Our anniversary: five years

Today is our anniversary. Five years ago today we got married. Five years ago as of now, I was looking out the window and bemoaning the rain and wondering how I was going to keep my hair dry as I got my shoes on to go have my manicure, and my husband was just waking up on a friend's sofa. How much things change, and how much my life has altered in the last five years!

We are going to be busy today, but not like you think! *grin* I think we are going to start working on fixing up our cabinets. I was at Sharon's house yesterday for a birthday lunch and a fun afternoon of stitching, and I was inspired after seeing how great she and her husband made her cabinets look, which appeared to be in about the same condition as mine pre-project, and I talked it over with P last night, so I think in a little while, after we eat, walk the dogs, and figure out what the heck is wrong with our dryer, we are going to go to Home Depot in search of hardware, pulls, Kilz and oil paint for our cabinets. Oh, yeah, and Grease Lightning to get off the layers of nastiness on our cabinets from all the years of tenant neglect. (Our house used to be a rental property.) We may even buy a paint gun. I expect that this is NOT going to be a project that we are going to finish this weekend. We are probably going to do it in stages, and see how long it takes us, but my cabinets are driving me insane, and since I spent the other day thoroughly cleaning it, it's really the closest thing to being ready to being painted. The next closest area is the bathroom, but there are some drywall repairs to be done, and we haven't quite figured out yet how we are going to retexture the patches. Probably fodder for another Home Depot trip, I'm sure.

Tonight, we will probably go out to dinner, but where, we don't know yet. I've asked to go to Maggiano's, but I don't know if P will be up for that. I'll post the details tomorrow. The GOOD thing is that I am not feeling sick! YAY! No morning sickness today.

Last night was enjoyable...ha! I finally got to see firsthand just how important this election is to the country. For the first time EVER since I was old enough to vote, I actually had to wait to cast my ballot...for TWO hours. It was crazy. They had early voting last night, and P was like, "Oh, let's just go get it over with." So I waited from 6 pm to 8 pm. And I learned a valuable lesson in line...never ever let on to anyone in public that you are pregnant, especially in a place where you can't walk away, unless you want to hear all the details of THEIR pregnancy and get all kinds of embarrassing advice, such as, "You know you won't be able to paint your toes or shave your legs when you are at the end, right?" Oh, that never occurred to me. Duh! Anyway, I did my civic duty.

No memes today. I'm going to pass. Too much on my plate today, and I better get busy! Happy Saturday to all!

The Grim Reaper lives here

More moaning and whining about how sick I feel, so if you're sick of reading about it yet, just change channels. UGH UGH UGH. I look equally as bad today as I did yesterday, and my hair is like a rat's nest. My tummy is churning up a storm. I guess next time I'm at the store I'll need to pick up some extra-moisturizing shampoo!

The Weigh it is!

What do you take to work for lunch? Usually I take turkey meatloaf and an apple when I am out in the field for lunch. More oftentimes than not, though, I will find myself stopping for a chicken sandwich at Chick Filet or a chicken wrap at Subway.
Do you eat big, or little lunches? Why? Little...smaller, more frequent meals are better for your blood sugar levels, and I don't like feeling like I need a nap after lunch!
What do you do for your whole lunch hour, to stop you from snacking or eating from boredom? Well, I usually don't take an entire lunch hour. I usually just stop long enough to eat and then get right back to work. When I DO take an entire lunch hour, it's usually so I can go out to eat with friends.

And the Friday Forum:

1) Do you believe in ghosts and/or supernatural beings? Why/why not? Have you ever seen a ghost or stayed in a haunted place? Yes, I believe in ghosts. I believe that they come back and walk amongst us as spirits after they are gone. I've never seen one or stayed in a haunted house though.
2) Do you prefer horror movies that are psychological thrillers or"slasher" films? Why/why not? What's the scariest movie that you've ever seen? I prefer psychological thrillers, just because they are more interesting and honestly, more believable than slasher movies. The scariest movie I've seen to date is Seven.
3) Have you ever used a Ouija board? What is your opinion of them? Do you believe what they say or just consider it a fun party game? I used a Ouija board with some friends at a party at my house when I was a junior in high school, and it was something else. It was just fun more than anything else. It predicted that I would go to NC State (I went to Carolina) and that one of my friends would go to the prom with the guy that I ended up going with. Just good fun.
4) Have you ever read a scary book that totally freaked you out? What book was it, and why? (Were you reading it by yourself, in the dark?) :) Two books have really creeped me out...Pet Sematary by Stephen King and Phantoms by Dean Kountz. And yes, I was reading them late at night by myself in the dark.
5) Would you ever attend a seance and try to contact someone "from beyond"? Who would you want to talk to? Do you ever feel that someone "from beyond" is trying to reach you, or do you believe in things like that? I believe in that stuff, but I don't think anyone's trying to reach me. I don't know if I would attend a seance or not. If I could talk to someone though, I'd want to talk to my grandmother, Helen, who died when I was thirteen.

That's it for today. I'm off to have lunch and a stitching afternoon with a buddy. I'll write more tomorrow.

My first lunar eclipse

Believe it or not, I've never seen a lunar eclipse before. When I heard last night on the news that this would be the last one until 2007, I made sure I didn't miss it. I tried to get a photograph, but I guess my digital camera isn't too good for astronomic pictures. There were a lot of clouds that kept interfering with the view, but it was windy, and they moved fast. I was able to get a great view of it several times. So cool. I didn't quite feel that awe that people speak of though....that awe of "gee, that's how big the Earth really is!"...but it was still very cool. I saw a solar eclipse when I was ten during a field day in school, but I barely remember it. There's supposed to be another one next spring, and I definitely will make a point to see that one too.

And by coincidence, the Red Sox won their first World Series since 1918. Talk about amazing. I love it when the underdog wins and overcomes great odds to triumph in the end. I'm not really a baseball fan (let's face it, the Rangers are awful) but I did kind of find myself starting to like the Sox and I enjoyed watching the Series.

The only thing I accomplished yesterday before getting exhausted was thoroughly cleaning our kitchen and putting away all of our supplements and vitamins and stuff that we aren't going to use. I even got out the bleach and bleached our sinks and wiped down our counters with bleach. It smells great in there now. I'm sure it won't last though. Philip and I are both slobs. We tell each other all the time how much we wish that one of us was a neat freak. If one of the spouses is a neat freak, it will rub off on the other, and if both are neat freaks, then they will drive each other crazy or live in harmony, but if both people are slobs, they are pretty much doomed. Yesterday was a great day eatingwise though. I woke up hungry, and ate great all day. The only sickness I felt was a tad of acid reflux right before bed which I think was because I drank some orange juice with my eggs and toast.

