5.29.2008

Shoe Noises & Fizzers

Don't you hate it when there are people around you and your shoe or chair makes a pooting noise and then you try to recreate it (so people won't think you pooted) by rubbing your shoes together again or tipping back your chair but the noise doesn't re-create? Darn.

Big Mama has been working Adam today and, I must say, the house & yard look amazing. I feel like we live in a little enchanted secret garden in England. Now, if we could only get Powers to stop sprinting through the yard, knocking up flowers....

Big Mama is a fizzer, though. She's not such a fan of sitting still. We just got done eating supper and she's already back outside & sweeping the walk. I should probably go out there so I won't feel guilty. Okay, bye.

5.28.2008

4 things about Moi

The Blurtonator sent this to me. Fill it out on your blog if you want to!

FOUR THINGS ABOUT ME
Camille Jennings


A) FOUR PLACES I GO OVER AND OVER:
To the 1st stall in the downstairs bathroom at the office, to a happy place in my mind while I sit at meetings during work, to the www.thepioneerwoman.com, to sleep with my husband- yow!


B) FOUR PEOPLE WHO E-MAIL ME (during the day)
Bethany- she is my work correspondence buddy, Mary Lou from WWLTV, my boss with little questions, reminders, and favors, and billions of applicants!

C) FOUR OF MY FAVORITE FOODS:
a Chipotle burrito, chips & queso from Chili's, hunan chicken from Cathay House in Waco, Mexican Daredevil grilled hot wrap from Camille's sidewalk cafe

D) FOUR PLACES I WOULD RATHER BE RIGHT NOW:
the beach, getting a facial, getting a massage, or getting a pedicure

E) FOUR PEOPLE I THINK WILL RESPOND:
Brooke, Rachael, Lindsey, and Jen

F) FOUR THINGS I DON'T LIKE:
the sound of stryofoam rubbing, kazoos, gas prices, and Twizzlers (taste like candle wax)


G) FOUR MOVIES/TV Series I WATCH OVER AND OVER:
Gilmore Girls, Elf (well, every Christmas...), LOST (just new ones- not every week, it's not a watch over and over show in my opinion), and I do enjoy Flight of the Concords


H) FOUR favorite sounds:
the coffee machine in the morning, our huge industrial floor fan, the oceans (all 4 of them- haha), and kids singing


I) FOUR favorite smells:
fresh paint, new tennis balls, sun tan lotion, and Adam's armpit
and Power's rotten fish breath

5.27.2008

BIG MOMMA

Although my mom weighs 115 pounds, soaking wet I bet, she is my big momma. She's here in Erie and Adam & I are loving having her right down the hall. Now, I'm having to work so while I'm at the office during the day, she has Adam put to work- they are making our yard beautified and it's looking good so far. I wish her & Dad could just move here- we miss them. Especially when they're taking care of our yard!


It's funny how I slip into my childhood patterns when mom's around- letting her just slip back into the role of cooking & directin' us around. We love her & she sure is the boss! Can't nobody work that pointer finger like she can when she's making orders.

Having a good ol' time but we're excited for my dad to get here on Thursday night!
Dad can work that index finger right back at her. She is the most out-of-control backseat driver, especially with Dad. She makes all kinds of grunts and gasps and airbrakes when he's driving the car. Then they always have the same conversation:

Dad: Lora!
Mom: Well, you were getting close to that 18-wheeler
Dad: You know what? It's a miracle that I get to work everyday without you in the passenger seat telling me what to do.
Mom: I agree, it is a miracle!

The end. God love 'em.

5.26.2008

The Big Easy Debacles


Mary Lou & Baby Girl




Me & the besty, Mary Lou



I had the best time in New Orleans. I love that city, folks. There is no other place like it. It has such a unique feel and culture and you could just walk around all day long and never get tired of seeing beautiful homes, fantastic art, and smelling mouth-watering food.





I won't tell all the stories in this post because it would be entirely too long. Suffice it to say that I loved getting to see my pregnant best friend (baby is going to be a girl!) and her hubs, Brian. It was Mary Lou's 25th birthday and we ate yum crawfish. My favorite thing about crawfish is peeling. Because you work hard for your food and it makes you appreciate it more, you know? It tastes better because you worked for it.




