tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13742710396273206102024-03-05T12:03:32.880-06:00Allie and KyleAlliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.comBlogger94125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-63400128848367702852013-02-27T18:57:00.002-06:002013-02-27T18:57:43.984-06:00User ErrorSince we've moved out of the apartment, I have made a greater effort to take better care of our stuff. I wasn't always as concerned if the washing machine broke or the carpets got a little bit dirty at the apartment. Hey, you could just call the maintenance man, and all would be healed. Yet, in my quest to be a good home owner, I have encountered a few "omg, I'm such a dodo" moments. It's not the houses fault. It's mine.<div>
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User Error #1:</div>
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I was baking fish one night, and I didn't have any foil. I put a piece of wax paper on the baking sheet instead. Wax paper is NOT the same as foil. If it weren't for that smoke alarm, I would have needed more than a maintenance man.</div>
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User Error #2:</div>
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The lamp in the bedroom blows the fuse. I call my dad. He told me to check the breaker box. I did... three times. My dad offers to come check the outlets. He drives from an hour away. "I thought you told me you checked the breaker box."</div>
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User Error #3:</div>
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The toilet is flushed. The toilet overflows. I discover Bailey's dog bed is soaking wet in the other room. It look me an hour to realize it wasn't dog pee. The toilet water had seeped through the wall.</div>
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User Error #4:</div>
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The day before going back to work from Christmas break and my car won't start. I call Kyle. He and his partner from work drive over to look at it. The car starts the first time... I leave my keys in the ignition and have a very hard time finding them the next day.</div>
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User Error #5:</div>
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A questionable smell is coming from the laundry room. I start to wipe out the front, rubber part of the washer and pull out a very slimy sock. I wondered where that thing had gone.</div>
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What am I going to do with myself?</div>
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Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-38788229211753654292013-02-14T18:10:00.003-06:002013-02-14T18:10:55.891-06:00Middle School Valentine'sValentine's Day really does hold a special place in my heart. Kyle and I first starting dating near Valentine's Day, and four years ago, we brought home our sweet, little Bailey. But, from the perspective of a middle school teacher, Valentine's Day is a whole new ballgame.<br />
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Before the school day had officially begun, a mob of preteens stood in line in the cafeteria to buy $1 carnations for their boyfriend/girlfriend/themselves. (Don't you remember those days well? Young love). By the time the first bell of the day rang, most of students had already eaten at least one piece of candy. And, once the bell to dismiss first period finally came, I thought to myself, "Is this day really just beginning?"<br />
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Valentine's Day in a middle school is simply a hormonal, sugar-filled, carnation-surplus kind of a day. Rules don't exist and being loud is the only option. Oh, and that emotional lesson I taught on fair-trade chocolate last week? Out the window. Those kids of mine had chocolate shoved in every free space of their pockets and backpacks.<br />
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I can usually tell when the day is almost over. The candy binge starts to slow down and the carnations are barely hanging on to the stem. And when the last bell of the day rings and I walk around my classroom picking up handfuls of candy wrappers, I let out a sigh of relief. I did it. I survived middle school Valentine's Day.Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-21048086897556287712013-02-11T21:33:00.002-06:002013-02-11T21:33:23.499-06:00Blogging I've been debating back and forth about deleting the blog. There are some things that I want to write about, but it seems too personal to share with the world. And, there are other topics that I think, "Who really wants to read this?" How many stories can I write about my dog? Nevertheless, I'll keep it around for a little while longer.<br />
Since blogging last, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, and almost Valentine's have come and gone.<br />
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Quick Recap:<br />
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<li>Kyle and I hosted my family at our house for Thanksgiving. Josh and Meghan were going to their in-laws, and my mom's kitchen wasn't quite done from the flood. The meal was very scaled down compared to my mom's typical meal, but I was just impressed that I was able to cook some of her recipes. For the Schielack Thanksgiving, we went to Rockdale. The Aggies played Missouri the Saturday after Thanksgiving, so we did Thanksgiving at Granny's house the day after the game.</li>
<li>We went back to Rockdale for the Schielack Christmas. We were there a few days before Christmas, and we came back on Christmas Eve. Kyle and I went to the Christmas Eve service at our church, and it was the first Christmas Eve of my life to not sleep at my mom's house. Christmas morning with Kyle was my favorite memory from the holiday season. We woke up at our house. While I prepared the salad for my family's dinner later on in the day, Kyle drove over to Starbucks for holiday drinks and pastries. We proceeded to open gifts. There was something so comforting about spending the first part of Christmas morning together.We drove over to my mom and Gene's house around 10 a.m. and went through our normal Christmas traditions- stockings, gifts, breakfast. The only thing different was that Josh and Anna did a gender reveal for baby #2... another boy. He is due on Kyle's birthday.</li>
<li>New Year's is my least favorite holiday. So much hype and expectation. We went over to a friend's house party. Champagne and friends... New Year's in a nutshell.</li>
<li>And, while Valentine's is still 3 days away, Kyle and I have made reservations at a restaurant near our house. We have never done much on Valentine's. It always fell near our dating anniversary, so we would double up the anniversary/Valentine's celebration. Since Kyle's work schedule has been ridiculously busy, just dinner will suffice. We have both promised each other no gifts... aren't we romantic?</li>
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Random phone pics...</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="239" src="http://us-mg5.mail.yahoo.com/ya/download?mid=2_0_0_1_6578199_AK%2FTimIAAXbRURm00gNsdCkb09I&pid=2&fid=Inbox&inline=1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bailey wrapped up like a burrito</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwSmVZe0Rb5GIk-4tLfWBvFrY_wHEwBVpXJUYibCwIDGxxViKxYA5tWli3_HSm-puxCEI9XYqkW82TKN-2V7Mk-rqoYEWs_RGWkFOWUzBRviOGEmZr6JJLzg4ZGYOH7UfffY5ZlrNTL6W/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwSmVZe0Rb5GIk-4tLfWBvFrY_wHEwBVpXJUYibCwIDGxxViKxYA5tWli3_HSm-puxCEI9XYqkW82TKN-2V7Mk-rqoYEWs_RGWkFOWUzBRviOGEmZr6JJLzg4ZGYOH7UfffY5ZlrNTL6W/s320/photo.JPG" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Forcing Bailey to pose in front of the tree</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="239" src="http://us-mg5.mail.yahoo.com/ya/download?mid=2_0_0_1_6578930_APvTimIAARDiURm06Q1UCEaatpA&pid=2&fid=Inbox&inline=1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Christmas lights on the house!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="239" src="http://us-mg5.mail.yahoo.com/ya/download?mid=2_0_0_1_6579660_AP3TimIAAXAAURm1FAmX50WMzXo&pid=2&fid=Inbox&inline=1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The cutest face ever</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="239" src="http://us-mg5.mail.yahoo.com/ya/download?mid=2_0_0_1_6581124_AK%2FTimIAAYGIURm1aAVqYxZQNBc&pid=2&fid=Inbox&inline=1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sleepy dog</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="239" src="http://us-mg5.mail.yahoo.com/ya/download?mid=2_0_0_1_6581855_AK%2FTimIAAAGyURm12QwT73GpYbg&pid=2&fid=Inbox&inline=1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kyle's obsession with Johnny Football youtube videos</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="320" src="http://us-mg5.mail.yahoo.com/ya/download?mid=2_0_0_1_6582583_APvTimIAATFKURm13ApiGwCGB2I&pid=2&fid=Inbox&inline=1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Off to the Calf Scramble Badge Party</td></tr>
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Okay... that's as good of an update as I've got! :)</div>
Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-84838659750466422382012-11-11T16:22:00.000-06:002012-11-11T16:22:12.004-06:00My Kind of Weekend... These are the kind of weekends that I look forward to the most. Besides Kyle's work barbecue on Saturday, we didn't have to be anywhere, and there were no plans. Kyle recently moved in to a new office at work, so we had thought that we would go up to his office on Friday night. A few things needed arranging and cleaning, and we are the kind of people that would find that to be an exciting Friday night. Well, I came home from work in a very "it's Friday!!" kind of mood. I walked in to the house and saw our new Christmas tree just sitting there, and I couldn't convince myself that it shouldn't be taken out of the box despite the November 9th date on the calendar.<br />
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After assembling the tree and fluffing the branches for over an hour, I decided that I was indeed in the Christmas spirit. I started harassing Kyle to come home from work and suggested that we head up to the Nutcracker Market. Well, what would guess? Kyle said that sounded like a good idea, and he needed to see what this Nutcracker Market was all about. Next to shopping with my mom and sisters, nothing is better than shopping with your hubby -what a fun Friday night with my Kyle.<br />
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Saturday morning we slept in, or at least I did. As long as an alarm clock doesn't wake you up, I consider it sleeping in. Kyle was up at 6:15 a.m., and he attributed his early rise to the momentous Aggie game that awaited. We lounged around the house until it came time to get ready for his work barbecue. The barbecue started at 3:00, but Kyle told everyone that he would only be there if we could show up at 2:30 and a t.v. would be playing the A&M/Bama game. As we all know, the game was worth watching (if you are an Aggie fan, that is). We might have been the worst guests at the party because by the time we walked out of the house after the game was over, all the other barbecue attendees were leaving. We didn't care though. We left with big, goofy grins on our faces. Our Ags had pulled out the greatest victory ever!<br />
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And, on Sunday, we went to Sunday school and finished our study of Daniel, went to worship service, and enjoyed a lunch out at Corner Bakery. We made our way over to Cavendars to pick out a few Christmas presents for Kyle since he is on Calf Scramble this year. And now, I am listening to RedZone, doing laundry, and aimlessly browsing Etsy. Now, this is my kind of weekend.Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-22581123661771691452012-10-30T18:47:00.002-05:002012-10-30T18:47:42.847-05:00Bailey's Exaggerated Facebook Life We all have those friends who exaggerate their life on Facebook. Incessant posts about how "wonderful" their life is and the bounty of Instagram pictures to "prove" it. Of course, we know that exaggerator-Facebook-person would never tell us the dirty details of their life, so we just go on assuming that exaggerator-Facebook-person's life really is that wonderful. Well, today, as I took a picture of my sweet bulldog curled up in a chair, I realized that I was at fault for the very thing I accuse exaggerator-Facebook-person.<div>
You see, when Bailey is lying down or asleep, I can't help but take a picture of that snuggly, wrinkled face. I am like a mother watching her baby sleep. However, like most mothers, I just pray that my oohing and aahing doesn't wake the <strike>monster "</strike>baby". Believe me, Bailey is a sweet dog, but you won't catch me tagging pictures of her peeing on the bed or barking like a rabid dog at the t.v. Oh no, who would want to see that?</div>
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Not only have I become exaggerator-Facebook-person when it comes to the aforementioned "sweet bulldog," Bailey's been stringing me along as well. Bailey pretends she can't understand a word I say to her when it goes against her desires. </div>
