Thursdays Thoughts

Random Thoughts on a Thursday

**For all of you who may not know, my cousin Kaylis is having a sweet baby!!!!!WOOO HOOOO another sweet baby for the Pittman side of the family. I absolutely cannot wait to know what Baby Byrnes will be. I do know one thing, he/she will be spoiled rotten!! Baby Byrnes will be the 7th new family member, for the Pittman side, in just a little over 2 years.

**I still cannot "wrap" my head around the fact that the legendary Jack Cristil is retiring. He has been announcing MSU football and basketball since 1953. He has been announcing ballgames longer than my daddy has been alive. CRA-ZAY!!! Listening to the games will just never be the same. One thing I hope, is that on Saturday the Bulldogs can pull off a win against Tennessee, so we can hear him say "You can wrap this one in maroon and white" just one more time. What a great man. As we say at MSU... He is the ultimate definition of someone "grinding for our state" and the ultimate definition of "true maroon." I think he needs a billboard "Grinding for my State since 1953." Think about it...

JACK IS TRUE MAROON

Jack Cristil in the 2010 Homecoming Parade

I also can't wrap my head around the fact that Jack Cristil was a trending topic on twitter last night. For those of you who are not twitter savvy, that means he was one of the Top Ten things being talked about in the United States on people's twitter statuses.How awesome. As Marcello said "Jack Cristil is wrapping twitter in maroon and white." I just loved that.

**I have found a new type of radio to listen to while at work. It is the "Life is Good" online radio on their website. Most of you may not find this exciting, but I do!! I HAVE to have to music playing at all times or else I would never make it through a work day. Love it.

**I started a new kind of work out last night. It is called circuit training. Everyone should try it. From what I hear (and feel...ouch) it really works!!! It was suggested to me by my friend Memrie over at Our Life. Google it. Try it. Let me know how it goes for you. Yay for getting in shape!!

**Who all watches American Idol?? Kendol and I are obsessed. So far, my favorites are Casey Abrams (I predict that he wins... he is so awesome) Jacee Badeaux (just want to pinch his cheeks) and cowboys John Wayne Schulz and Scotty McCreary, of course!!

**How about this awesome weather? I mean it's absolutely perfect. Now, I wish it would stay this way. I have worn a dress to work twice this week. YES!!!

**So apparently I have been missing out on something major for a while now... Abita Strawberry Beer.... When it arrived in stores for the season, on Tuesday, you would have thought Elvis had come back to life or something, with how excited everyone was. I guess I should try it. I will let you all know how it goes.

**I am excited about making persuading Stephanie to eat her first ever Sloppy Joe!! I don't know about you, but Sloppy Joe's were a staple around my house. When Stephanie revealed that she had never had one, I immediately went to the grocery store. We will be having Sloppy Joe's and potato chips for supper. YUM!! I hope she likes it or else I will be treating her to dinner somewhere ha!

**So this is a question for all of you who read this in the Jackson area. Everyday I want a good salad for lunch, but I never can seem to find a really good one. Where and what are your favorite lunch time salads around town??

That's all for now.. I'm sure I will add more throughout the day.

HAPPY "ALMOST FRIDAY" FOLKS!!

Got My Toes in the Water....

GUESS WHAT!!!!!

The moment I've been waiting for...

since the last time I was there...

BEACH TIME!!!

Out of the blue the other day, Kendol says "I was going to try and wait and surprise you, but you know I can't do that... So do you want to take a long weekend to the beach sometime in April or May?"

ABSOLUTELY!!

Did he think I really might say no...

I just booked our condo in Seagrove for Apr 28- May 1.

WOO HOOO!! ARE WE THERE YET?

So, in just a little over 2 months I will be here:

Drinking one of these:

Listening to this:

With this guy:

Wee Bit Wednesday

{one} do you always wear your seatbelt in the car?
I always wear my seatbelt while driving, but I seem to forget when I'm just riding.

