Monday, September 28, 2009

I Found the Perfect Wedding Dress!

Now I'm just waiting on Nate to propose!

I have subscriptions to multiple bridal magazines, and use the excuse that I need them for "business purposes" to justify the 3+ magazines that arrive in our mailbox every month. In truth, I like to look at them to get ideas for my own wedding that I hope and pray will happen sometime in the near~ish future.

I found this dress in the most recent arrival, Elegant Bride, and think that it is absolutely perfect. I always assumed that I would have to buy two dresses ~ one for the ceremony and another for the reception ~ so I would be able to dance comfortably {let's face it, poufy white dresses and Argentine Tango are not a fabulous mix} and then I came across this one. It's two dresses in one ~ you just remove the taffeta skirt and your fabulous wedding dress becomes a beautiful little lace number perfect for dancing! I'm in love!

Sunday, September 27, 2009

A Prayful Protest

I drive by our local Planned Parenthood multiple times a day on my way to and from work. {We live so close to my work that I am able to go home for lunch and spend time with Nate and Daisy.} To be honest, I don’t always pay much attention to my surroundings {other than the road, of course} while driving ~ I’m usually listening to an audiobook or talking on the phone to my mom ~ but I have taken notice of the small group of protestors that have been staked out in front of the pro-choice clinic lately.

The first protestor I noticed was a lone man holding up a sign that said “Praying to End Abortion.” Another time, I saw a group of women standing with their heads bowed in prayer facing the clinic entrance. I can’t say for sure whether the protestors are always so peaceful ~ for all I know, they heckle and harass every person who dares to enter the facility ~ but I can say that I think they are on the right track with their prayers.

I have always been pro~life. I feel that life begins at the moment of conception, and that an unborn child is just as precious and valuable as a newborn, toddler, or pre~schooler. I even volunteered at a pro~life pregnancy resource center for almost a year after graduating from college. {My work schedule and entrance into graduate school eventually made it difficult to continue the volunteer work and I had to quit.} But I feel that changing the law simply isn’t enough. Making abortion illegal won’t make it stop ~ it will just cause those who feel they have no other options to seek other methods of terminating their pregnancies.

What is needed is a change in the mindset of those who feel that abortion is okay, that no life is lost when a pregnancy is terminated. So while I may not physically join those outside the Everett, WA Planned Parenthood in their protest, I will join them in prayer ~ a prayer that all may come to value life, regardless of whether or not that life has been born.

Friday, September 25, 2009

Dear Someone ~ To the Piggies Who Use the Communal Kitchen at Work

I am so tired of being so busy ~ I haven't had any time to blog, and I barely have time to read my favorite blogs. But I did have time to join in ShortMama's Dear Someone this week ~ check out her blog to read more!

To the Piggies Who Use the Communal Kitchen at Work:

You may not realize it, but there are 28 of us who utilize the communal kitchen on the fourth floor of our building. It requires effort on the part of all of us to ensure that the kitchen remains clean and sanitary for everyone. With that in mind, here are a few points to remember about kitchen cleanliness:

~ Don’t spit in the sink.


~ If you use a paper cup for a quick drink of water, please take it back to your desk with you or throw it away. DO NOT put it back on the stack for the next person to use and share your germs.

~ If your soup spills or marinara explodes in the microwave, take a quick second to wipe up your mess so the microwave is clean and ready for the next person to use.

~ Please be sure to wash all reusable dishware after use ~ leaving it in the sink “to soak” {i.e., to be forgotten} makes it challenging for the rest of us to wash our own dishes.

~ If you happen to not eat all of your soup one day at lunch, find a Tupperware container to store the leftovers in. Don’t wrap up your bowl in a grocery store plastic bag and leave it in the fridge for days where it ultimately will spill and make a huge mess for the person who accidentally bumps it when trying to store their own leftovers.

~ If you are sick at your desk and throw up in your garbage can, rather than throwing your puke bag away in the kitchen garbage, please take it to the restroom for disposal.

~ Try to keep track of the items you have in the fridge. With 28 people storing lunches in it, space is very limited. And forgotten {and eventually rotten} items not only take up unnecessary space, but they also stink up the whole fridge.

~ If you spill water on the counter, grab a paper towel and mop it up. It’s not rocket science, people.

~ I’m not quite sure why you do this, but it really doesn’t make sense to open a packet of coffee and put it in a filter UNTIL YOU’RE ACTUALLY READY TO MAKE THE COFFEE. A coffee-filled filter has been on our small counter, taking up valuable space, for the last day and a half. I’m sure the coffee won’t taste fresh when you finally getting around to making it, and you are running the risk of one of the 27 other folks who use the kitchen spilling the loose coffee grounds everywhere. Not a fun mess to clean up, I am sure.

~ Finally, remember that your mother does not work here ~ you are responsible for cleaning up after yourself and leaving the kitchen in tip~top shape for the next user!

Please note that all of these “pointers” are based on events/behavior I have witnessed myself or heard second~hand from reliable sources. Yuck!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Favorite Thing of the Week ~ Catching Fire

It’s been awhile since I’ve done a “Favorite Thing of the Week” post, but I decided to do one this week, as I currently have a favorite thing that I just can’t get out of my head.


