The little things in life

Dear Autumn

2009-09-29T14:10:00.003-04:00

Dear Autumn:

I see that you are sneaking your way back into my life again. Your subtle hints are showing up every where. And I am loving your presence.

The air is so crisp and fresh in the morning. There are a few colored leaves at my doorstep. My mint plant is slowly dying off and I'm sure parsley will follow right behind it. I see the pumpkins, gourds, and dried corn in the grocery store. I see the local farmers selling tickets to their corn mazes and setting out their pumpkins for sale.

I love that you bring me Pumpkin Spice latte's and pecan pie. I hate that I am on a super strict diet and won't get to enjoy them as much.

I am so ready to see all of the leaves change colors and smell the crispness of the air. I love opening the windows when we are home. And I LOVE getting my electric bill and seeing the lower amount due.

Please stick around for a while. And tell your friends Winter and Snow they are not welcome.

Sept 1st and the skirt

2009-09-01T14:17:00.003-04:00

Do you recall the skirt I mentioned a few posts back? I bought a skirt in a size down from what I was wearing. My goal was to be able to wear the skirt comfortably by September. No such luck.

I have stopped taking Alli and started seeing a weight loss doctor. I started seeing him last Wednesday (almost a week ago) and I need to visit him every 2 weeks. I get a B12 shot and 14 pills that will aid me in my weight loss. There is a very strict, boring, and bland diet to follow.

I keep telling myself it's worth it.

Oh yeah, my total weight loss thus far is 7 pounds.

14 days

2009-07-27T15:42:00.001-04:00

Saturday marked my 14th day on Alli and the Alli diet plan. I've lost 3 pounds!

Alli and diet

2009-07-23T15:31:00.003-04:00

The Alli and diet are working. I lost 1.5lbs in 7 days without exercise. I need to come up with an exercise regiment that I like and stick with it.

Alli works by blocking some of the fat you eat and that fat is released through bowel movements. By using Alli I am forced to look at the labels and see how many grams of fat are in one serving of something. Alli recommends that you keep each meal under 15 grams of fat. Do you know how hard that is for me? I looked at 93/7 ground turkey on Tuesday and that had 12 grams of fat. I paid a ton more money to buy the non-fat ground turkey. I've traded in the ice cream for fat-free sorbet. I've also started freezing bananas (note to you: peel BEFORE freezing) and drizzling a little chocolate syrup on them when I need something "ice creamy". This is hard work. I watch everything I put in my mouth. Did you know that ONE big Reeses cup has like 12 grams of fat in it? Holy cow.

My family and I went to Ledos Pizza for dinner last night. I wanted to get a pizza sooooooooooo bad but I knew there are probably 1,000 grams of fat in one of their pizzas. I opted for the Chicken Parmesan then cut the portion in half. I ate half for dinner and had the rest for lunch today.

Alli can be tricky. If you eat the wrong thing, it will mess your stomach up! I had ONE slice of mushroom-tomato-onion pizza from a medium Papa Johns pie the first week I started Alli. My stomach killed me for 2 days.

I am learning portion control.

I am learning how to eat healthier and be satisfied instead of eating half of a container of cookies.

Am I going to give in every now and then? Sure. And I won't feel guilty doing it as long as I can keep myself on track and not fall back into old habits.

Skirt

2009-07-16T10:58:00.001-04:00

I hung a skirt in my closet today. It's a place I visit everyday. I am determined to be able to wear this skirt - comfortably - by September 1st.

Food - the devil and the plan

2009-07-15T16:00:00.001-04:00

Weight has been an ongoing battle for me ever since I can remember. I remember being over 200lbs in 6th grade. Yep, you read that right. Then in 8th grade I dropped down to 130ish.

Food is the devil.

Food is my comfort.

I eat when I'm happy, I eat when I'm sad. I don't work out or exercise... yet.

Food is my best friend.

Food is my enemy.

I've definitely got a love-hate relationship with it.

Now here I am, 19 months post partum and I've gained 40lbs. They need to go. I picked up Alli to help me out and to teach me what I can and cannot eat. I've started keeping a food journal.

Small update

2009-07-14T11:34:00.002-04:00

I've been furiously running my frugal blog and have totally neglected this blog. Oops.

Anywho, James learned yesterday that he passed his 3rd year final exam. This means he gets a pay raise in September and he goes into his 4th and final year of school. If things go well, he will be taking his elevator mechanics test in September of 2010 and passing it. Then he will get a major raise! Also, word on the street is that his upcoming job location is at NSA. Since that's a Baltimore zone, he will be making Baltimore rate to work up there plus some additional per diem money.

