out with the old, in with the new

goodbye 2006. you have been such a great year, in fact, one of the best years ever. you gave me so many wonderful memories...

franklin


the coachies

a new nephew, lincoln

orlando festival


work

pregnancy!

(listening to "Come Thou Fount Of Every Blessing" by Sujan Stevens)

happy pawlidays!

white christmas

tomorrow morning i will be travelling to cincinnati for one final time before lily is born. i am so excited to see my family and friends and to experience some cooler weather for a change. it will also be nice to eat my favorite foods! i will definitely be stopping at Frisch's to grab something to eat asap.

i am a person that loves traditions. some of my favorite memories with my family are of going to the Festival of Lights, watching National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, and getting the cherished ornament that my mother so thoughtfully picked to represent us each year. i am thrilled at the idea of introducing lily to such fun experiences, as well as starting our own as a family.

i have a great family, but i feel especially blessed to have been "adopted" into kristen's (one of my oldest and dearest friends) family. they so graciously let me take part in one of the most special traditions of the season, watching White Christmas.

i had never seen this wonderful musical until they introduced it to me years ago. i immediately fell in love with it. it just doesn't feel like christmas to me without hearing Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney and Vera Ellen sing "Snow". i so look forward to this every year and feel so lucky to share in this sacred Myers women tradition!

here is a little clip from youtube that has completely wet my whistle for watching this movie on saturday... e n j o y !

thanksgiving

thanksgiving lunch at the polynesian hotel

this year, i have a lot to be thankful for. first of all, i'm so thankful to God for my wonderful family. both tom and i have been able to visit most everyone that we dearly love. we are grateful that everyone is in good health and that they are doing well. this year was even more special because of our new nephew, lincoln. he is a sweet addition to our growing family. i am so happy that he is in our lives and that we will be there to experience him as he grows. polly and franklin (our doggies) have also added so much to our lives. God is so wonderful for giving us such loving animals to shower with affection.

personally, i am extremely thankful for all of my friends. the coachies, our small group, and friends from work and back home in cincinnati have all truly blessed my life. God has truly provided a strong network of friends to support me, especially as i enter this next chapter of my life.

what i am most thankful for is tom. for as different as we are, we work. he has added more to my life than i can describe. he makes me a better person. as we go about this next adventure of becoming parents, i am glad that we are doing it together. there is no one else in the world that i would want for lily's father.

i am so excited to meet lily in this next year. she will be the best thing that i have ever done and will fulfill me as i have never been before. i thank God for her already and for the joy that i know she will bring to my life.

have a happy thanksgiving everyone.

(listening to "Goodnight and Go" by Imogen Heap)

ok, so i'm addicted to youtube, i know.

i just keep finding all of these awesome things to post on my blog from youtube. i'm having too much fun!

now i don't want to offend anyone, so i apologize in advance if the follow clip does just that.
this is one of my favorite songs from the musical/movie "Hair".

i love me some nell carter!

good morning starshine

this one's for you, betsy!

pokey little puppies like to play!

tom and i have recently discovered two new ways to "torment" our little dogs, polly and franklin.

the accordian

the balloon

nat king cole

i was lucky enough to find this video on youtube. bless the person who put it on there for us to appreciate.

nat king cole was and is one of the best musical artists of all time. watch this video and you'll see why.

e n j o y .

autumn leaves

the falling leaves drift by the window

the autumn leaves of red and gold

i see your lips, the summer kisses

the sun-burned hands i used to hold

since you went away the days grow long

and soon i'll hear old winters song

but I miss you most of all my darling

when autumn leaves start to fall

metric meets elliott

how cool ... searching youtube to show my mama an elliott video when i discover one of my favorite artists covering my absolute favorite. enjoy metric's emily haines sing "between the bars" by elliott smith. beautiful.

baby news!

for news about our baby and updated pictures, click the link below.

www.babyreynolds.blogspot.com

japanese potty training

so i'm watching the red carpet pre-show for the emmy awards last night, when they show a clip of a japanese potty training video. hilarious! i knew that i would find it on youtube (my newest passion) and couldn't wait to post it here on my blog for everyone's enjoyment.

you can totally tell that it is a japanese kid at the end ... as the japanese always seem to be giving the peace sign!

e n j o y !

catch my disease

i had put this video on here a while back, but it never quite worked the way that i wanted it to.

if i could have been a part of any music video, i'd want to have been in this one.

it looks like they had so much fun ... and ... there's clapping in it!!

tag team

you think that i would have learned the first time with Polly. remember this?

however, i'm not too bright these days ... and i obviously thought that it was a good idea to leave Polly & Franklin to play together unsupervised, while i checked my email. stupid me...

caught in the act!

partners in crime

(listening to "Deceptacon" by Le Tigre)

i feel gggrrrreeeaattt!

this is so funny. snaps for charlie for finding such an awesome commercial. babies everywhere!!!

thank you

claps for you, W!

thank you, Mr. President, for vetoing the stem cell bill today. popular or not, you did the right thing for all of the unborn children that deserve the chance at life.

