dream come true: i met a penguin

tonight an old dream came true.
i got to pet a penguin. (yes a real- live penguin)
now for exciting the back story.

ever since i was a kid i have had a obsession with penguins.
king, rockhopper, black foot, gentoo penguins- i loved them all.
we still display petey the 2 foot plastic christmas penguin with a red bow tie that i got when in grade school at our house year round. (he was even joel's high school punk band's mascot.)

so tonight i went to the zoo for a metro magazine event honoring the cities best events of the year. our heroes in the heartland event was up for the best event in the category of attendance over 500. we didnt win- but man did i win tonight!

little did i expect to get to not only see a penguin, but pet a penguin when i got dressed up for this vip event. so when i saw lucius, the 14 year old black foot penguin, from across the room i ran with my camera and co-worker liz in tow.

i beamed like that little kid and said- LIZ YOU HAVE TO GET MY PICTURE WITH THAT PENGUIN!!

not only did i get a picture with him- i pet him (he was very soft) and i got a little memory to remember him by when he pooped on my arm and shoe.

i didnt really notice at first...then we couldnt stop laughing.

i said excuse me sir- to the caterer with fancy coctails- where is the restroom then five words i never thought i would be saying 'a penguin pooped on me.'

funny thing is i dont care if he pooped on my sparkly brand new- just cut the tags off- sweater.

that's my life.
who else can say a penguin pooped on them at a vip event where the mayor was present?
me. :)
and i love it.

life is not a snapshot...

life is not a snapshot...
but a life is full snapshots.
this is one of my favorites of janessa and my sister megan at our daycare aka mary's house. (yes that is janessa the adventurous one hanging off of megan's highchair)
we all grew up together: laughing, playing and getting into mischief together (ok lets be honest a lot of mischief together...sorry mary).
i will always remember janessa both through all of the snapshots in my photo albums in and snapshots in my heart.
23 years doesnt seem like enough janessa time to me...but i cant really see the bigger picture now.
we love you and will miss you girl.
xoxo

ps- do they have red velvet cupcakes in heaven? if so- save one for me. :)

hoorah for plum pudding and a christmas carol!

me with scrooge himself!

today i took my mom to see a christmas carol at the omaha community playhouse.
this is one of the few shows that i have actually seen before and would watch every winter if i could.
i love their festive costumes, wassailing songs and spooky special effects for the ghosts of christmas past, present and future.
tiny timmy always tugs at my heart strings.
ebenezer scrooge was soo funny!
hot cocoa and christmas cookies at intermission was divine.
the ending was extra special with a snowfall over the audience!
my only regret, not picking up the rad dancing scrooge scarf.

this show plays until dec. 23 so get your family tickets and start the holidays off right!
i might even try to make plum pudding this year for our christmas dinner...

i heart fall

i also heart all of the foods that come with it.
today cranberry pear compote and sweet potato souffle for andersongiving (chrystal and michael anderson's third annual thanksgiving with friends!
cant wait!

sweet janessa

meet my dear friend janessa.
i have know her pretty much she was born.
her older sister kylee and i grew up best friends and partners in crime at mary's daycare. my little sister and janessa grew up the same way chasing us around.
we were pretty much all inseparable.

this is one of my slumber party favorites...
notice the keen details i had as a make-up artist even back then.

janessa is now a beautiful 23 year old girl who now lives out in nc. she was taken to the dr on oct 27 with what she thought then was the flu and strep throat. it then escalated to pneumonia and strep a. she was transported to another hospital and put on ventilator and put into a drug induced coma. later that week things were looking up a bit and she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. she finished her first round of chemo last wednesday. her tough little body has fought like a champ thus far.

janessa is a fighter. she has always been.
but she is still very critical.

we need your prayers for healing more than ever.

prayers that her earthly body be fully restored and that an overwhelming peace comforts her and her family. prayers that her doctors and nurses know the best treatment options. prayers that her family will have no worries about money or travel experiences. prayers that the girl we love will not be in pain. prayers that all those at camp janessa will be comforted when words arent enough. prayers that their afflictions are eclipsed by mercy and they realize just how great his love is for them...

its killing me not being able to be in nc with them. to offer my homemade cupcakes and hugs.

if you want to help the batchelors you can make a donation to the janessa batchelor fund at any wachovia bank. you can also get more info on how you can help by emailing campjanessa@gmail.com.

i love you janny and i know you can beat this nasty cancer.
i have had the pleasure of meeting many leukemia survivors at the red cross...and i know you too will be a great testament to the power of prayer and the gift of life.
xoxo

welcome back conan...

i finally feel whole again now that you are back on air.
glad to see you kicking it off with team coco right.
ps-the cover of rolling stone is no joke dude! its amazing!
pps-i still love your old cover more i think :)

ppps- in case you missed it i was called a conan superfan in the omaha world-hearld this week in this conan article!

Meet paddy cake the iPad...

Thanks to PRSA Nebraska I am the proud new owner of an iPad. You all know I'm an Apple addict and have wanted one from day one...but I couldnt afford one so I sat back and dreamed of one instead.

When I saw PRSA was having a raffle for one at their annual meeting I knew I couldn't miss it. I joked with my boss and Joel that I would win it...

Last night I even said tomorrow I'm winning that iPad...wish me luck! And what do you know...I won it today!

Amazing! Needless to say I'm over the moon excited. It will be perfect for taking to disasters!

Someone said today that I'm the luckiest person they know.

I think I'm just beyond blessed...