I'm still working at my shitacular insurance job. The job market totally blows right now. I applied for a general manager's position at Applebees but haven't heard back. Actually, I haven't heard back from anywhere that I've applied. So I continue to be miserable and want to cry every day the alarm clock goes off.

I've stopped taking Lexapro.

I've started taking Alli and a rigorious diet plan.

I'm trying the potty training thing again this weekend.

We caught another mouse in the house this morning. So gross. Now I get to disinfect, disinfect, disinfect when I get home. Joy.

I'm waiting for some karma to come around.

Update

2009-06-29T16:30:00.001-04:00

Soon, I promise.

Potty Training

2009-05-26T10:56:00.001-04:00

Potty training was a failure. It went good from Saturday until Wednesday when she had a complete meltdown. So for now I will wait until she shows signs of readiness again.

Potty Training

2009-05-18T12:16:00.000-04:00

I started training my almost-18 month old daughter how to "pee pee on the potty" this weekend. I hope it works. That would be wonderful!

Down

2009-05-14T09:10:00.003-04:00

It is amazing how much the sun (or lack thereof) affects my mood. Maybe the Lexapro isn't working out as well as I thought. Maybe I need to stop taking it and see how I feel.

I am so tired of feeling like shit. The number one factor of this feeling is this godforsaken job. The second factor is my weight. I am making an appointment with my primary doctor to talk about it and see what I can do to control it. I know that snacking is a huge problem. I caught myself eating last night out of boredom. I was the only one awake and I was reading. So of course, I was hungry. I ended up eating some cereal but I really wanted ice cream.

Everything is just going wrong lately. We've had a possible septic tank collapse. Just waiting on the final word from the septic company. My car is acting like crap and turned off on Friday when I was sitting still just holding the brake.

Sunshine and then rain

2009-04-29T14:22:00.002-04:00

We had a gorgeous weekend with temps soaring into the high 80s and higher. Monday was b-e-a-u-t-iful and Tuesday was beyond perfect. Welcome summer!!!!! On Monday, it was actually warm enough that Alexis took a sprint through the sprinklers (Although, she had no idea what she was doing. It was comical.) when James was watering the lawn. I had no fear that she would be too cold and get sick. It was like 90 degrees out! Alexis and I spent Tuesday evening playing in the sandbox while James lounged in the hammock and watched us play. We probably looked like something from a 1950's family except with better looking clothes and more tattoos and piercings. And the funniest thing was when I picked up a caterpillar and Alexis wanted to hold it. So I put it on her hand and she LOVED it! I totally thought she would freak out.

And here it is - Wednesday. Cold as hell and randomly raining. Shit. We are back to late winter-early spring.

So I guess we will be playing inside tonight. Which is fine. I'm kind of tired of saying "turn around", "that's not your yard", "no, Baxter [the neighbors dog] isn't outside", "don't put that stick in your mouth"... you catch my drift. And playing inside gives me more time to read Breaking Dawn!

Just, like, whatever

2009-04-23T14:17:00.003-04:00

I'm so tired of the rain. Are we noticing a trend here?

Well, today is bright and sunny and B-E-A-U-Tiful! And I'm stuck inside at work. It's a catch-22.

For those of you that don't know, I've started a frugal blog. The address is www.savershelley.blogspot.com. Coupon clipping is certainly an addiction. And luckily it helps my bank account instead of destroying it!

That being said, I need to destroy my bank account tonight and buy Alexis some new shoes. But I'll be going to Payless for that. I bought her shoes at Target last time and I think they run really small. There is no way she is fitting into a toddler size 6 already. She just went into size 5 and was in size 4's for months. Her dress shoes fit but her tennis shoes are pretty snug. Maybe I'll get lucky and they will be having some sort of sale.

Tax Day Freebies and Discounts

2009-04-15T10:03:00.000-04:00

Some of these may not work in all areas!!!

P.F. Chang's China Bistro: 15% off your bill

T.G.I. Friday's: Spend $15-$25, receive a $5 gift card. Spend more than $25, receive a $10 gift card. Members of the 1,000-outlet chain's frequent-customer program also will get double points.

McCormick & Schmick: A $10.40 entree menu is available, and every taxpayer will receive a $10.40 dinner certificate for a future visit. Get more info here.

Papa John's: Through midnight tonight, consumers can enter "1040" as a promotional code at http://www.papajohns.com for a large, original crust pizza with up to three toppings for just $10.40.

Dunkin Donuts: Dunkin' Donuts is offering all customers a free doughnut with the purchase of any size cup of Dunkin' Donuts' hot coffee.

