Taylor and Andrea

She did it!

2011-08-24T13:33:00.000-07:00

E just rolled over from back to front all by herself for the first time while I was chatting with daddy online. I barely caught it out of the corner of my eye as she got all the way over and got her arm out from under her. What a big girl!!! She is 7 months and a few days. I'm so proud! :-D

The count down begins...

2011-08-22T15:10:00.001-07:00

I start work in exactly a week. Don't freak out. don't freak out. don't freak out. I am really excited to start this job and think that I will love it. But I love staying home with Emmie more.... Sigh.... Oh well. You gotta do what you gotta do.

In other news: Emmie is 7 MONTHS OLD! How did this happen? I swear she gets cuter every day. And I'm not just saying that, I have proof: 7 month photo shoot. She's a growing girl for sure. At 12 months I'll post a collage of her 1-12 months pictures so you can see how much she changes.

She was just over 6 months old here and had started sitting up on her own for more than a few seconds. Now the only time she tips over is if she's trying to reach something out of her grasp and even then she'll catch herself before the topples most of the time.

I found this adorable skirt at Target for $6 and just couldn't pass it up. It's not quite a tu-tu but it's close :) Every girl needs one.

She is still small for her age but growing at a steady rate none-the-less. She is in the 16th and 18th % for height and weight. My little peanut :)

Here is a picture from my Grandma Jessie's funeral last Monday. This is me and my 5 older siblings and my mom. This picture just brings so much love to my heart.

Geez, update time

2011-08-11T17:24:00.000-07:00

Man, you would think I have so much time on my hands being home with E.... NOT the case. I bow to stay at home moms. There is ALWAYS cleaning, laundry, dishes, errands to do on top of wrangling the little wee ones.

Update: I do NOT have Celiac! yippeee! It was likely my ulcer and gluten was agitating it more than usual. This has happened in the past but did not make me as sick.

Emmie is now on Solid food and loving it. I am NOT, however, loving her new massive amounts of poop. Sigh....

Also, she is sitting up and playing much more independently! Can you say productive mommy in these times?!? This is such a great feeling! I have even started working out on the treadmill again right after her first feeding in the mornings. Starting out small and slow but it still feels good :)

My Grandma Jessie died this past week and I will be attending her funeral on Monday. She was 97 1/2 and sharp as a tack till her final hours. She is probably so glad to not have her ailing body holding her back anymore. She remembered each and every-one of her grand childrens names and birth dates including great grand babies. What an amazing woman.

My sister-in-law, Jen, is getting married tomorrow. I'll post pics when we get them :)

Also, I GOT THE JOB! I start on August 29th as a Guest Services Insurance Specialist (GSS) for DaVita Dialysis. I am soooo scared about leaving Emmie and going back to work, but....excited for such a great opportunity. Yikes.... Too many emotions.

Update on Celiac

2011-06-18T16:17:00.000-07:00

So I have a date for the Endoscopy to determine if I have Celiac or not. Oddly enough, I have been almost symptom free since the day we set it up.....WTH?!

Here's part of why (I think): The medication they had me on for my "ulcer" was possibly what was causing all of the GI issues except for the actual stomach aches. I believe this because I stopped taking it when I scheduled the endoscopy because why take an Ulcer medication for Celiac? So Dr. said it was ok to stop if I felt it wasn't helping.

Well not only was it not helping but it seems it was magnifying!! On another strange note, they told me to stop the gluten free diet and eat normal until the test so that it didn't come back inconclusive... Ugh....right? WRONG. I have had two very minor stomach aches since I started eating normal again... Am I taking crazy pills? Gluten was making me so sick at one point!!! So my theory is that I DID indeed have a flare up of my ulcer and foods that had gluten in them were exacerbating the pain. (I have been told that in the past by a doctor. Gluten agitates ulcers so to get them to heal naturally you go on a GF and reduced dairy diet. I have done this in the past and healed the ulcer heal without meds. The symptoms were a bit different this time though.)

So, my hope is that I developed a short term gluten intolerance because of my ulcer but by cutting Gluten out of my diet for the time I did, I had given the ulcer time to heal itself. I don't think it's healed all the way but I am going to have the endoscopy anyway to rule out Celiac for good since this isn't the first time I've had problems with gluten (and I've met my Out of Pocket Max for the year thanks to miss E). Wish me luck. Eating GF SUCKS.

Test Results

2011-06-13T22:17:00.000-07:00

So some of you know I have really been struggling with some pretty severe stomach aches and intestinal issues in the last month. At first I thought it was my ulcer back to haunt me but then it went from just stomach pain to stomach pain closely followed by the GI issues sometimes with every meal of the day. Well, through some elimination diet test runs, I figured out it was gluten that was causing the problem. So I emailed my Dr. and he had me get a blood test for Celiac Disease....

The test results came back and I got an email that they were in and so I went to KP.org to see the outcome. One of the results (IgA) was high or out of range and the other (IgG) was normal. Since it was after business hours, I haven't heard from the Dr. yet as to what that means... but I Googled the test name to read up on it more to try to prepare myself a little, and it seems as though a high IgA is indicative of Celiac.... Wow.... this is going to SUCK. We'll see what the doc says if it's official or not. :( (SUPER SAD FACE) This plus what's going on with my lady bits, I am really done feeling like crap all the time.

To understand what Celiac Disease is, read HERE.

Summer summer summer tiiime

2011-06-09T12:53:00.000-07:00

I LOVE this weather. if it could be 75 every day of summer I would be a happy camper. But alas, it will get hotter... And lack of air conditioning = miserable mommy and baby. At least she can run around in just a diaper. That might be awkward if I did ;)

Here are some pics of swimming with the other playgroup buddies yesterday :)

In other news Emmie the cutest girl ever. Even though some days I am over how clingy she can be, my heart melted when I got home from my RS meeting last night and she lit up when she saw me. She wasn't feeling well and had been quite fussy for daddy. As soon as she got in my arms she nuzzled me and just snuggled. Sigh.... It was the BEST. I do love that girl.

Little Peanut

2011-06-07T09:05:00.001-07:00

Haven't updated in a while I know... Instead of trying to catch up I'll just start from today. We had E's 4 month appointment yesterday and she's still a wee one. 24th percentile for weight and 26th for height. Oh how I love her :) As of late she is being such a good sleeper too. I have put her down while she is seemingly wide awake right after nursing her. But to my surprise, she squaks for maybe 2 minutes and then goes quietly to sleep. Yay :) As of this morning we just passed the 11 hour mark. Tiny one always sleeps longer after shots poor babe.

Here is my fav pic of her right now. Just cant get enough of those baby blues...

In other news, (if you are male and don't want to read something about me that's graphic, stop reading now!)

I have to have a Vaginoplasty. Yep, you heard me. The doctor that delivered E did not sew me back together correctly so I am almost 5 months out and still not completely healed and still having pain. Yah, not happy about it. Kaiser is so fired. I was really happy with my experience in terms of everything else but this....this just sucks. I'm looking at like 8 months from D day before I'll be able to be sexually active again?!?! Not cool. I finally burst in to tears yesterday after trying so hard to tough it out. I am so done with this and just want to be normal again.

Girl things

2011-03-08T17:09:00.001-08:00

So Sharon made Emmie this cute little bow/flower holder and lets just say it's getting use! I'll admit I'm a little bow/flower/headband crazy. What can I say? Emmie's hair is still very short so she could be mistaken for a boy if I don't. Especially as she starts fitting some of her bigger clothes which aren't all pink :)

Here's another picture of her in my favorite outfit with the blanket that Great Grandma Graves made for her. Sooo sweet.
And here she is sleeping away this morning. We napped from 8 to 11! Win Win

Emmie is here!

2011-03-06T22:15:00.000-08:00

Ok, so new mommyhood has made me a bit busy so here's a quick update on our news. Our little beautiful arrival came on January 20th. She was 6 lbs 12 oz and 18 inches of pure beauty! We named her Emmie Rebecca Graves after her Grandmas. Here are some pics.

Right Before being admitted

Emmie was about 1 minute old here:
All settled in to our room:
Mommy got a shower :)
Emmie at 1 day old ready to go home:

2 days old :

Daddy loves to hold her, even as he eats dinner:

Emmie 3 days old:

Nap time:

In my favorite outfit of hers a week old:

FLASH FORWARD to... 1 month old:
5 weeks old and getting cuter by the minute:

The countdown begins...

2011-01-12T22:41:00.000-08:00

So, below are a few shots from my 35 week maternity shoot done by the wonderful Hilary Erickson. She's a gem that one. Quite the talented photographer. You can see her photography blog here. She is not currently "in business" due to other demands in life but you can get a little taste for her talent. She does the occasional shoot as a favor or trade. Did I mention I heart her? Cause I do.

The leaves with light behind shot is my favorite :)

People really like this loving motherly gaze shot.

And of course the ever popular heart hands shot. Really though, it is quite precious.

I think this one truly shows that we are excited for little Emmie's arrival. Any time between now and the next 4 weeks...

Had my shower this past Saturday. Waiting on the pics from that to post soon :)

What I've been up to...

2010-12-18T17:31:00.000-08:00

Well, I know....it's been FOREVER since I've updated my blog. So here's a quickie of what I've been up to.