{two} do you crack your knuckles?
Heck no. That gives me the chills just thinking about it.

{three} what is your favorite flavor of gum?
Big Red

{four} what is your favorite piece of jewelry that you own?
My wedding ring and bands, of course!!! Then I would have to say my David Yurman bracelets. Love them!!!

{five} who is your best friend?
I just got so excited about this question. I don't even know where to begin to pick one best friend, so here they all are. I have lots and lots of very best friends!! For more pictures, please resort to the right edge.


 



 


 

  {six} what is your favorite smell?
A grill cooking up something delish!


{seven} what is your favorite lunch meat?
Turkey


{eight} do you still have your tonsils?
No, got rid of those at age 4.


{nine} do you untie your shoes before you take them off?
No, who does that??


{ten} what color is your car?
Cream

Time to Shape it Up

Ok, so after my 2 month hiatus, I went running yesterday. I still can't believe I haven't worked out in two months. It seems like the half marathon was yesterday and I looked up and it's been two months. WOW, where does the time go?? 10 Months worth of work to get in the best shape I've probably ever been in and I've let it all go and didn't even realize it.

I must start working out, hard core, bc it's almost swim suit season and I almost throw up everytime I see a swim suit in a store. Not to mention it's girl scout cookie season. There are no excuses now that the weather is gorgeous!! Yesterday's run was perfect :) Everyone should get out and do something.

As far as my workouts go, I do the following (Not all at the same time, obviously):
Running (usually 3-4 miles)
Gillian Michaels 30 Day Shred (only level 1 bc the other levels require too many things with your hands on the ground... such as a push up... and well, when your wrist doesn't bend, that's impossible)
Zumba DVD's
AB Ripper (P90X)
Kempo (P90X)

I have a few questions (for those who actually read this)
What are your favorite workouts?
Which wokouts bring the best results??
How many days a week do you work out and for how long?
Also, any healthy eating tips out there??
Any fun cardio/aerobics ideas?

If you can't tell, I am kind of bored with what I've been doing and want to try some new things!!

My Sweet Valentine

Yesterday was the best Valentine's I've ever had... hands down!! When I got home from work, I had not 1 but 2 vases of flowers waiting on me, a peice of Peter's conveniently called a "Bloody Mary" Bowl (so of course he got me a bottle of Zing Zang bc we all know I love Bloody Mary's) and then he took me to dinner at Franco's, which was absolutely delish and I'm still stuffed. I'm spoiled... I know :)

My two sets of flowers and my new "Bloody Mary" pitcher!!
LOVE

I, on the other hand, always have trouble with Valentines Day. It's so easy to buy for a girl in my opinion. Buy her some roses and take her to dinner (or cook for her) and you're good to go!

Boys are not so easy, especially for me, bc I am far far from a from a cheesy romantic. Most days I'm glad I'm not one, but some days, such as Valentines, it would be so much easier if I was. And it's double hard for me bc Kendol's birthday is on the 17th, so I have to try and keep the two seperate. I could get one big present, but then that's no fun for him on one of the two holidays.

Anywho, for Valentine's I got Kendol a book called "Wild Abundance." (real romantic... right??) It is a nice, coffee table type book, that has deer camp stories and the recipes (mostly wild game recipes, but some are not) to go with them from the best deer camps in the south. Plus there's a few pictures of Eli in there. He LOVES to cook. He LOVES to hunt and he LOVES the Mannings, so it was a win/win. I also got him a new pair of snazzy boots that are half birthday/half valentines.



Perfect gift for the hunter, ladies!!!




He has already picked out which recipes he wants to try first!



New Snazzy Boots



O, and funny story... Apparently the person who takes reservations at Franco's is a Twilight fan. It's not very often that people mess up the name "Collins"... Callie, yes... Kendol, yes... but Collins, no!! Apparently they thought Bella and Edward were coming to visit for a star studded Valentine's! This is what was on our table.

