Weekend Fun!

Well, the weekend was good. Lauren and I got to spend a ton of time together...never enough, but good enough until Friday rolls around. :) We stayed around the pool, played with Ellie, went shopping, got manicures and pedicures, went out to dinner, clubbin' on Saturday, and farewells on Sunday. It was a full weekend. I am missing her like crazy now though. :( Good thing we are taking a trip to Knoxville Friday to visit for the 4th of July! Pretty stoked about that!
Lauren, even though the night ended completely different than we planned or expected, I still had a great time hanging out with you! "That girl is so dangerous...dangerous...that girl is a bad girl!" Man, I'm still singing it! :) I thought I would post this second picture for you too. Gotta love those Waffle House calls. ;) Oh, and I figured out what those red marks on my hands/arms were from...digging in the bushes! Thanks! I thought you would appreciate that.

Pure Excitement!

So, I was trying to play catch-up on my celeb gossip yesterday and I read that they are working on the Transformers sequel! Set to release sometime in June 2009. I am beyond excited right now! It's sad, I know, but that is seriously my favorite movie. I'm talking watched-it-like-1000-times favorite movie. I can't wait to see more of Bumblebee!

Moving right along....

So Lauren is home! :) We spent the afternoon yesterday lounging by the pool, gossiping, playing with Ellie....you know, the usual. Then we got our cute little Davis selves ready and headed out for sushi with Mom, Leslie and Creo. We had so much fun; just chillin' with the fam. Lauren and I are headed out Saturday night and I am supa excited about it! So as usual, I'm wishing today was FRIDAY! That's ok though, having that extra day gives me more time to spend with the sista! :)

Anything new and exciting? No, sorry. My life has been pretty simple these last few days. No complaints from me though, it's nice not having to stress about school right now. Breaks are always fun! :) Well, that's it for now I guess. I really need to get back on that picture taking business....I'm gettin' behind on my job here!

Wednesday

One of my favorite days of the week! Today marking the completion of half my work week. Now I am home free for Thursday and Friday! Definitely celebrating that one. I like my job. Like most people I do not get paid near what I am worth to this establishment, but I think settling has a lot to do with the fact that I wake up in the morning excited about the accomplishments that await me. Yes, needing an income while I complete school plays a huge role, but I enjoy the fact that I am making a difference in the the overall outcome of individual lives. I work in a hospital so yes, I am surrounded by people saving lives on a daily basis; however, MY work is directly related to the emergency/safety side of the hospital.

So, this week I have been writing an evacuation plan for the hospital...exciting, huh? I just finished our Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) and this Evacuation Plan is an Annex to that main EOP. Already on page ten! I'm sure that probably sounds boring to most, but there is more to it than just writing. I think the education and exercising of the plans that comes next is the exciting part. Watching a bunch of employees, visitors and guests run aimlessly as they fear for their lives. Pure chaos breaking loose; all because of me. Just kidding. Those who know me outside of work are probably thinking that sounded about right. Seriously though, it has really started coming together in the last few days. Everybody has a job, responsibilities in an emergency and the thing I love the most about my new plans...accountability. There is nothing worse that having handfuls of people saying, "It's not my fault, that's not my job." Boils my blood just typing those words. Hopefully these plans will eliminate that excuse pretty quickly.

Just a little side bit of info on what I do at work...stimulating isn't it?! :)

The week has been good, my work is going good, and Lauren comes home today! I think that qualifies for a great week (watch, my Thursday and Friday will probably be Hell since I have said all of this). So anywho, I was reading through some fun quotes yesterday and came across a new one:

Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.

-Albert Einstein

As adults, do we really use our imaginations? I guess that is a big part of being an adult, using logic rather than imagination. I can remember when I was little I would use my imagination all the time...playing outside or even when I was swimming. I would pretend I was Ariel from The Little Mermaid all day long (ok, so maybe that was yesterday). Ah, good times! I see it in Ellie now too, she walks around with her baby doll and mumbles little things while caring so delicately for that little thing. It is so sweet. I guess I still use my imagination when I am scrapbooking or thinking about my future, but I have to say it isn't near the fun it used to be. I shouldn't say that, it is fun to an extent. I always have fun thinking about what could be, it's just a matter of making it reality now that I am an adult. Probably the reason we shy away from it so. :)

Tuesday's Gone...

