Monday, July 30, 2012

Tweeting? Huh?

So, I've had a twitter since last year but have never used it. I'm pretty good with technology but for some reason twitter has always intimidated me. It's so confusing! So, today I decided it was time to jump on the bandwagon and figure out what all this tweeting business is about. 

I changed my twitter name to @cariwattssavage - I'm trying to keep up with all my accounts by making them all the same name! This name-change business is hard, y'all. That's the real reason I wanted to keep my birth name - because I'm lazy! Not really, but it would have definitely been an added bonus.

If you have a twitter let's hook up - I don't know who has one so I don't know who to follow! I have a "follow me" button to the right to make it easy so don't leave me hanging.

Now, I've got to go get ready to leave. I discovered today that Hunger Games is finally at the dollar theatre, and y'all know how much I love the dollar theatre. I'm late as usual and have to make time to stop at Walgreens for some Sugar Babies. Life is good!





Sunday, July 29, 2012

What's in a name?

Settle in, make yourself comfortable, and get ready for a long, bumpy ride. Let me remind you, I am certified to teach Social Studies and Science, not Language Arts, so I apologize in advance for the mistakes I make. I have been contemplating writing a blog post about this topic since I began my blog almost a year ago. It's something that I have thought long and hard about for several years. I want to explain the reasons behind hyphenating my name and why the decision was so very important for me. This is more for my benefit than anything, but I hope you enjoy reading my thoughts. Feel free to let me know what you think.

I want to preface my story by saying that I am writing about my opinions and personal beliefs. That being said, I respect other people's choices and opinions because I am thankful we have that freedom. I am obviously in the minority with my choice and I'm cool with that so I understand others will disagree with what I say. As a Christian I believe first and foremost in love and tolerance and hope to portray that through my writing. Now, where do I begin?

I’ve always had a tendency to argue, and to do the opposite of what I’ve been told to do. Second child syndrome, maybe? I have never liked the idea of doing something, “Just because.” So, when I was little and my parents would give me the, “Because I said so” excuse, it didn’t fly with me. I like to know why things are the way they are and why people make the choices that they do. I learned a lot about myself while wedding planning – mostly that I am very thoughtful in the choices I make. I research all the options, and have to know I have seen every option before making a decision. I definitely did this when I planned the wedding, so it only makes sense to do the same for the marriage.

I grew up in what I would consider an egalitarian household. My parents had equal say-so in our family; neither one had more power than the other. No one was ever expected to do something just because of an old school scripted gender role. I didn’t grow up in a household where my father expected to come home from work to a spotless house and be served dinner on a silver platter. They both worked so why should she come home, cook dinner, serve him, and clean up after him, just like she would a child? I’m not saying you shouldn’t do things for your spouse; I’m just saying one person shouldn’t be put on a pedestal at the expense of the other. Both my parents did thoughtful things for the other because they wanted to, not because they had to. I can’t begin to tell you how thankful I am for that and that is how I want my marriage to be. To me, marriage is not about two halves making a whole – it’s about two people coming together and making each person their best self.

I’ve always been extremely close with my dad and that has had a profound impact on my identity. Several years ago Dad and I started working on our Watts family tree. If you haven’t done any genealogy research, I can’t encourage you enough to do so. We learned so much about our family that we would have never known if we didn’t start digging. Am I proud of everything we found? No way. If you dig hard enough you will find things you wish you wouldn’t have. For the same reason I believe in history, I believe in genealogy. Let me explain. To truly know yourself and know what you want out of life, you have to know where you come from and what your ancestors have been through.

What does this have to do with my story? Bottom line: It breaks my heart that it is nearly impossible to trace my female ancestors because they are virtually non-existent. So many documents say, “Mrs. John Watts,” or simply, “the wife of…” Their former selves totally disappeared when they got married. Why? Why do we have to throw away part of our identity in order to join with a man in marriage? I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for those women, but does history recognize them? No, basically they had no importance other than giving birth to the next generation of men. Even their gravestones list their husband’s name before their own. Sometimes when I’m reading through the information I’ve gathered, I daydream about what those women were like. What did they look like, sound like, think, feel, believe? They were real, just like me. They played just as important of a role as their husbands, but history doesn’t tell the story that way. This is why I love teaching Social Studies. My students (and my kids) will learn a different side of history than I learned. One that tells the stories of and to all peoples – not just the white man.

