Christmas Reflection

My Christmas Eve was just how I hoped it would be! Even though we didn’t sing O Holy Night in church, the Kuptz’s party was a lot of fun. It was so nice to see old friends and catch up. I got my fill of white chili and Oscar’s breadsticks and snacked my way through the rest of the evening. We have been going to this party for 18 years now. Back in the day, us girls were the “kids” at the party, putting on shows and making crafts. However, this year Whitney, Kelsey, Meg and I realized that somehow, over the course of 18 years, we have become…dare I say it? ADULTS! We did participate in the craft though in order to keep the kid in us alive. We had 2 moments at the party that made the fact that we have now joined the “adult” group at the party really hit home. Moment 1: We walk into the garage (where all the cool kids hang out at the party) and all the kids looked at us and stopped talking, then proceeded to leave the room. We wanted to shout “Hey now! We used to be the cool kids here so don’t go trying to pretend that we ruined your fun time.” Moment 2: When discussing what we wanted for Christmas, Meg wanted a suitcase, I wanted a shower cap, and Whitney wanted a comfy mattress pad cover. What happened to asking for bikes and cool toys?

The night continued as it does every year, presents were opened, PJs were put on, and karaoke was sung. Besides the fact that I realized I am now old, it was a very fun night!

( I was in to black & white photos)

PJ Time!

On Christmas Day, the Woodley’s and Smith’s came over for a delicious meal cooked by the famous chef, Randolfo (aka my dad). After dinner, we played Rock Band and then a crazy game of Grouch. Below are some Christmas Day pics plus photos of my mom and Sheri playing Rock Band…a priceless moment.

I've been smelling books when I first get them for as long as I can remember. It's typically one of the first things that I do. So of course, I had to smell the Bible I got.

What I love about Christmas...

As I get ready to come home for Christmas, I’ve started thinking about all of the things that I am looking forward to like seeing my friends and family, playing cards with Donnie (and hopefully winning!), my Dad’s cooking, and shopping with my mom. But the things I’m looking most forward to come on Christmas Eve…

Christmas Eve service
Watching the church youth choir sing the songs I once did
Singing O Holy Night as the whole congregation holds candles
The Kuptz Annual Christmas Eve Party!
Karaoke (Girls singing “These Boots Were Made for Walking”)
Cheri’s craft corner
Mom’s White Chili & Oscar’s breadsticks
Marion’s mint-fudge brownies
Late night gift exchange
Opening up our PJ’s and taking pictures in them (see last
year's picture below)
Steve reading ‘Twas the Night before Christmas

Dog's 1st bath

Many, many years ago, I received a Gund Mutsy dog from my parents. After trying out several different names that just didn’t fit him, he became known to me as “Dog.” Dog has gone on many adventures with me to camps, sleepovers, and even college. Through all of his adventures, he has been lacking one thing…a bath. I had been afraid that I would ruin his soft coat early on. However, after lots of snuggling and travel, Dog’s coat just is not the same. So, as I was feeling brave last week, I decided to give Dog a bath. I put him in a pillow case and into the washing machine he went. I could tell through the pillow case that he had made it through the washing process in one piece. Next was the dryer. When I heard the dryer timer ding, I knew it was the moment of truth. I made Casey open the pillow case first in case it was a sight that my eyes couldn’t handle. To my great relief, he pulled out a much cleaner and fresher smelling Dog! What could have been a very traumatic experience, turned out to be a way to bring my friend back smelling better than ever! Below is a picture of Dog in his hey-day…

