It's hard paying the price...

for good cookware---but I have decided to do it! My mom had a Pampered Chef party tonight and since she booked off my show, I got to choose any 2 items at 60% off. I never in a million years expected to buy much of anything tonight..and CERTAINLY not a set of cookware for $345...but I did! I got a 7 peice set of cookware and an 8" saute pan both for my 60% off items. Then I ordered a few other things with my 10% discount. In all, I spent about $180....but here is how I am justifying it.
I am fixing to celebrate my 10th wedding anniversary. The cookware I am using right now is the same stuff I got at my wedding shower 10 years ago. It was CHEAP then. All the non-stick coating has come off and now I just have silver-speckled pots and pans. I have never, in all these years, owned a nice peice of cookware. Yet, I cook almost EVERY day. We buy nice clothes, nice cars, nice house, nice lawnmowers, nice drills/saws, nice furniture....so why shouldn't I be using nice cookware? I mean, a lot of the stuff we buy we only use occasionally..but this is something I will use practically every single day and it even has a lifetime guarantee!
I am totally stoked about having it. I think cooking is going to be so much more fun now that I won't have to scrape everything off the bottom of all my pans. Plus clean up will surely be much easier since right now everything that hits the bottom of my pots or skillets burns immediately and then I have to let it soak with water for an hour before I can even begin to get the stuff off.
Anyhow, that's what I'm thinking about tonight...how much money I just spent---but what a good use of money it is.
How many of you have good cookware?

The Boobie poll has closed...

This was a fun poll. There were 19 votes in all! Looks like the majority of us just wish we could get a little work done and we'd be in love with our girls. Here are the final results:

When asked what you think about your boobies:
2 of you said "I love 'em"

3 of you said "If only they didn't touch the top of my waistband"

3 of you said "If only they were bigger"

2 of you said "If only they were smaller"

7 of us (me included) said "If only I could spend some money on them"

and for the 2 lucky ones in the group, you said : "If only they were real"

One of these days when I have more money than I know what to do with, I'll get laser hair removal and my twins put back up where they go...but for now...thank God for good razors and mega-supportive sports bras!!

Wednesday Weigh-In (on Thursday)

Okay so I waited to do my Wednesday Weigh-In post until today because today marks the beginning (the first day) of my current "goal". My 10th wedding anniversary is exactly 1 month from today. (3/28) So I am setting a specific goal for myself for the next month to see how much weight I can lose by that big day. I weighed 147.4 yesterday morning and then again this morning...so that is my starting weight. My DREAM would to be at 135 on 3/28 and then I could "brag" that I weigh exactly the same at my 10 yr. anniversary as I did on my actual wedding day...but I know that is asking a lot. 12 pounds in 29 days is almost a pound every other day. If only I could train with Jillian (from biggest loser) for the next month!! My "game plan" for the next month is to exercise every day..including my usual days off (Wed. & Sun.) and to not have ANY cheat days. It's just ONE month...surely I can have that much self control, right? I am going to continue my current regimen of eating every 3 hours and trying to watch my protein & fiber intake as well as my calorie intake.
As usual, if any of you have any suggestions, please pass them along. I have really appreciated all the feedback and ideas you have all been giving me. Amos, I am seriously considering seeing the nutritionist if I don't lose weight after this month.
Okay, so that's it. You guys hold me accountable okay? If I actually reach my goal, I am going to attempt to put on my wedding dress and see how it fits 10 years later! That'll certainly be interesting!! ha ha
Wish me luck (and for lettuce to taste like chocolate!)

ring ring

I am SO ready for a new ringtone on my phone. I want a cool song...something that sort of "describes" me. I can't think of a thing. So, I am asking you...my fellow bloggerbuds...to tell me what song would you suggest? What songs lyrics would make you think of me? If you are really into helping me with this you can actually go to Tmobile.com and look at the list of possibilities! However, I don't expect any of you to really do that...
Even if you can't think of a specific name of a song...tell me what you think the song should be called or what it should be talking about. Maybe that'll help....
Thanks!!

Sure ya, get a tan...but not all in one session!