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Allie: "Bailey, off the couch... Bailey, drop the ball...Bailey, sit... Bailey, lay... Bailey stay... Bailey, no!"</div>
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Bailey: "la, la, la.... I can't hear you."</div>
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But then, say the magic words...</div>
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Allie: "Want to eat?... Want to go on a walk? ... Ready for bed?... Want a treat? (oh, you sit if there's a treat in my hand, huh?)"</div>
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Bailey: "Sucker."</div>
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Isn't it amazing that she knows the latter phrases but not the ones that would help me out a little? Well, Bailey, you don't fool me... you just sucker me in every time. And, I'm pretty sure there's nothing I'm going to do about it.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrux6rAp0ByN8unvYm3X420Z8hgVxaNIphZYa575-CCXW8nraXSXWGCvXpBNIwyVG938lLno6y3XxGJfcKndWe4hJsyCfEST3CqsefbwrDc5PcBWBUlnrRpYDT3CO3mOfoznvtJa9BzD6b/s1600/bay.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrux6rAp0ByN8unvYm3X420Z8hgVxaNIphZYa575-CCXW8nraXSXWGCvXpBNIwyVG938lLno6y3XxGJfcKndWe4hJsyCfEST3CqsefbwrDc5PcBWBUlnrRpYDT3CO3mOfoznvtJa9BzD6b/s320/bay.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The truth? I had to hold a treat above my phone to get her to look at me. :)</td></tr>
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Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-43903996106818095112012-10-21T17:34:00.000-05:002012-10-25T18:02:42.378-05:00Car Trouble and a Troubled KyleThe alarm clock sounded at 3:45 a.m. on Saturday morning, and Kyle's two feet immediately hit the ground. An 11:00 a.m. kickoff time against LSU wasn't going to keep this hard-core Aggie from tailgating before (and after) the game. Kyle "graciously" gave me an additional ten minutes of "sleep", but before I knew it, he obnoxiously starts encouraging me out of bed. This peppy attitude was not mutual, and, regardless, wouldn't last long.<br />
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Well, all is going as planned. We will be on the road to Aggieland at 4:15 a.m. I finish getting ready while Kyle loads the car.<br />
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Kyle: "Okay, Al, let's go."<br />
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Me: "Alright, I'm ready."<br />
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Kyle goes to back his car out and move it in to the other space because we are taking mine.<br />
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Kyle: "Man! Why today?!"<br />
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I stand in the driveway very confused.<br />
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Me: "What happened?"<br />
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Kyle: "My starter is out."<br />
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Me: "What does that mean?"<br />
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Kyle: "We aren't getting to College Station on time!"<br />
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Me: <i>sarcastically thinking to myself</i> "Darn, we won't be at the tailgate at 5:15 a.m.!"<br />
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So, before Kyle has a full blown anxiety attack, we devise a plan.<br />
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Kyle: "We are going to push the car back a little, and then, we will push it up and over in to the spot."<br />
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Me: "I don't think this is going to work."<br />
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Kyle gives me the evil eye.<br />
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Me: "Okay, lets try it."<br />
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We start to push the car down the driveway, and all seems to be going smoothly.<br />
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Kyle: "Okay, lets push it up now."<br />
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We start to push.<br />
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Me: "Umm, its not going anywhere."<br />
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Kyle: "You think?"<br />
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With the car hanging half way in the road and not moving an inch, we frantically Google 24 hour towing services. Not for one minute is Kyle distraught about his nonoperational car, but if we didn't get to that tailgate before the sun came up, well, we might as well not show up at all.<br />
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Thankfully, and for the sake of my husband's sanity, the tow truck promised to come in a timely manner.<br />
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Kyle: "Okay, they said they'd be here in 40 minutes. Let's go."<br />
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Me: "So, umm, we are going to leave the car here in the middle of the road and trust some random person that we Googled will come and get the car."<br />
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Kyle: "Yep."<br />
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Me: "Okay then."<br />
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We hop into my car and drive through the grass around our abandoned car. Classy.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQI9qZIg32OXqAEOlTAErOpF5nwTxjRZALPNTpBex25Rij2PImSGVakUhTTaHJXHr4102XEfFwE8pSFbUITQkW50JV3MPi1fnzbuerlruyTTl0Fc2JRWw4OW6bMa1l0tKu-EbsJSo5GSOA/s1600/car.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQI9qZIg32OXqAEOlTAErOpF5nwTxjRZALPNTpBex25Rij2PImSGVakUhTTaHJXHr4102XEfFwE8pSFbUITQkW50JV3MPi1fnzbuerlruyTTl0Fc2JRWw4OW6bMa1l0tKu-EbsJSo5GSOA/s320/car.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The stuck car.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Don't worry... we made it to the tailgate.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimJhSUnFcis8C9WEMsqXJ6mSo_IF961u5VOT1XPzbZzbeaI0-A_NGxEKYYYMbYTQWNIo2ZzDDhE-vuIQ5Hdrp9C-cXdabxJihGAdx1CUsof0RoHXrrsS0gSwkJDlTY27VFDrGmZSsEESGu/s1600/ag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimJhSUnFcis8C9WEMsqXJ6mSo_IF961u5VOT1XPzbZzbeaI0-A_NGxEKYYYMbYTQWNIo2ZzDDhE-vuIQ5Hdrp9C-cXdabxJihGAdx1CUsof0RoHXrrsS0gSwkJDlTY27VFDrGmZSsEESGu/s320/ag.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Aggies didn't lose. We just ran out of time.</td></tr>
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We have resigned to worrying about the car until tomorrow. After all, football is more important than knowing how you're going to get to work on Monday, right?Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-78723667303291120752012-10-16T17:47:00.000-05:002012-10-16T17:47:12.770-05:00Ole Miss RoadtripBesides becoming professional wedding attenders, Aggie football has taken it's place on our weekend agenda. It was almost a year ago that we decided to take a road trip to watch the Aggies, and we decided that Ole Miss was the destination. When October 4th rolled around, we were more than ready to pack our bags and head to Oxford, Mississippi.<br />
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We, along with the hundreds of other Aggies that made their way to Oxford, spent 3 nights checking out the Square, touring the campus, tailgating at the Grove, and scraping out a victory against the Rebels. Despite the chilly/rainy game day, the weekend was super fun, and I'm looking forward to next year's Aggie road trip.<br />
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Enjoy the photo recap courtesy of my MIL...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="240" src="https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/522328_501373893206260_1652710495_n.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gig'em</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">MIL and mom</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="240" src="https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/540832_501377676539215_197065860_n.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">first night at dinner</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="240" src="https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/3838_501379986538984_333818857_n.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">happy hour at the Downtown Oxford Inn</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="240" src="https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/522342_501380043205645_202271681_n.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Con and Kyle</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tailgate banner</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="240" src="https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/374054_501392716537711_1795817281_n.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">all the boys</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">all the girls... minus me</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the two of us</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">a celebratory picture after the most exciting win<br /><br /></td></tr>
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Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-54262377920309233902012-09-23T17:16:00.000-05:002012-09-23T17:16:28.105-05:00September RecapSeptember has come and (almost) gone. It seems that we have been extremely busy, yet I can't pinpoint what has kept us going nonstop. All I know, Kyle and I are currently enjoying the sounds of NFL Redzone and Sunday naps.<br />
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September Recap...<br />
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<ul>
<li>I can't believe that this year marks my 5th year of teaching- I still feel like kid myself. The beginning of the school year is inevitably busy/crazy/overwhelming, but I started this year feeling like I had in under control. Well, until I got laryngitis... the week of Open House. Having laryngitis was super annoying. I could barely teach, I wasn't talking to Kyle much in order to heal my voice, and I was in the middle of the 2nd/3rd week of school (right when the beginning-of-the-year exhaustion kicks in). I was coming home feeling tired and emotional, and the only thing I could do was drink tea and not talk. </li>
<li>Aggie football has started, and that means frequent trips to College Station are a main part of our weekend to-dos. If you know Kyle, you know this is his favorite time of year. He loves his Aggies, and he loves tailgating. It seems that Kyle thought our empty garage was lonely as we have magically acquired more tailgate stuff than is probably necessary. If only I shared the same enthusiasm about tailgating... I left the tailgate yesterday to get a pedicure and to buy a fall wreath. I love the Aggies, but I'll leave the tailgating for some cooler weather.</li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi35FOg8IZAWgDNFjukpJ0lDmBaQa3Lry3H0TwVesHiJULvOu-eWLYFWnGpeg8Gm4qt2lM50miGpUEKQuNfpZtIelWZMiefb3BtlFVkdv0-L1WF0rYiqGugCO0F0dJTJ5kiuQ_0klKWFlH6/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi35FOg8IZAWgDNFjukpJ0lDmBaQa3Lry3H0TwVesHiJULvOu-eWLYFWnGpeg8Gm4qt2lM50miGpUEKQuNfpZtIelWZMiefb3BtlFVkdv0-L1WF0rYiqGugCO0F0dJTJ5kiuQ_0klKWFlH6/s320/photo.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aggies vs. South Carolina State</td></tr>
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<ul>
<li>Becoming a "house" dog was quite an adjustment for my little Bailey. At the apartment, Bailey was allowed on the couches. New house and new couches equals, "No Bailey! Get down!" At the apartment, we used to have carpet all over and playing fetch was quite easy. Now, Bailey slips and slides down the hallway when trying to retrieve her ball. At the apartment, we went on walks all the time. Now, Bailey plays in the backyard... she has no problem with this change. She LOVES ripping and running all over the place. Currently training: staying on the front porch without a leash. Bailey thinks that an open front door is an invitation to run across the street to the neighbors.</li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwcWAsOzo-a4kndi1T8OLXrje1mWdMIRX6hm0HRyZIdluzS_DJxpafEDQldtKqqI6EvJ0C9urrUYBn6vaMycsBQyV5QZMGhw-duJO8gWBLHFI6hhIIwGWEbHT7gfSYx3F5BHiCjbSOyJob/s1600/photo+(4).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwcWAsOzo-a4kndi1T8OLXrje1mWdMIRX6hm0HRyZIdluzS_DJxpafEDQldtKqqI6EvJ0C9urrUYBn6vaMycsBQyV5QZMGhw-duJO8gWBLHFI6hhIIwGWEbHT7gfSYx3F5BHiCjbSOyJob/s320/photo+(4).JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hanging out on the front porch<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjt-1eu59kFkI5zBHc-Q9yI6qWvz2nnL8CfUb-YiKD6oB-MfrphKs25vcZe-wqzjpZY7V9h7yf4Il5hB6YW9LJDX0NTFNMvkzXOZfwaR3PbJx6uAaAek9fO9mS0cZi67JH2ahXJXXOs6A8/s1600/photo+%25285%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjt-1eu59kFkI5zBHc-Q9yI6qWvz2nnL8CfUb-YiKD6oB-MfrphKs25vcZe-wqzjpZY7V9h7yf4Il5hB6YW9LJDX0NTFNMvkzXOZfwaR3PbJx6uAaAek9fO9mS0cZi67JH2ahXJXXOs6A8/s320/photo+%25285%2529.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"If she would take this leash off..."</td></tr>
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<ul>
