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By Amber, on October 20, 2011, at 10:40 pm I can’t believe we are already 2/3 of the way through October! October has long been my favorite month because of crisp weather and changing leaves. We still don’t have changing leaves here in Houston (unless you count the thousands of trees that have been killed by our terrible drought), but we have been enjoying some unseasonably cool weather this week. It’s been amazing and refreshing.
October is also my favorite month because of Halloween and our wedding anniversary! Actually, those days are the same. Win-win! And then comes my birthday at the start of November!
It’s bittersweet to realize that October is almost gone. We’re going out with a bang, though, as we’ve got some fun stuff planned for our anniversary. Oh shoot, I just realized I haven’t bought any Halloween candy, and I was just at Target yesterday! The only candy I love more than Halloween candy is Easter candy!
Be right back, I need to correct this oversight…
By Amber, on October 18, 2011, at 10:42 pm 
Today is Eat, DINK and Be Merry’s second birthday!
I may not have any fancy sponsors (on the other hand, I don’t have any annoying ads, either!) or giveaways, but I appreciate all of you who visit my corner of the internet now and then. Thanks especially to Mark, Heather and my parents for being super-supportive and pretending that everything I write is interesting. ;)
By Amber, on October 11, 2011, at 10:50 pm My favorite role at Toastmasters is Table Topics Master. For one thing, it means I don’t have to answer any questions (even though I really need the practice). More importantly, it lets me be creative. I like to step out of the usual Q&A format when I can. I’ve brought out a bag of props and asked people to sell random, useless items to mismatched buyers. I’ve asked people to give a report on a book they’ve never read and probably never would (although after that one, a couple people asked to borrow ‘their’ book!). Some of them have been so successful that it is getting to be a challenge to come up with new games.
Tonight I got to fill the Table Topics Master role again! I asked people to randomly select three slips of paper, on which I had printed assorted nouns like ‘chicken’ and ‘chainsaw,’ and incorporate those things into the confession they were going to give us about the terrible thing they had done. Some of the answers made me laugh so hard I nearly cried. My club has very creative members!
The best part of the evening was our little stopover at a local watering hole for a quick drink after the meeting. Our social events always far exceed my expectations. Who would think that Toastmasters members would have so much to say..?
By Amber, on October 4, 2011, at 11:29 pm Has anyone seen my blogging motivation?
I usually come home from Toastmasters and blog, but tonight I took a nap while Mark did the cleaning and then we went for pho, and now it is suddenly super-late o’clock! It’s good to have those days sometimes.
Speaking of pho and good days, we’ve finally gotten a break in the heat and we are down (down is relative) in the high 80s with humidity around 50% or lower. It’s sunroof weather! The last couple days have been the kind that make Houstonians feel like there is no other place in the world they would rather be. We may not have autumn leaves, but we do have this!
By Amber, on September 20, 2011, at 9:51 pm 
That would be Robert and Mario taking home the gold from both events at our Toastmasters area contest! (The rest of us are just hoping some of their success will rub off if we stand close enough.) This photo will go nicely on the new site and blog that we are launching!
I had forgotten how much fun contest season is (especially if you’re not competing!). I have another area contest to attend this week, and I haven’t decided whether I’ll attend the division contest, where Robert and Mario will vie for a spot at the district contest (it’s awfully early on a Saturday).
Do you have anything fun planned this week?
By Amber, on September 13, 2011, at 10:35 pm My sister and I were sitting on chaise lounges by our parents’ pool this weekend, a small iron table between us. “There’s a spider under the table,” she observed. It was hanging beneath the corner closest to me, inches away but minding its own business. Spiders kind of freak me out for some reason, but this one was so uninterested in me that after I made a mental note to come back with a camera, I proceeded to read and doze for several more hours.
When I finally grabbed my camera at the end of the afternoon, this was the only shot I got before the spider tucked up tight beneath the table and hid from view:
The next day, the spider was back in its spot and I seized the opportunity to snap away. Hey, wait — does something about this spider seem funny to you?
Oh. Okay, then.
I have to say, I liked her company better than that of the scorpion I found in the guest room. Is my parents’ house dangerous, or what?
By Amber, on September 11, 2011, at 11:24 pm 
Forgive me for the lack of content tonight, but I’m finally home for the first time in almost a week! Last Monday I flew to Illinois, and on Thursday night I flew from Illinois into Austin. Mark picked me up at the Austin airport and we headed to my parents’ house. I have the usual flora, fauna, and general silliness to share with you, but it will have to wait while I unpack and give Sweet Pea some attention.
I hope you had a great weekend, too!
By Amber, on August 25, 2011, at 10:39 pm 
Just kidding — this is Houston! Our seasons are ‘summer’ and ‘the pause between summers, wherein I think I am going to die because occasionally it gets as cold as 50F.’ The only difference between November and summer is that, in November, the days are shorter and I’m trying very hard to make my beloved waffle-weave shirts work. And so, since this is merely August, we are still so very far away from fall.
Someone should tell that to the retailers who are sending me catalogs full of delicious-looking cozy fall clothes. At least Express had the courtesy to pair their giant faux-fur trapper hat (is it wrong that I want one?) with a very short skirt, like ‘we know you want some warm clothes, but here’s something you might actually be able to wear.’
Anyway, my lizard brain is clearly still confused by the first 28 years of my life, as I am simultaneously trying to soak up the ‘end’ of summer, and yet continually reminding myself that September does not equal autumn. Just the end of my fast commute to work. Thanks, school buses!
By Amber, on August 23, 2011, at 10:39 pm I was going to post something tonight about my new work Blackberry, and how trying to learn to use it is giving me a terrifying look at what it will be like to be old. Or about how I won Best Speaker tonight at Toastmasters! Or even about the delicious, greasy bacon cheeseburger that I celebrated with afterward.
But the thing is, I got distracted by chocolate. We usually pick out a couple thousand bars when we do our grocery shopping at HEB, but Mark raided the Spec’s chocolate section and came home with some brand-new (to us) treats:
A tip from me to you: the red velvet, though somewhat of an ironic flavor for a chocolate bar, is amazing.
By Amber, on August 11, 2011, at 10:43 pm Just a few random green favorites from various Hill Country places tonight. I have nothing of note to post because I’m relaxing and soaking up the last of my little pretend retirement. Although part of me is ready to be productive again (by which I mean finance my retail habits) and get out of the house more than once or twice a week, I am really going to miss pajama pants, adequate rest, and the way the cat will cry desperately outside the bedroom door when I go upstairs to do something, then sit across the room with her back to me when I come back downstairs to read. You know, I used to scoff, but now I find the staycation highly recommendable!
Enjoy your weekend!
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