Weekend Top 10

Hello, Monday. How did you get here so fast?

Another weekend flew by and here we are, back at the workweek. For the last few weeks, I’ve been doing a Top 10 list of tidbits from my weekend simply because it’s an easy way to give you the highlights of a few days crammed and jammed with fun things… and truthfully, it’s quicker than writing a full blog post (and with me up to my ears in wedding planning, time is the one thing I do not have to spare). So, here we go… my Top 10 of fun things to know and tell from the weekend.

10- It is wise to take a chaperone (or what Dave Ramsey likes to call a financial “accountability buddy”) when you go to Carolina Pottery in Cary. It is, however, not wise to take an accountability buddy who says things like, “Baby, if that’s what you want, it’s just a swipe of the card.” I’m not really sure who was chaperoning whom. J

9- The perfect purple wedding shoes that live in my imagination apparently do not exist anywhere on this planet. However, very cute ivory ones can be found on sale at DSW. If I were as fantastic as Jennifer Garner’s character in P.S. I Love You, I’d just design my own and be done with it!

8- A surprise “invasion” of family members makes for one very entertaining Sunday afternoon. And, for the record, invasion was their word, not mine. I hope you guys will come back when you can stay longer!

7- New sneakers are good. New sneakers on sale with a coupon are even better.

6- A last minute decision to wear red heels is always, always, always a good idea. Woah, did this weekend have a shoe theme or what???

5- Popcorn and string cheese can make for a perfectly acceptable dinner… every once in a while.

4- After what seems like a million years, Leverage is back! Nate, Sophie, Eliot, Parker, & Hardison: I missed you!!! And even better than just being back, they’re back at 9 instead of 10 so I don’t have to stay up too late on a Sunday night. Thank you, TNT!

3- Is it just me or do Chick-fil-A team members seem like they've had to pass a cheerfulness test as part of their hiring process? The past two times we’ve been, the cashiers have been so bubbly, we’ve almost wondered what was wrong with them.

2- As soon as two people get comfy in a chair meant for one person, the cell phone will ring… across the room... and you'll never quite get back to that comfy place again.

1- Engagement pictures are a fantastically fun way to spend a Saturday night. This adventure will get an expanded blog post soon but in the meantime, I’ll just prove the point that red shoes make life way more fun…

We are not Stalkers... I don't think...

“We are not Stalkers.”

If I heard that once over the weekend, I think I heard it at least ten times… from my sister… who apparently is working very hard to convince people that we’re not stalking Bill Gentry. What would make someone think we were? Oh, I don’t know… let me think… could it be that we had concerts #5 and #6 on tap for the weekend… and that we always figure out a way to get to the front row? Could it be that we know all the words to all the songs and we’ve bookmarked all the videos on youtube? Could it be that, between the two of us, we have 3 BG t-shirts, 8 CDs, and at least 13 sets of Mardi Gras beads we “acquired” from Bill during shows? (And no, we didn’t have to “earn” them, in case you were curious.) Could it be that we have photos and autographed set lists displayed like kindergarten artwork on our refrigerators? Could it be that we hang around after the concerts and monopolize Bill and the band with chit-chat and questions? Could it be that we’re “friends” with all of them on facebook and don’t hesitate to post on their walls or send them emails? Oh, nooooooo, those things don’t make us seem like stalkers at all.

We took a little BG road trip this weekend with our great friends and fellow members of the Gentry Nation, Patsy and Blane, and had an unbelievably fantastic time! I’ve said it before but it remains true- Every time I think I can’t have more fun than the last BG concert, he proves me wrong.  On the boot-clad heels of a 14 show stint at CMA Fest in Nashville, Bill found some gas left in his tank and delivered one heck of a high octane performance. He put the pedal to the metal and never hit the brakes; it was more fun than Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride. Bill Gentry is not just a rising star, he’s a comet streaking across the sky of superstardom and we’re thrilled to be a part of his epic adventure.

As much as we love his performance on stage, we’re more enamored with his personality off-stage. He’s genuinely humble, friendly, and more than willing to spend time with fans and friends… and maybe even stalkers J.

We do love Bill but we also love the guys in the band. Matthew, Gary, Chris, Eric, and Steve are fantastic on stage but are equally fantastic off-stage when they’re just hanging out, cutting up, and having a good time. They are people you’d want to hang with any day of the week, not just on a Saturday night after a show.

We left the concert with pre-release copies of Bill’s album, Baptized in Temptation, coming out this fall. And let me just tell you, if you don’t buy any other CD in 2011, buy this one. You will not be sorry. I promise. It’s a full throttle, foot tapping, finger drumming on the steering wheel, dance your head, rockin’ country good time. You will put your windows down, crank the volume up, and wait patiently for the drivers in the next car to say “whatcha listening to?” and they will. This CD will take the mundane out of your Monday and put some fun in your Friday. It will be on perpetual repeat and you will move it from the car to your office and back again. Baptized in Temptation is not a CD you’ll buy for 2 songs; it’s a CD you’ll buy and wish there were 2 more songs, or 10 more.  I believe the release is October-ish maybe but in the meantime, check out his website (join his email list and you can probably still get a free 6 song download), give him a listen and hear what you’ve been missing… you’ll be glad you did. Bill Gentry is simply PHENOMENAL. He is… Something Else.

