Sunshine and Dolphins

WARNING... This is going to be long and filled with pictures :)

I had so much fun in Orlando, Florida with my Mom and Dad. Even though they forced me to go to bed every night at 9 (10 if i was lucky) and wake up at 8:30 every morning I still had a blast! We started out our trip by going to Discovery Cove, which is a sister park to Sea World that specifically is designed for an experience with dolphins. My dad and I got up close and personal with a dolphin named Maraya. My mom is not a fan of the water and sea creatures, so she slept in and visited a view outlet stores. The day began with about 30 minutes of pure, pouring rain and a thunderstorm. I was getting nervous... I had been waiting so long to swim with the dolphins. Luckily, it stopped raining and the sun started peaking through the clouds. Discovery Cove is an all day event; We arrived at 9am and left at about 5pm. It is set up so beautifully, it's filled with tropical flowers and trees and mock sandy beaches. There is plenty to do to keep you occupied all day. We snorkeled in a large coral reef that was filled with colorful fish and giant eagle rays. We stood in a lagoon filled with slimy stingrays swimming around us... you could touch them and feed them... I barely got a finger on one! We also floated around in a long, relaxing lazy river. We were served a very delicious breakfast and a gourmet lunch and had unlimited access to desserts, snacks and drinks. In the middle of our day, we learned all about Maraya. We played with her, fed her, learned tricks and had a few photo shoots! Overall, it was an awesome day! Here are pictures pictures of me and Maraya...

The next 2 days we relaxed by the pool, did some shopping, and ate at a few fun restaurants. One night we explored the City Walk, ate Margaritaville, and went to see the Blue Man Group. If you have never seen them, I would highly recommend it! They are blue, they never say a word, they make cool music, and are hilarious! Here's some pictures from the show, the ones with the Blue Man picture behind us, we were trying to imitate his face....

We played a round of mini-golf at a place called Pirate's Cove. Of course my dad dominated me... Even when I tried to cheat. I tried to get him to act like a pirate but that didn't work...

On our final day, we spent the entire day at Sea World. It was by far the coldest temperatures I have ever felt in Florida. When you are going to Florida, you really don't pack winter clothes! Compared to the high 80s low 90 temperatures we had the rest of the trip... 57 was freezing! The wind didn't help at all, except making it 10 degrees colder! The park was packed, but we still managed to see all the shows. My personal favorite is Clyde and Seamore... The sea lions! Here are a few of my favorite pics...

I came back with an amazing experience with dolphins, a nice tan, a few birthday gifts and amazing memories with my Mom and Dad! Thanks for taking me...Love you guys!

Now back to reality!

I'm back from Florida... Unfortunately. After a wonderful week of warm weather and sunshine, I'm back to the up and down weather in good old Columbus, Ohio. Back to school, homework, tests, and quizzes! As soon as I find the time, I will post some pictures and stories about my trip! Have a wonderful Easter weekend!

Back to school!

Spring quarter rolls in! I can not believe how fast this year has gone. It seems like a week ago that I moved down here! Now, I am in the last quarter of my first year in college! Even though I am technically a sophomore because of my PSO credits, I still feel like a little freshman!

I don't really have much to complain about this quarter. I have two classes online that I can do on my own time and only one class on campus. And that is only 2 days a week and doesn't start till 1! It's the schedule of a lifetime... Besides not having school at all ;-)

Like always, I am looking forward to the end of the week! On Thursday, I am leaving for FLORIDA!!!! I know, I know... I'm skipping school, but it is only one day of actual class! I have been cramming my online classes in these first few days so I don't have to take anything with me. I'm mostly excited about spending some quality time with my parents and going to discovery cove! That's right... It's part of Sea World and you get to swim with dolphins for the day! I am so excited!! And of course we are going to Sea World!

So... Here's my count down.... 2 MORE DAYSSSSS!!!!!!!

Addicting TV Shows

Nothing gets me more attached than TV shows. I have quite a few shows that I watch religiously. Some have been around for awhile, some are new. People quit watching the shows because they thought they were becoming dull and weren't entertaining anymore...I beg to differ. I watch my shows like clock work and if I miss them, I watch them online as soon as they are available. Many times, I find myself crying my eyes out whether I am alone or watching them with other people. I call Trav in tears and he laughs at me and tells me it's just a show. These things could happen... Well some of them.

For example, Grey's Anatomy. Everyone raved over it the first few seasons, then kind of drifted away because it was boring or whatever their reasons were. I will admit, the beginning of this season was a little rough, but I think it is better than ever. The episodes are so intense and so emotional. This season, Izzy has a very serious case of cancer. Being my favorite character, I cry ever episode as they reveal more and more about her condition.

One Tree Hill. It used to be a craze, but I'm not really sure if a lot of people watch it anymore or not. I still do and it adds to my list of teary episodes. I will forever love One Tree Hill. I completely love every character... Mostly Jamie Scott and least Dan Scott. There is a complaint about the last episode. A ridiculous scene where Dan is finally getting his heart transplant and the paramedic carrying the heart trips in the hospital. The heart falls out on the ground and a dog eats it. Seriously, when does that ever happen? Nothing will ever top the first season of OTH, but I will continue to watch it until it is cancelled.

My other addicting shows:

Dancing With The Stars - Shawn Johnson, Melissa Rycroft, and Ty Murray are my favorites!

Private Practice - I just love this one because it's a spin off of Grey's and is set in California!

