Drink More Water!

 I've been struggling with my water intake for a while now.  It's better then it was but I still have some work to do.  I can tell when I haven't had enough because I'll wake up in the middle of the night positively parched.  That should never happen.  My body is telling me what it needs and I just have to get better at listening.  Having water come out of our refrigerator has helped a lot.  It's just always there and cold when I need it.  This water bottle is the latest weapon in my arsenal to combat against insufficient water drinking.  I'm hoping this cute 12 oz water bottle in my favorite color that I can keep at work will inspire me to get guzzling.  The recommended intake is 48 to 64 oz!  It's always represented in ounces of water but we do get water in other ways from foods like fruits and vegetables.  Between the work water bottle and my 24 oz Tervis tumbler at home I'm hoping to manage at least 48.  If I just drink the one water bottle at work it's a minimum of 12 oz which is better then nothing but I'm definitely shooting for double that and then more at home.  I forget, I get busy, it makes my stomach too full.  I'm not sure what it is about drinking water that makes it so difficult to keep up with but it's so hard! 

Speaking of water.  Have you tried Mio liquid water enhancer?   It makes water delicious and it's calorie and sugar free. I love Fruit Punch and Sweet Tea.  You can adjust it to your taste by adding more or less.  Mj brought a few of those home last year and they are so good.  I actually like the taste of water but with the Mio I like it even more and it makes it so easy to drink.

How much water do you drink in a day?

Home Decor....Slowly But Surely

It takes so long to get a house decorated.  We got all the furniture we need it's just the details and accents that are taking a while to come together.  Once you figure out what you want sometimes it's almost impossible to find it in stores and at the right price which can be really frustrating but slowly but surely we're getting there.

Vintage looking Boudoir lamps from Pier One

Finally, after 1 1/2 years of living in our house we finally got bedside lamps for our night stands.  We have recess lighting so it's more decoration then anything else.  I looked everywhere!  First I didn't know what we wanted.  Then we decided to add color to our room with the lamps but finding the right one in the right color at the right price is hard.   I originally went in looking for a different lamp but found these pretty vintage looking ones at Pier One Imports for $40 bucks each.  I had a $10 off coupon so that was a bonus.  I had to take a picture and send it to Mj for approval and he liked them too.  We could have gone bigger because our headboard is high and our nightstands are a good size but eh...I just wanted something small.  These are 18" high.  I plan to add a satin ribbon around the bottom rim to add color once we get some accessories in our accent color; which I think will be purple.

Bargain price ottoman found at Ross for $99

Room for everything

Mj let me keep the black Ottoman.  He didn't say anything for about a day or so and then decided that he liked it.  My pajamas are all nicely organized now in one place where they all fit and are convenient for me to get to.  It's a nice little seating area too.  We're going to find a nice piece of wall art to put over it.

We didn't get the mirror that came with our dresser.  We found our own.

Can't wait until these make it onto the wall

 Back in October we found a large black mirror to hang over our dresser at Marshall's for $99.00, which is great because like everything else mirrors can get pretty pricy too.  I got a great deal on these matte picture frames at Michael's and framed our wedding pictures over Christmas Break.  They've been sitting there waiting for hanging for a while and they will go right over our bed.  Mj if you are reading this...how bout this weekend?  The black rimmed full length mirror needs to go up too. 

Sloan Espresso Leaning Book case.  Photo Source:  Crate & Barrel

Red Bamboo Vase-Photo Source: Pier One

In other rooms.  Just before the holidays we bought two leaning shelves at Crate & Barrel to put on either side of our TV downstairs in the living room. I was trying to go for the less expensive Walmart version but Mj wasn't having it.  At $149 each it's more then I wanted to spend on these but they are great quality and they look good.  We also bought a red vase from Pier One that we filled with sticks.

Next up.  We are getting the downstairs carpet and flooring replaced with hard woods.   Our kitchen counter tops will be replaced with granite and we're adding back splash.  We'll be getting started on those projects after we get our tax refund.   And lastly, we want to do something with our master bathroom.  I'm kind of itching to do it now.  The flooring is builder basic vinyl (like our kitchen) which I actually don't mind so much but I hate our very hard to keep clean fiber glass shower and tub surround.  It really can wait until next year though.  One thing at a time.  It's a work in progress but I love our house and I love how everything has been coming together.  House pics coming soon.

