Everyday Life...

Did You Miss Me??

2009-08-27T08:45:00.002-05:00

Hello, friends! You may (or may not) have noticed that I haven't posted anything over here in nearly 4 months. It really just got kind of hard maintaining 3 blogs....so I've really only been posting in 1. I initially had this blog for my personal/family life and a separate blog for my triathlon/marathon training. The 3rd blog is just a bunch of silliness that my bestie and I do together, but even that one has suffered lately.

Anyway, my training blog has become more that just training and it also encompasses my personal life as well these days. SO, if you wanna catch me, pop over to JourneyToABetterMe sometime. I post there regularly and not just about my training, but also about my family, friends, and whatever other randomness pops into my head. ;)

I hope everyone is doing great and I hope to catch you over at my other blog!

Werd.

My Weekend Back Home

2009-05-04T12:08:00.002-05:00

I had a pretty awesome weekend back home. I haven't been back since my dad's birthday in January, so a trip home was long overdue. We got there Friday a little before 8pm. My sister's boyfriend was in town too, so Randy and I watched "Yes Man" with them...except I fell asleep about half way through it. :( I really wanted to see it too, so I'll have to Netflix it or something. I'm just not used to staying up much later than 9:00, lol.

Anyway, Saturday was the John Blaufuss 5k. I registered for it WEEKS ago and was supposed to do it with my best friend...but she ended up hurting her knee, so Rylie ended up stepping in and running it with me. I can't believe how awesome she was!! I have an entire race report and photos at JourneyToABetterMe. Anyway, after the race, I went out and ran another 3 miles when we got home cuz I had a 6 mile run on tri schedule for that day. It was actually a pretty good run. Slow, but little pain...until later in the day.

After the run, I got cleaned up and then went to see my sister at work. She works at a tanning salon and Randy and I got to tan for free since we're "new customers." (Technically, I've tanned there before, but it was before I was married so I had a different name. I've never tanned there under my married name, so new name = new customer. LOL.)

After that, my mom and I went to the mall for a little bit. I needed some new work clothes, so I went to Maurice's and found a couple pairs of capris and a couple tops. Well, everything was buy 1, get one 1/2 off, so I paid for the pants together so I could get one of my higher priced items for 1/2 off, and I had my mom pay for the tops together. When I went to give her money for the tops after we left, she told me not to worry about it. So that was pretty cool. :)

After the shopping excursion, my best friend Melissa and her daughter Dylan came by to pick up Rylie & me so we could all go see the Hannah Montana movie. It was actually pretty cute. Rylie is obsessed with HM, so she's been begging to see this movie ever since the first preview aired. It was so cute too cuz there were a ton of Miley Cyrus songs in the movie and Rylie sat there and sang along with ALL of the songs during the movie, LOL!

When the movie was over, we went back to my mom & dad's and had dinner with the family and then Randy, Rylie, and I headed over Justin & Melissa's to hang for a bit. Melissa and I ended up going out and Randy and Rylie stayed over there to hang out with Justin and Dylan. We didn't really know where to go since the bar we used to always go to is now closed, so I basically just asked my sister where they were going to be. Yeah....totally all 21 and 22 year olds there (my sister is 22). I was literally THE oldest person at both bars we went to, LOL. Oh well, we still had fun. There were a lot of funny moments, but the best was when Melissa and I requested that the DJ play an Eazy E song and when he did, the entire dance floor cleared (cuz all the young kids were probably like who the f is this?!) and Melissa and I busted out into old school mode and then when the song was over and a "normal" song came back on, everyone resumed dancing. LOL, leave it to us.

Anyway, yesterday was a pretty lazy day. I had intentions of taking my sister's bike out for a ride, but never did. My grandma came into town, so I caught up with her for a bit. Oh, and Randy and I went to get a burrito from this Mexican place where no one speaks English, but they have some awesome authentic Mexican food. We didn't get back to KC until about 8pm last night. All in all, it was a pretty good weekend.

She's Her Mother's Daughter

2009-04-22T13:38:00.000-05:00

Preface: This is a pic of Rylie with a bottle of Sparkling Grape Juice on NYE....NOT wine! It was taken this year. The pic of me was taken on NYE 2 years ago. Uncanny, isn't it? She's definitely MY kid!

Anyway, Rylie (who is in kindergarten, mind you) came home from school on Monday and informed me that she ran a mile in PE. At first I didn't even believe her - I mean, a mile is a long ways for those little legs! I don't remember running the mile in PE until middle school and I was shocked that kg'ers were running a mile! But then she started telling me all the details, like how they had to run 7 laps around the playground, and how afterwards they got a stamp - "smile for the mile." After hearing all this, I knew she wasn't making it up!

She then proceeded to tell me and she and her friend Victoria were the first ones to finish. She said they beat everyone in her class of 23 students, even all the BOYS! Can I tell you that I was bursting with pride?? :) I think it may be time for her to start running with Mom. I mean, if she can bike 13 miles and run a mile, I this she can do more than I give her credit for! She told me awhile back that she wanted to start running with me, but at the time I really thought the only reason she was saying that was so I would buy her a running skirt like mine. *She's a girlie girl.* But it just may be time to take her out and see what she's made of! ;)

As a side note, she was sore yesterday. She came home saying her legs hurt really bad. So bad, in fact, that she was not able to go to dance last night. She must get that from me as well. :\ I gave her some Motrin and a banana. Hopefully she'll be good to go tonight.

In other news, I'm still trying to raise funds for my upcoming triathlon with proceeds going to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. If anyone is interested in donating, you can do so here: http://pages.teamintraining.org/mid/HyveeTri09/arobbins

Weekend In St Louis

2009-04-21T10:07:00.002-05:00

Randy and I left bright and early Saturday morning (6am) for our trip to St Louis. The reason for the trip was for my half marathon, but we had a little fun while we were there too.

As soon as we got into town, we checked into our hotel and then went over to the expo to pick up my race packet. They had all kinds of cool stuff at the expo - t-shirts, hats, visors, and all kinds of gear. I ended up getting a fuel belt, which I had looked for at Dick's Friday night and couldn't find. After that, we all went to lunch. "We" included the 2 of us and the 4 friends that went with us. After lunch, Randy and I went and toured Busch Stadium. That was a lot of fun and we got some really cool pics. Saturday night we all went to dinner and met up with our other 2 friends that were in town for the race too, so there was a total of 8 of us at dinner. We ate at a really yummy Italian place - had to get in some pasta before the race!

Saturday was the race. I'm just going to copy and paste my post from my running blog below:

I've been putting this off so that I could add race pics to my post...but the GO! St Louis site still doesn't have the pics up and I'm at work where I can't access my personal photos, so........you'll just have to wait for the pics. Sorry. ;)

Anyway, I DID IT!!!!! I RAN A HALF MARATHON!!!! WOOT!

I still have so much going through my mind, I don't even know if I can form complete sentences to describe the experience, so I think I'll just have to give the high(and low)lights:

**Standing at the starting line was one of the most overwhelming and exhilerating feelings I've ever felt in my life! There were 15,000 runners in this race and looking up and just seeing BLOCKS of mass people was just incredible. We were facing the Arch at the starting line and it was just such a surreal moment. Hearing the national anthem gave me goosebumbs and it is a moment I will never EVER forget!

**Right when the race started, they played Eye of the Tiger over the loud speakers, which totally made me LOL!

**I randomly saw a girl I went to high school with on my way to the starting line, which was odd since we were 6 hours away from our home town.

**It rained for the ENTIRE duration of the race. Luckily, it was in the 50's with no wind, so it wasn't cold...well, at least not until after the race was over. The 8 block walk back to the hotel afterwards was pretty miserable.

**The first few miles we were running near the interstate and all these cars and semis kept honking at us. That was really cool.

**There were porta potties at the starting line, but then not again until mile 4. We stopped to pee and since it was the first area along the race with bathrooms, the lines were HUGE. That added a good 10+ minutes to our time.

**The first 5 miles FLEW by! We saw our boys along the sidelines right around the 5th mile, so that made our day. They got some pics of us as we ran by.

**I saw a guy on my team at work in the crowd between mile 5 and 6.

**Mile 6 is where things started to get ugly. I had some power gel stuck in my throat that wanted to come up. I had to go behind a bush to make myself puke. We started to hit some hills that went on forever at this point.

**Between mile 9 and 10 we saw one of the Budweiser Clydesdales. It was so HUGE and pretty!**At mile 10 they were giving out free GU.

**The crowds of people cheering everyone on was so amazing! Everyone was just so positive and full of energy - truly amazing!

**Right after the 10th mile, we all decided it was time to pull out our MP3 players....but none of them would play since they were all wet from the rain. :(

**After the MP3 player incident, we started to split up. One of the girls ran ahead, leaving just 2 of us.

**At mile 11 I had to drop an emergency shadoobie. Damn power gel... LOL*

*At mile 12 I stopped and walked a bit with my girl friend as she was hurting really bad. That's when all the pain from my knees hit me - with full force! I gave her a pep talk and reminded her that we had only 1 mile to go and we needed to just power through.

**Just a few minutes later, we passed a guy on the side of the road with a boom box playing Eye of the Tiger - LOL again!

**At about 12 1/2 miles, there were 3 people along the course handing out cups of BEER - sa-weet!!! I grabbed me a beer and cracked up at the fact that I was running down the street in a damn marathon with a cup of beer! Hahahaha!!!!

**I spotted Randy in the crowd right before I crossed the finish line.

**I finished in under 3 hours, which I realize is a ridiculously slow time, but I did what I went there to do - FINISH! Official race time: 2:48:42.

**Did I mention that this was my first RACE ever?? Not just my first half marathon...but my first RACE! *unless you count "field day" in grade school* ;)

**I have a pretty medal that makes me feel like a bad ass.

So, there ya have it! In 5 weeks, I went from running 3 miles to running a half marathon. And I'm already thinking of what I want to run next.....BUT, I need to get back to my tri training first! I have just a little over 2 months until my tri and I've hardly swam at all lately.

Anyway, that's it for my first official race report. Pics to come soon!!! :)

I was glad to get back home Sunday night and see my girls! That was the longest I've EVER been away from Harper! I'm pretty sore today. I took yesterday off to go to PT, get a deep tissue massage, and see my chiropractor. I'm still having some trouble walking, but I'm still high on life from completing the half marathon. So it's all good. I'll post pics when I get the chance.

Weekend Recap

2009-04-13T12:32:00.001-05:00

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Friday was pretty uneventful. Randy and I went to dinner at a Mexican restaurant that didn't serve margaritas - what kind of crap is that?? Don't think I'll be eating there again. We had a pitcher of beer insead though. We caught up on a few shows Friday night and I was in bed by 10:00. I know, crazy night right.

