Target Time Giveaway
8.05.2014
It's been a while since I did a giveaway so I happily jumped at the chance to do one for Target, because TARGET!! It's August and what better way to start the soon to be Fall season than with a Target Gift Card? Whether you want clothes, home decor, or a nice new coffee pot, we want you to get what you want so we're giving away a $75.00 bucks to Target. Good luck and happy winning!
Pony Party. Make Up. Pink.
8.01.2014
I confess that waking up in the morning is awful and never seems to get
better. I don't know what my problem is. I'm normally in bed between
9-10pm. I have problems getting to sleep so I usually pop a Unisom
Sunday through Thursday night. I still don't fall asleep right away but
I sleep well. When 6:22am rolls around I hit snooze a few times then drag myself out of bed and it sucks. If I truly didn't get
enough sleep the day drags but usually I'm okay by the time I get to
work. If I go to bed at 8pm I'm sure I won't fall asleep right away and that leaves me with just an hour at home before bed on gym days.
I confess that I went to my very first pony party a few weekends ago and had a really good time. That's what happens when all your kids have friends. It was at this really cute place called Feather Acres Farm & Nursery and they had an area where the hosts can set up snacks, drinks and the cake. It's really a great (if expensive) kid birthday party idea. Everyone had a good time. His friends are awesome and always have adult beverages available even when the guest of honor is four. We sipped on champagne and made the rounds petting bunnies and checking out chickens and cows. We are too heavy for the ponies, but I fed a horse for the first time ever. They are so beautiful. I've never wanted a dog or a cat but now I want a horse!!
I confess that I only wore make up twice this month. One of those times was the full on shebang face that I did for my high school reunion and the other time was eye liner, mascara, blush and gloss. I didn't think it was possible for me to care about make up any less then I did last year but I guess not. Not quite sure what possessed me to do this. I guess because it's such a rare event, but I took a before and after pic in my bathroom before the reunion.
I confess that my skin is a total disaster right now. Obviously, it's not caused by make up. About once a year my skin is a total mess for anywhere from 3-6 months with what I think is hormonal acne mostly around my jawline. It started in my late twenties, sometimes skips a year or two and there is no pattern that I can find but when it strikes there is nothing I can do about it. I learned that the first time around. Nothing worked so now I just spot treat it with alcohol and wait it out. When it's ready to go away it will.
I confess that I didn't realize that you could change watch batteries yourself. I thought you had to take it to the watch people because that's what my mom has always done and that's what I did when I was still wearing watches. The battery in my Polar heart rate monitor went low and was all frustrated because I needed it for Monday and now I would have to go to the kiosk at the mall on my lunch break to have them change it. MJ looked at me like I was crazy. "You don't have to go there. Just do it yourself." We popped the batteries out. They are clearly labeled so finding the right size at the drug store was easy and the new ones popped back in. How did I not know it was that easy?
I confess that I forgot to put on deodorant yesterday. I realized it about half way through the day and made a little run out to my car for spare deodorant I keep there. Good thing because I planned on going to the gym right after. Hey, it happens. I forgot socks too so had to work out with sweaty feet.
I confess that I've been terrified of the free weight section at the gym. All those buff guys huffing and puffing in their tank tops are so intimidating. I march in there with my pink and try to pretend I know what I'm doing. I've been forcing myself to keep going back almost every day for the last two weeks and it's getting better. Can you tell I love Pink? I also have a pink lunch bag and water bottle for work. Plus a bunch of other pink stuff I can't think of right now.
I confess that I blogged 10 times last month and that's the highest per month so far this year. Half of it was vacation recaps. As always, I don't worry myself about pumping out a bunch of posts. I just want to keep on writing and enjoying this space. I was in a bloggy rut just two weeks ago but I think it's passed.
Thanks for all of your sweet comments on my I finally finished my novel post. I do plan on sharing more about it and an excerpt. I still feel extremely nervous about opening up about it but I know I need to get more comfortable with that so stay tuned!!
