February already?

I can't believe it's February already but I'm so happy because I love HEARTS! Anything cutesy and heartsy and Valentine's day related! The husband isn't into the girlie Valentine's décor so I haven't gotten too carried away with it. I love using our front window (bow windows display things so well) to put decorations in, so I just put two hanging hearts in it and the candles light it up nicely. I will add some more things to the house, when he's not looking. haha In other news, things have been status quo here. Not much new and exciting to report. I'm still cursing this nasty WHITE stuff that we have on our lawn and all over the streets & now I hear that we may be getting MORE? I hope not. YUCK. We did an overnight in A.C. for my sister's birthday and that was a great time. We had a light dinner with lots of laughs, some entertainment at the karaoke bar and finished up early with some dancing. It was a nice time away with just the girls. Then I had a great time last week with my niece. She slept over because my sister had to work overnight and I loved having her here. I always do! We watched some iCarly, played some educational games on PBSkids(dotcom) and then I tucked her in and read her Rapunzel and Sleeping Beauty. She loves the story of Rapunzel so she was thrilled that it was in the story book. She's already asked me to read it to her again when she comes over. My sister bought me the Grimm's Fairytales book about 7 years ago. She inscribed the inside cover and wrote that I could read it to her future nieces or nephews... Ironically, I'm reading it to my niece. I wouldn't have it any other way. Being an aunt is so rewarding and makes my heart so happy and very full. We had a great time together and I got her off to school in the morning. I would've preferred to spend the whole day with her but I wouldn't have been a very good aunt if we played hooky and I'd kept her home. She loves school too much anyway. I'm looking forward to the weekend and spending some time with friends that I haven't seen in a while. Game night always rocks & then Sunday we're off to a Super Bowl party. While I'm not a football fan, I still like to socialize and enjoy yummy snacks! Tomorrow night I've got plans for a dinner/movie date with my good friend Stephanie.. Not sure what we're seeing but I'm leaning towards Black Swan. I hope she concurs.

Karma

I'm sorry. I know there are mixed opinions on this one but give me a break. It's funny.. and truth is no one knew WHO it was until she made a stink about it. Today, reading about her shady past, I feel like karma just paid her a little visit. I'm glad she didn't get injured in any way.. To Laugh or not to laugh?

Down the tube

My day, thus far, has been anything but productive. NY & Co was a big fail. What happened to their clothes? Not to mention that they're not that cute anymore, but I looked at a top that caught my eye & it was $43. I'm a frugal shopper so that might be too pricey for me to begin with, but WOW. So I took the outfit back and was issued a store credit. Maybe I'll shop online with it; they're bound to have some cute accessories (although then I have to pay shipping). Whatever. So I did meet my sister at the mall and we had lunch and chatted about everything under the sun. We usually do! Guess that was the highlight of my day. I need to get my hair/bangs cut BADLY and I wanted to pick up some new makeup, but I came right home after I left the mall. I honestly feel like laying down and taking a nap. I guess I'm just in a funk now. My mom is really sick and won't go to the doctor - she's very stubborn. I have a lot of things going through my mind about it. She always seems to be sick (as in achy body, etc) and it scares the hell out of me that it's so frequent. Today I had a lot of guilt that I haven't pressed her to go to the doctor but I can't physically MAKE her. She'd be all over me if I thought I had something wrong and she would go to the doctor's WITH me but I think she's just afraid of what she might hear. I don't know what's wrong with her; I'm not a doctor. I just have some crazy notions in my head - and I want her to get checked out. She hasn't been to a doctor in years - maybe a wellness check is all she needs. Some vitamins? I know she's had high blood pressure in the past so that's a concern. My mom is literally about 5'2" and weighs probably just over 100 lbs. She is all bones and the smoking doesn't help. She could live on cigarettes and Pepsi. In fact, I feel like sometimes she does. I called the doctor today to see if I can get her in there on Monday but the answering service said their phones are forwarded for the day. Great. I could make her an appt with my own doctor but I know they're tough when it's a new patient. Sometimes they're accepting new ones and sometimes they want you to jump through hoops. She has to go no matter what. I just have to convince her somehow and I won't take no for an answer. Wish me luck.

