Are We There Yet?

Hello, neglected blog!

2011-01-15T19:51:00.000-08:00

I've been putting most of my blogging energy into The Geeky Saver lately, but this is a personal thought that really has nothing to do with saving... so I'll share it here. :)

When I was a kid, I used to love playing Super Mario Bros. I would play for hours. But here's the weird part: I would sit within reach of the NES to hit the reset button in the event that that first red mushroom got away from me, if I didn't hit the box right or whatever. Because then on the next box I wouldn't get the fireflower and that, my friends, would be a travesty. So if I missed that perfect start to the game, I would just press reset and start over.

2011 is my reset button with my weight. I know it's a cliché New Year's Resolution time to start, but I truly think (hope) I am ready to make it to the finish line this time. And I know I'm not going to be a perfect little Weight Watcher all year, but at least I can get off to a good start. I've never been as heavy as I am right now, and I don't like it one bit. If I was insecure before, I'm borderline psychotic now. It is truly difficult for me to go to social functions, ESPECIALLY ones that require me to be "dressed up" - because it is so difficult for me to find clothes that fit and don't make me feel self-conscious.

Anyway, that's not really the point. The point is I am really giving it all I've got. And that's not to brag, although it is in the hopes of creating some measure of accountability. It's also to say please don't be offended if I turn down whatever yummy food creation you offer me, or don't give me grief if we go out to eat and I scour the menu for 20 minutes, phone in hand, calculating my points.

This weight issue has gone on long enough. I want to have confidence again like I did when I was within 20 lbs of my goal weight (which is now a good 50+ pounds away). I want to wear some of the really cute clothes that are in my closet that are much too small right now. I want to wear cute boots. Not because I want to stand out, but because I just want to feel like I don't have to hide in the back at functions and pretend not to be bothered when people make fat jokes or poke fun at something I'm eating. I want to go to the gym because of the great feeling I get when I walk out, the cool breeze on my face - not because I HAVE to in order to lose this excess baggage. I just want to feel like myself again.

This could all be quite rambly, I'm sorry for that. All that to say, I just feel like I'm in a good place to DO THIS. To COMPLETE this. Not to get on a roll with losing and get close to my goal and stop. But to get to my goal and keep it there. Or at least within a few pounds of it.

So, that's my post-workout thought for today.

It's not WHERE you shop, it's HOW you shop!

2010-11-30T20:04:00.000-08:00

Okay, so Ralphs may not be the most economical choice for groceries. BUT, it's the closest besides Henry's. And I am enrolled in a loyalty program that we got when we activated our alarm system that gets me a $20 rebate every month as long as I spend $100 there, so I'm kind of married to it at the moment.

Some days, when I shop really carefully, I can make out like a bandit, like I did today!

I got:

6lbs of ground beef for $11.07 ($1.85/lb)

3 boxes of Betty Crocker loaded mashed potatoes for $1.50 (oops, only wanted to get 2, woulda been $0.25 each). Long story.

2 Pillsbury cinnamon rolls
2 Pillsbury crescent rolls
2 Pillsbury French loaves
2 Pillsbury Grands biscuit rolls

1 Betty Crocker chocolate chip cookie mix pouch

1 (pound?) of fresh parmesan cheese

All of the above was $35.01 and I got back $6 in coupons good towards my next purchase, so basically $6 in "Ralphs" money.

So my investment today really only cost me $29.01 and I will get at LEAST 12 meals from the ground beef, 6 meals from the potatoes, and God only knows how many from those Pillsbury packages.

Okay, so I could have gotten ground beef for $1.59/lb at Stater Bros... but like I said, I'm kind of married to Ralphs for now. :P

Happy hunting everyone, be sure to add my new blog to your feed reader or follow it or whatever you do.

What's New

2010-11-29T17:48:00.000-08:00

So, I am mostly using this blog now as a personal outlet and a place to put thoughts that are not quite polished enough for my NEW blog.

The new blog is going to be a source for saving money via coupons and amazing deals, as well as helpful hints for utilizing technology. I am planning to post a mail-merge tutorial on Friday for helping you save time on getting your Christmas cards addressed and mailed. Then the next Friday will probably be an Excel101 tutorial.

I am also going to be posting deals and coupon matchups for Henry's every Tuesday/Wednesday and those will be getting linked up via Money Saving Mom (yay!). Which should help get more traffic over there. :)

For now I'm thinking that Mondays I'll write a "Q&A" type post, assuming that somebody emails me a question. If not, I'll answer general questions which I've been asked in person.

I would greatly appreciate it if you would support me in this new endeavor. It is one way that I hope to contribute to supporting my family. You will find helpful information on my site for saving money, and if you really find a tutorial or something helpful you can always click donate. While you're there, you can grab printable coupons, sign up for Swagbucks, or shop Amazon.com.

Please let me know if you have a suggestion or idea for the new site, it is still very much a "baby" so I'm open to your feedback!

A sneak peak...

2010-11-27T16:06:00.000-08:00

Step into my office...

It's not 100% complete yet, but everything is installed so I can start putting things in their homes. :) This is a sneak peak complete with a handsome model.

What's left?

Repainting the baseboards and window sill
Curtains
Cord management
Figure out a good home for the laptop
Set up sewing space

But still, what is done is really working for me. SO excited to get this room done!

Lesson Learned!

2010-11-15T14:06:00.000-08:00

DOH! I was all set today to shop this deal from Passionate Penny Pincher. I gathered my coupons this morning in a frenzy while Isaac was freshly awake (read: happily playing by himself). What I didn't think to check were my expiration dates! My binder and organization system has been feeling a little neglected with the office remodel this past week. :( I left my binder at HOME, shambles that it is, and went to Rite Aid without it.

BIG MISTAKE!

If I'd had it with me I'm sure I had other diaper coupons that would have worked to help bring the out of pocket cost on this deal down. Oh well, I'll chalk it up to a lesson learned. And I'll be cutting and organizing my coupons again SOON.

Anyway, it's still not bad considering what I got:

1 Jumbo pack of Huggies Pure and Natural Diapers (size 4)
1 Jumbo pack of Huggies Snug & Dry Diapers (size 3)
2 boxes of Betty Crocker Potatoes
Colgate Total Advanced Whitening Toothpaste
Colgate 360 Toothbrush
4-pack of Colgate Wisps
Gain Dishsoap
Dayquil (12 Liquigels)
Nyquil (12 Liquigels)

After my coupons, $2 in UP rewards from last week's shopping, and $3 I had left on a Rite Aid gift card, I spent $17.93, including tax. That's my "out of pocket" total.

I got $11 back in UP rewards.

So my actual "cost" for all the stuff listed above is $6.93. It gets a little convoluted.

In January I'll be starting a coupon clipping/swapping club. We can sit and clip and trade coupons together and help one another put together deals based on what we each need. Let me know via comment if that is something you would be interested in and I'll contact you with details as they become clearer. :) We can even share stories of times we made mistakes and learned from them (such as leaving our binders at home). ;)

I get by with a little help from my friends

2010-11-15T13:33:00.000-08:00

Hi. I'm just putting this out there on the principle of "you have not because you ask not" and I figure if anyone of my friends out there was considering opening an account with ING if you did this it would help me out:

Isaac rolling and raspberry-ing on his arm

2010-10-25T15:17:00.000-07:00

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.3

$1.58 at Office Depot

2010-10-21T21:45:00.001-07:00

So tonight at Office Depot I got 2 reams of paper, a pair of scissors, highlighters, a tape dispenser, 12 pens, dividers, baseball card pages (for my coupon binder), and Post It labels for $13.56. I will get $11.98 back in prepaid Visa gift cards, making my total $1.58 for all of that.

I am so excited about learning how to do this.

Also, I am trying to come up with a clever name for my new saving blog. Any suggestions? I'll be starting it soon and posting sale/coupon info there as well as posts like this one.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.3

Today's Rite Aid Trip - $7.96

2010-10-18T23:08:00.000-07:00

Trip #1
Huggies Snug & Dry Diapers - Size 3
$3/1 Huggies Snug & Dry Diapers
Received $4 in UPR

Maybelline XXL Mascara
$2/1 from Maybelline's Facebook Page

Maybelline Eyestudeo Trio
$2/1 manufacturer coupon (from 9/12/10 RP insert)
and $2/1 Rite Aid Video Values
B1G1 50% off, should have also received $4 in UPR... grr! this isn't working for a lot of people, apparently.

Used $5/$25 found here
and $1/any purchase Rite Aid Video Values

Trip #1 OOP total $16.15 after using $3 in UPR from last week (so for a newbie it would be $19.15)

Trip #2
Bee MD Cough Drops – $2.49
Get $2.49 SCR
Submit $1 Mail In Rebate
Free after rebate plus overage

Childrens Oscillococcinum $4.99 (say that four times fast)
Get $4.99 SCR
use $2.00/1 printable coupon
Free + overage after rebate

SimplySaline $3.99
Get $3.99 SCR
use $1.00 printable coupon
Free + overage after rebate and coupon

Simply Saline Children’s $3.99
Get $3.99 SCR
use $1.00/1 printable coupon
Free + overage after rebate and coupon
Plus $1 in UPR

Kleenex x3 1.59
$0.50/3 Kleenex Facial Tissue 10/3/2010 SS Insert (exp 11/28/2010)
$1/3 Kleenex Facial Tissue Rite Aid Video Values

Ban Deodorant - 3.49, B1G1 Free
(2) $0.75/1 Ban Deodorant or Antiperspirant 10/10/2010 SS Insert (exp 12/4/2010)

Used $5/$25 found here
and $1/any purchase Rite Aid Video Values

Trip #2 OOP total $9.27 after using $4 in UPR from Trip #1

Total OOP: $25.42
Total coming back in rebates: $17.46
Net spent: $7.96

Which, if you look at that just in terms of diapers, it's .08 cents per diaper. But I prefer to think I bought two sticks of deodorant and some kleenex and got everything else for free. :P

This would have been a moneymaker if I could have gotten the following items:
Therma Care $2.99
Get $2.99 SCR
use $1.00/1 printable coupon
Free + overage after rebate & coupon

Bioron Children’s Cough Syrup $4.99
Get $4.99 SCR
*keep an eye out for $1.00 peelies on the product
Free after rebate

And my $4 in UPR from the Maybelline products, of course. Then I would have spent around $15 total and gotten around $21 back, so $6 in overage. That's what you get for not going earlier in the sale, I guess. Now I know that West Coast Rite Aids sales start on Friday.

Still, not a bad amount to pay. It just would have been more fun to say I made $6 buying all of that.

Thanks, For The Mommas, for listing these deals every week!

Rite Aid Deal Scenario

2010-10-10T17:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, so this is going to be my first week as a fledgling deal-finder! :)

My main concern right now is saving money on DIAPERS. I told some friends last night I basically refuse to pay more than 11 cents per diaper, which is a pretty challenging task.

Now, you'll notice that this scenario actually includes a few things that AREN'T diapers, but that's because sometimes buying things you don't need or want helps you to get better deals on the things you do need when couponing to save big-time.

Single check rebate: 55.88
Mail-in rebate: 5.99
Up Rewards (unused): 3.00
Total Rebates/Rewards: 64.87

Total spent both trips: 107.31

Minus Rebates/Rewards of 64.87, I will have only spent $45.44!!!

What did I get?

Trip #1 - $47.99 out of pocket
Gain detergent (1 of 2)
$1/1 Gain Detergent, exp. 11-30-10 (P&G 10/10/10)

Gain detergent (2 of 2)
$1/1 Gain Detergent, exp. 10-31-10 (RP 09/12/10) Plus $2 in UPR wyb 2

Gain Dish detergent
$1/1 Gain Dish Liquid, exp. 11-30-10 (P&G 10/10/10)

Kit Kat/Reeses (1 of 2)
$1/1 Kit Kat or Reese Snack Size Candy RA printable

Kit Kat/Reeses (2 of 2)
Plus $1 UPR wyb 2

Dayquil
$1.50/1 Vicks Product, exp. 11-30-10 (P&G 10/10/10) Plus $1.50 in UPR

Garnier Facewash
$2/1 Garnier Ultra Lift Cleanser or Moisturizer printable and BOGO 50% Off

Garnier Anti-Dark-Circle Eye Roller
$2/1 Garnier Skin Renew Anti-Dark-Circle Eye Roller printable

Playtex (1 of 2)
$1/1 Playtex Gentle Glide Tampons printable

Playtex (2 of 2)
$1/1 Playtex Gentle Glide Tampons printable
Plus $2 UPR wyb 2

Luvs
$2 in UPR

Cotonelle Flushable Wipes
Free Tub

Rite Aid $5 off $25
$5/$25 Rite Aid Non-Prescription Purchase RA printable

Trip #2 - $59.32 out of pocket
Huggies Diapers
$2.50/1 Huggies Pure & Natural Diapers printable

Renuzit
B3G3 Renuzit Adjustables Air Fresheners, exp. 10-24-10 (RP 10/10/10) Plus $1 in UPR wyb 3

NeilMed NasoGel
and
FREE with SCR

NasaMist

FREE with SCR

PediaCare
$1/1 coupon from the 10/10 SmartSource insert
FREE with SCR

Blistex
FREE with SCR

Palmers Cocoa Butter Lip Butter
FREE with SCR

Sucrets
FREE with SCR

Antiox
FREE with SCR

NeilMed
FREE with SCR

Comtrex
FREE with SCR

Emergen-C Immune Shots
FREE with SCR

PediaCare Gentle Vapors
FREE with SCR

Kids-Eeze
FREE with SCR

Playtex (1 of 2)
$2/1 Playtex Gentle Glide Tampons printable

Playtex (2 of 2)
$1.50/1 Playtex Gentle Glide Tampons printable and $1/1 Playtex Gentle Glide Tampons printable Plus $2 in UPR wyb 2

Use UPR from Trip #1 for: 11.50 off of total

Rite Aid $4 off $20
$4/$20 Rite Aid Non-Prescription Purchase RA printable

Today's out of pocket cost was a little high... but keep in mind all that stuff that is going to be FREE once I get my rebates. And I have $3 left in Rite Aid money that just has to be used by the end of the month.

