January 13 (Jan. 10,11, and 12th as well) !!!

Yes, I know I have fallen behind on my blogging duties, but that is what happens when you return to school and are surronded by friends, classes, business to take care of, and things to do that take up all 24 hours of your day. That's why I probably won't be able to keep up with my blog EVERYDAY,but I will be posting in intervals so that you all can follow along and take a glimpse into my life (if I even have any followers, that is.) When I stopped blogging, on the 9th, I had posted a picture about mine and Wade's and his brother's treacherous journey from Huntsville to Tuscaloosa. Since then, a lot has happened.
On the 10th, Wade and I returned to Livingston and thankfully we had no hazardous road conditions to deal with. We didn't have any classes Monday, so we got to have one more relaxing day before our hectic lives as college students started back up. That night I watched the National Championship game with the Tau Kappa Epsilon brothers, the fraternity Wade is in, and some of the girlfriends.

I don't have a real picture from that day because taking pictures is another thing that is sporadic when school starts back, but this picture sums up my day pretty well. Although I was dissapointed that Auburn won, I was happy that the state of Alabama was able to gain the title of the only state in history to have two schools from it win a national championship two years in a row. And I was also thrilled to be able to torment the ONLY two Auburn fans that rooted for them out of the 15 people that watched the game.

On January 11, classes started back, but I was glad I got to sleep in until about 11 since I did not have a class until 2. Although I was NOT thrilled to have been deregistered from my classes and have to go deal with getting that fixed for 2 and a 1/2 hours. That was not fun, but I was able to make it to my first class of the second semester. After I went to our first guard meeting of the spring semester, I had to get Wade to drive me to Demopolis for a class I was forced into because the school messed up my schedule. And yes, the class was only for 10 minutes. The one good thing about the hectic first day of official classes was that my trip to Demopolis gave me and Wade a good opportunity to go to Walmart. As students of a college that is located in a very small town, whenever we have a chance to venture into Demopolis, about 25 minutes away, we always find a reason to go into Walmart. This trip to Demopolis resulted in this:

There's always a good excuse to go to Walmart, ecspecially when we don't have one near us like I am use to. So Wade and I took the trip as a chance to stock up on groceries, and Mtn. Dews for me. A lot, if you notice the bottom shelf. :)

January 12th was a very good day, except for the part where I had to wake up at 7:30 for a 9 o'clock class that only lasted 15 minutes. Apart from that, my day consisted of a good English class and a dinner at Mexico with a big group of friends. For your information, "Mexico" is what we lovingly refer to as our mexican restaurant, Tres Hermanos. We also refer to our chinese restaurant, The China Dragon, as China. Here in Livingston, we love our code words.

After a good meal with good friends at Mexico, I ventured out to Demopolis AGAIN, with Shanna, Amber, and Cailtin, where they spent some of their money from their refund checks, and I wallowed in self-pity since I didn't get one. But I did get a little surprise for my wonderful boyfriend.

Finally we get to today, January 13. Today consisted of sleeping in, a math class that made me almost fall asleep from boredom and the monotonous voice of my old professor who loves suspenders. I enjoyed getting to catch up with all of my guard girls at "practice", and eating some yummy cheese fries and a cheeseburger at the cafe. I also enjoyed riding around in the monstrous truck that Shanna kidnapped from her boyfriend in between practice and dinner. Tonight I enjoyed playing drinking games where I watched everyone get drunk, while I chugged Mtn. Dew, my choice beverage. Now, as the night winds down, I am enjoying a relaxing night in with my amazing boyfriend, who looked like this when I walked into his room.

Goodnight and sweet dreams, Bloggers! :)

January 9, 2011

The words of the day? Birthdays and blizzards. Woke up today around 8 am for breakfast- some scrumtious monkey bread- and then went back to bed for a power nap. When I woke back up it was time to celebrate Amanda's (Wade's moms) birthday with a decorated kitchen and some spaghetti lunch with the family. After a 2-hour delayed start, we finally hit the road back towards Birmingham, despite the warnings of all our family members combined, and ran into icy roads, sleet, and snow. Making it into Birminghan wasn't the hard part, but the journey from my parent's house to Steven's house in Tuscaloosa was a treacherous journey. After being given a ziplock bag of Boston butt meat, and plenty of blankets (just in case we broke down on the side of the raod in 20 degree weather), we got on the road again. I think the 40 minute ride to Tuscaloosa from Hueytown took about and hour and 20 minutes today because we were going right at 40 miles per hour, or under, the whole way there. I have to admit, it's not very thrilling to pass over patches of ice that might pssibly send you flying to your death. I also don't think I have ever been to Walmart in conditions like I did tonight. Spending all day in a car was not very thrilling, but making it safely somewhere and getting to stay there is very fulfilling.

The picture above shows the GPS that Wade's Nana so graciously gifted to Wade on the exact day that we would need it. Look in the bottom right hand corner. See that 25? That was the speed we were traveling at one point on I 20-59. Yeah, I know- EPIC. Thankfull, classes were canceled for tomorrow, so look forward to some pictures of the snow...let's hope so, at least.

