Awarded!

Aww! My friend over at At Random awarded my blog! Thanks girl!

How the Award works:

• Thank and link to the person who nominated you.
• Share seven random facts about yourself.
• Pass the award along to 15 deserving blog buddies.
• Contact those buddies to congratulate them.

7 Random Facts:

1. I work with elderly people with Alzheimer's and Dementia at an assisted living home. I absolutely love the job and I've gotten so attached to so many of the residents! The stories they share with me and the moments we have together brings tears to my eyes and a smile to my lips every day! No matter how bad of a day I could possibly be having, one "I love you" from a resident will make it all worth it in the end!

2. I have three guppy fish in a 2 gallon tank. Their names are Troy Polamalu, Miles Austin, and Chad Ochocinco (David named the last two) if you haven't figured it out, they are all football players. Troy's colors are black and yellow = Steelers (My team) Miles' colors are blue and white = Cowboys (David's team). And David thought it would be funny to have the third fish, Ochocinco, who's colors are orange and yellow, be from the Steeler's rivalry team = Bangles. I guess since he bought the fish for me, I had to let him have his way... We also bought them a little football to sit on the bottom of the tank and they LOVE it! They are always gathered near it or chasing each other around it. They're quite adorable as far as fish go. I also have a Beta fish that my ex-boyfriend bought me, which David lovingly refers to as the step-child. His name is aurora. 

3. I have the constellation Cassiopeia in freckles on my left thigh! The Queen Cassiopeia, is from Greek Mythology. She was the wife of king Cepheus of Ethiopia and was beautiful but also arrogant and vain which eventually led to her downfall. Her name in Greek is Κασσιόπη, which means "she whose words excel". That's always the first constellation I look for in the sky!

4. I have an earring and flip flop addiction! In my oppinion, they are both two things you can never have enough of! As far as earrings go, the bigger and flashier, the better! I must have at least one pair of flip flops in every color, but preferably two in each color (one casual and one dressy!)

5. I am a Christian and God is not just an aspect of my life but rather the compass by which I live! I grew up going to church, sunday school and youth group. I went to a Christian school, Bible college for Youth Ministry, and also interned with a youth group for a year as an assistant leader, and now I am going to a fabulous church about 5 minutes from my house! I am involved with the sound ministry (running the sound board during church), the worship team (singing the praise and worship songs before the service), a private Bible study (about 5 or 6 women, we each take turns every week leading the study) and the youth group. 

6. The only way I remember what my real hair color is, is by looking at the roots when they start to grow in. Ever since about 8th grade, I've been dying my hair. Red, blond, different shades of brown, and just recently dark dark dark brown (almost black). I think my next color is going to be the closest I can find to my natural color so I can see what God intended me to look like. (maybe)

7. My mom is my best friend. She always has been. We never went through that 'angsty teenager who hates her mom' stage. Sure, we've fought, but I have always been close to her. She is my inspiration in life, she is the voice in my head when I don't know what to do. She is what I aspire to be. If I could be half the woman my mom is, I would be satisfied. Everything I am, I owe to her. Like I said today when she told me I owe her for a favor she is doing for me, "Mom, I owe my whole life to you." She even taught me how to book blog, check out hers Wall to Wall Books! Mom I love you!

My awarded 15 bloggers

1. Vamps R Us

2. Beauty will be Convulsive

3. Eating Y.A. Books

4. Love Laughter and a Touch of Insanity

5. Erin Reads

6. Reading Chick

7. The House of the Seven Tails

8. Books in the City

9. Once Upon a Book Nerd

10. Sherry Ann's Book Blog

11. Sheery's Place

12. Reflections of a Bookaholic

13. Chick Loves Lit

14. Emmah Christine

15. I am Princess Kitty

So You Think You Can Dance

Summer is here and with it comes the greatest dance competition on television to date! So You Think You Can Dance season 8! The long awaited, 2 hour season premier showcased auditions in Atlanta and San Francisco. If you’re new to the show here’s how it works: contestants dance before judges Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy (who returned after last season’s hiatus while dealing with cancer) and guest judges/choreographers such as Lil’C, Tyce Dioro and Toni Redpath. If the dancer is bad they are cut,. If the judges see potential but are not sure if the contestant has what it takes, they move on to the choreography round where the contestant is challenged with a style of dance outside their comfort zone. If the contestant has unquestionable talent and technique they immediately get a ticket to Las Vegas where hundreds of dancers will be judged and cut again and again until there are only 20.

The night seemed to be off to a good start. In fact, after sending ten contestants in a row straight to Vegas, Nigel Lithgoe, executive producer, said the turnout was "obnoxiously incredible." However, as all good things do, their luck came to an end. After several bad… very, very bad… auditions Tyce Dioro had to resort to “cup humor” to distract him from the lack of talent, with reactions such as, “That was one big hot cup of vomit” and “That was a grande' cup of not so good.” It seems that Tyce, though good looking, only has one unit with which to measure talent. There’s cups, and then there’s… cups.

