Friend Makin' Monday : BFFs

Good morning, Poodles! Even though I'm not quite among the living after a long holiday weekend I'm still going to attempt some Friend Makin'.

The Friend Makin' this week is being hosted by Kelli at Outside My Kitchen Window. Head on over to her place to get the instructions and to link up if you feel like joining the fun. Kelli's task for this FMM is this:

Tell us about your BFF. How did you meet? Was it BFFs at first sight? How long have you been friends? What makes him/her your BFF? What is it about this person that makes him/her so special to you?

Now then, just because I'm a rule-breaker free spirit I'm going to bend this a little bit. I don't know that I can choose just one "BFF" in my life. God has blessed me with many amazing friends, and they all mean something a little different to me. So I'm going to spin this my own direction and introduce y'all to some of the most fantastic folks ever!

• • • • •

My best long-term-been-there-through-thick-and-thin-knows-all-about-me-but-still-somehow-loves-me friend:

Jodi

Jo and I are BFFs that also just happen to be cousins. She is my partner in crime, but always manages to keep me out of trouble. Obviously, we go way back and our relationship shows it. She's incredibly intelligent, driven, motivated, and funny. Plus, she'll own your face in a game of basketball. Her drive and determination have always inspired me, and that determination (paired with God's grace) has gotten her into vet school working towards her dream career. I couldn't make a BFF list w/o Mugget.

• • • • •

My best 12-year-long-give-it-to-me-straight-you're-going-to-hear-this-whether-you-like-it-or-not friend:

Jason

Jay and I have been friends since my sophomore year of high school and somehow our BFF-dom has just stuck through the years. He is one of those few people that are honest with me even when it's probably not very fun. He knows how I'll react to situations, he knows what I'm thinking, he knows what I'm about to say, and because he knows all of this he helps keep me in check. He's an amazing man of God and his self-discipline is part of what inspired me to train for my up-coming 5K. God has brought him a long way and I'm honored to have been part of that journey with him!

• • • • •

My best compassionate-thoughtful-selfless-hilarious-sisters-separated-at-birth-cut-from-the-same-cloth-running-buddy friend:

Rachel

Although we haven't been friends quite as long as some of my other BFFs, Rach and I just "get" each other. We have similar pasts, we want similar futures, we find the same things funny, and we share about 1,478 inside jokes. I'm sure people that know us think we're attached at the hip sometimes. She is one of the sweetest and most thoughtful people I know. She loves her family immensely, and is truly a beautiful creation in Christ. She is truly a treasure that some man is going to be lucky to find someday. Our late-night tailgating sessions have done a lot for our relationship! :)

• • • • •

My best motivational-straightforward-bubbly-direct-blunt-inspirational-smokin'-hot-bride-to-be friend:

Becky

We share a birthday and always joke that we're twins...born 2 years apart. We share the same bossy strong personality, and we would rather be dancing than doing almost anything else. Becky is such a motivator for me through all the 5K fun. It's been an honor and a privileged to be Becky's Maid of Honor and to help her plan her wedding. I'm so happy for her future with Nathan...even if it means him taking her 8+ hours away from The Foursome. I know God has big plans for her and I can't wait to see her grow and blend into her new role as Nathan's wife!

• • • • •

My best world-traveling-globe-trotting-fabulously-cultured-intelligent-Godly-hilarious-words-of-wisdom-giving-domestic-diva friend:

Jenn

Jenn and I have grown closer over the past 6 months or so, and it's truly been a pleasure. She and I share the same love for cooking and all things domestic. She is one of the best cooks I know! She is intelligent, successful, motivated, self-sufficient, and beautiful! She puts her relationship with God first and always inspires me to do the same! I feel like I'm a more well-rounded person for knowing Jenn. I look forward to her emails every morning!

• • • • •

Finally...

My best known-them-since-birth-put-them-through-hell-yet-they-love-me-the-same-always-in-my-corner-always-my-prayer-warriors-sound-advice-giving friends:

Tim, my Dad; Julie, my Mom; and Adam, my brother.