Linking up with Leslie @A Blonde Ambition
I confess that I went to my very first pony party a few weekends ago and had a really good time. That's what happens when all your kids have friends. It was at this really cute place called Feather Acres Farm & Nursery and they had an area where the hosts can set up snacks, drinks and the cake. It's really a great (if expensive) kid birthday party idea. Everyone had a good time. His friends are awesome and always have adult beverages available even when the guest of honor is four. We sipped on champagne and made the rounds petting bunnies and checking out chickens and cows. We are too heavy for the ponies, but I fed a horse for the first time ever. They are so beautiful. I've never wanted a dog or a cat but now I want a horse!!
 |
| Disclaimer: I still don't know how to "do" make up. I realized that my eyeliner was unbalanced after I took the pic but before I left the house. |
I confess that my skin is a total disaster right now. Obviously, it's not caused by make up. About once a year my skin is a total mess for anywhere from 3-6 months with what I think is hormonal acne mostly around my jawline. It started in my late twenties, sometimes skips a year or two and there is no pattern that I can find but when it strikes there is nothing I can do about it. I learned that the first time around. Nothing worked so now I just spot treat it with alcohol and wait it out. When it's ready to go away it will.
I confess that I didn't realize that you could change watch batteries yourself. I thought you had to take it to the watch people because that's what my mom has always done and that's what I did when I was still wearing watches. The battery in my Polar heart rate monitor went low and was all frustrated because I needed it for Monday and now I would have to go to the kiosk at the mall on my lunch break to have them change it. MJ looked at me like I was crazy. "You don't have to go there. Just do it yourself." We popped the batteries out. They are clearly labeled so finding the right size at the drug store was easy and the new ones popped back in. How did I not know it was that easy?
I confess that I forgot to put on deodorant yesterday. I realized it about half way through the day and made a little run out to my car for spare deodorant I keep there. Good thing because I planned on going to the gym right after. Hey, it happens. I forgot socks too so had to work out with sweaty feet.
I confess that I've been terrified of the free weight section at the gym. All those buff guys huffing and puffing in their tank tops are so intimidating. I march in there with my pink and try to pretend I know what I'm doing. I've been forcing myself to keep going back almost every day for the last two weeks and it's getting better. Can you tell I love Pink? I also have a pink lunch bag and water bottle for work. Plus a bunch of other pink stuff I can't think of right now.
I confess that I blogged 10 times last month and that's the highest per month so far this year. Half of it was vacation recaps. As always, I don't worry myself about pumping out a bunch of posts. I just want to keep on writing and enjoying this space. I was in a bloggy rut just two weeks ago but I think it's passed.
Thanks for all of your sweet comments on my I finally finished my novel post. I do plan on sharing more about it and an excerpt. I still feel extremely nervous about opening up about it but I know I need to get more comfortable with that so stay tuned!!
Linking up with Leslie @A Blonde Ambition
That Day I Finished Writing My First Novel
7.30.2014
I keep a lot of things to myself. No one outside my immediate family knew I was writing a novel until after I'd already been working on it for two years. It didn't feel real for a really long time, so it didn't seem worth
mentioning and now that I'm done I still haven't really mentioned it.
I didn't post about it here, until I'd been seriously working on it for nine months. On June 11th, 2014 at approximately 12:15pm; three years, 450 pages of double spaced Times New Roman, and 106,585 words later I finished my novel. Just the week before I had to quit working on it because I hated it so much. I was so close to the end, and I just wanted to be done with it already so I forced myself to keep opening that word document. I went at it again that day, and two hours later there was nothing left to type.
