Southern Blondie: July 2011

Thankful Thursday: My Cousins

Leave a Comment
I'm about to drive myself crazy lately with life. It's not really life. It's me. I'm over thinking, over analyzing and over worrying. 

I need to do this for work. And that. And this. Oh, and I can't forget that. 

I'm really driving myself crazy with grad school. 

There is a lot more - but basically, I'm on my nerves. 

Luckily, I have good people in my family that keep me grounded and make me feel better. 

As an only child (shocking, right?) there may not be brothers or sisters...but being part of a large family, I have LOTS of cousins who might as well be sisters. 

Shannon
In 2011, Shannon found me a place to live. Helped me move in. Helped me not go crazy. Fed me. Supported me. Listen to me when I cried. Sat outside and drank wine with me. And become one of the best peeps in my life.I owe my sanity that I've kept these past two years to Shannon. No matter what has happened, she's always been there supporting decisions I've made. And when I made the unwise ones, she was still there. Shannon has been the big sister that I've never had and for that I'll always be thankful. She's done so much for me whether it was taking out my dog while I was on a date or bringing over Tylenol when I had a headache. My life really is better with her in it.

Sarah
Sarah and Shannon are sisters. I like to call myself the bonus sister. Whether they like it or not. Since 2007 Sarah has had my back. We've been through breakups, makeups and everything in between. We talk about jobs, politics, shopping, makeup, ending world hunger (heated topic) and so much more. Sarah pushes me to be better and smarter all the time. If there is ever anything I think I can't handle or don't know what to do, she always has a logical response. If you know me, you know logic sometimes goes out the door. I will always appreciate her for always having my back and will always have hers. I don't know what I would do without her support or friendship and luckily, I'll never have to find out.

Brittney
For as long as I can remember I've looked up to Britney. I'll never forget being little and thinking she was the coolest. She had a car. She had a boyfriend. She had a job. I idolized how cool she was. When I went to college I would go to her house to eat because I was just learning to cook and there is only so much cereal one can eat. Ever since then she's been like a sister to me. She's taken care of me and taught me that life happens but it always turns out the way it was supposed to be. You just have to have patience. I owe Britney a lot. Though I don't get to see or talk to her as much as I use to, I am sincerely thankful for everything she's ever done for me. I'm not sure if I will ever be able to re-pay her, but no matter what, I'll always be there when she calls.


So I may not technically have sisters...but if you asked me, I would say I have three. Three of the best people you could ever expect in your life. I'm so thankful for those three in my life and couldn't imagine where I'd be in life without them. 

SHARE:
0 comments

Wordless Wednesday: Card From Co-Worker

Leave a Comment
(She thought I'd appreciate this)
SHARE:
0 comments

May I Have A Redo?

3 comments
You know those mornings when you wake up and you just have that feeling that you should probably stay in bed, order in Chinese for lunch and just watch movies on HBO all day? I should have listened to myself today.

After tossing and turning all night due to a tired mind that wouldn't rest with all the things to do in the next couple of weeks, I woke up even more tired.

However, I had prepared my breakfast, lunch and clothes last night for today. So after getting ready, throwing everything in to my car to get to work early since I can get more done before anyone gets into the office, I took off. I started driving, and then boom. I heard this terrible noise and knew what that meant. Flat.

Dang it.

I pulled over into a parking lot and saw the beginning of a fun morning.

I know this doesn't look flat, but I promise it was. I should have taken it from a better angle, but I was a little busy thinking about how to get this fixed.

My first phone call? My dad.


My Dad: "Hey girl, what's up?"
Me:         "Um, Hi dad. I'm not going to be your favorite person today..."
My Dad:  "What did you do?"
Me:         (Why does he always think I did something?) "Well I got a flat."
My Dad: "Where are you?"
Me:         "In a parking lot.''
My Dad: "What are you going to do?"
Me:         ''Sit here. I guess I should call OnStar."
My Dad. "Sounds like it. Call me after you talk to them."

I called OnStar. They set me up quick and dandy and called someone to come fix my tire.

