January can suck it! Its good to be back (kinda) .....

So today is February 12th and Daddy passed on January 12th. Its been a month but it feels as if it was only an hour ago. Still very raw and hard and impossible to swallow.  I am going through the motions of getting up, getting dressed , going to work, feeding the dogs, etc but i feel like i'm in a fog.  I can just tell you that February couldn't get here quick enough.  For some of you that have been around my blog longer than a year , yall know that my stepdad Don passed away last year on January 4.  Now i have my lost both my dad's in January. How crazy is that?!!  I mentioned in my last post that i also was diagnosed with pneumonia.  I think its gone but honestly i haven't been back to the Dr to check.  A week after Dad's funeral, on a Friday,Todd started complaining of some pain in his stomach area. That next Sunday morning he woke me up groaning and moaning loudly in bed. I shot out of bed and i took him to emergency room. He had a blocked gallbladder. Fast forward to the next Friday , he had surgery to remove the gallbladder.  So i was at a hospital pretty much the month of January it felt to me. 
The first week of February, i had to fly into Ohio to work the week at one of our centers there to do some training.  That week was kinda hard being alone every night in the hotel. I cried every night and couldn't stop thinking about Daddy. The weather was weird that week in Loveland. We had snow flurries for a whole day but none of it stuck. I was so happy to see my first snow of the year since Texas didn't get any.
Lots of changes at work and i didn't feel any stress with the merger happening until lately.  I cant really talk about it now but i hate to worry about work and that adds more stress.
Daddy was a musician and he played everything from rock to country.  Surprisingly , many songs on the radio right now trigger a memory and i have to change the station.  What I've been listening to lately is Christian music. I know that Dad didn't listen to those channels.  There a few songs that i have to skip through like I can Only Imagine by MercyMe. Oh no way will i listen to that right now!
I came across a band that i had never heard before by the name of Needtobreathe.  One day i used Shazam on a song and it was Brother. The next week i Shazamed another song and it was the same band but different song Multiplied.  Then i fell in love with song Something Beautiful. So i am really excited that i found this band and there are so many great songs by them.  Their sound reminds me of a rock band Kings of Leon.  What do you think?
So i wanted to share these with you. 

I have missed my blogging friends and i have missed blogging.  Ironically , almost 5 years ago i created this blog when Daddy first got sick with his lung disease. I did it as an outlet. I'm glad i did because your sweet comments and support have meant the world to me.  I am going to try to get back into regular routing again.  Much love and have a great weekend y'all!!

Battle of the Bands- Round 2

Hey y'all!!! So i'm working this week in Ohio and i've been swamped. Its funny that the BOTB has ended up being both weeks that i've traveled. I almost went to bed when i remembered that tomorrow is the 15th and thats when the battles get posted.   Remember how it was raining cats and dogs when i was in St Louis? Well I brought it with me here and its been crazy storming around me.  Last night the winds and the thunder woke me up.  Stay safe out there if you're in the path of these storms. Its also crazy here with some kind of baseball All Star shindig.  Cincinnati is the host of the sport thing and all the hotels here are packed and tons of people are here.  Meh! Is how i feel about baseball.
Lets get started on the songs shall we.  Its after 11 and i have to get up early. This is my second time to play in the battle and i'm nervous that someone has already done the same battle.  I guess i just need to not worry and also know that i have different followers so your vote will be a new one.
My song this week is called Bad Company by the band Bad Company.  The song was released in 1974.  They were a British band and were considered hard rock back in the 70's.  They also have other hits such as Feel Like Makin Love, Running with the Pack, and Cant get Enough.  I have their greatest hits CD and its a great road trip CD to listen to!!

Ironically 5 years ago on my birthday May 17th, 2010 a very heavy metal hard rock band called Five Finger Death Punch released their album that included a cover of this song.  I ask you to be open minded because quite frankly, i think they do a FANTASTIC job!! Some of their other songs are pretty heavy but they reined it in on this song.  This band started in Las Vegas in 2005 so they've only been around for 10 years. They're doing pretty good and have won a couple of Indie awards, Rock Radio awards, etc.  They released a song last year that i like called Wrong side of Heaven.  I'll play it for you sometime....