Today, I feel sick. I woke up tired (despite sleeping every minute of a full eight hours) and without the slightest bit of appetite. I look in the mirror, and I look like death warmed over. My face is pale, dry and scaly, and my hair is dull, lifeless and a shadow of its former silky self. And my breath is terrible, of course. I swear, if I didn't know I was pregnant, I'd think I had the flu or something. P took me out to lunch, and he said he's never seen me pick at my food as much as I did today. (I was eating a salad.) It just feels like it takes SO much effort to do anything, including eating. Plus, my boobs are already starting to get tender and sore. Joy. I had great plans today to clean our dining room and living room, but after lunch, P just asked me to pick up a little, and he'd do the rest tonight. I just want to get in some warm yoga pants and vegetate on the couch for the day with my stitching. The dogs are sleeping, and the house is quiet. It's a perfect time to just get comfy and stitch quietly.

Time for some memes...at least the Thursday memes are still lively! I guess I just need to find some new Wednesday memes.

3x Thursday:

1. Are you registered to vote? Why/why not? If you are registered, will you actually go vote this year? I am registered to vote because I feel that if you DON'T vote, then you have no right to complain. Even though my vote will not matter one bit (Bush is going to carry Texas no matter what), I am still going to go vote.
2. Many people feel this particular election is very important this time around. Do you know why? Do you agree with it? I agree that this election is very important, because I feel that it is going to play a big part in not only the future of this country, but world events.
3. Do you think that the citizens of this country actually have a say-so in what goes on, or do you think the government just wants us to think we do? We're going on 230 years of this particular form of running the government....does it work? Yes, I think we do have a say-so in what happens in this country, even if it takes a while to make ourselves heard. I think this form of running the government works VERY well, although I really think we need to get rid of the electoral college and go back to a popular vote.

Theater Thursday:

1) What's your favorite scary movie? There have been a lot that have been added to the list, like The Ring, but my overall favorite scary movie is Seven.
2) Are you more into the lame scary movies that make you laugh, or the straight up - scare the bejesus out of you - scary movies? The scare the bejesus out of you movies.
3) Scary movies - best viewed alone? Or with a crowd? With another person. A crowd makes me too jumpy.
BONUS) You've parked your behind on the couch for a marathon of scary movies. What 5 scary movies are on your list? Seven, Copycat, The Ring, Jaws, and The Silence of the Lambs.

Thursday Threesome:

Onesome: Roll-- On a roll lately? What have you been up to where things just keep falling into place (maybe you're a Red Sox fan)? Yeah, what's working (even if it's just the TV)? I felt like things have really fallen into place by me getting pregnant so quickly. Sure does make our life plan go much smoother!
Twosome: Top-- Top of the world? What's the highest point you've ever been? No, the airliner doesn't count, I'm talking about standing somewhere . Have you made it to the roof? ...the Eiffel Tower? Mt. McKinley? How high is high for you? The highest I've ever been was at the top of the World Trade Center when I was thirteen and on a trip to New York City with my family. Thirteen years prior to the attacks.
Threesome: Desk-- Hey, what type of setup do you have for your computer work? Are you working from a laptop while sitting on the couch? ...or maybe you have a high tech workstation/hutch combo with mood lighting and soothing music? No? How about the kitchen table? Where do you post and work from? Nothing fancy. I have one of our bedrooms converted into an office. I have a small particle board desk that my husband got for free from his boss at work. My laptop and all my office stuff is on it. We have a corner desk for our home PC. The walls of our office are painted lavender and we have a few Thomas Kincade prints on the walls, my college diploma, and some cross stitch pieces. Our curtains are white sheers. And the carpet is denim blue. That's about it.

Thursday Tattle:

Have you ever said you forgot to call someone back but you really didn't forget? Yes, mostly with work stuff though.
Have you ever driven your children to school in your pajamas? No kids yet, but I've walked my dogs in my pajamas. Does that count?
Have you ever bleached your teeth? I did for my wedding, yes.
Have you ever given someone a gift that you yourself received as a gift? I'm sure I've done this at some point, yes, but I can't remember who or what.
Have you ever brought a dish to a party and said you made it yourself but you really bought it at the store? No, never.
Have you ever been at the register and when you are given the total amount which you know is lower than it really should be...do you say anything? I hate to admit it, but yes, this has happened, and no, I don't say anything!

Have a great Thursday and thanks for reading.

The Biggest Loser

My first day of vacation was wonderful. I washed sheets and bedding, watched television, worked out, and started Christmas Elegance. So much for Emerald City! I was dying to start something new. It was great. Christmas Elegance was the first Mirabilia pattern that I acquired, years ago, and I've been waiting a long time to start it.

To answer a question I got a lot yesterday about the dental cleaning, I have heard from a few different sources and read in a few books that all dental work, even cleaning, should be avoided until after the baby is born because bacteria in the mouth that builds up under your gums can be loosened when they do the scraping and go right into your body, which can harm the baby who doesn't have a strong immune system yet. But, thanks to the articles that Kristen posted for me, I guess I'm safe then and I'll be having a cleaning done if my doctor says it's ok! I'll check with her when I go in for my appointment. I'd like to have my teeth cleaned if it's safe! This breath problem is getting bad. I bought a huge bottle of Listerine last night at the store. I hate to use that stuff, but this is horrible. I brush my teeth, and about five minutes later, the bad taste in my mouth is back again. I did a little research this morning on it just to make sure, and one of the causes of halitosis is listed as "hormonal changes", so there you go.

Not much going on here today. My big task for today is to get the house somewhat picked up and vaccuumed, and continue with the laundry saga which I am convinced is never-ending. I'd also like to go to the gym tonight. I stayed in last night and did my treadmill at home, which was nice, but I'd like to get out and do legs tonight and maybe do a little light Stairmaster. VERY light Stairmaster though...that thing can get my heart rate pumping if I'm not careful.

A new reality show that I am watching right now is The Biggest Loser. Anyone else watching it? This is the new reality show where the contestants compete Survivor-style to see who can lose the most weight. You see, of course, why it's so appealing to me, even though I don't agree with the way they are doing it. I think the way they are going about losing this weight is too drastic and too fast, and it is going to be hard on their kidneys, despite having a doctor supervise them or whatever crap NBC is spouting. Anyway, my heart is breaking for these people, because I can imagine why it is so hard for them to lose weight and how frustrating they are finding this. Last night they had their second weigh-in, and a lot of them only lost a few pounds, compared to the huge WHOOSH they had the first week. P was laughing at me...I was yelling at the screen, "It's water weight, it's water weight! Stick with it!" But I remember so well how frustrating that battle was...you lose a lot one week, work even harder the second week, and lose nothing. Ugh. It's a roller coaster. Anyway, the girl that got voted off, just like the one from last week, was voted off because she wasn't as large as the others and therefore, didn't have the potential to lose as much weight as the others, even though she was working harder than the others in my opinion. For example, there is this guy on the show, Maurice, who is the largest one on the show at 436# and who, in my opinion, isn't really trying. They keep showing shots of him eating bacon and beef brisquet at meals. He even said last night on the show something to the effect of that he wasn't following the "Eat Less" or "Eat More" diet (the two schools of thoughts for the two different teams) but that he was following the "Eat To Get Full" diet which I guess is his plan. At any rate, he didn't lose anything this past week. It was just sad to see the girl that DID get voted off, get voted off because she was just smaller than the others. Oh, well. It's still a compelling show to watch and I can't wait to see next week's episode. There are very detailed recaps of the first two shows on their website if you want to catch up...it's an easy show to watch.