<li>We lived in the house for almost three weeks before we turned in our keys at the apartment. It was weird walking through the apartment one last time after not seeing it for awhile, but for the most part, moving in to the house has been a seamless transition for us. We love the area more than we thought (despite the lack of HEB), and I love that I don't sit in the Galleria traffic after work.</li>
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I am now looking forward to cooler weather, fall decor/drinks/desserts/holidays, and our road trip to BTHO Ole Miss!<br />
Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-87349437061730831582012-08-26T16:48:00.000-05:002012-08-26T16:48:00.231-05:00Back to SchoolWhile the past few weeks have been extremely busy and exhausting (packing, moving, back to work), they have all culminated with this very normal and relaxing Sunday. We slept in until 8, went to church, braved HEB, and came home to watch t.v. The perfect Sunday in my mind. While I can't believe that school starts tomorrow and 120 new faces will walk through my classroom door, I am content in knowing that the routine and consistancy are back. My summer has been exactly what I wanted it to be. The girls' trip, time at the lake, lazy days, the Olympics, and a trip with my sweet hubby...the house is an unexpected bonus. So, with that, I welcome the new school year... even that 5:00 a.m. alarm clock, eating from a lunch box at 10:00 a.m., and all the inevitable stress/fun/exhaustion/emotion that comes from working with 11-year olds.<br />
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So, here's to hoping I'm not too nervous to sleep tonight and I didn't leave anything out of my powerpoint. :)<br />
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Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-5001285348142859382012-08-09T22:13:00.000-05:002012-08-09T22:13:27.189-05:00Kyle and the House<div style="text-align: center;">
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With the majority of everything we own in boxes and the monumental move on the horizon, I have become surprisingly nostalgic and emotional. I'm not sure if it is the move mixed with school starting plus the gloriously, sappy Olympic moments, but tears have come to my eyes more than once the past few days.</div>
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Today, Kyle accidentally left his wallet at home, so I met him for lunch to bring it to him. We sit down to eat our sandwich and start talking about business Kyle is working on, the house closing, and what I was going to do the rest of the day. I begin to cry. This catches both of us off guard because I have no idea what's wrong with me. </div>
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Tonight after dinner I suggest that we make a drink and toast to the house. We both go back and forth about different things, moments, memories and I begin to cry. "Well, that was a cool moment until you started crying," said Kyle.... gotta love him.</div>
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I admit that my random cries have been a little silly. I think it all comes from how seriously Kyle and I have taken buying the house, and that leads my overly emotional self down memory lane. When Kyle and I started dating, I was 20 and he was 21. We were juniors in college. We really didn't even know each other, but it was the whole "love at first sight" bit. From the moment we hung out for the first time, we both knew we wanted to be together. It didn't matter that we didn't know each other- we never even questioned it. Today, as I was thinking about this, I thought how crazy it all started. During the first week of dating, we talked about getting married. It didn't even seem weird at the time. Kyle gave me an overwhelming sense of calm, and from day one, I felt like he would love and take care of me. Without me even knowing his favorite color, I knew we would be together forever. </div>
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And, I think that is the source of my tears. From the day we found the house online, Kyle has been in control. He never once asked me to worry about a thing, and he has taken all of the stress upon himself. The feeling of being taken care hasn't faded, and I love the peace that Kyle brings to my life. He is my perfect compliment. Even though I still couldn't tell you his favorite color, I can say that tomorrow, when we close on our first house, we are accomplishing something that we have talked about for six years... when we were just 2 college kids that had faith that this relationship would work.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of our first pics together</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">College memories</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Graduation</td></tr>
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I listened to this song over and over when we first started dating, and we had it sung at our wedding. </div>
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<br /></div>Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-21811924767086468302012-08-05T23:04:00.000-05:002012-08-05T23:12:58.834-05:00An Olympic Year I have a slight obsession with noticing patterns or finding connections in certain things. I mean, it is interesting that my sister and I are 1 year and 13 days apart. My birthday is the 31st and hers in the 13th. Who wouldn't find that interesting? What about my past 3 zip codes? When I was in college, my zip was 77801, our apartment is 77081, and the new house is 77018. Cool, right?<br />
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Every Olympics, with the exception of 1988 when I was 2... and we'll let that slide, something significant in my life has happened. It is very bizarre, and only someone like me might notice these trends.</div>
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<ul>
<li>Olympics 1992- In 1992, my little brother, Christian, was born. In fact, he was born on July 27th, so he was a newborn in the midst of the Olympics. My grandma lived with us at the time, and I remember sitting on her bed, holding Christian, feeding him his bottle, and watching Shannon Miller compete.</li>
<li>Olympics 1996- I was going in to 5th grade. While 5th grade shouldn't be a monumental year, it was huge for me. Our family moved from the house we had grown up in, and I started going to public school. For someone who has gone to private school until that point, this was a huge deal! I also met my lifelong friend, Sarah. And of course, we all remember Kerri Strug.</li>
<li>Olympics 2000- I started 9th grade in 2000. I never imagined that high school would be such a big change, but transitioning into high school really stressed me out. I actually had to study, and I started competitive cheerleading. Well, with this stress, my hair started to fall out, and I got horrible acne. Great! Every 14-year-old's dream- thin hair and a pimply forehead! </li>
<li>Olympics 2004- I started school at Texas A&M in 2004. I was actually at Fish Camp while the Olympics were on and watched the closing ceremonies in my dorm. Starting college was a lot like starting high school minus the hair loss. I was so home sick that I didn't have an appetite for weeks, and I cried... a lot.</li>
<li>Olympics 2008- 2008 was a pretty big year that doesn't need too much explaining. I graduated college, started teaching, and got engaged. That was a good year... and I'm a pretty big Nastia Liukin fan.</li>
<li>Olympics 2012- I am in the middle of the big to-do! We close on our first home on Friday. Our apartment is slight chaos at the moment. I have piles of school stuff in one room and boxes of house stuff in another. I know we will always remember watching the Olympics and packing up at the same time.</li>
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If I had to make predictions for Olympics 2016 for the Schielacks, I would imagine that it would be perfect timing for a ... </div>
</div>Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-60652311613626480672012-08-02T10:13:00.000-05:002012-08-02T10:13:42.872-05:00Flight Delay<br />
As much fun as we had on our trip, we are always ready to go home on the last day. Our flight schedule home was departing Boston at 5:55 p.m., landing New York around 8:00 p.m., and leaving for Houston around 11:30 p.m. I am one of those super, paranoid people that needs to be at the airport two hours before the flight actually leaves. I would rather sit at the gate with peace of mind than frantically running through the airport. With that being said, we got to the Boston airport at 3:45 p.m. We saw that another flight was about to leave for New York, so Kyle went to the desk to see if we could get on that flight and possibly get home earlier. Well, Kyle came back with worse news than expected. Not only were we not getting on that flight, but our own flight to New York was delayed because of storms. Guess what? We were going to miss our connecting flight to Houston, and the next flight wasn't leaving until 9:00 p.m. the next day! I went from calm to basket case in no time! We didn't know if we needed to book another hotel in Boston, wait it out at the airport, or book a direct flight with another airline. We had it in our heads that it was the end of the trip, and we wanted to go home!<br />
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Well, after thirty minutes of Kyle going back and forth with the evil lady at the check-in desk and a crying wife, we found out that our Houston flight was also delayed. There was a little hope that we would make our connecting flight. And, that is how it went for four hours! One minute our flight was delayed, then it wasn't, then delayed more than the first time.<br />
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Our flight eventually left Boston at 9:15 p.m. We were just relieved to be on a plane, but we knew that we would be running to the gate of our connecting flight as it was departing New York at 10:40 p.m. So, we land in New York, run to the gate, and what do we see? People. Everywhere. Annoyed people. Everywhere. JFK airport was a mess. Not only was our flight delayed, but almost every flight out of New York had been delayed, and I have never seen so many people lying around an airport (and looking like they wanted to cry). I guess there was no need to run to the gate. Our flight was delayed until 12:18 a.m.<br />
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We decide that we might as well get something to eat, so we leave our gate. We are only away for about 30 minutes, and what joy do we find when we get back? The flight was delayed another hour. There are no more tears at this point from me- only delusional laughing.<br />
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<img class="largePrevImg" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e9b1d69f3100000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" /></div>Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-21862685130624455252012-08-02T10:11:00.002-05:002012-08-02T10:11:56.789-05:00Trip RecapKyle and I just got back from our summer trip a week ago. We spent three nights in New York and then took the Amtrak for another three nights in Boston. Even though I had been to both cities, it was so much fun to experience it with Kyle.<br />
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I think we managed to hit every tourist spot- we are such a cliche. The highlights:<br />
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Day 1: Museum of Natural History, Central Park, The Met, glimpse of the Guggenheim, The MOMA, Top of the Rock, Magnolia Bakery<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Museum of Natural History</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d910b3127ccef0ea72efa79100000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Met</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d910b3127ccef0ead14966ce00000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Top of the Rock</td></tr>
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Day 2: Sopranos Tour, city tour, Wicked<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8f9293e9600000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sopranos Tour: In front of the restaurant Christopher was shot at.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e963c21e7c00000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sopranos Tour: In front of the Sopranos' church.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e9b9e51e3600000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sopranos Tour: from the credits.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e83a41ff3700000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sopranos Tour: Sitting in Tony's booth from the last scene of the show.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e9eb0a1ef000000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">in Times Square</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8b82b7e2c00000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">in Times Square</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e90c9cdfbd00000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Empire State Building</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e868d77eb800000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">at Wicked</td></tr>