So, I haven't said a whole lot about this yet because I am saving it for a really time-consuming post where I hope to put pictures and all...but in about a month and 2 days...Matt and I will be celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary! We are hoping/planning to take a weekend getaway without the kids to celebrate. This being said...I have decided to start tanning to try to hopefully have some color by that time. (in case we go somewhere bathing suit friendly). You KNOW I am also furociously trying to lose weight too....but more about that tomorrow with my Wednesday Weigh-In. Anyhow, so today after my work-out at the gym, I tanned. It was all good and fine until I realized I forgot to tell the girl HOW LONG I wanted to go in for. Turns out I stayed the whole 20 minutes! I am burnt from head to toe and every crevice in between! Wow...who knew wearing a bra could be SO painful! Even my nostrils are burnt I think! I had to go to a home party tonight at a friends house and I felt like such a dork with my blazing-red face! I wore a hat to hopefully distract from it. Who knows! ha ha
Anyhow, lesson learned....I will be sure and tell the girl how long I want to go in for next time!

boys

My son peed on our gigantic, beautiful mirror! Yes, you read that right. Apparently to amuse his sister, our 3-year-old son pulled his pants down and urinated on the mirror in our entryway!!! Brooklyn was doubled over in giggles...but me...I was just stunned. What in the WORLD would possess my sweet, usually obedient, quiet son to do something so ridiculous!?! After he realized that mommy wasn't going to find this funny, he was VERY remorseful. I talked with him before I bent his little butt over and gave it a good whack with the paddle and then made him clean the mess up...but still...I just kept shaking my head like "what in the world??" When I told Matt I couldn't believe he'd done it...Matt said, "I can." I guess boys will do anything to make girls laugh.

huh...

Oh....do I or don't I???

I typed up a big, ole' long post yesterday about something but I didn't publish it because I had to get up and didn't get to finish. Then now as I sit down to finish it and hit publish, I decided to just hit "delete" instead. It's one of those things. You know it'd make a GREAT blog story, everyone would probably enjoy reading it...however...it borders on the line of being interesting and funny versus private and personal. I'm sure my super-private hubby would much rather me NOT blog about it. Then you've got me...Mrs. I-don't-have-a-single-secret-in-the-world who would tell a perfect stranger my most intimate details! Grrrr.....

Anyway, I am not going to elaborate on the subject. If you want to know more...you can e-mail me...but I am just going to say that if you are married, you should buy the game "101 nights of Grrrreat Sex" by Laura Corn. Believe it or not....it's really not a "sex" game. It's about 70% trivia questions, 10% writing your spouse notes, 5% eating chocolates, 5% dressing up, 5% massages and 5% actually getting some action.

The night we got this game Matt and I laughed so hard and had more fun together than we have had in years. For the $21 we spent on this game....I recommended EVERY married couple getting one and at least giving it a try. I promise it will get you talking and laughing and remembering why you fell in love in the first place!

Crazy Hair Day

It was Crazy Hair Day at Grant's school last week. His hair turned out pretty crazy but he wasn't too happy about getting his picture taken!

Double Dip-Head

The other day Braums (our local ice cream shop for those of you who've never heard of it) had a sale on douple dip ice cream cones. We went in and Matt and I decided to order a sundae to share. Since the kids will only eat 1 dip of ice cream each and they both wanted the same flavor, I decided to just order them a douple dip and then split it up between them. (side note: a single dip is about $1.25 but the sale on double dips was $1.59 so it was a substantial savings over ordering 2 single dips.) So, I do that...and then as he is scooping on the 2nd dip, I say to him, "actually will you put that 2nd dip in a little bowl instead?" [THIS IS MY BIG MISTAKE APPARENTLY!] So, he does it and we proceed to the check out counter. When I get ready to pay, I tell the guy (another teenager) that we had 1 sundae and 1 double dip. He looks at the cone in my hand and the bowl with a single dip and shakes his head "no". I say "yes, we just put the 2nd dip in a bowl." He then leaves the counter to go ask the other guy if he should be ringing it up as a double dip...to which he says "no." I am like "What? I specifically ordered a double dip." He points at the bowl and says "but you got the 2nd dip in a bowl so that is 2 single dips." At this point I am so frustrated, so I say "Here is this better?" and I take the bowl and turn it upside down on top of the cone so that it now looks like a double dip cone with a bowl on top. The checker guy looks at the scooper guy and they shake their heads "no" again. At that point I was so ticked off I just left the counter and let Matt deal with it. Sure enough...we paid for 2 single dips. Isn't that ridiculous? I know it is SO NOT a big deal...but it just bugged me. What do ya'll think? Was I being too cheap? Trying to cheat them? Or do I have a right to be irritated?

