Friday Favorites

It's finally Friday!  And boy has it been a good/hot one.  Temps are higher than they have been all summer so if you're in the Middle Tennessee area stay hydrated, get yourself in or around a swimming pool or stay indoors if you can help it.

Here are a few of my favorites this summer!

These J Crew shorts have been in stable rotation and have become my favorite shorts this summer.  They look more orange-y in the picture but they are coral in real life.  I got them at the J Crew outlet store in Charleston while visiting a friend but if you're lucky enough to get to Opry Mills, there is a J Crew outlet store where these babies can be found on the cheap(er).

 Next up we have the Essie polish in "Sand Tropez" or as I called it "sand trap" for a while.  It's my go-to when I'm not polished in some shade of pink.  It's not super light but also not super dark, so it's just right!  Sure it's not the flashiest color, but I like that about this nude color.  Plus G tells me that bright nails remind him of a stripper...what?  I guess I'm proud that he was more concerned with strippers' nail colors/hands than their nakedness?  He makes me laugh.

Recently I've decided to start writing my friends letters/notes/cards.  Primarily because it's fun to receive and to send mail but also because I really love fun stationery.  Here are a few that I've been wanting lately...though I could look for note cards all day!

And my last favorite for today's Friday Favorites would be one of my favorite holidays, the Fourth of July, which is just around the corner!  As a child I loved/hated the Fourth because I thought the fireworks were terrifying.  Of course now as long as they are shot safely, I LOVE fireworks!  I went to a wedding recently where fireworks were shot as the bride & groom exited the reception.  It was great!  But really, what's not to love about the Fourth of July?  Cookouts, time spent with family & friends, fun red/white/blue colored outfits, food, and fireworks!  Last Fourth of July we went out on the lake and though it was kind of crowded we had a blast!  Here are some patriotic goodies that may inspire you this holiday....happy weekend, y'all!

Healthy Choices & Fun Tunes

Today I had lunch with my mom and some ladies from our church.  We ate at Ruby Tuesday.  I was glad to see that Ruby was taking some proactive stances in the obesity epidemic with their "Fit & Trim" menu choices that listed the calories on the menu.  I decided that I'd go with the Chicken Fresco that came with broccolli and mashed potatoes--all for 397 calories.  It was delish! 

I was feeling pretty proud of myself until we figured out that the delicious little garlic biscuits that had been brought to our table were 110 calories a piece.  Not too big of a deal......unless you were me who ate five of them.  Whoops.

This leads me to my next question....why weren't the calories of those listed?  And why were the "Fit & Trim" options the only menu items with nutritional values listed?  It's a good step forward to have the healthier items listed, but when the healthier items have "less than 700 calories" that makes me wonder how many the other entrees have.  Chili's is the same way with their "Guiltless Grill" options but have you ever looked up the nutrition on the other food there?  If you ever want to eat chips & salsa or queso dip I would suggest you just jog to Chili's rather than drive.  I like to know ahead of time what my menu options will be so I can adjust the rest of my day's eating. 

For example, Jack in the Box lists all of their menu items' calorie values on their drive thru board.  I know what you're probably thinking...why is she eating at Jack in the Box and trying to be remotely health conscious?....because I'm an American, a big fat American who just wants some of those curly fries....but I do want to know if I should eat only green beans for supper.  But Jack posts it all, the good and the bad.  It scares you into eating a better choice.  I could've ordered the giant, tasty hamburger that had 500 calories (just an estimate) but instead I ordered their weird little tacos for 200 calories (plus those things are 2 for $1!).  I really think that some people realize that Big Mac's aren't good for you, but they don't necessarily realize HOW they aren't good for you and maybe why you shouldn't have one for lunch and supper in the same day. 

Rant ended....for now.

On to more fun things!

The tune of the week is inspired by last week's lake visit.  I had heard that Little Big Town had a song called "Pontoon" and I couldn't imagine it actually being something I'd listen to on purpose.  I stand corrected!  Now granted, this is not the most soul-touching country song but dang it if this isn't relaxing and summer-y!

When they performed the song on the CMT Awards they actually had a pontoon boat (complete with water slide on the back) onstage and they sang from the hardtop like they are in the video.  So grab yourself a koozie, let's go!

My Mouth Hurts, Y'all: The Story of My Left Front Tooth

Now I had every intention on writing about last night's episode of The Bachelorette.  I'll probably write an additional post about that but this will be the first installment of my "Bethany's Tales" portion of this blog.
Be forewarned that it is in depth...as all Bethany stories can be.


