I hate this sort of thing for the most part – let me start by saying that much – everything in my life is random – I planned it that way! But it seems like this is the new “IT” thing to do on FaceBook (and I’m tired of getting “tagged”) and AV put hers on her blog to go for double duty – smart cookie!
And in true over achieving form, I’ve listed more than 25 things – HA!

1. I have different groups of friends, and I actually don’t think they’ve ever met for the most part. I have my friends from the more educational side of college, the friends from the party side of college, my BenCo friends aka the baby mammas, the dry county girls or the Bible Study Buddies, my friends from football aka THSC girls, my friends from the Dallas years and then MZ’s group of friends that I have somewhat assimilated into and then a few random friends sprinkled throughout.

2. I have 2 belly buttons – or at least that was my super fun party trick when I was about 5… When I was born, my esophagus was not attached to my stomach and I have immediate emergency surgery and was then affixed to a feeding tube directly inserted into my stomach so the scar looks like another belly button and this is totally what I would tell people when I was little – also what my parents would tell people as they had no clue what to do with a baby – no seriously, my dad loves to tell the story of when I was about a week old and my mother awoke asking “what’s that sound” to which he replied – I believe it’s a baby – oh shit –it’s our baby – my mom asked well what do I do, make her stop crying –he said she should feed it…. And there began my constant struggle for attention.

3. I love to travel but HATE the security line. Flying is not the fear, I’m terrified of the security line I don’t know why, I’ve got nothing to hide but they aren’t always very nice and I need about 4 more arms to hold all my stuff I have to take with me…

4. I actually really liked working for Walmart in my 5 years there– there’s something about being able to say “I’m Walmart, that’s why.” I don’t regret that I’m not there anymore, but I did enjoy my time there.

5. Contrary to all my friends’ beliefs – I do want to get married and have kids some day, just not today, maybe tomorrow… Their kids are plenty and I love to be able to give them back. I will love my kids but I do not have to love random misbehaving evil children I see out and about – that’s their parents fault they act like that. If you have bad kids, don’t leave the house till you figure out what to do with them to make them act somewhat decently.

6. I’m a pack rat, but I’m getting better – really. I realized that some people are bigger pack rats than I could ever dream of being when I had a garage sell this past summer and made over $1000 – I got rid of so much stuff and I actually felt like a burden had been lifted. So I’m going to have another one in the spring. I tried to sell some of my clothes to resale shops recently but have realized I’d rather give them away than get screwed at some place that is just going to jack the prices up.

7. I love fresh flowers. I love to go to the farmers market and get fresh flowers and bring them home and just look at them –it instantly makes your house seem cleaner and a better place to be.

8. I love my blonde hair – that’s really no secret though. I honestly did have blonde hair till I was about 20 years old… then it turned brown – I probably have some grey now too, but I’ll never know and I plan to keep it that way. It never fails, whenever I meet people that I have had some type of phone/email business relationship with, most people are always quick to say: “You’re blonde?” as if to say, you seem smarter on the phone. It’s also normally followed with “and you’re a lot younger than I thought.” I take this a compliment – it’s always interesting what people think you look like – I do the same thing – but thanks to Google and FaceBook – it takes a lot of the guesswork out of it. I’ve gone a bit browner this time and might keep it for a couple of months, but you know as soon as summer gets closer – back to blonde in a snap!

9. It seems like I’ve gotten this question a lot lately– how did you and MZ meet? We met in a bar… it’s a great story actually, I’ll tell ya later!

10. I love to be in charge – again, nothing new there. Nevertheless, I really like to be in control of things, which I guess is actually different from being in charge (although I like that too). I just like to know what’s going on and what’s going to happen next. I also love to drive – no matter what. MZ is proably one of the few people that doesn’t make me nervous if I’m in the passenger seat (which is most of the time). I totaled 3 cars in an 8 month period so I’m a big gun shy when it comes to car wrecks.

11. I love love love Dave Matthews Band and am sad that MZ does not – that’s one of the few things we don’t agree on. So I guess I’m actually really very lucky that we do agree on so much and have quite a bit in common. I had been to at least one DMB concert every year since I was 19 except for last summer.

Are you really reading this –there may be a quiz!

12. I love the smell of fresh cut grass and dirt; I also love the feeling of washing my hands when they are really dirty. I mean washing ones hands is good on all counts but really a good feeling when they are super dirty from working in the yard or something.

