have any of you seen the veggietales “the ballad of little joe”?  besides the very clever ties to Bonanza, the silly song with larry part is a total spoof on a boy-band music video.  it’s HILARIOUS!!! 

got this book for my birthday.  it was perfect timing b/c i’ve been reading the book of Job in my quiet times!  so i read this book this morning.  john piper is just brilliant.  good stuff.  it’s a little book – read it in one sitting – and i can’t wait to read it again.

currently eating: oatmeal!  yummy!

trying to get back into exercising.  i wish i was a jogger/runner.  never have been.  but it’s just so stinkin’ good for you!  yesterday becky and i decided to go jogging together.  it was great!  jogging is totally different when you do it with someone.  so we’re going to try and do it together several times a week.  hooray!  back to exercising! 

on the caribbean – my parental units are totally rooting for me to go on the cruise!  all i really have to work out is taking the time off work…

the heater in my office is broken or something, and it’s absolutely freezing!

met with  janelle for coffee last night.  totally a spontaneous thing.  and it was wonderful!  i was so encouraged by our conversation.  what a blessing her friendship is! 

“welcome to the Caribbean, love”
OH MY GOSH!!!!  i just got a message from a man in our church saying that he and his wife are planning on going on a Caribbean cruise in late April and they were wondering if i would be interested in going along to take care of their 1 year old baby (who, btw, is like the sweetest, most mellow, adorable baby in the church!)!  he was dropping phrases like, “at our expense of course” and “we’ll compensate you”!  i have no idea if i can go or not (biggest issue will be getting time off work) – for the love, i just found out a couple minutes ago and i can’t get ahold of either of my parents so i called my cousin to freak out over the phone with me!!!  this is so crazy!  me?  go on a caribbean cruise?  this is the type of thing one dreams about doing for your honeymoon or your 20th anniversary, not as a newly 21 year-old!    wowser!  :::dancing all around with excitement:::  i’ll keep y’all posted with what develops…. 

out of the mouths of babes
comical anecdote from yesterday…  our church is having a valentine’s sweetheart banquet for all married or engaged couples on feb. 13th.  this past sunday i was running the sign-up table b/c our admin. assist. was out of town.  basically i was just handing out the sign-up forms and collecting checks.  well, my little friend Andrea (pronounced “awn-DRAY-uh”) – who is 8 years old – comes up and asks me, “are you going to that?” as she points to the banquet sign up forms.  “no, silly” i reply, “i’m not married or engaged.”  she gives me this blank stare and then says firmly, “well, get engaged!”  i looked at raigan who was standing there also and started laughing.  andrea then adds “you’re beautiful.  you need one!”  i looked at her and said, “i’m working on it, sweetie.  we’ll get there.  and when i have kids, you can come over and babysit them.”  this seemed to satisfy her (i used to bbsit her and her older sisters), and she skipped off happily…  ah, too funny.  thank goodness there weren’t any guys around! 

OKAY!!!  here are the pictures from my weekend with holly!

two peas in a pod….

 

me and holly in becky’s dorm hallway…

me, becky, and holly in becky’s dorm hallway….

me and becky, same place… 

**special thanks to chris for hosting these for me so i could post them!!**

okay, now that that’s taken care of….

the weekend was great!  my bday party went off fabulously!!  it was grand fun!    all the guests arrived in grand costume (it was required that they come as pirates, or the ladies may choose to dress is period attire) at my house, but alas, i was not there.  the story being…  while on my way home, I, the Lady Andrea, was waylaid by Capt. Barbossa and carried off.  my guests were now sent on a mission to visit various places that i frequent (by following clues they obtained at each stop).  after visiting six different “ports,” (my school, my cousin’s house, my caregroup leader’s house, the church, the local starbucks and movie theatre) they found me at a small clubhouse in bethany’s neighborhood.  turns out, i was not actually kidnapped, but rather invited by Capt. Barbossa to join him aboard his ship for an evening of festivities and all who participated in the “treasure hunt” were welcome to join us.  thus the party began.  the house was wonderfully decorated with everything from strings of pearls, a mini treasure chest and seashells, to candles, fish netting, and maps hanging on the wall.  we fellowshipped for awhile and then sat down for a delicious dinner of ham, scalloped potatoes and green beans.  we played Pirate Jeopardy and there was even a very special song for me sung by joshua carden on his accordian (no joke!), and accompanied by his band of… mates.  it was hilarious!  the chorus was something to the effect of:

yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum
she’s turned 21, now she can have some
january 12th was her real birthday
we were busy then, so we’ll celebrate today!