And a bottle of water... cause all that shopping and saving made me thirsty! :P

Here's what it all looks like:

I cannot believe how much stuff I got for that $46. Even if you just divide that out over the stuff I will actually keep and use in my own family, it's a great bargain! And what I don't need or can't use yet, I will donate to someone else who needs it or Mercy House. :)

Man, what a rush! It was so worth all of the clipping and organizing and calculating. And the more I think about it the more certain I am I can do better next time on my OOP (out of pocket) costs. But hey, not bad for a total rookie!

God provides

2010-09-24T09:02:00.000-07:00

Sometimes God provides in creative and unexpected ways. Like a free case of bottled water with your office supply order for work. Or a good customer service rep to take care of an insurance claim that you were worried about. Or a traffic-free freeway and a parking space when you're cutting it close to make a movie that you already bought tix for (and that won't let you in if you're late). Or a free glider from a friend.

So many tiny little miracles that some might call coincidence or luck. I know they're winks from one who loves me and loves to provide for me and my family.

Woo-hoo!

2009-11-12T23:03:00.000-08:00

So lately I've been loving finding all these little ways to make / save money.

And here is one I think anyone could love.

You can actually make (a teeny-tiny little bit of) money through this site called BeRuby.

!!! Just for going to your gmail, Google maps, twitter, facebook, etc through links on their page.

Here's a link to an article on it from a blog called Money Saving Methods.

Man! I'm so excited about this. If you want to sign up and have me earn a $1 for you signing up, let me know and let me know which email address to send your invite to. Of course, you can sign up on your own but I don't get a buck from BeRuby if you do it that way. :P

Baby blog

2009-10-20T07:35:00.001-07:00

Sorry for neglecting you, blog...

For anyone who is interested, I just wanted to put out there that I do have a baby blog over at babycaloca.blogspot.com.

:)

Difficulty

2009-09-21T12:51:00.000-07:00

There is so much to be joyful about. There is so much to be sad about.

I have friends who don't have jobs. I have friends who really want kids, but aren't even married yet. I have friends who really want kids, but can't get pregnant and adoption is ridiculously hard and takes so much time. Not that it's impossible, but it's challenging. I have friends who desperately need to get out of rent or house payments that are too high. I have friends whose marriages are crumbling to pieces.

Yet here I sit, feeling taken care of. I'm pregnant. Finally. Aaron still has a job. I have a job that I love. We have a cute dog. We have a house in the city that we want to live in. We love each other. I have so many friends that it is hard to see all of them as much as I'd like. I have so many people who support and love me it's borderline ridiculous.

I won't say it's perfect. We have a lot more debt than we would like and can never seem to dig our way out of it completely. But we pay the bills, thankfully.

And my heart still hurts. My heart hurts for my friends who are lonely. For my friends who feel as though they're not doing anything with their lives of value. For my friends who can't get pregnant. For my friends who must have only met blind and mentally inept members of the opposite sex because there is no reason why any of them should still be single.

Not that I'm feeling sorry for them, because I don't think any of them would want that. It just breaks my heart. I wish that there were some cut and dry "thing" that each of them could have that would bring them joy and peace. For those that have faith, maybe it's the answer to one of their "big" prayers. For those that don't, maybe it's a little faith that things could get better. Maybe it's a little bit of hope.

I am a problem-solver at heart. So maybe that's why I dwell on the problems in life. I think I get the concept of the best of times and worst of times. Especially lately, I have been experiencing some personal "best of times." But they are simultaneously the "worst of times" when I have friends who feel as though they're outside looking in. I don't know how many times I've prayed for so many of them to have __________ (the thing it seems they need most).

Ugh. Ramble, ramble, ramble.

If you are my friend, I wish you well. I pray for you to have peace, to experience joy in spite of difficulty and sadness. I hope that in some small way, you feel that today. And that what little bit of good you are able to find in each day is enough to get you through one more day without falling apart.

And if you need to go see a movie, or get a smoothie, or just do something fun, I'm here.

For Maggi

2009-09-09T11:48:00.000-07:00

:) I think it's a good hopeful image.

2 Years in the Making

2009-08-26T15:09:00.000-07:00

You may or may not have noticed my attempt at artfully and creatively dodging pregnant people, babies, and questions about pregnancy or babies over the last 2 years.

Aaron and I decided in August of 2007 that it was time to start a family.

But God had other plans.

We had always had some reasons for thinking that we might have issues when it came to having kids, but we had faith that it would be okay.

And then it wasn't. We didn't get pregnant. Again. And again. And again. I got progressively more depressed about it. It became harder and harder to watch our other friends have children and wonder if we ever would be able to or if we would have to try every fertility treatment available only to end up empty-armed.

We kept putting off going for testing, thinking maybe this month it will be different. That times 27 months gets tiring. Meanwhile, I'm getting outright depressed over the circumstances. One of my closest friends has had 2 children in the time we've been trying (yes, they are close in age). And pretty much everyone in our Bible study has kids or foreseeably soon will.

So, we got an appointment for a consultation with a specialist at a reproductive health center. I was a nervous wreck going into it, it felt like we were about to jump onto the scariest (and most expensive) roller coaster imaginable. After waiting for our appointment for nearly an hour, we left that appointment yesterday feeling no more assured of any possibilities than we did when we walked in. We left feeling vulnerable, frustrated, and with no more answers than we already knew.

But then something occurred to me.

The doctor was asking me about the date of my last cycle, and I couldn't remember. Partly out of frustration.

As we were driving home I decided to count back and try to figure out when I should be expecting my reminder that I was not pregnant.

Wait, is that right? Am I really a day or two or three late?

No.

Scroll through and find a chat I remembered about my previous cycle.

Really? I'm late. Okay, I've thought I was "late" before and taken a test only to see a big fat negative result. I mention to Aaron that I *think* I'm late and wouldn't that be funny if this time we really were pregnant.

He wanted me to go buy a test and wait to take it until he got home from back to school night. Once he got home, I vaguely remember moving quite quickly to rip open the box and take the test.

What happened next was completely unexpected.

I swear the time waiting for a pregnancy test to turn is the longest 3 minutes you will ever experience. And I've heard they turn faster when they are positive. But when I saw the little "Pregnant" on the screen without the "Not" in front of it, I think I lost my mind. I called Aaron (well, screamed for Aaron to come in, in a crying weird sort of overwhelmed scream), and showed him the good news. I was in absolute shock. Pregnant. We are pregnant.

No more infertility and insurance run around, no more scouring the internet for potential causes and treatments.

Just scouring the internet to figure out what my little bean looks like right now.

Yeah... it's been quite the interesting evening / day. I truly have a hard time believing it's real. I swear I have had more placebo symptoms in months when I for sure have not been pregnant. Although I do feel like I have spidey-sense with my nose. I'm smelling every single particle in the air, I swear! :)

I won't lie, I'm still really scared I could have a miscarriage. It sucks to have to live in such fear, but they're really quite common. I absolutely feel that this is a total answer to prayer, and I don't know why God would arrange such extraordinary circumstances only to have it not come to full fruition... but if that does happen, I'm clinging to the idea that at least we know we did get there without any doctor's help, so there is still hope.

But yay! I'm pregnant! And if all goes well, I will be a mommy by Mother's Day! (due date May 4 according to the internet)

weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

See? Two out of two tests agree, I is preggo!!!

Eerily accurate

2009-08-25T20:12:00.000-07:00

Ah, listening to Imogen Heap's new album whilst playing Bejeweled Blitz... and I tune in to these lyrics which just speak my heart right now. It's really a beautiful song, sad, but beautiful. And if my heart could speak right now, I think this is what it would say:

Where do we go from here?
How do we carry on?
I can't get beyond the questions...

Clambering for the scraps,
in the shatter of us collapsed.
Is cuts me with every "could have been"...

Pain on, pain on, play repeating.
With the backup makeshift life in waiting.

Everybody says,
that time heals everything.
But what of the wretched hallow?
The endless in-between?
Are we just going to wait it out...?

There's nothing to see here now,
Turning the sign around.
We're closed to the Earth 'til further notice.
Stumbling cliché case,
Crumpled and puffy faced.
Dead in the stare of a thousand miles.

All I want, only one street-level miracle.
I'll be an out-in-out, born-again from none more cynical.

Everybody says,
that time heals everything.
All in the end.
But what of the wretched hallow?
The endless in-between?
Are we just going to wait it out...?

...and sit here cold?
We'll be long gone by then, and lackluster.
In dust we lay around old magazines.
Fluorescent lighting sets the scene,
For all we could and should be being,
In the one life that we've got...

In the one life that we've got.

Everybody says,
that time heals everything.
But what of the wretched hallow?
The endless in-between?

Are we just going to wait it out?
Sit here cold...
...just going to sweat it out?

Wait it out.

If you wanna take a listen, you can. This song is #2. The whole album is pretty great, though, I recommend it:

Top Ten List: Self-Care

2009-08-19T19:04:00.000-07:00

Ok, so the one suggestion I have received thus far for my blog is to do a "top ten" list.

And since I had a couple of funny realizations tonight, I figured I could give it a try.

Here are my top ten reasons why self-care takes precedence tonight:

10. Because I consistently fail to do this, and hide my laziness under doing things for others.

9. Because Red Vines are 3 points for 4, and I ate 3 before I even bothered to check.

8. Because my husband is gone and I have the house to myself.

7. Because my friend who I was going to hang out with tonight has another friend over.

6. Because I demolished some of my weight loss progress over the past 2 months.

5. Because I got EA Sports Active for the Wii thanks to a great and generous friend.

4. Because of EA Active, I can work out without leaving the house.

3. Because I am not leaving the house, the "dress code" is much more relaxed.

2. Because if I run out of water here, I can get more without begging quarters off of strangers.

1. Because the only one checking me out or judging me is my dog.

Picking up again

2009-08-19T12:32:00.000-07:00

I must admit, some of the encouragement and feedback I got while I was trying to do the Thankful posts daily was great, and is missed.

I might try to pick those up again, even if only to get myself back into the habit of writing every day.

Or I might write about some other stuff, I'm still cooking up some kind of theme to keep me from meandering off into whiny-poor-me-blogland, or today I blew my nose 8 times blogland, or how cute is my dog blogland... you get the idea.

So, all that to say, stay tuned. And if you have a great idea for me, please, hand it over! :)

The girl who cried wolf

2009-07-21T19:02:00.000-07:00

About my calendar post yesterday... here is my weekly life in a nutshell:

Sunday - Church
Monday - Work @ whatever time I want for 4-6 hours
Tuesday - Work 9:30-5:30
Weight Watchers 6:00-6:30
Wednesday - Work 9:30-5:30
Thursday - Work 9:30-5:30
Bible Study 6:45-9:00
Friday - Work 9:30-5:30
Saturday - Randomness

See? It's not that bad, right? I don't know why I feel so busy. The only thing I can think of is that I'm doing so much stuff that I feel like I "have" to do instead of doing the things that I "want" to do. Like I really (honestly) want to do a workshop at Ultimate Improv (or The Space), but the drive out to Westwood (plus the cost) would be brutal. Or I would like to go to the Saturday morning group instead of on Thursday nights, but it seems like there is ALWAYS something on Saturdays that interferes.

Maybe it's the Saturday randomness that's killing me. I just know I want to stop everything and figure out what really matters to me. Currently my weight is burdening me a lot and I just feel like I don't even have the time or energy to do anything about it. I was losing weight at a pretty good rate, but now I've stopped and that is stressing me out as far as fitting into my dress for Alicia's wedding. And money is stressing me out, and I haven't had time to set up Quicken on our new computer to keep an eye on our budget, and honestly I would rather just not spend any unnecessary money until we're out of debt. But there are two of us involved in that decision and maybe we even each other out between the two extremes.

Maybe I need a membership at the Huntington Library or some other serene place.

Maybe it's just a matter of getting a routine and some disciplines down, like workout days and times, breaking down the housework into days, figuring out some simple grocery shopping lists and meal plans to make it a little easier to tackle that beast.

Ugh, I don't know. I just know something's gotta give. And if I just keep treading water in this survival mode, I'll drown. I need a couple weeks on an island (ha, not literally, but I wish), to get my head on straight and to look at the forest instead of running along smacking my face and limbs on the trees.

So yeah, I'm feeling like I "cried wolf" yesterday because I make it sound like I'm oh so busy, but really it's just that things are oh so out of control (to me).

That is all.

Well, not really, but that is all I'll write for now.

Bowing down to the calendar

2009-07-20T12:22:00.000-07:00

I am seriously considering clearing my calendar completely except for work and self-care.

I don't exactly know how to go about it. But I really think I need to. And I'm not sure how anyone in my life will take it. I feel like I'm losing my mind in little ways every day, and I need some sanity.

The things that would absolutely NOT be on the chopping block would be things pertaining to Nick & Alicia's wedding, Lori's birthday, and Aaron's birthday. I think I need to absolutely limit my TV and internet time, and spend more time exercising and journaling and in quiet time with the Lord.

Ideally I would just go into hiding for 6 weeks and emerge a refreshed and stronger and more pleasant to be around version of myself. And slowly and catiously start adding calendar commitments back into the mix.

This sounds crazy upon re-reading, and I'm okay with that. I think people need to know this is honestly where I'm at and maybe it would help them understand if I say, "sorry, I can't go to your ________ (party, shower, luncheon, event, group mtg)." Okay, I'm leaving it at that. Any words of encouragement or wisdom are welcome.

