Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Monday, March 12, 2012
I love country concerts
Jason Aldean made my year by coming to town and bringing his friends, Lauren Alaina & Luke Bryan.
I have always been a huge fan of country concerts. When I was little, my grandmother would come to town and take me to see George Strait, Reba, and Alan Jackson. I also have a great memory of driving back to college after a visit home with Emily... we saw a random county fair in the middle of nowhere with a sign featuring Diamond Rio. When we realized it was the real deal and not a cover band, we lost our minds in the excitement. We spontaneously pulled in to the parking lot and paid something like $5 admission for one of the best nights of our life :) The following concerts cover all other music genres I have viewed live: All 4 One, John Mayer, Counting Crows (3 times), James Taylor, Sister Hazel, and Da Bomb concert featuring a variety of rappers and R&B artists from the 90's. This list makes me realize how cool I am.
Pretty much the only folks that add our little city to their tour are country artists, and I'm always up for a trip down to the civic center. I was most excited to hear about this most recent tour. It took me a while to admit that I liked Jason Aldean's music. I kept gravitating to it. I told David a few times I wasn't sure if I liked him, but every time a new song came out, I would obsess over it. Finally, David told me to just give in and admit that he is one of my fav country singers out there. Once I owned it, I immediately determined that I must go to one of his concerts. I almost bought tickets to a show in Nashville, but hadn't made the final decision yet. Then, while attending a Lady Antebellum show, the local radio DJ announced that JASON ALDEAN would be coming to town. We were in the nosebleed section and I went insane cheering. I don't think many people were paying very much attention to the "boring" announcements, so I startled a few folks. Anyway, my friend Karri accompanied me to "My Kinda Party." It was magical and we had a great time.
Lauren Alaina opened with a few songs. She also reappeared later in the night to sing the Kelly Clarkson part of Don't You Wanna Stay. She sounds really good live.
There's Luke Bryan right in the middle. You can tell because he has jeggings on. Even though those things are painted on, he busted out some MOVES. It was comical. I think a large portion of the audience may have thought it was sexy.
The very beginning of the show. I didn't want to carry my huge SLR camera around all night, and I can't believe what an awesome picture I got with my iPhone! Most of the others were very blurry.
The surprise appearance of Randy Owen was quite a treat. He played a short acoustic set with Jason Aldean & Luke Bryan. And the crowd went wild. Actually, the entire auditorium full of people, including those seated in the rafters, stood up during the last hour and a half of the show. I heard that some of the seats close to the front row were going for over $500 online the day before. I'm glad we scooped our regularly priced upper deck seats up just in time, about 5 minutes after they went on sale. It seems there really was something for everyone... an American Idol princess, Luke Bryan's hip thrusts, awesomeness from Jason Aldean, and a little Dixieland Delight - a crowd pleaser for all ages.
I have always been a huge fan of country concerts. When I was little, my grandmother would come to town and take me to see George Strait, Reba, and Alan Jackson. I also have a great memory of driving back to college after a visit home with Emily... we saw a random county fair in the middle of nowhere with a sign featuring Diamond Rio. When we realized it was the real deal and not a cover band, we lost our minds in the excitement. We spontaneously pulled in to the parking lot and paid something like $5 admission for one of the best nights of our life :) The following concerts cover all other music genres I have viewed live: All 4 One, John Mayer, Counting Crows (3 times), James Taylor, Sister Hazel, and Da Bomb concert featuring a variety of rappers and R&B artists from the 90's. This list makes me realize how cool I am.
Pretty much the only folks that add our little city to their tour are country artists, and I'm always up for a trip down to the civic center. I was most excited to hear about this most recent tour. It took me a while to admit that I liked Jason Aldean's music. I kept gravitating to it. I told David a few times I wasn't sure if I liked him, but every time a new song came out, I would obsess over it. Finally, David told me to just give in and admit that he is one of my fav country singers out there. Once I owned it, I immediately determined that I must go to one of his concerts. I almost bought tickets to a show in Nashville, but hadn't made the final decision yet. Then, while attending a Lady Antebellum show, the local radio DJ announced that JASON ALDEAN would be coming to town. We were in the nosebleed section and I went insane cheering. I don't think many people were paying very much attention to the "boring" announcements, so I startled a few folks. Anyway, my friend Karri accompanied me to "My Kinda Party." It was magical and we had a great time.
