Big steps...and a moving dolly

Moving in together is a big step...one that we did not take lightly as it involves two additional lives. Christian (age 11) will be with us every other weekend and for extended periods around school breaks. Daniel (age 15) will be with us on occasional weekends when he's home from school. We had both of the kids at my house on Thanksgiving to see how things went...1000 square feet isn't alot of space for 4 people. It went surprisingly well and the kids really enjoyed themselves. We told them about us moving in together and they were both pretty excited (considering they would be alternating between the spare bedroom or the couch.)

This weekend we did more moving of Michael's things and Christian came to stay. Christian arrived Saturday night along with 6 giant plants and 3 large gallon containers or different "kinds" of water. She is doing a science experiment to determine which plants will survive longer. She is feeding them with either: tap water, tap water with salt or ocean water. I am pleased to say her hypothesis is turning out correct...the salty water plants aren't looking so hot.



On Sunday, we borrowed a truck and went to Michael's old place to pick up his washer, dryer and couch. Although I have a washer and dryer, mine came with the house when I purchased it and are somewhat temperamental. Michael has a front load washer and dryer (Hell yea!!). My dad loaned us a dolly and some straps to make moving a little easier. Our anxiety increased as we realized we would have to lift both the washer and dryer into the back of the truck...which is really high. To our amazement, the washer and dryer were a cinch to move. With the help of blankets, they were relatively easy to get into the truck and into my house. The dolly certainly helped too. We anticipated those to be the toughest pieces to move...boy were we wrong. We got the couch out of his place with relative ease. We knew we would go into the back door at my house with the couch since my front door has 24 steps leading up to it. But the problem was that it is super heavy, made of suede (which doesn't help the lifting process) and large (so it must come through the door at an angle.

We finally got it onto my porch and initially, I was at the back and Michael was at the door navigating and pulling. Apparently our communication broke down at some point because Michael was assessing while I began pushing. I pushed the couch into his thumb, thumb into the wood door frame and which split his thumbnail about halfway down the bed. He was inside the house holding his bleeding thumb and running to the kitchen to put it under water while I am trapped out on the back porch by the couch. Once his thumb regained feeling, we moved the couch back out, I took the pulling/navigating role and he was the "pusher." 10 minutes later, the couch was still on the porch blocking the doorway, his thumb was still throbbing and my patience had caught the last bus to the bar down the street. I was done and wanted the couch in my house even if it required me to disassemble it and bring it in pieces.



A light went off in my head to some gardening gloves (never used as I have a 'black' thumb) that had some rubbery stuff on the palms. I figured they would help me grip the suede-like fabric. I put on my gloves, bent at the knees and told him to push. Damn if that thing didn't fly in the door! We got it in, put it in its place (even if its a temporary one) and fell onto it, exhausted. We were spent, our backs hurt and hunger had set in BIG TIME.



10 minutes later, I was in my pajamas, Michael was on a beer run and Christian and I were viewing the end of the wizard of Oz on TNT waiting for our pizza to arrive. We are now living with a washer in the living room and a dryer in the kitchen and honestly, I cannot guarantee that they will be hooked up before Christmas.

Am I too friendly?

I am generally a happy and kind person. I hold doors for strangers. I smile at passers-by. I do the obligatory wave when someone lets me into traffic. Hell, I have even honk less at terrible drivers compared to when I lived in Chi-town and my horn was used about as much as my blinker. For the most part, my happy disposition has served me well but I recently had a peculiar thing happen to me at Target.

I was at the Superstore the other day after work, bound and determined to finish my Christmas shopping. I had my list in hand and cart moderately full when I entered the creative activity aisle. I was looking for something for my 4 year old niece...wanting something educational and fun (I know, I am that aunt) when I heard an "excuse me." A nice woman, probably a few years older than myself (at least I think I looked younger) started small talk about Christmas shopping, etc. I thought nothing of it.

See I grew up with a mother who would (and will) talk to everyone about anything. To this day, we can be in line at a store, minding our own business and she will tell anyone within earshot what she's buying and why. Sometimes she'll share where she's from, what she does for a living as well as how well she does it. I understand that sometimes, there are those moments in line when the cashier is taking too long or patrons have a shared experience and its normal to chat for a second and then go on with life. My mom doesn't' wait for those moments, she chooses to make them. For a long time this bothered me. I'd be lying that on occasion it still does ("Mom, that stranger does not care that you were born in Hartford and can drive in the city better than most people.") She can talk to anyone at anytime about anything.

