Prest-o, Change-Whoa!!!!

They say the only thing that's constant is change, right?  Well, let's just say that I'm a firm believer of that!  I happen to be one of those people who used to fear change....um, not just a little, either.  I just wanted to hang on to things just as they were, and when anything threatened the security in that, I would pretty much have an anxiety attack merely thinking of it.

Well, it's been a goal of mine to overcome that fear of change, to let go and let God.  I'm a work in progress, but I'm getting better at it.  I also have decided to baby step it.  Where did I start first?  Well, at the top of my head, of course!

My beloved hairdresser (who has got to be some sort of MacGyver/ninja/Jedi/wizard type of woman) has been one of the biggest forces in my life to challenge me and help me get past this fear of change.  She talked me into the bangs I actually loved (although that did take her a full twelve months of campaigning).  I know, the shame.  It's only hair.  I'm finally getting to that place, and my how liberating that is!  It's phenomenal actually.

I must digress to really show off my hairdresser's work because she is AH-MAZING.  She came up with this for my wedding ceremony:



Photo Credit: CGS

...and then she expertly turned my hair into this for the reception.  With no help.  In the backseat of a limo.  While the car was moving.  With no mirrors available.  Without me seeing it.  (How did I know it was okay???  When my brand new husband said, "Wow, baby, that's perfect!")

Photo Credit: Official Entertainment

So, when this incredible woman took on the challenge of another change-up for me, I actually did pretty well jumping off the edge - it's shocking, but I did it!

Are you ready for this, world????  Well, buckle up, because Chicken Wing's fiery spirit is now showcased firmly on her head!

Ermagersh, I'm ginger!

Now, I realize that photo looks like I have taken on a lifetime role of Ariel in The Little Mermaid but my hair isn't that red all the time!  It is, however, when I stand in front of a deep turquoise wall.  So, if you see me in the Bahamas with that turquoise water, don't be afraid - as far as I know, mer-people aren't real.  Here's another view (please excuse the cell phone quality) to show you how it photographs differently depending a) on what I'm wearing and b) what color I'm standing in front of!

So, it's a big change for me, but to be completely candid, I am digging it!  I've been blonde for so long and in this case, I am thrilled with the change.  I love how it brings out my eyes, and even does wonders for my typical winter pasty complexion.

If the only thing that's constant is change, count me in!

Until next time,

Falling In Love With Fall

Do you know what I love?  I'm sure you're smart enough to read the title of this post, and if you were, then you know I'm talking about the sensational season of FALL.

There's something so romantic about fall.  The crisp air, the changing and falling leaves, pumpkins, mums, the promise of a bonfire and snuggling in a warm blanket with someone you love so dearly - I sincerely can't say enough about this season.

It makes me want to hike awesome trails, cheer on my favorite football team (GO REDSKINS AND RGIII), roast marshmallows and make s'mores.  It makes me want to decorate my home in the colors of autumn.  Fall has a magical way of making you want to dream again after a summer of wanting to do nothing but relax and have fun.

Want to know another thing I absolutely love?

For reals, y'all.

The best thing about Pinterest is that I can link multiple loves together.  For example, I love fall.  I love decorating.  I love decorating my home with fall things.  Pinterest gives me ideas and tutorials on how to do that.

Another example, you say???  Well get ready, because here it comes!  Let's say I wanted to decorate with pumpkins but in a new and exciting way.  Hit up Pinterest and......................GO!

Love this lady's creation, which I found on Pinterest,
and she created based on inspiration she found on Pinterest!

And who thought panty hose + pumpkin would = love?

How chic!

Maybe home decor isn't your jam, and that's okay. Pinterest has something for everyone.  Maybe you are the next Rachael Ray or Bobby Flay.  In your case, you might enjoy these scrumptious findings:

Buffalo chicken dip?  Makes me wanna cuddle up...with some Tostitos.

Sweet potato casserole = all kinds of good!

Okay, let's just say you're an uber-grouch and don't like decor or food.  Well, that leaves you with these guys.

Oh em gee.

If you don't like those adorable babies, I personally have a problem with you and your state of mind.  Get a therapist.  Get medicated.  Find the Lord.  Do what you gotta do to get right!  That.is.all.

Happy Fall, y'all!

Until next time,

If I Were Famous...

I've always found the idea of being famous a little crazy.  It must be totally weird to be followed around and to see your face on the covers of tabloids with lies emblazoned across your chest claiming to know the next "big" thing about you.  It must be hard to date and make true friends.