Saturday Rylie had gymnastics at 9am. She had stayed the night with Grandma Dorothy Friday night, so Randy had to go get her from grandma's and take her to the gym. We picked her up at 10:30 and headed to an Easter Egg Hunt at our friend's house. It was a lot of fun. They had all kinds of goodies for the kids and all kinds of snacks and lunch too.

Saturday was such a beautiful day out and I decided late in the afternoon to take a bike ride. Rylie asked if she could go too. Mind you, Rylie is 6 years old and just got her training wheels off about a month ago. I thought about it for a minute and figured it wouldn't be a rigorous ride for me, given the condition of my poor, aching muscles...so I figured why not? I loaded our bikes onto the bike rack and we headed for the downtown airport.

I have to tell you, I was soooo impressed with Ry! It was her first time to ride in an actual street with other vehicles (there's not that much traffic out there, and for the little traffic we did deal with, I explained how she needed to stay all the way over and let me get in front of her rather than beside her when cars were coming). She never crashed and she kept up and a pretty decent pace, considering she's only six and on a child's bike. Can you believe she rode 13 miles with me??!! And in fact, I finally had to call it a day when it was getting close to dinner time. SHE wanted to keep going! She's gonna grow up to be just like her mama, I tell you!

Here are some pics from the airport:

Here's a pic of the adorable Rylie - don't ya love the tassles on her bike? :) And a pic she took of me. Oh yeah, we have matching sunglasses. :)

Here's a pic of Rylie with the Broadway Bridge in the background and then a pic of downtown from the airport.

And here's a pic of the runway and a pic of some small planes. (The downtown airport is not a commercial airport, it's for small, private planes only. It's pretty teeny.)

Sunday, of course, was Easter. The girls got Easter baskets:

and Rylie got to find all of the eggs. Randy and I also got the girls matching outfits - this is difficult considering they are 6 years apart! But I found something *similar* so I bought them:

Randy made a yummy breakfast of bacon, eggs, and hashbrowns and we all just hung around the house for another traditional lazy Sunday. :) Rylie and I watched Miley Cyrus's E! True Hollywood Story and Randy and I watched Seven Pounds. Last night we grilled steaks for dinner. Nothing too exciting.

Now it's Monday. I hope everyone has a great week! :)

Peep Show!!

2009-04-10T09:40:00.002-05:00

This pic gave me a good LOL!!!

How is everyone out there in blogland? I've pretty much neglected this blog this week. But in all honestly, not much exciting has really happened in my life, other than training which I blog about at JourneyToABetterMe. But if you wanna skip reading through all of that, I can basically sum it up for you by letting you know that I ran 11.4 miles on Wednesday and have pretty much been barely able to walk ever since. The St Louis Half Marathon is 9 days away!! So...my last long run before the race is officially over. Now I'm just babying my muscles and trying to prepare them for the big day.

Things on the home front are pretty good other than the girls are both kind of sick. Randy is taking Harper to the doctor today cuz she's been sounding really hoarse lately. It's kind of hard to tell since she's not really talking yet....but you can hear it when she cries and when she babbles. She just doesn't sound like herself at all. I'm sure it's nothing major...but better safe than sorry. I think Rylie just has a cold or allergies. Oh by the way, she won first place in the Easter coloring contest at Randy's work. She won a $15 gift card to Target, which she is super excited about using this weekend. :)

Randy and I are supposed to go to dinner tonight, which I am very much looking forward to. Tomorrow we're taking the girls to an Easter Egg Hunt at a family friend's house. They live out in the country and go all out with this HUGE event. Should be fun!

I hope everyone has a great weekend and wonderful Easter!! :)

Weekend Recap:

2009-04-06T08:33:00.004-05:00

First off, whoever invented 2 day weekends was crazy. 2 days is just not enough time off.... I hope everyone in blog land had a super weekend. Mine was pretty great. Nothing too exciting happened...but it was still enjoyable.

Friday night was my 10 mile run. For more details, check out JourneyToABetterMe. After the run, I pretty much didn't feel like doing anything else. I took a hot shower and then laid around on the couch, massaging icy hot and aspercreme into my tired muscles. I finally headed up to bed around 8:30 - I know, right - crazy night! I tossed and turned most of the night. I never do sleep that well after a long run. I was pretty sore the rest of the weekend...and even today.

Saturday we took the girls to an Easter Egg Hunt at Randy's work. Rylie got a lot of eggs and goodies and they both got their picture taken with the Easter Bunny.

That evening I ran some errands. I got the girls their Easter stuff at Target (mostly candy and spring clothes) and then I hit up Bath & Body Works and GNC at the mall. It's gold card week at GNC, so I went and loaded up on powerbars and GU.

Saturday night Randy and I watched Milk. What a powerful movie. I also created a new, tasty adult beverage: white grape smirnoff, sprite zero, and grape powerade. LOL, I know....powerade in a mixed drink doesn't sound that great. But it was actually pretty good.

Yesterday Randy was gone all day at the Wizards game, so it was just me and the girls. It was a pretty lazy day of just hanging out at home and catching up on the dvr.

Looks like I won't be going home for Easter this weekend. I have an 11 mile run on Friday and a 20 mile bike ride on Saturday that I can't miss. Plus, we're taking the girls to another Easter Egg Hunt at my friend's house on Saturday. It's going to be another busy week....but only 13 days left until the St Louis Half Marathon. I just need to get through the next 13 days!

I hope everyone has a great week!

Another Busy Week

2009-04-02T08:15:00.002-05:00

I can't believe it's already Thursday! This week is just flying by!

Monday night we all went to the chiropractor again. Rylie is pretty much back to normal from the wreck. Randy and I are still being treated, but we're only going twice a week now. I also ran Monday night - 4 miles.

Tuesday was another chiro visit. Then Rylie had dance and I hit the pool after I dropped her off.

Last night I ran again and then we all headed to Kemper for the annual Disney on Ice show. This year just wasn't nearly as cool as last year. For one, last year's show was at the Sprint Center. This year they moved it back to Kemper. I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that Britney Spears is in town tonight at the Sprint Center and Disney on Ice is here all weekend too. I dunno...just not as spectacular as last year. Last year's show had the most special effects of any of the shows we've seen (4 total). The skating last year was amazing with lots of stunts. I'm not saying this year was bad. It just wasn't amazing. But Rylie had fun and that's what's important. Oh, and did I mention that her snowcone cost $12?!?! Yeah....

Tonight my friend Kristen and I are going to a stride workshop in Olathe. I'm really excited to get some tips on how to improve my running - from posture to stride, arm placement, etc. I think it will be really beneficial. We have our first 10 mile run tomorrow, so it will be great to get those tips tonight and actually implement them tomorrow.

Tomorrow I'm going to lunch with my old boss. I totally adore her and can't wait to get out of the office and actually be able to talk without other people around. I'm hoping to eventually transfer to her department and it will be great to sit down and pick her brain. Plus, she's just so much fun!

I hope everyone else is having a great week. It's almost Friday!! :)

There's Really No Such Thing As A Bad Weekend

2009-03-30T08:00:00.002-05:00

I didn't even leave my house one time the entire weekend, spent the entire time inside, didn't ever get dressed, but got a lot done and enjoyed myself nonetheless.

Friday Randy went and got groceries since we were in for a major winter storm. I fixed chili for dinner and we hung out watching basketball. I got a call that tri practice was cancelled for Saturday due to the weather. This worked out since I still wasn't feeling too well.

I awoke Saturday morning expecting a massive amount of snow on the ground, but it didn't come until later. When it did finally begin to fall, it was pretty unreal - snowflakes as big as the palm of my 6-year-old's hand! They were huge and falling fast! I have pictures that I'll try to upload at home tonight.

I fixed a yummy breakfast of french toast, bacon, and fruit for the fam and then we dove into some major spring cleaning. It was a pretty productive day, followed by a relaxing evening by the fire with a bottle of wine and a movie. Oh yeah, Rylie and I also baked monster cookies together and they turned out to be quite delicious!

Yesterday I was up early with Harper since it was Randy's day to sleep in. I fixed breakfast again and spent the rest of the day doing laundry and some light cleaning. Rylie and I did a project together. Nothing spectacular, but time with the fam is always great.

I have to run tonight and it will be my first run since last Monday. I hope I don't cough up a lung...and I hope I'm not jumping in too fast and hard this week. I have a lot on my plate, training wise, this week. So I hope I am recovered and rested up enough to be able to do it all. St Louis is only 20 days away, so I can't afford to miss any more days.

Update

2009-03-27T12:45:00.002-05:00

I have bronchitis and finally got on some antibiotics yesterday. Harper has a sinus infection, but is doing much better. She is just the sweetest little baby - despite not feeling well, she was still all smiles last night and was cracking us all up! She has learned to say "dada," although we're not really sure if she knows what it means. It's more or less just a new sound she has learned to make and she says it ALL the time! :)

Rylie had a boy call her last night! Mind you, she is just in kindergarten!!! This boy is in her class and also rides the bus with her and lives in our neighborhood. The boy's father actually called the night before to see if it would be okay if Rylie could come over to play one day after school. But then last night the boy called just to talk to Rylie. They were on the phone for a good 10 minutes, which is pretty long for kids that age. I'm not really worried about it being a "boyfriend" situation cuz Rylie has always played with boys. But it's just an early age to be calling your friends, period. I think I would feel this way even if it was a girl calling her just to talk. I'm just not ready for this...

We apparently have a winter storm heading our way. I'm sending Randy to the store tonight so that we don't have to leave the house the rest of the weekend if necessary. Strange how last weekend we were having a picnic in the park and this weekend we are preparing for 10 inches of snow. The midwest is stupid. It looks like a weekend of cleaning, movies, and March Madness at our house.

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

I Work With Too Many MU Fans

2009-03-27T07:38:00.000-05:00

Seriously...

My friend Brandon and I are running the brackets here at work for the tournament. It amazes me how many people have MU winning the entire tournament! I'm a die hard KU fan, and I don't even have them winning today. It's just the reality of it. We all want our teams to win the championship, but is it really going to happen? MU has had a decent year and all, but they're no national champions - that's for sure!

ANYWAY, I like to play pranks at work and today was the perfect day. There's a guy here who is a die hard MU fan. In fact, pretty much everyone here today is either wearing KU or MU attire. Well, this particular guy is always talking $hit to the KU fans and what not. Well, I took my friend's stuffed MU Tiger and put it on his desk, laying on it's back with a plastic butter knife to his throat with red marker "blood" on the knife. I then stole his MU coffee mug and left a ransom note saying "If you would like to see your mug alive again, please leave 2 Hershey's bars under the water fountain on the 10th floor. Otherwise, your mug will end up like this tiger." Let's just say I'm enjoying some tasty chocolate right now. ;)

Down With The Sickness!

