Will Work for Food

Ha ha, just kidding...I'm not that broke yet! Actually, my blog today is to ask anyone who reads this to pray REALLY hard about a job possibility that I have. I interviewed last Friday for a position with Gables Residential. It's a huge company that owns apartments and condos all over the U.S. (my apartment being one of them). It sounds like the perfect job for me, and I would get to do a variety of things rather than being stuck behind a desk. I'd be showing apartments and setting up leases primarily, but there's some other stuff too. Anyway, I felt pretty good about my interview on Friday.

Then, the lady I interviewed with called me and set up a 2nd interview for today at 2:00. It was with a different person this time, so I was nervous... especially since it was a second interview. I found out that they asked 11 people to come back and interview, which is about half of what they started with. And, there will probably be a 3rd interview. Ugh!! So, I just got back and I feel pretty good about it. I'm kindof to the point where if I don't get the job, I'll know that I put my best foot forward, and it'll be okay. BUT, at the same time, it made me want the job even more. There's lots of potential to move around with this job, which is good for Ryan and me. We never know where we're going to be living next!

I have been praying so hard for the Lord to show me what he wants me to do. Lately, I've been content to look for an easy job just to fill up time and make some money while Ryan is in school. But, I feel like I have a degree and haven't really gotten to use it these past 4 years. This job opening fell into my lap out of the blue, and I know that I've been given the opportunity for a reason. It's not even a job I had ever thought about doing, and all of a sudden I feel so strongly that it's something I would enjoy. At this point, it's hard not to get my hopes up, but I know better than that. So, I'll keep you posted. Hopefully I'll hear something in the next couple of days.

Time Flies When You're Having Fun??

I don't know if it's all been FUN, but time sure has flown by since we left our house in North Carolina. It's all been such a blur, but I am finally feeling settled in here in Sugar Land. Here's the long and short of our past 2 months. After spending the night on the floor of our empty house, we drove for 2 days to Tyler to drop our trailer off, then went to Abilene, then went to Flower Mound, then back to Tyler to pick up our stuff because our apartment was ready. We drove down to Sugar Land...nervous the entire way because we had NO idea what to expect from our apartment. We had only seen pictures of it online, and it was pretty crazy to know that we had paid all of our deposits and we were STUCK with it...even if it was horrible. Luckily, it's not horrible. It's not perfect either, but we can definitely handle it for another 7 months. Getting used to apartment life again has been interesting. I miss my yard, and so do the dogs. I miss my garage (not that I parked in it or anything) but there just isn't any storage room here! I miss walking out to my mailbox every day. I guess that missing all these things will make me even more appreciative when we're back in a house again. Hopefully sooner than later.

So, after quickly unpacking boxes for 3 days, we got back in the car to go to Molly and Peter's wedding. I wouldn't have missed it for the world! I was beyond excited that it worked out for Ryan and I to actually get to go to a wedding TOGETHER...that doesn't happen very often. But even more than that, I was completely psyched to see one of my best friends for the past 15 years marry the man of her dreams. As tired as I was from all the chaos of the past 2 weeks, I couldn't have been happier to be a part of her special day. It was all so beautiful!

We came back to Sugar Land the next day and continued unpacking and doing what little Christmas shopping I found time for. We spent another 4 days at the apartment and then packed our bags for 2 weeks. Our first stop for Christmas was Abilene. We celebrated early to give Brad & Kendall time for last minute wedding details in Ft. Worth. It was so much fun to all be together. It makes me even more excited to think about Christmases with the "new" Joneses in the future. On Christmas Eve we drove to Flower Mound and spent Christmas with Ryan's family. Everyone spoiled us more than they should have of course! We spent the next couple of days relaxing, which was just what we needed. Then we switched over to "wedding mode"!

When Brad & Kendall got engaged in Dec. 2005, they said that they would wait to get married until Ryan got back from Iraq. I don't know many people who would schedule their wedding plans around their brother-in-law, but it meant the world to us that they wanted Ryan to be a part of their wedding so much. So, when everyone was rushing around and trying to do Christmas AND wedding in one week, all we could do was blame it on Ryan! Everything about their wedding was so much fun. Even though I was a complete basketcase and could cry at the mention of the words "little brother", the weekend was pretty relaxing. It poured rain the day of the rehearsal dinner, but the weather cleared up perfectly for the big day. My new sister-in-law was absolutely stunning, and my little brother cleaned up pretty well too. I couldn't be happier for them.

