Weekends, winners and a wretched toothache.

Wow, what a great weekend! First off, I apologize for only just now updating my little corner of the internet! Time is moving much too fast these days... guess I'm getting what I wished for. The past two months I have been anxiously anticipating summer and what is to come this fall. All good things! ;)

I meant to get this post up yesterday, but after going to the dentist to see why I had more tooth pain I ended up needing a ROOT CANAL! So, at around noon yesterday I got my first root canal. At first I felt fine and thought it was no big deal... then around 8pm I started to feel it. The paaaaaaaaain. I had taken 2000 millegrams of Vicodin since 2pm, was feeling super loopy, and it wasn't doing anything for the pain in my tooth.

Anyway enough about that! On Friday I made the three hour trip south to Kansas City to meet our former First Lady Laura Bush at a book signing for her new memoir, Spoken from the Heart. I attended the event with one of my close friends and my aunt and we had a great time. I think I fell in love with Laura Bush even more after hearing her speak in person. She is an amazing lady and a wonderful story teller!

They were a little picky about pictures and we had a very small window of time during which cameras were allowed so I did not get as many photos as I would have liked, but I did get a couple.

And now...what you all have been waiting for...We have a winner from my giveaway!!!

Using random.org I let them pick a random entry... and....

Out of the 16 entries for the Laura Bush memoir, number 2 was picked at random which is...

Shannon from It's Trickey!!!

Congrats Shannon! Shoot me an email at alittlepinkinthecornfields@gmail.com with your address and I will get it right out to you!

I planned on going into further detail about my weekend, but I am going to have to stop here! Hope you all have a wonderful day! I am going to try and go back to sleep. If I'm unconscious I can't focus on the pain, right?!

Blogging in bed

I did have a really dirty title, but I erased it... if only I had the courage to actually post some of the dirty stuff that runs through my mind sometimes. LOL!

I'm sick and blogging from bed today. I am home from work for half the day, but I'm not sick, as in throwing up sick, I have a toothache. Again.

Remember that awful toothache I had back in September? It's back with a vengeance. That tooth had always been sensitive and sometimes hurt for short amounts of time but yesterday I woke up and it was throbbing and I could tell my gums were swollen by the way I couldn't bite down properly. I called the dentist and he referred me back to the endodontist. The endodontist (who's name is Dr. Lilly. I just like saying his name) immediately prescribed me some amoxicillin and said the earliest I could get in was Monday. He thinks it might be the tooth next to the one that gave me problems due to it having such a large filling. I got the amoxicillin yesterday and started taking it right away and it helped a little. At least, I think I did. That might be in my head because I think it takes a couple days for it to really start working. This morning I woke up around 3am unable to sleep because it hurt so bad. I stumbled into the bathroom and found some pm medicine and that did the trick. I was able to sleep, but when I woke up I knew that I wasn't making it to work. Luckily, I have lots of sick time and it's such a slow time of the year for my store so it was pretty convenient to call. I do have to go in tonight for a few hours and my boss will be in my store tomorrow so I have to make sure everything is ship shape. :)

So, here I am. Blogging from bed. I did end up calling Dr. Lilly back and asking him for something stronger to take for the pain and he prescribed hydrocodone. I took some about an hour ago and it's seeming to really help. I can't bite down without searing pain, but I think that's normal...(I may have been wishing he would have prescribed Vicodin... don't judge me. That stuff is handy to have around for bad cramps, migraines...etc).

I've got a good book next to me, Libby curled up in a ball, the windows open and a gorgeous 70 degree breeze blowing in... it's going to be hard to pry myself out of bed and into work tonight...

Do you have a dirty mind? Are you one of those people that blurts it out or do you just giggle to yourself a little bit?

Makin' some extra dough!

Since I am planning hoping to go back to school full time I figured I needed some sort of part-time job for extra moolah. I don't want to wait tables (I did that all through college and then some...), I don't want to work retail (because, hello! That would be defeating the purpose...) so what is there left to do? Well, one of my very good friends is the HR director of a local nursing home here in town for dementia patients, and they are in need of an activity aid. So, to secure the position for the fall when I hope to be starting school they need me to start now. I figured why not? It's only about eight hours a week and the pay is great. What else do I have to do, right? ;)

Basically, what my job entails is occupying and entertaining the residents (patients) while the nurses get paperwork and other things done. It sounds super easy and kind of fun. I've always enjoyed spending time with the elderly and learning from them.