One hundred and fifty nine

I came across a sale the other day. A GOOD sale. 10 cents per greeting card at a local drugstore that was going out of business. I bought 159 of them!!! I spent a whole $15.90...which is what I'd normally spend on about 4-5 cards! And..these weren't cheapo cards either. I am talking about $3, $4 and even some $5 cards! I have a card for everybody for every occasion under the sun! Of course, there will still be a time or two when I'll need something extra special and I'll go buy one...but for the most part...I have it covered! Cool huh?

Believe me, the other people in line behind me at the store were shaking their heads! ha ha

A valentine present I forgot to tell ya'll about!

A few weeks ago Matt's company sent home a flyer about a wellness thing they are doing. Basically, if every person (and their spouse) would go to the dr. and get a check up (checking weight, height, blood pressure, triglyceride levels and cholesterol levels) which meant getting blood drawn for lab work, (which the insurance pays for 100%) then they would send each individual person a $150 Mastercard giftcard good wherever MC is accepted! Of course, we jumped on it. Not only would the extra $300 be wonderful...but it was also way overdue to have those things checked. (neither of us has had anything like that done in probably over 8 years!)

We received our gift cards in the mail on Valentines Day! Hooray! In addition, we were both in the healthy/normal ranges on all of our tests. Well, except for our weights. We are both quite overweight according to their charts. Me, I could deal with ...but poor Matt! He's 6' and 200 pounds...which is NOT overweight...but according to the "charts"...he is. WhatEver! He's solid muscle everywhere except right around the middle...and even then...he's cetainly not fat. I HATE those stupid STUPID charts!
Okay, anyway, just wanted to say how excited I am about having an extra $150 in my purse to do whatever I want to with! Hooray!

It doesn't get any cuter than this!!

One of my best friends, Amy, (or you might know her from her blog http://www.craftydevil.blogspot.com/) took this picture of her ADORABLE son wearing this ADORABLE shirt! I had to post it on my blog!

Speaking of boobies...be sure to take my new poll and tell me what you think about em!

Eat Less More Often

That's what I've been trying to do. Eat every 3 hours about 200-250 calories. So far, so good, I THOUGHT. I mean...it is definitely keeping me from feeling like I am STARVING all the time....and I am eating MUCH healthier. Like carrot sticks with light ranch for snack or celery with a Tbsp. peanut butter or an egg sandwich. I've been eating at least 1 protien bar a day (190 cal/20 protien) and drinking 1 protien shake a day (110 cal/17 protien).
This all seemed so great and perfect and wonderful but I am STILL NOT LOSING WEIGHT!
I weighed 147 this morning.
I am more frustrated than ever.
Summer is approaching very QUICKLY and if something doesn't start changing FAST..I am not going to be in shorts/tank top/bathing suit shape by the time the hot weather gets here. Plus...we are thinking we might go to Destin, Florida (or somewhere like that) for a week in July...and it would be awesome to look good and feel good (in a bikini!)
If any of you have any tips for me...feel free. At this point, I am just gonna keep doing what I'm doing, I guess. My daily goal is to eat around 1200 calories, get 75 grams of protien, plenty of fiber and get some exercise. I don't know what I can do any better than that....??

Puppy Love

Sadie finally got her first bath (we were waiting on her stitches to heal). Poor little girl...she was shivering so bad! I wrapped her up in a towel and then dried her with the hair dryer...which totally freaked her out.
Of course, I had to do something to make her look girly...so we painted her toenails!

Here she is after the whole ordeal...zonked! It's a lot of work looking good, huh Sadie? ha ha

Here are some pics from our trip to Chuck-E-Cheese.
Here Grant is driving the monster truck.
Brooklyn and Grant posing beside SpongeBob, (whom they love and I am beginning to dislike---he has BAD manners!)