We rode the street cars in New Orleans. You should've seen us sprinting after the street car a good 100 yards from the street car stop. Don't worry, we caught it and then we rode to the end of St. Charles. THEN the streetcar driver made everyone get off, she flipped all the seats around, and made everyone pay to get back on. Mary Lou and I were cracking up but it was worth it because St. Charles' Street homes are beautiful and I saw the house that was on Flip that House. Anyone? The historic home turned into a duplex? Anywhoos...

Mary Lou & I are opposites in many ways. I wish I was as organized and crafty as she was. Look at her new project- she's actually growing herbs in her kitchen! Go Martha, it's your birthday!



The 90's version of trivial pursuit lasted over 4 hours. I finally pulled out a win- although Mary Lou had dropped out of the game at this point. She was a wee bit sleepy. It was 2 a.m., after all...




It was hot & humid and I loved it. I forgot about taking a shower, drying your hair, putting on your makeup and walking out the door to be hit with 100% humidity and your face melts off. But I brought back the warmth with me and it feels like summer here in Erie! More New Orleans stories to come- for now, I'm going to spend some time with my 2 boys & go pick up my mom at the airport- woohoo!

5.22.2008

Adios.

Dear Blogsters,

Gone to New Orleans-
be back soon!

Love,
Camille

5.21.2008

Personal Butler

Adam finished his last final today, Praise the Lord- Hallelujah. I'm so proud of him for working so hard this year. Tonight he asked me if I was excited about having a housemaid. Yes, yes I am.

I'm off to enjoy some relaxation with my husband before the trip to the Bayou. Oh, Jeeves? Could you get me some water with one lemon slice and three cubes of ice? Stat.

Just kidding.

5.20.2008

Potterheads Anonymous

Am I becoming a potterhead? (Not to be confused with a pothead- I'm not smoking the weed, folks)

Let's start from the beginning. Adam loves Harry Potter books. I look over and he's smiling like a little boy as he reads about Harry and his adventures at Hogwarts. I took great pleasure in teasing Adam about Harry Potter. I've seen the movies with Adam and I enjoyed them but I never read the books. Adam would insist, tell me that I'd love Harry Potter if I'd just give him a chance. I never did. On Thursday night, I finished my fiction book and didn't feel like transferring to my non-fiction book so I went downstairs and searched the bookshelves for a new book to embark upon. Even an old one would do.... something I haven't read six times already...okay, fine. I'll get the first Harry Potter book and read it until I fall asleep.

Three hours later, I finally had to will myself to shut the book and turn out my lamp. Adam slept peacefully beside me, satisfied, somehow knowing that he had converted me into a Potterhead. Over the past five days, I finished the first two Harry Potter books and am into the third Harry Potter book- the Prisoner of Azkaban. They're fantastic- such fun reads but also with good life lessons, I think. Lessons about the choices we make and loyalty and integrity. But also I laugh out loud when I read them sometimes because those Weasley boys are stinkin' funny.

So I think I'm a Potterhead. I'm joining the ranks of my husband, best pal Mary Lou, and billions of twelve year olds.

I only wish that I could read at work...

5.19.2008

NOLA weekend

Did I mention that my best pal is flying me to New Orleans this weekend? It's true- it's Mary Lou's birthday & she so kindly bought me a plane ticket so I can see her turn 25 and pregnant. Wait, I won't see her turn pregnant... just be pregnant. Regardless, I am beyond excited!

Since it's about 49 degrees here i'm definitely ready for all the humidity and heat that I can stand! Not to mention, heavily spiced food, Nawlins accents, succulent crawfish, streetcars, and, Praise the Lord, sweet tea!!!!

Adam will be holding down the fort with the Pow-wow pup. I think he's going to eat Smith sausages with a side of beef for supper and wings for dessert every night while I'm gone.

5.17.2008

Hot Dog Juice

Today, Bethany & I had our first experience at the Erie city mission. First of all, please know that I am not on a high horse and I do not think that I am Mother Teresa, okay? But I think everybody wants to help and be used by God and our church is providing outlets for people to go out into the community and serve the poor and hurting, which is awesome. Okay, with that said- we had our first city mission lunch experience today. It was a blast. We did some food prep & then went out and served people as they came through the line. I personally was on hot dog patrol and also would you like fish or chicken on the side patrol. Hot dog patrol is hilarious as I got a little dog juice in my eye from a back splash a time or two. But you gotta get those dogs out fast! Can't keep the folks waiting!