On New Year's Eve, we woke up and drove back to Sugar Land...hopefully for the LAST time for awhile! Ryan started the Ocean Corporation on January 2nd and is really enjoying it. I haven't ever seen him be such a good student before, so he must really love what he's studying!
I've spent the past 2 weeks job hunting...something I'm finding out that I don't enjoy too much. A few promising things have popped up, but nothing final yet. Ryan on the other hand just got hired at Deep Marine Technology, Inc. This will be a great job for him to get his foot in the door in the dive industry, so I'm really proud of him!

So, here we are...FINALLY Texans again, and FINALLY caught up on our blog. This teaches me a lesson to NEVER get this far behind again!!

Last Post from North Carolina!

They'll be taking our computer tomorrow, so I figured I better update my blog before our trip home. Yep, the day is almost here. Our movers come tomorrow and pack us up, then they come back on Wednesday to move us out. We'll load our trailer on Thursday, and then start driving on Friday. Did I mention that we'll be doing all of this in the middle of a "noreaster" or some crazy winter storm that's supposed to cause lots of rain and wind the next three days...Perfect. Nothing could rain on our parade though! We can't wait to be home again, although leaving Camp Lejeune has been a little more difficult than we planned. We really have made some great memories and met some wonderful people, and that makes it hard to say goodbye. I had coffee with two of my dearest friends this morning, Jen & Amanda, and it's hard to imagine Starbucks without them!

Ryan wanted to make sure I mentioned that Jack is looking VERY forward to being a Texas dog again, and Harley is excited because she's never been a Texan but has heard lots of great stories. They both can't wait to see all their friends and family!

It'll be awhile before I blog again, so don't get on my case! (You know who you are!!) I'll keep you posted as our journey home continues. Until then, Adios North Carolina...Hola Tejas!

No Time to Blog!

I've been bad...I know. I haven't updated since we sold our house. I guess that's been what's kept me so busy lately because I swear it feels like yesterday that I posted that blog! Goodness. Life around here is officially nuts. There are so many crazy details involved with checking out of the Marine Corps and moving halfway across the country. I'm still teaching piano up until next Tuesday, and praise the Lord I had my last high school concert last night! What a relief. We also made a trip to Texas for Molly's shower, Kendall's shower, and HSU homecoming. It was so great to see everyone, and it made us even more excited to hurry up and move home.

Last weekend, we drove up to Virginia basically to have some closure to this whole Marine Corps experience. Quantico, Virginia is where it all began when Ryan went to Officer Candidates School in 2001. It's crazy to think that we were just dating then! We never could have imagined all that we would go through over the next 5 and a half years...good and bad. After we walked around Ryan's "old stompin' grounds" as he calls it, we drove up to Annapolis to see my friend Joanna. It was so good to see her, and as always she blew me away. Her husband, John, and Ryan were in Infantry Officers Course together. He was killed in Iraq in April 2004. She is one of the most optimistic and inspirational people I know. She has taken what was the lowest point in her life and developed a passion for helping other widows and family members in her situation with an organization called TAPS...Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors. It's incredible to see how far she's come in 2 years. After Joanna's, we drove out to Robin & Will's new house in Manassas, VA. I got to go to Robin's baby shower, which was lots of fun. The Gazes' have been friends and "family" to us since we first moved away from Texas, so we didn't say goodbye to them...just "see ya later". Even though we'll be a few states apart now, they're stuck with us for life whether they like it or not! ha ha Before we headed home on Sunday, we knew we had one more stop to make. Unfortunately we know several people buried at Arlington Cemetery, so we went to pay our respects. It is so humbling to even set foot on that place. I can't stomach the fact that gravestone upon gravestone were names we know...my friends' husbands, Marines Ryan served with, Marines who taught him, and Marines he led. All I could do was thank God that I was standing there with my husband who is home SAFE and healthy. I will never take that for granted as long as I live.

So...here we are 5 days before our movers come, and we have offically packed 3 boxes. Yep--that's it. I guess I still can't believe that in one week, we will be sitting in an empty house. Our furniture will be loaded and on its way to Houston, and we'll be following shortly thereafter with the last of our things. We'll technically be "homeless" for 2 weeks because we can't move into our apartment until December 8th. It'll be fun seeing family and enjoying some "us" time though. We are supposed to close on our house on Monday, the 20th, but things don't always work according to plan, so I'm praying daily for patience, sanity, and as little stress as possible. Hope you enjoyed the update...I'm going to go pack now. :-)

SOLD!!!