The McDonald's draw? Buy a Big Mac or a Quarter Pounder with Cheese at regular price, get the second for a penny

Chick-Fil-A: Make a purchase and save your receipt. Bring the receipt back within the next 30 days starting April 16 and you can get the same items free.

Walgreen's: 15 percent off online + contact lens orders. Use coupon code "TAXED." Good though April 20th.

•Free ice cream. MaggieMoo's Ice Cream and Treatery will give away single-scoop servings to customers at 200 stores in what it calls an "e-cone-omic ice cream stimulus package."

•Free sweets. Snack chain Cinnabon will give out Tax Day Bites, free bite-size cinnamon rolls usually known as Classic Bites, from 5 to 8 p.m. at its 700 outlets on tax day.

•Free tacos. At its 275 restaurants in the West, Taco Del Mar will run a promotion: "Taxes Suck. Tacos Don't." People can register at the Taco Del Mar website for an e-mailed coupon for a free tax day taco.

Baltimore area McDonald's will be giving away hot and iced McCafés on April 15th.

Subway - Free Cookie

Cinnabon - Free Classic Bites

A million and one times

2009-04-14T13:37:00.002-04:00

I know I've said this a million times, so this is one million and one.

I cannot do this god forsaken job any longer. I am too young to wake up every morning and think "Oh my god, I have go to there again?" I am too young to despise every minute I am here. I am too young to dread every minute in the car on the way to work. I am only 23. I think I have to be like 75 or something to qualify for social security. I cannot do this for another 50+ years. I just can't. It's wearing me down. Come to think of it, this place is wearing everyone down.

I've been job hunting for over a year. I've sent my resume out over 100 times and I have not gotten a single response back. Not one. Do you know how depressing that is? I know it's a tough time for job hunters with the economy being in the pits but damn. I'd hope to have atleast one call back even if it didn't amount to anything. I am currently getting help from a mommy-group friend who works in HR. She's helping me to make my resume better. I'm looking into furthering my education so I will look appealing. I've got an associates degree but it does nothing for me.

I need to decide what I want to be when I grow up. I certainly don't want to be unhappy for the rest of my life.

Frugal

2009-04-13T10:57:00.002-04:00

I am on a coupon-clipping frenzy right now. It consumes my evenings. I'm signing up on various coupon websites. And I'm learning to play the CVS Extra Care Bucks game. So far, so good. I'm still getting the hang of it. I thoroughly enjoy watching the cashier ring up my groceries and then watching the total drop after she/he scans my store card and coupons. I've even had a guy in line behind me ask for lessons on how to save money the way I did.

One of my favorite frugal bloggers is Perfectly Provident. She is the money-saving guru.

This is my newest obsession.

Hmpfh

2009-04-07T14:13:00.001-04:00

I am starving today. But I'm controlling myself and not pigging out. I need to watch my not-so-girlish figure. I seriously need to lose weight. I just don't even know where to begin.

Talk about slacking

2009-03-31T14:32:00.002-04:00

I've been slacking. My bad.

Been down in the dumps lately. My husband was away for 9 days and came home with an attitude. Now he's back to somewhat normal.

Job still sucks. Job hunting is unearthing nothing. Economy sucks. Gas prices suck. Grocery bills suck. Not to mention credit cards.

Friends are awesome. I'd like to thank those near and dear to my heart for always being there for me. For always offering to help or give me a shoulder to lean on.

I've been reading the Twilight series. It took me two weeks to read Twilight. I don't see what the huge hype over the book is. Yes, it was a good read. Yes, it was a good story. But I was able to put it down and walk away from it. I know some people who read the book in a matter of a day or two. Insane. I wish I had that much free time. I'm about 200 pages into New Moon. So far, so good. Much better writing in New Moon. I found myself trying to correct sentence structure errors and grammar in Twilight. I haven't been doing that with New Moon. Maybe it's because I'm into the story more now. Or maybe it's because Stephenie Meyer had a better editor. Or maybe I'm a Jacob fan and not an Edward fan. But I think it's because I know nothing about New Moon. I knew the major highlights of Twilight - girl moves, girl falls in love with vampire, girl gets in trouble, vampire saves her, yada yada yada... I know nothing about New Moon outside of the 200 pages that I've read. I purchased the final two books at Target on Sunday.

I still need to watch the movie. I'm sure it will disappoint the book. But I'll watch it anyway.

After I finish these books, I'll need to find a new series to read. I've read the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich.

