I'm just me

We Have a Dog

2007-07-18T21:19:00.000-05:00

D and I now have a dog. He's too big to be a puppy (around 110 pounds), so he is definitely a dog. His name is Guillermo. I don't think he quite knows what to make of his new home yet, but he'll adjust. We got him from a friend our ours who couldn't keep him.

That's all for now.

The Elephant in My Brain

2007-06-08T19:03:00.000-05:00

When May started, I had a very clear little niche writing here. I knew roughly what I was going to say here and what topics I wanted to avoid. Then came the excitement of people misunderstanding what D was saying and fighting out of an odd sense of loyalty to me and putting me between my extended family and the family I've created with my husband. I got to see how much my family closes ranks when they feel attacked.

And after that stopped, with only partially being cleared up, there was an elephant put into my brain regarding this blog. Now, when I try to write anything here, I freeze up and find it hard to say anything.

So, I'm going to use this blog to update the family about big events in my life, things like moving, pregnancy, etc. But it won't be updated very often otherwise. Because the elephant that doesn't belong to me won't let me write much on here anymore.

TTFN!

We're Home

2007-05-29T13:22:00.000-05:00

D and I made it safely back from Tampa. Then I slept for 11 hours. I wish I could say it was a wonderful vacation, but it was only okay.

I did get a lot of reading done. I read several Sherlock Holmes stories and the latest issue of Reader's Digest.

Well, I need to go have lunch and go to the chiropractor.

TTFN!

Greetings from Florida

2007-05-23T19:37:00.000-05:00

D and I have made it safely to Florida for his conference. Tomorrow I should be able to get us into the type of room we actually reserved (they ran out of rooms with king sized beds before we got here).

Other than that, there isn't much to say.

TTFN!

A Lazy Day

2007-05-20T21:42:00.000-05:00

Today, D and I had a rather lazy day of mostly watching movies. We were happy with 3 of them, and disliked only one which we didn't fully watch. It's been nice to have time off to just fully relax, because I will be very busy for the next few weeks.

We did go out to lunch, but we ended up having really bad service. Which was very frustrating. And the restaurant was out of two of the items D wanted (a cinnamon roll and chocolate milk). It was the worst service we've ever had at that place.

I'm going to go enjoy my movie now.

TTFN!

Spending the Day with the Laundry

2007-05-18T21:59:00.000-05:00

So, today was spent washing, drying, folding, and putting away the laundry. I also spent some of the day watching courtroom shows, which I think goes well with laundry. It's been a slow day. I also watched yesterday's CSI tonight (I was doing something else last night). I'm now looking forward to next season to start.

I need to get back to reading Catch 22. But that probably won't happen for a little while. At least tomorrow. But I should be able to read all day tomorrow, I think.

I'm going to relax now.

TTFN!

Back in Business

2007-05-17T22:30:00.001-05:00

After taking a week and a half off, I'm back. And I have at least one amusing story to tell.

Yesterday, D and I went to go look at a house about 4o minutes away from ours. When we got to where it was supposed to be, the only thing we found was an empty lot with a mail box at the street (there was a little concrete walk too). D talked to the neighbor and found out it had been torn down about 6 months ago. On the plus side, we got to tell the guy who was wanting to sell it that it was no longer standing (he hadn't seen it in a long while). The owner is thinking of deeding the lot back to the city, because he can't do anything with it.

I've been spending a lot of time reading lately. D and I went to the library Monday and Tuesday this week. I checked out a book on Monday and returned it when we went back Tuesday. Then I checked out two more books. I really enjoyed the one I read Monday, but was disappointed with one of the two books I checked out Tuesday. The other book, which I am still reading, is Catch 22. On our way to see the house, I read the first chapter out loud to D. We discovered that I like it and he hates it, which is common apparently.

Other than that, I've kept myself busy with laundry and movies. If you are looking for a good romantic comedy, I would recommend The Holiday. It's funny, but mostly sweet. I want to get it someday.

I guess that's all for now.

TTFN!

On a Break

2007-05-06T21:22:00.000-05:00

I'm taking a break from my blog for a little while. I don't know when I'll be back. I just need some time off.

TTFN!

Buying a Swimsuit

2007-05-04T17:34:00.000-05:00

For the first time in my life, I have dreaded going and getting a swimsuit. This year is the first time I have to try to cover up my more than ample chest and minimize my waist line (which is larger than I'd like). Having said that, I got my swimsuit for our trip later this month to Florida yesterday. Then D made teased me for not wanting to spend $6 on sandals that were made to match my swimsuit (I got a nice pair at Wal-Mart for under $3). He pointed out that I had no problem spending money in another store on stuff that could be considered unnecessary, but wouldn't spend $6 (that we could easily afford) on shoes to match my swimsuit. I do, however, need to toss a pair of sandals that I've got that are old and worn.

We also got me a nice beach towel for our trip too (I should only be going down to the pool, but I need a towel for that). I figure I will get 2, maybe 3, days of quiet time around the pool before there may be vacationing people there with their kids. And I probably won't go down to the pool if that is the case. I can stay in the quiet of the hotel room and relax up there. I'll just open the curtains to let the sunshine in.

I'm going to go. I think I've run out of things to say for right now.

TTFN!

What is selfishness?

2007-05-03T12:35:00.000-05:00

This post written by D.

It has suggested that I apologise to Beth for the comments that I made on her blog, especially for calling her selfish. Well, I will apologise for not having sufficiently gone back and edited the post. It looks like it was written by someone whose first language is not English. As for the comments, they are completely founded on a very solid foundation. All except one, apparently I have meet Beth, but I completely forgot about it since she didn't spend any time talking to us at any of the events that we were at. As to the comment of selfishness, it stands. The only reason that Beth wants Meredith to go to family events is because she wants Meredith to be there. It is not good for Meredith to be there and she has expressed this. So, if it's bad for Meredith to be there when Pat is there, then anyone who says that Meredith should go anyway must not be looking out for Meredith's interests. Beth is also not looking out for Pat's best interest because if Meredith were to go to any of these events she would completely ignore Pat, so that leaves Pat feeling bad. So, now who is left? Only Beth. It is only for here own interest that she wants Meredith to be there, since she is the only one in this equation that would benefit. Sure the rest of the family might also benefit a little from getting to see Meredith, but it's not like most of you actually talk to her for more than 10 seconds at these events anyway. Why should she (Meredith) do something that causes her great pain in order for all of you to feel like everything is fine since the whole family is there? If you all really wanted to spend time with us, or even just Meredith, then all you would have to have done is let us know that. We have been to OKC many times over the last year, and almost every time Meredith has blogged about before we went, but not once has anyone ever suggested that if we had some time then we could get together. NOT ONCE!

To get back to the subject of this post, the answer to the question is easy. Selfishness is putting your own WANTS over someone else's NEEDS. Meredith NEEDS to stay away from her mother for reasons that you all don't know about. I know that you know the reasons because of the comments that you have made. They are so off base that you're in another ball park. None of you knows what is really the underlying issue. The very, very few people who do know the real issues are all in agreement that not seeing or talking to Pat is absolutely the best solution to the problem. It's not a short term problem either. It won't pass with time, and there is nothing that Meredith and I can do to change it, that is why we are simply avoiding it altogether.

If any of you ever do actually want to spend some time with us, then you should simply ask for that time with just you, and not at a family event where you know that Pat will likely be at.

I know that I am not being very gentle with this post and that some of you will be upset with me. But, my first responsibility is to my wife, not you. The only reason I left a comment in the first place is because as soon Meredith read the first couple of lines of Beth's comments to her she slammed her laptop closed and became very angry. I had to calm her down first and read the whole comment to her a little at a time so that she wouldn't get too upset. I posted because I knew that she wouldn't be able without coming across far more strongly than I did. Another thing about that post, she read it before it was submitted. In fact, she is the one that clicked the submit button. It would not have ever been posted if she didn't want it to be.

Later,

D

Breaking the Silence

2007-05-02T18:32:00.000-05:00

I have been very reluctant to say anything about why I am not talking to my mother. Mostly I have done this because I don't want everyone in the world to judge my mother solely based on what my experiences with her have been. And I'd rather my family judge me based on what they know of me, although that seems silly since most of them (at least my mother's siblings) seem to want to treat me like I'm a little child making silly decisions they don't like. For the record, I'm 26 and that treatment just makes me mad. I've been making adult decisions for at least 10 years now, and all the ones with long lasting results have turned out very well.

D left a short message about why I decided to stop talking to my mom on my aunt's blog. My family can access it if they want a few details, but I'm not going to give any more out here. My aunt's big complaint is that I'm denying my extended family the chance to see me because I refuse to even see my mother. She cares about me, I know, but she wanted to give out advice on a topic that she doesn't know the full story on and did so in a public way, which I think really got under D's skin and mine too. And what most of my family doesn't realize is that as much as they are hurt by this decision, it hurts me even more to not see them. But I'm willing to pay that price, because my sanity and my sense of peace is worth far more to me.

So, while my family may miss me, and wonder when they will see me again, I am missing most of them about as much. I'm not selfish enough to ask that they have a get together and not invite my mother, I think that would be terribly rude of me. And I'm just asking that they will understand that I've made my grown up decision to follow the Bible (Hebrews 12:14 says to follow peace and Romans 14:19 says to follow after the things which make for peace) and follow peace.

That is all I have to say. Thank you for reading.

TTFN!

Buying Luggage

2007-04-29T19:42:00.000-05:00

D and I went out today and bought luggage. We now have matching luggage, which is a first for us. But we really needed some before going to Florida next month. Now I just have to find a swimsuit. It's nice to say that. And the luggage is red, so it will stick out more than the old luggage we had (that didn't match).

I can also recommend Find Me Guilty for those who want to watch something funny. It stars Vin Diesel (now with hair!), and is based on a true story. I think that D liked the movies I picked this time at Blockbuster. My choices improved (of course, it wasn't any more expensive for us to pick bad movies than good ones, so we're trying more movies out now), at least in his opinion. We're trying more of the independent films now too.

Okay, I'm going to go now.

TTFN!

I Had Fun!

2007-04-28T22:31:00.000-05:00

Okay, I would imagine everyone is a little tired of me talking about how I'm feeling physically. I'm a little tired of it too (or is it that I'm just tired?). Today, I had fun with my friend. We went out to eat (D too). We got to show her our new house (D was going to stop by and water, but the lady who is watching the place was there, so we got to show off the inside too). My friend and I watched a couple of movies (she napped during one, because she got up at 4 this morning). Then D took her home, and I rested because my energy drained while we watched the second movie. But I was up-right and out of bed from 9:30 a.m. until almost 6 p.m., so that was good.

I had lots of fun today, but it was nice to rest and relax after it was over. Since that is so much fun, I think I'll get back to it.

TTFN!