Today I went in there to finish up paperwork, have a physical and get a TB test. I also got a tour of the facilities and met several of the residents.

Now, I'm not going into this blind and ignorant. I know it will be hard, I know that many of these residents are considered very sick and I know they may not remember me everyday. Many of them do not get regular visitors and their families do not come to visit them. I just didn't realize it was going to hit me so hard. As I was getting the tour and meeting many of them I felt a lump starting to form in my throat and immediately I was like, "oh no, Amber. Don't, do it! Don't cry!" Luckily, I didn't cry, but I just know that there will be days I leave there in tears over how sad it is.

I still want to do it because as my friend put it, these people need people like me during the last leg of their life. People that truly care and want to make their lives better. Just by sitting next to them smiling and holding a conversation for a few minutes a day will provide them enough joy and happiness that could last days or even weeks.

Next week I have my orientation and I should start shortly after that. I'm really excited and hope I like it!

Other than picking up a part-time job I have been trying to do other things to cut corners as well. I gave up my regular manicures, which I used to receive bi-weekly. For the past eight years I have gotten my nails done every other week that cost an average of $35 each time. I knooooooow. So indulgent. I always considered it a vice of mine and claimed that I could not do my own nails and make them look nice enough. Well, I took the nails off and have been taking vitamins (pre-natal vitamins to be exact. Ha!) to strengthen them and they're looking really good! I'm actually enjoying painting them myself and changing the color every couple days instead of every couple weeks!

My rent has gone down because I am living with my sister and I am also looking into trading in my car.

Ok, so trading in my car isn't going to help so much but I just want something different. Not new, just different. ;)

What are some of your indulgences that you know you should go without but just can't give up?

PS: Don't forget to enter my giveaway!!! It's a good one! :)

Laura Bush giveaway!!

Happy Wednesday everyone! How's your week so far? Is it just me or is this week crawling by? My weeks usually fly by but for some reason this one is moving at a snail's pace... Perhaps it's because I have lots of things coming up that I CAN'T WAIT for in June/July/August?

On May 21st I'm heading down to Kansas City for an appearance by Laura Bush at Rainy Day Books on Country Club Plaza. I. Can't. Wait.

First of all I adore her (no secret there) and I am long overdue for a trip to KC to see family and friends. I lived in Kansas City for two years right after college and made many wonderful friends. Almost all of my dad's side of the family is from there so I have tons of family and it's always awesome to see them.

I'm a little bummed though because I called Rainy Day Books yesterday to see if we needed tickets and what the tickets involved. The event costs $30 and includes a signed copy of the book. Too bad I already bought the book! Whoops! I guess I should have planned a little better, huh?

So, of course I'm still going to purchase a ticket which will result in my having two copies of this book... what to do, what to do...

Are you thinking what I'm thinking???

If you said GIVEAWAY! You are absolutely right! =D

All you have to do is leave a comment letting me know if you are a Laura Bush fan. What do you think of her? Do you know very much about her? Do you agree with her husband's politics? Who's your favorite First Lady? (Obviously you do not have to answer each question - leave any comment you want!)

I will take entries until Thursday May 20th at midnight and I will post the winner on Friday May 21st - the day of the signing! :)

That gives you about a week, so get going! And tell your friends! :)

Test taking time, baby!

I officially have 24 days left to study for the Praxis Pre-Professional Skills I Test... and I am so nervous. To be accepted into the program I need a reading score of 171, a writing score of 171 and a math score of 169.

The reading and writing shouldn't be a problem, I have always been a natural in those areas. But the math? Not so natural at that... All through school I had to study hard to excel in math. (And even then I did not excel.)

My plan is to study a little bit each day. Perhaps an hour or more? Cramming for tests is not really an effective study method for me, but my self-discipline is slightly lacking so it's going to take a lot of pushing to make myself study every day.

I can do it though. I HAVE TO! This is what I want and passing this test is a crucial and necessary step.

