Orlando

No, not the city-the Really Hot Actor. I just watched Elizabethtown again for the millionth time, and realized (again) how much of a crush I have on Orlando Bloom. Whoa. Allow me to collapse into adolescence for a moment to say how incredibly sexy I think he is. I don't even use that word, sexy-but he is.

In other news, I just saw Get Smart this weekend, and was woefully disappointed in Annie. What a rotten job they did on a movie that had INCREDIBLE funny potential. It was terrible. The Rock had the best role in the whole thing. Not even Alan Arkin could give it any class. Wait for the dvd...better yet-wait for it to come out on TBS or FX. Not at all worth the money.



While we are on the topic of films, I also recently saw Prince Caspian. I can't wait to see what they do with Edmund's character in the next one. Skandar Keynes is growing up to be quite the cute teenager-in a sulky, indie sort of way. I would SO have had a crush when I was 15.



Now I just crush on the 30 year old actors. *sigh* Oh well, it's actually much safer than crushing on the real thing. By the way, where ARE the real things, anyhow? It's not even like I know of any to potentially crush on. Not that I like to complain, but it (the lack of grownup males in my world) just happens to be a great big pink elephant that I continuously am trying to ignore. Mostly, the pink elephant keeps to itself and it isn't an issue, but there are times when it plops itself down on my head and squishes me.



In still other news, I got rid of a LOT of peripheral paper today. I am SO ready to get my office organized!

School's Out!!

I know, you're saying, "What?!? They've STILL been going to school? The rest of the world has been out for weeks....."

Me, too. *Sigh* But now it's officially over.

I have the first three day weekend I can EVER remember where I don't have ANYTHING that I'm supposed to be working on.


As my kids would say, "Woot, woot!"

I almost forgot

It's been awhile since I've done a list, so here's one from Tres Poshe Preppy:

Pick 5 (In No Particular Order)

5 Things I Can't Live Without Under $10:
1. Grande Hazelnut Skim Latte

2. San Pellegrino

*I'm having a hard time coming up with nonperishable items for this one-I think I have more expensive taste than $10!

3. Gel Pens...I know-it's SO seventh grade. I can't help it; I love 'em.

4. Lindt truffles

5. Skim milk. I'm an addict.

(That was MUCH harder than I expected. Wow.)

5 Favorite Movies: (romantic comedies)
1. Sweet Home Alabama

2. 13 Going on 30

3. Cold Comfort Farm

4. The Princess Diaries (both #1 and #2)

5. The Prince and Me

5 Favorite Girl Baby Names That I Love:
1. Lauryn

2. Ellen

3. Julia

4. Nicole

5. Elizabeth

5 Favorite Boy Baby Names That I Love:
1. Joel

2. Nicholas

3. Jason

4. Nathan

5. Peter

5 Songs You Could Listen to Over and Over: (This morphed into 10 Songs. Sorry about that)

1. Found, by Hillsong (Anything b y Hillsong, actually. Lately I've been on a Hillsong United kick)

2. I Will Love You, by Fisher

3. Fragile, by Sting

4. One, by U2

5. Lullaby, by Josh Groban and Ladysmith Black Mambazo

6. The Luckiest, by Ben Folds

7. I hope That I Don't Fall In Love With You, by Tom Waits

8. Iris, by GooGoo Dolls

9. Yellow, by Coldplay

10. Love Me Tender, by Norah Jones

5 Things That Stay In My Handbag At All Times:
1. My wallet

2. Cover Girl LipSlicks

3. Tums Smoothies (I know, that's just weird. )

4. A mini Journal where I can make lists

5. My compact

5 Obsessions I Have Right Now:
1. Hillsong Conference

2. Getting my licensure renewed

3. Facebook

4. The connection between worship and justice

5. Songwriting


5 Places I'd Love to Go:
1. Sydney!

2. London

3. Kruger Game Park

4. Copenhagen

5. Memphis

Ok, so I have to explain that one: my friend Liz and I are discussing a road trip to Memphis for the dual purpose of eating barbeque and enjoying the blues kitsch. I don't REALLY care about Memphis-just the fun of the experience.