I'm Feeling Better

2007-04-27T22:24:00.000-05:00

Okay, I admit, that isn't the truth. I'm feeling much, much better! And I didn't really do anything today. I did make it to Blockbuster (if you haven't seen Man of the Year, I recommend it). And I took a bath just a little while ago, but that's pretty much it. I did have a little time earlier during the day where I felt completely crappy, but most of the day I've felt pretty good. I did take it pretty easy, mostly because I have plans tomorrow with a friend from college (not last semester), and I wanted to ensure that I would be up for it. I watched most of The Price is Right (and remembered why it's only good if you don't feel good). I watched The People's Court, and heard it when the sound actually came through (or rather the static stopped).

I am looking forward to tomorrow. It will be nice to go celebrate my degree (D and I kind of celebrated it at New Year's), and she's promised to pay. We have absolutely no idea what we're doing except eating, but we'll figure something out. There is a part of me that's hoping it won't be walking around the mall, but that's mostly because there will be a ton of people there (since it'll be Saturday).

Okay, I'm off to do crosswords and day dream about tomorrow.

TTFN!

Blah, Blah, Blah

2007-04-26T18:50:00.000-05:00

After finishing the colonics I can say one thing very definitely: I feel tired. My body seems to adjust to getting rid of toxins by wanting to sleep for a day and a half (or at least lay around and not do anything. And I'm running a slight fever (very slight). But D has told me that he is very proud of me (on all three days he's said that). And I do feel better, just tired.

I did discover, quite by accident the other day, that the TV in my bedroom gets some of the channels on it very fuzzily. I get about 5 channels that would come in much clearer with rabbit ears, but should help entertain me tonight while D is out. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be up to going by Blockbuster to help pick out movies for the ones mailed to us. And I think that and maybe some laundry will be all that I will do tomorrow.

I'm going to go now.

TTFN!

P.S.: I should have real television watching capabilities in about 2 months, I think.

I'm Feeling...

2007-04-25T19:58:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm ready for it to be tomorrow, at the very least. I'm not feeling terrible, but I'm tired and don't feel all that wonderful right now. I do believe that I'm healthier now than I was two days ago, but I'm ready to be done. D and I have a Mr. Goodbar to split tomorrow to celebrate being done.

I really don't have anything else to say. The colonics have kind of taken up all my time and energy the past two days. Other than that, I've mostly just relaxed.

TTFN!

How to Describe the Past 24 Hours

2007-04-23T19:57:00.001-05:00

I can sum it up in one word: interesting.

D's parents (read D's mom) decided to e-mail us (well, mostly D). There wasn't really an apology, not that I'm surprised, just that they have been trying to understand us. I'm mostly going to let D deal with that (he is going to e-mail them back, but I think I'll read what he has to say first).

We're moving forward on stuff with the house, which is all I'll say for that until it's a done deal.

And tomorrow, D and I are getting colonics. And then we're getting them Wednesday and Thursday too. I'm trying hard not to think about it. But it did include us drinking something called Magnesium Citrate (grape flavored) to empty us out. I didn't care for the flavor (seemed sour to me), but it wasn't horrible. I'm not sure that I'm going to want to eat much this week.

So, all I can do is think it's been interesting (at least if I want to remain thinking positive thoughts).

I'm going to go now.

TTFN!

Greetings From Arkansas!

2007-04-21T22:17:00.000-05:00

D and I are spending a couple of days visiting my dad. It's nice. We got here close to noon and D helped plant trees in the back yard. I sat inside the house and stayed far out of the way, which is helpful in a different way. Then we visited for a while. My dad took us all out to eat. He told me that my burger (we went to get burgers) sounded good, and he would have to try it sometime (more so, the three cheeses on top, I would imagine). Then we came back to their house and have enjoyed visiting quite a bit for most of the evening.

It's nice to get out of the house for a little bit. And I always enjoy getting to spend time with my dad and step-mom. I'm pretty sure that D even enjoys himself fully while we are here, even if he wishes we would go somewhere and walk more (he's gotten much better about sitting for hours at a time since leaving his job).

I'm going to go read the book I've got off my dad's shelf. I'm getting close to finishing it.

TTFN!

Getting Closer to Moving

2007-04-20T13:47:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, in my desire to write about what interesting things D had said during the evening, I forgot to mention the wonderful things that happened that day in regard to getting us closer to owning our next home. We found out that the contract should be faxed soon (it was supposed to come last night, but didn't). In fact, the current owners want to add a clause to it to protect us, they are willing to pay up to $1000 for any damages we find when we get ownership (within a certain time frame, I'm sure). Of course, there shouldn't be any damages since they've just remodeled and updated most of the house. And we have an appointment Monday afternoon to start signing papers for our loan. So, while there will still be a little time before we're moving, we're starting to see some headway (in less than a week).

Okay, I'm off to check the mail.

TTFN!

Things D has Said Tonight

2007-04-19T23:48:00.000-05:00

"Come to bed soon dear, it's almost midnight." (less than a minute ago)

"I'm going to win." (while we were teaching other people how to play our game)

"I'm known in my house for..." (the ellipses were because I interrupted him with, you're known in our house?) "... getting out and rolling the six I need to win." (There are two parts to the board game. I've done well at getting out of the first part quickly. But then he gets out of that first part before I win the second part and lands on a square that wins him the game. Then he gloats about it.)

"Meredith hates it when I do that." (Talking about rolling the six to win. And who likes it when someone wins and then gloats?)

It's been a good, if somewhat long evening. A game that normally takes D and I about 2 hours to play took almost 4 tonight. Of course, there were 3 other people, 2 of whom had never played before. I'm somewhat tired, but happy to be back home. I'm thinking that we need to set a time to end next time we play, so that it doesn't go so long. I won, but the chairs started getting uncomfortable around 3 hours in.

I'm going to go. I'm debating if I want a heating pad on my back when I'm still really warm.

TTFN!

P.S.: D, I apologize for gloating most of the way home. You took it well. And I did tell you that I was going to win. ;)

I'm Just Me

2007-04-18T23:47:00.000-05:00

D and I spent a little while hashing out a schedule for him. Mostly so that I'll know when I get to spend time with him and when I don't. It's nice, because it will help both of us figure out what to do each day. And I still get most of his attention at least two days a week (he's attempting to take two days a week off). I understand why he's working so hard right now, but it helps me when I know that I can pull him away from work at a designated time each day. That way we can achieve a better balance between him working to earn us money and us still having a relationship. The past week has pointed out to me that we haven't done that well.

So, starting fully next week, D and I will attempt to have a set schedule for at least him. I'll let you know how well that works.

Maybe tomorrow D and I could try to figure out how to post some pictures of my future kitchen.

TTFN!

Change Is in the Air

2007-04-17T12:43:00.000-05:00

As I read blogs by my family and look at my own life, I realize that change is in the air. I have 3 cousins who are going to expand their families with children. And I learned that my dad and step-mom are looking to expand theirs (and mine) by adopting. D and I are looking at moving in a few months, and we are trying to get me pregnant. One of my pregnant cousins is moving too. All this change, all for the better, is happening somewhat quickly. And I'm still reeling a little bit from the idea of becoming a big sister again (I'm happy, just slightly shocked).

Tonight, we're helping one of the current owners of our soon to be new house return her rental car. Tomorrow morning, D will take her to the airport. We're hoping to hear from her about what is up with the contract, if she knows, because we haven't heard anything from her husband. And it seems odd that D and I are planning for having kids when I'm not pregnant yet. But it's good to plan ahead, and that's what we are doing. We've got a room picked out to be a nursery, when that actually becomes important. We've figured out where I'll set up the bills and all my other stuff (at the wet bar in the living room, because it will give me plenty of room to do so. We're making so many plans, and I'm ready to get things going on this.

And with all this change in the air, I'm suffering from some slightly mixed emotions. Happiness is always right on top, but there is this longing for things to stay the same, which commonly seems to accompany change for me. And once I move, I'll feel better and wonder why there was a part of me that didn't want the change.

So, for now, I'm excited for everyone else, and mostly excited for me too.

TTFN!

P.S.: I love my new house!!!!!

Today Has Been...

2007-04-15T22:41:00.000-05:00

Today has been monumental, important, and exciting. Pretty much from the start.

I woke up, dragged myself out of bed, and talked to D about my dream. Then I checked e-mail and read comics/blogs until lunch. Then I watched a DVD with D about a company (real estate related). Then D and I went to the open house for the house we are in love with. And tomorrow, we'll have a contract on it and possibly the financing. I'm getting the big, beautiful house that I'm in love with! We'll be moving in the next few months.

Then, D and I traded in our movies at Blockbuster and watched Stranger Than Fiction. If you haven't seen this movie, you have to rent it. It starts off a little slow, but it is hilarious and moving. D started to enjoy it after we saw about the first 20 or 30 minutes of it. I enjoyed it from the beginning, but I think it was because I could tell it was going to be hilarious just as soon as some of the background got established. It's mostly a comedy, but there is some romance in it too. D and I have realized we can be less picky about what we rent now that it is one set fee a month (as long as we abide by three at a time, except when we have a coupon for a fourth).

So, I'm on an excited buzz for things working out really well right now.

Okay, I'm going to go talk to D some more, because we haven't spent much time talking the past two days.

TTFN!

My Day

2007-04-14T19:38:00.000-05:00

Some days can't be described. Some days shouldn't be. I don't know which this one is, but I have no words for it. And that's not necessarily a bad thing.

I'm going to go watch American Beauty with D now.

TTFN!

Things I Don't Need to Re-Learn

2007-04-13T22:42:00.000-05:00

D and I ordered a DVD from Blockbuster that was about improving your marriage. We figure that even a great marriage can be improved, because we are still human. We already knew and did everything that was talked about, and didn't really get anything from the DVD. Okay, I got a few interesting mental images, but that was about it. It's good information, but we already had it. And it echoed a lot of the information in His Needs, Her Needs, which D and I went over at Christmas and might go over again around our anniversary. I guess I could say that it helped me understand D a little better, but I already kind of knew this stuff already.

And watching the DVD kept me entertained while D was off at a real estate thing. Which is important (me being kept entertained... and D's real estate stuff too).

Okay, I'm going to go back to talking with D, because it's fun.

TTFN!

P.S.: D would probably encourage all men to talk and pay attention to their wives for at least 30 minutes a day. I agree with that sentiment.

Trying to Relax

2007-04-12T23:43:00.001-05:00

All day today I have been trying to relax. D has decided to wait until his parents call before dealing with this situation, which I think has caused me to tense up. Which is why I've been trying to relax all day today. I also think it has something to do with me waking up several times last night.

While D and I were at the chiropractor's office today, I asked one the girls who works in the office how her weekend was. I kind of forgot that it was Thursday and not next Monday. I'm blaming it on, well, everything that has happened lately. That kind of thing is not normal for me, and I don't like it happening.

