Many of you know this already, but my birthday is tomorrow. I will be 29 *Sigh* I used to really love my birthday but I guess that changes as you get older. It becomes not such a big deal to anyone and let's face it...who REALLY wants to be excited about aging. Since this will be my last year being a 20-something I've really been thinking about what I've accomplished and what I haven't. I personally think that my 20's sucked... I'm gonna try to make the best of 29 but honestly I could just skip it and move to 30. Most people that have been through their 30's say that those were the best years. I'm willing to give it a try. Can't be any worse than the last 8 years. I still have one year to finish up some major milestones before I hit the big 3-0 though. Like...finish school.
Reflecting on my 20's...so far:
I've loved and lost.
Lived and learned.
Said goodbye to loved ones.
Welcomed new babies into the world.
Ran a marathon in Rome, Italy.
Ran a 1/2 marathon in San Francisco.
Made some of the best friends a girl could ever have.
I've been in school for about 8 years. Now that's endurance!!!
I became a worrier...
I've moved 13 times since 2000.
I've made very bad decisions.
I've seen / traveled to so many fantastic places.
Most importantly... I figured out who I am!!!
Love
xoxo
Riss
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
Updates and whatnot...
It seems that I haven't blogged in a while so I feel that everyone is due for an update.
Nothing spectacular is happening in my life.
The end...
Just kidding!! Prepare for some randomness.
Nothing spectacular is happening in my life.
The end...
Just kidding!! Prepare for some randomness.
- Things are really just moving along at a rapid pace...which I LOVE!!! Tomorrow will mark my 1 year anniversary of being back to work at Affirmative Insurance. I do love my job and the people I see everyday. I'm very grateful that I have found such a great position in this company because I was sad to leave it at one point.
- I'm currently on break between semesters. My summer classes start next Tuesday. I am NOT thrilled about that at all. But hey, this will be my very very last summer that I will have to waste on school. And this my friend, has me as giddy as a school girl with pigtails. As long as everything goes according to my schedule, I will be finished with school in December. I keep thinking that I would like to get my masters but then I slam my head into a wall and I come back to the reality of...I HATE SCHOOL. I remember back in the day I actually enjoyed going to class. I think when you drag it out for 10 years it puts a bad taste in your mouth. So with that, I will graduate with my Finance degree and call it a day.
- Memorial Weekend. I am sooo excited about going home for this reason... My nanny (dad's mom) passed away 4 years ago next week. This of course was a really hard time for my family. However, since Memorial weekend was the following weekend after her passing we all decided to get together, look at old pictures and celebrate. This party has since turned into something you probably wouldn't want your kids at but fun none the less. It is officially titled the Nanny Pat Memorial Horseshoe Tournament. It is so much fun just to hang out with my family and people that consider themselves family (though that feeling is usually one-sided). Things to expect at this East Texas shindig...award winning BBQ, all the beans you can eat, horse shoes of course, potato guns, annoying women, annoying men, and finally...you can definitely expect the cops to show up. It's best to sit back and watch all of this unfold from the safety of your tailgate.
- And for my last update today... I am going to NYC in August with my bff, Courtney. I am STOKED!!! We already have our tickets and our agenda pretty much planned out. We are still missing a hotel room which I feel is vital to our enjoyment. We should probably get on that...
Well I think that pretty much sums up anything and everything that's happening my world right now.
P.S. I thought bullet points were fun today.
Peace
Riss
Monday, March 15, 2010
New digs and my man, Tyler...
Well guys, I have officially moved into my new place in Frisco. I cannot even tell you how excited I am! I still have a few things to pick up from the house but for the most part the move is complete.
On a separate note... This weekend was pretty fantastic. Saturday afternoon I went to see Tyler Perry's play "Madea's Big Happy Family" with my mom and Cyndi. Honestly, if I try to explain how awesome the play was I will break down in tears. But I'm going to give it a go anyways... This play was written as a part of the healing process for Tyler when his mom passed away in December. The premise of the play was that this lady has cancer and only had 4-6 weeks to live. So she wanted to get all of her children together and talk to them about it at one time and answer any questions they might have. Well, Madea was summoned over to the house as well to keep the peace. As expected, when all of the children showed up, chaos ensued. Everyone was fighting and yelling. Needless to say, the mom was not able to tell her children that she was dying. When the mother died, Madea got all of the children together and tried to give them some words of wisdom and tell them how it is...something their mother was never able to do.