We've been so busy trying to get ready to move back to Texas that I haven't blogged in awhile, but we got really good news this week that I just have to share. WE SOLD OUR HOUSE!!! I had been so nervous about it because we wanted to sell it ourselves without going through a realtor. But, I just didn't know if it would be too much of a hassle and it we'd have any luck. Well, last week, one of Ryan's platoon commanders came over after work to look at the house. Then, he brought his girlfriend with him on Sunday to look at it. On Monday, he told Ryan that he was pre-approved for a loan and wanted the house!!! So, we sat down on Tuesday night and started all of the paperwork. I didn't even get to put a "For Sale" sign out in the front yard! I can't tell you what a huge load off our shoulders this is. And it's kindof cool that our friends Mike & Amber bought it, so we know that we'll be leaving our first home in good hands! On top of that, we've just about settled on an apartment in Sugar Land that should work for us and our puppies for the 7 months Ryan will be in school. The logistics of moving across the country are just crazy, but thank goodness things are really starting to line up for us. I can't wait until all of this is behind us and we can just be HOME.

Brad's Visit

I know I'm really late posting this, but what's new?! Last week, Brad took a few days off work to come visit us. I'd like to say that he came to see me, but I have a feeling he REALLY wanted to see Ryan. It had been since New Years that they had gotten to hang out, so we were so excited that he decided to spend his vacation days in North Carolina. The weather was beautiful, so we hung out at the beach, played football (despite Ryan's hamstring injury!), and cooked out. It was really relaxing for all of us...I think we all needed it! I'm so lucky that Ryan and Brad are such good friends. It's going to be so much fun when he and Kendall get married, and the 4 of us get to spend even more time together. Here's a picture of Brad with his neice and nephew who LOVE their "Uncle Brad" very much!

A Day at the Beach

Let's just say that Jack is his Daddy's boy, and Harley is her Momma's girl. Jack would chase the waves and swim in the ocean ALL day long just like Ryan would. Everyone on the beach stops and watches him...he's definitely the star of the show. Harley, on the other hand, didn't enjoy the water too much. Maybe she's scared of sharks!! She hates to be dirty, so she spent most of the afternoon licking sand off of her paw and "sunbathing". Jack was devastated when it was time to leave, but I'm sure we'll be back soon enough.

HOME AT LAST!!!

I guess it's about time I post some homecoming pictures! Let's see...on Monday the 4th, everyone started getting into town, so I knew it was really happening...Ryan was coming HOME. Ryan's parents flew in, and Robin, Will, & Jackie drove down from Virginia. We all went to hang his welcome home signs on the highway, ate dinner together, and tried to get to bed early. Ha ha!! The anticipation was literally just as much (if not more) as I felt the night before my wedding, so sleep was the farthest thing from my mind. At 1:30, I finally fell asleep, then popped out of bed at 3:30 to start getting ready.

By 6:45 am, we were all up at the battalion waiting to see him for the first time. It was horrible weather...rainy and humid...but nothing could ruin this day for us! It seemed like FOREVER, but finally at 8:15, we saw the Marines start walking up from the armory. It took me a little while to pick Ryan out, but as soon as I did, you better believe I was running across the parking lot like a crazy person! I could try to describe how amazing it was to see his face and hold him for the first time in 7 months, but words can't do that. It's just the best feeling in the world to know that he's safe and back in my everyday life again. The little things are what I missed most, and now that he's home, I'll never take them for granted. Knowing that this was his last deployment makes it even better!

We spent the next few days unpacking, looking at pictures, eating good food, playing with the dogs, and just spending time with everyone. Then this weekend, we got to celebrate our anniversary at the beach, which was wonderful! I never thought he'd be home in time for that, so it was icing on the cake. I find myself looking at him and pinching myself to see if he's really here. Then, at times, I feel like he never left. Even though Ryan is home, the majority of the battalion is still in Iraq for a couple more weeks, so keep them all in your prayers.
Here are some pictures of the past week.

