Title-less

Nothing new really has been going on with us b/c basically we're the most boring couple ever. The past couple weeks have just been a time to slightly recover from the onslaught of exams I had (4 in 9 days) and start preparing for the next round, which starts next Monday (3 in 7 days). Gotta love Optometry school!

Last Saturday Seth and I had date night with our friends, Jennifer and Claudio Gonzales. We met them down at Hollywood Beach at a Greek restaurant called Taverna Opa. Soooo much fun! Not only was the food a-mazing, but they have a belly dancer who gets up on the tables and dances. It was so cute when she got two little boys under the age of 7 up there to dance with her! What I found to be even more entertaining was the Greek men (waiters) who got up on the tables and danced. Holy cow! I wish I could shake my hips like that! Believe me, I tried! I came home and stood in front of my mirror and tried to imitate them...not quite as pretty and easy as they made it look! Seth tried too, which was REALLY funny! I told him if I had a belly dancer outfit complete with little bells or whatever it was she had around her hips I'd be better!

The following day Seth and I completed our new members classes at the church we've been attending since late March. During the service, we officially joined, which is pretty exciting! They have a website if anyone is interested in checking it out! It's www.newlifeindavie.com. Of course we miss our home church back in AR, but we've really been enjoying worshipping there. We've made some really good friends, and we feel like we've been learning a lot!

So something exciting is going on in the Sethie Poo's life right now! He is a die-hard Texas Rangers fan, and they are back in the playoffs for the first time in 11 years! They play the final game against the Tampa Bay Rays Tuesday, and if they win, they advance to the the American League Championship series against the NY Yankees. If they win that series, they go to the World Series! We've gotta get past those Rays, first! Come on Rangers!!!

Today has been a bit of a relaxing day. We got up and went to church, had some lunch at Wendy's (for those you who know I don't eat fast food meat, don't worry...I had a baked potato!), then went to the beach for a quick trip b/c my cousin Jessica told me her little boy Austin is collecting sea shells. We filled him a ziplock back about 3/4 of the way full of shells (sadly couldn't find him any big ones), pieces of coral and cool rocks. After our beach run, I came home and took a nap, and now I'm taking a break from Optics homework to post this. :)

Next week is going to be a great week! Momma, I'm comin' home! We're flying out of Orlando Thursday b/c Paige is getting married in Bentonville on Saturday! So exciting!!! I'll definitely be posting some pictures in my next blog! Also, I'm meeting with a realtor on Thursday in order to get Dad's place put on the market. It's time to do something with it, and with the money I get, we plan to buy a piece of land (at some point) in NWA where we'll build our future home.

Okay, I think this is enough for now! Thank you to my 4 readers out there who follow what's going on in our lives! :)

Much love,

Meg and Seth

So far behind....

It doesn't seem like a whole lot has happened the last month, I know a MONTH! Let's see here. Where to start?! Well, right at a month ago my friend Kelly came down with her then fiance (now husband) and their families and got married on the beach at Crandon Park (I was a bridesmaid!), and it was absolutely beautiful! It was so good to see her b/c I'm afraid it's been almost 2 years since we've hung out. That 1300 miles thing really does put a damper on stuff. We had a great time hanging out with her and Kevin and meeting their families! What was so great is Kelly's family is from AR, and they reminded me a lot of my family. It was nice to have some home-grown Southerns (Arkansans, even!) here in South Florida! It really made us feel like home. Also, I acquired a new buddy, Kelly's 4 year-old niece Charlie, after I shared my mashed potatoes from KFC with her. Their wedding made me realize that my 2nd wedding (to Seth of course!) will be on the beach. It was so lovely!