Rainy Saturday

I just got home from my morning tutoring, and the rain is drumming on my kitchen window, reminding me that it's my favorite season: Spring! Springtime in Virginia is (in my humble opinion) not as much fun as back home in Ohio. For one thing, we don't get nearly the rain here that we do back home, and when we do, it almost never comes in thunderstorms, which I adore. For another, spring in Ohio is full of wonderful sights, sounds and smells from the newly plowed and planted fields, to the baby animals, to the lilac bush in my parents' yard. And finally, in Ohio I can venture into the great outdoors without fear of all the nasty critters present in Virginia, like cottonmouths and copperheads, brown recluse spiders, and the ubiquitous deer tick, which can just MESS UP your nervous system with Lyme's Disease. All we have back home to be concerned about are mosquitoes and tornadoes. No biggie. :)

I love Saturdays. I think today I will get my home really, REALLY clean, then maybe have coffee with a friend, and catch up on some reading and lesson planning. I might even write a few letters. I'll be glad when school's out! Only three weeks to go!

Posting, shmosting...

Yep, I completely dropped the posting ball-again. This month has been a whirlwind, and well-you get the picture...we all have busy lives. The fact is, when my life gets crazy and I have lots of stuff to think and work through, instead of writing through it, I tend to retreat into my head, which is where I've been lately. However, today I decided to come out and play, so here I am!

It has been a really fun weekend-starting with dinner with a couple from my church on Friday evening. We ate amazing steak and steamed asparagus and broccoli, and has biscotti for dessert. Yummy! Saturday, I went wine-tasting with friends at Tarara Winery. We came back to my house and made more amazing food like blackened chicken fettucini alfredo and roasted asparagus and colored peppers. We then went to a friends' house for a rousing game of Taboo...and let me say, you have never enjoyed Taboo until you've played it with South Africans!! We quickly were reminded that we were two countries separated by a common language. Sunday morning, a girlfriend came by for breakfast (we had to use up the leftover veggies from the night before in omelettes), then church. We barbequed after church with friends, ate ice cream in the afternoon, and watched a movie in the evening. Finally, today we met for brunch at IHOP, then another girlfriend came by for a few hours afterwards for conversation. Lastly, I took a nap and am now dreading tomorrow's return to a "normal" social routine!

Belated credits, and other news

So I forgot to mention that the Five Things Meme came from here-sorry, Libby!


Now that I'm done with spring semester classes, I'm having an interesting time coming home to whole evenings worth of time to relax! I'm taking this week as a sort of vacation-but only sort of, since I've got a million portfolios due over the next two days. Now that I think of it, it's a really good thing that I'm done with classes-I'd never make it through teaching AND being a student this week!

Five Things Meme

Five things found in your bag:
1. My amazing 3-headed highlighter
2. Starbucks card
3. teacher ID on lanyard, which I always forget to wear.
4. agenda, which I write things in and forget to look back at.
5. The new I Heart Revolution cd

Five favorite things in your room:
1. my chocolate and aqua leather jewelry box.
2. Sunset 1929 magazine cover poster:




















3. Vermont dressers from Overstock

4.White quilt with blue toile country scenes.

5. 3 Euro pillows with navy velvet cases.

Five things you have always wanted to do:
1. Travel the world.
2. Play the piano proficiently.
3. Speak several languages fluently
4. Wear long, lean jeans.
5. Be a purveyor of justice and hope to the nations.

Five things you are currently into:
1. The I Heart Revolution
2. Spring Fever
3. Lakeland, Florida
4. Hillsong College
5. The BIG diet.

Playing Hooky

But not really, since the whole reason I stayed home today was to get caught up on final exams and papers for my grad classes! I'll tell you what, I'm a little tired of bring in school. But nowhere as tired as Libby who has been working her teensy tail off in law school-go Libby!

