Oh we had some big fun today! Erik's cousin Jennifer stopped by with her son Nicholas. It was so fun! We taught Jen to play Guitar hero and she taught us about parenting. Little Nicholas is a true Graham man because he loves video games, music and TV. He especially liked Erik singing and dancing with him.

Here Erik is working out his arms by lifting Nicholas up and down.
But THIS is hilarious. At one point little nicholas got HUNGRY. Erik gives "Mr.Mom" a run for his money:

Cute name right? Good music too. Its a band out of Denver who is starting to get big all of a sudden. If you mash up Rage, with Eminem, and the clueless soundtrack(ska) & Linkin Park then you get the Flobots. Song to Download? Handlebars.
Click that link for some free samplin.

No surprise here that I love Jason Mraz's new stuff. I say stuff cause the official album hasnt been released yet but the EP's have. "We dance" & "We Sing". I feel like its his best stuff yet. Lyrically and Musically. See for yourself HERE.

On the advice of Mississippi Candice & a few others I did get the new Jack Johnson "Sleeping through the Static" and I love it too.

So Lizzy/Jessidesign/Hays... someone needs to burn me some Shins Cd's! I think I like them!

Ralphie decided to go and create some drama. Its my Birthday right? My "Golden Year" and Ralphie decided to bring in the bang. Earlier today, we ( the grizas) were all outside and Erikface says to me " you know what, we should all lay in the sun for a bit b/c a suntan is good for FAT" (yes, i know he said that, he is known for his honest statements)
Anyway, I said totally. B.R. always says "Tan fat is better than white fat" (gah I miss Bobby Ray) ! So all 4 of us are on the deck sitting and sunning. I look over at E and say " look at Ralphie. (our prince first born) his perfect posture and that odd way that he is sitting. Isn't it weird/funny? Why is he sitting in the doorway?!" E says " Snubs you know how he is!"
Well 30 mins later my prince first born jumps into my lap and he is sticking to my pants. I pick up his foot to see why and he is COVERED in sap. Turns out that door frame and odd position had him sitting perfectly in the PINE door frame which oozes sap in the heat. His entire under carriage was covered in sap... privates and all.
Complete disaster I tell you. This was at like 4pm and we were supposed to have dinner at 6 and I had not showered yet. I spent the following 2 hours first trying to cut the sap out of what little furs he had grown back from his UGLY haircut he had recently. Most of the sap was stuck to his skin, which was impossible to remove. After that 45 mins we were both covered in sap.
I then tried to get the "goof off" which is basically paint thinner and put that on there to remove the tar but the smell is SO LOUD and I couldn't get him to understand the concept of "breathe through your mouth" so that was a disaster as well and we both had a headache from the smell and were covered in sap. Right about then is when I started to cry. Its supposed to be my birthday and I am about maxed out with the stress of him covered in sap (painfully) the dread of turning 29, the gut hanging over my oh so cute "skinny jeans" . I cant imagine having a human child who is in pain and not being able to help them.
Anyway below you can see pics of his sap.. its in the most sensitive areas you can imagine. His tail is basically glued down to his Hiney.

Paw covered. Check
Privates. check.
Embarrassed patient who doesn't understand the need for the camera. Check.
( I tried to tell him that in order to Justify this drama on my BIRTHDAY, "GOLDEN YEAR" it would have to be blogged. He didn't think that was funny at all)

We are watching Idol tonight with the Grouts. On time for a change. I like the 2 song drama. Erik wants to know what the AC is all about on David Cook.. he cant let it go. Jennifer and I both want David to win and the boys hate him!
Brooke.. gag me. Puh-lease. Seriously. She is too sassy and too over confident, and a terrible dresser. Yikes. I know that Matt, Scott & millie know my love of EVITA from our Lyrical nights but last week when Brooke butchered my Evita song.. I was like OH GOD! Please send her home already!
Seyesha, who I have never really loved, I started pulling for her last week. She does great with musicals and I have started liking her a lot more in the last 2 weeks.
You know what REALLY irks me though? That these kids DONT know these classic songs. How can you claim to love music and not KNOW classic songs like Niel Diamond or Musical Soundtracks or Dolly Pardon? It's unbelieveable to me that they dont know these songs so no wonder they cant sing them with conviction...
So one BIG plus for American Idol is that all the young kids watching are hearing all these older songs. I cant imagine a generation who only knows Britney Spears by heart. UGH
It was kinda hilarious when Paula starting judging that dude for 2 songs when he had only sung once though.. wonder what kind of drug regime she is on?
Anyway who do you guys think is going home? I am sure its Seyesha but I wish it were Brooke!