But I digress...

So, I was not totally shocked when this stranger struck up a conversation with me initially about the holidays, recent moves to NC (she used to live in IL too), and where we were employed. Initially I thought, hey this is how friendships begin. Maybe I am making a new friend...until she started asking me a little too much about my employment.

Then it happened...out came the business card and the inquisitive question of, "Are you interested in becoming involved with an up and coming group of young entrepreneurs?" Give me your email and I will send you a short video to check out. I must have still been dreaming about my new friend and the many adventures we would have checking out pottery shops, going shopping, etc because I heard myself giving her my REAL email address. I was still in a daze when she said "Happy Holidays" and skipped away with my email address in hand. I gazed down at her card and under her name it read"Private Franchising." What the hell does that mean? I'm a social worker, not a business major.

I forgot all about my "almost" new friend until today when I received an email from her that read:
It was nice meeting you the other day! As I mentioned I am sending you some details on our company expansion! The first step will be for you to watch a 6 minute video I have on my website. It will not work on a smart phone, so you will need to be directly connected to the Internet. The video is not designed to teach anyone what we do, or how we do it. What the video does is cover some of the concepts behind what we are putting together. We use the video as a screening tool. It helps to separate the people that are just curious from the people who are actually looking for a way to make extra money. After you watch the video, email me back, and let me know if this is something you are still interested in and we can get into the details.

Of course I was curious so I watched the video that told me ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about what she did but encouraged me to attend a information session. Um, no thanks lady! Apparently, just viewing her message prompts a follow up email about how grateful she is that I watched the video and how I should contact her about setting up a time to meet. Seriously? Now she wants to have coffee with me.

Needless to say I will NOT be attending an information session and I hope that she hasn't sold my email address to other pyramid schemers out there.

This is a perfect example of me not following one of the simple rules that Miss Horton* told me in Kindergarten...NEVER TALK TO STRANGERS.

(*Side note-Mrs Horton was the coolest teacher ever. She only had 1 and a half arms yet she could tie my shoes. My mother says I used to sit there in awe of her when she would help me get my shoes on.)

So, this weekend was filled with holiday parties and moving. Friday we ventured to my party which was held at my bosses house. It was calm and quiet but allowed Michael to meet some of the folks I talk about on a regular basis. We ended the evening at one of the local pubs by OUR house, playing touch screen and continuing to carry on the FTOOL tradition.

Saturday was his holiday party which was AWESOME! It is a casino night and upon entry each employee is provided with 20K worth of poker chips. From 7-10 is gambling: craps, poker, roulette and blackjack. We started at craps for a tutorial and things quickly went downhill despite Matt, our dealer, egging us on to bet more. We rotated around to black jack and hit roulette for a second. Michael stopped at poker and did well until an unruly guest became too annoying at which time we headed back to craps. The 15 minute warning was given so we figured we'd take our remaining 6K and bet it all. Well, it paid off because we ended up with over 26K within those 15 final minutes and with the help of Michael's boss (who slipped us his chips) our total was 43K.

Why is this important? Because there is an auction of items that you bid on with your earnings. Some of the top prizes were:

• $375 Visa Card


• $150 Visa Card and $250 gift certificate for a limo (5 hours)


• $200 Best Buy Card


• $150 target Card

We knew we fell about 4th in the rankings so the top two prizes were out. We did win a $150 Target gift card though...remaining Christmas presents, here I come!!

This weekend we also began combining Michael's things into our space. I cleaned through clothes and provided him with a drawer or two along with some closet space. We set up the televisions (I LOVE Direct TV!) and the Internet. We also combined our refrigerators and I laughed out loud by the multiples we have between the two of us. We will not need condiments for months. Here's the short list of the current contents of our fridge: (feel free to read it while humming the tune "The 12 days of Christmas")

• 8 sticks of butter


• 5 vanilla extracts


• 4 Parmesan cheeses


• 4 sour creams (seriously?)


• 3 crescent rolls


• 3 cream cheeses


• 2 bottles of mayonnaise


• 2 mustard containers


• 2 ketchup bottles


• 2 blue cheese dressings and


• 1 bottle of fish sauce (we went through a Thai phase)

Our next adventure will be to figure out which furniture stays, and what goes....stay tuned!