Well, I think I'll go to bed early tonight (early for me) and hopefully, I will get more and better sleep tonight.

TTFN!

Staying in Town

2007-04-11T23:57:00.000-05:00

Remember how D & I were supposed to be going out of town today? On our way out, we get a call that the lady won't be able to show us the house after all. At least she called when we had only travelled across town. I would have hated to get halfway there and have her cancel on us. So, instead of spending 4 hours in a car and walking around a mall and a house (we left kind of early, which is only slightly unusual for us), we went and walked a couple of laps around a local park (the same one from Sunday and Monday). Other than seeing a lot of parked cars there, nothing really happened.

This afternoon, while letting the sunshine in, we watched Little Miss Sunshine (which I kind of liked, but D didn't) and Rocky II (which D watched and I kind of didn't). We actually spent most of the day with the curtains open and the sun lighting the house. It was nice.

My best friend from high school, and still my favorite girl friend, called this evening and we talked for over an hour. We caught up with each other and I enjoyed it. I did do way too much of the talking though and I apologize for that (she reads this blog at least occasionally). I sadly think that way too many of our conversations happen that way (me over-talking and not letting her talk much). And she still seems to enjoy talking to me, so the cycle continues.

Okay, I've got to get back to my crossword puzzles. They won't solve themselves.

TTFN!

Getting Nothing Done

2007-04-10T20:17:00.000-05:00

I need to stop mentally making plans, because when I do something interferes with my plans (like D deciding to watch DVDs with me all afternoon). Today, I planned on folding laundry, but instead I watched 6 episodes of Veronica Mars. It made for a fun afternoon, but I still kind of wish I had gotten the laundry folded. And I feel silly, because I should have folded laundry while we were watching.

Tomorrow, D and I are taking a (hopefully) brief trip out of town tomorrow. We should be back tomorrow evening. We're going to look at a house to possibly invest in.

I'm going to go. I'm trying to pay attention to Out of Reach, and can't seem to while writing.

TTFN!

I Dream of Semi-Famous People

2007-04-09T20:00:00.000-05:00

This morning, I had a rather interesting dream. I dreamt I was at a Hollywood premier for some animated movie that had Ben Affleck, Jennifer Gardner, and their daughter Violet doing voices. Except Violet Affleck is too young to be doing that yet. But in my dream she was around 8. And I was talking down to her. Which is sad, because I don't think I would do that. Not that I talked to either of her parents in my dream. Because I apparently dream about the offspring of celebrities.

Then I go for 30 minute walks with D at a local park. We're trying to get in shape, and are working our way up to hour long walks outside on sunny days. We've spent two days, and walked more today than yesterday. Oddly, when we were on our walk yesterday was when D's parents called. But nothing bad happened today. We just walked and enjoyed being outside, the sun even came out from behind the clouds.

I'm being asked what I want to watch, so I guess I should get back to paying attention to D.

TTFN!

Feeling Better

2007-04-08T20:32:00.000-05:00

D and I have talked a lot this afternoon about the message from his parents. We know what we want to say to them, but not when the right time to say it will be. We also decided what we want our wills to say when we need to update them because of having children. It's been an interesting day.

On the plus side, I'm feeling much better now. Ice cream, attention from D, and getting out of the house was apparently all I needed to feel good again.

I'm going to go back to talking with D. We have interesting and fun conversations.

TTFN!

Interesting Messages

2007-04-08T14:20:00.000-05:00

We got a message from D's parents today. They were offering us a chocolate bunny for Easter. They apparently thought they had hung up and said some bad things about me. We need to have a discussion with them about it later, but we aren't ready for that yet. And not surprisingly, I am upset right now. It did point out to me very clearly that not all of D's family has accepted me as part of the family (not that I was wondering). For that matter D hasn't really felt all that much like part of the family for a long time either.

I've got nothing else for now.

I hope everyone else has a much better Easter than we're having.

TTFN!

My Thoughts

2007-04-06T23:33:00.000-05:00

I try not to fill my posts with political stuff. Mostly because I find most things political rather boring. And I don't want to argue with others about my beliefs as they pertain to our government. D, who is kind of reading this as I type it, pointed out that I don't want to discuss politics. And he's partially right. I'm not likely to have someone write me and change my mind about anything, especially if it was horribly misspelled and I was hardly able to decipher it (I've seen enough stuff online to know that most people write that way).

Having said that, I am fully supportive of our troops. I know that they are voluntarily serving our nation and that impresses me. I know that I am not cut out for that kind of life, even though the army really wanted me to join after seeing my ASVAB scores. I am proud that two of my cousins joined the military and served, even though they knew that they could be putting their lives on the line to do so. They were willing to fight so that I could continue to enjoy my rights. And nicely, the last I heard, they are safely at home with their families now.

I am frustrated that those rights they are fighting for are rights that some people don't feel I should fully use. I should be careful about what I say about abortion or gay rights because I might offend somebody, despite my right to free speech. But, if I say that I'm offended by someone talking bad about my religious beliefs, which are also constitutionally protected, then I am being thin-skinned and they have a right to free speech. Where are those lines drawn? And why should I have to be the one to suffer when those lines shouldn't exist?

Just something to think about.

TTFN!

Forgetting and Remembering

2007-04-05T23:50:00.000-05:00

The mind is a funny thing to me.

I have memories buried deep within my brain I would like to remember, but can't seem to. Unimportant things, like how to make a parabola on a graphing calculator (I know, I could look that up online, but I haven't cared to so far). There are important memories lost too, like playing with my siblings, which I now can only see pictures of. I long to remember those times.

I have other memories that I would love to forget but they seemed burned into my brain, branding it forever. Most of those memories are bad. They cause sadness, heartache, and I hate them. And the fact that they are crystal clear hurts me even deeper.

So, I am trying to forge many new memories to take the place of both the forgotten memories and the ones I long to forget. And maybe someday I'll forget the bad memories, or at least I won't remember them as vividly, and I'll have wonderful stories to tell my children and grandchildren.

Right now, the stories I can tell the most vividly are the ones that show how I was hurt by someone who was supposed to be able to love me no matter what (not memories of D, he's provided me some wonderful ones already). Stories that I don't want to tell because of the emotions they bring out in me. Stories I doubt that I'll ever share here. The important thing is that I'm not focusing on those stories, but on the present and the future. I can't change the past and I like who I am today, which is of course based on the past. But I will keep striving to forget the hurts and find the happiness. Because when I have done as much of that as I can, then I will be truly free.

TTFN!

Nifty, Keen, and Neato

2007-04-04T23:33:00.000-05:00

In case you are wondering, the title describes how I am feeling. Mostly. Okay, so I'm ready for some things to happen (like getting our refund from the state). D is going to go tomorrow and mail off the tax returns, since we need to weigh them to make sure they have sufficient postage.

We rented 5 movies from Blockbuster earlier. After finishing off disk 3 of season 2 of Veronica Mars, we went by Blockbuster to trade in our movies. We also had coupons for two free rentals (1 from the old plan that we aren't going to renew because we don't need to, and 1 from the online plan because it rocks!). We've watched 2 of the movies since we got back home (Ultraviolet and Diamonds Are Forever). Our TV and DVD player have gotten quite the workout today.

A refund that we are supposed to get is hinging on a company finding the package that should have been delivered to them last Thursday. So, hopefully that will be straightened out soon, because I will relax a lot more when that money is back in our hands.

Speaking of tax returns (I was in the first paragraph anyway), D's old job had an odd way of withholding taxes. They kept underpaying the federal government while overpaying the state. So, I got to write a check to pay the IRS (which was nice to do without wondering about the funds), and will be looking for the check from the state starting way before it is ever likely to get here (I'm on the ball when it comes to looking for checks in the mail, even when they are unexpected).

Okay, I'm going back to talking with D.

TTFN!

A Brief Synopsis of My Day

2007-04-03T21:24:00.000-05:00

Today, my room got finished being painted. I helped remove the tape from the earlier stripes. I ate pizza, which is not what is on my mental list of approved foods. I got paint in my hair. I watched disk 2 of season 2 of Veronica Mars. D realized that he forgot to go get the business taxes for his business done. I took a bubble bath (run by D) and the water slightly burned my knees some.

And now, I'm going to go relax and talk with my husband, because I didn't get enough talking in with the friend who painted my room.

TTFN!

You Learn Something New Everyday

2007-04-02T22:00:00.000-05:00

D and I just finished watching the G.I. Joe movie. I learned that BET makes me think of the cable channel, not that I ever watched it when I could. It made the whole movie unintentionally funny. I kept giggling when they would mention the Broadcast Energy Transmitter because they would call it the BET. And it made it funnier that both sides wanted the BET. I think it bothered D some throughout the movie.

I also learned that I need to take care of my filing better this year. Trying to do our taxes pointed that out very well. D is going to talk with the CPA who is doing them again tomorrow to hopefully give her the rest of what we have.

I'm going to go. I've got comics to read.

TTFN!

Let the Sunshine In

2007-04-01T12:37:00.000-05:00

Yeah, I'm not going to do any April Fool's posts. I think they are silly. Fun to read but silly.

D and I have opened up curtains and windows in our house to let the sunshine in (and to get fresh air). Since the clouds are currently away, it is a good time to enjoy the sun. I've missed it a lot.

Okay, I'm going back to my relaxing and enjoying the sun.

TTFN!

Trying to Find Energy

2007-03-30T21:29:00.000-05:00

Today, I have not wanted to do anything. I forced myself to do the laundry and to empty the dishwasher. Eating has even been kind of a chore. I'm not feeling icky, just the need to lay down and do nothing all day.

D and I did go by Blockbuster (to trade our online DVD for one from the store), and there was a computer, or more probably a computer user, error. And this other woman (not the one checking us out), who I can only guess is the manager, tried to tell us that she couldn't do anything. Then she relented and got us our proper discount (meaning no payment for the movie), but said it would be the only time. After that, I just wanted to come back home and watch the movie, because most of my energy had been channeled into staying calm while there. It was a frustrating experience. The manager kept (before she changed her mind) saying something about us paying for the movie we were renting and calling customer service for an extra coupon for a free rental. She also asked us if we had turned in the movie before (how would we still have it?). She wasn't very good at her job. D and I aren't sure she should be working in a store, because she didn't seem to want to deal with customers. Have I mentioned that this was frustrating?

Okay, my energy from being frustrated and slightly angry has worn out. I'm going to go now.

TTFN!

Spending the Day at Home

2007-03-29T20:13:00.000-05:00

After the past 3 days of being out of the house most of the day (and overnight), D and I have spent most of today at home. It's been nice. Tomorrow, we have groceries to buy, so we won't be spending as much time at home as I would like. But it's important that we don't run out of tomato or bread. And it should be a rather quick trip, since we have a list.

