My Bucket List

A few weeks ago, I was given the opportunity to go to the Insight Bowl.  It all started with me making a statement that I had always wanted to go to an OU bowl game, but had never been.  Well, that statement turned into me having two tickets to the game.  That got me to thinking about the other things I have always wanted to do, but never done.  Or even some of the things that I could actually cross off the list.  So, here is my so-called "Bucket List".  It will definitely change over time, but that's expected.  That's what blogs are for. 

• Sky dive
• Travel to Hawaii
• Go to an OU Bowl game (December 2011)
• Go to an OU BCS game
• Go to an away OU game
• Go to an NFL game
• Go to an NBA game (2010)
• Go on a cruise
• Travel to New York
• Go to Disney World (March 2006)
• Go to Disney World again
• Build a house
• Open an Etsy store
• Give a surprise party for someone (March 2008)
• Have a surprise party thrown for me
• Randomly receive flowers from someone
• Go to Vegas (August 2007)
• Go snow skiing
• Go to a North Carolina/Duke basketball game
• Go to the Final Four

MIA or just M???

So, it's been a while.  A lot has been going on.  That's a lie.  I've just neglected to blog lately.  To make up for it though, here is a rundown of what has been going on in my life.

Last week was crazy.  It all started on Tuesday night with something called a "downburst" or a "microburst".  I don't really know what it was called, but it was not fun.  I lost power at the house around 7:30 and just hung out in the dark for the rest of the night.  I've never lost power for an extended period of time so I thought I would be ok.  I could just play on my phone for a while and then it would be back on and all would be good.  Well, all was not good.  I didn't charged my phone at work that day and had run the battery down while listening to music at work (I was around 30% battery at this point).  So me being the smart person I am, I decided I would charge my phone on my laptop.  Well, I quickly realized my laptop wasn't fully charged either.  That battery was also around 30%.  So, I charged my phone as much as I could and hoped it would last throughout the night.  It got up to about 40%.  That didn't last long though because people were trying to check on me and all that stuff.  I set the alarm on my phone and went to bed.

The next morning, I still didn't have power and my phone was at about 8% battery.  I couldn't make it to work.  I took a shower by flashlight and packed my blow dyer and flatiron and went to work.  Yes, I had to fix my hair and put my make-up on at work.  Needless to say, it was not my best hair day.  I made it through the work day though.  I decided I would go to the gym before coming home.  Kandi was an awesome sister and came by the house to check on Boomer and the rest of the house.  Still no power.  On my way home from the gym, I realized just how bad the storm the night before was.  I saw Channel 4 news on the way home.  While laying in the hammock for a while (it felt better outside than it did inside), I saw Channel 5's helicopter circling my neighborhood.  They were all trying to get footage of the storm damage.  They were as close as they were going to get to the downed power poles on 12th & Robinson.  I then decided that since the neighbors were working in their yard, maybe I should work in mine.  So, I swept the driveway and raked up the leaves in the front yard.

I knew it was going to be hot on Thursday, so I took Boomer to Mom's the spend the night Wednesday night.  I think he enjoyed that.  So, I get up Wednesday and get ready for work in the dark again.  I had washed my hair the night before so I didn't think about it.  Well, I have this little swirly thing going on in the back of my head and sometimes the hair likes to stick out.  Sam was not too nice when he saw me Thursday morning.  He made it known that I was definitely NOT having a good hair day.  Oh well, what can you do?  Another uneventful day at work and what do I come home to?  Still no power.  There were only 700 people in Norman left without power and I was one of them.  But having dinner with the Kiker's and Mom made the night that much better.  Power was finally restored 46 hours later and all is now ok.

So, what did I learn from this?  Always be prepared with a charged phone.  Either that or get a charger for the car.  And be ready for any type of storm.  That stuff was scary.  I was ready to get in the closet.  I also learned that I have some of the BEST friends and family anyone could ask for.  I don't know how many offered a bed or an air mattress or a spot on the floor so I wouldn't have to stay at home.  I appreciated all of it!!!  You guys are AWESOME!!!!!