New Roommate

Jessica and Andy did it. My brother and his wife did it. According to the 2008 US Census, 13.6 million couples did it. Yup, we're moving in together...I'm getting a roommate!!! After lots of thought, Michael and I decided to shack up. He'll be moving into my townhouse over the next month and a half. We have until the end of January to have his apartment cleared out so it gives us lots of time to slowly incorporate our stuff and see what fits (big comfy couch) and what doesn't (horrible queen sized mattress that feels like you are sleeping on a lump).

In reflection, I realize that Michael isn't my first male roommate. The summer before my junior year in college, I lived with 3 of my girlfriends and 3 guy friends in a large house just off campus. It was totally a party house. Only two of the 7 of us maintained steady jobs that summer and we spent most of our non-working awake time behaving like the debaucherous college students we were. I think this new roommate situation will be a little different.

I'm really excited that we are taking this step but admit to feeling a little nervous. I'm not nervous that he's moving but I'm anxious about the inevitable growing pains that many people go through when you live with your significant other. I have a feeling that there will be some new adventures on our horizon. Wish us luck!!

It started with the beast!

My parents were generous with the three of us growing up. We were all promised a car to drive on our 16th birthday and I was just hoping that "my" car wouldn't' be the 1982 Buick Le Sabre (complete with battery acid stain in the hood) that had been sitting in our driveway for two years since my mom decided she needed a new Lincoln. But alas, it did turn out to be my 16th birthday car and honestly, it was great. My parents didn't have to worry about my being hurt in a wreck since I had 2 tons of metal protecting me. The car was so big that I managed to fit myself and 13 friends in it one winter evening (including 4 football players) while we did donuts in the high school parking lot. Hey, there's not a lot to do in Dover, Ohio!

Once I headed to college, I got Baby Blue. BB was a V6 Beretta that was awesome. I LOVED THIS CAR!! It was fast, it looked cool and had a pop up sunroof that could be completely removed and placed into a giant protective cloth envelope in the trunk. Talk about cool!! BB lasted through college and well into my move to Chicago. BB died as a result of a cab driver who stopped too quickly and my friend's (who we will call Humberto) ability to drive a little too close. In all honesty, we know how Chicago cab drivers are, if they see a fare they will slam on the brakes from going 60mph to get it. I was actually out of town when this incident occurred, and despite what many friends thought, upon my return, I did not throw said Humberto from the car while speeding down the highway but rather I assured his safety from the accident and began my new car search.

Next came my white Saturn...never really had a good name for it. WS was cute, had a sunroof and survived many road trips across the USA including my move from Chi-town to NC in 2008. Sadly, in the last year WS has had some issues. Most recently, it billowed smoke while I idled at traffic lights. I pretended to ignore the looks of passersby or pedestrians that were coughing and running away from WS. These incidents made me think that I needed a new car. The boyfriend and I have been talking and since I will be getting a roommate soon (another post with details will follow) I will have some extra cash for a new car and it may be best to trade in WS before we actually have to push it to a dealership.

So, last night we went to a dealership with the intent of looking around. We decided on a car as opposed to an SUV since boyfriend already has one and it makes more sense to get something that will be more economical on gasoline. I like the Civic and the price was in the range we wanted to spend. We looked at the differences between the LX, EX, etc and ultimately, I knew I wanted a sunroof. That left us with the EX. We did the pricing and with incentives and the discount from being an employee of the University Who Cannot Be Named...During Basketball Season, the financing was right on. I picked the color I wanted and we almost signed the papers when....boyfriend remembered there was an EX with Bluetooth and a navigation system on the lot. He suggested to the sales guy that we just take a look at it. Well, I should have just put up the white flag cecause as soon as he saw the Navigation system he was sold. Me, I was a bit more hesitant. See I come from the the school of thought where all I need is my trusty atlas to get me to my destination. I do not like a voice telling me "Turn left now" or "continue ahead 5 miles" or "Missed turn, redirecting." But, I weighed the pro's and cons and after learning that I do not always have to use it, I caved and said yes. Ultimately the decision was mine, but seriously bf's puppy dog eyes were too much for me to say no. Needless to say, we've owned the car for less than 24 hours and his phone is already programmed into the bluetooth...whatever that is :)

So, I am now the proud owner of a new Honda Civic known as Black Beauty. I know its cheesy, but I haven't brainstormed a more suitable name yet. Suggestions are welcome. My drive to work was absolutely lovely...and exhaust-free!!

PS: This is not the actual Black Beauty as I do not have my camera with me :)

We survived...