January 8, 2011

I wish I could say that last night ended with my blog post from yesterday, but I would be lying if I did. At about 1 am, I left with Wade to go sit and do nothing at one of his friend's house. Unfortunately, I am not a video game freak or I would have had something to do from 1 to 5 am. Forunately though, I went to bed without any amazing strip club stories or drunken stories from the night; I wish I could say the same for some of the guys we had hung out with. When I awoke from the dead around 12:30, I discovered an all new way to get my hair to curl naturally, thanks to M'Lynn and her supply of hair products. During the day nothing exciting happened, but tonight I got to participate in the Medley Game Night. We played a game called "Dirty Minds" where the objective of the game is to guess what object/thing some perverted clues are hinting at. The objects are not perverted in themselves, only the clues are, and it is not a game that I ever would have thought I would have played with my boyfriend's family. Needless to say, it was a pretty fun game, and gave plenty of laughs.

After the domination of the other teams by Wade and I and the enjoyment of some interesting spinach and cream chesse pin wheels, the family gathered around the television to watch "The Grownups"; the laughs were only better the second night around. I am hoping and praying that no blizzard storms appear tonight so that we can travel safely back to Livingston tomorrow. Hopefully no late night rendevouz take place after I post this blog! Look for pictures tomorrow of my interesting Sunday and Wade's mom, Amanda's, birthday!

January 7,2011

"Is everything on the up and up?" This quote makes me think alot about Wade's grandmother, Nana, and today we spent a good bit of time with her. This lady cracks me up with her crazy antics and strange advice to Wade and his twin brother, Steven. Today I ate lunch with Nana, and then went to Costco and Strabucks with her, Wade, and his siblings Steven and M'Lynn tonight. In between the well-spent time learning about the effects of reading, which Nana and I strongly agree about, and how I have the "prettiest mouth I have ever seen", I spent some time at a local used bookstore in Huntsville called The Book Legger; I found two hardback books, "The Dead Generation by Daniel Waters, "Hush, Hush" by Becca Fitzpatrick and the first book in a series I have been wanting to read about an elite group of vampires in New York City called "Blue Bloods" by Melissa de la Cruz. I enjoyed a good meal of enchilada casserole around the table with the family, then ventured out to Costco with the kids and Nana where I experienced more "brotherly love" between Wade and Steven, which is not anything close to love but more like the torture of a sweet and caring kitty cat. After Wade almost lost his phone and having to trek all the way back to Starbucks from the other side of Huntsville, Wade, M'Lynn and I went to Wal-mart to get a birthday present for their mom when I realized I had lost my debit card meaning I have $8 to my name until I can get to the bank to get some money out. All in all though, today was a very adventurous day and it ended with a movie night in with M'Lynn while the boys were out on the town with their best friend for his 21st birthday. M'Lynn and I are only 2 years apart, so we have plenty to talk about, ecspecially a lot of "girl talk".

That is a picture of M'Lynn and me, a great friend and hopefully future sister-in-law. :) Today was a good day and hopefully life will just get better! Keep following my blog to check in on my life.

January 6, 2011

Today kind of went by in a blur to me; I was so ready to just see my boyfriend! I spent the day packing my stuff up to go to Huntsville and to take back to Livingston with me. The day passed by pretty quickly too because 6 o'clock came and so did Wade and we headed out to Huntsville. We were greeted by Wade's best friend, Cody, because today is his birthday and the boys headed out to the club while me and M'Lyn, Wade's sister, stay home to watch Law & Order. The picture below shows all the stuff I had to pack to take back to Livingston with me- it sure was alot!!

Not much else to report from today but look forward to more pictures from my weekend! :)

January 5, 2011

I cannot wait until classes start back because I feel so useless just sitting around and reading and watching Law & Order all day. I love being busy and I wish I had something I could have been busy with the past couple days! Thankfully, the next few days I will be spending in Huntsville with my boyfriend and his family and then on Sunday I will be headed back to Livingston and classes start on Monday. Today though, was just another day aboard the train of BOOKS & NETFLIX. I slept in until almost 1 o'clock, got a shower and went with my mom to the thrift store where I got three new books to add to my stack of novels I need to read. The books I got today are: "Death by Latte" by Linda Gerber, "A Million Little Pieces" by James Frey, and "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time" by Mark Haddon.  After grabbing some McDonald's gourmet food and my prescriptions, we went to pick up my sisters from school. At Syd's school I got to see my kindergarten teacher, Mrs. White. I have always been amazed at how teachers you had when you were a little kid, almost 13 years ago, can still know who you are even though  you obviously don't look the same. Mrs. White was an amazing teacher and she is part of the reason I want to pursue a major in Elementary Education and a career as a kindergarten teacher. I just cannot wait to teach little kids how to say their ABC's, how to count, how to read, and how to color inside the lines. The lady below inspired me to join educators in their search to teach kids the basics of life, and I will never forget the impact she had on me.

After our visits to the schools of Hueytown, we trekked into Hoover to Academy and Wal-mart where I stayed in the car and read, of course. We then went home where I finished reading "The Fallen 2" and I picked my next book victim. All in all, today was a good and simple day, and it will probably be my last one of those for a while, so I am glad I got to enjoy them while they lasted.