Swagbucks

2009-06-27T21:55:00.000-07:00

Swidget 1.0great free widgetsWidgetbox

I almost have enough for a $5 Amazon gift card after just a few weeks of using this for my searches and utilizing the occasional twitter or blog code. I'm all about expanding my spending horizon, especially when it looks like we might face pay cuts thanks to the California budget mess.

So, if you want to do the same thing, join up using the box above and I'll get a few more "swag bucks" for you trying it out. ;)

Workload

2009-06-26T18:11:00.000-07:00

Sadly, ever since I got my G1, updating this blog has become more of a stressor than it used to be. I was loving writing a post every day about something I was thankful for.

Until it became easier not to spend 45 minutes in front of the computer checking my feeds in the morning before work. Until it became an issue when Aaron and I would both need the computer at the same time. Until... many other factors which interrupted and made writing these posts more of an item on my "to-do" list than something I looked forward to doing.

So, for that reason, I think I'm officially calling it quits. At least for even attempting to give off the impression that I will write something for each day. There are a few precious people I still very much want to write about, so I will still be writing posts along these lines when I can, just not every day. ;)

Anyway, here are some Hawaii pictures for anyone who wants to see.

Maui, part 2

2009-06-16T23:35:00.001-07:00

Saturday was an interesting vacation day. Almost as soon as we got to a beach, Aaron cut his hand on some broken glass. Thankfully, we were also on the same property as the Ritz Carlton and their security guard was fantastically helpful with his little first aid kit and getting it cleaned up for him.

I fought my way through the choppy bay to do some snorkeling, and when I got back in Aaron had just discovered that a friend of his from Cal Poly had passed away. He was worried about how Joe was taking it, and a few other friends since word was just starting to get out. So that cast a bit of a gray hue on the day. My heart goes out to Andrew's friends and family.

We had a reservation for a luau that night, and I'm kind of glad we did. I think it helped us get out of the sadness, which I think we needed.

Sunday morning we went and checked out Hope Chapel in Kihei. I can only describe it as being a cross between Flipside and what I imagine Water of Life to be like. Artsy and casual, yet contemporary and traditional at the same time.

After church, we went down to Makena Landing hoping to find a calm place to snorkel and to see some turtles. No such luck.

So we opted for a scenic drive down along the coast, stopped at Big Beach to watch the crazy body boarders and enjoy a picnic on the soft sand. Eventually Aaron convinced me to be brave and we played chicken with the big waves breaking way too close to shore, and I held my first ever sand crab. Yes, I made it 28.5 years without actually letting one dig down in sand in my hands. And I still let out a little yelp and dropped him when he got too close.

We proceeded to Polo beach, again with snorkeling gear in tow, only to discover more monstrous waves. This time we ventured farther out, but got our fill after being sucked under once or twice (once).

Headed back to Lahaina and got cleaned up to eat the messiest greasiest cheeseburger ever at Cheeseburger in Paradise. It was decidedly awesome. Especially the part about sitting out overlooking the waves breaking as the tide moved in and the onion rings.

Yesterday was the road to Hana. I have never seen so much beauty in my life. Aaron swam under a waterfall (at Upper Waikipu Falls).

Unfortunately, we're now boarding our flight home, so the rest of the recap will follow tomorrow or Thursday.

Aloha

2009-06-13T12:36:00.001-07:00

Hello, neglected blog.

We're in Maui, it's 9am and we're starting to get ready to go find ourselves a beach and do some snorkeling.

Yesterday was our first day. We headed out of Lahaina around 8:30am, and found ourselves stuck in traffic. Eventually, everything came to a dead stop. When we were 4 cars away from the apparent cause of the traffic, some accident involving a rockslide, I think. I'm pretty sure we sat there for a good 30 minutes. But we had a great view and didn't get too upset.

We went to Charley's for breakfast, apparently a favorite of Willie Nelson's (who was on our flight!), and according to guidebooks the best breakfast on the island. It was pretty great.

Then we stopped in at a little gift shop and Aaron got a new conch for teaching Lord of the Flies. We made our way up to check out a couple of the beaches close to Paia, and then headed to Costco for some food supply and made our way over to Safeway for a few more small grocery items. I am so glad we have a kitchen.

We walked around Lahaina and got the best shave ice evar (sic), and then we ate it and watched the tide come in as hundreds of little crabs dodged in and out of their burrows. After we picked up our snorkeling gear for the week, we came back to our room.

For dinner we opted for The Royal Ocean Terrace and got $12 off thanks to our entertainment book. The food was pretty good, too. Nothing spectacular, but good especially for the price. We were able to sit outside and watch the sunset, too.

Today I think we'll head up to Black Rock and some other snorkeling spots up that way. We're going to a Luau tonight, and then I think I'll convince Aaron to get shave ice with me again. :)

The pics are of a beach by Paia, Aaron with his empty shave ice cup and Cheeseburger in Paradise in the background, and our drinks and the view from dinner.

NYC

2009-06-04T19:57:00.000-07:00

I really am curious about the mathematical probability of this happening.

I can tell you that approximately 20,000 students attend Cal Poly Pomona (CPP). If I were being extremely generous, I would say there are 250 in the Theatre program at Cal Poly, either majoring or minoring.

Last year, Aaron and I, both CPP graduates with minors in theatre, planned a trip to NYC with Joe and Nathan, also CPP graduates who majored in theatre. We chose the week of July 27th to August 3rd for our visit.

Sometime in May or June we went to see Nathan complete his senior project at the studio theatre at Cal Poly. While we were there, we saw Carlos and Samantha (also CPP theatre grads). We were making small talk, plans for the summer, etc... and found out they were going to NYC, as well. We asked them what dates. Oddly enough, their trip was planned for July 26th to August 2nd.

Ahem. Weird enough? Now there will be 6 people from the same miniscule department in the same big city at pretty much the same time.

Fast forward. We arrive in NYC as planned, meet up with Carlos and Samantha, as planned, and find out from Carlos that Wahima was getting in the next day. She was actually moving to NYC and had been in Belize for a few weeks spending time with family. What day did she arrive? Oh, yes, July 28th. Are you kidding me?

It gets better.

As we're standing there talking about how crazy it was that Wahima was going to be making her NY debut while we were all there, Joe casually mentioned that he thought Dave and Sio might be there, as well. He wasn't 100% sure, there was a chance they may have been on a plane home when we got there. Yes, Dave is a CPP grad. Sio, his girlfriend, was the only non-CPP person in this story.

Aaron called Dave and left him a message.

The next morning, we get up early to go get Conan tix and we decide to sightsee around Rockefeller center since we're already there. We made our way around and found ourselves in St. Patrick's Cathedral. Well, the guys found themselves inside, I was still outside snapping a bazillion pictures. Aaron came back to get me and was pretty insistent that I come inside.

Apparently, while Joe, Nathan, and Aaron were walking into the cathedral, Nathan turned around to see Dave standing there.

Have you ever been to this cathedral? I mean, it's HUGE. I am fairly certain that the likelihood of 2 people who know each other being in the entryway at almost the exact same time is pretty slim. Not to mention the fact that there are so many other people who we could have run into, but for it to be Dave? Someone we all knew?

Let me insert here that there was also a large group of people who Aaron and I know from Flipside who were in NYC at the same time. We did not once see or cross paths with them.

WEIRD.

Everyone except for Wa met up at a dive bar that night (Monday) to hang out and celebrate the oddity. I think Wa might have come if she felt she could have navigated the public transit well enough. She was pretty far out in the Bronx at the time, so no one really wanted her to risk life and limb to come have a beer. I did get to spend some time with her later in the week, which was great because A., I love her, and B., I needed some time away from those nerd-boys (whom I also love, but who were really geeking out together quite a bit over things I know little or nothing about, ie comic books and video games).

It was a great week. I really do think it was pretty magical how everything worked out. It definitely made it a memorable vacation. That and I absolutely fell head over heels in love with that city and was really wishing I could move out there even if only for a year.

So, that's my "coincidence" story for the day.

The Sound of Music

2009-06-03T22:12:00.000-07:00

I've got this thing with music.

I might be crazy, but sometimes I swear the universe points me in the right direction through song.

For instance, when Aaron and I first started dating, we would talk a lot about the Beatles. Not so much because either of us loved them so much, but we would introduce one another to different songs that we did really enjoy. It got to the point where every time we would part for the day, the Beatles would be on the radio in the car. Sometimes, 3 songs in a row - on different stations.

So tonight Aaron was being silly and started humming a little piece of The Safety Dance before we could figure out where to go for dinner. We had no idea where to go, nothing sounded good, but we knew it was getting late and we didn't want to cook. I had to make a quick stop to pick up some coupons from a friend, and we ended up going to this hole in the wall called Corky's that I had never been to.

What song do you think would be playing in the little ma & pop open 24 hours diner with a cartoon looking grandma in the logo? What's that you say, The Safety Dance?

It made us laugh. It pretty much started right as we walked in the door, to eat dinner, at 9pm. What are the chances? Of all the songs that Aaron could pull from the air to hum and make up silly words to while we were being wishy washy about dinner, of all the songs that could play in a restaurant, of all the places we could have gone instead.

Apparently we WERE in the right place at the right time.

Much Ado About Something

2009-06-02T20:46:00.000-07:00

The tale of my college education is a sordid one, and I'll give you the brief rundown before I explain how I ended up at Cal Poly Pomona.

I started out fresh out of high school on a mission to go to a Christian college, because my family wasn't particularly religious and I had become a born-again Christian between junior high and high school. I wanted to learn more about the Bible and to learn about science and history and literature through the perspective of a Christian education.

So, off I went, accidentally, to probably the most, or one of the most, conservative Christian colleges I have ever heard of. I had a Cal Grant (read: free money for school), and my parents were footing a good chunk of the bill. But, with the hefty pricetag that The Master's College carried, I was unable to live on campus or even afford an apartment. I lived in a travel trailer on a ranch. Twice a day I had to feed 5 horses and muck stalls. Plus I had to pay my utilities and for gas and car insurance, so I also got a job at Arby's.

Between the living conditions on the ranch and the bubble-like atmosphere of the school, I just couldn't hang.

I came home and decided to go to community college for a while so I could figure out what to do next. Meanwhile, I lost my grant because of inconsistent enrollment in school.

I sort of tried to get a paralegal certificate for a while, because law always interested me, and I just wanted something that paid well and let me have weekends off... but not really.

So I got a pretty decent job at Dave and Buster's, found it more interesting to party on the weekends for a while, then came back to the Lord and got an office job. Then I realized that I really did want to do that whole "school" thing.

I strongly considered moving up to Orland to be with my birth mother and family and go to Chico State. But that was just too far of a move for me. I gave some thought to moving out to LB and going to Cal State Long Beach and living with my cousin out there.

Finally I just dug my heels in and finished up my GE's at Riverside Community College. When it was time to transfer, I was living with a couple friends in Ontario. One of them went to Cal Poly, a school I had never considered for a second. She invited me to see Much Ado About Nothing, which ended up serving a couple of purposes.

Number one, I had no idea that the theatre department was any good at all at Cal Poly. I was pleasantly surprised.

Number two, I saw, for the first time in my life, the young man playing Claudio, whose first name is Aaron and whose last name happens to be the same as mine now.

He graduated the same quarter I began at CPP, and oddly enough about 8 months later we ended up dating at the behest of a couple of friends. Primarily Elizabeth, who is not the grim reaper of matchmaking, after all.

And a few of my favorite people in the whole world I know because of my time at CPP. Ashley, Becca (by proxy), Eliz, Justin, Wa, ACT, Sally, Dave (and now Sio), Joe, Nate, Liz L, Allison... all people I would have been missing out on were it not for my foot shuffling in regards to my education. :)

Maybe that's not all so much coincidence as "everything happens for a reason", and maybe those are kind of the same thing.

Beginning

2009-06-01T20:22:00.000-07:00

We'll start with the beginning.

I'm adopted.

My birth mother hid me under baggy clothes while she was 14, and gave birth to me when she was 15. Growing up, I knew very little about her. I had only a think packet of information from the County of San Bernardino with a bio written about her by a social worker. And I knew that my biological father had "had some trouble with the law."

As soon as I turned 18, I started searching for my birth mother. The only information I had was the same info I had possessed my whole life. Her first name and her birthdate. That and some miscellaneous odds and ends, such as she liked to sew and enjoyed rock concerts.

I started with the internet. I found all kinds of great resources for adoptees and families to make contact with each other. There are databases where you can list your information and when people search and there's a match, you can contact one another. I couldn't find her info on any of the sites I searched, so I left my pertinent info on a database and pressed harder on the county to get more info. This was all in November / December of 1998.

The county was a nightmare. They had actually lost my file in a move, so if there was anything more to know, it wasn't able to be discovered by me. The only way I was allowed to get my unaltered birth certificate would be if my mother and my father both signed the same stupid piece of paper agreeing to release the info, which would require them to travel, in person, to a government office and get through the beauracracy to sign said documents.

I pretty much gave up hope. Not completely, I just didn't know what else to do short of begging Oprah to help me find her.

Then one day in July of 1999, I got an email. Some random stranger had been perusing the adoption database where I registered and noticed that there was a match. She believed she had found my mother's info, and she had!

Side note, I really wish I still had that person's info or that email address, because I would love to send her a thank-you card. I'm sure I thanked her via email, but now after 10 years of knowing this part of my family I want to send another! :)

So, that day, July 11th, 1999, I called information to see if there was anyone by the last name in the area. Sure enough, there was ONE listing. I gathered all my nerve and called. The woman who answered the phone said that Charlotte (my mother) was her daughter in-law, and that she lived up in Northern California. She didn't want to give me her number (understandably), so I gave her mine and she said she would pass it on.