MORE PICS

My Busy Summer

I know, I know...my last post was over 2 months ago. I don't know where June and July went! I had such a great trip home to Texas. It was wonderful seeing so many of my friends and getting to spend time with my family. My parents were nice enough to drive me back, and my dad spent a lot of time checking things off of my "honey-do" list. I forget how nice it is having a man around! Just going back for a month made me so excited to be moving back to Texas in December. It can't come soon enough!

After I got back from Texas, I went to Virginia to visit Robin, Will, & Jackie. We went to the Kenny Chesney concert on Friday night, which was a blast. Then we pretty much played Trading Spaces in her new house for one LONG day on Saturday. It was so much fun to watch her house begin to look like a HOME. It's really coming along, and it should be perfect by the time their baby comes in January. I miss having her across town, but it's great to be able to go visit.

Early last week, I got probably some of the best news of my life. Ryan is coming home advanced party, which means he should be home shortly after Labor Day rather than at the end of September!!! That means the countdown is really on! In just over a month I will have my husband back for GOOD. Luckily, I have plenty to keep me busy this month until he gets home. I started teaching piano lessons again yesterday, so that puts me on a schedule, which I definitely need. I've also learned that I start losing my mind about 2 weeks before homecoming, and I become this psychotic obsessive compulsive person about making my house perfect, so I'm sure that will take over pretty soon. Watch out everyone!! Until then, I'll try to be better about keeping my blog updated, and I'll post some pictures soon.

My Hottie Husband

Oh goodness, Ryan will TOTALLY kill me for that title, but I just had to say it. Doesn't he look so great?!? I'm posting these pictures to commemorate the fact that he has been gone 3 months now, so time is slowly ticking away. By the time I finish out this school year, make my trip to Texas, and spend a couple of weekends with Robin in Virginia, this deployment will be over before I know it! In the 1st picture, that's the Euphrates River in the background...pretty cool. In the 2nd picture, you'll see a box of girl scout cookies...random, I know. A girl scout troop sent his company cases of cookies to share with all of the Marines, and they also sent a camera requesting pictures of the Marines enjoying the cookies. So, Ryan made sure to take a picture with the cookies and a grenade launcher...what a pair. I'm sure the girls loved it!

New York City!!

Molly and I had a BLAST in the Big Apple this past weekend. We saw 3 shows, shopped, shopped, ate, and shopped some more. We saw "The Light in the Piazza" the first night we were there, and it was really good. The music is beautiful & we got 1/2 price tickets, so I'm glad we went. Then, on Friday night, we saw Julia Roberts, Paul Rudd, and Bradley Cooper in "Three Days of Rain". To be honest, the play wasn't my favorite in the world, but I still couldn't get over the fact that I was seeing Julia Roberts in person!! Who cares if the play was good or not?!? On Saturday, we saw "The Drowsy Chaperone" which is up for Best Musical at the Tony's this year. It was hilarious...one of my favorite musicals by far! The whole trip was a great get-away from life here in North Carolina, and I was thrilled to get to spend the weekend with Molly. It was tons of fun! Everytime I go to New York City, I think I want to move there. It's just so energetic, and there's culture and great shopping everywhere you turn around! Then, I come back to my cozy house, my sweet puppies, my yard (not too many of those in NYC), and sometimes my husband (when he's in the country!), and I realize how much I love my life. We had a great time, but it's good to be home.
Here's an assortment of pictures from the trip:

Molly & me in Times Square



















Being silly in the cab...that kiss is for you Ryan!



















We just saw Julia Roberts! HOLY COW!!!

When we first got to New York, we grabbed a snack and took it out to Central Park to eat. Well, of course (because I have horrible luck with weather) it started pouring rain, so we decided to walk back to the restaurant. I'm SO glad we did because we saw Ty Pennington walking right toward us! We were such idiots and couldn't juggle our umbrellas and cameras very well, so I just got a really far away picture of him (that's him with the khaki jacket and big black umbrella) going to meet some really pretty blonde girl. Hmmm...wonder who she was.



















We are so lucky that our friend Luke lives in New York City so that we could stay for free! We felt like locals taking the subway from Queens into Manhattan everyday. This is Luke with his broken foot. He just landed his 2nd role on Broadway in a show called "The Times They are a Changin" that opens in August!



















Look familar?? That's Paul Rudd (from Friends, Anchorman, & 40 Year Old Virgin). He was awesome in the play with Julia Roberts!

