That’s how it goes right?! hehe.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Here are the rules:

1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award and insert a link to their blog.

2. Pass on the award to about 15 other bloggers who you recently discovered and think are great!

3. Contact the other bloggers and let them know they have been chosen for this award.

4. Say 7 things about yourself.

4. I’ve known for 7 years what I am going to name my baby boy, granted I have a boy. When I met and told Alex the name, he actually liked it. If I end up with all girls like my mom and gma… I will adopt a boy someday. I am going to have an Elijah James one way or another!

I definitely do not have some embarrassing things to admit today. Not me!

So for starters, I have not been in work out clothes all day, just bumming around the condo because I have no money, no life, nothing to do. No, Not Me!

I did not give up potty training this week because it was too frustrating trying to keep a pull-up or underwear on Adaleigh. She hates them! I did not get completely get grossed out and almost puke when cleaning up poop and pee off the floor. Not Me! I did not tell myself that I’m going to wait another month before trying again.

I most certainly did not let Adaleigh eat Cheez-its and fruit snacks for lunch because she refused to eat the leftover spaghetti. And of course I did not only give her juice and water to drink today because I was all out of whole milk and she hates the skim milk I bought. (Thank goodness she at least took her vitamins today).

By the way, I did not wait all day to clean up the apple jacks and popcorn on the floor because I just knew Adaleigh would make a big mess the second I cleaned it up. I did not put Adaleigh to bed at nearly 10pm because I was having too much fun cuddling on the couch with her. Speaking of bed, I did not go back to bed this morning when Adaleigh took a nap and sleep until she got up again at noon. Not Me!

Oh and last but not least, I did not put tin foil on our rabbit ears antenna because we STILL don’t have cable. And when the tin foil didn’t do much, I did not find a cable extension and run the cable outside to the patio so I can get better reception. Of course it worked, but still I did not do it! Not Me! So because I finally have some decent channels, I did not watch The Bachelor because I do not get entertained by that ridiculously stupid show. At least I switched the channel so I could watch Life Unexpected. And no, I did not tear up at the end of the show when Lux got her new room in the attic. It was such a beautiful room. I was not jealous at all.

So, that’s all the Not Me’s for this week! Until next time…

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I hate you. My heart has never been the same since you took a piece of it with you. Sometimes it was small, sometimes big, but the result remains the same… I hate you for what you did. It was my fault to give you control, but still. Ugh!!! Some girls may thank you for making them who they are today, but not me. I despise you for it. I regret ever giving you the time of day.

The point is… it’s hard to love someone fully when your hearts been broken, even just once. It’s hard to trust a guy when so many have disappointed you. My husband loves me and sometimes I feel like I do a sucky a job at loving him back. He’s the only guy worthy of my love, and after 4.5 years, I still suck at being selfless and loving him. I don’t know why I feel like this, but I owe some of that to you. I know I was stupid and niave to let you in heart in the first place, but I still share the blame with you for doing what you did.

I’m not bringing this up because I’m dwelling on the past. I have already forgiven and forgotten all you lousy guys. It’s just been on my heart lately because, at moments, I really feel like a terrible wife.

So… I hate you. The end.

Goodbye for good,
Brittany

P.S. I rarely use the word “hate”, I usually go for the “strongly dislike” phrase, but it just doesn’t have the same affect in this case. So yes, I hate you.

Adaleigh and I we’re already in the house most of Sunday and Monday because of the cold weather and having absolutely no spending money whatsoever, but Tuesday was Alex’s payday! So that afternoon we got ready, got in the car to head to Target and then make plans to visit family in South GA… and absolutely nothing happened when I turned the key in the ignition! Ugh! So I waited til Alex got home from work that night at like 11pm and begged him to stand in the freezing weather and try to jump start my car. Still nothing. Then I begged him more to take the battery out and bring it to O’Reilly Auto Parts the next day. Ha! That didn’t happen! He didn’t get around to taking the battery to the store until Friday!!! Yes, Friday! I spent 4+ days at home with Adaleigh with no form of transportation (except when Alex was home late at night and I was too tired to go anywhere). I thank God that it was just the battery though. $85 later and my car is good as new (sort of).