Being able to say that I count my family as some of my best friends has been a long time coming. We're a lot alike, and although that works to our advantage now, it hasn't always been that way. They have loved me fiercely since the day that I was born...even when it probably wasn't easy to feel that way. The fact that God has given us a second chance at a close relationship is a huge blessing in my life. I trust them completely, and I can't think of better advice-givers. I know that no matter what life brings me or where it takes me they will support me and pray for me.

• • • • •

Thanks so much for stopping by! I would love to hear about who you hold near and dear! If you're not taking part in the Friend Makin' Monday fun then tell me, who is your BFF(s)? What makes them special? I'd love to hear about it!

Happy FMM,

My Week in Bullets

------------------------------
Dust off that motivation, along with the keyboard, and get to work on those 5K Friday posts! Tomorrow is our first official week to post, link up, and share some encouraging words! Can't wait to see what y'all have been doing! For more information and instructions, click here!
------------------------------

I've typed, deleted, and retyped the first sentence of this post 6 times now. There's just no easy way to lead in to a post that I know will be disjointed, wandering, and random. If you don't do random, bullet lists, and week-to-date recaps, then you should probably just skip this one and come back tomorrow for 5K Friday. Otherwise, proceed...but you have been warned!


Still with me? Off we go!

This Week
(in bullets)

• Monday/Monday Late-Afternoon: Another glorious day at the office followed by the last round of vaccinations for El Salvador. (I really do need to post again about my trip. For those of you that haven't been around GM long enough to know what I'm talking about, you can do some catching up here, here, and here.) I met Rachel at Target, carpooled downtown, where we met up with another team member going to El Salvador, Allen. We all three had immunizations left on our list, so we decided to make it a group effort. The last shot I had on my list was the Typhoid vaccine. I've been subjected to a myriad of shots in the past two weeks -- Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, MMR, and Tetanus -- and the Typhoid shot was by far the most painful. Once we were finished being pin cushions protected from creepy jungle viruses vaccinated, we decided it was time for dinner. Since Rachel and I were such troopers Allen offered to treat us to dinner at a downtown restaurant he's been wanting to try. Which brings us to....
• Monday Evening: We follow Allen to his mystery restaurant. We're surrounded by unassuming-looking office buildings, until we come to a white, wooden door. Allen, always the gentleman, opens the door for us and we find ourselves surrounded by this...and this...and this...You've got to be kidding me! Bear in mind that Rachel is sporting a dazzling pair of cut-off jean shorts, complete with frayed hems. She's accented the shorts with a delightful white t-shirt from her high school volleyball days. To set off the ensemble she chose to pair it with black flip-flops. I had personally done only slightly better for myself...wearing dark jeans, a cute summery top from Target, while pulling it all together with black, rubber, Old Navy flip-flops. Certainly nothing worthy of what we discovered Cafe Bel Ami to be. We did our very best to be exceedingly classy, polite, and cultured with our waitress (who looked ready to give us the boot, or make us wash dishes to pay for our meals at any moment) to make up for our fashion faux pas. The food was delicious, the atmosphere was beautiful, the company was fantastic, but I have never been so ready to leave a restaurant in my life! Allen was so good-natured about it...he just made us promise to leave the flip-flops at home the next time he offered dinner. Yeah...you think? Anyone else getting a very "Pretty Woman"-ish vibe off of that entire dining experience? Just call me Vivian! After surviving Monday it's on to...
• Tuesday: Tuesday evening was my date with Rachel, Sarah Jane, and Gavin DeGraw! The girls and I had been anxiously awaiting his concert for a week! Rachel is in love with the man, and while he's not my usual cup o' tea (see The Husband on my sidebar) he can sing, and he does have rather delightful biceps shoulder muscles eyes. We ducked out just after Gavin finished crooning and headed home. We're not as young as we used to be...bed was calling! After a not-nearly-long-enough night of sleep I find myself right in the middle of...
• Wednesday: If I live through work we'll be off to a night of fun and frivolity at the bowling alley. Normally Wednesday night is our small group bible study, but tonight we're taking the show on the road and having a Fun Night. I'm not just being humble when I tell you that I am, quite possibly, the world's worst bowler. My all-time-best score is a whopping 78 points. I'm "that girl" that tries to throw/pitch/lob/whatever the ball and ends up releasing it behind her into the other bowlers seated in the chairs. Should be a great time! (Maybe pray for my bowling partners? Their toes are going to need it!)

