Survey says...

Saturday afternoon I met some girls from Vicksburg at the movies to see “Bride Wars” and eat dinner at Mint. I heard that movie had gotten some pretty bad reviews, but it was so cute. And of course it’s fun to watch a girly movie like that with a bunch of newlyweds. :)

The theater was PACKED for a 4:30 show, and I felt bad for the few guys that had to suffer through it. It was a total chick flick, and the crowd was pretty similar to "Sex and the City" minus the stampede of girls trying to get in the theater.

I must say dinner was good, but not outstanding or anything. There were 10 of us total, and the atmosphere was very nice. I took Maggie’s dare and ordered the chicken and waffles, which apparently is a Southern specialty, but I don’t know where in the South this dish is popular. It was interesting…. A Belgium waffle and piece of fried chicken covered in syrup. I actually did see it on an episode of “Snoop Dogg’s Fatherhood” on MTV one time, so there you go. Two girls in our group actually took pictures of it because it was that interesting. Seriously. :)

We had a great time, but I think a lot of it had to do with the fellowship rather than the food. And the wine probably had a little something to do with it, too. I will give them credit for having one of the most creative menus out there, though. Their specialty drink menu sounded great, and their dessert menu made my mouth water.

All in all, I think I would give the movie four out of five stars and dinner three out of five stars. But I would give the whole dinner-and-a-movie experience five out of five stars for some quality girl time well-spent. :)

Gotta love some free advertising!

It’s time to start gearing up for Taste of Mississippi, a fundraiser for Stewpot Community Services that I started helping with last year. This is my second year as marketing co-coordinator, and we’re trying a few new social marketing ideas because A) they’re free, B) they seem to be what everybody’s into right now, and C) we’re hoping they’ll be just as effective as paid advertising. We’ll see…

Long story short, this is a wonderful event at Highland Village in March that features specialties from about 40 area restaurants, plus a few from Oxford and Hattiesburg. The food is delish, there’s live music plus more than enough wine vendors sprinkled into the mix, plus there’s a live auction for some REALLY nice art and a silent auction for some items and services that we can actually afford. Last year we bid on a wine-tasting for 12 at home, but unfortunately we didn’t win. Maybe this year…

Last year’s event raised $112,000 for Stewpot, all in one night… Amazing. After the months of planning and marketing the event, it felt really good to be a part of such a great fundraiser. Plus, it was a lot of fun!

So back to the social marketing… We’ve started a Facebook group for fans of Taste of Mississippi, and yesterday I started a blog about the event. I thought that would be a fun way to post news and updates that come from our weekly meetings. And you know how I love to blog! :)

Please check it out, and feel free to leave comments or join as a follower. It’s a wonderful event, and hopefully this will be just another way to spread the word!

May the terrible two's be not too terrible

I can’t believe that it’s been two years since our friends Jennifer, Melanie and Erin all welcomed beautiful baby girls into this world within about a week of one another.

I remember when we said, “Oh, it’ll be so sweet to see them all together only a few months old at Katie’s wedding!” Well, that came and went in May of 2007. I remember when we said, “Oh, it’ll be so cute to see them all together when they’re toddlers!” Well, that came and went last spring.

Now they’re turning two, and I can't wait to see how you three continue to grow into gorgeous little girls. Time is flying by entirely too fast! So Happy Birthday to...

Ryan Hadley,

Jane Reynolds,

and Sydney!!

And to your mothers, here's hoping the two's won't be too terrible. :)

Just call him Marley

Friday night we had a date night with dinner at Biaggi's and then to the movies to go see "Marley and Me." I cried like a baby. I have to tell you, I was really worried about the movie because the book was so great on its own that I didn't think making a movie would do it justice. But I have to say I was pleasantly surprised.

The story of Marley the dog is especially dear to my heart because there was many an occasion that Bentley could have given him a run for his money on the bad dog meter. Derek and I had joint custody of Bent in the beginning, and he would spend one night at my house and the next night with Derek at his parents' house. We did this so that the other could actually get some rest because there was no sleep to be had during puppy duty. And it was wonderful to wake up to the stench of puppy poo in his crate while we were trying to housebreak him. I swear it would smell up the whole house. That's just some nasty mess.

He ate three cell phones, two remote controls, our floor boards, some shoes and no telling how many pairs of panties. I only know this last part because one time we were walking him and he stopped to potty and out came an entire pair. Not chewed up. Swallowed whole.

Enough with the dirty talk... he also chewed through two leashes and just about flunked out of obedience school. It was when he finally jumped through the screen door that my mother-in-law found an excerpt from "Marley and Me" and shared it with us. Derek and I both read the book in a matter of days, and it soon became a favorite in the Grey family. :)

Bentley has grown into a wonderful dog who loves us more than anything. I know he'll be incredible with kids one day, and we cherish every day spent with this slobbery giant of a Golden Retriever. Our lives definitely wouldn't be the same without him, and looking back, the hard times were well worth it and they sure make for great stories.

We love you, Bent.

A new year

Happy 2009! We started the new year off a bit rough yesterday with a six-hour search for the cat. I think she jetted out the front door at some point New Year's Eve with all the activity (that's what we get for being responsible and staying in the neighborhood to party.)

We searched everywhere shaking the bag of food as we went and yelling for her, and I had just about given up and accepted the fact that she might not come back (many, many tears, trust me) when I spotted her out of the corner of my eye. She was in the neighbor's yard and couldn't figure out how to get back over the fence. I yelled for Derek and he hopped the fence barefoot to get her. She was a little traumatized and seemed to be glad to be back home, although exhausted from her adventure, I'm sure. I, of course, cried some more with a mix of anger, frustration and relief. Whew! Not a good start to the new year, but at least she's home now. She usually doesn't stray too far from her silver food bowl.