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Day 3: Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Brooklyn, Brooklyn Bridge, Little Italy, 9/11 Memorial, night tour, Shake Shack<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8702d7e4e00000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kyle peeking out the ferry boat to glimpse the Statue of Liberty</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e85bffbf2100000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Statue of Liberty</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e96a31df2300000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Statue of Liberty
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e978b8dfa300000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Statue of Liberty
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8d502bf9b00000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brooklyn Bridge</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8bc177e1200000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dinner in Little Italy</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8dd52bfcf00000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">World Trade Center</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8a0a8ff9300000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Times Square at night</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="232" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e943b21e1c00000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">late night snacks :)</td></tr>
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Day 4: Amtrak, Fenway Park, Prudential Skywalk, Boston Public Library<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e815873e4e00000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting the Sopranos ready for our Amtrak ride. We watched Sopranos the whole train ride and every night before bed.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e88a407e5e00000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fenway Park</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e87b17bfd900000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">in front of the Boston Public Library</td></tr>
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Day 5: Freedom Trail, Old State House, South Meeting House, Paul Revere House, Faneuil Hall, North End tour<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8f369bfe300000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paul Revere's Tomb</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e94637df3300000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sam Adam's Tomb</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e846807ef800000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mitt 2012!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e95aaa5e9000000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Massachusetts State House</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e815773ebe00000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paul Revere's House</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e83d313eec00000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">old meeting place for the Boston mob</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8d124bfbf00000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">cannolis!</td></tr>
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Day 6: JFK Library, Harvard tour, shopping in Cambridge, Mr. Bartley's Burgers<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e80a79ff1700000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">JFK Library</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8f76c3ed400000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">JFK Library</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8a0357e3e00000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Harvard</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">John Harvard Statue</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e945c29f5f00000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ice cream break in Cambridge</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e8cd08bf9d00000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We went to the hotel after dinner with some Sam Adams and watched the Sopranos.</td></tr>
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Day 7: Sam Adams brewery, MIT, MAJOR FLIGHT DELAY<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hops from the Sam Adams brewery</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outside Sam Adams</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="largePrevImg" height="290" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e9861c5e4800000030O00EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">MIT</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="zoomPrevImg" height="266" src="http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2d911b3127ccef0e80e0e7e5200000030O10EatmjZoxbMQe3nwg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D1/rx%3D720/ry%3D480/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Saying goodbye to our hotel and ready to go home!</td></tr>
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<br />
... too bad our flight was delayed.<br />
<br />Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-67580756627016822342012-07-19T17:37:00.000-05:002012-07-19T17:37:28.849-05:00My Carry-on BagWhen we were little kids, every summer we would take a road trip to Salado, Texas. There were two things we looked forward to the most about our annual trip- the car ride and swimming pool. Our road trips were when kids didn't wear seat belts and televisions in the car didn't exist. In order to have a perfectly fun car ride, we would pack our ballet bags full of necessary junk. Barbies, notepads, books, games, crayons, you name it. This was the one bag our mom would allow us to pack on our own, and we didn't hold back. The five of us kids would sprawl out on the pallet of sleeping bags in the back of the Suburban, and with every precious toy nearby, we would dream of jumping in to that big, hotel pool.<br />
<br />
Tomorrow, Kyle and I leave for our New York/Boston trip. I have all of the high priority items checked off the list. We have everything booked, our bags mostly packed, and Bailey's food bagged up for my mom's. Yet, twenty years later, I find myself still obsessed with my carry-on bag. I had to make sure all of the essentials made their way in to the carry-on because what would this almost twenty-six year old do without her odd assortment of stuff.<br />
<br />
The carry on bag breakdown:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE56vqlD5gUyQ7QjJEElxlMmmrgptoZ_ft0-mXoQVdL1AHRMlSH1DQb5cQ-Y7fSR56wXNhyphenhyphendHKZ5UtwZ8I1VxPwWCFImeIz-FiDiNJ2FJ2B4qZx-qX1jgiOtmabipFyXjYv6VNrO5FhsRe/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE56vqlD5gUyQ7QjJEElxlMmmrgptoZ_ft0-mXoQVdL1AHRMlSH1DQb5cQ-Y7fSR56wXNhyphenhyphendHKZ5UtwZ8I1VxPwWCFImeIz-FiDiNJ2FJ2B4qZx-qX1jgiOtmabipFyXjYv6VNrO5FhsRe/s320/4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The carry on bag</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSW512249ee97xlV9OB2qN7B93_ofFzdaGiRL9Lhx_XSAX3QAe-02mBs1mVMF4dg-hy2DrSZOYHtV7YJJWbiFAbWwTHHjF77ZfURsHeyByWyYA_NisUvFPi7xiACibLnG9DTmuy39ZJacK/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSW512249ee97xlV9OB2qN7B93_ofFzdaGiRL9Lhx_XSAX3QAe-02mBs1mVMF4dg-hy2DrSZOYHtV7YJJWbiFAbWwTHHjF77ZfURsHeyByWyYA_NisUvFPi7xiACibLnG9DTmuy39ZJacK/s320/5.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My purse that goes inside the carry on bag</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRcBmLjP6-I-mW5WAnTqxkqR7T-1VEbAqcVTwytv_Ox6HVhM-r8AfNgViBDTwuP3XgpiQulQcX-JF6MRQQX6_svuC3GFMGEu9zrOgHZ3-R1occmMS60DjeuTh5DML7z6-LvsFr0ywt37TZ/s1600/6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRcBmLjP6-I-mW5WAnTqxkqR7T-1VEbAqcVTwytv_Ox6HVhM-r8AfNgViBDTwuP3XgpiQulQcX-JF6MRQQX6_svuC3GFMGEu9zrOgHZ3-R1occmMS60DjeuTh5DML7z6-LvsFr0ywt37TZ/s320/6.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A scarf in case I get cold on the plane</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5WjMNLPM3UgX-j4f9QLB9D2VDzNgVDLGR3CHtq6J49-oiLpJkALhq38Lhab4D57JMri_5LQqa7oN3bvaqhHDYlsXPMuEA04TZTua41v7D6iw7GQ9nSh7NUXaHRqhZe6UJI_QZhaQZLwbT/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5WjMNLPM3UgX-j4f9QLB9D2VDzNgVDLGR3CHtq6J49-oiLpJkALhq38Lhab4D57JMri_5LQqa7oN3bvaqhHDYlsXPMuEA04TZTua41v7D6iw7GQ9nSh7NUXaHRqhZe6UJI_QZhaQZLwbT/s320/3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another small bag filled with post-its, Life Savers, crackers, head phones, Sudoku, and a pencil</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivgEGNLiYvSThj-2zcVXlWc3c0Cm_41lxPepWS-bvXcTgPpVKVfOe7af-EXuFmgFaAtLmCB9YbpJUKpjjHxzKNGEjg6SNDu55XEqNn4FvFEmvHxTHIBS22pXN1N0UPw2xGVs5KY7O05FeX/s1600/7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivgEGNLiYvSThj-2zcVXlWc3c0Cm_41lxPepWS-bvXcTgPpVKVfOe7af-EXuFmgFaAtLmCB9YbpJUKpjjHxzKNGEjg6SNDu55XEqNn4FvFEmvHxTHIBS22pXN1N0UPw2xGVs5KY7O05FeX/s320/7.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My slippers</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5v1U16affBncLm2cwchWuzVIoVnzlr790fD3vBKtTxoPyMsFDXhn2gsCtuTatX2QjJe_Gwpk2C_ABeZ8au9b6e7TjlPMGsLnPLlfUWvp8301JsMJclZ0aZDCt-Y3PEiATHt_hbep3NZbF/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5v1U16affBncLm2cwchWuzVIoVnzlr790fD3vBKtTxoPyMsFDXhn2gsCtuTatX2QjJe_Gwpk2C_ABeZ8au9b6e7TjlPMGsLnPLlfUWvp8301JsMJclZ0aZDCt-Y3PEiATHt_hbep3NZbF/s320/2.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunglasses</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivPNG5RJz-Muzn5tRDouCRKF_wg4JWPI3vNl-JIcH_cZBVrvmlqse1V5wiLQvryMdZ6jtHEUVPPPABp0NoMWP_h-fkY_YaP1hBFj8ODnwoGp3B9s72lOpHvu4Fb-MDd_1SUHSZnfmSKBII/s1600/8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivPNG5RJz-Muzn5tRDouCRKF_wg4JWPI3vNl-JIcH_cZBVrvmlqse1V5wiLQvryMdZ6jtHEUVPPPABp0NoMWP_h-fkY_YaP1hBFj8ODnwoGp3B9s72lOpHvu4Fb-MDd_1SUHSZnfmSKBII/s320/8.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Season 3 of Sopranos to watch on the laptop</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGxUaYi2h_lbqSwaWF5P05axWbW_qV-6GHN53s2kbWC_lC-Lo0cOIc90DdJ0Lzshb0Ila30pS6o3LlfpAKsLBazX6W-0ybFTWGrL_yHtFyvUhSOOZCy8PyS3niQvo_icO0P0Rzr1dU2rVE/s1600/9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGxUaYi2h_lbqSwaWF5P05axWbW_qV-6GHN53s2kbWC_lC-Lo0cOIc90DdJ0Lzshb0Ila30pS6o3LlfpAKsLBazX6W-0ybFTWGrL_yHtFyvUhSOOZCy8PyS3niQvo_icO0P0Rzr1dU2rVE/s320/9.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My book</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOpve3wCwQF1J-yXyNi9PuGT-fM8tKYKJ0mpnftQQRUrqoZs2GOCQlGniX5AD0U_HiHBMokmfDEAPOUAc0QJ3090BPsoIqpFMz258rI1SLbIkX1aryR32BC0PrAydK4d_C9GFd-iMhvp4B/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOpve3wCwQF1J-yXyNi9PuGT-fM8tKYKJ0mpnftQQRUrqoZs2GOCQlGniX5AD0U_HiHBMokmfDEAPOUAc0QJ3090BPsoIqpFMz258rI1SLbIkX1aryR32BC0PrAydK4d_C9GFd-iMhvp4B/s320/1.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Most importantly, the folder with confirmations, tickets, etc.</td></tr>
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I think I'm all set!<br />
<br />Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-17380074137930247542012-07-18T12:16:00.002-05:002012-07-18T12:16:18.564-05:00Flood AftermathAfter I left my yearbook training in Dallas, I headed straight for my mom's house. The house flooded on Friday, so I was seeing everything three days after the flood. When I walked in, the first thing I noticed was not the disarray of furniture or missing sheetrock from the walls, but the smell! I really can't describe it. However, imagine the creek/bayou overflowing and sitting in your house for 24 hours. It is just very musty and yuck!<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">My parents live less than a mile from the creek. It is no surprise to any one that the house would eventually flood again. They live in a flood zone, have flood insurance, and have lived through a flood twice before. The first time the house flooded, I was in the 7th grade. Josh (my older brother) was at college, and my little brother and sister were staying at my dad's for the weekend. It was just me, Meghan (my older sister), mom, and Gene (my stepdad). My parents could see that the creek would be unrelenting, so we started moving all belongings upstairs. We were pretty much trapped there, so we sat around, without power, and waited for the water. I remember watching the water start to come in, and the hard wood floors starting to buckle. If you have ever wondered why they are called floating hard woods, well take it from me, they float in water. After that flood, we decided tile floor was a good idea. The flood was no match for the tile floor, and the floor came out victorious in 2001 ... and 2012.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">In our case, as it was now flooded in 1998, 2001, and 2012, we know the house will survive, the treasured belongings will be saved, and everyone will be alright. When standing knee-deep in water in your living room, you almost laugh. How can this be? It is slightly amusing that your dog just paddled across the threshold, right? </span><span style="background-color: white;">Truly, the worst part of a flood is the aftermath.