Happy Halloween!

The weather is PERFECTLY CHILLY for a great Halloween weekend!

We kicked off Derek's favorite weekend of the year by going to watch the Rocky Horror Picture Show production in Vicksburg. Our friend Olivia played Janet, and she was GREAT! We had so much fun! It honestly was one of the best community theater productions of Rocky Horror I've seen. I've actually only seen two, but this one was really good!

On tap for the rest of the weekend is a little ghost-hunting, some pumpkin-carving, some costume-preparing and a whole lot of fun! Stay tuned for the Halloween wrap-up. Don't be skeered.

First Friday Firepit of Fall

Friday night we met some friends downtown for Jacktoberfest. After cancelling the event last year, this was the return of the free "Beer, Brats and Bands" event. It was so nice outside! Even Baby Brady had a great time jamming out to the bands.

Speaking of, I think I found my new favorite band, Dirty Bourbon River Show. They were beyond awesome with their funky sound including a tuba and kazoo. I would describe their sound as "bayou funk", but Neighbor Ben said they were "Coon-ass jazz." Either way, they were a lot of fun - obviously very New Orleansish...

After Jacktoberfest, everyone came back to our house for our first firepit of the season. While it wasn't crazy cool outside, there was a slight chill in the air, so we took advantage of it and sat around the little fire. It was great!

Cheers to FALL!!

Random Thought Thursday

We've been pretty boring over the past week, so I apologize for the lack of interesting blogging material. Here are a few random things on my mind this lovely Thursday morning...

• On Friday my office took a field trip to the Mississippi State Fair for lunch in honor of my birthday a couple of weeks late. The birthday person gets to pick where to eat for their "birthday lunch" so I scheduled mine for when the fair was going to be in town! I actually got a sneak peak the week before when I had to go with one of our environmentalists to do some food booth inspections with WAPT, so I had already gotten one chicken-on-a-stick checked off my list. But, since it's fair time, I got another one on Friday along with some bacon/cheddar/ranch fries, half a roasted corn and some fried Oreos. Well, it was kind of windy that day so I had a bit of a catastrophe with my fried Oreos, as seen above... totally worth the mess though. Yum.
  


• Last night we went over to Melanie and Trey's for dinner. It was so nice to catch up and hear all about their New York trip and see their cute kiddos. It was a very enjoyable Wednesday night, and Mel, if you're reading this, the food was delish. Thank y'all so much!
  


• This past weekend I did a little shopping and am now the proud owner of two pairs of jeggings and some cowboy boots. I am thrilled. I've already worn the boots and can't wait to put them back on my feet, and the jeggings I'm still studying on, but they look cute on everybody else, so we'll see... It's about time I got some boots! LOVE them.
  


• I'm getting excited about Halloween next weekend! While I'm not quite as into this holiday as Derek is, I do enjoy watching our DVR'd collection of scary movies. I love a good scary movie (key word good). Our friend Olivia is starring as Janet in a Vicksburg production of Rocky Horror Picture Show over the next couple of weeks. We're looking forward to heading over there one night to cheer her on. Break a leg, O!

All in all, it's a fabulous time of year in my opinion. There's so much going on, the weather is just perfect, and the holidays are just around the corner! It's hard to be in a bad mood when life is this good... :)

Bunco!

So, about a month ago, a friend of mine was talking on Facebook about starting a bunco group. I was all for it. I knew her through another friend, and knowing how much fun these girls are I figured it would be a good group. I was right!

We played our first game last night at Sarah's house (she's in the peacock outfit) in Brandon, and the theme was Halloween. I recycled Derek's Beatle costume from last year and dressed in drag. Yikes... I don't make a pretty boy.

The game itself is fun! It's FAST. I don't see how all these people call it drunko because I honestly couldn't drink that much and still focus on the rules. I guess eventually I'll be able to play without thinking, but for now, I can't even carry on a conversation at the same time.

In summary, I loved meeting everybody last night and can't wait for next month! Fun times!

Big 3-0 Birthday Tour Stop #3: The Burg

We hit the road Saturday for USM's Homecoming, the final stop on my Big 3-0 Birthday Tour. It was a HOT day to be sitting outside all day, but we suffered through it. My friend Christy is Martha Stuart Jr. and had our two tailgating tents decorated just as nicely or better than most tents in the Grove in Oxford.

It was a special birthday celebration for me, my friend Katie whose birthday was Saturday and Allison, whose birthday is today. We even had a homecoming-themed birthday cake!

After sweating it out and chasing the shade all afternoon under our tent, we ended the night at Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the game on TV. It was a horrible game, we lost after what felt like hours, and we called it a night before even 11 p.m. But considering we started the day with mimosas 12 hours earlier, I don't think that was too bad, especially in 95-degree heat.

I had a great time seeing all my friends and celebrating my birthday one last time! I think three separate birthday celebrations was perfectly appropriate for this big birthday. I can now officially accept the fact that I'm in a new decade of my life. After all, it's all in how you celebrate it, and I think I celebrated in style. :)

Random Thought Thursday

• I've been on jury duty this week. While I only had to actually show up at court for half a day on Monday, I've been sort of "on call" all week by having to call after 6 p.m. each night to see whether or not I had to report the next morning. So far, I haven't, but I'm afraid this might last longer than just this week. I was kind of hoping that I actually would make it farther than the first round because I think it would be really interesting to serve on a jury. No such luck at this point. I'm on Panel #9, and only numbers 1-7 have actually had to report to Round 2 this week. Oh, well... maybe next time?



• Our Halloween costumes came in!! We're pretty pumped about them. No big announcements on this year's theme just yet, and while not quite as creative as last year's Beatle and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, still just as cool. I'm excited! Now we just need to figure out what to do Halloween weekend.



• I know I've already mentioned it, but I LOVE FALL!! We switched over to our "fall" coffee candle this week, and I swear I could burn it 24 hours a day. I love it. This weather makes me so happy!



• The final round of my 30th birthday celebration is this weekend. I'm heading to USM's homecoming, and I can't wait to spend the day with all my college friends! It's one of my favorite Saturdays of the whole year. :)



• Speaking of friends, I just finished a really good book, The Same Sweet Girls by Cassandra King. Set in the South, it's about a group of women who have stayed friends since college through their semi-annual get-togethers. They're all about to turn 50 and going through some major life changes. The quote on the book calls it a cross between the the Ya-Ya Sisterhood and the Sweet Potato Queens. It was great, and it reminds me of my little group of friends. I figured we've done well with our semi-annual get-together for seven years now, so we're well on our way! Ha!

Fall Is In the Air!

What a lovely fall weekend! It's been BEAUTIFUL here all weekend, and I have truly enjoyed spending a nice weekend at home. This is my favorite time of year!

Friday night Derek and I were the true definition of an old married couple. We sat in silence and read our books all night. Exciting, huh?

On Saturday I met my friend Katherine to help her shop for a wedding gown, then we went to lunch at Bravo and then I had my post-birthday massage at Aqua before going to get my monthly mani/pedi. It was a fabulous "me" day, and I've decided I really want to try to get a massage at least every other month. It did me wonders!

Last night Derek had a boys' night with Josh, and I babysat Baby Brady (not so much of a baby anymore really) across the street while his parents went out for their fifth anniversary dinner. We had fun! I think I might be his new favorite babysitter. ;)

Today I've succeeded in washing five loads of clothes so far, including all the sheets and comforters, and I have the back door and all the windows open for some fresh, fall air in this house. THESE are the weekends I love, and I'm ready for a few more nice, cool weekends before winter sets in. Love it when the seasons change! Happy Fall, Y'all!