Happiest of Birthdays! :)

Oh goodness, has it really been another year? I feel like it was just yesterday we were all jammin' out, for Laura's 30th birthday, at the The Band Perry (that's just a link to one of my favorites from The Band Perry!)! But, alas, it has been! So I want to say happy, happy, happy birthday to you, Laura! :)

Last Year's birthday cookie cake!

Now let me just tell you some reasons why Laura and I are such great friends:

1. We're both Hokies! :)

Laura and I both went to Virginia Tech, and though we met sometime our sophomore year, we didn't really become friends until just a few years ago. But we're Hokies all the way! We even try to make it out to games every once in a while!

Hokie ladies watching the game! (Laura, Kathryn, Kristi (Bethany), and Lila)

Here we are at Homecoming last year! Sarah, Matt, Kyle, Laura, Hokie Bird, Sara, Amanda, and me!

2. She doesn't mind teaching me new things! :)

Even though I've lived in Virginia now for 13 years, I had never been to the Virginia State Fair until last year. While we were actually anxiously awaiting for Kristi to have Bethany, she was texting with us and telling us to eat fried oreos for her since she couldn't be there! What an experience, fried oreos and fried peanut butter cups... YUM!!!

Being Silly!

Yummmmy! They were really good!

Party planning skills... 

Stole this idea from Laura! :)

An interest in crafting - even if it isn't every craft! :)

And an interest in trying to organize my life... I know this made her proud!

3. We can make almost anything an adventure! :) From just a half day of shopping to a road trip (or many)

Annnnd one of my favorite things about Laura, is that she LOVES to go on adventures with me. Be it a last minute plan, or something planned way in advance, we've definitely had some memorable road trips in our days!

First trip to Disney! (February 2012)

Trip to Disney 2014 - Snow White is a fav! :)

South Dakota on our 13 states in 10 days trip! :) That's a popcorn ball.

Chicago Ferris Wheel! We both read "Devil in the White City" (thanks Kristi for the recommendation) where we learned where the very first Ferris Wheel was constructed and wanted to go on the Ferris Wheel that is now in Chicago Navy Pier

And here is us with a picture of the ORIGINAL Ferris Wheel 

Every year for the past few years we find all the Christmas Lights on a map and drive around to see them!

Just a trip to NYC for a weekend in December! :) 

Laura, Anna and I jammin' out to some Frozen :)

And here we are entering North Carolina! :)

Laura, me and Kathryn hanging for a Richmond Flying Squirrels game!

4. We both love parties?!?! YES PLEASE! :)

Christmas Day brunch with the Williams Family (thanks for including me!)

Anna, me, Emily and Laura at the Lake before baby Carr arrives!

Charlotte, me, Laura, Anna and Lila at Halloween 2013 :)

Laura, Kristi (Bethany), and me at Kristi's Baby Shower!

Always a good time to go to the leg warmers! :) 80's style!

Laura, I'm sorry that I can't be there on your ACTUAL birthday, to celebrate you! Buuuuut, I hope you have the happiest of birthdays!!! You're such a great friend and so sweet and caring! You deserve to be celebrated! :)

A weekend visitor! :)

This past weekend my friend Rebecca came to visit from DC. Rebecca and I have known each other since we were about two years old. We both grew up in Sandwich and went to the same schools together. When it came time for college, Rebecca went to George Washington University in DC and I went to Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA. We had both moved south - and stayed there! :)

Rebecca took the train in on Saturday and left on Sunday. In the meantime I took her all over Richmond, we went for a walk at Maymont Park with Kristi and Bethany, then we hit up the James River Winery with Laura and Kathryn, then we went to the Daily for dinner with Kathryn, and followed that up with some Shyndigz for dessert. On Sunday we relaxed in the morning, went to see the Hundred Foot Journey with Laura, ran some errands and then it was time for her to go. :(

We failed at getting a photo of the two of us, but I at least got some photos of our yummy Shyndigz dessert!