During my time at UGA I was lucky enough to get into some great classes that truly changed my life. First and foremost, Women’s Studies. You guessed it, those “crazy” Feminists in the UGA Women’s Studies department got to me! I am still obsessed with my professor, Nichole Ray. She was phenomenal! Hands down the best teacher I ever had and the best class I ever took. Don’t let the name confuse you – it wasn’t just about women’s rights. It was about equality and issues in gender, race, class, and sexuality as social constructs. We discussed everything from politics, healthcare, LGBTQ, minority rights, stereotyping, sexual violence, marketing, body issues, and so much more. Every class made me feel confused, uncomfortable, and sometimes downright mad! I couldn't get enough. As a teacher that's what I want for my kids - I believe the best learning comes when you are forced to listen to what you don't want to hear. I challenge you to do the same. If you only converse with people of your same opinion where will you get? Nowhere – that won’t help you grow as a person. My education professor Jim Garrett always told us, "Uncomfortable is good. I want you to be uncomfortable. Learning happens when we get uncomfortable." I couldn’t agree more! Similar to what I said before about genealogy, I believe you can’t truly fight for what you believe unless you have explored all the other options and heard all the other arguments. Challenge your opinions – it will either change your mind or make you fight even harder for what you believe in.

I know this post has been all over the place and I apologize. I’m going to try and bring it all together to make my point. This post is supposed to explain why I decided to hyphenate my name when I got married last month, and I haven’t even mentioned my husband. Chris and I dated for over seven years before we got married. We literally grew up together and went through several major life events together before getting married. I’m so glad we dated for so long because I know we have created a strong foundation for our marriage. Chris is well aware I’m a Feminist who feels very strongly about her beliefs and he is secure enough in his identity to be with me.

When it came time to apply for our marriage license Chris and I had “The talk.” I had been torn for months and was still unsure about what I wanted to do. I’d discussed my thoughts with so many people: my parents, sister, friends, teachers, mentor teacher, my Italian family, church friends, etc. It seemed like I’d had this conversation a million times and I was still torn. I’d prayed about it, researched it, and read arguments on both sides. I’ll be honest, Chris was leaning towards me totally taking his name and I was leaning towards totally keeping my own. What was I supposed to do?

Let me spell out my argument for you:
·       I have had my name for 22 years and I’m pretty fond of it, why should I change it?
·       Why don’t men change their name if it’s about being “united?”
·       Why do I have to change my name to prove that I made this commitment?
·       What do we benefit from my taking your name?
·       In many other cultures women have and still do keep their birth name.
·       I am not property. Name-changing is an outdated tradition based on outdated principles.
·       It is something I want to do to honor my female ancestors.
·       I feel it is disrespectful to the millions of women who were treated as property and didn’t have this choice.
·       There are still millions of women treated as property, mistreated, and even murdered based on their gender around the world.
·       I am already marrying you – this is how I want to keep my connection to my family that I am very close to.
·       I do not love you any less by keeping my birth name. It’s not about love. It’s about equality.
·       I have spent years learning where I come from – why abandon that?

Arguments I personally heard from other women:
·       It’s tradition. (I’ll give you that – I love me some traditions, but I’m not sure this one is for me.)
·       It’s just what you do. (Why? That’s the point. Remember what I said about “Just because?”)
·       It’s theChristian” thing to do. (How does not changing my name make me less of a “Christian?”)
·       You should be leaving your parents and joining with your husband (I am. What does that have to do with my name? Isn’t that what the marriage certificate, vows, and being married part are for?)
·       It will be hard for your kids. They will be confused. (Then I’ll let them read this blog post.)
·       You will regret it after you have children (Doubt it, but if so I’ll change my name.)
·       People will think you aren’t married (But we are so… who cares?)
·       Either way you are taking the name of a man: Your husband or your father (Good point, it’s a lose-lose if you look at it that way.)
·       “I just want to have the same name as my husband. I love him.” (Okay, good. You should change your name then. I’m cool with that. But, don’t act like that means you love your husband more than I love mine.)


