This is your birthday song. It isn't very long-HEY!

Happy Birthday Courtney!!!

I love my family so much. We work like a little efficient city. I think all of us carry multiple roles to make our family work. Dad, the ultimate businessman, keeps everything straightforward. No shenanigans here. He tells us how it is, but sometimes we have to question his bizarre behavior. When he goes out on errands he always says where he is going and then adds he will come back. For instance, "I'm going to go to the store & come back." Being the sarcastic children that we are, we always say, "No way?! You are going to come back Dad?" We love him. And to this day he always comes back.

My mama is always trying to make everyone achieve maximum comfort. She always stuffs another pillow behind your head on the couch and covers you with a nice blanket. Glass of water with a straw? She's got it for you. And a nice little bowl of chocolate ice cream on the side too. No matter how bad your day is, she can always make you feel better. Many a day I call, and she just knows how I'm doing, and is still the only person that can make me feel like everything is okay. In college, I would call when I would feel like I was walking the plank...aka going to a scary exam or totally overwhelmed by a paper. Sometimes I would call post-plank walking and she always has just the right words and tone to make you feel like you are still fantastic & it will all be okay. She is such an incredible woman & I love her so much.

Courtney is hilarious. But she doesn't always know it. She feels so strongly about things & is a very passionate person that sometimes we all just crack up when she is telling a story. She tries to remain serious, but slowly breaks into laughter because she realizes how ridiculous she is being. I hope that never stops, I don't think it will ever get old. You might be surprised that we are still friends after childhood. She used to bully me, force me to stick my hand in a cup of very very hot water---slam my hand in a cup of cold---then back into the hot. (All with my eyes closed or the cups scrambled. Fun game, Court!) She didn't let Ky & I hang out with her boyfriends, but to us, the bored children that we were, that just meant she was challenging us to a fierce game of "see how mad we can make Court without her screaming because her boyfriend is around." Haha, now that was a fun game. Hey, I'm the little sister. I think this type of behavior is written in my contract. When she wasn't pushing me around or accusing me of "ruining Christmas"--she paved a great path for me. Now when I, or any of my friends, have peculiar rashes or medical problems, she always helps out. Haha, she knows way too much about a lot of people.

Kyleigh is like another mother to me. (I'm sure she is grinning right now...she has been anticipating her blog debut). Since she was a toddler she was always taking care of other people. Her kindergarten teacher even said all the kids would go to her with all their problems: bumps, bruises, un-tied shoes. I swear Ky was born with an old soul. On summer days, you would find her with cooking in the kitchen by herself, wearing 4 inch red hot heels and pretending she was holding her own cooking show. Some days she had an English accent, some days not. Need I remind you, she was 7. As we got older, I became her little "rag doll" friend. I basically woke up in the morning & she told me what was on the agenda that day. She made all the plans & I just had to get into step. Unless Courtney came in & took over. Then Ky's plans meant nothing. She still tries to boss me around, but often I still find myself her little rag-doll.

Today is Courtney's 29th Birthday & I can't believe it. I still feel like we are kids riding our bikes around & exploring the Christmas tree farm. She fulfills all the big sister characteristics. She is smart, protective, a leader and a counselor. Yesterday she did something amazing. My mom's herniated disk was causing her excruciating pain & Courtney performed an unexpected spine surgery on her last night. It was so nice knowing my mom was in good hands. My mom said she is relieved from the back pain. It is so scary knowing a family member is in such pain, but it is amazing to know that another can heal it.

Today, being Courtney's Birthday, we have a lot to celebrate. We are a wonderful family, we can face anything together. Happy Birthday to my wonderful sister, Courtney! I love you!