Oh geez, where do I even begin?! I cannot believe the weekend already ended and I'm on Tuesday again. Where does the time go? Everything has been a bit crazy, as usual, but the good thing is that the next weekend is just around the corner...again. :) I did have a good weekend. Sushi Friday night and a relaxing Saturday and Sunday. Stress-free to say the least. It was nice for a change. I had the opportunity to work on my scrapbook both nights (yes, I'm a wild woman...scrapbooking on Saturday night) and I even finished my James Patterson book! I'm even more excited about starting the next one. What else? I got some great workouts in over the weekend too. Mostly swimming and a nice run. I actually lost 5lbs! That's even more exciting. Weighing in at 140 now! Supa excited about that too!


Ellie and I got to spend the weekend together. She is so freakin precious! I started fiddling with her hair on Saturday and actually got it up into pigtails. Oh my goodness! Are those pics not the cutest pictures ever?! She is such a mess. I'm so very thankful that I have her in my life.

So anyway, Lauren is coming home this week!!! I am so excited! She is coming home tomorrow and staying until Sunday! This will be the longest visit since I went to Knoxville for Christmas. Sure, we get our weekend visits, but this is a whole vacation! I know she is excited too. She always loves coming to see Ellie. Even more now that she has precious pigtails.

Well, I guess that's it for now. I know, I know, no post for three days and that's all you got? I'm such a disappointment. ;)

Car Shopping

I started the car shopping process yesterday. Well, I have been shopping online for a while to get ideas and pricing, but seeing things in real life is a bit more important to me. I have been looking at the Nissan Maximas, Altimas, and a few others. The VW Passats have really caught my eye too. I am not really dead-set on anything yet, just something as fuel-efficient as possible. Used/new...haven't really decided yet either. So anywho, Mom dropped her car off at the Nissan place for some minor repairs last week and we went to pick it up yesterday afternoon. While we were there, we decided to take a look around. Man oh man, those car salesmen are like fleas...waiting around for the next person to drive up so they can jump right on and irritate the piss out of you (excuse my language). This is my first buying experience. All of the cars I have driven and paid for have been in my mother's name. Needless to say, it was a stressful experience for me. I keep to myself mostly; I go with the flow and always take the time to hear what others have to say, but I can be pretty easily persuaded at times. That is one quality that you shouldn't take to the car dealership with you, just FYI.
Mysa, the salesman that was hustling me, was of course ready for me to buy right then. Hey, I don't really blame him, that is his job. If my income depended on how many automobiles I could sell, you better believe I would be pushy too. People gotta eat, right?! One thing I didn't understand though (feel free to help me out on this one), is what relevance "What type of food do you like to eat" had on me buying a car? I thought hey, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and assume that the question was part of his sales gig. Maybe it was some sort of illusion he was trying to create that would make me hungry and then trigger some sort of inner response to buying a car. You never know, right? Wrong. Little Mysa was trying to get a date I think. Not cool. I do not have anything against car salesmen really, as individuals, I just prefer a guy that can properly pronounce my name...you know, Evelyn not Evethyn. He made me feel dirty, that sleazy, i-want-to-rip-you-off-then-take-you-out kind of dirty. Not a fun car buying experience to say the least. I could have been wrong. Maybe the not so subtle slide of the business card with his personal number on the back and the sly wink while handing it over was just a friendly salesman gesture. I think I am pretty good about reading people though.
Well, Saturday will be another car shopping day...dun, dun, dun. I will be sure to let you know how that experience goes.

New Perspectives

So, I'm trying to see things in a new light. It is always better to take a step back sometimes...a breather if you will. As I work towards seeing things in a different light, I'm drawn to this particular photograph. We are all so small in a world so big. Sometimes though, only sometimes, if we position ourselves just right we actually feel like things are in our control. Funny how that works, isn't it?! Things are never really in our control are they? Regardless of what you do there is always a feeling of, "That's the right thing to do" or "Oh no, that's not right at all." I guess that is control though...the decision to do whatever you want whether it is right or wrong. Hmmmm...makes you really rethink things. It makes me question the choices I make sometimes. I guess it is mainly because I am the one having to live with the consequences, but that's just life now isn't it.

