What I'm Loving Wednesday!

Guess what??????  It's Wednesday, and that means it's time to head on over to Jamie's blog and tell the blog world what I'm loving:

 This Wednesday, I'm loving:

1.  That our kickball season starts in less than 2 weeks!  For those who don't know, this is a pretty big deal in my group of friends, and this year Patrick and I are co-coaching our team!

2.  That the ladies of Sweet Valley are back!  And this time, they are older, wiser, and probably into every bit as much trouble as usual.  I can't wait to download this book to my Kindle:

3.  Twitter!  Seriously, I am addicted...I love following everyone during their daily lives...

4.  My daddy!!!!!  He has a birthday in a few days and this Wednesday, I'm loving him because he has always been such a good father! 

Here he is with my mom and Patrick at Andi's wedding last summer!

5.  That my car will be PAID OFF in less than 2 months!  WOOHOO!

Well, that's all from me for this evening...hope you all have wonderful Thursdays!

#36 -- DONE!!!!!

I really wish this blog post was more exciting, but honestly, if it wasn't for the fact that this is on my 101 Things list, I wouldn't even bother blogging about it.  What is this boring task you ask?  Well, I FINALLY (after more than 9 months of not having one) bought a DVD player.  Yep, I told you...pretty boring...that's what happens when Patrick and I decide we want to rent a movie on a Saturday night!  The last time this happened we had to snuggle around my laptop because we forgot I didn't have a DVD player until we got back to my house.  At least we remembered before Target closed!  =)

Weekend Update!

Here it is again...Sunday night...my how I always dread this evening...at least I've had a nice, relaxing weekend!

Friday night was supposed to be a laundry/relax at home kinda evening while Patrick headed out with the guys...well, much to my surprise, he called me around 5:00 and said that the guys had decided to invite the ladies to dinner with them, and would I like to meet them at the local pizzeria -- Pie in the Sky!  Since I hadn't seen my beau in a few days (darn tax season), and because, quite frankly, I was in the mood for some friend time, I decided to head straight there after work!  It was so fun catching up with everyone. 

On Saturday, the rainy, cold weather kept us from heading to the drive-in, so after working for most of the day, Patrick and I headed to dinner that night.  We were trying to go to Bonefish, but since the wait was over an hour, and I was starving, we settled for Jefferson's, a local bar and grille.  Despite the fact that it felt like a cold winter night and not a nice March evening, we decided it was essential to head to Sweet Cece's for some frozen yogurt after dinner.  YUMMY!

Sunday was pretty low-key as well.  I made breakfast, finished laundry from earlier in the week, ran 7 miles, went to the grocery store, and made tons of food for lunch and dinner this week.  I'm a little concerned about my running...my knees have really been hurting, and I was hoping the new shoes would solve the problem...no such luck.  After talking to several runners, I'm fairly convinced it's my IT band...and according to Mickey, they make a knee brace for this problem...I'll definitely be looking into that this week before my 8 mile run next Sunday!

One final note...is anyone besides me watching the Celebrity Apprentice?  I think it's really neat that 'Lil John's charity is the United Methodist Home for Children.  Having been raised a United Methodist, I will always have a special place in my heart for any charity affiliated with the United Methodist Church.  I sometimes feel like the Methodist church is struggling and my hope is that 'Lil John can bring a lot of positive attention to this organization!

Well, that's all from me...hope you all have a wonderful week!

Twitter

So, after all this time of wondering what on earth was the fascination Twitter, I have caved...thanks to Amber at The Daily Dose, I am now an official twitterer (if that's even a word).  Yep, you can check me out at nashmelrose!  Please feel free to follow me...oh, and if you can teach me how this whole thing works, it would be greatly appreciated!  Kay, Thanks!

What I'm Loving Wednesdays!

So, I haven't been able to link up with Jamie's WILW posts in a long time...so excited to be telling you this week that I'm loving...