As it turns out, Donna, the woman who answered the phone, had no idea about me. Hehehe. Surprise! To top it off, it was her and her husband, Art's, anniversary that day.

My mother and I started emailing and calling and getting to know one another. In August of that year, her and her husband, Tim, and my 4 (half - like it matters) brothers and sisters came down to Southern California for a visit and I got to meet TONS of other family members, go to Sea World with everyone, and introduce them to my family.

What's really odd to me is how fire & ice my "two moms" are. Charlotte loves to sew (and quilt, too), her favorite color is red, and she loves to read. My mom loves to sew (and quilt now, too), her favorite color is red, and she loves to read. Charlotte is a Democrat, my mom is a Republican. Charlotte hates seafood, my mom loves seafood. And the more I get to know her, the more amazed I am at the ways that I am like her, and then the ways I am like my mom from my upbringing.

I know everyone romanticizes adoption to a degree, as if the birth mother gets to handpick who raises her baby. In some cases, yes, and that might explain the numerous similarities in interests between the two of them. But with a county adoption like mine, my mom and dad were basically on a waiting list and I was the one that came along when it was their turn.

It's been a really cool journey so far. I can't tell you how amazing it was to have my mom, who was at first very jealous and insecure about the whole ordeal, invite Charlotte & Tim and the kids over for Christmas dinner a couple years ago. Or to see my mom crying and telling Charlotte that she was so glad that she had me and that they got to raise me. At least I'm pretty sure that was the gist of what she said.

I hope enough of that qualifies as the "coincidence" theme for the week. I wish that Charlotte & Tim & the gang lived closer, because it is so hard to spend good quality time together with such distance between us, but I love them all so much. And except for that whole living closer thing, I wouldn't have my weird little family any other way. I love my mom, and my dad, and my mom, and Tim, and Sara, and Tommy, and April, and Brian. :)

Theme Idea

2009-05-31T19:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday someone commented (in person) about a post of mine from a few months back about my lost and found check from the Good Samaritan FedEx man. It got me to thinking about how many stories like that I have, and how now that I'm a good 5 months into this daily blog venture, I would like to retell some of those stories. They really amaze me, and I hope that they amaze you when I share them. I am thankful for these "coincidences", and just because they didn't happen in 09 doesn't mean I can't be thankful for them still. :)

Today I'll leave it with being thankful for the theme. I know I have at least 4 of these stories, and I'm sure if I blow the cobwebs off of the brain library I can come up with 2 or 3 more. So we'll see if this carries us through to Saturday or Sunday of next week.

You may want to open a nice bottle of wine to sip while reading, because I cannot help but bring out the cheese factor in some of these stories. You have been warned.

Getting Back on the Wagon

2009-05-30T19:38:00.000-07:00

At least the wagon is still within reach.

I have once again fallen off of the exercise wagon, but now I've been to the gym twice this week. As far as I'm concerned, that is back on the wagon. Especially considering all of the times I've had a "goal" in mind of going once in the coming week and never actually made it.

It helps a lot that we finally bit the bullet and acquired a gym membership from Costco for Aaron. So Wednesday night we went and he proved who he was and signed his firstborn child over, etc, and they roped him into coming for a "fitness evaluation" today with a trainer. Being the loving and supportive wife that I am I went along with him (okay, okay, so it was really more like I recognized that if I couldn't drag myself to the gym I could always hop in Aaron's car and go with him).

While he was being "evaluated" I got a full 30 minutes of cardio in and then braved a couple of weight machines on the floor. All the while shuddering at the skeezy guys who were noticeably thinking that I was checking them out while I was scanning the room for my husband. YUCK!

I've been losing pretty consistently since I started Weight Watchers, but now it's starting to slow and I think my body is going to stay that way until I start working out. I'm going to go Monday, and I may even head out tomorrow to rent the new Active game for the Wii, since that might be a step in the right direction towards Aaron letting me buy it.

As a sidenote, I would encourage anyone who knows someone who is trying to lose weight to just be supportive and encouraging. Unless there's a real health concern, of course. For me, when people say "oh, why? you don't need to lose" - it makes me feel awkward. The point is, I am not comfortable in my own skin (or my own clothing for that matter), so I feel that I need to lose. Everybody is different, some girls much larger than myself are perfectly happy being that way, at least they don't say otherwise. And I don't badger them about losing weight. But if I someone wants to, whether or not I think they need to, I try to encourage them because it's really really hard to lose. It takes the power to say "no" to foods everyone loves and tries to offer you at every turn, the energy to think before you order at a restaurant, planning for a good healthy lunch and snacks at work, and finding time to work out on top of all of that.

So, I'm just saying. Don't say "why? you don't need to lose!" Try "good for you!" or "you can do it!" or "let's go for a walk sometime!" Exclamation points are optional.

Department Parties

2009-05-29T23:25:00.000-07:00

Apparently the people Aaron works with sometimes rib him about me not "liking" them because I miss a lot (?) of functions, parties, etc.

Couldn't be farther from the truth. I adore some of those people, and I haven't met anyone there that I don't like.

So when I do get to go and I'm able to relax and have a good time with them, it's a lot of fun. Gilda even insisted that we bring Scout, and she was great! Very well-behaved and not a pain in the neck.

Plus I kind of get a kick out of seeing a bunch of English teachers get inebriated. I imagine somewhere Urquizu, Taylor, Molumphey, and Padilla are all having drinks together and being actual people - you know, instead of English teachers. It's just oddly amusing to me to think about.

Adventures

2009-05-28T23:40:00.000-07:00

I'm just glad I had a couple of factors working into my being able to be very participatory today in some decision-making. :) That's all I have to say about that. It was a fun day.

Relax!

2009-05-27T20:45:00.000-07:00

Today I added a new little self-command to my vocabulary: relax!

Which can also be expressed as "fuhgetaboutit" or "chill out."

So today I needed to get out of the office for a bit, I had a volunteer who needed a desk to work at and I needed a change of scenery. Off I went to Staples to spend a reward certificate that was set to expire on Sunday. Woo hoo for guilt-free and cost-free office supply shopping. I got yet one more piece for my desk beautification /organization, and a few things that were a little more needed, such as post-it notes and binder clips and certificate paper.

That situation could have easily turned into me pacing around, trying to figure out how to install Office on the lame-duck computer in the corner (which reminds me, I need to do that anyway so it's more useful for Jane!), and otherwise trying to squeeze an extra-person into the already bustling and busy front-office.

But no, I gave Dawn some work to do (hooray for Dawn!) and headed out to Staples and then to take an actual lunch break, away from my desk and everything!

Then tonight, after getting home around 6:30-7:00, and Aaron not getting home until 7:30, I decided we should go out to dinner - even though we're completely broke as far as the monthly budget goes. Yes, we borrowed a little bit from tomorrow (a big whopping $20), but it was worth it for us to both be able to say, "relax!" It's no big deal, really.

Plus I got the big messes in the kitchen / dining area tidied up and now Aaron is working on the dishes, which I am about to go relieve him from so he can write a test. :)

Now, to those reading this blog who are stressed about no job, no money, no time, no weight loss, or whatever... I say, "Relax!"

5% Off!

2009-05-26T21:53:00.000-07:00

It's official. Today I am 5% less of a person than I was a couple months ago! Woo hoo!

I know they say you're not supposed to reward yourself with food when you're dieting, but I say screw that. Food is good. ;) But I was still good. Aaron and I went to the gym so he could complete his membership and I got in a 30 minute workout before we headed over to Baskin Robbins for a celebratory scoop of low-fat Raspberry Chip ice cream.

And it was gooooood. And I accidentally forgot to eat my snacks today, just too busy at work, so I had the points to spare anyway. :)

Today definitely had ups and downs. I was a little ball of emotion because sometimes I just have too much empathy (and my coworker/friend's boyfriend's mom died in a motorcycle accident this weekend), which was surprisingly hitting me pretty hard. Maybe because I knew about the text she got saying the accident had happened and it seemed like no big deal. I don't know, my heart just goes out to people in certain circumstances. Maybe too much and I need to reign it back in. On top of that, I woke up not feeling well, I took Claritin and it made me jittery and weird all day, and my friend confronted me on some stuff that to be honest, I already know most of and am doing the best I can to work it out.

AND I didn't even make it to the semi-finals of the Despair.com caption contest. Oh well, maybe I'll be somewhere on the "best of the rest" list on Thursday.

Ugh.

When I put it like that, today was mostly down. But I am so thankful that Aaron has a gym membership now, and that I have lost 5% of my body weight, and that I have done so while enjoying fantastic things like Raspberry Chip ice cream and the occasional french fry. I will try to end on the life is so good note instead of the today was not so good note. Strike that, reverse it.

First 3-day weekend in 2 years

2009-05-25T17:30:00.000-07:00

Everyone looks at me funny when I say I still have to go to work on Monday when it's a holiday like today.

I only work here once a week, people! Of course I have to go to work!

Anyway, today was really nice because I knew the boss-man and lady weren't going to be here because they're at the river. So there was extra-reduced pressure for me to get here by a certain time. I rolled up around 4:15pm and I'll probably leave in 20 mins.

I am so thankful for the extra rest and lounging I got today. :) And when I get home, we'll grill up some tri-tip and onions and a bell pepper for a special Memorial Day dinner.

Entertainment Setup

2009-05-24T17:23:00.000-07:00

Thanks to this software called PlayOn*, we are able to watch Hulu content via our XBox360 on our big tv in our living room. We can also watch YouTube, if we still had a Netflix account we could watch Netflix "watch now" movies there, and eventually when ABC gets on the ball, we'll be able to watch episodes of Lost on there as well.

It is pretty awesome.

Today I was especially thankful for it because we watched Johnny Dangerously, Dr. Horrible's Singalong Blog (finally), and started to watch Super Size Me - but we started too late and got too sleepy to stay up and finish it.

I feel like Aaron and I are so "go, go, go" sometimes and it can be so nice to just veg. No housework, no reading, no grading, no thinking, just to become a ball of mush on the couch. It's a brain vacation.

*If you're thinking about downloading PlayOn, I will warn you - it's MORE than a tad-bit buggy, so be prepared for a few moments of banging your head on the remote control if you're going to go for it. But when it works, it's beautiful. It could also be due to my computer being on the verge of dinosaur status.

Shiny Happy People

2009-05-23T15:00:00.000-07:00

On my way home from the grocery store today, I forged a brief, but meaningful, friendship with two adorable little girls in the car next to me at a red light near my house.

I think one was about4 and the other 7.

I was just sitting there, minding my own business, when I looked over and they were waving and pointing towards the shopping center across the street. I had no idea what they were trying to communicate, so I started pointing in the other direction just to play along. Then I "scarecrow" pointed both in front of me and behind me, and they laughed.

We sat there and played and I think the mom was embarrassed or weirded out by this little game we had going.

We ended up stopped at one more red light together before I got home, and that time was spent making absurdly funny faces at each other.

It was pretty much the highlight of my afternoon. I love it when kids "pick me" for shennanagins like that. It was really fun and brought a smile to my heart.

TGIF

2009-05-22T23:57:00.001-07:00

For the first time in a long time, I actually get to sleep in. Like I really don't have anywhere to be until a grad party at 7.

I'm writing from my phone on a nearly dead battery. Better post tomorrow... :)

Nurturing

2009-05-21T08:19:00.000-07:00

I love being able to take care of my dog.

Like knowing when she's pestering me because she wants food, or when she gives a little whine and she's pacing because her water dish is empty, or how she paws at her crate if we've locked her up and forgotten to let her make one last visit to the backyard first.

It makes me feel like I'm good at being that nurturing mother-like person. It's at least good practice.

And it's kinda nice because she's not nearly as demanding as a child would be. :P

Plus when I feed her or give her water, she usually comes back to me and gives some sort of thanks, usually in the form of a lick to the arm.

My mom had a headache

2009-05-20T19:49:00.000-07:00

I know it sounds weird, and I am not at all glad that my mom was in pain, but in hindsight I was kinda thankful my mom had a headache tonight when the receptionist at my mom's WW meeting got on my case about trying to weigh in twice in one week (God forbid!).

It's no big deal, really, I was just hoping I was at my 5%. And I wasn't sure how everything was going to play out this week because I wasn't going to my regular meeting in Rancho, so I went and weighed in and left. But since my pass gives me unlimited meetings every month, I thought I could still weigh in on Wednesday and just choose which number I wanted to go with (for my own personal records) for the week.

Anyway, this receptionist just went on and on and on, she wasn't even hearing what I was trying to say, which was basically okay, sorry, I didn't know - can I just step on the scale to see the number and we don't have to write it down on your list or in my book and nobody at WW is going to FIRE you over this. Oy vey.

Now the reason why I'm glad my mom had a headache was because if she hadn't, she probably would have gotten pretty belligerent with this lady. I mean, she really wouldn't stop (the lady). She wasn't listening to me, and she was prattling on and on and on!

I was embarrassed, and I'm really glad that that meeting is not the one I plan on going to every week, because I know at least 2 people overheard the whole ordeal in line behind us.

It gets better, too... at the end of the meeting, she asked the leader if she could make a quick announcement. I wanted to hide under the table. She said, "A lot of people who have the monthly pass think they can weigh in at multiple meetings..." and she went on to explain basically my exact situation, stopping short of turning on a neon sign over my head that pointed down and said "like that girl right there".

Oh, man, I never knew I could want to clock an old lady.

I actually handled myself quite well for my mom's sake, just so she wouldn't have to deal with it when she comes back every week. The two ladies who overheard the whole thing in line were asking me about it after the meeting and agreeing with me that it was pretty much overblown nonsense.

