More Running Than I Thought Possible...

Have I mentioned I have a dream of being a fantastic runner?? Well I do. I think I REALLY just have a dream of having a runner's body...but hey...I'm sure they got that body from running, right?

I was very active in high school, playing volleyball, basketball, and running track (and when I say running...I mean throwing...and really I mean just leaving practice early to go get slurpies and some pizza!) so you wouldn't think this running thing would be do difficult for me. Well you'd be wrong! I'm super slow and I've never run more than a mile in my life...and that was just when I was forced to run them in gym class.


First I thought...set a goal. So my goal is to run a 5K sometime this year.

Second I thought...figure out your training plan. I went to the Internet and found two 8-week programs. The first one is for beginning runners and the second one is for people who can already run about 2 miles and are training for a 5K.

Third I thought...do it! I'm on my third week of training...
I do all of my training in 30 minute increments (so this has equaled out to me doing these sequences 4 times).

Week 1: Walk 6 minutes, run 1 minute (repeat); do three times a week
This week was fairly simple. I have already been running off and on for about a year (not in long increments mind you) but a minute I can handle.

Week 2: Walk 5 minutes, run 2 minutes (repeat); do three times a week
I admit this was a little bit harder. I truly felt like this week was going to be it for me. I couldn't believe how tired my body got from just running two minutes at a time!

Week 3: Walk 3 minutes, run 4 minutes (repeat); do four times a week
I have feared this week since I saw the training program. It is a jump from running 8 out of 30 minutes to running 16! Um...what??
But I am so crazy excited to tell you...that yesterday....I actually did it! I literally almost puked one time...but I never stopped! I am so not looking forward to the next three times this week I have to do it...or the fact that next week I have to run even more....but I'm trying to focus right now on what I just did!

I know this doesn't seem like much to my running friends but it really is quite an accomplishment for me. Y'all are such an inspiration and I really love reading about all of your training. Maybe someday...you'll read about mine!

A Baby and Basketball!

Friday I had the loveliest time with my new friend Tammie. As you may remember, this was our first adventure out on our own without our husbands...and boy did we have a blast! She is so much fun and I am really excited about how much we had in common. I'm just so sorry I didn't meet her sooner.

We walked around the outdoor mall for a little while and then made our way to Starbucks for a break. Tammie is only maybe a week away from having her very first baby so a little exercise is a lot for her. She is too cute though. When Matt found out we were hanging out, he said, "Oh that's so exciting! If she goes into labor, you can take her to the hospital!" Well, I kinda flipped! What the heck would I do if this really did happen?? What hospital does she go to...do we need to get her bag...is she even packed...how long should I stay? I actually got kind of nervous! I ended up blabbing about this to Tammie on the way home and she thought it was the funniest thing ever. We had ourselves a good laugh...and she assured me that she was at least a week away from going into labor. We're planning an Oreo Truffle making session this week though...so I may in fact be the one driving my new friend to the hospital.

Speaking of Oreo Truffles...here they are!


My basketball idea did NOT turn out. Ha! Obviously..

I made the orange color chocolate and they were too cute. I was lazy and bought the store bought chocolate icing to make the stripes because I didn't want to whip up any chocolate buttercream. Well...the consistency did not work. It just didn't pipe in a straight line AT ALL! I ended up just doing little squiggles. Hey...they taste the same right?? They were still delicious and are now gone. Everyone at the party we went to on Saturday loved them...so I'd say...success!

My bracket, on the other hand, took a huge beating. I was sitting pretty...and this weekend was 1 for 4. Yikes...no money for me. Oh well...

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! As for me...it's a little Amazing Race and then off to bed. 4:45 comes pretty early on Mondays...

Weekend Plans??

It's finally Friday! This has been a rough week at work....we are letting 4 people go today...AND there have been rumblings that our Site Manager is leaving. More on this if it's true!

But onto brighter things....

Today I am going for a little shopping trip with one of my newest Cleveland gal pals, Tammie. She is the wife of one of the guys Matt works with. They live super close to us so we decided we needed to become friends! We're hitting up the open air mall by our houses after work. This will be our "first date" alone together...so hopefully we won't have any of those awkward silence moments...you know? Making new friends is hard! Tammie is pregnant and is SO super close to her due date...like two weeks...so I'm excited to see her. It may be awhile before she's up for hanging out again.

Tomorrow Matt and I are heading WAY east to meet up with some other people that he works with and their significant others to watch the NCAA Tournament. Well...since Purdue is officially out...insert sad face here...I'm rooting for North Carolina. I have them winning my pool and I am currently in 3rd place out of 100 people...so I have a very good chance of winning some serious cash!

I decided I would make the famous Oreo Truffles that I have been bringing everywhere...since they are always requested and always a hit! I'm going to try to decorate them like little basketballs. I had the idea...and then I saw them on this website!! It's exactly what I want to do!

What are your plans for the weekend?? Anything exciting?

A Starting Point

The story of my weight loss started oh so long ago. I was actually quite the skinny child but soon porked it up once I discovered I could steal snacks from the pantry and not get caught. I developed a HUGE sweet tooth which has never gone away.

As an aside, I am completely determined not to let this happen to my children. I don't blame my parents for my struggles (that's all on me) but I swear I will make my children eat well if it kills me.

