdRwZud249NIi1YnBIrOIjCyKIhxhnduQgR6NAtTPMoAn23yxbTh67H3CQsaV4fWVpQPaq4ehFl_VZiAflAGONnH__wUbCApPYo6buoEkEvdsxvcmfyWBquEtmQxG7T3lTn5W5LOTmnkBhzgrte/s420/NY.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="294" data-original-width="420" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNW_cYEbXTGHU7VYmpcp2Ueh9lY_dFD9ryDvTnqRdRwZud249NIi1YnBIrOIjCyKIhxhnduQgR6NAtTPMoAn23yxbTh67H3CQsaV4fWVpQPaq4ehFl_VZiAflAGONnH__wUbCApPYo6buoEkEvdsxvcmfyWBquEtmQxG7T3lTn5W5LOTmnkBhzgrte/w640-h448/NY.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />First off, sometimes I do like to have a word of the year...and when I was in therapy a few weeks ago, a word came to me while I was talking to my therapist. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>PEACEFUL</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I don't think peaceful is a word that typically describes me - I am loud, chaotic, explosive, disorganized...the opposite of peaceful. BUT I would like our home to be more peaceful. The mood starts at the top, and I don't exude how I want our house to be!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>PERSONAL</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">1) <b>Stand more.</b> I've heard the expression '<i>sitting is the new smoking</i>' multiple times. It is so bad for us to sit all day, and I have a job where I SIT ALL DAY. I want a walking desk, but Brent has vetoed that, but at the end of the year, I bought a little contraption to elevate my laptop so that I can stand and work. I'm starting with small increments - stand for this 1 call, stand for 10 minutes, and I want to build up to standing more and more every day. Do I think I'll get to where I stand all day? Probably not. But I can definitely do a lot more than I am now!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">2) <b>Play more piano.</b> We got a piano a few years ago, and Drew has been taking lessons for a few years. I will sit down and dabble sometimes, but I want to get in the habit of playing more. I'm pretty rusty, so I'm enjoying using her lesson books, ha.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">3) <b>Book goals.</b> I will continue to have specific book goals, but I'm going to do a separate post on that ha.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>FAMILY/HOME</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">1) <b>Organization. </b>We are redecorating a lot of spaces in our house, and it's made me realize we have a lot of clutter. I'm not much of a collector, but after almost 11 years in our house...we've just accumulated a lot of 'stuff'. I also talked to my therapist about this and she gave me some great resources and ideas for tackling our home in manageable increments.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">2) <b>Time with Brent.</b> In the evenings, I tend to want to read by myself. Well, that's not conducive to staying connected to your spouse! We started a show together, and while we don't watch together every night, we are spending more time together in the evening.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">3) <b>Family vacations.</b> We loved our trips in 2023 {<a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/07/az-trip-part-3-sedona-and-grand-canyon.html" target="_blank"><b>Arizona</b></a> and <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/08/port-swope-vacay.html" target="_blank"><b>Port Aransas</b></a> with the kids and <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2024/01/viva-las-vegas.html" target="_blank"><b>Las Vegas</b></a> with friends} and are already planning for 2024. I'm excited to see what we end up doing and memories we make!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">4) <b>Incorporate the kids into more chores.</b> This is not a new goal for me, but I haven't done a good job with it ugh. We are fortunate to have a lady who has cleaned for our family for 12+ years, and she is amazing. But that doesn't mean the kids are off the hook for doing anything. I want to work on them keeping their rooms picked up and picking up after themselves throughout the house every day as well as small chores {vacuuming, scrubbing toilets, washing dishes} to teach them some responsibility, help me out, AND make our house look great all the time!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">And if you made it through this whole post, your reward is a new picture of Sawyer! 2 months old and getting so fat!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdZe-DP2T8rTi4hsosclWsK7cKqK3JyvZMiVplejEspYVu5cNu5G0TSoQkd56eGuAmqJdnE8r_VCissATQiatrINSYtjbZVH3AWKeAdj_soTK5g39TSstQ37V5qyNIbQmQLtLQIEqZ1ahFH29KmzInTU8Ry3fxN-vMEHCrDsQRDaOdpRCBlBKkMHAw/s2048/sawyer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdZe-DP2T8rTi4hsosclWsK7cKqK3JyvZMiVplejEspYVu5cNu5G0TSoQkd56eGuAmqJdnE8r_VCissATQiatrINSYtjbZVH3AWKeAdj_soTK5g39TSstQ37V5qyNIbQmQLtLQIEqZ1ahFH29KmzInTU8Ry3fxN-vMEHCrDsQRDaOdpRCBlBKkMHAw/w480-h640/sawyer.jpg" width="480" /></a></div></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-81420642216305584742024-02-02T17:42:00.000-06:002024-02-02T17:42:01.219-06:00January 2024 Book Review <div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">First book review of the year! I love the start of the year when everything is fresh. It's exciting to think about what my favorites will be from books I don't even know exist yet! </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq9h7jUgVts-c30Shn12af_EXKuTIEarfXvEwjm9QZY74hfnEvF1puFh01zP3rorsClCJjXBKjgb4vEsuy8BIkBd_xP7FyD5vv3jr_jUfNcY88C9L9tjK7HdDgVjtJoWnYWm2-ZXw-YMv-XZKHYQX1zKRg1znsA1u6CNJ3ih2Vqaaz0OIN-cBVOzge/s659/Allena's%20Recent%20Reads.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="659" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq9h7jUgVts-c30Shn12af_EXKuTIEarfXvEwjm9QZY74hfnEvF1puFh01zP3rorsClCJjXBKjgb4vEsuy8BIkBd_xP7FyD5vv3jr_jUfNcY88C9L9tjK7HdDgVjtJoWnYWm2-ZXw-YMv-XZKHYQX1zKRg1znsA1u6CNJ3ih2Vqaaz0OIN-cBVOzge/w640-h428/Allena's%20Recent%20Reads.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This month I read 12 books. I was all over the place {in a good way} on genres - historical fiction, chick lit, memoirs, self-help, anti-racism...big variety here! </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuQjikgrFEJa71pFDpysV7x6tFrAB1CMJQVUHKGC0OTx3QTFZVbmVbul4DPps1k8QTzTjvBTyqQJV7s6gPEu3W_PdXi7iBs3i8dYrdm93_HFo1NVGyrMA65yYDXK9yLPHsSQnYA3NPpAWqghdhzmJf5KDn2oy91rjMYN8ufxj6Es6u-b6dZtDgS91a/s1000/happiness.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="652" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuQjikgrFEJa71pFDpysV7x6tFrAB1CMJQVUHKGC0OTx3QTFZVbmVbul4DPps1k8QTzTjvBTyqQJV7s6gPEu3W_PdXi7iBs3i8dYrdm93_HFo1NVGyrMA65yYDXK9yLPHsSQnYA3NPpAWqghdhzmJf5KDn2oy91rjMYN8ufxj6Es6u-b6dZtDgS91a/w418-h640/happiness.jpg" width="418" /></a></div><br />Happiness for Beginners</i> by <b>Katherine Center</b> - I pretty much like everything Katherine Center writers. They aren't NOVELS, they are light and fun and make me smile. This follows a woman who decides to do a wilderness challenge to get herself out of a funk after a divorce and her little brother's best friend is on the same course. I thought this was very cute. It was a little cheesy, but overall I had a smile on my face throughout.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0i8B9dGRhuArcRluWZPdSLgdomPYRIPCvPN0XVFf3kJ9OIVVrk3c04m64cbyqpr4sH0gz2KVGeWXyEDUXMVwLZs5d0JIhOyIQK7NzfkaXhf08QwIBH_FnERXF56jAZKaZMSIpeZ3vCJHfPJ7541YLw8HjgLQG6RNZF6qJAE4BO1_2hvEy1P7K7qwU/s388/The_Summer_Wives.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="388" data-original-width="257" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0i8B9dGRhuArcRluWZPdSLgdomPYRIPCvPN0XVFf3kJ9OIVVrk3c04m64cbyqpr4sH0gz2KVGeWXyEDUXMVwLZs5d0JIhOyIQK7NzfkaXhf08QwIBH_FnERXF56jAZKaZMSIpeZ3vCJHfPJ7541YLw8HjgLQG6RNZF6qJAE4BO1_2hvEy1P7K7qwU/w424-h640/The_Summer_Wives.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br />The Summer Wives</i> by <b>Beatriz Williams </b>[audiobook] - I usually like Beatriz Williams' historical fiction books. They follow alternating timelines and over the book we unravel some mystery. This was no different...I just found it boring!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpYlHMZ986BM9TxupNNsd3Mw4-3Er5sVjNCQszu_oJJg1_nBFehh4zHPT3qcn4leVgH8W_CYWGnfdGNgFVLPxYpANPLyQ1UEJiZ2awmld7sCzAr7zD_hs20942Ytl_L7E4nBcyGkYl_a8jkdbxdYGfrHeX1grRLwcsZdoASYYyn3x-YpjgM6c72jqp/s1000/whiteawake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="667" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpYlHMZ986BM9TxupNNsd3Mw4-3Er5sVjNCQszu_oJJg1_nBFehh4zHPT3qcn4leVgH8W_CYWGnfdGNgFVLPxYpANPLyQ1UEJiZ2awmld7sCzAr7zD_hs20942Ytl_L7E4nBcyGkYl_a8jkdbxdYGfrHeX1grRLwcsZdoASYYyn3x-YpjgM6c72jqp/w426-h640/whiteawake.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><br />White Awake</i> by <b>Daniel Hill</b> - This was on my 'oldest books to read' list for my 2023 goals. I thought it would be such an interesting book - we need more white people talking about anti-racism. But this book didn't really do it for me. Parts were good, parts were boring. Good effort and more books like this are needed though!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCDXlBpiH8WE-y0Gvh7x5jfTVGt8fxQ3U-VFBo6zlVMAXxPyhAgsA2irxnyvlgyutJdSO8Onpb7fyOmLHhWgohFbkUUhyNOMR4IesurR45QsmXL83LxUuW-AYUXqy1VSkExfYgo-Xms52xLmkdTOZVZwm3U-T5tKBQ1mydHM7mBZMnJ7MOT2L6ff6p/s500/worryfree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="323" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCDXlBpiH8WE-y0Gvh7x5jfTVGt8fxQ3U-VFBo6zlVMAXxPyhAgsA2irxnyvlgyutJdSO8Onpb7fyOmLHhWgohFbkUUhyNOMR4IesurR45QsmXL83LxUuW-AYUXqy1VSkExfYgo-Xms52xLmkdTOZVZwm3U-T5tKBQ1mydHM7mBZMnJ7MOT2L6ff6p/w414-h640/worryfree.jpg" width="414" /></a></div><br />Raising Worry-Free Girls</i> by <b>Sissy Goff</b> [audiobook] - I've had this on my TBR for a long time, but as we are navigating Drew's anxiety, I decided to give it a listen this month. I thought this had a lot of great, useful information and am so glad I read it to be able to support Drew better. However, I wasn't expecting there to be such a focus on Christianity and that turned me off a bit. As someone who dealt/deals with anxiety, I haven't personally found comfort through religion, and while others might, I didn't think it helped the book.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOwwDUBwbCzrKJa_EA5d8IYOpOkuZeG3GoR5kF3Zq5PiQWWh4MdM5_0zl-K92gJWIG8781KH2vmVxXQgzteVbb6HJtpz-OOPT9N5iIvWFXvcigFMfwvBKqbuspL6vbgh0egEPInvqKnrhxeKlBgS7X78MAAXZ5fvfrL9nIXP7N2qOODBipxvLi6kMf/s1000/blackwomen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="667" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOwwDUBwbCzrKJa_EA5d8IYOpOkuZeG3GoR5kF3Zq5PiQWWh4MdM5_0zl-K92gJWIG8781KH2vmVxXQgzteVbb6HJtpz-OOPT9N5iIvWFXvcigFMfwvBKqbuspL6vbgh0egEPInvqKnrhxeKlBgS7X78MAAXZ5fvfrL9nIXP7N2qOODBipxvLi6kMf/w426-h640/blackwomen.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></i></span></div><i>A Black Women's History of the United States</i><span style="font-style: normal; font-weight: 400;"> by </span><b style="font-style: normal;">Daina Ramey Berry</b><span style="font-style: normal; font-weight: 400;"> [audiobook] - SUPER interesting! I don't know why I'm surprised every time I read books that focus on parts of American history I know nothing about, but here we are AGAIN. This covered some amazing women who did incredible things through the last 4 centuries. So, so good!</span></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghvcNORKV4Cxuajhf1cGbNBcIj_To4x0d_UdhAbYvQhzc8mAWnb1Ty345j7JBuDEzAIdPyk58M1cxf5xj1l8xGPzuDM0gSTnThCiRad_dI6pWXDUx9dljhRxQ2Vs104Pg3h5C67eVS0xcpAp3AJKUykj_2uuQh7bd9O8bRBIXZyB8-Ie_S2LCXoqLO/s1000/lucky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="662" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghvcNORKV4Cxuajhf1cGbNBcIj_To4x0d_UdhAbYvQhzc8mAWnb1Ty345j7JBuDEzAIdPyk58M1cxf5xj1l8xGPzuDM0gSTnThCiRad_dI6pWXDUx9dljhRxQ2Vs104Pg3h5C67eVS0xcpAp3AJKUykj_2uuQh7bd9O8bRBIXZyB8-Ie_S2LCXoqLO/w424-h640/lucky.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br /><i>We Were the Lucky Ones</i></span> by <b>Georgia Hunter</b> - Wow-ee. I thought this was historical fiction about a Jewish family in WW2. I did NOT know this was the story of the author's ACTUAL family. Her Polish grandfather was living in Paris at the start of the war, and this book follows his journey to South America as well as the stories of his siblings who were scattered over Europe. If I didn't know this was a real story, I would have thought there was no way this could all happen. It was incredible!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdUwIW5es_aLT-kj3Zze5x-T1SlzDFVyyYfJV0RbrOjmpvNtjp9yXhTHaA0Tcigi1Tn0eGX6of-qgQ4VXVLfqiCOApqL02l7Vay7Bwxy9_rxy1C1aL6LDyMUFLpS3kQOyb1A4ScTPs3g9Tch1uQI2uMwHzaFfxaW7L1QfXZXxMMeslm9753gS1mwUL/s2176/wildfire-9781668026274_hr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2176" data-original-width="1400" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdUwIW5es_aLT-kj3Zze5x-T1SlzDFVyyYfJV0RbrOjmpvNtjp9yXhTHaA0Tcigi1Tn0eGX6of-qgQ4VXVLfqiCOApqL02l7Vay7Bwxy9_rxy1C1aL6LDyMUFLpS3kQOyb1A4ScTPs3g9Tch1uQI2uMwHzaFfxaW7L1QfXZXxMMeslm9753gS1mwUL/w412-h640/wildfire-9781668026274_hr.jpg" width="412" /></a></div><br />Wildfire</i> by <b>Hannah Grace</b> - This was a cute 2nd story in a trilogy about the hockey team at a fictional college. I continue to enjoy this trilogy {this time one of the hockey players works at a summer camp and falls for a co-worker}, really enjoy the spice level, but they seem just a smidge too long.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1VbK-5xGuOQURZ3-hYrMKiWfvy9RfBjWx8gHWMuY1ctniINvr-Uh-RRrNzZnPY421kSLE8B2eR8jdG96gTyndk7EW33TjZVNNJd3KA9zHfaX9o-c2esHNWaEkaolN8Y8Sx9U5fYDKc3bNt2_KwE7o4VBH9rhVa1GJcemhx0P5osh9lMq6cjShZO6X/s1000/fire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="671" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1VbK-5xGuOQURZ3-hYrMKiWfvy9RfBjWx8gHWMuY1ctniINvr-Uh-RRrNzZnPY421kSLE8B2eR8jdG96gTyndk7EW33TjZVNNJd3KA9zHfaX9o-c2esHNWaEkaolN8Y8Sx9U5fYDKc3bNt2_KwE7o4VBH9rhVa1GJcemhx0P5osh9lMq6cjShZO6X/w430-h640/fire.jpg" width="430" /></a></div><br />Fire Weather </i>by <b>John Vaillant</b> - We read this book for Blog Friend Book Club and zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. This was 4 different BORING books in 1, and I SLOGGED through it. Part 1 was the history of the community this fire took place in [way too detailed], Part 2 was the actual fire [it finally got exciting but again was way too detailed, the entire part covered 3 days of a fire that took over a year to put out], part 3 was climate change [I actually skipped pages and pages here because it was SO repetitive], and part 4 covered other catastrophic fires and the aftermath. I just don't think this author knew how to put all this information together which is unfortunate because it could have been awesome.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnfXYeJt8CzThMj5WEn5NV6wH41Eu9-_UHw0zOn8uiKaDghjRxiiZP7Gyor5KdoFg2y-w7tQi22V1f1CfaT6hwsRUM1xtpvbocTQDm3eJNeomA6TaE8hP9wopyrulbYNrogn0Fil8_-KDXYgfabO7Hv-yB0NMKrx26SXE-ug6c8RRvJ0AIZ7OcEbwe/s2114/betting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2114" data-original-width="1399" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnfXYeJt8CzThMj5WEn5NV6wH41Eu9-_UHw0zOn8uiKaDghjRxiiZP7Gyor5KdoFg2y-w7tQi22V1f1CfaT6hwsRUM1xtpvbocTQDm3eJNeomA6TaE8hP9wopyrulbYNrogn0Fil8_-KDXYgfabO7Hv-yB0NMKrx26SXE-ug6c8RRvJ0AIZ7OcEbwe/w424-h640/betting.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br />Betting on You </i>by <b>Lynn Painter</b> - I will read anything Lynn Painter writes. This is an adorable YA rom com - a genre Lynn excels at.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRvEVfGz8QETocx7tWxg_HQfDGDVYJZvsEznB0hX64uyVDmqk31fmtGF-ifaTABO_TFihTIvSK3msAkvoDI8pLjKzP7lrYkbxLQGRfulI8qPeAjcpkJ93puZrVtzcNT6YHha1IGlDGTHf2WMHoPoIUXfO8HbF35fuSXQTDJ8OXfBeSxGSAqR26Qtjw/s1000/paris.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="659" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRvEVfGz8QETocx7tWxg_HQfDGDVYJZvsEznB0hX64uyVDmqk31fmtGF-ifaTABO_TFihTIvSK3msAkvoDI8pLjKzP7lrYkbxLQGRfulI8qPeAjcpkJ93puZrVtzcNT6YHha1IGlDGTHf2WMHoPoIUXfO8HbF35fuSXQTDJ8OXfBeSxGSAqR26Qtjw/w422-h640/paris.jpg" width="422" /></a></div><br />Paris: The Memoir </i></b>by <b>Paris Hilton</b> [audiobook] - I am not a Paris Hilton fan per se, but I ended up listening to this and was surprised that I ended it with some respect for her! I had no idea everything she endured in life. Is she super privileged? Yes, most definitely. Did I speed the book up because her voice was kind of annoying? Yes, I did. Did I enjoy it? Also yes!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-FKVoPB4rC5aZJvzcx7mmKfO5BcmCJpCeWW3tTPG4XMH8UfXdKlt3vVmx3qpZr7HzQoV7s4xeVC9lli-FsAGwZA1WxxcqU2c64yuq9uOwkTZt3F6z9uRQfLLsiT-nRSoUBD8RwfGlkEeBmw_jNFVwE_eqbrLUfJecajt-gEkXJLCw5UP1FZ9yylAu/s1000/7year.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="667" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-FKVoPB4rC5aZJvzcx7mmKfO5BcmCJpCeWW3tTPG4XMH8UfXdKlt3vVmx3qpZr7HzQoV7s4xeVC9lli-FsAGwZA1WxxcqU2c64yuq9uOwkTZt3F6z9uRQfLLsiT-nRSoUBD8RwfGlkEeBmw_jNFVwE_eqbrLUfJecajt-gEkXJLCw5UP1FZ9yylAu/w426-h640/7year.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><br />The Seven Year Slip</i> by <b>Ashley Poston</b> - I saw so many people post about this and I think everyone I follow on Goodreads who had read it gave it 4 stars. It sounded super cute - a girl realizes her apartment moves people around by 7 years, and she meets a guy...and you can guess what happened. It WAS cute, but I didn't enjoy it as much as everyone else seems to have. I didn't love the pacing - the beginning was slow, then I really got into it, then it got slow again. When it ended, I was almost relieved.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHpb1WvRVqhpUjdQ-uD_1JOyJebgsULB_XY9aGawAeEMrZxn1UsXOzKfuyDcqzpFlDuaY9UrzdKNjcMw7knjq7aWhXkqIOSMvL2TL7mgU7GxznJ0Ekk9vUTAsdaM_VyUQSCn_keuuBq8PRoDblofzl77KpO_k06zcwqdVF0v66LvNBAlQXV7PLvDhh/s500/white.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="324" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHpb1WvRVqhpUjdQ-uD_1JOyJebgsULB_XY9aGawAeEMrZxn1UsXOzKfuyDcqzpFlDuaY9UrzdKNjcMw7knjq7aWhXkqIOSMvL2TL7mgU7GxznJ0Ekk9vUTAsdaM_VyUQSCn_keuuBq8PRoDblofzl77KpO_k06zcwqdVF0v66LvNBAlQXV7PLvDhh/w414-h640/white.jpg" width="414" /></a></div><br />You Sound Like a White Girl</i> by <b>Julissa Arce</b> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">[audiobook] </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">- When I read <i>American Dirt </i>a few years ago, I saw a lot of stories about 'own voices' stories and it really opened my eyes to the problematic nature of publishing. A former co-worker went to high school with Julissa and recommended her books to me. This is the second book of hers that I read, and it was excellent! We are about the same age and both grew up in Texas, but we definitely had different experiences, and it was so interesting thinking about what I learned in school as a white girl and how much was missing. This was really fantastic!