2012 Resolutions

I know most people came up with their resolutions last month or at the beginning of this month.  There is exactly 1 day left in January but the new year is still fresh so I figure it's not too late to write mine.  I have some non specific general things that I want to work on in life but these are the specific ones.  I like to zero in on a few that are really important to me so my list is usually short and sweet.  Let's see how I did on last years resolutions first.

2011 Resolutions:
1.  Be active at the gym or otherwise.  Success!  It was really hard at first.  It really sucked to be spending hours of my precious evenings working out but I stuck with it and now going to the gym and getting work outs in has become a regular part of my life.  It feels good to know that I am doing something healthy for my body and staying fit.  It  became part of my routine and doesn't suck as much as it used to.

2.  Take some classes at the community college.  Success!  I'm in my second semester now.

3.  Continue on with learning Spanish using Rosetta Stone. Fail!  I didn't even start up again at all.

4.  Get in the kitchen and cook.  Mixed Bag!   Cooking isn't my "thing" and I don't think it ever will be so I never set out to be that person that cooks multiple times a week.  The plan was to manage once or twice a week actually.  I started out really good last year.  I looked up recipes and got the ones I liked all organized in a folder on my laptop.  When we went grocery shopping I made a point to buy the needed ingredients so that I would be prepared to cook them.  When I get out of the habit of making an effort to cook it gets really hard to start back up again.  It started fading away as the year went on.  I got busy with trying to stay in the gym and then once I started taking classes in September that was pretty much the nail in the coffin.  Then the holidays came.  Things got busy.  Blah, blah, blah. 

Eh, not so bad. Maybe I'm not as much of a slacker as I sometimes think I am! I accomplished most of them and only had one total fail.  Now for this year's resolutions.

2012 Resolutions:
1.  Write a book.  This is the first time I've ever verbally voiced my desire to do this or even told myself that I really would.  By putting it out into the universe I am hoping that will help hold me accountable and make it feel more real and possible.  I have something fiction that I've been working on for a while and it sat untouched since Sept of 2010.  I started writing again and ended up with 20 pages in one sitting.  I can do this.  I just have to push myself.  I don't care if nothing further ever comes of it but I love writing and would like to accomplish this for myself. 

2.  Spanish with Rosetta Stone.  I started this back in 2009 while Mj was deployed to help keep me occupied.  He came back, we planned a wedding, got married and bought a house.  Needless to say I was otherwise engaged and then last year I dropped the ball completely.  I plan to pick it up again after I finish my two classes this semester.

3.  Get cooking.  Mj is the main cook in our family.  He enjoys it and he's way better at it then I'll ever be.  I'm trying not to feel so badly that I don't do this more often...or ever as of late.  We each bring different things to the table and for me cooking is just not one of them.  BUT...I need to keep trying.  Mj deserves to eat something every once in a while that he did not have to make himself.  It always makes me feel good when I make something for him even if I know it probably would have tasted better if he had done it himself!   So even thought this is not my "thing" it goes back on the list.  I'm not going to specify how often, just that I need to keep it on my radar as something I need to do on a regular basis.

If I Ruled the World and 11 Things About Me

 

Tiffany over at Knot Chocolate tagged me with a very deep question.  If I ruled the world....fill in the blank with three statements.  You can check out her post on this here.  This is a really hard question.  How could I possibly narrow it down to just three things?  Then I realized I was thinking way too much.  Duh, this is never going to happen and so I came up with this.

If I ruled the world.............
1. There would be no mean evil people doing mean evil things to others and hating others for things like race, sexual orientation or religion.  So much energy is spent on hating people for no reason at all and I'm so tired of seeing senseless crimes and murders on the news.  It is so sad that humans are capable of such cruelty and I want it stopped.   This is the modified version of total world peace.  I'm trying to be somewhat realistic.

2.  The standard work week would be four consecutive days instead of five.  Every weekend would be a 3 day weekend.  Even if it meant tacking on just one extra hour per day to the four work days out of the week to compensate a bit this would be huge for overall quality of life.  Two weekend days are simply not enough to have time for yourself and relax.  I'm sure everyone can agree with me on this one. 

3.  There would be no more terminal illness or disease (or murder based on rule #1).  The only way to die is by accident, injury or old age.  Period.  If I could get rid of all death I would but again...being realistic here and when I think about I'm really not so sure I want to live forever anyways.