I truly don't think I would've ever called myself FAT (what an awful word anyway...right??), but my weight was way up there. I am tall (5'11'') so you have to take that into account...I am aware. And I am thankful that I have always carried my weight well...relatively....(besides my huge backside and child-bearing hips...but I guess it has to go somewhere!).

I did WW on and off in high school and college. I never really joined for real (except if you count a very short one month span of going to the meetings to weigh in and then leaving!) but I usually just counted the points on my own. My mom has joined a bazillion times so she always had all of the materials to pass along to me. I had good spurts and bad spurts until I finally hit rock bottom. Maybe someday I will share this weight with you...maybe when I'm at my goal :)

Here I am at just about my heaviest....at my college graduation. It's weird to look at these old pictures...because at the time I thought I looked good you know?? I guess you don't realize how big you really were until you lose it. Oh my face...geez!


Shortly after this...I started doing WW for real. I wasn't cheating, I was working out, and it was really working for me. Matt and I got engaged and I was even more determined to look great for my wedding day. Well...I lost 78 lbs.


And then the honeymoon hit. A cruise. A buffet. A sweet deprived newlywed. Not a good combination. Needless to say, I have gained some weight since we were married 1 1/2 years ago. I didn't get down to my goal weight for my wedding either...so I'd say I'd like to ideally lose about 25 lbs. or so.

I started WW for real (yes...actually going to meetings...and staying!) late last year. I was doing really well (I had lost 11 lbs.) and then Christmas hit. I took it hard. For some reason my motivation was gone. Well ladies, I have gotten it back! I returned to WW last night and weighed in. I had gained 3.8 lbs. since Christmas (could've been worse right??) so I am now determined to get to goal. I'm so thankful to have this blog and all of you wonderful readers to keep me accountable. I'll post updates soon...and hopefully...with a lot of sweat and will power...I will make it to my goal weight!

Tees!

Has anyone heard of Busted Tees or Threadless? They're pretty much my favorite places to buy t-shirts online. They are absolutely hilarious. I'm big on giving them as gifts but I also have two of my own:

That's not me...it's the model from Threadless...but isn't the shirt awesome!


Also from Threadless

Here are some of my current faves from Busted Tees:

What, what Full House!

I got this one for my sister for Christmas!


And this one...a shout out to Doug from Nickelodeon...did you watch that show??


Who could forget Oregon Trail....ah...elementary school

Check them out if you have time. It's good for a laugh :)

On to a meeting...blech.

Retraction?!?

Anyone remember my post from yesterday?? I received such wonderful comments from my readers about what a touching story it was and what a loving couple we looked like. So you'd think that when my husband read my post he would be happy, right?? Well sisters, you'd be WRONG!

The ONE AND ONLY thing he took away from my post was this:

"Every time I was there, he was there. He was working downtown for the summer (it was the summer after his first year of law school) so he'd stop by after work everyday in his suit and bow tie. Oh...what a big dork I thought he was...but he was so much fun and truly hilarious...one could overlook his outward dorkiness."

That's it. Nothing else. A post I wrote to tell the story about how we met and fell in love is now leaving a bitter taste in my mouth.

As soon as I walked in the door last night he said he had a bone to pick with me. I was so nervous...I kept thinking...did I leave my straightener on?? Did I almost burn the house down? Was I supposed to do something and forgot about it?? While I was racking my brain to try and come up with why he was so upset, he said it was about my blog. He was mad I called him dorky! Oh dear...

Well he is demanding a retraction...and he's not going to get it...but I will explain.

Matt is not someone I would've ever pictured myself with. He's unlike any other person I have dated or even been attracted to. I think that's why I was so unsure about our relationship in the beginning...because it was so different than anything else I had ever experienced. Matt is extremely intelligent, very well spoken, funny, a UNIQUE dresser, ridiculously underweight, and he cannot deny it when I say that he is totally lacking in the muscle department. He wasn't what I was looking for at all in a boyfriend...but there was something about him that made me take a second (and maybe a third) look.

Matt turned out to be the one man I had been waiting for all my life. He had qualities in a significant other I never knew I wanted. He is extremely affectionate, sensitive, and caring. He's a great talker (a necessity with a long distance relationship) but also a great listener. He's everything to me and I can't imagine my life without him. Everything about him just fits...and I wouldn't want him any other way.

So who knew I would end up with a bow tie wearing, boat shoe strutting golfer who will only wear ties with little animals on them and won't exercise one minute to save his life? God knew...

The Story of Us

Have y'all read Mrs. Newlywed's post this morning yet?? I'm sure you have because she has a bazillion followers..but I have to say it truly touched me. Read her post for all of the information, but she and her husband are having trouble conceiving and things are not looking super optimistic for this to happen for them in the future. This got me thinking....

-What a fabulous man she has married to support her during this time; how would my husband and I handle a situation like this??

-Getting pregnant is not something that will happen for everyone...will it happen for me?? It's easy to think...okay...we're not ready to have kids right this second...but when we are...we'll try to get pregnant and we will. This is not always the case.

-How long do you wait to have kids...and how do you know when you're ready?? We'll never be financially perfect to have kids...who is? But how will we know when it's the right time for us??

So many unanswered questions! Anyone have the answers??

The one thing I do know is that I married a man who will be with me forever...kids or no kids. He's absolutely incredible...which brings me to the purpose of my post:

The Story of Us

Our story begins with four people...CJ, Robert, Matt, and me.