I'm so thankful. Thankful for my friends, my family, Ellie and everything in between. I get caught up sometimes in the everyday stresses, but each night I can go to bed truly thankful for the blessings I have in my life. Josh and I had a long history lesson this past weekend. :) We spent the two hour (one way) ride to the mall in traffic talking about the Depression. We also touched base on the events leading up to as well as following the Depression. I never really paid much attention to school history, so talking about it with Josh really made an impact on me. Just little things, like having food on the table and savings in the bank (regardless how small :)) is really something that I feel I take for granted. Do you ever walk into your kitchen and see a bunch of random food and still say, "Gah, there's nothing to eat in this house." Seriously, I'm sure there's something there that may not be quite as convenient as you would like, but it's still eatable. That's what I mean. Just taking things for granted.

Not real sure where I was going with this post. I guess just to say that sometimes things aren't as bad as they seem. :)

Tim McGraw!

What an amazing performance! Great seats, great company....a GREAT night! Even better than I expected I think. Halfway To Hazard was amazing! I was really impressed. They border more on a country/rock band than anything; a really good band to throw in the mix! Jason Aldean was awesome! Check out the picture of him. A Georgia boy at heart and you can really tell when he's playing at home. He did a really good job. Definitely a crowd pleaser.

Then there was Tim! Aside from the fact that he is the ultimate eye candy, he was jammin' last night! Even during his new songs that nobody knew, he still rocked the crowd! I think the venue has a lot to do with it too. Lakewood (HiFi Buys Amphitheatre) is the best place for concerts! It is outside and it isn't a huge place, so every ticket is a good ticket. Not like ours last night though! We were in the front section; row T from the stage! It was awesome! We had some really fun people behind us too, which always makes the concert more fun.

A short post I know, but I'll try to add more pics of the show later.

Concert Time

Yep, we are going to see Tim McGraw tonight! I am just full of excitement! Josh and I purchased these tickets back in December...talk about anticipation. It has been about eight years since the last Tim concert I attended. Too long! I am sure the concert is going to be great!

Accompanying Tim tonight will be Jason Aldean and Halfway To Hazard. I am not that familiar with Halfway to Hazard, but Jason Aldean has done nothing but impress me! There is no doubt in my mind it will be an amazing concert. I will be sure to let you know how it went! Can't wait...only 14 hours to go!

Summer Fun!

We had a wonderful weekend! Lauren came home to visit (to visit Ellie mostly I think) and we had so much fun! Although, we always have fun together. We spent all day Saturday out by the pool playing games and swimming. This picture was taken during a brief pause from the volleyball game. Aren't we cute?! Josh and I kicked some serious butt! :) So, in the picture: you know Josh and I, and I showed you pictures of Lauren, but I have not talked about the Jud-man yet. Judson has been a boyfriend to Lauren for three years now. He just recently proposed over the Christmas holiday, so we have fun planning ahead of us! Judson is a great guy and even though he makes fun of my obsession with green, I still love him! :)

Ellie was swimming all by herself this weekend! She still had her floaties on, but she was kicking around like she knew exactly what she was doing. It was too precious!

Then my favorite! I wish every weekend could be spent lounging around the pool with close friends and family. I guess the older you get the harder it is to actually relax on the weekends. There always seems to be something that needs to be done. Not this weekend though, we had a great time together!

Josh took some really cute videos of Ellie swimming, so I thought I would share one. It was so bright over the weekend that the reflections are crazy, but it is still an adorable video! Check it out!

Family Matters

I just realized that I have not taken the opportunity to talk about my family yet. What kind of person does that make me?! I know I have mentioned Ellie quite a few times, but I left the rest of my family out. So, here is a little Davis Klan background info for ya!

I am the youngest of three girls and I have a half brother who is the oldest; topping out at 42. Lauren, the oldest of the girls, will be turning 29 on July 30th. She is the one standing in the middle in the picture above. Lauren is currently working in Knoxville, Tennessee, but you never know where she will be next. She is an anchor/reporter for the CBS affiliate in Knoxville. That's right, I do know famous people. Lauren graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in Broadcast Journalism and has worked in the news industry ever since. Click here for her full bio! No, she hasn't given me a deal on UGA alumni tickets yet (hint, hint), but I still love her! You send her off to work and what happens? It's Vols this and Vols that...shame on her for forgetting her roots. ;) I guess it all comes with the territory.