Christmas comes early

Casey and I celebrated our Christmas on Saturday. We opened our presents (which were all hits!). Casey got me a James Avery ring that I wanted that is silver with a pearl in the center. I also got a black Under Armor track suit that is supposed to be extra warm. He said it was to keep me warm when we go camping. I think he is tired of hearing my teeth chatter all night! Then, my stocking was filled with fun stuff from Bath & Body Works. Casey got a new baseball hat (he just looks so cute in hats!), a nice jacket from The North Face that he has been asking for since he spotted it back in September, and some really good smelling cologne. After our Christmas together, we went down to Mesquite to have Christmas with his Dad and Denise. We went to lunch at On the Border and then back to their house for presents. After we left, we spent the next couple hours running around to several (5 to be exact) stores to try to find different sizes in the Under Armor suit he got me. The top was an easy find but we were on a hunt for the pants. We literally drove all over and all of the traffic on a Saturday night was not helping our cause. It took us about 20 minutes to drive 5 miles thanks to the lovely ICE! exhibit at the Gaylord. I have NEVER seen the place that crazy. I was annoyed with the traffic but I did have to say thank you to all the people fighting their way to the Gaylord for paying for my paycheck too! We finally locked down the pants in Lewisville and by that point, we were exhausted. We finished the day off with some delicious Paulio’s pizza and the 5th Harry Potter film. Presents, Pizza, and Harry Potter…days don’t get much better than that.

I saw the James Avery box and got excited!

Casey trying on his new hat

My cool, black, under armor suitCasey's jacket

Party with the Office

Friday night was the sales office Christmas party. The party was at John’s house and was packed with people and delicious food! John’s wife Marleen, introduced herself to me which I thought was really funny since I’ve stayed at their house twice to do-sit. To be fair, I had straightened my hair so I probably looked a little different. The best food there was the turkey that my manager, Aaron, deep fried. It was easily the best turkey I have ever had. I felt like I just ate my way through the party. It was fun to get the spend time with people outside of work and in a relaxed setting. One of the funniest things was that Aaron and Ernest dressed up as the guys from Step Brothers. They took a picture like the one on the movie posters and framed it for the VP because it’s his favorite movie right now. The picture was pretty hilarious. You can see the two “step brothers” in the picture below...

Ernest and Aaron (aka Brennon and Dale)

From left to right: John (the host), Brittney, Bob (the Boss), me, Aaron (my manager), and Marcy

Meet Doug!

I would like to take the time to introduce everyone to Doug (Dougy to those who know him). Doug is my Douglass Fir Christmas Tree. He is very special to me, being my first Christmas tree on my own. He stands a proud 6’-7’ and hails from the wonderful land known as Wal-Mart. Aside from my 3 actual ornaments, Doug is covered in a bunch of red Christmas balls. I think he looks best at night and now the only light in my apartment after 7pm comes from all the white lights on little Dougy. My whole apartment smells like pine which I look forward to smelling every time I come home. So, everyone…meet Doug!

How am I just learning this?

I learned something new this past weekend. Casey explained to me the Calvin and Hobbes comics. He told me how it was all about the adventures of a young boy and his stuffed tiger. How could I not have known this! I grew up a stuffed animal lover just like young Calvin. Baby Big Bird got my through my first overnight camp in elementary school. I can’t tell you how many stuffed animals I would pile into my bed when I was really young in order to go to sleep at night (one being a giant big bear, appropriately named “Big Bear”). And of course there is Dog! My faithful sleeping companion for the last I don’t know how many years. I was shocked to find out that there was a comic strip out there that I could completely relate to. Anyway, since I have learned this, I have been trying to find random Calvin & Hobbes comics to read online. So as a shout out to my fellow stuffed animal lover Calvin, this post is for you.

So full!!

This was my first year to celebrate Thanksgiving twice in one day and let me tell you, you do not go to bed hungry! Casey and is started off the holiday in Grand Saline, Texas which is about an hour and a half east of where I live. That’s where his grandparents on his dad’s side live. I came bringing my “ghost poop” dessert which I called “Turkey Treats” due to the holiday and also some corn casserole. There were about 30 people at his grandma’s house so it was a packed house. His grandmother is so cute though. She wears these magnified glasses that make her eyes look really big which I found completely adorable. All of his aunts and uncles made sure to let me know that this was the first time Casey had ever brought a girl to big family event (always said with a nudge or wink). The highlight of the day though was when not only 2 of his aunt’s but grandmother herself asked for my “Turkey Treat” recipe!!! I was shocked and very honored. When it was time to leave for round 2, his grandmother told me that she hoped to see me next year to which his uncle told me I could come back anytime as long as I kept cooking like I did (with or without Casey!).