It's funny to me. It really is. It probably wouldn't have been if my mom had been feeling 100% and had gone to verbal blows with the lady. ;)

Sorry

2009-05-20T08:44:00.001-07:00

Sorry, Blog, I know I've been neglecting you.

Next week will be better, I promise. ;)

Today I am thankful for GTD - like getting the T-Mobile bill paid for the first time, and set up to pay itself automatically from now on, getting my $1.02 credited on the AT&T account, and (I think), getting our extra payment on the couch refunded from DECEMBER. That baby is no interest for 3 years, so no way am I putting any extra funds towards that!

Of course, now (if we get) that money (it) is going in the Hawaii jar!!!

I love it when a plan comes together

2009-05-14T23:59:00.000-07:00

So, a few weeks ago I was fishing for cheap vacation ideas. And an old friend from high school overlooked the cheap part and mentioned that she works for the Ritz Carlton in Maui.

Well, hmm. She thought she might be able to help us get a discounted room for 65-70 a night. And I thought I might be able to get someone to donate some frequent flier miles to help us get to the island.

Neither of those options worked out.

But Vanessa did help me find a studio apartment in a great location that we can get for $50 a night. Yeah! It's got a little kitchen, so we'll be able to save a little bit on food. And I found us round trip nonstop (yes, you can stop going LAX to Hawaii, either Honolulu or Salt Lake City for some odd reason) tickets for $726. Total. As in, each ticket was $363. Yeah, I'm pretty stoked. We were going to try to do a super cheap vacation this year, but when this opportunity came up we just had to go for it. And it's pretty cheap considering what we're doing.

I. am. stoked.

Now I just need to figure out getting us to LAX and back... I'm thinking metrolink coming back at 5:30am on Wednesday morning (yes, I work on Wednesday - that should be fun LOL) , but getting there on Thursday afternoon it might be nice to get a ride from someone.

TV

2009-05-14T08:39:00.000-07:00

I am so glad this TV season is winding to a close. I don't even watch that much, but there are a few shows we've been really wrapped up in this year.

P.S. I would be writing a few catch-up posts right now, but my internet is being stupid so I am using my phone. It's difficult.

It's over!!!

2009-05-13T23:59:00.000-07:00

So my number one addiction as far as television goes, Lost, is over for the season.

And next year will be the final season.

I actually feel like my schedule is more free now because of it. I think that's kinda sad, but I also don't feel too badly about it because it's one show. And the two others I really care about watching, The Office and 30 Rock, will be done for the season tomorrow, as well. I just don't think 2 hours of TV a week is all that bad. Justifying? Maybe. But that's more because I am a productivityaholic than anything.

The "fish biscuits" we made (pics to follow later), were actually made from this recipe Aaron found for Citrus sugar cookies. They were SOOOOOOOOOOOO good. I think I'm going to have to make sugar cookies that way at Christmas time now, they were just more sexy than plain ol' sugar cookies. And they cooked really nicely, better than the Pilsbury dough. I think they'll be worth the effort.

Clean House

2009-05-12T23:59:00.000-07:00

We're having a little Lost party tomorrow night. Well, Aaron's having a little Lost party tomorrow night. He and a few other teachers and a secretary from his school get together every week and theorize and talk about Lost, so he wanted to invite them to watch the season finale.

Which meant I had an awesomely willing helper to get the house all spic and span for them to come over. :) I really try to stay on top of the little cleaning tasks regularly, but sometimes it just feels good to get the whole house clean at once. It's a greater sense of accomplishment or something, I'm not sure why I like that so much.

So yay, my house is clean and I get to play hostess tomorrow night! Word on the street is there will be Dharma Initiative peanuts, soda, water, and fish biscuits like the ones that Sawyer and Kate ate when they were locked up in the Polar bear cages. ;)

Grabbing Monday by the horns

2009-05-11T14:13:00.000-07:00

I'm tired of being tired and not feeling rested. So I have decided to work longer hours Tuesday - Friday at Flipside so that my only duties on Mondays are work at Scheu Plumbing and grocery shopping.

Today I slept in until 9am, lounged around the house and worked on our budget, then went to lunch with April and Vicky before heading over to Rose's house.

It made the day feel so much more like a day off. Even though I worked. :) I think this new schedule is going to be much better for me.

Doh!

2009-05-10T21:45:00.000-07:00

Yeah, so, I'm actually just about officially a week behind on my blog. I am not dead. There is nothing wrong with your feed-reader setup (yes, one person asked, so that's a legitimate reply).

I want to catch up, I'm going to catch up. Just not tonight. I'm wiped out.

I am thankful for my mom. We definitely have our ups and downs, but I love that woman. Today I was able to demonstrate that for her by way of spending the whole day at their house. I got there early, with groceries in tow, and made breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the three of us. I was going to do dishes, too, but my dad did instead. :) We watched a couple of movies and relaxed.

Basically, it was my family's idea of quality time.

And now my mom's fridge is stocked with a few low-point goodies, a couple WW brand items that they don't carry at Stater Bros, so I feel like what I did today is a gift that will keep giving. Plus I was able to plan the meals all around how many points she gets for the day, and then modify for how many points I get by skipping a side dish or whatever.

My mom is a housewife, so she has always done all of the cooking and cleaning and now that I have my own house and my own hubby and dog to care for, I appreciate that much more just what that takes. I'm thankful that the planets aligned properly today for me to be able to go love on her by way of serving her. And of course, I'm thankful for her.

Understanding

2009-05-08T15:20:00.000-07:00

I really wanted to go ride my bike with Lori tonight after work while Joe and Aaron went to see Star Trek.

But then everyone was talking about how good Star Trek was and I was tired and hot and Lori had chores to do, so I ended up going to hang out with the guys instead.

I'm so glad that Lori and I are able to be flexible with each other when we need to be, and that I didn't cram in going on a bike ride AND going to dinner and a movie into what was already a hectic and busy day.

Although I'm sure the exercise would have been great for Tuesday's weigh-ins. Oh well. ;)

Planning Ahead

2009-05-07T15:17:00.000-07:00

So often Aaron and I will go to dinner because we don't have other food in the house, or because we just don't feel like cooking, or because we are going with friends.

Today, we planned a few days ahead to go to Graziano's tonight after work. So all day I looked forward to it, and as soon as I got home we went. We didn't have the dramatic digging through the fridge and pantry, the guilt over how we shouldn't spend money. It was planned and decided, so we went.

Which made it so much nicer of an evening, let me tell ya!

My Happy Place

2009-05-06T23:59:00.000-07:00

So, I got to spend another day at Disneyland with my sister, April. And this time we got to go to California Adventure as well. Thanks to a friend who oh-so-generously agreed to help us get into the park sans hefty admission fee. :)

It was a really nice day, we had a couple of good laughs, and it was more good sister-time.

Successful Mad Dash Shopping

2009-05-05T15:07:00.000-07:00

One of the reasons I get so frustrated with my weight is how much difficulty I have finding clothes that A, fit, and B, look decent.

I stopped in today before WW at Old Navy and grabbed a pair of denim bermuda shorts, so I would have something to wear at Disneyland tomorrow that would not cause me heat stroke, and a shirt. I ended up grabbing 3 shirts, with the intention of returning 2, but I am only going to return 1. The other two look pretty cute on so I'm keeping them.

It felt good to be able to get that in the span of about 20 minutes without the usual agony, and for that I am grateful.

Scheu Plumbing

2009-05-04T15:10:00.000-07:00

I mustered up my assertiveness and talked to Rose today about my work schedule. I had to actually ask if she cared what time I came in on Mondays, because my schedule is starting to stress me out. I'm going to work longer hours at the church Tuesday - Friday now instead of trying to squeeze in work from home time on Mondays. And I'm going to sleep in on Mondays and come down here to Chino whenever I manage to get up and get moving for the day.

I have been seriously lacking "sabbath" time. I think I am going to start my Sabbath Sunday after church and end it after breakfast Monday, or when I'm on my way here. I think that will work. Except when I have Sunday meetings. I'll play it by ear. But I need to incorporate more rest into my life.

I'm glad that I have such a great relationship with the Scheu family and this little business of theirs.

Another List

2009-05-03T23:59:00.000-07:00

Sleeping in, even just a little bit (until 8:15)
Being able to opt out of an "obligation" in order to have downtime
Spending downtime meandering with Aaron
Having a little extra cash that can be allocated to home improvements
Spending downtime on a lunch date with Aaron
Spending downtime watching Special Victims Unit with Aaron
Watching Aaron try to prove that a mess could be cleaned up in 5 minutes, just to help me out and make me laugh
Having a friend lend a helping hand for a church event
Watching 34 people get baptized! Including a homeless guy who had not been accepted at a church before like he has been at Flipside
Getting Hulu to work again on the XBox 360

Helping Out

2009-05-02T23:59:00.000-07:00

Amy didn't want birthday gifts or a party this year.

Instead, she wanted friends and family to help paint the inside of their home.

So we did. :) It was fun, work, but fun. I can't wait to see it with all the furniture and pictures back in place!

Making it Fit

2009-05-01T23:59:00.000-07:00

Friday was cruising along just fine until about 4:00 when I found out I had grossly misunderstood the plans for the evening. I thought me and Alicia were going to pick out my bridesmaid dress, well, I guess I did realize the other girls would be coming to order theirs, as well, but they had already picked theirs so, yeah.

Anyway, apparently we were all going to dinner after, too, which I did not realize until Friday around 4. After Joe had already made cheesecake for me and Lori to enjoy prior to us all going to see Wolverine that night. Yeah. Woops.

Thankfully, Lori was stuck at work pretty late so I was able to stick around for dinner with the wedding peeps. I also am really happy with the dress, I was afraid it wouldn't look good on me, but it does, yay. Here's a pic. It will be in "pool" instead of brown and green.

But poor Lori was really stuck a lot longer at work than she should have been, so she was all decked out in her Lois Lane reporter look. I had managed to keep a few pairs of "someday maybe" jeans, so I was able to loan her a pair for our little outing.

Joe's cheesecake was amazing.

The movie was okay. I didn't love it, mostly because of the adamantium bullet nonsense and a few other cheese factors. But it wasn't awful. ;)

Between 4 and 5 on Friday, I felt like I had completely screwed up schedule-wise and that it was going to be a lousy evening. But by the end of the night, everything had worked out really nicely. Got to have dinner and laughs at Vince's, I was able to lounge on the couch with friends and enjoy Joe playing guitar, Nathan reading a comic, and Lori singing along. And Aaron and I had a nice little game of trick-fetch going with Scout.

McCooled!

2009-04-30T23:59:00.000-07:00

I am so very glad that the McCool family is back into their own little place. We had dinner over there tonight and it was so much fun just to talk and laugh and play with Luxy. Hopefully we'll be able to do that more often on non-work/school nights so we can stay later. We love those guys.

Once again I made pumpkin caramel pudding cupcakes, only this time I actually remembered to add the 1/2 cup of water that's not on the ingredient list but is in the instructions. Hehehe, oops. Well, I remembered once I had all the batter into the first set of cupcake cups... at least I used those or there would have been no undo button.

Just to clarify, I did not end up making them Tuesday night. I'm taking the rest of this batch to the office tomorrow to share.

31 Cents

2009-04-29T23:59:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for 31 Cent Scoop night. Even if I had to wait in a long line to get my mini scoop.

The new lowfat Raspberry Chip is awesome. 3 points for a mini scoop, I would have gladly taken the 5 point hit for the regular scoop, though. :)

Biggest Loser!

2009-04-28T20:41:00.000-07:00

It's only appropriate that Tuesdays are my weigh-in day.

We are doing a mini Biggest Loser competition at the office, and with my 3 pound loss this week, I'm in the lead with a total of 7.4 pounds.

I really didn't think I had a chance of winning this competition with Jeff dropping weight like it's hot, and Carrie's big 5 pound loss a couple weeks ago, but now I feel like I have a fighting chance. Although, now that Carrie is starting WW too I may be in trouble... ;)

Apparently this thing is working for me. I'm soooo excited to be making some progress. It doesn't feel like my goal is so far away, after all.

To celebrate, I think I should make some Pumpkin Caramel Pudding cupcakes to bring to the office. Oh, I should take those tomorrow for our big meeting. Mmm!

Off to bake and watch the real Biggest Loser.

Sick Day (sort of)

2009-04-27T20:39:00.000-07:00

Well, I still had to work in Chino today because there was just too much to be done. And I thought I'd be home earlier, like at 2 or 2:30, but didn't end up getting home until 4:30.

But that wasn't too bad because then Aaron made dinner, and after I ate, I pretty much conked out for the rest of the evening. When I was awake I was just lounging on the chaise in front of the TV.

I took what I could of a sick day and got some rest. And I already feel better for it. Yay!

Smart Dog!

2009-04-26T20:24:00.000-07:00

Wow. I seriously cannot believe how stinkin' fast my dog learns things. I'm sorry, but I just have to brag on this mutt a little bit.

Rewind to Christmas when Sara and Tommy were visiting and we watched a little bit of some dog competition where they were running through tunnels and jumping hurdles and climbing things, all kinds of things. Ever since I saw that, I've thought that Scout would be absolutely great at something like that. So one of the things I got really excited about for Family Camp was that they have recently added a dog park with an agility course!!!

Of course, I couldn't wait to take Scout on it. So, after breakfast on Saturday, Aaron and I walked over there with her and worked on getting her to go through the course. At first, I felt pretty dumb because she seemed to not be getting it. And I thought I had traumatized her for life with the teeter-totter because she was backing away from it after the first time. But I did what Cesar says and just kept the mind moving forward. I got her to go back on it, heavily bribed with treats, and sure enough, she got better at it.

By 2pm, I was able to prop up my camera on the bench and get the following video. Not perfect, but dang, for having just learned what the heck to do earlier in the morning, not bad at all!!!

