Sleepless Nights

One of my biggest irritations in life is not getting enough good, quality sleep. At 27, I feel a bit like an old lady as I rarely stay awake past 11 PM, even on the weekends! I usually go upstairs around 10-10:15 and read for a few minutes and then pass out. I get up between 6:20-6:40 AM on work days(depends how many times I hit snooze...) and around 8 AM on weekends. I usually have no issues falling asleep.

TWICE this weekend, however, I could not fall into a deep sleep. The first was Sunday night, which I attribute to the 1.5 hour nap I took that afternoon. It was rainy, cool and I was tired and had Friday Night Lights, season 1 on. I assumed I would have no issues last night since I was pretty tired from Sunday.

I went to bed around 10:30 with a little bit of a headache and slept until 2:15. Then I was up for an hour! I could not fall asleep, my head was hurting, I was hot and the fan was making weird noises. J couldn't sleep either. After an hour of tossing and turning, I finally found some earplugs, took a BC Powder(which I normally HATE, but wanted something quick), and kicked-off the comforter, finally falling asleep a little after 3 AM.

I HATE that feeling of not falling asleep. I try everything, counting backwards, slow breathing...When I am away from home, I will take a OTC sleep aid(usually only 1/2 the suggested dosage), but try not to use it very much. I supposed I should have taken Tylenol PM when I first went to bed; there's no way I would have made it to work on time had I taken it at 2:30 AM!

So tell me, readers, what are your tricks for getting a good night's sleep?

One Lovely Blog Award

Hi all! I hope everyone had a lovely weekend. We had beautiful weather...I laid by the pool for a couple of hours Saturday without drowning in my own sweat :) We were lazy, lazy, lazy and it was great. I spent the entirety of Sunday afternoon stretched out on the floor reading and cuddling with the dog. Perfection.

No Menu Monday this week, as I haven't planned anything :)

Ally over at Copacetic in Carolina pass on this One Lovely Blog award to me! How fun. These things are great--I love learning random facts about people.

Rules:

Link back to the person who gave you this award
Complete the form below
Share 7 random things about yourself
Award 15 bloggers this award and notify them of the award(kinda breaking this one...)

• Name your favorite color: Purple :)
  
• Name your favorite song: I actually don't think I have one because it changes all the time! I do love anything by Sugarland though.
  
• Name your favorite dessert: my Mawmaw's homemade chocolate pound cake + chocolate icing. yum, yum, yum!
  
• What ticks you off: liars
  
• When you're upset you: walk, call a friend, read for a while
  
• Your favorite pet: Of course I love our sweet Newnan! But I can't forget my baby back home in Georgia, Nipper, along with our cats. Then there was the first pet I ever had, my sweet cat of 15 years, Cocoa.
  
• Black or White: White...it looks so clean
  
• Your biggest fear: Not finding what I'm supposed to do
  
• Best feature: eyes
• Everyday attitude: Happy, laid back
  
• What is perfection: A fall Sunday afternoon...clear skies, post-church, preferably post- UGA win :)
  
• Guilty pleasure: pedicures, reading all day, Starbucks lattes
  

Seven Random Things About Myself:

1) I absolutely have to have reading materials for any car trip over an hour. I have to be entertained. Yes, I talk to whomever I am in the car with, but I also need a book or magazine. I can't stand to just look out windows for hours.

2) I used to be terrified of flying, yet I wanted to be a astronaut. Still not completely over my fear of flying, but as I fly more, I'm more comfortable with it.

3) I am, and always will be, a band geek. I started playing clarinet in middle school, marched in high school, and played in the UGA concert bands in college. I still love the sound of a drumline outside a Friday night high school football game!

4) For some reason, I always get sucked into movies I OWN when they are on TV. Yesterday afternoon was Titanic. I wonder how many times I've seen that movie? And each time I just think..."Surely he could have grabbed another piece of wood..."

5) Speaking of the Titanic, I have been strangely fascinated by it since I was young--7 or 8 years old. I'm not sure how it started, but I've read pretty much every book about it, watched the documentaries, played video games, etc. A few years ago I went to the exhibit when it was in Atlanta and touched a piece of the hull!

6) I went with some other Memphis-area UGA alums to the Liberty Bowl Gala last year. When we were coming down from the cocktail hour to the dinner, we saw Aaron Murray and some other players waiting in the lobby for a meeting. I told him I should get my picture made with him because "I'm the Memphis UGA Alumni club president, so I have street cred." Someone should have cut me off after 2 drinks.

7) At least 50%(probably more like 75%...) of my wardrobe is from Target. Probably 80% of my shoes are!

Here's Where I Break The Rules

If you are reading this, and haven't received this award, CONGRATS! You just did. Please post up some fun facts about you and leave me a link to your blog. No blog? Post the answers in my comments :)

Have a great Monday!

Oh hey....

Sorry about the absence!

I've been a little busy at work(I usually blog on my lunch hour) and just haven't felt like posting. I think I'm out of the funk though!