My first thought was Oh my gosh. I think I just finished my novel. I sat there staring at my screen for a few minutes while my eyes welled with tears. I sat with it for a while on my own. It felt like the best way to really take it in and enjoy the incredible wave of happiness washing over me. I thought about texting my mom, or MJ but I decided I'd rather say it in person because it's not something you get the opportunity to say very often. Then I tweeted it because what else do you do in this day and age? I was bursting. I had to tell someone and it was my way of shouting it out to the world, but at the same time still keeping it a wonderful secret to enjoy and savor for myself. I got some really sweet replies from some of you that made me even more excited.
I didn't look at it for a few days after I finished, but then tons of ideas started rolling in and the editing process began. It was non stop. I was jotting down notes in my phone and imagining different scenarios in my head constantly. Every time I looked at it, I frantically added or changed something. The revising part was way easier then writing the thing in the first place. I was actually really enjoying it and having a lot more fun with it than I had in a while. That went on for a month until it got really exhausting and I needed it to stop. I was so enmeshed in the process that after a while I couldn't see what I was reading anymore. I felt like I was changing things just to be changing them, so I knew it was time to take a break. I added 3,219 words and 14 pages by then, when I have a feeling I probably needed to trim it down.
My parents were coming down that Saturday and I decided right then and there that I would going to FedEx Kinko's to print it out and let my mom read it. I always knew that if I let anyone read it at all, it would be her. I had come to a nice resting point with the editing and I couldn't look at it anymore so it seemed like the right time to take a break. I could get some feedback, regroup and then go over it again for more edits with a fresh eye.
It takes a while to print out that many pages so we were there for a bit, and it was really special having my mom there. At one point the lady doing the print job said, "So who's the author?" I got to raise my hand and say, "Me. I wrote it," and that felt really good. Thank goodness I told her double sided because when finished it was pretty thick. Total cost: $25 bucks. I planned to put it into a binder, but it would have been a whole lot of pages to three hole punch and I didn't even have a binder that thick so it went into a box. That stack of paper is a physical representation of so much time and effort. I wrote all of that? It's really hard to believe that I finally have something to show for all those years I've been tapping away at my computer. I can officially say I have a manuscript now and it feels really strange because I never imagined myself to be a person that would ever get to say that.
Five years ago I didn't know how to start writing a novel and then, once I started, I didn't know if I could finish. For 2 1/2 years I essentially gave up. Life got busy and I told myself that I must be crazy to think I can actually write a novel anyway. I put it aside, but that desire to write kept on coming back. The yearning to finish what I started would not go away, so I dusted it off and committed myself to 15 pages a month for however long it took; which turned out to be three years. I didn't put too much pressure on myself which was helpful. When I reached the minimum acceptable novel length word count, I focused on finishing the story and finishing it this year. When it was finally done, I didn't know if I'd ever print it out, then I didn't know if I'd let anyone read it, and now I don't know if I'll ever publish. I've been winging it every step of the way. Going from the desire to write a novel to the act of spending three years actively trying to do it has been all about me loving to write and wanting to do it for myself. With all honesty, I can truly say that finishing it was my ultimate goal and if I never do a thing with it I'll be okay.
It's fiction. It might not be any good, but the story I've poured my heart and and soul into for three years is done and that alone makes me really happy because wishing I could write a novel got really old. I wanted to do it. There are many things in life I haven't got a shot in hell at accomplishing, but deep down I knew that writing a novel was not one of those things. I wasn't convinced I could do it but I had to try because there are some things in life that you know you have to do even if you don't believe that you can. I wanted to accomplish at least one goal in my lifetime that I could be really be proud of. This is that thing, and I'm glad to finally be able to say I did it.
 |
| Me and my manuscript |
I didn't look at it for a few days after I finished, but then tons of ideas started rolling in and the editing process began. It was non stop. I was jotting down notes in my phone and imagining different scenarios in my head constantly. Every time I looked at it, I frantically added or changed something. The revising part was way easier then writing the thing in the first place. I was actually really enjoying it and having a lot more fun with it than I had in a while. That went on for a month until it got really exhausting and I needed it to stop. I was so enmeshed in the process that after a while I couldn't see what I was reading anymore. I felt like I was changing things just to be changing them, so I knew it was time to take a break. I added 3,219 words and 14 pages by then, when I have a feeling I probably needed to trim it down.
