The Great Arctic Blast of 2010

I feel like we all need t-shirts that say, “I SURVIVED ARCTIC BLAST ’10.” It’s all the news channels have been focused on for the past week, and while it was indeed a bone-chilling weekend with highs in the lower 20s, we didn’t let the weather stop us from staying busy.

Friday night we headed to Vicksburg after work for Ryan Hadley’s 3rd birthday party. Jennifer’s mom made this fabulous Tinkerbell cake from scratch. Ryan Hadley was too cute, as always!

Saturday morning came bright and early as Derek headed out in the freezing weather to work the Blues Marathon. He was a course marshal, and fortunately his spot was in our neighborhood, so he was just right down the street. He was so bundled up he looked like he was going to ski the slopes in Switzerland – two pairs of pants, long-sleeved t-shirt, vest, fleece pullover and big ski jacket, plus toboggan and gloves. It was a warm 18 degrees at 8 a.m., so with two cups of coffee in hand, he took his post at the corner of Pine Lane and Hartsdale. Soon the snow flurries started to fall. I only walked out there a few times to relieve Derek for bathroom breaks, and it was FRIGID. There was a blues band playing one street over, so that was at least a cool (no pun intended) way to pass the time.

After warming up by the fire Saturday afternoon, we went out downtown with some friends for the Blues Crawl, a pub crawl after the marathon that featured blues bands at several downtown bars. We only made it to two of those bars – George Street and F. Jones Corner, but the music was great, and we had a lot of fun.

We decided that IHOP would be a good way to end the night, and it was until we had to argue with the waitress about overcharging us for my side Caesar salad. By the way, who in their right mind orders a Caesar salad at IHOP? I thought it sounded like a great idea at the time, but not so much when it actually arrived. G.R.O.S.S.

Sunday we spent at home, staying warm and resting up for a busy week ahead. It’s actually supposed to warm up this week into the 40s, I think. Temperatures that warm will feel like springtime after the ARCTIC BLAST last week! :)

29 and Holding...

I’ve always thought it was neat that my age is directly correlated to the year. I was born in 1980, so I turned 1 in 1981, I turned 21 in 2001, and so on and so on… Each new decade represents a new decade of my life, so it’s a perfect time for reflection.

This year, we not only start the 20teens, but I will move into my 30s. It just sounds like such a HUGE jump from 29 to 30, but I’m okay with it. I always thought I’d be upset to move on out of my 20s, but I don’t think I will be when it comes down to it. I’ve grown up a lot in the past 10 years (obviously, I’m sure we all have), but I really feel like I’ve learned a lot about myself and have finally grown into the adult I’m proud to be.

Here’s a short summary of my life in the 2000s… started college, had entirely too much fun in college, made some wonderful friends, got my heart broken, dated a few wrong guys, went on many a road trip, drank a lot of beer, got serious about college, adopted the coolest cat ever, made a 4.0 once, met the right guy, graduated college, moved away from Hattiesburg for the first time, lived on my own for the first time, got my first job, sustained a long-distance relationship for two years, made a lot of trips to Oxford, bought my first house, traveled to New York, got a beautiful and King Kong-sized dog, got married, traveled to Mexico, welcomed a niece, saw most of my favorite bands - some way more than once, bought a new car, got a new job, bought a new house, moved to Jackson, made some great new friends, traveled to San Diego, bought many a bridesmaid dress, watched most of my friends get married, drank a lot of wine, started this blog, traveled to Denver, took a few beach trips, lost a few loved ones, watched my grandparents get older, felt grateful for all the blessings in my life and welcomed a new decade…

That’s a lot of changes in 10 years, and that's just a short summary. I’ll welcome 30 with a smile in just a few months. It’s not like I can turn the clock back, and honestly I wouldn’t want to anyways. Life is all about living, and I look forward to what the future holds.

Brrr...

I don't know how you people up North do it. It's bone-chilling cold here this week, and I can barely stand it. Lows in the teens at night with highs in the 30s. Geez... I think my new Snuggie will get some good use this week.

We're used to short-sleeved Christmas Days around here, so a freeze warning all week is pretty unusual, especially when it's supposed to get THAT cold. The forecast shows snow on Thursday, but it's snowing today, which was not in the forecast.

It may be global warming... blah, blah, blah, but all I know is we picked a fantastic week to run out of firewood!

Welcoming the New Year

Happy 2010! We rang in the new decade with a lot of fun Thursday night. We started out at home with a visit from Baby Brady, our little Baby New Year. Then we headed to Sportsman's for a while. Poor Derek had a touch of a stomach bug, so I had to get my new year's kiss early so he could go home and go to bed.

After tucking him in, we headed back out to a party down the road at one of Claire's friends' houses where I made some new friends... :)

A few jello shots and glasses of champagne later, we came home just after midnight. On New Year's Day, I fried some chicken and made some mashed potatoes, black-eyed peas and cabbage to make the champagne headache go away. Ugh...