Round 2 was at Casey’s sister Kelly’s house. The was a lot more laid back (thank goodness!). I needed a rest after all that food from Thanksgiving #1. We mainly watched the Cowboys game and I played some trains with his 3 year old nephew Drew. I met his other sister, Laura for the first time which was really nice. Overall, it was a very nice (and filling) holiday!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I know, I'm a day early but I just wanted to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving! Tomorrow, I'm heading out with Casey to Grand Saline to have a good ole' southern style thanksgiving out at his grandparents house. Then we are heading back for round 2 Thanksgiving with his mom and sisters. I don't think I should have any problem getting full tomorrow! I'm sure I'll have stories to tell after that trip so don't fret, I'll fill you all in on all the details. Now, here is a fun Thanksgiving comic that I really enjoyed and hope you will too!

Twilight and my obsession

My latest obsession is the one and only Twilight Series. Now, even though I have seen the movie twice already, the books are where my true love lies. Casey went with me and about 11 others to see the opening of the movie at midnight. We all met for dinner at 7:30 thinking this was allowing for plenty of time. Boy were we wrong. Do not underestimate the obsessed 14 year old who thinks she will marry Edward Cullen (star vampire of the film). The theater we had tickets to we found out started letting people in at 1:00 in the afternoon! Girls were in PJs and camped out with blankets and playing cards already in the theater! We would have been the front and that was not going to happen. So we switched to the smaller theater (aka "adult theater") which was a much better choice. We went in to check out the big theater filled with girls, someone shouted "Edward!" and everyone screamed. I could not handle that for 2 hours waiting for the movie to begin. The movie was really good but could not even compare to the book. Although, I thought it was only fair to give it a second viewing so I went on Saturday with my friend Kate. Sunday, I finally finished the book series so now I really don’t know what to do with my life. I have contemplated re-reading the books or just holding tight for the movie to come out on video so I can watch my favorite scenes all the time. Until then, all I can do is sit here and daydream about the characters I love.

Christmas in November

Last Friday was the opening of ICE! here at the Texan. We got to have a sneak preview of the exhibit so I took some pictures so you all who don’t get a chance to come can see what it’s like. You can’t tell from the pictures but it is literally FREEZING in there! Nine degrees to be exact. One parka just does not work when it is that cold. That night was the lighting ceremony in the atrium and I dragged Casey to that with me. Luckily, 3 of the girls I work with also dragged their boyfriends there so he had some buddies to get a beer with while we waited. We got snuck into the VIP section by some other co-workers so we had a great view. They have been decorating the atrium since October 3rd so I feel like it’s been due to be Christmas for a long time now. But I really so love the atrium this time of year. At night, it truly is magical!

The entrance to ICE!
The Coca-Cola Bears
The Winter Forrest. This is my favorite part and apparently where a ton of Holiday proposals happen

Being a Chi Omega, I still find myself drawn to Owls!

The atrium all lit up

I thought you would appreciate this Mom and Dad. It's a wine bottle tree outside of Old Hickory!

The Quiet Place

My favorite thing to do at Forrest Home (the camp I went to growing up) was to find a quiet place somewhere out in nature to just sit, reflect, and ahve a moment with God. Typically these spots were along a creek or hidden in the trees somewhere. Well, since I am too old to go to summer camp anymore, I’ve started to do it on the capming trips I’ve been taking recently. On Sunday morning, in Cossatot Falls, I woke up and went for a little walk. I found a path down to the river and saw the most amazing site. It was freezing outside but the sun was burning brightly causing this mist to rise up from the river. The mist just moved along the top of the water like it was dancing. It was truly beautiful. The mountains around the creek with the fall colors only added to the beauty. It’s moments like these that I don’t see how anyone could NOT believe in God. It’s also times like these that I just appreciate what a beautiful artist God truly is. In this fast-paced, busy, cell-phone talking, radio listening to world we live in, it’s very rare to get a quiet moment. For the few minutes I enjoyed this scene, I just felt like God was there and that he would actually hear me if I spoke to him. I said a prayer and then carried on back to the campsite. But wow, if only everyday could be filled with more moments like those.

