Everything is Coming Up Roses

As I have told you before C is a huge Michigan State fan, because he played football.  So obviously, when we heard that the Spartans were going to be playing in the Rose Bowl Game , which only a 5 hour drive from Phoenix, we were so excited.

Getting tickets to this game is no small feat, so that’s what we tackled first.  Because C is an alumni, he could actually purchase them.  Whoop whoop! Those puppies aren’t cheap though.  At $200 bucks a pop (that’s face value with fees) we were looking at a big chunk of change.  Eek.  He also contacted a friend in the football office to see if she could help us out.  We went ahead and purchased the tickets and prayed his friend could help us out so we could sell ours later.  She did and we did. Phew. 

Because the game was an unexpected expense just days after Christmas, we were really trying to do this cheap.  I used my free hotel on hotels.com and that really helped.  Do you guys ever book through hotels.com?  It’s amazing!  If you book and complete 10 reservations, your next stay is free (up to the average cost you spent on your 10 rooms).  How could you not love that? 

If you aren’t aware, the Rose Bowl is on New Year’s Day in Pasadena, CA.  This meant we would be spending New Year’s Eve in Los Angeles.  So….of course hotels were more expensive. Even with my free hotel, we still had to pay $40 over the average cost of my 10 rooms.  But hey, $40 is way better than $160!

 

Leaving Phoenix!

We hit the road on New Year’s Eve around 3pm (thankfully I got off of work early) and made it into LA around 8:30pm. We grabbed some dinner at one of my favorite places in Cali, Pick Up Stix. Then we decided to head up to Pasadena to see if we could spot any of the Rose Parade floats.

The parade is at 8am on New Year’s Day and over a million (A MILLION) people come out to see it in person.  Um?  Heck no.  I had heard that if you go late the night before the parade, they are getting the floats lined up on the street at the starting line of the parade. 

Still in our traveling pjs

You guys? This was the BEST idea ever!  We went up around 9pm and strolled the streets until about 11pm.  We got to see about 10 floats up close, I mean within maybe a foot of them.  You don’t even get that when you are at the parade!  Also, the people that want to see the parade from a good seat? They get there at NOON the day BEFORE the parade!  There were people all over the sidewalks in their sleeping bags and huddled up in blankets. No thanks! I would never do that.  I am clearly not hard core enough. 

The floats are just incredible up close. The creators must cover every inch of the float with living things. Majority of the floats are flowers (hence the name of Rose parade) but they also use fruit, beans, seeds, veggies, ect. So, so, so cool! 

Cold and tired after looking at floats

After seeing the floats we headed to downtown LA quickly to meet up with a friend of mine last minute. We had planned on just chilling in our hotel room with some beers for the countdown, but she convinced us to come out.  We made it into a bar 15 minutes before midnight! We counted down to 2014, sat and chatted for a bit, then headed off to our hotel.  Since California is an hour earlier than Arizona, I was soooo tired.  3am is a long night for me!

Our only pic from NYE....and I hate it! Terrible angle.

The next morning we got up around 8am (ew) and headed back up to Pasadena.  We tailgated for a few hours which was so much fun. I got to meet a lot of people that C went to college with, even some that he played with who are still in the NFL.  I love getting to meet people from his past.  He still has great relationships with everyone. It was like it was just yesterday, not 10+ years ago!

There were people walking around just handing out roses, so of course I made sure to collect a few. They smelled so good.  I wonder how many dozens of roses they gave out that day?  I actually kept mine and took them home where I dried them out. 

When we walked into the Rose Bowl itself, I was so incredibly excited. This game was the 100^th anniversary, so it was extra special. The atmosphere was electric! When we actually got to our seats….I was shocked. We were in the front row!  I mean, does that happen to real people?!? We were right on the 25 yard line and the cheerleaders were in front and just to the left of us. Also, the place was 70% MSU fans, which was crazy. Soooo much green!

Now I do have to say, even though being in the front was sooooo cool (and I’m sure we made it on TV once or twice), I couldn’t see a darn thing!  Everyone standing on the field in front of us (cheerleaders, coaches, players, personnel, etc) blocked our view completely.  I am not sure I saw a single play looking at the actual field. I had to watch the game from the big screen. That was also tough because there was only one screen at one end of the field! 

Ok, I’ll stop complaining now :) 

Just bein a football player at halftime, the normal stuff

The game was truly amazing.  I am so lucky that I got the once in a lifetime chance to go! What made it even better was that the Michigan State Spartans won!!!!  Champion’s baby!

