There's the Frikin' Light!

Ohhhhhh, yes! We can actually see the light at the end of our very loooong Master's tunnel!

We have 3 classes left! That's it and we are free and on our way! ;)

Yippee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jonathan, the Rock Star

I just wanted to take a moment to thank my incredible husband. Jonathan is an absolutely amazing and hardworking man; he never gives up and does whatever he needs to do, no matter what.

He has taken on 2 jobs, just started back to school, and is doing wonderful! He temps during the day and works as a restaurant server and manager in the evenings. The temp agency loves him and he has had some great opportunities; he has already gained so much experience and even more confidence that he can do this. He will have a full time job, doing what he wants, very soon!

I am so proud of him and am very thankful that I am his wife. Way to go, Jonathan! Good luck and I love you!

A Guy's REAL Love...

Yep... no matter how we'd like to think we are his first love... we are not.

© 2010 Amy Yeilding

My First Must Be Repeated!!

My first Gin and Tonic!

It is one of Jon's favorites (besides good ole beer) but I never had once until this past New Year's. =) And I haven't had one since... so, here's to me having another one reeeeeeal soon!

It was delish!

Zona, the Frikin' Trooper!

My fish is bad ass. I got Zona to celebrate being hired permanently. That was 2 1/2 years ago. He is a blue Beta and has always been really cool. It's like we have similar personalities because he is a bit spastic too. =)

I am not sure how long fish live but I love this little guy and will be sad to see the day...

Happy 2 1/2 years, Zona! Love you!

Tree Frogs Galore!

I am not sure if Tree Frogs are native to this particular area but I had never seen them before just recently. I grew up loving nature and as a kiddo always had a special love for lizards and frogs of all kinds. In fact, a friend and I boxed over 30 tree frogs one time when I was 10 and we let them loose in her bedroom. We enjoyed them for a while and eventually caught them and set them all free. It was awesome!

1st sighting of the tree froggies

I have seen all kinds of toads and frogs who, in the past, have taken over our garden area with their underground cubbies. But I have never seen a tree frog around here until I brought 10 potted plants back from my father's house (where I caught the 30 tree frogs as a child.)

2nd sighting of the tree froggies

Now, we keep seeing these little guys every now and then; I think they are the same little frogs and think they were chillin' on some of the plants I brought from Dad's. I am happy to have them here but really hope I didn't take them away from their family. :(

Here's to the frogs! I hope they make a happy home here. :)

October is Fantastically Full!

I love this month! It just keeps going and going... We feel slightly overwhelmed but are having the time of our lives!

We began the month with Austin City Limits and the best line-up I have ever seen; it was the single greatest musical experience of my entire life. We also celebrated our first wedding anniversary and had a beautiful day together; we spent the day together and ended it with a trip to our college town and the bar where we had our first beer and conversation.

This past weekend, we attended Renaissance festival and actually didn't get rained out! We normally go in November and usually meet rain and way-too-cold weather. This time, the weather was great and the nights were wonderful for camping! We spent all weekend playing music and enjoying time with friends. We had such a great time! Hooray for Ren fest!

We will conclude the month with a weekend with friends, a celebration of our first date and 5 years together, and our 3rd Annual Halloween Partay! Helllllz yeah! What a month! I love you October!

Run Over by a Truck: ACL After Effects

This song is an excellent representation of how Jon and I feel after 2 days of ACL awesomeness. Weezer says it perfectly and took the words right out of my mouth! Hehe. We got to see some of my ALL TIME favorite bands and I have to say, we experienced 2 days of pure joy. More to come on ACL soon! Pictures and details of our most favorite weekend ever! Not only did we get to experience the best ACL lineup (in our opinion) but it was our Anniversary weekend! One year as husband and wife! We had a beautiful weekend and it is one we will never forget! =)

Video: Weezer - Posted on YouTube by: SinkFloridaSink

Krystal... Oh, how I am torn!!!

I haven't called yet... but I will! I like to use my feelings to my benefit but in this case, it was a much better idea to wait a week or two. Ha! I cannot even begin to explain how majorly disappointed and EXTREMELY PISSED I was last Friday afternoon. Oh my...