Doing Lots of Baking of a little bun soon to be named Emmie :)
Let me tell you. She's a mover. Perhaps she will be a tiny tutu clad ninja. Only time will tell :)

Also, I (and by I, I mean we) have been selling Miche hand bags. Check them out at www.andreasmichebags.com They are super addicting. And EVERYONE who sees them, loves them and buys them. Here are a few photo's to give you an idea of how cute they are:

You can see how they work on my site. But basically it's a classic size bag as seen in the picture above on top or the big bag as seen below the classic. Instead of having to dump out your purse when you want to change colors or styles, you just change the outside! It's brilliant and sooooo convenient!

Anyway, it's easy to sell something you love. And I LOVE them!

Baby Gymnast

2010-09-11T12:54:00.000-07:00

So Friday 9/10/10 was our 20 week OB appointment. My doctor was on the same wave length as me and totally agreed that Ultra Sounds are more elective usually than diagnostic. She said that as long as the pregnancy seems to be progressing at a normal level and you hear a healthy heartbeat, there is not a whole lot of reason for Ultra Sound if it doesn't change the outcome. In our case, no matter what, the outcome would be the same.... give birth to baby and we will love what ever we get. Abortion is NOT an option to us.

(The day before, we got an ultra sound but decided not to stress about it not being at the doctors office and it was cheaper anyway. THANKFULLY all was healthy and wonderful. The tech was amazing at pointing everything out and assuring us that we had a very healthy, and very tall baby girl growing with all 20 digits and a perfect little face and heart :) Yay!)

Anway..... later in the evening on Friday we were at our friends THE RAMBOW'S and I felt the baby start kicking away. I grabbed Taylor's hand and put it on my belly because he hadn't gotten lucky enough to feel her yet. The look on his face was so cute as he was in such awe that he finally got to feel her after hearing me talk about feeling her moving.

Then, this morning we were sitting on the couch waking up and my tummy was growling... well apparently she gets anxious when I'm hungry because she was kicking like crazy. So I pulled my shirt up and told him to watch and he got to see her kick twice. It was so cool :) He's so excited and scared to be a dad. No doubt he will be AMAZING. He comes from good peoples :)

Updates on baby :) It's a.....

2010-09-11T12:45:00.001-07:00

Ok, sorry I'm a slacker and haven't updated in a while. So here's the skinny of the last week. On Thursday 9/9/10 we went to THIS 4D Imaging place to find out the gender of our little bundle.

Here are a couple of photos:
It's a............................................................GIRL!!!!!

She was so active during the Ultra Sound. It was sooo fun to watch her kicking and moving and being imodest :) We did a $100 package and then paid the extra $25 to get the live motion DVD. It was so worth it! (I would have paid $150 at my Dr.'s office AFTER insurance with no fancy pictures, CD or DVD)

Now I can pop it in and watch her get jiggy with it. And considering I'm only about 20 weeks and am starting to feel a lot of movement I think my belly is going to be moving a LOT in these coming weeks.

Heyyyy baby

2010-08-02T20:06:00.001-07:00

This is 14 weeks. Not a whole lot different than 11 weeks but I'm starting to slowly feel better. The sickness seems to be only in the mornings for the most part now unless I need more sleep. I feel more sick if I'm more tired. So there ya go. More sleep is what the Dr. ordered. Yoouuuu got it.

Cravings: Beef, Artichokes, corn on the cob, tart or fruity things
Aversions: Still chicken tho it seems to be lightening a little, Salad (blechh), raw veggies in general.

Good. Times.

11 1/2 weeks

2010-07-13T21:46:00.000-07:00

So, a little background on today's visit. I had a wee bit of a heart attack because when the Dr. was listening for the heartbeat with her fancy little machine she couldn't find one. She quickly does a pelvic exam and says my uterus is tilted back quite a bit and that might be why she can't get the beat because baby is too far away from the surface or something...

I woke up today for the first time in weeks not feeling sick. Time. To. Panic.... Not a good sign. I'm not quite 12 weeks and yet I didn't feel sick this morning. Uh-Oh...

So she refers me over to Ultra Sound to get one as sort of an emergency.

Longest 10 minutes of my entire life.... trying so hard not to freak out as my husband is sick with strep and too sick to make it to the appointment... Be STRONG Andrea...

At last, finally the tech takes me in. Does the U/S.... Finds baby.... wait.... finally! Finds a heart beat. Holy crap I almost gave birth right then. 158 bpm and I got to hear it!

So. Amazing.

And, my baby is going to be a little Athlete. It was moving and shimmying all over the place. The tech even said, "wow, that's an active baby". My ribs most definitely will not appreciate that later I'm sure of it. However, it will be worth knowing little bebe is healthy and good.

8 Weeks

2010-06-21T21:55:00.001-07:00

So here's my first preggo photo at 8 weeks. Just enough of a pooch that I can't "suck it in" anymore. Boo hiss. J/K I'm excited :)

Finally I can talk about it!

2010-06-21T10:52:00.000-07:00

Ok, so it's been forever since I've updated but mostly because I felt like anything I say would spill the beans too early about bambino Graves, coming to a hospital near you around February 3rd 2011.

We are super excited and were a little surprised as we were not officially trying. Obviously not preventing very well either ;)

I have been sicker than a dog....but thankfully the Dr. Rx'd me the generic Zofran which does wonders. I can actually function on it. Though the occasional dose is not quite up to par and so I still suffer a bit. All I can say is thank goodness for medicine because I would be in bed ALL the time without it.

Side effect: CONSTIPATION. This has been a real battle. I've become the point of impacted twice now. I won't go too far in to detail but lets just say it takes physical intervention to get movement again. And there's blood. Lot's of it sometimes. Due to the consistency I tore and once you have a "Fissure" it doesn't heal until you can be on a complete clear liquid diet for 3 days. Seeing as how that's not possible with a growing fetus....well you get the picture...Oh the joys....

Eye on the prize. That's what I keep having to chant to myself as I experience the lovely discomfort that is morning (hah! more like all day) sickness, constipation, and aversion to food though hungry all the time.

That Duggar lady is CARAZY. 19?? At this point I think my mother is crazy too. She had 6! And was sick, if not sicker than I am. Who thought this pregnancy thing was a good idea anyway? Ok, ok, I do. I am so excited. only 32 weeks left.....

From my journey

2010-03-29T13:45:00.001-07:00

So I'm not generally keen on posing in a bikini but I did it in part for motivation and in part to see the true results. Since my tummy has always been a problem area for me. 14.6 lbs. Wowza!

And can I just say this diet is HARD. Emotionally more so than any other diet I've ever done. Then again, I always broke down and cheated or just quit on all my other diets so I filled that emotional void with food. Not this time. Nope. It kicked my emotional butt....but it works.

I am thinking I will do the three weeks of maintenance and then maybe try to kick the last 5 or 10 on another round. I know I won't be able to do it "on my own" without the CRAZY strict structure that this plan makes you follow. But I'll let you know in 3 weeks when my maintenance is up just how I feel.

Update on Weight

2010-03-16T15:44:00.000-07:00

So this plan has been working so well for me! The cat's out of the bag. I am doing the HCG diet. It's all the rage in Utah and now I see why. IT WORKS! (I'm doing the homeopathic though. No scary injections of straight hormone for me)

I have lost.....drumroll please....... 11 pounds!! In less than two weeks! And no.... it is not water weight. I was skeptical of the results I read about at first because having done Adkins before the first 5 lbs is always water weight (I lost 20lbs in one month on Atkins but it came right back as soon as carbs were re-introduced). Not with this diet. I noticed a diff in size right away but not in my hands or feet. I can tell very easily if I'm retaining water or not in my fingers. I am down a whole size already and am wearing pants today that I haven't worn in TWO YEARS! This diet is VERY strict and VERY hard, but is working so well for me because it is incredibly structured. You have to track EVERYTHING. It's not for everyone....but man o man, if you're someone who has tried everything and always gain the weight back. You might give this a try.

It IS...I repeat IS a LIFESTYLE change but it forces you to learn how to cook healthy because otherwise you get so sick of the limited food options. Now that I have all these great ideas and recipes I will definitely be cooking more often on my maintenance phase. Pray for me that I keep it off!

Weight

2010-02-02T11:37:00.000-08:00

Only 4 1/2 more lbs to go till pre wedding weight. Only 17 1/2 more to go to get to my goal. I weighed that when I moved here and figure since I'll be trying for babies in this year and I hit 30 next year, I should get down to the weight I want to be so that I can maintain it more easily. Cause heaven knows it will be 10 times harder when my metabolism decides to slow down.

and then....

2010-01-27T15:30:00.000-08:00

OY OY OY. Our water heater decided so spring a violent leak and as a result of soaking everything in a 5 foot radius, shorted out the power to our actual heater. We have an old school heater that you light the pilot electrically with a light switch....but when the light switch get's soaked and blows and the pilot gets doused by all the spraying, this means no heat.....brrrrrrrrr. It was like 50 in our house last night. First time i've had to sleep with a space heater on in a year. fun fun.

Following...

2010-01-21T11:10:00.000-08:00

So for those of you following my blog, I am on a journey right now to lose the post marriage weight gain of 10 lbs and get my endurance back up to what it was about 5 years ago. Check out my story and those of a few other women in their weight loss/getting healthier journeys. This "Losing with Loves and Lovers" blog is actually really helping me because I don't want to give up every time I get a little discouraged....Because I am no longer a freak in my own head when I read that others have the exact same frustrations and thoughts about this lifestyle change! So check it out, because at least for the time being I will probably be posting to that blog more often than this one. You can follow and or become a contributor. See ya on the flip side!