Job

2009-03-18T11:13:00.000-04:00

A little background - I've been an employee here for 4 years. The assistant has been here for 3 years. The other employees have been here for 10+ years. Our receptionist was fired back in October. The other assistant left in August because her husband was transferred to England. Neither positions were replaced. So we are two employees short.

Currently - something must be going on with the owner of this company. It's got to be something at home and he comes to work and takes it out on us. He picks up on the smallest things that are wrong and totally escalates them beyond belief. We've got one client who missed a payment and apparently that is our fault. This whole stupid situation has EVERYONE in our department involved. Even though we shouldn't be. This morning he made a comment about "the shit hitting the fan around here". WTF? Like I want to come to work and have you yell at me.

Also, a co-worker has to go out for a minimum of 2 weeks for surgery. She told him on Monday. The first thing he says to her is "When will you be able to work from home?" Not "Are you alright?" or "Are you going to be OK?" or "I'm sorry you have to have surgery."

Last week the owner made a comment about me "making a shitload of money". Um excuse me. I don't make a "shitload" of money. If something was to happen to James, my income would ONLY cover my house payment and truck payment. Nothing else. Not even food or electric. Or insurance. Or anything.

I cannot take the attitude anymore. I would rather work 80 hours a week at McDonalds than work here.

I don't know how much longer me, the assistant, and the other gal who needs surgery is going to make it. It is taking every single thing in me to not walk out of here right now and never look back.

I am fired up.

Rain, rain go away

2009-03-17T11:25:00.002-04:00

And don't come back for a long time.

I think it's been raining/snowing/sleeting/freezing rain for the past week. I don't remember the last time I saw the sun shine. It's quite depressing.

On another note, we've switched pediatricians after a horrible visit on Friday. The doctor made me feel like a horrible parent. He told me that Alexis was "aggressive" and "assertive". And she ended up with the Chicken Pox vaccine that I wanted to delay until she was 2. I'm pretty upset with myself over that stupid vaccine.

Husband is still out of town and will return on Sunday. It's been nice having quality time with my daughter and myself. It's nice to be able to eat whatever I want for dinner with no complaints and no extra dishes. It's nice not having socks sit on the living floor for 3 days until I get tired of looking at them and pick them up. Reading without someone asking me a million questions or interrupting me. Good little break. I'll be glad when he gets back though because the trash needs to be taken to the dump.

I feel like I'm forgetting to do something.

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Happy birthday, Nana!

Weather

2009-03-11T15:34:00.002-04:00

I cannot believe the weather lately.

Just two weekends we had 13 inches of snow on the ground. The week after the weather was just simply beautiful. This weekend the weather was like summer - it was actually HOT outside. No jacket or layering required. Sunglasses and flip flops were a must. Had my legs been shaved, I would have worn capri's. Yesterday was somewhat chilly but not unmanageable at 45°F. Today is it around 78°F. This is just insane! Tonight it is supposed to drop down into the 30's, be in the 40's tomorrow and Friday, and the 50's over the weekend.

This is why everyone around me, myself and daughter included, are constantly sick and congested.

You never know how to dress. Or which coat to wear. Or what kind of shoes you need. I leave some boots in the car just in case it snows. The ice scraper and the umbrella is kept in the car, too.

Anyway, I'll be thankful for the warm weather and grin and bear it during the not-so-pleasant weather.

I cannot wait for Spring!

Childish

2009-03-10T10:02:00.002-04:00

I'm tired of dealing with childish, he-said she-said, stupid drama. I'm over people thinking that everyone should be friends and that everyone's personalities will match. The reality is that no body likes everyone and not all people's personalities combine well.

I have so many things to vent about but I don't want to make myself mad again. So I won't vent.

Hopefully, now the drama is over.

Small update

2009-03-05T16:21:00.002-05:00

The whole family has been sick lately. I finally feel better today. It started on Thursday with my husband. He stayed home from work on Friday. We both stayed home on Monday due to a SNOWSTORM! Then I stayed home Tuesday. And now our poor daughter is congested.

Right now I'm overwhelmed. I don't know where to start. My desk is a mess and my husband leaves in a week for 8 days. The first time we have ever been apart for more than two days since we got married. And only the second time we've been apart for a long length of time in SEVEN years. I'm stressed.

A saddened heart

2009-02-27T15:21:00.002-05:00

Earlier this week I learned that one of the women from my mother's group lost her husband. He was in the Army and stationed in Afghanistan. He was only 29 years old and leave behind a 1 1/2 year old son. When I first read of this tragic incident, my eyes filled with tears. I had to fight the tears back so hard because I was sitting at my desk at work. And every time I read about the tragedy I have to fight back tears. I cannot imagine losing my husband like that. This woman is so humble, too. Not only is she dealing with losing her husband, she truly is concerned with how others are coping with the loss. She wrote a note saying that she "is sorry for everyone's loss". How incredible is that? She took the time to write a very long message to the mother's group just to let everyone know what is going on and how she is coping. She has inspired me to be more concerned with others and less concerned about myself.