2009-03-25T14:21:00.002-05:00

Our whole household is sick. :( Well, except for Randy. I stayed home from work yesterday and slept most of the day. I went to urgent care last night and waited around for 2 hours to be told that it was viral and they couldn't treat me. They also said to take it easy because all of my training is weakening my immune system. :\ Easy for them to say, they aren't running a half marathon in 3 1/2 weeks...

Randy stayed home from work today because poor little Harper was cranky and had a horrible runny nose. Her fever went up to 101.6, so he took her to the dr and it turns out she has a sinus infection. Poor baby. Plus, she's trying to cut another tooth. I hate when my kids are sick. Rylie is sick too, but she just toughs it out. It's like she constantly has a cough or a sniffle, but never complains.

As for taking it easy...I took yesterday off from working out. Today I did yoga, but I'm going to skip my swim tonight....again. I haven't swam in 2 weeks, which is NOT good!!! But I'm kinda focused on running right now, with the half marathon coming up and all. So I'll take tonight off....but tomorrow I have muscle conditioning and then our 9 mile run! But if I do the run tomorrow, that means I get to take Friday off from training, so that'll be a nice break before tri practice on Saturday. I really hope I can recover quickly because I'm starting to get nervous. Missing training days can really hurt me....but so can training when I'm sick.

The week is half over, at least. I hope everyone is having a good week!

Spring is Here!

2009-03-23T07:22:00.002-05:00

Well, I don't know about everyone else, but I had a pretty awesome weekend! And the weather was just the cherry on top!

Friday after work I did my very first 8 mile run. You can read more about it at JourneyToABetterMe. After my run, I went to meet my dad to get Rylie back. She's been at my mom & dad's (2 hours away) all week since she was on spring break. It's definitely good to have her back! But it kind of sucked to be sitting in a car for 2 hours after a long run. My muscles definitely cramped and I felt veeeery nauseaus.

Saturday I was up at 5am so I could get to tri practice. We cycled 22 miles. Then I headed home for a quick nap before heading out to the soccer field for the Wizards home opener. We tailgated most of the afternoon. Unfortunately, the Wizards lost, but it was fun nonetheless.

Yesterday was a BEAUTIFUL day!!! Around 10am, I thought it would be great for the whole family to have a picnic at the park. I started cutting up fruits and veggies and making sandwiches and I packed us up a lovely lunch and we headed to the park. I walked Harper around for a bit in the stroller and Rylie rode her bike without training wheels for the very first time! It was so exciting because she just TOOK OFF and was flying by! I wish I wasn't at work right now so I could upload some pics. Anyway, it was just a great afternoon outside with the kids.

Last night I made a DELICIOUS dinner, courtesy of Megan at TheParaplegicChef. I have been dying to fix this meal since the first time I read about it! The only difference I had was that I cooked the chicken outside on the grill. I also grilled some peppers to have as a side dish. The black bean salsa was SOOO yummy, we even added it to our salads. This meal was a huge hit - Randy and Rylie loved it too!

The weekend was so beautiful, I hated to see it end. I also feel like I may be coming down with something. I've been fighting a sore throat for days. I really hope I'm not getting sick because I have way too much going on this week that I cannot miss out on - mostly training.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week!

Is This Week Over Yet?

2009-03-19T11:45:00.003-05:00

This week has just been one giant fail. I have been zapped of energy and for the first time EVER since I started training for my triathlon and half marathon, I've really slacked off with my workouts. I'm pretty disappointed in myself. Tuesday I had muscle conditioning, but went drinking that night instead of swimming or cycling (my schedule had swimming on it, but I was going to cycle instead since the weather was so nice....but ended up doing neither). Yesterday my yoga class was cancelled (rescheduled for tomorrow) and then last night I ended up not running because I was too tired and just not feeling great at all...so I didn't work out AT ALL yesterday. :\ Today I have muscle conditioning again, and weight training is the only thing on my schedule for today....but I really should swim since I didn't on Tuesday. But I have too much going on tonight, there just won't be any time. So......I have a feeling that after such a lazy week, tomorrow's 8 mile run is really going to suck.

Reality really set in last night. I drove up to Liberty to see my chiropractor and after the 20 minute drive there, I looked to see that the drive was right at about 13 miles. Um....I'm going to be running 13.1 miles in exactly 1 month from today!!! OMG - that is like running all the way from my house to my chiropractor's office in Liberty! WOW....am I nuts or what?!?! And if it takes me nearly 20 minutes to drive it, I can't even imagine how long it will take to RUN it! I just don't know. I've been having a lot of anxiety over it as of late....

In other news, March Madness has begun!!! Brandon and I are heading the bracket pool here at work. We've got quite a few people involved, which always makes it more exciting. I think our pot is going to be over $150 this year. It will be interesting to see how everything turns out.

The next few days are going to be insanely busy...so I'm pretty much looking forward to Sunday getting here so I can rest. I've been having a lot of anxiety lately and I think I'm just spreading myself too thin.

Have I also mentioned lately how much I love my husband?? Cuz that is definitely worth mentioning. There's really no one else in this world that could put up with my shit. He's so good to me and I really am lucky to have him. I've been struggling with some things lately and I just don't know what I would do without him. He truly holds me together without even realizing it.

The Tooth Fairy Finally Came!

2009-03-18T06:48:00.002-05:00

No, not the kind that takes the lost teeth in the middle of the night. The kind that finally brought my 7-month-old nugget baby her first tooth! That's right, Miss Harper is 7 months old today and yesterday she finally cut her first tooth! Rylie cut her first tooth at 5 month, so I've been wondering when Harper would finally get hers. She's so cute - all smiles. I think she feels much better now that it finally came through. She's been pretty fussy the past few days and I think her little gums were just bothering her. I bet the next one isn't far behind, though.

In other news, I got my car back yesterday. They ended up fixing it and not totalling it out, which is good. Unfortunately, I'm going to miss my rental. It was a brand new Dodge Journey and I pretty much loved it. I wasn't thrilled to be driving my old Pathfinder this morning. Oh well.

Bobby took me to go get my car from the body shop yesterday since Randy couldn't get off work early to take me. On the way there, he asked me if I wanted to go get a margarita afterwards. He went and got us a table at Rancho Grande while I paid for my car and when I got there he had an entire pitcher of margs waiting for me. I really did not need an entire pitcher of margs on a Tuesday afternoon, but oh well. Then, just as we were finishing up our drinks and I was feeling a very strong buzz, Bobby proceeded to go ahead and order ANOTHER pitcher! Needless to say, I'm feeling pretty tired and dehydrated today. That was stupid. And I have to train 2 training classes here at work this morning. Great.... I also have to run 4 miles tonight. Double great. I really make poor decisions sometimes.

Well, I hope everyone is having a good day. It's hump day - woot!

Weekend Review

2009-03-16T06:42:00.002-05:00

First off, I successfully completed my 7 mile run on Friday! You can read more about it at JourneyToABetterMe. So it's official everyone: I WILL be running in the St Louis half marathon! It's just 5 weeks away, so the next 5 weeks are gonna be crazy!

Friday evening began with Rylie going to her very first slumber party ever. She was so excited! After I dropped her off, I went to go buy running shorts since the weather is getting warmer and I only have running pants/capris. Well....I ended up buying a running skirt. They're so cute and it was comfy too, so I figured why not give it a shot. After my purchase, I was so excited to test it out that I decided to go ahead and do my 7 mile run. As I said, the details of the run are in my other blog, but it felt pretty darn good to accomplish it. Not much else happened Friday night other than I iced my shins and tried to go to bed but was too wound up.

Saturday morning Randy picked Rylie up from the slumber party and she and I headed out the door for the Snake Saturday parade. Well, after driving around for 30 minutes looking for a parking spot that was closer than a mile away, we finally gave up and I took her to Quick Trip to get a slush as a consolation.

Saturday was pretty much a day of errands and running around. Randy got the bike rack for his car finally. Then we all went up to the bike shop so I could have them fix the computer on my bike and so I could also purchase a pair of tri shorts. Yeah, $68 for a stinkin pair of spandex padded shorts! Um, that could have been a new pair of jeans! :\ Oh well...

We headed home after that so Harper could take a nap and then I went up to the mall. I *finally* exchanged the perfume Randy got me for my birthday. I appreciate everyone's suggestions. I went up a couple weeks ago and got several samples based on your suggestions. I did really like both the DKNY Delicious fragrances. I actually came close to purchasing Be Delicious a couple years ago. The only thing was that it seemed to wear off quickly and I wanted something stronger. I also really enjoyed Ralph Wild. I pretty much love all of the Ralph fragrances too. And I actually already own Lacoste Touch of Pink. After many, many, many, MANY sniffing & sampling, I finally decided on Viva La Juicy. It's a floral scent that is also pretty sweet and also strong enough to last all day. I REALLY like it! I find myself constantly smelling myself all day long, lol.

Saturday evening we all drove up to Liberty to have dinner at Uno. I had a gift card that I got from Randy's dad for my birthday and we also had a $5 off coupon, so it was a pretty cheap dinner. When we got home, Josh & Kristen came over and we all had a few drinks and watched Role Models.

Sunday was pretty laid back. I took my bike out for a ride since it was pretty nice out. My parents came up for a couple hours to see Harper and then they took Rylie back with them. She's on spring break this week, so she's staying at their house until Saturday. Randy and I grilled last night - steaks, baked potatoes, and asperagus - YUMMM!!! I so love this time of year!

All in all, my weekend was both productive and enjoyable. I hope everyone else had a great weekend too! :)

TGIF!

2009-03-13T11:44:00.002-05:00

Josh & Kristen came over for dinner last night....and somehow we ended up polishing off 6 bottles of wine - wtf?! On a week night! That's crazy! Poor Kristen didn't even make it into work until about an hour ago. I only got about 5 hours of sleep. I feel fine today, but it's probably not a good idea to attempt my 7 mile run tonight. I'm thinking I'll have to put that off until tomorrow morning. Kristen said the reason she slept in was so she would be able to run tonight. If I can do this 7 miles, then I'm going to go for the St Louis half marathon. I really want to do it...so I just need to push myself.

I have a busy weekend ahead: 7 mile run, Snake Saturday parade, Josh & Kristen are coming back over Saturday night, and my parents are coming up on Sunday. I also have a lot of errands I need to run. I need to get a bike rack for Randy's car, some running shorts, biker shorts (ugly, I know, but so helpful for the tooshie!!), a tire pump for my bike. Who knew being a triathlete would end up being so expensive?! Thank goodness it's payday!

The weather is supposed to be nice this weekend, so I'm looking forward to that! I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Training, Training, and more Training...