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> It is a mess like no other. My family was able to get the wet sheetrock and base boards out on Monday, but they had to wait to throw away other items until the insurance adjuster came. Sopping wet rugs piled out on the patio brings out a whole other smell- think rotten eggs mixed with elephants. Seriously. But, now that the wet, nasty items are being thrown away or cleaned, the couches and chairs taken to the upholsterer, and the we-can-live-without-this-for-a-while has been packed in boxes, progress can be made. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX6H6MjsHySqpcsS00RR_R6sLNr50QlOYu7yZn4tdQeejceHMWdeNzAIJA1koXIoFPX6h7mS-QTR9LItZ70tSmMok3StXRqBP3fHGCGQjZJLYeN0jLST1wjnw1jGSwiiLOBE4tGBoCt17u/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX6H6MjsHySqpcsS00RR_R6sLNr50QlOYu7yZn4tdQeejceHMWdeNzAIJA1koXIoFPX6h7mS-QTR9LItZ70tSmMok3StXRqBP3fHGCGQjZJLYeN0jLST1wjnw1jGSwiiLOBE4tGBoCt17u/s320/1.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Things that were ruined were taken to the patio to dry. However, it keeps raining. I'm telling you, those rugs stink!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGPl8BKpXq2HSueV-Wg4UaoGm9aD91XWDzTmsqZQFdC3CzL1adz_DZ-vFYhAS6mxi44jNy3_gekM5omtc_JsUSyhoxlQMiakkkFt-X2oCXpPxpFzs61BByXZCPQJ1RPJUWSx_sI-XNHgaq/s1600/10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGPl8BKpXq2HSueV-Wg4UaoGm9aD91XWDzTmsqZQFdC3CzL1adz_DZ-vFYhAS6mxi44jNy3_gekM5omtc_JsUSyhoxlQMiakkkFt-X2oCXpPxpFzs61BByXZCPQJ1RPJUWSx_sI-XNHgaq/s320/10.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My mom's room is the only bedroom on the first floor. A lot of their things had to be thrown on the bed because they were running out of room upstairs.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoc0WmvfUGxrwyu_XAPmCIVHV7vFfoXIHQLoHiKPxQP9D_mDIV-qeLHlZ0N8W6360lDk-sNNiXaJDyKJMeIt5s1lbx4IL8ddJHqAb8kTmgTEEdX4eDD-TZ8PLUdyxCwpL0QIHV1pgQoBHg/s1600/11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoc0WmvfUGxrwyu_XAPmCIVHV7vFfoXIHQLoHiKPxQP9D_mDIV-qeLHlZ0N8W6360lDk-sNNiXaJDyKJMeIt5s1lbx4IL8ddJHqAb8kTmgTEEdX4eDD-TZ8PLUdyxCwpL0QIHV1pgQoBHg/s320/11.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The living room with missing sheetrock and most of the furniture crammed in to the middle of the room.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaG-942d1-UMEXkVdNt9Vf-cx9hRsdE67wZtTnmrLf4p6MGsq47wdC8tJU2sGh2aUHBt5joShEa6L_M9s8oeY-kf8BPlafSCuJGBIA-__zIKax1ZcFBiXxvnBfEDw21asHMvqatZbqhtMO/s1600/12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaG-942d1-UMEXkVdNt9Vf-cx9hRsdE67wZtTnmrLf4p6MGsq47wdC8tJU2sGh2aUHBt5joShEa6L_M9s8oeY-kf8BPlafSCuJGBIA-__zIKax1ZcFBiXxvnBfEDw21asHMvqatZbqhtMO/s320/12.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jill's bedroom with all of the the packed up items.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiBhYCJExgoYN3zoURnYFeGdlTDA05obrOEXb6zztz8C_um4lg6qvzPIaGyUwb-UABictX7I6-JV-52BQzfynOLHBgo3ABaiTfqtSLRAesFdw3Bc3z_9SFwi57swEgE6Yy_Z49NICzA2dj/s1600/13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiBhYCJExgoYN3zoURnYFeGdlTDA05obrOEXb6zztz8C_um4lg6qvzPIaGyUwb-UABictX7I6-JV-52BQzfynOLHBgo3ABaiTfqtSLRAesFdw3Bc3z_9SFwi57swEgE6Yy_Z49NICzA2dj/s320/13.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Upstairs bedroom with downstairs furniture.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR6vJkQJk3T10C0X9GU466NB8CBAbAyKnkzGvVglMph4hiCsVKzhTka4D-v6Bkdk43kQgnLNyNPykiTMMiwwZcuhgWMmb1L93njLsiSjySc-lB2LnD1rF7PPPfMGSFC83ilKFSV-w9tDnb/s1600/14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR6vJkQJk3T10C0X9GU466NB8CBAbAyKnkzGvVglMph4hiCsVKzhTka4D-v6Bkdk43kQgnLNyNPykiTMMiwwZcuhgWMmb1L93njLsiSjySc-lB2LnD1rF7PPPfMGSFC83ilKFSV-w9tDnb/s320/14.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dining room with missing sheetrock and yucky floors.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7b9xL51thwTVG_72MmjZfErs14X97xKXxW-SrrBu9xLzvLeBTytm7KI_NrDH77weKROltUUt77rFfBjqUvIO5MtQXauMfLMhJq9SWiwZn10WrP4yQovOyT1jBAufbaKuZgk-HiITRr42f/s1600/15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7b9xL51thwTVG_72MmjZfErs14X97xKXxW-SrrBu9xLzvLeBTytm7KI_NrDH77weKROltUUt77rFfBjqUvIO5MtQXauMfLMhJq9SWiwZn10WrP4yQovOyT1jBAufbaKuZgk-HiITRr42f/s320/15.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The pool has turned green, and that is one of many minnows that have made their home inside the pool.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhusFq2MbVE5akiec_ZnFqw9okDmg8C5tjOkc5hiWdlisOJzkkmyjMXctoUqp7GOElh17z3tNmDf6jI_NL8oGY-u99-ROcCkSvqDcgfH0wCJhI-T3BCdNz8lIBDwaDHrto5Z0rhiuSGJV9s/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhusFq2MbVE5akiec_ZnFqw9okDmg8C5tjOkc5hiWdlisOJzkkmyjMXctoUqp7GOElh17z3tNmDf6jI_NL8oGY-u99-ROcCkSvqDcgfH0wCJhI-T3BCdNz8lIBDwaDHrto5Z0rhiuSGJV9s/s320/2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another messy room with missing sheetrock.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4besuRIr1yTTUl0oMZWcBv8M0Welg0D0FnQc2MZfKcj0Gru7sv_7NmFCzcRnSZVog4pB4whwVtkXeOOrSgAXuE98yll1CmQ2yCEHFnnWsixAjWoJMc26YDGBkvw_lcZAcADRRqG9pUn2H/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4besuRIr1yTTUl0oMZWcBv8M0Welg0D0FnQc2MZfKcj0Gru7sv_7NmFCzcRnSZVog4pB4whwVtkXeOOrSgAXuE98yll1CmQ2yCEHFnnWsixAjWoJMc26YDGBkvw_lcZAcADRRqG9pUn2H/s320/3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With all of the missing sheetrock, you can see from room-to-room.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg7mLIFi8yB2tEIeWVgwGby_mYKpQXCLT7J03pk8Pn90DyL78Adoai3szAu4g3vfHTmLqPEnqQArvOPj9MaFscw2Yc1nJONZyqYQP2e6HXTsXZa1aESGKCsqGfY-H5Q_O7rAnYlKrf8JFQ/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg7mLIFi8yB2tEIeWVgwGby_mYKpQXCLT7J03pk8Pn90DyL78Adoai3szAu4g3vfHTmLqPEnqQArvOPj9MaFscw2Yc1nJONZyqYQP2e6HXTsXZa1aESGKCsqGfY-H5Q_O7rAnYlKrf8JFQ/s320/4.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Back entry</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHsrM-sGKfAKb_Fug5V_qMC4IQSx4SFhYfMaQP365BLqp_jGT8JqXWne6fzJqTU3-MsKJHa22v-ZqTc2I80w7XoCd4vKSn73cHA2w0iJ7Jal7d0ZS1JuYyYkIpbuo5m5NPlsuu2-zw1CCG/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHsrM-sGKfAKb_Fug5V_qMC4IQSx4SFhYfMaQP365BLqp_jGT8JqXWne6fzJqTU3-MsKJHa22v-ZqTc2I80w7XoCd4vKSn73cHA2w0iJ7Jal7d0ZS1JuYyYkIpbuo5m5NPlsuu2-zw1CCG/s320/5.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another view of my mom's room.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2U37KOEFAO3wHvDEGPG_sPL8LW2l7gxlHvQvQIyd0101xaegZZ5HOuaKZMxRD2AiOkHWP4EHZKPNpYfBJEzFiFylaAVbbPeGkl1AfaJ605tO-qTt21IWoTr6fyL_assxd2cqO2Mh9HFQT/s1600/6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2U37KOEFAO3wHvDEGPG_sPL8LW2l7gxlHvQvQIyd0101xaegZZ5HOuaKZMxRD2AiOkHWP4EHZKPNpYfBJEzFiFylaAVbbPeGkl1AfaJ605tO-qTt21IWoTr6fyL_assxd2cqO2Mh9HFQT/s320/6.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking down from the stairs.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq6fmoIzv1kwdl6n70iISrs_oHX6RfZLiPN-zCgmix9HDV6ddylMlU1V64J-DrEvf4tnCyjAHFwGheaEq9LP0Pv9RUgGs6KK1fZAG4E0XaU8Gkyvut7HqN_9Uz82TTUoEtIS4M3-hLqPVT/s1600/8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq6fmoIzv1kwdl6n70iISrs_oHX6RfZLiPN-zCgmix9HDV6ddylMlU1V64J-DrEvf4tnCyjAHFwGheaEq9LP0Pv9RUgGs6KK1fZAG4E0XaU8Gkyvut7HqN_9Uz82TTUoEtIS4M3-hLqPVT/s320/8.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking down from the stairs.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT0HlJmxUqx0jfgN1VeNVIS7glEv4JCHw2eWY-sNcFsJnr39iZF1LH-cDwHZd56ASBm1mD0g9Xoup3PChm3hEgENXy-wyjVmU3VB_NcFJfRue27KsClhlAosNbqkOwegXclW2PP-MLRziG/s1600/9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT0HlJmxUqx0jfgN1VeNVIS7glEv4JCHw2eWY-sNcFsJnr39iZF1LH-cDwHZd56ASBm1mD0g9Xoup3PChm3hEgENXy-wyjVmU3VB_NcFJfRue27KsClhlAosNbqkOwegXclW2PP-MLRziG/s320/9.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Piles of baseboards and garbage bags of sheetrock.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEWtlCOVrDd0po4n8Jl2SaoDoiIHAlGkOh-XVOhFql28GIFz24xH0rhSpTKqmMl9d4RauERcJ79Oc8Vyx4Pu7PA6DQ1hH1H27pYI8dfIZCYpj5tcNqXwatLZwVHk3Iwlj9kQeSIZRZJ7cZ/s1600/7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEWtlCOVrDd0po4n8Jl2SaoDoiIHAlGkOh-XVOhFql28GIFz24xH0rhSpTKqmMl9d4RauERcJ79Oc8Vyx4Pu7PA6DQ1hH1H27pYI8dfIZCYpj5tcNqXwatLZwVHk3Iwlj9kQeSIZRZJ7cZ/s320/7.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And, the "sheetrock guys" told us we shouldn't be breathing in the contaminated air. We only put the masks on for the picture. :)</td></tr>
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<br />Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-75127192475672278152012-07-14T20:49:00.002-05:002012-07-15T22:17:02.011-05:00Allie and Kyle Firsts: Buying a HomeThat is right! We are buying a house! We seriously didn't know when this day would come that we would be ready to leave our apartment, but a series of events have led us to this very special purchase.<br />
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Kyle and I are very methodical with our goals, finances, and life in general. We have tried to stick to "the plan." As we all know, tell God your plan and He'll kindly laugh and show you what's up. Now nothing really dramatic has happened that has caused us to buy a house. However, everything neatly fell in to place- God's perfect timing. Kyle and I had always imagined that the perfect time to buy a house would be dictated by a specific amount of money in the savings account. We also thought buying our first house meant buying a house that we could have several kids in- a house most likely in the burbs. Well, since our savings account wasn't up to the "magic number" and kids are still a few years away (there I go again with telling God the plan), we thought the whole house thing was still out of the picture.<br />
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Our apartment lease comes up in September. We obviously knew that we were going to have to make a decision. Should we renew our lease, find another apartment, or look for rental town homes? A house? No way! Well, for the past six months we had been doing exactly that. We would research other apartments and randomly search for affordable town home rentals, but nothing ever felt like the right move. After all, we love our current apartment, but we always knew rent was going to go up. It didn't seem reasonable for us to live at this location with higher rent and both of us commuting to work.<br />
<br />
A couple of weeks ago we come home, and our renewal papers were wedged in the crack of our front door. Yep- the rent went up! I immediately started to freak out a little bit. I knew that we were most likely going to move, but I was kind of emotional with the reality of it. We are sentimental people, and this is our first "home" together and the only place in Houston that Kyle, my small town boy, has ever lived. Well, I channel the OCD Googler that I am and start plugging in every "good" zip code in to apartmentfinder.com and har.com. I sent Kyle a series of whiny e-mails and text messages with my mediocre results of our future residence. Kyle was feeling just as weary. I'm seriously not exaggerating- we were very upset by this, and I think the root of our concern was no other part of town felt like home. Until... Kyle called me as I sit in tears at the computer, "Al, we're going to buy a home. Why not? Start looking."<br />
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It was strange how instantaneously my worries vanished. I no longer sensed any sadness over moving. It was like I could feel God saying, "Allie, it's okay. I know the plan."<br />
<br />
Well, the original "Allie and Kyle" plan involved moving to Katy (near Kyle's work), Cypress (near my work), or somewhere central to both. So, again, I get on har.com and feverishly research areas and homes. I infiltrate Kyle's work e-mail with all of these options. It was amazing how many homes I found that I was excited to show Kyle. However, there was something very constant- we didn't feel drawn to the Katy and Cypress homes... and we thought we would! Even though we had always imagined raising our children in the burbs, we just weren't ready to move out of the city.<br />
<br />
We found the perfect house in the neighborhood that we have always loved. It was an adorable, tiny 1940s home, and we fell in love with it immediately. We could picture our life there... and Bailey running around in the backyard! We knew that it would need some paint and t.l.c., but we were ready to move forward. We put an offer down on the house. We were so excited... we drove by the house any chance we got and would plan and scheme all the things we were going to do to it. AND THEN... in the midst of counter offers and almost finalizing a deal, we found THE house on har.com. It was essentially the house we had an offer on, but all of the updates were already complete. It was exactly the changes we wanted to do to the other house, but we weren't going to have to do them. Again, God was there. We never would have ever found THE house if He wasn't making provisions for us to see it. THE house was much more than the original house, and it was something that we wouldn't have originally considered. But, when we saw it online, we knew... the Schielacks were moving in if we had anything to do with it! Slight problem... I was going out of town, and we were anxious to move forward. We didn't want anyone else snagging our house. :)<br />
<br />
