All Rowelled Up

All Rowelled Up
All Rowelled Up

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Carnival Conquest Cruise
Chapter One

Okay, I feel that I will bore you to no end if I tell you all about our cruise vacation in one big long blog.  So, I will take a few days and tell you all about it.  I've never been on a cruise before and I had mixed emotions about going on one.  I don't do well in the sun because I have very fair skin.  I'm not a fan of super hot weather.  I don't like underwater sea life. It kind if grosses me out.  

On Sunday February 12th our group of 10 boarded the Carnival Conquest in Galveston, TX to set sail on our 7 day cruise.  This is where our story begins.  We were at sea for 2 1/2 days until we reached Montego Bay, Jamaica, our first destination.

Galveston

Sunday February 13, 2011
Day One
Waiting to cruise
this was my "Phoebe" doll that I had with me.
I know, I know. I'm an adult and I shouldn't be carrying this around but I really missed my ma'am.
This was our first dinner night. Couldn't eat because I got a little sea sick.
Our first towel sculpture.


Monday February 14, 2011
Day Two
Valentine's Day
&
First Formal Night

 
Enjoying my first morning on our balcony.

Exploring the ship.
Sneaking on the main stage to strike a quick pose.
On deck. It was WAY windy.
Balcony sunset.

.....now it's time to get formal.....

The first formal night was also Valentine's Day. These were waiting on me in our room.


Note: We did not receive a towel sculpture on this night. We were sad.






February 15, 2011
Day Three
Another day of exploring the ship


On the back of the ship.


It was also Remembering Michael Jackson night.
I did my dances to Thriller and Beat It.
It was a good night.

Our nightly towel sculpture.

to be continued.....





Thursday, February 24, 2011

Guess who's back?

Oh, my goodness!!! I have missed my blog!! Like, a whole lot missed it! I have spent the last hour catching up on all the blogs I follow. I have truley missed you all. My blog is all I have thought about the last few days. I wasn't going to write tonight but I've been itching all day to get some words out to you. I have a lot to tell you about my vacation. It was a lot of fun but I'm so glad to be home! I love my home and family and even though I was only gone a week it seemed like a really loooong time. I hope you're glad to have me back. It's Jersey Shore night so I have to get my weekly fill but I promise this weekend I will catch you up on the Rowell's and share some vacation photos with you. It's time to get back to normal.

Glad to be home,

April

just a little preview for you.....


Friday, February 4, 2011

SICK AND TIRED

Well, I'm sick and this sucks!  I've been snowed in the house for FOUR days now.  I've gotten a lot accomplished, I think.  I've done a little bit of work and a little bit of sleeping but not as near as much as I would like.  I thought the snow was going to stop but it started up again today and it has only paused for a few hours.  I'm over it! Soooooo over it!!! I have a trip to Galveston next Saturday to take so we can board the big beautiful cruise ship so this snow better get a grip and stop already!!! For real!!

I started feeling kind of crappy last night about 5ish.  Sore throat, sneezing, feverish but yet I don't have a fever, nauseous, tired but can't sleep.  I felt a little better throughout the day but this evening I started feeling a little worse.  I put makeup on for the first time today in four days and I have to say, it feels good.

(On a side note, my wonderful, caring, concerned husband just walked in here, read the first part of my blog and said, "Oh, so we're calling it sick now? We're officially sick?" He will be kicked in the shin as soon as I hit Publish Post.  That little brat! 

I think Phoebe is ready for us to return to work.  Any time her sleep is interrupted she looks at us with such disgust.  We cage her during the day when we are at work and I think she has been trying to prove to us that all she does all day is lay around. I'm no dummy, I found the paper and remotes you chewed up when one of us left the room.  

Zach was supposed to be in a wedding on Saturday but it was rescheduled for next weekend which didn't work out for us because we will be on the cruise but I received a text from the bride today that they rescheduled it again for the 25th.  We can make that one.  I'm kind of excited to attend because they are getting married in the same chapel Zach and I got married in so it will be fun to watch a wedding from the other side.  I feel bad for the bride-to-be because when Zach and I got married it was during the ice storm in 2007 and I wasn't sure if we were going to have the wedding and if anyone was going to show up.  There were some of my family members that didn't show up but all in all it turned out great and it's one of the happiest days of my life.

I don't have too much to talk about. I think I'm just really bored and need something to do.  So, blog I must!!  Pray for this snow to melt melt melt.  Stay warm wherever you are!

Going a little insane,

April

Another snow day for Phoebe.

My niece, Aubrey, wishing she could be outside.

Sorry, Phoebe. Didn't mean to disturb your slumber.