This one really cracked me up! From the guy that sold us our car!




Thanks to EVERYONE who remembered and sent well wishes! So sweet of you guys!
I got E-Cards from Caro Pauley, Lisa, Juliel, Marshall Lewis &John Brandt!
Emails from Mom & Dad, Sara Ussery, Brooke, Jessica Stuckey, Rachel, BD, Maggi, Grum, Lu, Julie Bray, Heather, Julie G, Rebecca Kelton,Marty, Jasmine, Alan Pulfrey,Millie, PKN, Jennifer Graham, Gmoney,Celeste, Hotdog, Marti
Phone calls from Mom & Dad, Deborah, Matt, Scott,PaPa, The Chapmans, & Linzy,
Texts from Tonya, Sarah, Marshall, my bro, Courtney, Deblasio,
Some licks from Ralphie
Real Cards from Lori Wasden Walker!,
A Blog Post on Mississippi Cadice


We finished the night off with dinner and margaritas at Rosepepper. Wooten, Grum & Lisa, CoCo, The Grouts and I.
It was super fun. Thanks to everyone for being so thouughtful!

Not much to report here lately. Kind of dull. I did make a pact with myself this week though to NOT EAT OUT, at all ( so we can save money for Italy) and to not drink anything besides water or coffee so I can shed this gut that looks scarily like a 3 month pregnancy. YIKES.
So far so good, until now. That is right, I made it all the way through ONE day before getting weak. I want to snack on something and drink a Sprite... DESPERATELY. When did I ever become such a soft drink drinker? This is all Erik's fault!
It is not helping me win this battle with my gut, that in the background is VERY loud guitar hero wars between Bro and my sickly,SO SICK ,husband. SO between that and the new "diet" I would like to bang my head into a wall at this moment.
Top all of that off with the fact that tomorrow I turn 29
Twenty Nine on the Twenty Ninth. Neat.

Tooooo sick to move, fetch their own cokes, take out the trash, walk dogs, pick up after themselves... or basically anything.... there is always guitar hero with bro to ease the pain and suffering.

because when i left the room to go to my office and work that sickly husband was on the couch moaning about his sickness (complete with convulsing and hallucinations)and lack of energy and was completely helpless.. but an hour or so later when I snuck around the corner with my camera.... this is what I found. Guitar Hero. Its a miracle healer I tell ya.

Now the Furniture is here so it will be more like a den than a dining room. Completely messy in there. We have Philip Johnson's wedding in Arkansas this weekend and after that I shall focus on making something neat and pretty in this room... starting with another bold paint color!

Just some numbers, incase you are interested....

3,073 Visits this month
16% of them are new visitors
660 Unique Visitors (thats 130 more than last month)

Top Visitors by State:
Alabama 1319
Tennessee 445
Georgia 192
New York 178
Florida 151
Unknown (maybe this is BC) 85
Texas 57
N Carolina 53
California 51
Oregon 25
(so Texas has moved up, Oregon has moved down and WHERE praytell is Missouri?)


The Grizas are strugglin in the Midwest! We have ZERO readers in the Dakotas, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Kansas and New Mexico! Yikes!

Oddly enough Monday and Tuesdays are the most read days! Saturday and Sundays are the lowest read days!

and for some UNKNOWN reason April 1st was really popular and had 314 hits! that may be a record! Wonder what was so interesting?

Thanks to everyone for all the hits and new subsciptions

The ice cream truck guy just drove by playing his little music. I wonder if he is American though b/c the songs he played were "We wish you a Merry Christmas" & " Deck the Halls" HA
weirdo

My parents were up for a visit this weekend and as usual there was not a dull moment! We spent Friday afternoon unloading the LAST of our furniture (thanks mom and dad for delivering that!) then we went to the Flea Market for a sneak preview and dinner at Rosepepper! Then home to weed our flowerbeds. I have blisters on 2 fingers but my mom is ready for more!
Saturday, we started out early. Lets just say that when I awoke before 8am (on a dang SATURDAY!) they were already up, showered, dressed and had cooked breakfast! Now that's impressive. I worked in my office for a bit and mom and dad finished planting lots of pretty flowers in our side flowerbed. Pictures of that to come. Then we went to the Flea Market for round 2! They love it there as much as I do! Dad gave me a Benjamin for Birthday fun (super cool), then it was off to Opry Mills where I got snugs some new running shoes and then home again for more yard work. We polished that off with dinner at Batterd N Fried with The Hindman's !
So if you don't live here you don't know that we did some MAJAH (thanks LCD) driving this weekend
Below are my Flea Market Trinkets:
Breathe Right Strips (ha)
Handmade Vegetable Soap
Tiebacks for the Living room curtains