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">My average rating for the month was 3.6 - a little low for me but <i>Summer Wives</i> and <i>Fire Weather</i> took it out of me, ha. {My average for all of 2023 was 3.7 and for 2022 was 3.9.} My favorite of the month was <i>A Black Women's History of the United States</i>, but I don't see that being the TOP book of the year... So we shall see!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-82209411579087656382024-01-31T10:00:00.000-06:002024-01-31T10:00:53.082-06:00Currently: Season of Sickness<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Current Book</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtyDe1XrhCoRNT6lhWprfBRQv479AewKhDMSpp_HJImdhh1ERKHujGtINLJCFCXMVzOGY-HzGN6ji_KNtkJO0TwKWQw6UzfCHcjBSGAr0FkBLG21c-HGCQjZ914NBO7DLFzLCv1M7N6-DkstF_KY34_Hj0MiX97Y3TnxLiU3AT4DhosArNxPUZTLFb/s1000/7year.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="667" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtyDe1XrhCoRNT6lhWprfBRQv479AewKhDMSpp_HJImdhh1ERKHujGtINLJCFCXMVzOGY-HzGN6ji_KNtkJO0TwKWQw6UzfCHcjBSGAr0FkBLG21c-HGCQjZ914NBO7DLFzLCv1M7N6-DkstF_KY34_Hj0MiX97Y3TnxLiU3AT4DhosArNxPUZTLFb/w426-h640/7year.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Song</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i>The Man</i> Taylor Swift</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/AqAJLh9wuZ0" width="320" youtube-src-id="AqAJLh9wuZ0"></iframe></div><br /><i>Current TV Show</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Brent watched this before, I never did.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We are watching together and then moving onto season 4!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk46h01eR8OwuIgRKNXnRfEcMG53gRIp_d0Pr5QXlkMi01Kzunvo_Ajqnq3wHUV57pXWlEdbrxL4CmrJZg3u8DrsClyGJx2NF_gpCbwjsobyup9ZHFBR3dN9KscMMyZkxnvzaAjJOfG7rvh1Wnv7pazAvXIIA7E6ctkCx_B4c4QM2Pt28mtGRxPxxW/s370/True_Detective_season_3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="370" data-original-width="250" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk46h01eR8OwuIgRKNXnRfEcMG53gRIp_d0Pr5QXlkMi01Kzunvo_Ajqnq3wHUV57pXWlEdbrxL4CmrJZg3u8DrsClyGJx2NF_gpCbwjsobyup9ZHFBR3dN9KscMMyZkxnvzaAjJOfG7rvh1Wnv7pazAvXIIA7E6ctkCx_B4c4QM2Pt28mtGRxPxxW/w432-h640/True_Detective_season_3.png" width="432" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Audiobook/Podcast</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd0pp1xlpvxG8hpaplXlult0iA487ggIT7FpnA7_cJ8m2EslrcF6PEvQcKIxwEndhn1HPXf1bvIcmI_uJ-dMOsAeMHAYj185Y1XfNtiCTQf2SLoLSHzhADnBiiXFYNEOJwaYBgvrV-bBp0YjL57oeqZAkB_y41baHAhxQ0ddPeD8fOrzL14am1x1Pg/s500/white.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="324" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd0pp1xlpvxG8hpaplXlult0iA487ggIT7FpnA7_cJ8m2EslrcF6PEvQcKIxwEndhn1HPXf1bvIcmI_uJ-dMOsAeMHAYj185Y1XfNtiCTQf2SLoLSHzhADnBiiXFYNEOJwaYBgvrV-bBp0YjL57oeqZAkB_y41baHAhxQ0ddPeD8fOrzL14am1x1Pg/w414-h640/white.jpg" width="414" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Drink</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It's always chai latte season here.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">But I also enjoyed several Moscow mules this past weekend.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Current Food</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It's the most wonderful time of the year!!!! {grin}</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif9d1rNZ34Vc2KEAMdeHxb_utyb59GsT_pEqXAk56NUPkVEefQdbrEGsgOeU4qgC8TE7Qxu0z-0FvNIvPfAVIgLh9bM5gsY5FBudAdwR9nhc9TP-7-l2wEleyrgTXFObhPUHcou9gxgQ1XtPKOsYsbs4pu1qL_ECY3PaRadXsHN3ddHfxLa4KVG3N0/s768/thinmints.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="768" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif9d1rNZ34Vc2KEAMdeHxb_utyb59GsT_pEqXAk56NUPkVEefQdbrEGsgOeU4qgC8TE7Qxu0z-0FvNIvPfAVIgLh9bM5gsY5FBudAdwR9nhc9TP-7-l2wEleyrgTXFObhPUHcou9gxgQ1XtPKOsYsbs4pu1qL_ECY3PaRadXsHN3ddHfxLa4KVG3N0/w640-h640/thinmints.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><i>Current Shame-Inducing Pleasure</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">SO MANY COOKIES IN MY HOUSE</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRUanbwzlOH4A0x25hwm-VdBJPq8uTOWFah_i9STgrlIOtLMIW1_GIh0O2COp48j8b-paCwcv5os0287W1hSrNWo2rs0wUzI4ObpZQTsWxPJ9_Juzj45EAPFONhXZxOg6OJ8joe2McaVbASlWrfJShaesygialZhfPaCEdP41Bm9Qb08CoLKwjYWjD/s292/gsc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="172" data-original-width="292" height="377" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRUanbwzlOH4A0x25hwm-VdBJPq8uTOWFah_i9STgrlIOtLMIW1_GIh0O2COp48j8b-paCwcv5os0287W1hSrNWo2rs0wUzI4ObpZQTsWxPJ9_Juzj45EAPFONhXZxOg6OJ8joe2McaVbASlWrfJShaesygialZhfPaCEdP41Bm9Qb08CoLKwjYWjD/w640-h377/gsc.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Outfit</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I'm really embracing my headband era.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">[And loving that Moscow mule!]</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_hCXgxTk5Y0qI9qhOJYXMwC1PH_9UU4Hpr3uVHFL5uIB4k7cfS_fcSz9EIEJ5qUcChiM_ie4G4JPiD9WQN4zGu0SlG0yDEDahJjwAwTua4t4GZ4zpvnVXCi7osOp7Xno5hzONDQxPeM761HwPHG_wByUxMXUZly_h8Kei8sbDQlTbFESmoi3O8xSM/s4032/friends.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_hCXgxTk5Y0qI9qhOJYXMwC1PH_9UU4Hpr3uVHFL5uIB4k7cfS_fcSz9EIEJ5qUcChiM_ie4G4JPiD9WQN4zGu0SlG0yDEDahJjwAwTua4t4GZ4zpvnVXCi7osOp7Xno5hzONDQxPeM761HwPHG_wByUxMXUZly_h8Kei8sbDQlTbFESmoi3O8xSM/w640-h480/friends.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Celebrity Crush</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Glen Powell is such a cutie!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisx8PlOxiSNfP68VU4i4kHGDUpBcNpRLcCAh9aXzOdTIT_od6tqfaFSySEtyyE6KsC8dqs3lZ7TdlfrxmdFrOvwokvKKrSmHCgg9e-1gtpNdFvq6TrVIQQdCFB4BTeMPeIuEl9EhTgOhyphenhyphentAV3j19DAdyXeByb045Ql0HXTKGUp8I1ttWKAiCV1WZkW/s1200/gpowell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="976" data-original-width="1200" height="520" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisx8PlOxiSNfP68VU4i4kHGDUpBcNpRLcCAh9aXzOdTIT_od6tqfaFSySEtyyE6KsC8dqs3lZ7TdlfrxmdFrOvwokvKKrSmHCgg9e-1gtpNdFvq6TrVIQQdCFB4BTeMPeIuEl9EhTgOhyphenhyphentAV3j19DAdyXeByb045Ql0HXTKGUp8I1ttWKAiCV1WZkW/w640-h520/gpowell.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Mood</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I'm over sickness season!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Drew woke up Monday with fever {and it's still going strong}</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">and I had to pick Paige up from school Monday morning throwing up!</div><br /><i>Current Anticipation</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">There's a lot of fun stuff coming up but nothing super soon.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I'm just focusing on selling cookies, ha.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Current Wishlist</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Living room makeover is finally happening!</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We ordered a new section that comes in February.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I'm currently looking at rugs, chairs, barstools, storage...all the things.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This also means the playroom is getting a makeover.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I'm currently cleaning it out like a madwoman.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">View from the weekend!!!!!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3sR5iJsJVOEq2R-Z4cW10bSa5-_CSIxoVQaHmHIjY0DC-UK2M8OpAc5x9f8pEHGjD34xx_77YsAzla_pLy2atbgAKKBTNdrxrpw4uEpqMm21AqyJ6A8rcFEGp7A75TqmjRSL_hdQAnTpesKGW2cVE4QF0RxrYnELdoEggTHRlxfky3BicjCeWdGbc/s4032/playroom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3sR5iJsJVOEq2R-Z4cW10bSa5-_CSIxoVQaHmHIjY0DC-UK2M8OpAc5x9f8pEHGjD34xx_77YsAzla_pLy2atbgAKKBTNdrxrpw4uEpqMm21AqyJ6A8rcFEGp7A75TqmjRSL_hdQAnTpesKGW2cVE4QF0RxrYnELdoEggTHRlxfky3BicjCeWdGbc/w480-h640/playroom.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Movie</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Going to see this with Allison tomorrow!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB_9EcthxtnVPnz5gl5rBxRaX74QxCz0A5DRakcufGMDVjXClEOad5HvfSzSBqWTa962nGX2Y2g5BMaH5eEqpVnZdQOx-81-Aif6UWiSe6Ojy5KUiuDpAJT9yRYsv8QqpiwkrujXvVqoTpivhLKMSDZenQWRY4GRIIqsdV8s2087CrcwbCesvaJiQU/s4096/americanfiction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4096" data-original-width="2765" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB_9EcthxtnVPnz5gl5rBxRaX74QxCz0A5DRakcufGMDVjXClEOad5HvfSzSBqWTa962nGX2Y2g5BMaH5eEqpVnZdQOx-81-Aif6UWiSe6Ojy5KUiuDpAJT9yRYsv8QqpiwkrujXvVqoTpivhLKMSDZenQWRY4GRIIqsdV8s2087CrcwbCesvaJiQU/w432-h640/americanfiction.jpg" width="432" /></a></div><br /><i>Current Picture</i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Not fitting so well on the couch anymore! {grin} #theSwopeseven</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgppf2RRj-TsRK83t6yb8ZlGY0pmBNBjQdfDBJJVUN0wu2dAfIFvOjjM6Kf0YkyEWzBFbF_o55_Vznh5ryPkitAwpjgax0E2OTOnIfNRbLPuwJsmKX3KXss4uz88hAvZL21P6QI1nJlg-mp5ReZ5PaqhfwJ341DwtJeFaDmEgeJeacOSaf0FHow6ACG/s4032/swope7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgppf2RRj-TsRK83t6yb8ZlGY0pmBNBjQdfDBJJVUN0wu2dAfIFvOjjM6Kf0YkyEWzBFbF_o55_Vznh5ryPkitAwpjgax0E2OTOnIfNRbLPuwJsmKX3KXss4uz88hAvZL21P6QI1nJlg-mp5ReZ5PaqhfwJ341DwtJeFaDmEgeJeacOSaf0FHow6ACG/w640-h480/swope7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-12317528485384575882024-01-30T17:28:00.000-06:002024-01-30T17:28:08.056-06:00Drew's 11th Year!<div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I'm going to get these yearly updates finished in January, yay! Last but certainly not least is our baby with the first birthday of the year. Our small but mighty girl is 11, and she just keeps getting better and better.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwzhf5aBhTNDxI2xwiBLHhw1T4gtwWQS_H0vTYWMQkn0wBTkzBqqsTFtY_iKaIGkmSH4zA7zHuv7S6PUgbQiLRP_3xTxNGr1Fg-WRboo-a88XMiPVpGc4bTs-fSDDPF5QX6pZSgwAMTF1Sp9nuBY3n7yjnIuxqyPoPhhQ8juEfhEzdbNZdcUUo1Tl5/s4032/Dbday.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwzhf5aBhTNDxI2xwiBLHhw1T4gtwWQS_H0vTYWMQkn0wBTkzBqqsTFtY_iKaIGkmSH4zA7zHuv7S6PUgbQiLRP_3xTxNGr1Fg-WRboo-a88XMiPVpGc4bTs-fSDDPF5QX6pZSgwAMTF1Sp9nuBY3n7yjnIuxqyPoPhhQ8juEfhEzdbNZdcUUo1Tl5/w480-h640/Dbday.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Stats</b>:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Height: 54.5" {21.8%}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Weight: 63.8 pounds {8%}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">BMI: 15.1 {12%}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Clothes size: 6/S and 7-8/M</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Shoe size: 4 or 4.5</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Teeth lost: 1</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiseOYp8XUgbohL15z1tNDYv8a88tBbNGTB78inlurr4MCsFvRvBlQlLMjXhGgWouN3mZHJPqEsbhRroIRBp3PATLXP4bXB8DUE1QS2TpACETdhgQkqje4KMiGZ7cKv6AJCYm8txYAgFFIUuB3RlNa_IQ09VdgnoE77r1C2wnxEa1Xb__j6PLDE8Hsl/s3088/IMG_0044.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiseOYp8XUgbohL15z1tNDYv8a88tBbNGTB78inlurr4MCsFvRvBlQlLMjXhGgWouN3mZHJPqEsbhRroIRBp3PATLXP4bXB8DUE1QS2TpACETdhgQkqje4KMiGZ7cKv6AJCYm8txYAgFFIUuB3RlNa_IQ09VdgnoE77r1C2wnxEa1Xb__j6PLDE8Hsl/w480-h640/IMG_0044.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This girl continues to be the sweetest of our children. She has the purest heart and is always the biggest helper. She keeps her room clean {most of the time}, will help with any chore, loves to help with cooking, just a big help to me! I have to remember not to take advantage of her kind nature since her brother and sister complain quite a bit more about pitching in!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2-vZqormum_MtT6IIyCSJaMNBzHnKXDQ2q7erDNNF0r4zyFUvY-oIAEzkwsyz426MOcNLmjVnF6pwWWgkPAE_jCJEUY7P8veQf6Ad3dMoAi9GSgZWDmMY-vC36tHuCka4R6K1SqHbOhCVs74Z_w54LdQ7kcSaacvI31oddPbI_x6puhdql9F2jc7g/s4032/IMG_9318.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2-vZqormum_MtT6IIyCSJaMNBzHnKXDQ2q7erDNNF0r4zyFUvY-oIAEzkwsyz426MOcNLmjVnF6pwWWgkPAE_jCJEUY7P8veQf6Ad3dMoAi9GSgZWDmMY-vC36tHuCka4R6K1SqHbOhCVs74Z_w54LdQ7kcSaacvI31oddPbI_x6puhdql9F2jc7g/w480-h640/IMG_9318.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">She is also very silly! She has her 'weird' moments where she is being extremely goofy and loves to say silly/outrageous things for a laugh. She's showing signs of growing up and maturing but also has some little girl in her still, which I love!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-LGH039TSR7ixU91rF8kfC61NxFMZAYATdH54FnOU4Zv5kRxbyJCPH708iLje2vi2ORKMu2_Ykodbcs9dCubN0lugZo-iy0hKnkGZ7Qp7X_t0AZqwNnfzuvzGC93uU-3uiD5quOFSWc2EpH4HnnjT5TFKplrLOLNARio6VZNBsEkglDWy1oJYDCj2/s2048/GW3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-LGH039TSR7ixU91rF8kfC61NxFMZAYATdH54FnOU4Zv5kRxbyJCPH708iLje2vi2ORKMu2_Ykodbcs9dCubN0lugZo-iy0hKnkGZ7Qp7X_t0AZqwNnfzuvzGC93uU-3uiD5quOFSWc2EpH4HnnjT5TFKplrLOLNARio6VZNBsEkglDWy1oJYDCj2/w480-h640/GW3.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Drew LOVES basketball! She played in a summer league and really thrived - we didn't realize she was so competitive and fierce. She's currently in her 2nd season and truly loves it. She is also still enjoying Girl Scouts and takes piano lessons {begrudgingly}.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4vrvhe18hNjfw-dxEYLbhS6_j8SiDQdCQtaHk8_Z-V7hNgk1RmJzTieNAI00fL24bF4tsCvHddfA4RN1xcrmgRlilAB8Uj8JLwJeN0ds4PtiA_ppjPyHBbHa5IoGxijcEJhhsXWqkLv8V3qdqD4AoSORkZfWO-LcSaTDCLDKemuL-ZLGHAVpEnWLl/s4032/Dcar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4vrvhe18hNjfw-dxEYLbhS6_j8SiDQdCQtaHk8_Z-V7hNgk1RmJzTieNAI00fL24bF4tsCvHddfA4RN1xcrmgRlilAB8Uj8JLwJeN0ds4PtiA_ppjPyHBbHa5IoGxijcEJhhsXWqkLv8V3qdqD4AoSORkZfWO-LcSaTDCLDKemuL-ZLGHAVpEnWLl/w480-h640/Dcar.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">She has really developed a love of baking and is very artistic overall. She loves drawing and painting, writing stories and music, and she loves photography - she's talented in ways I am definitely not.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzsdrM1doQhBBG64K2Y7fKQjIKzGCQfed8iU_Ehf0T9DQCrHr-_PcnrtTNicHOZifxfL8WoKNoiB0ZrbFOxwtmoetLI4fh4OKkIs53ptbrmZ54OF41Qwj_bZ73wl_aEGhOOBcoxdBslTen56-5QwuUlOZQuy4h91UfsbpMVnBNSjYgLaj-3TbUw6j/s4032/dbg3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzsdrM1doQhBBG64K2Y7fKQjIKzGCQfed8iU_Ehf0T9DQCrHr-_PcnrtTNicHOZifxfL8WoKNoiB0ZrbFOxwtmoetLI4fh4OKkIs53ptbrmZ54OF41Qwj_bZ73wl_aEGhOOBcoxdBslTen56-5QwuUlOZQuy4h91UfsbpMVnBNSjYgLaj-3TbUw6j/w480-h640/dbg3.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Drew is thriving at her new school, but it took some time to settle in. She definitely has anxiety in new situations, but I think we've managed through the worst of it. She has excellent grades, has made new friends {but still has her bestie, Zara}, has some great teachers, overall it's been a great transition, and I think she's going to be very successful here.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg6qGYyt5iG0-efCijQN8gG-mbvgkNF47vl3JQdisDtS6fFMKiHb1hvBqQiGPEiWoo70fTo5yY-Z9a4KtUiYufG4rQRfo-CSPNohqzRypgEzoAUJhAYnO3Z-UfBSR6oRlgNJASDxmoCliXZ3ZF7PPZgS3PIWywFADmgVeC10xziALZEjp2iQn7WBPp/s4032/IMG_1558.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg6qGYyt5iG0-efCijQN8gG-mbvgkNF47vl3JQdisDtS6fFMKiHb1hvBqQiGPEiWoo70fTo5yY-Z9a4KtUiYufG4rQRfo-CSPNohqzRypgEzoAUJhAYnO3Z-UfBSR6oRlgNJASDxmoCliXZ3ZF7PPZgS3PIWywFADmgVeC10xziALZEjp2iQn7WBPp/w480-h640/IMG_1558.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Clothes have historically been such a challenge with Drew, but we found a new store this year, Tilly's, and it has been a game changer. It reminds me of a '90s Pac Sun, and we've had a lot of success finding clothes she likes there. We used to end shopping trips with one of us in tears, and now we leave Tilly's every time with a few purchases, yay!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-d70sr6LHt1cG0OF8EwpU9f9xUy0_BmpPM2OnHvIhyphenhyphenxWQq9_hwLJbcb8FY_OdmJCdASDLFJkJkQ1NamauOXlPx-OZvNQHhvdnlCnIEzR3bVzhXnh-0M505xKFetQOxXRrI2tYM131oLzL-zplGlp7ve_5zPwyI20i_Fiscra_BuHrlep93mrZOKcd/s4032/IMG_2653.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-d70sr6LHt1cG0OF8EwpU9f9xUy0_BmpPM2OnHvIhyphenhyphenxWQq9_hwLJbcb8FY_OdmJCdASDLFJkJkQ1NamauOXlPx-OZvNQHhvdnlCnIEzR3bVzhXnh-0M505xKFetQOxXRrI2tYM131oLzL-zplGlp7ve_5zPwyI20i_Fiscra_BuHrlep93mrZOKcd/w480-h640/IMG_2653.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">She is a great eater still - lots of fruits and vegetables - and has gotten more adventurous in the last year in trying new things. She's started to be able to handle a little bit of spice which is fun! Her favorite snack is seaweed!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilh7-m129x23IN7bHGbWYGLDoVzmwzI4eJNxeusPNciPy4dSLkAtWp2U25OEQVv10FGjM3daiyRd82JFcB2ttcqdVDTgYLzzF9TSi4whwdy-MhumrQu0JOB6rFwSUr4_eYQN9cwn8qKXpLi09nv7IHCBUSeFkmTK4dtHn1-IhZNVxYd0m7Qsm8bFdP/s3088/IMG_2692.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilh7-m129x23IN7bHGbWYGLDoVzmwzI4eJNxeusPNciPy4dSLkAtWp2U25OEQVv10FGjM3daiyRd82JFcB2ttcqdVDTgYLzzF9TSi4whwdy-MhumrQu0JOB6rFwSUr4_eYQN9cwn8qKXpLi09nv7IHCBUSeFkmTK4dtHn1-IhZNVxYd0m7Qsm8bFdP/w480-h640/IMG_2692.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Electronics aren't an obsession for her like Trent and Paige, but she definitely has some apps she enjoys - she loves the editing apps, like Cap Cut, to make little videos. She loves to FaceTime her friends and play games. I'm really enjoying watching movies with her - we are making good pace through some of my favorites from growing up!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuJ28oBF1fv-4QLiJV9JCdEAqTkqHTTHFUIIkDZfzZ_TUDFNVmWrNixBAQXzDJc5XvBqX19A6D-yR2uWqFp111DN8TPSwU-egIuo9uIpvznCGPqLr0efibFiShyNl2cngKAtj-P68DFRrS1XBW37f7NaZ-dBXuU3XPiWp9GEY4AKPFfx_vIyiVr562/s4032/IMG_3010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuJ28oBF1fv-4QLiJV9JCdEAqTkqHTTHFUIIkDZfzZ_TUDFNVmWrNixBAQXzDJc5XvBqX19A6D-yR2uWqFp111DN8TPSwU-egIuo9uIpvznCGPqLr0efibFiShyNl2cngKAtj-P68DFRrS1XBW37f7NaZ-dBXuU3XPiWp9GEY4AKPFfx_vIyiVr562/w480-h640/IMG_3010.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Drew loves her family something fierce. She loves to spend times with her grandparents and cousins - she is always down for a sleepover with family. She and Blair have a super close bond, and I love that so much for them.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE-xp8WHSW33lslcZlVDQSf5AxeEsCgzle8Y6IObBNr8N-MublnbfNNeogGrq7kQWQupN-p-8k5nZcRKgGXoGmvOpzgrSaX7alQ7QNPXM_Z6LYDY9jopLYi2CE35bpEbAqeKxfb0yowHuN4uvBxfgEXXm2OMo_dMGph3s3o-nWCntt32DjeaTdOkx3/s4032/Tgivingdandn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE-xp8WHSW33lslcZlVDQSf5AxeEsCgzle8Y6IObBNr8N-MublnbfNNeogGrq7kQWQupN-p-8k5nZcRKgGXoGmvOpzgrSaX7alQ7QNPXM_Z6LYDY9jopLYi2CE35bpEbAqeKxfb0yowHuN4uvBxfgEXXm2OMo_dMGph3s3o-nWCntt32DjeaTdOkx3/w480-h640/Tgivingdandn.