New blog!

I have decided to keep blogging...I have a new blog titled, Je rêve en français.

Thanks for following :)

And it's over

Well, the big day has come and gone. I'm now part of the dirty thirty, flirty thirty, or whatever thirty club. The weirdest thing happened, too. I woke up yesterday, my 30th birthday, with wrinkles all over my face! I screamed, naturally, and then realized it was just a dream. Then I really woke up. No changes so far. However, my colleagues at work did say I seemed more considerate when I brought the contents of their mailboxes in to their rooms. Of course, the catalyst for that could have been the beautiful gift basket they presented to me that morning, clad with shower gel, lotion, body splash, sensual aromatic lotion, a red rose bush, and a very racy card. I believe there were also some hand sanitizer wipes and a giant container of Clorox wipes for my, ahem, germophobic tendencies. (Hey, I work around kids all day, and I have to protect myself!) Husband took me out for a delicious dinner at Coppertop, followed by some gift opening. I am now the proud owner of the Eclipse DVD, along with a video documentary about Forks, the real town that inspired the setting for Meyer's saga. How exciting!

Today I spent the day at the Turning Stone Spa. What a delight! I started in the whirlpool and followed that with a 75 minute massage and lavender wrap. I could just feel those toxins running from my body! Eight hours later I am still fully relaxed. Seriously, what a wonderful treat! I cannot wait to go again...I had a nice meal and even made time for some gambling before my departure. Unfortunately I wasn't lucky while gambling, but the people-watching was surreal. I'm always up for that entertainment!

And now I am home. What a fantastic 30th birthday! I feel truly blessed to be a year older. I have an amazing family, wonderful friends, and I am one happy lady!

Thank you for joining me on this journey. It has been a great deal of fun blogging these past 10 months. I really am sad to write this final entry. It's just so....final! So, instead of abandoning the blog entirely, I've decided what I really need is a new blog. Thus, I am taking suggestions from you. Comment with ideas and/or titles for a new blog! I'll be checking periodically over the next few days, so don't be a stranger :) Send me your ideas!!!

On the Eve of a New Era

On the eve of my 30th birthday I...

• cleaned snow and ice from my car, and shoveled my driveway, front walkway, and side walkway 2 times
• got my car stuck at the end of my driveway, then had to shovel and dig myself out - using all sorts of 30-year-old expletives!
  
• took a long afternoon nap
• made and ate a pizza
• and........
• watched Eclipse, my favorite of the twilight Saga movies

Now that I've had my Edward and Bella fix I can sleep easy, dreaming of all the wonderful blessings tomorrow will bring! (I won't actually be 30 until about 12:45 Thursday afternoon).

Despite the shoveling and time spent out in the bitter cold, I enjoyed the beautiful scenery Mother Nature has provided for my 30th. (But seriously, Lake Ontario, you can turn the snow machine off now. We're approaching four feet here in 95+ hours - more than plenty!)

On the eve of this new era, I'm thinking of all the people that have come into (and out) my life. I'm thankful for every one of them. I have had many blessings in my life, and if there's one thing I've learned this last year before turning thirty, it's that life is precious and shouldn't be wasted. While it's easy to get caught up in the little things that seem big, the good things in life can pass by. So, I am making a promise to myself, to each day honor my family, my God, and the Green Bay Packers. Just kidding, Jimmy Valvano! I vow to focus on the important things in life: God, family, friends, and people in general, because we are what makes the world what it is. Without people, our lives would be meaningless.

Come and get me, 30! :)

Holy Snow!

TWO. MORE. DAYS!

Let's see. It's been snowing steadily since Sunday. When I say "steadily", I mean it hasn't stopped. Non. Stop. Snow. It feels like a blizzard, dumping over two feet of snow. Now, where I come from (downstate New York), that would be considered a snow STORM. But here in upstate New York it's called snow SHOWERS. Did you read that correctly? SHOWERS. My ass.

Snow brings with it a magical feeling. I dream of snow days, and I want to put on a snowsuit, run outside with my snow tube, and find the nearest sledding hill. That's the child in me itching to come out. Instead I wake up to an alarm and force myself to get dressed, shovel a path to my car, dust it off, and head out on the slippery, unplowed road, determined to get to work in one piece. That's the adult in me forced to come out. Funny how life has changed.