CJ and I met at Purdue my freshman year. We lived on the same floor and we instantly bonded. CJ left Purdue after one year, but we remained close friends. She lived in Indianapolis (same as me at the time) so we were able to see each other during the summer.

CJ and me at my bachelorette party (is this giving away the ending??)

Now, CJ has a brother, Robert. At the time, Robert was living in Colorado. He rarely came home to visit, and I had actually never met him in the two years I had been friends with CJ. Well, the summer between my sophomore and junior year...Robert came home for one week. And guess who is Robert's very best friend??? Matt! Now I could easily stop here...say we fell in love and the rest is history...but that would be a lie :)

CJ AND her mother had their hopes set on Robert and me getting together. He was a cutie...but he lived in Denver. I wasn't sure about the idea of dating someone long distance...but I was enjoying spending as much time with him as possible. I think I stayed the night at CJ's probably 5 of the 7 nights he was home :)

Robert giving the best man's speech at our wedding...told you he was cute :)

Matt spent just as much time with his friend as I did. Every time I was there, he was there. He was working downtown for the summer (it was the summer after his first year of law school) so he'd stop by after work everyday in his suit and bow tie. Oh...what a big dork I thought he was...but he was so much fun and truly hilarious...one could overlook his outward dorkiness.

The four of us had the most amazing week. I wasn't sure where things would go with Robert when he left, but I was definitely interested in him. But...not only him :) The day before Robert left, Matt and I happened to be leaving to go home at the same time. We talked for awhile outside our cars and he asked me for my number. I was one of those people that never said no when someone asked for their number...so I gave it to him. And then we kissed! I have no idea how it happened or why the heck I did that when I was interested in his best friend...but it did :)

The next day, Robert left (we exchanged numbers as well!), and Matt had already called. To this day I remember what his voicemail said. He said that he had to call because he just couldn't wait another day to talk to me. We ended up hanging out about every night that week because I was going on vacation the next week with my family and then I had to go back to Purdue to work until the end of the summer. When I left, I wasn't really sure what we were...but I knew he was interested. He told me he wanted to be together...but that silly long distance thing was not attractive to me...he was going to law school in Virginia! Yuck...I went back to Purdue unsure.

Matt was not unsure. We joke now about how he held our relationship together...and it's the truth. He just kept calling. I talked to Robert a few times...but it was obvious we were not meant to be. I began to give all of my focus to Matt. He came to visit me a few times before he had to leave for Virginia and we had said our "I love yous" by August.

Now I was stuck with the long distance. For 2 years Matt lived in Virginia and I lived in Indiana. I graduated from Purdue and moved home to Indianapolis for one year to go to grad school. Matt moved to Cleveland to begin working. FINALLY...after I graduated from grad school...I moved to Cleveland to be with Matt. Over 3 years of talking on the phone was enough for me. I was a little afraid we wouldn't be able to talk and be in the same room with each other...but everything worked out swimmingly! And now...the rest is history!

A Sweet Tooth's Dream

Miss Olivia's 1st birthday was on Sunday, and I was asked to make her cake! Here it is:


And a side view:


Okay...just kidding...that was just her very own special mini cake. Here is the REAL cake:



What do you think?? I love all the pink! I thought everything turned out really well. It is white cake on top and the bottom layer is chocolate. It is covered in buttercream with fondant accents. It took me about 6 1/2 hours on Saturday to do it...and I baked all the cake on Friday! Yikes! Really though...this cake was fairly stress free and I am really happy with it.

This is my favorite part of the cake:


I made this cake topper out of fondant on Friday so that it would harden enough in order to stand up straight. I found a picture of one online and I new it would be perfect for this cake.


As you may remember, this was not all of the baking I had to do the weekend. I signed up to bring breakfast to Sunday School. I decided on the Sour Cream Coffee Cake and the Chocolate Chip Muffins.


I got to use my fancy cake plate! I LOVE when I get to use that :)




Matt and I had a wonderful time at brunch with our little old couple friends after church. I did miss my usual Sunday nap though...so today could be rough!

Hope everyone had a great weekend...happy Monday!

Wasn't the Crock Pot Supposed to Make My Life Easier??

Every Friday I plan out our meals for the entire next week so we can go shopping for ingredients. I have been in the habit of trying new recipes so last Thursday we were going to try this shredded pork thing that was cooked in root beer...yep...like A&W root beer. Hey...Matt chose it...not me.

Anyway, this would force me to prepare the meal in the morning to put it in the crock pot, which I SO do not have time to do. Matt did all the work. He browned the meat, chopped the veggies, everything! It was really sweet. He even set up the timer so it would start a little later in the morning so it would be ready for us to eat around 7. Well, when I got home, the house smelled a little funny. I took a look at the crock pot and the meat looked a little black. I decided to open up the lid and whoa! All this steam came out. It was SO burnt!

I guess Matt accidentally put it on high instead of low :( He was so upset! I tried to shred the meat and it was just so dry. Here is what I ended up with:



The black is the onions :( Needless to say, it was frozen food for us!


FYI: the polka dot cake turned out FABULOUS!!! Stay tuned for pics tomorrow!!!

Happy Birthday Mama!