Happy 51st Birthday Carolyn Holli Hood Burkett

Happy Birthday MOM!!! I am sad I couldn't spend your birthday with you mom, but I know you had a good time celebrating with your friends this past weekend. I thought this was a good picture of us since it is you and your two babies. (not that i'm a mama's boy or anything weird) I know i've told you about a baker's dozen times, but you need to come and visit St. Louis sometime. Keenan and I are sad that we don't see you and Dad enough, but those times when we do meet up are always great. I am really looking forward to having Keen/Mont come up for Thanksgiving, and we will all have a great few days together. Take care of Cheney and remember he has a birthday coming up too! Trick or treat. Also, if and when you pass out candy on Halloween, make sure to give mulch to the pillowcase kids who aren't dressed up. Fall is coming and it won't be the same if we don't go to Wessler's Orchard, so whenever I get home this fall, we have to go. Well, I can't wait to see you, and I hope you had a great day! We can only hope we'll be as youthful and vibrant as you are when we're your age. Thanks for everything and I'll see you soon.

I love you,
John

Cha-Ching!!!

I have found my calling. Some might call it an addiction, but I just say I'm trying my luck. Friday night John, Brad, Natalie & I decided to go to Dave & Busters. We walked in and I felt like a kid in a candy store. Games...money machines...prizes everywhere. Stimulant overload. We decided we should eat some dinner & take time to let all of our surroundings soak in. After we scarfed down our dinner, we headed for the game room. This time I was walking around and really checking out all the games...I needed to be frugal with my game card & had to choose wisely. Soon I realized this place was even more amazing than I had imagined.

While in college, we spent many anight bowling. I disguised my need and passion for gambling by showing interest in bowling. Why? Because at the front door of the bowling alley there was a money gambling machine. Keenan & Monte know exactly what I'm talking 'bout. The kind you could drop a couple (or 50) quarters into a little slot and watch them tumble down to the sliding money floor. If you positioned your quarter well or screamed loud enough, it would land in a magical spot...pushing and forcing the other quarters to fall down into the abyss of pure elation (my little hands). Oh man. I need to go bowling right now.

As we walked into the game room with nothing but ass-kicking on our minds, I found MILLIONS of money game machines. My mind could not comprehend what my eyes were seeing. The left, right, far and near--MONEY MACHINES EVERYWHERE. I grabbed my Dave & Busters game card and became a card swipin' fool. I haven't had an inanimate object ever evoke so much joy, despair, hope, and grit from me. I can never get enough. I walked around the game room like a vulture, sizing up all the different games...looking at my chances. Are more coins hanging over the edge on this one or that one? I made my decision and went in for the kill. I found my perfect money machine. I slid my card...watched my coins drop and then they were allll mine to strategize with. I used the "skill shot" to perfect my aim. It allowed me to make my coin drop so precise, I almost giggle thinking about it. The "skill shot" was a button that controlled a plastic coin shaft and allowed it to move back and forth. After, umm I would say just a few tries I banked on the Cash Roulette. Natalie was my witness and we shrieked together in celebration. I dropped the coins in just the right places & sometimes dropped two at a time to really disturb the moving money tray. And MAN...it was raining coins. Coins were getting pushed over the edge, flowing like it Niagra Falls. We were jumping around, celebrating my new feat. If you do well on these Dave & Buster games, you can get tickets. Seriously, the ticket slot exploded when I won. I didn't know what to keep my eyes on. The coins falling out of the sky or the tickets I won filling up the game room. I think I saw some people running for cover.

I hope you share my passion for this type of gambling. The night soon came to an end because I ran out of points on my card and redeemed my tickets for a stuffed animal dog. John got some sunglasses with attached sideburns...but of course he needed some of my tickets to afford his purchase because I totalled banked. One great thing about the bowling alley is that it gives you cold hard cash...no bells & whistles, which is very bowling alley-esque.

Please, if you see these money machines, just drop in a quarter for me. I bet you can't stop, but don't blame it on me.

Errr.