Lauren Alaina opened with a few songs. She also reappeared later in the night to sing the Kelly Clarkson part of Don't You Wanna Stay. She sounds really good live.
There's Luke Bryan right in the middle. You can tell because he has jeggings on. Even though those things are painted on, he busted out some MOVES. It was comical. I think a large portion of the audience may have thought it was sexy.
The very beginning of the show. I didn't want to carry my huge SLR camera around all night, and I can't believe what an awesome picture I got with my iPhone! Most of the others were very blurry.
The surprise appearance of Randy Owen was quite a treat. He played a short acoustic set with Jason Aldean & Luke Bryan. And the crowd went wild. Actually, the entire auditorium full of people, including those seated in the rafters, stood up during the last hour and a half of the show. I heard that some of the seats close to the front row were going for over $500 online the day before. I'm glad we scooped our regularly priced upper deck seats up just in time, about 5 minutes after they went on sale. It seems there really was something for everyone... an American Idol princess, Luke Bryan's hip thrusts, awesomeness from Jason Aldean, and a little Dixieland Delight - a crowd pleaser for all ages.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
The Pregnancy Chronicles: Week 18
How big is the baby?
Head to rump length is about the size of a bell pepper, 5 1/2 inches. Weight is about 7 ounces.
Work it pose.
How I'm feeling:
Hungry. So hungry. All the time. I'm bored of eating because I must put so much time and effort into it. When I have trouble finding time for snacks (while trying to keep up with my schedule at work), I become a crazy person known for sassing others. My coworker, Page, decided to be my snack police. She makes me sit down for a few bites here and there even if it means patients have to wait :)
What I'm eating:
Everything in sight except Italian & Mexican. Lots of peanut butter, fruits & veggies, and drinking a lot of ice water. Also, I still crave Dr. Pepper every couple of days.
Weight: +9 1/2 lbs.
Highlights:
The highlight of this week is that there hasn't been much going on. I have had some quality couch time, which I'm trying to embrace while I'm feeling good and don't yet have an infant to care for. I have also spent the whole weekend cleaning and organizing the house. Things are about to pick up with both of my brothers getting married in the next few weeks and all the festivities surrounding the weddings. It's just a couple of days until the big ultrasound! I have heard from a few friends that time flies between finding out the gender and feeling the first big kicks/movements until the actual delivery. I think the rest of this pregnancy is going to feel like a time warp.
Deep Thoughts: While sitting on the couch this week, David asked me if I was 15 weeks pregnant. Hmmm, I guess he feels like time is standing still.
Head to rump length is about the size of a bell pepper, 5 1/2 inches. Weight is about 7 ounces.
Work it pose.
How I'm feeling:
Hungry. So hungry. All the time. I'm bored of eating because I must put so much time and effort into it. When I have trouble finding time for snacks (while trying to keep up with my schedule at work), I become a crazy person known for sassing others. My coworker, Page, decided to be my snack police. She makes me sit down for a few bites here and there even if it means patients have to wait :)
What I'm eating:
Everything in sight except Italian & Mexican. Lots of peanut butter, fruits & veggies, and drinking a lot of ice water. Also, I still crave Dr. Pepper every couple of days.
Weight: +9 1/2 lbs.
Highlights:
The highlight of this week is that there hasn't been much going on. I have had some quality couch time, which I'm trying to embrace while I'm feeling good and don't yet have an infant to care for. I have also spent the whole weekend cleaning and organizing the house. Things are about to pick up with both of my brothers getting married in the next few weeks and all the festivities surrounding the weddings. It's just a couple of days until the big ultrasound! I have heard from a few friends that time flies between finding out the gender and feeling the first big kicks/movements until the actual delivery. I think the rest of this pregnancy is going to feel like a time warp.