This is by no means an exhaustive list – just the most frequent arguments I gave and received over the past couple of years. In the end we compromised – isn’t that what marriage is all about? As you can tell by the signature on my blog my new name is Cari Brianna Watts-Savage and I’m very happy with it. I feel like those two little words separated by a hyphen give the world a little glimpse into my mind and who I am as a woman. To me they say, “I am the same woman I was before I got married. I am proud to be my parent’s daughter and my husband’s wife.” Okay, maybe I’m a little dramatic but I told you it’s important to me. To answer the question I always get, “What will your students call you?” Don’t worry, I won’t ask my middle schoolers to call me, “Mrs. Watts-Savage.” That’s just brutal! I’ll be Mrs. Savage – it’s more appropriate for a Social Studies teacher anyway, right? I don’t mind being called Mrs. Watts, Mrs. Savage, or Mrs. Watts-Savage. It doesn’t offend me either way – that’s the best part: I get to be all three of those women. Isn’t that awesome?

For anyone who is afraid of marriage, commitment, or losing yourself – you can be married without losing yourself. That’s what this is all about. A good marriage should encourage you to be yourself. I’m so thankful I have that in Chris, and I am so thankful our sons and daughters will have a father who encourages them to be themselves. I thought long and hard about my decision and I wrote this blog post to encourage other women to do the same. I don’t denounce those who choose something other than what I chose. All I’m asking is you think about what you’re doing – don’t just do what you’re expected to because it’s “Traditional.” It’s a big deal, folks, don’t take it lightly.

Lastly, if you think that women’s rights aren’t an issue anymore, you’re wrong. Women have come a long way over the last century, but we still have work to do in our country and especially around the world. But, I’ll save that for another blog post! I could go on and on…

If you’re reading this sentence, you made it through the post—Congratulations!  I hope that all my little anecdotes came together, made sense, and made you think a little bit.  I’d love to hear your thoughts (in agreement or disagreement) so leave me a comment.




Friday, July 27, 2012

A little about me...




Merriam Webster defines Patriarchy as "Social organization marked by the supremacy of the father in the clan or family, the legal dependence of wives and children, and the reckoning of descent and inheritance in the male line; broadly : control by men of a disproportionately large share of power."






I'm working on a very personal blog post on a topic that is very important to me. Hopefully that last e-card gives you a hint as to what it will be about. If you are already annoyed I suggest not staying tuned for the next post. If you find humor in the above images or feel like you aren't sure what they are all about, I would love for you to read my next post and share your thoughts.

Click to read about my decision to hyphenate my name. 


Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Sweet Friends

I don't know about you, but when I sit down and think about my friends my mind automatically categorizes them. There are old friends, new friends, high school friends, college friends, unconditional friends, in and out friends, part time friends, this list could go on and on. Then there are those friends you can totally, completely, unashamedly be yourself around. You know you are free to talk about anything - and I mean anything - with them and you will never be judged. You can share the best, worst, most embarassing, craziest things about yourself and they will always hear you out (and make fun of you forever). It is so comforting to know that I have those friends. For me, that's these gorgeous girls!







I had dinner with these girls tonight (and missed you two, Chelsea Goss & Shelli Allen!) and had just as much fun as we always do! Our conversations get more entertaining every time. They keep me on my toes and make me laugh until I almost pee my pants in the booth at El Campesino!

I definitely don't see them as much as I would like, but when I do I have the best time! Thanks for the best four hour dinner tonight! Sorry for being sappy, y'all. I just love you girls!