the crowning moment of the entire party, however, happened very near the beginning when my good friend John Anderson arrived dressed to the hilt as Capt. Jack Sparrow!  oh.  my.  gosh.  it was the best costume i have ever seen!  complete with a wig and little braids extending from his chin.  beads in the hair, hat atop a red scarf-thing wrapped around his head.  vest, belt, gun.  it was all there.  even the eyeliner.  yes, even the eyeliner.  he came sauntering in as only jack sparrow can and i completely lost it laughing.  i was nearly doubled over as i cracked up!  he swaggered over to me and flourished his fingers as he took my hand.  then he opened his mouth!  “happy birthday, love” he said with the perfect jack sparrow accent and mannerisms as he kissed my gloved hand.  it was quite literally all i could do to not die laughing.  it was hilarious and massively impressive.  and what was more – he stayed in character the entire evening!!  granted, he would converse about normal things, but without forfeiting the accent and mannerisms, etc. of his character.  it was superb.  it completely made my night! 

my dear and wonderful friend, luz (www.xanga.com/fiatluz – btw, how do i make just her name be the link, instead of having to type out the entire site?) heroically and generously offered to be the Party Photographer and take dozens of digital pictures which will be up online in a week or so.  i’ll be sure to post the website so you can all go look at pictures of the grand evening!  

after the festivites were over, everyone was invited to return to my house to watch Pirates of the Caribbean on the “big screen” – projected from my Dad’s laptop onto a large wall in our family room, creating a screen approximately 6ft wide by 4ft tall.  very cool! 

so the party was a success.  one that will definitely go down in history.  and i owe it all to my dear and devoted friend bethany.  it was all her idea and she made it all happen.  i don’t deserve her as a friend.  she is amazing!

oh, and in case you hadn’t noticed, i am listening to the Pirates soundtrack, which i received for my birthday from ashley!    it’s way fun!

one last thing…  so, what am i going to do next?  I’M GOING TO DISNEYLAND!!!!  raigan and i got the “bug” to do a little weekend roadtrip to disneyland after watching the bonus footage on the Pirates DVD about the original attraction.  so, the plan is to drive over friday afternoon, february 20th, crash at a friend’s house, get up and drive to disneyland, do disneyland all day until it closes at midnight, drive back and crash again at the friend’s house, then drive home sunday afternoon.  we’re so stinkin’ stoked!! 

“now, bring me that horizon…”

okay, i’m working on the pictures, ’cause they’re not showing up to anyone but me.  snobs. 

i tell ya, only in arizona does the sun shine…while it rains.  haha. 

my brother buzzed his head.  it’s not quite bicked, but it’s pretty close.  he has maybe 1/4″ of hair all over his head.  it’s hideous.  i hate it.  our whole family hates it.  but ryan likes it, so it stays…  my mom did the cutting (after much begging and convincing on my brother’s part), and afterwards, she goes, “hi, this is my son, Private Ryan Lambros.”  haha. 

my birthday party is saturday!  woo-hoo!!  i’m having a Pirates party thrown for me by my wonderful friend bethany.  it’s going to be so stinkin’ cool!  everyone has to come in costume!    i won’t write more until after the party for fear of giving away any surprises.  but i am really excited!  i’m wearing a somewhat formal blue dress that i’ve had for a couple years, and we’re adding a few touches to make it look more old fashioned – like, lace around the collar, a petticoat under the skirt, gloves, a brocade waistband, a cameo broach worn at the neck, pearl earrings…  it’s going to be so much fun!   

here are 2 more pics from my weekend in texas –

me and holly outside becky’s dorm:

we really are “two peas in a pod”…

thanks for the pics holly!

on another note…
tuesday i came home from work and walked into my bedroom.  and there i found a…present.  but not just any ordinary present, and not from any ordinary person.  no no.  my doggy – a yorkie/silky mix – had left me a “trophy” that she had “caught” in the backyard.  yes, ladies and gentlemen, there was a dead bird laying in the middle of my bedroom floor.  with feathers.  all over.  ::shudder::  it was quite disgusting i tell you.  i used kitchen tongs to put it in a bag and then vacuumed up the feathers.  and my dog followed me around with this look on her face like, “what are you doing?  that’s my trophy!  aren’t you proud?”  and in some ways, i was proud.  my little BG has been chasing birds in the backyard for all 9 years of her doggy life and this is only the 2nd time she has caught one.  so i was a little proud… once i got over being grossed-out. 

a couple pictures from the weekend…

me, holly, and becky outside becky’s dorm at UT…

me and becky, same place…

hopefully more will come (if holly emails them to me!  )

site note: okay, okay!  holly, i uploaded the picture!  if any of you are interested in seeing me as a dead pirate, check out my new profile pic.  and you better look quick ’cause i’m changing the pic back in a couple of days! 

well, as i’m sure most of you know, i went and visited holly (www.xanga.com/hollywynn) this weekend in college station, texas!!  below is the play-by-play of the weekend.