Anyway, I guess that's all I have to report. Time to start day #2 of my vacation!

No memes today. A few of them are dying slow deaths!

Happy vacation!

After working thirty hours at work the last two days, I am finally on vacation. I wish that I could say that I am as prepared this time to go on holiday as I was the last time, but that's definitely not the case. I sent an email to Queenie and C with a list of about seventeen claims that need checks sent on them or something period done on them, and I don't think Queenie's going to be too happy, but it simply could not be helped this time. I wasn't working all weekend. As it was, I wasn't happy that I worked fifteen hours on Sunday. But, I'm not sick, my throat is not closed up, and that's a GOOD thing. I plan on couching, vegging, and stitching all day today, doing nothing productive except going to the gym, and then starting tomorrow, I'll start the cleanathon. I just need one day to relax. I haven't stitched in well over a week because of work and finding out that I'm pregnant, and I miss it. I started three pieces in my rotation (Noah's Submarine, the Precious Moments Noah's Ark, and my baby afghan) five years ago with the expectation that I would finish all three by the time I had a kid, that nebulous deadline, and now that deadline has been pushed up to seven months and two weeks from now.

That's right, I now have a due date! My doctor's office finally called back yesterday, and set my due date at June 21st based on the date of my last period, which I am fairly sure is correct. Back then, I didn't really pay attention to it because we weren't trying and I was certain that I'd have another cycle again before getting pregnant. But they told me not to worry...they are going to schedule my first sonagram at my first appointment (November 11) and as I have sonagrams, they'll adjust my due date. They told me that I'm going to get to hear my baby's heartbeat at my first sonagram. That gave me a warm funny feeling, that's for sure! Right now I just don't feel pregnant...I feel sick, and there's a difference. The nausea hasn't been too bad lately...it just seems to be an overall feeling of ickiness and it worsens after I eat. The worst is being so tired all the time and the halitosis...I have bad breath and a bad taste in my mouth all day long. I'm trying to remember to brush my teeth after I eat every meal to help with that, not to mention the fact that I can't have my teeth cleaned by the dentist until after I deliver. At any rate, it's weird to think of myself as six weeks pregnant, since that's what the doctor considers me to be. I still feel like I'm only a few weeks along. That whole date thing is just weird.

Not much else new is going on at the moment. That pretty much sums it up. I'm just so glad to be on vacation! I have this insurance exam to take in December, so I need to schedule that and get my books out, and I really need to get my pregnancy diet straightened out. I'm having a much harder time with the food than I thought I would. I've been SO used to eating to lose weight for so long. It's hard to adjust to the other way and eat to provide nutrients for growth. Yesterday I had cereal with skim milk and a banana, lunch was turkey meatloaf and an apple, I had a fat-free ice cream pop for a snack, and dinner was chips/salsa and a chicken salad at Chili's. I had fat-free yogurt and popcorn before bed. I drank water all day and had some herbal tea in the morning. I just don't feel like that's enough food, but it's hard for me to make myself eat more than that! I'm going to try better today though...and I need to eat some vegetables. At least I'm doing well with taking my prenatal vitamins.

I have so many memes to catch up on. It's pretty bad. Grab a snack and settle in...

First, Sunday Brunch:

1) What do your parents do for a living? My dad is a mechanical engineer, and my mom is an administrative assistant to a food broker.
2) How old were your parents when you were born? They were both 22.
3) What is the most important lesson that you learned from your parents? There are so many that I learned, but one of the most important lessons was when my dad told me that I WOULD use math later in life, even though I didn't believe him at the time. Math and Spanish are about the only skills that I use on a daily basis in my job.
4) What is the harshest discipline that you ever received from your parents? I was grounded a lot, of course, but one of the harshest punishments I ever received was when my car privileges were taken away for a few weeks the summer before I went to college and my mom threatened that they wouldn't pay for college.
5) What is the thing that you are the most grateful to your parents for? Life, of course, and sending me to college.

Second, the Stitching Blogger's QOTW!

What are you working on right now? Ha ha! You can see it at the right! Right now I have Fairy Grandmother, Once Upon a Time and Celestial Medley going, and I need to pull out Emerald City today and get it going. I haven't touched that project in 3 1/2 years, so it'll be a nice change! Almost like a new project!

Third, the Tuesday Twosome...

What is more annoying...
1. Having to look at someone who has food stuck in their teeth or spittle in the corner of their mouth? Spittle. How can you NOT know it's there?
2. People who don't wash their hands after using the restroom or don't flush the toilet after using it? Flushing the toilet. At least with the hand thing, that doesn't affect me AS much because chances are, you're not touching their hand, but if they don't flush and you're next in line, that's just gross.
3. People who take your parking space that you have been waiting for or cutting in line at the store? They are both pretty annoying, but if I had to pick one, the parking space because you are waiting so much longer. At least in a store, you have stuff to look at while you wait.
4. Getting an unimportant phone call in the middle of the night or having to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night? The phone call.
5. Staying home on the weekend because you are dateless or going out on a date with an obnoxiously annoying person? Going out with an annoying person. At least if I stay home alone, I can entertain myself.

Fourth, 3x Thursday...

1.Are you generally a paranoid person? How so/how not? Nah. Not really. Sometimes I think people are talking about me, but that's it.
2. Are you one of those people that's afraid of always loosing your job? If so, do you have just cause to think this way? Why/why not? For some reason, I am always afraid that I am going to lose my job or be fired, even though I've never even been on verbal warning ever at my job and I'm the highest ranked adjuster in my office. I can't explain why I feel that way. I guess it's part of my perfectionist attitude that never thinks I'm doing enough, as is evident from my first paragraph up there!
3. Name 3 things that you are paranoid about. Getting fat, losing my job, and that people are talking about me behind my back.
Bonus Question for Comments: What's your favorite song about paranoia? That song "I always feel like somebody's watching me".

Fifth, Theater Thursday...

1) Which fictional movie president would you most like to see sitting in the White House? That's a funny question, but if he was a real character, I'd say Harrison Ford in Air Force One.
2) Do you think the movies accurately portray the circumstances surrounding the life of the US President? Uh, NO. I think it's a MUCH harder job than anyone realizes unless they've actually been there.
3) A number of TV shows recently have featured the POTUS as a main character (The West Wing, 24). Would you accept any of them as the real US President? No way.
BONUS) What actor (or actress!) would you like to get the chance to play a US President on screen? I think Susan Sarandon would make an interesting presidential character. It'd be funny to listen to her diatribes, that's for sure.