Kathryn's Fresh Fruit Cake on the left and our Chocolate Salted Caramel on the right

The only photo of Rebecca I got this weekend!

yummmy :)

We totally saw this in Carytown it says: "May your life someday be as
awesome as you pretend it is on Facebook" HAHAHA!

Oh hey there :)

I'm still alive, just haven't blogged lately. Stay tuned :)

More from MA

So I realized after posting the last post that I had forgotten to show some other pictures I took while I was in Massachusetts for my grandmother's memorial.

Mern's house... This is specifically her piazza :)

The view from Mern's house, right there is the water

Ok, the next two pictures are of these little gems we found on her back porch... can you guess what they are?!?!

Washing machines... uhhhhh what?!?!?! I bet she still used them, too!

View on the road leading up to her house... those two tower things are just a nuclear plant

I flew home with some peonies from her yard

They were so pretty and smelled gorgeous!

A Legacy Lives On... #laterblog

I started this post a month ago and am just now getting back to it. Sorry it took me so long! And I have never seen the hashtag before but I felt like #latergram was for Instagram :)

In early June, I was in Massachusetts celebrating the life of my grandmother, Madeline Goff James, who lived 96.5 years on this Earth. You can scroll to the bottom to read her obituary, which shows the legacy she leaves behind her. But, I'm not going to lie, for a 96 year old she packed out the church for her memorial service.

I never heard a cross word from my grandmother, ever! She was so sweet and she was really a wonderful lady. The whole time she was at my parents house in the 6 months before she passed she just enjoyed the view and was so grateful for their willingness to love and nurture her in her last days. When I went home to visit she told me she felt like she was in a hotel with "such treatment"! She also told me "don't ever live this long", as if I have a choice!!!

And she never complained, and because of that she was the best patient. :) She loved going out on the "piazza" like I said in an earlier post and she really did do that up until the few days before she passed. So her last months and weeks were peaceful, relaxing and full of things that kept her happy.

I always remembered my grandmother with white hair and I don't think I ever saw any photos of her from when she was younger, until I was there for the memorial. She was a pretty lady!

My grandparents. I never met my grandfather, he had passed several years before I was born,
and my grandmother on their wedding day.

So pretty!

This reminds me of Anne of Green Gables with the puffed sleeves

And this is how I can remember her!

My mom's parents (Fran and Steve Rowen) are on the left and then
my dad's mom is on the right (Madeline James) ohhhh and that's me in the little white dress ;)

But back to the legacy living on... she's living on through her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, friends, neighbors, swimming buddies and anyone else who she met on the street. 

I kid you not, every James Family photo looks something like this, so I felt it appropriate to show her first generation legacy like this. Top Left: my dad, Aunt Sue, Autnt Di, Uncle Will. Sitting: Mern and my Aunt Bay

In Memory of

Madeline G. James

November 23, 1917 - May 29, 2014

Obituary

Madeline (Goff) James, "Maddie" age 96, of Swansea died May 29, 2014 at her son's home. She was the wife of the late Henry C. James.

Born in East Providence, a daughter of the late Adelbert and Edna (Carpenter) Goff, she spent her youth in RI, moving to Swansea in 1954. She was a graduate of East Providence High School and attended Bryant College.

Mrs. James worked as a secretary for the Swansea Water District, retiring in 1986. She was a longtime member of the First Christian Congregational Church where she served as secretary and worked in its Thrift Shop. She was a member of the Swansea Garden Club, and the Swansea Historical Society.

She was well known for her braided rugs, cane back chairs and refinished antique furniture. She enjoyed knitting, baking, sewing, gardening, writing letters, entertaining friends and, most of all, spending time with her family. An exceptional woman, she was most content helping others. She was a lifelong swimmer, swimming regularly up until her 96th birthday.

Surviving are two sons: Robert G. James and wife Susan of Sandwich, and William Henry James, DC and wife Desiree of Livingston, NJ; three daughters: Susan Demers and husband Robert, Marianne "Bay" Owen, all of Little Compton, and Diane R. James, DC of Oakland, CA; 11 grandchildren, five great grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. She was sister of the late Adelbert Anthony Goff, Marion Borden and Ruth Hetherington.