Thanksgiving weekend turned out quite well, if I say so myself. Despite being on-call (and called in on Thanksgiving Eve) everything was a success. Michael and I did a ton of prep the night before so that Thanksgiving Day would be smooth. I certainly have a new appreciation for all of my parents hard work over the years. Michael prepped the bird (and made sure it was defrosted) and I set the table using Michael's mom's china. It's tradition in my family that everyone gets a taste of champagne at the holidays so we even gave the kids little glasses for a champagne taste. They thought it was the coolest thing ever.

I also introduced them to Clams Casino (anyone who's been to the beach knows what I'm talking about) which is another Range tradition. The kids (and Michael) absolutely loved them!!

Dinner went off without a hitch...on time and warm, which was my goal. Christian really enjoyed her turkey leg. Where food goes in that skinny child, I will never know!!

We even managed to squeeze in a quick photo of the four of us.

Top Ten

So, my last post was a bit whiny so I decided to make a top ten list of things I am thankful for this year to make up for it.

10)Project Runway. I'm not kidding...I LOVE THIS SHOW! I was desperately sad when Bravo and Lifetime were fighting, preventing me from my Tim Gunn fix. Thank you Lifetime for bringing it back to me.
9) Buffalo Blue cheese sticks from Carolina Ale House. They are like crack to me.
8) Workout buddies. Initially it was cross fit and when that became too expensive it was meet-up groups. Regardless, I have met some wonderful ladies to run/workout with (when I have the motivation).
7) Weather. I absolutely love that I have all 4 seasons here. I made snowballs, smelled lilacs , swam in the ocean and caught falling leaves.
6)My house. It is by far the most expensive purchase of my life. I love that it's mine to come home to and its mine to clean, to decorate, to be.
5)Daniel and Christian. It's been an adventure getting to know the kids. From Daniels' life observations to Christian's Pre-teen drama...I covet the little moments of "look what I made" or "Can we paint our nails?"
4)Friends-New and Old. In this transition, the hardest thing has been missing my friends. I have been lucky enough to have old friends visit, to have new friends to celebrate with and hopefully I can continue to build a community here.
3) New Adventures. From attending my first pig-picking to watching my first Tarheel game. From the beach to the mountains...I have done a lot in my first year-plus here.
2)My family. My brother went through some job ups and downs, my sister went through relationship ups and downs, and my mom had knee surgery and we are all here to tell about it and love each other.
1)Michael. Plain and simple, it took leaving a city of almost 3million to find the one person who REALLY gets me.

Low-carb...Bah humbug!!

So, I have been a bit of a slacker lately...not really having much to blog about or the motivation to do it. I feel like I am in the middle of a huge transition and its like being in the eye of the storm...you can see things around you flying by and you don't want to make any steps cuz you may just get swept up. Most things going on are good but still relatively scary and full of change. I struggle with change although, at the same time, I enjoy it in some weird way too.

This year I am cooking my first Turkey. It's just going to be Michael and I and the kids. They are venturing to my house for a two night sleepover, complete with blow up beds and lots of movie watching. My house isn't as exciting as their dad's...no individual TV in their room, no Internet (I know, what century do I live in?), no personal space. I admitted to Michael last night that I am worried that they will be bored. For some reason his, "they'll be fine" didn't calm my fears :)

The past two days I have been running around like a mad woman...cleaning the house, defrosting the turkey in the tub (don't' ask), grocery store twice (that's after our BIG thanksgiving trip last week), picking up clams for appetizer, getting haircut (hey, that's important for T-giving too!). Tonight we are injecting the turkey (pending its thawed) and making the peanut butter cheesecake...low carb of course.

Oh yes, I neglected to mention that we are having a low-carb T-giving. Michael and his coworker made a bet about who can lose the most weight before their Christmas party (Dec 12). We eat the majority of our meals together so I jumped on the wagon and let me tell you, its been tough. We are in induction phase where we limit our carbs to 14 a day. I did well for the first few days but yesterday, I was GROUCHY. (Jess, thanks for the warning!!) Our whole T-giving dinner was re planned to accommodate our new dietary restrictions. The only carbs we will be having are mashed potatoes. I cannot imagine a T-giving without them. I will eat them sparingly and savor every morsel that I feed myself...we'll see how long I last :)

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Seriously?! Seriously?!

Hmmm...where in the parent handbook does it say that its a good idea to leave your 10 year old child at the Cardiology clinic by himself so YOU can run an errand. Mom's response to the inquiry was, "Well I told him to listen to what the doctor said so he could report back to me."

I can't make this shit up!

34 Years Young

We celebrated in true Halloween fashion.  We dressed up as Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf.