My parents were coming down that Saturday and I decided right then and there that I would going to FedEx Kinko's to print it out and let my mom read it. I always knew that if I let anyone read it at all, it would be her. I had come to a nice resting point with the editing and I couldn't look at it anymore so it seemed like the right time to take a break. I could get some feedback, regroup and then go over it again for more edits with a fresh eye.
It takes a while to print out that many pages so we were there for a bit, and it was really special having my mom there. At one point the lady doing the print job said, "So who's the author?" I got to raise my hand and say, "Me. I wrote it," and that felt really good. Thank goodness I told her double sided because when finished it was pretty thick. Total cost: $25 bucks. I planned to put it into a binder, but it would have been a whole lot of pages to three hole punch and I didn't even have a binder that thick so it went into a box. That stack of paper is a physical representation of so much time and effort. I wrote all of that? It's really hard to believe that I finally have something to show for all those years I've been tapping away at my computer. I can officially say I have a manuscript now and it feels really strange because I never imagined myself to be a person that would ever get to say that.
 |
| My shadow on the beaches of Playa Del Carmen, MX |
It's fiction. It might not be any good, but the story I've poured my heart and and soul into for three years is done and that alone makes me really happy because wishing I could write a novel got really old. I wanted to do it. There are many things in life I haven't got a shot in hell at accomplishing, but deep down I knew that writing a novel was not one of those things. I wasn't convinced I could do it but I had to try because there are some things in life that you know you have to do even if you don't believe that you can. I wanted to accomplish at least one goal in my lifetime that I could be really be proud of. This is that thing, and I'm glad to finally be able to say I did it.
Hello, Adorable
7.29.2014
I'm that slow annoying person who can and will agonize over every decision big or small. It could be something as simple as what size to get in a shirt or what pill box to get but it's a rare thing for me to make a super quick decision. Unless it has to do with Pink. I always go with Pink. The last time I got to pick a lingerie item from Adore Me to review it took me almost a week so I was kind of glad to shift the burden to someone else when Adore Me contacted me about writing an unboxing review. They pick, no over analyzing for me.
First of all, the box is adorable. You can't open a box that says Hello, Adorable without smiling.
I'm also that person that hates not being in control of every little thing so I was really thrilled when I opened the box and found that I really loved what was inside. MJ loved it too. I'd just come home exhausted from work and was going through the mail.
"Ooh. Try it on for me."
"No, not now. You'll see it later."
"C'mon, just try it on now. I wanna see."
I wasn't feeling my most adorable, but I rolled my yes and put it on because if your husband is interested in seeing you in lingerie that's a good thing and so you might as well put on the darn lingerie.
Adore Me is a membership-based e-commerce site with special prices offered to VIP members, but also offers a Pay-As-You-Go service for customers who don't want to commit. They have a large selection of lingerie, sleepwear and swimwear. They sent me the Desirae push up. I don't own a single white bra or panty so it was perfect because I would have never picked it for myself and now I have something different. I love the pink details because, pink. The padding in the bra is just right and the panties are just enough to cover the booty without riding up yet still look sexy and not even close to "granny panty" status as white panties can if not done right.
They done good. Thank You, Adore Me!!
My High School Reunion was Weird
7.24.2014
My high school reunion was weird. I'm not really sure what I expected but that's the best way to describe it.
I had mixed feelings about whether or not I wanted to go. I was a cheerleader for three years but I didn't build a network of friends out of high school, or college for that matter, and there is only one friend I'm still in touch with outside of Facebook who I already knew wasn't going to be there. The 10 year reunion is all about who got fat, who got married, how the popular kids turned out or who made it big but 20 years later nobody cares about that stuff anymore. By now we know that life happens and keeping your head above water and being content is sometimes as good as it gets and that's totally okay. The stuff you cared about in high school is almost totally irrelevant and the stuff you wondered about even 10 years later feels a little juvenile.