I hope I am able to keep up with my blog while I am in Huntsville the next couple days, so look forward to pictures from my trip there, and look for my pictures and posts starting on Monday when I return to college life!

January 4,2011

The only two words I know to use to describe today would be: gigantic adventure. My Tuesday started off with a trip to the doctor where I was prescribed some medicine for my panic attacks, and told I might need to see a psychologist (don't know how I feel about that one yet). After that I went over to my best friend's house and was welcome by some very interesting contractors working on her house. I think the correct adjective to describe them would be "sketch." We went to Wok, the Chinese buffet in town and had a scrumptious meal of "Chinese" food that is really American- Chinese food but noone knows the difference because we live in Hueytown, AL, for Christ's sake. After that, we spent the afternoon mostly driving around, talking and discovering places in the Hueytown area that I haven't seen in a long time. One of those places includes a gigantic rocking chair in Pleasant Grove that is in front of a nursing home. It's remarkable that we didn't get in trouble for trekking up to the decrepit chair. This is the infamous chair, and has you can probably notice, it is broken. I wonder how many residents of the nursing home it took to climb their fragile bodies up into the chair for it to break...

All in all, today was adventurous. At the end of the day, the thing I am most thankful for are memories and smiles. I am thankful for good friends and remembering the good times with ones who are gone. I am thankful I am alive and breathing, and I am thankful for good people who hold me up when I feel like I am breaking apart. <3 

January 3,2011

I realized today that holiday breaks where I have no school and nothing really productive to do, I become a lazy bum. I slept in until almost 1 today; it is sad, I know. But with no classes, no homework, and no job, what else do you expect from me? I read alot today of "The Fallen 2" by Thomas E. Sneigoski. You should definetly check it out, ecspecially if you are interested in reading about young and sexy men who are also angels (but who can kick some major butt). I went out to eat with my dad to KFC, one of God's gifts to his children. He had to talk to me all about my panic attacks; he even gave me a book called "Don't Panic" and a bag of tea that I thought looked a lot like weed when he first pulled it out. I am scheduled for a doctor's appointment tomorrow about these attacks and hopefully something will happen to make them get better/stop. Another thing- I also discoverd delectable little candies called "caramel creams" that are divine. They came from the Dollar Tree, but hey! What's better than delicious candy that only costs 100 pennies?

January 2,2011

There isn't much to report from the life of McKenna from today. I went to church, in a killer cute outfit, might I add. I was planning on going to visit my grandparents in Cleveland. I went to fill my car up with gas and on the way to return my mom's card to her, my car wouldn't start at the church. That was a great part of my day, right? I think NOT. So for the rest of the day I did nothing but watch Law & Order: SVU and mix in a little reading and web-surfing. Yes, I know, it's the second day of the year and I am already becoming lazy. It's sad, but I think I needed a day of doing absolutely nothing before the craziness of second semester starts up next week. This picture shows two of my favorite detectives on SVU- the ever sarcastin Detective Munch and Detective Tutuolla.

That was my day and I know you are all so thrilled by it's excitement and the business of it all. Oh, I almost forgot. I did do something interesting today: I sorta chewed out a 14-year-old girl from my church. I know, not the most Christianly thing to do, at all, but I couldn't help the temptation to give this annoying little girl a peice of her own medicine. I have never been a very confrontational person, and I never have been someone to intentionally hurt a fragile teenage in angst. But of course, it is a different story when this particual teenager has been pestering my little sister and her new boyfriend. Let's just say I told this girl to quit talking about my sister and keep my sister and her boyfriend's name out of her mouth. Hopefully I didn't scar her fragile heart too much in the process ;)

All in all, today was a vey unevenful day, but I got a long way in uping my relaxation for the year. Look forward to more posts each day on the exciting events going on in my life.

January 1,2011

It's officially a new year, so happy 2011, folks! My year started off with my boyfriend and a few friends by my side, and I love that I rang 2011 that way. It got more interesting as the night when on when I had a panic attack. Most of the reason for that would be that one year ago, today, I was with my best friend, bringing in the New Year with her. This past September she passed away and I have struggled everyday with coming to grips with it. I am hoping to get an appointment soon for my panic attacks and hopefully they will stop, or at least slow down.

On a happier note though, I spent the first day of 2011 with my favorite person in the whole world, my amazing boyfriend. I watched the Alabama Crimson Tide squash the Michigan State Spartans, and I enjoyed a good meal of shrimp alfredo with a side of Law and Order. All in all, it was a good day, and to add on to that I came home to my six-year-old sister screaming, "McKenna's home! McKenna's home!" the second I stepped in the door and that is always a good homecoming.

Like I mentioned in yesterday's post, I will be posting ONE picture from each day that sort of sums up my day as a whole. Today's picture is a favorite of mine, ecspecially because of the attire Wade is wearing. :)

This was one of Wade's Christmas presents from me- an apron that says "Mr. Good Lookin is Cookin". Very fitting for him because he is always cooking. Well, that is my picture for January 1, 2011. Stay posted each day, if anyone is even reading this, for a picture from each and a sneak peak into my life. :)