Christmas/New Years re-cap

2010-01-05T13:40:00.000-08:00

We began our adventure by driving to Utah the night of the 23rd. We left at about 7:30pm. About half way there, our heat decides to stop working. Rather, it just blows a luke warm air. Quite a "Dumb and Dumber" moment for those of you who've seen the movie. We were shivering as we arrived. Turns out due to some bone headedness on the part of Jiffy Lube, there was a hole in a place there shouldn't have been and as a result our thermostat stopped working. Fun. Thankfully my brother just so happens to be mechanically inclined and SAVED the day! And the trip! Yay for heat.

We had a wonderful time on Christmas eve and Christmas day spending time with family and cathing up. It was so great to see everyone.

On Christmas night as we returned home to my brother's around 11 my tummy started feeling queezy. This is not abnormal for me so I took some Tum's and tried to go to bed. I awoke about an hour later and emptied the contents of my stomach through violent heaving. I proceeded to repeat this about 6 more times over the next 12 hours. Life is quite interesting when you have to have a bowl in your lap on the toilet because your insides have become liquid from both ends :( But literally after about exactly 24 hours the appeal of food returned and I felt almost totally normal. Good times. Thankfully this was on Saturday, a day when my family had just planned to be lazy and let the kids play with their toys anyway. So I sent Taylor on his way snowboarding because how boring to watch your wife wallow in misery all day? So I was able to just relax and rest all day and my brother and sister-in-law were awesome and got me anything if I needed it.

Sunday we had the pleasure of attending Taylor's Uncle Brig's daughters blessing. What a beauty that one. We were able to enjoy spending a little time with everyone from that side of the family for a couple of hours before we headed up to my mom's house for a relaxing rest of our Sunday and dinner with more family. I was able to visit with my long time BFF Sharon too. I always love chatting with her.

Monday morning we headed out for our long drive home. Thankfully it was totally uneventful and we always love spending time together so we actually enjoy road trips such as this.

Tuesday, I got my new treadmill!!! Tay and I set it up and I walked on it right away for 20 minutes. Love at first walk....sigh.....

I worked Tues and Wed and then had another nice little break for a 4 day new year weekend. We got a lot done, got a lot of R&R and it was just a nice and enjoyable holiday. Oh, and I worked out every day but one. Go me!

Joy to the....

2009-12-22T16:20:00.000-08:00

Treadmill! I am seriously so overjoyed to be receiving my treadmill soon. It arrives the day after we get back from Utah...and what better timing?? After eating all of the decadent treats and goodies this holiday season has brought me (or rather my tush), it will be nice to be able to just hop on the treadmill and at least walk whilst catching up on my shows. I think I am going to make a goal that for the first month I am going to walk anytime I watch TV at all. I will be getting back in to jogging slowly (after my lovely raging kidney infection) as well but will need that little extra calorie burn of walking for long periods of time after this...

Seriously people...what's with giving sweets all the time? Can I get a fruit bouquet or something?! Throw me a bone!

Thankfully, we are financially blessed enough to have a solution, because within a year it will have been a cheaper investment than a gym membership! Yup, it was a smokin deal :D

Colors

2009-11-24T17:23:00.000-08:00

So I've noticed a trend lately and I just HAVE to say something about it. When people would ask me about my wedding colors and I would tell them that I was doing red and purple the reaction was always, "eww! Red and Purple?!"

I pulled it off people....and it was beautiful.... Now, suddenly I am seeing this as a trend in wedding colors. So I'm wondering if those people are getting as much flack? Or not, because they've now seen it done before and know it works. Everyone I told had never seen the two together before and 90% of people poo-poohed it. Hmmmm. Now I feel like shouting "See!? It looks awesome if you use the right tones!! so THERE!

Some examples:

This is very similar colors to what I went with. I wanted a darker blackish purple and a deep red. Bingo! Doesn't it go well together? And I DID infact use the EXACT same color of Cala Lily's pictured below in my boquet.

Here is my boquet and my mom's dark purple dress (She picked it out. Not to shabby since she was two states away so I couldn't micro manage ha ha)

Some other examples of the color scheme:

I didn't do any brighter purple like in the flowers below but wanted to use it as an example that it still works.

So, next time someone tells you what their wedding colors are going to be, don't judge or react. Instead be tactful so you don't hurt their feelings by making them think they are a retard for picking those colors. Especially because often, people will surprise you. What you picture in your head is rarely what they picture.

Yo!-se-Mite!

2009-11-24T11:14:00.000-08:00

So we're heading to Yosemite tomorrow evening for a fun filled trip with the (Taylor's) family for Thanksgiving. We're bringing pre-prepped food to warm up on Turkey day in my Father-in-Law's motorhome and then just going to camp and ride bikes and hike and have a blast. I'm so incredibly excited! ooh! I should charge my camera battery before I forget.

I really like that we're not doing a traditional Thanksgiving. Am I crazy or does anyone else get kind of bored of the same 'ol traditions? I mean, don't get me wrong. I love the whole gluttonous eating and and speding time with family but sometimes I just feel so idol and gross on Thanksgiving. I really like that though we'll still have the food, we'll be out and about enjoying the beaty that is Yosemite. Case in Point:

So excited! *jumping up and down*

Anyone else have any cool plans?

Hillarious. My bro sent it to me.

2009-11-05T14:05:00.000-08:00

The Darwin Awards 2009 Yes, it's that magical time of year again when the Darwin Awards arebestowed, honoring the least evolved among us. Here is the glorious winner:

1. When his 38 caliber revolver failed to fire at his intendedvictim during a hold-up in Long Beach , California would-be robber JamesElliot did something that can only inspire wonder. He peered down the barreland tried the trigger again. This time it worked. And now, the honorable mentions:

2. The chef at a hotel in Switzerland lost a finger in a meatcutting machine and after a little shopping around, submitted a claim to hisinsurance company. The company expecting negligence sent out one of its mento have a look for himself. He tried the machine and he also lost a finger.The chef's claim was approved.

3. A man who shoveled snow for an hour to clear a space for his carduring a blizzard in Chicago returned with his vehicle to find a woman hadtaken the space. Understandably, he shot her.

4. After stopping for drinks at an illegal bar, a Zimbabwean busdriver found that the 20 mental patients he was supposed to be transportingfrom Harare to Bulawayo had escaped. Not wanting to admit his incompetence,the driver went to a nearby bus stop and offered everyone waiting there afree ride. He then delivered the passengers to the mental hospital, tellingthe staff that the patients were very excitable and prone to bizarrefantasies. The deception wasn't discovered for 3 days.

5. An American teenager was in the hospital recovering from serioushead wounds received from an oncoming train. When asked how he received theinjuries, the lad told police that he was simply trying to see how close hecould get his head to a moving train before he was hit..

6. A man walked into a Louisiana Circle-K, put a $20 bill on thecounter, and asked for change. When the clerk opened the cash drawer, theman pulled a gun and asked for all the cash in the register, which the clerkpromptly provided. The man took the cash from the clerk and fled, leavingthe $20 bill on the counter. The total amount of cash he got from thedrawer... $15. [If someone points a gun at you and gives you money, is acrime committed?]

7. Seems an Arkansas guy wanted some beer pretty badly. He decidedthat he'd just throw a cinder block through a liquor store window, grab somebooze, and run. So he lifted the cinder block and heaved it over his head atthe window. The cinder block bounced back and hit the would-be thief on thehead, knocking him unconscious. The liquor store window was made ofPlexiglas. The whole event was caught on videotape.

8. As a female shopper exited a New York convenience store, a mangrabbed her purse and ran. The clerk called 911 immediately, and the womanwas able to give them a detailed description of the snatcher. Withinminutes, the police apprehended the snatcher. They put him in the car anddrove back to the store. The thief was then taken out of the car and told tostand there for a positive ID. To which he replied, "Yes, officer, that'sher. That's the lady I stole the purse from."

9. The Ann Arbor News crime column reported that a man walked into aBurger King in Ypsilanti , Michigan at 5 A.M., flashed a gun, and demandedcash. The clerk turned him down because he said he couldn't open the cashregister without a food order. When the man ordered onion rings, the clerksaid they weren't available for breakfast. The man, frustrated, walked away. [*A 5-STAR STUPIDITY AWARD WINNER]

10. When a man attempted to siphon gasoline from a motor home parked on aSeattle street, he got much more than he bargained for. Police arrived atthe scene to find a very sick man curled up next to a motor home nearspilled sewage. A police spokesman said that the man admitted to trying tosteal gasoline, but he plugged his siphon hose into the motor home's sewagetank by mistake. The owner of the vehicle declined to press charges sayingthat it was the best laugh he'd ever had.

In the interest of bettering mankind, please share these with friends andfamily....unless of course one of these individuals by chance is a distantrelative or long lost friend. In that case, be glad they are distant andhope they remain lost.

Things that make you go hmmmm....

2009-10-29T10:28:00.000-07:00

Saw a lady yesterday driving a smart car while simultaniously smoking a cigarette.... Does anyone else think that's kind of ironic?

Rain rain...go away...oh wait.

2009-10-14T17:08:00.001-07:00

No! Rain is good! It means snow in the mountains and I want to do as much snowboarding as humanly possible to someone who has a full time job. (Pardon me whilst I curse under my breath) Tay got a gig as a rep for Snowbomb. We get 100 free tix to the ski and snowboard show. Yah buddy. Along with lots of free garb and free lift tickets. I love my husband for figuring out how to get free stuff all the time. It's an art. Oh...and if anyone wants tickets and info let me know. Free lift ticket for each person who goes.

