A to Z Recap of 2012-Happy New Year's Eve!

Here is an attempt to do a recap of the year 2012. There were ups and downs, but overall, not to bad of a year. It was a humbling year for sure and many lessons were learned. Hopefully downsizing the year 2012 to an A to Z list will make this post not go on through 2013...Ha! Here we go :)

A-Apples and Apps-I became more appreciative off the fruit and ate a lot more. I used my Iphone apps to my benefit this year and got lots of free money and items from them.

B-Bargains-I became really, I mean RIDICULOUSLY good at finding good bargains and FREEBIES.

C-Counselor-I have become as my role as a counselor to students in dealing with Financial Aid.

D-Driving-I have done lots of driving this year, mainly due to the job. Glad they pay for mileage :)

E-Eating and Elections 2012-I have done a much better job, than in past, in eating right. Plan to keep this going! The Election of 2012. How could one forget! I voted and will be a good American and support our President!  

F-Food and Funny-I still love food always will. I did more cooking. I was quite the funny one this year!

G-Graduate-I became a graduate...again :)

H-Humble, Help, and Humility-2012 taught me all about being humble and humility as well. Lesson learned 2012, lesson learned. Able to help people who needed it out.

I-Ice and Inger-New found respect for Ice. Almost cannot have a drink now without it! Yes, even in the winter. And at work, met a really cool, sweet, and funny gal named Inger :)

J-Joshua-My heart, My Love, My Boo, My Fiance, My JJ, My Man. We kept our love strong this year even with the distance and some road blocks. Our love never failed and for that I am grateful. Thank you! 

K-Keep-There are things that I will keep close to my heart and in memory from 2012.

L-Love-I have learned to love and accept all things.

M-Masters-I earned my Masters Degree in Public Health in 2012! Wahoo!

N-Nice-I was nice to people this year. This will continue.

O-Opportunity-I have been given the opportunity to do more things that I thought possible in 2012. I hope this carries on to 2013.

P-Pregnant-I was NOT pregnant this year. However, I do want children in the near future 2014 or 2015.

Q-Queen-I heard this name a lot this year in referring to me from my love. I am his Queen!

R-Recycling-I started recycling this year. I take our collected water bottles to work and recycle there.

S-Skype-Love this program! Used it A LOT this year. It has done wonders for my love and me. We get to see each other basically everyday now and our niece (the baby) too :)

T-Time-I learned to manage time much better this year. Still wish there were more in a day...sometimes!

U-Unique-I stayed unique and true to myself. I appreciate my unique heritage and name a lot more this year than in years before. 

V-Voluptuous-I stayed true to my curves this year. I am proud of them and it does not hurt that my love likes them too :)

W-Water-I have been drinking more water this year. The cool gear cups help out a ton! I drink at least 3 of the 20 oz cups each day.

X-eXtra-I feel as I have pulled my weight in all I do and even have done eXtra without being asked.

Y-You-Powerful word! I have embraced the phrases: YOU are important! YOU are loved! YOU are wanted! YOU are needed! YOU are valuable! I am proud of YOU!

Z-Zesty and Zipper-I was Zesty this year in personality and in my cooking. Zipper goes for well, I have updated my purses, 2 new Coach bags and one Relic (generic brand of Fossil) and they have...you guessed it...Zippers!!! Not to worry, remember letter "B" for Bargain, I got GREAT deals on them all. The Coach (from the Coach Factory Store) bags were under $70.00 and the Relic bag from Fossil was under $20.00.

Well, that is it. 2012 A to Z completed. Enjoy and Best wishes and Blessings for 2013! Happy New Year!!!

~eloquently rambling....

Happy B-day! and New App!!

It is not my b-day, but it is my Dad's Birthday! Happy Birthday Daddio! Wishing you health, happiness and many more! I love you!

Looking forward to making 2 pies later on today after browsing at World Market and the Mall :)  I am going to make an apple pie and then a minced pie. Wish me luck!

My love is traveling, wishing him safety and the chance to see him soon! We have some catching up to do :)

I hope to get some points from the great App for Iphone and Android phones called Shopkick. Here is a sign up link: http://get.shopkick.com/horseradish2925 Check it out! You literally walk into a store(s) like Target, Best Buy, Old Navy, American Eagle (and others in your area) and collect your points. You do not have to buy anything!!! Then you can redeem your points for prizes and gift cards like Target, CVS, Old Navy, a Cruise, Itunes, Movie Tickets, Lowes etc...

Simple steps:
1. Just turn on the app on your phone.
2. Walk past the detectors
3. Wait for the Shopkick bubble to pop up with your points.
4. Click/Pop the bubble.
5. Walk out the store :)
All done in less than 2 minutes! The kids will enjoy popping the bubble, it even makes sounds when you do it (I enjoy popping the bubble and I am not a kid)!

