Photo Post from My Future MIL's Computer

Getting ready to cross the suspension bridge, seriously, this thing freaked me out:

This picture was ESPECIALLY meaningful to me, because I was in this spot two years ago, and I can't believe how different I look.

Best friend Mandi and I:

I just love this picture, I feel it captures part of my personality:

Group Picture of the Girls I Work With:

Very sweet friend I work with Beth:

Celebrating Ben's 29th Birthday on the Belle of Louisville:

This was the ONLY part of the bus ride up I enjoyed. The ten hour bus ride to Jamestown stunk. It killed my back.

Music To My Ears....

Last night I hesitated to bring up to Ben that we really need to spend at least two nights completing the tasks of merging his stuff with my stuff. I hesitated because he has to have all coursework finished prior to our wedding, and that time is quickly closing in (28 days...WOOT WOOT!!!). He said that he WANTED to get that task done....yeah for my jammers!

Last night we saw Gallagher, and he did NOT disappoint! Ben got to get up on stage and smash two things with the sledge-a-matic. He was so pumped. I have pictures to upload, once we have the computer back! (You guys will have tons of pictures to see soon, I promise!)

Off to do some errands, meet a friend for lunch, then Ben and I will be getting OUR WEDDING LICENSE! :) I found a new cafe for us to have dinner at before our flight. I'm stepping out of the box and going to have something vegetarian.

Live from Room 211

I am still at the hotel. I will get a break as we are headed to Charlotte this weekend. I hope to be back home (with a new AC unit) next Thursday evening. As it stands right now, Ben and I will be our $500 for the deductible, and my homeowners insurance will pay for the rest of the cost of a brand new unit. This is a major blessing, as it will be saving us about $4500. They will also cover my lodging expenses because of the extreme temperatures.

I did a free health screening at SBC yesterday. My cholesterol was excellent at 100. That is the lowest it has been poor DS. My two previous readings were 112 and 108. It feels so good to be healthy.

Tonight Ben and I are going to see Gallagher perform in my hometown. I know that will be fun.

Lots of Stuff Post

I am still laptopless, so I am writing a quick post on Ben's computer.

My bachelorette party was lots of fun. I had eight people there that I really liked, so I didn't feel overwhelmed by the number of people there. It was a very PG party, which is exactly what I wanted! (Pics will be posted when I am able to do so!)

On Sunday when we hung out with Alex and Rachel, she needed me to move some things in the closet....it was cool because the door would barely budge, and I was able to slide in and help her out. Yeah, that felt AWESOME.

My AC Unit has been out since Friday. I have been living in a hotel since. It turns out it was STRUCK BY LIGHTNING! I am waiting on all the insurance hoopla, but I should have an entire new unit installed next week. Ben and I don't know what our cost will be yet in this whole matter.

We went to the Creation Museum in Northern Kentucky yesterday and had a great time. I was there two years ago, and I took my picture by one dinosaur. I did it this time too, so I could do a side-by-side comparison post.

I am in LOVE with "Not Your Daughter's Jeans"....I could only afford to buy one pair, but I will be purchasing more in the future.

Today and tomorrow are the Southern Baptist Convention, so Ben and I will be at that for most of the time.

Sorry for such a boring post....this is my life at the moment.

Hope to be back...

On Thursday. I submitted everything to the insurance company from the theft. Tonight is my bachelorette party. I miss my blog friends.

Had a BAD day...

I came out of the GED center to the parking garage to find my car had been broken into. My laptop was stolen. To make matters worse the rep from the garage said they have been having about one break in a week. I would have loved having knowledge of this. Sorry so short lots of calls to make today.

Back HOME

I made it home yesterday on time and with no flight delays. Life is good. Ben and I took his roommate Randy out to dinner at The Cheesecake Factory. It was cool to get to know Randy better. Here is the main reason we went out: Randy wanted to talk with ME about weight loss strategies, etc. Ben had been bragging to Randy so much about how he was on the best diet ever, and Randy wanted to know more about how to tailor things for himself. Talk about a total paradigm shift. I'm sitting here thinking, "Dude, if you only knew what I used to weigh, you would pass out on the floor." I was a good hundred pounds heavier than he was. What did feel good is that I know I have learned some things along the way, and I am happy that I can pass them along.