Leslie is my other sister and just as wonderful. No fighting now, I love you both equally (that's what my Mom would say anyway). Leslie just turned 26 and she works for the same hospital I do. She makes a lot more money than I do, but I am attributing that to age. Ok, so it might have something to do with the fact that she has a Bachelor's in Biology and a Master's in Public Administration. Nah, it's totally an age thing! Yes, Leslie and I are still living at our parent's house. Hey, you have to save while you can. Leslie is working towards medical school where she wants to study plastic surgery. Fun, Fun! Speaking of that, she actually has her MCAT this Friday. Yikes! Friday the 13th! Maybe not the best day to choose to take the HARDEST TEST OF YOUR LIFE!! (Just kidding Leslie...no worries:)) She'll do fine though. She never lacked in the smarts department.

So, those are my sisters.

The oldest of the Davis siblings is Jack. I am such a bad sister, I don't even have a picture of Jack on my computer. I will try to get one soon! We do not get to see him as much as we would like, because he lives in Indiana. We shoot for annual visits, but sometimes time just gets away from us. He has two beautiful daughters and a new wife. I haven't had the opportunity to meet his wife yet, but she sounds sweet. Hopefully we can coordinate some sort of visit in the near future.

Ah, Mom and Dad. Aren't parents great?! My parents, Jack and Laurie, are coming up on their 32 wedding anniversary this year. Actually, it is tomorrow. Wow, 32 years! Now that is an accomplishment. Believe me, I say that with the deepest sincerity. Ellie's father and I did not even make it through the first year after she was born. Mom and Dad made it through all of us, and then some. My hat goes off to them and all of their hard work.

I guess that is it for now. I could hardly sum up my family in one post, so I am sure you will read more soon!

Dolphin Fun!

I was looking through the videos I had taken this weekend at the beach and this one is the best! No comments on the terrible filming job please; it was early and we hadn't eaten breakfast, so I was pretty shaky. You can still see the beautiful dolphins though!

Isn't that exciting?! I thought so. They were everywhere that morning. I always find it exciting and interesting to watch animals in their own habitat. Just to admire their routine, and in the dolphin's case, their elegance. I have been reading some rather interesting facts on dolphins since we have been back. Did you know that as soon as the calf is born, the mother takes the calf to the surface so it can take its first breath...what a good mom! Then, the calf will nurse from 11 months to 2 years, and after it is done nursing it will still stay with the mother until it is between 3 and 8 years old.

Let me just say, no way would I let Ellie nurse for 2 years. Sure, she kept it up for about 9 months, but that was long enough to damage Mommy's once-cute body. Although, I don't see many dolphins swimming around with any sort of sagging going on...they just firm right back up! Hmmm....very interesting. They usually only have one calf and twins are extremely rare. I guess our population would shrink quite a bit too if we were only programmed to have one baby. There's some food for thought!

So anyway, there is my two cents' worth on dolphins. :) Regardless of their reproductive habits, I am still in awe of their lifestyles and playful nature. I think they are just one of those mystical animals. You know, the ones that little girls fall in love with...like horses! Which, by the way, I love too! I am still a little girl at heart I guess.

More FB Pics

June already! I cannot believe half of 2008 has already passed. It is going to be Christmas again before we know it! I do have some fun stuff planned for the next few weeks. Josh and I are going to the Tim McGraw concert next Wednesday...supa excited about that! Then, a friend of mine is getting married June 14th and we all know how fun weddings are! The 4th of July is just around the corner which is exciting. Plus, I just got tickets for the Corey Smith concert July 19th...that's going to be a BLAST!! Then Lauren (my oldest sister) has her birthday on July 30th! So, that is the fun stuff we have planned; the rest of my time will consist mostly of classwork and real work. I guess all of that work makes the playtime more fun! I often times find myself wishing I had more time to play with Ellie though. Delayed gratification, remember? That is what I keep telling myself. I do take time for her, but I think every parent wishes they could have a little more time with their kids...at least while they are little, cute, and mute. ;)

So, Josh took some adorable pictures of Ellie on our Folly Beach vacation and I thought I would share them! These are too cute!

Lauren, the green outfit is for you and Judson...I thought you would appreciate that.