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">She has such a nurturing heart. She LOVES animals {wants a dog so bad she can't stand it} and loves babies. I fully see a career in babysitting for this girl when she's a little older. She is just a nurturer!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6uEUzMxJKv9znGdhjpqjI_4iHERYGjwdHvhZP-baa45gGRWzDmds1iTzaAafSEHvsCGsGwl8mu2p7KB9ROKdZ89f9_bmLobu9ZR91BUsw0FACf_qy8GWNtUMIMjA_LFUW53xfbum3DgUjIHBODq8pJ9U9gG1Fjv0jeTgN66x057tMLXcXhlvSZM4k/s4032/IMG_4309.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6uEUzMxJKv9znGdhjpqjI_4iHERYGjwdHvhZP-baa45gGRWzDmds1iTzaAafSEHvsCGsGwl8mu2p7KB9ROKdZ89f9_bmLobu9ZR91BUsw0FACf_qy8GWNtUMIMjA_LFUW53xfbum3DgUjIHBODq8pJ9U9gG1Fjv0jeTgN66x057tMLXcXhlvSZM4k/w480-h640/IMG_4309.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">This girl is beyond loved and it is such a joy to be her mother! I can't wait to see what her 12th year brings!!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-12017308977663408582024-01-26T05:00:00.001-06:002024-01-26T05:00:00.135-06:002023 Resolutions Check-In<div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>PHYSICAL G</b></span><b style="font-family: verdana;">OALS</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">1) <b>Improve Flexibility</b> - This one is hard to measure, but I 100% did improve my flexibility! I can 'see' it when I'm in yoga or stretching at the end of a class. One of our yoga instructors constantly talks about flexibility keeping us young, and I love that and definitely want to keep up with this.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">2) <b>Weight Loss</b> - I'm very happy with where I am in my weight loss journey. I'm definitely not done {I would like to lose another 10ish pounds}, but I'm happy with what I achieved in 2023 {20 pounds off} AND keeping it off {although the holidays and early January weren't my friend ha}.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>FAMILY/HOUSE GOALS</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">1) <b>Time with kids/Brent</b> - I don't think I did a very good job of this. I mean I'm with my family every day, but I wouldn't say I truly gave them intentional time. Going to keep working at this!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">2) <b>Cleaning every day</b> - Did I do better here? Yes. Did I do as much as I wanted? No. Will it be something I continue to focus on in 2024. YES.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">3) <b>Organizing</b> - I failed at this big time. I had a goal to just do a little at a time - clean out a closet here, a drawer there...and I didn't. BUT as I wrote this post, I just got back from taking a truckload of stuff to Goodwill, so this one is carrying forward, and I talked to my therapist about this as well - I really want to declutter this year!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">4) <b>Family Vacation</b> - Nailed it! We went to Arizona in the summer and also took a Swope vacation to Port Aransas in August. We are discussing vacations this year, and it looks like the Port A trip is going to be annual, yay!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHAjgKuWB3WlOt1ubdzpX5PX27pm8ZsEVQ7vjnUuhgySDZ-jgZXEgZcZgxzwokfCJL1vkzAeWySx7LKSCrfaInP_mJ_KiQU-8tXgeBMHnPW8V3trNAP4DFxFQ_WdivbA0K5HcvyeqcEHGJWoBs13XCU-vkCA7hwGy0XuXzvhBP1zZCZxtVajI9os9r/s4032/IMG_1595.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHAjgKuWB3WlOt1ubdzpX5PX27pm8ZsEVQ7vjnUuhgySDZ-jgZXEgZcZgxzwokfCJL1vkzAeWySx7LKSCrfaInP_mJ_KiQU-8tXgeBMHnPW8V3trNAP4DFxFQ_WdivbA0K5HcvyeqcEHGJWoBs13XCU-vkCA7hwGy0XuXzvhBP1zZCZxtVajI9os9r/w480-h640/IMG_1595.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheKWhqOK6hm8Gh8FBX34jpM-98KqfPXb8giPQusF5CqTgPCROS9KCKQXwnAZ7fJGxhdSZL7IJk57MzQll5k8Wzm3cXV7rNgrhB0CrFxsnizcUJUy7uvW2KyaV6a8Bwp6VlsPJehOZAZrnPRTrO8QLch9bm-iZLuFaTO8DEU0rQMk305yoogebDOMrl/s4032/beach.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheKWhqOK6hm8Gh8FBX34jpM-98KqfPXb8giPQusF5CqTgPCROS9KCKQXwnAZ7fJGxhdSZL7IJk57MzQll5k8Wzm3cXV7rNgrhB0CrFxsnizcUJUy7uvW2KyaV6a8Bwp6VlsPJehOZAZrnPRTrO8QLch9bm-iZLuFaTO8DEU0rQMk305yoogebDOMrl/w640-h480/beach.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />BOOK GOALS</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">1) <b>100 Books</b> - I read 130 books this year, my highest number ever!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">2) <b>Physical books cleanup</b> - Did I get rid of some physical books I haven't read but owned for years? Yes. Did I get rid of everything I should have? No, ha. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">3) <b>Goodreads TBR</b> - I had a goal to read my 10 oldest books on my Goodreads TBR. I read 9 of them! There was 1 I couldn't find at any library, and I finally just decided to delete it from my TBR - I didn't want to buy it! It felt good to get this one done.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">So that's how 2023 wrapped up - I'm pretty proud of this - I've had way worse years. {grin} Now onward we go!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-7454523088004083422024-01-24T05:00:00.001-06:002024-01-24T12:49:38.288-06:00Paige - Heavenly Seven<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I finally had Paige and Drew's well checks last week, so we are on the home stretch of ALLLL the updates needed. {grin}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VVBTS6L9uFggLdaFPJ6EZ_0Hxi_08vRbZdY6hnkecVHaGRCv8xhI47ibEEVgGkfzjq2U7X1xnIC3B_8yc6X8Hd9wgAmZrXwCQSD9cVT9UAyyEp7Uh5aCCEjANaqvxBZcD_oF334HTb0i0r4nLCTVnFQ0hEYiufCQxFSL5NoyLRvmrIUjx9Kz_D7s/s4032/IMG_4362.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VVBTS6L9uFggLdaFPJ6EZ_0Hxi_08vRbZdY6hnkecVHaGRCv8xhI47ibEEVgGkfzjq2U7X1xnIC3B_8yc6X8Hd9wgAmZrXwCQSD9cVT9UAyyEp7Uh5aCCEjANaqvxBZcD_oF334HTb0i0r4nLCTVnFQ0hEYiufCQxFSL5NoyLRvmrIUjx9Kz_D7s/w480-h640/IMG_4362.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br />Height: 46.5 inches {24%}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Weight: 45 pounds {21.4%}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">BMI: 14.6 {29%}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Clothes size: XS or S</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Shoe size: 13/13.5</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Teeth lost: 1 {for a total of 8}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBLBZ76Cmu8oC5dYJogfSo_4d4Gvqezz2N2IASawIhrrIQpjWbyQU72npMzJn-948UFQ5EHdz8hI_hyphenhyphendVngOhl5ZDOzuF-V-ty5t9DdUNroWuMK4h1OPglYwpQP6uSpxVe_YuO8RYTWZo_nKa1RJnLN9rf7UMEfwpfZCLqcXBnhrKGfdrlN9CGB2xP/s4032/GS1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBLBZ76Cmu8oC5dYJogfSo_4d4Gvqezz2N2IASawIhrrIQpjWbyQU72npMzJn-948UFQ5EHdz8hI_hyphenhyphendVngOhl5ZDOzuF-V-ty5t9DdUNroWuMK4h1OPglYwpQP6uSpxVe_YuO8RYTWZo_nKa1RJnLN9rf7UMEfwpfZCLqcXBnhrKGfdrlN9CGB2xP/w480-h640/GS1.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">When I think about our caboose and the year she had a lot has stayed the same - she is still our funny, joyful, helpful, happy girl - but some things have changed for sure - her style, new school, new activities. There has been a lot!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLozjGrriVq2nIxx5KiHNb0t7GGNvmB-9mHGSlhNWlcSBjlMCeJRP5LPW9JMb1LbC5NJHC2OAThKFs4JWHROJiJqf0U9GJECgN7vDPNO11VLfs6t3SBzxg7fq_g38dHRnsvajU1WAm-9ZDBosNh1jlZlUYdddXQMMzVNxExOCh_Kxc9l_vcKSs0bJx/s3088/currentlypic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLozjGrriVq2nIxx5KiHNb0t7GGNvmB-9mHGSlhNWlcSBjlMCeJRP5LPW9JMb1LbC5NJHC2OAThKFs4JWHROJiJqf0U9GJECgN7vDPNO11VLfs6t3SBzxg7fq_g38dHRnsvajU1WAm-9ZDBosNh1jlZlUYdddXQMMzVNxExOCh_Kxc9l_vcKSs0bJx/w480-h640/currentlypic.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Paige changed schools in November, and she still loves school and loves her new classroom and teacher. Her first progress report at her new school was a GLOWING review. She is exceeding expectations left and right and is doing great socially too. </span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEeYVbfiG6mhD_0sewnO_zS1xcynPjBsbJHAy9OxQUgz7zJG7FViVunkpI7P5wFbubDU6SC76sMKr-RisdaSv83U-6ioyO7CNji6pw3JzuHuKqqEtCEut2JrTuUmkRH3db_ewDRPqggdSTt-js-1zS3H_qsrmxtSl1KMhxPj-SvnOfi9HiCVx5dm89/s4032/IMG_9381.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEeYVbfiG6mhD_0sewnO_zS1xcynPjBsbJHAy9OxQUgz7zJG7FViVunkpI7P5wFbubDU6SC76sMKr-RisdaSv83U-6ioyO7CNji6pw3JzuHuKqqEtCEut2JrTuUmkRH3db_ewDRPqggdSTt-js-1zS3H_qsrmxtSl1KMhxPj-SvnOfi9HiCVx5dm89/w480-h640/IMG_9381.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This girl makes friends wherever she goes. She has an infectious personality - she is joy personified and people radiate to her. I can't wait to see what she chooses to do with all this charisma, ha.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5X9QmrFRpTeQySCMgSrYIHjmZoHIbkZKiVABZaBHVJvtftzB4Me5mtx9fMPXhggheBB64eBLsdFPHbada56rkyJdqekMxt26WCnWmwgTyR2KpfUsyEqeSgsoyymO4gkZ7Z7RY3_xEu076J2Le8tMEYqbLV9ubUNF1E-nKFR3m4JBmGkR9zWScYgIn/s4032/IMG_0209.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5X9QmrFRpTeQySCMgSrYIHjmZoHIbkZKiVABZaBHVJvtftzB4Me5mtx9fMPXhggheBB64eBLsdFPHbada56rkyJdqekMxt26WCnWmwgTyR2KpfUsyEqeSgsoyymO4gkZ7Z7RY3_xEu076J2Le8tMEYqbLV9ubUNF1E-nKFR3m4JBmGkR9zWScYgIn/w480-h640/IMG_0209.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">One big change this year has been her sense of style. She went from a girly girl wearing dresses non-stop to morphing into a mini-Drew with athletic pants and crop tops being her style of choice. It has also led to A LOT of meltdowns over clothes, and I'm seriously about to implement a uniform for this child. Looking back at Drew's 7 year update, and she hit the style switch at the same time - between 6 and 7, very interesting!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJQMPN3Y7ISS7-KW6kJl_DpI0XoHc6gVhqKTS2Do3etuU7YFYAIBES7d8GKZqg28LAuXZpNOrvYxpdkGwFJCRL-L54-FVaOES9ZPoIxopRKjte8jFCJMrt_5A8bjFGmQrM14kO3VpYZ5oN2Jo_pUUg6tAf9cZe3SpJ7HKZLrt-c7Rl7MKYnu3rxLBM/s4032/IMG_0772.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJQMPN3Y7ISS7-KW6kJl_DpI0XoHc6gVhqKTS2Do3etuU7YFYAIBES7d8GKZqg28LAuXZpNOrvYxpdkGwFJCRL-L54-FVaOES9ZPoIxopRKjte8jFCJMrt_5A8bjFGmQrM14kO3VpYZ5oN2Jo_pUUg6tAf9cZe3SpJ7HKZLrt-c7Rl7MKYnu3rxLBM/w480-h640/IMG_0772.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Paige is still involved in Girl Scouts and is loving it! She played a second season of soccer and is playing basketball right now. She did cheer camp last summer and loved that as well, she wants to do it again this summer and try volleyball - I think we're going to have a social butterfly and will spend a lot of time coordinating her activities ha. When I think of her in high school I see SO many paths for her.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFxjQv4pmmNHSAt-qYzgXtoI6cHvgXuvwDV6aCRwWjogjkpWxroYndGAxoeu6HlkqX2wDhMIcFP1aYT4EmqJmDT_iC29achxdMpwlwZ2n2FMBPp4oOed6zp405XcZ71o3qa0yYtrO19YNUz6mPAZviQz2FdEBlmgnVDFAY_ey8l4Xhgxu8AP7dyYym/s4032/IMG_1126.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFxjQv4pmmNHSAt-qYzgXtoI6cHvgXuvwDV6aCRwWjogjkpWxroYndGAxoeu6HlkqX2wDhMIcFP1aYT4EmqJmDT_iC29achxdMpwlwZ2n2FMBPp4oOed6zp405XcZ71o3qa0yYtrO19YNUz6mPAZviQz2FdEBlmgnVDFAY_ey8l4Xhgxu8AP7dyYym/w480-h640/IMG_1126.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">She continues to be a really good eater. She loves fruits and vegetables and tries A LOT of foods! She tells me all the time to 'make me a plate of food' and I can give her a lot of variety and she scarfs it down. She is our best eater.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpddgz-Y-QJnXpSVzKZNJ37fyD_amaQrNU5hRnrOEKKCRXFNVSXt_FD-GrUdbNIheMqty3_xiVE0e286ub9vXRx_woxIbfbHgD2tnJ6yuG78sfAT4i38JSKsMw7KkYlkKL7xrAB8UAUogOj2oUuLfuCEoCoUTvZIaPf6OLH-Vkp3AmWiuEIazY5BI2/s4032/barbie1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpddgz-Y-QJnXpSVzKZNJ37fyD_amaQrNU5hRnrOEKKCRXFNVSXt_FD-GrUdbNIheMqty3_xiVE0e286ub9vXRx_woxIbfbHgD2tnJ6yuG78sfAT4i38JSKsMw7KkYlkKL7xrAB8UAUogOj2oUuLfuCEoCoUTvZIaPf6OLH-Vkp3AmWiuEIazY5BI2/w480-h640/barbie1.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Paige still sucks her thumb and LOVES her Sackie. She did a round of speech therapy this year which helped a lot but we still have a ways to go with her tongue thrust, and we won't really be able to complete all that with her still sucking her thumb. She is starting to get self-conscious about it and doesn't suck her thumb at school but also tells us she isn't ready to stop. So we are just being patient and letting her decide what is right for her.</span> </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDH6EuBcXulx_DZTssUn-XcyfNVN_TfVy5h57ia93bZaFqiEqkXuOQELSKrT6Hd4iKU-dcU6RORj7Ey3vZ44CT4c8VKXJew61t5A6vVDt0IC2UinuflnEZjEgtCSpc364U2JPHLmMAl7PlkmOsQ1vSdRc52LJyyBkPKJ0iVt-RI9q19diRbEpDAEct/s4032/SRWS5250.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDH6EuBcXulx_DZTssUn-XcyfNVN_TfVy5h57ia93bZaFqiEqkXuOQELSKrT6Hd4iKU-dcU6RORj7Ey3vZ44CT4c8VKXJew61t5A6vVDt0IC2UinuflnEZjEgtCSpc364U2JPHLmMAl7PlkmOsQ1vSdRc52LJyyBkPKJ0iVt-RI9q19diRbEpDAEct/w480-h640/SRWS5250.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">She loves to play board games {Uno is a big favorite right now}, loves to read - graphic novels {Dog Man!}, I Survived series, Magic Treehouse series, Owl/Unicorn Diaries, and of course our beloved Baby Blues comics. She is weirdly into Calico Critters right now too. We got rid of almost all of the Barbies and the Barbie Dreamhouse {she pitched a HUGE FIT over that, yet hadn't played with it in months}, but she is big into Calico Critters ESPECIALLY if Drew will play with her. She likes art but nowhere near as much as Drew who remains our little artist.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6LOqX7oVE616ZH4mFZgcclzDFaklw5UHzEGNsvdoXssbHhy-b9k24det2nRplC9uP-2zB7vPqfDnXl8ucNpHwyIz6J1encVhP_i5Fn79cZqJX_yKb6lmfgosBZ5_Q-gThWZqJJw4epe0zclTHJMRqhiI9m6OZcXisxiwsX1WbpiUlPOoxYtaFDc_G/s4032/IMG_2974.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6LOqX7oVE616ZH4mFZgcclzDFaklw5UHzEGNsvdoXssbHhy-b9k24det2nRplC9uP-2zB7vPqfDnXl8ucNpHwyIz6J1encVhP_i5Fn79cZqJX_yKb6lmfgosBZ5_Q-gThWZqJJw4epe0zclTHJMRqhiI9m6OZcXisxiwsX1WbpiUlPOoxYtaFDc_G/w480-h640/IMG_2974.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Her 2 favorite things are candy and her iPad - both habits I understand but also don't like ha. She is way more addicted to screens than Drew - about on par with Trent at this age. </span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW6Smoor9GCvHTxuoOK6ILhDQKeZ5f0I4iBL1ojE6fulujeEMMLuSBuh1bs5Qk3YKEfdhn6ROkWRjYertwtiuVIL2Y0tiPP5abVrvy6IQDMp58KhEQ_QKbRlaPzrZzaam3MbOlalAM1KB2oh6rN6vdoyzCfUpfc8Ch6-kn-LQ9Tdbfl_Q9T605SWrV/s4032/Tgivingpcooking.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW6Smoor9GCvHTxuoOK6ILhDQKeZ5f0I4iBL1ojE6fulujeEMMLuSBuh1bs5Qk3YKEfdhn6ROkWRjYertwtiuVIL2Y0tiPP5abVrvy6IQDMp58KhEQ_QKbRlaPzrZzaam3MbOlalAM1KB2oh6rN6vdoyzCfUpfc8Ch6-kn-LQ9Tdbfl_Q9T605SWrV/w480-h640/Tgivingpcooking.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Paige has made big strides in the sleep department, yay! She still struggles to fall asleep alone but is consistently staying in her bed at night! She sleeps in Drew's top bunk a lot, but even when she sleeps in her room, she stays almost every night. This has been HUGE!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7FZ1Czmgsy541zXu3dppr1Pj8dvR5tgGh9RrooTFzcONYqxmd0DL-93d5NmlXdWk2glyBw4scjAW31qldcMv8wzYvSHJUW_IVrdz2TlRhZHUngBJryBtdmHLi-hTqZezFhOP33zh-4DlUZWAyXN0wjEtjvKogmujBpHZh_OUWP6MGXJJ3BPYfBo64/s4032/IMG_3800.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7FZ1Czmgsy541zXu3dppr1Pj8dvR5tgGh9RrooTFzcONYqxmd0DL-93d5NmlXdWk2glyBw4scjAW31qldcMv8wzYvSHJUW_IVrdz2TlRhZHUngBJryBtdmHLi-hTqZezFhOP33zh-4DlUZWAyXN0wjEtjvKogmujBpHZh_OUWP6MGXJJ3BPYfBo64/w480-h640/IMG_3800.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">She is such a social butterfly. Every new thing she tries with new people, she has a new best friend. She is always asking for play dates and is very frustrated she can't have sleepovers yet!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3MuL0jQFoCzOEs5MuE4fkvBpJd55OPS2s9gh10y9fKZ79zxoXcDUjaYzkjdK3wyxnRlCqcJkDxvkznUj4JfjzINeUleuT81QyDK-CLzhLD9FA1zJW6qa5VEruFOLtdDRVKOjEUBkPPL3IDmJBpjv4JZq8JJRsMXSKnrpk8Kc8ERvHmcqGv0im_gL0/s4032/Pconcert2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3MuL0jQFoCzOEs5MuE4fkvBpJd55OPS2s9gh10y9fKZ79zxoXcDUjaYzkjdK3wyxnRlCqcJkDxvkznUj4JfjzINeUleuT81QyDK-CLzhLD9FA1zJW6qa5VEruFOLtdDRVKOjEUBkPPL3IDmJBpjv4JZq8JJRsMXSKnrpk8Kc8ERvHmcqGv0im_gL0/w480-h640/Pconcert2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Basically, this kid is the cat's pajamas, and I am thankful every day she is mine! </span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-10166992114941509482024-01-19T06:00:00.001-06:002024-01-19T06:00:00.158-06:007 Year Comparisons<div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="font-family: verdana;">I finally had the girls' well checks so stats for them will be coming soon, but I can't NOT document their comparisons! I am still in shock my baby is SEVEN, but seriously how cute are my 3 all at 7?!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs3K73AN3TzIJ_FssbVG6KGBoXWxkYJ9RULJ2EkPCxkgy-R7Zwx-mIyGTvHqYGVXV3ySePNUnIfxhzQlGXblJJqdtBJz8sip2M0Lthtu3tHe2k5ZXcn3HMXThOiLvbz92Gg4yNeSVHGGU-VSpJUNxkKsuzKqi5gYYfiDSUz-X8vWFsqexyDY0Zsu8y/s1091/seven.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="617" data-original-width="1091" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs3K73AN3TzIJ_FssbVG6KGBoXWxkYJ9RULJ2EkPCxkgy-R7Zwx-mIyGTvHqYGVXV3ySePNUnIfxhzQlGXblJJqdtBJz8sip2M0Lthtu3tHe2k5ZXcn3HMXThOiLvbz92Gg4yNeSVHGGU-VSpJUNxkKsuzKqi5gYYfiDSUz-X8vWFsqexyDY0Zsu8y/w640-h362/seven.PNG" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Trent</b>:</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Height: 47.5" {50%} </span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Weight: 46.5 pounds {34.5%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">BMI: 15 {33%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Drew</b>:</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Height: 45" {9%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Weight: 40 pounds {5%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">BMI: 13.89 {12%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Paige</b>:</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Height: 46.5" {24%}</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Weight: 45 pounds {21%}</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">BMI: 14.6 {29%}</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">It'll be interesting to see where they all end up - Paige has bounced around from being smaller than Drew to the last few years being bigger, so I think she'll be taller than her 'big' sister, and Paige is definitely catching up to Trent even! I say this every year but genetics fascinate me!!