Tyler Perry gives the best advice! Every time I watch one of his plays or movies it restores my faith a bit that my "one" is out there somewhere. Tyler said that you have to be open to love and open to the thought of finding a good man. I'm not sure how to do this... He also said that God would send me a "good" man when my heart is ready. How do I know when that is or when I'm ready? I feel like I've been ready for a while now. I know that God has a plan for me but sometimes I wish he would let me in on that secret.
My favorite quote from Tyler is "you can be born into a whole lot of a nightmare, but God can usher you into a dream" I think he is brilliant!
xoxo
Riss
On a separate note... This weekend was pretty fantastic. Saturday afternoon I went to see Tyler Perry's play "Madea's Big Happy Family" with my mom and Cyndi. Honestly, if I try to explain how awesome the play was I will break down in tears. But I'm going to give it a go anyways... This play was written as a part of the healing process for Tyler when his mom passed away in December. The premise of the play was that this lady has cancer and only had 4-6 weeks to live. So she wanted to get all of her children together and talk to them about it at one time and answer any questions they might have. Well, Madea was summoned over to the house as well to keep the peace. As expected, when all of the children showed up, chaos ensued. Everyone was fighting and yelling. Needless to say, the mom was not able to tell her children that she was dying. When the mother died, Madea got all of the children together and tried to give them some words of wisdom and tell them how it is...something their mother was never able to do.
Tyler Perry gives the best advice! Every time I watch one of his plays or movies it restores my faith a bit that my "one" is out there somewhere. Tyler said that you have to be open to love and open to the thought of finding a good man. I'm not sure how to do this... He also said that God would send me a "good" man when my heart is ready. How do I know when that is or when I'm ready? I feel like I've been ready for a while now. I know that God has a plan for me but sometimes I wish he would let me in on that secret.
My favorite quote from Tyler is "you can be born into a whole lot of a nightmare, but God can usher you into a dream" I think he is brilliant!
xoxo
Riss
Monday, February 8, 2010
New Places...
Wow! It's been quite a while since my last blog. Fortunately I don't have any random dreams to update y'all with. Well, I do but I won't bore you with those this time around.
Lets see... After finding out that my roommate, Gabe is selling the house we live in, I was forced to get my own place again. Which I must say that I'm really excited about. Living with Gabe and Clifton has got to be the best roommate situation because we all do our own thing and really never see each other. But you know, it's just nice having your own space. I can put things were I want them, I can turn the heat and no one gets upset, heck, I can even walk around in... (well, you get the idea). I decided on these FANTASTIC apartments in Frisco. They are brand new and I LOVE them. My brother so kindly announced at the Super Bowl party last night that I will be hosting a pool party at my new place. He's so nice... Looks like my move-in date is March 12th. OH and one of the best things is that now I will live really close to Courtney and Crystal!
I actually scheduled my move-in on the worst possible weekend! I have midterms the week before, I go get my keys Friday, the 12th, move my stuff Saturday morning (very early, hopefully), I'm going to a Tyler Perry play Saturday afternoon, and then on top of that I'm running a 1/2 marathon in Dallas on Sunday morning. *SIGH* I'm tired just thinking about that weekend.
Other than that, things are moving right along as usual. School 3 nights a week and trying to train for the 1/2 marathon in between that and work.
My life is exhausting...
xoxox
Riss
Lets see... After finding out that my roommate, Gabe is selling the house we live in, I was forced to get my own place again. Which I must say that I'm really excited about. Living with Gabe and Clifton has got to be the best roommate situation because we all do our own thing and really never see each other. But you know, it's just nice having your own space. I can put things were I want them, I can turn the heat and no one gets upset, heck, I can even walk around in... (well, you get the idea). I decided on these FANTASTIC apartments in Frisco. They are brand new and I LOVE them. My brother so kindly announced at the Super Bowl party last night that I will be hosting a pool party at my new place. He's so nice... Looks like my move-in date is March 12th. OH and one of the best things is that now I will live really close to Courtney and Crystal!