After Kelly and Kevin went back home, Momma and Michael and Seth's family (Tom, Cheryl, Amber, Jamie and girls, Rachel and Aaron, and Camryn) came down for summer vacation. At first I was worried about both our families being here at the same time b/c I wanted to make sure we spent adequate time with everyone and no one felt left out, but I have no idea why I was worried. It was perfect! We all hung out like one big family, which we are, and we were so sad to see everyone go back home. We did a whole lot of hanging out on the beach working on becoming as brown as possible, the guys, minus Aaron, played a round of golf in the 1 million degree heat and humidity, Tom went out with hot pink toenails, courtesy of Cami, and we celebrated Nadia's birthday in style by going on an airboat tour through the Everglades. Crazy kid...wanting to see alligators! I must admit, it was kinda neat seeing those nasty suckers out in their natural habitat, but I really enjoyed riding in the boat! It's amazing how those things work! They glide right over the water, even if it's only a couple inches deep. AND there is so much grass out there that you can't even see what's up ahead, but the driver just plowed on through it. I was scared to death we'd hit a log or a gator and flip that thing end over end. I'd have a heart attack for sure! After the tour of the Everglades, we got to see a bunch of captive gators and crocodiles, and then who ever wanted to got to hold a baby alligator. I was brave enough to pet its belly, which was surprisingly soft. No wonder folks make so many shoes and bags of alligator skin! I know, I know...bad Meg.

During the time the families were in, the Sethie Poo started classes at University of Miami. My baby boy is growing up! haha Honestly, though...I'm so proud of him. He works so hard at what he does, and I don't think he gets nearly enough recognition. Then again, I'm slightly biased and think he's the best thing since red high-heeled shoes. He had his first exam a week ago today, and what do you know...he made a 100! Can you believe that?! Who does that in grad school? Seth, that's who!

I have also started back to school, much to my dismay. I have my first exam in a week and a half, and I'm already trying to put in 3-4 study hours a day, plus class. I swear it's worse than a full-time job! At least with work you can come home and forget about it at the end of the day. Not with school. You come home just to deal with it some more! Oh well, it is what I signed up for! Who knows...maybe in 10 years I'll miss school. haha Yeah right!

Today we had a really great day! The optometry program at NOVA threw a back to school bash at the beach with lots of food, ice cream, drinks, and a volleyball tournament. We had such a good time just hanging out and relaxing with my classmates. Plus, the color we acquired while we were down there is none too shabby either! Then, we went to Cinebistro down in Miami to watch "The Other Guys" which was freaking hilarious! Classic Will Ferrell! We laughed soooo hard! For those of you who don't know, Cinebistro is an upscale movie theater with huge leather seats with reserved seating, and they serve dinner and drinks during the movie. We had a really good time, and the food was surprisingly good! What was even better is it wasn't ridiculously over-priced, which is the name of the game for all things Miami.

Not a whole lot has been going on with us this past week or so. Saturday we attempted to go to the Flugtag in Miami, which means "flight day" in German. Big time fail. Apparently when something is a "free" event, everyone, and I mean everyone, comes out! The first flight wasn't scheduled until 1:00 that afternoon, so we thought getting there around 11 or so would be okay. Boy, were we wrong! There were sooo many people there! We tried meeting some of my classmates, but it was beyond packed. After I had my foot ran over by a baby stroller and a man about knock me over, I told Seth it was past time to go! Not to mention it was a billion degrees outside! By the time we walked the 80 miles back to the car (and praise Jesus for air conditioning!), we were soaking wet with sweat and fed up with people. I know, go ahead and say it...we're old. We never could hang with the youngsters! We decided an early lunch and some rentals from Blockbuster was the better idea for us!

I suppose this week has been so laid-back for us b/c I've been under the weather. I thought coming back to the Sunshine State would heal me of the allergy issues I'd been dealing with back home. I do actually think my allergies are better, but now I'm battling sinus problems. I have a dr's appointment on Thursday, so hopefully she can get me back on my A-game!

We do have quite a few festivities planned for the near future, though! Part of the reason I need to be well! My friend Kelly is coming down in just 2 days b/c she is getting married on the beach Saturday, and I'm a bridesmaid in the wedding. I guess if worse comes to worst (is that even how that saying goes?!) I can attempt to hide a few tissues in my bouquet. Then, on the 21st our families start to arrive! I'm so excited to spend some quality fun in the sun time with my mom and Michael and Mallory and Seth's family. I know we'll have a blast! Plus, Seth and I really need to enjoy our time off b/c he starts school on the 24th, and I go back the 2nd. Yay for both of us being in grad school and having excess amounts of student loans! haha j/k about the student loans part. There's really no fun in that!