Now, in my car I had a bag of M&M's, Milk, Watermelon, cereal, goldfish, apple and a banana.

I get hungry. Don't judge.

So, after my little wait of 30 min or so, the guy comes and fixes my flat in like 60 seconds. Looking back, I should have timed him. He also had to jump my car because that honey dies anytime something goes wrong. I believe my car has a flair for the dramatics.

Donut is on and I'm ready to go. I call my dad to let him know and ask what I need to do. There isn't a life manual for what to do sometimes when this kind of stuff happens. He tells me to go to SAM's to see if they can fix the tire or if I need to get a new one.

I head to SAMs and by the time I get there, I have a flat on the donut. Not even kidding. Two flats in one day. Winner, winner chicken dinner here. 

Poor baby. Second man down for the day. No one ever tells you that you have to buy new tires when you become an adult. Someone should mention that to you when you're growing up.


Now, it's going to take a long time for them to replace my tire. So what does one do when they are at SAMs with nothing to do for two hours? Try out couches and chairs. I sat. I moved. I sat again. I called my credit card company because they charged me a late fee when I paid two days before it was due. I texted. I went through my purse. I moved again. Sat some more. Walked around. Asked myself if I needed to buy yoga pants. Talked myself out of it since I just bought a new tire. Oh, and I carried around my watermelon. No reason to waste that. The milk wasn't going to make it, the banana had been eaten while waiting for OnStar. Two out of three isn't bad.

Saved!

As I'm texting one of my very good friends, she offers to come pick me up so we can go eat lunch. Yes!

By the time I got back from lunch, the tire had been replaced.

The poor tire. 

I did a good job on it. Somehow I've cut a L shaped hole on the inside of my tire.

I call that talent. 

From today I've learned that:

1. Patience is a good thing to have. 
2. This kind of stuff can't get me down. I laughed through it all. 
3. I should learn how to fix a flat. 
4. I really like lunch. 
5. It was worth it to save the watermelon. 
6. It can always be worse...a tire is nothing.

Happy Tuesday!
SHARE:
3 comments

Not In The Mood For This Today

Leave a Comment
My mom gave me a watermelon this weekend to bring back with me. Last night, I cut it in half, put one half back in the fridge and then took the next 20 min cutting the other half into squares and picking out the seeds. I'm pretty picky when it comes to how I like eating my watermelon. 

 After eating four bowls of watermelon last night before bed I made myself stop so I wouldn't be up all night. The first thing I thought of this morning when I woke up was, I can't wait for more watermelon. 

I'm not sure where I am getting this obsession with watermelon right now. In my haste this morning trying to find pants and shoes and take my dog out, I grabbed some tupperware, tossed in some of the cut watermelon and headed out the door. 

Once I got to work I thought about watermelon again before I went to put it in the fridge at work...that's when I saw it. That's when I saw which lid I had picked out for my tupperware. 

Yes I had picked out the Tupperware which said 'love you.'  Why does my Tupperware love me so? Well this so happens to be the lid that I use to give to my ex of 7-8 years (homeboy needs a nickname) when he would take food that I cooked to work. 

I just hope no one sees this and ask why I'm telling myself why I love myself today.

Happy Monday...
SHARE:
0 comments

Small Town Weekend

Leave a Comment
This weekend I took Friday off (my metal health day) and went to my hometown. There is something simple about my hometown. Traffic is considered 10 cars. We have about five red lights (not kidding) and it takes about 5 min to get from one end to town to the other, if you at least hit one red light. 

Friday I went to eat lunch with my mom. Took a nap. Helped cook supper. Watched a movie. Went to bed. 
I have no complaints about that. I tried to sit outside for a while but since there are mosquitoas, it was impossible.

Since I'm now getting old, I can't sleep in to noon like I use to. However, when I go home, I make myself sleep. I feel like it's my duty to myself. Saturday morning I slept until 8:30 a.m. and got up for breakfast. My mom decided that we needed to go to the farmers market. This farmers market is nothing like the one I go to in Little Rock. There are like four or five stands and the pickens are slim. I wish I had taken a picture but I was too caught up in the fact that there were only four stands. Or five. I'm not sure if the soap lady counts.We did however get a bushel of peas. My dog found this interesting to say the least...


