Finales

24I have been watching this show religiously since it first aired many years ago. I am a BIG Jack Bauer fan, even though he is a cheeseball. My fave is Chloe. Brian and I always make fun of her faces and comments on the show, they can't write that stuff, it's natural to her. My favorite season was when President Palmer was in the White House, he was so cool and I'm pretty sure the only non-corrupt President. Oh I also really liked last season when President Taylor was held hostage at the White House, that was crazy! So as big of a fan as I am, I'm very sad about the season finale. I can't believe Rene died! I was thinking that Jack and Rene would run off into the sunset on their way to fight crime, but she died? Bad choice in the writing. And then man oh man what a cheesy ending, having Jack all bloody on the big screen at CTU saying "how many seconds do I have?" and then running off to escape what could have been... so yes, I will take the jokes for this episode, but overall I give this show an 8.5 out of 10.

American Idol

Well I have been a semi-faithful fan of this show since day one... love me some Kelly Clarkson. This season I was a little unimpressed with the talent. I mean I can't sing, but these kids were just "eh" to me. I didn't vote (sometimes I do) because I wasn't really attached to anyone. Big Mike had a precious story, but that's about it. I LOVED the addition of Ellen Degeneres to the show, great move Fox. Kara is going to be the death of me. She loves herself a little too much. Randy? Oh gosh, he thinks he knows everything about music but he can't put it into words besides "Listen, Listen, Dog, Dude, Listen, Listen." Who do I love? Simon. He's so cruel but you know what? He says exactly what I'm saying to Brian here at home. He just has the guts to do it to their face. Wow how could I forget my fave person on AI - Ryan Seacrest. He is so precious and talented and my gosh so busy. He knows everyone in Hollywood and I feel like we would be good friends given the chance. Oh and I give AI one more season on the air. With Simon (and adorable Paula) out, the show won't last much longer. Overall, I give this show a 7 out of 10.

Biggest Loser

I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE this show. Brian loves it too. Although we tend to eat our dessert while we're watching it, so it's not as motivating as one would think. I think Allison Sweeney is wonderful (although I originally loved her from Days of our Lives), Bob is the one I would choose for my trainer (a good mix of sweet and tough), and Jillian is a tad crazy. Okay a lot crazy. Brian and I were pulling for either Ashley or Daris this season. Can you believe how fabulous Daris looked at the finale? Holy moly, he was so cute. And Ashley looked amazing too! It is just so wild to me that someone can lose 20-30 pounds in one week. But Brian keeps reminding me that if you weigh 400 pounds, 20 pounds isn't as "wow" as I think it is. Well it still is "wow" but it's not unbelievable. I do, however, wish that they would start showing more eating habits and not just focusing on the workouts. I'm pretty sure I know how to hire a trainer now, so just show me what to eat and how much to eat of it. Like I really liked the episode where they all went out to a Mexican restaurant and had to choose healthy items off the menu... very applicable to everyday life. So Dear NBC, Please try to focus a bit more on foods and not so much on exercise when you are showing us clips each week. Sincerely, Ellen. I give this show a 9 out of 10.

Hi, I'm a Cougar

So Brian likes to fondly refer to me as "his cougar" because I am 3.5 months his senior. He's such a child. Well the little guy turned the big 2-6 recently and per usual we dragged out the celebrations from the typical 2 hours of a party to about 3 days of fun. Again, we like to party.
First night of celebrations at Tarahumata - one of our fave Mexican restaurants (within walking distance of our house!)

with my family

back home for chocolate chip cake made by yours truly :)

Night #2 of celebrations - hanging with friends

and dinner at Relish - one of our favorite Southern restaurants in Roswell

this is a pic of what Relish is most famous for-->Pimento Cheese Fritters... a ball of cheese, deep fried, with sweet pepper jelly = DELISH!

And then after dinner was over, I served everyone a piece of chocolate cake with buttercream frosting. Sadly, I cannot take credit for this deliciousness. This cake is from Kelly's Kakes - another Roswell fave.

Good News, Bad News

First the bad news... the teaching job market is horrible right now. Horrible. Our county alone cut between 500-1000 teaching jobs this year. We are increasing class size as well. Actually, scratch that. The government just announced yesterday that there will be NO maximum class size for 2010-2011. Which means a Kindergarten class could have 20 children or 45 children. That is insane.

The good news... I just graduated with my Masters of Arts in Teaching Early Childhood Education WAHOO!!