1.  That my beau and I are heading to the drive-in movies this weekend...weather permitting...and we might even have some friends join us!

2.  That I actually got to run tonight!  I only ran a little more than 2.5 miles, but I was sooooo happy to get back out there!  AND, I love my new shoes.  =)

This is the way I wish I looked today!

3.  That I am finally feeling better from this awful cold/sinus infection/flu that I have had lingering around for the last week!  Yes, I said flu!  Unfortunately, my beau got sick on Sunday afternoon (and I am most likely the guilty party who infected him), and when he went to the doctor this morning he tested positive for the flu!  YIKES!  I can't believe I had the flu and didn't even realize it!  AND, I had a flut shot! 

4.  That work has been much less stressful this week...the long hours are still hanging around, but the stress level has at least dropped a little bit.  It will be a nice break because I'm sure the next 3 weeks will be crazy!

5.  That my mom is coming to Nashville tomorrow to clean my condo!  I just realized that there is really no way to say this that doesn't make me sound like a spoiled brat!  I promise, I'm really not...I just have a REEEEEEAAAAAAAALY good mom!!!!!

6.  And, last but not least...I'm loving these quote boards that I found tonight:

Head on over to This Kind of Love and tell us what you're loving!

I Think I'm Hooked!

Ladies and Gentlemen (maybe I should change this to GentleMAN, since I'm pretty sure my beau is the only male reader of this blog so no reason for the plural), I am going crazy!  This whole being sick thing is for the birds...not ONLY did I miss my 7 mile run this weekend, but I haven't been able to exercise since last Thursday and I am about to go stir crazy!  I actually found myself getting jealous of the work girls when they left the office this afternoon for the evening run that I usually get to participate in.  My what a difference a year makes...this time last year, I was probably thinking to myself about these same ladies, "why on earth do they want to go run when they are working so much?  The last thing I want to do after a long day's work is EXERCISE!"  Well, I am determined that tomorrow my new green running shoes are getting their first workout no matter what happens.  I am beginning to feel better and am really hoping that my hiatus from running didn't set me too far back in my training!  Fingers crossed!!!!!

Oh, and on a completely unrelated subject, please say a quick prayer for one of my BFFs, Anna Catherine...her aunt (who she is really close to) passed away suddenly from a heart attack today.  I'm sure her family can use the prayers right now, and I know they are having a hard time!  Love you, AC!

Well, that's all from me...I'm off to bed...good night everyone!

This is the first time I've ever linked up with Getting to Know You over at MannLand5, but you know how I love Q and A, so I decided to join in the fun.


1. if you won the title of miss america, what would your platform be?
    Definitely the issues surrounding homelessness and hunger!


2. outdoorsy or indoorsy?
    Depends on the day...I love a good campout, but I also love a nice king size bed.  =)

3. pajama's out in public..classy or tres tacky?
    Definitely tacky...my mom taught me better than that!

4. what's your favorite room in your house?
    After the new furniture arrived, it is 100% my bedroom!

5. nook, kindle, or book?
    I L-U-V my Kindle!

6. would you rather wear the same outfit for a week or not brush your teeth for a week?
    They both sound pretty terrible, but I guess I would rather wear the same outfit for a week...at least
    maybe I can do laundry...

7. what's your favorite blog at the moment?
    No way I can narrow this one down, so I'll just say I love you all.  =)

8. lately i've been daydreaming about.........?
    I just realized that I completely forgot to blog about this, but what I am day dreaming about right now (and
   what is getting me through the next 4 weeks) is mine and Patrick's planned trip to Europe late this spring! 
    We are taking a Mediterrenean Cruise and then spending a few extra days in Barcelona!  I. CAN'T.
    WAIT.

Head on over to MannLand5 and tell us about you!

Sickly Weekend Update...

I can't believe it's been a whole week since my last post.  I promise to get right back to it as soon as April 18 has come and gone.  I miss blogging more than I ever thought I would, and just chalk this up to one more thing that makes my life a struggle this time of year.