I forget how much I like to dress up for Halloween! We saw some pretty funny costumes when we were out on Saturday including a woman with 8 little dolls attached to her arms...she was the Octamom!

 I had an amazing birthday weekend of tasty eats, playing with friends, pretty presents, loving texts and phone calls that included some entertaining versions of the birthday song.  I am a lucky girl!

Her(s)

So, I was reading Jessica's post and it made me think of all of the wonderful girlfriends I have in my life. The hardest thing over the past year since I moved has been finding good girlfriends. Don't get me wrong, the ones I have met are very nice but none have come close to the ones who live far away. You know, the ones I call when I am having a sad day or a rough day of work. The ones I call on my drive home just because I know they are still at work/school and have(or make) time to talk to me. The ones I talk to when I have boy troubles or need advice. The ones that send me valentines cards and silly stickers and candy. The ones who saw me through big hair in high school and allowed me to live at their home throughout childhood. The ones who were my first friends in Chicago. The ones with whom I yearn to live near to have a glass of wine or a martini (or 3). The ones who flew 800 miles to move me into my first home. The ones I didn't expect to like in college. These are the kinds of girlfriends I want around me. These are the kinds of girlfriends who help make my life complete. So, instead of feeling sad about having very few of them near me, I am going to thank my lucky stars that they are still in my life. And even though we talk less often, I know they are there to pick me up/kick me in the butt/or give me lots of love when I need it. So thank you.

Can't always believe

So, I like to think that I have an independent streak and I do not necessarily have to follow the masses but lets face it, new developments happen that everyone wants to try every now and again. This year at the State Fair it was chocolate covered bacon. When Michael and I went, we refrained choosing to dine on other scrumptious things like deep fried Reese's. My high school friend Chad and I decided to take a risk. When the two of us go to the fair it is strictly to gorge ourselves on fried goodness that neither of us need. We figure, its once a year so what the hell?! Well, our first stop was the Chocolate Covered Bacon stand. We paid and were handed two bacon strips on a stick, covered in chocolate. It actually didn't' look too bad. In my mind I figured, salty and sweet, not a bad combination.

BIG MISTAKE!

Although the bacon looked crispy and yummy, it was not. Once I bit through the chocolate I was eating a piece of cold chewy bacon. Not good! I took one bite, looked at Chad in defeat and said....I can't do it! I'm not sure if it was the mixture of textures, cold bacon or what, but it was gross.

Lesson learned: millions of people can be wrong.

It's Official.....

...I'm a Tar Heel Fan!!

On Friday night, I attended my first "Late Night with Roy."  Michael, Shelia (my coworker) and I enjoyed hours of entertainment at the Dean Dome. Upon entering the dome, everyone was provided a light up Pompom so when the lights went out, it looked like tons of twinkling stars all around the dome.   We watched the UNC Women's' Volleyball team beat Duke followed by a showcase of the Women's basketball team.  They did some funny dance skits and a ten minute scrimmage against each other.  It was funny but the highlight of the evening was yet to come.  

                  

The coaches and the 2009/20010 men's team were announced and out they ran to the roar of the crowd.  They also did some very funny dance skits including one where they spoofed Coach Roy's Rock Band Commercial from last year.

The team performed dance routines from each decade they have won a championship.  The pictures below are from the 50's and all the guys were dressed up as Elvis.

Amidst the skits, they had different video footage.  They had outtakes of the players saying where they were from which was hilarious.  The freshmen did a video spoof of Tyler Hansbrough's AT&T commercial but instead of Tyler at the end finding a little girl's puppy, it was John Henson (complete with two pig tails) finding the NCAA trophy sitting on a porch with Travis and David Wear.  It was too funny!!

The night was a blast and we capped it off by heading to Bailey's for some late night eats and drinks where we were excited to see the Wears and their parents dining too.  They are SO tall but look so young.   Can't wait to see what they can do!!! 

On Saturday, Michael and I headed to the State Fair for some fried goodness and quality people watching.  I had some deep fried Reeses Cups and Michael had some chocolate covered cheesecake on a stick.  We watched some truck pulls, juggling acts and I even dragged Michael through the arts and crafts building.  We couldn't leave without seeing this years LARGEST pumpkin.  

There was one sad part of the fair...we walked over to the livestock area where they had the Grand Champions of various categories.   The Grand Champion Meat Goat was missing from his cage which led me to believe that they actually taste the meat to determine the winner.   Congrats and goodbye little goat.