Good news though...I had a job interview at work for a position in HR.  I'm hoping it went OK.  I have a second meeting with them in the morning so hopefully they will make a decision soon.  Positive thoughts!!!

So, now you know why I've been missing lately.  Or you probably didn't even notice...

A little friendly competition...

Starting on Monday (June 13th) I am going to be in a “competition” with Paul and Sam on who can lose the most weight in the next 6 weeks.  I use the term “competition” loosely because we there isn’t anything at stake at the end of this.  Only the fact that whoever wins will have bragging rights over the other two.  We are being fair though and having Tammy weigh us so no one can cheat.  Not that any of us would, but you never know.  It is going to be fun and interesting at the same time.   

I actually started my weight loss around Thanksgiving so I have been working on it a lot longer than the other two.  I’ve been running more and working out at the gym the last few weeks, which has been nice because I’m not getting bored doing the same thing everyday.  My current goal is to be down at least 20 pounds (I’m currently at 18.2) by June 25th, which is the weekend of the Newman Reunion.  That’s only 1.8 pounds in the next two weeks.  If I keep up with my workouts I will meet that goal, no problem.  I’ll let you know if when I get there.  My next goal will be 10-15 more pounds.  Then I will be happy.  It’s going to be a long road and there might be some detours, but I am going to stick with it and say healthy this time.  I don’t need to join Weight Watchers for a 4th time!!

So, for the next few weeks I am going to try and be on my best behavior when it comes to food and working out.  This isn’t going to be as hard as it sounds because I know what I need to be doing, I just don’t always make the right decisions.

I’ll keep you updated on the “competition” and let you know how I’m doing compared to the boys.  Things might get interesting around here…

Running and running and running...

I'm finally getting back in the habit of working out again.  It helps that I have someone at the gym waiting on me.  Jessica, a girl from work, has joined the same gym as me and is going to start working out with me.  This is going to help me because it will give me a reason to go to the gym instead of making excuses not to go.  I also bought a new pair of running shoes over the weekend.  Normally, I buy a pair of shoes that I intend to run in but I also use them for everyday shoes.  This new pair is only for running though.  I will use my other pair for everyday use.  So, this means I actually bought shoes that were meant for running.  I have never done that before.  I used them this morning and could actually tell a difference.  They were much lighter and were very comfortable.

So, when I run outside, I usually get about 4 miles in.  When I'm on the treadmill at the gym I don't get that much in.  This is usually because I become obsessed with watching the numbers that I can't help making myself go faster and then slowing down.  I can't keep a steady pace on a treadmill.  It's probably a good thing though. 

I had planned on running in a 5k with Paris on June 25th, but found out my family reunion is that evening.  Normally this wouldn't be a problem because 5k's are usually in the morning, but this one is actually a night run.  Oh well, there will be more in the future.  I think I am going to run/walk the Memorial half marathon next year.  That is my current goal.  Who knows, by then things might change.  That is what I am working toward right now though.  Ok, it's out there for the world to know so I can't back out now. 

Until then though, I am going to keep working out and running and hopefully I can get in good enough shape that I can run 4 miles straight without having to stop and walk.  It doesn't help though that lately I have been having to run into the wind and up a hill at the same time.  Not cool.  But maybe that is just helping me get the muscles back in my legs.

Until next time my friends...

Having fun making stuff

I wanted to take this opportunity to let everyone know about my new project.  I received a set of coasters from a friend a few years back and have used them regularly since then.  So, I got the information on how to make them from her and I also did some research on a few crafting blogs and found out how to make my own.  So, here I am, making coasters for other people and hopefully they will enjoy theirs as much as I have mine. 
The design or theme of the tiles can be customized to fit any occasion or any décor.  They also make great gifts.  I have included a few pictures to illustrate what I am making and give you a few examples of what I have already made.  Email me if you are interested in a set or if you have any questions. 

Until next time...

How much is too much?

I think I either have a stalker or someone that is really lonely. There is a little girl that lives a few houses down from me that has decided I am her new best friend. This little girl likes to ask me random questions…A LOT of random questions.

