My Love Affair Continued...

Like I said in my last post, there are many reasons that I love Nicholas Sparks. The most obvious, as I am sure many women would agree, is his ability to write about romance in a way that makes me feel as if I am falling in love for the first time. For example, here is one of my favorite excerpts from “Dear John”:

“I barely had time to drop my duffel bag before she sjumped into my arms, and the kiss that followed was like its own magic kingdom, complete with its special language and geography, fabulous myths and wonders for the ages. And when she pulled back and whispered, “I missed you so much,” I felt as if I’d been put back together after spending a year cut in half.”

OH.MY.GOSH!

My heart leaps, my spirits are lifted and no matter how bad my day has been, I believe that life is good. That’s powerful writing! Of course, my husband, does not appreciate Mr. Sparks’ novels nearly as much as I do. I think he gets tired of hearing me sigh and swoon as I read beside him. “Real men don’t act like that – Amber” he always says. But I specifically remember the first time he told me that he loved me and it was just like that.

Again, we were freshmen in college. It was Halloween and we went to a haunted trail. After a night filled with fake terror and pitiful “help me” squeals (by Steven, of course), we drove back to campus on a cloud of excitement. He dropped me off at my dorm and we said goodnight. Barely two minutes had passed when my phone rang. My heart literally burst at the sight of his name on the caller ID and when I answered he said, “I have to tell you something – will you meet me outside?” We both acted completely absurd, like excited little puppies. But I knew what was coming and I was so happy to know he felt exactly as I did. When he said that words for the first time, I truly knew this time it was different.

So every time I read one of Nick’s romantic passages, I’m reminded of how I felt at 18 years old. Excited, in love, dreamy-eyed. I just can’t get enough. No matter how silly it may seem, I will keep coming back to Nicholas time after time as long as he makes me feel like that!

I'm Having An Affair

Before you think, “AN AFFAIR!?!?!” let me explain…

I have a long standing love affair with Nicholas Sparks. Since I was fourteen and old enough to value his romantic ways, I have been in.love.with.him. My love for Nicholas is two-fold. His passionate stories about love, life and loss have always spoken to me in a very deep way. Despite my exceedingly logical mindset regarding career, legalities, schooling and almost everything else in life, I’ve always been a hopeless dreamer when it comes to matters of the heart. So at a very young age, when I first read “Message in a Bottle”, I fell in love for the first time in my life.

In the recent years, my affection for Mr. Sparks has only deepened. You see, Nicky is what they call a “North Carolina writer.” Every book he has written takes place in one of North Carolina’s charming little towns. As I said before, I have moved many, many times. I lived in Alabama until I was 7 and spent the following 11 years of my life moving to 7 different states before I landed in Wingate, NC my freshman year of college. I have resided in the Charlotte metro area for the past 7 years. So for me, North Carolina has become home. I love it here. We have mountains and snow, beaches and sun, professional sport teams, light houses, and a plethora of Southern charm that is hard to match.

I have recently reread some of my favorite Nicholas Sparks novels and I have discovered a new character in each book that has caused my appreciation for his writing to grow even stronger. Nicholas writes about the towns in his books as if they were an actual driving force of the story line. In his latest - “The Last Song”, the cities of Wilmington and Wrightsville Beach add as much romance and nuisance to the narrative as the lovers themselves. The way he describes the local traditions and culture captivate me and now, as a North Carolinian, I can actually appreciate the truth in his writing.

After rereading “Dear John” I was reminded of my first Valentine’s Day with Steven. We were freshmen in college (how *long* ago!) and he surprised me by driving 3 hours from Charlotte to Wilmington. He wouldn’t tell me where were going, just that I would enjoy it. We had an amazing dinner on the water and walked to see the battleship. He bought me a rose from a street vendor and blind folded me to our next destination. I knew he was taking me to the beach, but I was more than willing to play along. Unfortunately, he got lost and a policeman pulled Steven over as his driving was a little erratic. Imagine the policeman’s surprise when he found a blind folded woman in the car! After a brief explanation, the officer pointed us in the right direction and Steven lead me down the boardwalk to the beach. It was my first time at Wrightsville Beach. Despite the freezing cold temperatures and the darkness, we danced on the beach under the stars and the moon. It truly was magical. The entire ride back to Charlotte that evening, I kept thinking, “This is the one I want to marry.” Here I am 7 years later, happier than I have ever been in my life.

Somehow when I’m reading Nick’s writing, I become fully aware of the person, the Southerner, that I am. My expectations, my desires, my convictions, my faith, my life have been formed based upon the principle that I am a Christian, Southern woman who appreciates SEC football, the smell of a peanut field, the sound of children laughing, a church choir’s beautiful melody, the love of a good man and the dream of one day being a mother.

Thank-you Nicolas for reminding me that being a small town, Southern girl is something to be proud of – to be thankful for. It’s one of the many reasons I love you so dearly.

ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!!

So tonight is the night I have waited for all season.  The NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP featuring #1 Alabama vs. #2 Texas.  CAN I HEAR A ROLL TIDE!?!?!

Hubby and I will be viewing the game with friends at a local joint and I will be debuting my #22 Alabama jersey with the 2010 BCS Championship patch - quite possibly my favorite Christmas present from hubby.

If the Tide pulls it off tonight, they will have had the perfect season: undefeated, SEC Champs, Heisman Trophy Winner and National Champs.  It just doesn't get any better than that!  If they lose, say a prayer for me because it won't be pretty around here for days!
On a completely different note: My family and I are planning a trip to Great Lakes to watch my brother graduate from Navy bootcamp.  While we are there we will be visiting Chicago.  We've never been - any tips on what to see and do?  Keep in mind, we will have a 6 year old little boy with us!!!

One last time - ROLL TIDE!!!

I Need Sleep!

I’m on my second cup of coffee this morning – and I don’t drink coffee. *Except for those super sweet yummy lattes at Starbucks, but those don’t count because they are calorie free. Right?*

I have blogged before about how difficult it is to get a good night’s sleep when Steven is gone because my dogs go absolutely crazy. Guard Dogs on Crack  Lately, however, they have seemed to become used to him being gone and have calmed down the barking and howling somewhat. Unfortunately, now that they are no longer on guard duty, they have become a little too comfortable in my bed. Generally, Steven and I hook them to their leashes which are tied to our bed so they both sleep on their own dog beds on either side of the bed. When Steven travels, I do not want them chained down in case they need to “unleash the beast” on some crazy burglar trying to get their mommy. They love sleeping in the bed! Dixie in particular since she fully believes she is human and should always have the exact comforts as Steven and me.

Last night was miserable. I tried put down my copy of “The Last Song” (fantastic read for anyone looking for a good book!) around 11 and decided to call it a night. As soon as I turned out the light, Dixie maneuvered her way under the covers and sprawled out across my body pillow on my right side. Yes, my body pillow – the one I was supposed to snuggle up to. Unfortunately for me, Dixie is stronger and more stubborn than I am so she won the fight for my body pillow. On my left side, Bauer insisted on putting his head under my chin. Apparently Dixie was going to sleep on my body pillow and Bauer was going to sleep on me!

After an hour of fighting over the covers and doing my best to push them off me, I dozed off around midnight. My slumber was disturbed as my butt started to get really hot. I woke up to find Dixie lying in between my legs with her head on my butt (I sleep on my stomach.) You know the expression “blowing hot air up your ***”?? Well, I literally lived through that last night. Dixie was breathing fire directly onto my bum and my whole body was sweating as a result. I pushed her off the bed (knowing full well she would hop right back in) and nestled against my body pillow hoping to fall back to sleep. Another 45 minutes passed with no shut eye. I had almost dozed off when Bauer started mini-barking in his sleep and nibbling on my ear. (Okay, I just read that back and it sounds wrong on so many levels but I swear it was a completely appropriate, very cute puppy thing!) As cute as he was, I had had enough. I got my pillows and tried ever so quietly to sneak into the living room to sleep on the couch.

I wasn’t on the couch for more than 5 minutes when I heard her prancing to find me. In my sleepless deliria I could have sworn I heard Dixie chastising, “And just where do you think you’re going? You are my pillow and you will sleep where I tell you to.” Another 5 minutes later Bauer joined us on the couch. So there we were, me and two 70 lb boxers trying to fall asleep on the couch – needless to say it didn’t work out so well.

Around 1:30 I drug myself back to bed, dogs in tow, and did my best to clear my mind. I finally dozed off somewhere around 2:30 or 3. I woke up at 6a.m. this morning laying long ways across the head of my bed. My feet were hanging off the edge and I had NO covers. Dixie and Bauer, however, looked quite rested. I decided to go ahead and get up – I could finish folding my last load of laundry and get something yummy cooking in the crock pot since Steven comes home today.

As I pulled my load of darks from the dryer, I realized I had made a terrible mistake. I washed and dried Steven’s brand new *wool* Brook’s Brothers sweater by accident. I didn’t even know it was in the dirty laundry! As I held the sweater up to my chest and realized it was small enough to fit my 6-year-old brother, I burst into tears. I don’t know if it was my sleep deprivation or my utter disappointment in ruining Steven’s new sweater, but I leaned up against my dryer and bawled for a solid 10 minutes. I guess I’m out of the running for Wife of the Year pretty early in 2010. I told you yesterday – I HATE DOING LAUNDRY!

I need it to be Friday in the worst kind of way – I’m having a week of all Mondays.

On a more positive note, I am approaching the 75 mark for followers.  As I said in my resolutions, once this happens I will create my own blog award.  I've got something really juicy in the works - so if you've been reading lately, but aren't a follower - feel free to join!!