Since Sunday I've shoveled (with my husband's help, of course) the deck twice. Each time the snow was over a foot high. Initially I felt bad about missing the gym two days in a row due to a disinterest in driving late on snow covered roads, but no longer! I actually considered creating a workout video called "Shoveling Moves: A Full-Body Workout!. My abs, legs, arms, and back are definitely feeling the burn.

A little while ago I went to put the garbage out at the curb and observed that we've gotten about three more inches since I came home a couple hours ago. As I look out the window I can see the wind is kicking up (the pine tree actually dumped snow on me as we were shoveling the deck and I mistakenly blamed my husband, thinking he had thrown snow at me) and it is blustery!

I do want to go on the record for having predicted this storm long before it even hit weather radar. Over a week ago I mentioned to my husband that historically there has always been a snow storm around my birthday. Mother Nature did not disappoint this year. What would make a lovely gift for my special day this year? A snow day! What a blog entry that would make for the finale of this blog! Fingers crossed, everyone, and we'll see what your intentions will bring :)

SNOW DAY SNOW DAY SNOW DAY!!!

To beard or not to beard

Why do men (and apparently some women) have the capability to grow facial hair? What useful purpose does it serve? Some people may argue that its purpose is to keep its owner warm. But how much warmth could it possibly provide? And why do some men have the ability to grow a thick and plentiful beard while other men can barely grow a whisker? Recently I heard a radio show that claims Native Americans cannot grow facial hair. Could that be true? And wouldn't they have needed facial warmth, if that is indeed the purpose of a beard?

If anyone cares to shed some light on this topic, please do! I welcome your thoughts :)

Say hello to Husband with a beard (which, ironically, will be removed on my birthday, leaving only the mustache behind!). As you can see, he is quite capable of growing a thick and wiry beard. For the first couple weeks it was very itchy and uncomfortable. I'm pretty sure he's itching to lose the beard, though there may be some separation anxiety when it comes time to remove it. In his (and my) defense, it is part of a six-week Toys for Tots fundraiser. The culmination is a mustache contest, but he refused to grow the mustache without the beard. His reasoning? Some people can pull off a mustache and look decent, while other just look creepy. He didn't want to look creepy (thank goodness!)

Countdown: 5 more days!

I cannot believe that the date is approaching so quickly! It seems like I've been blogging about it for ages. This past week I've had the chance to think more about the whole idea of turning thirty. At first I started the blog because I thought all the hype about turning thirty was just that, hype. But my thoughts may be changing. Turning thirty means the end of my twenties. For the next ten years I can be only thirty-something, no longer a twenty-something. But is that really so terrible? I frequently hear on television shows and movies that forty is the new thirty. Wouldn't that mean thirty is the new twenty?

So here's the bottom line: I'm turning thirty in five days and can't do a thing to change it. I could borrow my mother's idea and start counting my age backwards, which would mean I'd either stay 29 or return to 28. A tempting idea, but I'm not interested in denial.

They way I see it I have two choices. I can mope about and fall victim to society's irrational obsession that turning thirty means the end of my youth, or I can embrace my upcoming 30th birthday and see it as a blessing. Intuition tells me the latter would be the better choice.

TGIF and the search for the perfect shoe

Thank goodness it's Friday! Really. What. A. Week. It went by quickly, but it also felt especially long if that makes any sense at all.

In a previous post I wrote about how disappointed I was (and maybe still am) in the lack of comfortable, stylish, and affordable shoe options for teachers. We, like nurses, doctors, and other professionals, are on our feet all day. By the end of most days my heels, calves, knees, and sometimes back hurt from standing in mediocre shoes on an unforgiving tile floor for most of the day. Recently I noticed multiple teachers I work with wearing the same style shoe. After inquiring, I learned that those shoes are DANSKOs, a brand of expensive clog originally designed by a couple from Denmark. Every owner/wearer I spoke to swears that they are so comfortable they bought more than one pair. So, out of pain and desperation I bit the bullet and bought a pair. I have to say, so far I'm not convinced they are so wonderfully comfortable. I wore them around the store and it felt like I was walking on a hard wood block. How can that be good for my feet? I do like that they have a substantial arch, which I find most dress shoes lacking. I also like that they have a bit of a lift to them, because that will help me look taller without having to suffer through heels all day. I feel much older than 29 right now. Who thought I'd be searching for comfortable, practical shoes before my 30th birthday? Certainly not me. Happy almost-30th Birthday, Bridget, you now own a pair of plain black clogs. Whoopee!

If you have DANSKOs and love them (or don't love them), please comment below and tell me! I'm on the fence - do I keep (and give them a chance) or return?