Adventures in Bridal Showering

I think I am sufficiently recovered from the work involved in throwing the shower yesterday to blog about my adventures (:

Adventure #1~
When I bought all my supplies, I oh so smartly bought a gi-normous role of white plastic tablecloth material. I did this thinking that it would be a super easy way to cover all the different sizes of tables there without having to know ahead of time what sizes I needed. Well, I unroll this proud purchase and it is an absolute mess. It is creased and dimpled and just disgusting. I was PISSED. What to do? Use it? Heck no! Leave the tables bare and destroy all my beautiful planning? Heck no! Mess up my entire planned out schedule for the day? Guess so.... This leads to adventure #2.

Adventure #2~
I go to get my new tableclothes and my sister and I fly out the door and I turn to lock it and the lock just keeps turning and turning. WTH! I am cussing in my mind at this point because my schedule is so crazy tight. And the door WON'T LOCK? Are you serious? We mess with this door for like 10 years and I finally turn to my sister in my panic and just spout out "you just have to stay here and I will be back as soon as possible!!" I fly out of there and head to the party store as fast as possible. Which leads to adventure #3....

Adventure #3~
I call the party store that has my balloon order and ask them oh so nicely if there was any chance the balloons could be done a little early since I was heading there anyway... this 9 year old that answers the phone tells me no way can the balloons be ready early and that HOPEFULLY they will be ready by 12 when I requested them. Now, you all that know me, know that I do not "do" confrontation. However, you do not mess with my showers.... so I informed him in no uncertain terms that the balloons most certainly WOULD be ready by 12 because that is when they told me I could have them!

Adventure #4~
So I am still fretting about the non- locking devil door while I am taking care of picking up cupcakes and new tableclothes (which btw- I had to beg the above mentioned 9 yr old to find me 7 more than they had on the shelf and then to actually check me out before I died of old age) so I call my good friend Lacey who happens to be acquainted with the room I was using. She rescues me from my dilemma by telling me that the door is easy to lock- all you have to do is stick the key in, hold the handle up, spin around 3 times, mutter "please lock" 50 times under your breath, and then blink your eyes twice and it will lock just fine. Wonderful.

Adventure #5~
My sister and I head BACK to the party store to get the balloons. All 100 of them. That's right 100 balloons. We stuff and shove and cry a little and all the balloons go into two cars. The lady that blew up my balloons asks me if they are for a wedding. I say no... for a shower. She says "a big one?" like maybe you have to meet some sort of balloon quota. I say no- just 15 people or so. Then she says (in this weird tone of voice) "well good luck..." . I have no idea what she meant. We race our cars back and try to see around the 50 balloons we both have in our cars so we don't hit anyone. That was fun.

Adventure #6~
Getting the balloons out of the cars in the hurricane winds we had that day was also fun. My sister is way skinnier than me and at one point I was a little worried she might actually get picked up and carried away! Then we had the fun of untangling all the strings and holy cow- a couple popped and scared me to death. (my nerves were a little shot). I also realized that I had somehow (obviously the fault of the stupid party store) gotten away without my balloon weights. GREAT. Just what I need. So I use up more of my precious time improvising by tying and taping balloons to a bunch of white candles I just happened to have brought and didnt need. And it turned out so cute! I actually told some people who complimented me on the idea that it was on purpose.

Adventure #7~
While getting all the food out I realize I have forgotten a few key items. First, no matches to light the candles.... (not the ones tied to the balloons! do you think I am that stupid? don't answer that). Lacey again rescues me with matches from her purse. Second, I go to open the cans of olives... no can opener. How could I forget a can opener!!!! Panic! Julie B rescues me with a call to a friend she has dropping by to look at the room in case he wants to rent it sometime. So this poor guy who has no idea who I am except as an empty-headed and forgetful friend of Julie's, has to go back to his house and get me a can opener!

Adventure #8~
This isn't really an adventure but I thought you might want to know that while we did get down to the very wire on time and that I did beg my friend Lacey to come help me finish, we did get it all done. And here are my public thank yous....

Mom- thanks so very much for watching Anna for two days straight so I had time to do all this. And thank you for all the help Friday and Saturday ESP with the cleaning up!