Oh, totally random note here...I'm going to throw it out there, and those of you who know my meat phobia, be ready to be in for a surprise. I came to this realization today, and for me, it's huge. I just had to share it with my 2.5 readers out there. It's official....I love hotdogs. I've been lying to myself for a really long time now. I've always liked hotdogs, I reckon, just not the thought of what they are. That part really grossed me out. I've concluded, however, it's okay to eat the all-beef or all-turkey ones. And only if they're burned black. I even tried to make myself eat the all-vegetarian ones, and those basically taste like crap. Ask Jenn, she can vouch for me. Straight up nastiness. Gotta go with the real deal on this one. Just thought I'd share that. By the way, I had a hotdog today, and it was good.

See, look at all those ways you can enjoy a hotdog! :)

Sorry for all the typos and grammar errors. This head funk makes it hard to read, so proofreading basically didn't happen tonight.

Celebration in Charleston

I'm pretty sure I'm going to start off every blog with an apology about how long it's been since the last post. From now on out, just assume it's there! Even though it's been over a month since we've celebrated our 3-year wedding anniversary, I just recently uploaded my pictures to the computer. I was waiting to do that before posting this so you could see some pics from our trip.

I'm Southern. Plain and simple. I also love the fact I'm a Southern girl. I didn't realize how proud of this I was until I moved to south FL, and trust me, there are not nearly enough Southerners down here. Folks don't even know what pickled okra is down here. I mean, come on! Seriously? We love that stuff! Anyway, I digress. For our anniversary, Seth and I decided to take a trip instead of buying presents, and we chose to go to Charleston, SC. If you've never been, then you must go if you love good old-fashioned Southern food, amazing customer service, and gorgeous architecture. I fell in love with the city! So much so I asked Seth if we could move there, and his words, "We're not Gamecock fans...we're Razorbacks." In his mind, enough said! If only I could look at things so simply!

The first day there we spent just walking around on the east part of town by the ocean in the area known as the Battery. It's breath-taking! If you're on East Battery and you look west, you see these magnificent mansions that have been standing since the 1800's with giant porches (they call them piazzas) on the south end of the house.






To the east is Ft. Sumpter. For all those who don't know, this is where the first shots of the Civil War were fired. Actually, the first shot was fired at Ft. Johnson, but Ft. Sumpter generally gets all the credit.Actually, the first shot was fired at Ft. Johnson, but Ft. Sumpter generally gets all the credit. We didn’t spend a whole lot of time downtown that day b/c the Sethie Poo wasn’t feeling too swell, and we did just drive all night to get there. The next day, however, we got busy with our exploring! We went to Magnolia Plantation, which is known for possessing the oldest romantic garden in the country. We spent several hours here just wandering around, and during our “wanders” we went on a tour of some original slave cabins dating back to the early 1800’s. We also walked in a slave cemetery, which was so humbling. It gave me goosebumps just walking through it.



To those of you who know me, you know I’m scared scared scared of alligators. I hate them. I think they all should be shoes. Or purses. Or luggage. I don’t care what you think of me…I think they’re gross, and they freak me out. Period. Well, at Magnolia Plantation, they offer an Audobon Swamp tour. Seth kept harassing me, telling me we needed to take it blah blah blah. My answer was of course, no! I thought he was joking. Come to find out, no, he’s serious. Since this was our vacation, and not just mine, I gave in. It wasn’t so bad when we were walking along the swamp on a very secure pathway surrounded by fence/wire. However, that pathway soon gave way to just a freaking trail going through the middle of the freaking swamp. No lie. I thought I was going to cry I was so scared. Seth then reassured me it couldn’t be too dangerous if they were letting 80-year old people walk through there. Seriously, though, y’all. It was just a path about 3 feet wide, and on the sides where the path ended was straight-up swamp. I’ve never seen a real swamp before. I’ve been to the University of Florida, and they call that the Swamp, but this didn’t look like that! This was legitimate swamp. At one point, we were standing on this little baby bridge that was maybe 9 inches above the water/algae/nastiness, when Seth said, “That log right there looks like a gator.” The log then moved. This sucker was a 12-foot alligator, and he swam right under us. Seth was proud of me b/c he said I was conquering my fears; I just said I was going to have nightmares.