I worried the entire trip to Williamsburg about my weight. I didn't bring a scale. Although, I did see an ultra skinny girl carrying a scale with her in the Richmond airport. I wanted to ask her what the occasion was, but I bit my lip. My weight went down 0.8 ounces from when I left. I was kinda hoping for more since we did so much walking. I'm ok with where my weight it, but still crazy about checking it.

Last night Ben and I decided to postpone Shakespeare in the Park until tonight (unless we are too tired), and we started to tackle the kitchen. We made three trips to the dumpster, and two trips to his car to give things away at the seminary. We really did make a lot of progress, but it doesn't look that visible yet. We are working on it today as well. My dad is coming over to help Ben hang a bunch of pictures, so that will get more boxes out of the way. Also, Ben is going to help me craft my GED center letter resignation.

Off to church. :)

Thankful That....

I don't sweat like I used to!!! Yesterday the temperature is in the high 80's, I have on jeans, and while I am warm, I am not sweating. That is AWESOME! I slept for 9.5 hours, so today should shape up nicely.

Off to explore Colonial Williamsburg.

Ground Transportation

We ended up having to take a charter bus ten hours to get to Williamsburg. I'm normally a pretty roll with the punches kinda gal, but let me tell you, I was ready to cry when I heard this. My back and neck were killing me within an hour of the ride, and sleep was so sparse. The biggest surprise was the size of my ANKLES and FEET when I got off the bus. They were ginormous! I thought walking around today and getting in a lot more fluids would make things better, but they are still very swollen. I am enjoying the trip, and know tomorrow will be better because of sleeping in a bed tonight. I bailed on the 9:00 activity over being able to sleep.

Still At the Airport

We are grounded right now, and are looking to take ground transportation because of all the booked flights. Since I had some time, I decided I would blog about something I had been thinking about.

We are a group of thirty-eight teachers. There is one guy who is really big, I mean big big like I was pre-DS. I probably weighed 30-50 less than he does before having surgery. From when our group started meeting, I wondered how they were going to do his plane ticket. It turns out he is driving there. I wonder if they made him drive? How did they approach this situation? My heart goes out to him. That would have been me two years ago.

I've already had two Starbucks lattes today. If we have to be here much longer, I am thinking I may have another one. Crazy, yes I know. I'll post more later. I'm going to pull out one of my nerdy books and snuggle up.

Thanks for Letting Me Gloat and Be All In Love

Guys, I wanted to thank you for how supportive you have been regarding my relationship with Ben. I tend to talk about him more here than I do with two of my three best friends.

One of my friends got out of an extremely unhealthy relationship (one week before she was to marry the guy) last July, and is just starting to dip her toes back into the dating waters. The other friend is in her mid thirties, in a pretty isolated area (where the prospects seem very slim), and is not only worried about finding a guy, but being able to get pregnant before the clock runs out. While I try to share some of the stuff about Ben and I with them, I do try to proceed with caution, because I know what it feels like to be the odd man out. This is a place I feel safe to be able to share, and be all happy about being in love.

I'm at the airport now. My flight is delayed. I finished one professional book since Monday. I have about 10 I plan to read before the honeymoon. I am a bigtime nerd, and I really do like reading this stuff, and figuring out how I can be a better teacher. I made action notes of small but good things I can incorporate from the first book that I read.

A project I am NOT looking forward to doing, but must be done: REORGANIZING THE KITCHEN! I told Ben that this project is really getting under my skin, and I want it DONE. So, Sunday afternoon we are going to spend the necessary 2-3 hours that it will need to get it done. I'm going to completely clean out all cabinets and drawers, organize in groups, and put everything back away. I will take a picture of the big fat mess, then I will take a picture of the finished product. Ben can take a final picture with a sigh of relief on my face when this is done, or maybe a sign that says, "Calgon take me away." :)

Hey...anyone out there a Facebook user? Let me know, I'd love to add you to my friends list.

Pics as Promised

This first picture is not meant to offend anyone....honestly when I saw it, it just felt like the story of my life. This was taken at Hobby Lobby while we were waiting for our reservation. (I still had no idea what we were doing.)