We're so sleepy we don't realize we are making an ugly face.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

The S Word

Well, If you have been watching the news then you know that the state of Oklahoma has been attacked by the stuff we loved as a kid but despise as an adult.....SNOW.  Okay, some of you might still really find it great when you see the first flutter of a snowflake fall gracefully to the ground where it rests for a couple of seconds before it melts away as if it were never there.  And ya know, that parts cool with me too, but when those flakes like to pile on top of each other and stay and build and stay and build all it does it make me mad.  Sure it's pretty, sure it makes for good pictures, of course it gives me a good excuse not to go to work but let me tell you here and now that I am not fan of Snow.

When I was a kid it was nothing at all to suit up (meaning I piled on as much clothes as possible until I kind of felt like I was weightless, if that makes any sense) and go outside and play until I was just plumb wore out.  I really hope I get this enthusiasm back when I have kids because all snow does is interrupt my daily living. I'm over it! I've been stranded at home for two days now and it's not horrible, I've actually gotten a lot accomplished around the house including watching some movies (four to be exact) that I bought but have never watched.  Today I helped Zach shovel the driveway and I literally worked up a sweat which I consider my cardio for the day :) Of course my lower back is on fire now and I can barely bend over to pick anything up.

Here is a rundown of my life in the past 48 hours.....

 *Set up a Skype account so I could chat with my family.  There were 6 of us on there last night and for a portion of it we were just staring at each other.  This is how bored we were.

*Went through my old magazines and tore out things I like.  My work will now be blessed with some magazines on the lunch tables.  Sorry if you are reading something and all of a sudden cannot find the rest of it. It's probably on the back of a page I ripped out. Sorry!

*Watched Elizabethtown, Failure to Launch, Last Holiday and Yours Mine and Ours.  They were all really cute movies.

*Organized my scrap desk area.  I still have more to do but it involves shopping which is out of the question due to the fact that I can't leave my house.

*I've gone 2 days without makeup which is good for my skin but bad for my self imagine.  I look like a 14 year old boy. Not cute.  I thought about putting some on today just to feel a little better about myself but I really just don't want to waste my makeup and the only people that have to look at me are Zach and Phoebe and they love me no matter what :) 

*I'm almost finished with ONE of the books I was supposed to read in January.  My resolution was to read 2 books a month but that just didn't happen.  I tried, I really did.  

*I finally finished season One of Gilmore Girls.  I've had all the seasons for 2 years now.  I will probably try to watch some more before the days done.

*I started the Special K diet on Sunday and let me tell ya, being stranded in your house is not the time to restrict yourself from food.  I've done so-so with it.  I did however make a coffee cup cake.  I've been emailed this recipe a few times and I decided today that I would try it out.  It was okay.  I didn't have any icing to put on it so I used chocolate fruit dip.  It was all I had.

*I've worked on some scrapbook stuff.

*Took some pictures.

*Watched From Justin to Kelly.  It was on television last night so I had to watch it even though I just watched it last weekend.  It's one of my favorites.

*Shoveled a driveway.

*Worked from home a little bit.

*Blogged.

*Made my bed.

*Worked out.

* Read some blogs.

Tonight I plan on watching some Idol and who knows what else.

I must say, I am sitting at my computer wearing a Snuggie and it's pretty much just a robe on backwards. Why on earth didn't I invent this?  

Okay, that's it from me for now. Eleven more days and I will be boarding a ship to a much warmer place. Believe me if I wasn't excited about it before, I am now!!!!

Anti-snow lover,

April



Snowed In

Outside our back door.

Phoebe on neighborhood watch.

My little flower garden is completely covered.

Still watching.

My front porch.

My cake inside the cup.

Outside the cup.

Covered in chocolate fruit dip.

Microwave Coffee Cup Cake

What you need.....

1 large coffee mug
4 tablespoons plain flour (do not use self rising)
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
small splash of vanilla
chocolate syrup (optional)
whipped topping (optional)
cherries (optional)

What you do.....

Add dry ingredients to mug and mix well
Add egg and mix
Pour in the milk and oil and mix well
Add chocolate chips and vanilla and mix well
Microwave cup on a saucer for 2 1/2 minutes
Cake will rise over the top but that's okay
Allow to cool and then dump out onto plate
Put whatever toppings you desire on it

I found this particular recipe at www.grouprecipes.com


This is a before picture of my middle room.

This is the after. 
I painted this room right before Christmas.

Before


After. 
 The walls look green in this picture but they actually look like the after picture above.
Eventually this will be the baby's room so I painted it a color that could work with a boy or a girl.  And no, I'm not pregnant. :)

My little craft area. 

My scrap desk I got for Christmas.