Online Sample Sales

Since I have more free time these days, and have to spend a lot of time on the computer for class work, I’ve also done a lot more online shopping.

I’ve also found the wonders of online sample sales.  I know, I don’t have the money for it, but I have found some ridiculous deals on some fabulous things, that believe it or not, I needed.

Most of them are free to sign up, but are invitation only, so if you’re interested in joining any of them, feel free to use my personal invitation link :)

Rue la la –  My favorite and first one I joined!  It is fabulous!  Invitation link:  https://www.ruelala.com/registration?invitationGuid=fd8beaf4-bfc0-44a3-ab4f-3c3ebab125ab&aid=1259

Hautelook - http://www.hautelook.com/invite/MSlaten956

Ideeli - www.ideeli.com/invite/maegz2685

RowNine - http://www.rownine.com/Register.aspx?d=NDAwOCptYWVnYW4uc2xhdGVuJTQwZ21haWwuY29t&qbuneng

Gilt - http://www.gilt.com/invite/maegz2685

If you sign up, let me know what you think!!  I’ve bought from Ideeli, Rue la la (several times) and HauteLook and I love them all!

Shoes!

Okay, now you know this girl LOVES shoes.  I will covet some pretty unique shoes, but when I saw this shoe post on Toxel, I have to say, I was shocked…and not in a good way.  I do believe that some of these babies are a little too “unique” for me!

I’ll start with the shoes I did like, or should I say, would actually wear:

 Glass slippers from Martin Margiela.

Shoes made from solid gold…ooh la la! 

Now on to the unique, but not so bad ones:

Zoe Heels by Christian Werner

Wireframe heels - creative wire sculpture by Polly Verity

Then, we’ve got the downright ridiculous.

Futuristic Shoes designed with no foot plate by Julian Hakes.  I’d be afraid I’d break the “heel” if I walked in them!

Speaking of missing parts, these take the cake.

Finally, the winner of the most ridiculous, outrageous pair of shoes goes to*drum roll please*

Nail Shoes.  Now I’ve worn some pretty uncomfortable shoes, but as for these, no thank you.

I will never doubt your style again Christian Louboutin.  Even your craziest styles are tame compared to these!

Anyway, if you’d like to see more of these…um…shoes, then check out the post on Toxel here.

Hog Tied!

The past few games, God (and maybe Bear Bryant ;)) has shined on us, literally, and despite the high chance of rain, we’ve managed to stay dry during the game!  Today’s game against Arkansas was no different!  Although it poured down rain before the game, we did not get ANY rain until after we got home and to make things even better, we won! :)

Anyway, this week my friend Rebecca and I worked registration so we did not have recruits.  This is completely fine with us since we have both had our fair share of recruits…we don’t mind the occasional off game :)  Our job was definitely more than we bargained for, but I loved it!

We did registration at the complex and then headed to the stadium for lunch and the game.  Normally, we eat lunch with our recruits and even though I love spending that time with them (since they’re hard to talk to during the game), it is sometimes hard to enjoy your lunch because it never fails, they always ask you a question as soon as you’ve put a bite of food in your mouth.  It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but sometimes it is nice to be able to just sit and enjoy lunch and that’s exactly what we did.

After lunch we headed back downstairs to grab our tickets and head into the game.  Rachael, our recruiting coordinator, grabbed us and asked us to help direct people where they needed to go (recruits to the field, parents and guests to their seats).  Sounds easy right?  Not so much!

The door that the recruits use to enter the tunnel and the door that the team uses to enter the tunnel are right beside each other.  When one of the coaches peeked their head out and told us they were ready, we had to help clear the tunnel of people, and hold the recruiting door for the team to come out.  As I was standing there with the team inches away from me, I was thinking how lucky I was to have this job.  People would kill to be in my shoes at that moment and to make it better I got “the nod” and some winks from my former recruits…I was so proud :)

Anyway, we finished up our job and managed to get everyone where they needed to go, despite the pouring rain and recruits coming back in to watch from the recruiting room.  Once it stopped raining, we directed everyone to their seats and we went to ours as well.