My mother-in-law got all of us tickets to see Chelsea Handler!!! So, Jon and I rushed from work and I mean, I was downtown by 5:10 pm which is EXCEPTIONAL and we were on our way. It took us 2 hours to get half an hour away from our destination after the sickening traffic we had known would be our demise; however, we planned for this and dinner while also fulfilling a special request. Hehe. Oh yeah.

I have been waiting for a Krystal hamburger for years. I had my last one when they finally came to my home town and Dad treated me their awesomeness. Unfortunately, there are no locations anywhere near me but to my excitement, we were going to pass one on our way to see the show! I was SO frikin' excited because it was the perfect solution to our extremely tight schedule, need for dinner, and end to my Krystal's attack! The show stared at 8pm but Jon didn't get off until 5pm. What could we do? Well, we could get us some good ole Krystal hamburgers to eat on the way to the show! Mmmm mmmmm!

Things started to go sour at this point... we get there and are about to drool all over the place but can't find the Krystal building. We drove around and then again until we realized that there is a building with the iconic red and yellow, just no signage what-so-ever. Yep... they were closed. Every sign was gone and they were boarded up. I could even see the sun markings from where the name sign had been plastered. OMG. It was not a pretty sight and I was pissed.

Unfortunately, we couldn't drive to the other location on the other side of the city because we had to get to the show. Uggg! I had to forfeit my beloved Krystal Hamburgers and will never forgive myself. Also, however, I am not sure when I will forgive Krystal. Oh, how I want to though! But geeeez, have they ever heard of updating a website? HELLO!!!

None the less, I will be expressing my concern to their management team and it will not be a pleasant experience unless they bend over backwards to make it one. Utterly ridiculous. These frikin' restaurants are in the most random places and when someone has to drive more than 2 hours, there better be a Krystal where their corporate website said there would be!



I am still so pissed...

Cool Green Product!

I have ALWAYS tried to find ways around wasting plastic baggies. I reuse them, wash-n-use them, recycle them... but I have never been able to totally get around the waste, except to actually stop using them; which... I should have but didn't.

Thanks to a lovely coworker, I now have a replacement that has totally come to my rescue! Check this out! The Wrap-N-Mat is like a sandwich bag but with so many more awesome features. First, it is a baggie which also opens up to make an awesome little mat (to eat on). And second, this little piece of awesomeness is totally washable and reusable!

The Wrap-N-Mat is really neat because it allows you to save baggies and stop wasting money while it also gives you a clean eating place and a way to say that you are doing your part! Check out the Wrap-N-Mat and stop wasting money and resources today!

Great Timing - Great God

I just had the most beautiful moment. As I was out in my garden trimming and watering, I called my husband after his first day at a new job. =) He was very excited for this position and I couldn't be more proud of him; he was asked to come in over others based on some of his Publisher work and was also asked to come back on Monday and Tuesday after today's work. What is REALLY interesting is that this job is one of the first places I started working when I was with this same company. So neat!

But it kept getting cooler because when I hung up from the awesome conversation with my husband, I looked up to see a beautiful rainbow between white fluffy clouds with what could have been blue birds flying over it. It was amazing and such an inspiring moment. I love the Lord and the gorgeous world He created for us and I love the opportunities that come when they are needed the most.

Thank you Lord and thank you all! Let's live in peace on this incredible gift we have been given.

Little Winslow! FINALLY!

Two things:

Number One - I am FINALLY posting some pictures of Winslow. I know; it's ridiculous BUT all I can say is that I have only had time to snap pictures and enjoy him! The posts had to come later. He is TOO cute for words and I can honesty say that he was meant to come to us. Even though Shadow's passing was one of the hardest things I have had to go through, I know he was meant to go on and I know that Winslow has a little bit of Shadow's spirit in him. =)

Number Two - Winslow is FINALLY off medication! He has been on antibiotics since we got him up until this week! First he had the cold... and then all the cats had colds (and had to go to the vet!) Then, he cut his back paw on something RANDOM. Then, he cut his front paw on something RANDOM. And lastly, he developed some weird lip-growth that the vet described as something she had never seen in the whole 3 years she had been there. All in all, he was on antibiotics 3 different times! He finally got better and is all well and off all meds! HOORAY!

And now... drum roll please!!!

MEET LITTLE WINSLOW!!!!!!!!!!

