Movin' on up!

Here it is! Our rental house.
Last weekend we went a bought a mower so we could get all domestic on our lawn. Kyle said he actually enjoyed it (the lawn isn't too large) and soon after was excited to get working on the next project. We are so excited to be in a home!
Although we moved all weekend when my Dad was here, we still didn't quite manage to get it all done. Kyle and I went back this week to get the last load or so and clean the place up before we turned in our keys.
This is moving day! My Dad is the one waving from the door!

Well, it had been well over a week since I blogged and I have got to chalk it up to the total chaos of moving. The weekend before last we had my Dad visiting and we did some major moving. And we continued to have a crazy week last week as we waded through the boxes and settled into our new casa.

We are still getting settled and organized - and I think it will be some time before we are really cozy (it is such madness moving from one place to another).

But we are happy and thrilled and getting used to the neighborhood life. Such a relief after living in apartments for years and years. When we get the house finished I will post some pictures. You wouldn't really be able to appreciate it now as there is still minor chaos in each room.

I will attempt to get back into the swing of blogging as things start to settle down for us.

Take Care!

-L

Moving Day

40 Tips for a Better Life

40 Tips for a Better Life

1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.

2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.

3. Buy a DVR and tape your late night shows and get more sleep.

4. When you wake up in the morning complete the following statement, 'My purpose is to __________ today.'

5. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.

6. Play more games and read more books than you did in 2007.

7. Make time to practice meditation, and prayer. They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives.

8. Spend time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of six.
9. Dream more while you are awake.

10. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that> is manufactured in plants.

11. Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, wild Alaskan > salmon, broccoli, almonds & walnuts.

12. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

13. Clear clutter from your house, your car, your desk and let new and flowing energy into your life.

14. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, OR issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

15. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class, but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

16. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed-out charge card.

17. Smile and laugh more. It will keep the NEGATIVE BLUES away.

18. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

20. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

21. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

22. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.

23. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

24. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?'

26. Forgive everyone for everything.

27. What other people think of you is none of your business.

28. REMEMBER GOD heals everything.

29. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

30. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

31. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

32. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

33. The best is yet to come.

34. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

35. Do the right thing!

36. Call your family often. (Or email them to death!!!)

37. Each night before you go to bed complete the following statements: I am thankful for __________. Today I accomplished _________.

38. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.

39. Enjoy the ride. Remember this is not Disney World and you certainly don't want a fast pass.
You only have one ride through life so make the most of it and enjoy the ride.

40. Share this with everyone you care about. I just did.

May your troubles be less,

May your blessings be more,

May nothing but happiness come through your door!

Apologize when you should, And let go of what you can't have.

Gentlemen..Start your engines!

This week is going to be an interesting one. My mind and body were exhausted this weekend in anticipation of what was happening this week. My Father is coming to visit on Thursday and will be with us until the following Tuesday. We sign our lease on Friday and will be moving into the rental house on Saturday.
It was very fortunate that my Dad's visit was scheduled when it was as far as us moving as I have been told to take it extremely easy for the next several weeks by my doctors. So Kyle will have a second pair of hands to help - although we have hired movers to do the brunt of the work. Work is lining up to present a hectic week as well - with the possibility of a day trip to Atlanta (my fingers are crossed that it waits but who knows!). I already have to travel today to a church we are building an hour or so away from my office. And basically we have today and tomorrow to pack our apartment (we have accomplished almost nothing thus far) up as Wednesday we have lifegroup and Thursday my Dad will be here and I would like to have a comfy place for him to stay amidst the boxes. This kills me because being a good hostess is so important to me. The type A part of me goes into overdrive when I have a guest coming to stay or dinner guests coming over. I'm not sure why - but the whole hostess thing is a huge deal to me and I struggle with knowing my Dad will be visiting us in chaos. I have calmed myself with the fact that he is a guy and I know that he does not see the world as many of us women do. If my Mom were here I would be a wreck about the mess!!

Along with all of that there is the unavoidable errands, emails and calls to make to transfer electric and cable services and renters insurance to get squared away. We are also planning to paint the master bedroom and bathroom on Saturday (this will be my job as I cant lift anything for the move and am hopeful that painting will not be too strenuous) and on Friday after we sign the lease I believe we will be giving the house a quick scrub down to be ready for our things and relocating our 50 gallon fish tank and fish so they will be out of the way of the movers (this should be interesting as we have to save a fair amount of the water to transfer with the fish so we dont put them out of equilibrium with too much new water).