Sixth, Thursday Threesome...

Onesome: Lights!- What do you think of the trend to light up houses for *every* holiday? It used to be just Christmas and maybe Halloween, but lately the stores have been full of Valentine's Day and St. Patrick's Day lights. Oh, and Thanksgiving/Autumn and... Honestly, I think it's NEAT! I love looking at all the lights when I drive around at night! I can't wait till I have kids so I can do goofy stuff like that! This is going to be the last year we don't put up a Christmas tree...starting next year, it'll be up every year!
Twosome: Camera!- What's your preference? Digital or film, black and white or color, portraits, candids, or just whatever catches your eye? I prefer color digitals so I can email them and post them on my blog. *smile* But I guess when I have kids, I'll start doing film pictures. *sigh* So many things will change...
Threesome: Action!- Do you have a favorite sport? Do you follow the local high school or college team, trek to the kids' games each weekend or are you all about the pros? To be honest, I could care less, but I have to admit that I have been rooting the Sox on all the way. I'd love to see them win the Series because I think they really want it!

Seventh, the Friday Forum...

1) Are you a spontaneous person, a planner, or somewhere in-between? Have you ever gone on a spur-of-the-moment road trip or vacation? When, and did you have fun? When I was in college, I left one time for the weekend after deciding about ten minutes prior to visit my boyfriend at the time because he had told me that his car broke down and he couldn't come visit. Ha. It would have been nice if that had been the truth...the truth was that he did come to visit...he just kept on driving past my school and went to the beach to see another girl. Chicken.
2) Are you a baseball fan, and do you plan to watch the World Series? Who do you think will win? Do you go to a lot of baseball games or mostly watch them on TV? What is your favorite baseball game food? I think the Sox will win, and I've been watching it when P has it on. I can't remember the last time I went to a baseball game, but it was a Rangers game a few years ago with people from work at my old job, so it has to have been at least four years. My favorite baseball game food is pizza.
3) If someone gave you $25 right now and said that you had to spend it within the hour, what would you buy and why? I'd either head to Best Buy for some new DVDs or to Walgreens for nail polish. I love both.
4) Name three things that you're looking forward to in the near future and why. Delivering my first child, going to Florida for Thanksgiving, and my five year anniversary next Saturday.
5) Do you know any foreign languages? Which ones? If you could become fluent in any language (writing and speaking it),which one would you pick and why? I speak Spanish, but I wouldn't consider myself fluent in it. I do pretty well with it though to communicate with my customers. If I could become fluent in any language, it would be Spanish because it is a skill that I use all the time with my work. If I could just find some extra time to take some classes! My company has already said they will pay for it since I'm the only bilingual adjuster in the office.

Eighth, the Friday Feast...

Appetizer Name 3 things that you are wearing today. Black capri pants, teal underwear and a gray t-shirt. (I'm still in my pjs!)
Soup Who was the last person you hugged? My husband.
Salad What do you like to order from your favorite fast food place? Steak and Shake has recently moved up to my favorite fast food place above Chick Filet. I usually order the Frisco melt (burger on sourdough bread with cheese and bacon), a small french fry and a milkshake. This is why I don't eat there often!
Main Course What time of day do you usually feel most energized? Usually in the morning after I eat and walk the dogs, but now that I'm pregnant, all bets are off.
Dessert Using the letters in your first name, write a sentence. Every rainbow is colorful always.

I think eight is quite enough! I'm going to go eat some breakfast, walk my sulky dogs, and then settle on the couch with my stitching to start the vegetation. I can slowly feel life coming back into my body. Slowly!

Have a great Tuesday!

My first play date!

Today is going to be busier than I thought!

First, I woke up at 5:45 am to take a third pregnancy test...just to be sure. It was the kind with the lines, and that second line came right up. So any doubt still in my mind is gone!

I kinda didn't want to eat breakfast...because I knew it would make me sick. So I made a few phone calls, talked to my dad and my mom again, and then made some hash browns in canola oil, egg whites, and toast. And promptly felt nauseous. Blah. Then about two hours later, I was hungry for pizza, so I ate the last two pieces from the other night. Craziness. Thank goodness for sparkling water and saltines. It seems to be the only thing keeping the barfing at bay!

This morning we got our FIRST invitation for a "play date"...C and her husband M called to invite us over for dinner. They are going to barbeque tri-tips, which is a big thing in California where they are from, and I'm going to bring a key lime pie, which is what I'm going to go out and get the stuff for in a few minutes. I say it's my first play date because this is our first outing with adults with children! They have a seven-year-old son and of course, C is due at the end of November, and we've talked about hanging out with our kids together.

Turns out it didn't rain, but there's not enough time to get our stuff organized to paint. I desperately need to get some work done tomorrow before my vacation. Maybe next weekend.

Anyway, that's all from here. Still no time to do some memes...maybe tomorrow!

A picture speaks a thousand words!

Or really, just two. I'm pregnant!

After my disappointing negative test last Friday, I had pretty much just resigned myself to the fact that I had missed the egg this time, and was waiting for my period to show up...which it did not. I had chalked it up to my cycle not being regulated yet due to being on the Pill for eleven years, etcetera, but it turns out it was the oldest reason in the book!

Yesterday morning, I woke up sick to my stomach with the worst case of diarrhea you can possibly imagine. I thought I was getting sick like I always do before I go on vacation. Then, when the queasy feelings continued, and I started getting a headache, AND I had my first ever heartburn, the light started to come on. So I called P, told him to stop on the way home and get a test. He got the top one. After Survivor, I did the test, thinking that it would just confirm what I already knew and that I was probably just getting rundown and sick.

Wrong. The little pink line showed up, but it was PALE. I went out and told P, "I think I have a positive, but I'm not sure." He comes in, looks at it, gives me this look, and says, "I think you better pick up another test when you go get the pizza." We had just ordered out.

So I did that...and got the bottom test, which as you can see is a little more fancy schmancy. For the low low price of $17.99, you get the thing to tell you either "pregnant" or "not pregnant". There's no trying to decipher the lines.

Let me ALSO mention that by the time I had gotten back from getting the pizza and second pregnancy test, the line on the first test was as dark as you see it up there which just further freaked us out.

So I eat my pizza, and wait to build up some more urine, and then we decided to do the test after I peed in a cup to make SURE we were doing the test right instead of peeing on the stick. The directions say that a positive result usually shows up in about one minute. I was timing it...the word "pregnant" popped up in about twenty seconds.

P's reaction: Dead silence
My reaction: "Now I'm really going to throw up."

