The End of Summer

Last weekend, Mark and I finally got to take his pride and joy out for one last spin on the lake. He likes to say he makes payments on his boat and pulls it around the country. Our Oklahoma pals Jansen and Jessica joined us for a camping trip on beautiful Lake Tenkiller. Mark also got the chance to share his Cherokee culture with me by taking me to the nation's annual holiday. We listened to the State of the Nation address and toured the Cherokee Heritage Center, where Mark rubbed elbows with the Chief. Our weekend wouldn't be complete, however, without a run-in with a park ranger Mark refers to as "the rude redneck." Apparently we were camping in an unauthorized spot. You would have thought we were serial killers the way he acted. Let's just say Mark is drafting a memo addressed to everyone from the park manager to Governor Brad Henry himself. That's not what we had in mind when we ventured back to the state we love so much. Anyways, after two days of "faucet showers" (Mark can fill you in about those), we journeyed to OKC to help the diva move into her new house.

Nightmare on Clubhouse Circle

A gang of masked robbers, armed with AK-47’s , hit a little too close to home last Friday night. By too close, I mean six houses down. No joke! Shots were fired inside and outside the house. Mark responded like any other “country kid” would. He immediately went to Wal-Mart and bought a shotgun, much to my dismay. When I called him at work with the scoop the following morning, he told me that he would take every precaution available to protect me. Thirty minutes later, he walks in the door carrying his artillery. That’s not the kind of protection I was envisioning. And he calls himself a Democrat! The Sentinel Record finally published a story when the culprit was apprehended this week. According to the newspaper, the robbers knew our neighbors. They were apparently on the hunt for a $3000 set of gold car rims. We can have no fear now because the ringleader is in jail on a $75,000 bond and is looking at life behind bars if convicted. Click on the link below to read all about it.

http://www.hotsr.com/ShowIndex.asp?Section=Headlines

Big Apple Escape

Sorry for the delay in sharing my fabulous vacation to New York to visit my best friend, Jill. (I know you were all dying to read about it!) Mark bruised my ego recently when he threatened to ban me from our blog for my cheesy entries. Of course I have to remind him that while he might reign supreme as the No. 1 firefighter in the family, I did once get paid to write. All bitterness aside, our Big Apple excursion was everything I expected and more. However, I don’t see myself packing up and heading north anytime soon. After five days of dodging rude New Yorkers and tourists in the crowded city streets, it is good to be back in the South where complete strangers greet you with a smile. The goal of the trip was to act as natives while visiting the typical tourist sites. Brooke was a pro at this game. About five minutes in, she decided I would be the chief photographer, and she would just take it all in. We dined in Little Italy, took a ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, drank the famous frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity and stood in the pouring rain for a half hour to purchase cheap Phantom tickets. (Looking back, it was well worth the wait and brush with the aggravated lady who was distraught because we were not moving fast enough for her.) My favorite parts were attending the Broadway show, strolling across the Brooklyn Bridge, napping in Central Park and taking in an oldie but goody movie in Bryant Park.

Bryan & Sarah Tie the Knot

It was 15 hours of driving well spent to attend the special ceremony this weekend in Baton Rouge, LA. Check out the newest member of the Masters family and the Cousin's picture in order of height, circa 1990 Jay, OK.

Expect NYC pics from Tebow soon, and "Man Weekend" pics from me as soon as we find my misplaced camera.

1 Day, 1 Hour, 9 Minutes to Go

Tomorrow, my sister and I will depart for a five-day excursion in the Big Apple. Last year, Jillian, one of my best friends in the whole wide world, decided to leave the great South and move to Brooklyn to be a middle school science teacher through the Teach for America program. When she left, I tried to ease her fears by telling her I would come visit. Little did she know, I was skeptical. But thanks to a very supportive hubby, I'm going to actually make the trip. It's a vacation I've always dreamed of but never thought would happen. After all, growing up, our family vacations consisted of loading up in our silver Safari minivan and traveling to twirling competitions (much to my brothers' dislike). Oh yeah, and there was the occasional trip to Frontier City or Whitewater Bay for making "Straight A's." You can say New York City is like my Disney World. That's only because things that go upside down and round and round make me nauseous. My pre-school teacher, Mrs. Black, can attest to that! I am going to drag Jill and Brooke to all the cheesy tourist stops: Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, Time Square. I am going to do my best to refrain from buying one of those fake Fendi or Prada bags in a dark alley, only because my lawyer tells me I could get arrested for that, and I need her to be my partner in crime. I can't wait. I'm going to be that kid who can't sleep because Mickey Mouse is waiting for her in the morning. Only 1 day, 1 hour and nine minutes to go!

Girls' Weekend

I just got back from a relaxing girls' weekend in the great state of Oklahoma. Three of my best college friends -- Aimee, Amber and Emily-- and I met at Emily's parent's house to catch up. (Unfortunately, Jill and Lindsay couldn't make the trip. We missed you guys!) We were all Thetas at OSU and have been friends since freshman year. Since we're spread out in three states now, we vowed to get together at least once a year. Thanks to Em's excellent organizational skills, it finally came to fruition. So much has happened in three years. Aimee is teaching kindergarten in Stillwater. (Pretty sure she's the best kindergarten teacher EVER). Amber moved to Plano, Texas, and earned not one but TWO master's degrees. Emily just finished her first year of med school and gave birth to the cutest 3-month-old boy in the world named Sam. (I have to say, her stories about childbirth were a little frightening). He was the only guy allowed this weekend.

The Backyard Beast

Moments after moving into our new abode in the Valley of the Vapors, Mark came face to face with danger. It's the kind of event you only see in the movies. You could say "The Sandlot" came to life in our own backyard. The minute we walked in the door we heard it. The same disturbing noise that serves as our alarm clock in the morning, serenades us at dinner and keeps us from going to sleep at night. Mark, being the curious guy he is, decided to peak over our six-foot fence and check things out. That's when the critter, we know as the backyard beast, leaped seven feet in the air and nearly ripped Mark's face off. He says he can still smell the beast's putrid breath, and when he closes his eyes, that face that resembles a Rottweiler is staring back at him right over the top of the fence. But no, we couldn't just leave the half Rottweiler half Great Dane to sit on his throne in the neighbor's backyard. We had to continue to check out the lumbering giant in his den. Even though this creature appears docile in this photo, please note, his head easily rests four feet above the ground while sitting on his haunches. P.S. Seconds after this photo was taken, the giant realized he was being watched and viciously attacked the thin wooden fence separating our alleged recreation areas.

Back from the Cheyenne Country

Here is some video and pics from my Montana detail, which I just got back from last night.

Idabel Blues

Here are some photos of a relaxing weekend camping trip in the Oklahoma Ouachitas with the legendary JMAST recently, which was only disturbed by a tornado.

We fell in the trap, almost

Since college, we've shared the same view of those computer nerds who sit in front of their pc's for hours seeing how many friends they can amass on My Space and Facebook. We were never going to become those people. No way. Not us. Then, our new found Arkansas friends and the legendary Will Jenks introduced us to the world of blogging, and we fell for it. We're not going to try to pretend our lives our exciting, but we'll do our best. Okay, Mark contends that even though I'm boring, he's far from it. It's been an amazing year. We've lived in 3 homes, visited 7 states (on 4 vacations), made meaningful new friendships and said goodbye to our rescue dog Fatty (he will reside with us once again, soon). Mark just returned from a 30-day detail in Montana as a Fire Management Officer. Paige just left her job in Little Rock to pursue law school, do free-lance work as a Public Information Officer and volunteer with CASA.