It all started in 2nd grade when I tripped over David Tuberville's foot and smashed my face into the the sidewalk breaking my left front (your right, my left) tooth across a nerve.  It wasn't pretty.  I'm really not sure who was more disturbed by the incident, me or Mrs. Morgan my teacher/family friend.  By the time my mother came to rush me off to the dentist Mrs. Morgan could've used a bottle glass of wine or two as she was pretty shaken up.


Once I made it to Dr. Hopson's office he said "Didn't your cousin do this too?"  She did.  Same tooth.  So he does some sort of magic and puts a "composite" on my tooth making it good as new.  Later that night I went on to win First Place in the school science fair for my project "Which Freezes First?" (Spoiler alert: it's bridges and overpasses) but I digress.  The composite on my tooth held up until the summer before 5th grade where it fell off while I was snorkeling in my pool.  I'm not sure what I thought I'd find down there but nonetheless I had to go to my tennis lesson looking like I'd been in a bar fight before my tooth could be fixed again.


One night when I was in the 5th grade, I was awoken by a terrible pain in my tooth.  This was the first time I ever took Advil and I had to chew it up.  The inside of Advil tastes like chalk, don't do it.  It turns out that I needed a root canal.  You know when people say "I'd rather have a root canal than (insert unpleasant activity)" they aren't kidding around.  Those things are not fun....especially when you are 10-years-old.  The doctor I went to had a screen you/he could see what he was doing.  Again, it was not pretty.


Fast forward a few years to Junior year of high school and I'm about to have my Senior pictures taken.  I had noticed that my tooth had darkened a shade or two and when I asked my big girl dentist, he said we could internally bleach it.  I made an appointment to have Dr. Weakley drill a hole in the back of my tooth (don't worry, there aren't any nerves in there!), pump some bleach in, and then rinse it out a day or two later.  As crazy as it sounds it really doesn't hurt and it worked like a charm...


...Until just recently when I noticed it was starting to get a little weird again.  Everyone else says they really can't tell but it bothers me so I wanted to do another round with Dr. Weakley.  Long story short--he drills into my tooth only to close it back up due to my tooth's "resorption."  What does that mean you ask?  Oh ya know, just that my tooth is eating itself from the inside and I could end up with a hillbilly tooth someday.  I was quite proud of myself for not crying at the news! 


That catches us up to today.  Today, I went to see an endodontist....aka root canal doctor.  He was a lovely man however he is in serious need of some soundproofing for his waiting room.  I was a little freaked out sitting there listening to drills and other torture devices while filling out my paperwork.  I was under the impression that today was a consultation--a let's poke around your mouth for a minute type deal.  I was sadly mistaken.  Dr. Webber tells me the only way he can really see what's going on with my tooth is to poke around...on the INSIDE!  After he gives me one painful and one somewhat painful shot to the gums/roof of the mouth he goes to town.  Drilling.  Sanding.  Frankly I haven't the faintest idea what he really did in there because I kept my eyes shut as tight as I could and my whole body tensed to prevent my shaking arms/legs from moving my mouth (or letting them know I was freaking out).  I'm not sure if it would've been better to have prepared for this or not but I was rather shaken up.  He said he got all of the bad tissue that he could.  He also likened my tooth to a "rotten tree with termites" (thanks?) and that resorption is "not cancer, but kind of like it."  I was proud of myself for not crying until I got into the car.


Curse you, David Tuberville. 


So there you have it ladies and gentlemen.  I may one day be walking around with a gold tooth, or no tooth at all!  Please still be my friends.

Weekend Activities

Happy Monday!  I hope you all had as wonderful of a weekend as I had!  It certainly was an eventful one, that's for sure.  Here are the highlights!

Saturday, my boyfriend G and I went to the 3rd birthday party of our sweet little friend Lucas.  To say Lucas likes dinosaurs is a bit of an understatement....there was even dinosaur shaped cheese slices!  He and his pals all got forks and dug into his cake.  It was really funny.  Also, my mother and I may or may not have jumped in the bouncy house...after all the children had gotten out.  

 

That night, my friend/sorority sister Rebekah came into town to celebrate the passing of her OT boards...way to go Dr. Reba!  We headed out to Beachaven Vineyard & Winery for their "Jazz on the Lawn" event.  Beachaven hosts Jazz every other weekend from May through October.  People come out of the woodwork for these events and they are a lot of fun!  Music, picnics, wine...all sorts of fun!

Please note the maiden voyage of my fold-up cooler.  It looks like a fold-up camping chair (or as folks around here call them, "Jazz chairs") but it is actually an insulated cooler bag that sits on a stand.  Thank you, Old Time Pottery!