 My mom and I each took half a bushel and started shelling...

 A big pea vs. a lil pea.

After two hours I had my two bushels of peas shelled.

After all the pea shelling it made sense to go out to eat. We went for Chinese. Out of all the Chinese places I've ever eaten in my life, this one has always been my favorite.  It sounds good right now.

 After going to eat Chinese, we drove around and we drove by my old high school. Funny how things don't change. Funny how they do.
Then we drove by the high school football field. This is where I spent many a nights as a kid. For some reason it makes me want to put on a Greyhound shirt.

Saturday night I watched the Cardinals game with my dad. Then somehow got started watching My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding. It's not a show I suggest anyone watching. It's disturbing to say the least. 

Today I slept in until 11ish. Ate lunch. Ran two miles. Showered. Ate soup. Played around. Packed up. Headed back to the city. 

I should have taken Monday off too...
SHARE:
0 comments

Thankful Thursday: Old Friends

Leave a Comment
Growing up in a small town there are a lot of things that I didn't appreciate until later on in life. One of those being the friendships I've had since I was a kid. I guess I've known these friends for so long, that I never imagined not having them.

Of course life isn't a Taylor Swift song and people grow apart. Move away. Change. Have different liftstyles and sometimes that doesn't fit in with who you've grown to be as a person. It becomes harder to keep up with everyone's life when you're living your own.

But then you see a friend you haven't seen in a year and nothing has changed. It's like you saw them yesterday. You can hang out once a year, or once a week, and you're still friends. You can go months without talking, but then carry on a conversation like there hasn't even been a pause. 

Today, those are the friendships that I'm thankful for.

I've known some of these friends for 20 years. That's a long time and it freaks me out to say out loud, but that's how long I've known some of these people. I can look back and think of summer day camps, birthday parties, dance recitals, and so much more. 

Though life will continue to change, it's good to know at the end of the day, you'll always have those old friends that will remember growing up and all the good things that came with living in a small town. 

 Senior Year Spirit Week with the 80's Day
 Moving into our college dorm...friends since 5.
 High school homecoming week.
 Part of the Group
 High School Prom.

High School Dance Team
SHARE:
0 comments

Busier Than Ever

Leave a Comment


Every time I have a free moment lately I say to myself, "It's okay you're not doing anything, enjoy just having a free moment...it won't last long." And you know what? I'm right. It doesn't last, before you know it life starts again and I'm spinning around asking where the day went. 

The best part about being busy? I love to be busy. The busier I am, the better in my book. The more I have to do, go and see, the happier I am. I don't do well doing nothing, I do well being busy. 

It also seems to be that when I am busy, I want to add more things to do. I can't help this. Even though I can't commit to anything, I love to fly by the seat of my pants and believe life is about being spontaneous but I have a thing for routines. Makes perfect sense right? 

Since Saturday night I have...gone on a double date...watched the women's world soccer cup with friends...started running for Little Rock's half marathon NEXT March...worked on getting information about my classes for grad school in a mont...worked like the crazy the past two days...eaten supper with my mother...and sat down to think, what can I do next? 

So...the running for the half marathon next March...yes I am starting early, but I'm not a runner per-say. I can jog, but I want to be consistent. I've learned that I need a goal, I need something to keep me going and pushing me out of my comfort zone. Why run? With all of the stresses of life, running is starting to clear my head and makes me feel better and sleep better. I've done this before, but I really want to keep it up. I've just got to figure out how I'm going to balance working a full-time job, going to grad school part-time and keep up the running. 
Can I do this? Yes. Will I finish this? That's the question. I hope so. I'm going to need running tips though...
SHARE:
0 comments

Thankful...Atlanta Friends

Leave a Comment
It's Saturday night and before I go out for the evening I just wanted to say how thankful I am for my sweet, Atlanta Friends. I couldn't imagine not knowing them and I couldn't imagine what my life would have been like without them. 