~eloquently rambling...

She is here!

my aunt is here. it was back and forth to the airport today, but all items have been recovered. good times will be had by all. i personally like to listen in on the convo. i am looking forward to the shopping trips. not to buy anything, but to look and take pictures. something different. counting down the days to see my love. VERY good times in that area. we talk daily and his voice soothes me.

Target had a great SALE today! Got lots of Christmas/Holiday items for 70% off. cannot have too many holiday items. got some plates and glass cups too. most things were $1.00 so that means, you guessed it you math folks out there, $0.30 each item. other than free, cannot be beat! got some coffee too, little packs for yep $0.30 and Nesquick chocolate drink mix too. will try them both out in the AM.

~eloquently rambling....

Blogs, Blogs, Everywhere!!!

Just finished up talking with my love! Gotta love Skype. It has helped us out A LOT! I can be funny at times and this time was one of them. We were talking about pie (as in food) and well, I am in search of minced pie for my aunt who will be coming in town and well I have not found it yet :( Next time I am telling her "look here, you are going to have to BYOP (Bring Your Own Pie) next time" (That was my funny moment, got my love laughing and calling me "wild" as he does).

Well, in between our video chat/date, b/c we are both work-a-holics, I have been (I will admit it) Blog Stalking (it is not illegal right??). Well as you may have guessed I am still up and stumbling across more and more blogs. It is safe to say that one good blog leads to another! :) Now to get some more followers!!!

~eloquently rambling....

The beautiful and Oh no :(

Today my family and I went to the beautiful Bellingrath Gardens and Home to see the "Merry Christmas in Lights". What an AMAZING job they did. The home was beautiful. I want a home like that. I am still trying to figure out why we could not take pictures of the items in the home? Hmmm. My dad aka (Mufasa) sure did have A LOT of questions, very unlike him, but it was good to see him interact.

The Oh No! is that I have a canker sore. It is SO painful. I would not wish it on my worst enemy (okay maybe I would as there are things that are much worse that I would not wish on them). Go away soon, like before 2013 please and thank you! Here are some pics of the Bellingrath Gardens, I will spare you a pic of the canker sore ;)

   

~eloquently rambling....

Saftey

Coming back to this post: I am not too sure how safe I feel anymore. I am not sure if I ever felt safe at all to think about it. With the recent shootings, it seems like now shootings are happening any and everywhere. Why is this happening? Why are we giving these shooters attention? It almost makes one think, is today the day my town will have its shooting 5 minutes of fame? As a nation we have to do something to get back to feeling safe again, I want to be able to walk out of my house knowing it will not be my last. I know the Lord is the only one that knows when our time will be, but it would be nice to feel safe again leaving my home to take care of daily task.

~eloquently rambling...

Turkey

Turkey! Turkey! Turkey! To be honest I am kind of tired of Turkey since Thanksgiving I have had nothing but Turkey! Ahhh! Turkey for Thanksgiving, Turkey for Christmas, and you guessed it, Turkey will be for New Year's Eve dinner and on New Year's Day. Oh boy! I do not want to see another bird for a LONG time. 

I did a bit of after Christmas shopping and well, here it is: nothing that grand out there :( but I loved seeing those low and great sale percentages off. Maybe as we get even closer to the New Year some more will be on sale. 

~eloquently rambling...

Freebies :)

I hope everyone's Christmas went well :) What did you get under the tree? We got lots of useful items and my love got a Cool Water Cologne set from me. He loved it and it was nice to do something special for him. I miss him, but I know he is in my heart, thoughts, and prayers always! Now on to FREEBIES :) Who does not like a FREE thing or things? Not anyone I know. Yes, on Christmas day I was still shopping, shame on me I know, but Bath and Body Works started its Semi-Annual Sale (online) in stores starting 12/26/2012 (today) and 75% off their products is something I look forward to and do not pass up 2 times a year.  Victoria's Secret is the other sale I do not pass up.

I follow a lot of fan pages on Facebook for FREE stuff. one such site is:  http://www.raininghotcoupons.com Thanks RHC and if you would like to know more about freebies, like her page and also join a fun and great site called Swagbucks (sign up here): http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/oksummer The concept is, you are already on the computer searching, blogging, looking for items and what not, might as well be earning some money while doing it. i use this site to search rather than Google at times. 450 Swagbucks (SB)=$5.00 credit on Amazon.com. You can get other prizes too, but Amazon.com gift cards are the best for your SB and once on Amazon.com they NEVER expire. Try them out and let me know what you think. If you would like I can always do more post about which "Freebie" sites I am on and which Facebook pages I "Like" and follow.