Today is my mama's 53 birthday! (Confession: I didn't know the exact age until I spoke with her this morning and she said that my dad gave her $53 worth of lottery tickets...and I put two and two together!) She lives in Indianapolis so I won't be seeing her on her special day, but I sent her a card and her gift which she has received. I got her a new set of pots and pans...apparently she has recently broken some of her lids...so it was time!

I feel bad for her though because my dad left today for Bristol. He goes every year with two of his guy friends from work to the Nascar race. This year, it happened to fall on her birthday weekend though, so she will be all alone :( She didn't sound too upset about it though. She's pretty good about keeping herself occupied when Papa is away.

Here she is with my gorgeous sister on her wedding day back in January:


I think I've mentioned this before, but my poor mama has Bells Palsy. For a long time, the whole left side of her face was motionless. She couldn't even blink her eye let alone smile. She even had to wear an eye patch! She wasn't able to wear her contacts because her eyes would dry out from the lack of blinking. It was just awful for her.

Bells Palsy comes and goes for reasons unknown to the medical profession, but I am CONVINCED her dentist did this to her. She was there the day before getting work done, and then this happened! Of course, he says it wasn't possible....and I say he's a liar.

Anyway, the longevity of the condition varies from person to person and a lot of people regain their motion. This has not happened for my mom. She has had this for years. She is much better than she used to be, but you can really notice it when she smiles. Poor Mama...I do keep hoping that one day she will wake up and be able to smile her true smile for us again.

So say a happy birthday to my mom!!


I also want to give a shout out to my Boilermakers. They pulled it off yesterday against Northern Iowa and are onto the second round. They made it a lot more exciting than it had to be though! I looked like a complete fool on the treadmill watching them yesterday. I talk to the TV and I get so into it! If someone was just standing their watching me...they would've had a good show. Close games make me so nervous!

Happy weekend!!! Baking is in my plans as well as decorating the pink polka dot cake tomorrow! Stay tuned!

Boiler Up!

March Madness anyone??

My Boilermakers are playing Northern Iowa today at 2:30 p.m. and I am stoked! They are ranked 5th and are Big Ten Champions! AND they beat Ohio State to get there...which I love! I have a weird obsession with my faves beating Ohio teams. It's fun for me and I love being in the minority...victory is so much sweeter!

I usually enter a pool at work with my bracket. The first year I won...yep...won...and the 2nd year I came in 3rd which got me my money back. This year I have eliminated my work pool (I'm trying to be financially fickle!) and have only entered my papa's work pool. Why you ask?? I can win a ton more money!

Anyways...just wanted to give a little shout out to Purdue! Boiler Up!

Who are you cheering for?? Do you even care??

As a side note: I feeling a little boyish with my Dumb and Dumber post and now this one...so I promise that my next one will be super girly!! :)

Filet-O-Fish

Has anyone seen this??

I DO NOT eat fish from fast food restaurants...but I LOVE this commercial. The song gets stuck in my head and the commercial itself is hilarious! They even play it on the radio here! Ha!

Are you lovin' it?

Oatmeal Scotchies

My dear husband baked! I know...crazy right?? Well, perhaps it was for selfish reasons (he is a huge fan of the butterscotch) but he made the most amazing cookies the other day. It's Nestle's recipe for Oatmeal Scotchies. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 c. butter, softened
3/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
3 c. oats, uncooked
1 (12 oz.) butterscotch morsels

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In small bowl, combine flour, soda, salt and cinnamon. Set aside. In large bowl combine butter, sugar, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla; beat until light and fluffy. Gradually add flour mixture. Stir in oats and morsels. Drop by tablespoons on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 7 to 8 minutes for chewier cookies; 9 to 10 minutes for crispy cookies.



Then today he did this...



Back to normal...(sigh)

Swim? Swammi? Slippy? Slappy? Swenson? Swanson?

Matt and I have been lucky enough to have met this sweet little old couple at our Sunday school class who have pretty much taken us under their wing. They seem to know everyone...but they always sit with us. They introduced themselves the first week we were there and they were just so warm and welcoming. They're wonderful because they give me the accountability to be there every week.

Well, they live right around church and have asked us to go to breakfast on Sunday. I'm super excited to spend more time with them outside of church. They're our first church friends! (Okay...is it weird that our first church friends are like 70?? I'm going with....no!)

My whole point...their last name is Swanson. Want to know what I always think of when I see their name tags?? Mary Swanson (Lauren Holly) of course...from Dumb and Dumber. Has anyone ever seen that movie? Well my brother and I grew up thinking this was the best movie on the planet (confession: a little part of me still does!) and quoting it every chance we got. You'd be surprised how many opportunities there really are!

The main girl in the movie is Mary Swanson. She meets Lloyd (Jim Carrey) when he drives her to the airport. She "accidentally" leaves her briefcase in the airport....Lloyd rushes in to claim it...but misses her before her flight leaves. Lloyd and his roomie Harry (Jeff Daniels) embark on this hilarious journey to return the briefcase to Mary and to make a better life for themselves in Aspen, CO.

If you haven't seen it, I definitely recommend it. I would also say...give it a couple times to really sink it. I didn't like it the first time I saw it...but I gave it a chance and eventually saw the awesomeness that is Dumb and Dumber. I have even brought my husband around to becoming a fan! And that, my friends, is a feat!

These are some of my favorite quotes from the movie:

[after Lloyd trades the van in for a moped]
Harry: Just when I thought you couldn't get any dumber, you go and do something like this... and totally redeem yourself!