And I got Aaron to go back with me on Sunday morning to get better video of her doing the same course again, and then the "big" dog course:

I am just so proud of our dog! She definitely has some quirks, I don't especially like being barked at when I'm just trying to watch TV and relax, but she really is a great dog. Smart, sweet, cute... sorry, I just feel like she's a huge blessing and the fact that we got her from the shelter just reminds me how lucky we are to have her.

Now I just need to start saving up for the agility training class that Rancho offers and get her in that. I wonder if we could ever get her in a competition, just for fun?

Angie

2009-04-25T20:13:00.000-07:00

I felt a little... out of my element at Family Camp. Since the Andersons didn't make it, I felt like I took a bit of a hit as far as people who I knew and was comfortable with, and Heather and Reigh Lea both had other groups of people who they were hanging out with. That's not a complaint, I promise. It was just a bit of a challenge trying to find a good place to go and sit and be around people. Apparently there were close to 300 people there, so that should bring clarity as to why it was a bit overwhelming.

After I got Aaron to go with me to take Scout to the little doggie agility course, we ran into Toby and Angie and Toby was leading a gaggle of boys to go catch crawdads. So Aaron went along. While he was doing that, I went and rinsed my pound of strawberries and took them and a chair and a book over to find Angie so we could sit and read and enjoy strawberries together.

That was probably the highlight of the weekend for me. We really didn't get much reading done, but Angie is just so nice to be around. We mostly talked about how good the strawberries were (because they were! and they're only 88 cents at Henry's right now!), and what we were reading (or not really reading at the moment), and whatever random porch talk you might have. We were just lounging, and it was nice.

I'm thankful for Angie. I get to work with her just about 4 days out of every week, and she is a constant and steady source of encouragement. That and a good rubber wall for joking - hopefully that makes sense. And some people (*cough*myself*cough*) might have been irritated to have someone come along and take away their reading time. If she was perturbed by that, she didn't show it. I really was there to read, honest, it just didn't happen. ;)

We're going to the Strawberry Festival next month with the Pikes, since Angie is one of the few people I know who truly shares my love for strawberries. I'm glad that Aaron is hanging out with Toby once in a while. And I'm really glad that we're starting to do more with that whole family. I think even Josh and Caleb seemed to care that I was packing up my chair and heading back to my own site when they came back from their little jaunt to the river.

Okay, if I write about any more of the ways that Angie has been a great friend to me I'm going to cry and that's just lame because I'm sitting here writing a BLOG for cryin' out loud. :P

Getting the Tent Set Up

2009-04-24T23:59:00.000-07:00

There was originally supposed to be another couple sharing a campsite with us for the weekend, but they had to back out. They still loaned us their awesome (read: HUGE) tent. I mean, Aaron could stand up in it huge. I mean, fit the queen sized air mattress, a folding chair, and the dog crate in it huge. Plus a "foyer" for the ice chest and a safe place to stash the other chairs! Which, the same couple loaned us.

SO, if all had gone according to plan we would have gotten down to San Diego around 6 or 6:30, with plenty of daylight for setting up tent (that we have never set up before). Um, when do things go according to plan, anyway? No. We got there around 8 or 8:30. It was dark. Our dog was excited and had to be contained on her leash from a few feet away so she wouldn't grab a pole and run with it.

This is where my thankfulness comes in: Dan Houghton and Dante Avila, husbands of a couple of my friends from Flipside, helped Aaron put up our little home away from home. Seriously, so so so thankful for them and their willingness to patiently put up with a couple of camping newbies to put up a complex tent. In the dark.

:) Those guys rock. I'm sure without them Aaron and I would have been sleeping in the bed of the truck Friday night, and would not have been very happy with each other in the end, either. They really saved the day.

Friends who Lend

2009-04-23T23:59:00.000-07:00

Well, we were going to be sharing a tent site for family camp this weekend with Kenny and Amy, but they can't go. Which is a bummer because I was looking forward to hanging out with them.

Not like there won't be 100 other people there to hang out with, but still...

So they are loaning us their gigantor tent. It will be a little silly for just me and Aaron to use it, but it will be nice. We have our air mattress, and we'll be able to keep Scout's crate inside the tent. That and we'll be able to stand up inside of it! :) They also loaned us some of their awesome folding chairs, I'm talking footrests, baby, oh yeah.

Sidenote: Amy LOVES camping, Kenny could do without it. I think I love it under the right circumstances, so we're thinking a girls' camping trip sometime. Hit me up in the comments if you'd like in on that.

I have also acquired my dad's Tacoma for the weekend, so now we can bring my bike, as well as fit the ice chest and crate without having to play a game of stuff tetris in the trunk of one of our cars.

I'm pretty sure I'm closing the office early today to get a decent start on the trip down to San Diego. And I'm positive Gretchen won't hold a charge if I leave her on all weekend. So I will owe 2-3 blogs when I get back on Sunday, but this time it won't just be because I glossed over the commitment. ;)

Appreciation

2009-04-22T23:59:00.000-07:00

At Cramer Painting, we were lucky if we got a "hey, thanks" on Administrative Professionals Day.

At Flipside, the pastors go all out. It's great. One year they brought in someone from the church to do pedicures for us! And Jane, Allison, and Mindi put their collective skills together and bring us this amazing lunch and set up a pretty table, it's fantastic.

This year, a masseuse who goes to our church came in. During our weekly Wednesday meeting, each of us who are "admin" got to go in and have a chair massage. And lunch was, as always, great. I was extra glad I hadn't abused my weekly points yet (and I think I've even figured out how to survive camping this weekend and stay on track).

Sometimes, I feel like I'm so behind at work, or not getting enough done, or not doing certain things up to my standard. I think I'm the only one who notices that. I got this really nice card from Kevin, he's great about encouraging all of us on staff. I actually feel like I was able to work "better" for the rest of the afternoon. I honestly believe that when he tells me I'm doing a great job, or Jeff tells me I'm indispensable, that I perform better than if one of them had pulled me in and told me everything I'm doing wrong. I've gotten a bad review or two before, and all they did was make me sad. Maybe because one of them was bogus from a bogus boss who was basically just shopping on ebay and playing online poker, but I digress. :P

I'm just thankful to feel so appreciated today. Even though I'm not perfect, and some days I do sit in la-la-land for far too long, I like to think that for the most part I work my tailfeather off. And when it feels like someone notices that and thanks me for it, it makes me want to keep doing it. And it clears my mind of the questions and self-doubt, which helps me to do my job better.

Ramble, ramble, ramble, stop.

Fat Free Dessert

2009-04-21T23:59:00.000-07:00

I'll be honest.

When Kevin set up a meeting for me and Aaron along with another couple we lead our Bible study with at his house for dessert, I was apprehensive. I have absolutely zero willpower when it comes to dessert (see how I spelled that correctly?). Especially the kinds of good things that Jen creates... like that Heath Pudding Brownie bowl thing they made at MOPS one day.

Sidenote: I think that must run in the family, I've had some good sweets from Louise's kitchen and Jane's, too. Dangerous, these women! ;) In a really good way.

Anyway, I was just glad that it was a Tuesday and I would have a full week's worth of extra points to work with.

So imagine my surprise when the dessert was this ice-creamish thing made with sugar free fat free pudding mix, fat free cool whip, and raspberry sorbet??? Score! I ate my whole serving without one ounce of guilt or concern. I think it was only about 2 points, too. Which I had left within my daily points anyway, so I haven't even gotten into the weekly points.

Although, I'm sure I will tomorrow considering it is Administrative Professional's Day and Jane (Jen's sister), is a huge part of planning that AND she makes amazing cupcakes. I actually think her and Aaron Thomas would be well-matched for a bake-off.

Unexpected Visits

2009-04-20T23:59:00.000-07:00

Back in August (?), our friends, John and Gina Erickson, moved to Colorado. I had known them for a while, I think since January of 07? It was always their plan to eventually move to Colorado, but they were paying off debt and preparing while they were still in Southern California. They became part of our Bible study, helped lead it actually, and even though I didn't really want to get too close to Gina because I knew I'd feel abandoned when they moved, I still did. :P

They're just those friends that everyone is lucky to have. They are always willing to help, to go get frozen yogurt, to encourage you.

Apparently John's grandmother died sometime over the last week, so they came to California for the funeral. And they text messaged and organized for everyone to get together at another friend's house for a little bring your own dinner party.

I'm so glad we were able to go see them, and that so many of our other friends were there, too.

Happily Ever After

2009-04-19T23:59:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm behind (again), so I'll make this quick:

Lisa and Christopher pretty much started dating after chatting the night away at our wedding. They got married today. How cool is that? I'm really happy for them.

Little Sister

2009-04-18T23:59:00.000-07:00

I grew up as an only child. I was adopted as a baby, so I'm blessed to have my parents (who raised me), and my mother (who physically gave me life).

When I was 18, I found and met my birth mother, and discovered that I had 2 brothers and 2 sisters. However, they live 500 miles away so forging real relationships has been challenging.

But today, I was able to spend the whole day with my sister, April, at Disneyland celebrating her birthday. I honestly never thought I would get to do something like that with her. We're really pretty different when it comes to interests, tastes, beliefs, etc. But, she is my sister. So I like to think we can spend a day together like we did today and enjoy being around one another.

And it was fun. I'm thankful that today it feels more like I have a sister than it did a year ago, or even 6 months ago. Baby steps. Slow, arduous, long-distance baby steps. And those steps look differently for each of my siblings. April has just been the toughest sell on the idea so far.

These awkward dynamics definitely keep life interesting. I love having such an interesting family life. Sometimes it hurts, and it's weird and uncomfortable. But days like today are refreshing reminders of why I keep pressing on.

Bicycle! Bicycle!

2009-04-17T23:59:00.000-07:00

So Nathan came over this evening and brought an extra bike for Aaron to ride. I had left the garage open, so he was very sneaky and fixed my tires for me before ringing the doorbell. :)

We made it to Rochester and then rode back. If I had realized how much easier the ride back was going to be, I would have been willing to go farther!

Scout did really well when we were on the actual bike path, just running alongside me - not pulling or crossing in front. And she was pretty beat when we got home, too. Definitely a bonus of utilizing the bike for exercise.

Although, there's a house close to Rochester that has a pit bull in the back yard that apparently made it up onto the fence and was going to come eat our dog. That's according to Nathan and Aaron. In my head if he made it over I could out "run" him with the bike, although I guess not if Scout can keep up. I really hope he's not back there all the time. I would prefer my ride to be a little less eventful than that.

Free Stuff!

2009-04-16T11:16:00.000-07:00

Who isn't thankful for free stuff? Especially good free stuff! Get yourself some free Dunkin' Donuts coffee. I imagine it's coming whole bean, which means don't grind it until you're ready to use it. This is particularly true of DD, if you ask me!

Getting over it (finally)

2009-04-15T23:59:00.000-07:00

Tonight I hit a total wall. I felt like I was making so much progress after Crossroads, but tonight I went into almost complete melt-down depression mode. Ugh! I can see improvement, I mean, I didn't cry, I didn't throw anything or eat my way out of it... but it was rough.

In case you didn't see the mini-Twitter saga, here's the full story.

I came home from work instead of going straight to the gym because Aaron had to go "paint the rock" at school. Yes, that is literal. For Link Crew they paint this giant rock with whatever the current color is for the Link Crew. So he was awesome and had dinner ready and waiting when I got home so that we could eat and he could leave.

I parked outside of the garage, expecting to get my bike out after dinner and go for a ride with Scout running behind me.

After dinner, I went into the garage, got the dog leashed up, got my helmet adjusted, and proceeded to position the bike to ride it out. Thankfully I left the garage door closed this whole time, because I discovered both of my tires were really flat. No problem, I think we've used my balance ball pump to inflate them before. I go grab that and come back and that's when the epic struggle began.

Pump, pump, pump. Nada.

Take off attachment, screw pump onto the valve: pump, pump, pump. Nada.

Noooooooo! I was feeling so determined and actually excited! Lame.

So I went in the house, texted Heather, texted Nathan (who lives in Chino, that was unlikely from the start), talked to Heather, tweeted my frustrations... Finally I gave up on the notion of riding the bike. Poor Scout was whining and confused because she had her leash on and wasn't going anywhere. I mustered up the determination to get out the door and just started walking.

I ended up finding a pretty nice loop that took me by this meadow in the middle of our neighborhood. According to Map My Run it was just under 2 miles. I think I could have finished faster if it weren't for the dog or having to stop and figure out where I was.

It wasn't the most intense workout, but I'm just so glad I got over being so upset about the bike and went.

And Nathan is going to come on Friday evening with an extra bike so that he and Aaron and I can go for a ride. Obviously he'll inflate my tires for me, too. :P

Progress

2009-04-14T23:59:00.000-07:00

Yay! I lost another pound.

As much as I say I'm glad I'm losing really slowly, because I know I'll be more likely to keep it off that way, I still wish I could drop 4 or 5 pounds in a week. But I know with what I'm doing and how I'm eating, I'm losing it really really well, as in, the healthiest way I can.

That doesn't really help when I think about trying on bridesmaid dresses in 2.5 weeks though.

Did anyone watch Biggest Loser tonight? I wanted to cry for Mike's little brother. Seriously, they had better let him on campus next season or something because that's just wrong. Now he's the fat guy in the family, and feeling terrible for it. Seriously, that is one thing I hate about this show. It's just so impossible to lose that kind of weight if you're at home doing it as well as doing all the normal things like working 9-5 and having a social life. The only way to get that kind of instant gratification (losing 100 pounds in 15 weeks) is to make working out and eating healthy your JOB. It's understandable that the brother would feel like he's not going to be able to do it, because Mike and Ron couldn't do it at home, either. They had BETTER be there for that kid when they get back, that's all I'm sayin.

