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Things That Go Bump in The Night

October is my favorite month. My birthday is 6 days from Halloween, the best holiday in my opinion. Full of haunted houses, jack-o-lanterns and corn mazes. My entire family has dressed up for Halloween since I was a kid and walked around the neighborhood to trick-or-treat. I love the ghosts and ghouls, the stories of things that aren’t normal seen. But here is the thing, it’s much more enjoyable when it is someone else telling their story, not you. In the spirit of the spookiest time of the year, I share with you my experiences when the hairs on the back of your neck rise.   I have always been more sensitive to the other world. My mom has told stories of hearing me play with imaginary friends or looking at something near a wall she couldn’t see. When I was a baby in the early 90s, Mom and Dad would hear me crying through the baby monitor. Sometimes, a woman’s voice would be heard and hum until I fell back asleep. They always thought it was a grandmother nearby that the moni
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Girls Weekend in Tennessee

   In my family we have a tradition for the ladies. Every October my mom, Aunt Erica, and I drive the 4 hours up to Tennessee to spend the weekend with my Grandma Joyal. We go antiquing, have lunch, and make Christmas ornaments. This year my younger brother's girlfriend, Jocelyn, came with us. It was her first time, and we had so much fun.    We spent Friday night in the car, crammed in there to make the trip after picking me up after work. I couldn't get off early so we didn't get to Grandma Joyal and my Uncle's house until midnight. It's always good to see family and the hugs went around for all of us. The bags came in for our rooms and we sat down with a bottle of wine. Whenever we come to visit, we have to bring our own wine and snacks. It is a dry county, and the closest store is about 30 minutes away from the house. We must come prepared. After the day at work and the drive, we were all exhausted and went to bed for the night.    The next morning I was the f
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The Keto Diet...

   So I started something new. My boyfriend and I decided to try the keto diet. It is a low carb, high fat diet that is supposed to help you eat healthy and lose weight. We don't eat anything that has more than 10 carbs, and as little to no sugars as possible.    Luckily I already cooked similar to it. We were eating lots of salads and meats, with just the minor change of not cooking rice with most meals and not bread. You have no idea how much I miss bread! All I want is a huge plate of fettuccine alfredo with a big piece of garlic bread right now.    The hardest part to get used to was no sugar in our coffee. I am the worst and put so much sugar in my cup that I would have a layer at the bottom after I drank it. That was the hardest thing to do, cut out the sugar entirely. It took a few days but I was able to just have cream and now I prefer my coffee that way.    I am still learning what we can eat, and what we can't. I am finding recipes and different substitutes to use.
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Wind and Rain and Flooding...Oh My!

   This past week every radio and news station has only covered Hurricane Florence and the devastation she left in her path. We have family out in Wilmington, where surges and flooding destroyed businesses and homes. Trees were pulled from their roots and crushed houses and cars. Our family is safe but others had to be rescued by boat as they watched their entire lives be swallowed by water.    Because I live near the South Carolina border and Charlotte, we didn't get as much damage as the coastal cities, but we got a hell of a lot of rain. My office was closed on Friday as well as schools, thinking it was going to start then but it was just the beginning of the gloomy clouds and overcast skies that controlled the weekend. The rain didn't start until the middle of the night.    What do you do when you have three dogs, an eleven year old boy, and can't go outside? Well, we cooked breakfast and dinner. He beat me at Clue, Sorry, and Monopoly. I didn't let him win either
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My First UGA Game

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   I am a huge University of Georgia fan. Like die-hard, never miss a game fan. My mom grew up in Georgia and we watch the Dawgs every Saturday in the Fall. I have never been able to see them in person before, until this past weekend.    We have family friends that live outside of Columbia, South Carolina who invited us down to tailgate for the USC vs. UGA game. This was huge because they are ex USC football players, who tailgate every game in their own fenced off lot with security. Tailgating is not a game in the South, it's an art form. The game was at 3:30 but we had to leave the house by 11:00 to avoid the traffic going to the stadium since it was a home game. I had no idea where we were going or what we were doing, but I was so excited because it was my first time. I was just happy that I could be close. As soon as the car was parked, my parents and I walked over to the fenced area and showed our passes (fancy, right) to get in. Every member has their designated spot to park
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Football and Cars, How My Weekend Looks

   I know, I know. I am way late with a blog post. It has been a busy week! between work, planning the meals we are going to eat for two weeks, and keeping track of the dogs and money by the time Friday hits I am ready for it. But today is different. I have to rush straight home after work to change and head over to the Carolina Panthers preseason game against the Patriots.    My favorite time of year is on the cusp of starting, football season! The cool mornings that give way to humid days are numbered while teams practice and schedules are released. I am a big Carolina Panthers fan for professional football. I wasn't always huge into them, it was one game years back that pulled me in. Long before they had an amazing season and went to the super bowl. I have been to their games, the boyfriend took me to my first. Their field is surrounded by parking lots for fans, bars and restaurants, and so many people moving towards the towering black and blue stadium. You become part of a wav
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Productivity...Before the Sun Rises

   I am very bad about procrastinating. I will get it later, I still have time. And then it gets done halfway or rushed. I don't want my life to be rushed. I want to have time to write, to do fun things, clean the house, and cook healthy meals. My boyfriend started getting up at 4 in the morning recently and is able to go so much done. I thought I could do that. I can get up early and write or clean. Maybe even have enough time to read in the morning.    I set my alarm for 4 and hit snooze until 5:30. I normally never hit snooze! but when the sun hasn't started to cut through the dark outside the window by my desk and it looks like darkness forever, I want to stay in my warm comfy bed. But I got up.    So here I sit, at my desk with a huge cup of coffee, trying to wake up enough to see the screen. But it has been helping. I was able to write two articles with plenty of time to edit, a week before the due date. I feel better. It helps when the house is quiet when no one except
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