time FLIES in december

hello world! how's it going? i'm sitting here sneezing up a storm for no reason and alternately trying not to tear up like an idiot as i listen to tori's pheonix and san diego shows. her tour ended this week and it KILLS me not every show was available for bootleg downloads! i still got what, 10? and i plan to grab a few more (even though they're $11 a show...)

anyway.

things have been going well and december is flying by in a flurry of christmas activities like always. this past weekend i attended a wonderful xmas dinner at angel's house and ate my weight in eggplant parmesan and mashed potatoes! YUM! and our office christmas party went well also.

so yesterday i was looking online for a new cat condo/cat tree thing, as my girls have destroyed the really cheap and crappy one i got them and clearly need something else (if you don't provide them a place to jump, scratch, sleep, and hang out, they will find ways to do that with the furniture you already own). i came across http://www.stepsforpets.com/ that has the most AMAZING cat trees i have EVER SEEN (good dog stuff too!) and the prices are out of control. a cat tree of such caliber and size would easily cost $300-500 somewhere else but they're selling them for $100 or so and FREE SHIPPING! clearly i am over the moon about this, and even better-- my family is getting me THIS ONE for christmas! YAYAYAY! they are going to freaking DIE! how fun does that look?! i totally want to hang out in that little hammock.

Clearly all i want for christmas is stuff for my girls. can you believe i've only had them 3 months? they really are my favorite things in the world and make me really happy (i obviously shouldve got them many years ago in college if that's what it would have taken for me to be happy! :)

other than that, i have a full week planned, and i'm going to detail it for you (lucky!) ;)

TODAY: i am leaving work in 1 hour (thank god, cause it's only tuesday and it's draaaaaagging) to pick up my twin's xmas present, drop off some toffee at my vet's office as an xmas present, run by the bank, mail my sister's present (if i can get a cd made in time to accompany it), and get to the theater with my mom to see THE GOLDEN COMPASS! ive been really looking forward to this since i read the books, and even though i hear it's disjointed and whatnot, i dont care because i've actually read the books. for those of you who haven't, you are missing out like CRAZY. get on that, NOW.

then we get home and i have to redye my hair (constant and annoying, but you cant look this good without effort! ;), roll my sugar cookie dough i made on sunday into 3 doz sugar cookies (and decorate them) and general merriment with my mom, cats and Bax in the kitchen.

WEDNESDAY: work, get home, mail my sister's present if i didn't already, track my mom and dad's xmas presents and see if they're getting here in time, find out where the hell the books i ordered on amazon on DEC 3RD are, hopefully get my cat tree and set it up for the girls, go to target and get cat food and spend way too much cause it's target and that always happens to everyone i know, do laundry, watch PR and annoyingly text bets and mikey and oH YEAH hang out with jessica

THURS: work, finish laundry, pack for austin, hang out with ADRIENNE who gets into town, finish all errands, etc.

FRI: leave for austin with jessica jacobi at 10 am, hang out with LAINEY for lunch, then party with lauren and joe and jessica and go to Alamo Drafthouse for movies.

SUNDAY: pick up Kara in san marcos, leave for houston around noon, come home, see emilie? rest, recover.

MODAY-TUES. enjoy CHRISTMAS! YAY! merry christmas everyone!

xo.

ps- to all my friends who i havent seen this month (i.e. cheryl) lets hang out in january because my friend ELLEN is coming! (her blog: http://dancingmathgradstudent.blogspot.com/ )

my weekend in pictures

i'm already exhausted and we didn't even do that much this wkend. okay, we drove from houston to austin and back in one day, then to college station, the ren fair and back the next. it's a lot more than my usual lay around weekends, and i'm barely hanging in there. and there is more merriment to be had! the week has just begun! i cant wait for dancing with the stars semi finals tonight!


since i have nothing fun to do today but clean, go to the store, clean, laundry, etc., i will recap this wkend in some pictures.


ENJOY!



First off, it's WB and me in Veggie Heaven in Austin with Lauren and Joe on Sat. around 3 pm.


yay! we are so colorful. well ok im the colorful one. wb was like, "aren't you sick of the pink yet?" and im like NO! BLASPHEMY! etc.etc. (to be honest i am kinda, but then i look at pictures like this and am like i am so BRIGHT! i feel like a crayon-- in a good sense)





next is lauren wearing her bday present from WB (an expertly crafted knit cap) and Joe, our fav. boyfriend.




















On to the east austin studio tour~! we only went to a few studios but it was AWESOME and we very nerdily and awesomely ran into a studio with a TESLA COIL thing! what is that, you ask? i didnt know until after i saw it and wikipedia'ed it. (look it up, very cool). the dude was playing the beat from "sexy back" and the legends of zelda theme. NERDTASTIC! we loved it! (esp. joe)
this is an aerial shot from the balcony above the tesla coil. joe is the green blob on the left.






Sunday we drove to College Station. It's one of my fav drives-- look how gorgeous and flat texas is!! i LOVE it.