Tiebacks close up
Coasters made of neat stones in oranges for the Living room.
Vegetables. We got beans, okra, tomatoes, potatoes & onions too!
wind chime! I have been wanting one forever. Its like an unspoken initiation to this neighborhood. "Must have 20 colorful windchimes to be in the In crowd"
I also got an old LV bag for $10! Some more old bottles for our bottle tree and antique door hardware. Good times. Now I am T.I.R.E.D!!

Lately, I have been in fear for my online stores, and whether or not it could make it through the summer because I am having a hard time finding things that will sell in this market. I had to downgrade some of the designers I carry and opt more toward a trendy cheaper inventory this time around, which is not as fun to buy I must admit.
We made MANY stops while in and around Atlanta and now my shelves are once again full. Hudson & J.Brand Jeans, J.Crew, Juicy Couture, Kitson L.A., Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters, Ann Taylor Loft, Merrell etc. I will spend the next week working like mad to try and get all this stuff listed.
Deborah and did a killer inventory spreadsheet online! Hooray right?! ha
I would also like to take this time to remind everyone that I actually do have a job and work. I get a little annoyed when people act as though, my job doesn't count or I can just go and do whatever whenever. If I did that I would never make any money! Being your own boss is cool, but it comes with a TON of work since there is no marketing department, IT department, accounting department, .. etc. All there is, is ME and when ME is not working, work is not getting done and I get further and further behind every day that is missed.
What I really wish is that Susannah or Juliel were here to help me with my recent load! I need an inventory counter and hanger (susannah is really good at that and Free HA)
Anyway, Hope everyone has a great weekend!
Holla!

Last Night, was a pretty awesome concert by Jason Mraz at the Variety Playhouse in ATL. He had several other people performing alongside, and in between his songs like Bushwalla, Justin CRedible, and The MakePeace Brothers. All of which were highly entertaining and really good.


Next to the theatre was a little greek restaurant with yummy food an cool patio area to chill in and we hung there before the show till some dude came running in there telling us that Mraz and his crew were all out on the sidewalk performing for the people lined up waiting to go in. I thought that was really neat of them to do. So I got Erik to take my picture with Toca (Mraz's bongo player)


Here is a video of Buswalla. QUITE the entertainer. Hays I thikn you would love him. He wears 70's gear, always and has kind of a fro with a 70's mustache. He is really goofy and funny but he can also sing and rap and his songs are pretty funny. He has one about being a gangsta on his bicycle.

There are rumors everywhere (some you can read here) implying that the NEW iphone will be out late June.
A few things in June of note: The Apple World Wide Developers Conference (great time to debut a new iphone ) & the big tax refund.
The New iphone is rumored to have greater memory, 3G speed and GPS, thinner housing, and prettier packaging. Maybe even a 32Gig model! HOORAY
Although I haven't read this anywhere, I am hoping/predicting that the new Iphone will have a removable battery. IMO- that is the biggest design flaw with this current model. Since June marks the launching of their big Microsoft Exchange compatibility, and delve into the corporate world they will need a battery that can hang. We shall see how that is addressed if it is addressed at all.


The other new thing is the Nike/Ipod combo that has been around for a few years now is gonna finally be compatible with all ipod models, not just the nano. Basically it a trinket and a plug in. The trinket goes in your shoe (you must calibrate it) then the plug in goes into whatever model Ipod/iphone you have. IT then measures your distance , calories burned and things of that nature. You can take your plug in out of the ipod and (the new one will be of a USB nature) so you can plug it straight into your computer like a flash drive and transfer your data to your nike page. This is great for people training for marathons or in any sort of competition or contest amongst friends and coworkers.
The new one launches May 1st for around $60. I really hope they make some cuter shoes so my snubs can get a pair. He loves (for unknown reasons) to run! He has been running like 3 or 4 miles a day and always listens to his iphone while doing so, and this contraption would prevent him from havingf to drive around in his car to measure his distance after running!