Well, the wedding was gorgeous and I've decided that I can either spend a year planning my own wedding or, like my friends, let my church spend a month planning it. If this wedding was any indication of what my church can throw together, I just might consider going for option number 2! I was exhausted, and I'm SO glad it's over. However, the important point was that we really were able to bless Kyle and Madelein, which was amazing. Here are some photos:




















































































Forgive my lack of technological prowess, but I still haven't figured out how to format these posts!

In other news, lots of good things have been happening in Donnaville. Part of the reason you haven't heard from me is that I've been journaling life's going-ons elsewhere (more private). For now, just know it's GOOD.

MIA Again

For anybody who hasn't given up on me yet-I'm still here! The wedding I'm catering is tomorrow-yikes-and things are a little crazy around here! Once Madelein is married off and on her way to San Diego, I'll be back, I promise!

Thanks for hanging in there!

D

Crazy week, and still waiting...

This week is nuts-tons of school work, grad school work, family visits, and now I'm coordinating a wedding reception-in two weeks! Yikes. Oh yeah-and standardized tests this past weekend, too...I thought I'd finished those when I got my GRE scores and MCAT scores! Oh well-I'm sure it all went well, and I'm glad it's over.

In other news, no response from Joel, but I'm still hoping! Meanwhile, there's this cutish Verizon guy (like from the commercial) who's been hanging around a lot lately. I've decided he's my Twin of The Opposite Sex. Which means, according to the last boy I went around with, that he's ideally suited to me. The only real issue is his age-quite a bit of a difference (think Demi and Ashton). Still, if the rest is good and he doesn't care, should I? What do you girls think of that?

I'm also hoping for some more of those (so far fabulous) responses to my Ten on Tuesday from last week. Libby, you experienced married woman: what about you? Would Dear D. like to contribute? Anyone else? Go ahead, Dr. J.-I want to hear from you, too! I'll post my list later this week.

Happy spring, and I sure hope the rest of your weather starts acting like it!

Ten on Tuesday

OK, so today from Ten on Tuesday, the topic is:

The 10 Things to Do Before You Get Married

However, since so many of you lovely ladies are married to such fabulous men, I was hoping you could give me some suggestions. What would YOU recommend I do before getting married??

Leave your suggestions in the comments and I'll post my resulting list later this week!

My Easter Day, and so on...

I must say that when I awoke yesterday, I wasn't as thrilled with life as I'd ought to have been. I remembered an Easter several years ago that could qualify as one of the worst days ever. It sort of marked the beginning of the end of a serious relationship (which end, in retrospect, I thank God for!). Anyhow, I was feeling a bit sorry for myself, but I put it out of my head and went on to church, and enjoyed a lovely time of worship and fellowship with my church family. I then had an errand to run after church, and unexpectedly enjoyed the company of a newfound friend who ended up turning the day into one of the most delightful ones I can recall. Hooray for hidden blessings!

And so, I have done something which I *hope* does not bring my blogworld crashing down around me...although, if it does, I will be surprised to have reached a higher level of popularity than I'd have thought possible. I have linked my blog to my MySpace account. Attention: if you are a MySpace spammer, GO AWAY NOW. If you are a regular reader, this may seem a bit cryptic, so just ignore this part of the post. However, if you are the reason I linked, then I extend my heartiest welcome to a new reader: Hi Joel! I look forward to getting to know you, but be forewarned-this blog is merely a partial expression of my most girly side. Still, it offers more than my MySpace does. (I really only set that up with minimal information so I could log in and view my friends' accounts. I never use it otherwise-it kind of freaks me out.)

Question: Will Joel Houston actually respond to my friend request on My Space, and will he find this link and will he actually take the time to read my blog? Who on earth knows? Today is a beautiful spring day, however, and weirder things have happened. And Good Heavens-Joel, if you read this, would you PLEASE at least let me know you stopped by?