2009-03-12T07:35:00.002-05:00

You can read all about it in my fitness blog: JourneyToABetterMe. Basically, my triathlon training is taking over my life. This is a good thing, it really is....it's just exhausting and I feel like I haven't spent much time with my family, especially Harper. She's been in bed or about to go to bed the last 2 nights when I got home. Factor in that she takes an evening nap as well, and I pretty much don't see her much on the week nights. :( But the good news is that I'm getting off work at noon today and will get the rest of the afternoon with that little nugget baby, so that's good!

Life has just been so busy lately! Saturday I had group practice. Then I showered and ran errands. Then I went out for dinner and drinks with the girls for Kristen's birthday. Sunday was a lazy day, and then Monday started another crazy week... Work, chiropractor visits every night all the way up in Liberty, training, running Rylie to this, that, and the other. Tuesday was her dance night and I had to cycle and swim. Yesterday she had gymnastics and I ran 6.3 miles. And tonight we are having Josh and Kristen over for dinner, which I'm totally excited about. I'm just ready for a day off!

I'm sore today, as can be expected. It's a good sore, don't get me wrong...but I'm just so TIRED. Not sleepy, but my body is just worn out. And the depressing part is that all this working out is making me soooo stinkin hungry all the time! With the way I'm eating, I'm never going to lose any weight! Here's what I ate yesterday:

apple
bowl of instant oatmeal
raw veggies (carrots, celery, green peppers, broccoli) with light ranch
salad (romaine lettuce, spinach, carrots, celery, green peppers, purple cabbage, green onion, raddishes) with homemade dressing: 1 part organic balsamic vinegar, 1 part organic olive oil, 1 part Bragg's liquid aminos
Smart Ones frozen entree - lasagna
Shot blocks & mona vie (electrolyte cubes & energy shot) before run - 100 calories each
raw almonds
tuna helper & asperagus for dinner
banana & peanutbutter after evening run

And I seriously think I ate more things that I just can't remember.... I feel like I'm just eating around the clock! I want to lose the rest of this baby weight and I really thought I would with all this training...but I'm coming to realize that my body now needs more fuel....so I'm not sure how that's going to work out.

Anyway, I hope everyone is having a great week! Sorry I've neglected this blog this week. The other 2 have been pretty up-to-date though. Thanks for stopping by! :)

And Now....A Birthday Shout Out To My BESTIE!!!

2009-03-10T07:36:00.001-05:00

Does everyone know what today is?! Not only is it the 69th day of the year (true story!) and the 32nd anniversary of the day astronomers discovered rings around Uranus (also true - there's a lot of cool shit about March 10th!!!) but is also the 30th anniversary of the day The Militia was expulsed from her mother's uterus! That's right, folks - please join me in wishing a fan-fucking-tastic 30th birthday upon my homie, my partner-in-crime, co-author of The Bung Blog: THE MILITIA!

This chica and I go waaaaaay back! I'm talking back to when our age was displayed in single digits, back when Reagan was the prez, and back before internetting (even DIAL UP!!!). 1986 was the year, and had it not been for a horrific wardrobe malfunction (a theme in our lives) in Mrs. Cooper's 2nd grade class, we just might not be where we are today. What would the world be like without Ash-Hole & The Militia?? Well, there would certainly be fewer water gun drive-by's, The Bung Blog would not exist (nor would the OBB - Original Bung Book), and the 7th sense would be completely unknown to all.

What have we been through in our near-23 years of BEST friendship? What HAVEN'T we been through?! From jumping on trampolines together and playing with our imaginary friend "Jade" who lived in the drain of my parents' pool, to driving across the country together and being in each others' weddings, we've been through it all. We've been roommates, we've been houligans, we've been hungover (duh), we've been considered straight up insane by most, we've been drunk, we've been in fights, we've nearly been arrested, we've been kicked out of public places, we've been each other's life lines. The Militia has always been here for me - she pushed me on the tire swing, she shared my first beer and first cigarette with me (both of which we stole from her step-dad), she let me cry on her shoulder during my first broken heart, she's held my hair while I puked on MANY occasions, she helped me move across the country when my relationship fell apart, she gave me a place to live when I had no where else to go, she stood up with me at my wedding, she STILL lets me call her to cry when things aren't going well, and she will always ALWAYS be my asexual vanilla!

So here's to all the horrible karoke we've sung, all the dancing on bars we've done, and to what is known as BUNG! May the next decade of your life be as bad assed as the first 3!

HAPPY 30th HOLMES!!! I LOVE YER ASS!!!

Birthday Pics!

2009-03-06T11:53:00.007-06:00

Okay, so there are over 90 pics from the night of my birthday...so instead of posting them all individually, I have broken them down into a few slideshows for your viewing pleasure. But first, I must post a couple pics of my WONDERFUL husband Randy who threw me an awesome surprise party and went to so much work to create a night I will never forget!

Okay, here is the first slideshow that includes many of my guests:

This next slide show is just a bunch of craziness, drinking, and (in)appropriate behavior:

And this last slide show is again, more craziness, drinking, and drunken debauchery:

It was definitely a crazy night...one I will never forget! To read about some of the funnies of the evening, please click here .

Busy, Busy, Busy!

2009-03-04T08:16:00.003-06:00

It's gonna be a crazy week! Between chiropractor visits, triathlon training, Rylie's activities, and Randy's classes, our family is going to be constantly on the go!

Last night Rylie and I went to the chiropractor up in Liberty as soon as she got home from school. I'm starting to feel a bit better from the wreck, but will need multiple adjustments a week for probably the next 6 - 8 weeks. After our appointment, we picked Harper up from daycare, ate a super quick dinner, and then headed out the door for dance. Randy had a final last night, so we had to take Harper with us. It was a crazy night. Oh yeah, and I forgot to mention that I cycled 8 miles last night too. It was an exhausting day!

Tonight won't be much different other than Ry has gymnastics instead of dance and I am swimming tonight instead of cycling. Tomorrow I run and Saturday I cycle again. I also had muscle conditioning yesterday and I'm pretty sore. My body is taking a beating this week and the number on the scale has gone up since last week - what the h?!?!

With all the craziness this week, I would like to take a brief moment to send a shout out to my bloggie friend Sarah - you can find her at JustABitOfSilliness,Really . Sarah posted a recipe for Taco Soup that was not only ridiculously yummy AND low cal, but it also took less than 15 minutes to make!!! Literally, from the time I got everything out to fix it to the time we sat down to eat, only about 13 minutes lapsed! THAT is amazing and what a mom on the go needs more of, so thank you to Sarah for sharing!!! :)

I hope everyone is having a great week!

My Birthday Weekend: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

2009-03-03T08:25:00.003-06:00

The Good:

Friday (my actual birthday) I came to work with a ridiculously decorated desk! Srsly...out of control! Glitter everywhere, streamers, signs, banners, you name it. The glitter is still here. Still. Out.Of.Control. I had 3 cards and lots of birthday wishes all day via text, Facebook, myspace, etc.

Friday night Randy fixed me a really nice dinner of shrimp with garlic sauce and veggies over rice. He gave me some perfume and Rylie and Harper gave me a necklace. We spent the evening as a family watching Madagascar 2.

Saturday night Randy took me to dinner at Bristol Seafood Grille at The Power & Light District. He then had a huge surprise party waiting for me at O'Douds at Zona Rosa with all of my closest friends that he had apparently been planning for MONTHS. It was AMAZING!!!!! Drinks were flowing, good times were had by all, and I definitely consumed enough shots to kill a small horse.

The Bad:

A handful of my close friends failed to call me...text me...or send me any sort of birthday love whatsoever. Talking about some of my CLOSEST friends over the past few years. Pretty hurtful.

A blizzard decided to come through Friday night after a week of 60 degree weather and it went ahead and deposited 6 inches of snow on the ground.

I had a raging hangover on Sunday that actually didn't occur until LATE in the day due to the fact that I was still pretty much drunk for the first half.

I woke up at 8:30 am on Sunday after just 6 hours of sleep and never did get a nap the rest of the day.

The Ugly:

Due to the previously mentioned weather conditions, Randy, the girls, and I were all involved in a wreck on the way to take the girls to my brother-in-law's house for the night. No one was seriously injured, but it started the evening on a sour note. We had to get towed, my car is totalled (I've only had it for 10 months), we ended up forgetting my camera in the car (we had others that got used, so fear not!), we were extremely late for our dinner reservations, and all night we were re-living the wreck in our heads. Our addrenaline was so strong, neither of us ate much at dinner. It was just crazy.

Due to the wreck, Randy and I both took yesterday off of work. We are extremely sore and had a lot to deal with yesterday including filing an insurance claim, getting a rental car, cleaning out my car, going to the chiropractor, and going to the doctor. My neck is pretty messed up and considering that I already have 2 herniated discs AND had some bad injuries from the wreck I was in LAST year, I'm basically going to have even more problems than before....

Randy and I also got into a hellacious fight at the end of the night Saturday night...all over a misunderstanding. I cried. But...it's all good now, everything got cleared up.

Oh yeah and our tab (for just me and Randy) was over $200. That was just at the bar. Did NOT include dinner....

So, there you have it. Overall, it was a GREAT night, despite a few hiccups. I have a ton of pics (thanks to friends) to post later. Now I'm just trying to recover....in more ways than one...

Perfume Suggestions?

2009-02-27T20:10:00.002-06:00

Ladies (or men) - I need your help! What are your favorite fragrances? My husband got me Victoria Beckham's perfume for my birthday, but it's just a little to "spicy" smelling for me. I know, it's mean to return a gift....but he told me to exchange it if I don't like it and it's just not me. I generally prefer fruity or floral fragrances. Not too fruity, like body spray from Bath & Body Works, but like Happy by Clinique, although I'm kinda burnt out on that...since like 2002. Guess that was a bad example. I also like Happy Heart and Happy In Bloom by Clinique. And I'm a huge fan of the Ralph Lauren fragrances like Ralph, Ralph Rocks, and Ralph Hot. I just want something new, but I'm kinda picky about perfume. I like it to be a strong scent that I can smell on myself. For example, I really like Paris Hilton's collection, but the scents are so weak that I can barely smell them after I have just sprayed them on. I want something that I really love and enjoy smelling throughout the day. Any suggestions??? PLEASE help!!