In this one you can see how the ball is flying up and over the game where it promptly konked a poor little girl right in the head! Oops!

nothing to say...

For 2 days now I have clicked on "new post" only to sit here and stare at the blank box and blinking cursor. I can't think of a single blog-worthy thing to say to you all. Life has been completely unexciting and more like a peaceful canoe ride than the roller-coaster we're more accustomed to. The kids were out of school Friday & Monday (today) so we had a long 4-day weekend with not a single thing planned. I can't even remember what we did on Friday but Saturday we got up like usual and went to the gym, then ran errands around town and came home and watched the dumbest movie ever (Martian Child). Major waste of precious time. Saturday night Matt got called out to go to work (at 3:30 am) so it was gonna be just me and the kiddos at church. I was proud of myself for getting up when the alarm actually went off at 6:30 am and I got all showered, make-up & hair-done and almost completely dressed before I even woke the kids up and got them bathed. Just as I was getting them dried off, I thought to myself how hot Grant's skin felt. Then as if she had read my mind, Brooklyn says, "Mom, my throat hurts worser than it ever has before." So...back in the closet went our church clothes and out came the sweats. I took Grant's temp and yep...it was 101.3. I gave them both a dose of Ibuprofen and then we threw on our tennis shoes and hopped in the car to go to Mickey-D's for breakfast. I figured since we were all up, cleaned and dressed...might as well make an appearance SOMEwhere! ha ha After that, we came back home and all piled into my bed for some cartoons and a little cat-napping. When Matt got home, we had our very own church service complete with Praise & Worship from Brooklyn (on the karoke machine), offering taken up by Grant and message led by our very own Reverend Matthew Jones. hee hee
The kids had a ball with that. We didn't do much else for the rest of the day. Then today, Monday, since the kids seemed to be feeling a little better...I got a wild hair and decided to take them to Chuck-E-Cheese for lunch. Actually...we went to Pizza Hut first and used Brooklyn's Book-It awards for free personal pan pizzas and ate there..then we went across the street to Chuck-E-Cheese for games. I bought 50 tokens thinking that would last us...and I was wrong. That was way too many! We played for about 2 1/2 hours and still had about 15 left!!! The kids had fun though and I only spent $15 total for the whole day...food included. Not bad.
Tonight we rented the movie "Lucky You" from Redbox. We get free codes on Monday's so I try to pick up a movie if I'm by there since it doesn't cost anything. It was not a horrible movie...but nothing I'd suggest to anyone unless you're REALLY into Vegas and poker and gambling. So, that's it. See why I haven't blogged. Totally boring stuff here...but at least I posted. I did take some pics of the kids at CEC's today...so maybe I put those on here tomorrow if any of them are decent! Goodnight!

My 2 pretty princesses

Sadie laid her head in Brooklyn's lap and then fell asleep. Brooklyn, of course, loved that! Here they are together!

I got a card too!!

Matt got me a really sweet card for Valentines day...but it was the little poem he wrote inside that really stole my heart! I was gonna type it out on here for ya'll to read...but then I thought he probably wouldn't like me showing his "sweet" side to the whole world! As far as you all know...he's Mr. Tough Guy! okay?

Hooray! It's my valentine present!

For my Valentine present, Matt got me an under-the-counter CD player/radio. I've wanted one of these since we got married...and now I finally have one! Yippee! It's nice because I can listen to preaching CD's while I cook or praise & worship music in the mornings while I make breakfasts/lunches and it just really starts my day out right.

best buddies

Here is Mixie and Sadie playing. They LOVE each other. The funny thing is --they are almost exactly the same size and colors....and if it's dark or they are far away...I can't tell them apart!

Meet Mixie

This is Mixie..our adopted cat. She just showed up at our back door a few months ago and we've been feeding her ever since. We even bought her a cute little rhinestone collar and held her down while we put it on her. She's not the friendlist kitty (with the kids) but she does LOVE me....what can I say...I am nicer to the animals than the rest of the family! he he

sleepy head

The other day I got my purse and laid it beside my desk while I payed bills online. When I reached over to get my wallet out...there was my little Sadie pup snoozing with my purse as her pillow! I had to snap a pic.