Here we are at Ruth Chris. The second picture is taken on the balcony, and I love to view of the city.

So a reader asked me a question about who pays for our dates, and how that has worked as we became a more established couple. Ben has always paid for our dates. I can think of two or three times where I paid, and it was only because I was super insistent because we were celebrating something for him. Has this always been the case in my dating life? HEAVENS NO. Many men expect you to meet them middle of the way. I think this personally stinks. It makes me feel good that Ben values spending time with me so much that he offers to pay. One thing I can hand it to Ben on is that he has been 100% gentleman with class since my first encounter with him.

I have meetings today until 12, then I am off to Colonial Williamsburg/Jamestown. I am super pumped about the trip. :)

Out of the Park

Ben hit it out of the park that is!

I was supposed to meet him at the house at 5:00. I call and tell him I am almost there, but he might want to go a different way because of traffic. When I get home, I am thinking he is certainly going to be another thirty minutes because of how bad it was. To my surprise, he is sitting in the recliner. He tells me to go put on one of my nicest outfits, we are going out. He is wearing jeans and a polo, so I say, "Shouldn't my outfit match yours?" He said that was not essential. When I come out from changing he had put on his suit.

He made reservations for us at Ruth Chris. He gave me a really sweet card. We went to see Sugar afterwards. (Sugar was an excellent movie!) Pictures will follow. Bed is calling my name!

First Post Via My Blackberry Storm!

I am in a training today so I thought I would try this out. Last night my mom was trying to engage me in a fight but I wouldn't go there with her. She kept bringing up topic after stupid topic. Finally I realized I needed to end the conversation. My brother is upset that I didn't ask his daughter (who is under two) to be the flower girl in our wedding. I can't please everyone.

I also bought my first jar of almond butter. I have not tried it yet, but it was pretty pricey.

First Post Via My Blackberry Storm!

I am in a training today so I thought I would try this out. Last night my mom was trying to engage me in a fight but I wouldn't go there with her. She kept bringing up topic after stupid topic. Finally I realized I needed to end the conversation. My brother is upset that I didn't ask his daughter (who is under two) to be the flower girl in our wedding. I can't please everyone.

I also bought my first jar of almond butter. I have not tried it yet, but it was pretty pricey.

Ladies always ride side saddle: :)

Saturday and Sunday Recap:

Saturday:

Ben went with me to two different stores to look for some longer dresses. Covering up this leg fat is really starting to get annoying. I am happy that I found two things I think look good that I can wear to the showers when we go to Charlotte.

We go down to help my mom get the programs together. The program is on four pages, and looks like a fan. They look very pretty, but were a lot of work. We got them finished in about four hours. We went to dinner with my friend Danielle and her boyfriend from high school. It has probably been ten years since I have seen her. While we used to be close, I was worried we wouldn't have anything to talk about. We talked for almost two hours straight. She saw my announcement in the paper, and sent me a message on facebook about the wedding.

My dad kept bugging me about going to my cousin Brittany's wedding shower. It started as a shower, but later turned into a big drunken bonfire. My dad must have asked seventeen billion times if we were going to stop by. My mom called my phone several times to "make sure we were still coming." I have never fit in around my dad's family. I have blogged about this before. This started from a very young age, and has never stopped. I've not fit in for so long, I guess I feel like it is my place, and I'm tired of trying. Ben and I stayed down for an hour at the event, and my mom looked at me once and said, "Smile Tiffany." I told her I would smile if I were having a good time. She went on about faking it, or learning to like it. I'm not trying to be mean, but I think some of the bridges are burned, and I will always be treated as an outsider.

On a completely selfish and vain note:

I was staring down my cousin Dawn, and I think I am her size. I seriously think I could have swapped clothes with her and they would have fit. Now that feels GREAT. (My cousin Dawn and I have not spoken in at least twelve years.)

Sunday:

Ben and I went to church. Afterwards we ate at North Star Cafe, which is becoming one of my favorite little places to eat. I had my Sunday afternoon nap. We then met up with Alex and Rachel to have dinner. Ben pointed out that Alex and Rachel are "our" first friends, by that meaning friends that were not his nor mine when we met, but that we met together. That is kinda cool. We invited them to go to Shakespeare in the Park with us next Saturday night. Ben and I ended the night at Starbucks. (mmmmm) We played Monopoly for quite a long time, and had lots of fun.

