Sprinkles Cupcakes is really big here in Dallas. If you haven't had one, you're not alone. Everyone talks about them, but I haven't tasted one... that's about to change folks! I can't wait to place my order for our TX/OU party. They're offering "Longhorn Vanilla" and "Big Red Velvet" cupcakes in honor of the big weekend. Proceeds from each cupcake will be donated to Children's Medical Center Center Dallas and Children's Medical Research Institute at the OU Health Sciences Center, respectively. In 2007, they raised $3,500 for CMC in Dallas and $2,500 for the OU Health Sciences Center.
Hook'em!!!!
Friday, October 3, 2008
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
It starts at the local and state level...
FYI: This post isn't my regular "fun" post, but it's something that's important to me and wanted to share... but don't worry, my next post is about cupcakes :)
I don't want to get on a soapbox here, but I hope you truly realize the importance of participating in the local and state elections. You may already be aware of this information and my intention is not to insult your intelligence, but rather, encourage you to take action (if you're not doing so already).
No doubt voting for the next President is important; however, it is just as important to educate yourself on the local and state candidates running for the Texas House of Representatives and U.S. House of Representatives.
The bills passed under a President's term start in the House of Representatives, hence the importance of electing representatives with platforms on which you agree. My experiences at Strategic Partnerships and our close ties to state and federal government officials have opened my eyes to the importance of voting at the local and state level.
If you're not certain of who represents your district, enter your address here
FAQs on Texas House of Representatives
U.S. House of Representatives Legislative Process
Congress Q&A
Texas Republican Candidates for the November 2008 election
Texas Democratic Candidates for the November 2008 election
and for fun... here's the history behind the elephant and donkey!
The Democrats think of the elephant as bungling, stupid, pompous and conservative -- but the Republicans think it is dignified, strong and intelligent. On the other hand, the Republicans regard the donkey as stubborn, silly and ridiculous -- but the Democrats claim it is humble, homely, smart, courageous and loveable. (source)
1870 Harper's Weekly Cartoon
(rise of the donkey)
1874 Harper's Weekly Cartoon (rise of the elephant)
hugs and rock the vote people!!!
Kimberly :)
I don't want to get on a soapbox here, but I hope you truly realize the importance of participating in the local and state elections. You may already be aware of this information and my intention is not to insult your intelligence, but rather, encourage you to take action (if you're not doing so already).
No doubt voting for the next President is important; however, it is just as important to educate yourself on the local and state candidates running for the Texas House of Representatives and U.S. House of Representatives.
The bills passed under a President's term start in the House of Representatives, hence the importance of electing representatives with platforms on which you agree. My experiences at Strategic Partnerships and our close ties to state and federal government officials have opened my eyes to the importance of voting at the local and state level.
If you're not certain of who represents your district, enter your address here
FAQs on Texas House of Representatives
U.S. House of Representatives Legislative Process
Congress Q&A
Texas Republican Candidates for the November 2008 election
Texas Democratic Candidates for the November 2008 election
and for fun... here's the history behind the elephant and donkey!
The Democrats think of the elephant as bungling, stupid, pompous and conservative -- but the Republicans think it is dignified, strong and intelligent. On the other hand, the Republicans regard the donkey as stubborn, silly and ridiculous -- but the Democrats claim it is humble, homely, smart, courageous and loveable. (source)
1870 Harper's Weekly Cartoon
(rise of the donkey)1874 Harper's Weekly Cartoon (rise of the elephant)
hugs and rock the vote people!!!
Kimberly :)
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Under the gun...
I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend thus far. The Spivey household is a happy one today because both UT and OU won their games last night. Wahoo! We watched the games with our friends, Preston and Sloane, at a new sports bar. Sloane attended Alabama so she was SUPER excited they beat their rival, Georgia. GA was expected to beat AL by 24 points, but AL pulled it through with a final score of 41-30. It was a fun weekend for college football because there were a number of upsets, but alas, UT and OU stay strong. :) After the AL game, we went to a small get-together at a home in Highland Park where I saw an original Picasso painting hanging on the wall. It appeared to be from his "Toros y Toreros" / "Don Quixote" collection. I've never seen an original Picasso outside of a museum so I though it was pretty cool.
