Tuesday Night Menu: YoPi

Every Tuesday night I attend a YoPi class at the downtown YMCA. For those of you who may not know, YoPi is a combination Yoga-Pilates class. It is a great activity for removing stress thrust upon the body throughout the day...I feel very relaxed and uplifted at the end of each class, which lasts roughly an hour. Also, there are three *SUPER WONDERFUL* ladies from work that attend the class with me: Monica, Jennifer and Debra!!! It is definitely more fun in a group, even though the talking is very minimal.

Below are two poses that I excel at:
The Plow:

The Firefly:

Okay, Okay, you got me...I can't do either of those poses well...In fact, the Plow hurts my neck very much and the Firefly...well, if my wrists held the weight of my entire body, supported only by the palms of my hands (leave the wiggle room for fingers and toes!)...i'm pretty sure they would collapse and I would no longer have hands. So, out of Spin (Monday and Wednesday night HELL), Running and YoPi, I would have to say this is the activity that I look forward to the most!

I Heart Musashi's!!!

Friday night I had a fabulous dinner and even better company! My bff, Julie, and her husband, Eric, came up from Dallas and took Andy and me out to dinner for my birthday!!! It was sooo good to see them (our visits are too few and far between), although the time went by super fast! Below is a picture of us...all stuffed with steak and fish! Ha!

I guess we were away too long, though, because our daughter got really OLD!

Break it down, Grandma Jadyn!!!

Happy Anniversary and Happy Father's Day!

Andy and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary yesterday...so it was a double-special day for Andy, it being Father's Day as well! I got this awesome camera for my birthday, yet I neglected to take any pictures of our Father's Day activities, which is really disappointing--so all you get is words!!!
We started the day off by going to church (the first time we were at a church since our wedding) to watch Jadyn do her VBS program. We followed that by lunch at Johnnies with Andy's mom and then a trip over to Andy's dad's house to visit with his father, Susan, Andrea, Kevin and Ri-guy! Then it was off to dinner-prep for Andy and me and we baked a delish enchilada dinner for my dad and Andy's dad. In the end, our Anniversary was a bit overshadowed by all of the Father's Day events - and freaking GOLF - but we survived the busy day! As for our Anniversary, I can only say: TO INFINITY...AND BEYOND!!!

I've Been Tagged!

I have been tagged by my fantabulous SIL, Andrea--and am def. up for the challenge!!!

Here Are the Rules: Answer the following questions about yourself. At the end of the post you pass on the questions to 6 other bloggers and list their names. Then write them a comment telling them that they've been tagged and ask them to read your blog. Let the person who tagged you know that you've accepted the challenge and refer to your post.

1. What did you do 10 years ago?
10 years ago, I just graduated highschool (our reunion is coming up on September, eek!), was one month away from meeting the man I would spend the next ten years of my life with (and many more to come), Andy, and I was excited about starting college at OSU with my bff, Julie!!

2. Five items on your to-do list today:
1. Read 30 pages in my book
2. Count down every dragging hour of my working day
3. Pick up Jadyn from her grandpa's
4. Pick up the house a little bit
5. Dinner at Musashi's with Andy, Julie and Eric!

(Okay...so until number 5, my day is pretty boring!)

3. Snacks I enjoy? If you couldn't tell by looking at me, i LOVE to eat! I love cookies and candy and cake and coke! I love it all! I love chips and bread and crackers and cereal...really, the list goes on forever.

4. What would you do if you were a billionaire? Everything I could think of...I would quit working (duh) and the very first thing I would do is take my family and Andy's family (all immediate, of course) on a trip to Europe...and it will be super long because we'll all be on a boat. I, too, would make sure my whole immediate family was set for life and then live a quiet, peaceful life!

5. Places I would live: I'm stuck here in Oklahoma...but if I could go anywhere, it would definitely be to Connecticut. I don't know if I've over-glamorized it through all of my trips there and my family being there...but everytime I go back I never want to leave. The East is such a beautiful place!

I have very few people to tag! I am challenging Kelly and Stephanie to respond to my tag!

Book Club: Shantaram

I have a book club at my work that meets at lunch the last Friday of every month. We started the book club July 2007, and it's been tres fun! We read so many different genres of books...books that I normally wouldn't have chosen myself. A few of the books that we have read are Founding Mothers by Cokie Roberts, Fluke, or I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings by Christopher Moore, Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (see? an ECLECTIC group of books!)

The discussions are thoughtful and light...and since there aren't many of us in the group, the setting is intimate! The book we are reading this month is called Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. This 933-page book is PHENOMENAL and I look forward to picking it up every evening! It is about a man who has escaped from jail in Austrailia and heads to Bombay, India to 'hide-out'. Shantaram is loosely based on the author's own experiences. Roberts describes so many delectable Indian dishes and, I have to admit, a couple of times I have been enticed to head for an Indian buffet at Ajanta! I'm also tempted to try Chai (please note: I hate tea) because it seems to be the drink of choice in India! Anyway...I highly recommend this book to everyone out there! I have pasted a picture below (you know, so you can see what the cover looks like when you go to the store to buy it!)

UPDATE: I hate chai. Although it doesn't taste like regular tea, the weird-spicy taste did not sit well with my buds (tastebuds...get it? get it?...nevermind).

Wind Sucks!!

Or should I say wind blows...very flippin' hard! Andy and I went on the most dreadful jog yesterday after work and, as you can see, we only put 1.17 miles under our belt and that's because the wind was VICIOUSLY blowing. Seriously...it was like trying to run through water, it was so bad. In addition to the ridiculous Oklahoma winds, it was 5:30p and the sun was scorching hot--my skin was on fire! I think from now until the end of summer, we will only be running later in the evening (8:00p anyone?) on very low-wind days or sticking to the treadmill.

Our Nephew Has Something Really Important To Say!!

Here is our favorite little baby boy: Riley!!!

Happy Birthday To Me!!!

I have the best friends and family EVER!!! They really know how to make me feel special on my birthday--and for that (and them) I am eternally grateful!!! On Friday night, I got to have a 'birthday dinner' at Bellini's followed by drinks at Henry Hudsons with some of my favorite people! Friday Night Cast: Andrea and Kevin Miller, Tiffany Benson and her fiance, Scott Short, and Jeff and Kaitlyn Eager. Also featured was my adorable husband, Andy!!! Sunday night, Andy and Jadyn took me out to dinner at my favorite restaurant -- Ajanta!!! At work today, the most festive friend I have, Amy Chavez, decorated my office with signs and purple streamers! Talk about feeling special on your birthday!!!

I love you guys!!!!!

Below is a picture of our Friday night group. Not pictured are Tiffany and Scott--pregnancy can shut a night down early!!!

Our Kids Are Brilliant!!!

Jadyn and Ethan have just completed first and third grade, respectively. At the end of the school year, both of our genius children got a plethora of awards!!! We are so very proud of both of them!!!

Jadyn and Ethan:

Jadyn got awards for the Spelling Bee (she is holding her certificate and ribbon), Mathematics and Reading!

Ethan got the Top Reader award for his class, Teacher's Honor Roll and a Health Award!