ebay Junkie & Weekend update

So with our lives changing I've turned to ebay to help us out. What can I say? I have the dreadful dentist bill coming up in a few weeks (which is not cheap) and then if I really want to get this laparoscopy and start clomid at the end of June, we've GOT to come up with a way to fund it. I used to collect Mary Moo Moo's, but haven't for quite some time. I didn't really have a place for them in our new house so they just sorta got thrown up on the wall in our laundry room. Then this past Christmas I won this awesome tapestry and didn't have anywhere to hang it up and decided that the laundry room was the perfect spot! Now what to do with the Moo Moo's? I didn't want to just store them in the attic, b/c honestly they would sit there forever, so I decided to try my hand at ebay. I was on the computer literally all night Friday taking pics of them, posting them, finding out what they were worth, etc. I have 31 Moos total, so it was not a quick job. I got them all posted shortly after 11 pm. What a relief that was. And to my surprise I had 3 different bids when I got up and checked Saturday morning. That made me happy. As of today, I have 11 different bids and SEVERAL watchers. I assume they will bid closer to date. I'm super stoked about this. So, if you or someone you know is interested in Mary Moo Moo's, Check this out! So after Eric saw how well this was going he started going through all of his comic books. We are contemplating either putting them on ebay or possibly taking them to a comic book place. He has a ton of X-men and a few Spiderman, plus some misc ones. Any suggestions?

Saturday we got up and worked out. We also ran a few errands. I spent the evening lounging on the couch w/ the doggies b/c Eric had a promo.

Yesterday I got up and had breakfast. Apparently it gave me a ton of energy b/c I started doing some major cleaning on the house and crossed a few things off my "To Do List". That was a good feeling. After that we headed to the mall. Eric had a $100 gift cert that he wanted to use on new shoes and I had a $25 gift certificate at Victoria's Secret that was not about to go to waist. :) Speaking of VS, they have a new bra that is in stores today. It's rather expensive and I doubt I will buy one til the price goes down, but it feels awesome. Its more like a summer bra w/ lightweight material all over and a little more coverage around the nip area so you don't "show through". I normally wear a little padding in my bras anyway so I don't have that problem. After we got home I did 2 loads of laundry and we picked up all of the sticks and limps in the back yard. They wouldn't burn b/c they were still on the wet side, but they are picked up for the time being and in a pile to burn later. I finally got a gardening fix. Not I'm anxiously waiting to get back out and do some major work around the house and definitely in my pond. In the next few weeks we will be getting the pond back up and running and it's going to take some work to get it back up to par. After making some things for my lunches this week I took a shower and relaxed on the couch and watched the Oscar's. Overall a nice, productive weekend. Of course this week is going to snow 4 out of the 5 days and who knows what the weekend will be like. We are supposed to make a trip to C'ville to drop off the weight bench we got sold on Saturday and then Eric's parents are coming over Friday afternoon. And Sunday the plan is to move the fish tank which will probably take up the majority of the day. Ugh. Not looking forward to that at all. Of course after we move the fish tank I have to do a major lceaning of the floors in the kitchen. That's probably worse than the move itself! I guess it will be a good upper body and rear workout though. ha ha

Dreadful Dentist

So last Friday I had a dentist appointment. The good news was I had NO cavities. The bad news was I brush my teeth too hard and have gum recession on both sides (upper), so they advised me to see a periodontist. Monday morning they called and had made me an appointment for today, Thursday. I knew my right side was the worst b/c I have a lot of sensitivity in it. Yep, he agreed that both sides were bad and I needed a gum graft. Basically they take tissue from either the roof of your mouth or a tissue bank and stitch it to your current gum and then it grows together and voila, no more recession. It is done in about 1 1/2 hours w/ local anesthetics in their office. We knew it was crucial that I get the right side done first and soon b/c I don't hardly even eat on that side now. So here's where the shit hit the fan or the wallet. Yep, that is not expensive to say the least. Our insurance covers 50% up to $1000. I won't go into details here, but that just royally screwed our budget! So I am scheduled to go in March 18 to get the right side done. We'll decide then when to get the other side done especially since it isn't bothering me and you can't see it. We might just wait til next year to take advantage of that "50% up to $1000.

On a side note, we got to thinking tonight about IU Medical and School of Dentistry, so I"m going to do some research tomorrow and see what I can find out about that. And may make an appointment to go down there and have it done. It's worth it if it saves us a bunch of money! Wish me luck!

General Update

We went and visited w/ our little chocolate Godiva last night. She was so excited to see us, but so exhausted. She just laid down against me and let me pet her. She was doing good overall though. The vet said she wasn't messing with her stitches so that is a very good sign. She is such a baby though. When I went to make her stand back up so we could take her out and then take her back to be put up, she was whining. It broke my heart, but then Eric came back in the room w/ the vet and she jumped right up, so I imagine she was scared it "might" hurt or she's just milking it. I assume more the latter. Eric is going to pick her up this afternoon. The sad thing is that since she is such an active dog we might have to put her in her cage a lot so she doesn't tear her incision back open. However, Eric will be home with her all afternoon and all day tomorrow and we will be home all weekend (besides going to the gym of course).

I have to go to the dentist tomorrow and I'm sure it will require at least one more follow-up appt. YUCK! Then after that I'm meeting my mom and possibly grandparents, too and having dinner with them. It's a belated b-day dinner for my mom. We had planned on doing it last week, but I got sick and she didn't want that for her b-day! :)

I haven't talked to my brother in a while, but my mom keeps my posted. Crystal (his new wifey) is going down today and they are going to check out the area and hopefully find somewhere to live. Unfortunately they can't live on married housing on base b/c it's full so the army will pay for them to live off base until something on base becomes available. I sure hope they find something this weekend. However, I did find out that my brother leaves in November for Iraq. It was inevitable I know. His unit has already been deployed once from what I can tell, so now they are going to be redeployed.

I'm starting to feel better about my appearance. I guess that's what working out and eating better will do for ya. :) I have only lost 4.5 pounds so far, but that to me is not as big of deal as just feeling better about myself. As long as I keep with it I know the weight will come off or at least I will in better shape and be toned. I want to be more healthy and if losing weight comes with it then so be it. In March we find out about our softball league which will ultimately start in April w/ practice and May w/ games. I can't wait for that. Also as soon as it gets warm out I want to start playing tennis at least once a week. And of course get outside and start working in my landscape. I read yesterday that gardening burns more calories than going to the gym sometimes. I can totally see that. I just want to get out there and pull some weeds (great for the butt and legs) and doing some replanting and stuff. I'd like to clean up the top of our hill, but I think it is so overrun w/ weeds that it will be a major chore! I intend to try though. If I start early enough it might just work. Last year I poured two containers of wild flowers on the hill and got a single flower. My hope is that I can start clearing it out early enough and plant those wild flowers again and have an entire hill of flowers by late spring or early summer. I'd love to have fresh flowers on my kitchen table every week w/out buying them! In fact I just added that to my list of "Goals for 2005".

COME ON SPRING! It will be here before we know it. It has already begun to get lighter in the mornings.

For my birthday I'm going to Chicago to see Peter, Kitten's beautician for a full makeover. I am so excited and anxious about that. I am getting a new color and do. I've been searching lately for a hairstyle, but haven't really found anything I "have to have". I'm hoping that he will set me up with the perfect hairstyle. I want to keep the length between my chin and shoulder and add some light bangs, but other than that I'm not too particular. As for color I know Eric likes my hair blonde better, but my hair is getting darker and I really want to get back to close to my natural color, which unfortunately is NOT blonde anymore. I'm going to go dark blonde/light brunette in that area. I want to get away from dying my hair again. Stay tuned for pictures.

On another note, I want to talk about my husband. Those of you who know him know how great he is to me. Many times I don't recognize that or am not so appreciative of that. I've tried to get better about that, but sometimes I just take it for granted. He is a great guy. Yesterday for instance since Godiva was going to be gone we were going to spend the evening doing a major cleaning on the house. However when he picked me up he informed me that he had already cleaned the house. That was so wonderful of him! He didn't have to do that, but he just does stuff like that. I'm not the greatest wife when it comes to stuff around the house. Most of the time he just does everything and I don't have to worry about it, so therefore I don't. I know he gets frustrated at me sometimes and for that I apologize, but I couldn't imagine my life without him. I don't tell him often enough how much I love and appreciate him and I want him (and everyone else) to know that I do love him and appreciate him and look forward to spending the rest of my life with him!

I guess this was a long post or maybe I just need to do this more often. Or maybe it was the caffeine I had in my mocha this morning. :)

Dedicated to Godiva **updated**

This morning we took Godiva to get fixed. It was so sad. She was totally clueless.

We weighed her at the vet and she's a whopping 51 pounds now. I figured she was at least 50 now. She is now heavier than Kodi. Another few months and she'll be bigger than Krissy. Yikes! Here's a few more pics for your viewing pleasure and because I miss her already. We will be so lonely without her tonight her since she has to stay over night. We are going to visit her when I got off work tonight. :)

Here is Godiva and Krissy. Both like to pose for the camera.


And here is how I spent last week lying on the couch when I was sick. Oh the pampering I got... Yes, not only does she think she's a lap dog, but she also thinks I like her sitting on my head!



UPDATE:
Godiva is out of surgery and doing fine. :)

Happy Valentine's Day

Yes, I'm still alive. I've been so sick the last week that I haven't really even checked blogs let alone updated. It was all I could do to keep up my diet blog. I missed work Wed & Fri last week and slept all day both days and got some major naps in over the weekend. Saturday I got up, got ready and headed to Christina's to get a pedicure and a free eyebrow wax. The pedicure was great as always. The wax was interesting. I had never had my eyebrows waxed. I've always been a plucker. It was nice. She said I had a nice arch. It hurt, but it wasn't unbearable. Eric commented that it looked nice, so I think I'll contiue to get it done occassionally or at least when it gets out of control. After Christina's we had some errands to run. I got to drive the Tahoe finally! However I was pretty tired still so I didn't drive it long. It was all I could do to stay awake while we ran our errands. Finally we got home and I napped for a few hours and stayed on the couch the rest of the evening. Yesterday we went to our Valentines lunch at Mt. Fuji and got DQ blizzards when we were done. Eric got me an African Fertility Godess (that I actually got one day last week). I didn't get him anything, however I did let him order some stuff for the iPod. After we got home I napped again and he gave me a back massage before I went to bed. Today should be interesting as I have to work the whole day w/out a nap AND I'm working out tonight.