Rebekah accompanied me to church where we heard our brand new preacher, then we headed back to meet some of our other sorority sisters for an afternoon at the lake.  Going out on the water is one of my very favorite things to do!  We really appreciated Chelsea's husband Evan driving us around and being such a trooper hanging with the ladies. 

Who's excited for tonight's Bachelorette???  I know I'm not the only one!

Awkward Moments

Awkward Moments, everyone has them but I'm beginning to wonder if I am setting some kind of record.  I secretly love awkward moments (witnessing them moreso than living them) because let's face it, if you can't laugh at yourself what's the fun in life?  So for today's blog, I've decided to list out some of my favorite, classic (in no particular order) awkward moments!  Enjoy and feel free to add in your own in the comments section!

1.  Waving at Someone Who is Really Waving at the Person Behind You.

Now I have been on both sides of this moment, the one waved to and the monkey in the middle.  When I'm the Monkey I typically just laugh at myself and then high-tail it out of there if possible. 

2.  Saying Hi To Someone You Kind of Know....Only to Receive a Weird Look in Return

This happened to me the other day.  I felt dumb, tossed on my sunglasses and ran to my car.  It is for this reason that if someone I do not recognize says hello to me I wave and smile with all of my teeth just so they don't feel bad.....Please refer back to Awkward Moment #1

3.  Singing the Wrong Lyrics Around Another Person

I'm a stickler for singing the real lyrics to songs, but I find it highly entertaining when other people don't.  A few of my favorite times this has happened:

•  Once while listening to Tim McGraw's "Indian Outlaw," my best friend sang out....full force..."Cherokee Peepers!!!"  If you haven't heard the song, the words are "Cherokee People." 
• A former dance teammate thought that when it says "Let me see what you're twirkin' with" in "Sexy Back" that they were saying "Let me see ya with your turkey leg"
• My boyfriend sometimes just makes up lyrics to songs...ie. "Total Eclipse of the Heart"...."Once when I was little I was falling in love, now I'm only falling away.....Total eclipse of my heart!"  I thought I would never stop laughing.
• Another former dance teammate was notorious for singing the wrong lyrics. A few highlights of my friend, Lauren:

"Breakfast at Tiffany's"
Real words: "And I said what about Breakfast at Tiffany's? She said I think I remember the film"
Lauren words: "And I said what about breakfast with Tiffany. She said I think I remember the spellbind."

"Hot Stepper" (now in Lauren's defense, when I sang along to this song I would just make sounds.  I applaud her for trying to decipher the words)
Real Words: "They call me hot stepper. I'm the lyrical gangster."
Lauren Words:"They call me alstaga. I'm the ludacal galsta."

"Sexy Can I"
Real Words: "Sexy can I, just pardon my manners"
Lauren Words: "Sexy can I, just parked my manis"

4. The Not-So-Correct Auto-Correct Text Message
These are courteousy of Pinterest via damnyouautocorrect.com...enjoy!

 

I think finding the photos for this post is the best thing I've done in a while.  I could do this all day but I will spare y'all...but I will leave you with these little treasures from awkwardfamilyphotos.com!  If you're ever having a bad day and want to feel better, visit this site (http://awkwardfamilyphotos.com/).   Again, feel free to sound off in the comments with your favorite moments!

Tuned in Thursday

I'm well aware that "Tuned in Thursday" should probably be "Tuned in Tuesday" but we'll roll with it!  For some reason I get into these moods where I will listen to the same two or three songs on repeat for a week straight, sometimes longer depending on how long the Recently Added playlist on my ipod can hold out before it dies.  Not quite as bad as Michelle on the episode of Full House where she forced everyone to listen to "Baby Beluga" a thousand times on a cassette tape, but there was a period of several days (possibly a week) where I listened to "No Diggity" on repeat in my office. In 2009.

But recently my Song D'Jour is by this precious man.

Thomas Rhett

Look familiar?  It's possible!  His dad is 90's country singer and songwriting superstar Rhett Akins ("That ain't my truck in her drive...").  Thomas Rhett aka Thomas Rhett Akins, Jr. has been on a roll the past couple years starting when he scored a song on the latest Jason Aldean record.  TR wrote "I Ain't Ready to Quit" which is coincidentally one of the better songs on that album....I could go into my disappointment with Jason Aldean's latest album but I'll save that for another post.  TR then signed with Valory Music Company this year.  That means he is labelmates with Justin Moore and Reba McEntire!