Tuesday, July 24, 2012

The life of a nomad

Chris and I have traveled a lot of miles in the past few days! Chris works a crazy schedule at his job with Oglethorpe Power that theoretically includes a "seven off" about once a month. I say theoretically because this is the first one in a long time where he has actually had a full seven days off. He is usually busy with meetings, trainings, and overtime shifts during his days off. We crossed our fingers and knocked on wood this time and got our wish (so far!). On Friday we headed to Athens, also known to me and mine as the happiest place on Earth, to get the last of my furniture there and run some errands. Last month we had a close call when we came back and found this: 

This is our back door - which was surprisingly still shut.
Devils helped themselves to our ladder to hop the fence!

Our cute ferocious guard wolf!

Dad and Chris replaced the door with a new, sturdy, and windowless one and we put a lock on the back gate just in case. We haven't had any problems since and hopefully it will stay that way. Our neighbor was hit three different times and several other houses on our street have been hit as well. On Friday Chris helped dad put up a glass door out back to let some light in since we put up that heavy duty door. Jasper and Lolli really enjoy it - Lolli looking out, and Jasper looking in! We spent a couple of days in Athens and hit up my favorite places: the dollar theatre, Barberitos, and Menchies to name a few. Can't resist posting a picture of my two favorite snuggles -

Lolli

Jaspy

Can I just say really quickly that I loved Snow White and The Huntsman (and not just because my ticket was $2)? I hate to admit that I've never read this original Grimm Brothers' tale but I definitely plan to now. If you haven't seen it I won't ruin it for you but I suggest you watch it. It was definitely a bit gory at parts, but if it wasn't too much for me or Haley, then you're probably good! It had a great story line without the romance Disney falsely adds to the mix. That was the best part - it had a heroine who saved her kingdom without totally relying on men or getting married. You know this Feminist loved that! Stay tuned years down the road to see if I let my girls and/or boys buy into that nonsense ;) 

Anyway, after a couple of days in Athens we headed back to Dalton to meet mom and dad at our house. They brought over the last of the furniture at their house and we had a big project party! Dad and Chris finally got the spot over the oven fixed - it has been driving me nuts! The lady before us ripped out the microwave and left a hot mess so we covered it and it looks so much better. We found that coke sign behind the oven - I'm going to make it a magnet for the fridge.


We headed to Chattanooga for dinner - my husband is obsessed with Mellow Mushroom - and then headed back home and my parents left for Habersham. Chris and I spent the next couple of days finishing up hanging pictures and organizing book cases and it looks so great. We spent one day exploring Chattanooga and shopping for goodies as usual! I'll post some pictures of everything soon but for now, here's our cute new wreath compliments of Pier 1. Hydrangeas of course...



We came back to Habersham today but we took the scenic route since it was such a beautiful day. We grabbed a peach milkshake and were on our way. We went through Elijay, Blue Ridge, Hiawassee, and around Lake Burton before heading home. It made me wish it was fall even more so we could be doing all those fun fall things instead of hiding from this heat!

My favorite!

In Blue Ridge today

I'll dream of pumpkins and a cool breeze when I lay my head down to sleep! Sweet dreams, all!



Thursday, July 19, 2012

My new favorite mac & cheese recipe

Okay, so I am pretty excited about this discovery. If you know anything about me, you know I am obsessed with Macaroni & Cheese. We used to make so much fun of my grandma when we were little because she absolutely could not cook Kraft Macaroni and Cheese to save her life! She was the greatest cook and could make anything from scratch - but being the finicky kids we were we always wanted Kraft Mac & Cheese to go along with our fresh vegetables and homemade biscuits. Fast forward ten years and somehow I have inherited my little grandma's problem! I always tell my family "real cooks can't cook boxed food!" I'd like to think that was true... but I know better. I can cook almost anything except Kraft Macaroni and Cheese and Crescent Rolls. I hate crescent rolls. Bizarre, I know. Just ask Haley. It makes me cringe just thinking about those doughy little things.