Meatloaf, pumpkins and Waffle House...Oh my!

Jake and Brian in the Butterfly garden at UNC Hospital

What a wonderful weekend it was!!

I was lucky enough to have Deb, Brian and Jake in town this weekend. Deb came into town on Friday where we partook (is that a word) in an old Friday night ritual, Girls Night In. We caught up on the weeks' TV shows (thank you DVR) and had some takeout for dinner. It was lovely and made me a bit nostalgic for my former roomies.

Saturday I did my part for the Red Cross and donated platelets...ouch times two!! They took blood out of my right arm which traveled to a machine that took my platelets and then my blood was returned in my left arm. It took about 3 hours from start to finish partly because the vein in my right arm went left when the needle went right. It was difficult stick which resulted in the nurse having to readjust it every 10 minutes. I survived, met up with Michael and the kids for 9 and later dined with Jake's Aunt Diana and Uncle Joe (along with Deb, Brian and Jake) on yummy homemade meatloaf and potatoes.

Sunday, Deb and I went for a run (haven't done that in two months...ouch!) and met up with the boys for Waffle House breakfast...YUM! I spent the afternoon carving pumpkins with Michael and the kids and of course, roasting pumpkin seeds. Michael and I met up with Jake and Brian for sushi dinner. After beer, sake and 3 bottles of wine, I was ready to call it a night. Needless to say, toothpicks were needed this morning to prop my eyes open!

Christian and Daniel...showing off their pumpkins and goofiness!!

The witch and the Tarheel...I'm referring to the pumpkins!

Our 6 monthiversary !

6 months ago, Michael and I met for a drink at a local pub and have been dating ever since. I have not been a serial dater so all these little milestones are still fun and exciting...especially when they involve chocolate and roses.

I arrived at his house to find a beautiful card, a LARGE gift bag of chocolate (Reeses pieces and reeses dark...my new favorite) as well a a dozen roses.

Of course I cried because it was a big surprise...I know, I am such a dork. We quickly headed to an area of Raleigh called Five Points. We dined a a great local place called The Point. We both ate some yummy fish and I had cheese grits for the first time. I am a bit of a consistency eater, so I wasn't sure how the grits would go over (I cannot do runny oatmeal!) but I really liked them!

Me and my first grit :)

Us after a large meal AND dessert!!

After dinner and dessert (Tiramisu) we headed to Ben's place for a couple of drinks. It was a very fun night and I can't wait for the next milestone to arrive :)

Holy Billboards!!

So, Michael and I took a trip to Charleston to see my parents. Mom is still recovering from her knee surgery and doing quite well. She is still limited as to how much walking she can do so we managed to entertain her with some board games and movies for the weekend. I have made this trip numerous times and I am always amazed by South of the Border. Growing up, I often saw bumper stickers or shot glasses touting this place. Since moving here and after many road trips to my parents, I have learned that SOB is a rather run-down, tchotchke filled stop over for those going to and from the beaches in North or South Carolina. In its hey-day it must have been quite the tourist attraction but I must admit in the 10 times I have passed it in the last year, it has never had more that a handful of cars in the parking lot.

The one thing that has always amazed me are the billboards. There are TONS of them on I-95 coming from both the north and the south. We decided to document some of our favorites. And let me tell you, these were the ones on our way back to NC and this wasn't even half of them. I have decided that billboards are clearly not as expensive as I thought or there is some illegal money making activities going on there so that they can afford all these billboards.

Just Chilling!

So this weekend was spent doing all of those things I say I am going to do and never do.  On Friday I stayed in and watched bad TV while I scrap booked my way through 2004-2006.  Needless to say I was WAY behind.  It was actually very relaxing.  

I woke up early on Saturday and went to the Farmer's Market in Carrboro. It was packed full of flowers, vegetables, freshly baked goods and many other yummy treats.  I managed to find basil for $1 a bunch.  It was awesome and I cannot wait until I can make the market part of every Saturday.  Afterwards, my friend Elizabeth and I drove to Pittsboro, another adorable little town nearby.  We ate breakfast at the General Store Cafe which was cheap and delightful.  The entire place is blanketed in art work that is for sale.  It's got a nice granola feel which is rather appealing.  

The rest of the afternoon I made pesto with my newly found basil.  Michael and I managed to freeze a ton...definitely enough for many chicken pesto sandwiches.  The rest of the weekend was spent hanging with the kids and watching LOTS of football. I lazed and grazed and loved every minute of it. 

 

Michael and his daughter, Christian