House Update
Our Saturday wasn't anything too crazy, but the house "to-do's" are definitely keeping us busy. While at lunch yesterday, we drafted two lists: "Must Do by October 9th" and "Want to do by October 9th." Our annual TX/OU party is Friday, October 10th and we are determined to have the house in a condition that is somewhat suitable for entertaining -- or at least finalize those things that ARE under our control. We spent several hours yesterday at Lights Fantastic selecting the remaining light fixtures. The only two we have left to buy is the light above the dining room table and the light over the master bathtub. I picked out one for the dining room, but Brent is a little nervous about it... Lacey told him to trust me, but I think he was hoping she'd say "I'll talk her out of it." :) ha! I'm ordering it online today so it should be here in plenty of time. As for the light over the tub, we'll have to make a final decision on that today.
After lunch, I plan to purchase our hardware for the kitchen cabinets; mirrors for the upstairs bathroom; towel bars and toilet paper holder etc. for the upstairs bathroom; hardware for master bath cabinets... the list goes on. I'll try to get as much done as I can today because there's just not enough time during the week with work. I'd love to watch the Cowboys game at 3pm, but I find that when they have a home game, that is the best time run errands because Dallas is like a ghost-town. :) I need to get moving with my day!
Randomness
This article on Yahoo! Finance, "Towns That Could Be Hit Hardest By The Financial Crisis," caught my attention because I was curious to see the top ten markets. Interesting enough, University Park is listed at number 8 and the only Texas city listed in the top 10.
8. University Park, Tex.
Share population in finance and real estate: 18.83%
Nearest large city: Dallas
Population: 24,582
Median salary: $110,976
more later...
hugs,
kk and db
House Update
Our Saturday wasn't anything too crazy, but the house "to-do's" are definitely keeping us busy. While at lunch yesterday, we drafted two lists: "Must Do by October 9th" and "Want to do by October 9th." Our annual TX/OU party is Friday, October 10th and we are determined to have the house in a condition that is somewhat suitable for entertaining -- or at least finalize those things that ARE under our control. We spent several hours yesterday at Lights Fantastic selecting the remaining light fixtures. The only two we have left to buy is the light above the dining room table and the light over the master bathtub. I picked out one for the dining room, but Brent is a little nervous about it... Lacey told him to trust me, but I think he was hoping she'd say "I'll talk her out of it." :) ha! I'm ordering it online today so it should be here in plenty of time. As for the light over the tub, we'll have to make a final decision on that today.
After lunch, I plan to purchase our hardware for the kitchen cabinets; mirrors for the upstairs bathroom; towel bars and toilet paper holder etc. for the upstairs bathroom; hardware for master bath cabinets... the list goes on. I'll try to get as much done as I can today because there's just not enough time during the week with work. I'd love to watch the Cowboys game at 3pm, but I find that when they have a home game, that is the best time run errands because Dallas is like a ghost-town. :) I need to get moving with my day!
Randomness
This article on Yahoo! Finance, "Towns That Could Be Hit Hardest By The Financial Crisis," caught my attention because I was curious to see the top ten markets. Interesting enough, University Park is listed at number 8 and the only Texas city listed in the top 10.
8. University Park, Tex.
Share population in finance and real estate: 18.83%
Nearest large city: Dallas
Population: 24,582
Median salary: $110,976
more later...
hugs,
kk and db
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Horse Pills
My head is killing me today, but luckily, I went to the doctor this morning and got some antibiotics that could quite possibly be used for equestrian purposes. I would give anything to be able to lay my head down right now, but alas, I'm at the office and must work. I'm trying to save my PTO for when we unpack all of our boxes (all of our sick days, vacation, etc. are lumped into PTO). Brent keeps telling me to go home and rest, but honestly, the dust and fumes in the house only aggravate my allergies more. You know I must be sick if I'm willing to be at the office rather than at home -- or the dust and fumes could actually be that bad. :)
For your viewing pleasure...