Robin- thank you so much for your excellent and oh so yummy chicken salad sandwiches. mmmmm... those were so good...

Julie B- thank you so much for all the help cleaning up! I owe you big time for that! And thanks also for letting me bounce all my ideas off you every day for 6 mos.

Lacey- thank you so much for help before the shower with last minute decorating, help with the devil door lock, and help with all the cleaning up! I owe you big time too!

Stacey- Never never never could have gotten it all done without your help. Seriously- I can never repay all the help you were yesterday but I will help you with every shower you throw from now on!

Shower Pictures

It was just brought to my attention that we in the Midwest will now have to add earthquakes to our list of natural, terror inducing phenomenon. This is not acceptable. I do not accept this. I am sure my sister, at least, will also refuse to accept this. So... just NO. Tornadoes are enough. The petition will be sent around immediately.

April Showers

Its shower time! Most of you know I have been super duper busy (I am saying the word super a lot- not sure why- it just feels right) getting everything ready for Julie W's bridal shower! My OCD (lets just be honest- after the last post you all know I have OCD) took over a few times and I might be banned from another place of business. Here are some of my shower adventures...

I gathered up all my clear plates, clear glasses, clear forks and white napkins and brought them all to the register... and then changed my mind and went back and got all the colored plates, colored napkins, colored glasses and colored forks. Back to register.... changed my mind again and decided I needed clear glasses after all. Back to register. No... wait... let's go with clear forks too. Back and forth, back and forth. At one point I put it all back and started to leave. Then I got mad at myself and gathered it all up again. I have no idea what I actually bought. No that's ridiculous- of course I know- do you actually think I would leave things like plates and napkins up to chance?

I have changed my balloon order exactly 4 times. This is not counting the 2 times I went and asked two different stores to temporarily blow up balloons so I can check the color. Or the time I actually bought 8 different balloons and took them home and blew them up so I could compare the colors for myself.

I made two practice cakes. Then today while I was making the actual cake for the shower, I made my mom and sister come over and provide moral support. Mom also did the hard work of flipping the cakes out of the pans. Just so you appreciate the level of cake difficulty- I made three cakes. The first cake goes down ...oh wait- I also had to have a square cake and couldnt find a square cake stand, so mom had to make me one. So the first cake goes down on the stand. You have to poke holes all in it and drizzle the yummy coconut goo agonizingly slowly over the entire cake over and over until it absorbs all the goo into every possible centimeter of the cake. Then you have to flip another cake on top of that one (thanks Mom- you rock) and do the whole thing over again. Then you have to make another cake (single layer this time) just in case more people want coconut cake then you have pieces for. Then you chill both cakes in the fridge until the morning when you "ice" them with cool whip and top with actual coconut. This cake is evil and delicious when made correctly. I could eat the whole cake. (Note to self- go delete reference to second cake.)

When I thought I was all done with shower preparations, I saw these cute little toothpicks at Walmart that I almost bought. Then I thought... wait I could make those! So I cut out 200 little flowers in all the colors with my handy dandy machine and then had to trim them all up. Then I glued a cute center in another color to all 200 flowers. Then I used something called diamond glaze to make them extra cute. Then I glued two flowers to each toothpick (back to back)! Super cute! And only one goo-gillion hours involved. For those of you that don't know- that's a one with a goo-gillion zeros behind it. HAHAHAHAHA- that's for you Adam! Of course once I got the toothpicks done I thought how cute they were and proceeded to make some flowers for the tables (no toothpicks this time) just to use as confetti.

I won't even begin to go into all the double checking to make sure I had everything that I needed and the packing of the car. Let's just say it involved many lists, much crossing out and rewriting.

I hope I can put everything together tomorrow so it looks as pretty in real life as it looks in my head! If so, I will post some pics. If not... you will hear nothing further about this shower and this post will probably be deleted immediately.

My 100th post

It has come to my attention from reading other people's blogs that you are supposed to blog 50 things about yourself on your 50th post and 100 on your 100th post. I missed the 50th but this is my 100th post! Who knew I had so much to go on and on about? (Shut up ADAM!) Hope this isn't too boring for those reading!