</span></div></div></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-56456798176615595782024-01-17T06:00:00.001-06:002024-01-17T06:00:00.130-06:00Book Results: 2023<div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Year-End Book Review time!! Yay! I love looking at how my reading shook out over a whole year. My stats don't look all that different from last year - I know what I like I guess. {grin} I did find my audiobook #s continue to grow, which means my overall books read grows which I love!</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Enough talk...here's how the books broke down!</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Book Goal: 100</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Books Read: 130 - my highest # ever, yay!</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Physical Books: 26 {20%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">eBooks: 71 {55%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Audiobooks: 33 {25%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Fiction: 100 {77%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Nonfiction: 30 {23%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Female author: 107 {82%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Male author: 21 {16%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Nonbinary/unknown: 2 {2%} </span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">White author: 102 {78%}</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">POC author: 27 {21%}</span></div></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Genres [I choose these myself and can give a book more than 1 so this won't add up to 130 for anyone checking my math and honestly some I didn't give anything past 'fiction' if I couldn't pin it down]:</span></div><div><ul style="line-height: 1.4; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;"><li style="border: none; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Chick-lit: 23</span></li><li style="border: none; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Romance: 30</span></li><li style="border: none; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Biography/Memoir: 19</span></li><li style="border: none; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Culture/Gender/Sexuality: 4</span></li><li style="border: none; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">YA: 7</span></li><li style="border: none; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Fantasy/Sci-fi: 17</span></li><li style="border: none; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Thriller/Mystery: 5</span></li><li style="border: none; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Historical fiction: 19</span></li><li style="border: none; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">WW1/WW2 {subset of historical fiction}: 3</span></li><li style="border: none; font-family: verdana; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;">Educational: 8</li><li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px;">General Fiction: 18</li></ul></div></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">And my favorites of the year! This year felt a little lower for 'great reads' for me - in 2022 I had 25 of 123 books being 5 stars. In 2023, it was 14 of 130. So some of these were my favorite of the month but wouldn't qualify as an overall favorite and some overall favorites didn't win the month because of another favorite - if that makes sense. Like <i>Fourth Wing</i> beat out <i>Romantic Comedy</i> but I would include both as a favorite for the year.</span></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoJiG7LikuWvQ4sh6qLVQd8GTpLP8q5p7KevZ8n1r0KbApjdAvPQpO3vo2vnjJeUD4d_idz4J-lifaTVwTZpwZLLrh9GaDuYtZuZL5iFVUWgQGytHIi-izuVQ-eb8yhXHxf2xB1UHD9JfW6-e_XnqtWBEO48z4R_8JifB6DlrQYz4nOCXjFxHB-mqv/s1608/bookstats.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="437" data-original-width="1608" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoJiG7LikuWvQ4sh6qLVQd8GTpLP8q5p7KevZ8n1r0KbApjdAvPQpO3vo2vnjJeUD4d_idz4J-lifaTVwTZpwZLLrh9GaDuYtZuZL5iFVUWgQGytHIi-izuVQ-eb8yhXHxf2xB1UHD9JfW6-e_XnqtWBEO48z4R_8JifB6DlrQYz4nOCXjFxHB-mqv/w640-h174/bookstats.PNG" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This was my absolute favorite of the year though - </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">months later I am still thinking about it!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Such a powerful book!!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9F_vSvj57SBLi20_FsprG4LxCOnYnThxdikxzDfQ86bck5jvOZj7R4_cFH9p8AuMp65DriorNjXNKyj-t01JHupbfdugKYaPTo1VmykyHcoA7DF-NdC1NFiyRKGSWn2JGSGgT9op-eUnF8SVhyjTG9tQ4hKaPGB7DapMV2qyEWwUBRPje7IfyyiDM/s350/roots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="223" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9F_vSvj57SBLi20_FsprG4LxCOnYnThxdikxzDfQ86bck5jvOZj7R4_cFH9p8AuMp65DriorNjXNKyj-t01JHupbfdugKYaPTo1VmykyHcoA7DF-NdC1NFiyRKGSWn2JGSGgT9op-eUnF8SVhyjTG9tQ4hKaPGB7DapMV2qyEWwUBRPje7IfyyiDM/w408-h640/roots.jpg" width="408" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">I'm really excited to see what 2024 brings from my favorite hobby!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-12021800769677898962024-01-15T06:00:00.002-06:002024-01-15T06:00:00.151-06:00Movie Review: Anyone But You<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Allison and I ended 2023 in a drought of no movies for way too long. </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">We hadn't seen a movie together since </span><i style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/07/movie-review-barbie.html" target="_blank"><b>Barbie</b></a></i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> in July, WHAT?!</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> I vow to not let 2024 go down the same way! </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">But we remedied that drought on Thursday of last week, when we saw </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Anyone But You</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvnG0b8vtUyX46bnm3xU6YpIJITrNBt3NViyWtMVo1AI05XW2HLBcteOJOmPkWOHCcJlCjziM7_is7pus7ctdmKyW6aGnnEdEFDIe7s34u-twU3MDlCwdYCwToQzraSTyWqg-y0ICHcfbod74t4SA36XP1kL7wdIxXpE2zL06SDjChz9cgq1cXdmro/s1350/anyone.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1350" data-original-width="1080" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvnG0b8vtUyX46bnm3xU6YpIJITrNBt3NViyWtMVo1AI05XW2HLBcteOJOmPkWOHCcJlCjziM7_is7pus7ctdmKyW6aGnnEdEFDIe7s34u-twU3MDlCwdYCwToQzraSTyWqg-y0ICHcfbod74t4SA36XP1kL7wdIxXpE2zL06SDjChz9cgq1cXdmro/w512-h640/anyone.jpg" width="512" /></a></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt26047818/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank">Plot</a></b>: After an amazing first date, Bea and Ben's fiery attraction turns ice cold--until they find themselves unexpectedly reunited at a destination wedding in Australia. So they do what any two mature adults would do: pretend to be a couple.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Review</b>: Gosh this was just about the perfect rom com! Was it predictable? Yes. Was it cheesy? Yes. Did Allison and I both leave the theater happy? Yes! We both really love Glen Powell {he's a native Texan!}, and he was just so cute in this. I will say there was more nudity than I was expecting so just a warning if that's going to bother you, but overall super cute!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-13496208100592882362024-01-12T06:00:00.000-06:002024-01-12T06:00:00.138-06:00Life Updates<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">When I catch up with people, my response is always '<i>same old, same old</i>' and overall that remains true {for which I am SO thankful - happy marriage, good health, happy & healthy kids, stable jobs, etc.}. However, there have been a handful of small changes that in total need a blog post!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>MTHFR</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Some of my {small} number of readers have been reading for long enough to remember when we tested Trent and me for <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/search/label/MTHFR" target="_blank"><b>MTHFR</b></a> thinking it would be linked to Trent's behavior challenges and my anxiety. We never tested the girls, but Drew has been dealing with some anxiety for awhile and Brent said '<i>Do you think we should test the girls for MTHFR?</i>' and I responded '<i>DUH! Why didn't I think of that!?!'</i> So we tested both girls...and they both have at least 1 MTHFR mutation.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Drew - 1 copy of the C677T mutation {the more severe mutation, same as Trent}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Paige - 1 copy each of the C677T and A1298C mutation {same as me}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The girls have their well-checks next week, so I'll talk to their doctor about it, but for now, we've started them both on 1 of the over-the-counter supplements Trent takes.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Brent is curious about his own potential for mutations, but knowing him, he won't have any haha.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Gateway</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Trent and Drew changed schools at the start of the year {Trent 'graduated' from our beloved Montessori school so he had to move schools, but Drew asked to move when he did even though she could have stayed at Goodwater for 4 more years}. I applied for all 3 of them to get in {it's a charter school that always has a long waitlist} and none of them got in initially. Trent ended up getting accepted 6 days before school started and Drew just 3 days!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Having the big 2 enrolled jumped Paige up a lot...but she remained on the waitlist...until the week before Thanksgiving! I panicked when I got her acceptance email because she was super happy in her classroom and I didn't want to switch her so far into the school year. Brent {the level-headed man that he is} suggested seeing what Paige thought and how she felt about it. I just knew she would want to stay at Goodwater, but she surprised me and was super excited to move to Gateway with her Bubba and Sissy! {Don't ask me about the amount of time I spent panicking, spiraling, and crying over this ha.}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">So she started right after the Thanksgiving break and has LOVED it! She has 2 friends in the classroom across the hall {she has recess and PE with them} and a girl from her Girl Scouts troop is in her class and we didn't know it! Gateway is a much more traditional school, but Paige has settled in really nicely - she loves having homework {which takes her about 3 minutes to complete} and having a cafeteria, gym, music room, etc. It's been nice for me having all 3 kids at the same school again and on the same calendar {although their start and end times are different which is annoying ha}.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhThm2kHK1he_oXzmaCA5zXEgnYjCf_1gvnND9DH71U5DnD3hYlfb1HN_Ibjz1ZvHO_O1TE7G-7l8-gPvzDuJBd0lWxE0oKLmZWkuMzPE24ltwMm5tOpVlO_rMiTRu1jqRA15NSagkAcGDiAdVR_2KFzDxh7juq2JeKKfOBzJtJwAIYFoCZv7z187YF/s4032/PAmpedUp.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhThm2kHK1he_oXzmaCA5zXEgnYjCf_1gvnND9DH71U5DnD3hYlfb1HN_Ibjz1ZvHO_O1TE7G-7l8-gPvzDuJBd0lWxE0oKLmZWkuMzPE24ltwMm5tOpVlO_rMiTRu1jqRA15NSagkAcGDiAdVR_2KFzDxh7juq2JeKKfOBzJtJwAIYFoCZv7z187YF/w480-h640/PAmpedUp.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br />Sawyer</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The final member of #theSwopeseven got a name and I never shared it! We haven't been able to see the baby since his arrival because their pediatrician has suggested staying close to home, but we should get to see him very soon! My girls are chomping at the bits!!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">George 'Sawyer' Patnode!!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">{George is a family name on David's side}</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXHtVhDuNtYznooy9c6ByXuQil0NUgz43QD3szGEINZ4l6DtiOdLRWMtNC9g_mA6bmSdIMYB31ACGW3q_JvTk3UA4o93jnrpueWhhx5hYchurPmRnc8LFHDCBnSN7oGh-zDeCPtDOuKmAX7Hg31PIIVje5biUONredaEFwNJd_fcWxAwygBqj6GWfY/s4032/Sawyer1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXHtVhDuNtYznooy9c6ByXuQil0NUgz43QD3szGEINZ4l6DtiOdLRWMtNC9g_mA6bmSdIMYB31ACGW3q_JvTk3UA4o93jnrpueWhhx5hYchurPmRnc8LFHDCBnSN7oGh-zDeCPtDOuKmAX7Hg31PIIVje5biUONredaEFwNJd_fcWxAwygBqj6GWfY/w300-h400/Sawyer1.jpg" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-I5VVqFnpOhFBRn4z021iv-Ui3HuTMhP0Alnzo9caN27uJuE-VJ3rR0VClp5urOJftycqjawTpp0A5DSlvGDGnzyW-ZBIWztynBEsi34iluPtWXUHFui28r0j3oR6LoMTXiHVg74u-oUXtwySCYvjRTS5tpyEiBb2BL327ChXDN4XGftDmUVQ7FWS/s4032/Sawyer2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-I5VVqFnpOhFBRn4z021iv-Ui3HuTMhP0Alnzo9caN27uJuE-VJ3rR0VClp5urOJftycqjawTpp0A5DSlvGDGnzyW-ZBIWztynBEsi34iluPtWXUHFui28r0j3oR6LoMTXiHVg74u-oUXtwySCYvjRTS5tpyEiBb2BL327ChXDN4XGftDmUVQ7FWS/w300-h400/Sawyer2.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFxVgwYo_oh7zBDzvJOdQfOEbKmBOFWjXGYF-4L9ga49AbUqmU0cPqPoQFXE3eWUDSE2fifbJ9ntdfMFOx0mYu9sdISZC6dwpPN0yASpQP5SJm1KxMDTy1RzYiVfgP-7uF0zlYyYttDCwYv3daWn8ZlLAH-Vrq48s7dt3xQ7EbWsu_na2Jl60XTNex/s3088/Sawyer3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFxVgwYo_oh7zBDzvJOdQfOEbKmBOFWjXGYF-4L9ga49AbUqmU0cPqPoQFXE3eWUDSE2fifbJ9ntdfMFOx0mYu9sdISZC6dwpPN0yASpQP5SJm1KxMDTy1RzYiVfgP-7uF0zlYyYttDCwYv3daWn8ZlLAH-Vrq48s7dt3xQ7EbWsu_na2Jl60XTNex/w300-h400/Sawyer3.jpg" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCryS7eO_5hyiZUW_4NVSPI49nq9IFCOlgtLfDa11LifAfm4Su_Gc82zgLy8UZeWV0u7xwMwdegLbmj-Z71E3efyj58o-jhOLWTRmhtZj-NcWjF2_p8cSBDMoAUWIx4xMMiCry-IZvVHQy_FfkDmunhY6KS7tnUyTy-q0cSDKOrO3u8elgzUF7CT3G/s4032/Sawyer4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCryS7eO_5hyiZUW_4NVSPI49nq9IFCOlgtLfDa11LifAfm4Su_Gc82zgLy8UZeWV0u7xwMwdegLbmj-Z71E3efyj58o-jhOLWTRmhtZj-NcWjF2_p8cSBDMoAUWIx4xMMiCry-IZvVHQy_FfkDmunhY6KS7tnUyTy-q0cSDKOrO3u8elgzUF7CT3G/w300-h400/Sawyer4.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeGfJ0otCDypR-UaAqfwgLLHmnl_IWHQa8PgbjeyDv9H45c_wtU_JUSfUFfrtr9-7Am0WZxEYcjGXgKOCNo898LtXn2RjsUfAbJMmL5D05_GEHGorud0OHRS-Vixb7lCBhOFSj98fyiXpBA1S265IZcFOZLJZ2c5iju0kz0xlBT0iTRQHl0VfiYKsn/s4032/Sawyer5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeGfJ0otCDypR-UaAqfwgLLHmnl_IWHQa8PgbjeyDv9H45c_wtU_JUSfUFfrtr9-7Am0WZxEYcjGXgKOCNo898LtXn2RjsUfAbJMmL5D05_GEHGorud0OHRS-Vixb7lCBhOFSj98fyiXpBA1S265IZcFOZLJZ2c5iju0kz0xlBT0iTRQHl0VfiYKsn/w400-h300/Sawyer5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Girl Scouts Troop Leader</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I've been a relatively active parent in both girls' Girl Scouts troops but especially in Drew's as she likes for me to come to events. Well, there have been some leadership changes...and I took the plunge and became a troop leader this year, eek. I'm one of 3 mom leaders, and one was a leader last year, so we aren't a group of newbies thankfully! It's been a lot of fun so far, and I'm excited to go to GS camp this spring {both girls will be there at the same time and it'll be each of their first times}!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">So like I said - nothing earth-shattering but all together some decent changes/new information in our family!!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-51597280751267638832024-01-11T06:00:00.001-06:002024-01-11T06:00:00.141-06:00Monthly Musings: Ringing in the New Year<div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="font-family: verdana;">Why start 2024 by being on-time to the Monthly Musings link-up? Let's just continue in my perpetual lateness, shall we? {grin}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvNm6TflDiOwX_TfAtw5u5Q7W6jES5vNzYSonZd6rESDq9ts4xTDp07gibz72GrfGxqwl0Z7Y4rzYnVTxfitYbYyPXEGsAK7xE7JbcmRii0wuokRq1BQMUjsVRRW-bXZ9ZLrHkrZtaUqYvyT7tu2NDNgEPR3LpuqVlEcyMWjw5FRhLmlJz3oTQgPR2/s400/Monthly%20Musings%20December%202023.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvNm6TflDiOwX_TfAtw5u5Q7W6jES5vNzYSonZd6rESDq9ts4xTDp07gibz72GrfGxqwl0Z7Y4rzYnVTxfitYbYyPXEGsAK7xE7JbcmRii0wuokRq1BQMUjsVRRW-bXZ9ZLrHkrZtaUqYvyT7tu2NDNgEPR3LpuqVlEcyMWjw5FRhLmlJz3oTQgPR2/w640-h640/Monthly%20Musings%20December%202023.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">1. <b>How do you ring in the New Year?</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">For at least 5 years we have hung out with our neighborhood peeps and just rotated houses. It is low-key, easy, and the best fun!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">New Year's Eve 2020</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVQOadlgI2Zj0NJzPXz6iTykkPTfa49khWlH0VgyDLwUnKdXe5wNFYtyHU-kC6C8ECMVd25GT4-ZyDxapOlPK7ng6NhcmS8jnUPODMXQy00DIW9VGuEh6qqO4EXWZPaC_ghFusJtJRFvYkqapDvPhVLWIM-sVKMtnXuukqW-ENAGXUV1iU7ylKmJML/s3088/IMG_0937.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2320" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVQOadlgI2Zj0NJzPXz6iTykkPTfa49khWlH0VgyDLwUnKdXe5wNFYtyHU-kC6C8ECMVd25GT4-ZyDxapOlPK7ng6NhcmS8jnUPODMXQy00DIW9VGuEh6qqO4EXWZPaC_ghFusJtJRFvYkqapDvPhVLWIM-sVKMtnXuukqW-ENAGXUV1iU7ylKmJML/w480-h640/IMG_0937.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br />2. <b>Any special New Year's Eve or New Year's Day traditions?</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">No real traditions past hanging with our crew on New Year's Eve. New Year's Day is really just a lazy day for us as we wind down from all the celebrations AND gear-up to celebrate Drew the next day!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">3. <b>Favorite New Year's Eve memories?</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">New Year's Eve in Ruidoso was a wonderful memory with our forever friends.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz0RCyDlINStDTxApp1W_g1pI1O-YAknwYW_gJC3xfkN5z-fzIa7HjGyoYaRkGqDd5oTISTHNquwrrPLimvD47_eqQL_Soo2QUL2LlQ375muhBUt_fl3ZN021iLZOVWSYzk-nBtfS21Tmj8m2gxB4cenaThAJW0YSGT8btI466vQyJoq1SdFITbTFe/s1280/IMG_0297.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz0RCyDlINStDTxApp1W_g1pI1O-YAknwYW_gJC3xfkN5z-fzIa7HjGyoYaRkGqDd5oTISTHNquwrrPLimvD47_eqQL_Soo2QUL2LlQ375muhBUt_fl3ZN021iLZOVWSYzk-nBtfS21Tmj8m2gxB4cenaThAJW0YSGT8btI466vQyJoq1SdFITbTFe/w640-h480/IMG_0297.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">4. <b>Show us some New Year's Eve outfits.</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">I've gotten really into themed clothes in the last handful of years. I've been about Christmas clothes for a LONG time but have added clothing for a lot more holidays. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Bought this sweatshirt a few weeks ago {how cute is it?!}</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">AND how perfectly do my GG sneakers match it?!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJBP022uZX8I9-YQ3Rr53rrnvDizAVrBn_dN27M6KIUfWDuuri1EeAwHOaNfORhXA3TsRxc6Y-tEALMW0cnE-EGXI4-mzBnH_CmiiK7j7G3OKfoHZmislOdYorjtNz_jk3u5qz4zJwUZxTeoN3QGlUX6YZoH_17C5HRI7YvvgyZHH24qboiXLYQbFU/s4032/NYE1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJBP022uZX8I9-YQ3Rr53rrnvDizAVrBn_dN27M6KIUfWDuuri1EeAwHOaNfORhXA3TsRxc6Y-tEALMW0cnE-EGXI4-mzBnH_CmiiK7j7G3OKfoHZmislOdYorjtNz_jk3u5qz4zJwUZxTeoN3QGlUX6YZoH_17C5HRI7YvvgyZHH24qboiXLYQbFU/w480-h640/NYE1.