13. I’m obsessive about people’s birthdays. I love birthdays all the time and think they are very important to celebrate. I always make sure to call or text or email or send a card for your birthday if I know when it is. If I don’t know, then how can I celebrate it? I also LOVE to celebrate my birthday – some may call that selfish, but its one day a year that’s all mine so too bad. And I’m really super glad that MZ doesn’t mind all the celebrating for me, he’s a great sport about it!

14. I’m also equally excessive about thank you notes – a written thank you note means so much!!! I write thank you notes for everything – it might sometimes be too much and I hope it doesn’t weird anyone out, but I think it’s very important to write a brief note at least to say THANK YOU for something someone has done for you or given you, no matter how small.

15. I know nothing about wine except that I like super sweet wine – Moscato and Rieslings tend to work out well for me. I actually would rather just have a gin or vodka tonic anyway. But sometimes I do feel pretty inadequate when I don’t know what to order. MZ and I have gone to the Wine Tasting event at the Walton Arts Center for the past 2 years, but I don’t think I’ve learned too much except that I keep on drinking the same things…

16. Sex and the City is the answer to everything. You really can literally relate EVERYTHING IN LIFE to Sex and the City. We had a fabulous party to celebrate the movie and now that there’s going to be a sequel, I’m already starting to think of even more fabulous ideas for the next party in 2010!!! My very most favorite episode is from season 6, episode 9: A woman’s right to shoes (aka no shoes, no service). It’s the once where Carries shoes get stolen at the baby shower and she registers herself for new Manolo’s. “… and what, if I don’t get married or have a baby, I get bupkis?” I feel like that a lot of the time. I also like when Harry says “you know what we need to bring back in this house: cocktail hour.”

17. I love to cook, but hate to clean up after myself. I’m a pretty darn good baker if I do say so myself, and I was making cupcakes before cupcakes were cool.

18. I have an odd obsession with stationary and pens and especially Sharpie Markers. MZ once bought me a whole slew of Sharpie Markers at Sam’s Club as a prize! I have more note cards and post it note pads than I could ever use, no matter how many thank you cards of nice little notes I write.

19. I’m very glad I started my blog, and yes, I’m going to promote it – duh, have you met me? So for more info, check out http://www.graciefabulous.com/. I started it when most all my friends were starting their blogs about their weddings and their kids, I started mine just because I had something to say, nothing against babies and husbands but that’s not what makes one’s life complete, only an added bonus.

20. I’m very judgmental about marketing campaigns: TV, digital, print – whatever. I would love to work on so many accounts, because yes, I honestly believe they would do better if I was on their team. Unfortunately, that is not the market that exists in Northwest Arkansas, and I don’t see myself moving away anytime soon.

21. I love old school country music – it reminds me of my childhood and going to my uncles and grandparents farm. It normally makes me sad whenever I hear it.

22. I would love to start my own party planning business, I have a ton of fabulous ideas and I do love to host a party! However, I feel the market is pretty saturated right now and people aren’t nessisarily looking to shell out money for someone else to plan their party. I love to have parties for my friends, wedding showers and baby showers and everything in between, clearly I would never charge them, but I’d love to expand and do it full time. And I already have a partner for cake baking and decorating! Someday…

23. Halloween is my most favorite holiday followed by St. Patrick’s Day and the 4th of July. I love creative costumes and creep decorations at parties!

24. I like to go to sleep with the TV on and now I’ve pushed this habit on to MZ – sorry baby.

25. I took French for almost 5 years and might be able to barely survive if thrown in the middle of France, but probably not. I should try and pick it back up and I should really probably learn Spanish…

26. I’ve had my writing published in national journals and a few pieces have actually won awards. Also, I was the youngest student (at the time) to attend the finals of the Arkansas Sate Geography Bee – can you say mega nerd?

27. I’m Catholic and I plan to raise my future children Catholic, but I don’t really like some of the newer things going on in the church right now. I went to mass every day of my life in grade school and there have been so many changes, it makes me think: What’s the point, why make so many drastic changes, what was so wrong that you had to switch it up? That’s one of the reasons I don’t go to mass as much as I should – but I feel like I’m OK with my relationship with God.

28. I love NYC and Chicago much more than I think I could ever love LA. I like Santa Monica a ton, but will probably never make enough to actually enjoy living there. I think I could enjoy NYC or Chicago more, no matter how much I made.

29. I’m a severe coke addict – coca cola that is…

30. TV jewelry commercials make me gag – they are so sad and depressing. I hope anyone out there, male or female does not think that because it’s on TV the recipient of your piece of jewelry will like it – chances are they won’t. Any type of jewelry should be a statement or expression of sentiment, not mass-produced! Especially time marking pieces like engagement rings and wedding sets – they should be special and classic and mean something equally to both involved.