(listening to "Say Yes" by Elliott Smith)

sunset boulevard

it was may 2005.

a beautiful day in los angeles.

not too hot. sunny. perfect.

5 friends went to pay their respects.

elliott smith.

figure 8.

each wrote what felt appropriate.

fitting tribute.

a lovely afternoon.

walk down alameda

remembering

look closely near the end

(listening to "Between The Bars" by Elliott Smith)

guess who's...

Tom and I are happy to announce that we are expecting our first baby at the end of January!

(listening to "Multiply" by Jamie Lidell)

5.13.06

six years ago today. time is going too fast. it hasn't always been good. it hasn't all been bad. honestly though, in the end, it's been worth it.

i promise before God to love you and only you

for the rest of our lives together

i promise to love you in good times and bad times

to put your happiness first

and to always be faithful

this is the promise i make to you now

and the promise i'll keep forever

(listening to "All At Sea" by Jamie Cullum)

Ch-Ching!

just returned home from one of the best weekends of my life.

here's a a video to wet your whistle of what's to come of my coachella recap post...

dance your pants off, betamike!

los angeles

since i'm off to los angeles tomorrow evening for the coachella music festival in the city of indio... i give you

"angeles"

elliott

i love this video.

attack of the african crown crane

my job is rarely boring. in fact, since i never really know what someone is going to say, it's almost always interesting.

now don't get me wrong... i especially love when i have the opportunity to interpret at major theme parks in orlando.... wink wink. however, since i now know the shows like the back of my hand... it's not always that big of a challenge. i'm not complacent, i just know what i'm doing when i go there. the shows are always the same... that's the goal, anyway.

yesterday was the exception.

let me also add that my job is usually not dangerous. i mean, it can be, but for the most part it's extremely safe.

again, yesterday was the exception.



kevin and i were interpreting a particular bird show, when one of the stars of said show, decided to deviate from their well rehearsed script. when i say deviate, i mean... attack the interpreter closest to them!

no joke, people. i was standing near the stage, minding my own business... interpreting.. when all of a sudden, everything around me became windy! my hair was blowing around, feathers were flying, people in the audience were on their feet gasping and pointing, and a manager ran out into the middle of the crowd. the beautiful african crown crane was trying to attack me!

after i realized what was happening, i immediately jumped in front of kevin, and lowered myself as close to the ground as possible.. without actually lying down. the bird, who was no longer hovering over me, safely landed on the ground right next the first row of audience members. afraid that he was going to come back for round two, and try peck my eyes out, i hid behind kevin. finally, the trainer managed to get the bird onto the stage, and helped it to exit.

i'm not kidding when i say that it was incredibly hard for me to compose myself and finish the show.

you know how it feels when you're almost in a car accident? you know...the whole body becomes like jello thing? that's exactly how i felt.

i couldn't stop shaking and really just wanted to sit down and cry because i was so scared.

the rest of the show went very well, and afterwards we had a chance to talk over the situation with the trainers, etc. they told me that every show is videotaped for quality purposes, and that they would be reviewing the tape to see if i unintentionally provocted the bird to go crazy. please God, let me see that tape someday!!!

looking back now... it is pretty funny. it was definitely an experience that i will never forget!

*before someone asks.. no, this is not an actual image of the "attack"...

it's simply an illustration for your enjoyment!

(listening to "Blue Light" by Bloc Party)

happy birthday daddy!

oh yeah!

(listening to "Rose Parade" by Elliott Smith)

kristen

she'll always be there for you....

even when you steal the microphone from her in the Christmas pageant...

if you have to potty on your wedding day...

or if you need someone to catch your bouquet...

she'll even help you to conquer your fears...

she'll always bring a smile to your face...

and will make your friends, new friends of hers...

she'll never abandon you.

Happy Birthday Kristen!

I love you so much.

(in honor of her special day... i'm listening to "I Will" by the Beatles)

piccadilly palare

1 9 9 3
vacation
love this picture
what a time in my life
piccadilly circus in london
nothing will ever cooler than that
enchanted forest manic panic dye
most comfortable overalls
my old sony walkman
new doc martens
Morrissey
l i f e

(listening to "Panic" by The Smiths)

tom

today is tom's birthday. we met 12 years ago today, when he was 18, and now he's 30. time goes too fast.

tom is a private person, so instead of professing my love to him here, i'll do that in private. however, i will say..... that even though things have been crappy at times, and i mean... really bad, i'm glad that we've managed to stay together. it's been worth it.

happy birthday, my love.

i tell him this is his "author picture"

listening to "Four Leaf Clover" by Badly Drawn Boy... my new favorite song.. of course, IT HAS CLAPPING!!

polly is a bad girl!

this is why Polly needs constant supervision. she was alone for about 10 minutes... and look at the destruction! she completely destroyed her bed. now she gets to sleep on the hard floor, like all of the other non-pampered dogs in the world. her loss.

i'm so pissed off right now.