So, this morning we left Susannah and "Present's" house and headed all over the ATL on errands. Then we went to Emily & Kevin's house to finally see Miss Kirkland! It was a fun afternoon where Emily pretended that I was into marathon walks with a stroller and I ended up limping with a big blister on my toe! ha But seriously we walked like 2 miles with Belle (the dogchild) and Kirkland (the human child) in tow. It was fun and afterward Erik left for a Braves Game with Lu and Steve (lu's brother). I stayed at Emily' s and we got all caught up. It was a great time where she told me all about what it's like to be a mom and stuff. Her baby is a very good and smiley baby. Erik is kind of in love with her! Knowing us though, we wont have that sweet smiley baby. We will have the sassy, "you're not the boss of me" baby who screams to watch Star Wars from the crib. HA
In all seriousness though, Emily and I talked about how our master plan is to get us all together (us girls from college) and live like " Big Love" on a big plot of land with all our families (minus the polygamy) and I think it would be so fabulous!
Being around Susannah so much lately makes me want to cry when I leave her! and seeing Emily like that for the first time in months, makes me miss my girls so much! We are an interesting bunch, us 5 girls from the AU. All first borns and all children with parents who are still married. Unique friendships, sealed in time, that I am not sure I could live without! This trip, has been particularly surreal because I still feel like I will ....any minute now, walk across that hallway in the dorm, plop into a big green papazon chair to watch Young and the Restless while begging one of them to drive me to class. Instead, I am sittin in their completely furnished grown up living rooms, holding their children.. wondering.. when did this happen? When did we all just grow up?
To bring this all full circle, my sister in law Juliel, is in NYC right now, with our other college Girlfriend Brooke having cocktails at the "Pourhouse" where all the "Real Housewives of NYC" where having dinner. I absolutely love that my sis is spending time with one of my college BFF's.
Below I am, holding Emily's daughter Kirkland, who true to her momma is a happy go lucky, always smiling baby. you can just kind of take her anywhere b/c she is so easy going. She did NOT however, like Erik very much.First kid, in all of America who didnt like him. But the KiKi loved her crazy Auntee Laura!


Erik and I both have had a great time seeing all my girlfriends and staying with their families! Thanks everyone for having us and being so awesome!! Love you!

These are Auntee Susannah's 2 GI-NORMOUS dog children Flash (bloodhound) & Bart (Rhodesian Ridgeback) ha. They LOVED my little doggles. Lots of licking went on here tonight. Jason is currently snapping a dish rag at flash so that he will quit licking floss's under carriage.

We spent this weekend with Stevie (our nephew). It has been months since we had him overnight and so we had a full weekend. He had his first GH experience. He LOVES all video games and this one was no different.
We basically had a marathon Friday night and he fell asleep like this awaiting his turn. Flossie got tired of waiting for her turn as well. :)
Then Saturday we did a little shopping for Summer Clothes and got a haircut. He had some Erik hair when he arrived and we got it shaped up a bit. Funny thing is, since Erik and I both get our haircut from Matt, I hadn't tried any places around here.... till Saturday. The first place we went in had tinted windows, so I didn't know at the time, they don't do white boys hair. I think everyone in there busted out laughing when we walked in! But they were super nice and directed us to a barber shop next door, which we promptly left because I could that guy was ready to break out the sheers and we wanted a more cultivated style than that. Long searching led us to the mall. There was a guy in there who could speak no English but was trying to convey what kind of haircut he wanted.. quite entertaining.

Cool new haircut was a success. It was strange how much I had forgotten about Stevie since seeing him last, and one of those things was his memory. He remembers EVERYTHING about the Grahams, which is really sweet, and really hard for me to hear. I spend 90% of my days trying to not think about things that make me sad. Hearing him describe things they did together is even more hard than normal thoughts because when he tells those stories you can hear how they loved him and its pretty touching, and a vivid reminder of how much we have lost.
We totally ran into Uncle Louie & Andrea in the mall too and had a good visit with them. Then Sunday we finished up our weekend with a Preds Playoff game, which sadly we lost.

Today, The Grizas are off on an Atlanta road trip to see Susannah & Present, Emily, Kevin & Kirkland, and Luball! No worries though! We will blog from the road!