It was eyeopening to see how many folks are hungry in Erie and needing a meal. Bethany & I were blessed by being there and enjoyed visiting with the many folks that came through and reminded how much we have (food, shelter, beds, car) that we don't deserve. I'm so grateful for our church providing these opportunities to go out & serve and love like Jesus loved.

Now, I must touch on another note, that is LOST. You know, this year, I've kinda been like Ugh, Lost. Too many plots. Not enough time. How are we going to pull all these loose threads together? I even thought about just quitting. Throwing in the towel, saying Enough is enough! But this week's episode has reaffirmed my investment in LOST. Finally, so much is happening and I feel like we're returning to movement, momentum, things happening. Score.

By the way, it appears that Jim won our "Who Would You Have Dinner With" contest. Congratulations, Jim. New poll coming soon.

Have a great weekend!

5.15.2008

Certain Dri Firey Fire

Have you ever used Certain Dri? I discovered it when I was 17 years old and it's amazing. Basically, it's a antiperspirant that you roll on before you go to bed. But it's really strong and once you use it then you never, ever sweat under your armpits. Seriously, I used it every night for like 3 months and then I quit using it and went back to normal SECRET solid but I still didn't have a drip of sweat under my armpits for like 6 months. Not even on a run in the heat of the Louisiana summer. Like, not even if it's 100 degrees and you're wearing a skintight yellow shirt and sitting on metal bleachers in the noonday sun. No moisture. It just sucks you dry, dude. Anywhoos, I'll go on spurts of using it along with my normal deodorant during the day and it's a wonder stick, especially during hot summer days in the south.

Well, yesterday, I "dry shaved" under my arms. Yes, that's gross and weird but it has to do with the story. So, I dry-shaved before work and then I went to work and about my day, yadee yadee had a great day, la la. Then, before I went to bed, I rolled on my certain dri antiperspirant. Just like normal, right? Well, as I read my book in bed, I noticed that my armpits were a little itchy but that's not totally abnormal. I mean, sometimes they're a little itchy when they're being sucked dry by Certain Dri. So I put it out of my mind and fell asleep shortly afterwards.

Then, in the middle of the night, I shot straight up in bed. My armpits were on fire. This was the most intense, horrid firey pain. And, what a weird place to wake you up out of sleep because it's hurting, right? So, I got up out of bed and quickly stumbled into the bathroom and lifted up my arm. No horrible rash just a little redness. Okay, no problem- just grab the handy-dandy aloe lotion and smear it on.

Ho-hum.

It was basically like pouring gasoline on the fire. My underarms were ablaze with heat & pain. I whimpered back into the bed, hoping it'd go away- that it was a necessary pain that came before the recovery. No. Even worse, Adam and Powers slept through my whimpering and gave me no sympathy. How rude! Minutes later, I made another trip to the restroom where I soaked a towel in water and scrubbed the fire out of my underarms hoping to appease the anger of the certain dri/aloe lotion cocktail. It worked- minutes later, the pain had subsided and I was back in bed.

I think that I probably broke skin when i dry shaved and then the certain dri creeped in and reaped havock on my pits. Nonetheless, I am dry as can be and flowerfresh. Thank you, Certain Dri.

The End.

5.14.2008

Too much V-8?

Food Addict made a comment that I looked orange in that wedding picture- she's totally right! I think I got a little "Happy" with the boost feature on Flickr's website. Here is the pre-shopped picture versus the Flickr boosted picture.




Whoops! Maybe should've left it alone.

5.13.2008

Two Years Ago, Tonight...



Off to enjoy time with my phenom-husband of TWO years- have a great night!

P.S. Whoa, we were really tan back in Texas...

5.11.2008

Labor of Love

This morning, Bethany & I had our first go at volunteering for the church nursery. We were in the room with the babies (under 2) and we had a lot of laughs, fun, and a little body fluid but, hey, that's what kleenex's were invented for. I love to watch the expression on the kiddos' faces when their moms or dads come to pick them up. It's such a look of joy. The mom's I saw looked right back at them with a loving smile. I thought about how those moms (and dads, but it's mothers' day so we'll focus on you in June) labor all day and night to provide for and take care of those kids. They nurture, love, discipline, bathe, clean, clothe, feed, calm, rock, change diapers, referee, and so much more without a "Thank you" from those babies. I don't have any kids, so I don't know that love yet but I find it amazing and inspiring. The delight that a mom and dad takes in their child models the love that the Lord takes in us- not because we earn it but just because we're His.