Vacation

I'm finally back from vacation. It was an enjoyable time, but I was ready to get back home. I got in to Orlando about 2:20 on Thursday and met my grandparents. I was beat from the trip so we headed back to my grandparents for a nice home cooked meal and relaxed the rest of the evening.

Friday we got up early, got ready and headed north about an hour and a half to see my great aunt and uncle who I barely see once a year. It was so nice to see them. We visited with them then had lunch and headed back. We got back around dinner time, had a light dinner and fresh strawberries again and spent the rest of the evening relaxing again.

Saturday morning we got up fairly early again and headed south about 2 hours to see all the hurricane damage in Punta Gorda. The hurricanes were in August and you can't believe how much devastation is still visible. It was horrible. It left a bad feeling in your gut and a lump in your throat. My grandparents had spent some time down there several times, so we drove by some places where they had spent some time. Many places were either gone or damaged in some way or another. I took a few pics so I'll try to post them later this week. (We didn't get them downloaded last night b/c I got in late and made it just in time to watch the super bowl). Anyway we also stopped at this place called Fisherman's Village and it reminded me a lot of Navy Pier in Chicago. You walked out sorta on a pier and there were quaint little shops all along. It was nice, but expensive, too. After seeing a lot of the devastation, we decided to go to Lake Okachobee (sp?) and check on some people they knew over there, too. There wasn't as much devastation, but still a lot of damage. We got back and had dinner at Red Lobster and got back home around 8:30. I got everything packed up and ready to head to the airport in the morning.

Yesterday morning I got up and was sick. I felt horrible all day. My grandparents took me to the airport and we had breakfast there, then I headed to my gate to sit and wait. You can imagine I just wanted to curl up in a ball, take some meds and sleep. Overall the flights were not bad except for my final flight from Chicago to Indy. It was horrible. It was the smallest plane around and I was in the last seat at the back of the plane. I actually decided early that it was a good thing b/c the bathroom was directly across from me and several times I thought I might lean over and barf. But I didn't. We made it home in time to unpack and watch the super bowl. I made it until half time then headed to bed.

This morning we thought the house was exploding at about 5:30. Apparently a transformer blew and the power surged 3 times before staying out. I just went back to sleep and it came on about 7:15. Needless to say I still felt horrible and didn't mind sleeping in at all. I feel a little better now.

Confusion

Apparently there was some confusion as to why we were going through a sperm bank. I don't really understand it totally, but apparently the sperm bank gets Eric's swimmers ready for the IUI. We won't actually use someone else's swimmers. I guess that was a litle misleading after I re-read my entry. :)

Sorry for the confusion

Doc Update

So I went to the doctor today. Where to start. First off this guy is a freak. The nurse gave me some papers to read over while I waited (forever). The first one was about calcium. How much I needed, what it does and then a price analysis of everyone in town that carries it. The next sheet had the food pyramid on it and ways to prevent injuries. What this has to do with my crooch I have no idea! Anyway when he walked in my room he started rambling about people who talk on their cell phone and drive and how its worse than drinking and driving, blah, blah, blah. Then he started coughing and excused himself to get a drink of water. 15 minutes later he returns and we get the ball rolling. Basically oue next step is to do a laparoscopy. He will go in and check things out. If anything is wrong (ie endo, etc.) he will fix it, if everything's clear, well then that's good too. Insurance will cover this. Then I will do 3 months of clomid. If those 3 months don't work then do 3 more months and do the IUI (with a local sperm bank). We are not so sure on the later of that. IUI's are still pretty expensive. We'll make that call if/when that time comes. We are going to wait a few months to get the Lap done, too. In fact, I go in on June 30.

So there's the update. I won't be updating again or checking e-mail until Sunday night or Monday, but feel free to leave me comments or drop me a line!

Weird Neighbors Strike Again

So as I've posted before we do not like our neighbors. Haven't met all of them, but our immediate neighbors are probably the worst! Last night our doorbell rang shortly after 9 pm. It was the neighbor who lives on the right of us. We don't communicate with them whatsoever. She brought us a ham bone b/c they didn't want to just throw it away and they knew 3 dogs that would enjoy it. WEIRD?!?! Eric is convinced she poisoned it, but seriously, why would she do that when we would know the culprit? Our dogs do get in their yard at times, but we ALWAYS clean up the poop in their yard if they happen to cross over "the imaginary line". Needless to say we threw the ham bone away. Even if we liked and trusted the neighbor we wouldn't have given it to our dogs. They do not eat table scraps. (Especially from strangers)

Sad

I'm sad b/c my brother is coming home on Wednesday night. I'm even sadder b/c he's getting married at 2:00 on Thursday. It will be in the court house, but still. He's getting married. I won't be able to go b/c as you know I will be in Florida. I made these arrangements quite a while back and their wedding was basically last minute. In fact, I just found out today that it was going to be Thursday. I'm hoping they get home early enough on Wednesday that I can see him for a little bit, but it's not likely. Thankfully they will be having an actual wedding and reception in August or thereabouts, so I'll make sure and be there for that.

Weekend

Had a great weekend! Friday night we didn't do a whole lot besides go to the gym, which is always a good thing.

Saturday morning I talked to my sister Ashlee and she was going to be at our house at around 10:30 so we could take her out for her belated birthday dinner. Apparently C'ville had had freezing rain that morning and it was snowing pretty heavily. It didn't start even snowing at our house til around 10:00. She finally got to our house around 11:15. Once she arrived we headed to pick up Jamie. It had started snowing pretty heavily by this time. We headed toward Olive Garden and had a nice lunch. We convinced Ashlee that it probably wasn't a good idea for her to drive back by herself b/c of the weather so she ended up calling in and she and Jamie spent the night. We had a little sleepover. When we got back to our house we played some Phase 10. Ashlee has a friend that goes to PU, so we picked him up and he joined us for some card playing. Eric decided to order pizza. When the pizza arrived we headed to the living room and watch Friday Night Lights. It was a good movie. After the movie we decided we better make and eat fondue. Unfortunatley the guys we not interested, so us 3 girls put away a quart of strawberries and two bananas all dipped in chocolate of course. We were still up for some games, so we all played a game of monopoly. We finally quit at midnight. Eric took Ashlee's friend home and after some late-night chatting we headed off to dream land.

Today has been productive. Ashlee and Jamie left around 9:00. I relaxed on the couch a bit then we cleaned house. We headed to the gym to make-up our skipped workout from yesterday, made a quick stop at Taco Bell and the grocery store and headed home. Once home I got all geared up and shoveled snow. Yea, I sure did. Unfortunately we had packed it down some on the driveway so it wasn't that easy to get up and I even fell on the ice once. I'm sure anyone watching had to have been laughing b/c our driveway is quite inclined and was basically a sheet of ice. I almost fell several times actually. About the time I finished shoveling my dad and Peg stopped by. They visited for a little while, checked out our new SUV and saw the doggies. We don't see them very often so it's always nice to see them. After they left I started on supper. I had started to make a turkey breast yesterday, but Eric wanted pizza, so I just finished cooking it and put it in the fridgerator. I got it out and heated it up, but it was tough and didn't look right, so I ended up tossing it and just making some buffalo chicken wraps. I also made some sloppy joe mix (thanks Kitten) for my lunches this week. It doesn't look the greatest, but it definitely tastes good. I will say I had my doubts making it. This is evening is going to be pretty lazy otherwise.

Oh and I forgot to mention that the other day when Jamie was over Godiva a manicure. I think she likes Jamie. I just hope she doesn't start expecting it. Hell I don't even get professional manicures!

Dr. um... Downer

So I realized after making my appointment w/ the new doc I really wanted to see that they are not an in-network doctor w/ my insurance. DAMN, DAMN, DAMN. I thought I'd the hotline just to make sure they weren't added and was just not on my list of approved docs. Nope. So I called the doctors office and talked to them. They accept the insurance, but warned me there was much more out-of-pocket on my behalf. I unfortunately cancelled the appointment and scheduled an appointment w/ my old doctor, Dr. R. The good thing is I get to go next week. The bad thing, it's in the middle of the day and I'll get to return to work & spend the afternoon w/ goo in my undies! ha ha

On a side note: Me and the doc are going to have a serious talk about this TTC business. Hopefully he can give me some insight and we can figure out what our next steps are "up to" diagnosing infertility. That's what my insurance covers and I'm not sure what the "up to" entails. He's going to explain it to me. :D

Update on Brother

My brother has been in Airborne training now for a few weeks. I talked to him for a little bit last Saturday and he was excited. The would be jumping on Monday. Well, he jumped on Monday all right. Of the group he jumped with a girl died. Details here. He had to witness this as she jumped right before him. Can you imagine such a thing? He was pretty shook up about the whole deal, not surprisingly. Anyway, he also hurt is knee during that jump. To give you a little background, when he was younger he had a 4-Wheeler accident and had a body cast and his knee in traction. He just thought maybe he landed wrong or something, so he didn't say anything. So on Tuesday when they jumped again, he hurt it worse. They sent him to the doctor and they did x-rays. He didn't break it, but told him he couldn't jump again b/c they were afraid he'd totally trash it. So now he can't finish his Airborne training and he leaves next Wednesday and has 2 days to report to Ft. Hood, TX. He's going to come home for a day before he heads to TX and might even get married on that short visit. Yeah, he's planning on getting married to a girl he was engaged to before he left for boot camp. When he came home over Christmas they got back together and in order for her to move w/ him they have to be married. Although there is a waiting list for married housing so she can't go yet, but you have to be married to get on the list.