In other news, we are officially moved into the new place and my sister and I are not only sisters but roommates now! So far, so good. It's only been three nights though. I'm expecting blowups and tears, but I know overall we will have more good times than bad. (We're too old to fight like we used to, right? RIGHT?! Good Lord, I hope so).

My summer is also filling up super fast. I have three trips to Kansas City planned, four trips to the lake (YAY!), and one trip to small town Iowa for a wedding. I. can't. wait. Seriously, this is what I need. Lots of stuff going on to keep my mind off of other things!

I have also made a pretty big decision for myself. I have been trying so hard to get myself back out on the dating scene and find that person. But, I don't think that is what I need. I finally figured it out after the third date I had since Cy and afterwards I ended up driving around crying for about an hour. Seriously, I drove around aimlessly just thinking and thinking... and I knew that what I was doing was not right for me. Right now, anyway.

I need more time to get over Cy and what happened and just focus on ME. I have finally figured out what I want to do professionally and am ready to get going on that. I am finally feeling more comfortable in my own skin and I need to continue to work on myself before I can give my heart away again.

So, that is what's up with me! I'm trying to keep up with all of you and am trying my hardest to comment! I'm sorry the comments have been sparse lately!

Teachers out there... how was the Praxis? Did you pass the first time? Do you have any tips you would be willing to share with this hopeful soon to be teacher?

Book review catch-up!

Slowly, but surely I am becoming more and more myself lately. Everyone says I am doing so well and handling this breakup great but, honestly, I don't think I handled it well at all. I was a mess. So much a mess that even my boss pulled me aside one day while she was visiting to ask me what was wrong.

Luckily, I am feeling much better and I truly believe now that when one door closes another will open.

In the past couple months I have been reading though! Here's what I have had my nose buried in!

The Day I Shot Cupid by Jennifer Love Hewitt

From Amazon:

For any woman who has ever bought a self-help book and wondered why she bothered. (P.S. Now that I know he's just not that into me, where do I go from there? Yeah, thanks for that advice.)

Jennifer Love Hewitt is a self-proclaimed "love-aholic" and hopeless romantic (her middle name is Love, after all!). She has been lucky and unlucky in love, and lived to tell--and she's done it all in the spotlight. Much has been written about her love life--some true, most made up to sell magazines. Now Hewitt shares the real story of what she's learned navigating the dangerous dating waters.

In The Day I Shot Cupid, Hewitt offers her hard-won wisdom and tells us how to embrace love with both feet on the ground. First, we have to shoot Cupid. We have to believe that happily-ever-after is hard work--it's not all flowers and symphonies and floating hearts.

Wise and wry and refreshingly honest, Hewitt talks about how to pick the right guy and how to know when to let the wrong ones go free, and she offers some surprising truths about the opposite sex.

From twenty things to do after a breakup, to ten things to do before a date, to the perils of text flirting (Note: You are waiting. By the phone. For his response.), Hewitt uses stories and dating secrets to illustrate the idiotic, romantic, crazy, depressing, hilarious, awkward, glorious moments we all experience in relationships. Funny, quirky, and empowering,The Day I Shot Cupid deserves a place on every woman's nightstand, bookshelf, or coffee table, or tucked inside her oversized designer handbag.

I bought this book right after the breakup and it really helped me. Jennifer and I are a lot alike in how easy we fall for guys. I would definitely recommend this book if you are going through a breakup or just need a confidence boost!

American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld

From the authors website:

On what might become one of the most significant days in her husband’s presidency, Alice Blackwell considers the strange and unlikely path that has led her to the White House–and the repercussions of a life lived, as she puts it, “almost in opposition to itself.”

A kind, bookish only child born in the 1940s, Alice learned the virtues of politeness early on from her stolid parents and small Wisconsin hometown. But a tragic accident when she was seventeen shattered her identity and made her understand the fragility of life and the tenuousness of luck. So more than a decade later, when she met boisterous, charismatic Charlie Blackwell, she hardly gave him a second look: She was serious and thoughtful, and he would rather crack a joke than offer a real insight; he was the wealthy son of a bastion family of the Republican party, and she was a school librarian and registered Democrat. Comfortable in her quiet and unassuming life, she felt inured to his charms. And then, much to her surprise, Alice fell for Charlie.