Well, I have a lot of faith in my sweet Kyle. He went with our realtor to see the house, placed an offer on the house, and our offer was accepted all while I was at the lake! He called in the midst of 4th of July fireworks, and said "babe, we're going to be homeowners!" I was overwhelmed with emotions- so excited and at peace. The owners had accepted our first offer. Again, God.<br />
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And, when I saw the house for the first time in person, it was exactly as I had hoped! I can see us there. And Bailey.<br />
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Stay tuned...Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-11717900238128546962012-07-14T19:45:00.000-05:002012-07-14T19:45:28.349-05:002nd Wedding AnniversaryI can't believe Kyle and I are already celebrating our 2nd wedding anniversary- it feels like the wedding was just yesterday! Kyle and I have vowed (no pun intended) to always do something special for our anniversary no matter the circumstances, so I had been planning our anniversary for quite sometime. At one point, I had a weekend booked in Fredericksburg, considered going to Galveston, and ultimately chose something more low key due to the 4th of July lake trip and our New York/Boston trip being so close to our anniversary.<br />
<br />
Our anniversary fell on a Tuesday, so Kyle was at work most of the day. While he was off at work, Jill, my mom, and I went out for lunch and shopping for my nephew's 1st birthday. It was such a fun, relaxing day, and a wonderful way to spend part of my anniversary. My mom played a HUGE role in our wedding day, so it was special to celebrate with her too!<br />
<br />
After shopping, I went home to spruce up for the evening. Kyle and I had early dinner reservations downtown because we were going to see The Lion King at Hobby Center! I knew Kyle would love it, and it was something memorable for us to do on our 2nd anniversary!<br />
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How was the 2nd year of marriage different from the 1st? The 2nd was better! We are the epitome of a cliche, but I love him more and more each day. I love that we sit for hours and talk, we can make each other laugh, we are growing in our faith together, we listen to each other (even if that does mean having to raise our voice a little), we support each others goals, and the list goes on. Now, don't worry... he has several qualities and habits that drive me nuts, so please don't roll your eyes as you read this or delete me from Facebook. :)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD9yMScGkC9yL-jF-Odm9gUhkayj7hqGBAULlCZ4WmKs1udFiNH63WOWpB9dmz-87E3Ntarq-sDuBoXGIty1mFETinRE65kZMJEMi4S70nRgVAoTcQXeKC0HyvtNd4fzW3nRpnLmwXQvpg/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img $ca="true" border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD9yMScGkC9yL-jF-Odm9gUhkayj7hqGBAULlCZ4WmKs1udFiNH63WOWpB9dmz-87E3Ntarq-sDuBoXGIty1mFETinRE65kZMJEMi4S70nRgVAoTcQXeKC0HyvtNd4fzW3nRpnLmwXQvpg/s320/1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;">Astros game the Sunday before our Anniversary</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR6jtURFphoG20KDzVxFs8BgI42NJOjN8I6l1s3-T6v-eYzTRnvSB6RQSf6NPB88kn8_Za2TH01h0uCF_NinnADvHvRCb-EiCyypEcBYtMC-44uVoZpC9z9ZJ5zs55_cplGCGfjlje2xzs/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img $ca="true" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR6jtURFphoG20KDzVxFs8BgI42NJOjN8I6l1s3-T6v-eYzTRnvSB6RQSf6NPB88kn8_Za2TH01h0uCF_NinnADvHvRCb-EiCyypEcBYtMC-44uVoZpC9z9ZJ5zs55_cplGCGfjlje2xzs/s320/5.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;">Funny story... We wrote those cards to each other because we were forced to. :) We wrote them in pre-marital counseling a few months before we got married. We thought we were supposed to open them on our first anniversary, but we forgot about them last year. I found them a few months ago, and we decided to wait until this anniversary to open them. Well, the first sentence I read, " blah blah blah <strong>5th anniversary</strong>..." Oops!! We immediately shut them, and now the letters are tucked away until our FIFTH anniversary. My bad.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlmBwu-mToiVZj40YfrXVRbcF1TDIprgqN-P2WbS1EhkLjhCTHovbkHKQM5jMLa1VdD6i3HZH2Zxrvs_bgd1BUYTHnvhTu_5yOw1V2p1htLvl0N07__wBnxL09vyUsrGVB2aVipmY47bqp/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img $ca="true" border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlmBwu-mToiVZj40YfrXVRbcF1TDIprgqN-P2WbS1EhkLjhCTHovbkHKQM5jMLa1VdD6i3HZH2Zxrvs_bgd1BUYTHnvhTu_5yOw1V2p1htLvl0N07__wBnxL09vyUsrGVB2aVipmY47bqp/s320/4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
At dinner</div>
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<tr><td style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvYnIUiizNm1s2Ccnx8n0A5TU4mMMj77Z204lb7hTAeZFeRtZ80Uhs5jaToC4GBvjo__rVlvAHpgx7iBxmlrsFXLwSmlI5_EvVV0EPvczaiOU6CSTPQFv0yMXxgmUnyzX4IEGK8iXqxxG-/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img $ca="true" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvYnIUiizNm1s2Ccnx8n0A5TU4mMMj77Z204lb7hTAeZFeRtZ80Uhs5jaToC4GBvjo__rVlvAHpgx7iBxmlrsFXLwSmlI5_EvVV0EPvczaiOU6CSTPQFv0yMXxgmUnyzX4IEGK8iXqxxG-/s320/2.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the Lion King</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_MZXt5MXCuzHDk8jciYJZcl2KNHu-PuQWqo274zVRt4cuvSh1jEACLgYWspOakIJ6xThEdeb6GRMD5ytOTkI8yTs8XqHR05pDyQq7wRfEsbmsPmOQ2Jr2eIUzWiWnOWPoFZv2pSjWB0ol/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $ca="true" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_MZXt5MXCuzHDk8jciYJZcl2KNHu-PuQWqo274zVRt4cuvSh1jEACLgYWspOakIJ6xThEdeb6GRMD5ytOTkI8yTs8XqHR05pDyQq7wRfEsbmsPmOQ2Jr2eIUzWiWnOWPoFZv2pSjWB0ol/s320/3.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_eo8fvgeURsyHXyk9o8uZg2M0jsioGLVbzwEbklFBxF2BZrhb0WOEbPTh28reMRHpobD7lf-yyLtL6PzPii-Zs721bN7s-949_Ds0zCEF-FCgGuQPmtd3j-me9fVAtxtSyU0m-VSyKUlH/s1600/7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img $ca="true" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_eo8fvgeURsyHXyk9o8uZg2M0jsioGLVbzwEbklFBxF2BZrhb0WOEbPTh28reMRHpobD7lf-yyLtL6PzPii-Zs721bN7s-949_Ds0zCEF-FCgGuQPmtd3j-me9fVAtxtSyU0m-VSyKUlH/s320/7.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2nd Anniversary is the cotton anniversary... Kyle bought me a monogrammed apron. </td></tr>
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Flashback...<br />
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<br /></div>Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-47087453685521523662012-07-13T19:40:00.000-05:002012-07-13T19:40:33.960-05:00Yearbook and a Flood<br />
Next year I am going to be the yearbook teacher (as well as teaching World Cultures) at my school. I really am excited to take on this new challenge, but I have been kind of anxious about it since I don't really know what I am doing. Well, until today. I just spent my first day of yearbook training in Dallas, and I have 3 more to go. This might not seem like such a big deal, but driving to Dallas by myself and staying in a hotel room by myself has been nothing short of character building. I usually brag about the fact that I am a loner and enjoy my solitude, but there is something certainly awkward about being alone in unfamiliar territory. AND, my family's house flooded while I am stuck in a Texas-themed conference center surrounded by women that fit the very nature of every cliche you've ever imagined about teachers. Not to mention, you would think that a room of yearbook teachers would know the basic functions of a computer!<br />
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Anyways, like I said, my family's house flooded as I am here in Dallas. This will be the third time the neighborhood has flooded since my parents have lived there, but it doesn't make it any more tolerable. We, the family, have mastered the art of rushing valuables, pictures, clothes, furniture, etc. upstairs and elevating couches on to paint cans, but it is certainly surreal when water inches it's way in to your home. Thankfully, nothing of great importance has ever been lost and everyone has always remained safe, yet the aftermath is quite annoying. <br />
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In order to get out of the neighborhood, my brother and his wife rented a canoe from REI and paddled it up to the house. They took 2 trips to collect everyone and the dogs from the house. As I sit typing here in the business center of the hotel, Kyle is away at a bachelor party. It just so happened that Bailey was at my parent's house, and she apparently braved the flood just fine. She hates swimming, so I was surprised when the family sent pictures and videos of her running around in the water. Since Kyle and I are both away, my parents and the dogs are at our apartment while the rest of the family is staying at my brother's house.<br />
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Friday the 13th played it's games at my parent's house, but tomorrow looks to be a very special day. My sweet, precious nephew turns 1! Luckily, all of his aunts and uncles (minus me and Kyle) are having an unforeseen slumber party tonight.... and maybe the next. <br />
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Bailey running around in the water.</div>
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Josh, Anna, and Miles pulling up the driveway in the canoe.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Out of the 6 cars at their house, 4 flooded.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When the pool was starting to over flow</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bailey using the restroom. She could have gone in the house because it wouldn't of mattered, but she still used her manners and went outside. :) Love her!!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My mom and sister standing on the front porch.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_lHgfseachGvq4FONipdCyBgvp6C0dJm5ZBaXOyilpkSOm0z56veBau6bVAXWqGX23YzVEAqi4zDzgy23JjmhdRNYPG-yGUTaFFLOaivYY07pdcoRIlm1GWy4OUeQM978INLaD0ua4842/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_lHgfseachGvq4FONipdCyBgvp6C0dJm5ZBaXOyilpkSOm0z56veBau6bVAXWqGX23YzVEAqi4zDzgy23JjmhdRNYPG-yGUTaFFLOaivYY07pdcoRIlm1GWy4OUeQM978INLaD0ua4842/s320/5.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Front of the house... the water still wasn't at it's highest when this was taken.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrqSDtObssMKQ_hEf9OUVEe7YzHIdzd3qJRs1Can30feJ_MlLFi6RuuqN5n-KqAcE1yRmF-vInyelkBgK7T50-xQwmo5rbXbXOJ2Tm2U4mkglmuzag6AvacEptmGNvM4cIwcLWWfOEhC2V/s1600/7.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrqSDtObssMKQ_hEf9OUVEe7YzHIdzd3qJRs1Can30feJ_MlLFi6RuuqN5n-KqAcE1yRmF-vInyelkBgK7T50-xQwmo5rbXbXOJ2Tm2U4mkglmuzag6AvacEptmGNvM4cIwcLWWfOEhC2V/s320/7.jpeg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Miles with his Aunt Jill-The birthday boy came with his mommy and daddy to rescue everyone!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4LXygisYO-ppW99QLulTtO8CLLNNv7fiUNX1KmnKFnUl5UZuENI-tIE545ASwYqRPtQ7cfwRjKKD3OkosJQxFiif-J1QfDPEHGsz1vP34Rb4ZhlqoHrji9y2qtrlRxpS3d5pVAhE9WHQP/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4LXygisYO-ppW99QLulTtO8CLLNNv7fiUNX1KmnKFnUl5UZuENI-tIE545ASwYqRPtQ7cfwRjKKD3OkosJQxFiif-J1QfDPEHGsz1vP34Rb4ZhlqoHrji9y2qtrlRxpS3d5pVAhE9WHQP/s320/2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first "rescue mission"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizVKPvhlmk1N0osSX7An2FeiFt_bEsDFaHVCDxLuVTUPquMBi3oIU4HKc3egH3YsFxVGbOAG3DLVYB7Tg1YsUipZH-9ZwGyb49zU-S4cVF9AXU_HPM4atBD7VC_EO7JeovtBnco1J6jRkX/s1600/6.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizVKPvhlmk1N0osSX7An2FeiFt_bEsDFaHVCDxLuVTUPquMBi3oIU4HKc3egH3YsFxVGbOAG3DLVYB7Tg1YsUipZH-9ZwGyb49zU-S4cVF9AXU_HPM4atBD7VC_EO7JeovtBnco1J6jRkX/s320/6.jpeg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The second "rescue mission"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyqeox83Jmru373E4tjPt-I_eAzmawxpDb9BYmL-xIV9AYmSwOHxKrPbHjHEPwwhZf_tex7EUJM9UYyewCJS8W-fFi5dza2KxMDOafw4sxriUDWSwG3g5kRnfigeiYVs9iaQB58cBjcuB2/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyqeox83Jmru373E4tjPt-I_eAzmawxpDb9BYmL-xIV9AYmSwOHxKrPbHjHEPwwhZf_tex7EUJM9UYyewCJS8W-fFi5dza2KxMDOafw4sxriUDWSwG3g5kRnfigeiYVs9iaQB58cBjcuB2/s320/1.jpg" width="238" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bailey once she is safe at home! What a day!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<br />Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-30722062311176770002012-06-20T12:06:00.001-05:002012-06-20T12:06:56.680-05:00Jury DutyWell, after having to reschedule twice, I did my job as an American citizen and showed up for jury duty. I went, but I was DREADING it! Jury duty lived up to the hype... it was horrible. I absolutely hate not knowing things. The whole time I was at jury duty it was a constant mystery.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>When are they going to call my name?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Are they going to call my name?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Why did I not eat breakfast? I could be here for hours!</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>How many more games of solitaire will I have to play?!</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Will I make it back in time to go to the bathroom?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Why did this weirdo just sit next to me?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>MAN! They just let 50 people go!</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Why am I moving into another room?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>I wonder how many calories are in that muffin I just bought at the concession?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Why didn't I just throw the summons away and pretend I never got it?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>I should have gone to the bathroom 10 minutes ago. I had time.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Is my phone going to die before I can escape this place?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>What?! Our group is changing rooms again!</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Oh great, a cop!... Oh, what did he say? I can go!!!! :)</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Can you just imagine what happens when I get in a real crisis?</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-61627694149560799222012-06-18T13:40:00.001-05:002012-06-18T13:40:43.397-05:00Dog Collar Overload I just got back from spending 5 nights at the lake. Minus my car almost breaking down an hour away from the lake and the $1000 bill to fix it, the trip was wonderful.<br />