Tomorrow, my exercise room will be finished being painted. It's going to have stripes added to the aqua shade that it already is. I'm looking forward to it being done (at least with the paint) so I can actually use it for it's stated purpose.

Okay, I'm going to go. My ice cream is melting (I need to have some dairy, okay?).

TTFN!

2 Posts in 1 Day? Cool!

2007-03-28T21:32:00.000-05:00

We're home from the dinner. It was a nice night. We had a good dinner, nice company, and we heard our mayor speak. We even got to meet the mayor before the speech. We've been instructed to go to a spa at the hotel where the event was. At the end of the night, we have 2 energy drinks for D (I refuse to drink that stuff), a notepad, and two pens. We threw away quite a bit of other stuff (2 phonebooks in Spanish, 2 pens, a bunch of stuff that advertises alcoholic beverages we don't drink, and a program of the evening). In fact, I traded a pen for the notepad with our banker's wife (who currently also works at a bank).

Oh, and I hate my shoes and will find new ones before dressing up again. I don't think I'll be going to heels ever again (unless it is a VERY slight heel).

So, now you know what happened this evening.

TTFN!

Killing Time

2007-03-28T17:06:00.000-05:00

Well, since I didn't post the past 2 days, I thought I'd do that now while I have some time to waste. D and I are going to something tonight, and we are currently waiting for our clothes to dry so we can change. In fact, we had to go buy pantyhose for me and dress pants and a tie for D for tonight, which, for those of you playing at home, means that we spent way more on D for tonight than we did me. And I finally have a reason to wear my new dress shoes (I am thinking about looking for some summer dress shoes too, but we'll see), but the new shoes have me hoping that we'll be seated for quite a bit of the night (I dislike heels, and these have rather high heels).

Monday, we went to Arkansas to look at a property. The house wasn't bad, but the realtor did not impress D at all (the realtor didn't want to let me say anything, which is stupid since I am part of the decision making team). From what D has said, we won't be taking it. While we were in the area, we stayed with my dad for the night. It was nice to see them again, Christmas was a while ago and we haven't seen them since.

Yesterday, we came home, and then watched 2 of the DVDs we got in the mail from Blockbuster. And that was it. Okay, D got Serenity checked out because a warning light came on as we were driving back. There was a sensor that needed cleaning (I think), and our mechanic fixed her up within a couple of hours. It did through D that I had been home longer than him, since he mentally kept me with him after dropping me off at the house while taking Serenity to get fixed. But I promise that was all we did yesterday.

I'm going to go now. I have some online surfing to do, and little time to do it in.

TTFN!

The Real World vs. The Ideal World

2007-03-25T21:49:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking about what I wish the world would be like if I could shape it differently, not that I think I should. I just have some ideals (not all realistic) that I think would make this a better place. These are my ideas.

1. In the ideal world, every parent would love their child. Even if they still messed up, which I can see happening based on how the experience comes, they would obviously have the best interests of the child in mind and it would show. This would eliminate quite a few problems that I've seen, and would be wonderful.

2. In the ideal world, businesses that are in some competition with each other would find a way to work together for the betterment of them both. Then, big chains like Wal-Mart and Barnes & Noble would not be looked down upon ever. People wouldn't see them as hurting the smaller stores. And small towns would be completely happy to see them come in.

3. In an ideal world, families would be made up of people who care for each other, not just people who are related by blood. They would all be supportive and loving, no matter what the circumstances or decisions for the members. This would of course be because of ideal number 4.

4. In an ideal world, there is no crime. I think this speaks for itself.

I know that I'm not going to live in this ideal world yet, but I can dream about it.

TTFN!

Learning about Myself

2007-03-24T23:06:00.000-05:00

Tonight, at church, I got reminded that I am still supposed to be reading my Bible. The past two weeks, I haven't done so, and I can see how much more emotional I've been in this time frame too. I'm not trying to say that there is a correlation between me reading my Bible and my emotions being under control, I've just noticed that I've been really emotional the past 2 weeks, and I haven't been reading my Bible. I am reading through the New Testament, and I stopped in John (so, I guess I haven't gotten too far yet). So, tomorrow, I am going to start back on my reading.

Last night, D and I went to Wal-Mart and we ended up buying two games. We bought Bunko, which is the dice game that we thought sounded cool (the ladies of our church are having Bunko nights, so we are happy to be able to check it out), and Phase 10, which is a card game and is a lot of fun. We've played Phase 10 three times now and Bunko once. I haven't fared too well with either game, but it's not that D was trying to beat me as much as he did. Bunko is a pure luck game, and the dice turned up for him way more often than they did for me. However, the next time we play, it could happen the exact opposite way.

Well, now you are caught up on what's going on here (or at least all the stuff I want to talk about).

TTFN!

Reasons to Feel Accompished

2007-03-22T20:59:00.000-05:00

1. You finally did all your hand wash that had been waiting for at least 2 months.
2. You are pretty much caught up on the dishes (1 dish needing to be put in dishwasher).
3. You ate a healthy, balanced meal of chicken sandwiches (oven roasted chicken breast, wheat bread, tomato, and lettuce, with juice to drink... now you just need some dairy).
4. You listened to 2 and 1/2 sermons today, most of them while the dishwasher was running earlier.
5. Your back popped really well when you were at the chiropractor's office earlier, and you've felt wonderful ever since.
6. You've finished all the DVDs that are from Blockbuster, and you are ready to return them for more from your queue.
7. You got to entertain your husband some while making dinner together (you washed the veggies, D *cooked the chicken in the oven and sliced my tomato).
8. You've read through everything you normally check earlier than you expected.
9. You went grocery shopping and didn't forget the one item not written down.
10. You post to your blog before returning the movies, and it's still early enough to watch something when you get home (if D is interested).

* Cooked here meaning reheated, because it was already cooked and then frozen. But he did do most of the work on everything else.

Okay, it's off to Blockbuster now. I'm going to see what movies I want to see next.

TTFN!

Feeling Accomplished

2007-03-21T20:57:00.000-05:00

I feel odd writing half the time about the housework I get done. It's probably not that interesting to read about (yet people keep reading). And it's never all that fun to do, but it is my job description (housewife - do housework). It's just that some days, I get so much of the housework done, more than normal, and I feel like I need to talk about it. To share my success at my job with the world. Today, not so much one of those days. I did get the laundry done, but that was the only housework accomplished. And I have machines doing the work for me.

But Monday, oh the stuff that got done. I did the laundry, loaded the dishwasher, tossed out stuff (and quite a bit of stuff). I got the checks written for the bills before we left for our chiropractic appointment. D and I opened up a checking account, and I picked out the checks and check cards. And most of this stuff got done by 1 in the afternoon. I was ultra efficient and energetic. I was even here when the guy came to set up the phone and fax lines in D's office (D was getting Serenity's oil changed). And I still feel accomplished when I think about it, even though it's been two days.

Yesterday, we looked at 2 apartment complexes, a house, and a coffee shop. And we picked something up for D's parents from his grandmother's house. And despite being tired pretty much all day, I felt like we had done good. I even had enough energy to post something (I hope it was coherent).

Today, we got the car fixed, got the new tag for the car, and took it to D's parents house. We got our garage door opener back (without giving them much of a reason why we wanted it back other than it is ours). D booked our flight down to Tampa, FL in May for his next conference. My big accomplishment? I slept for like 10 hours and did the laundry.

Okay, I have to go. It's time for some alone time with D.

TTFN!

Fighting Exhaustion

2007-03-20T21:07:00.000-05:00

This morning, I got up way before I normally do. And so, I've been fighting off the desire to sleep like all day long. I got a Cherry Coke (sorry, a Coca-Cola Cherry) and food before D and I set out to go look at real estate 2 hours from where we live. And I've spent most of the day either wanting food or wanting to visit the restroom. Anyway, we're back home and I don't have the mental capacity to follow any movie right now, so we are sitting pretty much in silence. And I'm trying to look at most of the stuff I would have earlier today if we had been home.

Tomorrow, we plan on returning the blue car to D's parents, which means we can also go drop it from our insurance (yay for less going out each month!).

I'm glad to be home.

TTFN!

Watching James Bond Part 2

2007-03-18T22:56:00.000-05:00

This afternoon, D and I rented more movies. We also signed up for an online service. So, D and I are now watching James Bond again (Licence to Kill). We also rented 3 Steven Seagal movies. Of the 4 movies, we'll have watched 3 tonight. It's interesting, because we don't normally watch that many movies in one sitting.

Other than that, we've not done anything today. We didn't do much yesterday either. We went to the open house for the house we think we want to buy (we both love the house, we just aren't sure we're going to buy it yet). We got a tour by the current owner, which was nice. We got to see what all was new and what they planned to do before they sell. It's a two story house with 4 bedrooms, 3 bath, a den, a huge kitchen (with counters and pantry that I've been daydreaming about since we moved into our current house), a living room, and a formal dining room.

Okay, I'm going to go back to watching James get revenge. I've been paying more attention to him than this post anyway.

TTFN!

Wakefulness

2007-03-17T06:03:00.000-05:00

Last night (which this still feels like for me), I couldn't seem to fully fall asleep. At first, it was just that every time I drifted off, I would wake back up. Then it seemed more like I was just getting some cat naps. I've spent 5 hours in bed trying to really sleep, and I've kind of given up, at least for right now. I don't know why I kept waking, other than I guess I never truly fell asleep, just drifted on the edge of consciousness.

I'm numb right now. I want to feel something, even if it's just tiredness, but I feel nothing. I just am awake. I guess that for now, it is enough.

I'm going to try to exhaust my mind, because I know my body needs more rest. Wish me luck with that.

TTFN!

A Day and a Half and I'm Back

2007-03-16T20:22:00.000-05:00

After wearing wrist support for a day and a half, my wrist is almost completely back to normal. And back to normal enough that I can go without the wrist support pretty much entirely (I may put it on for a little while later, because it is still a little sore, but for the most part it isn't' needed).

What can I tell you about my past two days? Well, I haven't done very much. I've relaxed, and today I took a two hour nap. It's been nice, but oddly normal for me lately. D has even helped me with the laundry today, which is wonderful of him. He didn't have to, but he did so that I wouldn't have to change clothes some (he was still fully dressed, I was wearing shorts I sleep in). He also got the mail, which had a nice surprise for us. His former job sent us a check, based on some bonus system they had worked out for people who work there and used to work there. It's nice to get unexpected money.