Game time is also another perk to not having a recruit  is getting to enjoy the game without having to “entertain” recruits.  Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy that aspect of my job, but sometimes it is nice to relax and just be a fan…and that’s what we did (and of course snapped a few pictures)!

     

I love my “weekend” job, but I’m looking forward to having away games for the next two weeks so I can sit at the apartment, decked out in my Bama gear and enjoy a couple more wins :) 

Roll Tide! :)

Working on a new project…

Sorry I’ve been a little MIA lately!  Between classes, football, and just life in general (including a little sickness)…I’ve been swamped!! Since fall semester is now in full swing, I do have some back-blogging to catch up on and I’ve got quite a few post sitting in my draft folder begging me to finish them so I hope to get on that soon!

Now, for the project…

Although I do have some awesome school projects coming up, the project I am referring to has nothing to do with school.  This project is more of the business sense, but doesn’t really have anything to do with education (ok, maybe if you stretch it! ;))  Confused yet?  I’m sure you are! :)

Dating a guy who will have a degree in Entrepreneurship, new business ideas are constantly popping up in our life (not “our” as in jointly but more in the “both of our lives separately” kind of way) and this has been something I’ve been thinking and talking to him about for a while.

Sadly, it’s not a full fledge business because I don’t have the 1.) confidence, 2.) experience, 3.) time, or 4.) money, but I think this small little “mini-business” is perfect for my situation right now and a step in the right direction toward a bigger business in the future.

Anyway, now that I have you thoroughly confused…I just wanted to let you know that I will do the big “reveal” (really, it’s not that big…but I love some drama in my life ;)) on October 1st so stay tuned!! :)

  Have a fabulous weekend and for all my Bama fans out there….ROLL TIDE!! :)

Weight Loss Wednesday: Week 3

So, I’ve been horrible this week!  I did go to Zumba twice last week, but I started getting this sore throat/cough at the end of the week so my last workout was Wednesday!

Despite all of my horrible “football weekend” eating and lack of exercise, I did lose one more pound.  I have no clue how, but I’m not complaining!! 

I’ve been dosing up on medicine and surprisingly I have no other symptoms other than the sore throat/cough so hopefully it is nothing too major!  Hopefully this will work its way out of my system soon so I can get back on track! :)

Halloween Costumes

When I was little, it was about this time that we started deciding on what we wanted to be for Halloween.  My grandmother on my mom’s side is an amazing seamstress and can sew and create just about anything imaginable (she used to make me Barbie doll clothes when I would stay with her).  Anyway, every September, we would trek to the fabric store and pick out a pattern and material for our costumes.  It was so much fun flipping through all of the pattern books (it still is!) looking for a Halloween costume because it was like looking through a catalog or magazine and knowing that everything would fit and you could have it custom made to your specifications (color, length, design, everything!)

I’ll go through my list of costumes in a Flashback Friday post closer to Halloween, but they were all pretty amazing!  My grandmother would slave for hours and make sure that every detail was perfect (it is her fault I’m so gosh darn picky when it comes to how clothes fit!) and Halloween would roll around and I would happily slip in to my costume for all of the Halloween festivities and as soon as it was over, I would put my outfit in my dress up box and start thinking about the next Halloween.

I still love to dress up…I have no clue why!  The reason is probably similar to my love of theatre and dance (and well clothes in general ;)) because nothing was better than donning something different and being someone else for the day!