I was in shock all night last night, and didn't really know what to say, hence that cryptic blog message. Plus, I really wanted to make sure that our parents knew before I posted the news on the internet. This morning I called both of my parents who live out of state, and tonight we went to see my inlaws and tell them in person. My parents were both SO excited...this is their first grandchild, so it's a special time for them both. Both my FIL and my MIL cried, they were so happy. Seeing the look on my mother in law's face just made my DAY today, I swear.

I have not been able to have my doctor confirm it yet. I called her this morning and left a message but never heard back (not a great sign), but if today was any indicator, I don't think there is any question. Everyone has told me that those tests are pretty darn accurate, and I was nauseous all day. After eating dinner tonight, I fell asleep at my inlaws after visiting with them for about thirty minutes. I'm feeling okay now after drinking some herbal tea and eating a pickle.

So that's my happy news! I am so excited. I haven't quite formulated all my thoughts just yet, but I had an extremely tough time working today, that's how distracted and excited I was. And being the bigmouth that I am, I couldn't keep it a secret. I told just about all my friends that I could reach by phone and a small handful of folks at work.

Right now, I don't care if I have a boy or a girl, as long as the baby is healthy. P is SO excited and keeps researching names and other things on the internet. This is going to be an exciting time for us both, no doubt about it! Our lives will never again be the same!

I'm a firm believer that a big factor in why this happened so quickly is the time and effort that I have spent the last two years de-obesing and improving my cholesterol and blood pressure levels. I think my body just said, "Hey, she's ready! Let's DO IT!"

And of course, the first thing my mom wanted to know was if I was doing bright tropical fish colors or soft pastel shell colors, and if I was doing white wood or dark wood. This was literally about fourteen hours after I found out that I was pregnant.

Mothers! And I'm going to be one! That in itself is terrifying! But I'm SO excited! What an adventure this will be! I am READY for the next step.

I'll write more tomorrow, and do some memes, but right now I just want to savor this moment! And check out my new blinkie at the top! Cool, huh??? I've had that one saved for a few weeks for when I actually got my first positive test, but had NO idea I would be posting it in my blog so soon!

Thanks in advance for all the congratulations and well-wishes I will get from you all...I know a lot of you have been following my blog and my fertility journal with interest, and I appreciate all your support! This journal should start to get VERY interesting!!!!

TGIF!

Sheesh. Is it Friday already? WHERE did this week go?

As seems to be the norm for me the week before vacation, I have been putting in some super-duper long hours trying to get stuff done, but I'm being careful this time not to overdo it so I don't put myself in the doctor's office again with a closed throat. I'm getting lots of sleep, drinking lots of fluids, and reminding myself on an hourly basis that it's not crucial that I have every last thing done before I leave, because it just ain't going to happen!

This week has been pretty devoid of stitching, unfortunately, and I haven't made it back to the gym either since Monday because I'm doing so much working. I am looking forward to next week when I can get to the gym. That'll be nice.

I don't have too much to share at the moment. Just moving right along. I'll post more this weekend.

There are tons of memes to respond to, but I quite simply don't have the time today. I have a lunch date at 11:30 with my friend S, and I need to be as productive as is humanly possible in the next four hours. But tomorrow I will sit down and write a nice LONG entry, I promise!

Happy Friday to all!

The wonder that is Chlorox

P and I have discovered that we have something else in common.

We are addicted to the smell of chlorine bleach.

And now that I have discovered this, we are using it to clean everything...we're using it to wash our towels and bedding, to clean our bathrooms, and yesterday I used it to clean my kitchen floors. Yowsa. I don't think my floors have ever shone like that, not even when we put them in!

And the smell. Aaaaaah. I love it! So clean! So fresh!

Ok, done now.

I don't really have a whole lot to report today...other than we watched the movie Supersize Me last night. OY! I will NEVER set foot in another McDonald's after watching that movie. As it stands, I haven't been in one in almost two years other than to use the loo or that one morning when my throat closed to get an ice cream cone. Disgusting. Never, ever again. And to think that I used to eat there often. And Super Size my meal often. BLAH. One of the many reasons why I became obese...and one of the reasons why I am heading to the gym in a bit!

No interesting memes today...darn! So I guess this is where I leave you all...good night and I'm off to pump that iron!

The coup d'etat of the 400 count sheets!

Can you believe it? We went to Linens and Things yesterday for this sale and we bought not one, but TWO sets of sheets at P's suggestion....one was 400 count sheets and one was 250 count. P won't admit it, but I know he likes the higher count sheets or else we wouldn't have bought them both. At any rate, that was a good chunk of our "home improvement" budget for this month...we're going to see how things go, but I'd like to replace all six of our pillows if we can and Linens and Things has them on sale for about $10 each. Ours are old, grungy and just nasty. We were also eyeing a quilt set on sale yesterday for $29.99 but we're going to look at what Bed Bath and Beyond has first. I washed them both last night and the lesson I learned is not to wash two sets of king sheets in the same load or you'll be drying sheets at 4:30 in the morning. They just get all twisted up and mangled and won't dry! We were going to give away all our old 200 ct sheets that came with beds in bags, but I just can't part with them, so P suggested that we just put them in another closet and save them for the pull out sofa when people come to visit. If I had a bigger linen closet, this would not be an issue. *sigh* Item number 58 for my dream house list...a walk-in linen closet. Anyway, I went through all the rest of our bedding and seperated out our pillowcases to go with our comforters and dust ruffles, and much to my surprise we pretty much have a full set of each one...it's just the fitted sheet that is missing thanks to Katie.

Today is going to be a busy day filled with laundry and cleaning. We worked on our budget last night for a while and set up a spreadsheet to track our expenditures over the month. We also went grocery shopping at Kroger (first major trip in a long time) and got all kinds of stuff so we eat at home. I even bought deli meat for sandwiches...I think that's the first time that's happened in about a year. I couldn't even remember what I used to buy! I finally just got smoked turkey and oven-roasted chicken. We also went to Cheddar's for a quick bite prior to shopping...we were starving. And we're going to TRY to make it our last dinner out until our anniversary on October 30. There will be lunches out, yes, but the main thing is that we have to get back in the habit of eating at home. We did so well for such a long time, and lately the last few months we're starting to order out a lot more. Granted, we're making healthier choices, but it's expensive! Now we get grilled chicken salads from Chili's to go rather than a super-sized #3 from McDonald's! It costs to eat healthy, as we all know! That's why no one does it and the impoverished sometimes are the most obese of all.

