Winter Jam 2013

Last night I spent my evening with a bunch of Jesus Freaks. It was great! I'd been hearing about Winter Jam for a while, and Tuesday I decided I was going to take Tony. Our seats weren't too bad.

tobymac, Red, Matthew West, Jamie Grace, and Royal Tailor

  We went with some friends from church. We had a blast. I think he enjoyed his first "real" concert.

Valentine's Tea

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope everyone had a good day, no matter how you celebrated (or didn't). Today was another long one, and slightly weird on top of it.

This morning I hit the ground running. I woke up at 6am so I could get dressed and eat before I went to a cycle class at 8:30 (I like to finish eating at least an hour before class starts). I had to make sure to take my uniform and my clothes for my date with Greg when I went to work. I managed to get everything but my name tag. Close enough.

I had just gotten done getting ready for work after class when Sara showed up. We weren't expecting her quite so early, but it was ok. She talked to me about the job opening and we went over a few scenarios. I don't know that there is anything I could have said or done differently. Then she did our audit, which we passed by the skin of our teeth. I'm hoping that helped my case a little bit. She's supposed to talk to her boss about it tomorrow on their way to a meeting in Ashville. So maybe I'll know something tomorrow afternoon.

After work I met Greg to go on our Valentine's date. We went to Coolato Gelato and to see The Princess Bride at the Tennessee Theatre.

Somehow, Greg had never seen the movie the whole way through. Apparently, he'd never even seen the beginning through the sword fighting scene. Inconceivable! 

I got tea for my Valentine's present. He and I wandered into Teavana back before Christmas, and he decided to go back there for my gifts.  

 The teas are Peach Tranquility and Strawberry Lemonade. I'm probably going to wait till this weekend to try them. The tin is to help keep the teas fresh.

He also got me a nail kit.

It helps make your nails shinier and such. I tried it when I got home and it seems to work. My nails are super shiny!

Productivity

I think I have a problem...

Water "enhancers"

I have trouble drinking plain water in the winter, so I got these to help me out. If you haven't tried them, they are basically like the Crystal Light dry powders in liquid form. All 4 flavors I've tried are really good. I put the Peach Bellini in my unsweet tea today. Yum!

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Today was a busy, productive day. I got my new tires first thing this morning. I'm glad I did because it started raining not long after. Yay, traction! After that, Mom and I went to the mall. She wanted to go to JCPenny to look at purses, and I wanted to look for new shoes at Rack Room. I lucked out because they were doing a BOGO1/2, so I got two pairs of Saucony Cohesion 6's.

Yay, new shoes!

The other pair are white and teal. We also went to Hobby Lobby, Target, another Target (I was looking for something specific), the Post Office, a computer store, church, Lowe's, and the grocery store. Whew!

I went to the 2 Targets looking for Greg's Valentine's Day present. We're not super romantic on Valentine's Day (or ever, really), but we still exchange gifts. I really wanted to get him a Heart Rate Monitor, but I didn't have the funds timing. I may put some money away and get him one for his birthday... if he doesn't buy one before then. Instead, I "repacked" his gym bag. His old gym bag is falling apart, so I got him a new one, 2 workout towels, a water bottle, and a travel shower kit. He better like it! :-)

I also ended up selling an old laptop (hence the computer store) today. The motherboard was bad, and it's been collecting dust for almost 2 years. I got $30 for it, which is now sitting my savings account helping it's friends collect interest. I'm trying to be more responsible with my money, and get a nice bit stocked in savings. Next up, most of my accessories. :-)

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I have a job interview tomorrow! It is for the Front Desk Lead at the gym. My boss said I'm the only person she's nominating for the job. If they don't pick me, then our club won't have one. It's kind of a confidence booster, but at the same time having no one is a viable option. I'm a little nervous, but I've prayed about it, so I know it will be fine one way or the other.

It's going to be a long day. I'm going to a Love/Hate cycle class in the morning. Two instructors are team teaching, and they are going to alternate between love songs and hate songs. I love the themed classes. I have to work from 11-6, so I'm just going to shower at the gym and get ready for work. The lady is coming sometime during my shift to interview me. Then Greg and I are going to dinner at Coolato Gelato and a movie at the Tennessee Theatre. Tonight I laid out my workout clothes, packed my uniform, and got my date night clothes all ready. Now I guess I should get some sleep!

Long Day

Today was a long day! I woke up this morning at 6:20 to the sound of my phone ringing. It was a school calling for a substitute. I normally wake up naturally between 7:30 and 7:45 in the morning, so I was not super excited to be jolted awake more than an hour early. But of course I couldn't go back to sleep, so I just got up and got my day started.

I was scheduled to work 11-6, and I had planned to go to Groove at 6:40, but at 5:00 we found out that the 6:00 person was being sent to the emergency room. I told my boss I would stay until 9:00, but only if she let me clock out to take the class. :-) I had been looking forward to taking the class all day.

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I'm growing up, and I'm not sure that I like it. Tomorrow is my day off, and I am most excited about the fact that I have and appointment to get new tires put on my car. But I really need new tires. My current tires did not pass the penny test. They are not too horrible, really, but it will need to be done soon. And I have my tax return money to get it done now. I'm afraid if I wait then I will need them when I don't have the funds. Plus, it's not like there's anything else I really need to do with the money. If I'm not responsible with it, I'll just blow it on something I don't need that I will regret buying in 2 months.

I actually haven't done anything with my refund yet, except tithe. I refused to make any big purchases until I had my tires. My tires aren't going to take my whole refund, but wanted to be safe. One of my Facebook friends was trying to offer me her broken iPad2 for $200. She said it was cracked and needed repairs.... for $200. Uhm, my mom just got a brand new Galaxy Tab 2 for $170. No thanks. Besides, I don't need a tablet. I have an ereader and a smart phone. I don't need to waste $200 on a want, when I need to get some new workout shoes. Or when I need new clothes. Boo. I really am growing up.