Then WB and i met up with dad at the Texas World Speedway. I declined to hop in the car, but WB was into it, so she and dad suited up and drove around the track going 130 mph for about 15 minutes.

this is a picture from the car that WB took. you can see how the track curves, etc. she got a lot of dashboard pictures (the centrifugal force made it hard to take decent pictures)

and finally, on our way to the ren fair (via navasota and plantersville) we saw this amazing car with not only goats in the back but chickens above them!

well you can't see the chickens, but they're in that wooden box.

why no pictures of the ren fair? probably because we were too busy buying stuff. well WB was too busy buying essential oils (dirty hippy scents like patchouli, sandalwood, and Egyptian musk), rings, and other various sundry items. i bought some amazing rhinestone elephant head studs (my mom saw them and said, "i cant believe you bought the fucking republican party's symbol" but when she saw them on said, "i actually love them") and a small jar of lavender oil (very good quality) that i may make candles or soap out of or something. who am i calling a dirty hippy? ;)

more pictures to come! tomorrow it's a day with haley, then my sister and her bf get in town, wed. is more family fun (at PF Chang's; they have a gluten free menu complete with a gluten free beer for WB) and of course, THANKSGIVING! and most importantly, TORI ON SUNDAY!

YAY

to say that i'm looking forward to it would be the grossest of understatements.

Yay Holidays

so i have a very busy couple weeks coming up, and i'm excited. i do exciting things (or really anything at all) in spurts with long rests in between (really the best way to go people) and it's coming up on a busy time.
let's go through the entire thing, shall we?
today i am dogsitting, i have to do a lot of cleaning. family's coming in town soon (YAY) and the cats are finally (mostly) better so i have bedding to wash, vacuuming to do, etc. i have cds to make and then Greg is taking me out to olive garden for a belated bday. why olive garden? no, it's not the unending breadsticks and salad (although that's a perk) but the amazing people watching. and i love free dinners (REMEMBER THAT PEOPLE)

anyway. tomorrow it's more dogsitting and work until i pick up the twin at 6!! YAY! womb buddy! i'm excited. we're going to mai's with a bunch of her friends and possibly poison girl for the drink they make just for her (and me), a Capri Sun.
saturday we go to austin for the East Austin Studio Tour with my favorite tour guides, Lauren and Joe, and possibly run into Angel and Lindsey who will also be in the greatest city in texas. SO fun!
we get back in the evening b/c WB has a loft party and a show that i dont think im invited to. but i need to be with my kittens anyway (im a crazy nervous mom).
sunday we go to Trader's Village (or maybe she goes alone, i dont know if i'll like it) then to the Texas World Speedway to watch my dad race his car (he goes at least once a month), and then to the Texas Renaissance Festival (it will be my 2nd but not last time this year). then we come home and probably fall asleep.
monday i have to work and then it's DANCING WITH THE STARS SEMIFINALS! so exciting! i am rooting for Mel B like none other. Girl Power! win it for the rest of the spices!
tuesday it's results show for Dancing with the Stars and HALEY IS IN TOWN!! YAY! she is taking me out to dinner (FREE DINNERS FOREVER) somewhere awesome and then we're going to rehash old times (although we may skip the story of my alcohol poisoning) at Volcano's. i'm prob. going to cop out before midnight because i hate staying out late but it will still be very fun.
Wednesday i work again, then its second episode of Project Runway (Mikey and I have determined the drama is b/c one of the contestants is HIV+), and KHRYSTI AND TIM come in around 11! yay older sister and bf!
thursday is my favorite holiday-- it's full of amazing food, everyone's home but it's not like christmas where there's a ton of family time, and it's the beginning of the holiday season. at our house, we are having a vegan and gluten free thanksgiving (with the exception of the turkey and 2 pies). it sounds intense but it really isn't-- we use cornbread for the stuffing and use soymilk and special margarine (Fleishman's Light) for everything else.

I love hearing about what different families have for thanksgiving or what their holiday traditions are. We usually all make the dinner together (everyone gets a few dishes, although my mom makes the majority of them) and no one thinks i can cook so i get to make the homemade whipped cream (not vegan) and maybe mash a potato or two. we have the sweet potatoes with the (vegan) marshmallows on top, cornbread stuffing, turkey, cranberry sauce (we like the can kind), maybe mashed potatoes, a salad, pumkin pie (all vegan and gluten free this year-- clearly WB is going to make that), pecan pie (2 of them) with my homemade cinnamon whipped cream...i think that's it. do we eat anything else guys? we also eat around 2 and then eat again later :) i love 2nd thanksgiving.

ok back to my week. so after thanksgiving (im also dogsitting too) it's friday and sadly WB leaves in the am to go back to california. Khrysti and Tim and i are going to the Ren Fair again (they dress up; i used to but dont have anything to wear anymore. get ready for pictures). it's the Celtic Christmas theme so it should be pretty and Christmasy. yay!
then Saturday i'm still petsitting, hanging out with khrys and tim, and sat. night Khrys is having a party for all her friends in the area (she went to Texas A&M the year before we moved to Houston from Dallas, but still has a lot of friends here).
and sunday is a very special day. Khrys and tim leave and i'm sad about that, but sunday....

IS THE TORI SHOW

yes my favorite human being for a very very long time will be here. greg and i have orchestra row C seats and I AM SO EXCITED. we decided to do it up right and camp out at the venue around noon.
i will CERTAINLY be blogging about that event. SO EXCITED!! YAY!
(will post pic of tori later when my computer isn't being insanely slow)