Good-bye 20's, Hello 30's

2009-02-26T19:08:00.002-06:00

As I sit here tonight, sipping my wine and reflecting on the past decade of my life, I have come to realize that this is, in fact, the very last day of my 20's. Wow....I started looking back at the last 10 years of my life and I've realized how far I've come. Then I started to think back to where I was the last day of my teenage years, and can you believe it - I actually remember that day! I was in California with my friend Charren and our boyfriends at the time. It was a trip to celebrate my 20th birthday! We arrived the day before my birthday and over the next few days we visited Disneyland, Universal Studios, and I went to the ocean for my very first time! My 20's were exciting years. Years of many accomplishments and firsts. They were also years a much struggle. But I have grown so much over the past decade. So I would like to take a minute to look back at some of the highs and lows of the past 10 years of my life:

20 years old: I celebrated my 20th birthday in LA. It was my first trip to California, my first trip to the ocean, and such a glorious and happy time for me. I was in college and about to embark on many journeys. That year, I did a lot of traveling. I went on my first (and only!) cruise, I visited the desert for the very first time (Arizona), and I later moved away from home for the very first time - to Tucson, Arizona. The only friend from home to visit me in the short year that I lived there was my life-long friend Melissa, and boy did we have fun! While living away from everything familiar to me, I finally started to discover who I was. I grew so much that year.

21 years old: I celebrated my 21st birthday in Vegas. I was living in Arizona at the time and again, my boyfriend at the time and I met up with my good friend Charren and her boyfriend at the time in Vegas. I moved back home around the 1 year anniversary of being away. My trusted friend Melissa - best friend since 2nd grade - flew out to help me move home and welcomed me into her house as a roomie once we got back. Wow - the time we lived together was AWESOME! We partied our @$$es off!!! We were finally legal to drink and it was the first time I had really ever been single and boy did we take advantage of both! What a wild year that was!

22 years old: I celebrated my 22nd birthday in New Orleans at Mardi Gras. My birthday in '01 just happened to be on Mardi Gras and I had a friend whose mother lived in New Orleans. We road tripped down there - 13 college fraternity guys and me & my girlfriend Dee. Wow....talk about insanity! 22 was a crazy year for me, to say the least. It started out carefree and fun...but ended with some challenges. I was laid off from my job and turned to partying to fill the void. It got a little out of hand, to say the least, and there was a lot of drama that followed. I was diagnosed with depression and have battled it off and on ever since...but finally being diagnosed after YEARS of struggling was actually a good thing so that I could finally be treated. I moved out of Melissa's house and our friendship suffered for awhile. I did, however, return to college after 2 years off and I took it VERY seriously, even making the dean's list. 2 months before my 23rd birthday I found out I was pregnant. It was pretty much the shock of a lifetime.

23 years old: I celebrated my 23rd birthday by going to dinner with my mom, dad, and sister. I had just broken the news to my family that I was pregnant. They could not have been more supportive and to this very day I realize how truly blessed I am to have such a loving and supportive family. At the end of spring semester I moved back in with my mom and dad and the day before classes started that fall I gave birth to my beautiful daughter Rylie. I missed just 2 days of classes and then returned to my senior year in full force. I took a full load of 18 hours plus interned. My life really turned around after having Rylie.

24 years old: To this very day I still laugh at this, but I suffered a "mid-life crisis" the week of my 24th birthday. I think it has to do with the fact that other than when I was pregnant on my 23rd birthday, all my birthdays prior to that had been HUGE - I mean, I took trips and partied my little tail off. When I turned 24, I realized that I was a mother (a single mother at that) and that those days were behind me. I hibernated for about a week and didn't answer my phone at all. I later came out of it, but finally went back on meds for my depression. I later graduated (with honors!!) from college that year and just a few weeks after graduation, I met a guy at a party in Manhattan. We were introduced by a mutual friend and instantly hit it off. He accepted the fact that I had a baby and somehow I just knew we were meant to be together. My relationship with Randy grew so quickly. It was so magical and as if we fell in love overnight. Even though he lived 2 hours away from me in Kansas City, we saw each other EVERY SINGLE weekend from the day we met until the day we moved in together just 9 months later...

25 years old: 25 was a monumentally HUGE year for me! So many life altering events happened that year! Rylie and I had just moved to Kansas City to be with Randy and a month later we were engaged!! And not long after that my little 18 month old Rylie randomly started calling Randy "Daddy." Neither of us had ever encouraged it or even taught her that word....but he just came home from work one day and her eyes lit up and she yelled out "DADDY!" He has been Daddy ever since... That summer I began working for the company that I work for to this very day. I've really made a career for myself there and hope to finish that career out with this very company. Randy and I were also married that year on the beach of Key Largo after a short 7 month engagement and just 16 months of knowing each other. 40 of our friends and family joined us, including Melissa (my best friend since 2nd grade) and Charren (my life-long traveling buddy).

26 years old: My 26th birthday was a weekend long event of celebrating. Randy and I had a party at our duplex that Friday night and then a group of us went out that Saturday night. It was insane. Rylie started taking dance that year, shortly after turning 3. That year was a year of ups and downs. The highlight was purchasing our first home. The low point was losing my best friend Nick. He was an electrical lineman and he went down to Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina to help restore power. He was electricuted and died on September 12, 2005. I miss him every day of my life and still struggle with his death all the time.

27 years old: Randy and I were supposed to go to Austin, Texas for my 27th birthday but everything fell apart that week. Rylie got horribly sick...then Randy got the flu...and my friend Christine, who we were supposed to meet in Austin, got sick as well. It just wasn't meant to be. So I went out that Friday with my good friend Brandon and again that Saturday with my girl Jennie. We had fun anyway and some great times happened that year. Unfortunately, Randy lost his job in the spring of that year. He tried to take advantage of the situation by getting into the mortgate business....but the market just wasn't that good. With me being the only one making a regular paycheck for the next 18 months, we came very close to losing our house and we truly struggled for a very long time. Money was tight, times were tough, and it's a wonder that we made it through all of that still together. But I was blessed to receive a promotion that year and many opportunities came my way at work. We were also able to enroll Rylie in a Montissori school, despite our financial struggles. We always made sure to put Rylie first.

28 years old: My 28th birthday came after 2 consecutive months of not leaving the house other than to go to work. My weekends were spent in bed and I was thoroughly depressed. I was still suffering from the loss of Nick and I was just in pieces. Randy finally forced me to see a psychiatrist and get back on medications. My birthday was my first time out in a LONG time and I actually had a great time. I also quit smoking that weekend (2 years and counting of being smoke-free!!!). Randy and I finally got our finances back together that year and were finally starting to live a life of being caught up on our bills and not struggling for the first time in quite awhile. Near the end of the year we found out we were going to have a baby - after over 2 years of trying! AND, we found out EXACTLY 6 years to the day that I found out I was having Rylie...AND it was also Randy's birthday when we found out!

29 years old: My 29th birthday was spent pregnant, of course. Later that year, our beautiful Harper joined us and made us a happy family of 4 just 1 week exactly before Rylie turned 6. Rylie started kindergarten after 2 years of Montissori and was at the top of the class, being one of the only children that already knew how to read. She also started gymnastics that year and advanced quickly. I really learned a lot after having my second child. My true friends are still by my side and many others lost interest once I was no longer able to party with them like had in the past. Randy and I grew sooo much closer. He did EVERYTHING during my pregnancy - cleaned, shopped, waited on me, he even got up in the night with Harper when she was born - and not once has he ever complained. This past year has taught me more than most of my other years combined. I have learned that I have the best husband I could have ever even dreamed of having. And I have learned that my true friends are some of the best people in the world.

Tomorrow I turn 30 and I just know that the next decade of my life is going to be AMAZING!!!! I already have so much to look forward to! Harper will celebrate her first birthday this year! Rylie will turn 7! Randy and I are planning a trip to Mexico for our 5 year anniversary (with my good friend Charren and her husband - who I introduced her to)! AND I am going to do my very first triathlon in June!!! Life is good, and I really have to wonder if there is any way it could ever possibly get any better than this!!!!!!!!!!!

And now I have to wonder if the night before my 40th birthday if I will be sitting somewhere remembering this very night. And if that happens, I hope I remember how wonderful and happy and truly blessed I feel at this exact moment. Through all the struggles, joys, challenges, blessings, I finally feel like I know who I am and I am finally realizing how wonderful life is.

So at this very moment, I admit to all of you, that I am not in the least bit reluctant to turn 30 years old tomorrow. I am actually looking forward to it and am ready to embrace what my 30's have in store for me!

In Honor of the Birthday Boy!

2009-02-26T18:07:00.013-06:00

Here's a little tribute to a boy I like to call Coop Doggy Dogg:

Happy birthday, Coopy! I love you!!!!

Happy Birthday To My Baby Boy!!!

2009-02-26T08:13:00.006-06:00

Happy birthday to Cooper, aka Coopy Doggy Dogg! My baby boy is 8 years old today! It seems like just yesterday that he was a little puppy...and now he's a grown boy! I love this dog with all my heart and can't wait to give him lots of hugs & doggy treats tonight!

I'm at work right now, so unfortunately this is the only pic I have available (I have LOTS more at home). This was taken a couple years ago when Rylie thought she'd tuck him in for the night, lol. Being the obedient dog that he is, he sweetly complied. Happy birthday, boy! I LOVE YOU!!!

My Blog Needs A Facelift...

2009-02-25T12:05:00.002-06:00

Coming soon: new blog layout! Be on the lookout - woot! :)

Straight From The Bung Blog - Cuz It's Too Good To Only Post Once!

2009-02-25T07:06:00.001-06:00

We, at The Bung Blog, would like to take time out of our busy lives to wish a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY to this crazy bitch right here:

Miss CHELSEA HANDLER!!!

We consider her our pisces sister. Like us, she has a bad ass 7th and we pretty much think she's the funniest bitch alive.

I have personally been following Chelsea since back in the day when she was on Girls Behaving Badly:

I own & cherish both of her critically acclaimed books:

My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One Night Stands and Are You There Vodka, It's Me Chelsea

The title of My Horizontal Life says it all. This book chronicals the insane sexcapades of young, single woman who dabbles in ecstacy, anal beads, and sleeping with midgets. Basically your standard bedroom romps of your 20's.

Are You There Vodka walks you through the typical belligerance and debauchery of the typical American woman. And if these stories aren't typical for you, well....I guess you're just not as cool as we are.

These days, you can find Chelsea on Chelsea Lately on the E! Network weeknights at 11:00pm (10:00 central).

If you don't adore Chelsea as much as we do, then I'm afraid we can no longer be bloggie friends.

Oh, and my favorite little nugget would like to wish Chelsea a happy birthday as well:

Once again, HAPPY EFIN BIRTHDAY, CHELSEA!!! We love your crazy ass!

Until we bung again, folks!