I took some time out of my day to sit down and write a letter to her son that he can read when he gets older. I told him how brave his father was and how lucky he was to have him as his father. I told him that his father was a selfless man and very brave. I told him that I was forever grateful for the sacrifice that his dad made so the rest of the country could be safe. I just wanted him to know that his father did not die in vain.

If I could, I would go to his funeral.

Amid the sadness, there is some brightness. Just a few short weeks ago this soldier was home for some vacation time. In the two weeks that he was home he got to make a lot of memories with his son. The family was able to get some beautiful pictures taken. There were so many things this dad got to do with his son that were documented with photos such as coloring on each others face, pretend shaving, brushing their teeth together, and playing cars. It's almost as if the soldier knew that his time was limited and he needed to cherish every second with his family. I get chills just thinking about it.

This family has forever touched my life. You never think of how close things will hit home until they actually do.

Alright, I need to stop before I start bawling my eyes out.

My advice to you today: be selfless, love one another, and appreciate EVERYTHING and EVERYONE you have in your life.

Just ugh.

2009-02-25T11:04:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was ugh and today is ugh. I don't know how much longer I can stand this job. Not necessarily the job but people's attitude's around here. Yesterday I got attacked before I even had a chance to take my coat off or put my purse down. And today I got attacked, too. Over stupid crap. THIS IS NOT MY FAULT. It's not my fault that someone archived their emails and shouldn't have. And it's not my fault that you are too cheap to buy online servers.

The attitude has got to go. Or I have to go. Whichever comes first.

So I sit here

2009-02-23T14:16:00.002-05:00

So I'm sitting here thinking about the 10,000 things I want to write about and I have totally drawn a blank. I keep thinking about the fantastic weekend I had and how I so did not want to come to work this morning. A three day weekend would have been fantastic. A permanent vacation would be better. Then I think about how my belly is so full from lunch. And in between I'm thinking of my daughter and what I would give to spend some more quality time with her.

And I find myself wondering what quality time really is to her. I know she loves me because she cries every time I leave without her. And I try so hard to stop what I'm working on when I'm home if she wants something. Each time she brings me a book, I'm inclined to sit on the floor and look at it with her. She never lets me finish reading the page so I just point to the pictures and tell them what they are and make any animals noises (if related to the book). I help her put her baby in the stroller so she can push her around. I push her around on her ride-on-toy. I will stop cooking dinner and sit on the kitchen floor with her if she keeps holding on to my leg. I keep wondering if I should be doing something different with her or what I "need" to teach her. She is so smart to me. She's got a fantastic vocabulary for an almost-15 month old, she knows what a bunch of animals "say", and she listens pretty well to certain directions. Heck, throw in a few sign language signs too. I just keep reminding myself that I'm doing things the best way I can and the best way I know how and that I cannot be with her every minute of every day.

She truly is my pride and joy.

Irritable

2009-02-20T14:27:00.003-05:00

People are pissing me off today.

I guess I just got really irritated starting yesterday afternoon. A co-worker had a comment to make about every little thing. And I mean everything. I seriously just wanted to scream at her and tell her to shut up. But I refrained. Then my daughter and I went to dinner with some friends and we had horrible service. The server tried to charge my friend $15 for some chips and queso. Seriously, I can go to the grocery store and get an a few bags of chips and a case of cheese for $15. There were also mystery charges for multiple sodas and juices that we didn't order. Then the server had the nerve to argue with us about the charges. The food was excellent but the service was horrible. I won't be going there again.

I seriously need to cut down on the amount of caffeine I am consuming. I notice I get the shakes mid-day but if I don't have any caffeine, I get a horrendous headache. Catch 22, I suppose.

Turnabout, reading, and dreams

2009-02-19T13:42:00.005-05:00

There is a neat little cafe near my work called Turnabout Cafe. I eat lunch there nearly every Thursday. The place reminds me of the coffee shop from 'Friends' but not quite like that. They have tall and short tables, long dining room style tables, couches, chairs, and a corner for the little ones to play. They have the most incredible soups, pastries, and drinks... not to mention an awesome staff. My favorite meal from their has to be the Veggie Chili with sour cream and cheddar and a large sweetened iced tea.