Also that same day, we went to Ft. Sumpter. That place was beyond cool. Then again, I’m a bit of a nerd and love me some American History, especially that time period. We only got to stay an hour there, but it was so neat. I never knew cannonballs could fly so far! Some of them could easily fly through the air for over 4 miles! We thought that was pretty impressive!





The following day we spent checking out the grounds of two of the other plantations in the local area: Drayton Hall and Middleton Place. Middleton Place was one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen! The house wasn’t much b/c most of it was burned by General Sherman and his army, but the grounds were exquisite! They were designed by the student of the man who designed the gardens of Versailles. Everything that was growing there had been planted! What I found to be super cool was an oak tree that was over 1000 years old. They had documentation proving “she” was a landmark for the Native Americans in the area long before the colonists settled Charles Town.

It started raining on us while we were there, but luckily there was plenty of foliage to keep us dry. It was pretty romantic hanging out under the giant magnolias watching the rain.


Next, we visited Drayton Hall. Drayton Hall is one of the only plantation homes in the area that wasn’t destroyed by General Sherman. Luckily for us, everything in the house is still in its original condition. Original mantles, floors, mahogany staircase, crown molding carvings all along the ceilings, paint colors, everything. What I found to be crazy is every plantation house we went to (3 total) there were alligators. I never knew how marshy Charleston was! You certainly wouldn’t find me outside after dark!




The next couple of days we really got busy with the sight-seeing! We toured several houses within the city limits that were all magnificent! We also went to the Museum of Charleston, where they had a bridal exhibit dating from the 1700’s to present day. It was fascinating to me to find the average woman was about my size! Finally somewhere I would have fit right in! Being in Charleston feels like you’re stepping right back into the mid-1800’s. A brief history lesson. At the time of the start of the Civil War, Charleston was the richest city in the US; although, it was only the 4th largest. South Carolina was the first state to secede from the Union, and Charlestoians were very proud folks. During the war, the city was under attack from the harbor for over 500 days, but they never lost their pride. Most people gave everything they had, money, silver to be burned down, food, etc for the “cause.” Consequently, after the war, most people ended up very poor and had little. Still, they had their pride. The city continued to be occupied by Union soliders for years after the war. Due to this lack of funds, renovations were neglected and changes were not made. By the time outsiders came into the city and showed an interest in making changes, the Preservation Society of Charleston had been founded. Many of the older homes were purchased and restored. There was also a law enacted stating one had to go through a committee seeking permission to do such changes as painting their fences, shutters, etc. Due to this, it’s still a very nostalgic city, and it literally feels like you’re stepping back into the time of Scarlett O’Hara.

On the final night of our vacation, Seth and I celebrated our 3-year wedding anniversary! I still cannot believe it’s been three years! Being married to such an incredible man certainly makes time fly! We celebrated the occasion by going to a restaurant called Magnolia’s, where I had the best fried chicken of my ENTIRE life! Sorry Momma and Bridgett, but it’s true!


I know this ended up being super lengthy, and trust me, I edited out a ton! I just wanted you all to get a brief insight into what we experienced. Seriously, y’all, if you ever have the chance to go to Charleston, seize it b/c you will not be disappointed!

So I do realize it's been a while since my last post, which I'm afraid will be the theme of our blog. However, I simply haven't had time to update for legitimate reasons. Jenn and Joe came to visit us on the 13th, and we had such a wonderful time with them! There's never a dull moment when the four of us get together! Seth appreciates Jenn b/c she gets his jokes and laughs at him. What man doesn't like a girl to think he's funny? Funny enough, Jenn told me Joe appreciates me b/c I get his crude humor and laugh at his umm...semi-vulgarness. Whereas Jenn would scold him, I just laugh.