Tuesday was also the day that my battery charger on my computer died. WTH. Yes, ladies and gents… I was home all week without a car AND without my laptop! Thank the Lord for my iPhone. You can only imagine how much cleaning I got done, how many times I had to play dress up with Adaleigh, read books, and do everything else I should do on a regular basis but I don’t because I have the internet and shopping to distract me! LOL. Not sure if that’s funny, but I’ll laugh to make light of my addictions. Unfortunately, I still don’t have a charger… I ordered one off eBay. I’m crossing my fingers it’s a good one because I got it for $30 instead of the retail price of $80. Hey, I gotta do anything to save money at this point! In the meantime… I have Alex’s laptop at night to catch up on my TV shows (another thing we don’t have… cable).

Anyways, as much as I just complained about the inconveniences I had this week… it was quite refreshing. I totally realize that I’m addicted to my computer and spend way too much time on it. And I’m definitely hopeless without getting out of the house everyday. BUT nevertheless, I enjoyed my time spent with Adaleigh just hanging out all week. It was, in fact, wonderful!

But Thursday came too soon. I got a phone call that morning from my MIL who was staying in South GA with her stepdad (Alex’s grandpa Bud) who had been in the hospital since before Thanksgiving. I missed the call and she didn’t leave a message, so I assumed she was just checking in. That afternoon I called Alex while he was at work and he informed that Bud had passed away that morning. My heart sank. And to be honest, I’m not sure my heart has come back up for breath yet. Like I said, Bud had been in the hospital for 2 months and we never got a chance to go down there and visit. We thought he was doing better and was gonna get out so we held off while Alex was working 24/7. Then, when Bud took a turn for the worst last week, I planned to take Adaleigh with me to visit him… but of course we were negative on our bank account (so embarrassing to admit! This NEVER happens, though I can totally blame Alex because I don’t touch our bank account since I quit working in Sept. LOL) until Tuesday’s payday. And you know what happened on Tuesday… damn my car!!!

So as I type this, my eyes are full of tears. I’ve already broke down twice, today alone. I can’t believe I didn’t manage a way to get to the hospital to say goodbye. I feel absolutely terrible. Bud was such a great guy… only 66 years old. I wasn’t really “close” to him, but we saw him once every 2-3 months. We always hung out at my in-law’s house… watched TV, went out to eat, just sat around. There were so many opportunities to get to know him, but I never did. So for that, I am sorry. It’s so easy to take the people around you for granted because you know you’re gonna see them again, but sometimes it doesn’t work out that way.

Adaleigh with her great grandpa Bud... Aug of '08

This is one of Bud's high school pictures.

Bud was an awesome racer. This was his passion. Can't you see it on his face? He loved it!

I remember soon after Alex and I started dating in college (in FL), ironically one of Alex’s other grandpa’s had passed away and he had to leave for GA to make it to the funeral that weekend. I remember him having to drive through the night, so I planned to stay on the phone with him for most of the drive (we would’ve stayed up all night talking even if he wasn’t driving). Well, Alex made it 2 hours away and his car broke down. I don’t remember the technicalities, but I just remember him saying he had to go so he could call his Grandpa Bud. He said Bud would know what to do… he knows nearly everything about cars. That was the first time I learned about Bud. His passion was racing cars. I thought that was so neat. Sure enough, it was something wrong with the clutch and Bud knew exactly what Alex needed to do to rig the car enough to make it to GA, but told him he needed to get it fixed professionally later.

One of the best memories I have of him, though, was October of 2008. A bunch of us rented 2 cabins in South GA off Lake Blacksheer. It was a great weekend! I remember him always wanting to fish off the dock the whole weekend, but most of us stayed inside. Right before we were about to leave, we were looking for everyone to say our goodbyes. Of course, we found him out on the dock by himself, cane pole in hand. Alex, Adaleigh, and I went to say goodbye, but instead we stayed out there on that dock for nearly an hour. We really had to get on the road, but I just couldn’t leave yet. I just knew it was making his day that someone actually wanted to fish with him. So we all sat, talked, and waited for a bite. We didn’t care if we caught a fish (and I don’t think he did either)… he was just so glad we were spending some time doing what he loved and wanted to do. It was so relaxing, so beautiful out there. It was wonderful, so peaceful.

So thankful my MIL had this picture of him!

That’s how I will remember him… on that dock, fishing… so at peace.

http://www.tiftongazette.com/archivesearch/local_story_015234109.html

Bud, you are loved and missed. Tomorrow we will celebrate your life and all the joys you brought to ours!