The excitement kind of died down when I got to Junior High and high school and continued off and on through college.  1.)  People just didn’t dress up and 2.) We didn’t have anywhere to go.  Anyway, I missed the fun of picking out costumes and even though I would never buy any, I would always look anyway :)

This year is no different, but with more free time at home, I’ve had some time to look at costumes and boy there are some fun ones out there.  Since I have Alex around, I of course want to do the couple’s costumes but even though I’m willing to go out on a limb to accommodate his costume choice…him, not so much.  Usually he wants to  be something really obnoxious or gross (yeah I won’t even go into some of his costumes…they are not classy OR fabulous!)  and either the costume does not lend itself to a girl’s costume or I don’t want to have anything to do with it (Usually the latter).  Sure, I could dress up by myself (and I have many times), but it’s just more fun coordinating sometimes ;)

Anyway, here are some of my favorites, that could possibly lend to some cute couple costumes (although none of them are quite Alex approved…I told you, he’s not as game as I am ;))

Trophy wife….probably my favorite!  I don’t know what Alex would be, but since I’m not a wife, I’d feel a little strange wearing it anyway.  Oh well, maybe in the future!

I will always love me some Snow White although I’m not sure Alex is quite Snow Prince material ;)  Sorry sweetie…I had to!  Fun fact:  my ex-boyfriend is now Prince Charming/Snow Prince in Disney World…he’s not quite Prince material either though ;)

Alex would probably be game for this…

 

Marian Ravenwood from Indiana Jones…he’s a huge fan! :)

or a girl from one of his other favorite movies or should I say, series….James Bond

I would totally vote for this one ;)

or even this one…

in an attempt to channel Ms. Catherine Zeta-Jones in Zorro.

Anyway, do you still dress up for Halloween?  If you have a significant other, do you try to coordinate?

New Hot Water Heater!

Remember when I posted this picture in my “When it Rains It Pours” post?

If you missed it, I opened up my utility closet one day back in August to find that my hot water heater had begun leaking.  We called maintenance and they said it was probably just stopped up from all the rain we’d been getting and that it would probably go back down. 

We kinda forgot about it until last Sunday, when Mom noticed the hall carpet was wet and obviously, it was from my hot water heater.

We got some towels and cleaned it up and realized that if it had leaked into the hallway, it had probably leaked into my craft/coat closet right next to it.  So, we immediately started pulling things out of that closet as well and good thing, because that carpet was wet too (as well as a lot of my things, thankfully it wasn’t my scrapbooking paper and stuff…just things that were in rubbermaid tubs!). 

We called on Monday and let them know about the carpet in hopes that would get them out here faster.  One of my favorite maintenance men came and checked it out.  He thought it might be backed up from the rain (yep, we’re pretty much building arks here in T-town ;)), but he went ahead and drained it and said he’d be coming back the following day to see if there was any water in it, which would be a clear sign that it is leaking.He returned the next day and sure enough it was water standing in it again so he made a call to their contracted service and said they’d be here today.

Sure enough, at 8:00 on the dot, I heard a knock at my door.  I’ve been getting sick so I took some Tylenol cold last night to knock it out thinking I could sleep it off…so the 8 am wake-up call was not very welcome.  Between being groggy from the meds and just plain out miserable form being sick, it was all I could do to stumble to open the door, point to the hallway closet, and then snuggle up on the couch staring at the TV.  I could see him working from my perch on the couch, but I didn’t bother to go investigate until I heard him cursing and then get on his walkie-talkie and go “Okay, what do I do next?” Exactly what you want to hear from your maintenance man ;)

He eventually called in reinforcements and they spent the next two hours cursing and going in and out of my apartment, while I sat glazed over on the couch.  They must have been able to tell I felt bad because the only time they tried to talk to me was to ask if I worked for the football program (they saw my pictures).  After I squeaked out a few answers, they left me alone and got back to work.  After about 2 hours, the water was drained out and it was time for the old one to go (no I didn’t get a picture…I figured they would think I was crazy and I barely managed to get up off the couch long enough to snap this one while they were out to get the new one!)

You can tell where the water leaked around the old one, and of course they didn’t bother to clean it back up before putting the new one in…ewww! 