These pictures were taken during breakfast on Saturday morning. This was shortly after she spit up all of the orange juice she guzzled down. If you look closely at her shirt you can still see what's left. One of the many pleasures of having a toddler...lots of messy clothes!


Look at those eyes! Makes me melt. Don't ask me how I got such a beautiful little girl. What can I say? God loves me! :)


Can you say bored?! I have to say this series of photographs that Josh took are by far my favorite. I am hoping to get these framed together at some point (whenever I have some free time). I just love them! Thanks Josh!

Hmmm...how do I explain this one? Well, if you blow air out of your mouth with your lips closed; making the sound of a big truck...that is what she is doing. Her noise doesn't sound much like a truck, but I am hoping that gave you some sort of an idea. I am actually making the sound right now as I type in an attempt to better explain it. Not so great with those descriptive details yet. Sorry.

Well, that is it for now. I have more to post, but no time! Maybe this afternoon!

Ellie with her Papa D

I thought I would add these in separate from the rest. I know I mentioned before that Ellie has her Papa D wrapped around her finger, but she has everyone that way. Who can help it? This picture is just one of the priceless memories that will last a lifetime.

I have this short clip of Ellie at the beach. I know it isn't much, but it is still cute.

Believe it or not, there are still tons of pictures I have not shared. I will try to keep posting the cute pics over the next few days. I know I am not writing much, but there isn't much I can say about the photos that they don't already say for themselves. No worries, you will get to hear me ramble about myself again soon! :)

Random Cuteness

Yes, I am still adding fun stuff from our trip to the beach! There are too many cute things to just leave out. So where should I start? Ellie, where else? This first picture was taken Sunday afternoon. She was so precious! I know I have said that a thousand times, but there just isn't any other way to describe it. The first day we were there, there was a little boy playing beside us. He was about the same age as Ellie and he was digging head-first in the sand. She kept looking at him with amazement that he was covered in sand from head to toe. He was definitely a beach baby!

It's me! Josh took this on our EARLY Saturday morning walk. This was about the time we saw all the dolphins. I will be posting about them soon....I even have video! :) So yeah, this is me and a whole bunch of water.


This is my Ellie again, ready for breakfast! She left that hat on about...ummm...two seconds before deciding she did not want to wear it. Gotta love that outfit...sportin' the potbelly. She is so cute, I could just eat her up!



Have you ever seen a kiss so sweet? There are few things greater in this world than a daughter's love. I am really not much of the affectionate type, but when it comes to Ellie I just cannot help myself. She brings it out in everyone I think. They see her and just want to give her love. What a wonderful gift she is!

Surfing Adventure

So we did it...well, we tried to do it anyway. Let me just say that 5:30am does not come early enough when you are excited about doing something new. Josh and I woke up Sunday morning at Folly Beach, put on our swimsuits and headed out to the beach for our first adventures of surfing.

The sun was rising, the waves were crazy, the water was warm, and there we stood on the beach with a surfboard looking at each other like we may be nuts after all. After a little nervous laughter and several questions of who was going first, Josh headed out to sea! I stood on the beach, camera in hand, and watched as he made his way out on the surfboard. He actually made it look pretty simple, paddling his way through each wave. Then, after several attempts, he stood up on the board and rode the wave the best he could. It was so exciting! This first surfing picture is of Josh standing up for the first time.

Then it was my turn. A few simple instructions from Josh and I was ready to try it. So I grabbed the board and started wading through the surf. After climbing onto the surfboard, I started to paddle. Let me just say that the rental boards they give you to use are huge! My arms barely reached either side, so it looked like I was paddling with my fingertips. Then the first wave hit me and I thought I just got sprayed in face with water from a pressure washer. I am sure it was an interesting sight; me paddling just as fast as my arms would allow, hair all across my face, saltwater in my mouth and nose, me gasping for air and frantically blinking my eyes in hopes I would regain some sort of vision before the next wave hit me. I remember briefly thinking, "I remember Josh making this look a lot easier." Somehow I did it though, I actually made it to a spot suitable for catching a good wave. So, I turn around and see a wave coming and I start paddling again. At this point my arm muscles, which rarely get exercised, are burning with pain. Then I notice I am not even moving. You know when a big wave comes and it pulls you backwards? That was me, paddling just as fast as I could and not even moving. So the wave catches me... I'm in it! I'm going! Then I think, "Ok, time to stand up!" I put my arms on the board to assist with the standing up process and they collapse like Jell-O. Not kidding at all, they were so tired I barely got to my knees before the wave was over. So what did I do? I got up and headed back out for another try! That is me in the picture making it to my knees before flopping into the water.