This is the kind of place I feel comfortable eating alone. I take my book and relax for 50 minutes in this quaint atmosphere. I don't think I can eat anywhere else alone and not feel like a weirdo. And probably one of the best things about this cafe is that they are helping the developmentally delayed/disabled. There is a girl, P, who is developmentally delayed and she is so sweet. She always makes sure I have crackers for my soup and enough napkins. She is often selling bracelets that she makes. I keep meaning to buy one but I always forget to ask her about them.

Today was nothing spectacular as I was sitting in Turnabout having my lentil soup, chocolate latte, and reading my book. The cafe was the busiest I have ever seen them. They had several faxed in orders plus 8 or so people come in to place orders as I ate my lunch. I think it's fantastic that the word is starting to get out about them. I cannot say enough about this place. I hope they survive as long as they do I will continue my weekly visit.

I've been reading "Plum Lovin'" by Janet Evanovich for what seems like a lifetime now. This is the first book of hers that I cannot just get into. It's not that it's a bad book or poorly written, I just don't care for the story line. I'm about half way through and cannot wait to be done with it. I'm on the waiting list at the library for "Plum Spooky" and I'm anxiously awaiting the release of "Finger Lickin Fifteen".

I've also started reading a Sue Grafton book called "A is for Alibi". So far, so good. I'm also toying with the idea of starting the Twilight series that everyone seems to be so into. I've also got Kate Gosselin's book "Multiple Blessings" to read. I think I will read Multiple Blessings next since it's not a part of a series.

I wish I had more time to read. I enjoy it so much.

I've been having some really vivid dreams lately. They seem to happen in the early morning hours between 4:00 and 6:00 which is between the time my husband leaves for work and I get up for the day. It is insane how memorable they are when I first wake up. I almost have to ask myself if the dream was real or if it was truly a dream. But as soon as I shower and get ready, I can barely remember what happened. Like now, I'm wracking my brain trying to remember what I dreamt this morning. For the life of me I cannot remember. Perhaps, I should write them down. I found this interesting article about vivid dreams from Associated Content. I guess I have REM sleep from 4:00 to 6:00.

Grouchy

2009-02-18T14:19:00.003-05:00

I was in such a grouchy mood this morning. My daughter is fighting sleep and goes to bed later and later each night. That means mommy goes to bed later and later each night. Which also means that mommy wakes up on the wrong side of the bed in the morning. Top it off with some totally random snow flurries and downpours (that, thankfully, didn't stick) and fighting with the ATM to make a deposit. That makes me grouchy.

The day has progressed well and I don't feel grouchy anymore. I had a company meeting to attend during lunch and usually I dread these meetings. This one was fun though. A lot of laughter and jokes. Good Italian food. And we saw a used condom in the parking lot after lunch. Yep, you read that right. A used condom in the parking lot. This takes me to a time several years back when we were meeting with the same company people and found a baggie of marijuana in the parking lot. Hm, maybe we shouldn't do lunch with these folks anymore. But I digress. It makes me wonder what kind of area I live in. The schools are top notch, the homes cost a bazillion-and-a-half dollars (obviously, not mine but other houses), and I see lots of Mercedes and Porches driving around. Tom Clancy owns a home in the area. And a Washington DC weather man, Doug Hill, owns a home here, too. Yet, we find used condoms in a shopping strip parking lot. I guess some couple went parking last night.

Moving along...

I really need to work on my daughter's blog. So I'm going to do that now.

TTFN, ta ta for now.

Under my skin

2009-02-17T15:14:00.003-05:00

There are just some things that get under my skin.

Today my sister was kind enough to take a merchandise credit I have for The Right Start and buy some things for me. I asked her to take it because the store is closing and it's well out of my way. It's nearly $60 on the card. So she goes in and picks out various things that I asked for and goes to check out and they won't let her use the merchandise credit because they've gone bankrupt. Well, I tried to use the card online before and they cancelled my order. And now I can't use the card in store. What am I supposed to do with it? $60 down the toilet I suppose. At least it wasn't my $60.

Another thing is when people blow things out of context. I merely point out that something that was rude and it turns into something totally stupid. This happened to me like three times today. I guess I need to stop pointing out rude things.

The next thing is when people ask when we are having more kids. Can I enjoy watching my daughter grow up and learn before I have another kid? Or is there something wrong with having just one child? Or how about we can't really can't afford it. Or our house is too small for 4 of us. Kids are so small but they take up a lot of room. Our daughter's toys fill her room and closet, part of the dining room (a toy box, a book shelf, a ride on toy, and a play kitchen), her rocking chair in the living room, her ride on pony is kept in the office, and there is a basket of toys in our bedroom.