Anyway, they finally brought in the new hot water heater and put it in!  It is a little bigger than the other so I can’t fit all of my cleaning stuff in there anymore, but that’s what Josh’s closet’s for :)

It’s times like these, I’m thankful I still live in an apartment.  I got a new hot water heater that is much better than my old one AND had it installed and I didn’t have to pay for it…love it!

Things I Love Thursday’s: The Office

In  honor of the Season 6 premiere tonight, I thought I would share my love of  NBC’s hit show The Office.

Back in the summer (a few days after my official unemployment began), Alex got me hooked!

I had watched a few episodes in the past, and even watched some parodies (like the one below, created by our emcees for an arts awards show that I was in charge of as a GA at Alabama). 

Even though I was familiar with the characters and it made me laugh, like many shows, I wasn’t drawn in because I was not familiar with the story line. 

One day (the Saturday after I finished my summer job), I was over at his apartment and he was busy with homework or something so I got control of the remote.  He has Netflix on his XBox360 and as I was browsing through the “Instant” movies, I saw these seasons.  Being a huge fan himself,  it didn’t take much convincing to let me start at Season 1, Episode 1 and go from there.

I pretty much watched it the entire afternoon and picked it back up Sunday afternoon.  I hate to admit (which if you remember I confessed to it on my very first “Not Me! Monday” post ;)) that we watched 37 straight episodes of the office that Sunday afternoon into early Monday morning!  Don’t believe me?  Here’s Alex’s twitter stream for the day…

Sad, I know!

Anyway, over the course of that next week I had watched all 4 seasons worth of episodes and was still craving more!  The 5th season had not come out on DVD and only the second half of the season was on NBC’s website so I scoured the internet trying to find the first 15 episodes.  I finally found them on random sites and Alex and I watched them (with Japanese subtitles…yeah that’s how desperate we were!).  Since then, I’ve been trying to pace out the remainder of Season 5 to time it just right so that I don’t have to wait too long for season 6 to start and when I wasn’t watching The Office, I was following them (@theofficenbc) and two of their characters (Kelly @iamkellyfierce and Ryan @veRY_ANgelic) as well as playing around on their website http://www.nbc.com/The_Office

So if you’d like a good laugh, check out the Season 6 premiere of The Office on NBC :)  I’ll definitely be watching! :)

Have a great weekend!

Weight Loss Wednesday: Week 2

I’ll pick back up where I left off last week! I wrote these day by day so excuse the tense shifts! :)

Wednesday – I went and took the Zumba class at the rec and it was absolutely amazing!! In fact, I loved it so much, I wrote an entire post on it, which you can read here.

Thursday – I had planned on heading to Hips, Butts, and Guts & Arms, Abs, and Back today but considering I had trouble sitting up in the bed this morning, I figured going to a class that mentioned anything about abs was a bad idea ;)  I decided to hang out at the house and give my body a break!

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday – Because it was football weekend, my family was down and I totally fell off the wagon when it came to diet and exercise.

Monday – Was not feeling well so I didn’t exercise :(

Tuesday – Weighed in (okay I cheated and weighed a day early) and realized I had gained weight from my weekend of splurging, so I was raring to go exercise!  Because of my allergy shots, I had to skip pilates this morning (you can’t exercise before or after shots) so I went to Zumba tonight.  There was a different instructor and she wasn’t quite as good as the one on Wednesday, but still got a great workout!

Today – I weighed in and my weight was back to where I was last Wednesday:)  Although I’m sad I didn’t really lose any more weight, I’m glad I was able to work off the weight I gained this weekend.  I’m not that sore from class yesterday so I’m thinking about going to Zumba tonight so hopefully I can work off some more calories now that I’m back on track! :)

So, tell me…what are your strengths?