Most of you know what an animal lover I am so when I saw this picture on Yahoo! news, I had to post it.
CAPTION: In this three picture combo, played out on the front walk of an Amish family in Middlefield, Ohio, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2008, a black cat approaches a resting dog, and then makes herself quite comfortable with her new-found friend. Family members, who preferred not to share their names, said that the dog belonged to a neighbor, and the feline was one of their many barn cats. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)
More when I'm feeling better...
Hugs,
kk and db
For your viewing pleasure...
Most of you know what an animal lover I am so when I saw this picture on Yahoo! news, I had to post it.
CAPTION: In this three picture combo, played out on the front walk of an Amish family in Middlefield, Ohio, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2008, a black cat approaches a resting dog, and then makes herself quite comfortable with her new-found friend. Family members, who preferred not to share their names, said that the dog belonged to a neighbor, and the feline was one of their many barn cats. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)More when I'm feeling better...
Hugs,
kk and db
Monday, September 22, 2008
Allergies. Shmallergies.
For those of you that do not have any allergies -- I envy you. My allergies are making me miserable! I'm afraid I developed a sinus infection so I scheduled a doctor's appointment for tomorrow morning. Hopefully I'll get some antibiotics to knock this thing out.
We had another eventful weekend. I returned home from Washington D.C. on Friday night about 9:30pm. Preston and Sloane came by for a few hours since they were out celebrating her birthday. On Saturday, Brent and I ran some errands, packed our bags and got on the road to Oklahoma to celebrate his grandmother's 80th birthday. We literally got to the TX/OK border and Brent's SUV downshifted to 2nd gear... not the greatest feeling when you're cruising on I-35 at 75 mph and then suddenly drop down to 4o mph at 3000 rpm. The only solution was to tow the truck back to Dallas so... we rode along in the tow truck with our 75 year old driver. He was actually quite interesting and I enjoyed hearing of his days working on the oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico and serving in the Army while living in Alaska. I digress. We drove my car to OK on Sunday and ate lunch with Brent's family. It was a really nice visit. JAC and Isabel are growing too fast!! All of the pictures will be posted to our SmugMug page soon.
The Kids
Lulu, Elvis and JT are still adjusting to the house. Lulu is moping around crying because I was out of town last week for work and then gone most of the weekend. I spent some quality time with her tonight and she's feeling better. :) Brent took JT to the vet today because we noticed he's experiencing hair-loss on his back. Turns out, he's under a lot of stress with the new house and it doesn't help that he is spending more time outdoors. Once we get the dog door installed, both of the dogs will be able to come and go through the garage and yard. Elvis is looking pretty slim these days. We boarded the dogs last week while the back patio was built and apparently, he didn't eat much while away. I'm not worried though, because he's making up for it now that he's home. :)
House Update
The backsplash in the kitchen is coming along nicely. I'm really pleased with the tile we selected. Tomorrow they will add the grout. Here are a few pictures... the top one is the left side of the kitchen and the bottom pic shows the hole where the cooktop will be placed (you can click on the pictures for a larger view).
Also, a backsplash was added to the master bath vanities. It's the same riverstone used on the border of the floor and shower wall.
More pictures of the house will be posted soon when I'm not so wiped out... hopefully I'll be back at 100% in no time.
Hugs and good night!
kk and db
We had another eventful weekend. I returned home from Washington D.C. on Friday night about 9:30pm. Preston and Sloane came by for a few hours since they were out celebrating her birthday. On Saturday, Brent and I ran some errands, packed our bags and got on the road to Oklahoma to celebrate his grandmother's 80th birthday. We literally got to the TX/OK border and Brent's SUV downshifted to 2nd gear... not the greatest feeling when you're cruising on I-35 at 75 mph and then suddenly drop down to 4o mph at 3000 rpm. The only solution was to tow the truck back to Dallas so... we rode along in the tow truck with our 75 year old driver. He was actually quite interesting and I enjoyed hearing of his days working on the oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico and serving in the Army while living in Alaska. I digress. We drove my car to OK on Sunday and ate lunch with Brent's family. It was a really nice visit. JAC and Isabel are growing too fast!! All of the pictures will be posted to our SmugMug page soon.