1. My name is Amberlyn Casie.
2. My dad always called me Amberlyn Casie Michelle.
3. That is where I got Anna’s middle name.
4. Anna is the best thing that has ever happened to me.
5. I am 30 years old.
6. My birthday is in August.
7. I always hated having a birthday in August.
8. It is only in the last few years that I have learned to appreciate the beauty of my birthstone.
9. I am not ready to turn 31 at all.
10. I feel like I hit 30 and started falling apart.
11. I grew up here and have never lived anywhere else...yet.
12. I will shortly be moving somewhere else.
13. I am trying to look at it as an adventure.
14. I have been married almost 10 years.
15. I deserve a reward for that.
16. A big one.
17. My husband and I are high school sweethearts.
18. I only dated one other guy before Adam. His name was Matt.
19. I am the oldest of 3 kids- my brother's name is Bradley and my sister's name is Stacey.
20. I love my brother and sister and think hanging out with them is the funnest thing ever.
21. My family is very important to me.
22. I had the best childhood I could have possibly asked for.
23. I was ridiculously shy until I started working with my best friends Julie B and Lacey. So if you don't like me this way you know who to blame.
24. I love old people. I really do. I actually almost majored in Gerontology in college. Wow was that a close one! I almost got a worthless degree! Oh wait....
25. I have 7 major regrets in life.
26. No, I don't want to name them for you. In fact at least one of them will never be confessed to EVER.
27. I think the details of a project are very important.
28.I am a big detail person- esp when giving a shower, throwing a party, creating a scrapbook page, etc. The small details make all the difference.
29. I LOVE giving showers. Esp. baby showers.
30. I do not like shower games at all.
31. I am getting ready for a big shower right now.
32. I have serious “mom brain”.
33. I was told it would get better as I started sleeping more and as Anna got older.
34. I am still waiting.
35. As an example of “mom brain”, I called my sister the other day to ask her if she wanted to meet me for lunch at the last minute and as I was leaving her a message to call me back, I remembered that I was on my way to meet Adam for lunch....
36. I am becoming very cynical.
37. I love exploring old buildings, houses, churches, castles, etc.
38. I also love a new construction site.
39. I feel like I have grown, both emotionally and spiritually, enormously in the last year.
40. Partly from the last few months of stress, but also partly from turning 30 and taking stock of what I want my life to be.
41. I am always glad for the growth after it has come but I still never want to go through the hard situations that lead to the growth.
42. Unfortunately I have a lot more growing to do.
43. My next blog will be about all the growing I still have to do. That is, if I ever finish this one.
44. Colors have an extreme effect on me- they can make me feel calm or angry or uneasy.
45. I mentioned in an earlier blog that I love chocolate brown, dark gray, and blue. I also like black, and most warm colors. Like warm fall colors.
46. I do not like bright, primary colors or yellow green.
47. I bought my own box of 96 crayons the other day. For me, not Anna.
48. I wanted the 120 box but my cheapness overcame my want for the extra crayons.
49. I am VERY cheap.
50. I have named my last two cars.
51. The explorer's name was Lucy.
52. This new car is Clarissa.
53. Julie B wants me to call it Brown Betty. But I can't because her name is already Clarissa.
54. I really really want to travel to: all of Western Europe, Hawaii again, Alaska, the Northeastern coast of the USA, the Northwestern Coast of the USA, Australia's Great Barrier Reef.
55. I have no desire to ever see China, Japan, Russia, South America, or Mexico. But I would go if anyone ever offered me a free trip.
56. My husband is the smartest man I have ever met.
57. I have only passed out once in my life. It was right after I had Anna and I was sitting on the toilet with my pants around my ankles and a nurse by my side. Yep... that was fun. Adam is still traumatized.
58. It occurs to me that each thought must seem very random and disjointed. I am trying to make them flow together but… it is hard.
59. And I am adding these things about myself over a couple of days because there is no way I could come up with 100 in one sitting.
60. I feel like I should be revealing secret brand new information about myself that no one knows yet but I am too much of a loud mouth and I don’t have any new information.
61. I love England's history. Especially any and all parts surrounding Henry VIII, his wives, and his daughters.
62. I love making lists. They make me feel calm and in charge and organized.
63. I make lists everyday and I have a certain way that I like them to appear.
64. For instance, I like the date written either 01-01-08 or Jan 1, 2008. I do not like the slashes.
65. I also do not like too many things marked out when they are completed. More than about 4 mark-outs and I have to make a new list.
66. And I can't stand any mistakes. If I make a mistake on the list then I have to do it over again.
67. Oh, and if it is a very important list then I really like to use multiple colors of ink.
68. I also love my blog.
69. I once thought Jordan Knight of the NKOTB was the hottest thing ever to walk the face of the earth.
70. I hate odd numbers. Except 9.
71. Number 3 is the worst number. Followed closely by number 1 and then five.
72. All even numbers are ok. Don't have a favorite really. Tonight I seem to be liking 4 the best but that changes.
73. I really want to learn how to crochet.
74. And to decorate cakes.
75. And to be a better decorator.
76. And a better cook.
77. I have been a Christian most of my life.
78. I ask God everyday to change my heart and make me into who He wants me to be.
79. This post is much harder than I thought it would be.
80. I don't like being the center of attention.
81. On here it's ok because no one is looking at me. I hate hate hate to have a group of people looking at me. Maybe it's part of the anxiety. Don't know.
82. One day I would like to write a book.
83. I am totally scared of the dark.
84. Before I found out we were moving I had actually finally gotten to where I was organizing and cleaning my house on a daily schedule that made me feel all warm and fuzzy. Since then it has been a struggle to get back into that groove.
85. But I will get back on track.
86. With cleaning.... and eating...and exercising
87. And serious self-improvement.
88. I asked Julie B for some ideas of what else to write. She said to tell you I wear contacts. Very interesting info for sure.
89. I am very sad about moving. There might be a teeny weeny small ittsy bitsy part of me that is excited about the possibilities of newness.
90. I also have a situation that I don’t know how to fix that is weighing on my mind.
91. Adam, Stacey and I had a conversation the other day about how I have to feel like everyone likes me and approves of me.
92. I am like George on Seinfeld asking Jerry if he thinks the waitress likes him.
93. Hopefully that is the only way I am like George.
94. I am trying to avoid filling the last numbers with things that everyone already knows -like “I like scrap booking…”
95. I love the book of Isaiah and Romans. And Psalms.
96. I love using this symbol ~ instead of this -.
97. I would like to learn how to take beautiful photos.
98. I wish I made friends more easily.
99. But I am so thankful for the ones I have.
100. I hope I don’t sound too crazy after revealing all these 100 things about me.