To go or not to go? My thought process was this. I'm here, I have a cute husband, I haven't made a total mess of my life. Might as well go. My life actually was a total mess 10 years ago and I still went to that reunion.
I bought the tickets, put it on my calendar and then mentally checked out. I didn't submit a biography. I gave myself hardly any time to get ready and by the time it rolled around I kind of wished I wasn't going at all. I got off work at 5:00pm, I needed to be there at 7:00pm and at least an hour of that was to be drive time. I rushed home, rushed into the shower, rushed to do my hair, rushed to do my make up. Threw on a dress. Forgot to put on a necklace. Rushed out the door. Forgot my camera. It's a miracle I had the foresight to get my toes done last week but I had to have MJ slap a clear coat on my nails. On the way there. While I was driving. Yeah, that was interesting for both of us.
Turns out I probably could have come in anything and it wouldn't have mattered. The dress code on the flyer said "cocktail casual." I don't even know what that is. It also said "cash bar only" as in cash paper money no credit cards. Weird.
There were a few people that didn't want to pay to come inside including an old cheer buddy, J. They showed up at the hotel to meet for drinks before hand and I can't say that I blame them. I almost wished I'd thought of it myself because tickets were ridiculously overpriced. $75 per person and that's times two for me because I wasn't going to make MJ pay for such shenanigans. I was really glad J came over and said hi. We keep up on Facebook and I always really liked her. We spent a few minutes catching up before everyone started to go inside. She was a fun girl then and she still is. It's too bad we don't "really" keep in touch. She tried to speak to this other couple whom neither one of us recognized and was totally ignored. She'd mentioned it to me and I gave her a you weren't kidding look with my eyes when they did it again. She just side eyed her and looked at the guy but wouldn't speak and there was no word or acknowledgement from the guy. Either he had no idea who she was, she was mean to him in high school or they have no social skills. More weirdness.
We signed in, got our obligatory name badges, and went inside. People were wearing everything from jeans and maxi dresses to cocktail dresses. I start to wish I'd gone casual instead of cocktail and felt a little bad for vetoing MJ's polo shirt request. I made him wear a button up. The room was small and there were only a few tables so I already knew the turnout was going to be low. There was a booklet on the tables with class biographies but hardly any profiles in it.
There was a picture area set up where we took cheesy prom like photos against a black textured backdrop. I actually liked the pictures of us but I'm not really sure what I'm going to do with 1 8x10, 1 5x7 and 4 wallets for $40. I know that we graduated before the digital age but now that we are in it, what's with the old fashioned picture packages?
We heard that dinner was ready so we went out to the Mexican food buffet to fix our $75 fajitas and then sat down in the still mostly empty room and started to eat while I wondered if anybody else I knew was coming. There were familiar faces but nobody I was actually friends with. I was closest to my cheer friends and gymnastics friends but none of them showed up. Where are you? I send a message via Facebook to the one friend I was really hoping to see. She replied that things got busy and she couldn't make it which is a total waste because I know she bought her tickets and there are no refunds. We did cheer leading and gymnastics together and triple dated to senior prom. We were Freshman year college roommates, she lives about 1 1/2 hours away and yet I haven't seen her in 10 years since our last reunion. Why didn't we stay in touch? I've asked myself that question many times over the years but I don't have a concrete answer. Why didn't I stay in touch with anybody? Some of those people I see on Facebook don't live that far away but when high school is over some stay in touch and most of us drift. It's just what happens.
I remembered everyone who sat at our table (and vice versa) including the guy voted class "Most Wanted." He brought along our class yearbook which I have sitting at home, but haven't looked at in forever. I didn't even remember that two of us were on prom court together. I was impressed that they'd traveled out of state to come. We had some interesting catching up conversations.