The Kids
Lulu, Elvis and JT are still adjusting to the house. Lulu is moping around crying because I was out of town last week for work and then gone most of the weekend. I spent some quality time with her tonight and she's feeling better. :) Brent took JT to the vet today because we noticed he's experiencing hair-loss on his back. Turns out, he's under a lot of stress with the new house and it doesn't help that he is spending more time outdoors. Once we get the dog door installed, both of the dogs will be able to come and go through the garage and yard. Elvis is looking pretty slim these days. We boarded the dogs last week while the back patio was built and apparently, he didn't eat much while away. I'm not worried though, because he's making up for it now that he's home. :)
House Update
The backsplash in the kitchen is coming along nicely. I'm really pleased with the tile we selected. Tomorrow they will add the grout. Here are a few pictures... the top one is the left side of the kitchen and the bottom pic shows the hole where the cooktop will be placed (you can click on the pictures for a larger view).
Also, a backsplash was added to the master bath vanities. It's the same riverstone used on the border of the floor and shower wall.
More pictures of the house will be posted soon when I'm not so wiped out... hopefully I'll be back at 100% in no time.Hugs and good night!
kk and db
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Hurricane Ike
It breaks my heart to see the devastation in Galveston. My family has vacationed there long since I was even born. Please keep those affected by Ike in your thoughts and prayers.
One of my sorority sisters lives in Houston (The Heights area) and also happens to be a great photographer. She took these pictures of her neighborhood after Ike hit and posted them to her website. Some of the photos have comments below them...
http://www.casadecamera.com/IKE/
One of my sorority sisters lives in Houston (The Heights area) and also happens to be a great photographer. She took these pictures of her neighborhood after Ike hit and posted them to her website. Some of the photos have comments below them...
http://www.casadecamera.com/IKE/
It's always something
Let me start from the beginning... Yesterday morning (Monday) around 6am, I knocked a pillow off our bed which then hit my cup of water on my nightstand which then fell into my purse. All of it. Thankfully, my camera did not get soaked, but everything else did. I emptied it out, laid everything out to dry and hung my purse in the tub to allow the liner to dry (I'm sure the construction crew already thought I was a bit crazy, but when they saw my purse in the tub, their thoughts were confirmed). When I left for the office, I grabbed my wallet, car keys and lip gloss and threw them in another handbag.
Fast track to the middle of the afternoon when I get a call from Brent. He says, "I'm leaving for Oklahoma City, but wanted to let you know that the sprinkler guys are here repairing some lines. Since they do not have a key to the house, they plan to leave the garage doors open. Do you plan on staying late at the office today because I'm concerned with leaving the garage doors open all evening?" Of course, I reply, "I have no plans of working late. I'll get there at a decent time and close the garage doors."
Fast track to after 7:00pm when I finally leave the office. Not exactly leaving early, but it was still daylight. I get on the highway and think, "hmm... I really need to hit up Ikea and now is my only chance because I'm traveling Wednesday - Friday for work and we'll be out of town this weekend visiting Brent's family." So I jump on the toll road and close down Ikea at 9pm. I arrive home around 9:40pm, tired and hungry for dinner. The only problem is that I can't get in the house. Apparently, the last worker to leave locked the doorknob, instead of the our deadbolt. Well... I only have a key to the deadbolt because of the aforementioned water-in-purse situation, that key was tossed next to all the papers laid out to dry on our bedroom floor.