Sweet Miss Annabelle

(: and ): at the same time....

Adam got a new job! This is such a relief of serious stress for me! But it is also sad because we will now be moving for at least 6 mos to a year. However, this is a great job and Adam beat out 7 other people for the job. YEA! I am so proud of him!

I will keep everyone updated on how and when etc we will be making the actual move.

Start saying your prayers that we can come home after our adventure of the next year! (:

oh....ps....

Adam called me "granny" the other night, all because I asked him to put an extra-y blanket over me and then to put a 3rd blanket over my feet....

Papa

"When someone you love becomes a memory, that memory becomes a treasure."

Today is my Papa's birthday and also the anniversary of his passing away. I miss him. He was such a gentle soul- full of laughter and fun. The last few years of his life were spent mostly sleeping- he had many, many health problems. But somehow, what I remember of Papa are the years when we were small. He wore his love for us on his face and in his voice. He remembered jokes for weeks just so he could tell them to me the minute he saw me. And they were such goofy jokes. Sometimes it was hard to come up with a convincing laugh, but I am so glad I did. I wouldn't have hurt his feelings for the world. He loved and collected gorillas. We kept an eye out everywhere we went for a gorilla that might top the one we had last gotten him. He also loved pewter statues and belt buckles. And shells. And owls. He had shelves of them. He took wicked delight out of getting away with something that my grandma didn't want him to do. He had a funny little hand gesture that he would use after she walked away just to be ornery. One of the other things that I loved so much about Papa is that he loved to be involved. He went everywhere with us as long as he could. Sometimes, all he could manage was to sit in the front of the store and wait. But he still came. And never fails, but that he had made friends with two or three people waiting with him. That man never ever met a stranger. He talked to anyone and everyone. Loved kids. He had this dry sense of humor that people responded to. We used to joke that we could always tell how sick he was by how much he was joking with the nurses. If the man was conscious, he was joking. I wish he could have met Anna. He would have thought that she was the best thing ever. He did think that about his grandkids. Papa- I still love and miss you everyday. I will never forget how much you loved me. What a treasure your love and company was. I am so thankful for the years and time we had with you.

