Life as I live it..

Fun times in Utah

2012-01-09T12:19:00.000-08:00

Hannah was so fun to play with. Although I think she may have only liked me for the packet of gum she "borrowed" from me. Although she was nice enough to share her already chewed pieces that she kindly put back into my purse!

Kayla and Brooke have grown up so much!

Isn't Hannah adorable? And she looks just like Brit did at her age.

Grandma

2012-01-09T12:16:00.001-08:00

When I went back to Utah for Christmas I got to spend a little time with Grandma. She looks pretty good but I swear she has shrunk about a foot!

Carving pumpkins

2011-11-04T19:46:00.000-07:00

Before Halloween we spent an evening carving pumpkins. Brooke had so much fun carving hers that she took over Mikes too. I decided to do something different and carved a witch. It was fun and we even cooked the seeds in my toaster over (since I still don't have a stove). We tried a couple different recipes.
My favorite: spray the pan with cooking spray then sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon and bake until light brown.
Mike's favorite: spray pan and sprinkle seeds with garlic salt and bake until light brown.

Hannah and me!

2011-11-04T17:16:00.000-07:00

California

2011-10-26T18:31:00.000-07:00

the beach at Chicago

2011-09-05T14:59:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we went to an arts festival near Chicago then went to the beach. It was a little windy and a little cold so we didn't get totally in the water but Brooke and I did get our feet week. Brooke pretty much went all in by the end of the trip.

Chicago

2011-09-05T14:55:00.000-07:00

We went to Colorado last weekend for a friends wedding and stayed in Chicago the night before we flew out. We got to experience a little Chicago and it was so much fun. We walked around Navy Pier, rode the famous ferris wheel, took a cruise and ate traditional Chicago pizza. It was so fun and it was great to see some nightlife in Chicago. It was even a first for Mike. It's crazy how you can live so close to somewhere and never go visit it.

house-after

2011-08-06T14:07:00.000-07:00

This is my bedroom, my upstairs bathroom and the closet (my craft room) in the second bedroom upstairs.

Inside my house-after

2011-08-06T14:05:00.000-07:00

This is my downstairs living room/kitchen. Notice the dark green wall by the stairs and the light green on the back wall in the kitchen. I was very excited to actually be able to pick out colors. The other is my second bedroom/office upstairs.

My house-after

2011-08-06T14:03:00.000-07:00

This is the front of my house, the view is of the back of my house from the porch in my bedroom and a view of my sun porch on the front of the house.

Tornado

2011-07-22T12:39:00.001-07:00

I went to Chicago last week for training but the training was delayed due to a TORNADO! Apparently, this happens a lot here. It's crazy. This is some damage to the hotel where our training was.

My house Before...

2011-07-22T12:37:00.000-07:00

Here are a few shots of the house I am renting. It is two bedroom, has a sunporch on both floors and a back porch. It's got a big yard and lots of shade. Obviously it's a work in progress but here are a few before pictures. I have taken after pictures but am having a hard time transferring them from my camera to a computer with internet.

I moved!

2011-07-22T12:34:00.000-07:00

If you haven't heard, I recently moved to Illinois to be with the love of my life. I have been here about 2 months and I love it. There is so much to do, tons of events and lots of outdoor activities. In fact, we have gone fishing several times and we even filet them and eat them! My biggest catch so far has been a large mouth bass about 15 inches long!

Necklaces

2011-04-20T20:05:00.000-07:00

I am finally doing something with all the jewelry I have made. I spent almost a full day taking pictures, getting the necklaces organized and ready to start selling on etsy and/or ebay. It took a lot longer than I thought. I also made my house a mess for a while. It's easy to do in such a small space.

Awesome pasta

2011-04-20T19:43:00.001-07:00

Mike and I were experimenting and made an awesome pasta. I decided to make it again today. It's really easy and REALLY GOOD! Buy some frozen tortellini, boil it for about 10 minutes in chicken broth. Cook a clove of garlic, fresh basil, cilantro and mushrooms in olive oil until tender. Then combine the two and store in fridge overnight. All the flavors intensify and the flavor is amazing!

Cancer Awareness

2011-04-13T00:05:00.000-07:00

No thanks to my sisters teaching me how to make hair bows :), I had (notice that is past tense) a closet full of hair bows. Seriously, I think I have made over 500 bows and about 100 rosettes. I finally got around to creating some packaging in order to sell them. I still haven't sold them but I have taken a step in the right direction. I finally got them out of my closet (step 1). My plan is to sell them on Etsy but I haven't made it that far. I did, however, have an opportunity to take them to work and donate them for a good cause. We have some associates who are trying to raise money in order to walk in the "Walk For The Cure" so I decided to donate my bows to them. I took them to work, made a display board and sold them for charity. I think I was able to sell 20 or so. At least this is a step in the right direction. Now I just have to get on the ball and sell the 580 I have left. I didn't know we could wear pink so i decided to wear a pink bow.