Brothers and Sisters - I Started watching this one during season 2 and haven't stop since. I don't think I have ever cried so hard in a TV show when Robert had a heart attack. (Actually, that's probably a lie ;)

Desperete Housewives - What a ridiculous show but I can't stop watching it!

Then, there are those shows I secretly want to come back... The O.C., Dirty Sexy Money, Laguna Beach (The first season), Summerland, Gilmore Girls and Wildfire (don't ask me how I got hooked on this crazy show!)

Mischievous Puppy

Oh Cosmo...always getting into trouble somewhere. Those who know him know that he is quite rambunctious and often very energetic. He is very cute and very loving but don't let him fool you, he is mischievous at times

Since I have been home, I've picked up on a little habit that Cosmo has developed. When I woke up one morning, I went to let Cosmo in from the garage. My parents keep him there while they are at work so he has the freedom to go out side through his doggy door and run around instead of being coped up inside all day. Normally he is laying in his bed right outside the door, but this time he wasn't. I yelled for him out in the back yard and still couldn't find him. I then tried the front door and there he was...laying in the black mulch. He looked like he was dead because of the way he was laying. He was laying on his side with all fours sticking straight out. I had a brief moment of worry until I banged on the door and he popped up startled. He came up on the porch and I opened the door but only to find Cosmo's one side to be completely black. I didn't want him running all over the house so I picked him up and carried him to the laundry room for a bath. After he was all clean, we played around the house for a bit. A couple hours later he rang the bell to go outside. We have a ball with a bell inside attached to a string that hangs on our back door. We trained him so that when he has to go outside to go potty, he rings the bell. I let him outside, watched him for a sec as he darted into the back yard after a bird. About ten minutes later I realized that he had not come back to the door to come back inside. I looked out the windows and didn't see him in the back yard. I happened to look out the front door again and where was he... LAYING IN THE MULCH!!! I was so mad! He stayed outside the rest of the afternoon just for that. So now, just about every time I can't find Cosmo anywhere else... Sure enough I can find him laying in the bed of mulch by the front door. I have yet to discover why he chooses a hard, dirty pile of mulch rather than his cushy, fluffy bed in the garage to catch a few Zzz's. I couldn't catch him in action, but I did snap a shot of the scene of the crime. Hopefully I'll catch him soon and a post a picture of his newly found habit.

Home Sweet Home

Finals are finally over... Yahooooo!! Now its spring break and time to do absolutely nothing! For example, I slept until 2:14 in the afternoon today. I went to bed at about 1:30 am, which means I got a full twelve hours of sleep. It was wonderful! It's even better that I can get that needed sleep in the comfort of my own home. Don't get me wrong, I love Columbus and I love my apartment, but I think everyone can agree there is nothing like the feeling of home. As soon as I walked in the door, I was greeted by my cheerful puppy. He was so excited... jumping on me, running in circles, and shoving his toys in my face. That's just his way of showing how happy he is to see you. It's nice to be missed... even if it's by a dog :-)

After chasing him around for awhile, he got tired and plopped down on the floor, and I finally got to give my Mom and Dad a hug. In true Mike and Patty fashion, they asked where I wanted to eat. When I moved to Columbus, they started eating out nightly because they lost their 'personal chef' as my mom calls it. I will give her credit though... She has started cooking a little more but only because I hassle her about it. Now that I'm home, I refuse to go out to eat every night which means we need to go grocery shopping and I am cooking the food! I love to cook, so I am not complaining. Later on, I went to see two of my favorite people, Dan and KC! We caught up on life and I snuggled with Jana (their dog) on the couch. Cosmo was not happy with me when I got home, he sniffed my coat for about ten minutes. All in all, it is so good to be home! I can't wait to see more of Dan and KC, spend time with my family, and see my long-time friends from OU! I miss them soo much! On happy terms, I will leave you with some pictures of my photogenic puppy Cosmo!

Jackets vs. Wings

Trav and I went to the Blue Jackets vs Red Wings game yesterday. Even though they had an upsetting loss compared to the 8-2 win at the last match up, it was still fun to be at. So, far Trav and I have gotten to go to numerous games. I went to my first Opening Night Game at Nationwide Arena, witnessed 2 hats tricks (which happens very rarely), and have been to 2 Wings game this season. Fortunately, Trav has gotten to go to many more games than I have, but then again they are his dad's season tickets! He loves it when I hassle him about going to so many ;-) But really, we are very blessed to have his dad around. He always gives us first dibs on his outstanding lower bowl tickets when he and his wife are unable to make it. He always pays for parking and often takes us to dinner when the 3 of us go to the game. So thanks Poppy!

I'm not going to lie, I had no idea that Columbus had a professional hockey team before I started dating Travis. I was gradually being introduced to the Jackets 2 seasons ago with random facts from Trav and watching games on TV. Last season, we went to a few games now and then when we could make it down to Columbus. I started becoming more interested and obtained a favorite player, the team fighter Jared Boll. After we moved down to Columbus this year, we had many more opportunities to go to the games and my obsession grew. I got a Jared Boll jersey and watch as many games as I can. This season, they finally are in the running for the playoffs, which makes it even better. There is nothing like the consistent speed, intensity and frequent full-on fist fights of the game. Coming from a family of all football players, football is on the top of the list. Hockey is now equalling out, maybe even exceeding my love of football! I will leave you with a picture of Jared Boll and I...we randomly saw him and teammate Kris Russell at Mongolian BBQ downtown. Never did I know how extremely good looking he was until I saw him up close!