You know you can always share a good story after a trip to the ol' Wal-Mart. This time, it comes in the form of a Great Value and good advice:

GREAT VALUE:

If you've shopped at Wally-World anytime recently, you might have noticed an influx of Great Value brand products. I've purchased quite a few and have been pleasantly pleased. Not only are these products cheaper, but they are also made in the USA! (well...i'm pretty sure they are. I tried to call corporate to ask about this but they've directed me to another number I have to call during working hours...I'll get back with you on this)

So, check out all the Great Value you can get at your local store!

GOOD ADVICE:

Now, after purchasing all these great deals, I'm assuming you'll proceed to the checkout. So many choices these days: 20 items or less, self checkout, cashier...the list goes on. Actually, no it doesn't. Whatever.

Most of the time the cashier lines either aren't open or are too long. Being the American that I am, I was "in a hurry" to get home. Apparently, last night I was super confident in my scanning skills and chose the self checkout. Once I got to about item #12 I was certainly rethinking my decision. What was I thinking getting in this line? My basket was stuffed full of great values and I had no room to put the full bags. I was one of "those" people that others were staring at and getting frustrated with.

I just kept trucking along, regretting the fact that I had a hoodie on. About 20 minutes later, I had swiped the last great value from the basket and the last drop of sweat from my brow. The supervisor for the self-check lines seriously had to clear my "please place item in the bag" screen about 10 times.

Lesson of the day:

You are not as quick as the Wal-Mart cashier. Do not get in the self check line with 80 items.

CHS 10-yR ReUNioN

Comanche High School
It keeps the Golden Rule
In all Dixie Land
There's none quite so grand
As our own dear high school

They say that days will come
When we are far away
That wherever we stray
We'll come back someday
To our own dear Comanche High School

...I did stray quite a ways, but returned 10 years later to my own dear Comanche High School! How could anyone resist

"Country Living at its Best"?

Wow. I can't believe 10 years has gone by. FAST. High school was a delight for me and I loved reminiscing through my high school yearbook. The "remember whens" and "In 10 years..." proved to be entertaining as I prepared a few memory lane games for the weekend. Too bad that was about all I prepared. Being the class president, it was my duty to plan the whole weekend. Uh...yeah. That didn't happen :(. In the midst of a busy job, a fall semester minus my boss and another employee (=super busy), planning a wedding and honeymooning...I just didn't have a lot of free time to plan all I wanted to do!

You know me...I had extreme plans for a big homecoming filled with attention to all the details. Like any smalltown girl should do, I still subscribe to my weekly newspaper, The Comanche Chief. I'm up to date on all the marriages, babies and youth league soccer champions and have been clipping classmate news for years. I had plans for "then & now" photos, a parent reception and a Wall of Honor for all our classmates who are serving or have served in the armed forces. I know! Fabulous plans!

Too bad none of that happened :(. Boo to me. Time! There's no time!!! Even so...with the help of my fellow CHS friends, we stilled planned a great weekend and got to catch up with a lot of good friends. Big thanks to Trisha and Lindsay for all their help! In all my worries and hype, Trey was still excited to go to the CHS varsity football game at Indian Stadium. Even though we lost the game, the Indians still headed to the second round of playoffs this year. Go Tribe!

We got to visit with almost 1/2 of my Senior class and met lots of new spouses and kids. It was so great to see everyone and relive the good ol' days. On Saturday, we met again for lunch and played some trivia I had prepared from our yearbook. Everyone really did get a kick out of this and it brought back some laughs I hadn't remembered in years! What I enjoyed most was visiting with classmates that weren't my general running buddies in HS. Makes me wonder what I missed out on in a friendship and why didn't I take the time to stay in touch. Oh, the what-ifs.

In any case, I don't regret a thing. Thanks to CHS for all the memories. Maybe a later post will come with some "then & now" picks. And maybe, just maybe, I'll follow through with my fab plans for our 15 year reunion :). For now...some picks from the weekend:

the saturday clan

...no, I'm not preggo. i'm blaming the breeze in an untucked shirt.

...but ashley is due in a few months with her second baby girl!

me, mindy & her newest addition

...her fam lives in corpus christi - home of Whataburger...lol

geremy, his wife nikki & clay

...geremy is an air traffic controller in albuquerqe

...clay is a systems analyst for a dallas university

aimee, trisha & kayla

...aimee is an RN for alzheimer patients in abilene

...trisha lives & works in ft. worth & I'm pretty sure she'll publish a book someday :)

...kayla is a dental hygienist asst in Midland & my neighbor back home

me, mrs. lively & aimee

...mrs. lively was my calculus teacher and is a joy to be around!

(random small town fact: her son, steven, was my first kiss back in the day...lol) tmi? :)

I heart Comanche.

If you do too, click here for your guide to unique dining, antique/gift shops and fine wines.

angie's house of cakes (updated)

it's no secret. everybody loves cakes.

Big cakes. Little cakes. Birthday cakes. Cup cakes.

if it's moist and iced...i'm eating it.

i've been inspired from my sister - she makes every one of her kids' birthday cakes (including mine sometimes!) and i thought maybe i had the cake construction gene, too. so, i've made a few here and there. after loving trey's armadillo cake at our wedding, i took some lessons from the lady who made it.

here are some old and new pics for your viewing pleasure:

1. lynch's wedding shower:

2. McKenzie's baby shower:

3. my first cake from deco class:

4. learning some new techniques (pay no attention to content or color!):

5. my fav..cupcakes!