Update: My kidneys are all better I think... *crossing fingers* The downside? The antibiotic they put me on for it (Levoquin) causes severe tendon ruptures especially in the achelles. So I can't work out for another month an a half until it gets out of my system. LAME!!! I swear, everytime I start getting in to a good routine...BAM! something happens to ruin it. Jeez

We're going to Yosemite for Thanksgiving. Way stoked about that. I need some Mountain time ;)

Oh, and a new website that is good for a daily laugh. It's called my life is average or MLIA. Read it,love it

Kidneys....who needs em? oh, I do

2009-10-07T14:52:00.000-07:00

This last friday night as Taylor and I were hanging out and watching TV at around 9:30pm, my low back suddenly started to hurt and I started feeling icky really quicky. It was a strange pain tho in that it was more of a burning pain than an achy muscle pain. By 11:30 I was in tears while Taylor was unconsious in bed. The pain, especially in my right kidney was so intense that I could hardly stand it. I red up online about kidney stones and decided to try pain killers first. That helped me sleep a little but by 9am the pain was back with a vengance. Called my boss, he said go to urgent care, I think you have a kidney infection.

Two hours later, after a U.A...Ta da!!! Congratulations, you have a raging kidney and bladder infection. So fun. Here's some Levoquin and Percocet. Go home and rest (and I mean rest young lady), drink LOTS and LOTS of fluids and come back on Monday.

Monday: Follow up, feeling quite a bit better, pretty much slept the whole weekend away. (Hey, Dr.'s orders) Dr. says "I am writing you a note for work. I want you to get more rest. You can go back to work Wednesday unless you feel MUCH better by Tuesday." Note: I have NEVER had a Dr. tell me he didn't want me to go to work, and to go home and get more rest, unless I had just had surgery. I guess they don't mess around when it comes to kidney infections cause your kidneys can fail if untreated and then you get a fun filled lifetime of dialisis. NO THANK YOU. I will follow the Dr.'s orders.

Best weekend ever....NOT

Memory

2009-09-30T10:31:00.000-07:00

Just thinking a lot about my family today. They've been through a lot in past months and unfortunately these times of tragedy are also good in that they make you really appreciate and remember your loved ones.

This is a picture of my brother Allen presenting the flag to my Aunt Joyce at Uncle Dale's funeral. This touches me so....

Updates

2009-09-22T09:05:00.000-07:00

Nothing too exciting but since this is the closest thing to a journal I keep I feel i need to keep it up.

I have gone walking/jogging 4 out of the last 5 days. Go me. Rested on Sunday of course. Yesterday was really good because I was able to jog twice as far as the last time I went. Any of you that know me know this is big because my asthma has held me back my whole life. It sucks.

Anyhoo, after not working out regularly for seriously like two years except for the sporadic occasions, I am determined to work my way back up to when I used to jog two miles every day.

Back when I was in good shape due to this daily schedule I hiked half dome like it was a 5 mile hike (It's more like 18mi). The next year when I did it I was not jogging on a regular basis due to an ankle injury and oh mann, it kicked my butt so hard. So I haven't done it since (3 yrs?). So...My goal is to get back up to jogging at LEAST 3 times per week so that I can do Half Dome again next Summer and so that Snowbaording this winter doesn't kick my butt like it did last year. And there you have it. Go team.

The other side

2009-09-14T12:02:00.000-07:00

My uncle Dale passed away this last Friday of complications from a ruptured spleen due to a nasty fall. Talk about a flury of memories and emotions that have come flooding back from the days when we still had the Taylor family reunion. So may good times. Such good family. Also, a lot of memories of my Dad's passing have surfaced.

I am somewhat jealous of the reunion up in heaven right now. Dale gets to be greeted by my dad, Grandma, Grandpa, and Uncle Farrell as well as others. Party!

Uncle, you will be missed greatly and we look forward to meeting again.

Luv,
A

tick tock

2009-09-10T09:14:00.000-07:00

Do you ever feel like your just killing time to get to something bigger? But don't know what it is? I have had this odd feeling for about 3 weeks now. It's quite strange. Not a feeling of discontentment or anything like that. But perhaps just compliance with what life is handing me right now? Don't get your panties in a bunch, it's nothing major or profound....just weird feelings I guess.

Still in the brain fog and oh so tired all the time right now. But I think it's getting a little better due to the supplements that I am taking to get my blood sugar better under control. Have lost 3 lbs from just that. {happy dance} It's always fabulous to lose weight when you're not trying to by "dieting". And FYI, I don't believe in "diets". I believe in life style. Eating healthier is always a good thing to try but "DIET" adds too much pressure and people give up and binge. Not me. I indulge if I want to or am having a strong craving but ALWAYS try to be mindful of how much and of what I consume. Now, wouldn't it be nice if another 5 lbs came off from these supps and I was back to my pre-marriage weight??? It would be super duper.

Pour some sugar on me

2009-09-03T11:34:00.001-07:00

Best. Concert. Ever.
Saw Def Leppard last night. Finally got to witness my childhood fav song live. It exceeded my expectations even though Joe Elliot had laryngitis. I tell you what, I can't sing worth a darn when I have it so I was blown away that he could. And it was fun to hit the high notes for him. He would just stop singing and point both hands at the audience and we'd sing it for him. Because of course everyone knew the words :)

Saw some AWESOME mullets. AWESOME. Here's a little taste. I took some video but the base was so heavy it distorts pretty bad. But I HAD to get my fav DL song on video! It was my very first favorite song and the ripe old age of 5 years old :-D

Missing.

2009-09-02T11:03:00.000-07:00

Has anyone seen my brain? It seems it has gone missing in the last few months. I feel like such a ditz. Anyone have any tips for how to not feel this way? Any remedies that help with cognitive function? I don't really feel like I'm not getting enough sleep...so what could it be? I'm not pregnant as far as I know. (Had a period 2 1/2 weeks ago) but this has been going on for like 6 months now. Bleh....

Photo's from our Cruise

2009-08-20T15:47:00.001-07:00

Check them out:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=112711&id=604856035&l=b77df5d96c

soooo....

2009-08-17T13:51:00.000-07:00

I need one of these

Why do I not have more time in my day? my back basically always hurts....but lately, I want to rip my spine out. Sounds fun huh?

Also, I want to get back in to doing this:

I used to jog almost every day and I was so healthy back then. And by healthy I don't mean thin. In fact I'm only about 5lbs heavier....but I could hike half dome (or anything else for that matter) without batting an eyelash. The last hiking I did about killed me. And it was only about 100 yards of steep uphill. Stupid Asthma. I'm gonna try my darndest. Go me.

My how time flies

2009-08-13T15:40:00.000-07:00

Went to dinner with a long lost friend last night. 11 years to be exact. It was good times. She's still as much of a sweetheart as I remember. Thank goodness for Facebook where i have been able to reconnect with so many people. Love it!

So sleepy, trying to get used to the new pad. Do love it though. Can't wait to be ALL moved in and settled. Don't want to move again for a while. May talk to the hubby about locking in a lease for a year so I don't have to go through this again for a while. Can't I just go home and take a nap and not move any more stuff?

Moving...my favorite....

2009-08-10T13:55:00.000-07:00

So, we moved all of the BIG stuff for the most part on Saturday with the help of some muscle (and thanks to the pig flu making it self scarce finally). Thank you Andrew, Ian and Bo. Now we're just moving the rest of our CRAP. And let me say we have a LOT of it. I guess after living in the same place for 4 1/2 years you accumulate a lot of stuff and things grow under your furniture. {gag}

I SWEAR I will not let our current place get so filthy...(talk to me in a year and see if I followed through) It is rather hard to clean, grocery shop, cook and maintain a home when you both work full time. I will prevail! I will be super woman!

Oh goody!

2009-08-05T11:17:00.001-07:00

I now have the stupid pig flu too. Dang it. I was hoping I was immune because I had "it" back in February but apparently either I didn't have it or you can get it twice. Poo.

On a happy note, turns out our new place in fact does have a dishwasher and at first we thought it didn't work but it turns out it does. The latch is just tricky. You have to shut it just right. this is great news for me. GREAT. Of course, we are both sick so we haven't even moved one single solitary thing. Boo

Did you hear the one about the bicyclist?

2009-08-03T15:55:00.000-07:00

So we just got back from our cruise and it was AMAZING and so fun. I will post pics soon I promise, however if I break that promise. Tough. We're moving this month and let's be honest. Moving is hectic. So anyhoo....short re-cap:

Our cruise started out rocky due to me having the hardest day the day we left. It was just one of those days... so then, as we're pulling out of the ally-way that is our drive way, low and behold SLAM!!! A guy on a bicycle slams right in to the front fender of the Civic and flies on to the hood and then rolls off. And he was fine. Which is good because it was his fault. But we were so shaken up and shocked we didn't care about all the new pretty dents in the car. Just FYI in case you didn't know: It is ILLEGAL to ride a bike on the sidewalk in Cali if your over the age of 14 (or is it 16?). AND he was riding on the wrong side of the road to boot. You're supposed to ride the same direction as the traffic. So that was loads of fun to start our road trip down to Long Beach with our hearts jumping out of our chests.