31. I could probably live out of my desk at work, but don’t know it – I’m prepared for anything – really … anything! Try me.

32. I rip the pages out of magazines and organize them into groups. It’s better than saving the entire magazine… I have all types of pages saved into different segments. It’s just like having great big storyboards if you lay them all out. I also create shopping lists from them.

33. I collect all things Absolut (vodka) I used to have my dining room wall covered in them in very neat rows – it looked awesome – I was also in college so we were enamored by all things alcohol, but it’s stuck with me.

So, that might be more than you ever wanted to know about me.

Dear who ever makes (and abides to) the rule to take away my UNOPENED water bottle at the airport fully knowing that I’ll now have to go and repurchase the same damn thing at the pitiful excuse of a “restaurant” for more than 3 times the initial cost:
I am not fond of you!
I’ve been allowed to bring in unopened bottles of water before, hell, at LAX I got made fun of because I thought I had to toss my newly opened Coke bottle – apparently I could have taken that with me through security with no issue.
I understand there are rules, I do – that’s why I take painstakingly arduous efforts to make sure all my mini items of product are well labeled and fit EXACTLY in my specially purchased clear plastic zipper bag – I just can’t bring myself to use a Ziploc back each time – they rip and then I just have to throw them away. Therefore, I got a lovely heavy-duty bag at Sephora – aka the store that sucks you in worse than Walmart or Target.
Sincerely,
$3 poorer with less water

I’m off to NYC for the 3rd time in about 5 months – I do love NYC! This time I’m going up to help out with another media tour for one of the product lines. Robyn Flipse will be promoting some healthier recipes using some of the products that not too many people know about and we are hoping to create more of a buzz around. So if you live in any of these TV markets, look for her Tuesday morning on your local news: Lubbock, Savannah, Huntsville, Lincoln, Topeka, Cheyenne, Flint, Atlanta, Roanoke, Baltimore, Wichita, Alexandria, Phoenix, Albuquerque – or if you ever catch the nationally broadcasted Daily Buzz… you’ll find us there.

P.S. – Dear small toddler on the plane 3 rows in front of me: Thank you for not screaming the ENTIRE flight, 1/3 of it is just the right amount of blood curdling screaming.

We’ve been debating this topic at the office and among other social settings.
Will there be a strain on the business of Valentines Flower Deliveries since V-Day falls on a Saturday this year?
It makes sense that there might be – OR will there be a mad rush of last minute calls and rush orders to get the flowers in on Friday during the workday?
Just a topic to think about – so make sure you plan accordingly if you plan to order flowers.
If you live in the Central Arkansas Area, make sure to call Ari at Little Black Dress Brigade (see link at right) – Mandy and she will be creating spectacular arrangements and they are providing free local delivery with a $50 order. They do flowers for everything, not just Valentines Day so keep their info handy!

Saturday night, a bunch of girls met at Noodles for a surprise baby shower for our friend Leslee. She thought she was just coming out to dinner since most of the girls husbands are in Vegas on their revenge trip they planned while we were living it up in NYC back in December.
She was so surprised – it was too cute. We all went together and got her a super cute diaper bag and the a few other items as well. I got her a pair of Heelarious Baby’s First Stiletto’s. I know, they are completely useless – babies can’t go to the bar… but they are freakin’ cute! They are basically like little infant shoes but have about a ½ inch heel on them. The ones I picked out were Zebra print since I heard that Leslee and Marty are doing an animal print theme for baby Shayne’s room. I can’t wait to meet her! As I’ve mentioned many times before – I love other people’s babies, for a few hours at least.
After dinner, a few of us girls went to the Wine Cellar for a drink or 5. Then we further split up and went our separate ways to meet up with other groups.
It was a fun evening and great to be able to share in Leslee’s glee of her baby shower. She is truly the sweetest, most gracious person I know and her little daughter will be just like her, I’m sure of it!