My goodness, I hate this question in job interviews!  It’s the one question that I know is coming and I never feel like I can give that perfect answer.  Surprisingly, even though I like to talk and tend to be an “open book” when it comes to my life (come on, I have a blog ;)), I have a really difficult time coming up with my “strengths” because I tend to be EXTREMELY critical when it comes to myself.  I usually say something like, “I give 110% to anything I do” or that “I enjoy researching and problem-solving” and pray that those answers are the perfect blend of confidence and modesty.

However, thanks to my motivation and emotion in education class, I will have the perfect answers AND I can back it up :)  For class, our professor had us read this book called Strengths Finder 2.0

 Picture is linked to the title on Amazon.

Basically, this book does exactly what it says:  help you find your strengths.  Here is the description from Amazon (I think it sums it up better than I ever could! ;))

DO YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO WHAT YOU DO BEST EVERY DAY?
Chances are, you don't. All too often, our natural talents go untapped. From the cradle to the cubicle, we devote more time to fixing our shortcomings than to developing our strengths.
To help people uncover their talents, Gallup introduced the first version of its online assessment, StrengthsFinder, in the 2001 management book Now, Discover Your Strengths. The book spent more than five years on the bestseller lists and ignited a global conversation, while StrengthsFinder helped millions to discover their top five talents.
In its latest national bestseller, StrengthsFinder 2.0, Gallup unveils the new and improved version of its popular assessment, language of 34 themes, and much more (see below for details). While you can read this book in one sitting, you'll use it as a reference for decades.
Loaded with hundreds of strategies for applying your strengths, this new book and accompanying website will change the way you look at yourself -- and the world around you -- forever.

Anyway, it has an online “quiz” that you take to help you find your strengths.  The quiz gives you statement and you give it a rating according to your own experience.  It asks questions like “I have a hard time getting motivated to do work” or “I enjoy being around a group of people”.  Anyway, it only gives you 20 seconds per question to make sure you’re giving your “gut reaction”.

After you answer the questions, you receive your themes based on your answers.  Along with the themes, you are also given examples of how you can utilize your strengths in your life.

I wasn’t sure what to expect with my results, but I have to say, the descriptions were eerily pretty accurate (there are more detailed descriptions, but I’m giving you the one-liners at the top :))

My themes were:

1. Learner – Learners have a great desire to learn and continuously improve.  In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome, excite them.
2. Achiever – Achievers have a great deal of stamina and work hard.  They take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.
3. Input – People who are especially talented in the Input theme have a craving to know more.  Often they like to collect and archive all kinds of information.
4. Focus – People who are especially talented in the Focus theme can take a direction, follow through, and make the corrections necessary to stay on track.  They prioritize, then act.
5. Individualization - People who are especially talented in the Individualization theme are intrigued with the unique qualities of each person. They have a gift for figuring out how people who are
   different can work together productively.

These five things pretty much describe me to a tee!  I, of course, love to learn (I mean, who else is crazy enough to keep going back to school after you graduate…twice!) and a bit of a perfectionist (achiever and focus). 

Not only do the descriptions match, but the action items (how to integrate them into your life) are right along with my career goals.  For example, under the “Learner” theme, it told me to shift my career toward a field of technology because it was constantly changing and I would enjoy the challenge of keeping up (glad to know I’m getting a degree in the right field! :)) and of course to go back to school to get other degrees/certificates.

The most scary part is that it said “Because you are not threatened by unfamiliar information, you would excel in a consulting role”…which I have totally been considering as a career.  Creepy!!

Anyway, it was really neat to see what they thought my strengths were and I’m still sorting through the vast amount of resources that they give to help you utilize these strengths :)

This is a great book so no matter what field you’re in (it is used most often for businesses, but will work for anyone), it is a great resource to have.  Now, when I get asked the question “So, what are you strengths?” I can confidently give an answer and have data to back it up :)

This is Alabama Football!

Football season is in full swing here in Tuscaloosa, which means my weekends are full of football!  I am enjoying my last year of recruiting and trying to savor what’s left of it! 