I actually scheduled my move-in on the worst possible weekend! I have midterms the week before, I go get my keys Friday, the 12th, move my stuff Saturday morning (very early, hopefully), I'm going to a Tyler Perry play Saturday afternoon, and then on top of that I'm running a 1/2 marathon in Dallas on Sunday morning. *SIGH* I'm tired just thinking about that weekend.
Other than that, things are moving right along as usual. School 3 nights a week and trying to train for the 1/2 marathon in between that and work.
My life is exhausting...
xoxox
Riss
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Boats, Waves, & Snakes
So I had a very strange dream last night. So strange in fact that I must share!
I was getting into a boat with my mom and brother, along with a huge crew of fisherman guys...complete with a captain. I'm not sure why we were on this boat. Before we left the port, I noticed this HUGE ship next to us. It wasn't a military ship but just as big! I kept thinking "why is that ship not moving in the water" because I could see how rough the waters were up ahead. I knew that once we were out of the port and past the ship, that we would be in really huge waves that were about 40ft tall. Now, don't think we were in a bass tracker b/c we weren't. I think it was huge deep sea fishing boat, but still.... You would think that we would have life jackets on since we were just sitting on the front of the boat, but no, we didn't. I also kept wondering about that too. AND somehow we managed to stay dry thr
oughout this whole fiasco.
So anyways... Finally we were out of the big waves and the captain was yelling about all of the fish they just caught. Everyone was happy. So we thought...
Me, mom and bro went inside the boat to use the restroom. When we came back to the deck we were under trees. Still in the ocean but under trees, in a swampy mess...hmmmm My mom looked at the captain and gave him the latitude and longitude of our location (120 and 3)...lol I will say that usually she doesn't know things like that off the top of her head but like I said, this was a strange dream. She asked the captain if everything was okay and he said "don't make any sudden movements and don't look anything in the eyes." Now, those usually don't mean anything good is going to happen! Right after he said that, a boa constrictor fell out of the tree above me, wrapped itself around my arms and chest and proceeded to squeeze me to death. The funny AND scary thing about this is I woke up at 4:15 this morning with my arms tucked really close to my body and I was really tense like I was being squeezed. So I tried to relax a bit and then I feel back to sleep only to start right where I left off...(I hate that sometimes)
So where was I...? Oh yeah... So I'm being squeezed to death, turning purple and all. What does my mom and bro do?? They go back inside the boat!! Yep, they left me! The captain told them he would take care of the problem. Then some of the guys on the boat started shooting the snake (keep in mind it is still wrapped around me) and chopping it with a machete.
Then I woke up!
Strange?? For sure.
Peace out,
xoxox
Riss
I was getting into a boat with my mom and brother, along with a huge crew of fisherman guys...complete with a captain. I'm not sure why we were on this boat. Before we left the port, I noticed this HUGE ship next to us. It wasn't a military ship but just as big! I kept thinking "why is that ship not moving in the water" because I could see how rough the waters were up ahead. I knew that once we were out of the port and past the ship, that we would be in really huge waves that were about 40ft tall. Now, don't think we were in a bass tracker b/c we weren't. I think it was huge deep sea fishing boat, but still.... You would think that we would have life jackets on since we were just sitting on the front of the boat, but no, we didn't. I also kept wondering about that too. AND somehow we managed to stay dry thr
oughout this whole fiasco.So anyways... Finally we were out of the big waves and the captain was yelling about all of the fish they just caught. Everyone was happy. So we thought...
Me, mom and bro went inside the boat to use the restroom. When we came back to the deck we were under trees. Still in the ocean but under trees, in a swampy mess...hmmmm My mom looked at the captain and gave him the latitude and longitude of our location (120 and 3)...lol I will say that usually she doesn't know things like that off the top of her head but like I said, this was a strange dream. She asked the captain if everything was okay and he said "don't make any sudden movements and don't look anything in the eyes." Now, those usually don't mean anything good is going to happen! Right after he said that, a boa constrictor fell out of the tree above me, wrapped itself around my arms and chest and proceeded to squeeze me to death. The funny AND scary thing about this is I woke up at 4:15 this morning with my arms tucked really close to my body and I was really tense like I was being squeezed. So I tried to relax a bit and then I feel back to sleep only to start right where I left off...(I hate that sometimes)
So where was I...? Oh yeah... So I'm being squeezed to death, turning purple and all. What does my mom and bro do?? They go back inside the boat!! Yep, they left me! The captain told them he would take care of the problem. Then some of the guys on the boat started shooting the snake (keep in mind it is still wrapped around me) and chopping it with a machete.Then I woke up!