I have been out of town on vacation for 11 of the 18 days that school has been out. In the few days that I have been home, I found my self cleaning, organizing, and catching up on all my riveting shows (Teen Mom, Dance Moms, Love in the Wild... only quality television, of course). Well, in between loads of laundry, I decided it was necessary to organize the 3 "junk drawers" in our laundry room. I knew the drawers were dedicated to the cookbooks, Bailey's stuff, and the 12th Man Towels (knowing Kyle, you know they have a special spot in our house), but all 3 drawers where just a conglomeration of the 3 said things. I started throwing the cookbooks in the top drawer, Bailey's stuff in the second, and the towels in the bottom when I realized the absurd amount of dog collars that were making their way in to the 2nd drawer. Yes, we have in fact become those people that change the dog's collar on a seasonal basis. I'm just not sure how disturbing or awesome it is to have a dog that has 13 collars (and 3 costumes).<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7bNRz-X-n6hxd1usmQWjl9w2pBaKkXHwq3fG28T3MShb5DZGwSuYA5YAVthwqsT08j-6ruAQh1lBkMmBUpyDqvzM7OzOtIWzSTDAZjT0C8sftxMpx2IMvG354eU5EowiMZYawWpBpFkae/s1600/collars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7bNRz-X-n6hxd1usmQWjl9w2pBaKkXHwq3fG28T3MShb5DZGwSuYA5YAVthwqsT08j-6ruAQh1lBkMmBUpyDqvzM7OzOtIWzSTDAZjT0C8sftxMpx2IMvG354eU5EowiMZYawWpBpFkae/s320/collars.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">4 spring/summer collars, 3 Aggie collars for football season, 1 Texans collar, 1 hunting season collar, 1 Halloween collar, 2 Christmas collars</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiC73iYhtXzWfgW6_SKqnqAN4I0W8NJ5CSA6WCWCa43qwQ83d-QgKrJvR4w3UgCTcBkRQkH5MYS-Mp64m5ezMjZJgJhwKF8oSvJmEUoE0hq_M2xWetSNDO5RRfi0H59ioBNnOW3KRU-IGs/s1600/new+collar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiC73iYhtXzWfgW6_SKqnqAN4I0W8NJ5CSA6WCWCa43qwQ83d-QgKrJvR4w3UgCTcBkRQkH5MYS-Mp64m5ezMjZJgJhwKF8oSvJmEUoE0hq_M2xWetSNDO5RRfi0H59ioBNnOW3KRU-IGs/s320/new+collar.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and I guess the new one she currently has on brings her spring/summer collection to 5</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /><div>
Bay, you're the coolest dog around!</div>Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-79174677213869535312012-06-11T19:15:00.002-05:002012-06-11T19:15:56.259-05:00The Girl Trip When noon rolled around on May 31st, my summer started! Although I had joyfully joined in on the inevitable summer countdown some time after spring break, I was a little sad to see the year come to end. This was by far my favorite year of teaching, and I just hope next year goes just as well! But, don't let all of that sap fool you, I was indeed ready for a break.<br />
<div>
As previously mentioned, my sisters, mom, grandma, and I had a trip planned. We left on June 1st- my first official day of summer. We spent three beautiful days in Washington D.C. followed by three chilly days in New York. In DC we enjoyed seeing all the typical first-timer sights, and in New York we kind of took it easy. In case you were wondering...</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Day 1:</div>
<div>
The first day of travelling, for me any way, is all about getting your bearings. We try and plan some low key things on our first days, and this day was just that... minus a whole lot of walking!</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Tour of the Capitol- One of my favorite things we did!</li>
<li>Walk through the Library of Congress- One of the prettiest buildings I have ever seen!</li>
<li>Q&A Session at the Supreme Court- Interesting, but ruined by all of the 9 year olds asking irrelevant questions.</li>
<li>National Archives to see the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution- This was neat to see, but being that our feet, pants, and hair were soaked from the miniature hurricane that came through, we weren't all that sad to head back to our hotel and get into our warm jammies.</li>
</ul>
<div>
Day 2:</div>
</div>
<div>
Day 2 started with a minor mishap on my part. We were supposed to start our morning off with a walking tour of the monuments. We were almost late to the nonexistent tour. Oops! I hadn't checked the tour website in a month, and there was obviously some rescheduling that I wasn't aware of. So, with a minor adjustment to our highly organized itinerary, our day played out like this...</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Quick stop in front of the White House... a mandatory first-timer site!</li>
<li>A few hours spent at the American History Smithsonian and then the Holocaust Museum... and a very brief stint in the National Gallery and Air and Space Smithsonian.</li>
<li>The Lincoln Assassination Tour- One of the highlights of our DC trip! We had a fabulous tour guide who took you through the events and locations leading up to Lincoln's assassination! We didn't go in to Ford's Theater of the Peterson House, but it was amazing nonetheless!</li>
</ul>
It is inevitable that you walk a lot of vacation, even if you use public transportation, but I was curious to see how much we actually did walk. I wore a pedometer that day, and we apparently walked over 15 miles that day!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Day 3:</div>
<div>
This was our "relaxing" day in DC.</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Georgetown Flea Market- It has kind of become a tradition to scope out a good flea market when we are on The Girl Trips. It was a bit off the beaten path, but it was a fun couple of hours. I found a super cute necklace that was created from vintage pieces, my sister and mom bought some photography from a local artist, and my grandma found an antique mirror!</li>
<li>Shopping in Georgetown- After the flea market, we had brunch at Serendipity, and we proceeded to shop around Georgetown's cute main stretch.</li>
<li>Arlington National Cemetery- It might be shameful to admit, but I wasn't all that excited about going here. However, it was very neat, and I am glad we went.</li>
<li>Monuments Tour- Since our mishap from the day before left us without seeing the monuments, I found another tour company that took us for a twilight tour of the monuments. The Lincoln Memorial was my favorite, and I happened to run into some students and teachers from my school that were on their 8th grade trip!</li>
</ul>
<div>
The last 3 days of our trip were spent in New York City. Since this would be our fourth time in NYC, we were able to skip all the major touristy things and kind of lay low.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Day 4:</div>
<div>
We arrived in NYC fairly early, and we were welcomed with rain and chilly weather.</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Uptown Tour- We took the ultra-touristy double decker bus tour of uptown NYC. Overall, it was interesting and we learned/saw some new things, and I have no shame in admitting that we took a bus tour. :)</li>
<li>9/11 Memorial- We had gone down to Ground Zero a couple years back, so it was neat to see the progress that has been made. They have built 2 fountains in the place of the twin towers. It was very inspiring to see.</li>
</ul>
<div>
<br /></div>
Day 5: </div>
<div>
Hands down, this was the most care-free, random day we have ever had on The Girl Trip.</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Today Show- My mom loves Kathie Lee Gifford and has wanted to stop by the Today Show for years. We walked down to Rockefeller Center from our hotel and waited only 10 minutes before my mom got a glimpse of Kathie Lee and Hoda. It made her happy. :)</li>
<li>Tea at the Plaza- Another tradition of sorts has been going to tea. We went to tea at the Ritz when we were in London 2 years ago, and it was so fun that we insisted on going while in New York. Our experience at the Plaza was so-so, but I guess we can check that off the list.</li>
<li>Shopping- We pretty much shopped and strolled the streets most of the day... fine by me!</li>
</ul>
<div>
Day 6:</div>
</div>
</div>
<div>
Our favorite New York day!</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Canal Street- Canal Street is were you can go buy cheap jewelry, scarves, and knock-off merchandise. It is kind of hit or miss, but we had a great time that morning and came away with a lot of cute stuff!</li>
<li>Greenwich Village Food Tour- This was one of the very best tours I have ever done. Our tour guide had the best stories and commentary, and we were taken to some of the greatest little restaurants and shops around Greenwich Village.</li>
<li>Chelsea Market and the Highline- I'm glad we went, but I wouldn't recommend this to anyone that is on a time schedule. There just wasn't that much to do or see.</li>
<li><i>Once</i>- We went and saw <i>Once</i> that evening. It was fantastic, and it won the Tony for best musical (and other things) last night! </li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
All in all, it was a great trip! I was kind of sad to come home except I did miss 2 very important people.<br />
<br />
I am horrible at remembering or wanting to take pictures, so I will try to get those from my sisters... if I remember to do that. That would probably be more interesting than reading my ramblings.<br />
<br />
I must go now... I need to pack for the lake. I'm leaving tomorrow morning. Oh the joys of being a teacher and summer vacation!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-61720233723501379982012-05-24T19:58:00.000-05:002012-05-24T19:58:51.784-05:00Wife vs. HusbandFor the past 10 years my grandma, mom, two sisters, and I have started travelling together every summer. We have affectionately coined our summer travels as "The Girl Trip." Well, since we haven't gone on The Girl Trip since 2009 due to my wedding and, a year later, my sister's, I haven't left Kyle alone since we married. He on the other hand has been to a bagillion bachelor parties and a handful of weekends at the deer lease, so I am no stranger to "Kyle-free" weekends. (I'm a self-proclaimed loner, so "Kyle-free" isn't necessarily a bad thing). <br />
<br />
Naturally, the girls and I are so excited to travel together again, but I have noticed several extra items appear on my "take care of this before you leave" list that weren't there pre-July 10, 2010. <br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>What is Kyle going to eat while I am gone? </i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>What groceries will he need?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Will he remember to make the coffee?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Will Bailey be okay? </i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Does Kyle have enough clean clothes? </i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Will he remember to take out the trash?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Does Kyle remember to not delete Dance Moms: Miami?</i></div>
<br />
Obviously these are things that I don't need to worry about. Kyle isn't helpless or anything, but still, I'm a <strike>control freak</strike> caring wife.<br />
<br />
My husband's thoughts before he goes out of town... "bye, I'll call you when I land."Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-19107363074549841272012-05-23T19:39:00.001-05:002012-05-23T19:39:17.035-05:00Training for a TriathlonNo, I am not training for a triathlon, but Kyle is in full fledged training mode. I'm not really sure when this whim hit him, but let me tell you, it came full force. This doesn't really surprise me about Kyle. (Maybe he is channeling his previous life as a race walker). He is very passionate towards anything he does, yet I wasn't the most encouraging of his new undertaking.<br />
<br />
<br />
Scene: Kyle is researching information about triathlons on the computer. Allie sits nearby playing on her phone. Bailey snores in the background.<br />