So, my recent thoughts about being famous are these:  There are a few people that I would LOVE to hang out with/be best friends with should I happen to become famous anytime soon.  List form works for me, so here we go, Peeps!

1.  Anderson Cooper

Hello, Silver Fox!  I love you!

Ahh, Anderson Cooper.  I adore you.  Why?  You are so down-to-earth and hilarious, and I genuinely believe that you care about people.  I feel that you are one of the most honest reporters/hosts that has ever existed, and I really appreciate your passion for good solid journalism.  I love that you cover topics as serious as war and as light-hearted as The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.  I love that you include your mother, the ever fabulous and classy Gloria Vanderbilt, in your new show and I am so glad to be hearing more from her!  I love that you can laugh at yourself (can we say Gigglegate 2011?).  And you are gorgeous, but this you already know.  If I become famous, let's hang out, mmkay?

2.  William and Kate

Love, sweet love!

These lovebirds need no introduction!  Why do I want to be mates with these two?  I love how charitable they are and how connected they are to the general public.  I have to imagine that being royalty would make that a wee bit hard, but they do a fine job!  I love Kate's sense of style - she is the epitome of class and grace, and I love William's sense of humor!  It appears very clear to me that these two adore each other and are genuinely happy, which is something I believe the world wanted to see.  We all know the difficult journey Princess Diana was on, and I am thrilled to see her son have a bit different path.  I feel that their accents alone could entertain me for days, and therefore, these two make my list!

3.  Tim Tebow

Purrrrr!

Okay, is this guy seriously not the total package?  Good looking - super check!  Smart - check!  Talented - check!  Driven - check!  Good Christian man - you know it!  Role model - check!  I would love to be friends with this guy mostly just to thank him for continually persevering when people try to bring him down. He recently said in an interview that the reason why he was so open with his faith is because due to his success on the football field, he had both, "a platform and a responsibility," and that is nothing if not admirable.  We need more solid men like Tim in the world who get what's important.  He seems to have a good head on his shoulders and values that are important to him.  I am down with that, so let's be friends, Tebow!

So that's my short list for now, folks!  What famous people would you want to be friends with if you had the opportunity?

Until next time,

Hello? And Happy Birthday!

Get it?

Wow - if I had a nickel for every time I took a second to realize how quickly time is flying by, I would be a very wealthy Chicken Wing!  I've recently discovered that Christmas has decided not to wait for me to be ready, and I really need to put the other million things going on in my life aside and devote some attention to getting ready for the holidays!

I greatly apologize for the lack of posting here lately - I'm still working on this whole promotion at work/planning a wedding/couponing/being addicted to the facebook online yard sale balancing act, and to be very candid, I'm not doing very well at it!  I mean, I'm being successful at most of these things, but it's definitely hard to keep my blogging up to date with all of that going on!

Oh, you thought that was it?  NO SIR/NO MA'AM!  There's more, but that will have to wait for a future post because truthfully, that deserves a post all its own!

Today's post needs to center around one of the greatest guys I've ever known.  I haven't seen him in a long time - almost seventeen years, to be exact - but today is his birthday, and he deserves my undivided attention.

I have really big feet and ears for a little Wing, but my Daddy sure looks handsome!

This guy...is my Daddy.  December 5th usually involves many emotions for me, but I'm finding that this year, I have had a little bit of an easier time because I literally have been so darn busy, I basically turn into a vegetable in my spare time.  It doesn't leave a whole lot of room for grief.

When I prayed him a Happy Birthday today, I told him that I hoped he was getting in lots of golfing, hunting, fishing, and that he was getting to watch a lot of the Redskins and Tar Heels games. 

I told him that I hoped he had the basket of rolled-up socks next to his recliner in heaven so he could chunk socks at the TV every time the Redskins made him mad (which unfortunately, has probably been happening a lot).  I told him that I hoped he was still singing ever-so-off-key but as loudly and proudly as he ever did.  (I used to love listening to him forget the words and instantly improve most songs by inserting his own noises or lyrics).

I told him how much I loved him and missed him and how I still think of him every.single.day.  I told him not to be mad at me because I've been getting so emotional every time I tell someone how sad I'm going to be at my wedding since he won't be there to meet Comanche, ease my nerves, walk me down the aisle, or share our special father-daughter dance.