I was also tagged by another blogger Abs to state Eleven things about myself, answer Eleven questions that she came up with and come with eleven questions to ask another blogger.  Whew....that's a lot of Q & A.  So since I have a tendency to make up my own rules on these things I decided to post the 11 things she stated about herself and answer the questions she passed onto me.  No one is getting tagged and I'm not making up new questions.   It's been going around quite a bit so I'm sure everyone has already done it right?  Right?

Eleven questions and answers about me:   
1. What was your favorite cartoon growing up?  The only cartoons I can remember watching are The Smurf's, Scooby Dooby Doo and Inspector Gadget.

2. Do you think kids had it easier back in the day (when you were a kid) or now and why?  Yes.  The internet and even texting is a game changer in terms of bullying and overall mischief that kids can get themselves mixed up in.  Kids seem to have gotten taller and meaner!  Things weren't perfect when I was a kid but everything just seemed simpler and less complicated.  I'm sure every generations says that.

3. In one sentence, what do you think makes a good mommy?  A good mommy is someone who is supportive, kind and knows when to put her foot down.  Just like my mom who has been the best mommy I could ever ask for.

4. Is the glass half full or half empty?  If I were asked this question 5 years ago I would have said half empty but now I say half full.  There are too many good things in life to only see half empty.

5. What makes you smile when you are feeling upset?  Thinking about my wonderful husband, what a good thing we have going on and how much happier I am since he's been in my life.

6. What is your absolute favorite food in the world?  Pizza.  I wish it were something more sophisticated but it's not.

7. What was your favorite 2011 Christmas gift?  My brown leather jacket from H & M.  I picked it out myself but it was a gift from my husband.  And my tan Uggs; also a gift from Mj.  I adore them both so I can't just pick one.

8. If you were given a shopping cart and 1 minute in your local supermarket, what would you put in your cart?  Tons of meat and cheese.  That seems to be the most expensive thing we buy at the grocery store.  I wouldn't overdo it on the fruit though.  It is also expensive but spoils...and I don't know how well it freezes.

9. What is your absolute favorite dream car?  I wrote a whole post about  my dream cars of years past.  I'd have to say my favorite dream car is the one I have now.  It's a Honda Civic that I'm hoping to keep forever.  I only care about what matters most and that is quality, reliability and gas mileage.

10. Are you a dreamer or a “go-getter”?  I'd like to say I'm a go getter.  Who wouldn't?  But I'm thinking I am more of a dreamer. 

11. What is your dream holiday destination and why?  Europe!!!  Particularly Greece.  Because I've never been and I hear it's beautiful.  I want to see all of those age old buildings and monuments that I've only seen on TV in person.  It's the kind of place you might get to go to only once in a lifetime and I hope I get to go.


Eleven things about Abs
If you want to learn even more about her check out her blog at Nabstural.
1. I absolutely love Jesus Christ – he is my “bestest” friend
2. I am a first born and honoured by my siblings respect of my role
3. I have 2 brothers
4. I have a weakness for chips (French fries) and crisps (chips)
5. I have never had a cavity
6. If I could re-decorate every week I would be one super happy girl – I love love love it
7. I am gifted in event planning
8. I am an internet surf-aholic
9. Bargain is my second name and I can smell it from a mile away especially on the internet
10. I am a lover of Mary Kay products and have been using them for 13+ years
11. My favourite shop in the whole wide world so far is “Bed bath and beyond”

Reality TV Randoms

I started watching house hunters back in 2009 when we were first starting to look for houses.  I thought maybe it was a phase because I was in house hunting mode but nope.  I'm still addicted.  I just watched an episode about a couple looking for a house in Hendersonville, TN and got to thinking that maybe we should up move there.  With a $350,000 budget you can get a large mansion like 4200 square foot 4 bedroom 3 bath move in ready home with hard wood floors throughout and sky high ceilings.  Granite counter tops included.  Oh, and an office.  Did I mention the 1200 square foot finished basement with a wet bar?  We don't ever want or need a place bigger then 2,500 square feet so just Imagine how little we would have to spend on the house of our dreams there.  I love So Cal but the Sunshine tax is such a high price to pay.   You can't get anything close to that here for that price.   But...on the other hand when I think about the perfect weather we have here it's worth it.  I guess.