Happy Monday, everyone!

(Do you really think he'd stop and read it? He's SUCH a busy, popular fellow-but oh my word, I have so much respect for him, I'd love to become his friend! )

Happy Easter!

He is not here;
He is risen,
just as He said.

Matthew 28:6











Today is my FAVORITE holiday.
Happy day, everyone!

Princess Lists

For your reading pleasure, more fun from my www.listography.com:

about me (reasons I would make a terrible princess)

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• I hate to wear pantyhose.
  
• I always say what I'm thinking.
  
• I abhor fake and pretentious people. See #2.
  
• I couldn't deal with the paparazzi.
  
• I can't dance.
  
• I'm very clumsy.
  
• My religious views are too conservative and too liberating for the general public's approval.
• I would hate to live far away from my family, and there are no royal families in Ohio to be part of ...
• I might take too many things personally from the voice of the media.
  
• I don't know any princes to marry.

about me (reasons I would make an excellent princess...)

¬

• I speak French. Everyone knows that princesses must be able to speak French fluently.
  
• I have a strong sense of style and great, though somewhat conservative, taste in fashion.
  
• I am extremely diplomatic.
  
• I love to travel.
  
• I love to meet new people and to bring out the best in them.
  
• I would be nice to the servants, and never leave them messes to clean up.
  
• I would never scandalize the monarchy.
  
• I am very well-read.
  
• I learned several years ago how to dissuade unwelcome advances from ungentlemanly gentlemen.
  
• I adore humanitarian causes.
  
• I would look great in a tiara.
  
• I would be an incredible patron of the arts.
  
• I'm already a princess in God's eyes!

Listography

So, if you've been reading my blog AT ALL, you'll recognize my fondness for lists. I thought I'd share a few of my (59) lists from www.listography.com. I love this site because it allows you to freeload list ideas from other list maniacs without guilt or penalty. Just a few of mine, for your reading enjoyment:

about me (Random things I love)

• precise articulation
• extremely fine fabrics
• vintage jewelry
• mid-century modern aesthetic
• the Arts & Crafts movement
• aqua and chocolate color combinations
• a new journal and a smooth, fine tip pen
• Chicago architecture
• tea at the Ritz
• halter top bikinis (Not that I can wear one)
• high heels
• leather accessories
• dark, interesting woods
• traveling alone
• The Stage
• ballet dancing
• thinking in French
• autumn tights
• Lilly Pulitzer
• expensive perfume
• tulips
• velvet
• grande hazelnut skim latte
• organic chemistry
• Volvos
• organization
• Christmas
• skiing
• going to the symphony
• my Empire Red Artisan KitchenAid mixer
• Reisling, Gewurztraminer, and Sauvignon Blanc
• hats
• Hermès' Kelly bag
• smart romantic comedies
• fake fur
• leather-bound books

work (10 jobs i would never want to do)

¬

• Retail ANYTHING
• Banker
• Accountant
• Car/insurance/real estate sales
• Police officer
• Military personnel
• Secretary
• Financial Analyst
• Factory worker
• Construction worker

relationships (favorite fictional loves)

¬

(you get extra points if you know who more than three of these people are!)

• Gilbert Blythe
• Mr. Knightly
• Fitzwilliam Darcy
• Adam Eddington
• Jim Frayne
• Lex Upham
• Joe Willard

(Disclaimer: I don't judge others who do the following things, they're just not for me)

autobio (i will never...)

¬

• Eat headcheese.
• Get a tattoo.
• Own a Porsche.
• Date a redneck.
• Say the f word.
• Take God's name in vain.
• cheat on my husband.
• wear a miniskirt.
• wear real fur (I don't have ethical issues with it, necessarily-I just think it's gross.)
• bungee-jump.
• skateboard.
• choose to live in Detroit.
• eat kimchee.
• be ashamed of my height.
• quit trying.
• be mean to my nieces and nephews.
• forget that I've been redeemed by Christ.
• walk away from my God.