Saturday: So the next day, Taylor is supposed to drug test two guys down in Hollywood and they no-show. So now we try to decide what to do with our now free day. Tay is just browsing and sees a truck on Craigslist and says "should we go look at it just for fun to pass the time?" Sure, why not? (P.S. We've been looking at trucks for a couple of months but nothing has felt right.) So, we go look at it. It's an '04 Cherry Red, Chevrolet Avalanche. Fully loaded. And it was a smokin' deal. And it felt soooo right. So we bought it :-D Yep, I finally got my dream TRUCK!!!! Yipee. Happy anniversary to me! For those of you who don't know, I was saving to buy one when I met Tay but paid for my wedding instead so this is like the best cherry on top. EVER. So we joke that Tay is my truck. ha ha

Sunday: Tay's 23rd birthday. Happy day! We set sail on our cruise and begin the week of over indulging in LOTS of yummy food.

Monday and Tuesday: 2 days at sea relaxing and enjoying the sun, reding our books by the pool, swimming, shows. Good times.

Wednesday: Puerto Vallarta. We did this excursion: CLICK HERE and it was SUCH a blast!!! It was muy caliente (really HOT) there and super humid, but for the most part we were in the shade under the canopy of the thick rain forrest like area. And the water in the waterfall was NICE and cool. Muy refreshing :)

Thursday: We did all of our shopping in the raping heat of Mazatlan but got some awesome deals and some cool stuff.

Friday: Cabo. You had to be back on the ship by 2pm so we didn't even bother getting off. And from what I hear we didn't miss much. We got to enjoy it from the pool on the deck and enjoy the beautiful scenery.
Later that evening: Taylor starts running a fever, starts coughing and doesn't feel well.

Saturday: Taylor is worse. Fever, chills, Coughing, Body aches, headache... and according to the insert we got at the beginning of the cruise these are the symptoms of the H1N1 virus and we should consult the on-board doctor. So we do. And Tay has Swine flu. Of course he does. Fortunately that last day was at sea and the weather was poopy so we didn't miss anything by staying in bed all day watching movies and Tay got breakfast, lunch and dinner in bed all day. He got to be the lucky winner of the "first and only case they saw on the boat this trip" prize. D'oh!

Sunday: Tay's not doing any better really but the cough medicine and fever reducing pain killers help a LOT to make him functional. We arrive in port at 7am and debark around 9:30am. We go pick up the car and truck and caravan home and make it home (THANKFULLY) incident free :) Tay is able to climb in to bed and rest while I unpack.

So all in all we LOVED our vacation. What's a vacation without it's little bumps right? I'm so fat now. Time to work out and become anorexic. ha ha jk

Signed, sealed, delivered

2009-07-22T09:36:00.000-07:00

Yep, we're official. We now are proud owners of two keys and a garage door opener to our new duplex. We'll be moving in ASAP. Good times. It's an older place so definitely not a lot of the bells and whistles of some places (uhem, no dishwasher or AC) but it's a cute place none the less. {happy dance} We'll be in our own place yippee!

All systems go

2009-07-21T10:54:00.000-07:00

So far all systems go on the Santa Clara Duplex. We meet with the agent this evening to go over the lease and give our deposit. Woot! This will make the move super easy as we are just moving across the street :) Here is a pic of the outside.

Duplex

2009-07-20T13:38:00.000-07:00

Just waiting to hear if we got the duplex or not. Basically we got it, it's just our lovely managers went out of town without telling us and all the other tenants so the agent is having a hard time getting my rental reference from my current residence. Thankfully I got a hold of the lady covering for them and asked her to pull our rental history and have it ready for when the agent calls in a few minutes...because hello!...we don't want to lose our spot because of one stupid little thing. They are sticklers about credit and good rental history which is why the property is still available. Because let's be honest, $1500 for a 900 sq foot duplex with a garage and washer/dryer hookups is a good deal in Santa Clara in this neighborhood and they have a LOT of interest in it. When I looked at it the agent told me they had a lot of people interested but thus far they either had shady credit, or poor rental history or both. So they were holding out and waiting for someone better... TA-DA!!! Here we are! Fingers crossed.

Blog fart

2009-07-16T15:26:00.000-07:00

Ever go to say something and then completely have a brain fart? Well this is my blog fart. Cause I went to write something.....and then BAM...nothing. Blackness. Nada.

Well, in randomness my brother, his wife and kids will be here this weekend for a whole day. Yipee! I finally get to see my newest nephew. Awesome.

Also, I love and hate craigslist. You can get such great things for amazing deals but at the same time I get so sick of every third post being some sort of scam. I am a pro at recognizing them now that so many have tried to scam me. boo

Tay's early bday and the Fair

2009-07-09T15:15:00.001-07:00

This was our trip to the ALameda county fair last friday the 3rd. WE had such a fun time. It was BLAZING HOT during the day but cooled off nicely for the concert and fireworks. fun fun fun. I swear I put on 15lbs in one day due to all the fried food I ate
Thi

This is the gun I bought for Taylor as an early birthday gift. He's like a little boy on Christmas morning. hee hee

B's Birthday

2009-06-29T09:12:00.000-07:00

Saturday was my neices birthday and we went swimmin :) Good times. I'm nicely sunkissed. We had delicious food and deserts and played ALL day.

My goodness!

2009-06-23T09:42:00.001-07:00

So my day today began with opening the office, and as our first patient was walking in the front door we heard screaming and a scuffle right outside. Then the screaming became urgent panicked sobbing so we all went running out to find a guy attacking a woman and kicking her while she was on the ground. My boss yelled and scared the guy away and he must have been strung out because he was like lightning when he took off.

Dr. B tells me to call the police as he's trying to help her and oddly she says "don't touch me" over and over as she's sobbing. She gets up and starts to limp away and there's nothing anyone could do because you can't restrain her.

So as she's limping away this lady pulls up and says "did he find her again?!?!" Apparently down the street this lady had witnessed the guy beating her in his car and she had stumbled out of the car and the lady yelled at her to get in her car and she would take her to safety and she refused and ran down the street. So I guess he followed her on foot and "found" her again in front of our office.

Hat's off to the LGPD though. They came, sirens blaring, in 3 minutes flat and took descriptions and statements and went looking for both the man and woman.

Crazy morning!

Pathetic

2009-06-16T13:35:00.000-07:00

Went jogging/walking on Saturday with Janet. OMG, I am so out of shape. I ran one whole lap and almost died of asthma.

I used to be able to run 8!!!!

dear oh dear, marriage is making me fat and lazy. Tay and I have started to go walking. Hopefully tonight I can do run two laps.

Seriously, I want to cry. I feel like my arteries are going to solidify and I'm going to die. No bueno...

Greatful for....

2009-06-11T09:32:00.000-07:00

Today is one of those days where I am just feeling really grateful. Here's a few examples of what I'm grateful for.

Taylor: He's so amazing and works so hard and is always putting my happiness first. I <3 Him

Jobs: WE both have jobs. This is HUGE right now. My boss got a little nervous about our numbers and said he may have to lay me off. Long story short, he now realizes his business would completely fail if he let me go. So I'm good until at least end of summer.

Money: Duh! A result of having jobs and being able to save a lot due to having roomates. (They really should be called house mates) We are so blessed, we're taking a 7 day cruise with those blessings for our vacation time and hopefully doing a couple of saweet shore excursions.

Family: Really, we both have amazing families that we get along with so well. I LOVE my in-laws. How many people can say that? I mean REALLY I adore them.

Anyhoo, just wanted to put these things down because I truly am grateful for all that I have and know that the Lord blesses me beyond my comprehension.

Side note, I've lost a pound and a half. The goal is 10 by the cruise. Go me.

Cruisin'

2009-06-09T08:44:00.000-07:00

Yep, it's true....we're going on another cruise and hopefully a better one this time. The Mexican Riviera. Woohoo! 7 days and the stops are Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo san Lucas. I am stoked. Hopefully for my tummy's sake the seas are calm unlike last time when we had winter waters. Lame...This ship is bigger too. It has THREE pools! So excited! And I fully intend on losing 10lbs before we go. I made a "fatty pact" with a friend that we would try to lose 10lbs by the date of our cruise. Goodbye Icecream....I'll miss you my sweet....Until the cruise that is :)

Swine Flu

2009-04-27T22:01:00.001-07:00

Yes, folks....believe it. My boss came to the conclusion today that we both got it. Thankfully we both hit it hard with vitamins and drugs so it didn't kill us but after reviewing the symptoms and looking in to it a bit he decided that we both got hit with it. Yes....Even I recently was in Mexico though I don't think that's where I got it. My boss was down in San Diego and got deathly sick with the blessed "even my hair hurts" flu right after coming home....and guess who got sick shortly there after?? Moi. Yup. Stupid swine. Thankfully though, we're both alive and well....just fighting off the pesky lingering cough. He's had his for about a month and a half now and I'm over two weeks now. Good times. Dare I say that means the incubation period is roughly 2-4 weeks? Yuk

Hair Cut

2009-04-27T16:51:00.001-07:00

So I posted this on Facebook but I'll post it here too. I got my hair cut and I love it :-) My roomate rocks. Oh, and I dyed it too. I love this color on me. Makes my green eyes pop!

Spending

2009-04-23T09:25:00.000-07:00

So as of late I have taken to watching what I spend more closely because we made an offer on a house and if we get it (unlikely) we'll both really have to reign in our spending. I've been using the great Hilary Erickson as my example because she is the most thrifty person I think I have ever met. I've started saving the coupons and ad's that we get in the mail and actually looking through them before I throw them away. Tonight, dinner will be at El Pollo Loco for a whopping $2.99 due to a lovely coupon.

Right now, we have a bit of what I consider "disposable income" because our rent isn't bad and Taylor is working full time and has benefits now which made our income go up by about 20%. How easy it is to take that for granted and just spend more. Don't get me wrong, we're also saving a lot more as well. So anywho, I am trying my hand at being a mega penny pincher right now. Wish me luck.