The first night I met her I’m pretty sure she asked me at least 20 questions. Why are you never home? What’s your name? What’s your middle name? What’s your last name? How old are you? Why is your dog barking? What does he look like? Why is he so fat? What does the inside of your house look like? Do you want me to bring you some miniature pancakes? (Really?!) Are you married? Do you have any kids? Can I come over and help you garden? (as she is holding a miniature shovel that is no longer than 6 inches) Can I water your flowers for you when you aren’t home? And this was just the first night. By the way, her name is Cacee and she didn’t believe me that we had the same name. And she thought it was weird that I couldn’t remember how old I was.

The next night I am sitting there watching TV and someone knocks on my door at 8:45. I grab Boomer so he doesn’t run outside and open the door because I just know it has to be her. 1) I didn’t even have the porch light on; and 2) Who else would it be? Everyone else that comes to my house lets me know they are coming before they come over. Good thing I didn’t have my pajamas on already. When I open the door she looks like she is holding something close to her. She says “You might want to put your dog down.” I just looked at her and asked why. She said because she wanted to show me something and takes her hands away from her body. What do you think she was holding? A gerbil/rat thing! She brought her animal to my house and thought I was going to pet it. I don’t think so. Then once I told her she didn’t need to bring that over anymore, she turned to keep it away from me and tried to reach out and pet Boomer. I had to let her know she wasn’t petting Boomer as long as she had that thing in her hand. I shut the door and went back to watching the game.

So, after I get home and mow the yard on Friday night, I’m trying to catch up on my full DVR and what happens? Someone knocks on the door. Only this time it’s light out and I can see her trying to see in the glass on the front door (the glass you can’t see through). So I pause my show and get up to see what she wants. This time she has a paper and she unrolls it to show me something she has drawn and colored, then proceeds to tell me that her mom doesn’t believe that my name is Kasie and that I can go over and meet her if I want to. If her mom doesn’t believe what my name is, she can come to my house and meet me. I’m not the one walking around the neighborhood knocking on stranger’s doors.

So, needless to say, this girl is crazy. Maybe I’m just that cool that she wants to hang out with me. We will see if this gets any worse if it was just a one-week friendship/stalker. Hopefully she will find a new friend to question…

Until next time…

It's been a while...

I said I was going to get back into writing on this blog...but I haven't.  I don't feel like I have anything interesting to write about.  This weekend was pretty busy though.  Saturday was my cousin Justin's wedding in Walters.  It was pretty and I got to see a lot of family that I usually only see once a year.  I will get to see them all again in about a month and the family reunion, too.  Love seeing great-aunts and uncles and talking to them.  They have some good stories and knowledge they can pass on.  Justin and Jessica, the newly married couple, had red-velvet cake as the groom's cake.  I was in heaven.  They also had a chocolate fountain so I was able to get some chocolate covered strawberries (love them).  Overall, it was a good time and I hope for nothing but the best for the new couple.

After the wedding, I met up with Candice and Landon and we went to the house of one of their car club friends.  I met a lot of people (I don't remember all the names) and had a good time.  I'm glad I met up with them because I would have sat at home and done nothing all night.  I'm supposed to go to a car show next weekend and hang out with them again.  Should be fun.

Sunday has been a normal day for me.  My stomach has been unhappy this afternoon though so I'm not feeling too well right now.  I did end up taking Boomer over to the dog park for a little bit though.  Someone thought it would be a good idea to bring a boxer into the little dog portion.  Not cool my friend.  So Boomer wanted to meet this dog and they didn't seem to get along.  I didn't think this was a good idea, so I just tried to keep Boomer away from the dog until the guy got smart and took the dog to the big dog area (genius). 

This week doesn't look to be overly exciting except for Thursday when Cristina and ReRe come over for girls night.  I'm cooking for them (!!!).  But the fun will be catching up with them since we haven't had a girls night in over a year.  There will definitely be a lot of laughs.

I will try to be better about posting even if I don't have much to say.  Now that I have finished writing this blog, I've remembered my new "friend" that has graced me with her presence this past week.  I will write about her tomorrow.  She is quite the character.  P.S. Her name is Cacee (and no I didn't make that up).