Click Chicks Photo Challenge // Nature

I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to find any nature in time for this blog post since there isn't anything all that beautiful and nature like outside my front door.  Then we were driving down the street on the way home from football on Saturday and I saw these beautiful trees all lined up and blooming just waiting for me to snap a picture.  I don't remember seeing them before but then again I don't remember exactly when I last drove down that street.  Wendy's and Save-A-Lot kind of spoil the tone of these pretty trees so I cropped them out. I love the bright blue cloudless sky in the background.  It was a perfect 80 something degree day.

  I have no idea what kind of trees these are but the flowers on it look really pretty up close.  In the immediate area where I live I can see beautiful mountains looming in the distance.  There are trees here and there but not a whole lot of greenery so it was nice surprise to discover these.

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Four Day Weekend

I heart four day weekends.  I slept in and went to a 10:30 am Yoga class on Friday.  Then I came home, relaxed and started dinner.  I rarely make dinner so this was a big deal and for some reason I actually enjoyed doing it.  It was very strange, but I liked it.  That night we watched a movie (Stolen).

Saturday morning I got up early with Mj and went to his flag football game.  I started out in a sweatshirt drinking coffee and ended up sweating.  The sun was blazing and by the time we left it was in the 80's.  I got some really great action shots of the game using the zoom lens.  He's the organizer for these flag football games and I was unofficially hired with no pay to take shots for his group Facebook page. 

After football we went to an open house in our neighborhood.  We're definitely not in the market but it's still fun to look and pretend like we are on House Hunters.  Then it was time for lunch  and we had to eat outside because the weather was so perfect.  We went to Downtown Cafe because it's in our neighborhood and they have a great outdoor seating area.  That sourdough cheesy bread was so delicious that I'm still thinking about it.  I'm such a carb junkie.  It's an appetizer but I ordered it as my entree.  It was only $4.95 so once again I was a cheap date.  Mj got a juicy burger with fries.  I couldn't believe I was wearing flip flops and shorts in February.  Okay, I can believe it and that's why I love living here so much.  But don't be too jealous because it's supposed to start raining any minute.

My husband's job clearly doesn't care enough about their employees so he didn't get Friday or Monday off.  How sad is that?  Monday I got up and hit the gym by 9am for some cardio.  Since I was in no rush I spent about 30 minutes afterwards stretching and working on my flexibility.  I ran a few errands, did laundry and spent the rest of the afternoon watching TV and blogging.

Not having to go to work is the life, I'm telling you.  I had time to exercise, relax and get stuff done without feeling like a chicken with it's head cut off.  Long weekends are the best.

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That Time I Got Ditched on Valentine's Day

I could have skipped this post altogether.  I mean, this isn't exactly the Valentine's Day post I expected to write but this is how it went down so I'm sharing it anyways.

My husband hates Valentine's Day.  I knew he hated this so called fake Hallmark holiday but for the last four years he's played along.  Special deliveries at work, a specially baked dessert, a dinner out.  It's always been very low key but we have acknowledged the holiday for my sake, but this year I got ditched.  He finally had enough and boycotted the whole thing altogether.  We didn't have plans together, but I certainly didn't expect him to leave me at home alone and go out to dinner with anyone else.  I find out that he's going to dinner with the guys for burgers after work.  Half the guys that went are married.  Sounds like the ultimate F you Valentine's Day if you ask me.

Am I hurt?  I have to be honest and say yes, but not mortally wounded since I was never really all that crazy about Valentine's anyways.  I've never placed much importance on what I got or what we did, but I did enjoy it.  I don't see anything wrong with an extra day to celebrate love.  He doesn't like the idea that there is a certain arbitrary date on which men specifically, receive a lot of extra pressure to do something that will show love.  My husband's tolerance for this day has clearly run it's course.  He wasn't having it this year, and while it's a little bit of a bummer, I'm okay with it.  And here's why.  I love my husband and I know he loves me.  I don't need Valentine's day to know this.  I don't want him feeling roped into doing something he really doesn't want to on my account.  If it's not genuine, there's no point and we didn't get married so we could force each other to do things we really don't want to do.  Sometimes we do things we don't want to in marriage for our partner, but Valentine's Day is just not important enough to me that it should qualify as one of those things he does anyway.  I see no need to force it upon my husband if he doesn't want to partake.  Marriage is about give and take, and it looks like it's my turn to be the one to give on this one.