Anyway, point of the story is I would much rather make real mac and cheese any day. It's just so good. I made it many college night and ate it for several days. It's just so good, right? For the past few years my staple recipe has been this one from OK Cafe. I'm a big fan of ranch so I love that aspect of the recipe. This version is delicious but not quite creamy enough for me. Don't get me wrong, I'm not fond of soupy macaroni, but I like a little creaminess. I have pinned several mac and cheese recipes straight from pinterest and from many different sites but this one really caught my eye. I was intrigued that the recipe called for chicken broth and knew it had to be delicious! Boy was I right! 

Once again, I apologize for the horrible iPhone pictures! I promise I'll do better!



ps, the chicken doesn't look too appetizing but it's delicious. Click below for the link



If you're like me and hate opening up multiple pages here you go:


Easy Baked Macaroni and Cheese
1 (16 oz.) pkg. macaroni
1 c. milk
2 c. chicken broth
2 c. sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 c. swiss, grated
1 c. monterey jack cheese, grated
8 oz. cream cheese, cubed
2 tsp. onion salt
fresh ground pepper
1/2 c. flour

In a large bowl, stir together the macaroni,  milk, and chicken broth.  Add the remaining ingredients and mix together using a large wooden spoon.  Pour into a very large, deep casserole dish.  Bake uncovered in an oven preheated to 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes, or until pasta is fully cooked.  Turn oven broiler on for the last two minutes of cooking time to brown up the top part of the mac and cheese.  Allow to cool slightly before serving.

Next go around I would probably add some sea salt and parsley, but that's just me. I was a little worried about all that cream cheese, but trust me - it is delicious! It's what makes it so creamy. Just make sure you get it mixed well before pouring it in the pan. A word to the wise, go ahead and get the biggest bowl you have to mix. I made a huge mess!

Now, I'm off to have some of this deliciousness for lunch! :)




Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Pizza my way!

So I had no intentions of writing a post about what I cooked for dinner last night, but I also didn't realize it would be so delicious! I didn't take any action shots but here's a couple after I was done cooking: 



Sorry for the mess - I was unprepared! 

I made pizza quesadillas and they were SO delicious! Chris is totally obsessed with them already. It didn't occur to me that they are perfect for me since I'm not a fan of thick dough or a lot of pizza sauce. In other words that means I love the cheese and pepperoni... shocker! This go around those were the only toppings I used, but next time I'll probably add some chopped peppers and onions for flavor.

Here's what I used:

Large Flour Tortillas
Marinara sauce
Pepperoni
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
Garlic Salt

First I fried the pepperoni in my black skillet on medium heat. It doesn't take much time at all since they are so thin. Be sure not to overcook them or they shrivel up and get tough. After frying them I recommend dropping them onto a plate covered with paper towels to soak up some of that nasty grease! After you're done pour out the left over grease so your tortillas won't get soggy.

To make the quesadillas use two tortillas for each. On the bottom tortilla spoon out as much sauce as you would like - I use very little sauce. Next add a layer of mozzarella followed by whatever toppings you are using and a little garlic salt for flavor. Then add another thin layer of mozzarella to bind the tortillas (be careful not to add too much - it takes less than you would think). Add your top tortilla and voila! I cooked my quesadillas in my handy dandy cast iron skillet on medium heat. I found that if it was any higher than that it would overcook the tortilla without properly melting the cheese. 

I'm still getting used to cooking the appropriate amount for us - it's definitely taking some getting used to. I way overestimated how much we would eat last night! I cooked three large pizza quesadillas thinking that Chris would eat a lot more than he did. I barely ate half one and Chris had a whole one so we had a lot left. The good news is they reheated well for lunch today! Yum!



Sunday, July 15, 2012

I may never eat s'mores again!

I wrote a couple of posts ago about the beginning of Camp Agape and Vacation Bible School at church. Well after all the Agape campers got checked in and settled into their "cabins," they all headed over the city park for some fun and food with our church family. Everyone was asked to bring a dish (I'll save that one for next time) and a dessert. Haley and I always get really excited when we are asked to bring a dish - take a wild guess what we do first... Obviously go running to Pinterest to search for our next masterpiece. WRONG. Since we knew we would be at church all day on Sunday we had to make our dishes Saturday night and planned to store them in the church refrigerators the next day. 