Scripture Hearts

Every Monday night I go to a bible study with some of the women from my church. Since tonight was the Monday before Valentine's Day, I decided I would make them a little something. I went back and forth, and finally decided to keep it simple and make scripture hearts.

I typed different verses into the out line of a heart (I Google searched for a heart outline I liked). I found my verses by doing a search for bible verses about love. Now, I know that the bible talks a lot about love, so picked out 14 of my favorites that talked about loving God and/or loving one another. Here are the ones I used:

1. But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. Psalm 13:5
2. But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love, for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble. Psalm 59:16
3. A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. Proverbs 17:17
4. A new command I give you: Love on another. As I have loved you, so you must also love one another. But this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. John 13:34-35
5. Owe no one anything except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8
6. The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Romans 13:9
7. Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. Romans 13:10
8. And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13
9. Do everything in love. 1 Corinthians 16:14
10. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23
11. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Colossians 3:14
12. Little children, let us not love in word or talk, but in deed and in truth. 1 John 3:18
13. Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has be born of God and knows God. 1 John 4:7
14. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. the one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. 1 John 4:18-19

You can kind of tell I was camped out in Romans 13 yesterday. Oh well! I picked 14 because there are 13 women (including me) in my small group, and I wanted to have extras in case we had any guests. In hindsight, this could also be used as a biblical Valentine's advent. 

After I got them to look how I wanted, I printed them on red cardstock, cut them out, and put a magnet on the back. The ladies in my group really liked them. And I liked them because it was quick and simple!

*My heart outlines were a little faint upon printing, but that was okay with me because it meant no one would notice if my cutting was a little off. :-)
*The font I used was called "A Gentle Touch" and can be found here. 

Wine Tour

Yesterday I went on a wine tour with Amy, Leah, and Brad. Amy and Brad saw a deal on Living Social for a wine tour for 2 including a wine, chocolate, and cheese tasting, $20 towards a bottle of wine, 2 glasses, and corkscrews. She and Brad each bought one, and Leah and I went as the additional people. Amy, Brad, and I had done a Wine Trail with this particular group of wineries before, so we were looking forward to it. This tour was at Eagle Springs Winery, which is their newest location.

We got to try any of the wines that we wanted. Each winery has a theme, and we quickly discovered that Eagle Springs' must be honey. Leah and I told our "host" Casey that we were "yessers," meaning if he poured it, we'd drink it. Brad and Amy on the other had are not fans of dry wines, so they joined us further down the list. He had us try some wines with the different chocolates and cheeses, and one he had us try with a bit of honey. It was fun. Amy and Leah each got a bottle of wine. Amy picked the Honeymoon and Leah got the Courage.

While we were doing the tasting, Amy, Brad, and I kept talking about how we had been to the other wineries to do the wine trail. When we did it there were only 3 wineries, and if you went to all of them you got a free wine glass. Casey said that since they added two new wineries to the group they changed it up. If you go to any 3 wineries you get a wine glass, but if you go to all 5 you get that and a tshirt. So we decided to make a day of it and do the trail.

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I'm thinking this map is not to scale, because Eagle Springs looks further away from the rest than it really was. (For the record, Amy was driving and only had 2 sips at each location.)

For our second stop we went to the Apple Barn Winery.

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I could spend all day on this property! They have a restaurant, a creamery, candy shops, and all sorts of things to walk around a see. We also remembered to take a group photo!

The sun was in our faces...

 I'm sure you can guess, but their major wine theme was apples. It was fun.

Mountain Valley and Sugarland had a general assortment of wines. Our service at Sugarland left much to be desired, but I had been there before and I would still recommend going. Our final stop was at Hillside. They had several sparkling wines, which was a nice way to finish up our day. And of course we finally got our tshirts.

I don't know how often I'll wear it, but it's a nice reminder of a fun day!

Interesting

I would like to start by saying GO RAVENS! I know I'm a few days late, but I promise I was a fan before Sunday. Actually, I was a fan when I realized their mascot was named after a literary character. I'm a bookworm like that. :-)

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We had quite a bit of fruit left over after the weekend, so I threw it in the blender, poured it in an ice cube tray, and voila!

I really wish I knew why Picasa doesn't load

I think it was peaches, strawberries, and pineapple. Anyway, I put the cubes 5 to a bag and put them back in the freezer. My plan is to throw them in with protein powder and milk alternative for quick smoothies in the mornings. I miss having smoothies for breakfast. I think I stopped when I didn't have to hit the ground running in the mornings. Dumb, because they are tasty! I kind of just wanted to suck on the cubes. :-)

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Today was kind of an interesting day. Amy called me this morning to tell me that Ajilon called her to check my references. I've known her for 9+ years and have worked for her at least 3 times. :-) She said they asked quite a few questions and of course she gave me a glowing recommendation. I know this doesn't mean they have found a job they like for me, but I find it promising that they are calling my references.

About 5 hours after that, my boss asked if I would be interested in the lead position at our club. She just got promoted (today!) from lead, so now we need a new one. The position comes with a pay raise a bit more responsibility/authority, but I think I could handle it. She said she wasn't sure if she could just name me lead [insert joke about my name being Jen] or if I'd have to go through the interview process, but we should know tomorrow. Interesting stuff all around!

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For those who were wondering, my cousin did get her box of hats. Her husband mentioned it in the blog he's been writing about Melissa's ordeal. Or at least how he's handling it. I'm currently working on ideas for February's hat. I think I know what I'll do, I just need to go get the yarn.