It was breaking my heart watching that and I just had to get it out of my system.

I'm going to be brave and put this out there... I'm thinking about looking into doing a marathon with Team in Training, hopefully in Laiken's honor. Pleh! I hate running, it makes my stomach hurt just typing that. But I think it would be really good for me both in accountability and help training, and emotionally to run that for her. We'll see. I haven't signed up for anything yet.

All Caught Up

2009-04-13T08:36:00.001-07:00

So I missed a few days of blogging this week... shame on me. I'm all caught up now. I really want to keep this thing going.

I also missed a workout on Saturday. But since Aaron was sick yesterday, we didn't end up going to the family festivities that would have prevented me from working out, and kept me stuffing my face all day. And since Daniella ended up sitting in front of me at church, and her husband was sick, too, I was able to set up a walk the dogs date with her for later in the afternoon.

Daniella lives pretty much up the street from me, I guess it's a mile away. We walked and met halfway and then around a loop and then I walked back. It was good to catch up with her.

And, I got my 3rd workout in for the week. Score!

I feel like I have a fresh start to the week now. Caught up on the blogs, ready to go work out and work today, and maybe even go to the grocery store.

That's it. Monday is calling, I've gotta go. :)

Death to Life

2009-04-12T23:59:00.000-07:00

I learned something new today.

I believe wholeheartedly that Jesus Christ was a real person, that he died, and then he wasn't dead anymore.

I did not realize that there were other people alive around the same time he was who were claiming to be "messiah." Because I hadn't heard of them before. Because they died, and people stopped following them.

The new thing I learned that intrigued me was that religious historians, who are not Christian, have a hard time understanding how this little movement of people who followed Jesus Christ of Nazareth has become this huge movement, with millions of people, that has continued since the time he was alive.

It shouldn't be so, because he died.

It wouldn't be so, except he lived.

He didn't stay dead. That's such an important part of my faith. I love remembering it each year by getting up and going to a park at sunrise, by remembering that the women who dilligently went as soon as Sabbath was over to go take proper care to bury him, only to find that there was no body. And even though angels appeared to them and told them he was alive, they were still perplexed. How could this happen? Someone stole his body! No! He even had to them and set them straight. He really came back from the dead. Nobody stole his body, the disciples didn't even "get it" enough to put together a scheme like that. His body isn't there because He lives.

Gives me chills! I love it! Happy Easter, everyone.

Kitchen Improvements

2009-04-11T23:59:00.000-07:00

I had every intention of going to the gym this morning, but I got into cleaning mode in the kitchen so I didn't make it.

My kitchen is sparkling! At least, everything but the floor. Sometimes it's so hard to dig up the motivation to do nitty gritty chores like cleaning out the toaster oven. So when I found myself effortlessly flitting around cleaning, I had to ride that wave.

Then my mom came over and I made her Girlfredo, but she couldn't handle the noodles. Ha, I guess it's not for everyone. She went with me to a Pampered Chef party that Amy was hosting, and even bought me a little somethin'. :) I'm excited, I was on a quest for new measuring tools and I found some great ones that I think will be very helpful when it comes to keeping up with this healthy eating thing.

My pantry is pretty well organized, now I would like to tackle the rest of the cabinets... especially tupperware and the area above the plates. I feel like I made big progress today in improving my kitchen, with the cleaning and the new tools. :)

By the way, I heart my granite countertops. Especially that I can choppity chop away on them. Awesome!

Encouragement

2009-04-10T23:59:00.000-07:00

Tonight after Good Friday service, Mindi stopped me and told me that people were talking about me! The nerve!

;)

But they were saying good things about me. It made me feel really good and after this week, it was great timing.

I'm thankful for Mindi and her sweet way of stopping me and telling me such nice things. It kinda made my night. :)

Aha!

2009-04-09T19:55:00.001-07:00

Ok, I know I am behind a day. We have lack of extra computer problems at times. Here's a quick note about today.

I found my way in to that bike path! It was great, too, because I walked up with Scout after a decent sized meal since I had points to spare today.

Yeah, I actually got some physical activity out of sheer curiosity! Who knew? ;)

And I got A LOT done at work today. That's always a good thing.

So, lots to be thankful for.

Prayer at Work

2009-04-08T23:59:00.000-07:00

One of the many things to love about having a ministry-related job is that our boss is also our pastor, which means sometimes his instruction to us is to go pray.

During the time that would normally be our Wednesday meeting, we instead went out and experienced the prayer labyrinth which had been set up for Passion Week.

Once we finally got ipods and cd players working, we each went in and prayed.

Sometimes I think that I could be better off at a normal job, at least financially. But on days like today, I wouldn't trade this job for any amount of money.

Boredom and the Lack Thereof

2009-04-07T23:59:00.000-07:00

I truly cannot remember the last time I was "bored."

There is never a time when I have nothing that I want to do. I usually either have plans, or a project I want to work on, or housework to be done, or something I want to read/watch/otherwise ingest.

Okay, I do get bored at the gym sometimes, but only because I can think of all of those other things I'd rather be doing than walking to go nowhere at the gym. :P

Today was one of those extra busy days. I went to work, went to the bank, went to WW, came home, grabbed a coupon for frozen yogurt, went back to WW shopping center to meet Lori for frozen yogurt, went to the grocery store, came home and put away groceries, did some dishes, watched some Biggest Loser and SVU while putting away food and dishes...

And then it was bedtime! Past bedtime, actually.

Tomorrow, it will be lather, rinse, repeat. I love my life, but I get tired sometimes. More sleep might be nice. ;)

Finding the Way

2009-04-06T23:59:00.000-07:00

After a frustrating day at work, I got home much later than planned and still needed to exercise.

Instead of going to the gym, which would have taken an additional 20 mins at least, I decided to go for a little walk with Scout. I really wanted to take my bike up to the Pacific Electric Trail, but I'm glad I walked around first with the intention of looking for an entrance.

They don't make it easy to get connected to that path, let me tell you. Especially if you consider a canine presence, and you know, actually wanting to ride a bike.

I took one little side street to try to find a way through, and happened upon some lost keys that had a Ralphs rewards card on them. I knocked on the door of the house they were in front of, but the lady said they weren't hers. I debated leaving them, but the Ralphs tag says return to the nearest Ralphs store if you find lost keys, and that's what I would want someone to do with my keys, so I did. I'm glad I ended up on that street and I hope the keys got back to their owner.

The walk was better than most because I was actually rushing a little bit to get back for dinner. And I was determined to find an entrance to the trail. Once I realized exactly where the trail was (above my head as I went through the Victoria tunnel), I noticed a pretty steep dirt path that had an opening onto the trail.

So I off-roaded it up that and felt this tremendous sense of accomplishment once I was actually on the trail. Only I also felt this sense of oh, crap, it's already dark and I don't want to have to walk all the way back to Etiwanda and then along Baseline to get home if that's the only way out.

As I examined all of the openings to the trail, I caught sight of a familiar looking one. The one where the lovely little sidewalk that goes through my neighborhood through a little fake park in the middle abruptly ends. A little more off-roading and I was in the home stretch. I *might* be able to walk my bike up through there to get on the trail.

Once I was across the street and into the center path, I decided to take Joe's inspiration and run. I panicked about halfway through and stopped, thinking I was mistaken about it being my neighborhood, but then I realized I was okay and kept running.

It was a really good walk. I can't believe I actually ran on my own volition - you know, without Ms. Dewitt menacingly withholding popsicle sticks from me if I wasn't running when I passed her by on the track. I ran just because. And it gave a nice little boost to my heartrate. I might try that again. Might.

If anyone knows of any quiet streets that have actual entrances into the trail, I'd love to hear about them. I have two concerns with riding on Baseline or Day Creek. 1, I do not have any exceptional prowess when it comes to riding a bike (read: I might fall or have brake issues). And 2, I thoroughly plan on taking my hyperactive dog along with me, because she needs to get tired out sometimes.

Smooth Sailing

2009-04-05T23:59:00.000-07:00

I realized too late that we had forgotten to bring money to pay for Family Camp (big ol' church camping trip), but then discovered that we could share a site with the Andersons so now we just need to pay them back, and it's only costing us half as much to go! Yeah!

After church we went to Target, got a "few" things (went in for 2, got 10), stopped at Henry's and picked up some salad for lunch fixins, ate awesome salads, then I went to the movies with Joe and saw Sunshine Cleaning. Which was great.

Then I came home and cooked and made a horrible mess of the kitchen. But all the food was good, including the diet coke brownies (thanks, Sarah!).

I'm just thankful for days like these. There's no particular rush, except for getting to church on time (which we sort of did). And then when you're not rushing, I don't know if it just seems like everything goes more smoothly or if it just does because there's no deadline or time constraint. Either way, it was a good day and I'm thankful for the change in pace.

Daffodil Garden

2009-04-04T20:30:00.000-07:00

Daffodils are my absolute favorite flower.

Since March 0f 2007, when my dad sent me a forward about this garden of daffodils in Lake Arrowhead, I've been dying to go. But you have to go during the three weeks that the garden is open to the public and in bloom. If you want to read more about this fantastic garden, go here.

The garden will only be open to the public for one more week. Next Sunday, Easter Sunday, when the garden closes it will be the last time anyone the Bauers don't personally invite to see the flowers.

This was something I think I took for granted, thinking one of these days I would actually go check it out. We tried to go one other time, but we didn't make it. I happened upon the information on the internet that this would basically be the last chance to go. So, we went. And what perfect timing, because it was a BEAUTIFUL day.

It will probably be even more spectacular next week, judging by the pictures at the bottom of the article. It was awesome, but I bet there are a lot more flowers still to bloom in the coming week.

I'm so thankful for the work the Bauers have put into creating the garden, and opening it to the public (for free) the way they do. Especially after reading the article, it's impressive that they've been able to keep this up for so long.

And it made a nice little afternoon date for Aaron and I. ;) We drove up to Big Bear afterward and got lunch at a great little place in the Village.

If you want to go, you have to go between 10am and 6pm. It's not actually in Lake Arrowhead, it's in Running Springs, so it's not AS far up the mountain as going to Arrowhead. You go park at this church called St. Anne's, and there are porta-potties and a kitchen/craft shop that's open from 10am to 3pm (Aaron and I didn't go in, so I can't tell you more than that about it).

Here's a map, just to make it that much easier for you. ;) 210 to 330, right on Fredalba Rd. Follow the signs.

Nick & Alicia

2009-04-03T23:59:00.000-07:00

Alicia is one of my best friends, and Nick is one of Aaron's best friends. So the fact that they are getting married in August is pretty sweet for us... except that it means now both of them will live in Long Beach.

Tonight we went to Vince's, a usual spot for us, then split up and went to get supplies for Irish Coffee and a movie.

Irish Coffee, I discovered, basically equals coffee and whiskey. Ha. It's extra-warm coffee.

We watched Bolt, which I had heard great things about, but I wasn't terribly impressed.

It was a fun night, it always is with them. I'm thankful for their friendship(s), and I hope that the LBC doesn't eat them once they move. It's so hard to maintain friendships across freeways filled with traffic. :(

Mission: Accomplished

2009-04-02T23:59:00.000-07:00

I wrote the other day about our kitchen being a disaster area...

Well, Aaron did some work on it on Wednesday, and I finished it up tonight after my attempt at making low-fat Buffalo-wingish chicken. It was okay. Not great, but once I figure out how to make it work, I'll pass it along to Siobahnne. ;)

I think that's honestly what I'm most thankful for today: my empty sinks. I can't stand when the dishes get so piled up that it becomes this huge beast of a task to get them knocked out. I know it shouldn't be like that, but once in a while it just happens. There are only two of us, and we both hate doing the dishes. :P

Don't judge me! lol

Lying & Cheating

2009-04-01T23:59:00.000-07:00

April Fool's day is really fun when you actually get to "get" someone.

Like how I got Brittany when I came in and asked her what happened to the back passenger-side of her truck. She came running downstairs, she actually would have gone outside to look at her truck if Louise hadn't started saying things like "your truck is on fire!" It was funny. She was more worried about what her dad would do than anything. That helped to add to the funny.

So that's the lying portion of the day.

Then there was the cheating... on my diet!

Aaron and I went to Graziano's and I had an antipasto salad that I'm sure was just about horrible for me, but oh so tasty. We also ordered these Garlic Knots which were FABULOUS. I had noticed a Gelato place next door so I asked Aaron if he wanted to get a treat... I was thinking he would get something, not me - but then that place was closed and we got sucked into the Baskin Robbins across the street.

Yeah, I had Gold Medal Ribbon ice cream. So. good.

So I totally cheated, but the beauty of WW is that I get these "flex" points throughout the week that I can spend on stuff like that. It may impact my weight loss, but since I'm on the road to 3 workouts this week, I think I'll still be okay. Then next week, when I don't cheat, I'll really knock off a good 2 lbs. *fingers crossed*

Potential Lost Spoiler:

Side note, when it comes to Lost I'm totally with Hurley on the WTH boat. *shakes fist at time travel that is trying to actually be realistic and make sense*

Easy Breezy

2009-04-01T08:38:00.000-07:00

Our kitchen is ridiculous right now. Dishes in both sinks and overflowing onto the counters, you would think we didn't have a dishwasher or something. Lame.

I am thankful for the fact that I had picked up some more interesting shredded cheese at the grocery store and was able to microwave myself a quesadilla and have some baked tortilla chips with salsa for dinner. And considering it was 8pm by the time I even sat down to eat that, no, I did not tackle the dishmonster.

And slow and steady wins the race... I've now lost 1.8 pounds. Maybe that will start coming off faster now that I have intentions of regular gym visits? I hope.