We didn't do a lot of touristy things while they were here; we went to the beach, rode the water taxi in the Ft. Lauderdale intracoastal area, ate at the Cheesecake Factory, went to watch the Marlins play and the boys played hours upon hours of MLB 2K9 on Seth's XBox 360 while Jenn and I chatted it up. I was kinda bummed Tuesday after I dropped them off at the airport, as was Miss Gamble Jane. I'm pretty sure she would have gone home with them, at least for a visit. Joe couldn't sit down without her right up in his business with a toy in her mouth!

So...the cat is out of the bag. I'm officially "old." Or that's what the darling husband tells me. I keep telling him that no matter how old I get, he'll always be older! Some time ago he read a statistic saying we reach our physical peaks at 25. I guess I'm on the downhill slope now! We really didn't do much to celebrate b/c we're getting ready for our trip to Charleston. We ate dinner at Bahama Breeze then came back and watched some DVR'ed movies. Exciting, right? What is exciting is our car insurance dropping significantly! I'm pretty stoked about that! :)

What IS also exciting is we will be in Charleston, SC, in about 30 hours in order to celebrate three years of wedded bliss! I cannot believe we have been married for almost three years! Time certainly does fly when you're having a good time! We're going to tour several plantation homes dating back to the 1800's and a few houses in town where signers of the Declaration of Independence lived. I'm sure I'll feel just like Scarlett! haha Well, maybe not, but a girl can dream, right?

Okay, that's about all for now. I feel like I'm just rambling away, which is nothing out of the ordinary. Next time I post, it'll be about our mini-vacay, and hopefully I'll have some pictures to share!

Weekend Fun

Although it's after 2 am here, I'm up posting a new blog. I know I should be in bed, but since I'm not in class my bedtime has gotten significantly later! Like I said in my last post, I'm going to try to be better at this. Plus, I actually have something mildly interesting to write about tonight. Well, to me anyway. :)

Seth and I had a very nice weekend! Friday I went to the beach while he worked (poor Sethie Poo having to support his beach bum wife!), and it was incredibly hot! According to the weather channel, it was only 87, but with the humidity, lack of a breeze, and no clouds, it felt like 94. I don't prefer getting my hair wet in the ocean since the salt water isn't exactly good for it, but I made an exception Friday!

Saturday was a milestone for the Seth--he turned the big 2-5! I tease him that he is now officially an old man; he's 1/4 of a century! I, however, am still young for the next 9 days! We both slept in, and while he was in the shower I made him breakfast of pancakes, bacon, eggs, and vegetarian sausage. After breakfast, he went to Dania Beach Poker Room and Jai Lai to play some poker. Keep in mind he plays online about every night, but this is the first time he's played in person since we've been down here. He didn't do as well as he'd hoped, but he had fun. Once he got home, we loaded up the golf clubs and went to the driving range to hit some range balls. I tried a couple of times, and I was absolutely terrible. Seth, on the other hand, looked like a pro! Well, to me anyway! He even admitted he hit them better than normal. What can I say? I guess I'm just his good luck charm. ;) From the driving range we ventured to the batting cages for a little softball action, which was more my style. I haven't held a bat since the 8th grade or so, but the hubs was impressed. Not that I can hit far by any means, but that I made contact with the ball! haha I'm not quite sure what he expected from me! Sadly enough, I am unbelievably sore today, and I have a pretty blood blister on my hand to show for it. After our stint at the driving range and batting cages, we came home and cooked dinner. I'm not gonna lie...when Seth and I choose to, we can be pretty dang good cooks! What can I say, we've had excellent teachers! We had a very colorful dinner of chicken kabobs with onions and bell peppers, baked squash, baked potatoes, salad, and marinated cucumbers and tomatoes. The best part, however, was the Snickers ice cream cake. I'm sorry all y'all missed out on that one; however, it leaves more for me and Seth! :)

I can't finish this post without a shout-out to all our mommas and grandmas! Happy Mother's Day! We are so very lucky to have you wonderful ladies in our lives! You have certainly given us all the love and encouragement two kids could ever ask for! We are very very thankful, indeed! We celebrated your honor today by going to the beach and enjoying the hot temps but amazingly clear, beautiful ocean for you today! Seriously, we thought about y'all the entire time we were there. Okay, maybe not the ENTIRE time, but we really did wish you were there to spend some quality fun in the sun with us.

