Monday Night Guilty Pleasure

Monday nights are an ABC guilty pleasure night for me.  No matter what season it is, I'm likely to be watching or recording the primetime show on Mondays.  I have no shame about it -- it's one of the ways I shut down my brain.

So during this season, if you were to show up at my door & make yourself at home with me, you're going to find me wrapped up in my fleece blankie, favorite sweatshirt on, & DANCING WITH THE STARS on the television. And it just so happens to be "guilty pleasure" week - which means all those cheesy songs we all love to hate & hate to love (think Titanic, Brittany Spears & the like).

That's right, I said I had no shame about it!

But I am excited for hubby to come home -- he's been gone a couple days & I miss the fella.

<3

Family

Happy Easter all!  All in all this Easter was good -- minus Isaac being in Bend with his golf team.  But in all honesty, the highlight was spending the afternoon with my extended family.  Growing up I always felt a little lost in my family.  When everyone gets together, family, spouses, & kids there's easily 60 of us.  A fact that still blows some of my friends away.  There were many Thanksgivings & Christmases spent eating in a garage because that was the only space big enough for all of us.
This year it was one set of my cousins (the Hilligoss' & their kids/spouses), my fave cousin Tasha & her family, my parents, my aunty, the Hilligoss' aunt & uncle & cousin.  Definitely didn't have everyone in attendance, but it still felt like the crazy family get togethers of yesterday.  The only thing missing was our Grandma Jewel.  No one really talked about it - but at the point of hiding eggs for the little kids I felt a small pang missing her & her laugh.  She would have been cracking up at my little cousin Cooper.  
As I get older I appreciate my large family & all it's craziness more & more.  I appreciate all the dynamics that everyone brings to the mix.  I appreciate the way Cindy wants to plan all our big family get togethers, I appreciate the go with the flow naivety of my cousin Tasha & how she sees the best in everyone, I appreciate the awkward intelligence of my cousin Tyler, I appreciate the no bull personality of my cousin Kelly, I appreciate the gentleness & family focus of my cousin Kayla, I appreciate the way my cousin's husband Chad just fits w/ our crazy neurotic clan, I appreciate the spunky personality of Colby's wife Heather, I appreciate the way Colby always seems to make people chuckle, I appreciate the gentleness of my cousin Kyle, and I especially appreciate & love the way all of us want to maintain the big family experience for the next generation.  Maybe that's the biggest realization that came out of today -- it's us now, we are the ones that have to make the plans, keep us getting together, keep the few family traditions alive. Whew that's crazy - it's always been my parents, my aunties & uncles, Grandma & Grandpa Pat & Grandpa Butch.  But I suppose that's the natural course of life...


Crazy how changes seem to sneak up on us...
<3

Book Challenge 2011!

I've decided I need some more quiet in my life -- and what better way to spend that quiet than by reading!  I used to be an avid, borderline voracious, reader.  Anything I put my hands on I completed in like 5 days.  Since being married, things have slowed down sadly.  

So while catching up on Mandee's blog (The Bear Naked Truth) - I noticed a little widget on the side bar  for a reading challenge.  And I thought PERFECT! I am jumping on the bandwagon & diving right in - I am hoping to read at least 35 new books this year, and hopefully more if I can!

Here's where you come in! I need some suggestions! I have one book I'm currently reading now (Love The One You're With by Emily Griffin) and have a couple more books lined up for afterwards.  But that still leaves me about 31 spots to fill of new books! Bring me your thoughts & suggestions! Bring them all!  I want to add the widget they have available to my sidebar - but I'm not THAT technically savvy when it comes to that stuff. Can anyone offer some help on that??  Hopefully it all works like it's supposed to! 

Thanks friends! 

<3

Thankful for excitement & my upcoming trip to Denver!

 

Wee Bit Wednesday

{one} how often do you do laundry?

currently once a week, but i think that's going to get bumped up.

isaac has huge clothes so i'd rather do multiple small loads than 2 HUGE loads.

{two} what is your favorite type of cookie?

chocolate chip...without a doubt

{three} what would you do with an extra $2000 per month?

hire a yard guy, cleaning lady & update the wardrobe

{four} what was/is your favorite subject in school? 

i really loved history - and almost became a high school history teacher

{five} have you ever ridden in a hot air balloon?

no i haven't - but wouldn't mind it!

{six} what was your high school mascot?

we were the Celtics - i still know the fight song & dance

{seven} if you had the chance to go in to space, would you?

probably - i mean how many people EVER have that kind of chance?!

{eight} how often do you go dancing?

not very often - but went a couple weeks ago w/ friends

{nine} would you rather drive or fly?

fly -- i want to get where i'm going so i can enjoy it the longest time possible

{ten} have you ever been caught re-gifting?

don't think so, but i definitely have re-gifted! muahahaha

Sorry for the lack of interesting posts as of late friends - I've been trying to focus my energy on getting my rear end to the gym & making better food choices, but alas the food is still my hang up.  