Deep Thoughts: While sitting on the couch this week, David asked me if I was 15 weeks pregnant. Hmmm, I guess he feels like time is standing still.
Monday, March 5, 2012
The Pregnancy Chronicles: Week 17
How big is the baby?
The baby weighs about as much as a turnip, 5 ounces, and is about 5 inches from head to bottom. *Forgot to take a belly picture this week*
How I'm feeling:
I've had some headaches this week, and they seem to be at their worst in the middle of the day. I've had some congestion and sinus-type pressure, so it could all be related. I came really close to fainting in the check out line at Old Navy this weekend. I had gone too long since my last meal - about 3 hours. Also it was very hot in there. Once I got to a bench and started taking off layers (no worries, I left the final layer and remained decent), I had a nice recovery. Then, a banana peanut butter sandwich with fritos on the side really saved the day. Oh, but I'm getting ahead of myself with all the food talk...
What I'm eating:
Bagels, hamburgers, olives, salad. I'm still craving Dr. Pepper, and it seems to help with the headaches. I feel like I have started to eat a lot more. I get really hungry if I go more than 2 hours without a snack.
Weight: +7 lbs.
Highlights:
I got in lots of quality resting this week. I vacationed at my parent's house for the weekend because David was gone to my brother's bachelor party. I only planned to spend one night. But, the longer I stayed, the more amazing home cooked food kept appearing on a plate in front of me. All of the nourishment was much appreciated, especially after the almost-fainting episode.
Deep Thoughts:
I wore the same skirt on three different days this week. I don't think anyone noticed :) I'm definitely having trouble adjusting to more frequent laundry with my minimal maternity wardrobe. I guess this is just another one of those ways to get myself used all the things I will have to do more often once the baby is here. Note to self: must do laundry almost every day.
There is one week left to vote on whether Poppy is a boy or girl. Right now we have an exact tie with 7 votes for each!
The baby weighs about as much as a turnip, 5 ounces, and is about 5 inches from head to bottom. *Forgot to take a belly picture this week*
How I'm feeling:
I've had some headaches this week, and they seem to be at their worst in the middle of the day. I've had some congestion and sinus-type pressure, so it could all be related. I came really close to fainting in the check out line at Old Navy this weekend. I had gone too long since my last meal - about 3 hours. Also it was very hot in there. Once I got to a bench and started taking off layers (no worries, I left the final layer and remained decent), I had a nice recovery. Then, a banana peanut butter sandwich with fritos on the side really saved the day. Oh, but I'm getting ahead of myself with all the food talk...
What I'm eating:
Bagels, hamburgers, olives, salad. I'm still craving Dr. Pepper, and it seems to help with the headaches. I feel like I have started to eat a lot more. I get really hungry if I go more than 2 hours without a snack.
Weight: +7 lbs.
Highlights:
I got in lots of quality resting this week. I vacationed at my parent's house for the weekend because David was gone to my brother's bachelor party. I only planned to spend one night. But, the longer I stayed, the more amazing home cooked food kept appearing on a plate in front of me. All of the nourishment was much appreciated, especially after the almost-fainting episode.
Deep Thoughts:
I wore the same skirt on three different days this week. I don't think anyone noticed :) I'm definitely having trouble adjusting to more frequent laundry with my minimal maternity wardrobe. I guess this is just another one of those ways to get myself used all the things I will have to do more often once the baby is here. Note to self: must do laundry almost every day.
There is one week left to vote on whether Poppy is a boy or girl. Right now we have an exact tie with 7 votes for each!
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
The Pregnancy Chronicles: Week 16
Oops, I'm a few days late with this post, but life was crazy...
The baby is about the size of an avocado, approximately 4 1/2 inches & 3 1/2 ounces. This is Poppy & me in pj's in the St. Louis hotel room we stayed in over the weekend. This is also my first attempt to post pictures to my blog from instagram. I think instagram is cool, but I admit that I don't really know what I'm doing with it. It's like twitter for me ... I think I have an account, but I don't know how that happened and I don't understand how tweeting works. It seems like this should come naturally to a birdie, but not so much.