Lloyd: We got no food, no jobs... our PET'S HEADS ARE FALLING OFF!"


Lloyd: This isn't my real job, you know.
Mary: No?
Lloyd: Nope. My friend Harry and I are saving up money for a pet store.
Mary: That's nice.
Lloyd: Igot worms!
Mary: Ibeg your pardon?
Lloyd: That's what we're gonna call it. I got worms! We're gonna specialize in selling worm farms. You know, like ant farms.


Lloyd: What are the chances of a guy like you and a girl like me... ending up together?
Mary: Well, that's pretty difficult to say.
Lloyd: Hit me with it! I've come a long way to see you, Mary. The least you can do is level with me. What are my chances?
Mary: Not good.
Lloyd: You mean, not good like one out of a hundred?
Mary: I'd say more like one out of a million.
[pause]
Lloyd: So you're telling me there's a chance.

[coming out of the 7-11]
Lloyd: Hey guys. Oh, big gulps huh? All right! Well, see ya later.

Sea Bass's Friend: Kick his ass, Sea Bass!


Harry: What's her last name? I'll look it up.
Lloyd: You know, I don't really recall. Starts with an S! Let's see. Swim? Swammi? Slippy? Slappy? Swenson? Swanson?
Harry: Maybe it's on the briefcase.
Lloyd: Oh, yeah! It's right here.
[He reads the manufacturer's name, which is Samsonite]
Lloyd: Samsonite! I was way off! I knew it started with an S, though.




Do you feel like this about a movie?? I'm also completely obsessed with Dirty Dancing, Juno, Finding Nemo, and Lilo and Stitch. I'm big into the quoting...which can probably get annoying...but I heart it!

Shredding!

Yesterday afternoon, Jillian put the hurt down on me...big time! Perhaps it was the fact that I had already spent an hour at the gym and THEN decided it was a good time to try for the first time my very own copy of the 30 day shred?? Who knows...but it was tough. I sweated more doing that than at the gym!

Onto more important things! The sweet Southern Bride gave me this award!



Her blog is super cute (probably why she got the award!) and you should definitely check it out!

Now onto the shame...writing 10 not so cute things about yourself...here we go:

1. After a workout: Fine...I'll admit it...I am a heavy sweater. Not a smelly sweater...just heavy. My clothes are soaked through after a workout, my hair is nasty, and my makeup is smeared...not cute!

2. My lack of showering: Sometimes after these workouts...I do not shower right away...and when I say right away...I mean not until the next morning. Yep...gross. I HATE to shower!

3. After a nap: I'm all groggy and I usually have lines on my face from the couch.

4. Lounging around the house: In my sweats...looking like a bum...not cute.

5. After my shower: When I finally do shower in the morning and my eye makeup from the day before is smeared all over my face. No matter what I do the night before...it just doesn't come off (and hey...sometimes I don't do a darn thing...)

6. When I'm bored: I get really antsy just sitting on the couch with the hubby doing nothing. I just keep saying over and over, "I'm bored!" And when he askes me what I want to do...I say, "I don't know!"--not cute...and kind of annoying.

7. When I'm in cake decorating mode: I get super intense because I want everything to be perfect...and when it doesn't go as planned...I take it out on the closet thing to me...the hubs! Sorry!

8. Doing yoga: I try to take yoga once a week...and I'm a master on the Wii Fit...but in the class with all of the beautiful size 0's...I am NOT cute!

9. When I brush my teeth: For some reason I get all of the toothpaste all over my face when I brush. We have one of those Sonicare brushes so it goes for 2 minutes and you can't take it out of your mouth or it will spray everywhere....so I have to stand over the sink and let the escaping foam drip out of my mouth. I've tried to put only a dot of toothpaste! It's gross...and I don't know how to fix it!

10. When I wake up: I sleep with my hair in a pony tail so it always ends up super crazy in the morning...like on the side of my head or something. It is definitely not what I would call cute.

I'm glad that's over!

I'll tag:

Brown Eyed Girl & Her Beau
Blue-Eyed Bride
Life at the White House
The Undomesticated Wife

If you've already done it...don't feel like you have to do it again. I guess you're just extra cute!! Love you guys!

Baked Goods Bonanza!

I got an order for a cake last weekend for a little girl's 1st birthday! It is due on Saturday so I will keep you posted on my progress. I was referred by the wife of one of Matt's co-workers! Isn't that sweet!?! I made her daughter Kennedy's first birthday cake a couple months ago. I think I may've already posted this...but check it out anyway!



It's going to be super cute....two layer stacked cake with pink polka dots! I'm also going to make a little mini cake especially for the birthday girl! I'm really excited about it and it should be super fun to do!

This, of course, fell on the same weekend that I signed up to bring breakfast to Sunday School! Ha! Well, there will be a lot of baking in my house this weekend! I have narrowed down the breakfast items to these three:

Sour Cream Coffee Cake by Brown Eyed Baker
Chocolate Chip Muffins by Annie's Eats
Cranberry Scones by Annie's Eats

I am KNOWN for making incredibly too much food...and also for taking on way too much all the time. I made 9 different goodies during Christmas time within a three day span and I think I just about died. I just have such a hard time deciding what to make...so I just go ahead and make it all!! However, since I will be doing all of the decorating of the cake on Saturday, I'm thinking of just doing two of these options. Any suggestions??