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br />New Years Eve 2021 - in a fun t-shirt and champagne earrings!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXRcfrvwhm-rMGeg6gRnpf2iVIR8MLLHIvJ4gc8lCkjFXb7jxnARSlWNbynKA24wFLFbWjA_onjSJJtCMxYL66upM1Ye80owlcxH_yi_QD4-n95i6Qp1-b9Sk-1Sk5nY-fN558TiLz_wTKf_MaE9yU9Q6vB0Dj0mTctLRciD00Egjdo6U42K0GYfD5/s4032/IMG_3670.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXRcfrvwhm-rMGeg6gRnpf2iVIR8MLLHIvJ4gc8lCkjFXb7jxnARSlWNbynKA24wFLFbWjA_onjSJJtCMxYL66upM1Ye80owlcxH_yi_QD4-n95i6Qp1-b9Sk-1Sk5nY-fN558TiLz_wTKf_MaE9yU9Q6vB0Dj0mTctLRciD00Egjdo6U42K0GYfD5/w640-h480/IMG_3670.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br />5. <b>What are you most looking forward to in 2024?</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">More of the same! I love the little life my family has created here in our little corner of the world {most of the time ha!}, and I'm looking forward to traveling together - Brent and I already have 1 trip planned whoop!, job stability, parenting this crazy trio we have, just normal life. We do have a few things we're discussing that would be big events, so I'll share once we make some decisions!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">One thing we've started on is...a living room and playroom makeover! We've been talking about this for over a year, and we bought a new sectional this past weekend. We're working with a designer and a friend who is a lover of all things organization to help us create 2 new spaces. Our goal is just a refresh for the living room {our current sectional is 18 years old} and a layout that fits our house a little better and to have a more functional playroom space for all of the kids - so it needs to be a space for teens, tweens, and elementary school kiddos - a tall ask but one we're excited about.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Color of the new sectional sitting on the old sectional!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Really excited for the direction we are taking in the living room, eek!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGRTBl2a0lvGI-bZoh6L7hBDMcEJkLKpxSmZaACuWQFxJ8ti_ZIVcmzNlwBx3w0zB68G8dJzM5xvVBMGtTntjhcaCH6D6Y0pWCnHMIzKTS5jzjtb_J4jGc1TzvOb1u_o3lx4gAfkpAQ_F4q_tIaz31htYRoTUYSKSrjDzlZvDGldYGD1zWHOydiWGs/s4032/swatch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGRTBl2a0lvGI-bZoh6L7hBDMcEJkLKpxSmZaACuWQFxJ8ti_ZIVcmzNlwBx3w0zB68G8dJzM5xvVBMGtTntjhcaCH6D6Y0pWCnHMIzKTS5jzjtb_J4jGc1TzvOb1u_o3lx4gAfkpAQ_F4q_tIaz31htYRoTUYSKSrjDzlZvDGldYGD1zWHOydiWGs/w480-h640/swatch.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br />6. <b>Asleep by 10pm or ring in the New Year?</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Ring it in baby! We have never {in my memory} not rung in the New Year. We've done big parties in the past and those were fun too, but I really love our neighborhood party.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">2006 NYE fun at a hotel party!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUX4o6xp_BF-0hDdIKlY9hXa8nQL_3KvAKFO90uXrbQXPqLClTBOJZqynInE__Kilp4lj61KCvJSy94xpkWM4hazncZsanTiRwCePyA9GI_V25q9mHT-KrExaNVD2ne5Zmvouhj1ZssfQYuv7VV-fJBqEQA-N9n330Jv9ih_ywhQxqBHCegFB7lDDW/s2576/0300007177590719902514074735680.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1932" data-original-width="2576" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUX4o6xp_BF-0hDdIKlY9hXa8nQL_3KvAKFO90uXrbQXPqLClTBOJZqynInE__Kilp4lj61KCvJSy94xpkWM4hazncZsanTiRwCePyA9GI_V25q9mHT-KrExaNVD2ne5Zmvouhj1ZssfQYuv7VV-fJBqEQA-N9n330Jv9ih_ywhQxqBHCegFB7lDDW/w200-h150/0300007177590719902514074735680.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfElCX0n7AXL3UuLjl8DvQ3zY8HplX6RfriMinVSZZJGvYv3SaIN2b9S03Xpz3bJZv5okrFdHu9L8o9ebTDWIqD2uOnYWnNXyKVJdcifBfZfKxhz__gXn7xM6c6myGPCSIfdiNQU7ItNPO6yntPRpdaeaeYGzGOOpi1sXbIiqtRl4K7JnZckWp3cUY/s2576/0300007177590719903113074737911.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1932" data-original-width="2576" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfElCX0n7AXL3UuLjl8DvQ3zY8HplX6RfriMinVSZZJGvYv3SaIN2b9S03Xpz3bJZv5okrFdHu9L8o9ebTDWIqD2uOnYWnNXyKVJdcifBfZfKxhz__gXn7xM6c6myGPCSIfdiNQU7ItNPO6yntPRpdaeaeYGzGOOpi1sXbIiqtRl4K7JnZckWp3cUY/w200-h150/0300007177590719903113074737911.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu96L_P3vGT8MsQLKakDK7HYvibRp7XXHPpo8OrHzUcVSARhXz7j19j6NeJiUlnRxBvobAj5776LCbVzT7gyGP85ud8O5jl9YGX-I_-h3VljjJso8hyCQ9B_H0lEqHZueprQg7yX27IJCYmED9tPpsEt6oS2zd5fTvM4EqPDVNaRUxbc7SpuA86sb7/s2576/0300007177590719903113074739455.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1932" data-original-width="2576" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu96L_P3vGT8MsQLKakDK7HYvibRp7XXHPpo8OrHzUcVSARhXz7j19j6NeJiUlnRxBvobAj5776LCbVzT7gyGP85ud8O5jl9YGX-I_-h3VljjJso8hyCQ9B_H0lEqHZueprQg7yX27IJCYmED9tPpsEt6oS2zd5fTvM4EqPDVNaRUxbc7SpuA86sb7/w200-h150/0300007177590719903113074739455.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><br />7. <b>Do you have a word or goals for 2024?</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">I'm marinating on it currently. A word came to me while in therapy on Friday last week, and I got super excited about it...but need to think about it more ha.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">I don't go into the year with a requirement for goals or a word, and if I come up with something, I go with it, and if not, I don't! I am constantly striving to make little changes - usually around organization - to better myself and make life smoother for our family regardless of whether I have 'official' goals.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">8. <b>Best self care tips to share in the New Year?</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Finding what you love and making it a priority! Self care is different for everybody. So whether it's reading, exercising, massages, whatever... no one will make it a priority for you.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">9. <b>Paper planner? Electronic planner? None? Share your favorite brands or apps please.</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">None! We do have a whiteboard calendar in our kitchen and I use a fun notebook to keep notes for myself but not an official planner. I also use my calendar in Outlook for A LOT.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">My trifecta of keeping my life somewhat together...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFzZp7KoAnykv8V-In7-3xDR66mmmyEyuVa8JY71TycDJbvOTF7CaLeMUQLp7rWhcyIiU2draGIST85lw-So8OBfzsyrSi-c7q9WdNO2mLIQGoj5ii8xXdSv-WqY18AhGTiZBQRrdX3WvgWnRhucxLfUiL_kZJnOW72f_4P1VkwPrKSg-hTdyHlVb_/s4032/planner1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFzZp7KoAnykv8V-In7-3xDR66mmmyEyuVa8JY71TycDJbvOTF7CaLeMUQLp7rWhcyIiU2draGIST85lw-So8OBfzsyrSi-c7q9WdNO2mLIQGoj5ii8xXdSv-WqY18AhGTiZBQRrdX3WvgWnRhucxLfUiL_kZJnOW72f_4P1VkwPrKSg-hTdyHlVb_/w150-h200/planner1.jpg" width="150" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1GF60hAf6PwY3ehmsm0D6oOTrlE5Pr3yNfQrK7v3ILiDACQTUviMZii98H4-1b0v3SXtv-ps8nUvgHtEBE1lcTedA-e-LU_vLeytY1af-uQcCZXxJmcbjvOOIEQsbG3dNn1pGliAmh3BEII3qM5W16wBGWLToSy3LnzyswMgaEYl8wtSZpkeK9hQS/s4032/planner2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1GF60hAf6PwY3ehmsm0D6oOTrlE5Pr3yNfQrK7v3ILiDACQTUviMZii98H4-1b0v3SXtv-ps8nUvgHtEBE1lcTedA-e-LU_vLeytY1af-uQcCZXxJmcbjvOOIEQsbG3dNn1pGliAmh3BEII3qM5W16wBGWLToSy3LnzyswMgaEYl8wtSZpkeK9hQS/w150-h200/planner2.jpg" width="150" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhAX7nrw8D4mQkzjzLMtyKvRm6ddKFqSvZKT8-KOTG8f91yq0ChEzM3n7ORY15P7qjFBsHWzTULURDRBeSZlj3JZDyzVIR4Ug4PEU5DmTaT8ZZeRBgl_A840kEjYuZehFUHA4L-YJ6KCVh3Ou5LfNg_oLch4LBxlFhJbMqOjuIQLf0wSRPFohEXz1g/s4032/planner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhAX7nrw8D4mQkzjzLMtyKvRm6ddKFqSvZKT8-KOTG8f91yq0ChEzM3n7ORY15P7qjFBsHWzTULURDRBeSZlj3JZDyzVIR4Ug4PEU5DmTaT8ZZeRBgl_A840kEjYuZehFUHA4L-YJ6KCVh3Ou5LfNg_oLch4LBxlFhJbMqOjuIQLf0wSRPFohEXz1g/w150-h200/planner.jpg" width="150" /></a></div><br />Brent and I have been toying with the idea of an electronic family calendar but haven't pulled the trigger yet, so we will see!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">10. <b>Black-eyed peas on New Year's Day-Yea or Nay?</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">While we always did this growing up, I think it would be safe to say I haven't had a black-eyed pea in my 20 New Year's Eves with Brent!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3hobifKVrlzHlojcJwdrn_qWu0PvRns17cMdr8T3v5NrIblW9A6M5ztfoAvQKiTMIThaqfLhNE6ES8Q6Po9Bcd0gK8fgWrRp-T-7anNqKu9Go3HOLGC0LvfPnKNxdPDiFWPzErQKmM8cQ2CieszinCAB4NLOSqjqZwMzvSXa5e0LwU79ns9PNaH5G/s4032/NYE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3hobifKVrlzHlojcJwdrn_qWu0PvRns17cMdr8T3v5NrIblW9A6M5ztfoAvQKiTMIThaqfLhNE6ES8Q6Po9Bcd0gK8fgWrRp-T-7anNqKu9Go3HOLGC0LvfPnKNxdPDiFWPzErQKmM8cQ2CieszinCAB4NLOSqjqZwMzvSXa5e0LwU79ns9PNaH5G/w640-h480/NYE.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cheers to a great 2024!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-24373522497793777292024-01-10T06:00:00.001-06:002024-01-10T06:00:00.131-06:00Rounding Out December<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As I put together my Christmas post and was looking back at my pictures, we packed a lot into December! And I don't want to forget these memories. So here's everything else we did in December.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Our neighbor had a little Christmas party with Santa!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI47s36uUiRtEUjNAEyXlOjd4K89PiAIKZJS1-XXZKsf1lGmLCwUBLllSCmoOZmTCQX-g-pUzKwmpQ8HO6sHT9VYIFSsG0E0OCHZEliMIktIychdGXPK0LB9ufFV6qZ2pl2HjlwFJf8aG09_4_hwCwKft6voBtM4W66UXJZqxWncaomoKXTAtIVRGg/s4032/IMG_3797.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI47s36uUiRtEUjNAEyXlOjd4K89PiAIKZJS1-XXZKsf1lGmLCwUBLllSCmoOZmTCQX-g-pUzKwmpQ8HO6sHT9VYIFSsG0E0OCHZEliMIktIychdGXPK0LB9ufFV6qZ2pl2HjlwFJf8aG09_4_hwCwKft6voBtM4W66UXJZqxWncaomoKXTAtIVRGg/w300-h400/IMG_3797.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhabnqw_H7DywuCkw_SO0uvSbygjn7Z8cAMTapL2sHeMEtNnZ-QbbxPWaVTaylDZ_JWXk0eCn469ufZwbHa7CepnahysTldmfpTM3y6WpB6JfQCUt0DGpCSJ8zfLm1XoE4virN8Ywjvpf6m0H3xAOGqL6fPGFDOii7CLVfWndRN2LSsrXKtdbWlw7nb/s4032/IMG_3800.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhabnqw_H7DywuCkw_SO0uvSbygjn7Z8cAMTapL2sHeMEtNnZ-QbbxPWaVTaylDZ_JWXk0eCn469ufZwbHa7CepnahysTldmfpTM3y6WpB6JfQCUt0DGpCSJ8zfLm1XoE4virN8Ywjvpf6m0H3xAOGqL6fPGFDOii7CLVfWndRN2LSsrXKtdbWlw7nb/w300-h400/IMG_3800.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I copied <a href="https://daveandnatasha.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><b>Natasha</b></a>'s homemade potpourri!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLkhPleoShBzGQwdNIKu-Qau1aEaH3DjfAe30KTysKszSO5EiWXFDbj5DD0ra65nxPvAEhvRWWSUwzfYmTybJgj2zG-N9BlpOjZi8zqgVV4MWq8K7rcsESDs7JdAPkVhqKPBPNRDMh1ZSCxkXhs40yxoN77JFokWQ_MW2ofovmPpyyAuTcoj04BatK/s4032/IMG_3816.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLkhPleoShBzGQwdNIKu-Qau1aEaH3DjfAe30KTysKszSO5EiWXFDbj5DD0ra65nxPvAEhvRWWSUwzfYmTybJgj2zG-N9BlpOjZi8zqgVV4MWq8K7rcsESDs7JdAPkVhqKPBPNRDMh1ZSCxkXhs40yxoN77JFokWQ_MW2ofovmPpyyAuTcoj04BatK/w480-h640/IMG_3816.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Trent donated canned foods he collected in our neighborhood.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjbcQBoB_gdtKddXmfKa9T9QEpdQbKWkrE9-ZVWwGofPpm-YefudzbzCmmYVBGfjFx5w9WRvtd_WMyFiv8HU1NpWT9rrFr9bnbNxp2MFf8zqYCWOS9KjjFX1ftc6YUkr2xn-FnRfNqhOcu-d2X_i_c4OUXeVVCPOYqXWwwSBDdI4JfAmlSKbM9NLMx/s4032/IMG_3828.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjbcQBoB_gdtKddXmfKa9T9QEpdQbKWkrE9-ZVWwGofPpm-YefudzbzCmmYVBGfjFx5w9WRvtd_WMyFiv8HU1NpWT9rrFr9bnbNxp2MFf8zqYCWOS9KjjFX1ftc6YUkr2xn-FnRfNqhOcu-d2X_i_c4OUXeVVCPOYqXWwwSBDdI4JfAmlSKbM9NLMx/w480-h640/IMG_3828.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Girl Scouts fun on our town square!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxRhcaAFCs6bENTrr5y5g-eoNefw6_UfH-RXXItMtMOxKbKqESSqu3pMAi9zgOPbCjA8OKcTVSeSGRyVYE99YDSqtIttUqZD7wwSGbEfgkXXeoJjQ3BsL4k8rqF5YLW-MDLmROvZYAldYZTw0Nc8pvl62kJVYddnuI82tvtLPm2iIPMzP7tcS2J9Xm/s4032/IMG_3830.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxRhcaAFCs6bENTrr5y5g-eoNefw6_UfH-RXXItMtMOxKbKqESSqu3pMAi9zgOPbCjA8OKcTVSeSGRyVYE99YDSqtIttUqZD7wwSGbEfgkXXeoJjQ3BsL4k8rqF5YLW-MDLmROvZYAldYZTw0Nc8pvl62kJVYddnuI82tvtLPm2iIPMzP7tcS2J9Xm/w300-h400/IMG_3830.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4YDvt2oACZQdvNoViDMNKECc6iVEmVORxMBarsZw5McWIYpQ-5IVn-WfHgMlO4kRukrUthWfNNm5XZ9cKzCHxNEdQpvcCoKvIo_vRwrOFkB_iKAtnN4cGH0usuFY5EPFjXLq7B6kJSZ0leMrQI1Fok2gViygFYBKznIg0JDyfGO2u2S_bSqe-dElc/s4032/IMG_3833.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4YDvt2oACZQdvNoViDMNKECc6iVEmVORxMBarsZw5McWIYpQ-5IVn-WfHgMlO4kRukrUthWfNNm5XZ9cKzCHxNEdQpvcCoKvIo_vRwrOFkB_iKAtnN4cGH0usuFY5EPFjXLq7B6kJSZ0leMrQI1Fok2gViygFYBKznIg0JDyfGO2u2S_bSqe-dElc/w300-h400/IMG_3833.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Trent asked to make gingerbread cookies with me. I died.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJQrmL2Ddj7OlPJ9rkeN2hMHMvwtIRRNigIV2MIiAqz9Nrg5eBw8DOVd5qbR8sr_l6VnzNncRRP631R0dwmnUvZA4I92czIBAJq9kFBXvV8orjDFKV1WLbyIA99sFy7EMUZLwFl675Hsq55-v7NhyphenhyphenY2a3PW6xQ3sn1gxW5yUQeLqhOGmNEjPhRf9mp/s4032/IMG_3888.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJQrmL2Ddj7OlPJ9rkeN2hMHMvwtIRRNigIV2MIiAqz9Nrg5eBw8DOVd5qbR8sr_l6VnzNncRRP631R0dwmnUvZA4I92czIBAJq9kFBXvV8orjDFKV1WLbyIA99sFy7EMUZLwFl675Hsq55-v7NhyphenhyphenY2a3PW6xQ3sn1gxW5yUQeLqhOGmNEjPhRf9mp/w300-h400/IMG_3888.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk0W67uiROTZ4Ps-SKY_z6SXgGVkM1mvghQmGuLRC81b6BAilfUVHsSzEavzqT-v5lrNHmAHqwDHOheb2EYku94vKvXWLG1Roh4MeOC5FEq35pac8_K0xG30uafjeYE3M53DvyTtZ5VJGBoMa5VXGynERdlHD5sucYv8lpTy0FSr7K_5lYFsI-9o3S/s4032/IMG_3889.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk0W67uiROTZ4Ps-SKY_z6SXgGVkM1mvghQmGuLRC81b6BAilfUVHsSzEavzqT-v5lrNHmAHqwDHOheb2EYku94vKvXWLG1Roh4MeOC5FEq35pac8_K0xG30uafjeYE3M53DvyTtZ5VJGBoMa5VXGynERdlHD5sucYv8lpTy0FSr7K_5lYFsI-9o3S/w300-h400/IMG_3889.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Paige earned her Arts badge</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5bfGs98z82yZHeQWLX8v0jFlmMeX7oVCKaAbI0Y8TuokOV9snRdiFsYGFKWtaGwlnRi7UVZTrcTadVT3pcaeuXR78rKrmp1aKujcp4PdHTQZXqwpwOMausFBWP3hoZa_y30XviGuWz8Nuv79FHv3F0JiAG7T3pp2P-ISqFOSt-ldPoO2V2zOx9zGz/s4032/IMG_4177.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5bfGs98z82yZHeQWLX8v0jFlmMeX7oVCKaAbI0Y8TuokOV9snRdiFsYGFKWtaGwlnRi7UVZTrcTadVT3pcaeuXR78rKrmp1aKujcp4PdHTQZXqwpwOMausFBWP3hoZa_y30XviGuWz8Nuv79FHv3F0JiAG7T3pp2P-ISqFOSt-ldPoO2V2zOx9zGz/w480-h640/IMG_4177.PNG" width="480" /></a></div></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The girls sang carols on our town square with our Girl Scouts service unit</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc8eKgCpf-vIuynXh2ygv8G39uQvCNcFOoUM8ebXGWNksuW8Q_hXllFz3BSqzNS-8a5DptwGzNZu5Bky25LrwCTH-1m9gdjm2_LdmxjZfaicJVtM4fYaDd9FE3AMZ_FTVtc-j5tduofpEAbMHHe7mpDvDeyX302VIy2wBSIrYvnO9MCjzSRNx54_KV/s4032/IMG_4175.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc8eKgCpf-vIuynXh2ygv8G39uQvCNcFOoUM8ebXGWNksuW8Q_hXllFz3BSqzNS-8a5DptwGzNZu5Bky25LrwCTH-1m9gdjm2_LdmxjZfaicJVtM4fYaDd9FE3AMZ_FTVtc-j5tduofpEAbMHHe7mpDvDeyX302VIy2wBSIrYvnO9MCjzSRNx54_KV/w640-h480/IMG_4175.PNG" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Drew made her flower cards again, I love how much she loves doing this.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHsZH6XmajWIjy5qsmW3f9V4u9LTO_6zV30cQaPY9lqKh8NrnG9hzWqKVCHWeT4UFvqt__1jV4DG7MugnPDQKslzYlDhoEEJaG7llS7bXw_2aXpRSdc83zNtSe2TReedzAv5tQ_vh5uwfe9gGbJ9-wAjrQlk-T9Zz2-7GILdDkt5s8pIFOvT5eDc5d/s4032/IMG_1184.JPEG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHsZH6XmajWIjy5qsmW3f9V4u9LTO_6zV30cQaPY9lqKh8NrnG9hzWqKVCHWeT4UFvqt__1jV4DG7MugnPDQKslzYlDhoEEJaG7llS7bXw_2aXpRSdc83zNtSe2TReedzAv5tQ_vh5uwfe9gGbJ9-wAjrQlk-T9Zz2-7GILdDkt5s8pIFOvT5eDc5d/w300-h400/IMG_1184.JPEG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6wtCIeHWCsfFvs_aNrY8MBxJ7jsWcvp76-m5B9jQbJy1s4HgRELMaFBQrKWfJq08xLi0Xd_R22I9N90hooJEQkVKlRSTSZO5FcWLIGI8Eevzqrbus2PFeiPv-I-thCbJjn8tMbxTC-On0LVSppFuIEIBbDRzozy3B1R4bSpTsrWSLpFH-VDenleMt/s4032/IMG_1176.JPEG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6wtCIeHWCsfFvs_aNrY8MBxJ7jsWcvp76-m5B9jQbJy1s4HgRELMaFBQrKWfJq08xLi0Xd_R22I9N90hooJEQkVKlRSTSZO5FcWLIGI8Eevzqrbus2PFeiPv-I-thCbJjn8tMbxTC-On0LVSppFuIEIBbDRzozy3B1R4bSpTsrWSLpFH-VDenleMt/w300-h400/IMG_1176.JPEG" width="300" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Paige had a Christmas concert</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfDb2IAZ1YlIEwBxyLLWetdDWGk6xsPAKuN35o7L1v1FuVJcTbLIyoZ-HpgrE7JivCdNKxX6WTuC7L0tQdHcVFW6bCHHT81gr-5OcxMwLp67QkuQ6l9NR8_DnEAltSSvwk8TVAKVbWfoSRcOgw2rdYQcKMNtbTmYf2qLnnZ7M2kNB5AGV1vMUAO5jM/s4032/Pconcert.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfDb2IAZ1YlIEwBxyLLWetdDWGk6xsPAKuN35o7L1v1FuVJcTbLIyoZ-HpgrE7JivCdNKxX6WTuC7L0tQdHcVFW6bCHHT81gr-5OcxMwLp67QkuQ6l9NR8_DnEAltSSvwk8TVAKVbWfoSRcOgw2rdYQcKMNtbTmYf2qLnnZ7M2kNB5AGV1vMUAO5jM/w300-h400/Pconcert.jpg" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjfU18wh1g-dTVOrKfedl0t4N1D0RyQcNHrN0l-zjJQZChQUSO8_rVhfpSNC_nQaJ0uxe_UTNnqMSqNWB4rgtXd1jqn17oFlx2fPitka8JEPr7YnYDqhmC4ebOaKuXRxhKeUXzmawFlL5Doab4JdKI-Nk7P7UPN-ldL8rzjYxtLB0WVH9BdrpL_340/s4032/IMG_3989.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjfU18wh1g-dTVOrKfedl0t4N1D0RyQcNHrN0l-zjJQZChQUSO8_rVhfpSNC_nQaJ0uxe_UTNnqMSqNWB4rgtXd1jqn17oFlx2fPitka8JEPr7YnYDqhmC4ebOaKuXRxhKeUXzmawFlL5Doab4JdKI-Nk7P7UPN-ldL8rzjYxtLB0WVH9BdrpL_340/w300-h400/IMG_3989.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">And a party in her classroom</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI-yr0LuPGNJPeNHAXsPi_a1cGjGMCAY1hsVISi5dJpv1TYmiQyrrZFdfErOcQMGWZMXOtbBYCS9fL94y2tBAoYdDf07cLwgQ43IzKyn049sfmcLAT7wKfvNJ5U4UDsvZQM4w5JUJPRa9fUHNMab5Yt6i-wk5Rx4P1eK2zqPhTq3f_bbcv0ZF0Qvfh/s4032/Pclassparty2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI-yr0LuPGNJPeNHAXsPi_a1cGjGMCAY1hsVISi5dJpv1TYmiQyrrZFdfErOcQMGWZMXOtbBYCS9fL94y2tBAoYdDf07cLwgQ43IzKyn049sfmcLAT7wKfvNJ5U4UDsvZQM4w5JUJPRa9fUHNMab5Yt6i-wk5Rx4P1eK2zqPhTq3f_bbcv0ZF0Qvfh/w480-h640/Pclassparty2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">And we celebrated her turning 7!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHKt0LD7xcsq5Z5VIkAChXWSY0jfTEc4Wncs5l6H3VBUWQmbvK-Ufw7BmQaC-EI_4_sL8vXKCZ4gElsb_zdeKDRpwM3SXQ_1G0S1TSVp-hkPAJMwhnXdLbB7cMrwKHGzoiqUqrmDxP5TN7bMWV5uz2X21WYPAtn4hehHMYRmx_F_yEfUaz4e13B7Zg/s4032/pbday.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHKt0LD7xcsq5Z5VIkAChXWSY0jfTEc4Wncs5l6H3VBUWQmbvK-Ufw7BmQaC-EI_4_sL8vXKCZ4gElsb_zdeKDRpwM3SXQ_1G0S1TSVp-hkPAJMwhnXdLbB7cMrwKHGzoiqUqrmDxP5TN7bMWV5uz2X21WYPAtn4hehHMYRmx_F_yEfUaz4e13B7Zg/w480-h640/pbday.