It was like a parade of sweets, flowers, love notes and special dinners on Instagram, but I didn't have a thing to show off except these little conversation hearts I bought myself at Big Lots.  The upside is that I didn't get the chance to OD on sweets or gorge myself at a restaurant.  I spent the evening alone watching a movie on Netflix and eating Cheese Quesadilla's with carb stopper tortillas.  It was a little bit of a let down to be shut out of the V day festivities, but I realize that my marriage is more then what I did or didn't get on Valentine's day.

A tiny part of me wanted to pout and throw a little hissy fit over it, but I put on my big girl panties and sucked it up.  We didn't make plans, so in his mind Valentine's Day was a non thing, however it still meant something to me so I thought we'd just spend a cozy night at home.  I didn't realize we weren't acknowledging it all, since we'd always done so in the past.  Whelp.  I certainly know now.  I told him I felt sad and hurt that he went out, but that's it.  No point in getting super offended over something like this, when I have such a wonderful husband.  He's kind, generous, and he puts up with all of my crazy ways.  We do fun things together all the time, and show our love for each other on other days in other ways.  I felt pretty spoiled on my Birthday and Christmas.  Not getting this one day is no big deal in the grand scheme of things.  After you've been together for a while there comes a point where it just doesn't matter that much anyways.  He loves me for who I am, and I have to return the favor even if it means Valentine's Day is a thing of the past. 

And yes, I did get him something.  Just some football attire he needed.  It was not romantic in any way, but I did put a sweet handwritten note with it.  I can't really say I got nothing in return though, because I got him.

Click Chicks Photo Challenge // Hearts

Remember these little candy conversation hearts?  They didn't even taste that great but was always THE Valentine's Candy to give and to get and it was so much fun reading all the little goofy sayings on each one.  I saw a package of 8 of these little boxes at Big Lots for $2.00 and just had to get them.  I will say that these hearts taste much better now then I remember.  They bring back hazy memories of cutting out construction paper hearts and Elmer's Glue in elementary school.  Which reminds me of how we used to smear it on our hands and peel it off.  It was really creepy because once it dried up it looked like you were peeling off your skin.  I never had a Valentine in elementary or middle school.  Ever.  I was a late bloomer but it was back in the days when you handed out candy and cards to your entire class so it didn't matter.  Then in high school it was all about balloons, chocolate and exchanging little gifts with your group of friends.  I was jealous of my friends who always seemed to have boyfriends just in time for Valentine's Day.  Even then I didn't have a Valentine because I guess was still blooming.  I'm so glad those days are over.  My Valentine pretty much hates Valentine's Day but he's all mine and I love him anyways.

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What I'm Not Watching and Why

Reality TV has gotten so out of control. Every single channel from Animal Planet to National Geographic has gotten in on the craze. Some I refuse to watch and others I'm hopelessly addicted to. 

Not Watching:

The Bachelor

It's way too long, way too much drama and nobody ever stays together.  I can't bear to watch the girls crying about how they love him and they don't get to spend enough time with him.  This guy that they just barely met and are somehow falling in love with.  I love it that Trista and Ryan actually met this way and stayed together but they are the exception and not the rule.  I lost hope that it would ever happen again so I stopped watching after the Melissa Rycroft season of The Bachelorette.

Starter Wives Confidential

Ridiculous.  I can't believe they made a show about a bunch of ex wives of famous people.  I don't know much about the show but all it took was one preview for me to say NO WAY!

Gypsy Sister's

I watched My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding and My Big Fat American Gypsy Wedding but the buck stops here.  It was really interesting finding out about their culture and lifestyle but those sister's are crazy and I just don't feel like getting into their shenanigans.

Here Comes Honey Boo Boo 

I never watched this and never will.  This family is just too much for me.  I'm appalled and very turned off by a lot of the clips I've seen so even though I was curious at first left it alone.