*phew*

How's that for exhausting? The rest of the week isn't much better! Tomorrow is my only day with nothing planned...other than laundry. Friday will find me boutique-ing with my girls, and then Saturday it's time for some fun...rodeo-style!

How about y'all? What's been going on this week? Anything fun? Fill me in on what's new!

With love, from the girl that wears flip-flops for an evening of fine dining,

5K Friday : Week 4

It's the end of the week, I'm back on The Wagon, which can only mean one thing. It's time for another......

*If you missed the beginning of 5KF you can play a quick game of catch-up here.*

We're jumping right back in to things with Week 4 of the Couch-to-5K Training Program. It goes a little something like this:


Monday started workout #1, and let me tell you something...it pretty near killed me. I made it through the first cycle of intervals with just an average amount of huffing & puffing, but come the second half, I wasn't sure I was going to live through it. I must confess, I did end up walking 2 minutes into the last jogging interval, so I wasn't feeling terribly triumphant once I finished.

All that to say, Wednesday I was feeling just a skosh nervous about meeting Rachel after Bible Study to have our Mid-Week Running Date. We settled in to a decent pace and realized halfway through the first 5 minute jog that we were still talking to each other! We were running...yet our lungs still had just enough air left for us to giggle about boys have an intelligent conversation.

Will wonders never cease!?

We finished Wednesday night's workout feeling rather triumphant. We were both truly amazed at how quickly your body adjusts to working out again. In a week's time we've gone from near death during a 3 minute jog, to chit chatting away while jogging 5 minutes. Maybe this can be done, after all!

We'll see if we still feel as triumphant come the end of next week, when our Ct5K Trainer tells us to do this....


Pray for me, Poodles. I'm going to need it!

Retreat Feet, Sunburns, & Inner Tubes

The pictures of last weekend's Retreat have started rolling in, and I couldn't wait to share some of my favorites with you all!

Here's a little glimpse into how we spent our Memorial Day weekend!

There was some posing...

Hugging it out

"Moose" showing me some snorgle time.

Rachel and I are no match for Jimmy's charm!

There were some jam sessions...

Pickin' on the porch!

All together now!

Pickin' on the couch!

Rachel and I helped the boys harmonize

There was a lot of floating...

Which lead to a lot of eating...


...and napping!

Shhh! Snoozing Moodles

Poor Rachel!

Then, once we were rested, it was time for some fun!

Round Robin Ping Pong

Dutch Blitz!

Sadly, Retreat, like all good things, had to come to an end eventually...but not before one last all-the-girls-of-Cabin-3 photo session (raging sunburns, bug bites, frizzy hair, and all!)

An awfully foxy bunch!

The Right Side of Cabin 3.
Rachel, Jenn, Ginger, Me, Emilie, and Gayle

Ah, Retreat '09, how I loved thee! There's not a thing I would've done different! Except maybe the whole no-sunscreen-while-floating-on-inner-tubes-for-3-hours thing. That, I'd change. Ow.

xoxo,

Gone Fishin'!

Happy Long Weekend Friday, Poods & Moods!

Who has big fantastic plans for this weekend? Where are you going? What are you doing? Tell me all about it!

In 22 minutes I leave work for the day (hooray for half-days on the Friday before a long weekend!) In 3 hours and 22 minutes I meet Rachel and we leave the county for the weekend! We leave the county to go on the.......