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">See? I told you it was a lot leading up to Christmas, ha!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-61450399112262593862024-01-08T06:00:00.001-06:002024-01-08T06:00:00.143-06:00Viva Las Vegas!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Our friend, Riley, who is also Brent's co-worker and also our neighbor turned 40 in early December. We took a trip to Las Vegas right after Christmas to celebrate. This was my 3rd trip to Vegas but the other 2 were very different trips: trip 1-when I promoted to Senior Manager in Audit, we had training in Vegas, trip 2-our friends, Cristee and Leonard, got married outside of Vegas but I was 28 weeks pregnant with Drew. So this was my first 'traditional' trip!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Obligatory airplane picture with Brent!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAK-Z1hc1-epDzwF1XQ5inb36NYPD-RpJN1hK4qDL1WGHme_EL5HXOr8sSkc5e6xppZl0okXgQMlPiqWt2p5ulGDtBxYCQTIlS-rg5kUhOukhRs-hqfOwpa8q0d1kEFD82ELj7IMflGsY4qpRJ-R6h8Qoo33aLKc73CJKLu9nOvnrYHbQoCLtSk33I/s3088/IMG_4374.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAK-Z1hc1-epDzwF1XQ5inb36NYPD-RpJN1hK4qDL1WGHme_EL5HXOr8sSkc5e6xppZl0okXgQMlPiqWt2p5ulGDtBxYCQTIlS-rg5kUhOukhRs-hqfOwpa8q0d1kEFD82ELj7IMflGsY4qpRJ-R6h8Qoo33aLKc73CJKLu9nOvnrYHbQoCLtSk33I/w480-h640/IMG_4374.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Not sure why this won't get bigger, </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">but it was cheaper to take a limo from the airport!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLufY2Xngg0BI2GgKVnjlhyihQlm4_30yrIhdTdhLywV967taSdh4PtQ5J_E7ri3dX07Uk9S7sKIN-a7NSgOgB1e9bMIXeT0SCOne8JEFcCkVu4ptGz-RiWw3a60ucM4L93S6HFbE67zL2nFb_JFh8pdfCbAJSLkBhYz2z4Xy1A2OAu9S58-nlrn5l/s4032/limo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLufY2Xngg0BI2GgKVnjlhyihQlm4_30yrIhdTdhLywV967taSdh4PtQ5J_E7ri3dX07Uk9S7sKIN-a7NSgOgB1e9bMIXeT0SCOne8JEFcCkVu4ptGz-RiWw3a60ucM4L93S6HFbE67zL2nFb_JFh8pdfCbAJSLkBhYz2z4Xy1A2OAu9S58-nlrn5l/s320/limo.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Our first stop after checking in {we stayed at The Venetian} was the Westgate. The Aggies were in a bowl game that night, and Riley wanted to watch the game from a sports book, so we rented a space and spent the evening watching football, eating, gambling, drinking, and just having fun!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr2ZvV-5OWaGUY-9p32Ps4-XD_F-RBUFKVEDJaZi83wVOAoQmdmw51eKdTtACk3DeXQ6tsaPLrHtpiJ97aDFEPHR3BwynvE2_dG7IEuZpZYzq_1n-WvPQByGrHPWuw0Q7zrIw7xTvmdMvwym8-63X4PiIbvmqLlyr6_oVeihJCUvHxOSS1ZkqMWiMC/s1347/westgate2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1346" data-original-width="1347" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr2ZvV-5OWaGUY-9p32Ps4-XD_F-RBUFKVEDJaZi83wVOAoQmdmw51eKdTtACk3DeXQ6tsaPLrHtpiJ97aDFEPHR3BwynvE2_dG7IEuZpZYzq_1n-WvPQByGrHPWuw0Q7zrIw7xTvmdMvwym8-63X4PiIbvmqLlyr6_oVeihJCUvHxOSS1ZkqMWiMC/w640-h640/westgate2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">My expression in this picture cracks me up.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqZ9i1Mc5XTgH0gUBr_7Cy1Vo7UZCgNgCuF4GbmzcVVN9FBHG1NiBFUAbxGEQcfkCOx5MMvnvwjUYoWKsJYO6lBVMZZSFOaCRq8stWfILN07z4BdXeDI6RhZ2e6mcAf93GVVSwfFGQVDXyxoIBD1idAke2sf_esnBvJRbDin48lmdFOd2ALgKBZuO7/s2048/westgate1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqZ9i1Mc5XTgH0gUBr_7Cy1Vo7UZCgNgCuF4GbmzcVVN9FBHG1NiBFUAbxGEQcfkCOx5MMvnvwjUYoWKsJYO6lBVMZZSFOaCRq8stWfILN07z4BdXeDI6RhZ2e6mcAf93GVVSwfFGQVDXyxoIBD1idAke2sf_esnBvJRbDin48lmdFOd2ALgKBZuO7/w480-h640/westgate1.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Slots, slots, slots!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik_R_L9jmS60Xw5Je90hCdaOwPmxuefmUPktWf_HtTAaDDvgnHmggnMR-9YLepRwFGnrabT8ae0Ezf-UDokLmn-2ICLoB_omUBaO-D8ygmwC4DVxbWlt5dLYDNPGT3CsXLkDJ_6LsDrQwKnbl-80kpLB0h95_DD4vKyjvok42xXUuN5fJElZnie61d/s3088/IMG_4377.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik_R_L9jmS60Xw5Je90hCdaOwPmxuefmUPktWf_HtTAaDDvgnHmggnMR-9YLepRwFGnrabT8ae0Ezf-UDokLmn-2ICLoB_omUBaO-D8ygmwC4DVxbWlt5dLYDNPGT3CsXLkDJ_6LsDrQwKnbl-80kpLB0h95_DD4vKyjvok42xXUuN5fJElZnie61d/w480-h640/IMG_4377.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Day 2 the girls went to an exhibit about Princess Diana and the boys went to another sportsbook at The Durango. I won't post ALL the pictures I took from the exhibit, but it was really neat. They had several of her dresses, lots of correspondence from the Royal Family, all sorts of things!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhidfJU5xpby400gu0yGpRNfAoGpflb6E6ZW3OO00ZJGpqaMmDdlwODaT4UGkg751-_ZepD2C4rswpR0IszgXgTLbhCUCtZdZhAXBf3Q_5FOhcOFhrj8VRQMFe6JGKCnvDp7iRZ65izCOjnF1vXmY_ADyCiIcdACCqwIO0t298OEx6_xBPDoFfSz3T9/s4032/IMG_4386.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhidfJU5xpby400gu0yGpRNfAoGpflb6E6ZW3OO00ZJGpqaMmDdlwODaT4UGkg751-_ZepD2C4rswpR0IszgXgTLbhCUCtZdZhAXBf3Q_5FOhcOFhrj8VRQMFe6JGKCnvDp7iRZ65izCOjnF1vXmY_ADyCiIcdACCqwIO0t298OEx6_xBPDoFfSz3T9/w300-h400/IMG_4386.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYnV-Q5-ypawI-HtHLMk9tfu21g-wgOtjDx3wxBrxZHvo2F-J7k-MCspqVtI3rPYhUtvFmBofxFA5EAEfl_3e567QNrq9wVcNYPa8D6N4OMsNH9iIExSPBdbwl7HHAEUG1QfOLhzPHgYTLFFA6Win1oHr8YW_1BfI3o63AsK71QJdk-2yinTbzohC6/s4032/IMG_4387.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYnV-Q5-ypawI-HtHLMk9tfu21g-wgOtjDx3wxBrxZHvo2F-J7k-MCspqVtI3rPYhUtvFmBofxFA5EAEfl_3e567QNrq9wVcNYPa8D6N4OMsNH9iIExSPBdbwl7HHAEUG1QfOLhzPHgYTLFFA6Win1oHr8YW_1BfI3o63AsK71QJdk-2yinTbzohC6/w300-h400/IMG_4387.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsX5_3asWJ6pDTFoAnoy9_tA_hEv0OYCighEXadc7bCsxXu8Nsu4J3nRLWpWw89W0KPWOYGtJpLk3jLOAMJASoOfPtmcPGj-TXECzOeab1VBnjTJAYrEz-WCfgPclT6o4ZQWF7Avc8PfOpFoMXdbQBJSuDVXK6c13Zyb9cMYOWPo1S-N8cOzlrCv-w/s4032/IMG_4388.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsX5_3asWJ6pDTFoAnoy9_tA_hEv0OYCighEXadc7bCsxXu8Nsu4J3nRLWpWw89W0KPWOYGtJpLk3jLOAMJASoOfPtmcPGj-TXECzOeab1VBnjTJAYrEz-WCfgPclT6o4ZQWF7Avc8PfOpFoMXdbQBJSuDVXK6c13Zyb9cMYOWPo1S-N8cOzlrCv-w/w300-h400/IMG_4388.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOwlrYX11DYg7vKYxY88brnJw2TMh4mCxZsCXeCGsfZoZs9PNrNzJ9laHHsDjh5r3nymSnOjRmE4gwoF9n4zFTHRRAQxD6ILliZpKrHLfm75_fBfXiUppYuJO3oHvXVcpgLjrAo2QChWioiI5HhDqHYQG0-Y4Uw4LdhMhaUHuU5QqlnROtqAu4sCn-/s4032/IMG_4392.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOwlrYX11DYg7vKYxY88brnJw2TMh4mCxZsCXeCGsfZoZs9PNrNzJ9laHHsDjh5r3nymSnOjRmE4gwoF9n4zFTHRRAQxD6ILliZpKrHLfm75_fBfXiUppYuJO3oHvXVcpgLjrAo2QChWioiI5HhDqHYQG0-Y4Uw4LdhMhaUHuU5QqlnROtqAu4sCn-/w300-h400/IMG_4392.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Then I went insane and bought a pair of Golden Goose sneakers. Susannah had been eyeing them for easily a year, and I always said they were super ugly. Then Dez got a pair after Christmas and the dominoes crumbled, ha. Susannah went to buy her pair, and I found a pair I liked too. WHAT IN THE WORLD.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXAD9ZyITHM6-D2oyEJkqKWzblr2D5ZYWlMXAXVjiUXk8SpqpEQo76EnC28GldQX-ypIn4Ko1IQrfNklBV20gm_SwyP0UNU6uj-5jByvEcbBByedXECI3DitJZj8N-0mV3CyGxZ1nKo_B0s-lNKbQc29TpkV31UOdcL613kxUDDHaVAg9tyanCSfpL/s4032/IMG_4408.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXAD9ZyITHM6-D2oyEJkqKWzblr2D5ZYWlMXAXVjiUXk8SpqpEQo76EnC28GldQX-ypIn4Ko1IQrfNklBV20gm_SwyP0UNU6uj-5jByvEcbBByedXECI3DitJZj8N-0mV3CyGxZ1nKo_B0s-lNKbQc29TpkV31UOdcL613kxUDDHaVAg9tyanCSfpL/w300-h400/IMG_4408.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNyI4TfPhHA-W36_kV4XnHxEEo-FSxnTy46b86aI8mXq0hhoMRF-eQXmjZ85mU2XQlKtrKmgORaOzqlr27wUTwFfOCUa-Dkq9BveC7PXDI-nlcX-Po3j6ITRuFImuPhlEqtAAlZ8X96swbJ1otv9AY4nQefreoQr1Kct9ttE8rPWSMLouEoQLmY5Ao/s4032/IMG_4410.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNyI4TfPhHA-W36_kV4XnHxEEo-FSxnTy46b86aI8mXq0hhoMRF-eQXmjZ85mU2XQlKtrKmgORaOzqlr27wUTwFfOCUa-Dkq9BveC7PXDI-nlcX-Po3j6ITRuFImuPhlEqtAAlZ8X96swbJ1otv9AY4nQefreoQr1Kct9ttE8rPWSMLouEoQLmY5Ao/w300-h400/IMG_4410.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">They ran out of regular sized bags, so I got to carry this bag back ha.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8_fhUgmxm9MT_ryzFnJ6xsIRroDRvziOkOHuFQ3_LKHCiUq733EXvnMaaOiFPgrv4ynyDPK3TxaWrcNdCIl0uv1w3xw8MfETdvEbltJivmw5bD_HQee1-lrCxKKzsWFSkHymNxMrF536bpVBbGRsdotPUJxcaGl-KlEzJgabel6nYzzunbzEx9grs/s4032/GG2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8_fhUgmxm9MT_ryzFnJ6xsIRroDRvziOkOHuFQ3_LKHCiUq733EXvnMaaOiFPgrv4ynyDPK3TxaWrcNdCIl0uv1w3xw8MfETdvEbltJivmw5bD_HQee1-lrCxKKzsWFSkHymNxMrF536bpVBbGRsdotPUJxcaGl-KlEzJgabel6nYzzunbzEx9grs/w480-h640/GG2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">That night we had reservations at an Italian place and wanted to see the Bellagio fountain.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">Fit for the night!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTOLCXaLpo9Z2zYt1aYDln9E8boDkK4uOz3vfoU0bHvFyRmLZsJTP1w5hfmrIZiazKUth1NqkcLKu-R9jes8H4hlouUMB_PnNXGK15M41xB64DiJfpNFRaFQ2BqnQr3_BYqyMvBmt0VmYBtgoypcjaOh2BhUaNcl0wTLeRXyyYXC186Gg5ouWEEirG/s4032/IMG_4439.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTOLCXaLpo9Z2zYt1aYDln9E8boDkK4uOz3vfoU0bHvFyRmLZsJTP1w5hfmrIZiazKUth1NqkcLKu-R9jes8H4hlouUMB_PnNXGK15M41xB64DiJfpNFRaFQ2BqnQr3_BYqyMvBmt0VmYBtgoypcjaOh2BhUaNcl0wTLeRXyyYXC186Gg5ouWEEirG/w480-h640/IMG_4439.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">Dinner was AMAZING!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKnBQPtjhDNUofPcMAMfBoDwK2nSCJhnGvkqIQCyGk6jICuDxMo5ciY5nf-QoFRAuEkf1587RV0cpi-48jtqEw_n-CIE33C85nbJeNhF1bYE2nl1g39FCacK1TRXZlHHHCAL29T8IsTvgSI7lKEi5nQymTnqrxB9lBMPZWYvNwgKyLTwMidgQN90CE/s4032/IMG_4440.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKnBQPtjhDNUofPcMAMfBoDwK2nSCJhnGvkqIQCyGk6jICuDxMo5ciY5nf-QoFRAuEkf1587RV0cpi-48jtqEw_n-CIE33C85nbJeNhF1bYE2nl1g39FCacK1TRXZlHHHCAL29T8IsTvgSI7lKEi5nQymTnqrxB9lBMPZWYvNwgKyLTwMidgQN90CE/w640-h480/IMG_4440.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">LJA Family!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRomOrkWpLNhSUDOgx_gCuPdWy7eXBCaAcwZrfmOJ-0LOiLMQSIWmSBjyEvMLgzTx8ZKm42PT-8xOkGUlb_A2LpGXjgnoxZ6vou4w8YwvxYxw22SZ33N84Xe7RDBEHTnjm0ye6PypYYHKEqNdlHlrkdOjslsPv5CJEr362xGV6ZAhcE4o79Mgqo3XR/s799/bellagio2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="665" data-original-width="799" height="532" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRomOrkWpLNhSUDOgx_gCuPdWy7eXBCaAcwZrfmOJ-0LOiLMQSIWmSBjyEvMLgzTx8ZKm42PT-8xOkGUlb_A2LpGXjgnoxZ6vou4w8YwvxYxw22SZ33N84Xe7RDBEHTnjm0ye6PypYYHKEqNdlHlrkdOjslsPv5CJEr362xGV6ZAhcE4o79Mgqo3XR/w640-h532/bellagio2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">Derek got an AWESOME picture during the fountain show.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp0AlzLTizl0jajPmcYC5vS7nQOljAAmGBOBMoGZ7GaVR4hWyAQcuZmgdZF2bLeUQYHB_hMkqhui02HCzZVH6WCG6FEAKaZ1_AiBaCeCBtFJr_eZbmp2e6gTJfDaDHO4BgcRwOn1SWzZMW9e2c_pbf9wwF8vwBliEVTURXGMiy10ZkCkwF0Rv4d3Id/s1599/bellagio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1204" data-original-width="1599" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp0AlzLTizl0jajPmcYC5vS7nQOljAAmGBOBMoGZ7GaVR4hWyAQcuZmgdZF2bLeUQYHB_hMkqhui02HCzZVH6WCG6FEAKaZ1_AiBaCeCBtFJr_eZbmp2e6gTJfDaDHO4BgcRwOn1SWzZMW9e2c_pbf9wwF8vwBliEVTURXGMiy10ZkCkwF0Rv4d3Id/w640-h482/bellagio.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">We walked around the Bellagio conservatory after that.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEERxIvm3Pgp1hcJhS9nIkoY4YGCxunbY9m5vN7-ZwlYNeC977MdZ3x0EhroVysAHxFYMHaxpqrTu1RznTkWOKOChGKMokM1WqJpcX92ca-3EM-aY_8Hh7ZQwZb7Hl0ObHlMeFLy3Y4SuB5sogC38_uJ-4SEdN84tiiZiQ8jqWtAiQs1xtOYrYtt95/s4032/IMG_4453.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEERxIvm3Pgp1hcJhS9nIkoY4YGCxunbY9m5vN7-ZwlYNeC977MdZ3x0EhroVysAHxFYMHaxpqrTu1RznTkWOKOChGKMokM1WqJpcX92ca-3EM-aY_8Hh7ZQwZb7Hl0ObHlMeFLy3Y4SuB5sogC38_uJ-4SEdN84tiiZiQ8jqWtAiQs1xtOYrYtt95/w300-h400/IMG_4453.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK0E5NfXQtBla4RnbT6U7WMIoa2LxambQLERb0I4906E4aUcULrSDK9U9od_U8dnETH3_2EQ7XC0Ev6VAd54nprZ1FroYUxQVUgWUETfyAamYEL2OtSCoybpe8iDIc36i_pAgg3ZeAZOKQS1ouQoogtKt18qpxcthPEAlFxS5iE0Nl7W7WJocdNqPm/s3088/IMG_4461.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK0E5NfXQtBla4RnbT6U7WMIoa2LxambQLERb0I4906E4aUcULrSDK9U9od_U8dnETH3_2EQ7XC0Ev6VAd54nprZ1FroYUxQVUgWUETfyAamYEL2OtSCoybpe8iDIc36i_pAgg3ZeAZOKQS1ouQoogtKt18qpxcthPEAlFxS5iE0Nl7W7WJocdNqPm/w300-h400/IMG_4461.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNiQjOff_ukhq15ySWXg1U_CXdNkgOt2usIuZUh5LYuBkPowS1MClbe8H-spKKXKpobQ8ENLKF7IvIVttlmhbkN3eBtyRd_TKEiSCfQ93qnhLywvmvHD6PlDhsTDB4WRUv3GLYXJp_dkfdg6Zu9XHsR2G3CjOm6ipakjwxCapLQN015I_mBTj6TYAN/s4032/IMG_4462.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNiQjOff_ukhq15ySWXg1U_CXdNkgOt2usIuZUh5LYuBkPowS1MClbe8H-spKKXKpobQ8ENLKF7IvIVttlmhbkN3eBtyRd_TKEiSCfQ93qnhLywvmvHD6PlDhsTDB4WRUv3GLYXJp_dkfdg6Zu9XHsR2G3CjOm6ipakjwxCapLQN015I_mBTj6TYAN/w300-h400/IMG_4462.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4caOPGO9vWFPCZ9MzrEBH6rHiKp45XCaQcMxZr2hQjCq8PzFEZ970cOpon4M2jHdDxHE-XNYMYP3XNax8flWQ5wXNpwbezinqKynY7Tfbpmk8V5FkihyphenhyphenkJtPTe7kEK37z3MMx3CCQhHTbEUYfq_jp00zguXm2VgQdFV3LpUfgxYFUtqYTOrT7dYV5/s1599/bellagio3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1599" data-original-width="1204" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4caOPGO9vWFPCZ9MzrEBH6rHiKp45XCaQcMxZr2hQjCq8PzFEZ970cOpon4M2jHdDxHE-XNYMYP3XNax8flWQ5wXNpwbezinqKynY7Tfbpmk8V5FkihyphenhyphenkJtPTe7kEK37z3MMx3CCQhHTbEUYfq_jp00zguXm2VgQdFV3LpUfgxYFUtqYTOrT7dYV5/w482-h640/bellagio3.jpg" width="482" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyzF09MqPnfzWavSIxzNv4PUbwuB4OhGkuaIpNCqzkM5O_gxwOsg2GO2EiVJqXMPRi8IliY3iy5lMv8A1gRt4UP6telQZI3R5k0yMy3fihG6u2e89zPQwqkHFmibFKLe2o6U94ymDHbQ8DfhZB3Gd9On_mpELkVQONUR04Bg6VT_m1Xb4G4lsbFx_s/s1600/bellagio4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyzF09MqPnfzWavSIxzNv4PUbwuB4OhGkuaIpNCqzkM5O_gxwOsg2GO2EiVJqXMPRi8IliY3iy5lMv8A1gRt4UP6telQZI3R5k0yMy3fihG6u2e89zPQwqkHFmibFKLe2o6U94ymDHbQ8DfhZB3Gd9On_mpELkVQONUR04Bg6VT_m1Xb4G4lsbFx_s/w360-h640/bellagio4.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">We ended the night at a nightclub in our hotel. I was super grumpy and didn't want to go, but it ended up being pretty fun.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Our last full day we had reservations to a buffet {you can't go to Vegas without going to a buffet!}, hopped around a few casinos, and ended the night with a show, <i>Absinthe</i>, and dinner at The Palm.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">The Golden Goose girls</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLoRUyWr11dnC_HBv0QE3U-HV0QlCV06FXu30r-0Mvy-HwcPpv1CVG80iXRHKInji1BblEHg1xu3hY4d5PGexuHt_Nz-_JpwmowkDEEGm2klLaKB2uL_N_3yq9aYcdVhlNy5RvNGWhzNm70y8H4TZUxacM-Ywcw-AWr4QBnd5q-u2anabkk0BoFBaa/s4032/GG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLoRUyWr11dnC_HBv0QE3U-HV0QlCV06FXu30r-0Mvy-HwcPpv1CVG80iXRHKInji1BblEHg1xu3hY4d5PGexuHt_Nz-_JpwmowkDEEGm2klLaKB2uL_N_3yq9aYcdVhlNy5RvNGWhzNm70y8H4TZUxacM-Ywcw-AWr4QBnd5q-u2anabkk0BoFBaa/w480-h640/GG.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD1lfJMGrWWsHPu_eMe-B-u7wsYKRh1kuvzNkqCBFasrEP8gVoR1mKwbYsIYGOKpBdl0C0nxhuQl2CZ44voNWej0PQh0WckcocL4b0fR0HGuGkTiSA8hCZq0f6hIUkCk3oHtACPTGrTw97uQi6Mt7k8m1UdfrZ0i_3fKzOhCOYkG6sbEw0M5ZPsCgA/s3088/girls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD1lfJMGrWWsHPu_eMe-B-u7wsYKRh1kuvzNkqCBFasrEP8gVoR1mKwbYsIYGOKpBdl0C0nxhuQl2CZ44voNWej0PQh0WckcocL4b0fR0HGuGkTiSA8hCZq0f6hIUkCk3oHtACPTGrTw97uQi6Mt7k8m1UdfrZ0i_3fKzOhCOYkG6sbEw0M5ZPsCgA/w480-h640/girls.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">Dressed up for <i>Absinthe</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfFEAqXUcmXjRz7miV_UJuuKUviivu9kV4cBLsTcqdKv_lRbXbpeu7CGi4GvGC8hW_FWpi_cvwYdVIM0bQYFtyglmS5wBFzguMPqQSrAEUvsydlEqihWxsWYondWv5iQkps1kDIQM4MPsAljHPP-XDnsFEphUJpnDqioEn_JNdwUge62mosMhDs1MH/s4032/IMG_6844.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfFEAqXUcmXjRz7miV_UJuuKUviivu9kV4cBLsTcqdKv_lRbXbpeu7CGi4GvGC8hW_FWpi_cvwYdVIM0bQYFtyglmS5wBFzguMPqQSrAEUvsydlEqihWxsWYondWv5iQkps1kDIQM4MPsAljHPP-XDnsFEphUJpnDqioEn_JNdwUge62mosMhDs1MH/w480-h640/IMG_6844.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; text-align: left;">Blurry picture but the only one of the 6 of us this day</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7l9L5VjsTUd9KrpnqCJ4NeumGThN4Dcpl000sGSuuZK6GVMwZZndS2KTsqoTEgwtZY7Zgy_LYGYXGVR1yAl5Lbsf69CGE_56sk5OO9MRwUxFjc5qJpijIGTvQbQFkrBwohAizVz4iRGFC2NV18i9OOEmKA7mslFYJbjxtw3LAX5d0A-_eW0nw1Rtn/s160/IMG_4356.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="120" data-original-width="160" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7l9L5VjsTUd9KrpnqCJ4NeumGThN4Dcpl000sGSuuZK6GVMwZZndS2KTsqoTEgwtZY7Zgy_LYGYXGVR1yAl5Lbsf69CGE_56sk5OO9MRwUxFjc5qJpijIGTvQbQFkrBwohAizVz4iRGFC2NV18i9OOEmKA7mslFYJbjxtw3LAX5d0A-_eW0nw1Rtn/w400-h300/IMG_4356.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Absinthe</i> was absolutely incredible. It was part acrobatics, party comedy and overall AWESOME. It's VERY mature {so not for kids}, but we all loved it!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9xEAVyZli8ICUUsxZdZ3PW6vj1urK7hj_DLHVcZSM6UKmRv_thCpCvZNjA0lvowsn_AejNRcFbjkvmzeF4-TJky20i92wHBy1XX4cnvmBnsCU65ARcWKtnf6SycL2levVKdA9o6J4AKMkJCdy2sgcspjtMqu5qFbVEMzalmAcoMO3_KssGB1w6LFu/s1599/absinthe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1599" data-original-width="1204" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9xEAVyZli8ICUUsxZdZ3PW6vj1urK7hj_DLHVcZSM6UKmRv_thCpCvZNjA0lvowsn_AejNRcFbjkvmzeF4-TJky20i92wHBy1XX4cnvmBnsCU65ARcWKtnf6SycL2levVKdA9o6J4AKMkJCdy2sgcspjtMqu5qFbVEMzalmAcoMO3_KssGB1w6LFu/w482-h640/absinthe.jpg" width="482" /></a></div><br /><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">We flew home the next day back to our babies - a lot tired and a little bit poorer but ready to ring in the New Year and celebrate our Drew Drew!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-52683075290151277362024-01-05T06:00:00.001-06:002024-01-05T07:43:59.434-06:00Christmas 2023 Rewind<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We had a great break for Christmas. I was able to take the kids entire school break off with them, and we packed a lot into the time off!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Christmas Eve</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We started Christmas Eve by going to church with my mother-in-law. She is the secretary at her church, and I love going there - the vibe is topnotch. The pastor wanted children to read part of the story of Jesus' birth and my girls agreed to help! I almost fell over because Brent went with us, yay! We had lunch with my in-laws and then went home to get ready for celebrating with my parents.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">My dad requested pralines, so Drew and I attempted to make them - and I think they turned out great!