With all that goes on in this crazy world I think it's important to show and say what you're thankful for in life. My mom taught me this lesson growing up and I want to share it with everyone else. 
Dear Melissa, Courtney and Lauren,

You three have taught me lessons that you will never probably know. How that 25 can be hard, how life gets better, how to deal with difficult situations. How life can be as fun as you make it. 

Miss you. Love you. Can't wait to see you all again.

- M
SHARE:
0 comments

Hey, White Liar

Leave a Comment
Last year after moving from Atlanta back to Arkansas I seemed to be on a dating kick. I think it's like working out, the more you do it, the more you are comfortable and it becomes okay. Once you stop, the idea of jumping back on that wagon seems somewhat despairing. After dating and hanging out with all sorts of guys which I named, Army Guy, Chicken Pecker, Teacher Boy, Never Gonna Happen College Friend, Baseball Kid and so on (good year for me) I started dating a guy I now call Duck Boy.

Duck boy was a friend of a friend of a friend and he added me on Facebook. (That's embarrassing.) We had gone to the same college and had friends in common but I didn't know him. After finding out who he was through another friend, I accepted his friendship request and thought, eh, what's the harm.

We had been Facebook friends for a while and I didn't really give it a second thought. One day or another something was messaged back and forth between us and before I knew it we were texting. For about two weeks, we just texted back and forth. Nothing more. Nothing less. Just getting to know someone as well as you can over a text message. I don't really recommend it but it's how the dating world works nowadays.

If you know me, you know that I can recall specific weekends in a creepy Rainman kind of way. I can't help it, I could tell you this time last year I was going to St. Louis with my cousin on Saturday. We had a great time, bought scalper tickets and it's a memory I'll never forget.

Anyways...back to Duck Boy. So, last year during the Forth of July I spent the long weekend at the lake with my cousin and family. That was the weekend that Duck Boy called. He had been out on the water all day and it was late...I'm sure there was something to drink involved that made him call. That was the first time he had 'called.' Other than that it had been text messages, which to me are safe, easy and don't require much attention.

The phone call was awkward, confusing and ended pretty quickly. A couple of days later, Duck Boy texted again. It was a Tuesday and he was in my college town for work training thing. He lived two hours away from my college town so 'dating' him seemed pretty inconvenient, yet since commitment sounds scarier to me than jumping off a cliff with one bungee cord, it also seemed pretty easy. While he was busy with work training, I was busy baking that day. After quitting my job two weeks earlier, baking was a great way to preoccupy my time without having to 'think' about my life. It's easy to get lost reading recipes and measuring out sugar.

That day I had baked two different kinds of brownies. I didn't actually eat the food, I just baked it and passed it out around town. What else was there to do? Since he was in town that day I told him I would drop him off some baked goods. I needed to see this guy up close and personal before I wasted anymore time texting.

Once we had it planned out where I would drop off the baked goods, I made sure I had my makeup done 'natural' and looked 'skinny.' There is a lot of thought into all of this. After pulling up, he got into my car. We talked for a bit, he was cute enough, I'll keep texting him. He thanked me for the brownies and texted me all that night and next day. On Thursday I get a phone call from Duck Boy asking  what I was doing that weekend...uh...ohhh....umm...

If you ask me out with plenty of notice I"ll say no. If you call me and catch me off guard your chances are much higher. He asked if a friend of mine would like to come on a double date, sure, no problem. So that Friday night was my first date with him and it made it a lot better that it was a double. Whew.

We go out that Friday. I see him again that next Sunday. Then the next Saturday. Then the next weekend. I started to like him. Though there were rumors that he liked to 'play' girls and other unflattering rumors, I wasn't really concerned. A relationship wasn't anything I was looking for, I just wanted to date, play and have fun. Also, I was trying to figure out what to do with my life, a distraction was a nice thing to have the real world problems off my mind.