Reality set in a while ago when I realized how easy it would have been for him to grab that chute and it could have been him whose chute didn't open. Yikes!

New OB-GYN

So I (finally) called to make my yearly pap appointment, since I was due to have one in December. I decided to see if the office I was really interested in going to was accepting patients b/c last time I called it they said they would be accepting like 6 months down the road and I really didn't want to wait that long. Lo and behold they were! Yay! So I scheduled! The office has 2 doctors (1 female, 1 male), but I've heard great things about both, so I did first available. I got the male, Dr. Mc. My appt is Feb 22 so it's only a few weeks away, too. Now I have to make a list of my history so I can answer the billions of questions they will ask me. Oh well, hopefully I'll really like this guy and he'll give me some insight on our TTC challenges.

I feel like things are finally starting to go our way. Maybe we are getting out of the hole we were stuck in for a while. (I HOPE!)

Mirror Mirror On The Wall....

Reality is I'm not that fat at all.

I was standing in front of the mirror last night doing some upper body workouts when it dawned on me that I'm really not as fat as my mind has me thinking. Why do our minds play tricks on us like that? I'm feeling pretty good about myself right now. I feel good working out and don't feel too guilty when I eat something bad, unless I keep eating bad things. It is such a nice feeling. I feel like I'm getting back to "MY" self. I know I still have a long way to go, but I'm getting there. I know I'll have my ups and downs, but this week seems to be going GRRRRREAT!

Godiva

OK, so I lied. Eric sent me Godiva pics this morning, so no need to wait any longer!

Godiva loves getting her picture taken. Every time we get the camera out she jumps in front of you and then sits like "look at me, take a picture of me". And who could resist with a face like this?


I am finally able to get my hair in a pony tail, but apparently Godiva doesn't like it up...


Save the best for last! I think Godiva has finally realized why we got her. She really is my baby, more than she knows. She laid in my lap yesterday like a baby for quite a while. Of course she was knawing on my fingers, but that was ok. I didn't mind too much.

Snowy Weekend

On Friday after work we headed to BW3's as a manager there asked us to come in sometime and see how the bar service was. How could you turn that down? We ordered more than we could eat, I had a Bloody Mary and Eric had a few sips of a Long Island. After that we headed home.

Sometime over night it started snowing and we had a couple of inches when we got up. Nothing major, but it was blowing and drifting what we did have. Eric went to the gym and I got ready as we had to go to C'ville for Christmas on my mom's side. The roads were really drifting on our way down, but we made it fine. As usual my mom and I got into a bit of an arguement and she got mad and was short with me the rest of the day. And another commonality at these gatherings is that they are so screwed up no one knows when to show up. Needless to say, everyone else showed up when we were getting ready to leave. O'well. Thank god we are done with that for a year! We had a pretty lazy evening and as usual I fell asleep on the couch, only this time Eric fell asleep watching in bed and didn't wake me up til 1 am.

Yesterday was a relaxing day. We just kicked back, watched TV and bummed around the house all day. I did get some energy in the afternoon and ended up making some chili, jello, and cookies. We spent the evening watching football.

By request, here's a couple pics of our new car. It's been really crappy outside and the car is super dirty, so Eric graciously pulled a few pics off the web.



Also, I have some new pics of Godiva that I hope to get posted this week.

Automobiles in 2005 - The Bad, Ugly & Good

In that order. We've had a crazy last week or so w/ automobiles in our household. Last week before traveling to OH we found that the that Mercedes (Mel) needed new brakes, brake pads, rotors, and shocks. Yea we were floored to say the least as it was going to cost about $1G to get those repairs. They said I would be ok driving to OH since it was interstate driving, but not to do a lot of city driving and we could get those repairs when I got back this week. So on Monday when I got home Eric took Mel to run some errands and see some customers and noticed yet another noise. After stopping by the dealer we find out it is the catalytic convertor which was $1500 in just parts. So we decided Mel must go and fast. Eric's car, the Explorer was also leaking something, so we knew it had to go into the shop soon, too. After some deliberation, we decided we could go down to one car, save some money on our car payments and just make due to get some other bills paid off for the time being. So, off we went shopping for a new car. I get a GM discount so we wanted to get something new and we found out that since we have a substantial amount of negative equity we'd have to get something new b/c we'd never get a loan on a used car w/ that much neg. eq. We found one we liked, but the banks were all closed b/c of MLK, Jr day so we headed home.

Tuesday rolled around and the finanial guy made calls all day and as of 5:00 hadn't got anything approved yet. We were asking for a large loan to say the least. However, what the banks don't see is that we were trading both cars in so we actually reduce our payments and save some money. We were looking at a Tahoe. We thought, ok, maybe we are asking for too much money so we told them to see what they could do about finding us a trailblazer.

So yesterday our sales guy called and told us that the only way we could get the Tahoe would be to have a $20G downpayment. Are you serious? If we had that kind of downpayment, we'd just come in a buy a used car w/ cash. Good lord! We hung up the Tahoe and Dan, the sales guy, started working on finding us a trailblazer. That was more difficult than we thought. We have a few necessaties we wanted and they didn't have what we wanted on the lot, so they would have to check auctions and other dealers. We figured it would be at least a few days before we heard back...

but....

shortly after 5:00 last night Dan called to tell us they finally got us approved for the Tahoe if we could put at least a little down. Thankfully his parents had already offered to help us out a little with the downpayment so we could get out from under that $3G+ work/repairs we would have to put in both of our current cars. So needless to say off the dealer we went and drove home with a Tahoe. It is a sweet ride and there is no reason we won't be able to keep it for 10+ years. The payments were a bit more than we wanted, but it is still less than what we were paying. And we can totally make due on 1 car. We just have to make a few sacrifices. So something has went our way. We were both feeling like things were going downhill for us on the money side and it was scary. This weekend we are sitting down and looking at our finances and coming up with a STRICT budget to get some stuff paid off. I think we are on the right track now and things are looking much brighter. Yay! We just needed a little sunshine. It is stressful buying that expensive of a car, but at the same time it is a reliable car w/ a warranty, cheaper repairs if/when that time comes, and American made. No more foreign cars for us!

GWO Update

I headed to OH this weekend for another much needed Girls Weekend Out. It was great. I came in Friday evening and of course played with Grace first thing. We met Eric at Steak & Shake for dinner. We headed back home and Eric headed to the airport to pick up Danialle. Danialle arrived and of course played with Grace. She is such a precious baby. Saturday morning we got up and got ready. Heather arrived and we headed to First Watch for brunch. After that we met up with Samara and headed to Babies r' Us, Filene's Basement and the mall. Grace was wonderful the entire day. Saturday night Eric kept Grace and we "older" girls headed out to dinner at Champps. We had a blast. Samara drove since she is pregnant and the rest of us had a few (much needed) drinks. Dinner was nice although it took us a while to get a table b/c there was a football game on. Heather had us laughing so hard it hurt with her stories about drinking and dieting and make sure you wear a belt so you don't fall in the holler, etc., etc. For those readers who don't know Heather, all I can say is it's a long story. When we got home we were pretty exhausted so we all headed to bed around 11 pm. Heather got up early and headed home on Sunday, but Danialle & I stayed. We had a pretty lazy day Sunday. In the afternoon we headed to out to get fuel for Jennifer's smores maker (who knew how difficult that was?) and then to BW3s for take-out and back home to watch a repeat game of last year with the Colts & Patriots. We then finished off the night by ordering a pizza, playing some dominoes and having a few smores. Monday morning we got up way to early so Danialle could make it to the airport on time and I decided to head home at that time, too. I got home before noon. It was a nice relaxing weekend.

The Weekend

So I updated on Saturday about working long hours and overtime. Then said I was off to Eric's holiday party... Well, needless to say it was quite interesting. (To say the least)

On our way down to Indy we headed to the airport b/c we had to get my plane ticket for my trip to FL in February. We were worried at first that we wouldn't be able to get it b/c the "ticket counter" was closed, but thankfully they gave it to us.

Eric thought that cocktail hour was from 5:30-6:30 then the dinner at 6:30. So we arrived around 5:15 or so only to find out we were about the first one there. Yep, cocktail hour started at 6:30. We were starving, but managed a few drinks. About 7:30 they filed everyone in this small room and explained some rules and details as they had arranged a vegas night holiday party. Actually it was a blast! The downside was the invitation said "informal dinner". We assumed it was just a buffett and you could eat whenever. Nope. It was just finger type foods and not that great either. Oh, well, gambling made up for it I guess. There was a highlight to the night though...

We ladies were standing around a table chatting, when Eric's bosses fiance looks at me and says..... "Oh, your belly, when are you due?" I imagine the look on my face was priceless and I just said, "Uh, I'm not!" She just about melted in her shoes. I'm sure she was so embarrased. She came over and apologized and hugged me and all that. I was embarrassed, too. After that I just got a drink and headed to find Eric. Eric said I didn't look pregnant, but my shirt could look like it sometimes.... This is the sweater I had on. What do you think? Obviously I'm not that skinny, but I'm definitely not fat either! Seriously, why would you ask someone that if you weren't for sure??? IDIOT! Needless to say, I won't be wearing the shirt for a while.

Yesterday was pretty lazy. AF came first thing. We tried to go to the gym and I did most of my routine, but with cramps and a cold, we cut it a little short. I'm feeling better today. Have medicine head though with all the tylenol am/pm I'm on. That's not the best feeling, but it's better than being sick.

Long Week

Needless to say I worked lots of overtime this week. I even had to go in and work 4 hours this morning. Thankfully we are getting caught up. This next week is going to be a long busy one, too, but I have Friday off and the following Monday. I will be going to Columbus for another Girls Weekend and I can't wait. We finally get to meet Grace and of course have girl time. We've been going to the gym this week. I skipped last night because my sinuses are bothering me and draining and causing me to have a sore throat on top of that. Yuck! I'm feeling a little better about my body since going to the gym. That will take some time though. Tonight we are heading to Indy to pick up my plane ticket for my trip to Florida in February then to Eric's Company's Holiday Party. Woo hoo! Sorry I haven't posted any pics recently. I've just been to busy or too exhausted.