I guess you all can see the changes I made to my blog. I have Miranda on my laptop since it's a multi-purpose chat client, doesn't require to be downloaded and I can have multiple chat clients on it. I've had AOL and Yahoo on it for a while...but yesterday a pal of mine asked if I would add MSN Messenger to it since that's the only one she can have at work. And look what it started...I decided that I wanted to display my screen names on my blog, which meant that I had to change my AOL name since it has my full name on it. For security reasons, I'd rather that not be the case. So anyway, I played with the art yesterday and came up with those graphics by resizing, cropping, etcetera, and I was quite proud of what I did! I also added a mailing list for my blog. Please feel free to join it and I'll send out a notification whenever I post a new entry. It may be more convenient for some of you to join it rather than to continue checking every day. I am still LOVING my blog, don't get me wrong, and I hate it that I didn't get to post that much this week, but unfortunately with fire season approaching and C going on maternity leave, it may happen again. Anyway, just post your email address in there, and when I update my blog, I'll send out a quick notification with my blog address so you know it's been updated. I'm trying to set up one for my cross stitch site too, but I can't figure out how to add html code to it.

My husband looked at my blog yesterday for the first time in a while and said that he had no idea what I was complaining about regarding time since my blog looks so complex and involved! I reminded him that I set most of it up in July...but since then it just takes minor changes and maintenance to keep it going! I love having it...I just wonder what would ever happen if Blogger went down? Would I lose all my journal entries? Makes me wonder. At some point, I'll probably explore moving it over to Verizon, but that's a long way off, especially while I can't figure out how to add html code to it. Grr.

Anyway. My day today is going to be very quiet and uneventful. Mostly cleaning and getting laundry done, but I'd like to stitch this afternoon and evening.

First, Sunday Brunch...and let me just say how much I am enjoying doing this meme. It is fun and doesn't take that much time every week!

1) What size is your bed? It's a king.
2) Do you prefer fabric sofas or leather sofas? What do you have? I prefer leather, but I have fabric. I just think that fabric holds odors too easily.
3) What wood stain color is your favorite? (Pine, walnut, cherry, etc.) I love the colored stains...like blue and green. I just think that looks SHARP! But out of the traditional ones, I like cherry.
4) What piece of furniture is at the top of your wish list right now? P and I really want a real bed....not a metal frame that holds the mattress and box spring off the ground. I want a king-sized hardwood bed like a sleigh bed with an attached headboard...and not one just leaning against the wall. Ah, well. It's nice to want things.
5) Do you have a piece of furniture in your home that doesn’t seem to fit but that you can’t bear to part with? We have a hardwood breakfast nook table with leaves that collapse that I bought in college and refinished myself. I can't bear to part with it because I put so much time into it, but it just does NOT fit anywhere in our house. I think right now it's in the garage.

And the Weekly Bit! (Thanks, Naida!)

1. What is the first hour of your day like? What do you do when you wake up? Right now, the first thing I do when I wake up is to take my basal body temperature for fertility purposes...and right now my temps are all over the map which is quite frustrating. Then I get up, make a cup of tea (today it was English Breakfast) and come right in my office to start checking email before I eat breakfast...and usually my phones start ringing, and things start getting crazy, and I'm distracted and don't eat breakfast or walk the dogs for a little while. But that's my first hour.
2. What do you do during the course of the day? Are you always busy? Or are you able to take time out and 'smell the flowers' so to speak? My days are SO busy that I feel like I'm going to sleep five minutes after I woke up. I do make it a point to try to schedule lunch dates with my friends once or twice a week because it is the only time out of the week that I will stop and smell the flowers and relax.
3. What is your evening like? Do you go to bed early? Late? How do you relax? Usually I relax and wind down by stitching and reading. I try to work out at night when I can. I am a total night owl though...I didn't go to sleep last night until 2:30.
Now some word association...I say.... you think... Since I already read these and wanted to paste them in my blog first, I'm going to let my hub answer these!
apple: core
blue: green
pie: apple
rug: shag
fall: leaves
boy: girl
mean: Erica
open: closed
hamper: clothes

And Weekend Wonderings!

1. Are you one of those people who gets things done quickly, or do you put them off until the last minute? Depends. If it's something I want to do, I do it fast, but if I know it's going to be a huge hassle or I just don't wanna, I procrastinate.
2. Would you say you’re reliable and that people can count on you? Yes. If I say I'm going to do it, I do it.
3. When you’re going to meet someone, are you usually right on time, early, or a few minutes late? Haven't we covered this? I'm always late. My friend S usually adjusts 15 minutes past when I say I'm going to be somewhere. I'm really trying to change this habit though because I hate it...I hate it when I have to wait for people!

Okay, I'm off like a dirty shirt...so to speak! I have tons of them in the other room!

Memories of Me/Erica/Moira

I'm shamelessly copying this from Dana's blog. It sure is neat to read all the memories that people have of her! Please participate...I'd love to read what you have to say, whether you have met me in real life or not, no matter how small the memory is...and I'll respond to ALL comments in the comments section.

Post a memory you have of me. Any memory at all. Then post this in your own blog if you want to see what others remember about you.

And this is me.



Thanks for playing.

What a week!

Thanks, everyone, who missed me, and thanks to everyone who sent me those nice cards! What a nice gesture and it sure did make me feel great! I really appreciate it.

I can't believe I'm awake and writing in my blog at three am, but I just crashed on the bed around 10:30 tonight and slept there for a few hours and now I'm wide awake for some reason. Go figure. I guess even the Energizer bunny runs out of power eventually!

What a week! That about sums up the last four days since I posted last. Since Monday night, C and I (who have been working as a team!) have received THREE fire assignments. That's a lot of field time! Tuesday we were in south Dallas, Thursday it was Saginaw and today Fort Worth. We didn't get home before 6:30 pm any of the nights. Today by far was the stinkiest one. I threw my clothes into my hamper and when I got home, I had to remove them and toss them into the utility room...they smelled so bad. Three field days on fires is a LOT. My throat feels so raw right now...not only from breathing in the smoke, but also from talking. A lot!

Anyway, I took the first two and C took the one from today...and she did GREAT. She has now ridden with me on four fires, and I've ridden with her on two...and I guess she really did pay attention to what I said and did because I was SO proud of her today. I only had to step in and help her a few times. I haven't trained a new adjuster (even though she's not really new) in probably a year and a half, and she definitely made me proud. The people today really warmed up to her (her being pregnant was a great icebreaker) and she put them right at ease, answered all their questions, made sure they knew it was her first fire, and really just got them taken care of. It was just such a feat to watch her, considering that she wasn't even an adjuster a year ago! I KNEW I made the right recommendation when I recommended to Queenie that she ask her to join the intermediate team.

One thing that we are thinking about doing though is working as a team going forward. I have never met an adjuster who I work so well with and who doesn't drive me crazy after a few hours. Usually when I ride with another adjuster for a week or so, I'm ready for some solitude after a while, but that's not the case with C at all. It's amazing when you find someone that you really genuinely like and get along with, and we have so many of the same philosophies towards customer service and assisting people...plus she really gets me and I like that. And the best thing is that the time it took to do these fires was really cut down this week because we were working as a team and that was fantastic, which is why we are thinking about working as a team going forward, especially for the big ones that have both building and contents involved. She's really excited about doing that, so am I, and we only live about 30 minutes away from each other, which in the Dallas area is nothing. Queenie wasn't opposed to the idea either when I brought it up to her. She said that if there was a way that we could convince her that it would work and that we wouldn't both be out in the field too much, she would definitely consider it. But C still needs to be able to do fires on her own...I'll be on vacation starting October 26 and then again the week of Thanksgiving...and of course, I'll be flying solo for twelve weeks after she has her baby. But it would be SO COOL to work as a team after she gets back from having her baby. We're going to think about it for a while.