A couple of months go by and I see Duck Boy about once a week. Things started to change, it wasn't as fun, he was in a weird mood, or I was secretly stressed about certain life things and didn't see the need to share with someone who in my book was just a distraction until real life started again.

After three months of being without a job, I moved to the lovely city and started working again. I was only an hour away from Duck Boy now but things were weird. There wasn't the fun side anymore, it started to feel stressed and he was becoming extremely distant. The fact that I had moved closer (for a job, not in anyway for him) had freaked him out. He told me that. I'm not guessing. After a couple of weeks of just uneasiness and weird event that had happened between us I decided to tell him that I couldn't do it anymore. I was tired of the guessing game, even though I didn't want a full on committed relationship, I didn't like the way that I felt when I was around him either.

So. That was the end of that. Of course I was upset for a little time after it ended. This ended the same time my long term relationship had ended a year before. Even though I didn't cry over Duck Boy, I was sad. After a couple of months I heard from him here and there. A couple of months in between. This and that. I even saw him once or twice. No big deal, I knew that it would never become anything. It didn't need to. He was never going to 'get' me and I was never going to 'get' him.

All of that to say this...

During Forth of July this year, I was hanging out with a fun, sweet girl from my college town whom also went to the same college as Duck Boy and I. We were sitting just talking and having a good time when a friend named Luke mentioned the word, 'relationships.' I stated that closest thing I had in the past two years was Duck Boy and you couldn't even count that. This is when her ears perked up and she asked me to repeat the name and timeline of when I hung out with Duck Boy. I told her again. Her face turned white and she said, "Maegan, I'm so sorry." I laughed because I knew this was going to make for a great story to tell and blog about.

"I dated Duck Boy last September," she said. "Oh yeah?," I replied while thinking, this all makes perfect sense! We discussed how he had taken her out, then kept hanging out with me and vis versa. She said she ended it because everyone told her what kind of guy he was. I told her I ended it because I knew there had been someone else.

Amazing how small world it is sometimes.

Though that weekend I was kind of upset for the fact that I knew I deserved more respect than what he showed, I realized that sometimes people are in your life for one reason. His reason in my life was to provide a distraction from all the stress of quitting my job and having to figure what was the next chapter in my life. 

The rumors about him might be true, he might play this game with all the girls he dates, I don't really care anymore. Without him last summer I probably would have driven myself crazy with all the ideas that run through my head. Dating him provided some consistency that my life always needs. As long as one thing is consistent everything else can be chaos.

Whether Duck Boy knows that I found out his little secret or not doesn't really matter in my life. If he thinks he 'got one over me' then good for him. He did something that was good, but he's still a good person I believe.

Even though I'm not upset about what he did I would still like to play the song "White Liar" to him. Why? Because if you're dating others behind my back, I'm probably doing the same. Those weekends that I was at 'home' or 'at a friends' house...I was out. With someone else. Having fun.


Though my 2011 dating life has been slow compared to 2010 I can't help but repeat in my head...Don't hate the player...Hate the game.
SHARE:
0 comments

Southern Banana Pudding

Leave a Comment
I have some good friends at work. They are so much fun, very smart, well versed in life and a joy to be around.

Two of my favorite people are pregnant. They are having babies. Babies are little people who need 24-hour assistance.

Scurry.

So the other day I mentioned making banana pudding. Word to the wise, never mention cooking good food around pregnant women. I didn't make it a couple of weeks ago so last night I knew I had to make it. I needed something to do and I owed them.

So. I went and bought all of the things. I made this twice last year and both times it turned out terrible. When you don't succeed, try and try again. Last night i used a different recipe.

And it was MUCH better...

Ready...Set...Cut your bananas!

 Getcha fixins.


You can use a hand mixer but I burnt mine out...
Cream cheese? Check.

Sweetened condensed milk? 
Check!

Action shot! Mixing!

Add both instant mixes.

And 6 cups of milk. Relax. I freaked out, too. 

So, this is the bowl I used. My 9x13 glass pan was dirty and that seemed like a lot of work to clean.
So I grabbed this. I recommend something other than this.