If the bed fits...

Sadie has decided she rather likes snoozing in Sam's big bed. Amazingly enough...if she stretches out...she fits! The other night I saw her laying in Sam's bed but I couldn't find Sam anywhere....until I finally glanced in Sadie's little crate..and there he was! He'd crammed himself in there!! I giggled and giggled.....

You're still our baby Sam!

Here is our gigantic cocker spaniel squeezed into Sadie's little crate! Guess he just wanted to be the baby again! ha ha (or maybe he was just mad at Sadie for stealing his bed!)

For the record...

For those of you who read my post about not being able to find the key to my wooden box that holds all the $2 bills I've ever received...I STILL CANNOT find the key! I have looked and searched and tore apart every corner of this house practically...and no key. I am tempted to pull the hinges off and rip it apart....but then it'll be ruined forever. It's really silly since I don't even need the money out for anything now...but still...knowing that I can't get into that box is driving me NUTS! ha ha What would ya'll do? Just wait it out and see if the key shows up eventually...or go ahead and tear the box up?

Also, I am completely in love with this puppy. I'l admit...it took me a whole week (we got her last Friday) but I can tell now that I am totally smitten. I know it sounds silly...but I really think she has a thing for me too. She pretty much wants to be with me/near me all the time...and that's just dandy with me!

Lastly, for those of you who keep up with my Wednesay Weigh-Ins. I know I didn't post one this week --and I know I promised I would keep them coming. But it was a bad week for me. I ate great, exercised plenty--and somehow still gained weight. I had a really awful day/experience at the gym on Tuesday and I actually threw my hands up in the air and stomped out of a class I was in! The poor girl teaching it. It was her first time...and I defininetly handled that improperly. It's just that I was having a bad day anyway, I had started my you-know-what that morning and I was cramping. I felt like a blimp and on top of it all...I couldn't get coordinated to save my life. It was a Zumba class and the new teacher was just WAY too smiley and bouncy and IN MY FACE (literally) for me that day. Because I was having trouble with the steps, she came over and stood beside me with a ginormous smile on her face and proceeded to try to MAKE me move like her...which isn't gonna happen. The girl could've been Shakira for goodness sakes. She could move her hips like they weren't even attached to the rest of her body...and for me that day... I couldn't get mine to move at all. I was like a stick figure trying to do salsa. Ya right. Anyhow, after all that..and a rough night Tuesday night at home too...when I got up Wed. morning and stepped on the scale and saw the readout, I was ready to burst into tears. The last thing I wanted to do was post it for the world to see. So, I hope you'll understand. Wednesday Weigh-In's will be back next week though. I am totally certain that this new way of eating I am doing is the right thing for me. More about that later though...for now, I have to get back to work!
T.G.I F. everybody!
Ps. I have several pictures to share with you all so hopefully I'll get those on here today or tomorrow! Have a good weekend!
Hope you had a good Valentines day? Did your hubby/wife come through for you? I will do a whole post on our Valentines Day soon! My hubby did GOOD!

Vacation Time

We are on the lookout for a vacation spot. We are looking for suggestions. We are clueless.
We have lots of options:
Matt has plenty of vacation time built up...so that's not a problem.
We can take the kids or leave them with Grandma.
Potentially we could spend a decent chunk of money...but of course...the less we spend, the better.
We had thought about maybe taking a little weekend getaway in March for our anniversary just the two of us...and then going on a "big" vacation WITH the kids in the summer.
We have considered DisneyWorld in Florida...but neither of our kids is very into Disney...so not sure that's the right route.
We have thought about doing another cruise...but very leery of that one.
We have considered snow skiing in Colorado..but would very much miss the hot sun/water.
We like the idea of a "beach" but don't know where would be a good place.
We need entertainment. We aren't sight-see-ers. (however you spell that)
I have to be able to shop some. Its a necessity! ha ha
We don't have a lot of "hobbies"--so not particularly looking for a golf course or a spa with it.