Months ago, I raved about the book, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Stephenie Meyer, the author of the Twilight series and The Host, recommended it on her website, and I was hooked within the first few pages. The second book of the trilogy, Catching Fire, came out on September 1st and I have pretty much been obsessed with it ever since. I’ve read the book twice and just started listening to the audiobook for the second time. I love it! I love the storyline, the characters, the suspense, the politics, and the cliffhanger that is even more frustrating this time around than with The Hunger Games. I even love the love triangle between Katniss, Peeta, and Gale {three of the main characters} that seems unlikely to ever be fully resolved. {And what’s crazy is that I’m not sure how I want it to resolve if it ever does ~ both Peeta and Gale seem perfect for Katniss, and I know that she love them both! So difficult!}

I know there are a lot of die~hard Twilight fans out there who may object to this next statement, but I truly feel that these books blow the Twilight series out of the water. There is simply no comparison. They are just SO MUCH MORE… If you haven’t checked The Hunger Games and Catching Fire out, run straight to the bookstore or log onto Amazon and buy them now. But be sure to clear your schedule before you start reading, because once you start, you won’t want to stop.

Have you read any good books lately? I love recommendations!

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

I Want My Body Back

More specifically, I want this body back.


I took this picture and sent it to Nate back in December 2007 while on a vacation in Maui. For the first time in years, I was happy with my body and felt 100% confident in a bikini. I even wore a WHITE BIKINI while on the trip! Nate and I officially got together a few days after I returned, and I soon discovered that loving an Italian means eating lots of pasta and participating in lots of family gatherings where food is the centerpiece of the event. The body I had in that picture quickly vanished!

The good news is that I’m only 8 to 10 pounds heavier {depending on the day} now than I was in
the picture. {And in case you’re wondering, 8 to 10 pounds on a 5’1 frame unfortunately makes a noticeable difference.} The bad news is that I’ve been trying to shed the extra pounds for the past year and a half with little to no luck. I think part of my problem is that my attempts have been half~hearted at best, but I am finally 100% fed up with being unhappy with how I look, getting frustrated when I get dressed because my clothes don’t fit as well as they used to, and wishing that I was thinner.

I have set multiple goals to lose the weight in time for a certain event ~ both of our trips to Vegas, my best friend’s wedding last October, summer, Nate’s brother’s wedding this past weekend. Apparently none of these events were motivation enough for me to completely jump on the weight loss train because I sure didn’t lose the weight in time for them. This time around, the only motivation I need is me. I’m going to lose the extra pounds because I want to, and because I will feel better about myself once I do, not because some big event is coming up.

So here are a few of the steps I’m going to take as I work to get my body back:

~ I am going to write down everything I eat. Having to acknowledge on paper what I have put in my mouth has helped keep me accountable in the past, and I am hopeful that it will work now.
~ I am committed to doing four days of cardio a week, in addition to Daisy’s daily walks. It might not always be easy to fit these workouts in with my schedule, but I won’t regret squeezing them in once I’ve reached my goals.
~ I am going to take things slow and will remain positive even if I have minor setbacks. I didn’t gain the weight in a day or a week, or even a month, and I can’t expect to lose it in that time.
~ I am going to provide weekly updates of my progress on my blog. I hope that this will keep me accountable and make it easier to stay on track.

Wish me luck!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Friend Makin’ Monday ~ Fall TV

This week for FMM, the lovely Amber has tasked us with sharing the fall TV shows we are just dying to see. As a self~professed TV junkie, I have quite a few shows I’m looking forward to…

~ House. One of our favorites. When we left House last season, he had just willingly entered a mental health facility after hallucinating that he and Cuddy finally got it on. What will happen next?!? Will a summer in the nut house have cured him of his addiction and hallucinations? Will he and Cuddy get together FOR REAL this season?



~ Dexter. Ah, America’s favorite serial killer. We don’t currently get Showtime, but I think it’s just about time to call the cable company and add it to our service. Dexter is going to be a dad! We can’t miss that!



~ Heroes. I’ll admit it ~ Heroes lost some of its previous charm last season. But I can’t help but hold out hope that the show will get back on track this season. It’s another one of our favorites, and I am not ashamed to admit that I have a bit of a crush on Sylar. He is so evil, I can’t help but love him!



~ Private Practice. I’ve found myself loving the Grey’s Anatomy spin~off a whole lot more than the original lately. The recurring dramas and ever~revolving game of musical beds has kinda gotten old. In fact, I don’t even have Grey’s Anatomy on my list ~ after being spoiled by the gossip columns and thus knowing exactly who dies and who lives after the season finale cliffhanger, I’m not really even looking forward to the new season. Especially with Ellen Pompeo’s maternity leave coming up. But I digress. I am very much looking forward to the return of Private Practice ~ I can’t wait to see what happens with Violet. That evil lady just can’t take her baby!



~ Brothers & Sisters. This is one of my shows that Nate absolutely can’t stand, especially with the Justin~Rebecca storyline. But I love it, and am anxiously awaiting its return.



~ Survivor. We have a tradition of watching Survivor with my parents ~ we usually spend Thursday nights for dinner and TV with them, and watch almost every episode of Survivor together. It’s a nice way to spend the last work night of the week, and who doesn’t love a home~cooked meal made by Mom?



~ Dollhouse. What can I say? I’m a bit of a Joss Whedon fan. Dollhouse is different {and honestly, how could a show in which the characters are rented out to the highest bidder and imprinted with the personality requested by said bidder not be?}. But I like it, and am glad to see it was renewed for a second season.


Which shows are you anxious to see?!?

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Here’s to Hoping Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder…

I’ve been absent from the blogging world for awhile ~ mainly because I am no longer able to blog and leave comments during downtime at work due to our evil new WebMaster AND because I have been very busy in the evenings with garters and trying to keep Daisy entertained. I’m hoping to start blogging again on a regular basis soon, and in the meantime, thought I share some of my new garter creations.














And my absolute favorite ~


I hope everyone is having a great week!