I told him to keep watching out for our family and to keep an eye on Little Sister Chicken Wing and Little Brother Chicken Wing.  I told him to take care of some wonderful people I know that have lost their lives recently.  I told him to show them the ropes and teach them how things go in heaven.  I told him to hug my PaPa and cousins and friends for me and to remind them how much I love and miss them, too.

Finally, I told him, "Thank You."  I thanked him for teaching me things to do, things not to do, and for showing up now and then to remind me he's still watching.  I thanked him for instilling in me the importance of going to church and working on my relationship with God (even though I was quite lost in that department for a very long time).  I thanked him for marrying my mom and giving me my siblings, and for letting me keep one of the puppies that would eventually become one of my very favorite dogs.  I thanked him for just being him.

So here's to you, Daddy.  I will always be your little girl.  I will always remember you as one of the best guys I ever met.  I will never forget the legacies you left behind and I will never stop aspiring to take your best qualities and make them my own.  I miss you.  I love you. 

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Until next time,

Just In Case You Want To Follow Along

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I've never ever wanted to be one of "those people."  You know the kind - their conversation consists of one thing, and it's always the same old thing.  It's not that you don't care about their kids' neverending sagas or their parents being crazy.  It's not that you wish any ill-will on their big special day or their impending baby - it's just that it's hard sometimes to get just as excited as they do when you're not in the same situation. 

I want to be clear - I don't get aggravated with people who do this because I've done it myself from time to time.  I just decided that I'd like to set a goal for myself and that goal is this:  I don't want to force my wedding day to be the most important day of everybody's lives.  Yes, it will be the most important day of my life.  Yes, planning is stressful.  Yes, it's a big.freaking.deal.  But, people have other things going on, so my personal policy for all of my readers is this:  if you want to know about my wedding, ask me what's going on with the planning.  If you don't, that's cool too. 

This brings me to my latest struggle - I've been wanting to journal my journey of sorts down the aisle, and I wasn't sure how to accomplish this.  Originally, I thought I'd just write about the big day here, but then I realized that there are some folks who probably aren't that interested in weddings, so I didn't want to alienate anyone who chooses to read my blog.  Yes, I could argue that it is my blog and I can do what I want - rest assured, this is true - but I try to be courteous and respectful in my everyday life and my blog is an extension of that.

So, what's the solution?  For me, it was to create a wedding planning blog where I can write about the excitement and joy and frustration and pain that will go into my journey.  That way, if you want to read about it, you can, but you're not bombarded with it here!  Plus, I thought it would be a better way to keep it all seperate and organized so when I want to revisit it, I can do so.  Without further ado, I'd like to introduce you to my wedding planning blog:

If you would like to check out With This Wing, you can visit my page by clicking HERE.

*Disclaimer: I chose not to continue anonymity on With This Wing because it is really hard to do, and my family wants to read about the wedding.  So, if you choose to stalk me or my man, I will hunt you down.  You've been warned.  ;) 

Until next time,

You Gotta Keep Em Separated

"Hey, man you talkin back to me?
Take him out,
You gotta keep em separated...."

Okay, okay, flashing back to 1994 when The Offspring first released that song (with the ever-catchy surfer instrumental) isn't actually the point of this post.  Not even close, to be honest.  But, the main theme that was repeated throughout that song was, "You Gotta Keep Em Separated," and that theme ties perfectly in with the ever-important topic that I will cover with you today.

I once referenced HERE that Comanche had made a certain sandwich "just the way I like it."  That sandwich was none other than the all-American classic - peanut butter and jelly!

Enter music montage. Go on, watch it.


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Okay, enough with the nonsense - back to the matter at hand.  In my book, there is only one correct way to make a PB&J and I wanted to impart my wisdom on the masses.  It is imperative that you all know what is the right way and what is the wrong way.  Here goes nothing...

Step One.  Always start with the jelly.

Grape is my jelly of choice.

Step One, complete.

Step Two.  Rinse off your knife.

Seriously. Don't miss Step Two.

Step Three.  Peanut butter application.

Don't worry, PB!  You get your turn!

Clean rim = clean soul.

Step Four.  Thank your audience for watching you do the correct PB&J-making method.  (Please note that they are the primary reason why you start with the jelly and then move to the good stuff).

Yeah, it was a full house that day - my kids had friends over.

The peanut butter party has started.

Step Five.  Press each side together in a "folded over" fashion.  I call them "peanut butter and jelly folded overs."

