party in the city where the heat is on

Well, party in Lawerence, Kansas. When we arrived at the airport in Kansas City, there was a big sign that said , "Bienvenido a Missouri" which I sang all week to Will Smith's Miami song. I entertained myself.

But, alas, I am ahead of myself. I am back! And we had an amazing trip. (That is Krissie-speak for "be prepared for a long post.")

We left Thursday after work (last day!) and drove to Louisville. We went to the Summit for Nathan to buy some new shoes. While there, we ate at Mitchell's Fish Market where I had the amazing Tropical Tilapia. and walked around the shopping center listening to a Beatles cover band. It was such a neat atmosphere to only be an hour away from our home.

Friday 6.15:

Then we boarded a plane at the butt-crack-of dawn...actually, it was several hours earlier (we left the hotel at 4am, to be exact). We flew to Chicago and I was really impressed with the airport. We split a Cinnabon, a banana, and a bottled Starbucks drink. We then flew to Kansas City, met up with the rest of my family, and had an interesting discussion with a foreign man who didn't know how to pump gas. We went into downtown Lawrence and ate at the Mad Greek. We (Mom, Dad, brother Nick, his wife Leah, brother Zak, hubby Nate and myself) then drove our oh-so-trendy rented minivan into Topeka where the boys toured my brother's crime lab and us girls shopped without the ability to purchase much due to traveling by air. The evening found us back in Lawrence for dinner, I HEART Ole Tapas. Without question, my favorite meal of the trip. Spanish appetizers that you just pass around the table. Great food, great atmosphere, and they bring the food out as it is ready. The way it's spread out, you feel full without eating a lot because you eat a little at a time. Big thumbs up. We finished off the evening with a walk around Lawrence. We really liked the Signs of Life bookstore/coffeehouse. It was a great mix of typical bookstore with a large Christian section and rooms for Bible study. We ended up at Ben and Jerry's, where I had the Cinnamon Bun ice cream. Yumm. (Nate had a coffee drink from Signs of Life.)

Saturday 6.16:

We started off the day with bagels and coffee at Panera. We once again hopped in the van and headed to check out the Flinthills of eastern Kansas. I really thought it would be flatter, but the terrain was much like our central Kentucky hills, just with fewer trees and more wind. We ended up close to Fort Riley and my brother the firearms examiner spotted some big guns at the top of the hill across from the base. So we took a hike. Flip flops and all. Some of our best pictures came from our hike:

i.e. Mom and Dad by one of the big guns.

the very scary lizard that hissed and jumped a lot. I would have been okay in tennis shoes, but I was afraid he'd bite my toe. While my brother, Nick, scared and taunted his wife with the lizard, Nate and Dad generously shooed the lizard away.

brother Nick and his wife Leah by the biggest gun

brother Zak taking in the view. I think this one really shows how high we were.

Then we stopped in Manhattan, Kansas for lunch. Nathan and I ate at the Bluestem Bistro where I had the turkey and cranberry chutney sandwich. We looked around bookstores and headed back to Lawrence.

We dropped Nick and Leah off at their hotel to swim and went to the grocery store. We love Hy-Vee. Then we picked them up again. We finished up the evening with Zak's choice of a new dish to try, Spaghetti alla Carbonara. I cooked at his apartment. Some of my family were kinda skeptical, but as always, Krissie came through. We played several rounds of Apples to Apples, and we had a really good time.

Sunday 6.17:
We started off the day on Mass Street. Nathan, Zak, and I got coffee at this great place that I have forgotten the name of. (edit: It was La Prima Taza. Thanks Zak!!) This time I was able to take some pictures of our favorite stores since it wasn't dark! As mentioned above, the cool bookstore:

Shark's Surf Shop. Who'da thunk a surf shop in Kansas?

One of our necessities is an outdoor store, and we found one at Sunflower Outdoor and Bike. This one has a cat named Stanley. And I have a sticker to put on the car now as well!

