Hal: All right, men. Well, I hope you all learned something today, huh?
Malcolm (to the camera): I learned my dad is capable to doing something cool. I’m not saying violence is cool, but that was cool! I always wondered where we got it from. -Malcolm in the Middle

I’m curled up with my cup of tea for my weekly gab sesh with Impulsive Addict and Seriously Shawn.

There’s still so much to tell you about our trip to Oregon. A lot happens in a week away! Today I’m going to tell you about the things that I learned this trip.

1. Match likes to be comfortable for road trips. Note the buckle.

2. Rainy nights sound amazing in a camp trailer. Waking up to that view is even better.

3. There is nothing quite like kissing in the rain.

4. Four wheeling with your hubby in the rain will get you extremely wet. Hey now! Not like that. Well I don’t know what gets your motor going. I will say that the ATV does vibrate a little.

5. My 8 year old senior dog can keep up with an ATV. We clocked him at around at least 30 MPH!! It was annoying because we were constantly worrying that we’d hit him. It was also damn impressive.

Here’s a little video clip so you can see what it was like. Don’t mind my maniacal laughter. Also this video clip reminds me of Edward running through the trees with Bella. My parent’s woods look a lot like Forks. Except my vampire was spider monkeying on my back while I drove for this particular video.

6. Running all day after a four wheeler will wear a puppy out. So much so that they fall asleep on your slippers and don’t even notice.

7. After all these years I’m still the weird goat girl I was back in middle school 4-H. I guess I will always be part hick.

8. Watching a city boy try to feed goats is funny. They almost pushed him over a couple of times.

9. Initiating my parents into the funny hat club was awesome. I don’t think we’ll stop until every member of our family has one of these! I got my mother in-law an elephant, my mom has a racoon, and my Pops has a buck. We are such dorks!

10. It took moving away for me to truly appreciate how beautiful my hometown is.

“Country roads, take me home. To the place, I belong.” -John Denver

Today I’m off on an Ikea adventure with Tahoe Girl. Then we’re spending the weekend hanging out. It’s her mom’s 60th birthday on Saturday and she invited yours truly to help decorate for it! Tonight we’re going to hit up a happy hour and just kick back. I’m really excited for our little weekend.

But part of me is already daydreamin’ about an upcoming trip I’m taking with Match in November. I mentioned he’s in the middle of a TEN day work week right? Well he’s doing a shift trade so he can score himself ten days off in late October/early November. I can’t wait!

We’re heading to Oregon to visit my family, and the in-laws just may be tagging along. We’re talking about having an early Thanksgiving. I can’t tell you the last time I had Thanksgiving with my family. Sniffle. Also Match hasn’t been home to visit my folks since we got engaged back in December of 2009, almost 2 years ago!!

I can’t wait to go home and wander the beaches.

Go back to the park where he proposed and get a picture during the day. You can’t tell here, but he proposed on a cliff side overlooking the ocean with a full moon. It’s that tiny dot in the picture.

and spend some quality time with my family. Match is such a hoot in Oregon. He runs around like a country boy, chasing the goats and driving like a banshee on the four wheeler. We’re also hoping to make a lot of pit stops on the road trip back and make an adventure out of it.

Look at that shit eating grin. I can already see him buying an SUV with a thule ski rack and moving us to the sticks. That boy belongs in the country!

I’m really looking forward to showing the in-laws around my little town and the house that built me. I couldn’t wait to get away from it when I was a teenager, but now I can’t wait to go back. Funny how getting older does that to you.

Burt: Slow down there Jimmy. Do you even know what the hell you are doing?
Virginia: Of course he knows what he’s doing Burt. It’s a computer, not a condom. -Raising Hope

My parents have been going through a little bit of a hard time due to this recession. I’ve been trying to find ways to help my Pops increase business for his garage door installation service and construction company. Before I started helping, he was just advertising in the yellow pages and the newspaper. I added him to yelp and got his name out there a little bit more on search engines. Eventually I’d like to make him a website and really bring their business into the modern world.

I also think he’d really benefit from going to a trade show. It would be so cool to see him set up a booth and get his name out there for everyone to see. He could even put up a printed logo canopy. He wouldn’t just have to use it for the trade show, but it’d also be great for outdoor events.