<br />
Kyle: Hey Al, I think I am going to do this sprint triathlon in August.<br />
<br />
Allie: Oh, really? That sounds fun.<br />
<br />
Kyle: Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.<br />
<br />
Allie: Yeah, uh huh.<br />
<br />
Bailey: zzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZ!<br />
<br />
Kyle: And then, blah, blah, blah....<br />
<br />
Allie: Yep, sounds neat.<br />
<br />
Kyle starts the whole swimming and running thing, but he doesn't have a bike. In my mind the triathlon thing is about to fizzle out. Well, Kyle comes home last Friday, and he seems a little more eager to go to dinner. Being that I eat lunch at 10:30, I'm always ready to eat. Typically I have to force Kyle out the door for an early dinner, but this particular night he was ready to go!<br />
<br />
Allie: Where do you want to eat?<br />
<br />
Kyle: I don't care.<br />
<br />
Allie: Let's just go eat at Ruggles and then we can go buy that suitcase that I wanted.<br />
<br />
Kyle: Great! Then, we can go buy my bike!<br />
<br />
Allie: Seriously?<br />
<br />
At this point, whatever. I get it. He wants to try this. No big deal. Let's go get this bike.<br />
<br />
Scene: Allie and Kyle go pick out a road bike that in no way fits in to the budget. Allie is fairly supportive, and Kyle is ecstatic! The two return home... Kyle riding a bike through the front door and Allie rolling a suitcase behind him. All seems well until...<br />
<br />
Kyle: Al, come check it out!<br />
<br />
Allie: Oh no!!! That is not staying in the bedroom!!<br />
<br />
Kyle: Where else am I going to keep it?<br />
<br />
Allie: This is so stupid!! Why did you buy this bike?<br />
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Kyle: What are you talking about?<br />
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Allie: We have no where to keep a bike in this apartment!<br />
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Kyle: Why are you saying this now?<br />
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Allie: I didn't realize that we were going to have to keep this in our bedroom!!<br />
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Oh the joys of living in an apartment... mixed with an exhausted, crazy wife. No need to fear. We fixed the problem. Kyle called the apartment office and told them we would need a storage unit. This was to be a great solution to the bike in the bedroom situation. <br />
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Well, let's just say it's not as much of a storage unit as it is a mere sliver of a closet.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicxqYuIhp8otxMqHLh0RiIBRoHQA12w8aSyFGJTq8LJGyTZXyfY3K7XpbMFtGAYAOientLeBTt2jPmFju3wgn_XC8WJP4nb7W76qbjRFHlWetXz2GutgtQzWYUAbiRacDr9HXH5sWnByEz/s1600/bike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicxqYuIhp8otxMqHLh0RiIBRoHQA12w8aSyFGJTq8LJGyTZXyfY3K7XpbMFtGAYAOientLeBTt2jPmFju3wgn_XC8WJP4nb7W76qbjRFHlWetXz2GutgtQzWYUAbiRacDr9HXH5sWnByEz/s320/bike.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Smallest storage unit I've ever seen! But, a happy wife is a happy life. :)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Nevertheless, Kyle has enjoyed his rides to Brays Bayou, and while he's off riding, I enjoy dreaming of my looming summer vacation!Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-73696922230959468212012-05-13T19:46:00.000-05:002012-05-13T19:46:40.753-05:00Kyle's 27th <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt_deEJZR61uXmISP5DGedQSY5Xk5_aFOsdeb0CCDk61VSMHYzlkFNYOfwM-MtumyOpMqsrO9EoaUQ7vl7dHaXL-08ldKTYJRTbAK0ri3CCrDA7NdQZJ7rYqdff4vKPWdSnLWyBu6K19_0/s1600/poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt_deEJZR61uXmISP5DGedQSY5Xk5_aFOsdeb0CCDk61VSMHYzlkFNYOfwM-MtumyOpMqsrO9EoaUQ7vl7dHaXL-08ldKTYJRTbAK0ri3CCrDA7NdQZJ7rYqdff4vKPWdSnLWyBu6K19_0/s320/poster.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Silly b-day poster I made for Kyle</td></tr>
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Kyle's birthday is on May 6th and his brother's is on April 26th. It seems that it is easier to get the family together to celebrate both birthdays at one time, so this year, we started Kyle's birthday celebration 9 days before his actual birthday. Now Kyle could care less if we actually celebrate his birthday, but to me, birthdays are a big deal. Growing up, my mom would make us stay upstairs the night before our birthday so that she and the rest of our family could decorate the breakfast table with elaborate birthday decorations and gifts. It was so exciting to anticipate coming down stairs the next morning to see how the table would be decorated. So, if Kyle likes it or not, birthdays will always be a big deal to me!<br />
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Here are a few snapshots of Kyle's 27th b-day week!<br />
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This year was a little bit different because Kyle was going to be coming home from a bachelor party on his birthday. Since he left on Thursday afternoon and I wouldn't see him until 8:30 p.m. on his birthday, I wanted to make sure that his birthday week was special! Like I said, we started 9 days before May 6th with a yummy dinner at one of our favorite College Station restaurants, La Bodega. It was a great time to catch up with Kyle's family, have delicious food, great cocktails, and my favorite- a strawberry tart!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5NVgbMNK_1qLOyDp4835kgqCMOxe-IiIANv7hx6jPcMkQA1PKfhg0S_kGGrlzOPBWk8XQPp1LiE2W-H2sRaQKTL7MOkenN2nedOHZGpsZpn5otADXvbqucg3j2Cq9ECnPgFDTFWIX5L9-/s1600/kbd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5NVgbMNK_1qLOyDp4835kgqCMOxe-IiIANv7hx6jPcMkQA1PKfhg0S_kGGrlzOPBWk8XQPp1LiE2W-H2sRaQKTL7MOkenN2nedOHZGpsZpn5otADXvbqucg3j2Cq9ECnPgFDTFWIX5L9-/s320/kbd.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">La Bodega</td></tr>
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I had been wanting to take Kyle to breakfast at Rio Ranch since we moved back to Houston after college. There is nothing super wonderful about eating here, but I have so many memories of eating there after church when I was little that I had to take Kyle there at least one time. So, last Sunday after church, we headed over to Rio Ranch for a little birthday brunch. Kyle still hadn't opened his cards from his parents the few nights before, so we decided to bring them in to the restaurant. Every time the waiter would refill our coffee, Kyle would open one of his birthday cards. We had such a fun time talking over coffee (and a lot of food), and it will always be such a special memory for me.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifrrGxZMHu7z4fHWPmNe8MbWNEZ5KfvAHwHqjbSTWBOdT4Uqx7WzaLCWXDLAV653F8xw2YlPyEyOUSprLgEjt9fFrpenTtJ153aR2_Rst_2BF6mglFrHLBoQ_vdKOA2QhHVJJGp5PKrfgo/s1600/rr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifrrGxZMHu7z4fHWPmNe8MbWNEZ5KfvAHwHqjbSTWBOdT4Uqx7WzaLCWXDLAV653F8xw2YlPyEyOUSprLgEjt9fFrpenTtJ153aR2_Rst_2BF6mglFrHLBoQ_vdKOA2QhHVJJGp5PKrfgo/s320/rr.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Only picture from Rio Ranch. Horrible pic!</td></tr>
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This wasn't apart of the birthday plan, but on Tuesday, Kyle found out that he had passed his last exam for a certain designation he was working on for work. This was a huge deal as the test are extremely hard, so we decided to head out for a celebratory dinner. We enjoyed a long, relaxing dinner on the patio at Daily Review Cafe. I'm so glad the test results came during his birthday week because it made it all the better!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO88Cr1CFcKMVCc2j342L6B7zgWkmgopRbjejJkK2UIkJdBn_38JZ_K1MgjHjdAyCokqBXZgJ1W3eTq852qcsNgQ0aDrfDN5r_u35ypGDx86lje2SN5V6fcbMNIoULSxQcwAQB6fNPmPb4/s1600/dr1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO88Cr1CFcKMVCc2j342L6B7zgWkmgopRbjejJkK2UIkJdBn_38JZ_K1MgjHjdAyCokqBXZgJ1W3eTq852qcsNgQ0aDrfDN5r_u35ypGDx86lje2SN5V6fcbMNIoULSxQcwAQB6fNPmPb4/s320/dr1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dinner at Daily Review</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_MdXnKX9qASzUnJXwBiHr1svo_OrLZ8_HoGqtDvPIb6_Pi2RvkkUMz8CM_Z5jOQDdZaVS7JhKNx32rgE1rXUgGOlu7-u26-6RouMyCWbbJ_nRBcybR3j8-ZhXGJbJ6zIGcVbPUT1BIydh/s1600/dr2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_MdXnKX9qASzUnJXwBiHr1svo_OrLZ8_HoGqtDvPIb6_Pi2RvkkUMz8CM_Z5jOQDdZaVS7JhKNx32rgE1rXUgGOlu7-u26-6RouMyCWbbJ_nRBcybR3j8-ZhXGJbJ6zIGcVbPUT1BIydh/s320/dr2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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But most of all, my favorite birthday moment of the week came on Kyle's actual birthday. I of course wanted this to be the best day, and I had planned a surprise for Kyle. We are going to New York this summer, and Kyle is a Sopranos fan. There is a tour company that takes you to landmark sites from the t.v. show, and Kyle was very interested in going. I had been feeding Kyle lines about us not having enough time, how I had never seen the show, and that I just plain wasn't going to do it! Well, all the while I was planning on doing it. This will be fifth time to New York, so I am willing to do whatever Kyle is interested in doing. So, back to the birthday. I picked Kyle up at the airport at 8:30 p.m. He was fairly grumpy as he had been on a plane all day... on his birthday. I was trying to keep him in a good mood since I knew I had a surprise waiting for him at home. Upon arriving at our apartment, Kyle walked in to the Sopranos Season 1 playing on the t.v. and a giant "Admit One" ticket to the Sopranos tour in New York. He was so surprised and excited, and thankfully, his bad mood wore off. To top it off, we used our china and Waterford for the first time and ate Italian food in honor of Tony Soprano.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-3VZ5eBUixn6J0tK9ZVGKffW2-yPJw5uhG6pxJvVnpjGkDUj63ZCJ7AAnMvU_R7tSYpwJvt73s0bmLc63U6Ud0eNctxRyZM4u2EFUUQMfwc6kDFvYa_SDK1Cdh7Ox66-c4Xh8CIPgSKP8/s1600/so+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-3VZ5eBUixn6J0tK9ZVGKffW2-yPJw5uhG6pxJvVnpjGkDUj63ZCJ7AAnMvU_R7tSYpwJvt73s0bmLc63U6Ud0eNctxRyZM4u2EFUUQMfwc6kDFvYa_SDK1Cdh7Ox66-c4Xh8CIPgSKP8/s1600/so+1.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sopranos surprise!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF1j0bJ8SJVmMFoy0OQG4D-b1WrTFYhL2XL7hJ40ZBD16GMbcKvX_J-QTOA-oKmad-hPFxypK624ho768ltTDjB0zqGj-MI61nFJnSJsT4B9oXpScC24TI54ogH2mNZBzg1YoobRpfBMUv/s1600/so+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF1j0bJ8SJVmMFoy0OQG4D-b1WrTFYhL2XL7hJ40ZBD16GMbcKvX_J-QTOA-oKmad-hPFxypK624ho768ltTDjB0zqGj-MI61nFJnSJsT4B9oXpScC24TI54ogH2mNZBzg1YoobRpfBMUv/s1600/so+2.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sopranos surprise!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Kyle, you are the best! I love you more and more everyday! I'm so glad I decided to "Smile with Kyle"... still smilin'!<br />
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<br /></div>Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1374271039627320610.post-1822272195712157952012-04-23T20:13:00.000-05:002012-04-23T20:13:17.426-05:00What's Up With the Schielacks?Since I haven't written a thing in 2 months, let me give the quick version of an update. Here is a small glimpse of what I believe to be memorable happenings since February. Remember, memorable is a relative term...<br />
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We went to more rodeo performances than ever. Reba was the best!!</div>
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I had a wonderfully long visit with my childhood bestie, Sarah, over Spring Break.</div>
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Bailey went through another terrible season of allergies-lots of Benadryl, anti-itch cream, medicated baths, and extra snuggle time.</div>
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We attended Megan and Ryan's fabulously fun wedding in Austin.</div>
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Kyle went to the emergency room... and then again two days later- different reasons.</div>
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Our niece, Leighton, was baptized.</div>
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We bought Aggie football season tickets. Whoop!</div>
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I started planning our summer trip to Boston and New York.</div>
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We decided we were going to buy a house and just as quickly decided against it.</div>
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We babysat our nephew, Miles, for a whole day-by ourselves.</div>
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I read 5 books.</div>
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We watched season 1 of Mad Men.</div>
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We went to more concerts, happy hours, dinners, and social outing with friends than we have since college.</div>
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And, we have made plenty of time to do absolutely nothing... just the way we like it!</div>
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<br /></div>Alliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17949438869533100463noreply@blogger.com0