You know what I need? One of those quizzes that you fill out for other things to help you determine what you like or what you are or what type your personality is...to help me figure out what kind of vacation to go on!

Anyhow, if any of you have any suggestions of places that are good or of places to stay away from...please tell. This will be our first big vacation since our honeymoon other than the cruise we took 2 years ago. And we've never taken the kids anywhere on vacation so we really want this to be something special with lots of lasting memories for them.

Not Love at first Sight...

okay, so I know many of you have been waiting for me to post pictures of the new puppy. I took some right when we got home Friday so I could hurry and post them on here. But I'm gonna be real honest with you guys. I didn't post them for 2 reasons. 1) Having a new puppy is a lot more like having a baby than I even realized! Up every 3 hours through the night...wants to sleep all day and play all night...poops every half hour. Whew! I could hardly find time to check my e-mail let alone BLOG! ha ha But also...2) She's not as cute as I thought. There I said it. It feels like SUCH an ugly statement. But I'm sorry. I can't help it. I was expecting this:

But instead, I got this:

Obviously she's grown up quite a bit from that first picture...and a lot of the aspects of her appearance that I LOVED in that first picture...have already vanished. She is looking more like a Beagle I think than the King Charles Spaniel...and I'm not too keen on Beagles.

HOWEVER,

She's got a terrific personality and she is sweet as can be. She is smart and is learning not to potty in the house slowly but surely. The first 2 nights we had her...were long nights. She cried and cried at being in her crate...but last night (her 3rd night with us) she slept quietly in her crate from 10 pm until 7 am without a peep! Hooray!

I feel so guilty for not thinking she's very cute. Am I THAT vain? Maybe I am. I don't know. I just know that I really wanted a puppy that I would fall in love with at first sight and she would just steal my heart...and that little Sadie in the first picture did that...but this one....I'm not so sure. Which is completely ridiculous because it is the same exact dog in both pictures. I don't know what's wrong with me. I think this will all be better when I am not doctoring up my hands from all the tiny little knife-like teeth that are constantly biting me and when I am not cleaning diarrhea out of my new carpet 3+ times a day. She really is gonna be a good dog, I think. I am definitely dedicated to training her properly--and I know that will make a big difference.

I am also a bit bummed that we paid SO much for her. I think she's great...but $300??? I feel like we got ripped off to a certain degree...and I know that is horrible of me to say or think. It's just that right before we got her the people told us that they really don't know how old she is or what breed she is because she was given to them from a lady who found her sitting on the side of the road all alone. Man...why couldn't that have been US who found her on the side of the road? Then we'd have had her in her cute puppy stage AND she'd have been Free!! Oh well...

I don't know why I have such the "negative" attitude right now...I really do love her. I guess she just doesn't fit the "mold" I had in my head. But...that mold'll have to change cuz she's a keeper!

Big Foot!

Okay, is it me or does it look like she has GIGANTIC feet in this picture? Ha ha. Her feet are pretty big...but they really look huge here! She LOVES these rawhide chews. I've gone through like 5 in only the past 3 days!

Here we are...

Here we are together.

She loves me!

See her little tongue licking my chin? She really doesn't lick much...but she just happened to stick it out there when I snapped this picture.

Scrapbooking...

I've been at it again. I'm really trying to put more texture and depth in my pages. Lots of different patterns and colors and textures....I'm not quite where I wanna be...but I'm getting better.

Here's a double layout I did the other day. I had a lot of fun with this one. I actually covered the letters "Sugar" in actual sugar. Don't know how that'll work out in the long run...but for now it looks pretty cute.

Yet another scrapbook page. I tried to scrap "outside the box" on this one and mix some papers I wouldn't usually put together. I think it turned out pretty cute....a little wild, but I like it.

Seen posted on my son's door:

Do not nok or opin!