For those of you who think that teachers get off all summer: WE DON'T! I am booked solid the next two weeks. Not to mention several other sparadic days throughout the summer. Also, summer is a time I cherish because I only have to work "one" job, instead of the two that I maintain throughout the school year. I am off to work. Enjoy the day! :)

Anniversary Celebration Dinner and Thoughts

Rivue was awesome! The dining room spun around as we ate, so we got to see an amazing view of the city from 25 stories! My dessert had flames coming off of it. Yeah, that pretty much ROCKS! :) While waiting for the dessert, a candy cart came by, and our server mixed us up to go boxes of gourmet candies. Ben likes a restaurant that sends you home with candy. (Heck, who wouldn't!)

I try to be very candid about my feelings in this blog. This blog was started two years ago as a way for me to process how all the changes that were affecting me. I'm glad it has helped and humored a few other people along the way, but that is still the sole purpose. Last night the mental battle kicks up a few notches while having dinner. I started to think and obsess about the number on the scale. The number is fine, and I know I need to not worry but I was. Life has special events, and it is ok to splurge at these events. My problem before was just that I treated every day as a special event, and allowed myself to always eat what I wanted. So what if the scale goes up today....I was celebrating something special, and that is more important.

When Your A Celebrity It Is Adios Reality

My school made the front page of the newspaper yesterday! My picture is there along with two of my students!

Photo Post

Ben celebrating with me after graduation!

Ben completed the blazin wings challenge: 12 wings in 4 minutes and 22 seconds!

Last Day of School with My First Fifth Grade Class....

Graduation went well. I will try to post several pictures that I had Ben take last night this evening after GED Center.

I guess this is the biggest reflection right now that I have on this current school year:

* There are some students I just couldn't make an emotional/relational connection with....I really tried, but it wasn't happening. This is huge for me, and something that is a big part of my teaching beliefs. A few of these kids were some of the toughest, biggest offenders in their previous school years. They didn't get in fights, or get suspended, and their behavior greatly improved, but it was only because I had to be constant on the discipline/routines/procedures with them.

I'm sure I'll have more reflections later, but for now that is all I feel like sharing and all I've processed in my head.

Ben got two more boxes unpacked last night. I worked on filling up my bookshelf. I am going to sort out all my literacy nerd books. Right now I just have them all on the shelves so I can see what I have before I move them around.

We had dinner at Buca Di Beppo last night, and my chicken marsala was so awesome!

51 days!

Graduation Tonight

My fifth grade class will be graduating tonight. We still have school on Wednesday, but this is when the facility could hold our graduation. Ben will be attending.

A few kinks...

Penny (my maid of honor) sent out my bachelorette party invitations, but forgot to put WHOSE bachelorette party it was. I have to go and tell my friends it was for me (those who don't know Penny).

My mom sent out about 75 invitations with the wrong address to the church. Fortunately, most of them were to Ben's family. Most of his family is not coming, and those who are will be getting directions from us to the church. We will still probably need to send correction post cards to about 25 people.

Last night Ben and I got the program ironed out. This weekend we will be assembling them (it is some fan type thing she got at the craft store) with my mom.

Ben got all the shelves put on his bookcases at my place, and got four boxes unpacked.

Off to work. I am loving listening to this man in the morning. His messages are POWERFUL!

Lets just say Ben was excited about the butter on the fixins bar at WW Cousins last night! :) I am proud of him. Although his scale is packed, he got on my scale last night, and the numbers are continuing to go down for him.

Thanks to Scale Junkie, I am so excited to try Metromint water. I bought all four types, and they are chillin in my fridge. They cost $1.50 each, which is about the same price as FUZE, which I love. It is so funny how I still second guess the cost of things that are healthier for me. I NEVER thought about how much my Coca-Cola addiction cost me, or the number of king sized candy bars I would buy cost. If things like this keep me from going back to old habits that will cost my health in the long run, I AM WORTH IT!!!

Tonight after the GED Center, Ben and I will be doing our wedding program. I totally dropped the ball at getting this done during the weekend. I am going to print off some sample ones at school today.