Look at those eyes!!!

Remembering Joe Coppeto

The world lost a good man on September 13, 2010. Joe Coppeto was an amazing human being, friend, son, and brother. He was a kind man with an amazing heart. He loved to laugh and enjoyed people, music, and having good time.

I am so sorry to hear of his passing and my prayers are with his family and friends.

Some of you may know Joe as the drummer from my wedding. His band, Professor Shark, played for us and truly made our night one of a kind and more special than I can ever describe. Our wedding was Professor Shark's last performance together and is a truly bittersweet memory.

Joe passed away in his sleep and was later found to have passed from an enlarged heart. The world will not be the same without him and he will always be in our hearts.

Rest in peace, Joe. We love ya, man.

Good 'ole Jager

Jager is my friend.

After years of drinking in college and learning all the bad things, I have truly discovered "my drink" and its name is Jager. I actually prefer to sip on a "Jager-bomb" as opposed to shooting the Jager-bomb or drinking the Jager straight. Now, you must realize that not all Jager bombs are made the same/correct way and I have prided myself on finding the best mixture to achieve this at home (AKA the MUCHO cheaper, safer, and equally fun way).

I had gotten it as close as I could when my amazing father got me a set of Jager glasses as a gift. These amazing little glasses allow for THE perfect measurement and have been my pride and joy ever since. I LOVE THEM. You can view and purchase these HERE.

I do not enjoy Red Bull as a mixture for my Jager-bomb; I have tried many different amounts and have never been able to get it to where I actually enjoyed it. My shots are made with a Monster Energy Drink and I really enjoy the Blue or Green Monster. The mixture is pretty much a shot to a shot (Jager and Monster) with more or less Monster to your own taste.

*** Please be careful with Jager-bombs. *** These should NOT be consumed in excess. ***

Enjoy and remember to ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS drink responsibly!! DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE!! =)

Hyperthyroidism & Graves Disease

I get a lot of people looking for information on both Hyperthyroidism and Graves Disease here on the 'tude. I not an expert but am always learning and trying to get the knowledge to help those that have inquired. And while I am dealing with both and have been able to gain lots of valuable information, I am definitely always interested in hearing what y'all have to say.

I am trying to make it a point to post more information here and to be a valuable resource for those seeking answers. These are complicated diseases and they should be battled from all angles. Please seek me out for questions and while I know I have not been the best at this in the past, I will definitely do what I can to answer any questions or share any knowledge I have.

I am also very interested in hearing what information or resources you can share. I enjoy learning and would love to share what knowledge you have with others. Thank you all for your readership and please let me know if there is anything you would like me to include or try to answer for you.

Thanks! =)

Need a Laugh?

Watch this and done. =)

(I have to credit Tosh.0 for this blog - I would not have seen this piece of awesomeness if it were not for Tosh. Thank you, good sir.)

Wheel Admiration

I loved this idea and had to share it. What a cute idea for a table! I had to share this with my family because this is the type of thing they would totally enjoy making and which would look super cool with their decor (especially Dad's!)

This is a simple and very hip idea for a table. Check it.

Mattress from the Sky

I was grabbing a bite to eat and minding my own business when out of nowhere, a mattress fell from high in the sky. That's right, I said a mattress! After some shock and a little laugh, I realized that the mattress did not fall from the sky but from the freeway directly in front of me. It was craziness.

(Photo taken after a woman pulled the mattress out of the street.)

It landed right next to a car on the road and while I totally enjoyed this little bit of randomness, I am sure that I would have enjoyed it much more if the mattress had fallen on the car that was 2 inches away. That would have been superb!

None the less, I feel honored to have been at the right place at the right time. It was cool, it was funky, it was RANDOM! Yay for me!

A Look Back - The Best Day EVER!

I did post the link for our wedding photos but never put up any of the pictures specifically. I think I should have and am still disappointed in myself with this and several other things that I will not bring up at this moment.

It was such an amazing day and while a lot of my good friends and family were unable to be there, we still had the best day of our lives with some pretty spectacular individuals.

So, here are some of my absolute faves. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do. =)

October 2009 was an incredible month. Here it comes again, and even better this time!

Anonymous Individual... 2 words for ya

SUCK IT!