~Ash-Hole & The Militia~

Frustration Consumes Me

2009-02-24T06:53:00.001-06:00

A) I went shopping again last night and STILL have no shirt to wear out for my birthday this weekend. :\

2) We still don't have a home yet for Cody (aka Stray Lab). Double :\

I went to the mall last night in a last minute attempt to find a shirt to wear out for my birthday this weekend and still....nothing. I'm so frustrated. I'm going to try one more place tonight. If I can't find something, I don't know what I'm gonna do...... :(

Last night was a busy one. I tanned right after work (trying to look skinnier for my bday, lol). Then ran to the mall as soon as Rylie got home from school. After that, I popped some chicken enchiladas in the oven (I had cooked them awhile back and froze them) and then headed to the gym to swim laps while Randy stayed home and fed the girls. I swam a whopping 22 laps!!! Then headed home to eat an collapse on the couch with a drink. I'm pretty sore today - mainly my neck, shoulders, and back. Swimming is such a great workout.

The rest of the week is going to be pretty busy. I feel like my life is a whirlwind right now....

PS

2009-02-23T07:35:00.003-06:00

Are there any Chelsea Handler fans out there?? Well, I submitted 2 pics of my fat little nugget baby to be on her "big fat baby" segment of the show. Keep your fingers crossed!!!

Weekend In Review:

2009-02-23T07:13:00.002-06:00

Well, Friday night I ended up running my 3 miles so I could skip practice on Saturday. Running in 56 degrees sounded much more pleasant than 12 degrees, so yeah...

Saturday I was up pretty early, around 7:30 or so. Rylie and I ran a couple errands in the morning and then the rest of the day was spent cleaning the house. Randy left for what was supposed to be a couple hours to help Bobby with some stuff, but ended up lasting until 7pm. We were supposed to take Rylie bowling Saturday night, but by the time we got there we were going to have to wait for an hour and a half for a lane. So we just went out for ice cream instead and then went home.

Yesterday was a grueling day of shopping for me. Anyone that knows me knows that I really hate to shop. I can do an hour...two, max. After that, I'm done. Well, I needed to find a shirt for to wear out for my birthday this weekend. I seriously went to 8 different stores and must have tried on at least 50 shirts. It was just depressing. I still haven't lost all the weight I gained when I was pregnant with Harper, so trying stuff on just isn't fun at all. :\ I never did find anything, so I'm going to have to go look again one night this week. I'm running out of places to go to also...sucks.

I have a really busy week ahead of me. Tonight: swim practice, tomorrow: Rylie has dance and it's parents watch week, Wednesday: I have to run & Rylie has gymnastics, Thusday: Randy and I have an appointment and then I'm HOPING to finally get a damn shirt for the weekend. Friday is my birthday......gah, I'm turning th.....th.....thir....thirty. Wow...

Oh, and by the way, we still have Cody (aka Stray Lab). Randy posted an ad on Craigslist to see if anyone is missing a lab. If no one responds, he's gonna post another ad to get rid of him. OH - and of all the random things, a stray GOLDEN RETRIEVER showed up in our yard on Saturday!!! What are the freakin odds of two pure bread strays showing up in our neighborhood in the same week and they just happen to be the two breeds that we own??!! This golden was soooo beautiful!!! He could be a show do! He is also not neutered, but he was very calm and very obedient. A guy came along in a truck not long after he showed up and he said that he found him about a week ago and has been basically doing what we've been doing with Cody - calling vets & shelters, posting signs, etc to see if he can find the owner. Apparently no one has reported him missing. He said that with the economy, people are deserting their pets because they can't afford them anymore. People's homes are being foreclosed and they are being forced into apartments where they can't keep their pets. It's really sad. I kinda wanted to keep that golden....but hell, we already have a damn zoo at our house.

If anyone would like a free black lab or a free golden retriever (both males, both need neutered) please, PLEASE let me know! These dogs need good homes!

Stray Lab.....He's Still With Us

2009-02-20T07:48:00.002-06:00

Okay, so Stray Lab (who I have now named Cody...cuz it sounds cute with Cooper and Callie) is still with us. :\ Randy took him up to our vet's office and of course he is not chipped. He was also not in our vet's database of missing dogs, and all the shelters Randy has called are kill shelters that kill in either 3 days or 5 days. Black labs are apparently the hardest to get adopted because they are the most common breed of dog. The only no-kill shelter in our area is full right now and not accepting any new dogs unless you are returning a dog you adopted from there. That is the shelter where we adopted Callie. I joked that we should take Cody up there and say he's Callie, lol. Rylie made up some posters to put around the neighborhood, but we'll probably end up paying to take him to Wayside. It's too cold to leave him outside...so we've basically been taking care of him until we figure out what to do with him.

Anyone want a free black lab??

In other news, I took Harper to get her 6 month shots yesterday. I'm sure she'll be cranky pants today. The little nugget is still in the 95th percentile in weight and 90th in length. She's such a chunk, lol. But a CUTE one!

I have tri practice tomorrow morning and we are running....in the cold. Not looking forward to it. I'm really sore today from yoga, running, and muscle conditioning so I'm taking today off from working out. Went and saw my chiropractor for a MUCH NEEDED adjustment yesterday, so I'm feeling pretty good today and I am welcoming the break from training. Tomorrow morning is gonna suck.

Update on Stray Lab

2009-02-19T15:37:00.002-06:00

I really love dogs and all........

......but this dog has GOT TO GO!!!!! OMG, I came home and found that not only had this dog had massive diarrhea all over our garage (probably from the 4 bowls of food he consumed last night!!!), but he also got into all the trash and chewed on everything he could find from laundry baskets to the shop vac hose! He pissed on the spare bed mattress and THANK THE LORD he didn't do anything to my road bike, which is worth almost more than my car! I would have shot him dead. I knew we shouldn't have trusted a stray animal in our home while we were not there. I'm making Randy take him somewhere as soon as he gets home. I already have 2 big dogs, 2 kids (one being a baby), and a husband to clean up after. I'm not adding a large PUPPY to the mix. No thanks.

I Need to Pretty-Up My Blog

2009-02-19T09:23:00.009-06:00

I've spent so much time working on TheBungBlog that this one just hasn't gotten much attention. I really need to upload some pics or something to add some excitement. It's just kinda boring around here.... Sorry it's not very entertaining, but if you're looking for entertainment, go check out TheBungBlog. ;)

Last Night's Adventure

2009-02-19T07:12:00.002-06:00

Okay, it wasn't really an adventure....just something a little out of the ordinary.

When I got home from work, I noticed the neighbors across the street were outside and there was a black lab running around their yard. They yelled over and asked if it was our dog. To be honest, from across the street, the dog really did look like Callie. It was the same size/build, and of course, it was a black lab. But I thought to myself, how did Callie get out?? We keep the dogs in the house all day long and even if she did get out in the morning, A) Randy would have called or emailed me to let me know they dogs got out and 2) Cooper would have been with her, which he was not.

I walked over to where my neighbors where and yelled "Callie!" but the dog didn't come to me. Then I noticed the dog wasn't wearing a collar...and then I noticed that this dog was a boy and not a girl. Nope, not my dog. There is a house back behind my neighbors across the street that have a black lab because I've seen it in their yard when I'm out running, so I assumed it was their dog. I told my neighbors it probably belonged to those people.

Well, I went inside and went about my business. I let my dogs out and started fixing dinner. I looked out the window shortly and noticed that the stray lab had jumped our fence and was in my back yard playing with my lab and golden retriever. They looked like they were having fun, so I let them be. I'd rather this dog be safe in my back yard than running around loose and risking being hit by a car. I figured once Randy got home, I would drive over to the house that owns the lab and let them know he was in our yard.

As the dogs kept playing, I noticed the stray lab humping my golden (who is also a male). Now, Cooper is the most submissive dog in the world. He even lets Callie hump him and typically humping is a sign of dominance. But....it wasn't long before I noticed that the stray lab had his red rocket out for the world to see. Sick. So I went ahead and brought my dogs in. They were soaking wet from the stray lab's drool. Stray Lab was obviously going through puberty.

Well, Stray Lab continued to sit on my back porch and whine. Randy got home and I left to go tell the owner of Stray Lab that he was in our yard. Well, the neighbors that I believed Stray Lab belonged to answered the door....with their black lab in tow. So Stray Lab obviously didn't belong to them. I asked if they knew of anyone else in the neighborhood that owned a black lab and they said no. So.....we were stuck with Stray Lab.

Randy let Stray Lab out of our yard so he could try to find his way back home, but he ended up back in our yard. It started getting dark out and I really didn't want a black dog running around the neighborhood after dark cuz I didn't want him to get hit by a car. We decided to just let him stay in the yard until we could figure out what to do with him.

Well, when Rylie and I got home from gymnastics, Randy informed me that Stray Lab had obviously not eaten in days. Randy fed him and he ended up eating 4 bowls of food!! Poor guy! We ended up letting him sleep in our garage last night since it got down below freezing. He was really good - he never barked or whined, which is surprising considering he was in an unfamiliar environment.

Anyway, I think Randy is going to take him today to see if he is micro chipped. I'm really hoping he is, cuz I really want him to get returned to his home...if he has one. Otherwise, we'll probably end up taking him to the Parkville Animal Shelter. How ironic that we just adopted Callie from that shelter just a month ago and now we'll be taking a black lab to that shelter to be adopted. They are a no-kill shelter tho, so hopefully he'll find a good home if that's where he ends up.

Side note, since I'm talking about my dogs, my Coop Doggy Dogg turns 8 years old one week from today! I can't believe I've had him for almost 8 years!!

The Weekend: Great for Me, Bad for my Liver

2009-02-17T08:01:00.003-06:00

I had an awesome weekend....but my liver didn't, lol. Damn alcohol.

I left work on Friday and went to pick up my friend Kristy so we could go tan and grab a few drinks at happy hour. Happy hour ended up lasting a good 4 hours. We consumed Long Island Ice Teas, martinis, beers, and a couple appetizers. So great for the diet...especially after all the food I consumed at work for our treat day. No wonder the number on the scale was not in my favor this morning. Regardless, we had a good time. It was nice to catch up and we went ahead and made plans to get together again on Sunday.

Saturday I had practice in OP at 7am, so I had to leave the house shortly after 6am. Our coaches left after lap swimming was over and then entire team went and hopped in the hot tub - that was the highlight of practice. :) I then got showered and cleaned up in the locker room and headed over to Gary Gribbles to get fitted for running shoes and load up on running gear. It was close to noon by the time I got home. I ate lunch and gave Harper a bath while Randy ran some errands. Then I headed out to run my own errands. I had to run by Hyvee to pick up a few things for dinner and then I went to the mall to get a new bra at VS, Vday cards at Hallmark, and then I headed over to Bath & Body Works to load up on goodies and redeem a few freebies with my coupons.