Lately, I've been thinking about weight. This is not a topic I normally spend lots of time thinking about because I'm content with my body over all. But I do know that I need to loose at least 30 pounds to be at a good weight for my height (I need to loose at least 5 to stop being technically overweight). So, for now, I'm giving up greasy foods and sticking with eating more fruits and vegetables. I should also attempt to lower the amount of sweet foods I eat, but I've pretty well done that lately. And I refused to let us buy cheesecake, which is amazing because I love cheesecake (and will probably shock my dad some). I am mentally trying very hard to resist those kinds of temptations, because I know they will not lead me to my goal to get back into some of the clothes I could wear when D and I got married. And I don't really have that much to lose, I just need to focus on each pound and not think about it the whole. I am also trying to help D find more fruits and vegetables that he likes so that he will eat healthier too. I'm not trying to change him, I'm just trying to help him meet his goals (he wants to loose weight too).

Okay, I've got things to do other than continue talking about weight loss, so I am going to do them.

TTFN!

In Which I Injure Myself in my Sleep

2007-03-15T17:24:00.000-05:00

Last night, I went to bed tired, but not hurting anywhere (well, my back was a little sore, but nothing too unusual for me). This morning, when I woke up, my left wrist hurt when I moved it. I think I rolled onto my hand at an odd angle last night and injured it while I slept. So one of the first things D and I got to do today was go buy me a wrist support. And because I'm not used to having any body part injured, I'm finding it difficult to remember not to move it (not that I can much now). And I keep itching underneath it.

I can't type well with my wrist wrapped up, and I hate the hunt and peck method, so I'll be back when my wrist no longer needs the support.

TTFN!

Watching James Bond

2007-03-14T22:32:00.000-05:00

Today, D and I rented some movies and bought a couple of pizzas. We rented the newest James Bond film and Goldfinger, both of which I'll have watched before the end of the night. We did rent a few other movies too, but tonight is a James Bond night. D watched Casino Royale with me before heading to bed. He was even nice enough to switch out the movies for me.

Okay, I'm getting back to Goldfinger now. I just thought I'd share what a wonderful evening I've had.

TTFN!

We Finished Veronica Mars

2007-03-13T21:46:00.000-05:00

D and I finished watching the first season of Veronica Mars today. We spent most of the day watching the DVDs to finish. Now D knows who killed Lilly Kane. If you ever get a chance to see the show (if you haven't yet), I would suggest you do so.

In other good news, the trim in the room got painted tonight. It is now white again (and a bright white). It looks nice, but I'm waiting until morning to fully judge it. Not that I think the room will get a ton of sunlight, just that it would be best to judge it that way first.

I'm watching part of You've Got Mail while relaxing. It's nice. I started toward the end of the movie, around my favorite part of the romance of the movie. I love the drawing of Eloise from the series in the background at different parts of the movie (mostly the store scenes).

Okay, I'm going to go back to enjoying my movie before I shower and go to bed.

TTFN!

Room Mostly Painted

2007-03-12T22:35:00.000-05:00

Today, the spare room got mostly painted. The base coat was applied, and tomorrow the trim will be painted white (again). We have carpet to replace and more painting to go in there, but it's actually a lot better now than it was.

I also got my laundry washed, dried, in the house, and sorted out for folding later (maybe tomorrow?). Dishes have also been washed. And D and I are over half way done with season 1 of Veronica Mars. I'm looking forward to sharing the rest with him, probably starting tomorrow.

Okay, I'm going to go back to talking with D, because it's fun.

TTFN!

Forecast for Today: Mostly Accurate

2007-03-11T23:22:00.000-05:00

Today, the only work that D and I did was doing a little shopping, and D emptied the trash cans. It was nice. We spent roughly 6 hours just sitting and talking in our room. We have been a little too busy lately, so that hadn't happened recently. It was wonderful. D reminded me that he loves the fact that we have roughly the same IQ (as best as we can figure it) so he can talk to me about almost any subject.

I am eating more fruit this week. Our veggie tray thing didn't last too long (I kept letting it sit until I wasn't sure the veggies were still good). We still have some carrots, a full jar of pickles, and some pickled okra (the last two are all mine). And now I have some oranges and some mixed fruit (pineapple, cantaloupe, honeydew, and grapes) to eat as healthy snacks.

Okay, I want to go back to talking with D, so this post is finished.

TTFN!

Forcasting My Week

2007-03-10T22:35:00.000-06:00

I thought I'd do something different and try to write about how I foresee my week as if it were a weather forecast.

Sunday: Mostly relaxing with cleaning bursts throughout the day.
Monday: Mostly busy with points of relaxation and probable painting on spare room.
Tuesday: Partly busy with possible visit for tax information gathering purposes.
Wednesday: Partly busy with laundry and dishes. Church possible in evening.
Thursday: Mostly relaxed with reading and housework as needed.
Friday: Unpredictable this far out, but potential for taxes being done. Chiropractor appointment to be kept as usual.
Saturday: Relaxing. 5:00 church services are advisable.

In case you're wondering today was slow with bursts of activity. We got our bar cleaned off, groceries bought, and bills paid. It's been a good day.

A friendly, last minute reminder: Tonight Day Light Savings starts. So when you read this tomorrow, it will be an hour earlier than it feels like it should be. If you feel the need to complain, write your local congressman about it and encourage others to do the same.

This has been a probable forecast of my week. Just to remind you, the contents of the week may shift to accommodate my desires for relaxation or cleanliness. Thank you for caring and read throughout the week to see if it changes.

TTFN!

Delayed Painting

2007-03-09T22:16:00.000-06:00

The friend we have that is going to paint our spare room hurt himself yesterday, so he wasn't able to paint it today. So, he'll be painting another day. His daughter is going to come up with some ideas for using a couple of other colors on the walls too. We're sticking with light colors so that when we move out we can easily paint over it. Which will be a little sad, since we'll have put so much work into it.

Tonight, D and I watched V for Vendetta again. I still like this movie, but I don't think I'll be watching it quite as much in a short time as I did when we rented it. But I still think that it makes me think. D and I like that the main character, while he's a terrorist, he doesn't personally kill anyone that didn't do wrong. Other people may have killed innocent people, but V didn't (he did inadvertently cause some to die though).

I think I'm about to spend some time cuddling with D, so I'm going to go now.

TTFN!

A Day in Bed

2007-03-08T21:08:00.000-06:00

Today, I have spent most of the day in bed. Not because I am ill, in fact other than a nose that thinks it wants to run some (it really doesn't), I am quite healthy. But I have had cramps that hurt bad enough to convince me to spend most of the day as stretched out as possible, which pretty much means in bed. I've watched almost all the special features on Bend it Like Beckham and watched Quest for Camelot (and most of it's special features too). I've surfed the web. I've napped. I told D what he could toss of my stuff. In short, I've had a long day of doing little. It's been nice, good for my abs, but slow. In fact, the only time that moved quickly was the time watching Quest for Camelot.

I wonder if D would think I'm crazy for wanting to watch You've Got Mail again.

Cleaning out our bedroom was a little hard for me. There were things I wanted to get rid of mentally that emotionally held attachments. Stuff that I know letting go of didn't mean letting go of the person who gave it to me (people I just don't have a close relationship with any more). I did learn that telling D it's up to him meant stuff getting tossed. On the plus side, my bedroom is much more open now and we have a wall to actually hang stuff on.

Tomorrow our spare room, which I'm using for exercise when that happens (next week, probably), will be painted. We're painting it an aqua color (light in shade, so easy to paint over later). D is emptying out the room for tomorrow. Hopefully the gold carpet will look good with the aqua walls until it's replaced.

Okay, I'm going to go look for a movie to watch.

TTFN!

Where I Am

2007-03-07T23:14:00.000-06:00

I love hearing the conversations the main characters have over e-mail through most of the movie You've Got Mail. To a small degree, I feel a little like I'm talking to the world in the same way they were talking to each other (before Joe found out who he was talking to). I'm talking to all my readers like they are my friend who I would talk to about everything and nothing.

I want to know a lot about something. Not so much that I couldn't do anything else with my life, but I want to know enough about something to have something intelligent to say about it. And so far, that hasn't happened. But I'm still young enough to do that. I would love to do that with books, but I'm not always good about reading books that I don't care about. I can't seem to make myself read almost any self-help book. Maybe if I focus on one type of book, I could do learn a lot about what makes a book popular. But I just don't know.

I'm going to go back to watching my movie again.

TTFN!

Meatloaf and Movies

2007-03-07T22:04:00.000-06:00

Tonight, D and I made meatloaf for dinner. It was delicious, even if we did accidentally leave it in our oven a little too long. After dinner, we tried to play our favorite board game and watch a movie. Yeah, D kept getting sucked into the movie, and I started feeling icky. So, the game is on hold and we're watching You've Got Mail in bed.

On the plus side, we finished cleaning out of kitchen today. And our garage has expanded greatly in size with the loss of all those built-ins. It's wonderful to see and to have so much room. Tossing all this junk is so freeing.

A friend and I would love to own a bookstore like A Shop Around the Corner in You've Got Mail. We love how small and intimate it is. And how the owner knows everything about what she does. And she and I both love to read. Her house is full of books, most of which I would love to read, because I haven't yet.

Okay, I have to go back to falling in love again with You've Got Mail.

TTFN!

Going Out To Eat

2007-03-06T19:45:00.000-06:00

Tonight, D and I finally went and used the gift cards to Outback that he got from his coworkers when he left his job. We ended up spending more than they gave us (which isn't surprising, or hard to do). It was nice. I just wish my appetite was larger today. But now I have lunch tomorrow (so does D, but he ate more while we were there). I got a chicken Caesar salad. D got an 11 oz. sirloin with fries and mashed potatoes. Oh, and D got cheese fries as an appetizer (he really wanted potatoes tonight, huh?).

We've temporarily stopped home. We've got a trip to Wal-Mart to make tonight, and then we should be home for the night.

Okay, I'm going to get ready to go.

TTFN!

Emptying Our Garage

2007-03-05T18:23:00.000-06:00

Today, we got the dumpster we rented. D spent a good hour or two emptying the garage. We have a little bit of stuff still in there, but not much (mostly, Serenity). And he ripped out all but one of the built in storage pieces that we hated (and took up so much room). The only one that is left is by the door to the house, and is blocked off by a different storage cabinet right now. Just emptying out the garage filled the dumpster, so we get this one hauled off tomorrow and a new one too.

While D was trashing the junk in the garage (which we had planned on getting rid of with the dumpster), I did the exercises on one of my DVDs. Or, rather, I did half the exercises on one of my DVDs. My body just wasn't up for doing them all yet. But that will happen with time (and a decrease in bust size). Tomorrow, I'll do some Tai Chi, probably.

I'm going to go work on some of the crossword puzzles from last week's papers.

TTFN!

Arriving Home and Napping

2007-03-04T18:42:00.000-06:00

D skipped out on his last day of the conference (it was covering something that someone else that he wants to learn from later covers), so we beat everyone else who was leaving out of town. In fact, most of the people who would have been on the road later were either in church or in bed, so we missed the bad Dallas traffic.