Anyway, I guess it's time to catch you up on my weekend.  Earlier in the week, I made a proclimation to my boss that I really, really, REALLY needed a day off on Sunday, and would he please tell me exactly what I needed to do to make that happen.  My boss (who is really pretty cool about working on Sundays, and doesn't like doing it either) said that if we finished the big project that is due to the client this Tuesday then there would be absolutely no work on Sunday!  Okay, I can do this...I have a mission, and I will make it happen!  Well, Wednesday night and all day on Thursday I felt a little trace of allergy/sinus issues.  I really didn't think anything about it though because, let's face it...it's March in Middle TN...can't really expect anything else.  Well, by Friday night, I had a full fledged cold.  =(  I pulled my sickly self out of bed on Saturday morning, and headed in to the office because I only had a few more hours of work before my short weekend officially began (and I needed this weekend more than you know). 

By the time I left the office at 2:00 on Saturday, I was feeling a little bit better.  I decided to head over to Fleet Feet and by new running shoes...and BTW, if you haven't been to there, you should definitely check it out.  These are the new shoes I ended up with:

Aren't they pretty?  I've never had green shoes before.  =)

After running a few more errands, I headed home to relax for a few hours.  Still feeling pretty puny, Patrick and I decided to have a quiet night at his house.  He cooked an AH-MAZING crab/shrimp boil, and we "watched" a movie...the quotations are because he watched the movie and did what I do every time I try to watch a DVD...sleep!  =)

By this morning, I was feeling really terrible, but thank goodness, I had a great nurse.  My beau cooked me breakfast, brought me tea and blankets, and made sure I had plenty of medicine on hand.  After laying around most of the day, I decided to try to get out and enjoy this gorgeous day. 

Patrick and I are co-coaching our recreational kickball team.  He had scheduled a practice, and even though I had no intentions of actually doing anything active, I decided to still head out and see everyone.  It turned out to be a really fun day.  After practicing kickball, everyone worked up an appetite, so we headed to eat some bar-b-que.

I am now at home resting, trying to take care of myself, hoping I feel much better tomorrow.  I have a really long week ahead of me, and I need to be at the top of my game.  I am pretty bummed that my illness kept me from running my long run (7 miles) this weekend.  I'm kinda stressed out about it because next week I'm supposed to up it to 8 miles.  Anyone have any suggestions for how to handle this?  Since I'm training to run my first half marathon, I just don't want to do anythng to hurt myself, but I also don't want to miss any of my runs.  Please help anyway you can.  =)

Oh, and I almost forgot...I taught myself to do this over the weekend:

As I mentioned in a previous post, my friend, Elizabeth, from work promised to show me how to knit, and we even made a special trip to the yarn store during lunch one day this week.  Because I was so busy, she never got an opportunity to show me how it's done, so I just decided to check out a video on youtube instead.  My work isn't perfect, and in fact, I'm not even sure that I'll be able to do anything with it, but I'm still pretty pleased with it for my first try!  It's super relaxing and I think I may have found a new hobby...as if I needed to add anything else to my plate.  =)

Well, I hope the weather "in your neck of the woods" was as fabulous as it was here in Nashville this weekend!  Here's to a great week for everyone!

Weekend Update and a Birthday Celebration!

Okay, I give up!  I have been trying not to blog about the hours I am working, but quite frankly, it's so ridiculous, that I just have to share.  As of Saturday, I will have worked 27 days in a row!  And that's assuming that I don't have to work this Sunday.  Let me just tell you...if I have to work this Sunday, NO ONE will want to be around me!!!!!  Yes, I am exhausted; yes, I am stressed; yes, this weekend I was ready to take some time for me and just have fun!  Well, the good news is that I got to do just that on Saturday night!