We took an awkward class photo. It was an oh my gosh this is really happening kind of moment as the photographer cajoled us into gathering around. They gave away really weird prizes for things like most kids (6) most tattoos (29) and longest married (17) based on so called ballots we filled out. Now that I'm thinking about it why was it a ballot? It was more like an info sheet but I guess in some roundabout we we were voting for ourselves even if we didn't know it. One of the prizes, which is what looked like a fish bowl full of rocks, cracked when tattoo guy, whom I didn't recognize claimed his prize. It is announced that he will receive a free beer to match the one in his hand.
After that we were left to our own devices. The music got louder so I looked around for the DJ and saw an iPod hooked up to a speaker. I guess $75 per person really doesn't go very far. I spotted a girl that I did Girl Scouts with in elementary school and hesitated before approaching her. We lost touch after she stayed in girl scouts and I quit in middle school. I don't think we spoke a word in high school so would it be weird for me to talk to her now what would technically be over 20 years later? Maybe a little, but I said hello anyway. We caught up a little and I chatted with a friend she's kept up with all these years but someone whom I only knew in passing in high school. I ended up in a really good conversation with three other girls two of which I remembered. We all had really interesting stories about how we met our spouse/fiance. The dance floor mostly sat empty. I doubted this thing would last all the way until midnight and was surprised that we stayed until just past 11:00pm.
It was interesting to see how people have aged or not aged over time. So where do you live? Here. What are you doing? I work. Kids? No, but we travel a lot. Polite inquiries along with the obligatory I can't believe it's been 20 years because really, none of us can. Where does the time go? How is that I am as old as I am? How is it that my peers are old enough to have teenagers almost the same age we were 20 years ago? Sometimes I feel it, but most of the time I don't feel like the old person I thought people in their 30's to be when I was in high school.
The organizers from our class did the best they could with what they have to work with and have already said that the 30 year reunion will not be professionally organized. It will be a happy hour somewhere instead which makes much more sense considering the turn out is likely to be even less...or maybe it will be better if it's free.
A few days later I got this e mail with all of the candid pics from the reunion. I found our gallery and all I could do is shake my head and laugh. Out of all of the random pictures taken throughout the night I'm only in two that were taken while we were all doing the group photo. I'm glad I went (and according to MJ he did not have a terrible time) but It's almost like I wasn't even there. Just like high school.
Are all high school reunions this weird? Or just mine?
I had mixed feelings about whether or not I wanted to go. I was a cheerleader for three years but I didn't build a network of friends out of high school, or college for that matter, and there is only one friend I'm still in touch with outside of Facebook who I already knew wasn't going to be there. The 10 year reunion is all about who got fat, who got married, how the popular kids turned out or who made it big but 20 years later nobody cares about that stuff anymore. By now we know that life happens and keeping your head above water and being content is sometimes as good as it gets and that's totally okay. The stuff you cared about in high school is almost totally irrelevant and the stuff you wondered about even 10 years later feels a little juvenile.
To go or not to go? My thought process was this. I'm here, I have a cute husband, I haven't made a total mess of my life. Might as well go. My life actually was a total mess 10 years ago and I still went to that reunion.
I bought the tickets, put it on my calendar and then mentally checked out. I didn't submit a biography. I gave myself hardly any time to get ready and by the time it rolled around I kind of wished I wasn't going at all. I got off work at 5:00pm, I needed to be there at 7:00pm and at least an hour of that was to be drive time. I rushed home, rushed into the shower, rushed to do my hair, rushed to do my make up. Threw on a dress. Forgot to put on a necklace. Rushed out the door. Forgot my camera. It's a miracle I had the foresight to get my toes done last week but I had to have MJ slap a clear coat on my nails. On the way there. While I was driving. Yeah, that was interesting for both of us.
Turns out I probably could have come in anything and it wouldn't have mattered. The dress code on the flyer said "cocktail casual." I don't even know what that is. It also said "cash bar only" as in cash paper money no credit cards. Weird.