OK...I know you really can't see her, but I promise that's Julia Roberts in the back seat of her Escalade...Crazy!!

I don't know if I'm at liberty to explain why Molly was passed out in the back of the cab. You can ask her about this one!


















Random picture in Times Square

In Honor of Brad

Here's a little blog tribute to my brother, Bradley Lane. Today, he not only turned 22 years old, but he also got his college diploma! That's a pretty good birthday present if you ask me. I also have to mention that we have matching tassels since we both got Business degrees from HSU. Do you know what they call that icky, brownish color? DRAB. Yes, that's right...we have "drab" tassels and we're proud of it! I wish SO badly that I could've been there, but it just didn't work out. Luckily, he had quite a crew in Abilene to help him celebrate. He has quite a year ahead of him. For a graduation gift, he and 2 of his friends are going backpacking all over Europe. So much fun!!! On top of that, he deserves all of this celebrating because he got offered a "real person" job where he'll actually get to use his Finance degree. He'll be moving to the metroplex (that's Dallas/Ft. Worth for you non-Texas people who read this). Then, on December 30th, he and Kendall get married! What a great year for him! Sorry for all of the bragging, but big sisters are entitled to do that if they want. Keep him in your prayers these next few weeks as he's traveling through Europe, sleeping on trains, not changing clothes very often (gross), and enjoying "bachelor's life" for one last summer! I'm proud of you little brother... Happy Birthday & Graduation!!!

My Future Sister-in-Law (Kendall) & Brad

Ryan Gibson & Brad...one of the friends he's going to Europe with

Brad & My Parents...not pictured is ME (insert sad face here)

Girls' Night

I invited Robin & Jackie Rose over for dinner Monday night, and they beat me there, so I actually got to come home to people! It was so much fun after a long afternoon of teaching to pull up in my driveway and see my puppies and Jackie Rose waiting right inside the door for me. I forget how quiet my house can get with Ryan away. We had a great time eating chicken enchiladas and of course indulging in our traditional brownie sundaes. YUM! My dogs seemed to manage to make it into every picture...even when they weren't invited. In the first picture, Jackie is on her hands and knees posing like Jack & Harley...she's going through a "puppy phase"!

DRAMA, DRAMA, DRAMA

Sometimes drama can be good. For example, I was SO proud of all the kids for the amazing acting they did this weekend in Beauty and the Beast. They made Jacksonville High School history by selling out every single performance. They were so excited! I just adore those kids. Here's a picture of "my boys". I've worked with all these guys for 3 years, and they just make me smile.

This is our "Belle", Anastasia Papanicolau. She was just accepted to Walnut Hill, a high school performing arts conservatory in Boston, and she's only a sophomore in high school! Look out Broadway, she's definitely on her way!

Like I said, sometimes drama can be good. However, the rest of my weekend was filled with the bad kind of drama. I found out on Friday that my debit card information had been stolen and $1700 worth of transactions had been made to Wal-Mart, 7-Eleven, and Exxon in AUSTIN, TX in a matter of a day and a half!!! $1000 of it was flagged by the bank, so it didn't get charged, but $700 was sucked right out of my checking account. I explained that I was in North Carolina at the time, with my debit card IN MY WALLET. And when they asked where my husband was, I laughed and told them that he was in Iraq and that his card was in his wallet in Ramadi. I have proof that Ryan is in Iraq because there's a paper that says so, but now they have to prove that I was in North Carolina on Thursday and Friday, which is funny to me. That shouldn't be a problem since I was videoed playing for the musical both days, not to mention my name is in the program. I know that this kind of stuff happens to people all the time, but when it's YOU, it's really scary. I feel so violated! I had to file a police report here in North Carolina, so the sherrif came to my house to start the process. But, because the "crime" took place in Texas, the Austin Police have to do the investigating. They assigned me a detective that will work with my bank to hopefully track down whoever this loser is. In the meantime, my card had to be cancelled, which means that Ryan's card was cancelled too. That card is what he uses whenever he has the chance to buy anything in Iraq, so I feel bad for him. He can get cash other ways, but still... Not only that, but the bank won't mail me his new card when it's ready. They say they have to talk to him personally on the phone, and since he doesn't really get that many phone calls, I guess we'll have to figure something else out. It's not the money that bothers me (well, that's part of it), but it's just the inconvenience of it all. All of this to say, BE CAREFUL with your credit card information!! I still don't know how mine was stolen. Luckily, we caught this the day after it happened, but it could've been a lot worse.