My brother headed back to GA for airborne training. Unfortunately he decided not to go on to ranger school, but that's his choice and I'm happy b/c he's doing so great. I won't go into a lot of detail, but I think some of his decision was based on a girl... Darn them. Anyway, he officially starts 3 weeks of training Monday then when he's done he'll go to Ft. Bragg, NC where he'll be for 3 years. Most likely he'll go to war sometime within that time.

Godiva gets better every day. She can now sit and shake. (I taught her how to shake.) She's still having some pooping problems and goes back to the vet next week for her final set of shots, so hopefully they'll figure out the other, too. She is getting so big. I'm curious to see how much she weighs now, too.

Anyway, that about sums up what's happening in our life right now. Hope everyone is having a good new year so far. We had a horrible ice storm about mid week this week and it snowed again last night. Lovely winter, what can I say?

And so it begins...

A new year, a new life, a new body, a new attitude...

2004 was a tough year for us. I had several bouts of depression for starters. I was trying to repair a relationship with my mom, which is depressing in itself. :) It has it ups and downs and I let it get the best of me sometimes. I started controlling the situation around Christmas and hope to be able to control situations as much as I can in the future. Yes, I know some things are out of my control and those things I have to not let bother me and get me down.

Another tough one as you know from reading this blog is our not getting pregnant. Where do I begin with this one??? It was even more tough when others around us were/are getting pregnant. I had one sister (15 yrs old) who was pregnant late 03, miscarry in 04. Then, Jennifer & Samara got pregnant. I'm super happy for both of them. Then I found out K is pregnant. That was really a punch to the gut. Its even tougher every time I'm around her. I've just got to accept it and move on and I'm getting there. Really, I am. We have taken a break from trying and will continue to break for a little while longer and it really has been good for us.

I am at the heaviest I've been in my entire life. That makes me sad. I know I have done nothing to help it. I can blame some of it on the depression, TTC, etc. but in reality I have to make the choice to get in shape. Thankfully my husband is finally with me on this one. We joined a gym right before Christmas and started practicing last week. Figuring out our workout routine, weights, cardio, etc. We fought at first b/c I was in the BFL mentality and Eric was out to kill himself and I thought kill me, too. :) So, we met with a trainer who got us both on the right track and routine. We really only do cardio together, but that's ok. We still motivate each other to go 6 days a week. I hope to get back down to 130-ish pounds and a size 7/8. That's my goal right now. I have a pear body shape, so I will really struggle with my workout, but so far I've done it twice and it's not too bad except for the damn lunges. YUCK! They suck! But as my trainer said, that's the best way to work your butt... Guess he would know since he's a "trainer"... I just have to suck it up and do them! Today was our first real day of working out and it was great. What else can I say?

I feel like this is going to be a great year. At least I hope. I want to have a positive attitude and things will go our way. At least they better. :) I don't expect anything to change over night. I know they won't, but at least I have the motivation now to take steps to make my life better.

Happy New Year!

Well, its off to a fresh start with the new year. I hope to be a much better person this year. (Not that I was that bad last year) I feel like this is going to be a great year. Let's hope I'm right! Check back later for my new "Goals for 2005" in the sidebar as I'm still working on them.

(Special thanks to Kitten for her new year's meme.)

New Year's Meme
1. What did you do in 2004 that you'd never done before?
*Disney World & Sea World in Florida
*Cancun, Mexico

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
*Yes, I think I kept most of my new year's resolutions. I read 10+ Books, sent more cards, worked on relationship w/ mom. I did not get pregnant, but I'm not sure how much control I had over that. I also gained 10 lbs instead of losing, but what can I say, but I'll do better in 2005. I will definitely make more for this year.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
*Yep, one of my best friends, Jennifer

4. Did anyone close to you die?
*Nope

5. What countries did you visit?
*Mexico

6. What would you like to have in 2005 that you lacked in 2004?
*Motivation to get in shape & keep it up
*To be a better wife & show more affection in my marriage
*To have more patience dealing with things. (That's a tough one)

7. What dates from 2004 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
*February 5-8 - We went to Florida to visit my grandparents & I went to Disney World, Sea World, & Homosasis Springs for the first time
*April 12 - Our 1 Year Anniversary
*June 24-27 - Our first trip to Cancun, Mexico
*September 18 - Saw George Carlin w/ Danialle & Chadd
*November 4 - We got Godiva
*November 6 - Jennifer's Baby Shower
*December 11 - Eric's Surprise Birthday Party that we pulled off
*December 12 - Baby Grace's Entrance to the World
*December 24 - The first time in a long time my mom and all her kids were together for a nice Christmas
*January, March, July and October Girls Weekend Trips

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
*Getting a new job

9. What was your biggest failure?
*Maybe not failure as it was out of my control, but biggest disappointment was not getting pregnant.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
*Nope except for an occassional cold

11. What was the best thing you bought?
*Godiva

12. Whose behavior made you appalled and/or depressed?
*Sister L miscarrying
*K getting pregnant
*My mom and sisters fighting

13. Where did most of your money go?
*Bills

14. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
*Well, I got excited about a lot of things. I'd say everything that was in question #7

15. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? - About the same
b) thinner or fatter? - Fatter definitely
c) richer or poorer? - Poorer

16. What do you wish you'd done more of?
*Doing special things together w/ my husband

17. What do you wish you'd done less of?
*Spending/Charging

18. How did you spend Christmas?
*Christmas day Eric & I spent the day together, then around 3:30 we headed to C'ville to see my parents and then on to my grandparents. For once we weren't running all over creation!

19. Did you fall in love in 2004?
*Already in love

20. What was your favorite TV program?
*So many to choose from.... Survivor, CSI, Cold Case, Law & Order

21. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
*nope

22. What was the best book you read?
*Probably the Jennifer Weiner books

23. What did you want and get?
*I'm a bit spoiled so there's too much to count

24. What did you want and not get?
*A fence for our backyard

25. What was your favorite film of this year?
*We watched a lot of movies. I don't really have a favorite I don't think.

26. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
*We went out to eat at the Melting Pot and I was 25

27. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
*Getting Pregnant

28. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2004?
*Sorta plain jane type. I hope to be more girly in 2005 after I get back into shape

29. What kept you sane?
*My husband and GWOs!

30. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
*Vin Diesel and Harrison Ford

31. Who was the best new person you met?
*Samara - Although it was in January 04 so she doesn't seem like a "new" friend anymore! ha ha More like a longtime friend

32. What is a valuable life lesson you learned in 2004.
*Patience - Still working on it, but getting there
*To Accept the Things I Cannot Change - Still working on that one, too

I'm Still Here

It's been a crazy last few weeks. Obviously I haven't updated in a while. Where to begin...

The holidays are hard for me. I love Christmas and the decorations and the spirit, if you will. I'm not a big fan of the rest of the stuff I seem to get from it. My mom and sisters and I have been on a rollercoaster since about a week before x-mas. Why they always have to bring me into their bullshit is beyond me. Maybe b/c I'm the only responsible, respectable, sain one and they like me to be the mediator. I was at my wits end about a week ago and so Danialle set my family straight for me. (Thank you) I was about to write the entire side off again. Anyway, they all came to my house x-mas eve and we did have a nice dinner and exchanged a few gifts.

The rest of the x-mas get togethers weren't too bad. K was there showing off her "belly". Yes, I'm jealous and I know she is nonchalantly rubbing it in my face, but that's her and I guess I am happy for her. However I do feel sorry for the baby. They have it rough on the financial side and apparently they are clueless how much a baby costs. Hell they just recently got a home phone... Anyway, I'm sure the family will help her out (they already are). That's just not the way I want to raise my kids and we won't raise our kids that way.

Godiva is settling down a little more these days. Still mean and wild, but she's getting there.

Work has been super busy. I've put in a little over time. I even work through lunch sometimes b/c we have so much to do. I do like my new job at least what I'm learning of it. Hopefully after the first of the year it will be better and I can learn more of it. To make a long story short, we have an interum "office manager" who is a micro manager and a control freak. He's hording some of my job, I think, b/c he's the only one who knows it, so it's a way to let them know they need to hire him. If he gets the job I probably won't stay around nor will the other lady in our office. We'll see how it goes. We are both hoping he doesn't get it.

Last Thursday we got a membership to a gym that just opened about 2 minutes from our house. We are leaving shortly for our first day of working out. I'm really excited about it. Yes, we have lots of workout equip in our garage, but who wants to work out at home? Not I. Anyway, I've been down about my weight, too. I'm at the heaviest point I've been in my life and somethings gotta change. Thankfully Eric is all for it, too. I think we both finally have the motivation to do something about our weight before it gets out of control. I think mine already is, but you know.

Anyway, the holidays are over, I'm moving towards a healthier body (again) and I hope to update my blog more often. I'll try to post some pics this week, too.

I've been busy

Sorry, the holidays are a busy time for me. We've been super busy at work, plus as you know the holidays have begun. Thought I'd give an update on my life this week.

Monday we had a Christmas, I mean Staff Recognition Luncheon at work. (The Univ won't pay for it if we call it christmas...) It was at the Trails and I had never been there. It was nice. I won a patchwork throw type thing from Singapore. There were some really neat gifts there, too. Basically what happens is this. There is a lady who works here and her husband is a very well known faculty member. He travels all over the world attending conference, giving lectures, etc. Part of her job is to go with him and pick up unique gifts for the Christmas party. What a job, I know! There were 40 gifts total and our placemats at the table was a table 1-40 w/ clues for each gift. You have to decide by the clues what you want if your name gets picked from the hat. Anyway, it was a nice time.