Last week, Alabama played Virginia Tech in the Georgia Dome.  Since it was on ESPN (and he only has basic cable), Alex came over to Josh’s to watch the game.  The boys grilled hamburgers and I made “little pizzas” (tortilla chips, with a piece of cheese and pepperoni on top) and pigs in a blanket.  We had a great time eating, hanging out, and watching the game.  Although it was a little stressful at times, we won! :)

Today, we had our first home game against FIU!  We’ve been several having recruiting meetings to discuss some changes in the program so we were all anxious for the season to begin.

When we got there, Rachael, our coordinator, asked who would like to go to the stadium to recruit.  Because we are old and have given many tours in our recruiting “career”, we were fine with skipping them and heading on over to the stadium so we volunteered.

Here we are waiting to head to the stadium.

Usually we ride over to the stadium on the team bus, but since there were just a few of us, they decided to drive us over on this little cart we named the Saban Mobile (sorry didn’t get a picture…I’ll get one another game!).  Basically it is an uncovered golf cart decorated for the football program and has “Saban Nation” written on it…it is super cute!

Anyway, it was so entertaining to ride down the road in the midst of all the game day traffic on this thing.  Although I didn’t get a picture of the cart itself, I did get a picture of my friend Megan and I on it! :)

That picture would be taken right before I was almost thrown off…it would have been my fault too because he told us to hold on haha.

Anyway, we got to the stadium and got to enjoy the walk of champions from our chairs while waiting on the recruits to arrive.

Right after this picture was taken, Rebecca and I were assigned to a group of 14 recruits.  They were precious though so the worst part was keeping them all together :)

We ended up winning the game and the new game day procedures went very smoothly! 

Up next:  Bama vs. N. Texas!  It’s an early game (11:21 kick) so that means it will be an early morning for us…boo :(  Oh well, guess it is all in a day’s work ;)

ZUMBA!

I know I’ve gone on and on about how I used to dance and how that was the best workout because I loved it, and it was the best cardio/strength workout a girl could ask for!

Although I love other “aerobic” classes like Pilates and Abs and Back, I still long for those dance classes :)  I taught hip-hop aerobics at the Rec for years and loved it because I not only helped other people get in shape, but it kept me in shape as well (If not for the vast amount of time it took to choreograph outside of class, I would still be doing it).  However, I have a difficult time going to take other people’s hip-hop/dance aerobic classes because I try way too hard to perfect the steps and I get frustrated.

Anyway, because of this, I tend to stay away from the dance type classes because I’m scared I’m going to fall on my face.  When I saw that this class called Zumba was added to the fall schedule of classes at the Rec, I was intrigued.  Since I used to work there, I was pretty familiar with all of the other classes, but this was something that was completely new to me.  So, I did what anyone does when they don’t know what something is…I googled it.

My google search led me to websites and after watching a few videos, I was interested in trying out this class and boy was I glad I did!

When I got there, the class was already packed so I figured I made a good choice.  According to our “instructor rules” she had music on when I got there and it made me want to dance…so another good sign:)  The entire class was filled with some amazing music and as soon as I got home I started downloading some of it to add to my workout playlist! The instructor was very upbeat and bubbly.  The entire time she was chatting it up with people before class started, I remembered doing the same thing during my aerobics classes and wondered how I ever had enough energy to be that bubbly ;) 

Overall, the class was the perfect blend of basic dance steps, latin ballroom, and hip-hop.  None of the steps were extremely hard and there were many “free style” opportunities.  Just because the steps were easy doesn’t mean that it did not provide a great workout because boy, it did :)

One of my favorite thing about the class was the format.  When I taught aerobics, I would choreograph about 8-10 8-counts (however many 8-counts it took to get to the chorus) and then we’d spend the rest of the song doing those same 8-counts over and over.  This allowed my participants to get more comfortable with the dance and have a great time.

