The Soup

Ahhh...The Soup...how I love thee! Please tell me you guys watch this show!

The Soup basically makes fun of all the crazy shows and people on TV. Joel McHale is the sarcastic host that "watches it all for you." He shows clips of reality shows, daytime talk shows, morning news shows and lots and lots of Jersey Shore!

That show is just begging to be made fun of with its overly tanned, bouffant-ed, self proclaimed "guidettes" and disgusting greasy haired guys pumped up on man-juice and roids. Like it or not, this show is part of pop culture and although I would never actually watch a full episode, I am glad I know what it is and can make fun of Snookie and The Situation with the rest of them!

He also loves to pick on Tyra Banks and both her talk show "Tyra" and "America's Next Top Model"....all I have to say is that Tyra is one vain, crazy, girl! Some of the topics for her shows are just out there! Most recently, Joel McHale made fun of one featuring 5 women supposedly born with 2 vaginas...the tag line was "5 women - 10 vaginas!"...really? Is that what you've stooped to? And, furthermore, what woman is going on TV to share that? I mean, WOW! If I had a freak 2nd vajayjay I certainly would not be on national TV talking about it with Tyra Banks of all people. And how do they find these women? Just WOW!

Moral of the story: watch The Soup on E!

I Love My Stories....

Well, they aren't really "stories" (soap operas), but can't you just imagine a little old lady talking about watching her "stories" when you hear that phrase? I do...a little Betty White.

In fact, come to think of it, my own grandmother was a big fan of Young and the Restless and I remember distinctly watching it with her one summer day when I was staying with her. I was probably 8 or 9 and I had been out swimming in her pool and at 11:00AM she brought me inside so she could watch her stories (not sure if she used that term...but I'd like to think that she did).

I should have given a tangent alert! Oh well....back to the subject at hand - my love of certain TV shows (past and present).

Here are my favorite TV shows (in no particular order):

1. Arrested Development

If you have not fallen in love with this show, please go out and buy it (or borrow it from one of your cool friends that owns it). I just love GOB (played by Will Arnett - the hilarious husband of Amy Poelher)... "illusions" +"The Final Countdown" = hilarious! The writing is clever, witty, quick, and original. A very quotable show!

2. American Idol

The show that has produced some of my favorite singers: Carrie Underwood, Adam Lambert, Daughtry, and of course Kelly Clarkson. I have been watching American Idol since the very first season. I discovered the try outs while flipping channels one night and was hooked! I TiVo'd it and hooked my whole family...I vote for my favorites and buy my favorite songs on iTunes. I love Simon's acerbic opinions and wit and am going to miss him next season. I am still debating on whether to watch the show without him...I just don't know if I can do it. I miss Paula - she was all kinds of crazy and Kara just annoys me.

3. Community

Gosh this show cracks me up! I have loved Joel McHale ever since I discovered The Soup (to be discussed another time!) and this show just gives me more time with him. The show is about a cocky lawyer who has to go back to school to complete his undergrad degree because the Bar found out his degree was fake. He starts a Spanish study group and then hilarity ensues! The ensemble cast is great! I LOVE Senior Chang, the Asian Spanish teacher - youtube clips of him and you'll be hooked!

4. Glee

This show rocks...literally! The singing is great, the show is well cast, and the storyline is entertaining. I love Sue Sylvester and her unexplained hatred for the glee club - she is so perfectly evil! The musical numbers are all covers of great songs that I love anyway and they have made a great addition to my "cleaning the house" iPod mix!

5. Project Runway

I love watching creative minds at work - mix that in with Tim Gunn's oft repeated anthem of "make it work," Heidi Klum's ever-pregnant and beautifully fashionable self, and witchy, dramatic, and emotional designers and you have a combination that keeps me watching season after season just to see what they come up with next!

6. The Office

Oh, the awkward humor that is Michael Scott...he is sometimes the villain, the idiot, the pitiable, lonely, fool, the punchline, and the punching bag - he makes the show and is the heart of what The Office is - cringeworthy, laugh out loud, quote-it-after comedy!

I even have a Dwight bobblehead!

7. Biggest Loser

This is such an inspiring show! I always want to work out afterward, but for some reason I always eat junk food while I watch it! Seriously! Pizza, hamburgers and fries, donuts, ice cream...all consumed while watching the Biggest Loser - what's up with that? Jillian and Bob are serious hard A's, if you know what I mean! I hope either one of the grey team wins or Stephanie from the purple team...down with red team! The wife drives me bonkers!

PS - Bob was doing a promotional work out thing at the downtown Dallas 24 hour fitness center last Saturday and I wanted to go and meet him, but I didn't want to sign the waiver to allow the cameras to capture the moment (which would probably be embarrassing! They were filming him giving "inspiration" while people worked out and neither do I look cute while I work out nor do I want to be on TV - ever! I guess I missed my chance to meet Bob :(

Loves...