As I mentioned last week, my beau had a special Birthday this weekend...he turned 35 years old (He doesn't look a day over 28, does he?)!  Every year, he and his friend, Matt throw a huge party to celebrate the day they were born, and even though I have always wanted to throw him a party, I never seem to be able to because of the timing...WELL, this year I decided to make an exception!  No matter what happened, I was throwing Patrick a birthday party!  I knew pretty quickly that I wouldn't be able to do it at my house...no time to clean.  After asking a few friends for some suggestions, my friend Anna Catherine came up with the best idea!  She suggested that I throw him a Progressive Dinner or as I like to call it, a Food Crawl!  I got on it and contacted Erin (Matt's wife) to help me give these guys a night of fun!

First stop of the night: Allium for appetizers...I've mentioned this place before, and I just love it!  It's in a great location, and they gave us the entire bar area Saturday night!  Here are a few pics from one of mine and Patrick's favorite places:

Me with the Birthday Boy!

Patrick with Adam, Alacia, and Hannah!

Matt, the OTHER Birthday Boy and his wife, Erin

Next, it was time to head to dinner.  For that course, we headed to Battered 'n Fried.  This place is not what it sounds!  Sure, it has great fried food, but they also serve excellent sushi.  Here is a pic of the sushi dish that my beau and I shared:

Doesn't this look ah-mazing?????

Patrick definitely enjoyed himself at dinner...and with 3 tables full of people, he definitely did more than just eat.  He took a few shots...

They are totally taking an Oyster Shot -- No clue what that means, but if it tasted half as bad as it smelled, I'm sure it wasn't pleasant!

These 2 guys sure do look mischievious!  =)

...and he also got to catch up with so many wonderful friends:

After dinner, the party went from a "Food Crawl" to a "Pub Crawl" when we went to a new East Nashville bar called No. 308.  I don't usually like to throw out negative reviews, but I'll just go ahead and say it...I was NOT impressed!  The bartenders were all very pretentious and honestly, downright rude!  My drink was okay, but extremely expensive.  I can get an expensive drink at lots of places in Nashville...I think I'll stink to the places that at least have a friendly staff!

Anyway, back to the fun...our next bar stop was Cooper's on Porter.  This is another new bar in East Nashville, and was much more my speed.  However, things were winding down there for the night, so we finally decided to end the night at our ole stand-by:  Beyond the Edge. 

All-in-all, it was a great night, and such a fun way to end an otherwise stressful week!  I hope Patrick enjoyed his birthday as much as I did!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

Someone very special has a birthday today!!!!!  Who, you ask?  Well, that would be this guy:

Anyone who knows me know how much I LOVE birthdays!  To me, it's the one day of the year that is all yours...and, the best part is that you didn't have to do anything to deserve such attention...all you had to do is be born!  Isn't that awesome?

Anyway, back to the matter at hand!  Patrick may not be so keen on his birthday, but as long as I'm around, a big deal will be made!  Unfortunately, the March 15 tax deadline is really kicking me in my behind right now, so I won't actually get to even see my beau until about 10:00 tonight, but don't worry...I definitely plan on making up for that this weekend! 

Patrick, I hope you have the best birthday ever, and I couldn't be more happy to have you in my life!  You make me laugh and I always know that as long as you're around, lots of fun will be had!  I feel so fortunate to call you my BF, and really appreciate the fact that I know you are always there for me and are always on my team!  Enjoy your day, and I look forward to the next 365 days!  =)

Weekend Update!

This is how I feel on every single Friday:

Then, as I'm typing my Weekend Update every Sunday, I feel like this:

However, this week is an extra special week because SOMEONE (you'll find out who later in the week) has a birthday, and I LOVE celebrating birthdays!  Therefore, I'm determined to make it a good week! 

Anyway, time for a weekend recap.  Since my beau has been living it up at Mardi Gras for the last few days, this weekend was about all things girly!  Friday night, I had dinner with Alysia, Kat, and Kevana at Tavern (a new restaurant in Mid-Town), and then I rushed home to spend some time with my mama and our family friend, Nikki, who were in town for a work function on Saturday morning. 