All in all, what usually ends up happening is I go to the gym for Group Power/running or go running & then get home and am exhausted. That's right, exhausted. As in no energy for anything.  So as a result, our laundry has yet to be folded, we have yet to go grocery shopping (yes I've mentioned probably about4 or 5 times here & on my twitter that we were going...it's yet to be accomplished), and there are still dishes in my sink.  I'm looking forward to the day when I'm energized from all this working out to get the house spic & span, have the office finally organized (i.e. go thru isaac's old paperwork & organize), the middle room finished with Isaac's recording things put together & our entire bedroom/bathroom cleaned top to bottom .  Yes that will be the day!

Maybe I'll start registering my food choices here as a for of accountability...hmm...or not. That's a whole heck of a lot of transperancy with the blogging world I'm not quite sure I'm ready for.  I think I'll just stick with my WW log.

Love to you friends!

<3

Workouts & Quiet Nights

Well my friends I know I have been MIA the last few days - life & work has just been so crazy that I've barely had time to even think or do anything other than work & crash.  So my apologies! I have been keeping up on your blogs though! :)


But I will say that I have been sticking to my workout schedule - which is making me pretty proud of myself.  And tonight I added a quick 30 min run after my weight lifting class.  First time I've done that, but dang I felt good afterwards.  So I may just keep that in the mix of things after class on M/W/F.  
And I'm so appreciating the quiet nights Isaac & I have been having as of late. It's so relaxing and comforting know that we can sit together and just chill out.


8 days til we get out of town & I can't even express how much I am looking forward to getting out of town.  I'm always a little nervous getting together with Ike's family, but I'm sure it'll all work out fine.  It'll be fun to see Ike's brother get married and be all together - but send me your good thoughts next weekend! :)
<3

Sleep Deprivation

Let me start off by acknowledging that I in no way really know or have experienced sleep deprivation (i.e. moms to newborns, military, nurses/doctors, etc).  

That being said, the last three nights of sleep that I have gotten have been terrible. Just terrible.  And the primary culprit to said terrible sleep....my lovely husband's lack of use of his CPAP machine.  I am not exaggerating when I say that he has the LOUDEST snore in the world & it is consistent...no breaks, which would give me a chance to fall back asleep. And this morning I felt like I was gonna go off the deep end!
Well about a year ago some things popped up that gave us kind of a scare, so ultimately he ended up going through a sleep study & getting a CPAP.  This isn't the CPAP of your father or grandfather's day.  This baby is small & quiet (I reckon it sounds like a wave machine).  And it changed the way we live & sleep!  I compared it to a miracle in our marriage after the first couple nights.  Have someone in your life who snores like a bear or can fall asleep literally anywhere at any given time?  They may want to check out the CPAP/sleep study; it'll change your lives!

So here's the dilemma...when Isaac doesn't sleep with the CPAP on he snores & snores & snores...and I can't sleep, thus becoming a major B-face.  I am not exactly the easiest/nicest person when I'm really tired and am trying to sleep with no avail.  It got bad this morning, but lucky me I married one of the most patient & understanding men out there.  Despite my outburst of pure exhaustion, Isaac didn't get upset with me at all...let me go back to sleep while he got up & started getting ready and simply hugged & kissed me when he left.  Oy...talk about guilty conscience! 

How do you handle interruptions to your sleeping patterns?!
<3

Thankful for a quiet office this afternoon....I need a slight break from people

Wee Bit Wednesday!

As always thanks to Leigh Ashley for her Wee Bit Wednesday series!

{one} have you ever fainted?

no - but I have been feeling pretty dizzy lately...

{two} what is your favorite casino game?

slots...i'm a slots girl. although Isaac makes the big bucks when he plays blackjack!

{three} do you have a good sense of direction?

i think so - i don't get worked up about "getting lost"

and i've made my way around Hawaii by myself, so I feel pretty confident!

{four} laptop of desktop?

i really like both of my computers

{five} what is your go-to hairstyle when you're having a bad hair day?

low pony tail...rockin' it today

{six} do you read the newspaper on a daily basis?

i glance at it daily when I get to the office

{seven} do you have a favorite celebrity chef?

tom colicchio(sp?), anthony bourdain, and I know he's not a chef - but Adam from Man Vs. Food

{eight} what tv show would you like to make a guest appearance on?

hmm...Grey's Anatomy for sitcoms, but would also LOVE to be on Big Brother one day, i love that show! it's my summer addiction

{nine} do you have satellite radio in your car?

nope

{ten} what was the last movie that made you cry?

i watched "Possession" - a lesser known Gwyneth Paltrow movie.

it's about two literature profs who investigate a possible love affair between two Victorian author/poets & inevitably end up falling in love too. i love how it bounces between the two love stores - the Victorian era & the modern day.  i'm inspired now to order the book off amazon & get to reading on my flight to Denver in a couple weeks! we shall see

<3

Thankful for friends, birthday dinners, & cute little babies I got to hold last night