Moving right along, TR's first single out to country radio is "Something To Do With My Hands" and he seems like a pretty frisky little guy!  It's got a good melody and quirky, fun(ny) lyrics.  I always like a song that puts a clever little twist on something so that the moment you hear it you just laugh or smile and want to dance.  Sometimes you just want to hear a fun song! 

The "official" videos aren't working at the moment but I did find this little gem of a live performance in what appears to be a break room?  Regardless, live music is usually way better than recorded so without further ado....enjoy!

Cumberland Valley Coffee Company

As part of this blog, I plan on talking about different people/places/products/whatnot from the Great State of Tennessee. 

Ever since I had my first sip from my daddy's coffee cup I have enjoyed drinking coffee.  I am by no means an expert on coffee, but I do judge on the following scale: Tastes Good, Tastes Okay, Oh No.  For example, growing up I had two ideas of coffee, Folgers and Maxwell House and you had better believe I could tell the difference!  Sidenote: Folgers = Makes me happier than that riverdancing gal on their commercials, Maxwell House = Oh No.

In my wise old age I have made an attempt to branch out into the world of flavored coffees with mixed results.  So, when I came across a coffee roasting company out of Greenbrier, Tennessee I knew I had to give it a try.  Therefore my friends, I give you Cumberland Valley Coffee Company!

The store where I found these goodies only offered a handful of blends (is that the word coffee people use?) and being the indecisive creature that I am, I ended up buying two-- The Tennessee Blend and The Southern Pecan Flavored Coffee. 



Trial One- The Tennessee Blend

The instructions found on the back of the package said to add "One rounded tablespoon for every 8 ounces of water.  Adjust to fit your taste!"  Correct me if I am wrong but isn't 8 oz = 1 cup?  What cowboy came up with this recipe??  Not being one to question the people who designed this blend, I just went for it.  It was strong.  I mean walk-off-of-your-countertop, beat-you-in-an-arm-wrestling-match kind of strong.  But, I channeled my inner John Wayne and tried it anyway (PS did I mention that I was so excited to try this I did so at about 7 pm?  I slept weird and had crazy dreams).  It wasn't bad, just very stout.  I quickly decided that if I was going to give the CVC Co. a fair assessment that I should go the "adjust to your taste" route. 

Second time-much better!  It's got a little kick to it that took me a few sips to figure out, it has an almost smoked flavor to it that's different but interesting!  I threw in a little French Vanilla creamer and was good to go! 



Trial Two- Southern Pecan Flavored Coffee



To my delight, the selection I was offered included the Southern Pecan Flavored Coffee.  Butter Pecan is one of my very favorite flavors of anything.  After learning from my mistake on the first go-round with the Tennessee Blend, I eyeballed the normal amount of coffee I typically use, started the coffee maker and then waited as patiently as I could until it was an acceptable temperature to drink.  The verdict: Tastes Good!

It's not an overwhelming taste of pecan but that is probably a good thing.  I'm sure you can add some flavored creamer/sugar if you aren't into drinking it black and/or want a little more sweetness.  I give this a thumbs up!  Sidenote: I have had more caffeine in this one day than I typically drink in a week and I fear I will never sleep again.

After visiting the Cumberland Valley Coffee Company's website (here) I saw that I had just seen the tip of the coffee iceberg as far as their varieties.  They have several different "Blended Coffees" as well as "Single Origin Coffees" with beans from several South American and African countries.  CVC also offers 23 flavors of "Flavored Coffees" including seasonal roasts like Pumpkin Spice and Gingerbread as well traditional flavors like French Vanilla and Hazelnut.  I'm pretty intrigued by the Mountain Blueberry and Coconut Cake flavors.

If you are a coffee drinker be sure and check out Cumberland Valley Coffee Company and tell them I sent you....they will have no idea who you are talking about.

What Have I Gotten Myself Into?

After thinking about this for a while, I've decided to join the rest of my friends and jump into the "blogesphere."  I will most likely be writing about a wide variety of nonsense but will try my best to keep it interesting. 

Let's just say if you like terrible television programs (ie The Bachelor(ette) Series), DIY projects and/or recipes found on Pinterest, music reviews, Volunteer Football and just hearing about my day-to-day shenanigans (don't worry real-life friends, I'm thinking about doing a segement to include my past "Bethany Stories") then you are going to LOVE this blog! 

Also, please forgive the disarray of the layout...I'm learning and I swear I feel like Methuselah trying to figure out how to work this confounded HTML stuff...bear with me friends.  PS - any blog design tips are much appreciated!