Tuesday Eric got up early thirty w/ Godiva b/c she was coughing. It was sorta spuratic throughout the day and by afternoon Eric called the vet to get her in first thing Wed morning. Our vet figured it was kennel cough and they would put her on antibiotics. When I got home she started coughing much more and we felt horrible b/c it was almost like she couldn't catch her breathe, so guess what we did? Yep, she went to the emergency vet. It was some foreign lady who thought Godiva had or was on the verge of puppy pheumonia and they could keep her overnight and give her an IV. Can you say, "We just want your money!" Needless to say we declined the offer, got a prescription and headed. Eric stayed up throughout the night with her. She was still very active, eating and not dehydrated, so we weren't too worried. The coughing just sounded horrible!

Wednesday was Eric's birthday. I felt horrible b/c he had stayed up all night with Godiva. He took me to work and then headed to the vet. Basically, they confirmed that she had kennel cough and gave us some stronger meds. Thankfully they didn't charge us much since we had went to the emergency vet the night before. I felt really bad all day b/c it was Eric's b-day and actually we celebrated it on Saturday w/ his party. Anyway, after work we headed to this mexican place for dinner (surprise) and then home and watched White Chicks. It was funny.

Thursday was a lazy evening. We came home and Eric had a sandwich for dinner and I made some homemade mac n' cheese. I did a little reading, watched some TV and went to bed sorta early.

Tonight my sister is coming up and Eric is helping her with a scholarship application essay. (He's good at BS) I think I'm making tacos for dinner.

Saturday we are heading to Indy for a few hours to go to my dad's side for Christmas.

Sunday I think we'll head to a movie. We haven't done that in a long time and it will be fun. That's about all that's going on in our lives right now.

Hope everyone has a merry christmas and happy new year. I hope to update by then though!

Congratulations!

Special congratulations to Jennifer & Eric on the arrival of their new baby girl, Grace Ellen Marie. I know that they will be wonderful parents and can't wait til January when I get to see them!

I was so overwhelmed w/ emotion yesterday when the news came in that Jennifer's water broke, they were going to the hospital, and she was going to have baby Grace! I know she is such a strong woman though and knew she would be fine. Danialle & I talked several times about the fact that it is just so surreal! We can't hardly believe it until we see pics or something! Maybe even until we see and hold her in January! I did talk to Jennifer for a few minutes last night and she sounds so great! You can hear the joy in her voice.

Weekend Update

Let's see, Friday night we didn't do much. We went to the hospital to visit my uncle who had surgery. He was doing good. After that we headed to BW3s for dinner then home and watched Dodgeball. It was a pretty funny movie.

Saturday morning we got up and cleaned house. My in-laws and sister-in-law and her husband came in around 1:30 ish and we munched on goodies and had our christmas with them. It was nice getting together with them as we don't see Amanda & Erik much (yes her husband is Erik, too). I haven't mentioned it here for obvious reasons, but we were throwing Eric a surprise birthday party that night. Everyone was supposed to arrive at Don Pablo's at 5:00 and we were going to show up around 5:30. Unfortunately my male cousin called my cell at 4:30 to make sure it was still going on and I couldn't come up with anything to tell Eric why a male was calling me. He knew right then that something was up, but didn't know what. He also had an inkling b/c normally we open gifts then go straight to eat, but we stalled by watching part of Elf. Anyway, I made his sister and her husband ride with us b/c I knew Eric would grill me all they way to dinner to tell him what was going on. Of course as soon as we pulled into Don Pablo's he spotted my mom's car then we parked right near my aunts car. Thankfully we pulled it off as long as we did and it was a great time. There were about 20-25 people. After dinner and cake, everyone parted ways and my cousins and aunt stopped by as Danialle had not seen our puppy yet. We chatted for a bit and then they left. We were both pooped, but we went through our christmas presents and put stuff up then I headed to bed.

First thing this morning (@ 8:30) I got a call from Samara saying Jennifer's water broke. It was sorta trickling out and she really wasn't having any contractions so they took their time, finished getting ready and headed to the hospital. Samara called back around 10 and said that Jennifer was having contractions about 5 minutes apart and was still only 3 cm dialated. The doc also did an internal exam and felt hair so we know Grace has hair now. I haven't heard from her since and am getting VERY anxious to hear something again. If she doesn't call soon, I'm going to have to call her! I'll update if I hear anything else!

The rest of the day has been pretty uneventful. Aunt Flow came, I've been crampy. We had Taco Bell for lunch and am watching the Colts game right now. I'm making totellini for dinner. The Survivor Finale is on tonight so we'll watch that. We were supposed to go to a christmas party today for one of his bars, but Eric changed his mind. I think he may go to the after party and make an appearance later.

Share your Shower....

With your dog??? Eric got to this morning. He thought he locked Godiva out of the bathroom but apparently he didn't get the door latched and instead of getting into the trash and shredding tissues, she decided to be a good girl and jump in the shower and join him. At least she likes to take a bath. The other two doggies run when you ask if they want to take a bath.

Side Note:
Godiva has learned a new trick, too. When I ignore her and walk away, she jumps up and bites my butt. She's so smart to figure out how to get my attention.

Adventures in Babysitting (The Chocolate Demon)

Yep, last night was my first official night alone with all 3 dogs.... It was definitely an adventure.
Let's see.... Where to begin...
* She peed on the floor 3 times, but at least it was in the kitchen on the linoleum
* When Eric called to say they arrived in KY safety she pooped by the back door and believe me I'm not good at doing the poop thing. I did a few dry heaves.
*Guess who thinks the skirt on the tree is her new toy? Yep, she dragged that out a few times.
*She also likes to go under the tree to "look out the window". Of course that is not necessary as she can clearly see out on the other side of the chase.
*She was racing between the living room and kitchen (around the table) w/ this snake that is as long as she is and tripped and spilt her water.
*I did get her medicine down her easily both last night and this morning. That's good right?

Needless to say, I went to bed at 8:30 last night. By then Godiva was winding down and I could have stayed up a little longer, but I figured she's tired and so am I so why not? I think I did pretty good overall, but it was a little stressful. I guess I didn't realize how much Eric does until he's gone. Good thing he'll be home tonight. Of course they know he's boss and he has lots more patience, so I'm sure he doesn't have as rough of time as I do/did...

*Krissy apparently thinks Eric has left her b/c she's been acting lost. She vomitted while Eric was still home 3 times yesterday (it's nerves). I thought I was doing good until she vomitted this morning. Thank goodness it was on the linoleum, too!

*Kodi is just Kodi. She slept w/ me most of the night and I'm sure she liked that.

Weekend - Good turned Bad

Friday night was nice. After Eric picked me up from work we headed to get some dinner at a mexican place we both like. After dinner we stopped at the Silver Dipper and each got a scoop of ice cream in a waffle bowl. We didn't do much that evening.

Saturday morning we got up early and I headed to C'ville to get my hair cut. I basically just cut it cut up all one length. For some reason my hair grows faster in the back or something. Peg & Dad both loved the color which made me happy. I visited with them for a bit, had a bowl of chili, made a quick stop at the bank and headed back home. When I got home we took Godiva and went to get our Christmas tree. Eric thought with taking her she would be more used to it and not as likely to get in the tree when it's in the house. He was RIGHT! She did good at the tree farm and got many compliments and pats. This is where our weekend turned bad. When we got home Godiva got sick. We thought it was just nerves and maybe the car ride. We worked on getting the tree up and she ate, then got sick again. Both times it was just food so we figure she's just eating too fast and nerves. Then she got sick again. This time it was just liquid. I think it was her UTI medicine. She is still VERY active and mean as ever. Just can't keep her food down. I tried to even just give her an ice cube b/c I felt to sorry for her and she puked that right up. We've been feeding her a cooked rice, cottage cheese, yogurt combo as her meals and that is the only thing staying down in her. She's also getting pedialite. Both recommended when our oldest dog was a pup and horribly sick. Anyway, Eric's calling the vet today so I'll keep you updated. We did get our tree decorated and it looks nice. We didn't doggie proof it and so far we aren't regretting it. We do have some animated ornaments and one is doggie eye level. She noticed it and sniffed it or maybe she was sniffing the tree b/c she touched her nose to one of the branchs Eric had snipped and got some sap on it b/c everytime we cuddled her Saturday evening we smelled pine.

Update: I was right! The vet just thinks it is her medicine so they are just going to switch her med and that should take care of it! Yay!

A little note about Eric and some scary stuff that happened "near" him. About 1:30 am Sunday morning Eric was really worried about Godiva (as was I) so he headed to the grocery store to get the cottage cheese, rice and yogurt. Anyway on his way home he saw a head-on crash that was only maybe 10 feet in front of him. For some unknown reason this idiot was driving the wrong way on SR 52 (a 2 lane Highway by our house) with only his fog lights and blinkers on. No headlights! Eric said he didn't even see him until he was really close. Thankfully he was in the turn lane already. There was a black car that swerved and missed him, but a white car behind them didn't have time and hit the guy head-on (he was in a jeep). The driver in the white car was pinned in and we think he made it b/c it wasn't in the news. We aren't sure if the guy driving the wrong way was drunk, on drugs or trying to commit suicide. We will probably never know.

Anyway, yesterday was uneventful. We babied Godiva most of the day. I went to the grocery store and picked up a few things, had Taco Bell for lunch and just had basically a lazy, boring day. I made a taco dip for our luncheon today at work and we had grilled cheese for dinner.

Goodbye Blonde... Hello Brunette...

Be honest! What do you think???




I'm not so good at taking side pullbacks myself...


Godiva & I match!

Godiva a.k.a. The Chocolate Demon

Thought I'd write about some interesting things that have been happening with our new baby...

The picture under the glass of our coffee table.... Need I say more?




We noticed over the weekend, that when Godiva peed she had some discharge there (sorta like snot). Anyway we didn't see much so we weren't concerned, but noticed more yesterday so Eric called the vet. We think it's only a urinary tract infection. Needless to say, he had to run around this morning try to "catch her in the act" w/ a cup in hand and take it to the vet.... Only to find out there wasn't there. So he had to take her in so they could "catch her in the act". Apparently she likes it there b/c she's been there going on 3 hours and hasn't peed a drop...