On another note: I just got an email on myspace from a long lost best friend who i haven't seen in two or three years. We used to be really close but he sort of stopped talking to me when he met his now "baby mama". Which I get it...Life happens but I admit I was rather sad that he didn't even wish me well when I told him I was getting married (again on myspace email). Nope. No response at all. It was heart breaking considering how close we used to be.... So anyway, he emails me and appologizes for being a "douche" and thanks me for always being a good friend to him no matter what. He is being deployed to Afganistan in a few days and he wanted me to know that he still thinks of me from time to time and appreciates our friendship. Can I just tell you how wonderful that was to hear? I pray that he will be safe. He is a rare breed of an amazing human being. We all have our "douche" moments because we get wrapped up in ourselves and life. But then our "Afganistans" come up in life and make us remember and be greatful the important things in life. God be with you my friend....

Blogging hurts

2009-04-08T13:47:00.000-07:00

Soooo, I had surgery Friday....ooodles of fun. Drugs are good. Well at least anesthesia is good. The puking for hours the next day wasn't so fun. The jury is out on exactly why I was yaking so much. My boss (doctor) thinks I got some bad bacteria in my intestnal tract from the hospital. Others think it is the pain meds though I haven't thrown up since Sat and have been taking them every night before bed. I get the splint off Friday. Yay!

My little nephew Thomas has been transfered to Primary Childrens Hospital because he may have a blockage. When they give him milk he bloats up but isn't gaining weight becaus he as been IV fed since birth due to not being able to process the milk. Keep him in your prayers.

In other news, we put an offer in on a house also on Friday. We're still waiting to hear but chances aren't great since there are "bidding wars" going on in our price range due to the overabundance of investors (people with too much dang money) swooping on them to flip them and sell for twice the price or more. Jerks! They are making it unaffordable to live here!!!Again!!!

I'm slacking...

2009-03-31T11:23:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged in a while....but don't feel I have much to say. We've sort of been house shopping again. I hate it. Hate. It. .... It is the worst roller coaster of emotions.

I'm having surgery on Friday. Happy to get this thing out of my wrist, but not happy about recovery time. Pray to the Percocet God's that they give me pain relief. Dang you high drug tolerance.

I'm just kind of in a meh mood this week. 'Splain that to me: It's warm, sunny, winter is ending and I'm all bummed out like it's been raining for 40 days. WTF? I'm in need of another vacation...or something. Not really sure what.

On a lighter note, my new nephew has arrived. Tiny little fella. 3lbs 11oz and 15 inches to be exact. They induced Heather 5 weeks early due to Pre-eclampsia. But baby and mama are doing fine. This is a pic of him (Thomas) holding my brother's wedding ring. Gives an idea of just how small....

Surgery

2009-03-20T21:16:00.000-07:00

Well pooper scooper. I found out today that I am having surgery on my right wrist to remove the lovely little ganglion cyst that has developed in the joint and hurts like the dickens when ever I put any weight on it. So April 2nd is the big day. Wish me luck.

I do you nails

2009-03-06T17:10:00.000-08:00

So Sharon and I went and got pedicures today and it made me think of this Youtube skit. Awesome....

Technology

2009-03-04T14:36:00.000-08:00

Got this in an email today and laughed out loud. Thought I'd share:

You are on the bus when you suddenly realize ... you need to fart. Some music is playing and it's really loud, so you time your farts to the beat hoping no one will notice. After a couple of songs, you start to feel better as you approach your stop. As you are leaving the bus, people are really glaring at you, and that's when you remember: You've been listening to your iPod.

Everything's amazing, nobody's happy....

2009-03-03T13:19:00.000-08:00

Man, I have the most annoying headache today. boo...

Funny but soooo true video (HERE) about how spoiled we are even in these economic hard times. Gave me a good belly laugh and it was a good reminder how blessed we really are. Gonna look into this guy more.

Looking to go to Vegas or NY or something for Tay's birthday/our anniversary....anyone got any ideas? I have a free round trip from my Southwest Credit Card so we're trying to figure out some place cool to go that we have never been to or at least not in a long time.

My BFF Sharon is coming in to town Thursday for the weekend...Yipeee! I'm excited. This is a RARE occasion. Vicki is coming from Hawaii too. Should be busy and loads of fun this weekend.

Ok back to work....drat this headache!

Full Time

2009-02-26T16:31:00.000-08:00

So Taylor started work full time this week. He is still attending school full time, and is now working full time on top of that. I admit it's been weird not having him home till 10pm at night. See, I leave at 7:45am for work and get off around 6. I used to get home about two hours after him but now he gets home several hours after I do.....weird. I worry that the poor guy is going to burn out. Pray he doesn't :-/

I really should take this opportunity to get back in to my exercise routine....but I haven't. Nope. Instead I've found many other things at home to do. So I think starting tonight or Monday I am going to try to go walking/jogging for 30 minutes after work at least 3 times a week. Cause, my stupid rear end has gained like 10+ lbs since we got married. (Grrrr.) And I can't afford new clothes. So it's crunch time. Literally.

I miss my honey terribly too....I'm so used to being able to spend our time after work together. It's hard to not just mope and wait for him to get home.....but alas, the fat will continue to accumulate on my rear if I do not get off of it.... And until he is done with shcool and a full time career man we'll have to manage this lifestyle. Sigh.....

On the plus side, now that he's full time we'll be saving $380/month on his health insurance. :-D That is a HUGE bonus. Woot

Cruisin'

2009-02-25T09:24:00.000-08:00

We had a blast on our cruise! I spent the first day (Monday) really green in the face and then drunk later on from the Dramamine. But considering there were like 10 to 15 ft swells that day in the ocean and it was raining sheets it wasn't a surprise. We were supposed to dock at Catalina that day but because of our yucky weather we spent that day at sea instead due to it not being safe for us to board the excursion boats and ride over to the island.

So the next day we got to do Catalina. It's an interesting little island but unfortunately we didn't spend long there as it started raining again pretty hard. Tay and I were supposed to do a snorkeling excursion but not enough people signed up (I assume because of the weather...call me crazy) so they canceled it.

Wednesday was our day in Encinada. Soooo fun! We got to do all kinds of haggling with the little Mexican shop owners and MAN o Man you can get some smokin deals because they are pretty desperate for you to spend your money at their shop and not the next guys. Let's just say I came out pretty well ;) And we learned my sister-in-law Rachel has an amazing ability to haggle at the ripe age of 15. Awesome.

Oops, I still need to upload the Encinada ones I guess. Don't know how I missed those.

Here are some from our many dinners on the ship as well. Good times and gooooood food mmmm.

Good morning sunshine!

2009-02-10T09:27:00.001-08:00

How much do I love my husband? Let me count the ways: I awoke and got in the shower this morning and when I got out, there was this tiny little box gold wrapped on my nightstand with a tiny golden bow. In it, was this:

It's sort of a crappy picture because I took it with my cell phone but it's AMAZING! A blue saphire and diamond ring. Mmmm what an awesome birthday so far! And to make things even better I had 24 happy birthday posts on facebook and a message from my sister in Turkmenistan on my phone when I got to work this morning. I cried because I missed the call and I miss her so much :-( But am so happy she called. Drat! I always cry on my damn birthday!

Next on the Agenda

2009-02-04T10:54:00.000-08:00

So next on the list, we're heading out on our cruise on the 15th. I'm sooooo excited! However, I am really nervous about getting motion sickness. Yuck. Perhaps I'll head to the drug store today and buy everything on the shelf to prevent it. I also hear raw ginger helps. Anyone ever done the 4 day Encinada cruise? Any tips on fun things to do?

I need to stop eating for a week or so before we go to lose a couple of pounds so I can afford to gain it back on the cruise :-) Silly logic I know, but I'd rather just end up the same than heavier.

Need snow!

2009-02-02T10:37:00.000-08:00

Ok, seriously people, this whole summer in January thing has got to stop! We went to Kirkwood on Saturday and were all snowboarding without coats. Heck yes it was awesome and the snow wasn't even icy from melting but that's besides the point! We need more snow! For two reasons: #1: I need some darned powder to surf through!!! and #2: I don't...repeat DON'T want to have to ration water and be all stressed about a drout. Drouts suck.

Crazy story: So as we are leaving Kirkwood Saturday (like 50 degrees all day I kid you not) and it has just started to get pretty nippy outside so it was perfect timing to leave. We're driving along and about two miles down the road some guy is frantically telling us to slow down! So Matt (driver) presses on the break to start slowing down and we start skidding a little. Thank Goodness for ABS. So we slow WAY down and low and behold there is a car right after the bend flipped over. So we pull over and I fully expect to have to bust out the first aid training...so Luke and i get out and run up to the car yelling is everyone ok? and the two ladies had gotten out unscathed... CRAZY! Not a scratch on them. It was just a little late 90's model Nissan. *Note: Buy a Nissan for next car.

So we get back in the car, because someone had already gone for help, and start driving and immediately have to pull over again. The adrenaline from seeing the car had caused Luke's migraine to go full blown and he had to Yak. So sad. We had to pull over two more times so he could heave on the side of the road. Poor guy.....

Quite the adventure Saturday was....I need to start carrying my dang camera!