Why I didn't go to the gym last week!

Here is, yet, another blog that probably should have been posted last week. I just haven't really had a lot of time (or MADE a lot of time) to complete it. I hope the title caught you off guard, though. :) Because, well, if you know me, you probably also know that I don't go to the gym - pretty much ever. Do I have a gym membership? Yes. Is it a waste of money? Probably except the two or three times a year I actually go. Right now I'm averaging a cost of about $150 per trip to the gym (and I only pay $30 per month). 

Buuuuut... there was actually a reason that I DIDN'T go to the gym a couple of weeks ago, and it wasn't because I was lazy! It was actually because I wasn't allowed to exercise, because after four plus years of waiting, I finally was able to have LASIK SURGERY! Part of the recovery is that you aren't supposed to exercise within the first week of surgery, thus the reason I didn't go to the gym. You're also not supposed to rub your eyes, be in dusty/smoky places, sweat, swim, get water in your eyes... you get the picture. 

Yay for Lasik surgery, because it corrected my horrible prescription! Check out my actual prescription the last time I purchased glasses. And just to let you know, -8.00 (for the sphere) or above is considered legally blind, so that's how close I was to that! 

Right Sphere(SPH) -6.00 

Right Cylinder (CYL) -2.75 

Right Axis 023 

Left Sphere(SPH) -6.75 

Left Cylinder (CYL) -3.00 

Left Axis 155 

Left PD 29.5 

Right PD 29.0 

Now, moving on, let's have a little history lesson. I started wearing glasses when I was in 3rd grade (I'm pretty sure I was about 8). I am now 31, so for 23 years or 75% of my life until now I have had to wear glasses or contacts. Annnnd let's also be honest about the fact that I'm not cool... and my glasses (that I chose) were CERTAINLY not cool either. Let's take you back on a little tour of CJ's choices in glasses and believe me when I tell you that you are in for a treat...

My very first pair of glasses, round and red... Elena will kill me for posting this picture
but honestly, I still look dorkier (Pretty sure these guys lasted me from 1991 to 1994)

The real gem for ALL my glasses pinnacled right here in 5th grade.
Ohhhh check out the outfit, too. (Let's see these glasses probably went from 1994 to 1998)

Ahhh transition lenses... Went with a smaller more circular frame here (1998 to 2001)

Transitions again, this time they are "transitioned"

Smaller oval glasses here (2001 to 2006)

Just had to show a pic of how cute Scotty was! :)

Let's not forget about the prescription sunglasses (this was in 2008)

Annnd these were my regular glasses in 2008. 

Here were my glasses in 2009

I think they were the same in 2010 - 2012. Meredith had just finished her
FIRST Boston Marathon!

Here are Laura and I in the Badlands with my glasses of 2013 :)

Here I am with my glasses of 2014

Anddddd here I was last weekend celebrating my beautiful friend
Meredith, with NO GLASSES!!!

Thanks for taking that journey with me and I'm sure I missed a pair or two of glasses, but in some cases I was wearing contacts, so the glasses didn't make many pictures. I will say that my glasses choices did get significantly better over the years, so that was good! 

The weekend after my surgery I started to think about what I was going to do with all my glasses/contact stuff! I had my friend Anna over and I wrapped up some things for her.

We both use(d) the same contact solution and that stuff was pretty expensive. So I gave her alll the contact solution I had because I knew she would use it! Then I researched organizations that take donated contacts. I figured if my prescription was that bad, someone else's had to be! And if they couldn't afford corrective lenses then why couldn't I donate mine... Wellll, I soon realized that not many organizations take donated contact lenses, but I finally found one (Madre)! So sometime in the next week or so, I'll be sending a box of contact lenses, glasses, and some other items that Laura also graciously donated to the cause.

All the contact solution went to Anna, but the glasses and contacts go to Madre!

PS Not going to lie... I am SO SO SO happy I got LASIK surgery! :) It is a whole new world!