Bananas and...

BOOM SHAKA LAKA. 
They are cut. Magic!

 Start the layers then compeltely forget to take the rest of the pictures. 

You get the idea.

Puddin. 
Wafers.
Bananas.
Puddin.
So forth. 

 Carefully take it to work with you and get a picture before it's all gone...

Take a picture to prove that people actually ate your food. 
Isn't Leigh cute? 


Want the recipe? Okay. Here you go:

  • 8 ounces, weight Cream Cheese
  • 1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk (14 Oz)
  • 5 cups Low Fat Milk
  • 1 package Instant Vanilla Pudding (1.5 Oz)
  • 1 package Instant Banana Cream Pudding (1.5 Oz)
  • 4 whole Bananas, Chopped
  • 1 box Vanilla Wafers (12 Ounce Box) (You may want an extra box. I did.)
1) With an electric mixer, whisk together softened cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk until smooth. 

2) Add milk and pudding mixes, and whisk until combined. Set mix in the fridge until it sets. About an hour.

3) Line the bottom of a 9×13 pan with vanilla wafers and one of the bananas.

4) Pour half of the pudding mixture over the cookie and banana layer.

5) Smooth the pudding, and then make another layer of vanilla wafers and bananas.

6) Pour the remaining pudding on top and refrigerate for 1-2 hour(s).
SHARE:
0 comments

Life is Bananas

Leave a Comment
“When you're young, your whole life is about the pursuit of fun. Then, you grow up and learn to be cautious. You could break a bone or a heart. You look before you leap and sometimes you don't leap at all because there's not always someone there to catch you. And in life, there's no safety net. When did it stop being fun and start being scary?” 
Sex and the City 

Can't stand the heat...stay out of the South.

So. It's been a while. I'm sorry loyal readers. (I know two of you who get a kick out of this. The other seven are just compassionate and follow me out of pity. I'll accept that, too.) 

SO...what's up? Here is a re-cap of life lately: 

I got into grad school. Yeah. All that fun studying during lunch breaks, at night and a couple of weekends I guess paid off. Or the school just felt bad for me because I emailed them weekly until I heard a reply. Either way, I got in. I start August 18 working on my Masters of Public Administration. In 2 1/2 years you will be able to call me Master Maegan. No? Fine. 

 The same Friday I found out that I had gotten into grad school was the weekend I was going to the lake for Forth of July. I spent the entire weekend with some of the most fun people ever. We had a good time. Lots of laughs. Lots of fun. Lots of memories I'll never forget. (Some memories I will try to forget though...)



This is Brandi, she's a super fun, sweet girl and we found out we had something in common. That will be a story for later on this week...it involves dating...the same guy...at the same time. 
After leaving the lake Monday, I went to my parents house to see what was shaking. As I drove up into the neighborhood, I see an army of flags...


Very patriotic my parents' neighborhood. Gotta love small towns enthusiasm for holidays. 

Now that holidays are over and it's back to real world, I seem to have a daily afternoon snack that I am totally obsessed with eating. M&M's, Cheez-it's and gummy bears. This reminds me that even though I argue I am an adult, my eating habits are of a 6-year-old. 


But who can say no to gummy bears???


Last weekend my cousin Sarah and I got up bright eye early and hit the farmers market. I bought tomatoes, cucumbers, peaches, corn, bell peppers and bread. It's enough to send me over the edge in vegetable heaven. 

Tonight I cooked bell peppers, corn and green beans. It was delightful. DELIGHTFUL. What is even more delightful are the peaches that I bought. Thinking about them now makes me happy. 


Also tonight, I tried making banana pudding. I'm still waiting on the pudding to set. I hope this turns out. We shall see...

So that's the re-cap from the past two weeks. Lake. Friends. Laughter. Cooking. School. Farmers Market. Work. Life. 

Off to check my pudding now...
SHARE:
0 comments
Next PostNewer Posts Previous PostOlder Posts Home
BLOG TEMPLATE CREATED BY pipdig