Strange?? For sure.
Peace out,
xoxox
Riss
Friday, October 16, 2009
Trying Times and Big Decisions
As everyone so kindly pointed out at lunch it has been a couple weeks since I posted a blog. I feel like I have enough to share today that it warrants a new posting. It's funny to post updates on here as most of the people reading this actually hears my plans and ideas everyday...lol But blog, I must....
Let me start by saying that school is going to be the death of me. This semester is really kicking my rear. Partly because the classes are difficult and partly because I am a horrible student with no studying skills or attention span. Regardless, I am just trying to make it through this semester so I can start another one. A couple weeks ago I got some horrible news that it was a possibility that I wouldn't graduate December 2010 as planned because of glitch in my class schedule. I could actually see the light slipping out of the tunnel. This honestly just devastated me. If anyone has been in school as long as me then you would understand that the only way to make it through with your sanity is by sticking to your plan and not wavering from it. I want to quit everyday!! But I know how disappointed I would be in myself and I just can't do it. However, I finally got word from my advisor this week and turns out that graduating in Dec 2010 is still a very real possibility. I might not be able to have friends or any social life next year but I guess in the end it'll be worth it.
Speaking of in the end... That brings me to my post graduation plans! Some of you may know of my friend Jason (aka..Swat Jason) that I've known for a good 4 years now. Well he applied for a job with the Secret Service two years ago and has been going through that process for about 20 months now. He found out a couple weeks ago that he did get the job and will, after training for a few months in Georgia, be taking a position in the New York City field office. I am so thrilled for him. I can't even imagine what it's like to have your BIG dream fulfilled. To dream a little dream... I took him to dinner last week to say good-bye (though he says it isn't good-bye) and celebrate a little. Jason thinks that I should move to NYC after graduation. Well...I'd have to agree with him. I absolutely LOVE NYC and have wanted to live there for a very long time. So that is my goal! If I have my eyes set on something this fantastic then it will help motivate me to get things taken care of here. While I think I would be perfectly fine moving somewhere by myself, I can't imagine a better person to share that with.
I know some people probably think that it's way early to be thinking about moving after graduation when it's still over a year away. But that's me. I'm a dreamer and a planner. I like to have my life planned out and I like to dream BIG! So I move and it doesn't work out... I guess I can always move back. I would much rather take a chance on something that could be so fantastic and add so much to my already great life than just sit back and dream about what could have been. Besides, I'm the only one that can make good things happen for myself! Everyone is a critic these days and sometimes you just have to look past them. I would think that my friends and family would be thrilled that I'm taking control of my life and shooting for the stars... I will have no regrets!
I hope everyone has a great weekend!
XOXO
Let me start by saying that school is going to be the death of me. This semester is really kicking my rear. Partly because the classes are difficult and partly because I am a horrible student with no studying skills or attention span. Regardless, I am just trying to make it through this semester so I can start another one. A couple weeks ago I got some horrible news that it was a possibility that I wouldn't graduate December 2010 as planned because of glitch in my class schedule. I could actually see the light slipping out of the tunnel. This honestly just devastated me. If anyone has been in school as long as me then you would understand that the only way to make it through with your sanity is by sticking to your plan and not wavering from it. I want to quit everyday!! But I know how disappointed I would be in myself and I just can't do it. However, I finally got word from my advisor this week and turns out that graduating in Dec 2010 is still a very real possibility. I might not be able to have friends or any social life next year but I guess in the end it'll be worth it.
Speaking of in the end... That brings me to my post graduation plans! Some of you may know of my friend Jason (aka..Swat Jason) that I've known for a good 4 years now. Well he applied for a job with the Secret Service two years ago and has been going through that process for about 20 months now. He found out a couple weeks ago that he did get the job and will, after training for a few months in Georgia, be taking a position in the New York City field office. I am so thrilled for him. I can't even imagine what it's like to have your BIG dream fulfilled. To dream a little dream... I took him to dinner last week to say good-bye (though he says it isn't good-bye) and celebrate a little. Jason thinks that I should move to NYC after graduation. Well...I'd have to agree with him. I absolutely LOVE NYC and have wanted to live there for a very long time. So that is my goal! If I have my eyes set on something this fantastic then it will help motivate me to get things taken care of here. While I think I would be perfectly fine moving somewhere by myself, I can't imagine a better person to share that with.