I am excited to hear your vote and i will post the results on the 21st i think.  HAHA- i have to check to see when i'm supposed to.  There is quite a few battles being hosted and the list is at Stephen's page.  Please Please go there and vote for other songs. You may hear some new songs and artists that you like.   Have a great day tomorrow!!

Art in many forms

While in Ohio a few weeks ago , I dropped my husband off to band practice and I was driving around killing time.  I came across this very interesting place on the side of the road. It has ginormous metal statues and I couldnt drive by without pulling over and taking some pictures.  You just don't see stuff like this everyday. 

This is blurry but those are duck decoys. 

There were a few political signs too but I just took pictures of the art.  

I just love different. People who express themselves .  There's beauty in that!

Have a great day yall! 

I went back to Ohio

I am wrapping up my visit that I spent in Ohio 2 weeks ago.  I only mentioned the one night that Todd played in his band so far. We were there for 3 nights and 3 days so we were able to have some nice relaxing mornings.  We stayed in a Homewood Suites in a town called Maumee. They served breakfast until 9:00 am every morning. What was so funny is that we woke up every single morning at 8:45. If you knew how strange that is for big of us. I am not a sleeper. I am a very restless sleeper and I wake up very easily.  Sleeping late to me is 7:00 on a weekend. We stayed up late though every night and probably didn't get to bed before midnight.  Luckily there was a Cracker Barrel across the street from us.

Todd wanted to see his homes and schools that he lived in and went to.  We also saw where his dad went to elementary school.  We drove around a lot and spent some time in a cute town called Grand Rapids, Ohio. It had nice little shops and antique stores.  A beautiful river ran behind the Main Street. 

One thing I couldn't get enough of was all the lovely huge barns.  Out near where we were it was pretty rural. Lots of farms and crops were around. I lost count and gave up taking pictures of all the barns once I realized that dang near everyone had one.  If I lived in Ohio, I would have to have a huge barn!! 

Todd was super excited to eat at a place called Tony Packos.  In fact, we ate there twice.  If you remember the TV show MASH, then you know the character Klinger. Klinger was from Toledo and always mentioned his favorite place Tony Packos.  They're famous for their Hungarian hot dogs and chili.  I have to admit, they were tasty! We went to the original one that was close to downtown Toledo.  

Another night, while Todd had practice , I had the evening alone to explore. I ate at a chain that was also popular in that area called Charlie's. It was Greek and so yummy!  Afterwards, I shopped and didn't buy much but Todd and I bought a few shirts from the Harley shop the day before. I also bought some gorgeous antique chippy Corbels that came off a house there in Ohio. The lady at antique store was so nice and told us she was there when they removed from an old abandoned house. I love knowing the history of something I bought.  Todd suggested me going to a post office and shipping my purchases home.  Instead, 

I found a thrift store and bought a small carryon bag for one dollar!! It was perfect  to pack the corbels and tshirts in. We checked it for free and I didn't have to ship anything. 

All in all, I had a great time and enjoyed seeing a part of Ohio that I'd never seen before. Todd was happy and had fun  and we needed some time away together. 

Now for tons of pics:

Downtown Toledo 

Fun night of music and friends

Exactly a week ago on Thursday , Todd and I were hopping on a plane headed to Ohio.  We flew into Detroit because it's not far driving distance to Toledo.  Todd's family is from that area and he went to school there some as a young kid in elementary and he went to high school his last 2 years (junior and senior).  He was in a band during those years and have remained in touch with his band mates.  A few of them still play today in other bands which is pretty cool.  They get together every 5 years and they play a reunion concert and this was why we were in Ohio.  The lead singer John organized the gig in a bar called the Bunker Bar that had this huge hall connected to it. Todds band is called Octavian and Johns band that he's currently singing for is Alter Ego.  Alter Ego pulls in quite a crowd because they play locally and have done well with getting their name out.  However, tons of people from Todds high school came to see the band and show support.  A few other members also live out of state now. 

I would say at least 300 people came out. It was so cool!!  