I went shopping at the Promenade in Rogers on Saturday. It was gorgeous weather so the open-air mall was really nice –and not toooooo crowded. Lauren went with and we did some serious economy supporting. I’ve found it useful to keep lists of things I want to buy (thanks iPhone feature). So, I have a list for Sephora, the shoe store and other trendy items I may be looking for at a bargain steal, etc. This way I hope to avoid too much impulse buying. So on my Sephora list I had Makeup Forever Smoky mascara, which I came to love a few months ago when they had the trial package of about 10 mini mascaras. This is great item for a couple of reasons: you get to try out all types of mascara AND then you have travel appropriate sizes of your faves.
We headed to Sephora with the hopes of not being sucked in by a sales person with their pretty and shiny trickery of testers and samples! Well shit – I came out with way too much stuff – all of which I HAD TO HAVE AND WOULD OF COURSE CHANGE MY LIFE FOREVER! Or at least until I ran out and I went back to get my fix and they have discontinued the line but have something even better and more expensive so it must be good– I swear, Sephora is like what I imagine crack cocaine or heroin is like! Glad Sephora doesn’t leave track marks – although I’m sure they’d be happy to sell me some type of concealer for it!
I also scored some other fab finds at Francesca’s and Forever XXI. We also picked up baby shower presents for the upcoming evening. I also got some super cute clothes for baby Milo and not-baby Stella. I got Milo a rocker shirt and some overalls which are too cute and a good way to relate to Milo’s grandpa’s (MZ’s dad) caretaker Jack – he always wears overalls!!! Although I heard he wore shorts and t-shirt the other day. For Stella, I got a super cute and very preppy pink and green plaid skirt and sweater set. She will, of course, be adorable in it! Hey, that’s what pseudo-aunts are for!
After shopping and lunching at PF Chang’s – and knowing that I’d eat a big dinner I HAD to go for a run on Saturday afternoon. So Presley and I set out for our normal path – we’ve added an extra loop around the lake and have now taken to attempting to sprint what I claim to be the last quarter mile straight and flat stretch. Presley is NOT a sprinter. I literally have to drag my 60-pound dog down the street. She tries so hard, and then looks at me with disgust as if to say: I hate you mother – I prefer to remain fat.
We almost caused a woman to run off the road she was laughing at us so hard. I did determine it might be partially to blame on the nerd harness I make her wear (the dog, not the woman driving the car). Sunday, I hooked the leash to the front of the harness rather than the top so that it doesn’t make her legs drag… we are a hoot to watch run – I know… I can only hope that it either gives all onlooker s a good laugh or makes them realize that anyone can “run” or at least attempt it.

It’s been a stressful few weeks, especially for MZ. His parents still do not have power, they have been staying at his house, and no one can accurately tell them when they might get their power turned back on. Also, MZ was in Kansas City most of last week for the Sam’s Club year beginning meeting, so he has definitely had his hands full – and his house.
Friday night he called to ask me out on a date, it was so very sweet of him! We went to dinner and movie and had a great time! He was very proud of himself, as he should have been! It really is the little things in life that make people truly happy!
It was great to just get to sit and talk about the week since we hadn’t seen each other in what seemed like forever! We decided that date night was a fun thing and we should do it more often and that sitting in the house realizing that we don’t have any food and then going to dinner out of necessity did not a real date make. Another thing we established was that we are both way too old to go to the movie on a Friday night. WOW, I guess I was too sheltered as a teenager, as I SURE wasn’t allowed to go to the movies that late at night, not even when I could drive myself. There were some kids there that could not have been more than 12 years old…. And that made me feel super old!
Those darn, pesky kids….

But I was very happy to be out of the house by ourselves, it was a great treat. He’s been so patient with his parents being at his house and abiding to their routine, I’m so impressed. I know I’m a brat and can admit that I don’t always make things easy and sometimes I just give up. I realize it’s way too easy to take things for granted and just get mad and take my aggressions out on him, and for some reason he still puts up with me! =)

Dear town of Punxatawney,
Yep, I said it, I’ve had it with your beloved rodent and his handlers with their top hats and tuxes? Really?
I can not, will not, handle 6 more weeks of winter. I want and need spring to be just around the corner.
Although I know either way, it’s really the same thing but still, this BS about seeing the shadow or not – it’s a sham I say.
I’ll take a sunny, warm patio please!
Get it right next year.

Thanks,
gt

Two weeks ago, MZ and I went to Paint the Town Red, a local fund raiser for the American Heart Association. It’s a great fundraiser for a great cause and I personally like it because they have vowed to never move the event to Benton County! I will always go to anything that makes that type of promise to me!
Zack and Lauren joined us at Paint the Town Red as well…

1. We would spend just as much money going to a bar, so it might as well be going to a good cause – especially if they are “open bar.”
2. I get to play dress up which is ALWAYS fun!!!!!!!!!!
3. Neither of us smell like lung cancer at the end of the night.
4. It’s a good networking …. uh network.
5. Most of the local fundraisers also showcase local restaurants so we get to try all kinds of local food!

So, I’m planning out the rest of the year and trying to find some good fund raisers to attend!

Even more exciting, almost $120,000 was raised which is 30% more than last year. That’s quite an accomplishment considering the state of our economy.