I know some people probably think that it's way early to be thinking about moving after graduation when it's still over a year away. But that's me. I'm a dreamer and a planner. I like to have my life planned out and I like to dream BIG! So I move and it doesn't work out... I guess I can always move back. I would much rather take a chance on something that could be so fantastic and add so much to my already great life than just sit back and dream about what could have been. Besides, I'm the only one that can make good things happen for myself! Everyone is a critic these days and sometimes you just have to look past them. I would think that my friends and family would be thrilled that I'm taking control of my life and shooting for the stars... I will have no regrets!
I hope everyone has a great weekend!
XOXO
Monday, September 28, 2009
Our Girls Christmas
As most of you know, I have a GREAT group of friends. I met all of these ladies (Rhonda, Sarah, Courtney, & Traci) at the Treehouse Academy back in 2001. I'd say it's not often that people...especially girls, remain such good friends for sooo long. We have such a unique friendship... I guess it's really hard to explain actually.
Well, over the years things have certainly changed. We've seen each other through many a good times and bad, weddings and separations, and of course the babies. :) I personally have no intentions of ever living my life without these girls in it. As things have it, we've all kind of separated...by cities or states. I guess once you have your own family it's finally time to start concentrating on other priorities. But last year we all decided to celebrate our Christmas in September so we could be together with each other and both of the kiddos. Things get too hectic around the holidays with our families being in different parts of Texas to manage a weekend get-together.
Since last year was such a success, we had our 2nd annual Christmas in September this last weekend. It was fantastic of course! Jaxon is such a busy body, which is such a change from last year since he was only 6 months old. And Ava...she is as busy as they get...lol She is so beautiful! I cannot believe she will be 4 this Christmas. *sigh* Where does the time go?? The girls and kids came over about 3ish Saturday afternoon and I think we ate for about 3 hours...lol We had a Mexican themed dinner on Halloween plates to celebrate our Christmas in September with what looked like a birthday cake that Courtney made for dessert...lmao Made perfect sense to us! :) Then the kids opened their Christmas presents and we just hung out for a few more hours, reading to the kids, watching movies and catching up.
OH...and Traci's mom wrote us the sweetest letter. We all just love and think the world of Mama Becky. I need to get my hands on a copy of that letter. It's definitely something to cherish...
I have some pictures that I will post on here from this weekend. Definitely come back to check them out.
And to my girls... I love y'all!! I'm definitely a happier person with each of you in my life.
xoxoxo
Aunt Rissa
(aka..Aunt Wal-Mart)
Well, over the years things have certainly changed. We've seen each other through many a good times and bad, weddings and separations, and of course the babies. :) I personally have no intentions of ever living my life without these girls in it. As things have it, we've all kind of separated...by cities or states. I guess once you have your own family it's finally time to start concentrating on other priorities. But last year we all decided to celebrate our Christmas in September so we could be together with each other and both of the kiddos. Things get too hectic around the holidays with our families being in different parts of Texas to manage a weekend get-together.
Since last year was such a success, we had our 2nd annual Christmas in September this last weekend. It was fantastic of course! Jaxon is such a busy body, which is such a change from last year since he was only 6 months old. And Ava...she is as busy as they get...lol She is so beautiful! I cannot believe she will be 4 this Christmas. *sigh* Where does the time go?? The girls and kids came over about 3ish Saturday afternoon and I think we ate for about 3 hours...lol We had a Mexican themed dinner on Halloween plates to celebrate our Christmas in September with what looked like a birthday cake that Courtney made for dessert...lmao Made perfect sense to us! :) Then the kids opened their Christmas presents and we just hung out for a few more hours, reading to the kids, watching movies and catching up.
OH...and Traci's mom wrote us the sweetest letter. We all just love and think the world of Mama Becky. I need to get my hands on a copy of that letter. It's definitely something to cherish...
I have some pictures that I will post on here from this weekend. Definitely come back to check them out.
And to my girls... I love y'all!! I'm definitely a happier person with each of you in my life.
xoxoxo
Aunt Rissa
(aka..Aunt Wal-Mart)
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