Editor's Note: She has finally peed, but the vet was at lunch, so we can't pick her up til 3:30 now.

What is the fetish of toilet paper????
Yep, this morning after I got ready (and shut the bathroom door), fixed breakfast, and headed to the computer room to check blogs, news, etc. Apparently Eric fell back asleep on the couch and Godiva opened the bathroom door (it's hard to latch). Anyway, she had pulled out lost of TP and Kleenex and chewed on it and strategically placed it all over the living room, bedroom and dining room. What can you do but laugh and pick it up???

The scarey part is we are getting our (real) christmas tree this weekend. Anyone like to place bets on...
1) Nnumber of times the tree "falls" over
2) Number of Ornaments that get broke
I will post a pic as I'm sure it will not look quite as good this year since we will only be decorating the top half of the tree. Not that it will matter really.

Such an exhausting day...

Job

So I started my job yesterday full time. The afternoons are much busier than the mornings around here. Nothing too exciting happening though really.

A bit about the people I work with:

M - Interim Office Coordinator right now and will most likely become permanent. He is also a youth pastor or something at his church. He's a bit older. (He has kids my age) Seems like an alright guy, but he does have a bit of an ego. Not sure why though unless its just the fact he's been in the department for like 5 years and did my job for 4 of those years. Maybe he's just being a know-it-all.

G - She is over Admissions. She is a level lower than me for whatever reason. She is a super nice lady. I think she likes her job but does have some resentment that she is a level lower than me. And to make matters worse the campus paper put out a thing today that shows every single person's salaray (I'm not kidding when I say everyone), so I'm sure she checked mine. I know I checked hers. I make about $2 more/hour than her. She seems to be really religious. It came up that she does not acknowledge Halloween. I just ignored it.

We have 5 student workers in our office and they all seem to be pretty good people.

I seem to be really slow right now. (Obviously since I'm updating my blog at work) I hope it gets much busier as this is going to be really boring if it's the case. Maybe after I learn more about the job I will be busier. Let's hope. I did have one catastrophe yesterday. I keep a calendar of the prof that meets w/ students regarding their classes and stuff. Well, yesterday being my first day I had to mess something up. I accidentally scheduled some students an hour before the prof was actually supposed to be here and didn't realize it until 2 had already shown up. Oops. Good thing I can blame it on being new. Wonder how long I can use that excuse?

Turkey Update

I tried updating yesterday, but was having problems with blogger. Sorry for the delay.

Anyway, Thursday when we got up we started cleaning the house. We did some pretty extensive cleaning, too. Not that our house is super dirty or anything, but it needed some detailed cleaning. After the cleaning we had a pretty relaxing, lazy day. Surprisingly we didn't ahve a single dinner on Thanksgiving day!

Friday we decided to go ahead and go to my mom's side's dinner which was good. We tried telling them we couldn't stay long b/c of the puppy so when we got ready to leave everyone convinced us to just go home and get the puppy and bring her back, so we obliged. Godiva did pretty well in the car and didn't have one accident at my aunt's house either thank goodness. It's always nice seeing everyone. We had good eats, played some cards and just caught up on everyone's lives. We were exhausted when we got home and I headed to bed.

Apparently w/ all the excitement Godiva was exhausted, too b/c she actually slept through the whole night and didn't get up til 6 which was when I had planned on getting up anyway. I laid in bed til about 6:30 then headed to the kitchen to prepare "THE MEAL". I started getting the turkey ready and Eric helped me get it into the bag, but unfortunately it went through the other end so Eric had to make a run to the grocery store to get another bag. The turkey ended up being done by 11:00 and our dinner wasn't until 2:00 so it was a little cool by the time we ate, but o'well. Everthing else went pretty smoothly. Everyone enjoyed each other's company and the dogs were good, too. We cleaned up after everyone left and pretty much crashed.

("Oh, whatever" in valley girl voice)
I thought you might get a kick out of this tidbit. Saturday during our dinner w/ my & Eric's side my cell phone rang off the hook. Apparently (but not surprisingly) my mom got drunk and got into a huge fight with my sisters. A hole in the door and a phone call to the cops later, the girls are back at their dad's and everyone is calling me. I talked to my sister Ashlee first and she assumed they were not invited to my house Sunday anymore. I politely told her that if they can't get along then no one is coming to our house on Sunday. I didn't want to be in the middle of anything. I tried calling my mom to let her know the dinner for Sunday was cancelled, but no one answered, not even voicemail. Finally she called me back (drunk). Eric answered the phone and she called him Tim, that was from left field. More or less our converation went as follows

Me: We aren't having a dinner tomorrow now since no one can get along
Mom: "Oh, whatever" (in a drunken stupor) You've apparently already talked to the girls
Me: Yes and I didn't want to hear either side.
Mom: "Oh, whatever"
Me: (Ready to burst out laughing) "You know what, you are drunk and I'm done talking"
Mom: "Oh, whatever" CLICK.

I'm sure I've left out some stuff, but as you can see, that was the most important and highlight of the conversation. Oh and before I went to bed, she called again, but I didn't answer. I did however get this voicemail message:

"Erica, this is mom, when you talk to the girls tell them I said Happy Thanksgiving and thanks for nothing"

My reply: "Oh, whatever!"

Needless to say Sunday we didn't do much. I cut up the leftover turkey and made some lunches for this week. I made some cookies, which sorta flopped b/c I used I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" sticks instead of real butter/margarine. We went to Lowe's to get the pull chains for our ceiling fan and Target for a few odds and ends. I tried cooking Turkey A La King, but my sauce wouldn't thicken while Eric worked outside finishing up putting up the rest of the lights. We had dinner and watch "The Terminal". It was a pretty funny movie.

What a weekend. I'm glad that's over. I hope Christmas is better on my mom's side otherwise I'll see them after the first of the year! ha ha

Happy Thanksgiving

Nothing too exciting happening with me these days, thus the lack of posts. I'm finally done with my old job and can concentrate fully on my new job come Monday. Thank goodness after the Turkey holiday. It's been a little hectic b/c I've been trying to do as much as I can to help my now old boss since she will be returning on Monday from being on medical leave the last 4 weeks. I think I did all I could. It was really a struggle this week to stay motivated knowing it was my last week, but I managed.

They informed me yesterday that come Monday they'd really start training me hard core, which is fine with me. I've been bored the last few weeks although I'm sure that will pick up, too.

On Turkey day I'm going to really get down and clean the house good. Eric will probably help some, but I will probably be a little on the anal side while cleaning. I hope to drink some Asti while I'm cleaning, too. We've decided to go to my mom's side's family thing on Friday for at least a few hours. I debated it for a while now and decided we should since we definitely won't be seeing them at Christmas this year. Saturday my dad's side and Eric's parents and sister will be at our house. I'm super excited about that. Unfortunately we forgot to put the monster turkey in the fridge to thaw, so right now its in the sink and may be there all of tomorrow, too. (I forgot last year, too until the last minute and froze my hands trying to get the inerds out!) We also bought a real turkey roasting pan today from BBB. Target had one in their add for $8 and of course they sold out so we've been checking back every day. Then yesterday we got an ad from BBB w/ a $5 coupon, so we headed there today. We found one for $19.99 minus the $5 coupon, plus a $10 rebate, so we got a nice roaster for a whopping $5.99. Woo hoo! Now I don't have to worry about my grandpa dumping turkey juices all over the cabinet and floor and his shoes with the flimpsy foil pans. Sunday my mom (and possibly new boyfriend) and my sisters are coming up for the afternoon. Mom's bringing the turkey and desserts, so that's a load off. I'm hoping to get to meet her new boyfriend I've heard so much about and they'll get to see us and our new puppy.

Speaking of the new puppy... Godiva was/is doing really well. She does really good then regresses a bit then does good again. The last few days she thinks when Eric is in the bathroom w/ the door closed that it means she should do #2 on the floor. She's been good about that with me except for 1 accident today, but I wasn't paying attention to her either so that was my fault. She still is mean and bites constantly, but is getting better. She pretty much only minds Eric right now, but I can't expect too much b/c I'm not home w/ her much. It saddens me a bit b/c even though it's "our" dog, she's sorta "my" dog and I don't really get to be with her, train her, bond w/ her, stuff like that. I guess I'll take what I can get. I wonder if that will happen when we have kids, too... That scares me a little.

Anyway, hope everyone has a safe and happy thanksgiving. I'll try to update over the weekend at some point.

And the Holiday Blahs Begin.../Weekend Update

Friday was not a good day at all. In fact I won't go into any details, but we thought Eric might lose his job. Needless to say he made 2 trips to Indy and I have about 3 more fever blisters. He still has his job for now, but he is working on a new job/career. Let's just say Eric overheard something he shouldn't have (by accident) and wasn't thinking and told some others not realizing how big of deal it was. Those "other people" supposedly got really mad and threatened to quit, but haven't so far. Eric was told that if one person quits that they will fire him. We aren't sure if he is blowing smoke up Eric's ass or if they will hold true. All the people Eric work with are sick of the shit and have been looking for quite some time, too. Who knows, we'll see what happens. Anyway, after Eric picked me up from work we ran a few errands and had dinner at Bruno's (pizza). We headed home and hooked up the TiVo Eric won as an incentive. Eric had a promo that night so I went to bed and he went to the bar.

Saturday morning the alarm went off nice and early for Breakfast club. I spent a few more hours in bed, but didn't really get totally back to sleep. When I got up I cleaned the house, made a few phone calls, and started making pumpkin rolls. The dogs were being pretty good and it was a pretty nice morning. When Eric got home I showered and my Nanny & Papaw arrived around 2:30 to help Eric put up the ceiling fan/light up in the living room (the motor blew in our other one). He started on it before they got there while I was putting the filling in the pumpkin rolls. When they arrived it wasn't too much of a chore to finish the installation. After they got done, Eric took a shower, Papaw took a nap and Nanny & I sat and chatted in the kitchen. I had been marinating some chicken, but everyone decided that we'd just go out for dinner, so that we did. The PU/IU game had finished, but we knew traffic would be bad so we headed to Battleground to TC's. We almost didn't get a table b/c they were all reserved, but they gave us one. Dinner was yummy and cheap as usual and we headed home. Nanny & Papaw left when we got back and Eric & I had a lazy evening. I wasn't feel great and ended up falling asleep on the couch until late.