See?  Folded overs!

Step Six.  Locate PB&J Party Fouls.

Uh uh.  Not cool.  My skin is literally crawling.  Ew.

Step Seven.  Show your obvious disdain for the situation.

Step Eight.  The final step.  Hunt the offenders and make them pay.

In the wise words of Liam Neeson, "I will find you and I will kill you."

There you have it, folks.  This has been a valuable life lesson from me to you.  You are welcome.

Until next time,

THE HAPPIEST POST OF MY LIFE

Okay, there is going to be limited verbiage.  I'm going to let the video and the pictures do the talking.

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So, I will apologize for the fact that I look absolutely HORRID in this video - I had bawled my face off with sheer bliss and makeup reapplication apparently never occurred to me.  For that, I am truly sorry, but I guess it can be forgiven since I was clearly high on love while this video was filmed!

So, needless to say, last night was amazing and I am greatly looking forward to spending THE.REST.OF.MY.LIFE with this man, and I am absolutely the LUCKIEST girl I know! 

He could have any woman in the world that he wanted.  Even as the ring sits on my finger, I still can't believe he chose me.

Okay, okay, you didn't think I would actually leave you hanging without seeing the most incredibly amazing gorgeous drool-worthy insane beautiful ring in the whole wide world, did you?  Come on, now, you know I'm not that mean. 

What do I love about this ring?

Let's do this in list form, because we all know that's how I roll.

1.  It was chosen by Comanche with absolutely no guidance from me or anyone else.  (Dang, he did good!)

2.  It really reflects my sassy, sentimental, and girly personality.

3.  Comanche used what I call the "lucky stone."  The lucky stone is the diamond that my darling PaPa (whom I lost last year to Alzheimer's) gave to my Grandma.  He picked it out for her, and she wore it for my whole life.  They were married for almost 59 years!  Also, the diamond once fell out of her setting when she was at a craft fair, and she didn't realize it until she got home.  After calling them frantically, she asked if she could take all of their trash home (hoping and praying that someone had swept it up).  After going through industrial-sized bag after industrial-sized bag, she found her diamond.  In the bottom.  Of the very.last.bag.  So, I call it the lucky stone, and I was honored and privileged to have her want to pass it along to me!

4.  It was designed by a pro.  Seriously.  You may know this guy:


Neil Lane, meet my peeps.  Peeps, meet Neil Lane.

 5.  Most important reason ever - because my Comanche gave it to me as a symbol of the fact that he wants me to be his wife.  There is no greater honor that I've ever achieved and I am so incredibly blessed to call him my future husband.  If he would have given me a bread tie or a popsicle stick, I would have been just as thrilled because the symbolism would have been the same.  I will say that this symbol is amazing, though, and I find that I will need to invest in more sunglasses.  ;) 

I love this man, I love this man, I love this man.

Until next time,

Family Matters Pt. 3

Remember this guy?!?!  Yeah, you do!

Missed one of this awesome series?  Catch up here:
Family Matters Pt. 1 - The Preparation
Family Matters Pt. 2 - The Food

Warning, picture-heavy post ahead!  But, this post is dedicated to the point of the family reunion - THE FAMILY (and the fun and fellowship that comes with family)!  It was awesome getting to spend time with some of the ones I love the most in the world.  They are my connection to my dad, and because of them, the memories of him will stay with me forever.  Plus, this was the first time Comanche met most of the family, including my paternal grandparents! It was an exciting day!

Is he Hollywood or what?!?!

Cousin MB is going for it!

Perfect cannonball form!

Big splash for a little girl!

And she emerges after her long trip to the bottom!

Cousin M helps a little friend around the pool!

My adorable paternal grandparents, Grandma M and PaPa G!

Momma Chicken Wing and her new husband Dubya - it was his first time meeting the family, as well!

Little Sister CW and her boyfriend, Seatbelt, with one of our Aunt J's in the background!  All of the Chicken Wing girls brought new men to the family reunion this year!

Cousin F and Aunt J, looking adorable!

Me and Great-aunt M!

My Uncle H and me!

Sibling Love!  I absolutely LOVE this picture!!!!

Our little branch of the family tree, missing Little Brother CW, Uncle R, Cousin C, Aunt N, Uncle B, and their kids/grandkids!  (Our branch really isn't that little, as it turns out).

"Other things may change us, but we start and end with family." -Anthony Brandt

Until next time,