The church provided hot dogs and hamburgers for everyone and we all brought everything else. As you can imagine all the usual side items were present - baked beans, slaw, potato salad, etc. We assumed there would be a multitude of cupcakes, brownies, and cookies as well so we wanted to make something different. Since the picnic was essentially a big cook-out we thought it would be fun to bring s'mores for the kids. What kid doesn't love s'mores? They tasted delicious - they just looked like a holy hot mess. I think the photos speak for themselves.



My first encounter with marshmallow creme - yum!



Lookin' good!


Everything seemed to be going alright up until this point... The chocolate was way too thick for dipping


Nope, not even close


So we improvised. Hey, let's just scoop the thick mess into a ziploc bag and make pretty designs (like all those fancy people on pinterest!)


Okay, okay, this might work...



NOPE


In two seconds time our ziploc bag had a giant hole. That looks appetizing, huh?


Last but not least, we decided to just spread the chocolate on top - if you didn't know any better they look pretty good, right? 


S'mores evolution. 
Disastrous. 


I'm not a very patient person. Ergo, I'm really bad at breaking the graham crackers. Oops. 




So in the end we covered them all with chocolate and put them in the refrigerator overnight in hopes that the marshmallow creme and chocolate would harden. Unfornately, that was not exactly the case. In case you were wondering marshmallow creme does not harden - it just turns into thick goo! More bad news: they don't hold up so well when it's ninety-something degrees outside. The good news is they tasted delicious and the little campers loved them! Just don't ask Hal to make you any because she's still traumatized...




Friday, July 13, 2012

Shower gifts put to good use

Last weekend my mom and sister visited Chris and I in Dalton for the night. The wedding was over a month ago and I had yet to unpack the vast majority of our shower and wedding gifts. I had absolutely no idea where to begin with the giant pile shoved behind our couch. This had been driving me nuts for several weeks...



When I was little I was always in trouble for something - my mentor teacher, Pierre, once referred to his  daughter as a "feral child." My family thought that was also an appropriate name for me! I was always a mess, in a mess, and making a mess. My room was like a disaster area. When my mom would finally break down and make me clean it I would be locked in there for hours! I would have to stop and play with every. single. toy. along the way.

Point of the story is - I am still the exact same way. Unpacking all of these gifts took me days hours because I had to take out everything and play with it! It was like Christmas because I hadn't seen any of it in months! Once we finally sorted through it all I think I ended up repacking over half of it and storing it in our guest room. I only opened up things I was sure I needed and plan to save the rest for when we get a bigger place. Of course the little kid in me wanted to open everything - but my mom kept reminding me that if I needed any of it I could go in the guest room and get it. It would be like my own personal store! How fun, right? The only thing is, I was really sad about having no where to store all the beautiful serving pieces I received. The ladies at church absolutely spoiled me with so many beautiful things! Hopefully one day we will be able to move back home and I can put those pieces to good use throwing showers for other brides and babies.

Until then, my sister came up with a great solution: to use the items as decoration above our kitchen cabinets. Our kitchen is pretty small, but I really like the cabinets. It's functional but definitely not my ideal set-up. I have always loved to cook and definitely need more counter space. I can't wait until we own our own home and dad can build me the pinterest kitchen of my dreams! Having a dad who is an awesome woodworker comes in pretty handy (more on that later!). Anyway - here are a few photos of what we chose to put above the cabinets. I ended up only using a couple of the serving pieces - I was afraid to use any of my metalworks pieces because I wasn't sure if they would tarnish. I'm handling one area at a time so I'll post some more pictures when I perfect other spaces.

Ignore that gaping hole above the stove - I'm working on something to go there right now. Any good ideas?





The small basket holds all of the cups for Chris's Keurig - I hate those ugly things!


Hey, it put all of our old textbooks to good use! I was glad to get all those ugly electricity guides off the shelf! ;)


We finally found a rug we both loved, so now that the living room is almost cleaned up I'll post some pictures of it!