Christmas was wonderful this year… I thought it was going to suck because of the move and not being able to go to Florida AT ALL (my first year not going… sad story), but it turned out alright. I enjoyed staying in LaGrange with my in-laws and getting to spend some time with my sister-in-law and her hubby. This was the first year that I got to go to all the Georgia Christmas get-togethers… 3 all together. Then when we went back home to Tuscaloosa, my parents and one of my sisters came to visit so we could have another Christmas with them. The movie “Four Christmas” ring a bell?

Adaleigh was so excited for Christmas this year! Love it!

My parents and sister planned to spend New Years in New Orleans, but guess who invited herself along? Me!! HAHA. They didn’t mind though… and were so thrilled that they got to spend more than a day with Adaleigh. So we hopped in the car with them and took off. Would you believe that I came home with more money than I left with? No wonder I used to love family vacations! My dad won $600 in the casino… and gave me $20 to gamble with… and I definitely doubled it! I walked out of Harrah’s Casino with $40. I felt like a winner… so I bought some cute boots and a pair of earrings at a cute little boutique on Canal St. One of the nights we were there we stayed at the Waldorf Astoria… absolutely beautiful!! Especially the lobby with all the Christmas decor!

I heart the Waldorf Astoria!

I’m really glad that the Sugar Bowl was there that week though, because we got lots of free stuff and a free Lady Antebellum (one of my faves) concert at the Sugar Bowl Fanfest. Good times.

Bourban Street!

Fast forward to today… I’m in LaGrange and showing our house to 2 sets of people that want to rent it. I’m stoked! It would seriously be a blessing if it worked out because I really want to get rid of this house. I’m ready to move on. I pray it goes well and works out. I have a great feeling about the first couple that came though. They want to rent to own… praise the Lord! And, they offered to fix the leak, the ceiling fan, and do all the painting. Exciting!

That’s all for now… until next time. Aren’t you glad I didn’t have any drama to post about? I love having a drama free life, but I know it’s only a matter of time…

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? – Wrapping paper with pretty ribbons and bows!
2. Real tree or artificial? - Artificial this year, but we tend to flop back and forth.
3. When do you put up the tree? - I usually put it up the day after Thanksgiving, but it wasn’t last week. ;(
4. When do you take the tree down? - Most likely New Years Eve.
5. Do you like eggnog? - Yeah, especially when it’s spiked. haha.
6. What about Fruitcake? - Not me.
7. Favorite gift received as a child? - My teacup chihuahua named Baby when I was 13 (she’s still around, but was adopted by my parents when I moved away for college in 2004).
8. Do you have a nativity scene? - Yeah, a little bitty one made out of glass. Can’t even remember which relative gave it to us. lol.
9. Hardest person to buy for? - The guys… brother-in-law and dad-in-law
10. Easiest person to buy for? - My daughter. Duh!
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? - Ugly, ugly clothes.
12. Mail or email Christmas cards? - Mail!
13. Favorite Christmas movie? - Miracle on 34th Street!
14. When do you start shopping for Christmas? – Procrastinations my middle name. Sometime in December.
15. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? - Shhh.
16. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? - Mom-in-laws milk chocolate coconut balls (a lot like Mounds only better!)
17. Clear lights or colored on the tree? - We have color lights that have different settings where they chase each other, fade in and out, etc. Beautiful!!
18. Favorite Christmas song? - Don’t laugh… All I Want For Christmas Is You by Mariah Carey.
19. Travel for Christmas or stay at home? - Wish I could stay home… have to go to the in-laws this year. Not that I don’t love them, but next year we are starting our own traditions in our own home.
20. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeers? - Yeah, I was just talking about that with my hubby today. He apparently couldn’t. Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, RUDOLF!
21. Angel on the tree top or a star? - Angel.
22. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? - Christmas morning.
23. What is the one present you want most this year? - I honestly don’t know… didn’t ask for anything specifically.
24. Most annoying thing about this time of year? - Nothing… well, maybe the crazy drivers! and the fact that we are on the tightest budgeted Christmas yet. ;(
25. What I love most about Christmas? - Everything! Family time. Pretty decorations and lights. Delicious foods. Funny movies. The feelings in my heart and love in the air. Okay, I’m starting to sound like a Hallmark card. The end.