march madness + irish luck

Haha! So it's kinda crazy, but this is my first year to join in and fill out a bracket...and I'm beating everyone in my family! I know, right? Insane. Beginner's luck. Cause I had no idea what I was doing.

Now if Memphis can just hold out over Texas...

"Hey, Ya'll!" from Savannah

"Nice to be back among the magnolias, again!" It's true! They're blooming gorgeously.

Wow, so much has happened since that last post! I know I can't even begin to cover it all, but it is, indeed, time for a status update. So I'll do my best.

The last days before I left Oregon were some crazy last days! I had a special day with my Granny...introducing her to the joys and luxury of a great pedicure. I spent a couple crazy last-minute shopping times with Jenny. Even on the day I left, we needed one more trip to Sonic and our favorite shopping area. (Found some great deals at Kohl's!) Incredible to both of us that it was a year ago right now that we were going to the gym hard and heavy (and Sonic) in those few last months before Chandler came. Speaking of that little guy... it was so hard to leave him!

My dear family took me out to a "last & celebration dinner out" Tuesday night at our favorite: Stanford's. I then left Wednesday night...and it was snowing in Portland. How bizarre for this late in the year!

Here's a picture from my phone of our new place! Our black door (with our very own staircase...grocery trips will be great exercise!) is flanked by the windows. The one on the right is the bedroom and the one on the left is the living room with the mini-kitchen to the back of that. We have the garage just under the living room, too! And that's the place! Can't wait to make it homey..

I'm typing this from my apartment living room, "borrowing" a kind but unsuspecting neighbor's wi-fi. Southern hospitality at its greatest!

I arrived yesterday, via a flight to Jacksonville and a rental car. It's nicer than I thought it would be to be back! The sun is shining, the breeze is fresh, and everyone's kind. Again, southern hospitality, right? Although everything's nicer when Andrew's on his way home.

Yeah. Did I mention? He's already left Ramadi by convoy and arrived at TQ to await his flight to Kuwait and then on across the ocean! His travels are expected take a while, and then some... but we do have an actual date/time that he's supposed to be here!

2:30 am on April 3rd.

Crazy, cause that's the date I'd picked on my margin survey a while ago! Who else picked that with me? We're the winners. : )

So, I've been busy these last couple days just moving in and making trips to Target, WalMart, Starbucks...just the essentials. My first dinner back here I just HAD to eat at none other than Cracker Barrel. Just a minute from my apartment! Which is going to be my downfall...good thing there's a fitness center here.

Anyway, I've kinda typed at this all day. And now I have Cracker Barrel leftovers heating in the microwave.

Oh yeah! My car arrived late this afternoon! (and everything inside seems to be in tact!) Another man with a heavy accent. He sounded like the Indian janitor on the Tom Hanks movie, The Terminal. But it turns out he didn't look like that at all! He was taller, his hair wasn't all white, and he said "Ciao" and "mama mia"...very Italian. (How'd he learn Italian in India?) [wink, wink]

I have to add the winks cause you might not be ready for me to be funny. But my Soldier's coming back from Iraq healthy and happy and safe!...so please excuse the uncharacertistic giddiness.

Ha!

at least one of us is on our way to georgia!

Unfortunately, it's neither one of us, yet...but rather, our Nissan.

It was all quite insane. There I was yesterday, vacuuming out the Murano, getting it ready to be picked up on the 20th. I was in the middle of the second seat when my phone rang and the nice man with an accent (yeah, another one. It causes me to wonder if maybe I'm actually the one with the foreign accent?!) -- anyway, the nice man told me that he would like to come and get my car in an hour. At least that's what I understood. Haha! No, I really did understand. And it really was an hour.

I went ahead and asked him if I could pack a couple of boxes in the back of the car, and maybe my vacuum cleaner, too? (I mean, how else could I get my nice new vacuum to Georgia? By plane? Um, no.) He said that I could put whatever I wanted to in the car, it's just that they weren't liable for loss, etc. I think he said that, anyway.

Panic and pandemonium.