We are also on a craiglist hunt for a washer and dryer set. We have found that somes great deals are out there and we are searching for the right price. We have found though that things sell so fast that you have to constantly monitor the list if you are searching for specific things. Twice we have called on items and been told that they have just sold and they were only on the website for an hour. Crazy....

We thought we had found the perfect puppy this weekend as well on an add from someone in Tampa. Surprisingly enough it turned out to be some sort of internet scam with someone pretending to have this dog in order to get personal information. It was crazy but they got nothing from us as we realized it sounded fishy on the second email from the supposed puppy owner. Wow..it is a scary world out there!

I had a great time on Saturday with my girlfriends - we met up for lunch at Crispers and then went back to the Pottery Patch for another fun experience. We decided that painting is theraputic and we all enjoy it so much as we sit there and talk and take our time painting our chosen pieces of art. I am hoping to get picture of everyones work so I can post more than just my own. This week I made a cookie jar canister. I painted zebra stripes on it with red details and it says "animal crackers" on the front. I can't wait to see the end result after it is glazed and fired. After Pottery, Amanda and I continued on to get pedicures (Pottery and Pedi's!) and had a good time discussing Harry Potter (we had both just finished the 7 book series and didnt want to bore/ annoy the others with our animated discussions of it) much to the amusement of our pedicurists and another lady in the shop. We also were pretty funny as we had stopped by Sweetbay and grabbed some iced teas and Chex Mix as we were starving after our pottery fun and munched on our snacks while sitting in the pedicure chairs. There is nothing as relaxing and rejuvenating as a pedicure (except maybe a massage..). If you are a Harry Potter fan - watch my Overflow page for an upcoming post - if you aren't a fan it will probably make no sense at all.

Back to moving..

I cannot wait to get into this house - there are so many upcoming projects and fun things to do. Along with the puppy, I have some fun refinishing projects to start on (with actual space to do it now!) and Kyle is excited to get a grill and start cooking...I see a lot of meat in my future..lets hope for my sake that that includes a lot of grilled chicken as opposed to red meat as I fear I am constantly fighting the battle of the buldge as of late.

I hope to blog more this week - but if you don't hear from me you can probably figure out the reason!



Have a happy Monday!

Happy Birthday Heath!

Today is the birthday of my very best friend, Heather. Have a fabulous day Mizz Jeans!

glitter-graphics.com

thirteen things to be happy about

Today I was going to list 13 things that were bothering me and then 13 things that I was happy about. The first list sounded too negative and who wants to reflect on the bad anyhow? So, I put it in the Lord's hands and off of my mind and I am going to share with you the 13 things that I am happy about today.


1. I am happy to be reading the last Harry Potter book. I was waiting for my fellow Harry fan to finish.

2. I am happy to be packing in order to move to the rent house next week.

3. I am happy that my Father is coming to visit Kyle and I for almost a week long trip! And it happens that we are moving during that time (clever aren't we?). Actually we didnt plan it that way - it just goes to show that you cannot PLAN your life out. Surprises (both good and bad) always seem to pop up.

4. I am happy that the purchase of a puppy is in our very near future!!!

5. I am happy to have a hilarious, adorable, sweet, and amazing husband that I am head over heels in love with.

6. I am happy to be going to paint pottery again on Saturday with the girls.

7. I am happy that our lifegroup is studying Prayer and that it seems to be working on the hearts of those in the group despite the overwhelming problem we all seem to have of self-control over "snapshots" happening during a great lesson.

8. I am happy to be alive and thankful to be surrounded by generous and loving people.

9. I am happy that it is almost the weekend and I get to wear jeans to work tomorrow.

10. I am happy to be listening to a movie while I work on my computer.

11. I am happy to not yet know the results of my licensing exam. The date that they should be coming is fast approaching and I am terrified to see the F on the paper when I open it and know that I have to retake it.