The bad news... I applied to 75+ schools (private, public, churches, daycares, etc) and only 4 called me in for an interview. Two of which were daycares and I have come to the conclusion that that is not the job for me. You cannot pay me enough to be a nanny to 25 children. I want to be a TEACHER to 25 children, not a nanny. Oh and the daycare's philosophy was "The children are in charge." So if we are outside at recess and come back inside and I say, "Okay class, gather around, we are going to do a Science experiment." The kids don't have to participate if they don't want to. They can stay outside at recess. WHAT??? I understand that children should WANT to learn, but I'm pretty sure allowing a 5 year old the choice of recess or learning, they will choose recess. And what happens when that child begins attending a public school? I know what happens. I have Kindergarten teacher friends that have some of these children and say they are nightmares because they feel like they don't have to participate or listen. Sorry for the rant. Obviously, I said no to these 2 daycares. The 3rd interview was with a private school. I really enjoyed my interview with the Headmaster and he seemed to really like me. He gave me 1.5 hour tour of the school. This lead did not pan out as I didn't hear back from him. Hmmm...

The good news... interview #4 was for a Lead Teacher of 3's at a church. And I TOOK IT! I am so excited to even have a job offer. Out of all my friends I just graduated with last weekend with our MASTERS in Teaching, only 1 other person has a potential job. So I feel crazy not to take this opportunity. Although it is not my dream job, I am still very excited about this upcoming year. Three is one of my favorite ages. The kids are very sweet and lovey, and they soak up everything you say like a sponge! Something cool about this whole job situation is that I actually attended this church when I was a tiny tot for Mother's Morning Out, Preschool, and Kindergarten. So it is very cool to come full circle and now be teaching at that very school!

The bad news... I have to leave my family in Dunwoody that I have been nannying for 3 years. I love the little girl Lydie more than anything. She is a mini-adult and we have had such fun gallivanting around town - GA Aquarium, the park, Atlanta Zoo, the pool, ballet class, grocery store, and of course the mall :) Lydie sings about everything she does and I swear we have a mini-musical everyday about the most random things. Today we sang a song for 30 minutes about watching Hudson sleep on the baby monitor and how he looked like a "squirmy wormy" haha. She will be 4 this Fall. Hudson is the new baby in the family and he is a muffin man for sure. He is 4 months old and so adorable. I can't wait to see what his personality ends up being. Needless to say, I am SO sad to leave this amazing and wonderful family. The entire family (parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles) are all fabulous. I will "end" in August.

The good news... Lydie & Hudson live about 30 minutes away and I plan on hanging out still quite often!!

Upcoming Trips

We are SO excited about our upcoming trips! In a few weeks, we are going to Hilton Head Island with my (Ellen's) family for a week. My family goes here every year and we have our usual favorite spots - Red Fish, Salty Dog, and of course the beach! Although, I must be honest. I don't get in the ocean. Sad I know. But I am VERY afraid of what is out there. I was stung by a jellyfish when I was a child and since then I have seen every scary ocean movie out there so I am officially terrified of sharks. So needless to say, I keep my distance. I will put my feet in, but that's about it. Hopefully that'll change once we have kids. I would hate to pass down my "issues" like that to our children. YIKES!

Anyway, back to the trip. We are very excited about HHI this year, but also nervous at the same time. This will be the first time we are leaving Penny and we are very sad about it. In fact, I'm not sure who will be more sad - Penny or us. We have hired a girl from the vet to come and stay with her at our house for the week. She is a very sweet girl and obviously loves dogs, but it is SO hard to leave your baby for the first time. And for a week nonetheless.

Naturally, I have typed up a 2 page list of "things to know about Penny" for her. Naturally.

Now onto our next trip for 2010. Toward the end of June, one of our best friends, Miss Chelsea C., will be getting hitched in St. Simons. SUCH a fun destination wedding! She will no doubt make a beautiful bride. All of my best college friends (The Fab 5) will be there. Some with husbands. Some with babies. Crazy times.

Next trip is another wedding. Obviously it is wedding season. My cousin, Miss Anna N., is the next to get hitched. She is marrying the most wonderful guy (besides Brian of course) and we couldn't be happier for her. Their wedding is in July in Augusta, Georgia. Oh and I am bridesmaid in both weddings YIKES!

And our final trip for 2010 (thank goodness b/c I am getting tired just thinking about the packing and unpacking!) will be to St. Thomas with my family!!! We are taking the week of Thanksgiving and going to this gorgeous island. My parents have rented a villa for the 5 of us (mom, dad, sister, B, and me). I am SO excited to go somewhere exotic and far away!!!

patio view from villa :)

So obviously, I will be doing a LOT of packing and unpacking over the next few months. I LOVE to travel, but I am not a fan of packing and unpacking. I dread it with each trip. I feel prepared for our upcoming trips, there are just 2 things that I think I'll need to purchase between now and then...

We have a fabulous digital camera, but it's just not "cutting it" anymore. It's great if the subject is sitting completely still and is willing to hold the pose for 3-5 seconds. We are in need of a nice Digital SLR, especially now that we have Penny and you gotta know the girl will not hold a pose for 3-5 seconds. And then for when we have children, it will definitely come in handy. Brian really wants a DSLR for St. Thomas.

I, like every girl, have 42301 bathing suits. But alas, it is never enough. I am on the hunt for a cute new bathing suit for my 2010 summer wardrobe. This year I am wanting a ruffle bandeau. So I'm keeping my eyes out for one!