Also, on my way home yesterday I was flipping through the stations and ran across K-LOVE. Why have I never known what station this was and why have I not been listening to it for years??? What an awesome station and what a perfect thing to find on Valentines. (100.9)

Anywho, Apparently they do a "Next Great Love Song" contest for Valentines and a guy named Matthew West writes a song based on the story of one couple who sent in a letter. Read story HERE!!

Thank you to my sweet Valentine, Kendol for all you do for me!!

I love you!!

I hope everyone had an awesome Valentine's Day and even if you didn't have a Valentine this year, I hope you find one like the one in the song!!

Long Black Train

After work yesterday, I watched the Josh Turner "Origins" special on GAC bc let's face it... his voice is to die for and he's pretty easy on the eyes. But let me just tell you, I unexpectedly got a lot more out of it than just looking at his pretty face for an hour.

He started talking about his first hit, "Long Black Train" and there's so much about this song that I never paid attention to. What an awesome and unexpected reminder this was to keep on the Godly path and not let the devil's "intriguing" distractions steer you away!! It's crazy how God speaks to you in such random ways. I have always loved this song, but I guess I never really paid attention to the meaning of the words.

He started telling the story of him writing this song in his apartment by himself, right after he graduated college. And how he never even thought about putting it on his album bc he didn't think people would listen. He ended up crying telling the story of a lady who said the song saved from taking her life. And look at it now, his first hit... a christian country song!! Who would have ever thought? It's so refreshing to see that there are still some good, christian, down to earth (famous) people out there, who really are trying to send out the right messages to those around them.

I listened to the song again this morning on my ipod and I thought I should share it!!

HAPPY HUMP DAY EVERYONE!

 LONG BLACK TRAIN

There's a long black train,
Comin' down the line,
Feedin' off the souls that are lost and cryin',
Rails of sin, only evil remains
Watch out brother for that Long Black Train

Look to the heavens
You can look to the skies
You can find redemption
Staring back into your eyes
There is protection and there's Peace the same,
burnin' your ticket for that Long Black Train

'Cause there's vict'ry in the Lord I say,
Vict'ry in the lord,
Cling to the Father and His holy name,
And don't go ridin' on that Long Black Train

There's an engineer on that Long Black Train,
Makin' you wonder if the ride is worth the pain,
He's just a waiting on your heart to say
Let me ride on that Long Black Train,

But you know there's vict'ry in the Lord I say,
Vict'ry in the Lord,
Cling to the Father and His holy name,
And dont go ridin' on that Long Black Train

Well, I can hear the whistle from a mile away,
It sounds so good
But I must stay away
That train is a beauty, makin' everybody stare
But its only destination is the middle of nowhere,

But you know theres vict'ry in the Lord I say,
Vict'ry in the Lord,
Cling to the Father and His holy name,
And don't go ridin' on that Long Black Train

I said cling to the Father and His holy name
And dont go ridin' on that long black train
Yeah, watch out brother for that long black train

That Devil's a drivin' that long black train.

Over the Weekend.. Superbowl Style

OVER THE WEEKEND..

*I watched my first MMA fight and learned what a cauliflower ear is! Disgusting.. how do people watch that?

* I had a girls day out with Ann-Hamilton and Hayes!! We ate at Pan Asia and did a little shopping. Hayes is learning early!

*We ate at Burgers and Blues for Austin's birthday!! That was our first time there and I have to say, it's was pretty dang good. I had the bleu cheese BLT. YUMMMM!

*We didn't get to meet Miss Maggie Mullis :( I cannot wait to meet her though, she is a little cutie pie!! But, I am soooo glad we didn't end up going to the hospital. Kendol finally went to the doctor and has poison ivy all over his face and neck. I diagnosed him on Tuesday or Wednesday and he didn't believe me. He's going to learn one day that I'm ALWAYS right!! (HA) I have been itching all over ever since I found out.