(I may have a small crush on him) Okay... so it's not so small! But come on! Can you blame me?

Lil’C, hip-hop choreographer, is known for his philosophical prose that often times generate a good laugh but sometimes leave everyone in bewilderment. For example, when Melanie Moore took the stage she brought a whole new meaning to the word “flawless.” She danced like an angel with moves that made me gasp in awe. Or as Lil’C put it, “I think that Zeus himself would invite you to come dance on Olympus.” Melanie certainly deserved such a high level of praise, I will be rooting for her in Las Vegas.

One thing I really like about this show is that it’s not dance style specific. Contestants can enter the competition with a solo piece ranging from ballroom to street dancing. In fact, during the middle of the show it seemed that the judges favored the street dancers who got sent straight to Las Vegas, over some of the seemingly more talented contestants who for some reason had to prove their worth in choreography first. With auditions for hip-hop, contemporary, krunk and street dancing you see moves you didn’t think the body could endure. One contestant slid across the entire length of the stage on his head! OUCH!

One thing is for sure, it was two hours of pure enjoyment for my mother and I. I have been waiting a whole year for this show to begin again and boy was it worth the wait! I can’t imagine what is in store for us this season! Keep watching, and if you don’t… START! Once the show is past the initial auditions and gets down the the choreography for the 20 finalists, they will move in ways that will make you laugh one minute and cry the next. Each dancer dancing with such a passion that brings the story behind the choreography to live. Here are some links to some of my personal favorite dances from previous years.


Dreaming with a Broken Heart - Twitch and Kherington

Mercy - Katee and Twitch

The Garden - Mark and Courtney

Bleeding Love - Chelsie and Mark

Outta Your Mind - Twitch and Alex

Gravity - Kayla and Kupono

Love Lockdown - Jeanine and Phillip

Gossip Girl by Cecily con Ziegesar

“Sex and the City for the younger set.” - Teen People

“Deliciously catty and immediately engrossing.” - Kirkus

“A nasty, guilty pleasure. The book has the effect of gossip itself - once you enter, its hard to extract yourself.” - Publishers Weekly

Before starting Gossip Girl, I had just finished re-watching (for the third time) Gilmore Girls seasons 1-7  on DVD. The show revolves around single mother Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) and her daughter, Rory (Alexis Bledel). Having committed the unforgivable sin of getting pregnant at 16, Lorelai flees home, leaving behind a life of unmet upper-class expectations. She was running from the silver-spoon in mouth concept only to find herself entering her daughter into a world of just that through private school and Friday night dinners with her eternally disapproving grandparents . The plot is focused on Lorelai and Rory’s struggle to prove that you don’t have to come from wealth to make a difference and  their fight against trust fund kids, cotillions, etiquette classes, and all things privileged.

Gossip Girl, however, derives its plot from the very life that Lorelai and Rory fought so hard to rebel against. Set in New York City, main characters Blair Waldorf and Serena van der Woodsen embrace their privileged teen hood, and their endless supply of daddy’s money, with no morals behind their frivolous lifestyle. At first I despised the self entitled “poor little rich kids” and their following of admirers who wished to be them but never would. I found myself reading page after page only to be able to say I finished it and also to further criticize the fantasy of throwing caution to the wind, consequences be damned. However, as I got deeper into the book and allowed my heart to soften for the characters and their background stories, I found myself turning the pages with an ease that soon turned into an addiction.

Blair Waldorf is shallow and her boyfriend Nate, though hot, would rather get stoned than pay attention to her never ending list of needs.  Throughout the course of their relationship, Blair has held onto her virginity, not for a sense of purity but as a tease to keep Nate intrigued. Blair finally decides tonight is the night only to find out that her former best friend (Nate’s secret lover)  has returned to NYC after getting kicked out of boarding school in New Hampshire.  Blair’s newfound hatred for Serena only deepens as the two battle for Nate’s affection. Rumors run wild of exactly why Serena got kicked out and her reputation is ruined as she unsuccessfully tries to meld back into her old clique. Expensive booze and illegal drugs come easy to minors and are overlooked by the adults as long as no one makes a scene. Sex is just as common a past time as shopping for designer clothes, or in Blair’s case shop lifting. Do these teen’s scandalous life choices come back to bite them? Will Nate stay with Blair and allow her to consummate the relationship or will he return to his true love Serena,? Or maybe there is someone else in the cards for him.

I recommend this book but only if you are in the mood for mindless entertainment. No offense to Cecily von Ziegesar, but if you are looking for a thought provoker this series is not for you. If you are the type of person that will judge the characters, get frustrated when they choose their own selfish desires despite better judgment, and secretly hope that they all grow a conscience and donate money to world peace, then please don’t even glance at the cover much less read what’s inside. However, if you are looking for a book that allows you to let go and enter into a life that, though stereotypical, will inevitably take you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions, dirty language and thoroughly scandalous gossip, then by all means read on!