My mother-in-law is improving slightly. She's been getting her nutrition through a tube, and apparently when this whole thing started she had really bad acid reflux which is the reason why she's having problems eating. But she's home, she's stabilized for now, and is feeling and looking stronger since she's getting some nourishment. The chemo is hard for her, but she's being a trooper and being brave.

Sadly, I am not pregnant. I know....WAAH! It's not like I really expected it to happen on the first cycle...okay, maybe I did! I don't know...I've spent so many years being SO careful about not getting pregnant, I guess I thought the second I stopped, it'd happen. I've been charting my temperatures all week, and they are remaining low. I'm now on my 35th day of my cycle and no sign of Aunt Flo just yet, other than some acne, some cramps and overall general PMS. I'm sure she's on the way. Tonight (since I'm so far along in my cycle) I stopped on the way home and picked up an on-sale $7 pregnancy test, and sure enough, it was a big fat negative. *sigh* Anyway, I'm kind of looking forward to getting my period (wow, did I really just type that?) since it'll be a sign of my cycle starting all over again! I'm trying really hard not to think about it so much and just relax. I finished Taking Charge of Your Fertility and now I'm working on the other one, What to Expect When You're Expecting, and so far they are both informative and entertaining. And this week? I want a boy! Ask me again next week...I'm sure I'll want a girl.

My stitching has been pretty nonexistent this week...I've just been so tired and working a lot when I came home. But I did manage to get Fairy Grandmother started, and I think I'm going to enjoy that one a lot. The colors are gorgeous. P and I don't have much planned this weekend other than cleaning and hanging out, so I should be able to get some work done on my projects and get at least one picture posted. Sleeping Beauty's definitely the closest to hitting the ten hour mark. I think I've inspired C to maybe take up cross stitch. She has done it before, but when I suggested to her that maybe she do a baby sampler for her nursery, she was really excited about that. She has her nursery decorated in light blue and green. This weekend her mom is here visiting from California, but I told her that maybe next weekend or the weekend when I'm on vacation, she should come over and look at my cross stitch books and then we could go shopping for stuff so she could start a project. I have TONS and tons of baby pattern books...I bet I could find something that she really likes. Her nursery is SO cute!

Working out has ALSO been nonexistent this week but with as much running around as I've been doing, I haven't been stressing about it too much, but I do need to get back on the wagon and pronto. P of course tells me I'm nuts and that I look FINE, and my clothes aren't tight at all, but I can feel my tummy very soft. But what's weird is that it doesn't feel hard and tight like fat...it feels extremely jiggly and loose, almost like I've just got a layer of water under the skin. Odd.

Okay, I have LOTS of memes to catch up on from the last four days! I'm just going to hit the ones that appeal to me the most at this hour...

Chick Chat

1. What's the Best Thing about Fall? The smells. Burning leaves is something that I associate so clearly with fall, I can't even explain it. Unfortunately, it's not something that Texans do, but I remember it well from living in North Carolina. Clear crisp air magnifies smells well.
2. Pumpkin Pie or Apple Pie? Apple.
3. Do you pull out the flannel nightgown when it gets chilly? Uh, I don't even own a nightgown period, much less a flannel one. Sweats are my preferred chilly weather clothes.
4. Hot Chocolate or Mulled Cider? Hot chocolate, although cider isn't bad.
5. Sex: with socks on /or/ off? On if my feet are cold!

3X Thursday

1.When's the last time you went on vacation? Where'd you go? We went to Lake Palestine in mid-August with my dogs.
2. What's your favorite mode of transportation to get to/from/go on vacation? Plane? Train? Boat? I honestly prefer to drive when I go on vacation. A long drive is the best way to clear my head and really unwind before I start my vacation. By the time I get to my destination, I'm ready to have some fun.
3. How important are vacations for the human spirit? Do you think it's healthy for someone to go 20 years without a vacation? Why/why not? I think they are essential. Everyone needs a break eventually, and twenty years without one is a recipe for a heart attack!

Theater Thursday

1) Do you go to the movies alone or with friends/family? Do you know exactly what movie you're going to see before you get there, or do you stand for 30 minutes outside the box office trying to decide between Pauly Shore and Meryl Streep? I don't go to the theater very often anymore. P and I usually average one movie a year. If I go, sometimes I'll go with a friend. But when I do go, we know exactly what movie we're going to see. They are too expensive to just pick one!
2) When you go to the movies, do you usually buy:
a) Popcorn? What do you put on it? Yes. Extra butter and lots of salt.
b) Cokes? What's your favorite? Cherry Coke, but I try to be good now and stick to diet.
c) Candy? What gets stuck most in your teeth? We always get Reese's Pieces at the movies. P loves them.
d) Other (hot dog, nachos, sushi)? I don't think we've ever gotten anything besides popcorn and candy...maybe pizza once.
3) Do you like it load and raucous in the theatre, or do you immediately stuff crying babies in the nearest waste can? Do you talk back to the screen and interact with the movie, or do you sink way down in your seat and just experience it? We usually just watch in silence.
BONUS) What's your favorite, most memorable movie-going experience? What experience almost (or maybe did) make you vow never to darken the door of a cineplex again? As cheesy as this is, the first time I saw Titanic was very moving. I really cried in the theater (along with everyone else except P) and liked it enough to go back and see it two more times before I bought it on VHS and then just recently, DVD. The worst movie I have EVER seen in the theater is The Accidental Tourist when I was in eighth grade. By far, that is the most awful movie I've ever seen. I don't care who won what awards for it, it was more boring than watching paint dry. Talk about an awful two hours. If I had had my license and could have left, I would have.

Thursday Threesome

Onesome: Kitchen- What's your favorite room in your place? Do you migrate towards the kitchen, or prefer to cozy up in the living room? I really like hanging out in my bedroom. I have it painted a dark turquoise blue color (kind of juniper) and it's just a very calm, relaxing place. My bed is very soft and I love to snuggle with my dogs on it.
Twosome: Gadget- What's your favorite gadget type item and why? I absolutely LOVE my Kitchen Aid mixer. I don't know how long I lived without it. And LOOK, they make it in pink now! If only I had a spare $250 lying around!
Threesome: Store- What's your favorite store, even if you never actually buy anything there? Are we talking kitchen gadgets or otherwise? My favorite store is Target. I LOVE Target. You can get everything there. If we are talking kitchen gadgets, I love Bed Bath and Beyond. I can always find some fun thing for the kitchen that I need there!