Extreme Snow

2009-01-27T09:31:00.000-08:00

Sigh....Tay is leaving tomorrow with his dad on a business trip to Southern Colorado. They will be working some serious hours down there but it will all pay off because they get to go to this amazing place that we saw on the Warren Miller movie called Silverton Mountian. It's like going Heli-skiing but it's a lift! not groomed trails, just all fresh and steep pow! Holy crap I'm nervous for them! But sooooooo green with envy too. Lame

So I get to stay at home... and mope because I'm not extreme skiing at this amazing pace that I WANT to go SO BAD. Boo. Oh well. I may go boarding up at Kirkwood with Sammy on Saturday. He's got discount tickets. So that will be nice. I think there is some pretty fresh snow.

I guess I can catch up on my DVR'd shows too. :-/

Nope!

2009-01-26T13:22:00.000-08:00

Well, after carefully inspecting the house we were looking at, we decided not to make an offer. It needed way too much work for the price. Most of it was structural so we're talking thousands. Oh well. Better luck next time. Supposedly prices are to continue to drop drastically in the next year so we'll see.

Offer

2009-01-23T20:41:00.000-08:00

Ok, so we signed the paperwork tonight to make an offer on a house! Go us! Wish us luck. Eeeekkk. We are offering less than the asking price so if we don't get it, oh well, nothing lost. :-)

House shopping...

2009-01-22T11:23:00.001-08:00

Ok, so I'll spill the beans. To those of you who don't know, we have been doing a little house hunting. Or rather, shopping. Yes, we are looking to buy a house *silent crowd cheers - aaaaahhhhh!*

Can you say roller coaster of emotion? We get excited about a prospect....and then find out there's too many things wrong with it and it would be a money sucker. Boo. But no worries, we have time. The market is going to continue to fall. So cross your fingers for us. Off we go!

P.S. I KNOW! Crazy that prices are actually in my price range in the BAY AREA!!! For those of you who don't know what i'm talking about. I would say the median home price out here for a 3 bedroom house was between $450,000-$800,000 a year an a half ago depending on the neighborhood. :-X Yikes.

Things that make me go hmmm.....

2009-01-21T10:39:00.000-08:00

-The fact that I've gained around 7lbs since we got married but my clothes don't seem to be fitting any tighter.....Denial maybe? Or perhaps un-explained muscle tone?....seeing as how i have worked out a whole lot of NADA since the big day. I'm so motivated
- That I am trying to pinch pennies relentlessly and yet, my credit card bill seems to be the same...am I imagining this? - - Probably not. I did just buy a new dress for our cruise (calm down, it was a gift) because I don't own anything "formal" looking that isn't WAY to formal....like my old floor-length homecoming dress.... *sigh*
-Did I mention the cruise? Yep, I'm going on a cruise with my hubby and his family. Will I be puking the whole time due to my notorious motion sickness?? LETS PRAY I don't. Any good suggestions for motion sickness or nausea? I know scopalamine (sp?) gel used to work when I had vagal nerve problems.

ok, i'm done...for now
P.S. Happy Hump day!! Yipee! Half way to Friday!

Economy

2009-01-20T10:29:00.000-08:00

Why is it that right when I am ready to change jobs (because I'm at that phase where I want to do something new and for possibly more pay...and because my patience is wearing thin) that the economy sucks?? People are laying off right and left or having hiring freezes. D'oh! Guess I should suck it up, put on a BIG. SMILE. and quit my whining because I have a job....right?

Diet?

2008-12-30T15:58:00.000-08:00

So I am trying this stuff because there's a bunch of fuss that it works and I got a free 15 day trial (just paid $10 shipping). It's a mix of an Acai supplement and a Colon cleanse supplement and it's supposed to make you lose weight without exercise or changing your diet. I figured, what better time to try it then as the Holiday's are winding down? I am on day two. One thing I did already notice is that I have lost a lot of water but not sure if that's just because I got all sugared out and haven't ate nearly as many sweets yesterday and today as I have for the last two weeks. I weighed myself this morning and was two lbs lighter than yesterday... Coincidence? We shall see....

Christmas-Hater?

2008-12-23T09:30:00.000-08:00

So typically every season, everyone goes through the the "normal" holliday stresses. Such as shopping, dealing with crowds, wraping and of course the financial stress. This year is interesting because though we have the financial stress from our accounts being drained from Christmas shopping, everything else has been relatively smooth. We've hit a couple of rough spots with some other unrelated things, such as having some stuff stolen right from our apartment, and having to feel rather scrooge-like over having to ask one of our roomates to find another place to live (NOT FUN). But relatively speaking this Holliday season has been rather cheerful and happy for me. As many of you know I used to be a Christmas-Hater. Due to the many years of being "The Single One" in my family and having to sit and watch everyone else open there loads of gifts from their spouses and children. Last year was an amazing Christmas due to the efforts of my wonderful Sister-in-Law, Brother and now husband. I think this year is going to be amazing too :-) Yay! I think I don't hate Christmas anymore!

Anniversary

2008-12-12T10:57:00.000-08:00

So yesterday was our 1 year anniversary since we started dating :-D I started counting from our frist kiss, not our first date because the kiss came later. It's such a cool feeling and I'll tell you why: In the past my longest relationship was 8 months. I know... 8 MONTHS?? That's it? Yes, that's it.... I was a huge commitment phobe and so by month 2 or 3 most guys got the axe because I would start picking them apart or they would just start pushing me to get more serious too fast and annoy the crap out of me. My longest dating relationship lasted as long as it did because 1) he wasn't a member of my church 2) he never pushed for anything serious and 3) he was just way fun to be around so I didn't care if it progressed or not.

Now to get to my point. With Taylor, it's totally different...and has been since day one. Right away I saw myself marrying him.... Had it been a year ago and another guy?...Not a snowball's chance in hell. I would be running the other direction as fast as possible if another guy had told me he was in love with me after only 3 weeks. With Taylor, it just made me soooo excited and happy. So there you have it. That's how I knew Taylor was the one. And now it's a year later and I am still just as giddy and excited as day one :-D

Just thought you should know.

Longing

2008-12-11T17:32:00.000-08:00

Can a girl become a professional snowboarder at the age of 27 with a bad knee? If so I'm in. Sign me up. I want to make a living at it. I'm tired of sitting at a desk. That's all :-)

Sleep is my friend

2008-12-08T16:58:00.000-08:00

So I was the queen of sleep this weekend. Friday, I got off work at noon, went home and ate lunch with my honey and then crashed till 3pm when Janet came over to hang for a bit. Then, we went to bed around Midnight that night after and eventful night of dinner, a movie, crime busting by catching some "Dine and Dashers" and then grocerie shopping. We slept till 11am the next morning! We then went up to the Oakland temple with my cousin Drew his wife Hillary and their two boys and watched the interprative dance performance up there at the Stake center as a part of all of the Christmas stuff they have going on. It was....interesting.....I think everyones FAVORITE part (insert laughter because of private joke) was then "The little girl dropped her light and it broke!". ha ha. I think Spencer is still talking about it. Sorry Hil.... ha ha ha Then we had a magical dinner at Fudruckers and played a fun game of Clue DVD. We probably hit the sac around 11 and woke early Sunday for 9am church. The clincher was taking the two hour nap after church. So needless to say, I got a TON of sleep this weekend and it felt GREAT! I actually didn't feel the need for caffiene today which is amazing seeing as how I always have the HUGEST case of the Monday's every week. *sigh* Sleep is my friend...

Inspired to blog

2008-12-02T14:04:00.000-08:00

So I'm totally bummed that we didn't get to go snowobarding while in Utah due to lack of good snow....big bummer....however, we did get to hang out with two of my best friends that i don't get to see often which was awesome. Especially hanging with Jami and Shane and catching up on the years missed. Good times!

In other news: While reading my cousin-in-law's (is there such a thing?) blog in which she expressed how much she appreciates her husband, I decided I would like to do the same. I think that sometimes though we tell them, we just need to say it publicly. Similar to Hillary, I will list it in points:

1) He is so amazing in that he puts up with me when I get whiney and tired or run down feeling. I was terribly sluggish and run down our whole Thanksgiving/Utah trip and slept for the majority of the drive home to CA. He puts up with it like a champ and never makes me feel like I am annoying him, though I am almost positive I am.

2) I must count myself EXTREMELY lucky that he can admit if he's wrong or feels like he's being a jerk right away. Most men are terribly stubborn and just want to be right or "win", if you will.... Not Taylor, if he can see that my feelings are hurt, he will immediately appoligize for acting -insert action here- and affectionately remind me how much he loves me until i have softened. (I'm quite stubborn you see so it takes me some time to let the ice melt when i'm upset)

3) I LOVE LOVE LOVE that if I ask him to do something whether big or small, he will do it right away. No whining, no complaining. He'll just usually say something like "My pleasure" or "of course, I will do anything for you my love" It makes me feel so incredibly respected and loved.

4) I appreciate how much he loves babies. Sometimes men are repelled by most babies except for their own. I love that Taylor will just play and play with a little child or baby. It's so cute. If you know me at all you know how much I love children and babies and always have. So this is a BIG one for me.

Warning: May be graphic
5) I love how sexy he thinks I am. Seriously. He makes me feel like I look like a super model at all times. Every morning when I come out of the bathroom in my robe after showering I start picking out what I want to wear and then take my robe off to start getting dressed. It never fails...as soon as he hears my underwear drawer shut, he wakes up and opens his eyes to appreciate my body and he'll murmer "mmm". And just throughout the day he'll wink at me or goose me. I LOVE it! Though I've always had my self image issues, he makes me feel amazing all the time :)

End of Graphic content :)
6) He is so unbelievably kind. Seriously, you will not talk to one person who does not think Taylor is one of the coolest, most laid back, kindest people they have ever known. He brings good balance with his White personality to my very YELLOW/RED personality traits. He teaches me how to be a better person every day.