I thought about my own mom, today, and the times that I put her through. I wasn't a very quiet child and I sure wasn't a respectful pre-teen. I was blessed and receiving so much that I did not deserve but was not grateful. I'm so thankful that my mom (and dad- but again, it's mothers' day) kept loving me, kept asking me about my day, kept disciplining me, kept after my heart. It modeled the unconditional love of our Savior, the slow to anger & rich in love God of the Universe.

Most moms that i know are plagued with guilt- they feel like they're failing, not doing enough, not loving well enough, not making organic baby food and canning it in your own vegetable garden/cellar. There is weird comparison that happens amongst moms and lots of women feel like they fall short. I think that's a horrible attack of the enemy. I love what the Bible says:

"The generous prosper and are satisfied; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed."
-Proverbs 11:25

"I live in that high and holy place with those whose spirits are contrite and humble. I refresh the humble and give new courage to those with repentant hearts"
-Is. 57:15

Great promise to claim! Moms walk so humbly and selflessly refresh and serve us. Thank you. Praying that you Moms are refreshed today by the goodness of God!

Thanks, Mom! For teaching me about discipline, integrity, and purity. For making me call and apologize if I was rude to someone, for cheering me on even when I groaned at you, and for teaching me how to listen well to others. Thank you, Jule, for raising Adam into a man who is so loving and so trustworthy. Thanks for not letting him get into the car with yahoos, for driving him to races all over the country, and encouraging him. You both protected us and loved us well. We are thankful for you!!!

5.10.2008

Over-Eager Bear

After church tonight, our friends Josh & Bethany came over to grill some hamburgers. Even though it got a little chilly, we enjoyed sitting around outside, reminiscing on childhood breakfasts, and laughing over a delicious, frosty beverage. It was fun. Now I'm watching Bear Gryllis pee into a black tarp and show us how to survive on a deserted island. Why is he always eating creepy crawlies and drinking his own pee before he's even been there 5 minutes? Dude, wait a while until you're thirsty or at least until you've walked around a bit. I mean, you might find a coconut or a Burger King if you'll just hold your horses.
"In this world, you will have trouble. But fear not, I have overcome the world!"
John 16:33

He is victorious.

5.09.2008

Blogalicious, Definition:

Some gal pals & I started a new blog. You can check it out here.

It's basically stories, musings, thoughts, and rants about being married to medical students and what life looks like. Feel free to take a looksie. I guess that I kinda like blogging. Maybe Powers can start a blog on what it's like to be the pet of a medical student. He's very troubled.

5.08.2008

Teeth Cleanin' Time

I have suggested giving Powers a good ol' mouth cleaning for some time now. You see, everytime he licks you, your arm smells like sun-baked poop. Adam always resisted- saying how unnatural it was to brush a dog's teeth. So we'd try the floss bones, mint chews, but nothing really helped. Lately, though, Powers' breath has reached an all-time stank, resembling decaying fish mixed with rotten eggs. Adam finally agreed to the ol' brushy-brush. We found an old toothbrush and used Arm & Hammer baking soda toothpaste.


Wait, what is that? Yum, I need to lick it.




Ugh, wait, wait. No. this is not beefy! This is...(gasp) good for me!




Wait, this baking soda is surprisingly refreshing. That commercial IS right.




Yeah, get that cranny right there. I've been tasting that old piece of chicken for weeks.




Time out- I've got a booger.




Resume please, thank you.





Try Arm & Hammer baking soda toothpaste. Co-stanza.



By the way, if you're a guest at our house and you happen to see that same toothbrush in your guest basket... don't worry! It just LOOKS the same, okay? It's a different toothbrush, though. Yeah...

Te amo, RSVP.

Freakface recently posted about his affinity for the Pentel G2 pens. Adam likes these pens, too. I don't understand it! I hate them- they make my handwriting look like a serial killer's! The G2 hates me and wants me to write like an 8th grade boy's graffiti on the bathroom wall!

My penlove? The Pentel RSVP. Never was their a smoother write.