On Saturday, Elizabeth (one of our fabulous interns) and I decided it was time to get our first pedicures of the season!  While we were at the nail salon we decided to go ahead and treat ourselves to both a manicure AND a 15 minute neck and shoulder massage.  I have never seen the massages offered at nail salons before, but I thought it was amazing!  I will definitely be doing that add-on again in the future.  We wrapped up the evening at a little Chinese joint right next door, and it was really yummy!  Elizabeth also told me she was going to teach me how to knit, and I am really pumped about that!

Sunday was spent in the usual way, running, doing chores, and sleeping in.  I did miss the usual time I spend with my beau on Sundays though...so glad he's heading back to Nash-Vegas tomorrow!

Well, that's all for me!  I hope you all have wonderful evenings!

ABC's and a Little About Me!

Hi, my name is Melissa and I have a blog...a blog that I have really neglected lately...I know that everyone is going to stop reading my blog if all I talk about is how much I have been working, but let's face it...this blog is about my life, and my life is mainly about work right now.  =( 

Anywho, I saw on Jamie's blog a post called the ABC's of Me, and decided, what better way to make up for the fact that I have hardly blogged at all lately...Thanks Jamie, for giving me something to blog about (other than the 65 hours I have worked in the last 6 days)!

A-Age:  30 (for 3 more months anyway)

B-Bed Size:  King, and I love it!  I can't believe how different it is from a Queen.

C-Chore You Hate:  Where do I begin...I hate cleaning bathrooms, making the bed, sweeping, and doing laundry...I could go on, but I'll stop there.  =)

D-Dogs:  Well, I don't have a dog, but when I really want my dog fix I just love on this special girl:

E-Essential Start to Your Day:  COFFEE!!!!!  I drink a cup of coffee every morning!  It's a necessity!

F-Favorite Color:  Black!  I know...it's kinda boring, but let's face it...black looks good on EVERYONE!

G-Gold or Silver:  Well, since I sold all of my gold a few weeks ago at the Gold Party, looks like my favorite is definitely Silver!

H-Height:  5' 7.25" -- Weird fun fact about me...I was 5'6.5" until I was 24...then all of a sudden, I grew .75"...weird, huh?

I-Instruments You Play:  I always wanted to play the piano, but sadly, I have absolutely no musical talent!

J-Job Title:  Certified Public Accountant

K-Kids:  None, yet...one day though...  =)

L-Live:  In Nashville, TN!  The home of country music, the Tennessee Titans, the Grand Ole Opry, and Nashville's Melrose

M-My Mom's Name:  Beverly Ann

N-Nickname:  Okay, so I'll be honest here...I ALWAYS wanted a nickname, but apparently, most people don't think I'm a nickname kinda girl...UNTIL my beau and our good friend, Chase gave me the nickname Melrose (hence, the name of my blog).  I couldn't be happier to be "Melrose."  =)

O-Overnight Hospital Stays:  Not since I was sick as a 9 month old...

P-Pet Peeve:  Pretentious People!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Q-Quote From a Movie:  Oh, that's an easy one..."Nobody puts Baby in a corner."  I don't think a single girl didn't dream of Patrick Swayze defending their honor.  =)

R-Righty/Lefty:  Righty!

S-Siblings:  An older brother and a younger sister!

T-Time You Wake Up:  In a perfect world, 6:30...in a realistic world, 7:00!

U-Underwear:  That is for me to know and you to never find out.  =)

V-Veggies You Dislike:  Not many...other than collard greens and cauliflower.

W-What Makes You Run Late:  Sleeping in, of course!  Please see letter "T."

X-Xrays You've Had:  Just once on my ankles, when I sprained both of them at the same time...

Y-Yummy Food You Make:  I make a mean red velvet cake...if I do say so myself.

I really wish mine looked as good as this one!

Z-Zoo Animal:  Giraffe!