6. most recent...a modern wedding cake for one of my former students:

7. I forgot to add...McKenzie's (leah's daughter) 1st "Pink Poodles in Paris" birthday!

A Glimpse of Things to Come...

Boo to the flu (a.k.a. really bad sinus infection)...

It makes me feel bad.

My blog is out of date...

that probably makes you mad.

There are so many things to share...

I need to add some posts.

Check back in days to come...

for events that deserve a toast:

1. Angie's House of Cakes

2. CHS 10-yr High School Reunion

3. 9th Annual Burns Family Roping

Have a nice trip...see you next fall!

Harvard Health Publications
tells me that our balance tends to erode with time...that, for weekend athletes, lost equilibrium can mean more spills on the slopes or wipeouts in the surf...or, for the sedentary, it can bring a surprise encounter with the sidewalk.

Apparently, training for a half marathon (or lack thereof these days) doesn't count as a "weekend athlete" because my mishaps these days are more relative to a chance encounter with the sidewalk...ahem...car door, wall...whatever.

So, I'm on my way home the other night. Mind you, it's been raining. I park...on the slab these days. Ike did a number on our back yard and I no longer have a carport or decking of any kind...just the hard cement and muddy ground. Getting out of car...arms loaded, quick Taco Bell dinner and drink in tow. I'm making it up the steps and the past sedentary weeks take effect. My feet stumble, apparently over themselves, and as I'm reaching for the door handle...slow motion sets in. I totally miss the grab and fall down three steps flat backed in the mud :).

I didn't know whether to cry or laugh. Not sure of whether I've broken anything, except my pride...I try to get up but am stuck and laughing so hard I just sit and enjoy the moment, wishing I could've seen it happen. I finally found my phone and called Trey to come to the back door. He got a good laugh and I got some good bruises.

It's been a while since I've had a "real" fall...so much for the fake!!

lesson #1: take time to laugh at yourself every once in a while.

lesson #2: getting off your duff will help you stay on your feet.

Lessons & Laughter

So, I mentioned in the beginning wanting to make people laugh and have yet to say anything funny. So, I'll share a newlywed moment with you:

Trey and I were enjoying a nice movie the other night from the director and producer of Little Miss Sunshine:

It was a nice break from a long week of work. However, I must point out that we ate Mexican food for dinner and any of you who know me well know that my body and beans don't mix. It's a natural situation...I'm sure you will agree but may not admit to it yourself. In any case, I'm holding in a lot of opportunities to put my stomach at ease for the sake of my husband, mind you...he does not return the favor to me and will take any chance to try and "sneak one in" like before he gets in the car or by the kitchen sink when I'm in the living room, knowing full well that it will follow him wherever he goes.

I'm trying to still be that girly gal of his and not get all sloppy now that we're married :), but I'm not sure how long I can hold up! What's great about this story is now my total disregard for the sanctity of mystery in a relationship, and how nature couldn't have come to fruition at a more perfect time...

So, we're on the couch and I'm messing with my earring or hair or something to that effect and Trey states, "You're making a lot of noise over there." To which I respond, with the likes of Babe Ruth calling the outfield, "Oh, I'm about to make some noise!" And as if the heavens themselves were opened, I let out the loudest, longest flatulence to which I had not even witnessed myself in my lifetime.

I have never been so proud yet so appalled by the offspring of my dinner. When I saw the surprise and disgust on my husband's face I knew I had made a horrible yet incredibly entertaining mistake. The mystery was gone and so was the love...for the moment. I honestly thought he would never want to come close to me again. I was laughing so hard because deep down I knew he wanted to pretend that he was nauseated but was obviously thoroughly amused at the whole situation.

Nothing's a secret in marriage...we share everything these days. :)

Now, onto the lesson of the day:

When someone wants my opinion, they'll ask for it. Other than that, listening is a pretty good option these days. God loves to show me lessons in illustrations and I thought this was a great one...

"Unsolicited advice is like using a sprinkler in the rain."

- Angie Taylor, on realizing that she's not always right.

pay no attention to the green curtain

I will still be writing but patiently waiting for Fabulous K to make me a fabulous design that is cutesy and easy on the eyes. ...just so you know :) (that's for any of you Everybody Loves Raymond fans out there).

I love how I'm writing to no one right now but still acting like someone is reading this. I don't really know the unwritten rules of blogging but I feel like I'm about to break one. Is it wrong to post twice in one day? Warm it up Kris...I'm about to!

Hello, my name is...not Elle

But wouldn't this blog title be perfect for someone who was?!

I like to mix it up...keep people on their toes :). My name is really Angie, but I do love to laugh and more importantly, make other people laugh. Not really the "center of attention" type of person but more like the "accomodater" or "comforter". I'm the icebreaker or tension easer. Totally ok with awkward silence and find it interesting to see how other people handle it. Truth is...most people don't. Funny how we feel the need to always be doing something and "filling the silence".

Let's try this...lesson of the day:

less talking, more listening.

less planning for the future, more appreciating the present.

less worrying, more assurance in our Creator.

less judging others, more judging ourselves.

less gossip, more building up of the brethren.

less me, more You.

God gives me insight everyday, when I'm seeking Him. This will be a blog to inspire...a time to think, a time to laugh, a time to glorify our God.