On the agenda

It must be Friday because I'm still running around the house in my pajamas and making a mental list of what I need to do today. As always, my Friday ritual definitely has cleaning on the list! I also need to get out and return an outfit that was a gift from Christmas. My sister bought me a cute outfit from New York & Co but they always run big there. The top is one size too big and of course, when I went there last, they didn't have the size I needed so now I'll either have to find another or just get store credit. No problem. I love going to the mall by myself; you have no one trailing behind you or pulling you in another direction. So nice that I can get right in and right out. Tomorrow the girls are headed to Atlantic City for my sister's birthday. We go every year (that's what she likes to do). We usually have a light dinner and some drinks at The Irish Pub and then just head out for dancing later.. and of course, we have to stop at the karaoke bar. That's always a blast! I've got to be honest though, every year, I'm so excited to go and can't wait .. but this year, I don't really feel like I want to go. Maybe since I'm married, I just want to stay at home. It just feels weird. I wouldn't have minded if we stayed local and just went out dancing etc. But I'm just going to suck it up and go. I know I'll have a good time. I also just started my online course this past Wednesday and it wasn't really what I thought it would be. I guess I thought that it was going to be somewhat interactive but it's not. I basically just log in to the "classroom" and read. There are quizzes, a discussion area and will ultimately be a final exam so it's not all that lame. : ) just looking forward to adding some education/skills to my résumé. I really want to get into the medical field in an administrative position. *Fingers crossed* Well, I'm off to get my Friday started & get all my errands done. Hopefully. Have a Great Weekend!

no words ...

I lied - I do have words for this one but none that I could repeat and even sound remotely like a "lady". Before anyone reading this, thinks it's about the "A" word; it's not (strictly) about that. Everyone has their opinions on THAT but the plain and simple fact here is that this "doctor" murdered babies. Real, LIVE, babies.
He is insane -- An example of the evil that lurks among us in this world-

Tuesday Blues

I felt so awful when I woke up this morning & I waited it out for a bit before calling off for the day. I don't like doing that and leaving my work for someone else to do but I guess we all pick up the slack for each other. I decided to lie down for a while (actually watched two really good movies) and now I'm feeling a bit better. I called my mom & asked her to go to lunch; so spur of the moment but I know she's up for it. I just hope that the roads aren't crazy. I heard there's tons of ice on the roads and that makes for a very treacherous drive. My awesome husband was up earlier than usual, shoveling and de-icing both of our cars. He's such a good man. I figured I'd utilize my time home today & make a really nice dinner for all of his hard work he does around here. I'm still thinking about what to make, and I'm scouring the net for ideas. I want something yummy but it has to be EASY and have FEW ingredients. I know, that sounds so boring but you'd be surprised how many great meals you can make in less than an hour and with only a few ingredients. Ok, maybe not a FEW, but at least under 10. I'm off to shower & get ready to head out. Hope you're all having a great week so far.

Another productive Friday!

I actually went to bed fairly early last night, even considering that I didn't have to work today. I was able to get up early enough to meet my sister for breakfast, at our favorite spot for the BEST deal on breakfast. Seriously, the diner that we go to has a GREAT breakfast deal, Monday through Friday. You have to get there before 10, so we're always rushing out the door, and just making it there! It was so funny, the first time we went, I thought our waitress gave us the wrong check. No lie - our check today: 2 coffee, 2 small OJ, 1 eggs/bacon/toast/homefries, 1 eggs/scrapple/toast/homefries for a grand total of - $8.51 I kid you not. Is that not a great deal for breakfast? I don't think I could go anywhere else and get that deal for even ONE person. So then after a quick breakfast, I made my run to the store for cleaning stuff, came home and cleaned, threw in a load of laundry and headed back out to register for an online course I'm taking through our community college. I can't wait! It's a non credit course, so that stinks but at least it's something I can add to my resumé - since it's an admin medical course.
Then my sister invited me to my niece's Family Involvement Day - so that was a nice treat! My niece had no idea I was coming so she was pretty surprised when I walked in! The theme was Winnie The Pooh - apparently it's his birthday so they had all these Pooh-themed activities. It was really cute. The kids were so happy that their moms and dads came. I always get so upset when I see a child who didn't have anyone show. My niece took my hand and led me around the room showing me her cubby and some of her works of art. She was very proud. : ) Finally, my sis and I ended up back at my house, ordered take out and relaxed a bit. Now I'm so tired and can't wait to just fall into my comfy bed and stay under the covers until my big blue eyes open tomorrow. But that really doesn't work because my husband's idea of sleeping in is until about 7 and I feel like a bum if I stay in bed.

