Melissa, Oh!

Tag: Jenny

  • Fear of committment

    I received a wonderful compliment from Stephanie yesterday – she told me that she admires my committment to fitness. This said during the same day that I a) had committment on my mind, (namely, people who commit to things and then disappoint) and b) started a new workout journey – boot camp classes at this…

  • Trim that ugly tree with tradition

    “I miss Mia,” Jenny confided to me the other night. “I was just thinking about her crazy Christmas trees.” My sister and I had a good laugh over that one, and we decided to file it into another of those “Mia stories” categories that just have to be shared with you. So, in the spirit…

  • Pink ballerinas, freight trains and talking mice; and yet no, this is not a post about drugs

    Severe weather had been predicted all day yesterday, but in the morning the news was calling it merely a “slight” chance for tornadoes. So I didn’t worry too much about it, and I even thought that my plan for an evening run probably woudn’t be affected. I tend to keep the news on in the…

  • On ambien and Joy Bauer

    So, you may have heard me reference this little piece of magic that I have recently discovered. Joy Bauer’s “Your Inner Skinny” is a perfect guide to nutrition, in my opinion. She shows you how to get your fruits and vegetables, proteins, fats and carbs all balanced in a healthy way that helps you get…

  • When lack of communication is actually good …

    The good thing about beginning marathon training on the West Coast is the flat ground and dry heat. The bad thing about it is re-entering the SouthEast, and while everyone else is grateful that the humidity is finally starting to break, I walk outside and can barely breathe. Acclimating = fun times. The lucky thing…

  • Proving Mia wrong

    Her 95th birthday party was supposed to be tomorrow. We had been planning it for months. My grandmother’s major desire was that we all be there. That’s why the party was to be 10 days after her actual birthday – because that was the first time everyone could be there. And it totally sucks that she’s…

  • Sometimes, adventure is loss

    When I was 15, I went on my first adventure. It wasn’t by choice. I grew up in Fort Mill, SC, a small town where everyone knew each other. My friends were mostly friends I’d had since childhood, and there was a certain security about knowing that my closest allies were always just a phone…

  • Our last moments

     I’m sure I’ll have more to say with time, but I wrote this the other day and wanted to share it with you … It had been a long and emotional day at the hospital, and it would be the last day of Mia’s life, though of course, we did not know this yet. A…

  • 4 kids and I didn’t even have to change a dirty diaper

    Chuck surprised my sister for their anniversary by bringing her and the kids up to my house for the night so I could babysit while they had an evening out. What he may not have known was he was giving me a gift as well! It was my pleasure to watch the two boys. And…

  • ‘My Cabooooooodle!!’

    It was 1992 or 1993. We were in the family’s Astro van, driving out west. All five of us in one car, and two of us were teenagers. So yeah, you can imagine the highs and lows of that trip. Some notable things: = Dad got a speeding ticket. That was when I learned that people are…

  • ‘My Cabooooooodle!!’

    It was 1992 or 1993. We were in the family’s Astro van, driving out west. All five of us in one car, and two of us were teenagers. So yeah, you can imagine the highs and lows of that trip. Some notable things: = Dad got a speeding ticket. That was when I learned that people are…

  • ‘like peeing in your pants’

    Ah, I turn twenty-thirteen today. Love being in my 20s. I was going to write a post going on and on about how wonderful all those in my life are (yes, I am talking about you!) but I have been doing that a lot lately. Instead I’ll show you some of my super-cool presents. Pampering…

  • Even better than backpacking

    So, my meeting with Caleb didn’t go as I had planned it to. In fact, I had been scheduled to be at my sister’s on March 1. Which meant I would have been there when Caleb arrived on March 3. But my little stint in the hospital changed those plans. And as I spent time…

  • Weddings, babies, surgeries, life …

    So, you wouldn’t know it by reading this blog, but other things have been going on besides the fact that I fell on my face and have spent the past few weeks recovering. Who knew?? So, in a nutshell, here’s some other things that have been going on: = My brother had back surgery. You…

  • The story of how an intruder (didn’t) catch me

    So, one of the most wonderful silver linings about the past few weeks is how many visitors I have had. I know I’ve mentioned them to you all along, but it’s just been so touching. Colleen visited me *every day* in the hospital and some at home, as did my parents and Jeff wouldn’t leave…

  • Sadie, the 2-year-old bottomless pit

    As an oldest child, I can say that it’s not that we didn’t want our younger siblings to have good toys. It’s that we didn’t want them to have better toys than us. Same with good grades, fun birthday parties and desserts. I see myself in my oldest niece, Mia. When her 2-year-old sister Sadie…

  • Sadie, the 2-year-old bottomless pit

    As an oldest child, I can say that it’s not that we didn’t want our younger siblings to have good toys. It’s that we didn’t want them to have better toys than us. Same with good grades, fun birthday parties and desserts. I see myself in my oldest niece, Mia. When her 2-year-old sister Sadie…

  • Top-secret assignments, trips to DC and my in-laws are cool

    This post is random (advanced warning). I had a dream last night that I was being secretly recruited by the FBI for an assignment of which I had no knowledge of but if I told anyone I would wind up dead. Also being recruited was an exboyfriend who is notoriously untrustworthy so why I would…

  • Discouraged

    I just ran 4 miles. It was harder than it should have been. All my runs lately are harder than they should be. Running partners, I need you. You haven’t seen me lately. Don’t let me get away with it. Make me run with you. Make me run with you a lot.

  • Discouraged

    I just ran 4 miles. It was harder than it should have been. All my runs lately are harder than they should be. Running partners, I need you. You haven’t seen me lately. Don’t let me get away with it. Make me run with you. Make me run with you a lot.

  • It’s all uphill right now … but I have a hammock.

    Stealing this picture from Kevin’s blog because this is just what I need right now: And lucky for me, I have an awesome brother and friends who invited me to go hiking/camping with them this weekend in Roan Mountain, Tenn. We will be leaving tomorrow evening and hiking 3 peaks (a total of 12 miles.)…

  • Friends who are active and famous, and hot tubs that get snowed on

    First off, I want to say thank you for all the kind words and support last week. Having a heavy heart and no outlet is at times, lonely. But, things are not all bad. In the good-news department, I have some exciting things to report: Good friend news #1 My friend Michael, an actor, has landed…

  • Friends who are active and famous, and hot tubs that get snowed on

    First off, I want to say thank you for all the kind words and support last week. Having a heavy heart and no outlet is at times, lonely. But, things are not all bad. In the good-news department, I have some exciting things to report: Good friend news #1 My friend Michael, an actor, has landed…

  • On training bras and doing whatever your friends tell you to do

    It’s 1980-something and I’m in the back of mom’s station wagon, sitting on blue vinyl with my neighbor Lauren sitting across from me, and we’re on the way to school. Jenny and Kevin are in the car as well. Lauren says to me, “Why don’t you ask your mom if the tooth fairy is real?” It’s…