Next week will be back to our regularly scheduled programming, but for today you get a bulleted list of my random thoughts. Enjoy!

• I plan on enjoying this last weekend of August by the pool and walking Newnan(the temps have been great yesterday and today!), but come Monday, I'm ready for Fall.
  
  
• Fall items I'm looking forward to: cool weather, tall boots, recipes with cinnamon and apples, fall scented candles, hoodies, Jim Beam + Coke Zero and college football!
  
  
• Newnan destroys at least 2 toys a week. Does anyone make dog toys made of steel?
  
  
• I read Heart of the Matter by Emily Giffin this weekend. I've read 4 of her 5 books and they all deal with cheating. I'm sensing a theme.
  
  
• On another note, I liked Something Borrowed and Something Blue, but did not care for Baby Proof or Heart of the Matter.
  
  
• I've read a lot of books recently, so expect a reading post soon!
  

That's all I have for today...Ally gave me a blog award, so expect that post sometime this weekend!

What are your weekend plans?

Currently, I am...

I have a bit of a writer's block today. While going through my Google Reader, I saw this post on Something to Cheer About and decided to follow suit!

Eating: I just finished an Amy's Kitchen Southwestern Burrito. Have you had these burritos? I love them! They're fairly healthy, keep me full and are now available cheap at Kroger for $2.14 (They used to be $3+)!

Reading: Nothing...can you believe it? I just finished the fifth "Pretty Little Liars" book. I have a new book on hold at the library.


Wishing: I was home with my pup instead of at work. Yes, he owns us both now.

Patiently Waiting For: The weekend

Freaking Out About: Our sweet pup is somewhat over our apartment's weight limit. Let's hope we don't get in trouble!

Annoyed By: The fact that I don't have a lot to work on at work.

On My Nails: Nothing! I really need to paint them this weekend.

Obsessed With: Pretty Little Liars. I'm reading the series and watching Season 1. I promise I'm 27, not 17.

Lusting After: This china cabinet. I really, really want it. It would look ridiculous in our apartment, but I hate that our pretty wedding gifts are boxed up in the guest room closet.


Looking Forward To: Football season! It is only 44 days away! GO DAWGS!

Happy (Late) Birthday To Me!

Again, I apologize for the lack of posting this week. I'm hoping to get back on track soon!

I flew back to Memphis on Tuesday and my sweet husband was actually waiting inside the airport when I got there instead of picking me up curbside. Okay...he was only in there because I told him I like it when he is there waiting on me, but it was still sweet :) And the Delta App let him know when I was landing so he hung out in the cell phone lot before parking, so we still made it within the 30 minutes of free parking :)

Yesterday was my 27th Birthday! I celebrated with an all-day client meeting(JUST what I wanted. How did they know? ;))...okay, it ended early and they let me leave around 3:30 so it wasn't terrible. I tried to do some shopping but came up short. When I got home, a gift from my friend Kelly was waiting for me:

Image from Amazon.com

The commemorative 75th anniversary printing of Gone With The Wind. I actually have a copy, but it is my grandmother's hardcover from the 1950's. The binding is coming apart; I keep it with my other GWTW memorabilia on a shelf at my parents' house. Plus, Pat Conroy wrote the forward to this; I love his writing(despite the somewhat sick twists his stories have).

J gave me a big canvas print of Turner Field he found a Target for me to hang in my office. I can't find a picture online! But it will be great to fill in the white space I have going on there.

He also surprised me! I knew we'd go out to dinner and he was very insistent on Tuesday that I pick a place RIGHT NOW. He suggested Mellow Mushroom or (my fave) Sekisui. I couldn't figure out why I had to make a decision at that moment, but I picked pizza. Last night when we got there, two of my good friends and their husbands met us there! I was so surprised. It was nice to have friends there to celebrate with.

All in all, a good day. I loved the Facebook posts and texts and calls. I also love the gift card from my in-laws and new Nike shorts & InStyle subscription from my parents :) I love birthdays!

Friday Ramblings

I don't have much to write about, so today you get a random collection of thoughts!

• I want to learn to coupon. Not the crazy, 39482090 boxes of Ramen noodles and 39804932 cans of dog food type of couponing, but reasonable things. If I could get a small stockpile of items like shampoo & conditioner, laundry detergent, cleaning supplies and toilet paper, I'd be happy. As my BFF in Kansas said Monday, "I just want some free toilet paper. That's all." All coupon blogs make it see so easy, but I can't wrap my head around the planning process and spending hours on the process.

• I need a new summer bag. I'm still carrying my purple leather purse from winter. I want something light, but structured and under $50.

• We are terrible about watching our Netflix movies. I've had Black Swan for two weeks now; we had Tangled for at least a month before we watched it.

• I am reading this book. I'm just a few chapters in but I already know it is going to make me cry.

Sorry for a short(both in length and substance) post today. Hopefully something exciting will pop into my head over the weekend to write about! We have busy Saturday and not so busy Sunday. I'll be back Sunday to recap this week's menu. Have a great weekend!