As we left the Dallas area, we went to a gas station that is based around where we live. It was nice to see a little slice of home. They guy who rang us up had come down to Texas to run this store, so he wished us a safe journey. It was nice.

We had turned off our heater (to save some money), so we turned it on and left the house for a little while after we got back. We did a little grocery shopping and then walked around the mall. When we got back, the house wasn't up to it's normal temperature, but I took a nap. In fact, about the time I got up, the house reached 75 (which is where we keep it).

Yesterday, I did little but read because the interenet connection I was getting on my laptop sucked, and I was tired of messing with it.

It's good to be home!

TTFN!

Buying Meals

2007-03-02T14:28:00.000-06:00

D's conference is providing his meals, which is nice because we will save money today on food. I only have to go buy my own meals, and that's it. So far, I've gone to Denny's and bought an omelet with ham and cheddar cheese, hash browns, and biscuits, with a lemonade without ice to drink. Not that I think any one who reads this post will have any interest in what I'm eating today, but I feel the need to express it none the less.

Last night, D and I went by a Jack in the Box to get dinner, so D got to try one of their burgers (he actually got to eat half of the one I ordered, he only ordered onion rings for himself). He now wants to try their tacos (which I think is silly, because I don't like them). He mentions that my dad likes them for a reason, so he would like to try them. Which is fine with me, because they aren't expensive to buy ($1 for 2).

I'm going to go back to reading and relaxing.

TTFN!

P.S.: I think I want to go by IHOP and get something with cinnamon icing on top.

My Temporary Job

2007-03-01T17:41:00.000-06:00

While we are down here, my job is to drive D to and from the hotel where his conference is. It's less than a mile away, so it's not too hard. But I've never wanted to drive in Dallas. On the plus side, D's business is buying all my meals (his too, since he's no longer fasting). And tomorrow, I only have 2 trips over there, because they are providing his lunch and dinner, which means I'll probably get takeout from Denny's and eat in the room.

We're staying close to Medieval Times, and can only see it when we are walking to Denny's. I might suggest we try somewhere else tonight, but I still have most of an hour before I pick up D.

Okay, I'm going to go back to my waiting.

TTFN!

Greetings From Dallas!

2007-02-28T18:56:00.000-06:00

"Remember, if you are driving upside down, you have to go at least 40."

This is what D said when we saw a speed limit sign that was upside down (only the minimum speed was upside down).

Our hotel, which is nice on the inside, doesn't look quite as nice on the outside. And the internet seems to only work as one computer per room.

On the plus side, there is a restaurant within walking distance (across the parking lot), so while D is at his conference all day, I can still go eat.

TTFN!

Packing

2007-02-27T21:50:00.000-06:00

When I pack (which I think I've finished for the night), I run in and out of the room in which I'm gathering things like a crazy person. I always seem to think of one more thing to pack, and it seems to always be in a room I have just been in. When I used to go spend a month with my dad, I think I went into the bathroom 3 to 5 times before each trip. And I don't wear makeup. I would remember to grab the toothbrush and toothpaste together, but then I'd have to go back for the deodorant (I now keep a stick in each of the bags I regularly use when traveling with D). And something else after that (hair stuff?). So, packing for me is exercise with frequent visits to most of the rooms in my house looking for something (the only rooms not searched tonight: the kitchen and the spare room). But I have little left to pack the morning of the trip (just the last minute stuff). Well, to be honest, tonight I did have laundry to fold before I could fully pack (or really even start). And then, I had separated out some of the clothes, so I got some stuff ready before the rest.

When D packs, he lets me do it. I get his opinion on his shirts and how many jeans we should pack, but he lets me do the rest of the running around. Although, he has stream-lined one process. We now have bags with our hygiene products in them (shampoo, body wash, etc.) already either in a bag, or in one of the other bags (less searching and running around for me, actually). So, now I only seem to make one trip into the bathroom (oh, I didn't have to get anything from the large bathroom either). The only down side to that is that we had a couple of bags with that kind of stuff in it, so we (I) had some duplicate stuff to unpack.

I'm tired of moving. I'm done until the morning.

TTFN!

P.S.: Tomorrow's post will be from Dallas, TX. Because I'll have an internet connection in our room. And television.

P.P.S.: Tomorrow night on CSI:NY, Criss Angel will be guest starring. And he could be a murderer (or a potential victim). So, if you are fond of him, you should tune in.

Serenity Is In the House

2007-02-27T14:50:00.000-06:00

Or at least the garage.

Before 11 this morning, the Salvation Army truck came and picked up the furniture from our garage (and clothes, and books). We now have given away quite a bit. It's freeing. D is talking about moving the love seat into his office, so we can spend more time together during the day. Then our living room will pretty much be used for playing games. We'll see if it happens.

D also bought me some workout DVDs today, and V for Vendetta (it was $10). I can do the workouts of the New York City Ballet, on the days I don't do Tai Chi that is. All this just in time for us to go out of town.

I've got to go. The laundry and dishes won't do themselves (I keep trying to convince them to though).

TTFN!

Getting Things Done (by Someone Else)

2007-02-26T18:19:00.000-06:00

This morning, I had an ambitious goal on what I wanted to accomplish today. Two loads of dishes, folding the laundry, getting the dress clothes that we're donating together. Instead, I took a nap (a short one) and D did a load of dishes. I did help empty out our spare room, but D did most of the work. So today, things got done around my house, but not so much by me.

On the other hand, I've finished one of the books I was reading, which is a good accomplishment on it's own.

I hear another book calling my name, so I shall answer it (No Shirt, No Shoes, No Problem by Jeff Foxworthy).

TTFN!

Eating Ice Cream, Drinking Shakes, and Reading Books

2007-02-25T19:27:00.000-06:00

You have to guess the question the title of this post answers.

It took me 5 hours to take a shower today. Well, 5 hours to actually get into the shower. The shower itself took about 10-15 minutes. I was going to take a shower after I ate this morning. Which would have been fine if I hadn't decided to spend some time talking with D first. I have gone through all my dress clothes and pulled out the stuff I want to keep (not much). The rest will be donated to the Salvation Army on Tuesday. We're also getting rid of all of the furniture in the garage then too, so Serenity will be back in covered parking after next Saturday.

Why Saturday? Because D and I will be traveling to Dallas on Wednesday and will be gone for several days. I get to relax in a hotel room while D is at a conference (all but the last day, the conference ends at 1 pm, so we will leave after that, which means I'll be going with him that day.). D offered to let me stay here, but I really don't want to be home alone. Besides, this way I can watch some People's Court (or similar shows) while he's gone. That is only important because he recently said something about never getting cable again.

Okay, I think I'm going to try to watch CSI online while D is cooking hamburgers.

TTFN!

Visiting with Friends

2007-02-24T10:50:00.000-06:00

Last night, D and I went and spent 5 hours visiting with a couple that we are friends with. They have been married for almost as long as D and I have been alive, so we kind of look up to them as an example of how a marriage should work. It was nice to spend time with them, since it had been a while since we had seen them. D and I didn't get back home until after midnight (actually, we didn't leave their house until after midnight). I may have talked D into going and seeing them more often now (not that I had to twist his arm to do so).

On our way home, we ended up seeing this other vehicle swerving between the lines (going over many times). D called 911 to report it. The police didn't see them before we think they got home, but we did talk to a cop who had been in the area who said he would look to see if they went somewhere else (and wait until they made a mistake, for a proper reason to pull them over). We felt better driving home after that. It was fairly obvious that the driver was on something, and I only wish that a police officer had seen them and pulled them over.

I've got to go get dressed, we're taking someone to the airport and then going to look at books.

TTFN!

Guess What I Did Today

2007-02-22T17:54:00.000-06:00

I'll give you a hint: I haven't done it in a while (and neither has D).

Okay, I'll tell you. I got my hair cut. I went from mid-back to shoulder length. D also got his hair cut, and it looks wonderful. We can see his ears and neck again. I'm still at the point where I run my fingers through and think "It just stops", which will probably last the next couple of days.

I also bought dress shoes with heels. And I hate wearing heels. But they are cute and they fit. And with the insoles we bought, they should be comfortable. I did get reminded while looking why it is that I dislike shoe shopping. My feet are an odd shape, most dress shoes have heels, and I don't like most of the styles without heels.

I would like to make a personal note to D that I can see him (he's in his office, I'm in the living room).

TTFN!

Taking It Easy

2007-02-21T17:28:00.000-06:00

Today has been a day for me to apparently take it easy. D and I stayed up late last night talking (so I got less than 8 hours last night). When I got up, I ate a little (very little) and relaxed on the couch while listening to my iPod. Then D suggested that I lay down in bed while he ran some errands (so he could surprise me). When he got back, an hour later, he let me get back up. He bought me lunch (which I had requested) and had bought roses for me too (6 long stem red, with purple flowers and Baby's Breath... it looks beautiful). Then I relaxed some more. Then D and I both took about a 2 hour long nap. The only other plans I have today (other than dinner) are to go to church. After having done so much yesterday, it was nice to take it easy today.

I've got to go read from my Bible while fixing some chicken to eat.

TTFN!

Update on House

2007-02-20T22:04:00.000-06:00

I got all my clothes (and D's) folded and put away. I mention this because when I posted earlier, I wasn't sure I was going to do any more housework at all today. And then when D went out to prayer night, I got inspired to fold and put away more clothing. And I got to babysit his phone while he was out (so he took mine).

Our dining room now shows off our wedding. It gives the room personality. D and I think the room looks better now.

That's all for now.

TTFN!

Statement by D

2007-02-20T16:19:00.000-06:00

D: You are very brave.
M: Why?
D: You've been watching me walk past carrying things and not said anything.

The reason this comment amused me is that we were discussing emptying out our spare room and I told him to toss whatever. I know that there is little in that room that I'll ever even notice is missing. That and he was mostly carrying out things that were his or stuff I didn't care about. But I'll accept being called brave.

I got most of my to do list done today (I finished washing and drying the laundry from yesterday and folded one basket of clothes). And I feel good about what I didn't get done.

Another conversation.
D: Why do you get to lay on the bed when you take a break but I have to do manual labor when I take a break?
M: Because when I work I'm doing physical work and when you are working you are sitting at your desk reading or listening to someone talk.
D: I'm surprised that you had an answer for that.

I'm going to go back to relaxing.

TTFN!

I've Been Busy Lately

2007-02-19T21:09:00.000-06:00

D and I have been going out almost everyday to look or shop somewhere. And today was no exception. We've bought more picture frames in the past 2 days than ever before. We figured after 3 and 1/2 years of marriage, it was time to put up some wedding photos. So 32 choice photos now have frames, and should be hung very soon.