~eloquently rambling and holiday seasons best...

Christmas!

Happy and Merry Christmas 2012! Hope it is filled with love, joy, happiness, family, good pictures, yummy food, and good presents! Life is the best present there is. Enjoy everyone! Random thought: one good blog leads to another :)

eloquently rambling and Merry Christmas...

Holidays!

happy holidays to you and yours! it is Christmas eve and well, i am here cleaning up a storm and my love is in Jax getting ready to eat some delicious pizza....lucky him :) wish we could be together for the holidays, but we will soon enough and until then, thank goodness for technology like texting, facebook, and skype! the best Christmas or anytime present I get is hearing that he loves me and video chatting with him! Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and Happy whichever holiday your celebrate to all :)

---on a random note, you know those cool gear cups that look like this: (see below), it has me drinking a lot more water/fluid. i love it. i have one too many to count...opps.

~eloquently rambling and Seasons Best...

State Worker Pluses :)

work is work. i am grateful for it. really i am . i am not sure what i would do without employment mainly b/c i am not yet a wife or mother, so what would i do? read a book? i have read all the books :) anyhow, being a state worker does have it pluses such as...PAID holiday break. that is right!!!!....2 weeks of PAID time off. yea for "winter break" as we call it. i am SO grateful. i now understand why a lot of state workers basically "die" at their desk.

on another note: things are looking up for my love and i could not be happier. he is a good man and a hard worker and it broke my heart to know things were not going as they should. i helped the best i could and also provided 110% support. it was my pleasure. always remember, NEVER GIVE UP!!! i hope he knows that i will NEVER GIVE UP on him :) I love him <3 happy holidays and thank you Mrs. Blimes for my first comment in a LONGGGGGGG time! you rock!

~eloquently rambling....

Are we really listening America???

one has to wonder, are we really listening America? all weekend we have heard nothing but the tragic and senseless killings of 26 people. but again i ask are we really listening? it is sad, we are thinking that could have been my loved young one, could have been my school, how could anyone do this? we have all cried, had our hearts broken and held our loved ones a little bit closer or talked to them a little bit longer. however, are we listening America? are we REALLY ready to do something to change the rules regarding guns, mental health, and other factors that lead to tragic events? change is hard, i agree, but if we want acts of violence like this to stop, things have to change. access to tools that can harm others need tougher regulations. i know the people of Connecticut are ready for change and reform, the President is read use his power to make it happen, are we ready America to make the change. We should not have to wait until OUR town or families become victims to rise up and make change happen...it need to happen now! we need to put aside OUR WANTS for "this and that" and "luxury" freedoms (i view having a firearm as a luxury freedom, one will not die without having one as your would without food, water, or healthcare) and focus on what we all NEED as a nation. it is time to show each other how much love we truly have for our great nation and to show America and the lives lost at Sandy Hook, yes we are not only grieving with you, but WE ARE LISTENING!!!

~eloquently rambling...

long day...

today was interesting...here is what happened:
-gave presentation for work
-went to bath and body works (great sale), Stein Mart, and Fresh Market. So glad one is in my area now :)
-going to try pomegranates for the first time (they were big)
-went to a neighborhood holiday party. it was nice. played a gift exchange game. got my gift taken from me a few times :(  but ended up getting a 16 piece cup set :)
-clipping and organizing coupons now...with the help of the brother.
-thoughts are still with those precious angels in New Town, CT. When we start taking the lives of innocent children, we have a BIG problem!!! Period.

~eloquently rambling...

Good Days, Bad Days...

there are good days and then there are bad days and then there is today...just plain ole' aggravating. the smallest things are making my skin crawl right now. i think i am just upset with not having the car today, i could have really used it. i am trying real hard to understand the logic behind it all. it is SILLY! i am almost 30, with a full-time job, yet for some odd reason b/c the car will sit here at work and not move...i cannot drive it. need to rethink getting my own car ASAP. but hmmm, school loan payment or car? anyhow, i am all caught up at the office and well, i am bored. that could be the issue too. also folks it is "BOTH" pronounce the "th" not "BOFF"...ugh!!! my dear fiance is SO SWEET! he just said I am sorry, is there anything i can do. I just said, no, just listen to me rant.  going back to keeping my hands warm now over this candle :) thank you for letting me rant.

~eloquently rambling.

Looking out...

sometimes i look at others and wonder why i am not them. does this happen to anyone else? i water my lawn, it should be green by now. i have pulled out all my weeds, and well i want to see some reward for it. maybe my lawn is just slow to grow. who knows? (shrugs shoulders).

~eloquently rambling