There were a few people that didn't want to pay to come inside including an old cheer buddy, J. They showed up at the hotel to meet for drinks before hand and I can't say that I blame them. I almost wished I'd thought of it myself because tickets were ridiculously overpriced. $75 per person and that's times two for me because I wasn't going to make MJ pay for such shenanigans. I was really glad J came over and said hi. We keep up on Facebook and I always really liked her. We spent a few minutes catching up before everyone started to go inside. She was a fun girl then and she still is. It's too bad we don't "really" keep in touch. She tried to speak to this other couple whom neither one of us recognized and was totally ignored. She'd mentioned it to me and I gave her a you weren't kidding look with my eyes when they did it again. She just side eyed her and looked at the guy but wouldn't speak and there was no word or acknowledgement from the guy. Either he had no idea who she was, she was mean to him in high school or they have no social skills. More weirdness.
We signed in, got our obligatory name badges, and went inside. People were wearing everything from jeans and maxi dresses to cocktail dresses. I start to wish I'd gone casual instead of cocktail and felt a little bad for vetoing MJ's polo shirt request. I made him wear a button up. The room was small and there were only a few tables so I already knew the turnout was going to be low. There was a booklet on the tables with class biographies but hardly any profiles in it.
There was a picture area set up where we took cheesy prom like photos against a black textured backdrop. I actually liked the pictures of us but I'm not really sure what I'm going to do with 1 8x10, 1 5x7 and 4 wallets for $40. I know that we graduated before the digital age but now that we are in it, what's with the old fashioned picture packages?
We heard that dinner was ready so we went out to the Mexican food buffet to fix our $75 fajitas and then sat down in the still mostly empty room and started to eat while I wondered if anybody else I knew was coming. There were familiar faces but nobody I was actually friends with. I was closest to my cheer friends and gymnastics friends but none of them showed up. Where are you? I send a message via Facebook to the one friend I was really hoping to see. She replied that things got busy and she couldn't make it which is a total waste because I know she bought her tickets and there are no refunds. We did cheer leading and gymnastics together and triple dated to senior prom. We were Freshman year college roommates, she lives about 1 1/2 hours away and yet I haven't seen her in 10 years since our last reunion. Why didn't we stay in touch? I've asked myself that question many times over the years but I don't have a concrete answer. Why didn't I stay in touch with anybody? Some of those people I see on Facebook don't live that far away but when high school is over some stay in touch and most of us drift. It's just what happens.
I remembered everyone who sat at our table (and vice versa) including the guy voted class "Most Wanted." He brought along our class yearbook which I have sitting at home, but haven't looked at in forever. I didn't even remember that two of us were on prom court together. I was impressed that they'd traveled out of state to come. We had some interesting catching up conversations.
 |
| 28 out of a graduating class of 300 something |
After that we were left to our own devices. The music got louder so I looked around for the DJ and saw an iPod hooked up to a speaker. I guess $75 per person really doesn't go very far. I spotted a girl that I did Girl Scouts with in elementary school and hesitated before approaching her. We lost touch after she stayed in girl scouts and I quit in middle school. I don't think we spoke a word in high school so would it be weird for me to talk to her now what would technically be over 20 years later? Maybe a little, but I said hello anyway. We caught up a little and I chatted with a friend she's kept up with all these years but someone whom I only knew in passing in high school. I ended up in a really good conversation with three other girls two of which I remembered. We all had really interesting stories about how we met our spouse/fiance. The dance floor mostly sat empty. I doubted this thing would last all the way until midnight and was surprised that we stayed until just past 11:00pm.
It was interesting to see how people have aged or not aged over time. So where do you live? Here. What are you doing? I work. Kids? No, but we travel a lot. Polite inquiries along with the obligatory I can't believe it's been 20 years because really, none of us can. Where does the time go? How is that I am as old as I am? How is it that my peers are old enough to have teenagers almost the same age we were 20 years ago? Sometimes I feel it, but most of the time I don't feel like the old person I thought people in their 30's to be when I was in high school.