I felt as though my house was on fire (I imagine that's kinda the feeling, anyway!) and I was forced to quickly decide what of all my possessions did I really want to save?

Though in this case, it was trickier. I didn't want to send my most precious things that way. What if something happens on the road? It's a wide country! And yet, there were a few things that I knew I wouldn't be able to take on a plane, therefore I won't have them at all for the next 8 months or however long...

At the same time, it was so exciting because some things that I thought I would just have to leave in Oregon, I actually now had the chance to take with me! Like my apple green KitchenAid and my cookbooks, my vacuum cleaner, my jewelry box (empty, of course), some other books, and even some framed pictures! Aaahhh! Too many decisions!

My wonderful Mom, Seth, and Darren sprang into action when they saw my great need! (Just kidding. They merely sat there and continued to eat lunch while I panicked!) Seriously, though, Mom helped me empty my jewelry box, Darren helped me pack it in it's original styrofoam and box, and Seth did the same for the KitchenAid. Seth also chatted it up with the guy with the accent while Darren loaded 2 Rubbermaids into the back of the car. Great stall tactic.

Guy: So are you moving to Georgia?

Seth: What?

Guy: Are you moving to Georgia?

Seth: Oh! No, that's my sister.

Guy: Who?

Seth: My sister. The one who's panicking.

Guy: Ah.

I watched it leave on a truck and went back into the house in shock. This is actually happening!! I'll be with Andrew so soon. Maybe even in 2 weeks!

Meanwhile, I wonder how the KitchenAid, vacuum cleaner, and jewelry box are enjoying their road trip? If they could talk, I'm sure they'd have some stories to tell.

Meeting Elisa

Here she is at 3 months old, already! Greg and Carolyn and Elisa are in town for Spring Break and we got to meet her on Monday. What a beautiful little girl! I love her expressive face. Here are a few of my favorite shots of her. (The people whose hands and noses you see asked to remain anonymous. Not really. It's Carolyn, Weston, Dad, and Mom, I believe.

The New Twenty

I turned 30 on Saturday, but really, it was painless. "Thirty is the new twenty," Jenny assures me. (Yeah, she's still 29, but I believe her, as usual.) I pause to consider if 20 would be worth going back to... After just a little bit of thought, I realize that I'd sure rather be here where I am at "the new twenty" than back where I was at "the old twenty!" My life was wonderful then, but ever so much more beautiful now.

I have a wonderful family, including a new nephew who makes life more exciting every day! (By the way, they sure don't make it easy for me to leave when the time comes! Couldn't they be awful or at least indifferent??)

I am surrounded by friends who love me for no reason of my own and always think the best of me no matter what!

And the greatest blessing I could ever have in this world became mine just a couple years ago: my precious husband, Andrew. He should be home in less than a month, Lord willing! And we have a whole life of love and togetherness and life and adventure and possibilities ahead of us.

Yes. I love where I am at "the new twenty."

So, after a morning of manicures and pedicures with Mom and Jenny... I came home to open up my special gift from Andrew! (As you can see, I'm proudly displaying the turquoise Tiffany's box!)

"What could it be?" (Although he had my help in picking it out, I still love the suspense!)

Slipping on my new aquamarine ring!

A closer look...

Chandler loves "playing along" with Redcast...also known as Uncle Sef!

And riding the motorcycle with Uncle Jarrod...

Jenny & Chan

Caught in the act of talking!

A really yummy hotwings spread for the party that night!

Sharing a mini corn dog and water with Chandler...

Jenny and Jarrod serve up a wonderful dessert! (Notice the flowers...they're from Andrew, too!)

Seth, Darren, & Jarrod (with little Owen Kangas, too)

The next morning's photo shoot for a better view of the amazing arrangement from my Sweetheart!

Redcast's First "Official" Review

So with the addition of a new publicist in the last couple weeks (this is the big time!), Redcast is beginning to get more media attention. The first-ever review in an online music magazine was a marvelous start! NeuFutur (pronounced "new future") gave a 7.8 out of 10 and wrote a very detailed and positive critique on the Redcast EP.

Click here to read the March 1st review! (Click "NeuFutur" above to go to their home page.)