This Zumba class went by the same philosophy.  The instructor taught about 4 moves per song and we just did them over and over.  This allowed us to just let loose and have a good time.  At the beginning of the class, I went back into dancer mode and I struggled because I tried to perfect every step and do it just like her.  The second routine, we did Christina Aguilera’s “Candy Man” and she threw in some “chasse’s” and “jazz squares” and I was back in my element :)  The rest of my class I relaxed and did not worry about perfecting every move and just had a good time!

I was definitely sore after class, but I really had a good time and I look forward to class next week!

Anyway, if you have a chance to take a class…I highly suggest you go!  It is amazing!

Weight Loss Wednesday: Week 1

Okay, I’m sorry I did not update last week because it was a HORRIBLE week on so many levels that I won’t even go into. :)  Anyway, I was fairly good about working out/walking last week but didn’t feel well enough to do as much as I needed to.  However, this week I’m back and track and ready to go!

Workout Journal:

Sunday:  Ran on the elliptical for two miles.  I wasn’t feeling well so just that little bit did me in.  I took a break and got some Gatorade (I was feeling a little light-headed) and watched Josh and Alex play a little racquetball.  Josh went to play basketball so I played (or attempted to play) racquetball with Alex for about an hour and then walked 2 miles on the treadmill.  I felt horrible afterwards (just because I wasn’t feeling well), but I wasn’t too sore!

Monday:  Recovered from Sunday and tried to let my body get some rest.  Felt MUCH better!

Tuesday:  Went to my first Pilates class at the Rec and LOVED it!! I felt stretched afterwards, but not sore!  I went and walked 5 miles around campus!  I was exhausted…but it was a good exhaustion!

Wednesday:  Woke up, weighed –1 lb!!!  Normally I would have been frustrated, but I can tell I’m losing inches so I know the pounds will come off eventually.  A little sore this morning, but between Pilates, walking, and falling in my bathroom last night (a whole other story in itself…let’s just say hairspray on the bathroom floor can be dangerous!) it is no surprise.  Planning on heading to a Zumba class this afternoon and out for some more walking! :)

I’ll do a little better about keeping my journal up for next week (I’ll journal daily so I don’t forget)  Like I said, I can tell I’m losing inches everywhere and my appetite has changed.  Surprisingly, I’ve struggled to even finish my SmartOnes meals and am having a hard time getting in my 20 WW points for the day because I’m actually full…not a bad thing I guess! :) I’ve started adding on wheat bread to every meal to add in some fiber and a few points :)

So far, so good…let’s hope I can keep it up!!!

Have a happy Wednesday!

UPDATE:

My Zumba class was amazing!!  It deserves its own post so I’ll post that tomorrow, but I did want to share my WW Online Weight Tracker…I just finished off my points (I had a junior frosty from Wendy’s…my new favorite snack!) and posted my activity for today…check it out!

I was super excited!!! If you are not familiar with Weight Watchers, I’ll break it down for you.

Basically, you have your daily point balance (mine is 20), I used all of my 20 points so I have 0 left (daily remaining).  You also get 35 weekly points that are basically your just in case.  This allows you to splurge a little and still fit in the plan.  If you exercise, you can calculate your activity points for that activity and put it in.  Ideal situation is that you build up a great deal of activity points and not use any, but they can be used like the weekly points.  Although I don’t plan on using any of my weekly or activity points, it is nice to know that I’ve almost accumulated a full day’s worth of points and it is only Wednesday! :) 

Anyway, just thought I’d share!! Look for a Zumba post coming in the next day or so!

Flashback Friday: Football Recruiting – Bama vs. Utah State 2004

Since tomorrow is our first game of the season and next week begins my LAST season of football recruiting (due to some changes in rules…they are no longer allowing grad students ;( which I’ll talk about later ), I thought this would be the perfect time to look back on my first year of football recruiting.

Before this season, Alabama had a group called the “Bama Belles” that they used for football recruiting.  My friend Crystal and I had both interviewed, but neither of us made it.  I was devastated, but I had other commitments that kept me busy (i.e. being an Avanti student orientation leader mainly) and as with everything else…I knew there was a reason and just assumed it was not the job for me.