holly and her roomate bethany picked me up at the austin airport friday evening.  we drove back to CS talking and laughing about movies, shopping, boys, getting lost, etc.  it was raining like the dickens most of the way back.  we arrived safely nevertheless despite 2 stray dogs on the highway and a few distracted-driver moments.    the house where holly and her 3 roommates live (only 2 of them were there, though) is SOOO cute!!!  i seriously fell in love with the house, the roommates and the whole idea of where and how they live.  it totally made me want to move into a little house with friends!  haha!  holly and i made a late night trip to H E B to pick up some groceries since the fridge and cuboards were quite bare.  then we stayed up until nearly 3am talking, looking at pictures…  holly gave me a way cool journal that she had covered the outside with various fun pictures and sayings and then modge-podged.  it is SOO fun!  it has a pic of us on it, a pic of THE best scene from Pirates, 2 peas in a pod, and even an “A”.  yes, i totally love it!  we eventually fell into bed and didn’t stir much until 10:45 the next morning.  we got up and made waffles (and can holly make some killer waffles!!) and sat in our pajamas talking some more and looking at her scrapbooks from the summer and her debutante year.  eventually we decided to meet the outside world.  we got dressed, etc. and holly took me on a walk around Lancaster Place (where she lives) and the university (Texas A&M).  i got to see where she has most of her classes and we discovered together where some of her up-coming classes will be.  what a beautiful campus!  since we ate so late and didn’t really want lunch per se, we hit starbucks instead and then headed to the mall to see if we couldn’t find me a cute A&M shirt.  i found one, but they only had XXL, so i’ll wait until i get around to sending holly a check and she can send it to me.  i didn’t buy a t-shirt, but it’s okay b/c JC Penneys was having a huge sale and i came away with some *other* treasures – a Calvin and Hobbes book (LOVE those!), another pair of jeans ($17.99!), AND a great little black dress that i had seen a couple months ago, totally wanted, and found for only $29.99!  woo-hoo!!  i was quite thrilled.  then we hit Freebird’s for dinner.  it’s kind of like Chipotle but not quite so mexican.  i liked it!  after Freebird’s we went to 1/2 Price Books and i found a copy of The Inheritance, which is louisa may alcott’s first novel.  i’ve seen the movie and i think i’ve read the book too, and loved both and am now happy to own it!  at this point, it was only like, 9pm.  we went back to the house and had WAY too much fun exploring the special features on the DVD of Pirates.  did you know that if you put the disks into your computer, there are a ton of other features??  like, the dead pirate picture one.  we scanned in pictures and created dead pirate versions of ourselves!  you can also watch the film with the original script or the original storyboard pictures running next to it.  very fascinating.  then one of the guys who lives in lancaster place – ben wilson – came by to hang out.  holly and i chatted for a little bit then went to Shakes to get ice cream – can you tell we did a lot of eating this weekend??    when we got back we sat in the living room with ben and katie and bethany and chatted some more.  then ben’s brother garrett joined us and we all talked till like, 1am.  the beds were calling our names so off we went, but not after some more holly-andrea conversation right before bed…  the next morning it was stinkin’ freezing out!  we went to church and somehow got stuck under an A/C vent.  brrr!  after church we stopped back at the house so i could pack up my things and change clothes before the drive to austin (but not after one more trip to starbucks).  when we got to austin we met becky parry for lunch and a cute place called Kerbey Lane.  their specialty that day was pumpking pancakes, which holly and becky both got and i tasted.  they were good!!  after lunch we went and visited becky’s dorm and looked at more pictures.  we weren’t able to stay long ’cause i had to get to the airport, but it was still so good to see becky and spend some time with her too.  she’s cut her hair and it looks ADOREABLE!  well, it was sad to have to say goodbye again to holly…  we seriously had so much fun just hanging and talking and doing everyday stuff together.  i wish that we lived in the same place.  holly totally cracks me up and gets me crazy and out of my box.  i love it.  i was also very encouraged being able to talk and realize how much we agree and understand each other and yet we come from very different backgrounds and families and lives.  it’s so awesome how God brings people together and knits them in friendship and love. 

holly, i love you girly!!!  thanks for giving up your weekend to spend it with me – i had a WONDERFUL time!!!  did i forget to blog about anything?  can you email me a few pics from the weekend?  grazi

and if you want to hear holly’s side of the weekend, check out her blog (URL above)!   

and now i’m back to reality.  work.  but i have great things to look forward to!  like, my Pirates bday party that’s coming up this saturday!!  that’s going to be mucho fun!  can’t wait!  maybe i’ll post some pictures if i can figure out how…. 

well, i did it.  i went had my first *drink* as a 21 year old.  ::gasp::  my cousin and i went to happy hour at applebee’s last night b/c we were both starving and wanted to spend time together.  and i got a drink (and an appetizer).  now, i must first explain that i honestly don’t like the taste of alcohol at all.  for the love!  it’s fermented!!  bleck.  i’ve tasted wine and beer and a strawberry daqueri and didn’t like any of them (although i like strawberry daqueris without the alcohol).  but i wanted to try something now that i was “official,” so i did.  i got a mud slide.  okay all of you who drink on occasion, stop laughing.  i know i know.  mud slides have practically no alcohol in them and you can’t even really taste it.  hello – why do you think i chose it????    and actually, i rather enjoyed it, thank you.  so i’ve officially crossed over and both purchased and consumed an alcholic beverage by choice.  “and [she] liked it!”  (Sandlot)  woo-hoo!!  go 21! 

i leave this afternoon for texas!!  9 hours till my plane departs!  11 hours till i see holly!