The rest of the fam opted for subs, but Nate and I decided to brave a new restaurant called ingredient, which unfortunately is too new for a website. I think it opened the day before we were there.It was awesome. Nate and I shared the Applewood Pizza you see below. Smoked chicken-apple sausage, rustic tomato sauce, and gouda cheese. Very yummy.

We then made our way back into Kansas City. We spent a while in Cabela's, where I decided I need to be more of a vegetarian. Too many hunters and animals that were stuffed. Then we hung out at Legends for a while, this huge outdoor mall close to the speedway. Again, we bought nothing, but walking around the area was really cool.

We had dinner at the Yard House, which was nothing short of amazing food. I had tuna and Nate had lamb chops. So much for the vegetarian thing. But the food was great.

Then we took Nick and Leah to the airport and went back to Zak's. On the way, we decided we wanted ice cream. Zak found a little spot on Mass Street (again, I don't remember the name) that stayed open to serve us. (Edit: Zak to the rescue again! The ice cream was from Sylas and Maddy's.) So they got a big tip. And they gave Dad his cone for free since it was Father's Day. We went back to Zak's and stayed up late discussing what's going to happen in the last Harry Potter book. I'm excited!

Monday 8.18:

Ugh. Airport day. We started the day in Kansas City, where we had Starbucks and read for a while. I finished Icy Sparks and got started on Affluenza. We ended up eating lunch in the airport as well (Sbarro is good!). We read some more, got on a plane, and ended up in Atlanta. I am 90% sure we were on the Hank Aaron plane, which is pretty cool. Then we sat in Atlanta for a while, had Chick-Fil-A, and ended up in Louisville around midnight. We drove the hour home, and were very relieved to finally be in our own bed again.

Tuesday 8.19? Not a darn thing.

Yes.

I hope you all had a great weekend! I have so much more to say, but this has been an incredibly long post. Wish me luck at my new job tomorrow!

it takes two to make it out of sight

Last day of work! Last day of work! Woot woot!

I cannot thank my lovely blog buddies enough for all their help yesterday. You solved all my problems!

Mindy - thanks. I am taking an entire box of baggies. And I've found that they really help my organization as well. I can actually see what's in my make-up bag. I wouldn't have thought of the baggies.

Maryann - The website was a life saver. I actually now have a baggie that looks a lot like the picture.

Amy - I hate to hear that you are leaving Bellarmine, but we knew it was coming. Big congrats! And I think we are planning on coming to your celebration (not in Florida). So many changes for you! And, I too, now have short-term health insurance!

Marie - I know how you feel about airports. However, we are flying out of Louisville, and I am very comfortable there. When I was in college there, I spent a lot of time picking up and dropping off friends, and trying to spot famous people during derby week.

You all are awesome!

The potluck yesterday was awesome. My dear friend Courtney made my chicken salad (and well!) and there was tons of fruit and veggies and dips and one plate of cookies. It rocked. The food was great, the company was great, and I got great gifts. Gift certificates to the Fudgery and the store where I buy Vera Bradley bags. I've actually picked out the one I'm buying, and the one I am donating in return.

I am so excited about Kansas. Nate and I are driving to Louisville tonight, doing a little shopping, and staying in a hotel. Then we'll be at the airport at 4:30 am to be ready for our 6am flight. I figure this way I'll be sleepy and will sleep on the plane. Even with our layover, we'll land in Kansas City before lunch. Very exciting! Carr family, here we come!! (that felt like something from Extreme Home Make Over!)

Yeah, Kansas. So we'll be gone until really stinking late Monday night. I may be able to post while I am out there, but I don't expect to. If you don't see me for several days, please don't forget about me! I look forward to catching up with everyone when I get back!

Have a great weekend!

never trust a big butt and a smile

Yippee! I am getting ready for my second-to-last day of my current job! I don't know if I could be more excited. They (being people that work in our main office, not my own) are having a "healthy potluck end-of-the-day experience" for me this afternoon, and I am very excited about the loads of fruit and (gasp!) healthy chicken salad (!) I have been promised.

