Princess... the New Salutation for All Kates!

...ok well at least I think it should be ;)! How cool would that be if Nathan called me Princess Kate all the time? I know I would love it!!

What sparked this thought?

Today was the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.



















I have to be honest and tell you, before today I did not get caught up in the hoopla! I mean...cool, they are royalty and they are getting married and it will be extravagant but it's not like Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears were getting married. Talk about something to see.

None the less, I couldn't help but DVR it. I know, I didn't get up at 4am but as I just told you, I would watch but not go to extreme measures to see it first hand. So I got up early and turned on the TV and hit play...

I have to say, I was instantly hooked! I loved the tradition of people riding in cars to the ceremony and the fact that everything was planned out to the minute and it went off without a hitch. That is the planner coming out in me :)! But since everyone in the world watched or DVR'd the ceremony, I'll spare you all the details and go with my favorite moments!

Kate's Dress
Can I just say that I instantly fell in love with Kate! Knowing very little about her, I knew she had a passion for fashion and this dress showed it. The dress was designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen. Right there...those two words... Alexander McQueen let you know this dress was going to be something amazing! I love the traditional/modern feel to the dress! The structure and lace on the top were ... well I have no words! The design on the bottom of the dress just added that much more. I think she did a great job fusing the old with the new, showing the Queen she would keep traditions but make new ones as well. FLAWLESS!!







































When Harry told William something to the affect of "Wait until you see her, she looks beautiful" as Kate walked down the aisle!













The Hats!! Pretty sure these should be required at EVERY wedding! I mean I even wore one to my Senior Prom. SHUT IT, I know... what a horrible fashion faux pas...haha.

































Pippa, Kate's sister's, dress! At first I thought, wait...only the bride should be in white. But then when I saw her and Kate together, it just looked classic.






















And finally, the not one but two kisses!! The first one was cute and quick but the second was just adorable...you saw their love! And I fell in love with them!
















I am now definitely Team William and Kate!

Mourning the Bachelor Breakup!

I've had some requests to blog about the most recent Bachelor Breakup...

Brad Womack & Emily!






















I am not going to lie...I have been avoiding it like the plague because I didn't want it to be true :(. At first I had my hopes high when it came out in "OK" because we all know that magazine is pure trash yet we all know we can't get enough! Then Life & Style wrote about it which means there is some truth behind the rumors! But keep some hope alive with me people, it hasn't come out in People yet!! Let me explain this...



Reading stories from OK Magazine means you heard the rumor from your best friend from middle schools oldest brother's ex girlfriend's Nanny when she was a child.








Reading stories from Life & Style Magazine means you heard it from your current best friend's college roommate's husband that works in the industry.







And finally reading stories from People Magazine is like hearing Justin Timberlake loves me directly from his mouth!



If I let go of my denial, I realize it's probably true that they are no longer together! Here are my thoughts on why either of them called it quits...













Emily's Reasons:

• "I now have to go to his TV therapist with him"
• "He keeps asking if I will accept this rose"
• "He still refuses to go to second base while Ricki is upstairs sleeping"

Brad's Reasons:

• "Wow...did you see her on the After the Rose show...what a bitch!"
• "I choose a blonde bombshell not a dirty blonde"
• "What...you mean I can't have sex with anyone else? She lives in a different time zone"
• "I can't call my daughter Ricki Ticki"

Until the next Bachelor Disaster Love Story...

Pre-Easter Celebration

My family just loves holidays...so much so that we celebrate each about 2 to 3 times a year ;) (This happens when parents remarry and then you get married...extended families). So this past weekend we went to my mom's house for an early Easter.

Before everyone got to the house on Saturday evening though, my mom, Nathan, and I took the munchkins (Carter & Kennedy- Tony, my brother's kids) to a store that had miniature trains that went around and around on tracks.

















My mom's friend Virginia was married to Jack who collected more trains than anyone I have ever known and now they put them on display for the town. As you can see Carter was infatuated! He wanted to ride a train so bad. I told him to join the circus, his mom probably won't like that but I just got done reading "Water for Elephants" so it was the first thing that came to mind :)!

















I told Kennedy to go pose in front of the store's sign. Maybe I should of rethought the word "pose"...

















I also went to hug Nathan in the store and Kennedy came up beside me and hugged me. Talk about cuteness. I'd say this girl knows what she is doing ;)!

















Not only was it Pre-Easter weekend it was also Prom! Kennedy even had to get a Prom outfit! Sparkly vest and all. Carter was her date whether he like it or not!

















I'd have to say, this girl had the best accessory I have ever seen walking into a Prom.






















And not to spoil the surprise but Ali, this is your bridesmaid dress for Halley's wedding! If you can't see...the dress has peacock feathers on it...Halley's favorite!






















Carter lasted about 15-20 minutes at Prom and had, had enough...probably like most men at this point. So we all headed to the playground. Yes that is me sitting on the purple dinosaur. I was impressed I still fit (sort of)!
















Going up and down the play gym and down the slides makes me rethink waiting to have kids as it was exhausting. But not that exhausting... so do get any ideas :)!

















I also attempted to do a pull up. If you are looking for the after shot of when I had pulled myself up...this is it! When all your weight is located in the bottom half of your body this is as good as it gets!

















When everyone arrived Saturday night, we all hung out and listened to my oldest brother, Tony, tell us how much he had won at the Casino on the way to town. He kept saying "Duh, Winning", so when he went to bed I took his winnings from his wallet and left a note saying "Duh, Losing"...CLASSIC!

Sunday we had a family dinner with my Grandma and Uncle Jim and then after just played around and had some fun. Here are a few pictures from the afternoon.