Not long after I interviewed, there was an incident in Colorado where a recruiting hostess got raped by a recruit so the NCAA changed a lot of the rules and ultimately cut out athletic specific hostesses such as the Bama Belles.  Since this new ruling was put into place only weeks before the kick-off of the football season, the football program was scrambling to find replacements.  Since they WERE allowed to use an already existing support group, they decided to use the Avantis (since we went through an extensive interview and training process) and I jumped at the chance to sign up to work the football games.  I felt like God was again reminding me that HE knew what was best for me and that if I was patient, he would work things out :)

I studied up on both the rules of football and Alabama football history before the first home game and was ready to go once it finally arrived!  One of our responsibilities was to memorize information about our new football complex and give group tours to recruits and their families on Game Day.  At that time, there were only a few of us that were recruiting so we alternated taking turns giving tours and usually averaged about 5-10 tours per game.

Anyway, the first game was nerve-wrecking and exciting at the same time.  I nervously squeaked through my tours and it was finally time for kick-off.  One of the best things about recruiting (there are many perks as you can imagine) is that we get to stand on the field to watch the team’s warm-ups.  I remember stepping on the field for that first game and it gave me chills…I knew that this is what I needed to be doing and was proud to be a part of this group!

Minutes after stepping on to the field for the first time (Note:  you won’t see a cool silver name tag on me.  When I went to pick mine up, they had Morgan Staten so I was stuck with a sticker until the next game)

My best friend Crystal and I savoring the moment. 

My favorite girls

       The following are some pictures my dad took of me on the sidelines.      

The Avantis that worked this game (except for Crystal…not sure where she is in the pic!)

    And of course baby Josh ready for the game ;)

Then, we continued the picture taking in the stands…

It was a great way to start our first recruiting season.  Stay tuned for more highlights from that season! :)

Opening of The Alcove Tavern

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned, but Alex is working on a degree in business.  In one of his entrepreneurship classes, he had the opportunity to work with a local entrepreneur who invented the Option Knob which is a tool for musicians (to all you guitarists out there, click on the product name to go check out the website for more info!). 

Anyway, Alex and his “client”, Chad, became pretty good friends and when Chad decided to open a bar/tavern here in town, he called Alex to get some advice from a former bar manager.  For the past month or so, Alex has been sort of his “business consultant” in helping him set up the bar.

Last Friday, they had a “soft opening” which I didn’t get to go to, but tonight The Alcove officially opened its doors and of course Alex and I had to attend :)

So for the first time in about a year, I got my “going out” attire on and headed to The Alcove with Alex to check it out. 

        Chad, the owner, asked for an action shot…and this is what he got! ;) 

I have to say, I really had a great time!  I’m not a bar type of girl for a couple of reasons:

1. I don’t like dealing with rude people and Tuscaloosa bars (at least the more college-type bars) are full of them.  When I was younger, I could handle it a little better, but now I appreciate going out without getting cheap beer spilled all over my fabulous shoes.
2. I’m allergic to cigarette smoke and although I don’t necessarily have a severe allergic reaction to it, it makes me pretty stuffy and let’s face it….allergies or not, secondhand smoke is pretty yucky all the way around!

Anyway, the Alcove is so not your stereotypical bar, which I loved!  First of all, it is pretty classy and geared toward the young professional so no drunken college students here…yay!  Secondly, it is SMOKE-FREE!  This means no more sore throats and smoky clothes for me :)  Thirdly, they have these amazing non-alcoholic Mocktails.  If you go…try the Bahama Mama Sea Breeze…it is absolutely AMAZING!!

Anyway, for all your T-town folks…go check it out!! It is very much worth it!  In the mean time, hit up their website at http://alcovetavern.com/Alcove.html for more pictures and information :)