There was a confetti machine right in front of us at the end of the game. A girl would load it full of paper and it would spit it out into the air directly above our heads.  So much fun!  I tried to get some action pics….but they are all pretty weird….see for yourself:

Roses before...

Roses after...

After the watching all the ceremonies and singing of the fight song in the stands, C and I made our way to the car. We decided that to save money, it would just be best if we drove home that night.  I have to say….that was really tough! We didn’t arrive in Phoenix until about 2am. I am so glad C was driving, I definitely wouldn’t have made it. I couldn’t keep my eyes open!

Even though it was a quick turn around, I am so happy we got to make this trip. In my mind, going to the Rose Bowl is probably a once in a lifetime experience!  I know there are a ton of Bowl games at the end of each college season, but the Rose Bowl is definitely one of the biggest ones. Now I can say that I got to go to one!

Going Out to Play

Day 18: Tell a story from your childhood.

When I as a kid I was a big sleepwalker. Of course, I don't remember it at all, but that's what my parents say. I do remember waking up in super strange positions though. 

Once, I fell asleep on the toilet.  I remember my mom waking me up. Um? Embarrassing!

Once I fell asleep only half on my bed.  You see, I had a pretty tall bed. To get onto it as a child, I had to do sort of a climb.  It must have been exhausting that night after a trip back from the bathroom (I’m assuming) because I fell asleep with one leg bent up on the bed, one leg standing on the ground, and my body hunched up over the side of the bed. Comfy? Must have been!

Once I fell asleep standing up in the middle of my bed with my arm outstretched over my head. Apparently I was trying to be a rock star.  Or possibly trying to pull the string to turn off my fan. Either way, it was just too much for me so I fell asleep right in the middle of whatever action I was doing!

My favorite story as a kid though is a sleepwalking story.  I was 5, which is probably why I don’t remember it.  Thankfully, when I was younger, my parents had an alarm on the house.  One night around 2am it went off.  My parents rushed out to see me cheerfully walking out the door (albeit completely asleep).  They freak out and say “Justine, what are you doing?”  My reply???

“Bye mom, I’m going out to play!”

Happy Saturday!

My Modeling Days

Day 17: A favorite photo of yourself and why

I just thought I'd show you a few pictures from back in my modeling days. It's so cool to get your hair and makeup done and become someone else for a little while.  I did a lot of bridal modeling, I guess I just had the look for it.  Sweet, innocent, girl next door.  It was awesome to be able to put all sorts of wedding dressed on! I had several fake husbands over the years.  One I even had for multiple shoots! Modeling was something I just did for fun. I never planned to be the next Heidi Klum, I just loved the whole process of it :) Maybe if I show C some of these pictures he will get excited to see me in a wedding dress?

Locker Rooms

Day 10: Most embarrassing moment (s). Spill. 

Gosh, its hard to think of a really embarrassing moment!!  I guess that is a good thing right? 

The only one that comes to mind happened in high school.

I was walking to gym class and went into the building where the locker rooms were to change into my “uniform”.  I was minding my own business (probably playing that snake game on my awesome Nokia phone that was so popular in 1998) and walked into the girls locker room.  Now, there was a set of double doors that lead into a long hallway and then another set of double doors that actually go into the locker room itself.  I guess maybe it’s to keep intruders out? I walk down the hall and open the second set of double doors…..

And lo and behold I am in the men's locker room.  FULL. OF. MEN. CHANGING. I freaked out and turned so quickly that I don’t think I saw anything, I was just too embarrassed to even notice.  I ran back down that hallway so darn fast and into the safe haven of the girls locker room praying that no one saw me. 

I still wonder to this day if anyone did. Eek.

P.S. Isn’t this just the epitome of high school embarrassing stories!?!

P.P.S. I'm sure I have some stories that are even more embarrassing, but I honestly can't think of any. I mean, I have to right? This could not be the worst.  But maybe at the time it was and so it has stuck with me all of my life. I swear I am not holding out on you guys with a better, more embarrassing story!

Music

Isn’t it funny how you can hear a few beats of a song or a few lyrics and instantly you are taken for a ride through you memories?  How a certain song can take you back to an exact moment?  Or even make you think of a certain someone? 

Being a vocalist, music is one of my greatest loves. I’m pretty sure you could say a sentence or two and I would start singing a song that ties along with those words.  It happens all the time. I break out into a random song…..often.

The other day I was thinking about how and why certain songs remind me of certain people and I thought it would be fun to really break it down.