5.07.2008

Refrigerator Budgeting

Adam & I are reassessing our budget. This involves writing every penny spent down on a big, magnetized pad of paper stuck slap on the middle of the refrigerator for the month of May. For every penny spent, the other spouse gets to whip you with a limp spaghetti noodle.

Not really. But it is good for us to write these things down. I think Adam & I can get too reliant on our handy-dandy online checking and money seems more "real" when you're recording it by hand, evidence for all to see (in the kitchen). Like, Powers, for example. He's always judging our spending habits. Not everyone can be as frugal as you, Puppy.

5.06.2008

Whoops-e-daisy/Correction

I got the lyrics wrong on my Gloria Estefan post.

It's supposed to be:
"Turn the beat around
Love to hear the percussion"

You were right, MaryLou. I googled it.

Although I still think that "Love to hear her passion" sounds better.

This post brought to you by the Letter "i" and viewers like you!

Stole this from R.J.

i am: sipping green tea
i think: often (?)
i know: that the Lord is who he says he is.
i want: to go to the beach
i have: an aversion to Estee Lauder Pleasure's perfume. It smells like mothballs. to me. Sorry if you wear it and I offended you.
i wish: for more time with our family
i hate: that plane tickets cost so much
i miss: Katie's custard
i fear: never tasting another sweet bite of delicious Katie's custard brownie sundae with oreo crumbs
i feel: hungry after talking about Katie's custard
i hear: computer keys and high heels clicking
i smell: dust and clorox.
i crave: sunshine
i search: for answers to hard questions- How do I honor God in this season of life? How do i love others better? How do I make the perfect quesdadilla?
i wonder: where we'll live after medical school. And how do they get that white stuff on the inside of twinkies?
i regret: not making more time for my sweet nephews last year
i love: stepping outside after work on Friday's- the whole weekend stretched out ahead of me
i ache: for girls who are sold into brothels, human trafficking
i care: about experiencing delicious Mexican food
i always: eat a blueberry smoothy for breakfast. Ingredients: frozen blueberries, protein powder, skim milk. Blend. Sip through bendy straw.
i am not: deserving of mercy and grace.
i believe: that Jesus is the hope of the world.
i dance: like a spaz. Seriously, watch out.
i sing: loudly, in my car, in the shower, in the mornings.
i don’t always: floss. But I do at least a few nights a week which is a vast improvement from college. Once someone told me that if you don't floss, you have rotting food in your mouth, I changed my ways.
i fight: when I feel insecure.
i write: in this blog, in my journal, and on bathroom walls. About you. Just kidding.
i win: sometimes when playing speedscrabble.
i lose: when I try to win an argument. Win the battle, lose the war?
i never: forget my sunscreen facial moisturizer.
i confuse: Powers when I try to explain my emotions to him.
i listen: happily to my besty tell me about the baby growing in her.
i can usually be found: drinking something. I'm very hydrated.
i am scared: of snakes. and empty elevator shafts. and empty swimming pools like in that old drug-free America commercial.
i need: to run. It balances my emotions, I get to spend time in creation, it makes me a better woman.
i am happy about: the sweet sunshine outside and small group tonight!

5.05.2008

Creamy, Crunchy.

For Cinco de Mayo, do you know what song is in my head? Gloria Estefan- "Turn the beat arouuuuuund.... love to hear her passion! Turn it upside doooooown! Love to hear it, love to hear it, love to hear it!"

Adam Jennings eats an entire jar of Jiff reduced fat, crunchy peanut butter every week. It used to be Peanut Pan honey roast crunchy but after the salmonella debacle, they only make creamy. Boo. Back in Waco, at the "gucci" HEB, there were peanut butter machines. The best machine was the honey roasted peanut butter machine- inside was pounds and pounds of honey roasted peanuts. Pull the lever and the peanuts went through the grinder and out came the oozy, delicious, honey roasted peanut butter. Mmmmm. Maybe I should add that to my Amazon wishlist.

Celebracion!

Bloggy Nation,
Happy Cinco De Mayo!

¡Olé!

and....Happy Birthday, Biggest Brother! Well, yesterday. But you didn't answer your phone. I hope you got my gushygram. Love you!

Biggest Brother & Littlest Nephew.