With all the job excitement and lack of healthiness overtaking this blog of late, I have barely mentioned the reason for most of my excitement. On Friday, we jump on a plane and head to Kansas! I am so excited to spend time with my family. It really is our vacation for the summer. People say, "Why Kansas?" And I explain that my littlest brother is there in Lawrence and has the coolest job in the world and lives in the coolest city in the world and I explain the sidewalks, I mean "fitness trails," and Mass Street and the stinky Korean store...just so much excitement!

I'm a little nervous about the plane, though. I haven't flown since 9/11. Not because of fear, but I just haven't. I have a whole slew of fears regarding getting my stuff on the plane, all of which are very silly.

• What if I pack something I'm not supposed to pack? What if I foret to take the fingernail clippers out of my purse? Or someone deems my Clinique foundation suspicious and takes it from me? I'll look scary in all my pictures!
• What if they say my carry-on is too big? I keep looking but can't find anything that tells the dimensions of an acceptable carry-on! What if they won't let me take the bag on the plane and I'm left without my favorite clothes and make-up? (again, I'll look terrible in all the Kansas pics!)
• I had a nightmare that one of my flip flops was confiscated. One that I was wearing at the time. I had to get on the plane wearing one shoe. Now I'm considering not taking flip flops at all.

Ugh! I know it will be fine, and maybe I'm focusing on the stuff aspect to distract myself from the fact that I may be a little afraid to fly. That's fine. Consider me distracted.

I am also really torn about health insurance. My new job has a 90 day wait before I an eligible for insurance. I KNOW I need it, but I also know that in the last 3 years, I have gone to the doctor twice. Twice. What are the chances that I'll contract something in the next 3 months that can't wait? I know, this would be the time where we would get pregnant, even though it hasn't happened for 2 years. Do I spend a ton of money on the transition coverage (COBRA)? Do I not leave the house and pray for no injury or illness? Ugh. I just don't know. But I've got to figure it out. My last day of work is tomorrow. TOMORROW! Yay!

I must get ready for work today now. Have a great day in blogland!

using colors bold and bright

Remaining days at current job: 2!

Wooo what a day! I've been nominated by two bloggers for the Thinking Blogger Award. I am so excited and thankful.

I was nominated by Sarah. She is super cool and we have very similar tastes in music. It seems like she always makes time for her workouts despite how stressful her life may be. She motivates me to try the best I can no matter how crazy my life gets. I also think her blog title is one of the wittiest thing I've ever read (Phat Girl in a Little Coat), being that Tommy Boy is my favorite movie of all time. Thank you so much, Sarah!

I was also nominated by Marie. Marie's is one of my favorite blogs, as I get so much inspiration reading about people who are successful in their weight loss journeys. She motivates me to run. One day, Marie, I will be a runner. I also find her recent scale woes entertaining. She commented on the song lyrics from my blog titles, and I really didn't think anyone cared or payed attention to any of that. I am so excited that you nominated me, Marie!

So, as I understand it, my new charge is to choose 5 blogs have an influence on my thinking. These are the rules I have been provided (and that apply to you if you get tagged!):

1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think.

2. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme.

My five were really hard to pick. I read a lot of blogs, and some of my favorites have already been tagged. It was SO HARD to narrow down to the five most intriguing, but here goes.

1. Aimee at Aimee's Adventures
2. AMuldoon at New Year, New Me
3. A FatBridesmaid
4. The Token Fat Girl
5. Jeannie at Points and Pounds

Thank you ladies so much for your inspiration and making me think! I look forward to reading your blogs every day!