We're headed 2 hours southeast of home for a weekend of camping, hiking, swimming, singing, worshipping, and fellowship. I can't think of a better way to spend the weekend!

Enjoy your long weekend! I'll see you back here on Monday morning for more Friend Makin'!

Snorgs,

Wisdom Teeth Chronicles : Day 2

Welcome to Friday afternoon, Poodles! Hope this finds you doing well and counting down the minutes until you begin your amazing weekend plans!

Day two of "Operation No More Wisdom Teeth" has gone fairly well. After surviving my first night of sleeping with cheeks the size of cantaloupes, I rewarded myself with a cup of lukewarm coffee. Yum, right? Normally I'm not a girl that drinks her coffee any way but hot and black...but it's that whole "no hot liquids until Saturday" thing. Details, details. Breakfast was yet another pudding cup. Joy and rapture. At this point, I would kill for a cheeseburger...even one from McDonalds. *shudder*

This afternoon Mom, in her infinite wisdom, told me she thought I should get out among the living. I went with her to several nurseries in town shopping for Grandma's Mother's Day present. We had a great time perusing the aisles, but by nursery #3, my mouth was throbbing!! Overdo it? Me? Never!

Stopped off at Sonic on the way home for my lunch (read: another Peanut Butter-Fudge Milkshake) and here we are. I took Percocet #2 about 30 minutes ago (does that make this my first Percocet-fuelled blogging adventure?) and I'm ready for nap.

I can't be overdoing it because in less than 3 hours Twin and Rachel will be blessing me with their presence. They're coming over to make fun of my chipmunk cheeks keep me company. We're all three looking forward to an evening filled with chick flicks, milkshakes, and pain-killers! :)

Until next time...enjoy your Friday afternoons! Anyone have anything exciting planned for the weekend? I'm living vicariously through you all right now!

Hugs & snorgles,

It's Mrs. Jackman To You.

Last night Rachel and I exercised our spontaneity muscles and went to see the special midnight showing of "X-Men Origins : Wolverine."

We both wanted to see the movie, but I would be lying if we didn't tell you that 65 - 75% of the reason we stayed up until 2 o'clock in the morning on a week night was because of.....

THIS!

God bless that man!

I would absolutely recommend the movie to X-Men fans (and Hugh Jackman fans.) It's a great way to spend 2 hours. I'm pretty sure the action didn't stop once!







----------------
Listening to: Mercyme - Sanctified

5K Friday : Week 1

Wait a stinkin' minute here! Another post!? From GM!? On the weekend!?

Why did I not know about scheduled posts before right now? ♥♥♥ them!

-------------

Now then, I realize that the title of today's post is "5K Friday" and today is not Friday. I promise, in the future 5KF will actually show up on Friday...but darn it, I'm playing with my scheduler...you'll manage somehow!

Since I momentarily lost my mind and decided to start training for a 5K, I figured I should keep myself accountable and post about the training. I would love your feedback, encouragement, ideas, etc. as they come up.

-------------

This week was week #1! The schedule looked a little like this:

5 minutes: Brisk walk warm-up (3.5mph)
90 seconds: Run (6.0mph)
2 minutes: Walk (4.0mph)

Repeat run/walk combination for 20 minutes, finish with a slower-paced walk as a cool down.

-------------

Obviously, this wasn't too bad. I've been doing my own version of interval training before 5KF started, so I wasn't dying. Next week (Monday) I'll bump up a little, and that's when the rubber meets the road.

Can't wait to get this bad boy started! I've talked Twin and Rach into training with me, and our first 5K is July 4th!

Ready or not, here we come.






haha! I can't believe I'm listening to "Back That Thing Up." Gotta love Pandora!
----------------
Listening to: Juvenile - Back That Thing Up

Saturday Shenanigans

When the FF gets together things like this happen.

Sometimes things like this happen.