*We went to a little SuperBowl party on Sunday.

Of course, all of the food was delicious.

MENU:

Red Beans & Rice

Gumbo

Homemade French Bread

Cheese Petit Fors

Homemade Breadsticks with Marinara

BLT Dip

Ranch Dip

Veggies with Ranch

Hummus

Needless to say, I seriously couldn't sleep because I was so stuffed (and itching). I am still stuffed. If I had eaten one more breadstick, I would have turned into one.

In honor of all the good food, I will share a couple of recipes. I made the Cheese Petit Fors. The recipe is compliments of Kendol's cousin Clancy!! She had them at a birthday party once and they are delicious! The breadstick recipe is from Krista! YUMMY

Cheese Petit Fors
 4 Cans of Old English Cheese Spread
2 Cups of Softened Butter
1 TBSP Hot Sauce
1 TBSP Worstershire Sauce
1 Tsp Garlic Powder
3 Loaves of "Very Thin" White Bread (Pepperidge Farm)

Mix first five ingredients well. Each sandwich has three slices of bread. Put a thin layer of mixture on the top and bottom pieces just like you would when  making a regular sandwich. Then put  a thin layer of the mixture on both sides of the middle peice. With an electric knife, cut the crust off of the bread and cut each sandwich into 4 squares. Bake for about 20 minutes on 350.
If you would like, you can spray the top of each sandwich with spray butter so they will toast better or sometimes, if I have any mixture left, I put a little dab on the top of sandwich.

On Sunday, all the grocery store had was Very Thin Wheat Bread. Although they were a little more healthy (if these can be healthy at all), they were not as good. Definitely use white bread!

These are super easy, but they do take a little time!! I counted yesterday and a full recipe made right at 105 mini sandwiches.

 Quick Pizza Breadsticks

1 10 ounce package of pizza dough
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup grated Parmesan or romano cheese
2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning, crushed
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 8 oz can of pizza sauce, warmed

Lightly grease a large baking sheet. Unroll pizza dough and use your hands to press the dough into a rectangle. Brush the dough with melted butter.
In a small bowl, combine cheese, italian seasoning, garlic powder, and red pepper. Sprinkle over dough. Using a sharp knife, cut dough crosswise into strips then in half lengthwise.
Bake at 425 for 10-13 min or until golden brown. Serve with pizza sauce.






Stephanie and Wally, being the little philanthropists they are, sold football squares to benefit Relay for Life! Since no one there was just a die heard fan of either team, it was a fun way to bring on a little friendly compition!!  I love having parties at their house because, no matter the occassion, they find a way to give back to some sort of organization!! So awesome.

I have to say, I was rooting for the packers bc of Aaron Rodgers. Maybe now he won't always have to be compared to Favre. And, of course, I am proud for former Bulldog, Donald Lee, on his SuperBowl win!! HAIL STATE

Every year, after the superbowl, it's always a little depressing..

Christmas is over and football's over.

What else is there to do????

Bring on the Sunshine, Water and Crawfish!!!!!!!

 It's time to get a tan.

(O and P.S. I think I threw up a little when I saw the swim suits at Old Navy yesterday. Must start working out ASAP!!!)

Thankful Thursday

So, I was just working in my cubicle listening to a little Zac Brown Band to help pass the time, and the song "Make This Day" came on the ole ipod. I know how boring some days can be, how slowly time can pass and how repetitive they can be sometimes, but the chorus of this song made me realize how thankful I should be to still have a job, with the current economic situation, and how we need to make the most of every minute of everyday!! 

"We're gonna make this day

A little better than the last

It's amazing how slow a day like this can pass

Find a way to wash away

Any regrets you have

Don't let this moment pass, live inside this day!!"

~"Make this Day" Zac Brown Band

So for this Thursday, I am thankful to have a really good job, with an awesome company that has very christian values. There aren't many of those left out there!