Yahoo is really annoying me. Check out my new photos at www.whitneyiu.shutterfly.com

Weekend Whirl

What a fun weekend. I'm sad its already Sunday night. John & I took full advantage of our weekend. On Friday night we saw the Allman Brothers concert. What a great show! They played Midnight Rider, Sweet Melissa, Jessica...and many more. (No "Ramblin' Man"--don't ask) Greg Allman's voice sounded amazing. I even used the adjective rich, like Paula Abdul would on American Idol, to describe his voice...haha. (umm who's ready for the next season?!?)

On Saturday we wasted no time & got to Forest Park as quick as we could. We couldn't wait to see the hot air balloon race! I took my bike & John brought his blades and we spent the day exploring the park & enjoying the day. This weekend the weather was amazing. Ahhhh. We made it over to the balloon festivities & met tons of really cute dogs...big and small.

Side note: I mentioned going to the balloon race to John & he seemed kinda indifferent to it and decided to look it up on the internet. The website showed that the Energizer Bunny would be in attendance & he exclaimed "The Energizer Bunny is going to be there??!?!?" Almost like he just found out his long lost best friend was in town. He then proceeded to get really pumped...and I learned that my boyfriend had a deep love for the Energizer Bunny. The Bunny sealed the deal & we were on our way to the race!

It was so much fun watching the balloons fill up with air. The Energizer Bunny started the race & we watched it float up and above us....you can imagine John's excitement at this moment. The Bunny's take-off was kind of a "Ladies & Gentlemen, start your engines" message & within minutes 70 balloons floated up in the sky. The colors were beautiful against the blue summer sky & it we loved watching them take off and float up high. We took one balloon, Rat, under our wing and rooted for our little rodent.

After the take-off, there was no time to spare because we were on our way to the Coldplay concert! The band rocked the house and it was great to see them again. John & I were a little dissapointed because the set list was basically an exact match as the Indy show and they only played an hour and a half. I enjoy them so much, that I won't hold it against them. We decided to top off the night with some munchies from Denny's.

Sunday John asked me if I wanted to go shopping (gasp) to help him find some clothes. We found some good buys and John needed to burn off some shopper's angst, so we returned to the park for some biking/blading. We then enjoyed a late Sunday dinner in & watch Million Dollar Baby. We took tons of pictures this weekend and created a little St. Louis mini-tour of photos. I will get those all up later today. We really had a great weekend & I hope all of you did too!

(Sorry about the color of the text---for some reason it won't let me change it?!?!)

%#@*%$!*&

I am totally freaking out. I haven't heard from the job people all week. I totally thought I would hear back early this week. I called yesterday & haven't heard back. All the possibilities of why this is happening are running through my head. Everyone is telling me not to freak out, but I want someone to tell me why I shouldn't be freaking out. This is making me crazy & and I'm not feeling so hot about myself. It upsets me that if I don't hear from them today...I will have to go all weekend. Waiting is hard. Ugh, I just want some relief.

I Went Platinum--I'm Famous

This weekend I made crowds scream, dance and many even said they saw my aura glowing because I was rocking so hard. I know, I can't believe it either. Unfortunately, I need to come back to reality and realize that I am not a rock star. Even though I rocked crowds so hard they sycronized danced, it wasn't real life...per se. I was playing Karaoke Revolution. This game is a way of life. I believe the world could all get along if everyone got their daily dose of Karaoke Revolution. There are variations of this game all around the world. Suck at singing? Put the setting on easy. Rock real hard? Advanced. Anyone can do it. The game makes you yearn for true talent and breeds major competition among your friends. No matter how the game turns out, you always feel good about yourself. Except for those who fall on their knees during a performance due to a failed song...we won't focus on that. Besides, it's just like in life, you gotta brush your knees off and try again. Trust me...you can't stop. You can even wear a head-set like Britney Spears or use a standard microphone. Whatever feeds your rock star style. Both make you feel equally important, but I tend to like the head-set because it doesn't inhibit my dancing abilities. I think every morning I should sing "Red Red Wine" or "ABC" to jump start the day. Gives me the natural high I need to get through the day. Word for the wise: Don't play with John. He kicks ass.