I have a lot of loves. Of course Kevin is at the top of the list, but I am pretty sure you are all pretty sick of me talking about how much I love my husband. So, since it is February and Valentine's Day is fast upon us (and in an effort to get back into blogging!) I thought I would post about some of my favorite things.

I LOVE to read...but I won't read just anything. I am very particular about the novels I read, but they all have one thing in common - a love story. I LOVE a good love story. I don't care if the story is seemingly corny, predictable, or sappy or if the male love interest is a rich Englishman from Derbyshire, a glowering teenage vampire, the ever-reliable childhood friend, a poor farmboy turned pirate, a werewolf, a bad boy on the run, a beast, or an aristocrat bent on saving people from the guillotine in revolutionary Paris; if there is a love story, a little bit of suffering, an interesting plot, and a happy ending I want to read it.

So, if you have anything that fits my ideal mold, please let me know! I am constantly searching for new books to read and would welcome any and all suggestions for lovey dovey books.

Also, what are your favorite types of books? And, if you are like me and you love a good love story - who is your favorite male lead?

*Please note that I am NOT interested in romance novels...just want to be clear about that!

Cedar Breaks

You are all getting too spoiled with all of these posts!

These pictures are from 9-12-09

When Kevin and I were enjoying our wonderful month long vacation in Cedar City this fall, we took a drive up the canyon to check out Cedar Breaks Monument, and it was so breathtaking!

On the drive up the mountain canyon

Overlooking the Breaks

It was another beautiful day in southern Utah!

Thanksgiving

This post is obviously late...oh well...

With so many things going on this fall, Kevin and I thought it would be best to not add a flight home for Thanksgiving, and opted instead for a last minute drive to Florida to spend the holiday with my military brother, Steve, and his adorable wife, Tracy, and our only (for now) nephew, Cody.

It was a lot of fun to see Steve's place for the first time (just a 5 minute walk from the beach!) and to have some much needed hang out time.

Steve and Kevin enjoyed playing video games...

and Cody just wanted to be one of the boys!

(notice how focused Kevin and Steve are - they were working very hard to beat something or other....)

Cody just bonding with Kevin

Christmas picture time!

(I have to admit, I was really proud of how cute these turned out...to my photographer friends, please don't judge me!

Not the most flattering picture...oh well

In Destin, just 20 or so minutes away, there is a really cool restaurant called McGuire's. It is a cool Irish pub that has not only good atmosphere, but awesome food as well.

Their "shtik" is for people to leave a dollar decorated with whatever the person wants and then the dollar is stapled on the ceiling and around the restaurant.

Supposedly, there are over 600,000 dollars bills around the restaurant...so we decided to add our own! (Can you pick ours out?)

It was a really great trip - thanks for having us, Steve and Tracy!

2009 - A Big Year For Kevin

This has been a really big year for Kevin. I am just so proud of him and all he has accomplished and I wanted to post a few "highlight" pictures.

Kevin competed in New York for a Moot Court Competition

He trained for and finished his first half marathon.
Last Day of Law School

Law School graduation

First day of studying for the Bar
First day of work

Swearing In (this is the LAST step to becoming a lawyer!

Signing on our first house!

It's been a great year for you! I am so proud of all you've done!

Our First Christmas...at Home!!

Wow! What a crazy month! Christmas has come and gone and I know that if I don't get some pictures of our house on this blog, somebody (you know who you are!) will have my head! So, here they are!

We were lucky enough to spend our first Christmas in our home with family. Kevin's parents and little brother Brian (who just came home from his mission in the Philippines this November) flew out to spend almost 2 weeks with us and we had a great time!

It was so helpful to have my mother-in-law in the house to help pull everything together to make it a special Christmas! We make a mean team in the kitchen and everything was wonderful.

Something that was really special was the fact that for the first time in over fifty years, Dallas had snow on Christmas Eve...that's right...we had a white Christmas! How cool is that?

Here is the house on Christmas Eve

Our Christmas tree...looking small in our empty dining room

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that St. Nickolas soon would be there!

It kept snowing all night!

That night, Kevin and I put out the strings for Artis, Lionel, and Brian...they went upstairs, downstairs, and even out in the snow (which was more of a punishment for Kevin and I!). Kevin's dad, Lionel, said it was his first time having a string just for him!

(Kevin's family tradition is for "Santa" to have a string that leads from the person's stocking to a special present hidden somewhere in the house...it is a lot of fun and really builds the excitement of Christmas morning)

We awoke Christmas morning and it was a beautiful day!

Artis is enjoying her string!

Kevin is looking a little tired after a late night of putting up string!

A beautiful Christmas day!