The organizers from our class did the best they could with what they have to work with and have already said that the 30 year reunion will not be professionally organized. It will be a happy hour somewhere instead which makes much more sense considering the turn out is likely to be even less...or maybe it will be better if it's free.
A few days later I got this e mail with all of the candid pics from the reunion. I found our gallery and all I could do is shake my head and laugh. Out of all of the random pictures taken throughout the night I'm only in two that were taken while we were all doing the group photo. I'm glad I went (and according to MJ he did not have a terrible time) but It's almost like I wasn't even there. Just like high school.
Are all high school reunions this weird? Or just mine?
The Food
7.23.2014
Oh my gosh the food. They don't call it Gourmet Inclusive for nothing. We ate a lot and it was amazing and expensive enough to deserve it's very own post. For breakfast everyday we went to Flavours which is buffet style. They are also open for lunch and dinner. We ate the same thing everyday so I should have taken at least one picture. Egg white omelet made to order and a slice of french toast. One day I had some cereal just because I haven't eaten cereal in years and most days at least one of us had a mimosa or other such fruity spiked drink.
The only two restaurants that required reservations were Arezzo and Tsuki. We made reservations with the concierge the very first day at each for the adults only nights which are Monday and Thursday.
Most of our lunches were eaten at either the Olive Tree or Oriola Beach Grill. They were close so it was easy access from the beach. They both had outdoor seating so we could roll up in sandy beach duds then go right back to the beach.
The Azul Fives website is very specific about dress codes for each place. No flip flops, shorts or tank tops for for dinner but we saw other people dressed more casually then the rules so we only followed it the first day and for the two restaurants that required reservations. We never got dressed until dinner anyways so that worked out. If we were going to Flavours I'd wear shorts but if we went to Olive Tree I'd throw on a skirt.
The all inclusive fee is pricey and I'm not 100% sure that we ate the cost per day every single day but between drinks and meals I'm sure we came pretty close and the amount we didn't eat up paid for peace of mind. The restaurants were expensive and we heard that the buffet prices were anywhere between $25-40 something per person depending on the meal. We didn't leave the resort and even if we did there wasn't really any place nearby to eat or get groceries. It was really nice not to have to nickel and dime my way through meals and had we been paying that's exactly what I would have been doing. I would have agonized over every meal choice and passed on extras like desserts and appetizers even if I wanted them. Every time the waiter asked if I wanted more wine I usually said yes and when you are on vacation it's so nice not to worry about stuff like that. I truly got to be on vacation from everything including money worries. We had a fun game of adding up the cost of each meal just to see how
much we'd be spending and every time we sat down for dinner at
restaurant it was at least $150.00. With drinks and all we lost count. The portions were small and when I say small I mean closer to what a person actually needs and not the supersized portions that are served in most American restaurants. However, if I had to pay $20 bucks on the spot for those tiny correctly portioned kabobs and 15 french fries I would not have been happy.
There was a fully stocked mini bar in the room and we only drank one beer. We were doing so much drinking outside the room that we didn't have room for anything else.
So fancy. Super calorific. Definitely off my meal plan. Way off. We only went to the gym twice and didn't skip a single meal. I'm always worried about overeating on vacation but I tried to push those negative oh my gosh how much weight am I gaining thoughts away. I paid for it. I wanted to enjoy it; and so I did.
Playa Del Carmen Day 1-2
Most of our lunches were eaten at either the Olive Tree or Oriola Beach Grill. They were close so it was easy access from the beach. They both had outdoor seating so we could roll up in sandy beach duds then go right back to the beach.
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| Italian // Arezzo |
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| Japanese // Tsuki |
There was a fully stocked mini bar in the room and we only drank one beer. We were doing so much drinking outside the room that we didn't have room for anything else.
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| Dessert |
Playa Del Carmen Day 1-2
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