Sunday morning Godiva got up before 5 and Eric decided she was too wound up to go back in her cage so he let me sleep and took her to the living room. I got up around 8 and honestly was dreading the dinner we had to go to that evening so I spent the day being lazy. This bothered Eric some, but at the same time I've been so stressed out and really am starting to get somewhat depressed so I think he understood later what my problem was. He did some laundry and worked on putting some of the lights up outside. (Thanks honey!) It was just not a good day or me at all.

And so about the first holiday dinner...
We had a dinner Sunday evening w/ my stepmom's side. This usually goes ok, but I was really dreading it this year. I guess the biggest thing was being around pregnant sister K and all her glory. Yes, she's like 10 weeks pregnant and already in maternity clothes. Let me just say that she was not a small girl before so it is not the baby that is causing the need for maternity clothes... She spent most of the evening holding her "belly", which I'm sure was just so everyone had the constant reminder that "she was pregnant". This girl needs lots of attention and cannot stand it when anyone else gets it. For the most part Eric & I sat back and didn't say much and just observed. I guess I'm just not feeling close to the family every since we moved to Lafayette. Maybe that's what moving away does or maybe not. My grandparents have always been very good to me, but we just don't see them much and I'm sure it goes both ways, but whatever. I'm also sure its a case of the holiday blahs, too. I'm starting to feel depressed and as I said before, all of my emotions are intensified 300 times or something. Anyway we pretty much just ate and left for the most part. We had a nice talk on the way home though, so I think Eric understands more. After we got home we put some of the Christmas decorations up around the inside of the house and I went to bed around 9:30-ish.

Holidays are just not the best time for me.

We have a big weekend planned (sorta). Wednesday I get off work at 12:00 noon so essentially I only have 2 more days (Mon & Tues) of my old job. That will be some stress off my shoulders that's for sure. I hope to run down to C'ville maybe Wednesday or Friday to get my roots re-done. We will probably finish putting up the lights either Wednesday or Thursday depending on the weather. Call me crazy, but I'm ready for some snow! Friday we are supposed to go to my mom's side for a dinner, but we are pretty sure we are skipping it this year. I want to go, but at the same time we can only leave the puppy for about 4 hours and with driving an hour, visiting for 2 and driving back an hour I just don't feel up to it this year. I will probably spend Thursday and Friday cleaning and getting ready for Saturday when we have my dad's side and Eric's side at our house. I'm excited about all the cooking I get to do. I love cooking for things like this, just not the everyday stuff (ha ha) We already have the turkey and potatoes. I really don't have to make any other sides as I've divied them out to the guests. Sunday my mom, possibly new boyfriend, and sisters are coming up and we are having a small dinner w/ them. Again I won't have to do much since there will only be 5-6 people total and mom is bringing the turkey. I'll probably do mashed potatoes and a couple sides.

Good thing we've taken a break from trying. My lip is all messed up from the fever blisters I've had from stress, my emotions are on a roller coaster, and I've probably got an ulcer or something.

Ugh, the holiday season begins... I wish I could be more happy about it...

Finally some sleep

We finally got a good night's sleep last night. (Me especially) My dad & Peg came over to visit last night so of course Godiva was on high while they were there. She even drew blood on Peg. Before they even left Godiva went and slept underneath the bed. She didn't even tell them goodbye! ha ha Anyway I went to bed shortly after 9 and Eric stayed up with her watching Monday night football. He said he fell asleep on the couch and she slept on the floor by him. Anyway, he came to bed sometime after midnight. We had moved her cage earlier in the evening right next to the bed and put a towel in there for her to sleep on, too. She went right to bed. She did wake up about 4-ish, but didn't wine much and laid back down and went to sleep. I feel so much better today after some good sleep!

I can definitely tell she's getting better. She isn't having as many accidents in the house for starters. We are super excited about that. She is simmering down a bit. It won't be long before she can jump up on the couch/chase! She's quite clumsy, so she hasn't figured it out yet even though I'm sure she actually can now.

I forgot to mention

that AF did arrive on Sunday. I knew she would and really it didn't bother me too much. We are definitely taking a few months off now. I mean really taking some time off, not just saying it. Holidays are always stressful for me and we have so much going on during the holidays and on top of that the new puppy. We also want to work really hard getting some of our debt down. It is so important to both of us and frustrating, too. We just feel a little out of control right now. We have been doing good the last few months and we will get better I know. It just takes time to get things paid off. Unfortunately it won't happen over night. Darn!

Weekend

The weekend was pretty good overall. Friday night Eric had a promotion and I ended up going to bed early as I had a headache (lack of sleep I'm sure). The dog woke us up at 4:45 and we tried sleeping til 6 with not much luck. Eric had to get up a 6 b/c he had breakfast club so I got up, too. Godiva was wired so I really couldn't go back to sleep. I lounged on the couch for a bit and finally got up and took a shower aroun 9. It took me longer to get ready of course b/c of the doggie. Jamie, Sherrie, & Tom were at our house shortly after 10:30 to pick me up. We left by 11 and headed to Merrillville for some major shopping. We stopped at Hooters first for lunch and then headed to the mall. We had a blast and Tom & Sherrie got a lot of christmas shopping done. We were beat by the end of the day and headed back home. Jamie stayed the night at my house. I went to bed about 10 and she and Eric stayed up and watched a show til about 11. We ended up just putting Godiva in bed with us in the wee hours of the morning and it was so-so sleeping with her. She licked Eric's head a bunch and chewed on my hair a bit. We did sleep in a bit more (8). When we got up Eric went and got us breakfast at BK and we just hung out for a bit. We left around 10:30. On our way out Matt called so Jamie was excited, too b/c I put him on speaker phone and we both got to talk to him. He was on his 36 hour pass and they stayed at a hotel the night before. He was pretty excited b/c he got to sign his ranger papers on Friday. I think its more b/c he actually feels like he has a "Place" now. Our first stop was PetSmart b/c Godiva broke her nice ceramic bowl. We also got her some puppy shampoo and some more food and a few other things. On the way to take Jamie home we had a really good talk. I'd never really had an "in-depth" conversation with her so it was very interesting. I'm not going to write much about it here, but I'd be glad to tell you what I learned in e-mail or something. Anyway, I took her home then made a quick stop at my dad & Peg's to say hi. Then headed back home. When I got home I cleaned the house, talked on the phone some, made my list of stuff for T-day since one of them is at our house this year, and then made dinner. Oh, we also gave Godiva a bath. She surprising was really good and didn't mind it at all. Of course after she got and we tried drying her off she got wired again and ran everywhere. She spent most of the evening napping on the couch then. We went to bed shortly after 9 and had another bad night w/ the pooch. Not sure what we are going to do with her yet. She just does not like being in her cage at night when we and the other dogs are right there. Godiva is really taking a toll on our sleeping right now. I hope that lets up soon.

Job Update

So I started my new job this week. So far it's going well. I seem to be moving right along and learning some new things. I took my first box of stuff from my old office today and loaded up another one this afternoon. I also have started organizing some stuff there and of course cleaning. Damn, I don't think they ever dusted over there. I spent most of this morning cleaning up and such. So far the people in the office have been great, too. I had an uneasy feeling about the other lady the first day, but she seems fine now. We showed off our pictures today since I brought mine over!

My old job isn't too stressful yet. I'm trying to get some stuff done for my boss before I leave although this afternoon I don't feel like doing much so I repotted one of my plants and obviously am updating my blog, too. ha ha ha I'm trying to have a less stressful afternoon these days, too. I have busy mornings in my new job and busy evenings with the puppy. Gotta have some "me" time in there somewhere.

This week has been a little on the stressful side with starting the new job and the new puppy. AF is supposed to arrive Saturday, too. So far I have 3 fever blisters and the normal teenage pre-AF breakouts. Really I'll just be glad when this week is over. I'm ready to start a new week.

Tips on Owning a Puppy

As I may have mentioned before, I have never owned a puppy before so I have already learned a few things about owning/raising a puppy.

1) You cannot have trees in your yard. Those falling leaves are considered toys.
2) Mulch is considered sticks for puppies
3) You must have metal everything in your house b/c they will chew on everything.
4) You must wear padded bras b/c they will bite anything!
5) Along w/ that wear ultra thick clothing.
6) "No" really means go ahead and do it anyway.
7) There is no "Just sitting on the couch watching TV" in the evenings anymore.
8) MOST IMPORTANT (at least in my house) Make sure you have a husband who has raised puppies before!

As promised

Here are some pics of our sweet little chocolate Godiva...






Doesn't that just make you melt?

Weekend in OH

Friday afternoon I got off work at noon. I had only had a mocha that morning so I was coming down off my caffeine high and STARVING. When we got home I finished packing and Eric went to grab lunch. I also took some pics of Godiva to show the girls this weekend. (I'll try to post some this week) Anyway, I left our house at 1:00 to head to OH. The drive over was pretty uneventful. It was a long 4 hours with little sleep from the night before. I spent a lot of time on the phone to keep myself awake. I got to Samara's at 4:50 and she wasn't home yet, but she arrived shortly there after. After the tour we headed to town to grab dinner (breakfast style) at Bob Evans and do some shopping for stuff for the shower. We also stopped by her husband's parents house to pick up the cake, which was absolutely adorable. Jennifer picked up Danialle at the airport and they got to Samara's just a few minutes after we did. I think we were all exhausted, but we stayed up until about midnight before retiring to bed.