“In the secret, in the quiet place

In the stillness You are there.

In the secret, in the quiet hour I wait,

Only for You,'cause I want to know You more”
~ Chris Tomlin

Cossatot Falls

This weekend I went camping at Cossatot Falls in Arkansas with Casey, Candace, and Ryan. Let’s just say the trip was…interesting. The camping was amazing, we had the best site there, the river was beautiful, and the trees were turning into fall colors. However, it was what happened away from the campsite that made the trip interesting. Here are the top stories of the weekend:

1) Candace and Ryan left around noon on Friday so they could get there while it was still light outside (smart decision on their part. Casey and I left around 4 after he got off work. I had printed out directions to Cossatot River State Park so we were good to go. The only problem was that we were going to Cossatot Falls, not Cossatot River. Apparently, there is a difference because Casey and I went at least 20 miles past where we wanted to be and ended up on Polk Road 31 in Country Bumpkinville, AR. Casey has officially banned me from direction duty (although I think this is the 2nd time he learned this lesson). Luckily, in between the phone cutting out, I was able to get the correct directions from Ryan and we made it.

2) Saturday, we pulled into the E-Z Mart in Wickes, AR to get some more firewood. When we asked where we could get some the lady said “Firewood? Well I don’t know. Folks ‘round here just chop their own.” So we set out to find some firewood. About 2 miles down the road we saw a house that looked like it was selling anything and everything out in their yard. I mean ANYTHING, garage canopies, Barbi bikes, one-eyed giant teddy bears, and firewood! Casey pulled into the driveway and started heading up to the house. From our point of view, it looked like Casey just walked right in the door without knocking (apparently the guy waved him in though) but that made Ryan say “Uh, Jenna, maybe you should get into the driver seat in case we need to make a run for it.” Well “Earl” as we like to call him came out with full Santa beard and all and sold us some firewood for basically nothing. He also asked where we were staying which we cleverly skirted around answering just to prevent old Earl showing up at our campsite.

3) After going on a 3.5 mile hike that was mostly either steep uphill or steep downhill walking, we wanted to grab a couple beers. We drove into Umpire, AR and stopped at TNJ’s Grocery (also a gas station) where they are known for their fried catfish. They didn’t have any beer so we asked if any of the local towns might have some. The girls said “I sincerely doubt it.” We either had to drive across the state line to Oklahoma or to Hot Springs. I didn’t understand this though…isn’t that what teenagers do in small towns? Go out in the fields and drink? We concluded they must make their own moonshine or brew their own beer.

4) One example of the kind of people we were around was the guy who pulled up at the E-Z Mart in his big truck in his hunting gear with a dead deer in the back. It was my first encounter with a dead deer and a little too much for me. The cherry on the top was the stickers he had on his truck though “I taught your wife that thing you like.” Classy.

5) The second time we had some slight fear for our lives was while we were sitting and enjoying the beautiful stream when “Cletus”, as we call him, pulled up on his four-wheeler. He drove by once and then pulled around again and stopped. All he said was “Water’s pretty ain’t it?” He had a gun on his four-wheeler and spit twice while he talked to us. Casey and Ryan just tried to keep him entertained for about 10 minutes. He asked if we wanted to see his gun which Casey quickly responded “No” too and then he said something about his dual exhaust and just drove off all of a sudden. We weren’t sure if he expected us to be there when he got back but we weren’t waiting around.

6) To top off the trip when we went to pack up the car, we realized I had a flat tire. Hurray. Luckily, we made it back on the spare.