</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhknCrtqRxOBPBkZHWoxXkTRvb6sThr9hTDn-Lc5zHiDMLQAYb9mdFh0sRhb6WxpSZw4EyrqWjYuA-sj0FxtqDpLxDgyUMfSa4axzNRZMhYY9pz9PPIXUQensCEEkdOPMfGX5mESUZwd5FiJ3_JZsY_OR9k6qmV2RrLlQFvZ9hbBuwtrIn7G5CJi4b5/s4032/pralines2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhknCrtqRxOBPBkZHWoxXkTRvb6sThr9hTDn-Lc5zHiDMLQAYb9mdFh0sRhb6WxpSZw4EyrqWjYuA-sj0FxtqDpLxDgyUMfSa4axzNRZMhYY9pz9PPIXUQensCEEkdOPMfGX5mESUZwd5FiJ3_JZsY_OR9k6qmV2RrLlQFvZ9hbBuwtrIn7G5CJi4b5/s320/pralines2.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSGRYtlb0GV5ffK17Imlbr7BjGbfQF86uN9xMNUTEsdkLqqq_tbLVp7Ayrqhfl7wrEsXRvL8tJZLd5cXRIqnrAj9B-lpjU0NekYMFumJ1jVg8Srapy9Gi4N_S5Ev-5HDvyd0L1U6oe6FVS6utj-JQjewOu07LiZhgDgsuQ2_cr58lHvgkxCZgiXTCQ/s4032/pralines3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSGRYtlb0GV5ffK17Imlbr7BjGbfQF86uN9xMNUTEsdkLqqq_tbLVp7Ayrqhfl7wrEsXRvL8tJZLd5cXRIqnrAj9B-lpjU0NekYMFumJ1jVg8Srapy9Gi4N_S5Ev-5HDvyd0L1U6oe6FVS6utj-JQjewOu07LiZhgDgsuQ2_cr58lHvgkxCZgiXTCQ/s320/pralines3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">My little baker</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqPxB28KnHvkWiDTBAHDV7LrE9GiaoO7bu-1E_KHkumoD6JOAqE60nImzKaXDVrPtsiOEUsMJ6uxlamldpGIS-9iXZ3r8p0fqBFqJ7IBxtcnfxLRdqVi_fY4M5OrRc4fzdwmJgJoKR1FGbTM43UVWMOpeI-nwQfPG7qwjdXIVNkxXQwkQtFVI58aFI/s3088/IMG_4263.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqPxB28KnHvkWiDTBAHDV7LrE9GiaoO7bu-1E_KHkumoD6JOAqE60nImzKaXDVrPtsiOEUsMJ6uxlamldpGIS-9iXZ3r8p0fqBFqJ7IBxtcnfxLRdqVi_fY4M5OrRc4fzdwmJgJoKR1FGbTM43UVWMOpeI-nwQfPG7qwjdXIVNkxXQwkQtFVI58aFI/w480-h640/IMG_4263.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Swope Christmas was a little smaller this year as Patty's crew didn't come over. Their pediatrician recommended keeping the baby away from people for a little while, since he was over 3 weeks early. We still had a great time with my parents though!</span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Whiskey sours in honor of my Granny and the Gurley grands!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKdxFU6Ni2uWQhIydZYooen0D8oNgLxR6d-4EkAnCQHkJP8BSqWaBIx2CDA4rqkcMsy7NHiHLxHtNb0kHSLc5YHsdAaT_3GTeBg5HeS5oPGGVH7oAzAWd6G2RQ5N8zWbSpSXp9RAw1SAycS2gK3g9Zi8rK27Qr8sh3xjwKXoBhQHo-lmlqI_kORoCT/s4032/Eve1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKdxFU6Ni2uWQhIydZYooen0D8oNgLxR6d-4EkAnCQHkJP8BSqWaBIx2CDA4rqkcMsy7NHiHLxHtNb0kHSLc5YHsdAaT_3GTeBg5HeS5oPGGVH7oAzAWd6G2RQ5N8zWbSpSXp9RAw1SAycS2gK3g9Zi8rK27Qr8sh3xjwKXoBhQHo-lmlqI_kORoCT/w300-h400/Eve1.jpg" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrWQQygNZu9L8-qhL03qA1uFJIJSbEdHsPnFnOzLpbJ_6vKvc9G5kqxFrAZCw1xFMSfLQrdbVrRR2LHtEZF_2IP_RWfMfpwO1-6BEGriiIhBOm5ADWg9-XVj7BSWlKLlGOOhYaqd-4TX1BgSa5y-tczjDCeph6K9hQj-UuWgouHX1OXaabZGVmsiUD/s4032/Eve2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrWQQygNZu9L8-qhL03qA1uFJIJSbEdHsPnFnOzLpbJ_6vKvc9G5kqxFrAZCw1xFMSfLQrdbVrRR2LHtEZF_2IP_RWfMfpwO1-6BEGriiIhBOm5ADWg9-XVj7BSWlKLlGOOhYaqd-4TX1BgSa5y-tczjDCeph6K9hQj-UuWgouHX1OXaabZGVmsiUD/w300-h400/Eve2.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Lots of great gifts!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCveYIGR3jm9VDipCtJ6OON-m6vgUsEbVqfuV2AS77-WpZGV3FxMdExu5cOzsO4yLbesfpd5DcoFl9ZvmwNwRoq5irbuvhl4nPLp6n0e8RI5tBl9EvFwsRQg2wkxTCTNyqOe24oPGExAPqjvqTAV4uVAf367SvfoVTND5M0nEoUq8nfE4UYe-1fQ4u/s4032/IMG_4268-1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCveYIGR3jm9VDipCtJ6OON-m6vgUsEbVqfuV2AS77-WpZGV3FxMdExu5cOzsO4yLbesfpd5DcoFl9ZvmwNwRoq5irbuvhl4nPLp6n0e8RI5tBl9EvFwsRQg2wkxTCTNyqOe24oPGExAPqjvqTAV4uVAf367SvfoVTND5M0nEoUq8nfE4UYe-1fQ4u/w300-h400/IMG_4268-1.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_I6CF84dG7NNTkAaGhX2dt9eJYLfRL9uRhtC5JG2zAny_YdO1GXpBFLL03fXCjAQEZrZUoVPTY5_n-2ZoDSxYLLUq1s7m_fr8ScciO-CzT7NrrBHRz1I-6nU2aKdOQwBUzpTjJ-3AoOjHgeX3XP5e5h55dUYVI7XjxRCM2TnTNhvX5HAOShvfQ-cG/s4032/IMG_4269-1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_I6CF84dG7NNTkAaGhX2dt9eJYLfRL9uRhtC5JG2zAny_YdO1GXpBFLL03fXCjAQEZrZUoVPTY5_n-2ZoDSxYLLUq1s7m_fr8ScciO-CzT7NrrBHRz1I-6nU2aKdOQwBUzpTjJ-3AoOjHgeX3XP5e5h55dUYVI7XjxRCM2TnTNhvX5HAOShvfQ-cG/w300-h400/IMG_4269-1.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieDB3r4BXp0JGZBT658SAC5CDxTxRY2CcuFK5xmGnmExHLfvCiJtz5sxrbdHlXx67L2vqKBY5yVo5NB75rlu4RS5yFei2hcX6nvRNRXQBdW6OGqiYvF3tZ8aBld0vbhXBvFNWLv1z4-O4lMUg6GojlEa3ARH-T7lXpJnb4nJ53OU_OY1ILcIugCQWB/s4032/IMG_4270-1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieDB3r4BXp0JGZBT658SAC5CDxTxRY2CcuFK5xmGnmExHLfvCiJtz5sxrbdHlXx67L2vqKBY5yVo5NB75rlu4RS5yFei2hcX6nvRNRXQBdW6OGqiYvF3tZ8aBld0vbhXBvFNWLv1z4-O4lMUg6GojlEa3ARH-T7lXpJnb4nJ53OU_OY1ILcIugCQWB/w300-h400/IMG_4270-1.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtzUWJ0tYN4urKJjgdvCKZi-xi_ubbM_Y4Sve7UhyJNG32puPiGXLj7-3JVbUjTxaEGpILayLo55hupHapzSfoidkvSgYd86rjewwGZcdurzMOeO5de4Y7smS8seLMXINqdvP_xnYh4cp0PkxWEJKvTQYO-VGKXxZt5jK4ZXt_rcHN-qIkHQeSnML4/s4032/IMG_4272.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyKOtjg26txRAM9TJ2IwbnuHTduG0hNtlOharphTouQWZKpf1PDyXQd0YOvuLqQaYBDdymmLBjsQTtExnakus2umFs1xSDSCpdM36gbFHhpQyIUsxjlercorkdx0GPNEmP-Kx8tXINaXVBoC1BQCyHCgoSQX97zk12Nrd_mTLtFbcY-P6MpDh-qFhN/w300-h400/IMG_4283.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRObTFMwRuo6rcgsYRyHMyvWBNvtCanTcCNfKXHPy8PPNlgdjImone9p3719C8JlPWy0sFrwKvPAjZe2jB1n6DXEVkERWMD_O7p6KXB9YD7g2qRRGtBV0vwxUB5aRYFfyjOZrOWsfaWne5lQvWtoqiziydPR4gqlFSHDXUtJ8e_S8bScPZkGndCO4h/s3088/IMG_4286.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRObTFMwRuo6rcgsYRyHMyvWBNvtCanTcCNfKXHPy8PPNlgdjImone9p3719C8JlPWy0sFrwKvPAjZe2jB1n6DXEVkERWMD_O7p6KXB9YD7g2qRRGtBV0vwxUB5aRYFfyjOZrOWsfaWne5lQvWtoqiziydPR4gqlFSHDXUtJ8e_S8bScPZkGndCO4h/w480-h640/IMG_4286.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I had to eat a Christmas wreath alone this year, so sad!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyI43GOpQI96LSIVb_GaOCdbqEBLhB2i-zfb0eWp681JruAZBd_pVnUhdEe66O6b8r1S1DkzXAdEyoEL63AnB4uhNUW-GZfzDAAnvebCJlmUgRQoDCqk1QCkr3iiAztiLk_ac74LEQMyGEcXclJRZm97Md5iYJEJqN7aHQBFKA6xGAvbVdjEt_oXky/s3088/IMG_4288.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyI43GOpQI96LSIVb_GaOCdbqEBLhB2i-zfb0eWp681JruAZBd_pVnUhdEe66O6b8r1S1DkzXAdEyoEL63AnB4uhNUW-GZfzDAAnvebCJlmUgRQoDCqk1QCkr3iiAztiLk_ac74LEQMyGEcXclJRZm97Md5iYJEJqN7aHQBFKA6xGAvbVdjEt_oXky/w480-h640/IMG_4288.PNG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9oGI9GAcq0vCVg1mZN2HI75JORiOwtoX_0e6qVXtZTkZgxu2CHVSwugPduQ386C5-Gchhle2yeYV56NEGO2rgvwGXPfR69-M63dEdL5SyMIFvT1jnuJQF7AE6c9Br_n4Jf8iC226cKjVAHXxxtBvBGM1sI47rMGoXkmKicduxV1mWX1y9bVEZWxUW/s4032/IMG_4289.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9oGI9GAcq0vCVg1mZN2HI75JORiOwtoX_0e6qVXtZTkZgxu2CHVSwugPduQ386C5-Gchhle2yeYV56NEGO2rgvwGXPfR69-M63dEdL5SyMIFvT1jnuJQF7AE6c9Br_n4Jf8iC226cKjVAHXxxtBvBGM1sI47rMGoXkmKicduxV1mWX1y9bVEZWxUW/w480-h640/IMG_4289.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><b><span style="font-family: verdana;">Christmas Day</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">The kids actually slept in pretty good {we didn't get home from my parents until midnight}, so we didn't start opening presents until 9:00am - that was their present to us, ha.</span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Trent's hair!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt-OKQkbeZUorrS5FJfWOYI5rF6rHZLs98J6WvryXKiDmSke-eKIjboJA_yVOvbMsQmkYWtlSqx1g4KDqIwKcLoZQi7b6U23pqgIbmQLNLW0m6i921h6FjDcaZBnJw5nD4uEQdh_GuP3DXNUeRV1hNssUzlKfkwIL7XhEoGEOPD_nkheXL0DrEP88a/s4032/IMG_4297.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt-OKQkbeZUorrS5FJfWOYI5rF6rHZLs98J6WvryXKiDmSke-eKIjboJA_yVOvbMsQmkYWtlSqx1g4KDqIwKcLoZQi7b6U23pqgIbmQLNLW0m6i921h6FjDcaZBnJw5nD4uEQdh_GuP3DXNUeRV1hNssUzlKfkwIL7XhEoGEOPD_nkheXL0DrEP88a/w480-h640/IMG_4297.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJYDmKI0SbgPHBZdScBbIeXPgT9ZqvVFrAgYSqmV0zcrXMRhUU_V3A6BRxPkZGbj9fScKAe1MbV4lPNV5yZpYN3V5qcJ-KQAePOOALfz1fhbWIpOf9vLXL40VMnkFaPJZ-SvqvcPBraquiRuELHOP9mXiQLowQMrZcqWljEpXsFo4KG8v1oLsxxLjd/s4032/IMG_4298.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK2I08kkJMxKaic4Uyw7Ag9rk5UfgDJgjxWaWFBHi6LostoqXQ5enoRCuUYG46fLnARaGSScEIJ8NmQeyed5P01i5KSikOixa2XTgD6CYyQc0IodM5jDhl3N48AoDOtb9Jf_bWoKI_m7mv2-MZVD5USR2tCDIk2JXDkqPOz3yNdvFmPV4sOQw7Tb12/w300-h400/IMG_4314.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Mimosas and poinsettias in my new Santa mugs</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwbW7S49-CtWPSBtmN60qSDUObbuyeeuo84Z_Njajm9UIYcBA0fLwGh9A0W7XlW0aOMqyuWguPcFa63SJIcpNVVjV9VQAJJMwSNS5nO48zNL0qyU8xBJ69SY3H4kuGYRHZyUuCV_uJYTOE8oAk9JvHNLK4bIZD58IonaYv1a1_zNvEhyphenhyphen6RManU0tUI/s3088/IMG_4316.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwbW7S49-CtWPSBtmN60qSDUObbuyeeuo84Z_Njajm9UIYcBA0fLwGh9A0W7XlW0aOMqyuWguPcFa63SJIcpNVVjV9VQAJJMwSNS5nO48zNL0qyU8xBJ69SY3H4kuGYRHZyUuCV_uJYTOE8oAk9JvHNLK4bIZD58IonaYv1a1_zNvEhyphenhyphen6RManU0tUI/w480-h640/IMG_4316.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEhyq9-jQFMp0UEUmUTLcgsexKXDN32mnsHAMP-eGljc_SNuij3MRmAYSLRCpRM0jaXAvOwZxksdP2_JY3HZ08NicrsCP8ERvAt0kt21TdraLbWEh_Ugg6AZXCeWPgVXWXpRBiLvCkGp10sILhjdxA2Y1tqolKGAkwXnCbihLnYjmhOIyRJ37E0Ql9/s4032/IMG_4317.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEhyq9-jQFMp0UEUmUTLcgsexKXDN32mnsHAMP-eGljc_SNuij3MRmAYSLRCpRM0jaXAvOwZxksdP2_JY3HZ08NicrsCP8ERvAt0kt21TdraLbWEh_Ugg6AZXCeWPgVXWXpRBiLvCkGp10sILhjdxA2Y1tqolKGAkwXnCbihLnYjmhOIyRJ37E0Ql9/w300-h400/IMG_4317.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR0PEZswzYv8tLC0r92zwsWBgK3830yhcOqSAVvCXbRcLN7_G6Xu4eq9fYEyTmR8OB8QH3aOHDVubEEXbhnG29xus9zbbT6895B-_YbbP6gAvMid7EQY5DgJSwZubEJ1oTQcowKamGqec2u99C2i8tkh7YYg-UH4Z79XqYjbLTHLOqtQ3WCb0KaOKK/s4032/IMG_4318.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR0PEZswzYv8tLC0r92zwsWBgK3830yhcOqSAVvCXbRcLN7_G6Xu4eq9fYEyTmR8OB8QH3aOHDVubEEXbhnG29xus9zbbT6895B-_YbbP6gAvMid7EQY5DgJSwZubEJ1oTQcowKamGqec2u99C2i8tkh7YYg-UH4Z79XqYjbLTHLOqtQ3WCb0KaOKK/w300-h400/IMG_4318.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">We went to Brent's parents' around 3:00 for another round of Christmas!</span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">You can't be a Gurley Gurl if you don't like champagne, ha</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMeUn2mc0g4zHraKEeCMCtRCQ3qynC1whii9YrMlA_XmbzR8UPjgXfXGQo-dPRePrMgP3uhf4PfMFBSxTUkAHLfENT4haIXTZg30lcsE_vYiKpm4FPpelqGUEMnhyphenhypheny9KNzTTOkQ5u8ZP8ism_BoOMkDDbvgaeS6gjzg7YRgtnjgYhp4A2FxFcbqTqU/s3088/IMG_4319.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMeUn2mc0g4zHraKEeCMCtRCQ3qynC1whii9YrMlA_XmbzR8UPjgXfXGQo-dPRePrMgP3uhf4PfMFBSxTUkAHLfENT4haIXTZg30lcsE_vYiKpm4FPpelqGUEMnhyphenhypheny9KNzTTOkQ5u8ZP8ism_BoOMkDDbvgaeS6gjzg7YRgtnjgYhp4A2FxFcbqTqU/w480-h640/IMG_4319.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Our YuGiOh guys</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh98fCmwiptiF9jhweuPcZnyIUyH71fG23hVzwzNlidPF2QDQoD9uXOldJd1IywHHzYiZP2JKZECdxOd5eOZu92Z2ALkmka8zgniUxdioMkfL7HI4E2bPaq2a_hnM9JlKFZ1w4aTT9Oj_58MhceMZRTKOCSWRqaG06gG-aGEhyphenhyphenMbTqn4knYuZdW9UW/s4032/IMG_4320.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh98fCmwiptiF9jhweuPcZnyIUyH71fG23hVzwzNlidPF2QDQoD9uXOldJd1IywHHzYiZP2JKZECdxOd5eOZu92Z2ALkmka8zgniUxdioMkfL7HI4E2bPaq2a_hnM9JlKFZ1w4aTT9Oj_58MhceMZRTKOCSWRqaG06gG-aGEhyphenhyphenMbTqn4knYuZdW9UW/w640-h480/IMG_4320.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Gurley grands</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOn2INrtznkFjVwsBYKPcbEmcTtbbFKNyT_qWSmYznfZvIofGJxItIh5RBrNGCqLOPL2aiR2KW29okhDFuO8w4BsOC0Q38hsJsRCSeQUA3xWuRaopwsrs_EYX0IUPeegh-vK7aNvLB-ZlWe9QPdpTRf12Z6Fpt3z5SHRG7_q0dZ1qB50JBwKelsoFR/s4032/IMG_4321.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOn2INrtznkFjVwsBYKPcbEmcTtbbFKNyT_qWSmYznfZvIofGJxItIh5RBrNGCqLOPL2aiR2KW29okhDFuO8w4BsOC0Q38hsJsRCSeQUA3xWuRaopwsrs_EYX0IUPeegh-vK7aNvLB-ZlWe9QPdpTRf12Z6Fpt3z5SHRG7_q0dZ1qB50JBwKelsoFR/w480-h640/IMG_4321.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbwbbm3N0wRj-6qt8UKihrcOP7EO7fjbBEChaMhvIzcZDNb-vTFXV8ulb6P_AL2ADQE2vgCCiJ_NiZjYv16l8Qv6inFfan7OHfXpvBTTcJh9KFagyk5CVmeMRm0Jvel4NaKy05LOdd7e2LsoZf-x29qRSSMhBvZUeICQ974HYCdkf6imOoWegLhv-9/s4032/IMG_4324.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbwbbm3N0wRj-6qt8UKihrcOP7EO7fjbBEChaMhvIzcZDNb-vTFXV8ulb6P_AL2ADQE2vgCCiJ_NiZjYv16l8Qv6inFfan7OHfXpvBTTcJh9KFagyk5CVmeMRm0Jvel4NaKy05LOdd7e2LsoZf-x29qRSSMhBvZUeICQ974HYCdkf6imOoWegLhv-9/w300-h400/IMG_4324.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbBYRnIqEns7YIvnOFZPigmVvcYIKZ2Gi88h0EJGe9vT_zHsElr7c1I41yTha2WLkr2ja2hGAb3qmLMsZLc7RecgDcPxjpQG0eb436RucSl4OJxZligWtjo39x4lyZ8Kd9TqiXEzw0r4TmnuHIldKQeV1Aj5BSmDi6tGteHMrT4S7Db0DK40wTpirS/s3088/IMG_4327.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbBYRnIqEns7YIvnOFZPigmVvcYIKZ2Gi88h0EJGe9vT_zHsElr7c1I41yTha2WLkr2ja2hGAb3qmLMsZLc7RecgDcPxjpQG0eb436RucSl4OJxZligWtjo39x4lyZ8Kd9TqiXEzw0r4TmnuHIldKQeV1Aj5BSmDi6tGteHMrT4S7Db0DK40wTpirS/w300-h400/IMG_4327.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHM8T-J3yb28QikRJRVmfi2DeB040SF-Y3OaTy-fVd5ozcggxQNJRXebyp8R-MxYvHiGd5LciWzyrfiWn9Ygo8kunnVTtBuoPfPlBdndYPv49dch7qq6xf__4nVHqjZSrefVKZOC5arrZTdsG6SDopj53msLGwFUuRcK_c2iXTYX-E6a1tss-nxJqc/s4032/IMG_4369.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHM8T-J3yb28QikRJRVmfi2DeB040SF-Y3OaTy-fVd5ozcggxQNJRXebyp8R-MxYvHiGd5LciWzyrfiWn9Ygo8kunnVTtBuoPfPlBdndYPv49dch7qq6xf__4nVHqjZSrefVKZOC5arrZTdsG6SDopj53msLGwFUuRcK_c2iXTYX-E6a1tss-nxJqc/w640-h480/IMG_4369.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVWjZvBC8wnnFiuuPGvfUoGWipj0AkzhICT51_y2Tgs9mUrknEQuiCfX-u74X8VpY79WfZkqp_coQLT7FyLE32_b9RqwMc6O9JXqSra1IVqlSK2qdwi5Yarcn3nQXzboTet7kzxSqhKZ6u-7i2HRKp0_qyEUgXTE1n5rnEvB-0GOnnfvEPZ-7_Zx6H/s4032/gurley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVWjZvBC8wnnFiuuPGvfUoGWipj0AkzhICT51_y2Tgs9mUrknEQuiCfX-u74X8VpY79WfZkqp_coQLT7FyLE32_b9RqwMc6O9JXqSra1IVqlSK2qdwi5Yarcn3nQXzboTet7kzxSqhKZ6u-7i2HRKp0_qyEUgXTE1n5rnEvB-0GOnnfvEPZ-7_Zx6H/w640-h480/gurley.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Patty took a picture for me when they went to my parents' Christmas Day.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Thanks, sis, for always humoring me!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRaf3aWa3iBg8SUX55DDeH7PKD-cbMjGD_SXJ-QlwXJcrU-_2n6fKgI7SznBgaXHs5oTFwtAEHgKOJNN1frfYMziXCd2e6eTcCJjaws0-jdB23P4fl0vxXMCY3O7dEI05JA3eI_XibXfw_ijZOnMGvC3EL5-5EP13-lDYPoOHpP2DXZXSELLouYumT/s3088/wreaths.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRaf3aWa3iBg8SUX55DDeH7PKD-cbMjGD_SXJ-QlwXJcrU-_2n6fKgI7SznBgaXHs5oTFwtAEHgKOJNN1frfYMziXCd2e6eTcCJjaws0-jdB23P4fl0vxXMCY3O7dEI05JA3eI_XibXfw_ijZOnMGvC3EL5-5EP13-lDYPoOHpP2DXZXSELLouYumT/w480-h640/wreaths.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We have one more Christmas Saturday {my mom's extended family}, but we had a great time!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-60576046993669422772024-01-04T06:00:00.001-06:002024-01-04T06:00:00.347-06:00December 2023 Reads<div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It's my last book post of the year! This has been my biggest year of reading ever but not my best. Full yearend stats to come in the next few weeks, so let's breakdown how I finished 2023.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxzSAaeL9mMycE9A_LGlQiCQ6KqEISt1uwYN27HXHg9wAi7DsdwZGbU0kd50kIrvzcYFTTCnUFy3ZWz_3ibbdG6n1FMqRRAqFco-JxwZ4rMIzUvqUMn27Iy0_ooyRaOGRSjpq1g0KmIAkaV5PqvzuJz8TUbmgXW6mi9pwuwTQq4WaY2xHzAwgGL_vN/s659/Allena's%20Recent%20Reads.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="659" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxzSAaeL9mMycE9A_LGlQiCQ6KqEISt1uwYN27HXHg9wAi7DsdwZGbU0kd50kIrvzcYFTTCnUFy3ZWz_3ibbdG6n1FMqRRAqFco-JxwZ4rMIzUvqUMn27Iy0_ooyRaOGRSjpq1g0KmIAkaV5PqvzuJz8TUbmgXW6mi9pwuwTQq4WaY2xHzAwgGL_vN/w640-h428/Allena's%20Recent%20Reads.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">I read 9 books this month bringing my total to 131 for the year - a new high for me! Reading audiobooks has definitely helped with my numbers, and I love having access to audiobooks through my library - there are too many great books out there to not be using audiobooks when you can!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I had a pretty solid mix of books - nonfiction, fiction, several by BIPOC authors, some I loved and some I didn't - overall a good month.<br /></span> <br /><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9eBdCgNWmtUZOoSJfdVuoYH_zpTG6uwmMMZOMS0PzwJd2xnMMev803s5I2gg32MZ6tj4s5qsFWjKYyQIO-Fa_UGkajsiNU2xh7ka2eUM3IdN7JbUZqVUh4t3CWOeaUYZ3JM9X4QtPZ11lQ9UrU2kwCso7WBade5QpJaInyv8XNZ7QGNv40pQbNPzf/s1474/icebreaker.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1474" data-original-width="1024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9eBdCgNWmtUZOoSJfdVuoYH_zpTG6uwmMMZOMS0PzwJd2xnMMev803s5I2gg32MZ6tj4s5qsFWjKYyQIO-Fa_UGkajsiNU2xh7ka2eUM3IdN7JbUZqVUh4t3CWOeaUYZ3JM9X4QtPZ11lQ9UrU2kwCso7WBade5QpJaInyv8XNZ7QGNv40pQbNPzf/w444-h640/icebreaker.jpg" width="444" /></a></div><br />Icebreaker</i> by <b>Hannah Grace</b> - This was cute and SUPER steamy! It's about a figure skater and a hockey player who end up having to practice on the same rink and sparks fly. I will say the back 1/3 felt uneven and the ending kind of annoyed me, but overall it was a fun one! And the beginning of a series!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMouMBug_CX_deV1Osr_g-chyPODTkSxnKtZ523GZchCNcjaaSjEQ3bF9RQU-g_GdhXf77tpaVvcTMEbsO4vaod4_rhvpaprKtYFDIb8mu1-DCTycossEDKeBWnBBsMlp9e-5J6DEjSeP1eEqAEM583QpEpoFhUioxc_PjDfEACdwfEiGSx4xfLONs/s1000/maame.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="658" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMouMBug_CX_deV1Osr_g-chyPODTkSxnKtZ523GZchCNcjaaSjEQ3bF9RQU-g_GdhXf77tpaVvcTMEbsO4vaod4_rhvpaprKtYFDIb8mu1-DCTycossEDKeBWnBBsMlp9e-5J6DEjSeP1eEqAEM583QpEpoFhUioxc_PjDfEACdwfEiGSx4xfLONs/w422-h640/maame.jpg" width="422" /></a></div><br />Maame</i> by <b>Jessica George</b> [audiobook] - I saw numerous people recommend this one, and I'm so glad I picked it up! It follows a first generation British-born woman {her parents are from Ghana} as she navigates life dealing with a tragedy, racism, loneliness, grief, depression, and all the things. It is also a story of friendship, finding yourself, found family, branching out, and love. It was fantastic! I also thought the audiobook narrator did a FANTASTIC job. This one was a winner!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ_lnDg3tXSVSPbqFBN9AN80tC4FfrwvyxwPUqr3hN9oW2NphldtobGC7SAqxja_izSHlX6jovDYyiq33a-fYMlarMtO38r6cIYJvPovlhuLLAJ2BATfWJvpr1ihcvRn_cRRoLT9P5KTTsFZwg1Xe2wbYoCauDJMVngHJXbqxOnMtRjmQfaJdztXZa/s1000/nov9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ_lnDg3tXSVSPbqFBN9AN80tC4FfrwvyxwPUqr3hN9oW2NphldtobGC7SAqxja_izSHlX6jovDYyiq33a-fYMlarMtO38r6cIYJvPovlhuLLAJ2BATfWJvpr1ihcvRn_cRRoLT9P5KTTsFZwg1Xe2wbYoCauDJMVngHJXbqxOnMtRjmQfaJdztXZa/w410-h640/nov9.jpg" width="410" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><i>November 9</i><span style="font-style: normal; font-weight: 400;"> by </span><b style="font-style: normal;">Colleen Hoover</b><span style="font-style: normal; font-weight: 400;"> - This is likely to be my last CoHo book. This was not good. It follows a girl and boy {I'm too lazy to remember/lookup their names} who meet on November 9, basically fall instantly in love and decide to meet every year only on November 9 so they can achieve their goals. It was SO overwrought and over-the-top. I found myself rolling my eyes and skimming A LOT.