And once in awhile, it's not uncommon for things like this to happen.

-----------------------

I just wanted to make you all aware because The Foxy Foursome rides again this Saturday!

Board up your windows!

...Secure all valuables!

.....Women and children off first!

.......It's going to be a bumpy ride!

-----------------------

Have I ever mentioned I seriously love these women!? Stay tuned for more pictures and a recap of the shenanigans after the weekend.


Oh, and if you know us in real life...stay close to a phone...we might be using our "one phone call" to ask a favor.

The Foxy Foursome

Warning! The post you are about to read may contain themes not suitable for all audiences. Themes may include, but are not limited to: mush, sap, sentimentality, and/or gushing. Should you decide to continue reading you are doing so at your own risk.

• • • • •

Time and time again people claim to have "the best friends in the world." Those people are wrong. I have met "the best friends in the world" and they belong to me...or maybe I belong to them.

Please allow me to introduce you to some of the hottest women on the planet...The Foxy Foursome!

I have learned in my years as a woman that we have many different types of friends, and those friends fill the many different types of needs we may have. Some of my friends are my opposite, and that works for us. But these girls, The Foursome, we could've been sisters! When we met, it just clicked. We had come from similar backgrounds, we had been through some of the same struggles, we just "got" each other.

Each one of us, no matter how similar we are, brings something completely different to the group.

Sarah Jane (Monkey) has a heart of gold. She is one of the most selfless, compassionate women I know. She is fiercely protective of her friends and family. She can just as easily sit down and have a heart-to-heart with my Mom as she can get down on the dance floor at Margarita's. (Don't let that sweet smile fool you...girl has some serious moves.) Monkey has overcome more in her 26 years than some women overcome in lifetime.

Rachel is as funny as she is beautiful. Her dry sense of humor catches people by surprise, but it's also one thing that draws people to her. She and I have walked very similar roads, and because of that we have a very close bond. She is dependable, trustworthy, thoughtful, and generous. She is always one of the first people to welcome a visitor to Pathways and to invite them to sit with her at dinner. I look forward to our Wednesday night solve-the-world's-problems coffee dates more than I let on. I can see God growing Rachel by leaps and bounds...He's got huge things planned for her. I can't wait to share an obscene amount of Pupusas, inside jokes, and memories with her in El Salvador!

Becky is my twin. We share a birthday. We share the same (slightly bossy) personality. We share an affection for taking out our frustrations on an elliptical trainer. She keeps me accountable, she keeps me motivated, and she keeps me laughing. We became fast friends planning our birthday party last year, and I believe we'll be friends for a lifetime (if we live through planning her wedding!) Becky is a woman who will always tell you what she's thinking, but she'll do it in a way that doesn't offend you...it inspires you. She's intelligent, she's beautiful, she's ornery, and she chair-dances to the annoying music they play before a movie. I'm not sure how I'll manage when she moves to Houston in September. My only consolation is that I'm pretty sure Nathan realizes just how amazing she is and how lucky he is that we're letting her go!

Putting faces with the names! (L to R) Rachel, Becky, me, and Sarah Jane

For a girl, who once had a seriously lacking social circle, to have not one but 3 best friends is nothing short of a miracle. God has blessed me with these women that support me, love me, challenge me, yell at me, motivate me, pray for me, and get into trouble with me. I pray for each of them daily...sometimes more often than that. I believe we will see each other through engagements, marriages, children, moves, job changes, and grandchildren.

"However rare true love may be, it is less so than true friendship."
~ La Rochefoucauld

To my Foursome: Thank you for coming into my life at exactly the right moment. Thank you for being obedient to what God wants you to do, and for inspiring me to grow closer to Him. I count you all as some of the most precious blessings God has given me. I can't wait for all of the seasons of life we'll share together. I love each of you a ton!

*mwah*

ps: You didn't really think I could write a post about the Foursome and leave the Estrogenfest picture out, did you? You're welcome!! ;)