This job gets under my skin. Period.

I'm tired. And rambling.

Wedding

2009-02-16T12:17:00.004-05:00

We went to a wedding this weekend in Reston, VA. It was a gorgeous wedding and reception. I didn't get to see much of the wedding because my daughter decided to start making "vrrm, vrrm" noises in the middle of the prayer so I hot-tailed it out of there. I brought a small bag of mini M&M's with us to keep her quiet and we ran out (it was just the little fun sized bag). So I gave her a car to play with. Apparently, that was a bad idea because it provoked the "vrrm, vrrm's". On another note, my daughter thoroughly enjoyed the reception. The staff was nice enough to make her chicken tenders and french fries for dinner. The bride had a high chair out for her and a little gift bag set at the table. It was too cute. The gift bag had a stuffed animal, a box of crayons, and a little notebook with an 'A' on the front of it. She enjoyed her dinner and lots of dancing. The photographers fell in love with her. Here is a photo of the three of us at the reception. All-in-all their wedding was everything I wanted mine to be.

Not saying that my wedding was bad. I just wish I had a bigger budget for it (don't we all?!). Looking back, I would not have gotten married in a church. The only reason we did was because my husband's uncle is a Deacon at that church. We had originally planned to get married in September 2006 but moved it to January 7, 2006 when my fiancee (at the time) learned that he would be laid off during the winter. (He was working for a lawn care company.) I had planned to get married outside at Jefferson Patterson Park. Instead, we ended up in a Catholic church with a reception at the Elk's Lodge. Fancy, right? And I'm not saying the Elk's Lodge was a crap-chute. Because it wasn't. The food was good, the bar was open, and there was plenty of room for our 200+ guests. There aren't many options in this area for winter weddings. So I picked the cheapest and the biggest. I enjoyed our wedding day. It was fun and I will remember it forever. I wish I had interviewed more photographers. I went with one that two of my co-workers had used. I didn't get a single picture out of him that I truly loved. Actually, there was one - the cake smash photo - but I cannot hang that on my living room wall. So the picture hanging on the living room wall is a traditional photo. I'm half smiling and my husband isn't smiling at all. Oh well, live and learn, right?

We went to our neighbor's wedding in September. It was held at the old mansion overlooking a cove. The wedding was outside at the water's edge with the sunset behind the bride and groom. That was also a gorgeous wedding. Very non-traditional because the Maid of Honor was the bride's mother and the officiant was the groom's father.

Love is in the air.

Quirks

2009-02-13T09:43:00.002-05:00

Just some things that I find odd about myself.

When I make my cup of coffee, I put the sweetener in first, then the cream, then the coffee and stir.
Same thing for hot tea less the cream (except for in some instances like Lady Grey and Irish Breakfast).
I prefer sugar in my tea and Steevia (like Truvia or PureVia) in my coffee.
When I sleep, I have to face the outside of the bed, I cannot face the middle.
I must have two pillows under my head and one on my side to sleep.
I prefer the TV volume to be set on an even number.
Peanut butter is the worlds greatest food. I eat some everyday.
I get ready in this order: Shower, clean nose ring, make-up, hair, dressed, deodorant, teeth.
I hate talking on the phone and I probably won't call you back.
I usually eat all of one type of food on my plate before moving on to the others. For example, if I have chicken, noodles, and broccoli. I will typically eat the chicken first, then the noodles, and then the broccoli.
I hate washing dishes and will wait until both sides of the sink are full before doing them. Maybe that's just lazy.
When I was clothes I wash the colors first, then the towels, then the whites, then my daughters clothes.
I wait until all of the clothes are washed and dried before I fold and put them away.

Friday the Thirteenth

2009-02-13T09:05:00.004-05:00

Here it is, Friday the Thirteenth. And there is another Friday the Thirteenth next month. The last Friday the Thirteenth was in June. That was the day my mother-in-law had a stroke. It was the scariest day since I became a mother. My daughter was in her care and she was having a stroke. Luckily, I only work 2 miles from my in-laws home. I was able to call the ambulance for her and be there with her. At the time the stroke happened, my daughter was napping. That was a total blessing. I was so afraid. Thankfully, my mother-in-law made a full recovery in a short 6 weeks. She still has trouble with her handwriting but other than that, she's good.

My mother-in-law and I have always had a rocky relationship. Right now we are on the up and have been on the up (for the most part) since my daughter was born. I guess my daughter is the golden ticket. Prior to me marrying her son, she told me that I was only after his money and his car. At the time she told me that, he didn't have a job and his car was in need of a new transmission. Ironic. Hilarious, actually.