5.03.2008

Adam R. Jennings, Child Prodigy

Remember yesterday how I said that if you go to the grocery story hungry, you end up with random purchases? Like, ones that weren't on the list? Well mine would be like cookie dough, ice cream, classic junk food. Adam's random, hungry purchases are always organic cereals, almonds & pistachios, or fiber-filled yogurt. Sigh, I have so much left to teach him.

Adam will laugh really hard at your jokes. He'll make you feel like you're really funny and he'll also stomp a joke into the ground with you like it's a shovel (Yes- Poor analogy but what else do you stomp into the ground?)

I'm not sure what will Adam will do if anything ever happens to Powers. He loves that dog. They are best pals. But we think Powers will probably live until we have grandchildren, at least, so our grandkids can console us.

Adam is a man of routine. He eats the same things everyday except for supper or if there are leftovers for lunch- blueberry, protein smoothie and coffee at 5 a.m., then at 7:45 a.m. a half banana/peanutbutter sandwich. Fastfoward to 10:30 a.m.- he eats a Builder's Bar. Then for lunch? He makes an omelet at home. And so forth and so on.

Adam's really disciplined. He wakes up at 5 a.m. to study. Do you know what I do at 5 a.m. when he wakes up? I run downstairs and make him pancakes. Not really, I stay in bed and snuggle with Powers for another hour.

Adam belongs to Jesus. He is a man who seeks to honor God.

Adam loves beef.

Adam makes the coffee every day.

To bed, Adam wears a pair of spongebob pajama pants from Walmart that are practically shreds, he's had them so long. It's kind of like wearing a loincloth at this point.

Adam lets me put my cold feet on him at night.

Adam loves being outside, in creation.

Adam has a smokin' body.

Adam will be an incredible doctor.

He's a good man, that one.


This is a picture of him from right before we got married- he looks really calm, right? Like, he was making such a good decision- he was confident of that.

5.02.2008

Friday Night Wild Nights

Going to the grocery store on Friday night is the bomb, people. Adam & I can whip through without worrying about traffic jams in produce and we can take our time bargain shopping for fusilli (yes, I'm making this pasta again, Adam wants to try it with buffalo instead of shrimp this time.) We may be big dorks for grocery shopping on Friday nights but it's so much fun, people, and at least we have each other. Word to the wise, though- don't go grocery shopping when you're hungry. We definitely see the difference in our checking account & cabinets correlate. We'll end up with some random snacks in the house that I didn't even see Adam slip into the buggy. Oh, alright- I might do it a little bit, too.

I do have to let you know- I bought tofurkey again. I can't help it- I like it, folks!

5.01.2008

Eat Milk, Be Skinny?

Disclaimer: This post is rated "P" for potty-talk and may not be appropriate for squeamish ninnymuggins who don't like to discuss bowel movements. It may contain the word "poo." Reader discretion is advised.

The other night, Adam & I watched a show on Discovery Health about food. They discussed many experiments and studies and one in particular concerned the power of milk. Basically, these fine Swedish researchers wanted to know if milk would bind to fat in your digestive system and therefore you would flush more fat out instead of absorbing it.

To perform this study, they had subjects eat the same calorie & fat content meals but with varying amount of dairy during the day. Then the poor subjects had to poop into these jars and take them down to the lab. Then the Swedish lab folks took the poo and hammered it out, flattened it with a rolling pin, freeze-dried it, and an assortment of other weird, slightly disturbing things. Then they found out (by some magical science way) how much fat was in the poo.

During an interview, one of the researchers said (with her milk-maid, Swedish accent)
"Yes. It was quite difficult- the smell was not nice."

No kidding, sister.

Anywhoos, then the researchers took one of the subjects out to this barn. (For some bizarre reason, this scene played out at a farm.) Then they showed him the bucket with all his poop in it.

(Remember the swedish, milk-maid accents when you read this:)

"This is your poop from the last week." The two female researchers (now dressed in street clothes instead of white astronaut suits) said.

"Oh, is that all?" The tall, lanky subject asked.

"Ja, ja, ja." They all laughed.

Painful. Cringe. Adam and I were rolling.

Then, they showed him the fat comparisons from a dairy-filled week verses a non-dairy filled week. The difference in poo-fat was unbelievable. Something like 80% more fat came out in your poo during dairy week.

So maybe those milk ads are right, people. We could learn from the Swedish pooers.