And on a remotely related note:

I thank God for the sacrifice that we remember today, Good Friday. I'm humbled and amazed to think that Christ would have endured the undeserved suffering He did even if it had been only for me. What an incredible weight humanity would have to carry if it weren't for His divine power of resurrection! I love this time of year-not just for the newness of Spring, but also for the reminder that my soul is renewed!

Happy Easter, everyone!

New Girl Stuff

So I never, EVER splurge on girlie stuff-usually my splurges go on bookshelves. However, I found two gorgeous new shades of nail polish and I went crazy. (For a girl who doesn't wear nail polish, this is huge.) If you'd like to check out my new shades, google Sally Hansen and look up the new Salon line of nail colors. My two new colors are for my fingers (Can't Bare To Know) and for my toes (Raisin The Bar). However, I just tried out the toe color on my fingernails with lovely results. SOooo pretty!

Ok, so I also went to the bookstore...where am I going to put three more books? :)

Feeling meme-y

This from Magnolias, Marriage and Manhattan (who went private for awhile, but I'm so glad she's back with us!)

50 Odd Things About Me Meme

1. Do you like blue cheese? It's a recently acquired obsession. Yummy on a salad with dried cherries, pecans and pears.
2. Have you ever smoked heroin? No-but I thought it was sniffed, not smoked? (Never did that either.)
3. Do you own a gun? No, and it's HIGHLY likely that I never will. I hate 'em.
4. What flavor do you add to your drink at Sonic? We have no Sonic here-although we have the commercials as a teaser. I like the cherry and lime flavors, but it's been years (early college days) since I've indulged.
5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? Only the dentist. I HATE going to the dentist.
6. What do you think of hot dogs? Umm, ok-confession time: hot dogs (really GREAT ones) are a guilty pleasure of mine. I like Nathan's all-beef kosher dogs, with brown mustard, onions and ketchup.
7. Favorite Christmas Movie? A Christmas Story. Ralphie grew up cute!
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? I make espresso in a little Italian-style pot on my stove and and make a sort of latte. Today it's Christmas Blend from the 'buck's.
9. Can you do push ups? Ummm, no.
11. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? It's a toss-up: my garnet earrings from Shari for graduation from college and my gold heart necklace with the opal that Dad had made for Mom years ago.
12. Favorite hobby? writing, reading, designing, cooking...
14. Do you have A.D.D? I have "an atypical form of A.D.D." that solely interferes with my ability to sort and prioritize. No problems with focus or processing speed. I also have the O part of OCD, and a mild form of dyslexia/dysgraphia. Believe it or not, I'm relatively functional as a human being-just not so much as a student.
15. What's one trait you hate about yourself? Lack of self-discipline
16. Middle name? Michelle
17. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment.. 1.I really need to get my shower. 2. I should probably exercise today, too. 3. I wonder when I'm going to have time to go to Georgetown and pick up that nightstand I found on Craigslist.
18. Name 3 things you bought yesterday. An Easter dress, bubble bath, a Susan Branch cardmaking kit.
19 . Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? Coffee, Water, Pellegrino with orange juice.
20. Current worry? How am I going to get all those papers graded this week and still have a fun break?
21. Current hate right now? That I'm not spending Spring Break at home with my family.
22. Favorite place to be? At home with my family.
23. How did you bring in the New Year? I actually don't remember, but I know I was with my parents. Oh wait-My sister brought all the kids over and we played games, and then turned on the TV to watch the ball drop at the last second. Mom and I always watch the parade on January 1 together.
24. Where would you like to go? Paris. Sydney. Napa Valley. Chicago. Santiago. Denver. New York. A lake house. Around the world.
25. Name three people who will complete this? Not sure-but you're all tagged!
26. Do you own slippers? Yes, they are pink and look like ballet slippers.
27. What shirt are you wearing? my white flannel PJs with the navy blue flowers.
28. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? Not so much. I'm really a high thread count cotton girl...
29. Can you whistle? Yes
30. Favorite color? Indigo. Scarlet. Periwinkle. It depends on the day.
31. Would you be a pirate? No. I think life on a boat would be claustrophobic and besides, I think pillaging is overrated.
32. What songs do you sing in the shower? Since I'm not usually too awake, I kind of don't think I sing then. Ironic, because I sing all the rest of the day...
33. Favorite girl's name? Julia, Lauren, Hallie, Kiki (just kidding)
34. favorite boy's name? Jason, Brian, Jacob, Matthew, Nicholas, Patrick (I plan to have more boys)
35. What's in your pocket right now? No pockets in my PJs.
36. What's something that made you laugh today? See my previous post.
37. Best bed sheets as a child? Raggedy Ann. I still have one of them tucked into a chest in my closet.
38. Worst injury you've ever had? I broke my pelvis in a car accident in '97. This was accompanied by a concussion and kidney and spleen bruises. I NEVER want to go through anything like that again.
39. Do you love where you live? Not especially, but I'm trying harder these days.
40. How many TVs do you have in your house? one
41. Who is your loudest friend? Alyse. I adore her, but she has no volume control. (She knows it, too.)
42. How many dogs do you have? Does the dog I bought for my parents eight years ago count? If so, one.
43. Does someone have a crush on you? I don't think so.
45. What is your favorite book(s)? Franny and Zooey, Pride & Prejudice, The Enchanted April, A Room With A View. Does the Bible count? I think of it more as a manual/guide than an actual book...
46. What is your favorite candy? Not such a big candy fan...chocolate and peanut butter is a whole 'nuther story though.
47. Favorite Sports Team? Do I have to have one? I stopped caring about sports (Not that I ever did much anyhow) when Michael Jordan left the Bulls.
48. What song do you want played at your funeral? I have no idea. Actually, I don't really care what they do-I won't be aware of it, so they can play whatever they want.
49. What were you doing 12 AM last night? Talking to my mom on the phone.
50. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up? There's something I need to remember to do....(And then I went back to sleep!)