As you can see, it was a very interesting weekend but overall we had a lot of fun. We made some really good food and thanks to Earl’s firewood, we had a raging fire Saturday night. I think Cossatot Falls is definitely on the repeat camping list.

ANGRY.

What is with black sweater material lately? Within the last 4 days, I have had two, I repeat two, black sweater garments that I recently purchased rip on me. Monday, I was wearing a long black sweater when I realized that my under arm was a little more drafty than usual, only to find a giant hole right below the cap sleeve of my sweater! Luckily, I had a camisole on underneath otherwise, my co-workers would have seen a little more of me than I would have liked. Then, today, not more than 10 minutes ago, another co-worker pointed out a whole on the back of the neck of a new black sweater dress I purchased less than 24 hours ago. Needless to say, I am angry. I’ll admit, it’s not like I paid an arm and a leg for some high-end couture sweaters; but still, shouldn’t clothes last for at least one wearing, even if it only cost $15? The quality of low priced clothing (I know that’s an oxymoron) but still, it is going down hill and I’m tired of my clothes ripping for no apparent reason.

However, even in my sadness, I would like to take the time to thank Julie and Kate for helping me temporarily hide the holes in my clothes so I don't look completely unprofessional at work.

Decieved...on Election Day!

My morning started off well enough. I was actually pretty excited since it was my first time to actually vote in a formal poll (last election I had to vote by absentee ballot). I got there right as the polls opened and was one of the first to vote. This whole week I have been looking forward to getting my “I Voted” sticker and wearing it around proudly all day. After submitting my vote though, sadly, I did not receive the classic sticker that I had seen my parents wear when I was younger. However, outside the church where I voted was a little old lady with a table set up. She was giving away cookies, tiny American flags, and stickers! Everyone that walked out was getting a sticker from her so I joined in, excited to be getting to live out my sticker dream. This was not the classic sticker I knew and loved though. It said “Yes I did!” on it with a little American emblem and a check mark in it. I would have to settle for the homemade sticker. After being at work for a few hours, Debra came over to visit me and see if I voted. I proudly showed her my sticker only to hear her say “You voted for Obama?” I was confused by this question until she pointed out that the American emblem on my sticker was in fact, Obama’s logo! Who knew he had a logo? Instantly, I was furious that I had been deceived. I had been deceived by the face of innocence…a little old church lady. So my friends, on this election day, beware of these little old church ladies recklessly handing out these stickers. And above all, do not be fooled by the chocolate chip cookies!

A Night in Hollywood

Today my good friends Jeanie and Neil McDoogle called to tell me all about their amazing night. They live in Minnesota and won tickets on the radio for a real Hollywood Red Carpet party out in LA. They got a little lost on their way but their handy Hollywood map helped them find the party. Jeanie spent all day getting ready and even brought out her "fancy jacket" as she calls it. Neil brought his polaroid camera to try to get some pictures with the famous people. Once there, they found out that it was an Oscar party and they were handing out awards. The highlight of their trip was winning an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay (aka Most Original Costume). She sent me some pictures so you can see their great outfits...Enjoy!

Lost before the event

Picture with Pebbles Flinstone and Jessicaa Simpson

Winning the Oscar

The Great Pumpkin

Today officially starts the annual pumpkin carving/decorating contest here at the Texan. Last year we were robbed so hopefully this year we can pull through. Our theme is The Dark Knight complete with Bat mobile, Joker, and a spotlight that shoots the Bat emblem into the sky. The pumpkin team was extra creative this year, the buildings and the Bat mobile are all shoe boxes, the spot light is a cut down Pringles can, and the pumpkin is the water tower. People seem to have stepped up their game this year though so the competition could be tough. If you live in the area though, come by and check them all out (and vote for SALES of course!)

"You and I both love..."

