This Unfamiliar Road

Captain Jack Sparrow!

Ben and I love Halloween. I'm pretty sure this began around our freshman year of college when we dressed up as characters from The Pirates of the Caribbean. We won a costume contest that year (gift certificates to dinner & a movie!), which sparked a little competition and our interest to have "the best" costumes every year. Over the years, we have had our share of bad wigs, smeared face paint, bad homemade costumes, and one year, we had to actually cut Ben out of his costume! We were fortunate that my sorority had lots of themed date parties-where we got to dress up in character more than just once a year! One of my favorite Halloween date parties was in 2006- Our Tennessee VOLS had just slaughtered the GA Bulldogs (51-33) IN Athens. We have always been the victims of ridicule only because we grew up in Georgia, but went to school at UT. Basically, we are surrounded by Bulldog fans. So, what better way to celebrate our win over Georgia (and also the beginning of a horrible season for them) than by dressing up as "beat-up" Georgia players. The hardest part of this was having to buy Georgia gear. Blah!

Ben was a football player and I was a cheerleader

Best costumes ever!

 So, of course, this year (around mid-September), Ben and I began discussing our Halloween costumes and when our party would be!
I think the party was a great success, and next year will be even better. 

The Mad Hatter, Alice, and The Cheshire Cat

Our outside decorations

Cowgirl & Witch

Characters from "The Watchmen"

US Border Patrol and a Cuban- LOVE IT

Mi Familia

Our Pumpkin-it's a bat

"Alice" falling down the rabbit hole

Yes, it has been entirely too long since I have posted. Here's what has happened lately:


-Ben's grandfather passed away on Thursday, October 21. He was a great man and will truly be missed. He had a stroke many years ago, so I have only known him as wheelchair-bound with very limited speech. Still, I was always amazed at how he could communicate-Grandpa always made his thoughts and feelings known! I can only imagine what he must have been like prior to his stroke. He was a military man, a fireman, and most importantly- a family man. He loved his family so much, and even made the trip from Michigan last May for our wedding! The funeral home put together a wonderful Life Story website at http://www.lifestorynet.com/memories/63258/ What an interesting life he had! (For some reason, my websites won't link? Try to access it from here)

What a spirited man

-We traveled to Michigan for 5 days. This was an interesting trip, to say the least. We left last Sunday afternoon to make the 14+ hour trip to Muskegon, MI. Now, Ben's SUV is typically very roomy...but there were 4 people + luggage + golf bags crammed into his Kia Sorento.Cramped? Just a bit. It was worth it as we were able to switch off drivers and make it there in good time. Before leaving, Ben got an oil change and an overall check of the car to make sure it was road-trip worthy. After the ok...we took off on our journey. As were were heading out, Ben ran over a *random* block of wood with nails poking out of it. Hmmm...we will keep an eye on it. So, after 900 miles, Cracker Barrel, road trip junk food, lots of caffeine, and uncomfortable napping positions, we made it to MI at about 8am on Monday morning-tire still intact!
No time for sleep-we began working on funeral preparations and sorting through pictures. It wasn't until we left for the visitation that we noticed Ben's tire pressure was low. After filling the tire...and refilling the tire, we took it to a shop for a patch. At least we made it to MI first!
The visitation and funeral were wonderful services filled with people whose lives have been touched by Grandpa Furman. I have never seen so many people coming together to celebrate one man's life. It was great seeing family afterwards at the church luncheon. 
On Wednesday, the guys played golf, then we met with Grandma Starr for lunch before we headed back to Atlanta. Before we left, Ken started feeling sick, but we hit the road anyway. I will spare you details and just let you know we didn't make it far before deciding to turn around and go back to Rich & Lori's house. That night, 2 more people in the house were sick...making us wonder if it was a stomach virus (which would have been fast moving!) or food poisoning. Still a mystery.
We finally left (again) on Thursday morning- very much ready to be home!


-No rest for the wicked..(haha, corny, I know)-Friday morning we woke up early-Ben had to work and I had to unpack, do laundry, clean, and cook for our Halloween party on Saturday (more on this later).


Wow, I am tired all over again from reading this. We were able to sleep in a bit this morning, but...it's off to clean the house (after-party). 

Well, I have made the transfer to a hospital much closer to my house. I used to work there before going to Atlanta for RN training. I LOVE it- I feel like I am back "home" and I feel much more comfortable in a smaller hospital. The one challenge? I am on night shift. I recently worked Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night from 7pm-7am. Whew! I have worked night shift before, and I managed to adjust to it, but so far...no good.

Last night was a great "pizza night", due mostly to Monday night football (Sidenote: I needed Percy Harvin to get me 6 points for Fantasy and he ended up with a huge 28 points! What a night!)

Whole wheat crust and "traditional" pizza sauce

I like just enough sauce- some delivery places put waaay too much!

I had Mozzarella cheese, but then saw a "Pizza Blend" so I opted for that

Mushrooms!

And Pepperoni!

More Cheese!

Yes, I like to cook in my PJ's-way more comfy

The finished product! The orange cheese throws me off but it was tasty!

Of course, on our UT plates with a side salad!

Ben's response? "I can honestly say this is the best homemade pizza I have ever had" 
Yay! Maybe next time I will try to make the crust myself!


Pizza, Beer, and Football on Monday night= success!

Mustang loves watching football!

Ben and I went to the county fair last night. Today, I feel like I am floating around in a pool of fryer grease. Oh well, it was SO worth it. Fair food is pretty much the only reason I go, although we had a great time doing other things:

Eating a giant corndog!

Watching people on The Ferris Wheel

This llama took a liking to Ben!

How sweet!

YAY fair!

Ben won a stuffed animal for me : )

I have been wanting to try these for years...!

That's right folks...deep fried Oreos!

We also watched a dog show- frisbee tricks and dock diving! Those dogs were full of energy and too quick for my camera. My other fave part of the fair? People watching. I could do that alll day.

Overall, a great date night and a new yearly tradition.
Now time for a detox...

There are many adjustments and compromises that couples must make in order to maintain a healthy marriage. One of them is sleep arrangements.