American Idol

The last season I watched was when Ruben Stoddard won but up to that point I watched it religiously.  Sometimes I think about watching but I guess I just lost interest.

The Biggest Loser

Mj and I watched one season of this together.  It was so time consuming!  Two hour long episodes is just too much and I got annoyed that they only focus on exercise when diet accounts for a good 90% of weight loss.  I wish they would show more on what they are eating and the challenges of trying to maintain a healthy diet.  I thought about watching again since Jillian Michaels is back but didn't.

Real Housewives of Anything

I watched Orange County, New York and a few seasons of Atlanta then I quit.  I got sick of watching these people living their excessive lifestyles.  It was too much fighting, arguing and drama among people that aren't even friends.  If they hated each other so much they wouldn't hang out but they do because they are thrown together for the show and the drama that they will hopefully create.  I can't stand watching spoiled grown women act so immature and petty.

There might be a bunch that I won't watch but I have plenty of guilty pleasures that I can't get enough of.

Watching:

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Dance Mom's

This is one of my favorites!  I love watching these talented girls perform.  They are so cute.  Chloe is my favorite and she was getting a lot more solos but is now suspended.  Maddie has fallen from grace but seems to be on her way back up after finally getting another solo and winning.  Abby is straight evil.  It's not just being a tough teacher she is down right rude and mean.   The mom's react to it of course and then it's just this terrible yelling match and power struggle.  It's getting harder and harder to watch.  Just when I think it can't get crazier it does.  The moms are upset and screaming, the kids are crying.  I don't know how these girls focus on their dancing with all the drama going on.  There has got to be another dance studio in Pennsylvania that they can go to.   There is so much jaw dropping drama on this show that Mj has even started watching it with me.

Toddlers and Tiara's

I know, I know.  It's so terrible that these little girls are wearing more make-up then I do, fake nails, fake lashes, fake teeth, fake hair, tanning and then being trotted out onto a stage to be judged on their facial beauty.  I removed it from my DVR one season only to manually record a bunch of them and add it back the next season.  I'm fascinated by mom's who spend thousands of dollars on these pageants and the little girls who control them.  There are even a few pageant Dad's that seem to love it.

Cheer Perfection

I used to be a cheerleader.  I can't not watch this show.  I like watching the girls perform at practice and competitions.  This show comes with it's own set of mama drama.  Anne in particular drives me crazy because for some reason I haven't figured out yet she thinks she's way better then everyone else.  How superior can you be if you think that when you go #2 on a coach bus it falls into the street. 

 

Teen Mom 2

Uggg.  I did a whole rant about this one.  You can find it here.  19 year old Leah who is already a mother to twins had a miscarriage which is indeed sad but she was beyond foolish for wanting another baby in the first place.  Chelsea is still having unprotected sex with the father of her child who is an absolute mean jerk.  I mean really.  Haven't these girls learned their lesson?  The new season starts up again next week and according to the previews the drama is a MOTHER and I'll be right there watching it.  As annoyed as I get with these girls I can't help it.

The Face

I will watch any and all modeling reality TV shows because I love modeling.  This is a new one on Oxygen and Nigel Barker who got booted off of the judging panel of America's Next Top Model is the host.  Successful models Karolina Kurkova, Coco Rocha and Naomi Campbell each lead teams in challenges against each other but only one girl will be the face of an Ulta campaign.   I predict lots of drama, cat fights and tears as one by one their modeling dream shatters.  Too bad Oxygen doesn't have an HD channel.

House Hunters

Always!  Mj is way over it but I never get sick of this one.  The only drama on this show is when couples don't agree on if they should live in the city or the suburbs.

We got into Walking Dead, Son's of Anarchy and Breaking Bad on Netflix.  I didn't even want to start watching those.  We also watch Modern Family and The Office together.   Those are my "scripted" shows.  I love how there is now that distinction of scripted vs non scripted since reality TV has taken over.  There are so many good shows I'm not watching and that's fine with me because I don't want to spend time watching them.  The Carrie Diaries looks really cute and Smash looks like my kind of show. Mj's watching The Followers and The Americans but I can't  want get involved.  As much as I love my couch I don't want to spend my life on it watching TV.