So anyway, I just wanted to express those things out loud because I want people to know why I think my husband is so amazing. Cause fact is: HE IS!!!!

Thats all....
for now

Economy?

2008-11-19T12:11:00.000-08:00

Holy cow, I can't believe how slow we have suddenly gotten at work. It's crazy because not many people in this area have been directly affected by the economy yet... And yet business has suddenly gone way down...to the point that I actually get bored at work. I NEVER get bored at work. I always have something to do even if I am being particularly lazy that day and stay signed in to facebook all day. But now, I am actually trying to WILL people to call and make appointments. Not only because I am getting ridiculously bored but also because if this lasts too long it could really hit us hard. I am praying that it doesn't hit so hard that my boss has to cut my salary which is unlikely.....but.....you never know. Expect the worst and hope for the best? We think that people are just really holding on to their pennies right now even if they have not had a change in their status or income for fear of it happening to them sometime soon. I thought with gas prices having dropped so drastically that business would have picked up because more people are driving more often....but it actually did the opposite. Let's just hope we're slow right now because it's the week before thanksgiving and people are just pinching pennies for their travels. I don't want to be a Negative Nancy so I'll change the subject..

I am sooooo stoked to go snowboarding in just over a week. Yay! Pray that we'll have some fantastic pow to shred. Also, I am really excited to see my family. My mom turns 70 on the 26th so this is a milestone for her and we get to be there to help her celebrate! My sister Cynthia and her family are moving to Turkmenistan(sp?) after the first of the year so we will get to see them before they head out too. Sissy (as I call her) and I have always had a good bond so I always miss her terribly since they live abroad for the majority of the time, but I relish every moment I get to hang out and laugh with her, her husband Doug and their adorable kids. So so so excited! My sister-in-law Heather Anne is pregnant and due sometime at the end of April (we're staying at their house on this trip) so I am excited to see her progress as well as her of course along with my brother and their kids. So fun! Yay for family vacations!

One of these days hopefully, Tay and I will get to take a tropical vacation as a couple. He's never been to Hawaii *gasp* so I am just dying to take him and especially to hike the Na Pali Coast. Hopefully next year sometime but we're pinching our pennies too so we'll see. Ok...I am done rambling.

Can't wait for vacation

2008-11-17T14:51:00.000-08:00

I was just thinking to myself today, "I can't wait to get a little vacation with my Tay next week." Not so much because I'm stressed at work or anything because really, who isn't in one way or another? But more because I'm actually looking forward to the 12 hour drive there. *Gasp!* I know, it's sounds loony but here's why I speak such craziness: Last Christmas/New Years break, Taylor flew out to see me in Utah on Christmas night. We had only been dating just over 3 weeks but it was almost unbearable to be apart already. I know, sooo mushy. Anyway, I usually HATE christmas but the combination of my superhero sister-in-law Heather Anne and the fact that Taylor flew out to spend time with me (as well as see his family) made my Christmas by far the best one i have ever had. We went to visit my grandmother in Idaho, he met my whole family almost, aside from the brother + family who lives in Indiana, and we hung with a bunch of his family and went snowboarding twice. It was sooo incredibly fun. And to top off an already amazing vacation we had such an incredibly fun time on the drive home just talking and enjoying each other's company. So, in the middle of the desert we were just chatting about how much fun we have together and how things just flow and that's when he told me that he loved me. It was so cute because he just stated it so matter of factly. Now, normally with any other guy after three weeks I would have shown him nothing but the back of my head as I was running for the hills, but with Taylor, I knew I loved him too. Yes, that soon...and that didn't scare me at all. I knew I wanted to spend eternity with him.

So Anyway, I am really looking forward to our trip because we get to spend some quality one on one time together outside of our normal daily routines. PLUS, we get to go snowboarding...our drug of choice...sigh.... I'm so excited I could pop

SNOW

2008-11-13T15:01:00.000-08:00

Can I just say how incredibly excited I am for the snow?? Taylor and I are driving out to Utah the night of the 26th for Thanksgiving with the fam. We're going to snowbird on the 28th to shred some serious pow because as of yet they've recieved 46 inches of snow in some places! Woot woot! Time to dust of my beautiful Burton Feelgood ES and float down the mountains on a cloud of cold yummy goodness. YES!

In other news...I thought this was interesting. Elton John said the exact message the Yes on Prop 8 people were trying to convey. Things that make you go hmmmm.

Mini Melt-down

2008-11-10T14:27:00.000-08:00

Never mind...

Frustrated...

2008-11-05T14:39:00.001-08:00

I am so frustrated to the point of tears because of all of the mud slinging and name calling surrounding prop 8. People say we should seperate church and state, but regardless, Prop 8 made the ballot and therefore it was up to the people to vote. Because of my beliefs I voted yes on 8 to restore the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman. As a result I am being called a Bigot among other things. I really feel frustrated that people say we all have freedom of speech but attack me for my opinion. I know it's not reasonable to think that everyone will just be respectful of my right to my opinion and agree to disagree but man, it really gets hard to stand up for what you believe when EVERYONE around you is telling you what an awful person that makes you. One of my best friends is gay, and she was saddened when I told her of my decision on how I would be voting.... but we are still friends and hopefully will be for years to come. I find it sad that of all the people who are angry at my vote, she, who has the most reason to be upset, respects my beliefs, understands my reasoning and does not think I am a bigot. She knows I love her and support her happiness any way I can as do I for anyone, male or female who is gay. I am always happy for someone when they find love, happiness and acceptance for who they are from another person.

Election DAY!

2008-11-04T09:44:00.000-08:00

Can I just say how friggin excited I am that the election will be over after today??? Either way it will be interesting to see how it goes. Oh the anticipation!

Trick or Treat?

2008-10-31T12:18:00.000-07:00

I decided to be a redhead for holloween this year. I've always wanted to be a true red head. Also, it's fun to wear this wig because it makes me feel like I have LONG THICK hair. Which I never have and never will. ha ha. Good times. We'll see how the hubby is feeling tonight and go to some holloween stuff. HAPPY HALLOWEEN everyone!!

Prop 8

2008-10-30T09:30:00.000-07:00

Wow... this guy really nails it here. And I love that he is so sarcastic...just my style eh? ha
http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=31822808251&h=Ru1uL

Bridge Benefit Concert on Saturday 10/25/08

2008-10-29T10:57:00.000-07:00

Good times. Sarah Mclaughlin was amazing. So was Nora Jones, Death Cab and good 'ol Jack Johnson. Amazingly talented people I must say. Shoreline is always fun for concerts because you get to be sprawled out on a blanket relaxing....or playing cards during bands you don't care for. Learned a new game that was super fun taught by Taylor's friend Sam, don't remember the name of it but good thing I don't drink or i would have been smashed from losing. But I won the last game. It's a drinking-card game....I think it was called B!#$%*S and A-- holes? Anyhoo, the last game I won and became "president". The president gets to make any rule any time and you have to follow that rule or drink...you get the picture. Ha ha, we stopped playing after I won tho (whew!) cause Death Cab came on. Some lovely pic's above of the festivities and people dancing as though they were on extacy (sp?).

"Deep Thoughts"

2008-10-28T13:30:00.000-07:00

I think people who steal Prop 8 signs and bumperstickers are lame. Why you ask? Let me 'splain...no let me sum up: EVERYONE has freedom of speech. Not just everyone who agree's with them (the stealers of the signage). It really is getting ridiculous.

On a positive note: The Campbell police arrested the said thieves after they stole several signs in broad daylight and were very visible to the callers of said police. Though it seems such a trivial offense, it is PRIVATE PROPERTY and that is stealing private property....Which indeed is a crime. However petty it may seem to those doing the stealing.

Sicky Sickerton

2008-10-28T10:19:00.000-07:00

Taylor is so sick right now. Get this, he got the flu shot....and the flu shot gave him the flu.... So he is hacking up a lung and can hardly eat and his voice box only works about half of the time. As his wife (I'm sure this is normal) I am worried sick. I think he needs a blessing because he just keeps getting worse. When he gets sick it LEVELS him because the diabetes makes his recovery time twice as long as your average person. His immune system just doesn't have the high gear that most of ours does. So it just runs on medium until he finally gets better. Ugh...poor guy, he's so miserable. I am going to go to the store after work and get some ingredients to make some soup for him.

2008-10-27T16:05:00.000-07:00

More Photos:

Bad Blogger

2008-10-27T15:22:00.001-07:00

So as you all can see I am a horrible blogger...However, I am vowing to make a more valiant effort at updating it more regularly. As all of you know we got married in the Bountiful Temple on August 2nd, 2008. It was the most amazing day of my life because I was sealed for time and all eternity to my love and best friend Taylor. How lucky am I??? Seriously....I thank Heavenly Father every day that he is mine :)

Counting down

2008-07-17T12:29:00.000-07:00

So we have 16 days left until we officially tie the eternal knot so I thought I would start a blog. We have spent this week moving Taylors things into the townhouse and everything is fitting and working great in our room. We are so excited! It's getting so hard to focus on work or sleep because my brain is on all of the remaining details! Though few they may be my brain won't stop thinking about them! Oh well, I guess it's to be expected. And so the countdown begins to becoming Mr. and Mrs. Taylor Graves!