(listening to "We Used To Be Friends" by The Dandy Warhols)

loosen that snot with a neti pot!

ahhhhh! where do i even begin?

a few weeks ago, when i was in california with my family, my dad called me over to his computer to watch a video sent by my brother. paul is never one to disappoint when it comes to funniness, and that was true for this too.

at first, i wasn't sure what to make of it, because it started out with very relaxing music. however, i soon broke into hysterical laughter.


follow this link then click the top where it says "Watch the Neti Pot Demonstration Here"


poor lady, could she look any more asexual? i swear, this looks like it could have been a SNL skit.

apparently this is a very popular product, because i found multiple places that a neti pot can be purchased online.

in researching the neti pot, i found many beautiful images showcasing the pot's usefulness as well as expert neti users. please take a few moments to peruse my gallery.

professional neti pot user

just starting

who knew that my doppelganger was such an avid user?

according to this man's site, this is an image of "a wash while feeling okay"!

notice the grin?

"a wash while feeling cruddy"

closet neti pot user

"Comatose Neti"

who knew that Kevin Federline liked to neti?

take it from this guy, he knows how to neti

don't forget to finish with a "farmer's blow"

and then remember to stick your excess tubing down one nostril and out your mouth

(listening to "Trusted" by Ben Folds)

happy (v)heart day!

(listening to "Plan A" by The Dandy Warhols)

"i wish i could quit you" ... (sob..sob...blah..)

this is too funny. thanks alisa for posting this for our enjoyment!

nothing new...

i really don't have anything to say, because nothing much is going on with me.

i did go to disneyland in cali last weekend. that was a lot of fun. as soon as i get off my butt and get my pictures developed... i will maybe post about that.

i cut and colored my hair today. (see below for a bad picture that i took of myself) i love it. it feels so healthy and i llllooooovvvveee the color!

hhmmmmm..... what else.... i'm happy... oh, i know! the coachella lineup has been announced. let me just say that i about pooed myself when i saw that the Scissor Sisters are going to be there. here are the bands that i'm most looking forward to seeing...

in no particular order...

scissor sisters
metric
daft punk
depeche mode
sigur ros
franz ferdinand
clap your hands say yeah (don't they just sound like a fun group?)
go team
cat power
the zutons
yeah yeah yeahs
bloc party
wolf parade
coheed and cambria
go! team
sleater-kinney

i'm not going to kill myself to make it to the Gobi tent in time to see...

mogwai
tool

i'm mostly excited to hang out with (v)hat + friends. so much fun!



well, that's pretty much it for me. here's my bad new hair picture...

have a good day everyone.

(listening to "Exit Stage Right" by Badly Drawn Boy)

kanye walks?

this picture sums up exactly why i can't stand kanye west....

(listening to "The Repudiated Immortals" by Of Montreal")

scary!

because i love all things scary.....


i give you....

diane feinstein

(not listening to anything except a plane going overhead, and my heart pounding in my chest at the sight of this woman!)

stephanie

today is stephanie's birthday. to honor her, i want to dedicate this post to her and to our great friendship.

hot mamasitas!

wow, where to start. i first met stephanie when tom was doing an advanced internship with eyes & ears at disney. steph was one of his leaders and he always spoke very highly of her. i knew that she was very into music, and that she was a lot of fun, though i didn't get to experience that first hand, until several years later.

after tom and i moved to orlando, i found myself lonely and needing a friend. i didn't know it then, but God had brought stephanie into my life at a time when i needed her most. within a few weeks, she was coming to our house bearing gifts (she's always extremely thoughtful) and encouraging me to attend the farmer's market in winter park with her.

i could immediately see that she was cool, and that she was going to be so much fun to hang out with. we have had so many memorable experiences together. going to Coachella with {v}hat, buying the Mini, photobooths, concerts, movies, shopping, dog parks, restaurants, etc. what excites me, is that i know there are many more fun things yet to come! yay!!

more things that i love about her...

stephanie is and extremely talented writer and photographer. she is smart and respectful of people's views and opinions, even when she doesn't agree. she has such great taste in music and concerts (though i still can't get into Bright Eyes!), and she single-handedly brought me back from the dark ages of music listening and introduced me to a plethora of great bands.

most importantly, she is a devoted friend. she has such a warm personality. she is always willing to listen and advise when appropriate. stephanie always looks for the good in others.

we need more people like her in the world.

happy birthday steph! i love you.

(in honor of her birthday, i'm listening to "First Day Of My Life" by Bright Eyes)