By the way, Contest Winners, your packages will go out in the mail tomorrow! Be on the look-out!

listen to the music on the lake

Days remaining of current job: 3

Today has been a huge, embarrassing failure because:

• I had 2 starbucks drinks today.
• I bought a new Vera Bradley bag. After all my purging of bags. I really did need one to have as a carry-on for Friday. That means I have to put one of the ones I decided to keep in the Goodwill pile. That will be done. Amen.
• I have eaten 3 mini Reese cups today.
• Nathan spent all evening working in the yard. I did very little. I mostly watched tv and played stupid games on the internet.
• The crap I cleaned out of my desk and shelves at work will almost fill up my trunk. I can't bear to leave it behind because I paid for the stuff (art therapy supplies, play therapy supplies, books, toys, games, etc). Although I won't use it in my new job, I'm not about to leave it there. It's a stubbornness and pride thing for me I guess. I don't know where I'm going to put it all in my house. I guess it's a good thing I'd cleaned out so much stuff.

Today has been a success because:

• I went through the drive-thru at Taco Bell today. I had a single soft taco supreme and an extra large ice water.
• I managed to have a meeting with the boss's boss and stayed objective and factual about why I am unhappy with my current job.
• I pulled weeds in the flowerbeds in the front of the house and around trees.
• I talked to my friend Vanessa in Idaho. I'm going to make hotel reservations so we can attend her wedding in July. It's not in Idaho, just Ohio.

Despite my annoyances with today, the next week will be awesome because:

I finish my job on Thursday!Thursday night finds me and Nate in a hotel in Louisville so that...

Friday we will board a plane and head to see the brother Zak in Kansas! We are meeting my parents, my other brother and his wife for a long weekend in the Sunflower State. It's been a while since we've all been together that hasn't been due to illness. I miss my brothers. We're all growing up, and away, now. I'm three hours from home, Nick's still home but he works and goes to school all the time, and Zak's 12 hours from home. There was a day when we used to look like this. Sigh. I have no idea how old this picture is. I mean, isn't the spiral perm every young girl's dream? But at least the boys don't have mullets. They must have outgrown them by then...

we climb on two by two

I can't believe how fast the weekend went by...grrrr.

We had a great day yesterday, as we cleaned out our pantry, which has actually been the closet of things we never unpacked from our move 2+ years ago. We took a car full of stuff to Goodwill and have almost as much to recycle or throw away. We started on our upstairs back closet, but it was full of stuff from our parents' homes, so the nostalgia slowed things down. I found a copy of the Suck List, a list that hung in my dorm hallway in college that documented 1001 reasons my best friend and I sucked. Some of it was hilarious. Much of it I didn't understand or remember, and some of it reminded me of how much I was stuck in a terrible relationship. I'm so glad Nathan rescued me from who I was. I was on the track to being a bitter and lonely person. I would have been much fatter if I was bitter and lonely, I'm sure.

Today we went to visit Kent in Lexington. For some reason, we drove around and looked in houses on the Tour of Luxury Homes. It is absolutely disgusting what houses are selling for a mere 40 miles from our current home.

Did I mention that I ate tons of crap today? A jerk chicken sandwich and chips for lunch at Cosi. Buffalo chicken sandwich, fries, and Pepsi for dinner at Ramsey's. Why do I drink Pepsi? I know it upsets my stomach. I know I'll pay for it all evening. But I do it anyway. Maybe I've learned my lesson this time.

So the contest is officially over! I have decided that the winners will each receive a copy of my "Kick off the Covers" cd and two random cds from my collection. Very exciting! For the winners: Email me your address (questionsfordessert at gmail dot com) and I'll get the prizes out to the winners by the end of the week! And the winners are:

1. Southern Fried Fatty
2. Aimee
3. Fat Bridesmaid
4. Marie
5. Token Fat Girl

It's time for a bath and bed for me. Four days of work, then Kansas for four days, one day off, and a new job! It's an exciting time to be me!

so please be kind if I'm a mess

It's a day full of cleaning, organizing, and purging of stuff for me! I'm actually excited, and I'll be even more so once I get my morning Starbucks drink! I'm sure there will be some before and after pics to show my progress!

Have a great Saturday! Today is your last chance to get in on the contest. Post here!