Random Wednesdayness

First off, I'd like to thank all the contributors to my dilemma post. Thanks to some very good advice, I've decided to put the situation behind me for the rest of the week and deal with it next week when I get back to school (so I can enjoy the rest of my break). I am definitely going to talk to the girls, and I think a partial penalty is the best route to go, since I didn't actually see cheating as I had in the previous situation. We'll discuss a redo at a lower point value, or something along those lines. Whatever.

So I just rediscovered the funniest website ever. It's called Lolcats 'n' Funny Pictures, and you may find it at http://icanhascheezburger.com. Now here's my disclaimer: as a general rule, I am not fond of cats, and I strive for impeccable grammar. However, when you get such gems as this, who cares?































Then there are the cute ones...


































And finally, an Easter pic:










How much fun is that??

Actually, you know what's really fun? I'm sitting at my computer writing silly things in my PJs at10:30 in the morning on a Wednesday, and I didn't even have to pretend to be sick to do it! Also, I just found the cutest dress to wear on Sunday at Ross yesterday for a mere $25. AND a new Nine West handbag for $12.99.

I think my requisite morning latte is in order now...followed by a bubble bath, perhaps?

Happy Wednesday!

8 Things revisited

I can't believe I forgot to add one of my most beloved, long-time passions to my 8 Things list a few days ago!

Surprise, surprise:

Passion # 10: Travel!

I was just reminded of this passion by a wonderful blog I've discovered belonging to Lars and Stephanie (who are both just too gorgeous for words, by the way) about their current adventures in France-and it would seem, the rest of Europe. I'm so envious of these two at the moment, but when I recall some of the fantastic travels I've had, I truly have nothing to complain about. You can find their tales here:

http://ruecassette.com/default.aspx

Oh, and if the Johnsons are checking out Chantico, thanks-and I forgot to mention, I'm a huge Pink Martini fan, too.