Old school

I went back to an "old" Blogger template for now. At least until I'm able to sit down and edit a little more. Everyone has such cute blog backgrounds etc, I just haven't had the "ooomph" to sit and fiddle with all of the possibilities. I've been updating almost regularly though; that's a big step for me! I've been trying to catch up on my reading so I've not been spending as much time in front of the computer lately. So not like me. :) I guess the reading kind of tires me out which is good because I'd really LOVE to have one night of really GREAT sleep. For some reason, my sleep is always broken up. I have not slept through the night in ages. U-G-H. Not fun. But yay for Thursday!! My weekend has begun.

All discombobulated

* I took a stab at spelling that so I'm sure it's not quite right *

As you can clearly see, I've been trying to tweek my blog a bit. I needed a change; something new and jazzy. BUT evidently I need to "tweek my tweeking" because I done messed it all up. I just realized I am missing a whole handful of "stuff" on my blog. My archive links are all gone, my profile info and picture have disappeared.. etc. Dang it! I promise I'll get to fixing it TOMORROW. It's diffcult, being on the lap top, to get into all of the editing. Hope you're all having a fantastic week - Snow days all over!

My niece Chloe

My oldest sister, whom we all were sure wouldn't have children (due to her struggle w/Crohn's and some other past issues).. gave birth to a beautiful baby girl this past November! We're all so thrilled with her arrival and look forward to watching her grow and learn, but most of all, look forward to all of the happy memories.
Here are a few pictures - I've been greedy and haven't shared. I posted one of my beautiful sis too - in all her pregnant-glowing-glory. *in the last photo, Chloe looks as if she's "getting rid of something" but I think she was just leaning forward*

Early Weekend

Well I called in sick today - I have a sucky sinus headache and I really just wanted to lay in bed all the live long day. I finally roused around 9:30 or so and decided I should be doing something productive at home since I wasn't doing any such thing at work today. So I threw the bedding in the washer and I cleaned the kitchen a bit. Heavens to Betsy, my kitchen floor is linoleum and it's driving me crazy to see how it just doesn't come as clean as I'd like- so I decided today that I really need to scrub it on my hands and knees. Who does that anymore? Mr. Clean Magic Eraser works wonders on that kind of stuff so I guess I'll be off to the store and hopefully getting that floor all spic-n-span before the weekend's over. Other than that, my weekend plans include maybe having a sleepover with my niece & having my cousin and her husband over for dinner on Saturday. That should be nice. I love to entertain - so I hope they don't cancel. I was planning to go all out and make a nice big dinner but we have church at 4 so I may opt for pizza instead. Kind of cheap of me but it's much easier to visit and socialize when I'm not prepping and then cleaning up a messy kitchen. Right? Right. Guess I better get my butt off this computer chair and start tidying up the rest of the house now. Happy Thursday; it's almost Friday.

Blog Challenger - Post #7 - How you came across Blogger...

and how it changed your life.

Hmmm.. I'm wondering if it has really changed my life in any way. I guess in a way, it has. Blogger is the best thing since sliced bread. How cliché of me? Since I started blogging, 5 years ago, (holy cow!), Blogger has been a way of me journaling the good, the bad, and the ugly of my life. And sometimes other peoples'. Oops.
But, all joking aside, Blogger is just an awesome way to make friends (even virtually), and to keep friends etc up to date on what's happening in my life, what's bothering me, what's making me happy or sad. I love reading everyone's posts/stories and seeing pictures that you all share. It's like I have all these friends that only exist in the blogosphere but I love it! Sometimes, my friends aren't always there to lend an ear and as long as I have my blog, I always have someoene who cares about what I have to say. We often share the same trials and tribulations and it's so awesome being able to relate to someone on so many levels.
My husband does not "get" the blogging thing AT ALL. He thinks I log on and just start telling everyone about my life etc... complete strangers. *GASP* Strangers??? Bite your tongue. These are my friends! ** corny clip art below **