A light bulb goes off, "the garage doors!" I walk around to the back of the house and much to my dismay, the doors are closed. I checked every single window I could reach and let me tell you, those are some nicely secured windows -- nobody is getting through those babies. I finally breakdown and call Brent... I was hoping I could figure a way into the house and fail to mention the fact I was ever locked out since Brent thought I would be home in the evening, but I was desperate and totally busted. :) To cut this story short, Brent called our friend, Ryun Guthrie who lives a few short miles away. Ryun and his dad, who was visiting from out of town, came to my rescue. They too tried the windows, but eventually had to bust open the front door. It was quite comical... we looked like the most inexperienced burglars ever trying to break into the house. And poor Lulu... she was in the house following us from window-to-window wondering what the heck was going on. She finally gave up and began crying at the front door wanting us to come in already. ha :)
My life is never dull. I remember when I was younger and my older siblings would complain of boredom, my mom would say, "How can you be bored? There are so many things you could do. I don't ever remember being bored as a kid." I don't recall feeling bored in my childhood, but how I long for that feeling now or at least a slower pace than what I'm experiencing at this stage in life.... and we don't even have kids! eek! ;)
That sums up my Monday evening.... tonight I have some errands to run and need to pack for my trip to Alexandria, VA. I fly out at 5:30am tomorrow (you know I didn't schedule that flight!) and return late Friday night. It's going to be a long 3 days...
House news
When I left this morning, they were preparing to pour the concrete for our back patio, prepping the kitchen cabinets to be stained, replacing the breakfast room window with french doors and tiling the backsplash on our master bathroom vanities. Hopefully they'll keep up the pace and the house will be somewhat ready for our annual TX/OU party (or as Brent refers it, "OU/TX party").
hugs!
kk and db
Fast track to the middle of the afternoon when I get a call from Brent. He says, "I'm leaving for Oklahoma City, but wanted to let you know that the sprinkler guys are here repairing some lines. Since they do not have a key to the house, they plan to leave the garage doors open. Do you plan on staying late at the office today because I'm concerned with leaving the garage doors open all evening?" Of course, I reply, "I have no plans of working late. I'll get there at a decent time and close the garage doors."
Fast track to after 7:00pm when I finally leave the office. Not exactly leaving early, but it was still daylight. I get on the highway and think, "hmm... I really need to hit up Ikea and now is my only chance because I'm traveling Wednesday - Friday for work and we'll be out of town this weekend visiting Brent's family." So I jump on the toll road and close down Ikea at 9pm. I arrive home around 9:40pm, tired and hungry for dinner. The only problem is that I can't get in the house. Apparently, the last worker to leave locked the doorknob, instead of the our deadbolt. Well... I only have a key to the deadbolt because of the aforementioned water-in-purse situation, that key was tossed next to all the papers laid out to dry on our bedroom floor.
A light bulb goes off, "the garage doors!" I walk around to the back of the house and much to my dismay, the doors are closed. I checked every single window I could reach and let me tell you, those are some nicely secured windows -- nobody is getting through those babies. I finally breakdown and call Brent... I was hoping I could figure a way into the house and fail to mention the fact I was ever locked out since Brent thought I would be home in the evening, but I was desperate and totally busted. :) To cut this story short, Brent called our friend, Ryun Guthrie who lives a few short miles away. Ryun and his dad, who was visiting from out of town, came to my rescue. They too tried the windows, but eventually had to bust open the front door. It was quite comical... we looked like the most inexperienced burglars ever trying to break into the house. And poor Lulu... she was in the house following us from window-to-window wondering what the heck was going on. She finally gave up and began crying at the front door wanting us to come in already. ha :)
My life is never dull. I remember when I was younger and my older siblings would complain of boredom, my mom would say, "How can you be bored? There are so many things you could do. I don't ever remember being bored as a kid." I don't recall feeling bored in my childhood, but how I long for that feeling now or at least a slower pace than what I'm experiencing at this stage in life.... and we don't even have kids! eek! ;)
That sums up my Monday evening.... tonight I have some errands to run and need to pack for my trip to Alexandria, VA. I fly out at 5:30am tomorrow (you know I didn't schedule that flight!) and return late Friday night. It's going to be a long 3 days...
House news
When I left this morning, they were preparing to pour the concrete for our back patio, prepping the kitchen cabinets to be stained, replacing the breakfast room window with french doors and tiling the backsplash on our master bathroom vanities. Hopefully they'll keep up the pace and the house will be somewhat ready for our annual TX/OU party (or as Brent refers it, "OU/TX party").
hugs!
kk and db
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