I got home and started fixing dinner around 4:00. I made an AMAZING lasagna with salad and garlic bread. Did I mention that the lasagna was amazing?? :) Randy got me a bottle of red wine and bought him a bottle of dessert wine, so we sat down to eat a yummy dinner and consume our wine while watching netflix movies - Zack & Miri Make a Porno and Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist. I wasn't expecting much of Zack & Miri because it went to dvd pretty quickly, but it was actually really good - efing hilarious!! I thought Nick & Nora was going to be really good, and it wasn't all that great. I ended up drinking a THIRD bottle of wine near the end of the night, so I was good and buzzed. Randy and I then engaged in some adult behavior and I passed out around 11:00. Great Vday. :)

Sunday was a pretty lazy day, typical of most Sundays in our household. We did go to Wal-Mart to get Harper a high chair and to get a few other odds & ends. We also stopped by Randy's grandparents house so the family could see Harper. I also caught up on a few shows on the dvr. Then Sunday night we went to Kristy & Dave's for dinner and Desperate Housewives. Well....we ended up staying until 2:30am and consuming many adult beverages. Good thing they live in our neighborhood, so the drive home was just a couple blocks. That was a fun night. Once again, Randy and I engaged in adult behavior when we got home....only a little crazier than the night before.

Yesterday we were both off for Presidents Day. Good thing too, cuz Randy was hungover as all get out (he spent most of the day in bed) and I wasn't feeling that great myself. It didn't help that Harper got up at 7:15 yesterday morning. I finally went and swam my 20 laps at the Gladstone Community Center. Then I came home and showered and then drove to Ottawa to go meet my dad to Rylie. When I got there, she was pouting in the car. Turns out she got a HUGE wad of gum stuck in her hair. We headed back to KC and I called my mother-in-law to see if she could perform an emergency haircut on Rylie. Mind you, Rylie has only had trims her entire life and has really long, beautiful hair. Well....she had long, beautiful hair. She got about 6 inches taken off and now it's at her shoulders. It really is pretty cute....just a shock. She's never really had a hair cut before, so it was sad to see her long locks go.

After the hair cut, Randy took Rylie to a birthday party while I stayed home with Harper and finished up some laundry. After the girls were in bed, Randy and I watched The Bachelor and I drank another bottle of wine. Why....I'm not really sure. My back was killing me and I thought it would help me relax, which it did. But all the food & booze this weekend did not help me lose any weight. Ah, frustration.

Anyway, it's just a 4 day work week this week, so that's nice. On the tri training agenda for the rest of the week: cycling today, running tomorrow and Saturday - 3 miles each day. I've got some yoga and muscle conditioning in the mix too. Should be good times. Oh yeah, and T - 10 days until I turn........30.

It Pays To Be Nice

2009-02-12T08:37:00.002-06:00

So I'm sitting here at my desk enjoying a normal Thursday morning, when a lady I work with appears and says "I have something for you." She then extends a bag to me, and to my delight, I find a PINK (my favorite color!) Nine West Handbag, complete with a small matching make-up bag and cell phone carrier!

I felt my eyes widen as I exclaimed "what's this?!" She said I had commented on how cute her purse was awhile back (I don't recall this, but I really DO love the bag, so I'm sure this is true) and she said I could have it when she was done with it. What a pleasant surprise & great way to start my day! It even matches the shirt I'm wearing today...and my gym bag....and cell phone, mp3 player, camera, and pretty much everything else I own, lol. I'm so excited to go home and transfer everything over to my new bag!

Two other girls I work with asked why she just gave me her bag. My reply was "it pays to be nice." :)

Oh the weather outside is frightful....

2009-02-11T09:51:00.003-06:00

Ya really gotta love the midwest *rolls eyes*. Yesterday I drove home from work with my windows down, left the front door open when I got home, went for a bike ride, and then turned the attic fan on. This morning when I left for work, I didn't bother putting on a coat cuz it was still warm out. And NOW........it's freakin SNOWING!!!! What the ef?!?! How does it go from 70's to snow?! I just don't get it.

This really sucks. Rylie has gymnastics tonight and I normally take her while Randy stays home with Harper. But Randy is gonna be gone tonight to watch the US Soccer game, so I'll have to get poor Harper out in all of this. Yuck! And tomorrow Randy has to drive the girls all the way to Ottawa to meet my dad....so I REALLY hope the roads don't get bad! Yuck, I hate winter. And all this nice weather lately has been such a tease. No fair.

Great Weekend, Happy Life

2009-02-09T07:24:00.002-06:00

I love having great weekends, even if they go by too fast.

Friday wasn't all that eventful. I went to bed around 7:30, lol. I had gone to the doctor on Thursday for a sinus infection (Rylie went on Wednesday for the same thing), so I wasn't feeling all that great and I needed to get some rest since I had tri practice Saturday morning.

Saturday I got up shortly after 5am. I needed to make sure I ate a good breakfast before practice. I was out the door by 6am. I had to drive all the way down to south KC for practice. I was nervous about soooo many things - getting lost on the way to practice, getting lost DURING practice, not having anyone at my pace, etc. Of course, everything ended up being just fine. We actually had another girl join our team, which was very exciting for me! She's my age too, so I now have a buddy that is also at the same pace/level as me - what a relief! After practice we had a seminar, so I didn't get home until about noon on Saturday.

I ended up taking Harper up to urgent care Saturday afternoon. She's been kind of fussy and has had a cough and congestion lately. No fever, but I was pretty sure she had a sinus infection since Rylie and I both do. Turns out she has an ear infection - poor baby! But we got her some antibiotics, so hopefully she'll be better soon.

Saturday night Dustyn & Toni watched the girls so Randy and I could have a date night. We went to dinner at Applebee's (we had a gift card, so it was a cheap date, lol) and then we went and had a quick drink at On The Border since we had time to kill before the movie started. We went to see Slumdog Millionaire (movie passes - again, cheap date). Great movie! Very eye opening. We then went to pick up the girls and were home by 10:00. It was nice to have some alone time, tho. Feels like we don't get much time together just the two of us.

Yesterday was a pretty domestic day - laundry, groceries, etc. I think I spent a solid 2 1/2 hours in the kitchen cutting up veggies for the week, making our giant salad for the week, fixing dinner, and baking banana bread. I caught up on a few shows and that's about it.

Lots going on this week. Kicking into gear with tri training - running today, swimming on Thursday and Saturday, yoga today and Wednesday, muscle conditioning tomorrow and Thursday. Should be a great week!

HELP support a great cause!!!

2009-02-04T09:41:00.004-06:00

Please check out this link and make a donation toward the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society: http://pages.teamintraining.org/mid/HyveeTri09/arobbins

I am training for an Olympic Triathlon with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training and have committed to raising $2700. All contributions help fund research for blood cancers and will help accelerate a cure. Donations are tax deductible and are easy to make on the secure web link above. I realize times are tough right now....but every little bit - large or small - helps! I thank everyone for your generosity in helping with this cause!

2009-02-03T11:51:00.001-06:00

There was a question today on a web board that I am on - "What do you do for a living?" So I replied with this:

--Wife & mother of 2 girls - 6 years
--Quality assurance auditor for insurance company - 4 1/2 years
--Comedic gangsta - 30 years (I don't actually get paid for this one) ;)

That's just how I roll.

Um yeah...

2009-02-02T12:02:00.003-06:00

So my weekend pretty much consisted of working on http://www.thebungblog.blogspot.com with Melissa. Okay, so actually we were trying to install software to scan pics for like 10 hours on Saturday...whilst consuming some BROskies and laughing our asses off at our old pictures and ideas to blog about. LOLsies.... Sunday, we finally gave up and went to Wally World to scan the pics. Took an hour with each of us on a different scanner.....BUT, we finally got some quality photos to be posted soon to The Bung Blog for your viewing pleasure.

I went out Friday night with my little sister and was pretty much the THIRD oldest person in the bar, behind some white trash old lady and then a guy I went to high school with that is turning 30 tomorrow (I turn 30 in.....25 days....). Everyone else there was pretty much 21/22ish. But it's all good cuz I forgot how cheap Emporia bars are. I only spent like $10 and that bought me 3 beers & part of a pitcher. Then I had a beer and a jager bomb (I shower in that shit) bought for me. And after the wine and vodka drinks I had at mom & dad's before we went out, I was good to go. Ran into my cousin Kaila and hung out with her most of the night. Got about 6 hours of sleep and then bunged it up with Militia. Good times.

Now I'm back at work.....but hardly working. I need to though. I just have too much other stuff on my mind. Official triathlon training begins this week. I'm amped!!! Lots going on, homies!

Nothing to blog about....

2009-01-30T11:20:00.005-06:00

Life hasn't been too exciting as of late. I was sick this week, so I haven't really done much with myself. It's unfortunate too, since I've been really focused on preparing for my triathlon training and now I've gone an entire week without working out. It sucks that I really had a lot of momentum and now it's gone.... But I also have patellar tendonitis and my coach advised that I quit running until team practice begins (only 8 days away!!!) so I guess it all kinda worked out. But I plan to hit the rec tomorrow and swim a few laps and put a few miles on the treadmill.

Today is my dad's birthday, so we're hitting the road and heading home for the weekend. I haven't seen the fam since the week of Christmas, so that'll be nice. Plus, The Militia and I are gonna hook up and work on The Bung Blog - http://thebungblog.blogspot.com/ bitches! Read it, learn it, live it, love it!

This week has really been the slowest week I've had in a minute. Nothing too exciting to report. Oh wait, Harper finally learned to roll over! That fat nugget took her sweet time - she's 5 months old already, LOL.

Oh, and the Rylie got invited to join the team at gymnastics. The up side of that is that you have to be invited by the owner of the gym to join the team. It means they see potential in her and want her to start competing. The down side is that she would have to put in a lot more hours at the gym and she would also have to give up dance as we cannot afford for her to be in both if she triples up on time at gymnastics. While I am super excited for her, I'm also thinking "SHE'S ONLY IN KINDERGARTEN, people!!!!" That's just a lot for a 6-year-old to take on. I want her to do gymnastics because she enjoys it. I'm worried that it will no longer be fun if we push her too hard or too far. For now, we're gonna finish out this school year with what we have in line at the moment because we've already paid for her dance recital fee and costume. Maybe this summer we can try out the team and see where things go from there. If she likes it, she'll have to forego dance at point....after putting 4 years into it. I dunno....we'll see.

I guess that's about it for now.

2009-01-20T14:31:00.002-06:00

I really think I need to make a list of things I wanna do before I die....and then actually start working on accomplishing the stuff on the list, one thing at a time. I want to be able to reflect back on my life and feel a sense of accomplishment and not feel like my life has just passed me by. I think doing this triathlon this year is a great start.