The best part of these shennanigans is me in the background in that STELLAR outfit jammin out to Guitar hero! ha

I painted this rough draft copy last night (of the Nashville skyline) and I think I am gonna attempt a HUGE version to go over the fireplace. I will post pics of that later

Julie took this pic of her TV in NYC and saw Uncle Robba (who unfortunately is a Detroit Fan)... This is KK's uncle..

So last night, I was up late working. I went to bed around 2am and was very unhappily awoken with Ralphie going ABSOLUTELY nuts. He was acting as if someone was in the house.. that kind of barking/growling. Ralphie is like the MOST FIERCE protector you have ever met. He even protects me from Erik! ha so It scared me so bad I couldnt get back to sleep for hours. This morning when Erik comes home he tells me there was an earthquake! That was why Ralphie was so upset! He didn't know what the heckle was going on. I can tell you he did.not.like.it.
So I have no idea what it felt like b/c I was asleep when it started and scared for my life when I woke up to the barkingness.
Here it is in the news if you wanna read
Ralphie is currently catching up on his beauty rest right now (even though he INSISTED that I not sleep in this morning)... little jerkdog!

How many times have you gone yo order Koozies for parties, tailgates, weddings etc only to be met with a serious "miminum order" requirement? Totally uncool!
So Andrea has found the solution. She said THESE PEEPS dont have a minimum AND they are quick to respond and friendly.
Next time you are in need, check em out!
Maybe I will order some for thegrizasonline.com....
But what would the pic be of? hmmm

Did anyone read about that girl from Yale and her disgusting "Art " project on perez or elsewhere? I never stop being amazed at the STUPIDITY of some people, but this girl... she gets like the award for 2008. I cant talk about the details as I think what she did is disgusting and immoral, but I would love to hear what other people have to say about it.
From the pics I have seen, she should have spent more time working on her outfits and brushing all that nappy hair rather than doing her bodily experiments.
I totally agree with this guy , that she is full of it and has NO idea what she is talking about. She looks like a hot tranny mess.

Recently, I was telling Julie/Grum/Erik about how I am left out as one of the few family members with no special initials behind my name. They are all RN's , Lisa has a teacher something behind her name, my dad has lots of insurance ones... Granpa, louie, Jennifer... They all have them! just me with a plain name...
SO Julie made me up some new initials :

Laura C. Graham, EBM, iPG (i-Product Guru)
(the EBM is Ebay Master) ha

So from here on out, you guys make sure to put those on the back of my name whenever you write it ...LG/EBM/iPG
LOL
Just kiddin

Just kiddin but this dude is a total Spencer Look alike. Hard to capture in a picture.

We got an email today announcing a new addition to the 08 Bonnaroo Lineup ***WideSpread Panic***.
So Les/Trish does that mean you guys are coming now or WHAT? Erik feels sure that you will and that you will have an RV connection for us !
Speaking of... I have seen 2 in our hood this week and I am contemplating asking them if we can rent one! ha

Perfect Wallpaper for the Play Offs!

Today was our 1st EVER trip to a dogpark, because dummy that I am, I never knew "Dogpark = fenced in area where you go leash less".. ha so once I realized this, I was all about it. My doggles have LOTS of energy and LOVE to race so off we went. Right when you get there all the other dogs come to greet you. This really scared Ralphie, while Flossie flirted with every boy around. They made some small friends immediately. See Below (lots of but sniffing )

Watch this video for 9 secs and see the FASTEST dogs on the planet!

Because generally, when a box shows up on our porch, I know exactly what it is and can't wait to rip it open... so today when I saw the UPS man.... I thought oh for sure its for me... but the box was so big I was confused.... and so the doggles and I ripped it right open... and GUESS what was inside...????

Now, I would like to take a minute to Thank Susannah for the pain in my wrists and fingertips right now, as I can barely pull myself away, I am pretty sure I have sprained something. Erik and I are like children in here fighting over the guitar for our turns. He can BARELY stand to watch me play b/c I am so terrible (but getting better!) His character looks like Jimi Hendrix and plays a lot of pearl jam!



Complete with hair swish :) But seriously, I am like the biggest Video Game Hater out there and, just now, I get why people are addicted to video games. You cant walk away not winning so you sit and try and time is FLYING by and its totally fun. ha Hopefully this will be like texting. My fingers were sore forever when I first began texting, but now they are used to it. I need my Guitar fingers and wrist to stop hurting so much .....
5 Stars for Guitar Hero. Sus and Present best be practicing for when we come to ATL next week!