Have you ever had an emotional breakdown because the washing machine and dryer take time to do their jobs? (No, just me then?) D and I then sat in our room and talked about stuff (nothing important) while I calmed back down. Then he heated me up some dinner (which is wonderful, because he is currently fasting). He took care of me, because I wasn't taking the time to last night. See, we've been spending at least a few minutes each night (usually 30) talking about whatever right when he goes to bed, since I stay up later. Last night, I decided that I didn't need to do that. I guess I was wrong. And it came out as frustration about doing laundry and dishes. But I feel 190% better now.

Okay, I'm going back to relaxing, and praying for a foot rub.

TTFN!

My Sister Got Me Thinking

2007-02-18T14:13:00.000-06:00

My sister wrote a post about love. She read somewhere that whoever you love (truly love) you never stop loving (we're talking friendly love here, not romantic love). And I like that idea. It bugs her, but where I'm at it speaks greatly to me. It explains some things. It explains why I want to go to my high school reunion (in a couple of years) to see what people are doing with their lives. And I'm not surprised to hear that we never fully stop caring about friends, because I've never fully stopped caring about most of the people I've ever met.

In other news, now that Oklahoma has a warm front coming in and staying for a while, I've got a new winter coat. My old coat had a hole in one of the pockets, and was a few years old. It also didn't have a hood, so I had to wear a hooded sweatshirt underneath it. Now I am going to be able to just wear a coat. And it is longer than my old coat, so it will help keep my legs warmer. It's even machine washable, so if it gets dirty I can clean it at home.

I'm going to go back to reading comics now.

TTFN!

Getting Some Things Done

2007-02-17T21:43:00.000-06:00

D and I have been going to MANY different stores lately (we've been window shopping, and trying to figure out what we can and can't get for now). In fact, I don't think I've spent an entire day at home this past week, which is very different from what I've gotten used to. We've looked at furniture, houses, clothes (D now has 5 pairs of jeans and 8 shirts for everyday wear), curtains, towels, rugs, and iPod accessories. And tomorrow, we get to do some of it again (I'm sure). On the plus side, we're almost done with our grocery shopping and our bills are in the mail.

I enjoyed church tonight. We're hearing about what our church, which is celebrating it's 20 year anniversary, is based on (firstly, the Bible). Our pastor started out as a youth pastor, so he has probably surprised some of the men who knew him then with his success pastoring a church. We also, before his message started, got to hear about the private school our church runs (well, the academic part). If my kids were to go to school, it would probably be there. This school tested higher than the school district we are looking to move into (which doesn't matter, since we will be homeschooling). There is a part of me that wants to tour the school next week after church, just to see what the facilities look like (they are having an open house then).

Well, I hear the comics calling my name. I don't know why I keep waiting to read them until the end of the day.

TTFN!

Guess Who Has a New Toy

2007-02-16T20:52:00.000-06:00

D, who seems to like getting me new toys from time to time, and I got iPods (1 each). I am now among those who have a (an?) mp3 player. It's cool. We got different colors to tell them apart. D's is black and mine is white (we had 2 color options, so D let me choose). We also restocked our pantry (and spent quite a bit for us). We had entertainment while checking out too (the guy who checked us out tried to go faster than the scanner would let him).

While we got our dinner (at Subway), the guy who was in line jokingly complained that they have American cheese, but he wanted African American cheese (since he was African American himself). It amused us while we ate.

Oh, and according to the guy at the McDonald's we waited at (trying to show someone the business opportunity... she didn't show) Jamaica was bought by America. We have done no research to find out it it's true. I just thought I'd report what I heard.

We looked at another house today. The current owners (who are living in another state) are remodeling. It looks nice now, but should look even better when it's finished. D and I will look at it again when they have the open house (in about a month). We talked to the owners, who told us what all they are doing to it. They also told us that we will be at the front of the line (if we want it), before any other offers.

Okay, I'm going to look at my iPod again.

TTFN!

I Have No Ideas

2007-02-15T21:53:00.000-06:00

Yeah, I have nothing to say right now.

Except to note that on Monday, I had 1 visit. Yesterday, 15. It's an interesting thing.

TTFN!

P.S.: D took me out to a nice dinner tonight. I love him. And if I had any room, I would start eating my chocolate covered cherries tonight.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2007-02-14T14:32:00.000-06:00

I hope you're having a great day. I am doing pretty good (we ran out of tortillas, but other than that it's going well).

Okay, I have something to say as a woman. And if you are offended by my opinion, I don't want to know about it.

Why is America afraid of women's nipples? I'm not talking breastfeeding here (although, that comes into play with most women). When Janet Jackson flashed her boob for a few seconds during the Super Bowl, it sent shock waves throughout the country. Why? What is it that scares us about women being topless? Are my nipples going to destroy your life if you happen to see them (not that I'm offering to show them)? Why are men's nipples okay but not women's? Isn't a nipple a nipple? Are we really afraid of the flesh behind the nipple? And doesn't this mean that women and men aren't truly treated as equals in the public eye?

I think I'm ready to move off to the island D promised to get me and not look back. Let me know when sanity has regained control.

TTFN!

P.S.: And when will they stop making men pay child support for children they didn't father when the mother of said child doesn't want them having to pay child support?

Early Valentine's Gifts

2007-02-12T20:15:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, D went to Wal-Mart and got my Valentine's gifts. I have a nice necklace that says love on it, some chocolate covered cherries (which D doesn't like, so I get all of them), and a solid milk chocolate heart (D got one for each of us). We also split a heart-shaped bar cookie with icing (I still have some left). It was really nice of him, and reminds me why I love him. He told me today that my gift to him can be sneakers bought on Friday. He really is a practical guy (for himself). And he doesn't care that I got my gifts yesterday and he has to wait until Friday.

I'm going to go back to spending time with my valentine.

TTFN!

P.S.: Valentine's Day is Wednesday, so if you haven't bought anything yet, go shopping!

I'm Glad to Stop Looking for Today

2007-02-11T18:06:00.000-06:00

D and I went and looked at 5 houses today. We liked 3. I think we've decided to buy used for the next house, it's cheaper (around half as much). It's tiring to look at houses. Most of the houses we looked at, D's office would be on the second floor (which would give him lots of exercise). We know that we aren't ready to buy a house yet (we need a few months first), but we have seen some things we like. The one house I really wanted to look at, we weren't able to find (I wanted to see what a house just shy of $1,000,000 looks like). Looking at houses is tiring to me (maybe it's the realtors?), or at least was today.

I think I'm going to go start watching A Bug's Life while D is out and can't complain about it.

TTFN!

When Good Intentions Mess Up Plans

2007-02-10T19:47:00.000-06:00

D let his brother borrow our GPS system, so we had some issues actually trying to go by any open houses today. We ended up driving around a couple of nice neighborhoods near our house and looking at the outsides of the houses (especially those with for sale signs in the yard). Without entering a house, it's hard to decide if you might like it at all. Maybe in the morning we can look up directions to houses and write them down to see the insides of houses tomorrow. We did find a new office chair for D (and one for me for his office). And we know what chairs we want to have in our living room in the next house (they are rocker recliners, and felt wonderful... I could have napped in the one I tried out).

That's all for now.

TTFN!

Good News and Slightly Frustrating News

2007-02-09T15:32:00.000-06:00

Today, after the chiropractor, D and I went to get my paperwork that proves that I have an Associates degree in Science (I don't know why the community college I went to only has arts and science for their stuff, but that's all they have). And I'm finally done talking about my semester at school.

After that, we went to one of the banks we have an account at to withdraw D's last paycheck and put it in another bank. We found out that they didn't get his last paycheck. So, we came home and D checked the mail - no paycheck. So, he calls up to his ex-employers. We find out that they did issue a check, so he needs to call this other number to see if they have it. We call, and they have 3 things for us (his pay-stub from last week, his paycheck this week, and his buy-out money). We pick it up, and find out they took out union dues for February (even though he was no longer in the union in February). Not a big deal, just a little annoying. So, we go buy ourselves some lunch and then go to the bank to deposit the checks and maybe get some money. Well, the big buy-out check will not be fully posted until the 21st (we get $100 at the end of today, some more next Friday, and the rest on the 21st). So, we will have no problems being able to cover our bills while working on real estate deals, but we have to wait a week to do our kitchen stock-up again.

It's been a long day, and it's not over yet.

TTFN!

Making Plans for the Weekend

2007-02-08T17:13:00.000-06:00

D and I are planning to go look at houses this weekend. I figure that it will at least help me point out to him what features I want in my next home. We have decided on a 2 story house with at least 3 bathrooms. I know that I want a much bigger kitchen than I currently have, and a pantry. After that, I have no clue. So, we will look and figure it out.

Other than that, I only have the lack of clean bathrooms to report. I just don't care about them right now.

TTFN!

Crazy News

2007-02-07T01:29:00.000-06:00

Have you seen the news about the crazy astronaut? She drove from Huston to Orlando "to talk to" the girlfriend/love interest/whatever (and astronaut) of a male astronaut she likes. And she took weapons with her. I love D. In point of fact, I love D a lot. I would not try to go talk to any woman who flirts with him some, because it would be a waste of my time (he's not going to cheat, and if he's flirting back, it's to make them feel better about themselves). So, I wonder about someone who would do that. And the biggest interest draw of the story is that she wore diapers so she wouldn't have to stop to go to the bathroom. I've read the story 2 times now, and I'm still wondering what she was thinking (and wondering what her husband thinks of this).

In other news, have I mentioned that cramps suck (or that I'm glad I'm done with them)? Because they do, like big time.

I should go to bed and sleep now, because tomorrow looks to be a long day of laundry and dishes (I'm almost caught up, really). Does anyone want to come clean my bathroom for me? (No? I guess I know what I'm doing Thursday.)

TTFN!

P.S.: Did it really get up to the 70s in temperature in February? Because I can hardly believe that I missed that (stupid cramps).

Finding Our Rhythm

2007-02-05T18:50:00.000-06:00

Now that D has had a few days to get (more) used to sleeping at night again, we are working on figuring out what we are filling our days with. Mine are filled with cleaning and reading, and he has his own stuff to do. I got the laundry washed, dried, and in the house, and a load of dishes washed. It's not too much, but it's something done around here (and we've got 30 minutes worth of purging/organizing to do later).

We sat and watched the Super Bowl commercials on YouTube a little while ago. It was very entertaining, and I was impressed by a couple of the commercials. Of course, I thought some of them were stupid, but most commercials are. D know wants a Toyota Tundra, even though he has nothing to haul (the commercials just made it look too good, I guess). I do wonder what he would do with a pickup truck.

We got good news while shopping last night. Apparently some of the people who took the buy-out got their checks around 2 or 3 weeks after leaving. Which means I'll be able to switch banks sooner (we're keeping our old account, but it won't be used as much).

I've got to go, we have some bills to go pay.