But yeah, I think I need to start working on a BID (Before I Die) list. I think one of my teachers in high school made us do that...but I'm sure what I would come up with now would be a lot different than it was back then. And I'm sure I've done a lot of the things that were on there then, like get married, have kids, buy a house, graduate from high school, graduate from college, go sky diving, see the ocean, go to Mardi Gras, etc.

Hmmmm.....I'm really going to need to put some thought into this.....

Happy Obama Day!!!!!!!!!

2009-01-20T11:33:00.004-06:00

Our IT department went crazy and decided to block any kind of video and radio today because of the inaguration - lame! So everyone was in the cafeteria to watch on the tv's down there. If they hadn't blocked it on our computers, we could still work at our desks and watch it at the same time. So yeah, that was stupid. Oh well, I went down and watched and Randy dvr'd it, so I'll watch it again tonight. Ry was so cute this weekend - she wanted to bank a cake for MLK Jr's bday and also for Obama. So yeah, dark chocolate would be the flavor, lol.

Funny thing happened Saturday night. Charren and Alex were over and Char was saying how they had a couple coming over the next day to look at their foster dog and see about adopting him. She was all, "yeah, their names are Angie and Rich Yates." I was like, um - I know them! Rich is my "ex husband", LOL!!!! Ah, the magic of Mardi Gras! Such a small world! And then Brewer called just a few minutes later, so I had to tell him about it. It was so funny!

So, we got a new dog on Saturday - a black lab named Callie. She is so awesome! She's needy, tho - needs attention ALL the time! But once Cooper gets his stitches out, they will be really good together. We let them play Saturday and Coop's stitches ended up busting and he ear is all swollen now, so we've had to keep them separated since then. But Callie is really good. She's house trained and very obedient. She does try to get on the furniture a lot, but if we yell at her to get down, she gets down. No, she doesn't get funky. She just gets off the furniture. She's been sleeping in our bed with us, which is fine and all except that she's shedding pretty bad, so we ordered a Furminator off of Ebay. Pretty much ready for that to get here!

Harper is officially in the big girl car seat - still rear facing, but she has outgrown the carrier. What a chunk! She'll be doing the truffle shuffle before long!

Sunday I totally had a "moment." I sat there feeling so content with life and thinking "how did I get so lucky to have 2 wonderfully behaved children, 2 awesome dogs, and the best husband ever??" I love moments like that. I need to remember to hold onto them more than I do...

Life is great...

2009-01-16T08:29:00.003-06:00

...for no reason in particular. Maybe it's because I've caught up with some old friends this week. Maybe it's because I've reunited with a few friends via facebook. Maybe it's because I've been productive with work and my workouts. I dunno....small things sometimes make my day, so whatever it is, I'm happy that I'm happy. :)

I've got a lot on the agenda for this weekend.

Tomorrow:

Working a few hours of OT
Getting my hurrr did - yay!
Going to look at a black lab - double yay!
Looking at new car seats for Harper
Possibly a game night at our place?

Sunday:

Lots of laziness
Possibly some house cleaning

Monday:

MLK Jr Day - the office is closed, but I'll prob work a few hours anyway
Dr Appt
Get Ry from mom & dad

I am getting off work at noon today. Ry get outta school early and I am then taking her to meet my dad in Ottawa. Hopefully the snow lets up by then. Then I need to motivate myself to go run at the gym after that. This week has been exhausting. Last night I went to bed at 7:30 and was asleep by 8:00!

Interesting

2009-01-15T07:52:00.002-06:00

A couple days ago I had a message from a guy on facebook. The subject line was "You probably don't remember me" and then he went on to say that we used to email each other a few years ago and that I must have left an impression on him because he remembered my name. I kind of wondered if he possibly had me confused with someone else...but then he asked if that was Cooper in my profile picture, so he must know me to know personal info about me. I mean, my page is private so I'm not sure how he would know my dog's name. His page is private too and his profile pic is of a baby, so I really couldn't place who he was. He mentioned that we used to email each other around 6 or 7 years ago. Well, that does sound about right...it was right before Randy and I met and I did used to go onto a few sites and meet people.

So I messaged him back and asked how/where we met and got involved with emailing each other. I felt bad for not remembering him because I'm usually the one that remembers people, not the other way around. I got a message back from him yesterday saying that we met on date.com. Yeah, I was on that site around 6 - 7 years ago. He then went on to ask if that was my little girl in my pic and said that I was pregnant with her when we used to talk and he asked if I ended up naming her Rylie Kayden - correct spelling and all! Pretty impressive! Anyway, he's married now and he and his wife just had a baby boy in October. It was cool to catch up and all. I just don't ever think anyone has remembered so much about me for so long after not even knowing me like that. I must have made an impression on him. Kind of flattering, I guess.

Yuck

2009-01-14T11:44:00.002-06:00

I'm not feeling too well today. :( I threw up at work about an hour ago. I felt better afterwards, but I'm starting to feel yucky again. I think it's because I took some pain killers for me knee and they upset my stomach. I'm really trying to stick it out and make it through the day since I've got overtime riding on this check....but I have a feeling I won't be here at work much longer. I'm really tired too. I think I need to go home and take a nap...

2009-01-12T12:08:00.001-06:00

I need more Militia in my life. And also, more cow bell.

Vacation!

2009-01-12T10:52:00.002-06:00

Our trip to Mexico has been booked!! October 17 - October 24, 2009. Yep, that's 9 months away, but I'm excited nonetheless! Randy and I have not been anywhere together since our honeymoon and this trip will be the week of our 5 year anniversary. PUMPED!

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g150792-d219568-Reviews-El_Cid_El_Moro_Beach_Hotel-Mazatlan_Pacific_Coast.html

Weekend Review

2009-01-12T07:57:00.003-06:00

Since my systems are down at work, I suppose I have nothing better to do than blog. :)

I had a pretty good weekend. I was pretty wiped out on Friday after all the OT I worked and I had to get up early on Saturday to work some more, so I went to bed pretty early. Nothing exciting there.

Saturday I was at work by 6am. I worked a little over 5 hours and then headed to the gym. Saturday was a jam-packed day. After the gym I had to get myself and the girls cleaned up and ready for Christmas at Randy's mom's. The Christmas was nice. Shelly made a nice dinner and we all got some really nice gifts. After that, we dropped the girls off over at Jenny's so Toni could watch them while we went out for Angel's birthday. Melissa was in town, so she was able to join us.

We went to Tanner's in Waldo for Angel's birthday and it was a lot of fun. It was nice to get out of the house for awhile and have a few drinks. I had just enough to get a nice buzz, but not a hangover the next day. Melissa and I shared some good laughs, as always, and it was really great to get to spend some time with Charren and Angel - I feel like I haven't seen either of them in so long and it's always nice to get to catch up. I think Angel had a good time, which is good since it was a special night for her. Definitely good times....with good pics, lol. I wish we could have stayed out later, but we had to pick up the girls. Melissa and I ended up staying up for a few more hours once we got home, reminiscing and reviewing the ever famous Bung Book.

Sunday was a lazy day. I had intended to go to the gym, but in the end I really needed the day to rest and relax after working all the OT last week. Between work and caring for my sick family, I felt like I was constantly on the go last week. It was nice to just lay around the house and catch up on my shows.

I'll be working OT again this week, which will be nice since we need the money right now. Randy and I want a new house so bad, but it just seems like every time we get some money in savings, something comes up and we end up having to spend it. But we'll get there someday....hopefully.

I'm becoming a blog whore....

2009-01-10T06:25:00.002-06:00

Okay, so I've got the bung blog going and that's dedicated to all things bung....and I've got my fitness blog to track my training and health regimine for the year. I want to keep each of those separate from my everyday life....so I've created this blog simply for journaling about life, day-to-day activites, how I'm doing, and how I'm getting by. It can definitely be tied to the other two...but more than anything, it's just for my own personal release.

I'll start off by getting up to speed on 2009 so far. Today is only the 10th day of the year and I must say it's been a very productive year to date. I have been very focused on my workouts and diet so that I can prepare for my triathlon (more about that in ashleysfitnessblog.blogspot.com) and I have successfully lost 7 pounds already. I've also been working an excessive amount of overtime, but in the end it keeps me busy and will be nice padding for the pocketbook.

The year hasn't been completely perfect, though. Both the girls have had ear infections this week and Randy has been sick as well. Yes, all three of them have been to see the doctor and our medical expenses have already been more than what we've budgeted for this month. And worst of all, we had to have our boxer Nikki put down last Saturday after she suffered a stroke and several seizures. Randy rushed her to the emergency vet to discover she had a brain tumor. :( He had raised her since she was a puppy. It was hard on our entire family, but especially on Randy. She was his baby and he's had her since he was in high school.

In addition, our other dog Cooper had to have surgery this week to drain and repair his ear from a hematoma. He is recovering well, though, and we hope to adopt a lab within the next few months to help keep him company. Poor Cooper has never been the only dog in the house before, so we will be looking forward to adding to our family in the months to come.

I really have great feelings about 2009. I have a lot of goals I want to accomplish and a lot of fun things planned for both myself and my family. I am excited to see what this year has in store. I feel like 2008 really opened my eyes up to a lot of things and I feel like I am finally seeing my life much more clearly than before. This gives me a great sense of peace, love, and satisfaction. I have a feeling that 2009 is going to be one of the greatest years of my life to date.

Everyday Life...

Did You Miss Me??

My Weekend Back Home

She's Her Mother's Daughter

Weekend In St Louis

Weekend Recap

Peep Show!!

Weekend Recap:

Another Busy Week

There's Really No Such Thing As A Bad Weekend

Update

I Work With Too Many MU Fans

Down With The Sickness!

Spring is Here!

Is This Week Over Yet?

The Tooth Fairy Finally Came!

Weekend Review

TGIF!

Training, Training, and more Training...

And Now....A Birthday Shout Out To My BESTIE!!!

Birthday Pics!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

My Birthday Weekend: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Perfume Suggestions?

Good-bye 20's, Hello 30's

In Honor of the Birthday Boy!

Happy Birthday To My Baby Boy!!!

My Blog Needs A Facelift...

Straight From The Bung Blog - Cuz It's Too Good To Only Post Once!

Frustration Consumes Me

PS

Weekend In Review:

Stray Lab.....He's Still With Us

Update on Stray Lab

I Need to Pretty-Up My Blog

Last Night's Adventure

The Weekend: Great for Me, Bad for my Liver

It Pays To Be Nice

Oh the weather outside is frightful....

Great Weekend, Happy Life

HELP support a great cause!!!

Um yeah...

Nothing to blog about....

Happy Obama Day!!!!!!!!!

Life is great...

Interesting

Yuck

More

Vacation!

Weekend Review

I'm becoming a blog whore....