How I'm feeling:
Great for the most part. I get extremely dehydrated in the middle of the night even if I drink a bunch of water in the late evening, so that is not overly pleasant. Most of the other typical pregnancy symptoms faded away this week.
What I'm eating:
Favs this week were potatoes in any form ... baked, mashed, fries ..., chicken salad, and bagels. I'm really craving Dr. Pepper and it has completely stopped giving me heartburn. I'm trying to limit to only a couple per week because I know it's not the most healthy thing to drink. But, I figure if I also drink a ton of water it'll be alright.
Weight: +6 lbs
Highlights:
I made it on a road trip to St. Louis (8 hours each way) for a fabulous shower for my future sister-in-law. I had to stop about twice as much as I normally would have to stretch out my legs & hips. The good news was that it was an all female road trip including my mom & grandmom, so no one suggested that any of us just "try to make it a few more exits." Riding around in a car was one of my least favorite activities during the 1st trimester, and now I feel almost back to my old self on long car rides. Let's hope the feeling lasts until my brother's wedding at the end of March when we make the trip again.
Deep Thoughts:
Deep Thoughts:
Grandmom decided that my maternity clothes look very comfortable. We got to spend about an hour at the galleria in St. Louis and burned up all of our time in Macy's. I was perfectly happy with this because it appeared to be the only store in the whole mall that had maternity clothes. Grandmom lamented the fact that she spent her hour in formal dresses when she might have found some great options for herself if she had stayed with me. Then, she just decided that I could give her my hand-me-downs when my gut goes back to a normal size. Makes me wonder if anyone else's grandmother has inherited their maternity pants...
Sunday, February 19, 2012
The Pregnancy Chronicles: Week 15
How big is the baby?
The baby is about the size of a large navel orange, 4 1/2 inches long, and a little over 2 ounces - so tiny!!
How I'm feeling:
Pretty good this week. I had a few days of back & hip pain, mostly on the left side. It gets worse throughout the day, especially if I am on my feet a lot. I was at the grocery store with David when I got a significant attack of this pain and tried a few varieties of walking styles. He was not a fan. He wanted to hurry ahead and pretend he didn't know me :) Nothing worked anyway, so I went back to my normal strut.
What I'm eating:
Pumpernickel bagels from Brueggers (I am so missing their smoked salmon bagel - I will be eating one right after Poppy arrives), mac & cheese, baked potatoes, eggs, popcorn, olives, chicken. I am able to eat larger portions than I've been used to over the past couple of months. The only foods I didn't feel like eating this week were Mexican & sweets. I ate more candy than usual because it was Valentine's day and I don't think Poppy was into it.
Weight: +4 lbs
Highlights: I think I felt the baby move/kick today! I experienced about ten minutes of a fluttering feeling on the top left side of my stomach, mostly while I was in the shower this morning. Our next ultrasound is scheduled for March 13th, so hopefully we will be able to find out the gender. I added a boy or girl? poll to the blog, so be sure to vote.
Deep Thoughts: Now that none of my regular pants will fit and I've fully transitioned to maternity clothes, I realized that I will not have to worry about my fly being unzipped for the next 6 months. Whew, what a relief.
The baby is about the size of a large navel orange, 4 1/2 inches long, and a little over 2 ounces - so tiny!!
How I'm feeling:
Pretty good this week. I had a few days of back & hip pain, mostly on the left side. It gets worse throughout the day, especially if I am on my feet a lot. I was at the grocery store with David when I got a significant attack of this pain and tried a few varieties of walking styles. He was not a fan. He wanted to hurry ahead and pretend he didn't know me :) Nothing worked anyway, so I went back to my normal strut.
What I'm eating:
Pumpernickel bagels from Brueggers (I am so missing their smoked salmon bagel - I will be eating one right after Poppy arrives), mac & cheese, baked potatoes, eggs, popcorn, olives, chicken. I am able to eat larger portions than I've been used to over the past couple of months. The only foods I didn't feel like eating this week were Mexican & sweets. I ate more candy than usual because it was Valentine's day and I don't think Poppy was into it.