12. I am happy to be planning on painting and decorating a house of my own (even if it is rented). I have been living in dorms and apartments since 2001 when I moved out of my parents homes. I am ready to LIVE in a house and have a yard.

13. I am happy that Kyle and I's fish are thriving and we have had no funerals by the toilet bowl for many a month (knock on wood!).

I am happy. I hope you are happy too. Enjoy your Thursday!
If you are a "My Boys" fan - the season premiere is tonight!!!!




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Puppy Love

Those who know me well would probably agree that I have never been much of an animal person. However I have wanted a dog for the last couple years and have been waiting until we were in a house to get one. Well, next week we are moving into a house that we are renting and we are sooooo excited. This means that soon we will be deciding on a puppy. We are semi torn when it comes to the breed of dog that we want. Kyle wants a poodle

which is what his parents have. And I grew up with a pomeranian and would love to have one as a pet again. Kyle has had an allergy to pet dander in the past so we have to be careful of the breed we get when it comes to shedding. So basically, a pomeranian is out as they are just little puffs of fur.

So, we went to a pet store to get a feel for what kind of puppy we might want. The one we went to was nice and you could pick the puppies up and play with them. We really loved the Shih tzus and Maltese pups and began thinking about looking for one of those breeds mixed with a poodle. The Shih-poos and Malti-poos seem to be pretty popular, so we are looking in that direction. We are going on a trip in mid July so we are going to wait until then to get anything for sure.

As we have been looking on the internet and asking people that we know I have found that the whole thing is kind of intimidating if you know as little about dogs as I do. For starters we want an inside dog that is small and affectionate. I didn't realize I would need to worry about all of these bad breaders and scam artists that are out there. I had never heard terrible stories of puppy mills and bad pet stores and all kinds of scary things about diseases and registrations, etc.
I am getting a little overwhelmed with it all. Even my Mother is not totally supportive of a puppy for Kyle and I - she says it is so much responsibility and I know that it is but, I also know that we are ready for it and excited to take care of a dog. We have had fish for over a year now and have had lots of fun with that (and trust me its kind of an extensive undertaking too).

We are building up slowly you see - Can we take care of fish? Can we take care of a puppy? Should we even consider the possibility of having children and taking care of them? I am completely sure that I am not ready to bring another person into the world. But taking care of a puppy - that I know I am capable of.

Well, its going to be a few weeks until we start looking ultra-seriously (right now I am gathering information and learning all I can so we can make a good decision).

Happy Wednesday!

-L

Typical Tuesday

Thought I would share a picture today. This one is from part of our honeymoon which we spent on the island of Maui. We were hiking to a waterfall that was located off the road and we came upon this and thought it was so interesting.

Not too much going on today. I am enjoying my peaceful lunch hour before I have to get back to the most recent of deadlines to be gracing my desk. I love staying in for lunch because it is so much more relaxing than going out and fighting traffic although sometimes I just need to leave the building! I have a doctor's appt. this afternoon for some more pain management shots so that will be a break in the afternoon half of the work day. What stinks is that I have to get these shots and they make me feel so clammy and faint - my hope is that this time around they will also leave me feeling relieved and with less pain.

I guess I will leave it at that - have as fabulous a Tuesday as you possibly can!

-L

Cul-de-Sac Party (Part II) and the Cornhole Championship

Here is the lifegroup (plus a few others) at Doug and Becky's neighborhood gathering. They invited the whole gang to come out on Saturday evening and have fun. Everyone brought their dogs, coolers, camping chairs, and some food to share. It was a lot of fun meeting their friendly neighbors - there was a real old fashioned type feeling with the neighbors all gathering as friends and eating and enjoying one anothers company. Kyle and I were happy to be included!
The game of Cornhole was the main event of the party. 22 people were entered in and teams were selected using the ancient tradition of drawing names out of a hat :)
Lights were brought out to light the area after sundown as well as a giant scoring pad and bracket to keep track of the tournament progress. Each team also had a creative name which made it pretty fun. I was teamed with our good friends James and our team name was, "The Cornhole Theory", other team names included. "The Untouchables" and "The Gladiator Gals".
My team was eliminated in the first round as I have zero cornhole skills. After the final team was declared victor, the two team members battled it out for the championship cup. Doug was the champion and was awarded the prize as well as two smaller prizes that were divided between the winning team members. Above is a picture of the winning team. As you can see they were also accosted with some water balloons to celebrate their winnings.

