We’re Moving!

 

We found this lovely home within our budget… We had gone back and forth a couple times about actually buying it because there’s quite a bit of work that needs to be done in the house.  We had actually rescinded our offer to purchase the home, except the sellers altered the terms of the purchase and we came around.  This gives us so much to actually be excited about…  I know where we’re going to put our Christmas tree, and how I’d like to arrange the dining room.  I can picture what our guest bedroom is going to look like, and I’m pinning up so many ideas for what to do with the unfinished basement.

 

The real deciding factor was when we got our parents to do a walk-through of the house to get a feel for whether the problems that it has are insurmountable or not.  After seeing everything in person–including the pug room, and the spray-painted spare bedroom…

They said that they didn’t see anything that tells them to actually walk away from the house.  I think that the males in the family were impressed with the 30′ x 30′ garage, and I think that no one could really pass up the half-acre yard that’s already fenced in for pupper-duppers:

Even though we went back and forth a few times, we’re still trying to keep the same closing-date as before… so here’s hoping that we’ll be able to move the weekend of 9/27.  It’s going to be a flurry of packing and cleaning until then, and sadly, I have to revert the kitchen back to the brown/yellow/red mess that it was when we first moved in.  There was a term in the contract that said no contact paper, but apparently the office staff didn’t read it any closer than I did.  Thankfully, they’ll let me just remove it instead of keeping my security deposit..

Wibbly Wobbly

The Doctor:  People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but *actually* from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint – it’s more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly… time-y wimey… stuff.

[spoiler] If you are sensitive to the subject of miscarriage, for your own sake, read no further.

Gotta dash. Things happening. Well, four things. Well, four things and a lizard.

And, I’m back…

Is it just me, or is WordPress being weird? I usually include photos in my posts and this one *STARTED* fine, but then I went back to edit the draft of this post and the photo exploded.  The preview looks fine, but, I dunno…I’m typing right now and all I can see is the orange and it’s super zoomed in and… let’s just say it doesn’t look like an orange at the moment @_@;

Ahem.

I’ve been away a lot lately because, well, life happens–I needed to be there for family and so I was.  This involved going back to Canada for a funeral service just a week and a half after we had come home from Canada, but it was well worth the journey, just to gain some closure, healing, and time with family.

 

I’m at a point, where I want to get back to what I originally intended with this blog–cooking, working out, getting healthy.

Today, I’m spring cleaning around the apartment and I’ll be cooking up a few things for this week’s dinners.  I’ve got my grocery list planned out and the meal plans, too.  Now it’s just a matter of executing on the plan:

Monday: Chorizo Chicken Jambalaya

Tuesday: Taco Chicken Bowls

Wednesday: Wild Rice Soup – made from a mix, I’ll be adding fresh mushrooms and serving with a salad and a crusty bread.

Thursday: Spaghetti – nothing fancy, just browned beef, pasta, and sauce

Friday: Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup

Saturday: Skillet Gnocchi w/ Chard and White Beans – we’ve tried this one before, and it was terrible.  Mostly, Jeff says, because “melted spatula” wasn’t supposed to be part of the recipe.

Kneehigh Productions: Tristan & Yseult at The Guthrie, MN

Turns out, sometimes students get REALLY good deals for theater performances.  This weekend, we got to see Tristan & Yseult performed by Kneehigh Productions (from the UK!)  The opportunity was *so* good that we invited all the family that was in town to actually come along:

Of course we wished our family far and away could’ve come with, but it was only 2 days notice for anyone involved.  C’est la vie, non?

The production was fantastic! Of course, I was really tempted to record some of the songs etc, but theater, much like movie theaters, have rules against such acts.  Probably even more so since their set etc. is also intellectual property–not just the performances.

The final act had me in tears, it was so moving. [spoiler alert]

Breakfast: scrambled eggs with veggies

Yesterday, someone snuck a salad into my eggs, so, today I’m putting veggies in intentionally 😉

Maybe it’ll help me cure my pizza hang over. We hung out with friends last night and ate really good food.

Okay fine. It was “bad” food, but it was delicious, and we enjoyed ourselves 😀

Happy Monday!!

I meant to write more over the weekend, but the days just got away from me.

So much so, in fact, that I woke up this morning thinking (hoping?) That today was Sunday.

For Valentine’s, not to beat a dead horse, but, I was one if those people in line at the last minute picking out a card. I know it’s contrived, but I like celebrating love. We don’t make a big   fuss, but just a little something.

I ended up buying him a saucy birthday card, abd crossing out “biryhday” and writing “Valentine’s” hehe. I also snagged him a new mug since his favorite one recently shattered.

What’s cute, is that he actually does give up his coffee for me some days. And he’s the one to be a pot 90% of the time.

Love is not something I’ve ever been without, because my mom is a total sweet heart. I got her the same mug as Jeff, and she bought us chocolates and a sweet-as-honey card.

Anyway.. that brings us to today: Snow Drama, Monday edition.

I woke up to big fat snow flakes falling heavily this morning, blanketing the road like thick butter cream icing.  My commute was really good, considering the conditions. I know the plows were out, but they couldn’t keep up with the snow. My car was pulled to the side every time my wheels came again the resistance of packed snow that didn’t go in the direction I was going (think intersections, merging on the highway, changing lanes..).  What doubles the frustration is that I was supposed to have the day off.