This process continued for a few tries before I finally got one. Yep, I stood up....and that was about the extent of it, me standing on a huge piece of foam. It was so much fun! It was one of those things that once you got that feel of how it was supposed to work, you crave to keep trying it. I was pleasantly surprised at all the excitement that came along with it. Something I would definitely do again...LOTS!! :)

A bit of advice for those new surfers out there...the ankle strap can be tricky. Once I regained my balance in the water after falling off, my legs were swiped out from under me as the surfboard was taken with the next wave. It comes as a quick surprise if you aren't prepared for it.

This last picture is great! Really captures the intensity of the whole adventure. Definitely a reminder that you are all alone out there...paddling for your life. ;) I really wish Josh and I would have rented surfboards when we first arrived at the beach, it was well worth having the whole weekend. We will know next time though. SO MUCH FUN!

Folly Beach, SC

What an amazing weekend! I have a feeling I will be blogging about this vacation for a while. We all had such a good time. The drive from home to Folly Beach really only took about five hours. We left Friday morning and after stopping for breakfast, gas, the restrooms to change Ellie, and lunch, we finally arrived about 3:00pm. Trips are always longer with a little one, but it really wasn't a bad drive at all.

So when we arrived, we checked in to our condo and unpacked the car. Packing for Ellie is like moving the whole nursery, so unpacking the car took some time. Then we headed to the beach! Ellie was so precious. She was in awe of the beach and the ocean. She loved every minute of it. Josh and I were going crazy snapping pictures and taking video of her. I am sure the locals were probably thinking we had never seen the ocean before. Needless to say, I will be posting pictures from this trip for a while too!

Then we headed for the water. She was a bit frightened by the waves at first, but it did not take her long before she was giggling with excitement. Josh and I took turns holding her and jumping through the waves while the other took pictures. She was such a sight. She did not mess with the sand at first. When it got on her hands she would hold them out towards you like, "Here, get it off!" She would waddle her way down to the water with me to wash her hands. The longer we were out there the curlier her hair would get. I will post more pictures of her at the beach a little later. This post is just an overview of what the weekend agenda consisted of. ;)

So after an afternoon of playing on the beach, we headed inside to shower and prepare for dinner. We went to the Folly Beach Crab Shack the first night. We ate more than enough and then headed out to the pier for a nice evening walk. We were already wishing we could stay longer and it was only the first night.

On Saturday, we got up early to watch the sunrise and chitchat on the balcony. It was a beautiful sunrise...as usual at the beach. Then, Josh and I went for a walk on the beach before Ellie got up. Those early morning walks are always wonderful, but to add to the beauty there were several occasions we stood along the shore and watched the dolphins play just beyond the surf. It was perfect!

Once we finished our walk, Ellie was up and ready for breakfast. We headed to one of the restaurants in town to eat. That was another thing I found so enjoyable about Folly Beach, everything was within walking distance. The town was small enough that it took no time at all to walk from one side to the other. It was just a great vacation spot (or spot to live if the opportunity was there). So anyway, after breakfast we walked around town for a few minutes before heading back to get all of our beach gear ready for the day.

After the day out by the ocean, Josh and I managed to decide we were going to rent a surfboard. Surfing has always been something we both have wanted to try, so I guess once we saw that we could rent a board for $25 (for 24 hours) there wasn't anything stopping us. We rented the board late that evening with plans to try it early Sunday morning. Why early Sunday morning you ask? Well you see, less people=less audience for our first attempts. You will hear all about that later...that is a post all by itself!

To conclude our Saturday evening, we all got ready and headed for dinner at the Locklear's Pier restaurant. Dinner was delicious and the dessert was even better! A perfect end to another perfect day!
Sunday morning Josh and I got up early and tested our surfing skills or should I say the lack of skills. We had a blast! Then we spent the remainder of the day by the beach and in the water with Ellie. We ended up leaving Folly Beach about 5:00pm...tan and tired. It was a wonderful trip and weekend.