I'm also thankful for Zac Brown Band and Jason Aldean for keeping me entertained on the freezing Thursday!!

O and this is what I'm listening to, to keep warm!!

"Wishin' I was knee deep in the water somewhere
got the blue sky, breeze and it don't seem fair
my only worry in the world, is the tide gonna reach my chair?"
~"Knee Deep" Zac Brown Band/Jimmy Buffet

STAY WARM OUT THERE!!
HAPPY THURSDAY!!

Remember:

MAKE THIS DAY A LITTLE BETTER THAN THE LAST.

DON'T LET THIS MOMENT PASS.

LIVE INSIDE THIS DAY!!

Spring Things

Ok, so I was just thinking about it and I confused myself about what months are considered spring. In my mind it's February-ish through May-ish... so that's the months I'm going to use, whether ya'll like it or not!!

(Googled it and it's March- May... O well.. My blog... My way)

TOP 5 THINGS I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS SPRING

*CRAWFISH!!

Hands down, my favorite thing about spring, whether we are at the Crawdad Hole, at Mudbugs, cooking them at our house or on our annual trip to Cason's!! CAN NOT WAIT.

*THE RODEO!!

Ok, obviously you all know I have a country side to me (that i'm completely NOT ashamed of) and the rodeo is one of my favorite things to do each year. I love the bull riding, I love the music and who does not love the rodeo dance on Saturday night. I mean what can be better than that many rednecks (and I mean hardcore rednecks) in one room? It's bound to be entertaining. O it's just ridiculous! It never disappoints.

*ST. PADDY'S DAY!!

Although nothing will ever top being at the South Side Irish Parade in Chicago on St. Paddy's day (2007), the Jackson parade comes in a very close 2nd. It is so much fun and definitely one of my favorite events in Jackson.

*COOKOUTS WITH PERFECT WEATHER!!

Let's face it... 24 degrees is not ok for grilling. I think I speak for us all, when I say "Bring on Spring!" Spring is the perfect time to hang out outside and we take full advantage. It's not too hot... not too cold. Just perfect for a dress and sandals and the occasional cardigan, if necessary! It's perfect for a little Bocci Ball tournament or two! Or if Kaitlyn's around, a nice little game of Hide-n-Seek around the yard. 15 adults and 1 six year old running around like crazy people!! Love it.

*BABIES
I just cannot wait to meet Miss Mary Clayton Makamson and Mr. Chandler Lee Counts. O my gosh, it still has not hit me that we are old enough to have children, even though the majority of my friends have at least one. Yay for precious babies!!

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And since I just remembered it's Wednesday, I'll let you learn "A Wee Bit More" about me.
Uh Oh!!! 2 blogs at once, getting a little crazy around here! Watch out!




{one} what was your favorite sitcom growing up?
Well that's easy... Saved By the Bell!!
(Don't reaally know if it was considered a sitcom, but o well)

{two} what song always makes you happy when you hear it?
I can't think of 1 particular song. I listen to too much music to pick one. So i'm going to go with anything from the 90's. My radio stays on 90's on 9 or 90's country and 99% of the time there's a smile on my face.

{three} do you still have your wisdom teeth?
Yep! If I even have them yet. Most people say it hurts when they come in and I've never felt anything, so I don't know if I have them or not haha.

{four} what is your go to way to relax?
sweat pants..check
 sweat shirt..check
 tv..check
couch..check
 blanket..check
wine..check
Or a massage... you know... if I have an extra $100 just laying around.... ha

{five} do you play any instruments?
ummmm that's a big negative! I wish I could play the guitar and the piano.

{six} nude beaches: yes or no?
BAHAHAHA... heavens no!

{seven} do you chew your pens/pencils?
I just break the clip part off.

{eight} can you change the oil in your car?
Heavens no. Why would I do that, when someone can do it for me.

{nine} can you curl your tongue?
yep!

{ten} can you knit or crochet?
No, but I'm learning to smock.