Gratitude Day 7

Today's Thankful Project prompt is a job.
I'm thankful for my old job at Acme Markets. I worked in the bakery department. First only baking products but then I learned how to decorate cakes. And from there I decided to go to school for cooking and taught myself how to decorate cakes using fondant. I now do cakes for my family and friends and hope that one day I will be able to have my own business doing cakes. Making the cakes for my family and friends has also brought my brother and I closer, since he's my assistant in the kitchen while decorating. I could one day see my brother and I on one of those food network cake challenges. So when I look back on my job at Acme I'm thankful that I had that opportunity, without it I might have never discovered my talent and passion for the culinary arts!

Cake I made for my 2nd cousins first birthday.                       This one was for my co-workers wedding

Keep Calm and Eat Cake

Peggy ♥

The Thankful Project

Here it goes I'm going to give this blog a chance.....

To start things off, I asked my cousin Monica to help me by finding a blog challenge that had a daily line up and she found an awesome one. It’s called The Thankful Project from thechasinghappyblog. It started on Nov. 1st so I'm a little behind so this will be a collective gratitude post.

First up is a person. Right away my mom comes to mind. She passed away 4 1/2 years ago. I am super thankful for all the time I got to spend with her. When I was in 8th grade she was diagnosed with cancer and from that point on we were glued together. My mom became my best friend. We did everything together, shopping, dining out, going to the doctor's, or just going to see a movie. Looking back I'm glad that I was able to do all those things and learn so much from her. She taught me how to laugh and love and how to make the best out of  most situations. I will always love and treasure my memories of her. ♥

Me and my mom

Second is a role I've played. This really had me stumped for a long time. Then while looking though my Facebook I saw my pictures of my family and realized that I'm thankful for the role I was able to play and still do of being a sister. I have two younger brothers. The one is two years younger than me and the other is ten years younger. Although we fight, argue and annoy each other every other day, I love being their older sister. I can bug and tease them, but if someone else does it......prepare to meet the wrath of Peggy! I'm thankful that I have them to laugh and play games with.

My brothers and me

The third is a place. The place that I'm thankful is where I visit almost every Friday. It’s my Godmother's (AKA my aunt). I get to leave my house which is usually crazy and chaotic, living with 3 guys, and go to her house and hangout and talk we can do a range of things together from watching TV/movies to making yummy fajitas. It’s like my own weekly vacation.

Me and my aunt

Fourth is an experience. This one was also difficult for me to come up with. I can't really pick one experience but all of my family gatherings over the last few years. My extended is very large. I have 24 cousins and growing. Our parties and gatherings are loud and amazing. As we grow older and get along better we have so much fun. I am thankful that through these experiences I've gotten to know my family better. 

Some of my awesome cousins

Fifth is a talent I have. This one is easy for me. My talent I am most thankful for is that I can cook really well. My cooking has brought my family closer. After my mom died we all had different schedules my two brothers had school. I had school and work, and my dad working. It seemed like we would never have family time together. Then I started making dinner every night we all of us around the table and we became closer and stronger as a family.

 Last year's Thanksgiving Day platter

Finally today's date is a failure. When I was a senior in high school and trying to pick where to go to college, I had no idea what I actually wanted to do or where I wanted to go. But all of my friends and guidance counselors were telling me I should go away and have "the college experience". So I chose to go to Kutztown University. Well I moved in and got settled in my dorm and realized I didn't want to be there. After much consideration I decided to come home. After I did I felt like a big failure having to come home and start school later than everyone I graduated with. But if I didn't come home I would have lost that time with my mom and my family I could never get back. 

Keep Calm and Give Thanks. 

Peggy ♥

Keep calm????

HELLO PEOPLE OF BLOG LAND!!!!!!!

I imagine that's what I would say if this were a concert! Speaking of concerts, I am missing my favorite artist's show right now. That would be Josh Groban. So I'd thought I would share my amazing experience from the last time he was in Philly. 