Thursday Tattle

Do you like to talk on the phone? Not really since I have to do so much of it for business.
Do you talk for a long time or like to get off quickly? I like to get off quickly unless I'm in the car and then I'll talk forever.
Who uses the phone the most in your family? I'd have to say I probably log more phone time than P since my job is so complex, but for personal, P gets way more personal calls than I do for sure!
Do you have to look up people's numbers or do you know most of them by heart? They are all plugged into my phone.
Are you good about returning someone's phone call? Yes...unless it's the kind of call where the person's like, "Well, I just called to chat, no rush..." and then I drag my feet.

Friday Forum

1) Do you consider yourself a physically fit person? Why/why not? Even though I have been off the working out wagon for a few weeks, yes, I do consider myself to be physically fit.
2) What are your favorite types of exercise? Do you have any favorite sports that you enjoy participating in, and how often do you work out? I really enjoy weight lifting and exercising on the Stairmaster and the treadmill, and in a good week, I try to get to the gym 4 times a week minimum. As for favorite sports, I love swimming and downhill skiing.
3) Do you follow any special eating plans, diets, nutritional philosophies, weight-loss goals, etc.? Why or why not? How long have you been doing so, and have you had success with them? Well, as most people know, I lost about 70 pounds between December 2002 and May 2004 doing Body For Life. I had excellent luck with it and I feel like the eating habits that I learned from BFL really have stuck with me, even though I've relaxed a lot over the last few months. The one thing I don't believe in (and don't bother to try changing my mind) is the low-carb craze...I don't think it's healthy for anyone to train their body to stop relying on carbohydrates for energy. I think it's a recipe for rebound. That's my opinion. Your brain can't function on low-carb. Your muscles can't grow and develop on low-carb. The main reason why I've been able to maintain my weight for the last few months (even though I'm getting a little soft) is because of my muscle mass.
4) What would you most like to change about your physical appearance? Which features of your body do you like the most? I really like my arms a lot, although they are losing some definition with the less than clean eating. If I could change anything about my appearance, I wish my thighs were a little slimmer and not as bulky (I have huge quads) and that my stomach area was flatter. You can never lose fat cells...you can only shrink their size.
5) Do you feel that it's important to encourage children to become involved in sports? Why/why not? Did you participate in athletics when you were growing up? It's very important, and it's a lesson I will passing on to my children for sure. I was very athletic as a kid...I participated in competitive swimming when I was younger before high school, took diving lessons, synchronized swimming lessons, played softball with Little League, volleyball in junior high, and then played softball, volleyball and swam in high school. My last year of high school I was captain of the swim team.

Friday Feast

Appetizer What is your favorite beverage? Iced tea.
Soup Name 3 things that are on your computer desk at home or work. I think I've covered my desk at home in prior memes, so I'll go with my desk at work even though I'm only there on average once a week. I have a book called Office Sutra which is daily sayings that contribute to office peace and destressing. (It's not what you are thinking, so get your mind out of the gutter.) It was sent to me by a housing service vendor in California that I use on a regular basis. I also have a Buzz Lightyear toy that I rescued from a roof earlier this summer. And I have a UNC mug for herbal tea.
Salad On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being highest), how honest do you think you are? 9. I can't lie. I'm really bad at it. But I can tell little white lies about being stuck in traffic to make me late, when in fact it's because I woke up late. And I've used that migraine excuse a few times to call in sick at work when I'm just sick of work, plain and simple. But I can't lie about anything major.
Main Course If you could change the name of one city in the world, what would you rename it and why? I don't know what I'd name it, but Moscow always makes me think of a garbage scow, like the one in Overboard that Goldie Hawn hits her head on and loses her memory. I would rename that city to something else, but I don't know what.
Dessert What stresses you out? What calms you down? High pressure at work is the biggest stressor. I can't stand to have things undone. A hot shower, a nap, or just a few hours of cross-stitching is excellent for chilling me out.

The Weigh It Is!

Do you belong to a gym, or do you exercise at home/outdoors? Both, but more often at the gym.
Why do you do what you do? Is it the money, the convenience or something else? I truly believe that weight lifting is the best form of exercise there is.
What would your ideal exercise routine consist of, if time and money were not an option? Swimming and horseback riding.

And last, a Daily Dirt from this week...

1. What's your name spelt backwards? Acire. Sounds like something out of the Mummy movies!
2. Where you named after anyone? If so, who? My mom was an avid All My Children watcher when she was pregnant with me, and at the time she was pregnant, Susan Lucci's character, Erica, was married to a cast member on the show that had the same last name as my maiden name, and she just thought it was a good combination. So here I am. If you remember Erica's last name in 1975, that'll answer your question about what my maiden name is!
3. If you have twins, will you call them matching names like Bill and Bob? Absolutely NOT. I remember this lady in our neighborhood that had twins when I was in high school and she named her kids Tyler and Taylor. I remember how I thought that would be so annoying.
4. What do you plan on calling your kids? Unfortunately, my nieces and nephews have already taken a LOT of my favorite names. That's what you get when you wait to have kids! My nieces and nephews are Zachary, Danny Ray, Valerie, Natalie, Isabella, Julia, Victoria and Alexandra. The names that I really like right now for children are Ian or Diego for a boy and Emily or Lily for a girl.
5. What's the most weird name you've ever come across? Oh, no, I'm not answering that one! With my luck, I'll name a name that someone has a child named with!

I guess that'll just about bring me up to date. Thanks to everyone for checking in with me this week and I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!

Goodbye, Superman

The first thing I read this morning on the news was that Christopher Reeve had passed away. A sad day, indeed.

I don't have much to share today...it was a pretty long day and I'm getting ready to go work out in a few minutes!

Monday Madness

Name 3 things....
1....your ideal salad has on it. Almonds, some version of honey dressing, and pineapple.
2....you do religiously in the morning. Check email, walk my dogs, and shower.
3....you look forward to doing in your spare time. Stitch, surfing the internet, and shopping.
4....you've never done before, but think you will at some point in your life. Sky dive, go to Europe, and swim with dolphins.
5....you love to do while on vacation. Sleep, stitch, and eat out.
6....you took pictures of in the last month. Fire scenes, roofs, and my stitching.
7....you have to do before the end of the day. Work out, start laundry and make meatloaf for tomorrow.
8....you like about your best friend. Her outspokenness, that she's interesting, and that she's fun.

Stitching Blogger's QOTW...

You've just been given a $100 gift certificate to buy anything cross stitch or needlework related - what would you spend it on right now? The rest of the floss that I need for my projects, Celtic Summer, Celtic Autumn, and some of the Mirabilias that I don't have like the new mermaids and fairies.

I hope everyone had a great start to the week!