Saturday night we enjoyed our "second annual" Grey-Gor holiday dinner with Drew and Kristin at Ely's. We decided that we'd come back to the house after dinner and play Dance Dance Revolution. It was hilarious to say the least...

Then, of course, a Wii night wouldn't be complete without Rock Band, and this time we really broke in our new Beatles Rock Band. SO much fun!

You'd think we'd be worn out by then, but no, not the Greys... we decided to try out F. Jones Corner, the new late night bar downtown with Claire and Josh. We took a cab, and the place was PACKED. It's a really cool bar that feels like it's set back in time. There were people from all walks of life there, including some old local blues legends. It was pretty cool, and the music was incredible.

After a couple of hours, it was finally time to call it a night (which was a good idea since it was 4 a.m.), but the bar was still just as packed when we left. I'd love to go back there, but unfortunately the place isn't really even open until about midnight (WAY past my usual bedtime) so we'll reserve it for just every once in a while.

So, in summary... we thoroughly enjoyed welcoming the new decade with old friends, meeting new friends, and starting the year off in a great way overall. It's also a good thing there were a few extra days to the weekend to recover from all our fun. :)

Looking Ahead

I am ready and waiting for a fantastic 2010! Overall, 2009 wasn’t a bad year, but it was a sad year for obvious reasons. I have faith that 2010 will be a good one. Here are just a few things I have to look forward to in the coming year…

• Colorado Ski Trip – It’s been almost two years since we visited Matt and Jennifer in Denver, so this time around we’re hoping to go in the next couple of months and do some skiing in Breckenridge.
• My FOURTH wedding anniversary – My, how time flies!
• My 30th birthday – Yes, I’ll be turning the big 3-0 in September, so stay tuned for party plans. ;)
• Baby Ferrell’s birth – If you haven’t heard already, Derek and I will welcome another niece or nephew this summer! Congrats, Neil and Katie!
• Another summer at Eagle Lake – my favorite thing to do during the summer… there’s nowhere else like it.

There’s much, much more to look forward to as we welcome 2010, and I'm anxious to see what all lies ahead in the immediate future. Happy New Year!

Another Wonderful Christmas

We had another absolutely wonderful Christmas on both sides this year. We spent special time with family in Hattiesburg and Vicksburg and feel extraordinarily blessed.

The Christmas holiday started with a trip to Hattiesburg on Wednesday. We spent the night looking at Christmas lights with my parents and eating dinner downtown. Christmas Eve morning we opened presents at my parents' house before heading to Granny and Pap's for Christmas with them.

Some highlights of Hattiesburg Christmas were bongo drums for my mom, some new Wii games for us, pearls from my Granny, a Snuggie (yes, yes, I know you're jealous!), gift cards, tupperware, new sheets and pillows, soap galore and an anniversary trip for my parents, just to name a few. We headed home Christmas Eve night and found that Santa had already made his visit and filled up the stockings for Izzy and Bentley. :)

Christmas Day we woke up early and opened up our presents from each other. I felt very spoiled from my sweet husband but very grateful. Among the presents Derek gave me were his mother's diamond earrings, which are absolutely beautiful. I cried, and as Derek's mom used to say, "It's not Christmas unless somebody cries!" So, Candee, it was a very special Christmas moment, to say the least.

After our presents, we walked across the street to have coffee with Ben and Tina and Baby Brady. We couldn't miss Brady's first Christmas, and he even ate baby food for the first time. He is too precious!

We hit the road to Vicksburg around noon and spent the afternoon playing Scattergories and Trivial Pursuit with Derek's dad and sister before everyone came over to open gifts and eat our Italian-themed Christmas dinner. It was a marathon present-opening evening with Ryan Hadley helping everyone open every present. She didn't want to miss anything. She's big into Disney and princesses this year, so one of the gifts we gave her was a Cinderella wig, pictured below. It's entirely too much fun to shop for an almost 3-year-old. :)

We were spoiled once again with all the wonderful gifts from the Greys, including an apron and oven mits for me, a new gas blower and weedeater for Derek, a gorgeous picture frame, an Eagle Lake cookbook, socks, boxer shorts and much much more.

Saturday we spent playing with our new toys just like kids and staying warm by the fire. It has been an absolutely wonderful holiday, and we feel so very loved and incredibly blessed. And a very special Happy 81st to my Christmas Day Birthday Girl, Granny!

Party Time!

Saturday night we hosted our second annual Christmas party, only this time we made the theme Dirty Santa AND Tacky Christmas. We hosted with five other people and had entirely too much fun (this said after I drank entirely too much eggnog). Here are some pics from the night…

Derek organizing Dirty Santa...

A favorite of the night...

Happy Birthday, John and Claire!

Drew with his mullet and a creepy look on his face... :)

Towards the end of the eggnog...

A fun time was had by all, and we look forward to the THIRD annual party next year!