It all started in March of 2011 when I found out he was coming to Philly in July of that year. I told my brother Greg about it and he bought me the tickets as an early birthday present. (My birthday is in August). Some months later I enter a fan club contest (yup I'm one of those) to win to be the official fan club reporter. Then a few days before the concert I decided to check an email account that I really don't use any more. And to my surprise I had an email from the FOJG fan club saying I wasn't picked for the reporter but I won a meet and greet. At first I thought it was a joke and screamed for my brother to come to the computer. (He thought I was yelling about a spider). We read it and realized it was legit. I was super excited but at the same time thinking what the heck am I gonna say to him. Knowing that he accepts gifts from fans I made 2 shirts. One that I printed a pic of him and wrote "I met Josh Groban" with the date and city and the other a picture of me and saying " I met Peggy Mourer " with the date and city. 

Concert date came and we headed down to the Wells Fargo Center really early. We met up with some of the girls from the fan club and finally got our passes and tickets from will call. While we were waiting we found an open door to the center and could hear Josh doing his sound check. The excitement was killing me. 

We finally made it to the floor and had to wait some more before heading backstage. When it was time we were lead into a hallway where they had set up a black curtain for pictures. They went over some stupid obvious rules like no kissing, licking, or groping of Josh and only one picture and you only get 30 secs with him. By now I was really going to explode. I was trying to calm myself and remember my name. 

He finally came through the curtain. We were the 3rd in line.When it was our time I walked up to him (I think pretty normally) and introduced myself as Peg and my brother as Greg. Josh got a kick out of our names. Then I showed him the shirts and told him he was gonna keep one. At first he was confused which shirt he was gonna keep and which one I wanted him to sign. After about 15 life times seconds we all figured it out. Then Greg asked him to sign our CD to "The Mourers" and the rule guy turned around and told the rest of the line we cant ask for special signings like that but we got it. Next we got our picture taken with him and said our good byes. We shook his hand and I realized he had super soft hands, so I went back for a second shake :) He was super sweet and nice. And super cute in his glasses!

We left the hallway and went to our seats (which thanks to my brother were amazing floor seats) and I almost cried. Once the concert started Josh walks around the crowd and noticed me again. During the concert he joked and interacted with the crowd so much. he even had some fans come and sit up on stage with him and gave them wine or milk for the under age! Then while he was singing his last encore he nodded and pointed to me and my brother, we were the only ones standing up and swaying to his song "You Raise Me Up". 

In all it was the most excited I think I have ever been. We walked around the complex after the concert just taking it all in. So although I didn't get to see him this time I know that nothing could top this experience. 

Keep calm and Listen to Josh Groban

Peggy ♥

What's in a name?

Hello blog world!

Thought I'd start my blog with a little tidbit about myself. In case you didn't get over to my about me page, my name is Peggy. I was named after my grand-mom (my mom's mom). We both go by Peggy but our birth names are Margaret. And all my life I've been asked a question that has made me dislike my name, "How do they get Peggy from Margaret?" So I googled the origin of my name and found that no one really knows. Many believe that it was changed in the middle ages from Margaret to Margie to Marge to Mag to Meg and then to Peg. Apparently during the middle ages it was common to change the "M" to a "P" when using nicknames to distinguish people because there were so many people of the same name. I was a little disappointed with this finding because many years ago, when the Internet went Skaweeerureeweeert and I used AIM, I researched my name and found some article about Peggy coming from Pegasus (which I think is a lot cooler). Now it is nowhere to be found :(

Me and Mommom

But while doing my research I've realized I have had many other nicknames over the years. At my old job they always called me Maggie or Mags. Some people add to Peg and call me Pegster (this came up a lot in high school). My youngest brother couldn't pronounce my name when he was two and called me Poggy. And finally my favorite unofficial nickname is Margie, which my mom used to call me and a few close relatives still do. 

So after my research I've decide my answer to the question will be, that it is an old family name and has been past down for generations and I'm glad to be named after an amazing woman like my grand-mom. Sounds good to me!

Keep Calm and Love Your Name

 Peggy ♥