Thursday night, my friends Kate, Amy, and I all went to see Jason Mraz in concert. The last time I saw him, he was performing at the Del Mar Fair. Needless to say, it looks like he has come a long way. We started the evening off with some delicious skillet queso from the famous Chili’s. After reading that, I bet you are starting to crave some skillet queso yourself…I know, it’s just that good. We headed off to the concert and when pulling up to park, Kate made the executive decision to park VIP (totally the way to go by the way). We parked right outside the entrance! After the concert, we hopped in our car and all of the flag guys directing traffic stopped all the other cars to let the VIP’s through. We felt very important. The concert was great! Our crush for Jason Mraz definitely grew that night. He was so funny and entertaining. He taught us important life lessons through his songs like “I won’t worry my life away” and “desperation is a mambo so dance it.” I was just impressed with his voice. Boy can sing! At one point he started singing this opera song and his drummer joined in. I was shocked at how good he was. As a whole, the concert was great. However, we were disappointed when he didn’t sing our favorite songs. Amy said she might have to write a message to him on his myspace page to express our disappointment. We made up for it though by rocking out to “you and I both” in the car on the way out of the parking lot. Who needs Jason when you’ve got Amy, Kate, and Jenna to serenade you?

Turner Falls

This past weekend Casey and I went camping at Turner Falls in Oklahoma. We drove up late Friday night and after driving around for a bit, found the perfect campsite. After getting the tent set up in the dark we realized that the batteries for the air mattress did not make it into my car for the trip. So, we made the trip into the small town of Davis, OK. In classic small town fashion, when we told the old man who ran the gas station quick mart we needed 4 D batteries, he said “Oh, well those are $6 each here but if you just go on down the road, you can get them a lot cheaper at WalMart.” Who turns business away these days? I got to experience my first real small town WalMart. It’s nothing like those big city WalMarts you’re used to going to. It was so small! We finally got all settled in our tent by 1:30 AM. Saturday, our friends Candace and Ryan were driving up to meet us and camp for the night. The four of us had so much fun! We went hiking around the falls and I kept laughing and calling us billy goats since Casey and Ryan liked to try some off-trail rock climbing. We found cool caves, saw the falls, and then hiked a little up the river…actually in the river. We also played a game of Frisbee golf and spent just as much time playing as we did searching for the rogue discs that flew into the forest. That night, we all sat around the fire and roasted brats for dinner and then had the best s’mores ever (the secret is dark chocolate!). Sunday morning I whipped up some French toast, eggs, and bacon. Quite the meal for camping outside, if I do say so myself. Before we went home, we decided we definitely needed to plan another trip. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed it!

A Night at the Theater

Last night, Casey and I got the opportunity to go to the theater! Thanks to Margaret, my mom’s college roommate, who gave me her tickets because she was going to be out of town. The show we went to go see was The Color Purple which I was really excited about since Oprah talks about it all the time. Even though O (I like to call Oprah “O” since we are close like that) I really didn’t have any clue what the story was about. Later I come to find out that Casey has seen the movie like 4 times which was a surprise to me. Anyway, Casey and I got all dressed up and headed to Fair Park to see our first show together. Once I walked into the theater I realized it had been way to long since I had seen a live show. The ushers directed us to our seats and the first thing that Casey said to me was “What? You couldn’t get better seats?” which was clearly a sarcastic statement judging by the fact that we were center orchestra and the perfect distance from the stage. We decided then that Margret had officially spoiled us with the seats. I think it was probably like flying first class, after that, flying coach just isn’t the same after you know how good it could be. The show was AMAZING! I loved the music and the character Sofia was by far my favorite. I laughed out loud every time she came on stage. I knew it was a really good show with an awesome cast when I started tearing up at the end. It just reminded me how much I love the theater and how much I miss being a part of shows. Whether it’s choreographing the children’s church musical or getting my first lead and partial solo, being there took me back and just made me want to see more. They were advertising the 2009 season and I already told Casey that one way or another, I am seeing Legally Blonde the musical (I already know all the songs by heart and thanks to MTV who aired the live Broadway show which of course I recorded). Overall, it was such a nice night and an awesome show! Thanks Margaret!