He could also get logo mats that he could put out in front of his booth to really draw people in.
Used in trade shows, trade show flooring comes in a variety of styles and shapes. There is even a line of printed flooring, so that end users can add a logo or message to the flooring. Trade show carpet is also available for exhibitors and adds a nice comfortable touch to any exhibit. I’d like to see people lining up on that trade show flooring and trade show carpet ready to sign up for his services. He told me that he’s already getting a bit more business now that people can find his info online. Here’s hoping things pick up for them. I hate to see my family struggle.

Lawyer: Now Charles, your Uncle Jack Bass is your closest living relative and, as such, has been named as your legal guardian. Are you comfortable with this?
Chuck: (to Jack) Curfew?
Jack: None.
Chuck: Girls sleeping over?
Jack: Yes, please.
Chuck: I’ll allow it. -Gossip Girl

I confess…

That I still haven’t written my post on my 10 year reunion. So much has happened this week and I haven’t been near a real computer or had much time. Plus I’ve been exhausted. This has been one busy summer! Here are just a few confessions from my weekend blast from the past.

I confess…

That I didn’t expect much from my reunion and was pleasantly surprised. We had so much fun hanging out and I forgot just how great our class of 2001 really was. There were no cliques and everyone mingled with everyone.

I confess…

That I may have inappropriately yelled out that one of our old classmates had gotten “REALLY HOT!”. I then went on to say that I was a married woman so it was completely ok to say. I wasn’t even drunk that night!

I confess…

That my parents accidentally locked me out of the house on Friday. I did come home at 3am so maybe they were saying I’d broken curfew?

I confess…

That while at the bonfire I kept it classy with a styrofoam cup full of champagne, which I delightfully kept calling champag-nay. In a hick accent. Repeatedly.

I confess…

That there were no bathrooms at this bonfire and I was worried I would pee on my leg, but I squatted like a champ. I did seem to find the need to tell everyone at the bonfire how great I was at squatting like a champ.

I confess…

That I’m probably still not going to get around to blogging about the rest of my epic reunion until next week since I’m currently decorating for Monica’s Hen Party. I’m hosting it and I’m so excited. I’ve already baked up cupcakes and decorated them with little penises. The hen party sign has been painted.

The audio and video cables have been hooked up to the laptop which will be playing an embarrassing photo slideshow of the bride to be when she walks through the door. The banners have been hung and I have signed us up for the dance club’s guest list. Taxi number is preprogrammed into my phone. We are ready!

Blanche: Oh, Dorothy, high school reunions can be so much fun. I will never forget mine! I was the most successful person there.
Dorothy: Blanche, didn’t you go to school with that brilliant doctor who won the Nobel Prize?
Blanche: Oh, yes, but she let her looks go to hell. -Golden Girls

I confess…

That this is a scheduled post, as I left for Oregon yesterday. 9.5 hours in the car with nothing but my pup Monkey for company. Impulsive Addict, I apologize already for calling you and talking your ear off.

I confess…

That I’m sad to be away from Match for four nights. It’s the longest we’ve been apart since we first started dating. He’s going to try to work some overnight shifts so that will be good. I think the hardest part is knowing how much he loves coming home to Oregon with me and how left out he feels. Sigh, such is the way of the Sheriff Deputy schedule.

I confess…

That I’m so excited to be back home with my family. I haven’t seen my parents since our wedding in September, and I haven’t been to my childhood home since December of 2009. That last trip home was also the trip that Match proposed, so it makes me miss him even more.

I confess…

That I’m kind of nervous/excited about my 10 year reunion on Saturday. I graduated from a class of 60, in a very small town, so it’s going to be intense. I’ve known a lot of my classmates since I was in kindergarten, and I’ve only seen a few of them since graduating. It’s going to be so strange to get together again.

I confess…

That I’m looking forward to the picnic and seeing everyone with their families. It’s going to be so weird to see my classmates as parents! I’m going to really wish I had Match with me that day, especially seeing all of the families together. Good think Ms. PHD will be there with me, flying solo.

I confess…

That the bonfire with the class on Saturday night should be fun. I never partied with my classmates in high school so it’s going to be kind of strange drinking with them now. I may have to reign in my wildness. I’m not sure my small town can handle Drunken Date Girl. She’s kind of a handful!