Junior League and the Best Surprise!

So Friday evening was my very 1st Junior League event. It was a happy hour that apparently "actives" have monthly...but they decided to invite the newbies to in order to make some informal introductions before our first big meeting at the end of the month. IT WAS SO FUN!! Let me tell you...I was so nervous about not fitting in and people being snobby...but it was SO not like that. All of the women were FANTASTIC! And I knew I picked the right outfit (I went with black pants and the pink sweater top from Express) when I was introduced and two girls said, "Oh...you're new? I thought you were already a member?" Ha! I LOOK like a member!!

The woman that is in charge of recruiting was extra nice...and get this...she lives down the street from me!! An actual female that I could see myself being friends with lives close to me! Also, she complimented me on my purse...which was super similar to her purse! By the way...mine was from Walmart...$5 and she definitely had a super fancy brand. Yeah...that's right baby! I cannot wait for our next get together. I'm so glad that I went!

Enter Saturday...I get up every Saturday and go to my Zumba class at the gym. Well, today when I returned...I was greeted with this:


What's weird about this you ask?? Well, my husband has been sporting the whole Wolfman look since Christmas...full on beard and mustache. Recently, I have been asking him...well downright begging him to shave. I was just getting so sick of it...it was itchy and just felt weird. I wanted my smooth husband back!

Well this is what he gave me! Yuck!!!!! He "says" that I told him I wanted to see what he would look like with just a mustache. I DO NOT remember this...and even if I did say that...now I've seen it...I want it gone! It is super creepy! After I stopped laughing, I asked him when he was going to shave it off. He said, "Oh I don't know, maybe today or tomorrow." I laughed again and said, "Um...you're going to leave the house like that??!"

**Update** He shaved!! Here is my smooth honey bunny...I'm so glad he's back!


We then did our usual grocery run to Walmart and look what I found for $10!!!


I'm on a sale roll man! I just had to have them! I can't wait until it's warm again.

Hope everyone has a fabulous rest of the weekend!!

And by the way...head on over to Monograms and Martinis in Manhattan and enter her giveaway! You could win this!

Down...and Out

I have hit a new low.

Right now, at work, I am organizing plastic bags. Yep, that's right. I have my masters and I am organizing by size loads of plastics bags that are overfilling a drawer in the lab. There is nothing else to do but to do this. I want to look busy...but do I want to be busy doing this?? I truly am glad to have a job...but this sucks.

And you thought that was bad?? Well I was just reaching for one of the bags, caught my jeans on my desk drawer, and ripped a huge hole in them! My jeans!! My staple for everyday wear at work are now ruined! Now I have to buy some more this weekend so I can work on Monday! Maybe I should purchase a few in case this happens again?? So much for not spending money. And...I have to walk around for the rest of the day with a hole in my pants...and it's not one of those "cool" holes either.

It's been a rough day...

Let's Play the Family Feud!

Recently, my husband has taken to playing computer games on my laptop whilst I am watching something on TV that he apparently has no interest in...who knows what that could be?? Perhaps Jon and Kate Plus Eight...Days of our Lives...Grey's...but those are just guesses.

Anyway, I got on the website the other day, being bored of Dirty Jobs and Mythbusters myself, and found The Family Feud! I LOVE this game! It's actually super fun even on the computer and I am so not a computer game person.

So Matt and I were playing The Feud tonight before The Office and here is what the question was:

What would you want someone not to do in your car?

We came up with the obvious answers of eating and smoking. We were drawing a blank so I typed in "have sex." Hey...I wouldn't want someone to have sex in my car! I thought it made perfect sense. Well, the answer flipped over like I was correct and "have sex" was actually one of the answers given in the survey! Well, to our surprise, the answer said "throw up." Um...since when were "have sex" and "throw up" interchangeable?? What??

And my dear husband adds to the hilarity by saying, "So you're telling me that you don't always throw up after sex?"

Dear self: "You love him, you really love him. He doesn't say these things all the time."

Shopping!

In lieu of my first Junior League event tomorrow, I decided to hit up the stores yesterday after work to see if anything caught my eye. I must warn you though, I am entirely too frugal for my own good and never even look at anything that is not on sale. This makes shopping a tad difficult for me...but I think I had some good finds...and only spent $40.

My first stop was J. Crew. I tried on a ton of stuff, but settled on a sweater. I couldn't seem to find the exact picture of the one that I bought, but this one is similar..

c/o J. Crew

I happened to have on one of my bazillion "wife-beater" tank tops so I tried it on underneath because you could totally see through it. Any other suggestions about what to wear underneath this?? Colors??

Next I went to Express and found this super cute sweater.

c/o Express

The one I actually bought was light pink. You can see the picture of it here. I think the sleeves make the whole outfit! I can't decide if I should wear this tomorrow or not though. It's been freezing here...really, below 30...so I'm thinking I might be out of place in short sleeves. What do you think? I MAY have some sort of jacket to wear over it...but covering up the sleeves makes me sad.

Junior League

For awhile now I have been contemplating joining the Junior League of Cleveland. I really need to meet some people and what a great organization to do it through!

Well, I have my first Happy Hour for "recruits" on Friday at the Paladar Latin Kitchen & Rum Bar on the east side. What the heck does a girl wear to this?? Suggestions??