Okay, I have to wrap this up and get into bed. I have a barking Tízziana under the covers, and she won't hush until I get in there and snuggle her correctly. Her daddy just doesn't do it right!

Meg's Random Ramblings

I can already tell I'm not going to be very good at this! Maybe I'll just blame it on the fact that literally nothing has been going on in my life. Since I'm not in school or working, I've turned into such a bum! And not even a beach bum! Well, I take that back. I plan on being a beach bum tomorrow and next week. My days have consisted of sleeping in, watching a lot of crap tv (by the way, nothing good is on during the day! What's up with that?!), chilling out in my bathrobe like a granny, and staying up until 3:30 or 4 am. No wonder I sleep in, right? I have decided, however, there's absolutely no way I could ever be a stay-at-home wife. I'd go insane and get fat.

I do have a couple of funny stories. Well, Seth and I found them humorous, as did my Momma. Apparently people, men in particular, aren't very creative in their approach of women. Last Tuesday I was at the Jeep dealership getting the oil changed in Cowgirl. A man sat down beside me and started chatting about nothing in particular. I was midsentence, when he exclaimed, "Wow...your eyes are gorgeous. They look just like the ocean!" Of course I cracked up right there, but I mean, seriously...who says that?! The ocean, really? Reaaal creative, mister. Maybe if we had been inland it would have been flattering. Well, then again maybe not. The best one, though, came Wednesday when I was laying out at the beach. I was by myself waiting on some classmates to show up b/c we were having a beach celebration celebrating the fact we're finished with first year. A 40-something year old man, who had spent waaaay too much time out in the sun, had a nice beer belly going on and was in a Speedo nonetheless, walked by me. On his second time by, he greeted me with a simple hello. The third time he came up to me, asked me how I was, if I was enjoying my day, and if I'd like some company. No thanks, Mr. Speedo-man, I'd rather stab my eyes out than have to look at you. I mean, what man seriously thinks he looks good in a Speedo? If you are a man and think you look good in a Speedo, you do not. I promise. Not that I said that, but ya know!

On a brighter note, the Sethie Poo and I are looking forward to an eventful couple of weeks! Seth's birthday is Saturday; he will be a quarter of a century! Man...we're getting old! haha j/k guys! But seriously! ;) I'm not really sure what all we're going to do. Most of our friends down here have gone back home for break. We're gonna cook out at our pool and hit up the batting cages and driving range. He's also going to go check out the poker rooms at either The Hardrock or The Isle Casino. Not quite sure what I'm going to do while he's doing that. I'm definitely no poker player, and I'd rather keep my hard-earned student loan money than feed the slots. THEN, on the 13th Jenn and Joe will be here!!! I cannot wait to see them! Our abs and cheeks (on the face!) always get such a workout from all the laughter when the four of us get together ! We don't really have much planned, but it doesn't matter b/c we have a blast anyway! You can't beat good times with great people!

Well, that's about all I've got right now. I know this is a bunch of nothing, but a bunch of nothing is what's been going on with us! OH! Seth has won some decent money with his online gambling (good job, baby!), and we recently purchased surround sound. We love it, but I'm sure our neighbors aren't such great fans. :)

Blogging Beginners

Hey guys, Meg here! We thought we'd start this so everyone back home can keep up with what's going on with us while we're half the country away. Be patient with us as we try to figure out this whole blog thing; we'll see how it works out!

As most of you know, I am now officially finished with my first year of optometry school. Praise be to Jesus because I passed all my classes! I've been finished for two days now, but I'm afraid it's going to take a couple of weeks for that persistent nagging feeling of needing to study to go away. My goals for the summer include reading as many novels as I can get my little hands on and acquiring a tan. With sunscreen, of course!

Seth and I really miss you guys, and we absolutely cannot wait to be home! We are driving to Charleston, SC (with our poochies!), for our three-year wedding anniversary, and we'll be there May 22-26. On the 26th, we will drive the 15 or so hours from Charleston back to Alma/Fayetteville/Muldrow. We are so excited to spend the month of June with our friends and family back home!