The good news is that the bosses sprung for breakfast and lunch, AND, it was healthy. Thank goodness!  What’s even better, is these same bosses cleared off everyone’s cars when the snow stopped so that when we went home, we wouldn’t have to.

I should mention, I don’t work for a small company. There were a lot of cats to clear! It was their way of saying “thank you” and they did it with a smile:

After work, I was able to get the grocery shopping done. I keep seeing it all over the place, so I actually picked up some Brussels sprouts to roast tonight. I also nabbed some fruit that week be quick and easy for grab-n-go snacking this week.  Plus: it’s a super nice splash of color in an otherwise blah landscape. Can winter be done now? ╮(╯▽╰)╭

Happy post Valentine’s day

This morning has had a few false starts.  I gave Tazzer his pill this morning around 7, stayed up for a bit, then snuggled back in bed. I played with Jeff’s arm this morning, using the crook of his elbow to play the sad trombone, over zealous tuba, and the panicked bugle (he tickled me mid-raspberry).

After that shenanigans, I went back to sleep. I can hear Jeff rummaging around in the kitchen.

Funny enough, he walked in with breakfast shortly after I wrote that sentence. Officially the first breakfast in bed!  In fact, this post exists because I’m usually out of bed before him, but he wanted to do this for me. It’d have ruined the gesture if I got up and helped him clean the kitchen. I know this from experience…he gets so sad if I foil a surprise.  This was nice. Good things come to those who wait.

And cats. Cats come to those who are waiting. D’awe…

Profound revelation

Jeff was running late today and muttering about how he didn’t leave himself enough time to make a lunch.  Like a whirling wizard, I whipped up a lunch that included fruits, veggies, carbs, and protein (ham and cheese sandwich with lettuce, grape tomatoes, crackers with laughing cow cheese, and fruit cups).

Me: Why can I always find time to make a lunch for you, but not for me?
Jeff: Because you love me!
Me: … 

Now, he was just being cute, but it was rather profound.  Does my lack of enthusiasm for making my own lunches mean that I don’t love me?  😦  

I’m up to 237.  I can’t, can’t, can’t hit 240.  Not again.  Never again. So I really need to figure out this funk and get out of it so that I can get going back in the right direction.  I started by making myself a lunch… with lettuce, ham, and tomato.  I’ve got crackers and fruit cups for snacks, and I know I’ve got broccoli at work to munch on.

Busy bonus day!

I had today off of work, but it ended up being busier than a normal day, even a weekend day.

It started at 5am when I took to the internet to waste time and debate social issues.

From there, I stopped at the chiro with Jeff, chatted with Brittany, said hi to Holly, then of to the coffee shop I went.  I read the paper and studied for a bit, then took my car to get fixed. While I was there, I priced out some pretty sweet wheels for the car.

They’re a bit spendy, so we’ll be saving up before that splurge.  I loved the shop I found, though.  They had a five-star rating on yelp, and from the looks of it, it was well-earned. They were neat, tidy, professional, and fair priced. There was some swearing that I didn’t appreciate, but it wasn’t AT anyone or about anyone, so I’m alright about it. Everyone swears, lol, he probably just didn’t realize I could hear him.

Along the way, I found a Crossfit studio–what!!

They were closed, so I couldn’t check it out.

When my car was fixed, I drove across town (30 minutes northeast) to pick my Mom up. We grabbed lunch, picked up her new glasses, and drove across town (30 minutes south) to pick up the keys to her desk. We traded seats and I let her drive so I could help my brother with an email response to an interview invitation via text and Facebook.  She drove us to the office (25 minutes west) to get her laptop, then we headed back to her house (25 minutes east). We stopped off for some grocery shopping and to off my gas tank ($132 later…), Then I dropped her off at Grandma’s work so they could run more errands.

From there, I drove back to the chiro (25 minutes west) to pick some things up, then went home (15 minutes northwest).

Once home, I played butcher for about an hour cutting the bulk meat down to reasonable sizes and organizing the freezer. I cooked dinner, and now I’m ready to eat. Phew!! I’m tired!

And then there’s me: seeking fitness friendship

It may just be the exhaustion talking, but I almost feel like giving up on the Facebook page AND the photo tracker. I’d also be “giving up” on my fitness group on Facebook, and instead start thinking of it like a secret group of occasionally fitness minded friends instead. We’ve all been friends online for so long that we share all of our secrets there. Love, life, even.. You know.

The secret group has about 9 “active” members–a couple are so busy they don’t really post too often. Of those nine, 5 are growing their families, so it’s less about fitness these days than it is about life.

And then there’s me. I love these girls and they’re great to be around. I love being involved, and I’ll appreciate their support when my husband and I start our family, but that’s so far away. What do I do in the mean time? I need a fitness support group. Should I join spark people and blog there again?

Are there other online support groups (preferably on Facebook) that I could join?

I’m mulling these questions over while I get ready for work. Hopefully this will clear up by new year–especially with people getting a renewed fitness inspiration.

If you have ideas, share them in the comments below 🙂