One thing that I love about this time of year......

..........is the Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cake. Mmmmm.

Tagged, Tagged and Tagged again

Ok, ok, ok, so I have been tagged by Casey, Jessica and Amanda, so I'm on it.......

Go to your fourth picture folder and then go to the fourth picture in the folder.Write four things about the picture and then tag four other people.It's amazing what you'll find!!!

4 Things About This Photo

1. WOW! This was from the 2006 company Christmas Party at the Sheraton Music City.

2. In this picture is JuLee, Matt, Karen, me and my friend, Katie

3. I did not have bangs and Karen no longer works with us.

4. Last year's Christmas party was on the General Jackson. So it seems the parties get better the longer I'm with the company. At least let's keep our fingers crossed for this year. :)

4 People I Tag
1. Mary Leigh Brown
2. Mary Dove
3. Susanna Custer
4. Denira Williams

Craig's List Junkie

My new obsession is Craigs List. I have posted a few things for sale myself and I have gotten several bites, hopefully to get rid of some stuff this weekend. I have also purchased a high chair that looks new for mom to have for Drew. Now I find myself on there all the time. They have everything! With the economy the way it is, I think people are looking for deals all over the place. Now let's see what else I can find to buy.........or sell. :) Remember another man's junk is another man's treasure.

Coast to Coast

Last week was spent traveling coast to coast. Wednesday I flew to Jacksonville, FL then drove to Amelia Island for a meeting through Friday. We stayed at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island..........I know, la-tee-da. :) That was my first time staying at a Ritz, I must say it is a little too frou-frou for me. I will stick to my first love, the Marriott. :) However, the service is amazing, everyone calling you by name and willing to help or provide for you at the drop of a hat. It was a great experience and the meeting was a success. Even though it was cloudy except when we were in meetings I did manage to get picture of the pool.

Friday afternoon I flew to San Francisco, CA, then had a two-hour drive to Monterey. Mark was actually able to fly and meet me in San Fran. We drove up a curvy mountain, with for some reason a 60 mph speed limit. I have never driven a more curvy street, it was even worse than Lombard Street in San Fran. It was pitch black and we had no idea what we would wake up to in the morning. Monterey was beautiful! The room looked over the golf course and the weather was perfect. They say it is pretty temperate throughout the year, never getting below 50 or above 85. Now that's my kind of weather. The reason for this trip is that I was invited to a FAM trip and the Great Wine Escape Weekend. The Hyatt Regency hosted this event and gave me an opportunity as a planner to see the city and all the hotel had to offer. Saturday we had breakfast with the group and then toured the Hyatt Regency. We spent the afternoon touring the vineyards and tasting local wine. We finished off the day with a very classy dinner. The kind with five courses, one tiny serving each, that probably cost $300 per plate. All Mark wanted to do was order pizza. :) I thought everything was very good. We met two great couples, Paul and Amy and Kent and Kim. We had such a great time, I wish we were able to spend more time with them. Sunday we finished with breakfast and drove through Monterey. We were so disappointed that it was raining. We thought we would run out of it and it just kept following us. :( We then drove to San Francisco so Mark could see the Golden Gate Bridge. I felt like I had been gone forever. I am so glad to be home. The flight was rough, flying from Charlotte (I had to connect here both flights) to San Fran is about a six hour flight. I have a very hard time entertaining myself for that long. However, it was a very nice long weekend. I just love traveling and especially with my soon-to-be hubby. But now I'm home...........at least for a couple of weeks.

Fun Fact: It takes 600 grapes to make one bottle of wine.

MR for Mark Rogers. Who knew he was a wine maker?

Cannery Row
We just could not get away from the rain. I was soaked and cold.

Next time we are staying at this Bed and Breakfast. It looks like a doll house.

Riding the cable cars

Lombard Street - the crookedest street

Alcatraz

More Engagement Pictures

We received some of our engagement prints and I can't help but keep looking at them. I am so excited to go frame shopping. Here are just a few more of our favorites. Again, we had such a great time and the park was a perfect spot. I am so glad we have some professional casual pictures. The next time we take pictures like this will probably be when we start having babies. And that will hopefully be a while...........

Congratulations to A Bride's Storey for receiving the Ruthie's Award for Favorite Bridal Shop for Rutherford and Cannon counties.

Is your love tank full??

While spending so much time on a plane, I have been reading some great books lately. Mark and I both read The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman. I have gotten this for several couples as engagement gifts but had never read it myself. I really enjoyed this book as we both prepare to spend the rest of our lives together and share our love for one another. I want to make sure my husband knows how much I love him. And I want to know what he desires and how I need to speak his love language so that he knows and sees my love for him. Everyone talks about how the "in love" experience fades after your married. I don't think that has to be the case. I believe this book will help us keep that "in love" experience much longer. I have listed The Five Love Languages below. The book goes into much greater detail on each language.

1. Words of Affirmation -- Your love tank is full when your spouse is showing appreciation to you, thanking you for the things you do, sharing words of encouragement, using words that build up (Thank you, I am so proud of you, You look very nice in that suit)
2. Quality Time -- You desire spending time with your spouse, probably not watching TV or multitasking but true quality time where you have conversation with one another and nothing is distracting you, giving your undivided attention.
3. Receiving Gifts -- You like receiving gifts from your spouse. These gifts don't always have to be expensive, they can be your favorite candy bar, a simple card, which he took time to pick out specifically for you.
4. Acts of Service -- Here your love tank is full when your spouse shows an act of service. He mows the yard, washes dishes after dinner, irons your clothes, or does the laundry.
5. Physical Touch -- This is self explanatory - you desire to be touched by your spouse. This could be holding hands, reaching out to you as he passes by, or randomly kissing your cheek.

I suggest this book to anyone in a serious relationship, engaged or married. It really can bring out some things you may not otherwise know about your spouse and what makes them tick. You could possibly be speaking your language but not the language of your spouse. Things you may be doing, could be meaningless to your spouse. If they desire Acts of Service and all you are doing is giving them gifts to show your love, you are not speaking the correct love language. Although, giving gifts may be your love language, it's unlikely that that is also your spouses love language. Read the book and take the test to find your love language, you may be surprised, but it could help or strengthen your relationship.

Bob That Head

A couple of weeks ago, Mark and I along with his sister Melanie and her husband, Richard, went to see Rascal Flatts and Taylor Swift. They have this concert every year and all ticket proceeds go to the Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt. They had several patients there from the hospital with their families. It is a great cause and they had a sell out crowd. The stage pretty much took up the entire floor at the Sommet Center. The set was great! Taylor Swift puts on an awesome show. She is so confident in front of such a large audience. It's amazing she is so young.