I guess Friday the Thirteenth will always scare the crap out of me. I ended up sleeping on my husband's side of the bed last night and when his alarm went off this morning at 3:30, I turned it off. I shot out of bed at 4:30 and he was pissed at me. Our daughter proceeded to wake up at 4:35 and she was inconsolable. I think she's teething so I gave her Motrin, a cup of milk, and a Nutrigrain bar. It worked and she was back in bed before 5:00. So it's been a rocky start to the day... which happens to be Friday the Thirteenth

My husband and I were talking about remodeling our home last night. I thought the plan was to move out of that house before our daughter started Kindergarten. I'm alright with staying there. I wish I knew what the future held so I can decide on which area I should concentrate my job search on. Although, the economy sucks so I'm stuck in this hell hole until things start looking better. And here I am at work again, pretending to work. I'm listening to other people talk about accounting and paying invoices so I'm just looking busy. It takes a lot of will power to come here everyday. I have no idea how much longer I can do it. But I have to.

Looks like another beautiful day. I hope it's nice out when we get home tonight, so we can go for a walk or play in the yard. We have a wedding to go to this weekend and we will be spending the night. It should make for a fun time. I love weddings.

Some history

2009-02-12T10:21:00.000-05:00

I was born on December 29th, 1985 in Maryland. I've lived in Maryland all of my life in a total of 6 different towns. Currently, I reside in Southern Maryland. It's a place where it's not abnormal to see a tractor driving on the main highway in the county. It's a small area where everyone knows everyone or they are separated by no more than three degrees. It's not uncommon to run into someone you know at the store. Gossip runs large but the love is larger. Overall, it's a nice place to live. Better than the ghetto area I grew up in. And right now I wouldn't trade it for anything.

I'm a mother to a little girl. She arrived in my life in Tuesday, November 27th, 2007. I could never imagine loving someone so much. She is my everything. If anything were to happen to her, I would be beyond devastated. I can thank my husband for her. She was not a planned pregnancy in the least. I was not happy when I found out I was pregnant. But I believe it was the initial shock and the fact that I never wanted children. Over a few weeks I accepted my fate and I'm so glad I did. She is my life. I dread going to work in the morning because I have to leave her behind. I am lucky enough that she stays with her grandmother during the day. I know she is well taken care of while I make my living. I cannot even imagine life without her. And I can barely remember what I did with my free time before having her.

My husband and I were married on Saturday, January 7th, 2006. We started dating in September 2001. I love him to pieces even though he drives me insane sometimes. We've often been told that we are a good match. He's a very handsome guy. He's been hit on several times by very brave girls while in my presence. The saying "opposites attract" is quite true in our case. He's very relaxed, funny, and outgoing. While I'm more uptight, rigid, and a homebody. He's got common sense and I don't. He's good at math and I'm not. I'm good with reading and writing and he's horrible with those things. I couldn't ask for a better daddy for my daughter.

I'm lucky that my parents are still married. They've been married since the beginning of time... or so it seems. I believe they have been married for 26 or 27 years and together for much longer. They never fight or argue. Ever. Seriously. I never recall them yelling at each other or being mad at each other. They are so mellow. I'm the oldest daughter of two. My sister is 3 years my junior. And we are opposites, too. She is so smart. She's got ambition and drive. She wants to be in the medical field and is currently attending college. We have recently become closer as sisters and I think it's because of my daughter. It's nice to finally be nice to each other instead of fighting and screaming. I guess we are adults, now. She's got a boyfriend and never wants to get married. Good for her because I don't particularly care for her boyfriend. He's an alright guy but some things that happened in the past between them makes me really upset. I know that she is so much better than him.

I work a job that I hate. It is a career and an income but I hate it. It's not that I hate what I do. I hate where I work. It feels like prison. I feel like if I sneeze wrong that I'm going to get in trouble. The company owner is a tight-wad and doesn't believe in having enough staff to function properly. We are forever buried in things to do and hardly get a chance to breathe. Welcome to the life of an insurance agent. I wish I was like my husband who truly loves and enjoys his job. He's an elevator constructor. I spend much of my day pretending to work. In reality, I browse the internet a lot and post on various forums. When my desk gets really backed up, I work full steam ahead until things are accomplished. After I write this entry, I fully intend on doing some work. For real. I would be fired in an instant if they knew what I really do all day.

All in all, my life is a good life. I live comfortably, don't worry about being able to put a roof over my head or food in my stomach. I try to enjoy everything I can and make the best of it all.