There is Basketball Wives, Baseball Wives and House Wives of:  Atlanta, New Jersey, New York, Orange County and Beverly Hills.  Did I leave any out?  Well, the other night I stumbled upon Prison Wives.  Let's just say it's way different then those other shows.  There is nothing glamorous about this one.  Annika Powell; a single mom with three kids decides to marry Anthony who is a convicted murderer serving time in a maximum security prison.  She was hooked up by the fiance of one of his cell mates.  Her and her kids have moved 5 times in 3 years to follow Anthony when he gets transferred to different prisons.  She's sort of like a military wife except when Anthony gets transferred it's certainly not for a new job and he never brings home a paycheck.  In fact, he never comes home.  Ever.  And he never will because he is a lifer with no chance of parole.  She survives on food stamps.  Anthony has stepped in from behind the walls of prison to be a much loved step dad to her kids.  She even wants Anthony to legally adopt the kids and have them change their last name to his.  That would require a man who is not imprisoned, albeit a dead beat, to give up his parental rights so I can't imagine any court in the country allowing this.  Annika's mom even got in on the inmate action.  Anthony found a pen pal for grandma who promptly fell in love as well.  When he got transferred to a different prison grandma moved out of Annika's house to move closer to him.

Photo Source and Video of Mia's mom behaving badly

I tried so hard to give up Toddler's and Tiaras.  I removed it from my DVR and basically quit it for a couple seasons.  There is something so wrong yet so enjoyable about watching these little girls and their moms go out to compete and kick butt in the cut throat world of pageants.  The next thing I knew I was watching it again.  There are kids who are so sweet and hard working in spite of their awful parents and kids who have some major behavioral issues and drive their poor parents nuts.  Last Week's episode featured precious little 4 year old Mia who competed her heart out. Her music ended before she left the stage in the Beauty competition so her mom was ranting and raving that she better forget about winning and that the judges hated her when she hadn't even finished the competition.  What kind of parent discourages their young child that way?  Then, when she won  $500 bucks and the second biggest title mom says that is nothing to her.  She wanted the $10,000 prize and now her dreams and her life are ruined because Mia didn't win it.  Okay...how is this pageant her life and how is her 4 year old daughter responsible for it?  One mom spent $1,200 bucks on a dress and her daughter didn't even get a crown.  Mia's mom says she is Russian therefore very competitive but that's no excuse.  Not that this has anything to do with anything but incidentally, she is a mail order bride.  She met her husband on the internet while she was still in Russia then she came out and got married.  Some parents take it way too far and push their kids way too hard.  I don't agree with packing on all of that make up and the concept of little girls being judged on their "facial beauty."  Regardless, I remain fascinated by the show and can't stop watching.  Please tell me I'm not alone.

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The School Experiment

I hate to say it but working full time and going to school is for the birds.  I can't even imagine if I was going full time or had kids or anything else.  I have so much respect for people who earn their degree as a full time working adult.  My husband is working on his B.A. right now and I'm really proud of him for persevering even though it's so hard.  Last semester I took 2 community college classes.  One fully online and the other partially online.  Some of those nights that I had to work from 8-5 then go to class from 6:30 to 9:50pm were pretty awful.   I started out good but by the last class I was so over it.  Online classes are no piece of cake either.  You really have to watch your deadlines and you don't have to go to class but you still put in a lot of time doing the assignments and discussion boards.  Trying to juggle work, the gym, house work, socializing and time to relax while fitting in class and homework is hard.  I was genuinely interested in my classes.  One of them was even to explore a possible new career option.  I found that I actually enjoyed the challenge of learning and being tested.  If I take a class I'm gunning for an A so it was frustrating to feel that I just didn't have the energy or time to put into it that I wanted to.  The day I took my last final I felt so free.  My time off from work became my own again and I really missed that.  I was worried that my mind had turned to mush after being out of school for so long but I got A's in both classes.  I'm taking two short term (hopefully easy!) 8 week courses this semester to get the 12 units I need to get my pay bump at work and then that's it.  I'm officially back in school as of today.  Not thrilled. 

Thank goodness I got my BA done when I was still a bright eyed fresh faced unemployed/part time working 21 year old because if I had waited who knows if it would have ever happened.  I'm glad I did this though.  This little school experiment affirms what I kind of already knew.  At this point in my life school is just not for me.  If money and time were no object maybe.  If I had my eye on a specific career goal that I was passionate about maybe.  If someone promised me a million bucks if I get my Masters degree...big maybe! But with my current life circumstances it's just not something I want to undertake and it's good to know that for sure now instead of having to wonder.