T. G. I. Finally the day!

You know how when you were a little kid and you had something exciting the next day, like maybe you were gonna leave for camp or you were going to a theme park or like on Christmas Eve? You can't hardly sleep and you wake up every hour wondering when it's ever gonna be morning? Well, that's how my night was. The first time my eyes opened at 5:36 this morning, I remembered what today is and could sleep no longer. In 2 hours I will be leaving the house and when I come back, I will have my little Sadie with me.
But that's not the only reason I am excited. Matt took the day off work and we get to spend it together, in a new town, with our new puppy. Husband, shopping, puppy...it's like the perfect day. I, of course, will have pictures to show you tonight! But for now, I have to quit blogging and get to working or I'm not gonna be able to leave out of here on time.
Thank you all for putting up with me and this whole puppy thing. I know I am making a way too big deal out of it....and if I was reading this on someone else's blog, I'd probably be rolling my eyes just a bit...but for you mothers out there....you'll understand. I've been torn (just a little) about whether or not we are EVER going to have any more babies. Neither of us is "fixed" so we technically could. The thought has rolled around in my head a few times and I always come up with the fact that we are DONE. That makes me sad and homesick for a baby. So...this puppy is like the "Best of Both Worlds" as Hannah Montana would say. I get to care for a "baby" but not have quite the level of responsibility that comes with a real baby. It's almost like the bigger deal I let myself make of this....the more like having a baby it is...which will hopefully fufill that desire. Anyway, I know I'm being silly...but it feels SO good for once to be sorta goofy and silly and not so serious and "perfect" all the time. It's like I've let loose of the reins for a moment. Ahhh...it's nice. It can't last forever, obviously...but it's been a long time.
Okay...really....gotta get to work! ha ha
Hope you all have a terrific Friday!

Online Romance

I have fallen in love...over the internet...with this puppy! I can't believe how I am feeling. You'd think I am having a baby tomorrow or something! ha ha

But seriously, now that I KNOW we are getting her tomorrow at noon, I am like a little mother hen. I am trying to get everything ready. I need to buy a crate, bed, bowls, collar, chews, toys, food, and of course every little girl needs a new outfit!!! ha ha ha

Okay, I am giggling as I type this because I have always thought that people who DRESS their DOGS in CLOTHES were nuts....but now that I am gonna have my own little princess puppy....I can't resist all the cute outfits! I have a whole list of places to go because of course, I want to get the absolute CUTEST stuff I can find. Atwoods, PetsMart, Target, Petco, Wal-Mart. I want to check them all out before I decide. Should I go with a pink theme? Or maybe red? Dots? Stripes? Paisley? so many choices....! he he he

I am so consumed with all this that I can't even think about anything else and that's not good seeing as how I am covering for a friend of mine who is on vacation and I have to do my work plus 3 of her doctors today, tomorrow and this weekend. Plus, I am supposed to be planning a Valentine party for Brooklyn's school next week and calling all the parents about what to bring today. Ya right! It's practically killing me to sit here and work until I pick Brooklyn up from school at 3 and then we can head to town.

Oh by the way, I want to mention that since this is sort of an "unexpected expense" I was going to use my "special money" to pay for her. Ever since I was a little girl, my mom has been giving me $2 bills for my birthday. I've never spent a single one. She usually gives me the amount of my age. So like when I turned 29 this past year, I got 14 $2 bills and a $1. Anyhow, I always put them in this little wooden box I have that has a lock and that's where they've been since I was a little girl--and the key has always been in a little jewlery box in my underwear drawer. So today, I am finally EXCITED about getting to spend them on something that I really WANT and I go to my undie drawer to get the key and low and behold...I've been burglarized! The box is ripped open and the keys are GONE! I spent the next 30 minutes tearing up the house and every toybox we own looking for them (because I know the crook was someone 7 or 3). But, to no avail...I can NOT find the key! So I have all this money I want to spend..and it's locked up! So my hubby calls and I tell him the story and he says, "Well, I wasn't going to let you spend them anyway. I have some money set aside for your Valentines present...so I'll just give you the cash!" Yippee!! I could have kissed him right through the phone!!! I take back anything negative I ever said about him and his gift-giving/thoughtfulness. He is CERTAINLY making up for times past lately! Thank you SO MUCH BABE!

Anyway, on another note: Earlier while I was sitting at my desk typing, after I had been to the gym and was stinky, nasty, sweaty...Grant walked up to me and when I looked up I started CrAcKiNg up! He had gotten one of my candles in a jar that is almost burned out and put it up to his nose to smell....but got the black soot ALL over his face and chin. Of course, I had to snap a picture. He wasn't very happy with me about laughing and taking his picture...so I let him take mine too.

puppy anxiety...