Someone is almost two....

Oh my goodness do we have an almost two year old in the house! Adam and I are having such a hard time keeping a straight face around her! Here are a few things she has thrown at us to start breaking us in for the terrible twos....

~Last night in the kitchen while pitching a little fit about wanting to watch her bedtime movie early, she STOMPED her little feet! HAHAHAHA! We both burst out laughing at her! Not an effective approach to discipline.

~Adam was teasing her the other day by messing up her name. She kept peeking out the door at him and telling him to "stop it!!" When he didn't, she finally walked right up to him and stuck her finger in his face and demanded that he "stop!!!"

~She has been spitting water out when she is done drinking for a while now. But this week, she added a fun twist. She squats down and just sprays the water out of her mouth as hard as she can, just dripping water and spit all down her chin and shirt. Over and over. This is hilarious because she tries so hard!

~Time-outs are becoming quite frequent at our house. She doesn't like them as much as she did at first- still runs away flailing her arms. And now she is refusing to stand in the corner- just sinks to the floor. (: Or runs away.

~She got in our new car and looked around, nodding, and said "NICE!"

~Oh my goodness the meltdown we had the other night because we didn't start Lion King soon enough!

I know certain moms out there are thinking "just wait! this is just the beginning!" I am sure you are oh so right so I am enjoying these "easy" beginnings of the terrible twos!

Walmart Thoughts

Did the Walmart thing today... here are a few of the thoughts that came and went through my mind....

1. "Wow, this is so much easier with no child reaching for everything on the shelves, begging for a cookie, throwing pillsbury biscuit packages on the floor and busting them open, screaming at the top of her lungs, etc etc! I do kinda miss her company though. Still, might as well take advantage of having a trip to Walmart to myself and take my time!" (sssh... don't tell Grandma I said that. Oh wait- she reads my blog sometimes! Oh well, she won't really care. She's great that way.)

2. "I love Walmart! Oh my goodness, did I just actually think that? I don't love Walmart! Or do I? Hmmmm, hard to say... I guess I have a love/hate relationship with Walmart. I bet in reality every woman does. So much to buy! So much to look at! So much to wonder what I could possibly use it for! But the crowds. And the gazillion dollar bill at the end for a cartload of stuff that will just get eaten and thrown away, and used up, oh! and don't forget flushed...well you get the idea. "

3. "I really need to blog today- I haven't blogged in forever. Oh hey! I could blog about what I thought about at Walmart today!"

4. "I love my iphone! Look at how handy it is to be able to stop what I am doing and make a note on my little notepad on my iphone about all the things I have thought at walmart so I can blog them."

5. "I've got the love of Jesus, love of Jesus, down in my heart, down in my heart, down in my heart... wow that song is making me tear up for some weird reason- how did that song even get in my head anyway? Now I am almost crying right here in the baby section over a children's song. People are going to think I am a crazy woman. Oh well, won't be the first time. "

6. "These are some really cute little girls clothes! I am buying this little pink skirt for Anna. I hope it fits since she is growing so fast I can't keep up with what size she needs. I tell you what though... (yes I really do talk to myself that way in my head.) I am super irritated that the little girl croc shoe knock-offs aren't better this year. They were so cute last year and I didn't buy them and now stupid old Walmart has dumb ones with weird ovals instead of circle holes."

7. "Ahhhhhh!!! What the hell is that touching my foot! OH MY HEAVENS IT FEELS FURRY! Oh... wait.. its just a piece of plastic from a box. Wow... that was close."

8. "Holy crap- I hope I didn't spend more than my budget...again...."