PS- In case you missed the tales of our previous adventures at Bill Gentry concerts, here are the links: The Magic Number (concert #4), The Exception to the Rule (concert #3), A Seam Splitting Good Time (concert #2), Best. Night. EVER. (concert #1)

Weekend Top 10

A few weeks ago, I posted my version of David Letterman’s Top 10 List of things I learned over the weekend. It was a happy little high-speed jaunt back through a very busy few days. It was easy and fun and, most importantly, it made me smile. Since today is Monday and I’ve spent most of my day doing something that resembles math (like Mondays weren't bad enough on their own without adding math to the mix), you’ll understand that a happy jaunt to anywhere but here would be a welcome break. So, here we go….. the “fun things to know and tell” that I learned this weekend…

10- When the internet says it will rain at 10, do not venture out at 8 without an umbrella… if you do, chances are you’ll end up soaking wet but laughing so hard that you can hardly stand up.

9- Wet flip-flops stretch just enough to be difficult to keep on when running in the pouring rain.

8- Contrary to popular belief, it is quite possible to watch too many National Lampoon movies in a row. The limit, friends, is two.

7- Homemade lasagna is much, much, much better than the stuff in the box. (I think we knew this already.)

6- Mosquitoes like hairspray. J

5- Chocolate chip cookies make wedding planning easier. They, however, probably make fitting into the wedding dress more difficult.

4- Working when everyone else is at the pool is the polar opposite of FUN.

3- Sleeping until 1:30pm on a Saturday is a rare and special skill… that I, unlike some others who shall remain nameless, do not (and probably will never) possess.

2- Fun foam is my new favorite crafting material.

1-The length of the weekend is inversely proportional to the number of fun memories and memorable moments that can be crammed into it.

I hope your weekend was jammed-packed with memorable moments. I hope you caught up on some rest, caught up with some friends, or just caught up on your catching up. I hope you laughed out loud and paraded in the rain. I hope your weekend was something easy, something simple… Something More.

From a Zip to a Ship

From the high-flying ziplining adventure of Saturday morning, Robert and I headed west to Lake Hickory, a lake that spans, I think someone told me, 200 miles across four counties. As soon as we arrived at the lake late Saturday afternoon, we hopped on the party barge (you may know it as a pontoon boat) and cruised down the lake to dinner. Lake Hickory is home to some of the most gorgeous homes I’ve seen and weekend residents include sports figures and celebrities... a certain someone in our boat was this close to ringing Denzel’s doorbell. I soooo would have gone with her to do it.

The cruise back from dinner was less about sightseeing and more about the entertainment on the boat itself. I haven’t laughed that hard in who knows how long and apparently, it doesn’t take much more than a creatively stocked iPod and a story about Panama City to get a party barge bash started.

Back on land, we joined in what seemed to me to be a good old fashioned neighborhood block party. We laughed and danced and Robert and I FINALLY won a game of corn hole so all in all, it was a perfect day!

Sunday, the block party moved to the water and we spent the day on the lake, forming a flotilla of five or six boats anchored and tethered together in a cove, away from the hustle and bustle of the busy holiday traffic in the main channel of the lake. I, amazingly, managed to stay my current shade of pale with no burning, peeling, or typical sunburn misery. Thank you, Coppertone; I owe you one. There were, however, some members of our crew that were sporting “neon tans” and believe me, they had my sympathies.

Monday, we headed home and all was well until someone said four little words that jinxed everything: “We’re making great time” but I’ll tell you about that later…..

In the course of this one weekend, I went from single to engaged, from walking to flying, and from landlocked to waterlogged. I hope you spent your weekend on the Partytrain to Funville too and that it's a trip you'll take again soon.

PS- I would be remiss if I didn’t say THANK YOU to our military service personnel for their service and sacrifice. Not just on Memorial Day but every day, you fight an enemy in front of you to protect a family behind you and I, for one, am grateful.

A Zip Roaring Good Time!

Several months ago, in the middle of a “try new things” moment in my life, I found a discount coupon on Living Social for a ziplining adventure at Kersey Valley Farm in High Point.  I talked a friend into taking a little road trip with me on Saturday and it turned out to be a zip roaring good time!

We arrived at Kersey Valley Farm and were introduced to our Flight Captain, Terri. Terri and her assistants helped us into very attractive helmets, thick gloves, and some very snug harnesses. The assistant helping me kept asking if my harness belts were too tight. I quickly told her there was no such thing as “too tight” if it meant I wouldn’t plummet six stories during the middle of a line. She assured me I wouldn’t fall; I’m pretty sure she looked like she meant it.

With everyone suited up and ready to go, we watched an instructional video and then headed out to our first zipline where we learned how to attach to the line, how to brake and steer, and finally how to land safely on the other side. Everyone was excited but anxious; it’s sort of sad when the grown-ups are hiding behind the 10 year old. It reminded me of penguins who push a little one in to see if there’s a predator in the water. Yep, we pretty much sacrificed the young’un.

After a line or two, everyone was gaining confidence and it was fun without fear. We even had a few fellas in our group letting go and spinning around backwards. A few more lines under our belts and we were making friendships within the group and picking on each other like we’d known each other forever. By line ten, some were making plans to meet up later. My friend and I both had other plans so we bid farewell to our high flying friends and moved along to the rest of our weekend.

Ziplining feels like flying without making you feel like you’re falling. The maneuvers are easy, even for the gracefully-challenged. I highly recommend it and would go back in an instant (if I had another half price ticket). My one suggestion would be that if you go, wear cargo shorts or some type of pants with low pockets because once you have that harness on, getting your camera or cell phone out of your front hip pocket is nearly impossible. And that, friends, is why there is only one photo of the zip roaring good time. L



 Kersey Valley Farm also has a maize maze and haunted trails for the Halloween season, laser tag, and nighttime ziplining for the more adventurous souls. It's a fun, family-friendly place with one exception- there are no bathrooms (they do have a port-o-potty) so prepare accordingly.

I hope your Saturday left you with some wind in your hair, some adrenaline in your veins, and some adventure in your life. I hope it was something fun, something spontaneous… Something More.