TTFN!

Making Correct Assumptions

2007-02-04T19:09:00.000-06:00

D took a nap again today, which isn't surprising since he is still trying to get the sleep at night thing going again. I went in recently (for the second time) to wake him up and make him get out of bed for a few hours. I mentioned to him that he should set an alarm when he takes a nap so that he will get up and not sleep until the middle of the night. He pointed out to me that it was an assumption on my part that he hadn't set an alarm. And when I asked if he had, he admitted that no, he hadn't. So, I made a correct assumption (in my opinion, it was a reasonable deduction from what I know about him).

Other than that, I've spent the day not doing much and relaxing. It's been nice, since I know that tomorrow I'll have dishes and laundry to take care of.

Oh, and my mother-in-law seems to be obsessed with the idea of me being pregnant.

TTFN!

Lavender Shampoo

2007-02-03T18:08:00.000-06:00

We use lavender scented shampoo. It's nice smelling, but does not help me to want to stay awake.

Okay, I have to go, because we have plans soon and I must eat first.

TTFN!

Sleep

2007-02-02T17:10:00.000-06:00

Lately (the past week), all I've wanted to do is sleep. Forget any chores that must be done, forget getting rid of stuff I can't use. Just give me my bed and uninterrupted time to sleep. Today, I have gone to the chiropractor, gone to a bank, and done 2 loads of laundry. Then, I took a nap that lasted at least an hour. And I still want to be asleep (but D and I have plans tonight, and another 30 minutes of sleep won't help me much). D is sleeping quite a bit too, which isn't as surprising since he's trying to get back on normal time (so, a few naps for now for him are understandable). I'm still reeling about the fact that I took a good nap on our love seat, because I've tried to sleep on it before and slept lousy (and I didn't have a laptop on it before, I did yesterday). I don't mind the extra sleep, but it is a little weird.

Oh, and D told me 2 times today that I couldn't put something embarrassing that he said on my blog, so I'll respect his wishes. But I cracked up (it showed how tired he was though). He is so cute.

My stomach is demanding food, I think, so I guess I should feed it something.

TTFN!

Helping Others

2007-02-01T21:11:00.000-06:00

D and I helped someone with some cleaning so they would be able to get that and their job done (or at least more of both done) today. It was at a ministry in town that is having a conference tomorrow (which D and I will be attending). It was nice to do something to help someone else, but I'm not so sure I want to clean a toilet or walk up or down stairs anytime soon (D vacuumed for them).

It affected me more than I realized, because I just woke up from a 2 or 3 hour nap and I'm still ready to go to bed. I slept on the love seat, which isn't big enough for me to effectively do, but my eyes wouldn't stay open (they still don't want to be). I guess this means I'll be in bed asleep for the night soon.

Not much else to say.

TTFN!

D is Done!

2007-01-31T17:38:00.000-06:00

D is done with his J-O-B. In fact, he got paid for the whole 8 hours last night with only actually working 4. I know he was home by 5:30 (his coughing in the living room woke me up). We are excited. I was mean enough to only let him have a short nap earlier to try to get him back to sleeping at night.

In other news, it's snowing again. We just (mostly) got rid of all the white stuff from the last time moisture fell from the sky. But this doesn't look like it will be as bad as the Blizzard of Dec. '06 or the Ice Storm of Jan. '07. I hear the coldest it gets in Southern California is the low 60s.

I've got to go. I'm making D take me somewhere (I'll wonder around a grocery store right now) to get me out of the house.

TTFN!

Not Much To Say

2007-01-30T22:02:00.000-06:00

Tonight is D's last night at his job.

That's really all I have to say.

TTFN!

This Opinion Won't Stay Inside

2007-01-29T20:05:00.000-06:00

I have an opinion that will matter to (probably) nobody. There is a big debate (apparently) about whether or not mom's should have a drink (some alcohol) while at a playgroup or a play date. I know that my opinion doesn't mean much for 2 reasons: 1. As stated before, I am not yet a mommy and 2. I don't drink much. But I feel the need to express the opinion I have formed. Personally, as long as those moms don't go overboard with the alcohol, I don't care if they drink or not. Most of the people who do seem to only have 1 or 2 drinks during a 2 or 3 hour time frame, more than enough to be clear headed the entire time and still able to safely drive.

Personally (again), I will probably never drink while at a play date, but that is because I have a tendency to feel really warm when I do have alcohol and don't plan on drinking much in public ever. In fact, I really only plan on drinking alcohol only when I'm at home with no guests over (and only having 1 drink). Which is, not surprisingly, what I do now on the rare occasion that I drink (mostly when I'm feeling ultra-stressed or extremely upset). But I won't look down on a mother for having a drink while in my presence, because she has that right. After all, from what I read (and have observed), parenting is tough enough without anyone adding any judgments on top. And people have opinions on EVERYTHING (not just in parenting, might I add).

On a side note, because this keeps popping in my head, my mother-in-law told me last Wednesday that they (she and her husband) would like to see more of us. It had been less than a month since Christmas, D and I are still trying to get back to what we had started during December (remember the house cleaning? It should start again in a couple of days), and I don't know when exactly we would find time for seeing them (we're also looking at real estate stuff and doing more with Prepaid Legal). I did joke that I wasn't planning on gaining weight (although, she did remind me that getting pregnant would do that), and the subject was dropped. Most everyone else there said that it was good to see us, but wished the circumstances were better.

Okay, I'm done talking about all this stuff for now.

TTFN!

Mixed Signals

2007-01-29T17:31:00.000-06:00

Today, my body has been sending mixed signals. Mostly that if I go lay down, it will let me sleep (I tried, it told me that it wasn't tired anymore). It's been frustrating to say the least. And I may be fighting off a cold (or something... all I know about it is that I keep sneezing).

On the other hand, I found a picture of my type of cell phone in yesterday's Radio Shack ad and took a picture of it with my phone (because I am silly like that). And I kicked D's butt at our board game today (despite the bleak start).

I hear the clothes asking to be messed with (not literally), so I must go appease them.

TTFN!

Must Get Out

2007-01-28T15:30:00.000-06:00

I have got to start getting out of the house more. Of course, for this feeling today, I blame D. He went and did our grocery shopping by himself (while I slept), so I barely went anywhere on Friday. He went when there wouldn't be many people at the store, which is wonderful (except when we only go to church for the rest of the weekend). I'm feeling a little stir crazy. D would probably point out that I have the ability to go somewhere since the roads are clear (but I don't want to go by myself). I'm trying to just suck it up and get over it. After all, I have plenty of stuff to do around here.

Next Thursday and Friday, D and I are working on cleaning the house (again). We haven't got any work done for most of this past month, because we've been too busy playing our new board game. It will be nice to get some rooms finished.

I'm going to go find a book to read or something.

TTFN!

I Think Soda (Mostly) Sucks

2007-01-27T19:04:00.000-06:00

When travelling, I tend to drink sodas (Sprite mostly). When I'm at home, I usually drink juice. I can tell you now that I prefer juice. Which is funny, since I used to have a 2-or-3-a-day Dr. Pepper habit. And I slowly weaned myself off soda almost all together. I quit caffeinated sodas, and now I'm only a soda drinker when on road trips. Mostly because I don't want to drink diet lemonade (otherwise, forget the carbonation). When I've had soda for several days (usually, at holidays), I start feeling like I've been drinking nothing but chemicals and really, really want juice again. I'm trying to start drinking water while on trips (and even when home), but it's not working out real well so far. I think it's the increased trips to the bathroom (so more stops, so longer trips). But I'm trying. When we went to D's aunt's funeral, I had some Cherry Coke on the way down there (to wake up and stay awake), and water (and a chocolate shake) on the way back.

I guess that is all I have to say for now.

TTFN!

My Guest Post

2007-01-27T18:47:00.000-06:00

And now, without further ado, here is D.

Hey everyone,

Apparently I'm supposed to tell you about the Blingo link to the right of your screen. (I'm not sure why I'm the one telling you because Meredith is the one who originally told me about it and asked if we should sign up.) All that I can really say about it is that if you do any searching on Google then you should sign up for Blingo. All you have to do is use their web page to search from, which is powered by Google, and with each search that you do, up to 10 per day, you have a chance at winning a prize. There is no cost, and there is nothing to install on your computer. The prizes range from Visa gift cards to movie tickets to iPods to a new car etc., and any time that you win something we also win the same thing. Also, if you get someone else to sign up then if they win something you also win it. As I said, if you normally use Google to do your searches, or if you don't mind changing to Google, then go ahead and sign up for Blingo through our link. (For now our Blingo name is "D and M", but that could always change in the future.)

That's all for now so I guess that I will go back to reading my book. (Rich Dad's "The ABC's of Real Estate Investing" for those who were wondering.)

Guest Posting Delayed

2007-01-26T19:12:00.000-06:00

D needed sleep before I got around to getting him to post, so I guess I'll have to try for tomorrow. He had been up 20 hours, so I'm not surprised he wanted to sleep.

I have a correction to my post from yesterday. Apparently, with the inclusion of all of Russia, Europe is larger in square miles than North America. But if you replace Europe with Antarctica (which only has about 30 research stations), my question is still valid.

D has 3 days of work left. Nicely, we get to keep our health insurance for 6 months before we have to start paying for it on our own. That gives us time to build up some cash-flow from real estate and time to compare what we want for insurance.

Today is my blogaversary! I've been posting for 1 full year. And I have yet to run out of things to say, which amazes me. I find that I get more news that I care about by reading blogs too (like actual news news, not just what is going on in someone's life). It is nice, because then I know about the things I care about without having to sort through the rest.

I'm going to go mess with my laundry, before I forget about it.

TTFN!

I Have a Random Question

2007-01-25T19:23:00.000-06:00

Okay, I have a random question for scientists (note, this is not a timely question, but one that I recently thought up). If you have demoted Pluto from being a planet based on it's size, are you going to demote any continents for being to small too? I read the comics on Monday (as I normally do), and when I was messing with the crossword puzzles, I saw the Mini Page for kids. They were talking about the 7 continents, and I realized that Europe and Australia are both rather small continents. Nothing wrong with that (they didn't decide their size, people long ago did). But are scientists, heady with their decision that Pluto is no longer a planet (which what do I say to my future kids?) going to decide that continents should be based on size too? So, if any scientists know this, please let me know.

I found out some good for me news about my phone today. When it drops, only the cover over the battery comes off, so the phone stays on. That's good for me, because I drop my phones more often than I would care to admit, and that used to make them turn off (lack of power will do that). But an inadvertent test today (I dropped it off the back of the love seat, which isn't right in front of a wall, and onto the floor) told me that this would no longer be the case. Just another reason for me to love my pink phone.

Hopefully, I will get D to do a guest post for me tomorrow (about the Blingo link on the side).

TTFN!