Saturday morning we all slept in a little later than anticipated, but everything worked out fine. We took turns getting ready and preparing food. Guests started arriving at 12:00 and we ate shortly there after. We played a few games and had a blast. I think Jennifer got some really great gifts and everyone had a great time. After the shower and cleaning up everything, we headed to Jennifer's to see the nursery and drop all her gifts off. Then we headed to this mexican place for dinner. It was very good except as usual it didn't sit well with me, so as soon as we got to Babies R' Us I headed to the "back of the store". Then we shopped around and helped Jennifer pick out things she still needed for Grace's arrival. When we got back to Jennifer's house we got in our pajamas and started helping her put together her stroller/carseat combo. That's going to be a sweet ride for Grace! We played a game of Phase 10, which I ended up winning after being down 4 phases. Then we headed to bed.

We got up early Sunday morning as Danialle had to be at the airport by 7:30. I headed back home and made it home in just over 3 hours. (Yes, I drove fast) I even made a breakfast stop and a gas stop. When I got home Eric needed some alone time from the doggies, so I spent the afternoon running around chasing the dogs and playing with them. Godiva and I even had a nap together. Later last evening my nanny and papaw stopped by to bring me my pants she hemmed and of course to see Godiva. We spent the evening just relaxing (and chasing the puppy). I guess that isn't real relaxing, but it was still fun.

Overall it was a good weekend. I got to see my girls. Next time I see Jennifer I'll be seeing Grace, too. Yay!

O What a Night

I tried posting this on my blog, but blogger is having problems this morning, so I thought I'd just send it out in an e-mail for the time being. Little laugh to start your day.

Yesterday right before lunch, Patty from the Lab Rescue called and said she had another lady coming to get a Lab either Friday or Saturday and wanted to know if we minded if she sent the pup with her so we wouldn't have to make the long drive. Eric said sure. I was sad b/c of course he'd get to see her and play with her before I would and we were supposed to get her together. Plus my in-laws are coming over on Saturday so even they would see her before I would. I got over it though and went about my day. We decided since we weren't sure when we were getting her on Friday or Saturday we had better get her some stuff, so we headed to Pet Smart after work. We got her a cage, puppy food, 2 bowls, collar, leash and 1 toy. We also got this bitter spray in case she is a chewer. Eric tried to call Patty and find out what they were feeding her now, but she didn't answer, so we went ahead and bought Science diet, which is what our dogs eat now. So when we got home we set the cage up and did some rearranging and I packed. We then set down at 8:00 to watch Survivor.

At about 8:15 we get a call....

It's the lady who was coming to Lafayette and she had the pup. All I heard was "Sure we can get it tonight". I jumped up and put clothes on and Eric kept motioning me to sit down or something. I couldn't figure it out. Then I heard, "Okay, so about 10:30". Yikes!!! Anyone who knows me knows I go to bed between 9-10 every night. So that was it. I had to wait almost 2 hours before we could head over to pick up our new puppy.
I tried watching the rest of survivor, but of course couldn't. I called Peg (my step-mom) and talked to her for a while, then I called my Nanny.
She told me she had my pants hemmed for me and they thought they would come up last night, but decided against it. I told her that was ok, that they could just come up next week and see our new puppy anyway. They of course couldn't believe we were getting another dog, especially another big one. I talked to her for a bit then let her go. By this time it was 9:45. I put my shoes on and waited, waited, waited, waited. That was a long 20 minutes let me tell ya!

So we left shortly after 10 and headed to the house we were going to pick her up at. We got there about 10:20 and they weren't back yet, so we drove around the big block and ended up pulling in right behind them.
She was just as cute as I could have ever imagined. I really think she has part frog in her b/c she just kept hopping everywhere. It was so funny. We signed our adoption papers and paid and chatted with the people a little then headed home. Unfortunately Patty had been gone most of the day and didn't get a chance to bathe her before the other picked her up so she was a bit stinking, but that was ok. I made the mistake of letting Eric drive home and I tried to hold her the whole way home. She was all over the place. The bad thing was we had already packed up the car for the trip to Ohio, so we couldn't even let her run around. Oh, we named her Godiva. Yes, like Godiva chocolates.

FINALLY we got home and introduced her to our other dogs. Of course it's going to take a while for them to warm up to her. Our other part lab is scared to death of her and runs from her. Our Shepard, Husky, wolf mix is scared of her, too, but of course Godiva just jumps around and runs after them, so I can't blame them.

We didn't have a very good night last night of course. I tried to go to bed by midnight. We tried just putting her in her cage (she is somewhat cage broken), just knowing the other dogs were out, she was p*ssed.
Finally Eric took her out and he ended up sleeping with her in the dogs room, while the big dogs slept with me. Neither one of us slept well, Eric I'm sure less than me. I tossed and turned all night and finally got about shortly after 5 and got ready. Eric came in about 6:30 and we spent about 45 minutes just playing with the pup and dogs and stuff. So far she's good about pottying outside. She had some split second tinkle accidents last night. This morning after I was at work, Eric let the big dogs out to go #2 and he kept telling them to poop. Well, he turned around just in time to see Godiva squat and start to poop in the living room, too. She had just went about 30 minutes before, too. He will have an interesting weekend with all the dogs I'm sure.

This is going to be sorta scary for me, too b/c I've never had a pup to raise. I'll try to post pics either Sunday or early next week. She'll make you melt, that's for sure!


Editor's Note: This was supposed to be published Friday, but I couldn't get into blogger for whatever reason

New Addition to the Family

This little Chocolate Lab Sweetie is going to be ours on Sunday. Yay! Don't those eyes just make you melt? aaaawwww.....

Teenager

I felt like a teenager last night. I spent most of the evening on the phone. It was a good evening though.

First I had a voicemail to call my mom. She said it was important, but it wasn't like paniced or anything so that was good. I called her back and ended up just leaving her a voicemail. She called a little while later and told me that she got a letter from the army (I think) that told her a link to go to and she could possibly see pics of Matt and those in his company. We checked out this link, but goodness is it every hard to pick up anyone with everyone having shaved heads. They all look the same. I'm going to try to go through the pics today in and maybe with the help of Kitten (hint) we can find my brother.

After that I got a call from Peg (my stepmom/K's mom). She has been nervous about calling me all week and frankly I hadn't called her either, but she finally broke and called me. It was a good conversation. She told me that she understood I probably had some hard feelings and was hurt and all that. She even said that K was scared to tell me, too, which is probably true. I told her I was pissed at first, but felt much better after I found out that she conceived on their own, which was a miracle. I am happy for them even though it does hurt deep down. Of course she gave me all the shit about relax, stop trying, etc, etc, etc. K went to the doctor yesterday and basically they told her to go to the Women's Clinic here, which she had already planned on. It's only about a 30-45 min. drive so that's not too bad. They told her that she is very high risk and that she was definitely not out of the woods yet. She's 7 weeks and her due date is June 23. Not sure when she is going back since she's finding a doctor up here. We talked about some other stuff then and that was about it.

I then called my mom back and talked to her for a LONG time. It was a great talk! I felt so much better after I talked to her. I started telling her about Kisha, but couldn't tell her everything b/c she does not know we are even trying. I ended up telling her and threatening her NOT to tell anyone. I imagine she might tell at least my grandma, but I doubt anyone else. I told her we had been trying for quite some time now and told her since she knew now, she can stop asking us, that we will tell her when we get pregnant. We had quite a few laughs and talked about all kinds of stuff and I was so happy when I got off the phone with her. I'm a bit sad b/c my brother gets his 36 hour pass this weekend and I imagine he will try to call me. I told mom to tell him to call my cell phone but explain to him where I'm at and what I'm doing so he wouldn't get discouraged if he tried calling me.

Finally I talked to my Nanny until bedtime. We talked about the election and K's news, too. Nothing too exciting.

Side note: I thought I was going to the shower this weekend with black eyes and a broken nose. I was playing around with Kodi (our dog) and we collided noses and I heard a "pop". I thought for sure I'd broken it. Eric swears that my nose is crooked, but it already was a little b/c I was in a car accident when I was younger. Anyway, I was bawling and my nose is still sore today, but no black eyes, so that's good! Only 2 more days til J's shower!

Monthly Fertility Update

My temp hit 98.1 this morning, so I feel like that is a sign that I have ovulated this month. I plan on taking it a few more days just to be sure. The question is, however, WHEN?

Option 1 - Temperature Indication
I ovulated either Sunday or Monday

Option 2 - Fern Indication
I ovulated last week sometime. I had total ferns last Wednesday and partials Tuesday and Thursday-Monday. Last night before bed I had no ferns what-so-ever and I haven't checked today yet.

Analysis - Craziness
I ovulated sometime between last Tuesday and yesterday (Monday). So, who the hell knows?! ha ha ha This month is just totally whacked!

Comments
I'm not holding much hope out for this month. We did use PS Mon, Wed, Sat so I feel pretty good about that. We haven't got another BD in since Saturday b/c Eric has been really down in the back. I marked on my calendar to expect AF around Nov 13, which is CD 30. So we'll see.

Weekend Update

Saturday night we went to my cousin's (J&R) Halloween party. We had to leave by 9:00 b/c Eric had a promotion at one of the bars, but we did spend a few hours there and it was fun. We really didn't know anyone, so that was not as good, but most of the people our age didn't show up until about the time we got ready to leave. We headed home and I watched a little TV and Eric got ready to go out. I stayed up for a little bit after he left, but fell asleep on the couch, too, so I got up and went to bed.

Yesterday we slept in a little (Eric a lot) then lounged around the house most of the day. Eric's back was really bothering him for some reason, so we just watched the Colts lose and alternated laying on the couch. I got into a homemaker mood and started baking stuff. I made Blueberry Muffins, which we both are sorta scared to eat b/c they are low-carb and look different than the ones I normally make. I also made some M&M cookies, which are good. Then last night, of course was Halloween. We already decorated a few weeks ago, but Eric bought a fog machine this week, so he set it up in the witchs pot we already had. It looked pretty neat. We had several trick-or-treaters again this year and even got a little worried that we might run out of candy, but we didn't thank goodness. We also found out that our neighbor that we really don't like is moving back in "for the time being". Ugh.

Overall not the best weekend, but it could have been worse I guess...