Is anyone a member of Junior League?? Like it...love it...hate it?? I'd love to know your thoughts about what I am getting myself into. I kinda feel like I'm going to an interview! I'm nervous they're going to take one look at me shoo me away because I'm not Junior League material. It's an intimidating group!

How the heck does this whole process work anyway?!?

Help!

Daddy's Lasagna Recipe!

After some requests, I have decided to post the lasagna recipe from my previous post! He adapted it from the New York Times Cookbook:

1 lb. Italian sausage
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups tomato sauce
1/2 lb. package of lasagna
1 lb. ricotta cheese
1 lb. mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1. Shape the meat into marble-sized balls and brown in the olive oil.

2. Follow directions on lasagna package to cook noodles.

3. Preheat oven to moderate (325 degrees F)

4. Using a baking dish about two inches deep, cover the bottom sparingly with tomato sauce and line the dish with a layer of lasagna. Dot with spoonfuls of ricotta, slivers of mozzarella and a little Parmesan cheese. Spread with the sauce and add all of the meatballs. Repeat with another layer of lasagna, sauce and cheeses.

5. Bake about forty-five minutes. Cool slightly before serving.

Enjoy! It's fabulous!!

A Visit from the In-Laws

As I mentioned on my previous post, my in-laws, Phil and Dianne, were in town for the weekend. Matt's parents, like my own parents, are from Indianapolis...so it is about a 5 hour drive here to Cleveland. Phil and Di make the trip fairly regularly, while my parents, cough, have been here once in the 3 1/2 years I have lived here...and have never seen our house. No comment...(or maybe I will just say that I am clearly the least favorite child of 3...for real).

I truly do have a great relationship with my in-laws. They are fantastic people who treat me like I am their daughter. Sure, they have their quirks...but who doesn't. Sure, it can be a bit much of 24/7 family time when I'm with them ALL weekend...but that could be with anyone. Sure, Dianne still calls Matt pet names (doodlebug, sugar cube??) even though he will be 30 this year. Now where was I going with this?? Oh yeah...they're great!

Anyway, when I have visitors, it is all about the meals for me! Dianne is a fabulous cook (what Southern woman isn't??) so it is super intimidating for me to cook for her, so I always try to bust out my very best recipes when they are in town. It's a chance for me to use our fancy plates and present meals that are appealing to not only the taste buds but to the eyes as well (and have someone actually notice!)! Friday I made this Mexican Pizza. I had never made it before...but it fit into my no meat category so I gave it a try. It was fabulous and I definitely recommend it!

Saturday, after a quick trip to the gym for a little Zumba and a trip to the grocery store, Matt and I gave Phil his birthday gift! It was a surprise that we were even doing anything for his birthday. It is actually today, but I thought that we should celebrate it with him since we wouldn't be home. I would tell you what is was, but it was some tennis book that Matt picked out that I have no interest in...so that's all I have on that.

We surprised Phil with his favorite dish, Dianne's Chicken Diablo. She gave me her family's secret recipe...can you believe it?? All I did was ask her what I should make...and she just gave it to me like it was no big deal...and then said, "I just ask that you not share this with anyone. You are the first person I have ever given this to." Whoa! Well, Phil just loved it...and then we topped it off with this...



It is supposed to be a tennis ball cake. Not one of my best, but hey, I threw it together after work on Friday....so sue me! It was pecan spice cake with cream cheese frosting. Excellent combination I must say!

Sunday we hit up church and Sunday school and chilled the rest of the day. I made my daddy's famous lasagna, my very favorite meal in the whole entire world, and it was just wonderful. Check it out!



Well, as you can tell, this was not a weekend fit for a Weight Watcher, but as they always say, it's back on the fit train for me!

Happy Monday!

Blog Makeover!

Notice anything different??? Hm??? Any guesses?? Give up??




I GOT A BLOG MAKEOVER!! (did the title give it away?)




Over the weekend, Sweetie McSweet (my name for her....not hers!) Allison from Addie Designs created a new layout and header for me. I'm so excited! She did such a fabulous job and I'm thrilled with the results. You should definitely check her out if you're looking for a new look. She's fab...and great for a girl that didn't want to (couldn't) do it herself!

I've had the in-laws in town all weekend...still here by the way...so I will have an update on my weekend hopefully tomorrow. Hosting out of towners, although a joy, can also be a drain! My plan for tonight...Amazing Race...bed!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

"Light Christian Humor"

My dear MIL sent me this forward today at work. I usually detest forwards and have told my own mother I will disown her if she sends me another one (by the way...this has not stopped her one bit!) but I actually found this one to be quite hilarious! Thought I'd share since everyone deserves to smile on a Friday!! There is just so much to smile about!

















I think I like the one about lepers the best :) What is your favorite??

My Very First Award!

A HUGE thank you to Sweet Tea Diaries for being so sweet and giving me the Kreativ Blogger award! This is my first award and I am so excited that people are enjoying reading my little blog! I am just having a blast and meeting some fabulous people who are simply spectacular!!

Here are the award rules:

**List 7 things that you love and then pass the award on to 7 bloggers you love!**

**Be sure to tag them and let them know they have won!**

**You can copy the picture of the award and put it on your sideboard letting the whole world know.....you are KREATIV!**

Now...the 7 things I love:

-Fridays...they are my "during the week" day off of working out so I get to go straight home after work at 3 p.m. and sit on my butt watching Days of Our Lives and anything else I want until my hubby gets home!