The live show was Saturday night and my birthday was the following day. Right at midnight, Todd and my friends wished me happy birthday.  My friend Janet drove up from Columbus which was a little over 3 hrs away.  We met 8 years ago when I worked there for a few months.  She brought her friend Connie who was a total hoot!! They brought a banner, a pink boa, a strobe light for the table, bracelets that light up, and a toy tambourine  as party favors for birthday. They really made me feel special and also  not alone while Todd played.  

I had a great night and so so happy I went to see Todd play with his friends. 

Here's a few pics from the night.  I still have more about my weekend there but I've got to go now. 

Just as cool in person

Happy Tuesday yall! I mentioned in a post last week that I was going to meet a blogger Laura at
 We Really Got This in person.  It was so much fun!! We met last Thursday at Houlihan's at 6 pm and yall, we didn't leave until 9:00.  She lives about 5 towns over from me so we met somewhat halfway between us both.  I had an idea of what Laura looked like from some pictures on her blog.  When I walked in I saw her and I smiled but then she was talking to the lady next to her so I thought maybe she's with her.  I was talking to the hostess but I kept staring at Laura and she said Are you Holli?  That's how friendly she is just chatting up the person next to her. So something I would do. I get asked by my friends often why I talk to strangers. hahaha!
I can tell you that it was just so easy to talk to her and I didn't feel awkward in the very least.  I was a little nervous because I always have a little fear of " what of she thinks I'm a big goober and we don't have anything to talk about".  It was seamless!  We have so much in common from our age, neither one of us have kids but our dogs,  to our taste in music, down to the exact favorite Mexican restaurant that is not the most popular around Dallas.  Fun! Fun !
I'm glad we put it out there and really set a time and date and had our meeting. I have had excellent luck in meeting my blogger friends around my community. In fact, Julie from A Beautiful Day is a very close family friend of ours now. She helped with my wedding and I don't know what I would have done without her then.  We used to live closer so I miss doing as much as we used to together but we always stay in touch.  Thank goodness for social media too!
If you end up realizing you have some close by bloggers- I encourage you to meet them! Yall are a blessing and we already have the whole blogger thang as a connection.  When I met Deb from Just Keepin It Real Folks in person a few months ago while I was visiting North Carolina- it was the highlight of my week! It made traveling and working away from home so much easier and she was a doll.
I understand that some of yall may be shy and prefer the safety of being behind your computer. That's OK too. I am very social and not a shy bone in me.  For those of you who don't know, I'm a corporate trainer so I have to get up and speak in front of large crowds or via the web almost daily.  So I get very excited to meet people.

Pardon the blurry but my camera was dirty I think.  Anywho you get the jest...

Did I mention that I'm going out of town this week? Todd and I are going to Ohio for the weekend. He has several friends and family there and went to high school for a while somewhere close to Toledo.  Todd is a drummer which I've mentioned a few times and he's playing in a reunion band get together at the Bunker Bar in Holland, Ohio this Saturday.  If you're close by, come meet me and rock out with the band.  We come home Sunday which happens to be my birthday.  Very busy weekend coming up for sure!


Have a great day!

J - just another day

So we were going to go away this weekend originally with a large group of our riding buddies to Hill Country. The forecast promised of lots of rain so everyone cancelled. Todd and I still wanted to get away and had planned to until today and we changed our mind. Btw, I'm writing this now on Friday. 

We our going to Ohio next month for a band reunion that Todd plays in. We already booked our tickets and so its a done deal.  Then as mentioned on my D for Donna post- I want to visit Mom this year and go to a wedding in Idaho. 

It was decided that we need to save what money we can to our planned trips.  Not that it was going to be too expensive this weekend but with gas, hotel, meals and any other it does add up. 

So today and this weekend is just like any other day. I have tons to do around the house and We are going to visit Nanny now.  She lives 2 hours away so it's 4 hrs round trip.  She's worth it and I enjoy every minute with her I can. 

I have to travel all next week for work in Los Angeles and I need to pack for that too.  Sometimes it sucks being an adult and making responsible decisions. Haha

Yall have a nice weekend!