</span></i></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgevKzhdwkkGJ222iQvWi21onUT3_MGBNaTD8KGD-J7I_GgThtXrn1IV3pKp8tdMAWboG9jvzOtHMQhyvJn1JmR709pZ4-UK-cq4TLpYl7nloMagpT-A4STiI0jMmD1J0EU8uWymHLG1_UhMaTRuYWeiG6ySfgzKHo1WKNugKFz1QOE9Wkwqpheb8ll/s445/when.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="293" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgevKzhdwkkGJ222iQvWi21onUT3_MGBNaTD8KGD-J7I_GgThtXrn1IV3pKp8tdMAWboG9jvzOtHMQhyvJn1JmR709pZ4-UK-cq4TLpYl7nloMagpT-A4STiI0jMmD1J0EU8uWymHLG1_UhMaTRuYWeiG6ySfgzKHo1WKNugKFz1QOE9Wkwqpheb8ll/w422-h640/when.jpg" width="422" /></a></div></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;">When I Was Your Age</i> by <b>Kenan Thompson</b> [audiobook] - This was GREAT! My second SNL cast member memoir this year {and I read <i>Romantic Comedy</i> which is a fictionalized story of an SNL writer}. This was laugh out loud funny and also just full of entertaining stories. Kenan seems like a great guy, and I truly enjoyed this one.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm-i3S5LdmahjmCZJU3DFylGAZCWpspRfmFUFgy47aHBurvAaZwH35dbqUJUrA9ncBWuzxof_wH4i6ENPlJjmAtGuQuVREFcWnKZVed6gcOokwo7GhWgOHexOP6ZHq9pQILp5HB2IWDOncUur6aM2nFAEUelRawcZu9uHXFcF-hvR3C8ZGX_zDBNRe/s1000/check.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="666" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm-i3S5LdmahjmCZJU3DFylGAZCWpspRfmFUFgy47aHBurvAaZwH35dbqUJUrA9ncBWuzxof_wH4i6ENPlJjmAtGuQuVREFcWnKZVed6gcOokwo7GhWgOHexOP6ZHq9pQILp5HB2IWDOncUur6aM2nFAEUelRawcZu9uHXFcF-hvR3C8ZGX_zDBNRe/w426-h640/check.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><i style="font-weight: 400;"><b>Check & Mate</b> </i><span style="font-style: normal; font-weight: 400;">by</span><i style="font-weight: 400;"> </i><b style="font-style: normal;">Ali Hazelwood</b><span style="font-style: normal; font-weight: 400;"> - This was Ali Hazelwood's first YA novel and it follows kids in competitive chess. This was so adorable. Ali Hazelwood can seriously do no wrong. The characters were just so cute {although the FMC did get on my nerves a smidge with blaming herself for things that weren't her fault and a bit of a martyr complex}, the chess was fun, and the love story was great!</span></i></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5XLS9-5-OG7Q3YzJxJ3icmKnjHljtUZJpMcSOhrMLZ07xpqjKHnU6J_8gAPe1sXgAEpssSl4blgcybjBjc1hajFlcB4RxTBlKRT5VgqwiW7Bp360JLVSoi7Y6WUNauBLcRQpXpfQE3V8ysSfzW4GI0x11Skh7WpwfJJ3k6BOJy_wxrWwoyNIazxgp/s1192/lightpirate.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1192" data-original-width="784" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5XLS9-5-OG7Q3YzJxJ3icmKnjHljtUZJpMcSOhrMLZ07xpqjKHnU6J_8gAPe1sXgAEpssSl4blgcybjBjc1hajFlcB4RxTBlKRT5VgqwiW7Bp360JLVSoi7Y6WUNauBLcRQpXpfQE3V8ysSfzW4GI0x11Skh7WpwfJJ3k6BOJy_wxrWwoyNIazxgp/w420-h640/lightpirate.jpg" width="420" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><i>The Light Pirate </i><span style="font-style: normal; font-weight: 400;">by </span><b style="font-style: normal;">Lily Brooks-Dalton</b><span style="font-style: normal; font-weight: 400;"> - This was another book people RAVED about this year! It follows Wanda who was born during a hurricane {and named after said hurricane} and jumps through some big pivotal moments of her life navigating major climate change. The book starts with her birth and ends with her as an old woman and the climate change is SCARY for what happens to Florida. I was equal parts entertained and terrified, ha. I will say I didn't LOVE this like others did {I wanted to care a smidge more about the characters than I did}, but overall it was a great read.</span></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSUc66_n8ntWQU_b0SO-dM3UouVJHbfc44TICQoRqu2TcQtw6gjtlrwk2QeDbzGIzHKpuyIerOo8RMBhX_nAaBV1PpRPCijE8PWRpLSbKLe9ipMtOsOI9MipHxDrrwPHDFL1o_GIajEUd5AfLtryGZ2hgUkEYnWYBHy5kopKW-iNCj-foyw039azCT/s2400/thingswenevergotover.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="1600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSUc66_n8ntWQU_b0SO-dM3UouVJHbfc44TICQoRqu2TcQtw6gjtlrwk2QeDbzGIzHKpuyIerOo8RMBhX_nAaBV1PpRPCijE8PWRpLSbKLe9ipMtOsOI9MipHxDrrwPHDFL1o_GIajEUd5AfLtryGZ2hgUkEYnWYBHy5kopKW-iNCj-foyw039azCT/w426-h640/thingswenevergotover.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><br /><i>Things We Never Get Over</i></span> by <b>Lucy Score</b> - This was absolute utter cheese, and I can't wait to keep reading the rest of the trilogy ha. This is such a typical grumpy-sunshine love story with a neat little cheesy bow at the end. It wasn't my favorite and the grumpy MMC was over-the-top grumpy and manhandled the FMC a little too often for my taste, yet I'm ready for more! Ha!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8oU5T-NEPyHUtrtcjqxuzNgsVmpcwFExFKtCLHSQD7SbGUgzpVe1c3M_gTREOzbws8gc-ndNXdfCXn1Dy9nvSo6HUf0O-NnCiIOYQaut3KuVnrGqyxtOIIYmbnUAX3jDz146SIvaHsan11sufW9TTztQdPN0Ni6Ov02P4PTcdJby_lJbsFPFTf107/s2400/yellowface.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="1593" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8oU5T-NEPyHUtrtcjqxuzNgsVmpcwFExFKtCLHSQD7SbGUgzpVe1c3M_gTREOzbws8gc-ndNXdfCXn1Dy9nvSo6HUf0O-NnCiIOYQaut3KuVnrGqyxtOIIYmbnUAX3jDz146SIvaHsan11sufW9TTztQdPN0Ni6Ov02P4PTcdJby_lJbsFPFTf107/w424-h640/yellowface.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br />Yellowface</i> by <b>R.F. Kuang</b> [audiobook] - Well, this is the exact opposite of the type of book I normally love, but I loved this! 2 authors are semi-friends, and 1 is successful and 1 isn't. The successful friend dies {not a spoiler} and the unsuccessful author steals her unpublished manuscript. The main character is NOT a good person, yet I found myself feeling sympathetic to her - it was wild and shows how well-written this was! It tackled some really interesting topics {the author who died is Asian and the author who stole her book is white and the published story is Asian historical fiction} like racism and who has the right to tell stories - it was thought-provoking and just plain naughty fun!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="font-weight: bold;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1MqrCuci5Se0oE6AHutk8obkcH9GjJhbUCksM2TdWabmTntrOErsHln11o4uJc5N034lLAjSekpOS5aphuLYAgQWfSCGajswYhFpdcfrl1DJImtaJ1m4SeS0gDQrWfc9OdkW295vNXDYNclScNLHwpNQviTrCZvQRJqWNsedi4GOu5fn74K3v2fQI/s350/winterinny.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="227" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1MqrCuci5Se0oE6AHutk8obkcH9GjJhbUCksM2TdWabmTntrOErsHln11o4uJc5N034lLAjSekpOS5aphuLYAgQWfSCGajswYhFpdcfrl1DJImtaJ1m4SeS0gDQrWfc9OdkW295vNXDYNclScNLHwpNQviTrCZvQRJqWNsedi4GOu5fn74K3v2fQI/w416-h640/winterinny.jpg" width="416" /></a></div><br />A Winter in New York</i> by <b>Josie Silver</b> - Man, I usually really like Josie Silver's books but this one was just okay for me. The plot felt a little silly {a British woman who has just moved to NYC after a bad breakup realizes she has the gelato recipe for a local cafe who is missing the recipe - only 2 family members have the recipe at any time} and I struggled to engage with the story because of that. I ended up liking it, but it took way too long to get there and felt too contrived throughout most of it.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I'll be posting my 2023 stats in the coming weeks - I will say I had a lot less 5-star reads than I normally do, and I struggled to name a favorite in some months. Am I getting more critical or did I just not have as many good reads? I guess it doesn't matter because I still LOOOOOOVE to read!</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-32228762718584820352024-01-02T00:00:00.001-06:002024-01-02T00:00:00.132-06:00Happy 11th Birthday, Drew Kathleen!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This young lady is going to do amazing things.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">She is overflowing with compassion and kindness.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">She has maturity beyond her years. </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">She is selfless. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Her beauty outside is nothing compared to her beauty inside.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is beyond an honor to call her my daughter.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Happy birthday, Drew Drew!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhhDsTQ0Vcno6Mzpk0qwUnBBxYoFvOxouC7FrnDCkHxZpLurjBMYDrBZ8OQdZW9VOkF69u3Pt3wwQCM7xcI9UCIRoypiCcFPQJxaDavmWl3OkAC1Eb2qZDCDS-GdLAOUItJi4ov9Pac1Lh_qWD32rOwEOddt6wYuAPDULnZDOJ7an6eFVIx2MJ5tOM/s3442/IMG_1011-001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3442" data-original-width="3086" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhhDsTQ0Vcno6Mzpk0qwUnBBxYoFvOxouC7FrnDCkHxZpLurjBMYDrBZ8OQdZW9VOkF69u3Pt3wwQCM7xcI9UCIRoypiCcFPQJxaDavmWl3OkAC1Eb2qZDCDS-GdLAOUItJi4ov9Pac1Lh_qWD32rOwEOddt6wYuAPDULnZDOJ7an6eFVIx2MJ5tOM/w574-h640/IMG_1011-001.JPG" width="574" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdLQakWxN4drOGikFmSmLdd7ZHx0rpPoM9S6TVZnML6taExXW0_AJpJS12QN6KElJESyzNdFuiU7hZJ3BG3lTsENC-QQbLvEX6ugk7pfbDZktJMHFcA_NQWRUCe0aPtMIb6e7usId4nEPJzqYXiyH8LBP65iT2_lZjfAMqbEDP6vvwh8GgjaD5A6mO/s5184/IMG_1068.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="5184" height="426" 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src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR0Deyfx_tJdgKtJxIExr_ecx5TpUFLK1EEDyJ3Sx_RlKXxTnpvecM0UJ9y8KfhJtbc7OmwHlaBfG7ukRLBsi8U7blGIzIB2hnCzjyreDjnBD5MotnaUJusPa2pii9PF8I6D7y19F_K-laBUy0PpJ5BB4tAE6f4sKzowm_V1s0GlS2y8NfOY9hnYM3/w426-h640/DGurley_0104.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-23049104483919205532023-12-31T06:00:00.001-06:002023-12-31T06:00:00.131-06:00Favorite Moments 2023<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I really like doing this year-end recap and looking back on our year - lots of fun moments with my little family.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>JANUARY</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- We always start the year off right with <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/01/happy-10th-birthday-drew-kathleen.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Drew Baby's 10th birthday</span></b></a> - can't believe 11 is right around the corner for her!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>FEBRUARY</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- A small but big event - <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/02/brace-face.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Trent got his braces off</span></b></a> after just over 2 years - it shocks me every time I look at older pictures, his teeth were SO crooked ha.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- I started using <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/03/noom.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Noom</span></b></a> which has been a great experience for me.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>MARCH</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- Nothing super exciting in March apparently, but we will always enjoy <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/03/spring-break-fun.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Spring Break</span></b></a>.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- And I loved posting my favorite <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/03/bluebonnets-through-years.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">bluebonnet</span></b></a> pictures through the years!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>APRIL</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- We went to the first ever <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/04/two-step-inn.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Two-Step Inn</span></b></a> music festival in our little town and had a BLAST. {We already have our tickets for next year, and I am so excited - one of my favorite bands is headlining - Turnpike Troubadours!}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>MAY</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- We had a lot of fun celebrating <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/05/celebrating-brent.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Brent's 43rd birthday</span></b></a>!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- I was able to chaperone another fun <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/05/girl-scouts-take-great-wolf-lodge.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Girl Scout event</span></b></a> at Great Wolf Lodge for Drew's Juniors troop.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>JUNE</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- I was finally able to take Drew to see <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/06/wicked-weekend.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Wicked</span></b></a>!!! We had a great weekend with my mother-in-law.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- We had another great weekend at the <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/06/summer-fun-with-lja.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">LJA summer event</span></b></a>.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- Trent turned <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/06/happy-14th-birthday-trent.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">14</span></b></a> - I still can't believe I have a high schooler.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>JULY</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- We went to Arizona with our kids and my parents - a trip to remember forever. [Posts <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/07/phx-trip-part-1.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">here</span></b></a>, <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/07/phx-trip-part-2-trents-birthday.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">here</span></b></a>, and <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/07/az-trip-part-3-sedona-and-grand-canyon.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">here</span></b></a>.]</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>AUGUST</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- I had a great <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/08/im-43.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">43rd birthday</span></b></a>.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- The <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/08/port-swope-vacay.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Swope family beach vacation</span></b></a> was a hit!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- We had a successful start to the 2023-24 <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/08/back-to-school-obligatory-first-day.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">school year</span></b></a> with Trent and Drew starting at a new school.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>SEPTEMBER</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- We took a <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/09/houston-natural-science-museum.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Gurley grands trip</span></b></a> to the Houston Natural Science Museum.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>OCTOBER</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- Brent and I celebrated 19 years of wedded bliss. I never posted about our anniversary trip, but we took a few days and went to a little town in the Hill Country and had a great time. Wine tastings, yummy food, and lots of time together.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7hGm6JhAWc3iG7CRwbaCAit-QGBL7R8SgY5TJZTrmuB_h0IDRKiA1C_1Cu7tny9D4kEg2hnAXtrCB0jgR-7yXJPxO2r1Xpn_fDN6FYcORgF5pHn-AJmilPRQh63bry94dnjh8urASSfasJxRx9kbQS3alaarDuBxJz5Wiyy0vNcdXrpIUTsa3irKg/s3088/IMG_3192.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7hGm6JhAWc3iG7CRwbaCAit-QGBL7R8SgY5TJZTrmuB_h0IDRKiA1C_1Cu7tny9D4kEg2hnAXtrCB0jgR-7yXJPxO2r1Xpn_fDN6FYcORgF5pHn-AJmilPRQh63bry94dnjh8urASSfasJxRx9kbQS3alaarDuBxJz5Wiyy0vNcdXrpIUTsa3irKg/w480-h640/IMG_3192.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br />NOVEMBER</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- Paige moved schools to be where Trent and Drew are...I haven't posted about this move yet, but it was a big moment in 2023. I've got some life updates coming soon...</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>DECEMBER</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/12/baby-patnode-4-is-here.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Baby Patnode #4</span></b></a> was born! {Life update post will share his name!}</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- The <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/12/lja-holiday-party-2023.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">LJA holiday party</span></b></a> was so much fun!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- Paige <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/2023/12/happy-7th-birthday-paige-noelle.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">turned 7</span></b></a>...hold me. My baby is getting so grown up.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- Will post about ending the month, but we had a great Christmas AND finished the year with a fun trip to Las Vegas to celebrate a friend's 40th birthday.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I also saw a lot of great <a href="https://agurleygurl.blogspot.com/search/label/Broadway%20Across%20America" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #800180;">Broadway musicals</span></b></a> {besides Wicked}: Pretty Woman, Ain't Too Proud, Hairspray, Six, and The Book of Mormon! Looking forward to more in 2024.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">What a great year! Cheers to 2024.</span></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5890474436523270615.post-75999798841945718972023-12-25T00:00:00.001-06:002023-12-25T00:00:00.146-06:00Holiday Wishes!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsouwawfMHuklZ72NcDDa22Y56tz0KNHZnGQ8q5Knq45_Oj725JkmxDQVHjEhWldNBoPsieorVbvNmZdkemD4mHonNopo6wtACcip_Ei3fMhE7gDj59Io4ROu8jDFc2SjhabQ8dG-joZRly_IrZzwCj_BquQguxIOT0law5uEg1tQXPfvDytwsgm__/s868/Christmas%20card%202023.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="622" data-original-width="868" height="458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsouwawfMHuklZ72NcDDa22Y56tz0KNHZnGQ8q5Knq45_Oj725JkmxDQVHjEhWldNBoPsieorVbvNmZdkemD4mHonNopo6wtACcip_Ei3fMhE7gDj59Io4ROu8jDFc2SjhabQ8dG-joZRly_IrZzwCj_BquQguxIOT0law5uEg1tQXPfvDytwsgm__/w640-h458/Christmas%20card%202023.PNG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>Allenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738835840061426517noreply@blogger.com2