-making lists...I makes lists weeks in advance for things I have to do...I make meal plans a week in advance...I love doing the grocery list...and I make to do lists for little jobs to do when I have time to spare. This isn't all...but I will spare you!

-eating dinner at the table...our dining room is quite small in the house we are renting so we haven't been able to buy a dining room table yet (we want a bigger one when we move) so all we have is this little two person table in our kitchen. We never really use it and always eat on the couch, but on those specials days where we actually sit at the table and talk rather than watch TV...I'm in heaven!

-a clean house...I'm not one to do a lot of small cleaning jobs daily...but when I start cleaning...I must clean the whole house and really clean it. An example...if I start to vacuum the living room, I must then vacuum every room in the house that has carpet. And then when I'm done I think to myself, "Why can't we just keep the house clean like this all the time?" I still haven't figured that one out.

-sending snail mail...I LOVE sending all of my family and friends cards for their birthdays. I think everyone should get mail on their birthdays and I love being that person who remembered. I transfer all of the birthdays to my daily calendar at home every year so I am sure not to miss one!

-Purdue! Both my degrees are from Purdue and I absolutely adore it there. If only I lived closer so I could be one of those alumni that go to all of the football games! Ah...I guess I will continue to worship from afar...

-and last but not least...my hubby! What can I say?? I just LOVE HIM!


And now onto the best part...passing on the award!!

These ladies are some of my faves and definite "must reads" you should add to your list!

1. Adventures in Newlywed
2. Newlyweds Next Door
3. Barefoot in the Park
4. Dugout Daisy
5. First Comes Love, Then Comes Marriage
6. Mandy at House of Rose
7. Life of a Southern Belle

I also wanted to thank everyone who responded to my post yesterday and shared advice on spicing up my blog! I will definitely be contacting you guys in the near future :) You are all fantastic friends and I REALLY appreciate the help!!

Happy Friday!!

Help...and a thanks!

When I arrive at work each morning, I start my day off by checking my work e-mail and setting up some preliminary tests in the lab. We are "technically" not supposed to be on the internet at work...but I don't believe in that rule (obviously)...so throughout my day when I have a few, I catch up on my fave blogs! Although I have been trying to ignore the fact that my blog is so not cute, it is hard not to notice when so many of you have fantastic templates and great headers! My template is just a boring Blogger template (but I do love the colors!) and my header is a totally lame version of my husband's attempt at a header that I forced him to make because I can't use Photoshop to save my life!

So I'm reaching out. Anyone have any suggestions or insight as to what I can do and who can do it for me?? :) I definitely want a three column layout and a way better header...but I'd really have to sit down and brainstorm what exactly I am looking for because I have no clue!?! All of your blogs are so creative and GORGEOUS! so I am inspired to have one of those too! I would appreciate any advice you could offer this newbie blogger who is totally out of the creative loop.



And as a thank you for listening to me blab on about my blog issues, I will tell you about this fabulous blog called Wandering DC. She is hosting a giveaway this week and you can win one of these tees called "My Husband Rocks." They are super cute...here is one example of one you can choose...so go check it out!

Girl Scout Mania!

Late winter...enter one of my favorite times of the year (besides it being freezing!): Girl Scout Cookie time!!! (As a side note...don't you always feel sorry for those freezing little girls and their mothers standing outside of Walmart selling their cookies?? Why don't you let them stand inside!!?)

Yummy Thin Mints (great in the freezer!)

Were any of you girls Girl Scouts?? I was a little daisy, then a brownie....but I can't remember if I made it to junior status or not. I was definitely a quitter. Our group was super lame and we didn't do anything but go to the Benjamin Harrison home like 5 times a year...which is also totally lame...especially when you're young and have no reason to appreciate it (let's be honest...I would so not appreciate it now!).

Selling the cookies (okay...eating them) was my very favorite part. One year I won a trip to Kings Island because I sold over a certain number of cookies! It was so much fun. I do remember having to wear these ugly purple and yellow matching shirts so our whole group would match though. Did I mention our group was lame?

Trefoils, my attempt at being somewhat healthy

I was also just thinking about how my mom would totally let me go all over the neighborhood by myself selling the stuff door to door. Well....those days are GONE! Trick-or-treating and selling Girl Scout Cookies will never be the same. How sad!

Well about two weeks ago, I spotted these lovely Girl Scouts in Heinens and I knew the cookies I ordered were on their way!! I try not to go super over the top because of the whole diet and all...blah blah blah...so I just ordered 4 boxes. My faves are the Samoas, Tagalongs, and the Trefoils. Unfortunately over the years, I have discovered that the Tagalongs are just too much of a temptation for me. They are super bad for you calorie wise and I am addicted to peanut butter and chocolate (ask Matt...who has come home to a jar of peanut butter and a bag of chocoalte chips sitting next to me on the couch many a days!) so I can no longer purchase these :( I did, however, purchase two boxes of Samoas, a box of Thin Mints (Matty's fave), and a box of Trefoils. Remember when they were like $2. Well now they're $3.50...it's outrageous...but obviously I don't care enough to not buy them.

How could you not sit down and eat a whole box of these??

And guess what...?? They arrived today!! I have already had two Samoas! I couldn't even wait until I got home from work :)

Yum!

What are your favorite cookies??