She slept on our bed all afternoon, and Bentley didn't let her out his sight for long the rest of the day. You could tell he actually did miss her, so that was sweet. They definitely have a love-hate relationship, but yesterday it was all love.

Anyways, back to New Year's Eve... New Orleans just about took it all out of us, so we decided to keep NYE low-key and stay close to home. Our neighbors across the street had a party, and it ended up being quite a late night between the dance party in the living room, some snowboarding and tight-rope-walking on Wii Fit and the tasty but way too strong punch they made called Sweet Ghetto Romance. Classy, I know. Here are a few pics from the night...

Oh, did I mention that Neighbor Ben's going to be a daddy? They found out on Monday, his 30th birthday, so 2009 will definitely be a memorable one for them. :)

So here's to the new year... may it be the best year yet!!

WHO DAT turning 30?!?!?!

It’s Benny-Boo! It’s Benny-Boo! Yep, Neighbor Ben turned the big 3-0 today, and to celebrate we headed down to New Orleans for a night on Bourbon Street and a fun afternoon at the Saints game yesterday. We had a blast. It had to be one of the most enjoyable weekends that I can remember having down there.

We started the evening off with dinner and drinks at a restaurant across the street from Galatoire’s. I can’t remember the name of the place, and the food was so-so, but there was no wait, and for a party of seven at 6:30 on a Saturday night, we couldn’t really complain. We then strolled down Bourbon Street until we decided to stop for a drink or two at Tropical Isle – yes, home of the infamous Hand Grenade, and yes, we are all WAY over 21 and definitely not in college anymore. But….. the balcony was pretty empty, and it was nice to just sit for a while and people-watch. :)

The highlight of the night was our next choice of bars… KARAOKE at The Saloon! Fun, fun, fun! We even lucked up on the VIP section with red velvet couches. Classy. I impressed the crowd with my rendition of “Bice Bice Baby” with a little help from some random guy who just happened to know the verses that I didn’t know, so it wasn’t a total embarrassment. Then later Katherine and I sang “Sweet Home Alabama” with, of course, a Mississippi chorus and a “Sweet Home Canada” thrown in for the birthday boy. Ben even got up to sing “Sweet Caroline.” We had so much fun!

Our hotel was right off Bourbon so we walked home after the bar and stopped for a Lucky Dog and a piece of pizza. I mean, who doesn’t love some Bourbon Street food at 1 in the morning. Ugh…

Then we woke up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for the Saints game yesterday. This was our first game to ever go to, so we had a great time walking to the Superdome and listening to all the jazz bands and tailgating as we went. Unfortunately for Ben, the Saints didn’t win even on his birthday weekend, but it was fun to watch and ended up being a good game regardless.

I’m not ashamed to admit that I fell asleep before 8 last night and didn’t wake up till about 6:30 this morning. I was pooped. I think I can handle a two-day work week though and then I’ll get another five days to rest before getting back to a normal routine next week. Gotta love the holidays! :)

Happy Birthday, Benny-Boo!!

The most wonderful time of the year

This is how I feel now that it's all said and done. What a wonderful Christmas... I'm just so sad that it's over already. We still have all our decorations up, but there are no more presents so the poor tree looks so empty now. It's always a little depressing to look at an empty Christmas tree. Oh, well... if I was smart I'd be out there shopping today for next year, but I don't think I'd remember what I bought if I started this far in advance. So instead we've spent the day putting up away all our great gifts.

We started the Christmas week with the Grey Family Christmas on Sunday. We packed up all the presents (mostly for Ryan Hadley) and headed to Vicksburg. Unfortunately, I, of all people, forgot the stupid camera. I've been kicking myself all week for not being able to share any pictures of Ryan Hadley opening all her goodies and playing with her new toys. She was so precious! We had a great time!

We both took off work on Christmas Eve and spent the day at home. Derek and I did our Christmas together (he spoils me entirely too much - each year is just better than the last), and Katherine came over mid-afternoon to eat breakfast for dinner and exchange gifts. We even watched one of my all-time favorite Christmas movies, "Santa Clause: The Movie" with Dudley Moore. I'm a sucker for '80s Christmas movies, that's for sure. Here's a pic of Bentley with a bow on his head. He loved it, I promise. :)

On Thursday morning we headed to Hattiesburg for the Bice Family Christmas and Granny's 80th birthday. We opened gifts at Granny's and then went to my parents' house to do Christmas with them. It was a day full of present-opening! Trust me, there was no complaining. :)

Here are a couple of family pics from the day...


Mom cooked a delicious dinner for Granny's birthday, and we celebrated with a cake we got from Campbell's bakery and a bottle of Dom Perignon champagne! Apparently my mom and dad bought Granny a bottle for her 60th birthday in 1988 and somehow in the pouring process they spilled almost all of it. I think it was pretty traumatic. Back then a bottle was about $65, which was a mighty expensive bottle of champagne. We were lucky enough to catch the whole event on camera and were able to watch it yesterday on the DVDs that Mom had made last month. It was priceless. So then, of course, it was the perfect time for a toast to Granny's 80th with a new bottle of Dom Perignon. Nice stuff! We were very careful not to spill a drop this time. :)

Here are a few pics from the birthday celebration...

I must have been good this year because I couldn't have asked for a more perfect Christmas. It was wonderful all the way around, and I'm so thankful for another year I was able to spend with my incredible family. Merry Day-After-Christmas, everybody! I can't wait to do it again next year. :)