Here are the girls watching the Cornhole Game.
Here is a pic of all the gals in our group. We were so excited to have Kim there as she has been missing a lot of our activities due to work.

I brought some appetizers and dip to the party and they were such a hit that I wanted to share them with my friends here as well.

Cheesy Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Prep Time:10 min
Total Time:30 min
Makes:2-3/4 cups or 22 servings, 2 Tbsp. each
1 can (14 oz.) artichoke hearts, drained, finely chopped
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained
3/4 cup 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese
3/4 cup Mayo Light Mayonnaise
1/2 cup 2% Milk Shredded Reduced Fat Mozzarella Cheese
1/2 tsp. garlic powder

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Mix all ingredients; spoon into 9-inch quiche dish or pie plate.
BAKE 20 min. or until heated through.

Turkey Peppercorn Ranch Bites


Prep Time:15 min
Total Time:15 min
Makes:12 servings, 1 slice each

2 oz. (1/4 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA Neufchatel Cheese, 1/3 Less Fat than Cream Cheese
1/4 cup Peppercorn Ranch Fat Free Dressing
3 ® Flour Tortillas
1 pkg. (6 oz.) Thin Sliced Oven Roasted Turkey Breast
12 Bread 'N Butter Pickle Chips
MIX Neufchatel cheese and dressing until well blended.
SPREAD evenly onto tortillas; top with turkey.
ROLL up tortillas tightly; cut each into 4 slices. Top each with pickle chip. Secure with wooden toothpick.

both recipes came from www.Kraftfoods.com

Pottery Party

Here are some pics from our Girl's Night Out a week ago. We went to the Pottery Patch in Brandon and painted pottery and then went to Amanda's house to play Nerts and some other card games.

Once we got to the Pottery Patch we had to select our object to paint. I had the hardest time deciding what to do. I finally settled on a plate and started painting it with no real set idea or concept. Next time I plan on going with a idea of what I want to make. But the first time was kind of a trial run for all of us. Becky picked our stuff up this Saturday (it takes a week to fire and glaze it) and I was pretty happy with my plate: (see pic below)Amanda painted an ice cream bowl and Kristen painted a plate with wording on it.
Ashley painted an ice cream bowl as well and Becky painted a trophy for the Cornhole champion at their neighborhood Cul-de-Sac party. We had such a great time that we are already planning a second trip in the very near future.

Thirteen Must Haves for the Beach

Well, my summer has yet to yield me a beautiful beach day but, sitting here at my desk miles from the shorelines of the Gulf I am daydreaming my way to the perfect spot on the beach. Here is my must have list - let's hope I convince Kyle that a beach day is a must ASAP.

1. The Beach Umbrella: As much as I love the sun I also love the shade and at the beach you have to have a retreat from the roasting.

2. The Cooler: Must have Beach Drinks are water water water. I hate drinking much else while I am there, except perhaps a flavored water.

3. The Best Suit: You know..the one that makes you feel pretty and not overly exposed - there is plenty of that out there. The perfect suit is very important.

4. The Cover-Up: maybe it is just me - but I strategize about what cover-up to wear depending on whether or not we are hanging out afterwards or heading back home. Do I need a casual cover-up or a cute one that becomes a dress at sundown?

5. The Towels: Even though they will all be sandy by the end of it - you gotta have em' if not just to guard your car from drippy suits on the way home.

6. The Boogie-Board: While I am not a big water fan (more of a sand crab actually)if I do venture into the ocean, I want a boogie board to relax and float on and then if I get adventurous I do sometimes concede to riding the waves into shore.

7. The Reading Material: I can't go without it.

8. The Sunblock: Well DUH!

9. The Football or Frisbee: To keep the guys entertained.

10. A Phone: So when your family from far away calls you can go, "Oh yeah...just at the beach..."

11. The Food: You will need sandwhiches, fruit and chips or some other snacky thing. Something at the beach just makes me HUNGRY!

12. The Pail and Shovel: I mean how much fun is it if no one gets buried in the sand?

13. The Deodorant: Reapply Reapply Reapply!

Have a great Thursday everyone!

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