My Life as a Sitcom

2009-03-30T23:59:00.000-07:00

My Monday job is really really really informal. I work in the shop in the owner's backyard.

I used to go to work in my gym clothes after working out. Because I can, and because it made it easier for me to get to the gym on at least 1 day of the week.

Yesterday, I went to work in my gym clothes and told myself I couldn't go home until I had stopped at the gym. And it worked!

While I was there, once I finally got a machine, I was thinking about all the pros and cons of evening workouts vs morning workouts. For instance, in the morning I wouldn't have to wait for a machine. Nothing feels like a bigger waste of time or energy than standing there, at the gym, waiting for equipment. Poke me in the eye with a spork, please! So there's that. Plus, when I was using my G1 to listen to some new tunes on Last.fm instead of listening to my iPod, I ran out of battery power. In the morning, after a full charge, I imagine there's a chance that the G1 would make it through the workout with me. Not to mention the added boost my metabolism would have all day long if I made it in the morning. ;) Now let's see if any of this actually helps me get out of bed next time I try to go in the morning.

Since my G1 died after 2 songs, I had to switch to one of my trusted workout playlists on the iPod. And those are getting a little dusty, even though I haven't worked out for a while. So to keep myself from drowning in a sea of "I don't want to be here", I started people watching.

Oh man, have you ever done that at the gym? It's awesome. There are so many opportunities to just imagine what these people would be like if they were characters in a sitcom. I wish I could type and use an elliptical machine at the same time. I think it might have been funnier in my head than on paper. I won't post it here, because it could be misconstrued as "mean". If you really want to read it, and you promise not to be offended and to understand that it's just completely made up in my head and not actual judgments on people, than comment or email me and I'll send it to you.

I'm glad I went to the gym, and I'm glad that I stayed and didn't just work out and get increasingly bitter as the minutes went on. I really don't like working out. At least, I don't like just being on a machine for 30+ minutes. Eventually I'll be able to go to classes again, and that will be more fun. I'm just trying to get to where I can workout for a while without having a coronary. :P

Newness!

2009-03-29T23:59:00.000-07:00

I absolutely cannot believe I just got my Blackjack II in June of last year.

It feels a little like cheating to have my new shiny G1 after just 9 months of having the other "smart" phone, but I'll get over it.

Now, Aaron and I both have a smart phone, and we got them from Costco for $129.99 each, and that included a Bluetooth headset as well! AND no activation fee! Score!

I believe that our lives should be easier when it comes to scheduling, and that Aaron will feel more organized when it comes to his tasks and calendar. We were both glued to the new toys all afternoon and evening. I hope that we get over the excitement because it's fun to play, but there's work to be done. :)

For those who don't know, a G1 is a Google Phone. To check it out, go here.

I'm not only thankful that we have new phones, but that we had money saved up to be able to do this, and that we got a GREAT deal, and that Aaron will now have more access to his calendar and email. I think it will help him to be more effective and to feel more satisfied as a result. Happy Aaron = Happy Kimbo.

Love, Love, Love

2009-03-28T21:19:00.000-07:00

Those reading my blog must think I'm a real piece of work.

I first was going to write that I was thankful for sleeping in, which I am, because I got to today - Aaron even got up and took care of Scout's morning routine. But I just wrote about being thankful for rest on Thursday, and come on, it's sleep! As the great Linda Bisesti used to say, I can sleep when I'm dead! :)

Here's where the "God-stuff" starts in, for those who care to stop reading. ;) I'm not offended, and I hope you aren't, either.

Today I'm thankful for love. Particularly for love expressing itself in service and through the people who make Crossroads happen. I got to see a bunch of ladies today who were there on this amazing little journey I went on a couple weeks ago, and to hear how they're doing and what they're up to, and to worship with them. It's so comfortable for me there, in a good way. It's a place where I feel I can serve and I have something to give. I mean, I give a lot - at least, I try really hard to give a lot. But this is different. This is set up so that what you give is given to help the receiver focus on God.

The whole experience is designed to immerse people in their faith for a whole weekend. To just love, love, love those who are there to receive that. This has done amazing things for my walk with God. I also just went back and reread the Laiken entries, because for some reason they came up in my search for "sleeping in". And how crazy is it that Psalm 63:1-3 was there, too??? I'm somehow thinking that God is telling me a lot through that passage, as I just used it in a devotional not too long ago, too.

Okay, I'm shutting up now. I'm just overflowing with thankfulness today, for everything that God has done for me even when I wasn't paying attention. And now so much more for what He has done and continues to do every day since I've been home.

And I love my girls over there, too. I can't wait to see them again and to serve with them in October!

Also, I heart this song and I think it fits with the post. He's playing in Santa Ana on April 16th, just so you know.

Because Of Your Love - Phil Wickham

It's Friday

2009-03-27T23:59:00.000-07:00

Yep, I'm thankful it's Friday. TGIF, I say.

A quiet day at the office, with a few tablespoons of productivity.

Add 1 cup of Skype usage discovery and testing, mix until you have one geeked out technophile.

Bake for 8 hours, let technophile cool in living room. Meanwhile, mix Husband and Dad and stir until they make the lawnmower work again. Once cooled, place in good Italian restaurant with an excellent low-fat 12 point option for dinner, send home for some Hulu on the big TV and relax.

Ahhh, sounds like a recipe for a chilled out Friday with the fam.

Sorry this is silly and random, it's how I feel today. :P

Extra Rest

2009-03-26T23:59:00.000-07:00

I took a bit of a personal day, well, half-day. I got some much-needed sleep and to slow down my pace a little bit. I told Aaron I probably could have slept the whole day, but right now it's not really possible for me to stay home and do that.

That notion stresses me out a little, in the event I were to get really sick or something. I guess as long as that doesn't happen on a Tuesday or Thursday I'll be okay, there will be someone at the office to cover.

Anyway, I'm thankful that it is such a quiet week and that I was able to stroll into the office around 12:15. Hooray for Angie, she normally wouldn't be in this week, and she's really the reason I was able to do that.

Spring Break

2009-03-25T23:59:00.000-07:00

Aaron came to have lunch with me today at work, even though he was super sleepy from getting up early to go fishing.

Then, when I came home, it was to practically empty sinks because he had cleaned up my wreckage from the previous night's feast.

I pretty much love that guy. I'm so glad that he helps out around the house so much when he's off work.

Dinner: Elaborated On

2009-03-24T23:59:00.000-07:00

In the picture below, you see 3 main components:

A Bean & Cheese Burrito
Chips & Salsa
Jalapeno Poppers (and Ranch Dressing! Holla!)

I know, I know, I keep talking about food. But let me tell you why I'm so dang excited about food. I'm a food junkie. I love food. Whenever I try to lose weight, it's food that defeats me. Sometimes I do really well at exercising, and when I get in my groove I know I can do that, but it's the onion rings beckoning me, or the craving for a certain off-limits food that gets me every time. And then I get that stupid attitude in my head about how I just blew it so I might as well throw out the rest of the weekend... and I'm off the wagon.

Right now, I feel like I can actually stick to this thing! I either read on WW or HG about not eating food you don't love, and I think that's my problem. Whenever I've tried to diet, I've crammed the Chick Fil A grilled sandwich down my throat, or whole wheat tortillas (YUCK!)...

So for me, the trick is having food that I actually enjoy eating, and feeling full, or at least satisfied, after eating.

And tonight, after that dinner, I was full! In a good way. :) In case anyone wants to know how I pulled it off, here's the rundown:

The burrito was a Mission Carb Balance tortilla, so it only had 2.5 grams of fat and 11 grams of Fiber! For the cheese, I used a whole 1/2 cup of fat-free shredded cheddar, and the beans were Rosarita Non-Fat refried beans. While cooking those, I added a little bit of water to give them a thinner consistency. In the end they almost were like beans from Baker's (mmm). Once I put the beans and cheese on my warm tortilla, I microwaved it for 15 seconds to get the cheese nice and gooey.

The chips were baked tostitos. They actually taste good. I've always tried to do this with baked blue corn tortilla chips from Trader Joe's (yuck!), but these Tostitos are a great substitute for the "real" thing.

The Jalapeno Poppers (called Jalapeno Swappers in the cookbook), were just jalapenos halved and de-seeded filled with a mix of 1/4 cup fat-free cream cheese and 1/4 cup fat-free cheddar cheese, then dunked in Egg substitute and coated with Fiber One crumbs with some salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

For the ranch dressing, I used a packet of Hidden Valley ranch mix with some fat-free sour cream. And I only had 1 tbsp of it, which was almost enough for all 5 of my poppers. They were too hot anyway, so I couldn't finish them. Plus, I was full.

Eventually I'll stop blogging about food, there is a lot more in life to be thankful for. But right now, I'm getting a lot of joy out of these successes and I hope that maybe someone else reading this can be inspired or feel like maybe they *can* lose that weight after all. I'm actually feeling like if I had been choosing these options all along, I wouldn't have gained so much weight. And that's making me feel like once I lose it this time, it's gone for good. :P

My 9 Point Dinner!!!!

2009-03-24T20:40:00.000-07:00

Hungry Girl

2009-03-23T23:59:00.000-07:00

I know I just blogged about this, but seriously, I am so thankful for this new cookbook. On Weight Watchers? Check out the points and go get a copy, seriously!

I'm really excited to get all of the recipes down to a science so that it doesn't take me as much time to make them.

Tonight I had a spicy chicken sandwich for dinner with onion rings. Yep, onion rings. That tasted *almost* believable. I told Aaron I was actually enjoying eating them more than the real thing, because I didn't have to feel guilty about it. Amazing.

Watch out, Flipside Biggest Losers, I'm a force to be reckoned with if I have healthy food to eat that actually tastes good. ;)

Sense of Completion

2009-03-22T23:59:00.000-07:00

Ahhhh, I finished the last section of the Stained Curriculum today.

I'm still going to have to go back and edit and put all 4 sections together, but it feels really really really good to have gotten to this point. I don't have another deadline looming over my head in 6-8 weeks or whatever.

It was stressful, and today was actually a pretty bad day between the dogs driving me crazy, feeling sick, being uber tired, missing church, the printer jamming, and getting in a tiff with Aaron, but I am so glad to have the Stained stuff done that all that pales in comparison.

So yay! It's over (sort of)!

Adventures

2009-03-21T22:36:00.000-07:00

I did not end up making it to my women's group this morning.

I did, however, manage to find my way to the Anaheim Garden Walk to meet up with Siobahnne and Marisa for the Lush opening. That was fun. Lots of waiting in line and elbowing people to get at wonderfully amazing smelling little bath luxuries.

After Lush, we headed to CPK, which, I discovered, has absolutely NO nutritional value information on their website or anywhere else, really. Shame on you, CPK! I opted for a grilled vegetable salad with fat-free balsamic vinaigrette and I guess I'm just hoping for the best. I guesstimated the points.

Then I got to go enjoy a Vanilla coffee concoction courtesy of Sio at her & Dave's place. She introduced me to Hungry Girl, which has the potential to be the greatest cookbook ever. Tons of low-fat, low-calorie options for great food.

Naturally my next stop after discovering the cookbook was Target to pick it up, as well as a few other supplies for my quest in health and wellness. Like My Fitness Coach for the Wii, a candle for my prayer and study area, as well as a new notebook and a beautiful treasure box for little faith momentos.

Then the guy ringing me up at Target told me he got that same treasure box at Marshall's for cheaper, so instead of paying the overpriced Target price I went there. They didn't have the same one anymore, apparently, but I found one that suits me and will work beautifully.

It was a good day, I spent a lot of money, and may not be getting that Disneyland pass after all, but I don't think I will regret any of today's purchases at all. I had a lot of fun on the journey today, whereas I usually am an, "Are we there yet?" kind of girl.

On that note, I will add that it just occurred to me that that is one of the things that I feel is beginning to shift in me. I am so very thankful for that. It seems like a better place to be.

Feeling Full

2009-03-20T23:59:00.000-07:00

With this Weight Watchers thing, I'm supposed to actually try to eat more. I kinda love that. The only problem is, it should be healthy stuff. Duh.

I really need to figure out ways to grab quick healthy snacks. I was starving most of the day at work today, so by the time I was making dinner, I was miserable. And I tried this recipe for onion rings from the Weight Watchers website and I think they would have been awesome if I had done them right. Anyways, the point is, the onion rings took forever. And I made these Tex-Mex burgers, which were really good.

Once I did actually eat my food, I felt full afterward. Like the good full, not the guilty uh-oh I ate too much full. And I even had points left for some angel food cake with strawberries.

I think one of the reasons I keep failing when I try to lose weight is that I get so tired of feeling hungry. And today was a prime example of that. But after that dinner, I felt great. If I take the time and energy to prepare, I think I can do this. I'm the little engine that could.

I hate to talk (well, blog) about it, but I feel like I need the accountability. So if in 3 weeks I'm talking about putting down a whole pizza and a large Coldstone, slap me around a little, k? ;)

Cheap Dates

2009-03-19T23:59:00.000-07:00

I don't have too much to say today. It was a busy evening, came home from work, got Lori's key, went to first Weight Watchers meeting, went to pick up Abbey, came home, got dogs settled, went to dinner at Red Robin.

Weight Watchers was cool, I'm a little leary but I think it might work for me. It's at least accountability. It felt a little surreal at some points, with Stephanie the uber-eager pep-talk cheerleader leading the meeting, and ending with making us read aloud with her a quote:

If food is not the problem, then eating is not the answer.

Um, yeah... I'm excited about losing weight, but not so excited about these weekly meetings. lol.

Anyway, Red Robin was great. I didn't eat all of my french fries. And I know I can splurge once in a while, but this was the last time I could do so without having to write it down and count it towards my points. :P And we had coupons that saved us $7 off our bill! Yeah. :)