As Alice learns to make her way amid the clannish energy and smug confidence of the Blackwell family, navigating the strange rituals of their country club and summer estate, she remains uneasy with her newfound good fortune. And when Charlie eventually becomes President, Alice is thrust into a position she did not seek–one of power and influence, privilege and responsibility. As Charlie’s tumultuous and controversial second term in the White House wears on, Alice must face contradictions years in the making: How can she both love and fundamentally disagree with her husband? How complicit has she been in the trajectory of her own life? What should she do when her private beliefs run against her public persona?

In Alice Blackwell, New York Times bestselling author Curtis Sittenfeld has created her most dynamic and complex heroine yet. American Wife is a gorgeously written novel that weaves class, wealth, race, and the exigencies of fate into a brilliant tapestry–a novel in which the unexpected becomes inevitable, and the pleasures and pain of intimacy and love are laid bare.

For those of you that know me well, you will know this is a re-read for me. I don't usually do that, but I just adore this book. I read it for the first time last year and I can already tell that I will probably read it every year for a long time. I simply adore Laura Bush and this is the book that really started my fascination with her.

The Perfect Wife: The Life and Choices of Laura Bush by Ann Gerhart

From bn.com

The intimate and critically acclaimed biography of the much-admired First Lady -- now in paperback with a new post-election Afterword by the author -- The Perfect Wife tells the complete story of Laura Welch Bush. From Mrs. Bush's upbringing in West Texas to her whirlwind romance with George W. Bush to the Governor's mansion to her roles as mother, Bush family member, First Lady, and savvy political campaigner, Gerhart reveals her as never before.

I picked this book up at Half Price Books and am so glad I did. I didn't really learn anything new about Laura Bush that I didn't already know but I just love reading about her. She's such a calm, soothing person (as far as I can tell!) and such a great person to aspire to be like. She is releasing a new memoir next week and I can't wait to pick it up! She's also going to be in Kansas City for a book signing later in May and I cannot wait to go!

Scandal by Kate Brian

This is the 11th and latest installment in the Private Series. It is a guilty pleasure of mine that I just can't stop! I think the series is losing it's sizzle that originally attracted me to it butare still enjoyable reads for me and make me feel like 16 year old again! :)

That's it for me! I have recently become obsessed with reading about the First Ladies of the United States. I have books on Eleanor Roosevelt, Jaqueline Kennedy, and Dolley Madison sitting on my nightstand ready to be read. I know I have Cy to thank for this new obsession but I am enjoying it quite a bit!

Southern appreciation...

The other day I had the sweetest conversation with a woman from Georgia. She was purchasing a few things in my store and I happened to be the one to ring her up. She had the thickest southern accent and I just couldn't resist asking her where she was from.

For those of you that don't know, I spent about a year living in South Carolina and really embraced the southern culture. It's so different from my Midwestern upbringing. Not different in a bad way, just different.

What makes the South so different is the people and the hospitality. Now, I know everyone says that and everyone has heard the term "Southern Hospitality" but it is soooo true. The people there are so sincere and thoughtful. In my opinion, Southerners have the best manners in the country and they're just so refreshing to be around.

It took me awhile to get used to children calling me ma'am and it even took me a long time to start using the terms sir and ma'am regularly but I did it. Sometimes I still do, but here I get funny looks. Here it's almost condescending to call someone ma'am. Sad, huh? I knew that if I didn't use those terms down there that I would be seen as rude. There I had to get used to making conversation with literally almost everyone. Southerners are talkers, take my word for it. They love to talk! So, it didn't surprise me when this woman stood and talked with me for quite awhile about the difference between her hometown and mine. It was sweet, and she totally made my day.

When she turned to leave she said thank you to me and said she really enjoyed talking with me. I could tell that not many people here had not struck up a conversation with her and I knew she was lonely. Luckily, she was with two little girls so I know she has a family and probably moved here with her husband.

I don't think either place is better than the other, they're just different. The Midwest is my home and always will be, but we are skeptical people. Most people aren't nice until the other is nice first. In the South it seemed that everyone is good until proven not and everyone is just so... friendly. That's what I miss the most. The friendliness.

I truly hope she comes back into my store because I could talk with her all day.