Singing in my Sleep

Ryan makes fun of me because he says that I hum in my sleep. I always say that I'm going to record myself sleeping because I don't believe him. Well, I guess I believe him now because I actually woke myself up humming Beauty and the Beast in the middle of the night. Seriously, it's sad when that's ALL I can think about because it's ALL my life revolves around...until this coming Sunday, that is. Then I will have my life back! Don't get me wrong, I love the kids, and I love playing for musicals, but we're all to the point that we're ready to kill each other. Anyway, forgive me if I don't blog much more this week. I promise there is nothing worth talking about anyway. Unless you want to read lyrics from Beauty and the Beast...

Life

Sorry it's been awhile since my last update. I can't believe it has been a week! Nothing very important has happened...just enough to keep me busier than I'd like to be. That's LIFE, I guess. I spent the end of last week catching up on make-up piano lessons that I missed while I was on vacation. Then, I had "Beauty & the Beast" rehearsals Thursday and Friday nights. Saturday, I spent 3 hours at church recording a concert for a middle school choir director friend of mine. I can't play for her concert, and she can't find anyone else, so we recorded it instead. Then, I went to dinner with Jen & Amanda. We had a great time catching up as always. Those two can always put me in the best mood!

Sunday was a great day. Marine wives always use the term "retail therapy" as an excuse to shop extra while their husbands are away. Well, that doesn't always agree with the bank account, so on Sunday I found a way to shop for FREE. Claire, another choir director friend of mine, enlisted my help to go shopping with her for a more "hip" wardrobe. Her daughter left for college this year, and so she now calls me her surrogate daughter. She really is an amazing woman, and has kindof been a mentor to me since I moved here. She was instrumental in getting my name out in the community to start booking piano jobs. Now I have more than I can handle, so I owe a lot to her. Anyway, she HATES shopping with a passion (can you imagine?!) and doesn't know what matches what, but she knows that she wants to be in style. So, I got to go crazy with her Master Card. She was so open-minded and was willing to try on anything and everything. It was almost more fun to help her find clothes than to shop for myself because I could do it all without feeling guilty! Plus, I could see how excited she was. She is definitely the trendiest teacher at Jacksonville High School now. My reward: lunch, dinner, a new shirt and a pair of earrings. Can't beat that!

Yesterday and today it's been back to the same old grind. Between piano lessons, musical practice, my Key Volunteer stuff, and trying to socialize in between, I'm TIRED!! Today was sad for two reasons:
1. Starbucks was supposed to have their grand opening today, and when I went by to get my grande, 2%, sugar-free, hazelnut latte, they were closed!!!! I have been waiting almost 3 years for this town to get a Starbucks, and it's wearing on my emotions!
2. Today was also sad because it was probably my last hair appointment with my hair guy, George. Yes, he's moving to Phoenix to live with his boyfriend...imagine that.

My goal for the rest of the week is to get out of this funk I've been in. I miss Ryan a lot...not that that's a new thing, but more than usual I guess. I think I just need an attitude adjustment, and I'm scared to pray for one because I know I'll get one!! Know what I mean??? Hope everyone has a great week!

Wake Up Call!

Don't worry, I'm not talking about a bad "wake up call" or anything...I got the BEST kind this morning when Ryan called me at 6 a.m.! We got to talk for about half an hour, and the satellite phone only cut out one time. That's a first! He sounded so good--probably the best I've heard him--and it put me in the best mood for the rest of the day. I wanted to go back to bed after we got off, but I couldn't quit smiling enough to sleep, so I decided to get up and be productive. I finished my laundry from my trip (finally!), went to the grocery store, walked both dogs, pulled some weeds, bought tickets to "The Drowsy Chaperone" in New York (for a great discount, might I add!), returned a shirt that I decided was ugly, and got my large Diet Coke with Sugar-free cherry from Sonic before I had to teach lessons at 3:00. Then I taught 6 piano lessons until 7:00 and flew to musical practice after that until 9:00. Of course, I TiVo-ed American Idol and watched Ace get voted off. I was sad because he's SO nice to look at, but he was definitely not the best singer in the competition, so I guess I have to let him go. Man! If my days keep going by this fast, Ryan will be home in no time!