Weight: +4 lbs
Highlights: I think I felt the baby move/kick today! I experienced about ten minutes of a fluttering feeling on the top left side of my stomach, mostly while I was in the shower this morning. Our next ultrasound is scheduled for March 13th, so hopefully we will be able to find out the gender. I added a boy or girl? poll to the blog, so be sure to vote.
Deep Thoughts: Now that none of my regular pants will fit and I've fully transitioned to maternity clothes, I realized that I will not have to worry about my fly being unzipped for the next 6 months. Whew, what a relief.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
The Pregnancy Chronicles: Week 14
How big is the baby?
The baby is the size of a lemon - about 3 1/2 inches long.
Here we have the "weekend look" for the maternity photo. This means I am not wearing make up. Also I am just a couple of days away from week 15 because we may have procrastinated with our photography. Also we have an empty bookshelf. Perhaps next week it will be full of books and other styled items :) I am turned the opposite way in my photo because I was feeling crazy this week.... Now everyone can decide what my good side is.
How am I feeling?
I am back to being very tired this week. I am having weird nights full of crazy dreams, tossing & turning. I end up wide awake and feeling OCD about strange things that seem insignificant in the morning. I must say the middle of the night is odd and I usually sleep right through it. I have a feeling I'm going to become more and more acquainted with 2 am, 3 am, 4 am, etc over the next few months, so I may as well get used to it. So, it's no wonder that I end up wanting a nap after eating breakfast. Also, this is a busy work week, so perhaps that's a contributing factor.
What am I eating?
Grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup, macaroni & cheese, salads, toaster strudels, and cereal. I have heartburn pretty much every night regardless of what I eat. I had some free pizza during a lunch meeting and the heartburn wasn't so bad. So, maybe I can handle more marinara? I'm not brave enough yet to put it on the regular menu ...
Weight: I forgot to get on the scale this week...
Highlights: I had a routine Dr. appointment this week. I got to hear the baby's heartbeat (rate was 160) and got an overall good report on all my blood work & blood pressure. I can't believe how low my blood pressure is. I think it was 106/64. I headed back to the gym this weekend and did 15 minutes walking inclined on the treadmill, 10 minutes on the elliptical, lifted weights (only 8 lbs), and did a lot of stretching.
The baby is the size of a lemon - about 3 1/2 inches long.
Here we have the "weekend look" for the maternity photo. This means I am not wearing make up. Also I am just a couple of days away from week 15 because we may have procrastinated with our photography. Also we have an empty bookshelf. Perhaps next week it will be full of books and other styled items :) I am turned the opposite way in my photo because I was feeling crazy this week.... Now everyone can decide what my good side is.
How am I feeling?
I am back to being very tired this week. I am having weird nights full of crazy dreams, tossing & turning. I end up wide awake and feeling OCD about strange things that seem insignificant in the morning. I must say the middle of the night is odd and I usually sleep right through it. I have a feeling I'm going to become more and more acquainted with 2 am, 3 am, 4 am, etc over the next few months, so I may as well get used to it. So, it's no wonder that I end up wanting a nap after eating breakfast. Also, this is a busy work week, so perhaps that's a contributing factor.
What am I eating?
Grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup, macaroni & cheese, salads, toaster strudels, and cereal. I have heartburn pretty much every night regardless of what I eat. I had some free pizza during a lunch meeting and the heartburn wasn't so bad. So, maybe I can handle more marinara? I'm not brave enough yet to put it on the regular menu ...
Weight: I forgot to get on the scale this week...
Highlights: I had a routine Dr. appointment this week. I got to hear the baby's heartbeat (rate was 160) and got an overall good report on all my blood work & blood pressure. I can't believe how low my blood pressure is. I think it was 106/64. I headed back to the gym this weekend and did 15 minutes walking inclined on the treadmill, 10 minutes on the elliptical, lifted weights (only 8 lbs), and did a lot of stretching.
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