High School Days

I have decided this is the funniest picture I have seen in a long time. It makes me miss all my girls from high school. It is crazy...this picture just surfaced recently when Tiffany found an old roll of film and developed it. I totally remember this day. It was after senior breakfast or some other "senior activity" and a bunch of us decided we were going to canoe down Sugar Creek. If you haven't found me in the picture yet, I'm the one by the red pick-up truck without a top on. Yeah, I'm not quite sure how to react to this. Since this picture surfaced, it was emailed around to the group of high school friends...people called me nasty names, citing my behavior. I don't even know how to defend myself. Why am I half dressed? Guess I thought I could just change real quick without anyone knowing. But I was caught. And this picture just surfaced to haunt me...5 years later. I feel like this picture really reflects what my high school experience was all about. Good times, fun people, and completely random moments that still make us laugh to this day. This picture floods me of memories of friday night football games, being in my basement for 24 hours straight dancing to spice girls (oh man, did i say that?) and staying up all night. I hope we don't lose touch...everyone is so spread out now. Jillian & Suz are California girlies, Tiff is in the Colorado mountains, Alisha is working hard in West Laf, Megan just moved to Ft. Wayne to be with her rocket scientist boyfriend, Chelsea is busy with Yoga and thinking about making the move to NYC for Chef school, Nat is being all studious and getting her Masters at IU, I'm trying to get a hold of Dagley, Janelle has started a family, Amie's teaching in Cincinati...and the list goes on. I miss & love all of you--can't wait to be all together again! :)

Tuesday Update

I want to give a big shout-out to those who are here to read about what is going on in my life. I thought that a blog might be a good medium to use because it seems like most people in my life can't keep up with where I am or what I am up to. Just add me to your favorites and you will know all. Feel free to leave a msg every now and again, so I don't just feel like I'm typing away in cyberspace.

I just finished watching Oprah and it took everything inside me not to weep for all the Americans affected from Hurricane Katrina. She airs Part II of her show tomorrow & I strongly encourage everyone to try to watch or record it. I know here, in St. Louis, they replay Oprah again late at night, so check your listings if you missed it today. The way her show depicted what is going on is so moving and in a different format than the news. I am very glad that Oprah uses her status and power to shed light and love on people who are so in need. I feel so helpless & I want to help out, take in a family, do anything I can. I heard a few hundred survivors are being flown to St. Louis & I am going to see if I can help with anything. Please donate what you can, these people are fellow Americans and suffering like no one ever should. Places like www.redcross.org or www.secondharvest.org are just two of many services that are aiding huricanne survivors. It seems that as time passes, we will learn what went wrong, who made the decisions, or lack thereof, and understand the breakdown of the emergency plan, but in the meantime we need to support our fellow Americans and give them the aid they deserve. There will be plenty of time to learn why the government was so ill prepared.

In my little corner of the world, my interview went well. Or least I think it did. Hopefully I will hear from them next week. It was a little nerve racking to have three men sitting directly across me, railing me with questions. Hopefully I performed well...being there and meeting those people made me even more excited about the position. Keep your fingers crossed!

Whitney For Sale

Welp, tomorrow is the big day. I have an interview with Momentum in the afternoon & I am really looking forward to it. I don't want to get my hopes up too high though because I hate the let down. I am just going to go in with good spirits and try to bedazzle them with my intellect. :) I had a wonderful weekend full of motor sports and tubing down Sugar Creek. Gotta love Indiana summers. I had the full NHRA experience because I was burnt by a ciggerette butt & witnessed grown men get into a heated arguement over the word "idiot"--classic. Besides that, John & I enjoyed free beer at our VIP Miller Lite tent (the race winner) and meeting some famous people in the industry (aka John Force--see below). I wish I could still be floating down good 'ol sugar crick (as the bus driver called it) only sans the redneck puke.