My brother:

Boondocks - Little Big Town

Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars

I think both of these were just moments where we were driving in his truck singing our heart out.  I remember we heard Chasing Cards late one night when he was in town visiting for a holiday and we were going to the grocery store.  I remember the strip of road we were on and everything.

My (ex) best friend –

Iris – Goo Goo Dolls

This one of her favorite songs.  Even though we don’t speak anymore I still think of her every time I hear it. 

CH – High School boyfriend (he appears in this post as well)

Red Hot Chile Peppers – Scar Tissue

Martina McBride – I Love You

Jo Dee Messina – Lesson in Leavin’

Hmmm these three songs about sum up our relationship! The first was the play back song on both my pager and his when we met. Yeah that’s right, I said pager. Once we realized this we thought it was meant to be and it became “our song.” Yeah, a song with lyrics like “Push me up against the wall Young Kentucky girl in a push-up bra” and “Blood loss in a bathroom stall” was our song. So romantic huh? The next was a song a remember pretending I was listening to on the radio and singing into the phone when I was talking to him.  Hoping he’d get the hint or something?  I don’t know.  I was clearly crazy.  I had no idea what love was.  The final song, as you can tell, came about after we broke up.  Probably after he started dating one of the other girls on my pom squad. It made me feel better to sing it at the time.

AR – Another high school boyfriend (and also in this post)

Lonestar – Amazing

Dixie Chicks – You Were Mine

The first was a song I remember him singing in the car once.  I was with him in the back seat of his dad’s black Toyota Tacoma (I still love those trucks) and his brother was driving.  I think someone else was in the front seat too.  AR broke out with this song on the radio and I just thought it was the cutest thing.  The other was the song that was on constant repeat when we broke up.  I mean CONSTANT.  I think I listened to that song probably 25 times a day! I remember singing it under my breath when I was doing dances on the sidelines at basketball games and I’d see him in the stands.  Somehow, singing a depressing song made me feel better. I’ve always been that way. Weirdo.

DH – my final HS boyfriend and almost fiancé

I Need You – Sonic Flood

I had known him two weeks (we eventually dated for three years) and it was Valentine’s Day.  We met at Denny’s and his clingy friend came with us.  When I got there, he started singing this song.  He was a musician and wrote songs often, so I thought he wrote it. It was fairly simple with a chorus that said “Love, I need love, You are love, I need You.”  It took two years for me to figure out that he didn’t write that song.  Kind of ruined it, but again it still was “our song.” Also, yes, 2 weeks after we met he told me he loved me. Woah.  

RF – boyfriend

Tim McGraw – Taylor Swift

Isn’t that an odd title to read?  I mean, which is the title and which is the artist?  So confusing if you don’t know it!  I remember telling him in the truck while driving past the Cardinals stadium going southbound on the 101 (yep, that detailed) that I liked this song. Then we sang it together. Why that reminds me of him I have no clue.

WH from NAU – went on a few dates

Colbie Caillat – Oxygen

I think this song was on when we were making out?  Super awesome huh?  Now I will remember him forever when I hear it.

FF -  boyfriend

Starting Line – Bedroom Talk

Seriously though, this song is terrible.  When we first started dating he told me this song reminded me of him because I was a good girl and wouldn’t um….you know. The chorus said “I'm gonna tear you’re a** up like we just got married and you're all mine now. Tonight is the night we've been waiting for all our lives or maybe for just tonight.”  So yeah, he was insinuating we were gonna get married and then do that and he couldn’t wait. I should have run far and fast.

A the cop – boyfriend

Pat Green – Let Me

This is another one of those songs where I was making out and now it reminds me of that person.  The first lines of the song are “Keep your head there on my shoulder, let's just lay here for a while. We can hurry when we're older. And girl don't worry about tomorrow, that just seems so far away. Luckily me and you all that we have to do is follow,  just follow.”  It just felt so right at the time because I was laying my head on his shoulder and we were talking. It became “our song.”  I’m kind of mad I wasted that song on him, its such a good song!!

A the nerd – went on a few dates

Lady Antebellum – Just a Kiss

Yeah that’s right, I labeled him the nerd.  Because he totally was. This song actually came about AFTER we had stopped dating.  We went to a Lady A concert when we were dating and had a lot of fun.  After we stopped dating (we stayed friends) he text me one night and asked if I had heard this song.  Told me it reminded him of me for some reason. So now, its only fitting that it reminds me of him.

Well that was quite the list. I think I just detailed every major boyfriend/relationship I’ve had (and then some). 

I just found this quote:

“Music is what feelings sound like” – unknown

I think that about sums it up.