Tony & Carter fishing.

















Chad showing his great baseball form. To bad form doesn't always translate to contact ;) JK Chad.

















Beth & Kennedy a.k.a Twins

















Mom & Carter doing yoga! You know it has to be done at every family event. Sorry mom, I think Carter has you on this one!

















Kennedy & I doing the tango!






















My brothers, Nathan, and I watching the kids Easter egg hunt. (Yes this is the only pose I know)

















I so enjoy spending time with my family! It just doesn't happen enough but when it does, I cherish it!

I'll leave you with this final note. Though Jon, couldn't be with us physically this weekend, I'm pretty sure his spirit was...

Mardi Gras in April

I have to be honest and say that I really never had any desire to go to New Orleans, especially after Hurricane Katrina. I heard the town had become the "arm pit" of America. And lets be honest people...after Vienna, nothing is going to look quite as appealing ;)! But none the less, duty called and I headed to New Orleans for a cardiology conference.
















It took me two planes to get there and two to get back. Lets just say, I had no clue planes could land sideways ;p! Though I felt I was going to die 3 out of the 4 flights, I'd say my friend Kelly Dieterle, who was flying at the same time, had a worse experience when a flight attendant sat down beside her, buckled in and goes "This is not good". Good thing she is a frequent flyer because she laughed, I would of cried!

It was a quick trip, down one night and back the next. We went to the show when we got there on Monday and then of course with only one night to experience the city we headed where any "tourist" would head....down the street to the French Quarter!






















I was told it's a MUST to walk down the street with a "Hurricane". It was delicious and if someone would of struck a match in front of my mouth I would of looked like a fire breathing dragon lol! Seriously...WOW.






















The first place I saw as I entered the French Quarter was "Hustler". What really caught my eye was their tag line... "Relax..It's just Sex". The phrase all men have tried once in their lives...





















We then ran into this street performer. And by performer I mean he takes pictures with you and you are supposed to tip him! As you can tell, I am a little leery about this awkward pose he tried to put us in. The guy had a foul mouth...even for me lol! He was talking about beads coming out of... nevermind let's keep this PGish!






















Also I noticed they blocked off the streets so people could stumble from side to side. Aggieville on steroids!

















My co-workers did a great job of showing me all the "must see places" in the Quarter. We went to Pat O'Briens and had Hurricanes, cherries soaked in Everclear at Jean Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop Bar (oldest pub in the country), and a weird vodoo shop where I swear they were sticking pins in our look alike dolls after we left!

Speaking of Jean Lafitte...don't you think the piano player at "his" bar looked like the modern day version of him?!













After we had jumped from bar to bar, experiencing everything we could in one evening, the night ended with a few co-workers taking Absinthe shots. Seriously the shot smelled like gasoline and later they found out it's not the "real stuff" so no green men for them...just really bad hangovers!










I took the easier route of "experiencing" New Orleans by buying a "Mardi Gras" mask.















It was a great trip and I am glad that I can now say I have been to New Orleans.

What are my thoughts on New Orleans (specifically the French Quarter) now that I have been there:

• Vacation place...Not for this girl!
• One night debauchery with your craziest friends...Absolutely for this girl!
• The streets in the "French Quarter" just reek! Someone next to me put it in perspective when they said "Just think about how many people have puked on these streets". Ahhh...that is the smell :(
• AND blackened alligator tastes like popcorn chicken from Sonic mmmm yum!

Ladies... Gentlemen... RING THE ALARMS!

Halley (our little Xtina lover) is getting married! Ryan she is your problem bundle of joy now ;)

In all seriousness though, Halley has always been a partner in crime since we were young! I could always count on her to stay in with me on Friday nights in high school (we were losers with no Bf's...oh how the times have changed), memorize and then dance choreography from"Save the Last Dance" and "Christina Aguilera's Dirty Video", and of course to share my love for N'Sync!

Most people know her for being voted "Most Beautiful Eyes" in high school, driving a duck tape mobile that caught fire in high school, and her brutal honesty (which I LOVE)!

I actually think I might cry when she walks down the aisle because of how beautiful she will be and how AMAZING her hair is going to look ;)!

But before she ties the knot to a great guy named Ryan, we needed to have a bridal shower! Halley is OBSESSED with peacocks...and why wouldn't you be?! They are beautiful :)! She'd probably own them one day if she wasn't terrified of EVERYTHING! So Ryan, you got lucky! So obviously peacocks would be the most appropriate theme for the party!

This couldn't of been any more easy from a decorating stand point! A little background...when we were little, we obviously lived in a small town, so there wasn't a large Zoo to visit. But you know those small town people...they are resourceful! So my school used to visit my Grandpa's farm. He had deer, mules, chickens, bulldogs, dogs, birds, rabbits, pigs, and peacocks! So you can imagine where I went to get some feathers! If you ever want to know where my sarcastic personality comes from, you need to be in a room with my Grandpa, Father, and me. MAN...I never laugh so hard!

Can you see the orange chicken running around?

The day of the shower, was complete chaos! My mom and I were running around like crazy women trying to get things ready! Let's just say someone almost lost a toe! Now looking back..those little weenies kind of gross me out after that thought haha!

I also made Oreo Lovin' Cupcakes. Thanks for the recipe Lindsey! Not quite the baker like you but I try :).

Then Ali Moore, the other hostess, showed up with her food/decorations and we were ready for the party! We had a great turn out and everyone had fun...especially Halley! One other thing you need to know about Halley is she loves presents and cameras so this was a perfect scenario. Here are some fun shots of the party!

Can't wait for the big day!