This is so ridiculous. I am totally anxious/nervous/butterfly's in my stomach about this whole puppy thing. We are wanting to adopt Sadie, the beagle/spaniel mix. Technically she is considered a "Beaglier". How they came up with that name, I have no idea. She is a "Beagle Hybrid." (I've been doing my research...can ya tell?)
Anyway, the place she is being kept is an hour and a half away. They require her to be spayed before she can be adopted...and so the money (for her spaying-$45) has to be paid to them in cash in person or else through Western Union (who charges a $20 fee). Anyway, basically, I am either going to have to pay before seeing her and just HOPE that when we do see her we have a bond/connection...or I could wait until I can actually physically go there and see her...but then I risk the chance of her being taken by someone else. The girl who has her said there have been over 50 people interested in her and that several are supposed to be "sending the money." Once she receives that initial deposit (for spaying) from a person...the dog is then placed on "hold" and the person has 5 days to come pick her up. Ugh!
This is just totally stressing me out...which is what I SWORE I wouldn't let happen.
Even though I know I want a puppy and I'm almost 100% positive she's the ONE....I still keep thinking about how much all of this is going to cost. Not so much "having a puppy" as just the "start up" costs. I will need to buy a crate, bowls, food, collar all immediately---and she costs $295!!! BTW, I asked why she is so much seeing as how I am getting her from an animal rescue place. She said that usually the dogs have a $75 adoption fee....but since Sadie is a "high demand dog" meaning that LOTS of people want her and are willing to pay to get her...that they use those dogs to recover some of their costs. Basically they lose money on all the other dogs that they rescue but on these "high demand" dogs...they make some extra to even out the difference. Whatever. All I know is that I want her, I am tired of looking and it actually makes me feel a WHOLE lot better to be giving this place $300 (since it's run by volunteers and they rescue dogs) instead of buying a dog from PetMart.

Okay, I know that was a bunch of jibberish...but I just needed to get it all out of my head and sorted out on paper. If any of you have any advice...feel free to share.

Okay FINE...if you're gonna make me!

Wednesday Weigh-In
One forty stinkin' eight. That's what I weighed today. Grrrrrrr..... I was tempted to assault the scale this morning. How can that BE? I've been working my butt off at the gym lately...going Mon, Tue, Thur, Fri & Sat---all 1 1/2 hours at a time! (of course, that WHOLE order of onion rings after church on Sunday could possibly be the culprit)--but aren't onions some form of vegetable!!!?
{big sigh}
So anyhow..that's where I am with my fatso self right now. 148. I will keep posting these because it holds me accountable at least--even if I don't see any changes in the numbers (except for going up).
I am attempting to make some changes to my eating habits yet again...such as LOTS more protien and 5 small (250 calorie) meals a day instead of 3 (700 calorie) ones a day. I am also going to attempt to keep an eye on my fiber intake and carb intake...though both of those things scare me because I really don't even know what they are...but I'm learning.
I am really happy with these protien shakes (EAS carb control 110 calorie, 17 grams of protien) I got at Sams and the Pure Protien bars (180 cal. 20 grams of protien). You should try them if you haven't.

Oh and by the way....we are actively pursuing adopting little Sadie (the beagle/cocker mix puppy). If all goes as planned, we should be picking her up this weekend. I'll keep ya'll updated.

Now its off to church to the marriage seminar! C U All L8TR!

Inked....the results are in!

The "Tattoo Poll" is now closed and the results are in.

6 of you said they're cool and you either have one or want one

2 of you said you don't care one way or the other

3 of you said they're gross and ugly

1 of you said you feel they go against God's word

and 5 of you said you probably wouldn't get one but you like watching Miami Ink anyway!

(by the way--I fit into that last group)

I searched the web for some cool tattoo pictures to show you. I came across a LOT...but none that were all that interesting. Here are the ones I thought worthy of putting on here:

This last one was my favorite...but you'll have to blow it up to appreciate it! ha ha...wonder if it's for real?