I Spy an Armadillo (or three!)

So my sister and I decided it was time to get our butts off the couch and go exploring. We've been taking a walk every Sunday with my dog Olive to local parks but we wanted to find new an exciting places. So we were off! I had purchased a Best Hikes with Your Dog book so I picked out a hike in the Highland Lakes area.

After our 1.75 hour drive (a little longer than expected especially since we didn't leave our apartment til after 11am...eekk!), we arrived to find the park gate open but no one around to accept our entrance fee or hand out maps. We decided to drive on in since the gate was open and start out hike.

The hike combined two loops up a small hill (or mountain if you live on the east coast - 1300 feet). It was pretty. We hiked first through a sort-of cactus-field and then up a rocky slope through the trees. We never really reached a summit but there was a great view of Lake Buchanan below. Sadly most of the lake seemed to be dried up as this is one of the driest years the Austin area has had in a long long time.

The best part of the hike was the wildlife though. The book said to watch for wild pigs, deer, armadillos, bald eagles and numerous amounts on poisonous snakes. Luckily we saw no snakes. Whew! We did however see three armadillos.

Now this is very important because Texas's official state mammal is the armadillo and the only armadillos I had seen thus far were roadkill ones. I took a picture. SEE BELOW. We also saw a couple deer. It was amazing!

Extra Bonus: We drove thru this cute little town called Bertrum on the way out that was just adorable even though it was only comprised of maybe 5 buildings.

I am A OK

I had my yearly review at work today. It went extremely well. My direct boss agreed with me completely on my strengths and weaknesses. And to top it off they're finally giving me more responsibility.

You're now reading the blog of the person not only in charge of payroll, but invoicing and the office filing system. This may not sound that exciting to you but after 6 months of not a lot to do this is a huge step.

And she said that I will most definitely get a raise! Yahoo for being me! Getting a good review definintely boosted my day up to spectacularly stupendous!

2007: The Year of New Beginnings???

Hello. I haven't written in over two months. Whoops. Guess I was busy, but I'm back....back with a new gusto, a 2007 gusto!

I am so ready for this year to get underway. I'm starting culinary school in less than two months and by November I'll be a certified baker. I can not wait!!!!

The holidays were hectic this year. Maybe more hectic than years past but still just as great as always. New Years was also great because we did absolutely nothing. Just what the doctor called for after 2+ weeks and weekends of non-stop chaos. My sister and I literally sat on the couch from Friday afternoon thru Monday night and every minute of it was glorious.

Of course that's not to say we didn't find a little time to go out and spend some of the money we got for Christmas on some new clothes. And we did take a break from sitting on the couch to go for a walk with my dog Olive on Sunday, a tradition.

Resolutions??? Not really. I've probably got the same ones everyone does. Be better this year, save money, be happy. But I don't really like to think of them as resoluations....they're just goals I'm always working towards and achieving on a daily basis.

I just want this year to be a great year. I want to just be able to live life as I want to with no one standing in my way except myself! I really have a good feeling about this chef thing. I'm so excited!