House in Virginia

2011-04-12T23:52:00.000-07:00

I know I have been really bad with keeping my blog up-to-date but better late than never, right?! Last summer I was able to go back home and visit Jeromy and his kids. I took a trip back to Montclair and drove by our old house. Except for a boat in the driveway it pretty much looks the same.

Blue Man Group

2011-04-12T23:47:00.000-07:00

When I went to Chicago we went to see Blue Man Group. I have wanted to see them for so many years and we finally got tickets (for only $40!). They wouldn't allow any pictures but near the end there was a point when I was able to sneak some in. They were much different than I thought. Their performance was more theatrical than musical. I thought they would be banging on pipes and playing with paint all night but instead they put on several skits and made fun of cell phones. Even though it was different it was still great!

Chicago Cubs

2011-04-12T23:38:00.000-07:00

I got to see my first Cubs game. I went with Mike, his brother Kyle and his girlfriend Brittany. It was so much fun, a little cold, but not too bad. The Cubs even won.

Move to Illinois?

2011-03-10T21:33:00.001-08:00

I recently drove my boyfriend back to Illinois to move home. It was the best thing for him. It was the hardest thing for me. Now he wants me to move there and be with him. I want to but do I? And if I do, how and what do I do? Do i quit, and try to find a job, try and go to school there, transfer? What? I don't know what the best thing to do...okay, I want to go but I am not sure about the best way to do so. Any suggestions?

Acting

2011-03-02T21:07:00.000-08:00

A passion I have always had and never said to anyone is to act. For the record, I was the star of a play in 6th or 7th grade (it was so memorable I can't even remember when!) Little did I know I am such a good actress I have fooled even myself.
I put up such a good act, do a great job of hiding my real feelings and avoid asking for help at all costs.
I don't know what's more sad-the fact that I can fool everyone around me or the fact that it was so easy.
Since I can remember I have always felt like I have fallen short to everyone in my family. It took me a long time to realize that I have always struggled behind those in my family, not because I am insufficient but, because every member of my family is so amazing. It is hard to stay afloat in this world let alone amongst the household of Humpherys. Each one of them has unique personality, intelligence and behaviors.
Unfortunately, I seem to continue to struggle and I am afraid it is my destiny. Dad always said when I start out on something I do great and amazing but once I settle in I start to lose focus. He has me pegged to a tee. It seems everything I touch, anyone I run across and anything I attempt I seem to turn upside down and inside out.
SERIOUSLY MY LIFE IS A ROLLER COASTER, but it's that way because I make it that way.

Anyways, a lot has happened lately and I need a few days to figure out how to get ahead again. The ironic part is that as I lose maybe the one and only love of my life and so much else stinks, I am stronger than ever. I swear the stronger I become the more things knock me down.

Family reunion

2011-03-02T21:02:00.001-08:00

It's been a while since I have been to Natalie's (bad on my part). She picked me up from the airport then Jeromy stopped by the next morning. He gave us an update on a "special" friend of his. The kids were excited to see us and we all had some fun.

Chicago

2011-02-28T10:09:00.000-08:00

It's done. I'm home (well almost I am still at Natalie's but I'm back in Colorado.) I drove Mike to Chicago and flew back home yesterday. It's been a crazy few weeks. Mike and I (as well as his daughter Brooke) have inseperable for the last month. It was great to spend time together but it has made it that much harder to move him.
Our drive wasn't too bad. We were pulling a U-haul behind his truck and had to stop several times to adjust the tarp over the back of his truck. Then we made good time until we started getting close to Lincoln Nebraska. We were supposed to stay the night in Omaha and were expecting to arrive between 4 and 5 but after running into weather, traffic, accidents and spent about 3 hours getting to Lincoln we decided to stay in Lincoln (about 60 miles shy of Omaha) and got there about 7:30. We were glad to be out of the truck and went out that night. The next day we made good time and got to Ladd about 4, unloaded his stuff and took the night easy.
The next morning we got up and took a train to Chicago. It was fun because Mike has never been on a train before nor the metro. We went around Chicago, tried to go up the "old" Sears tower, now the John Hancock Observatory. That was a mistake because we weren't thinking so when we got to the top all we could see was white because it was soooo cloudy. Duh, if only we had looked up! Then we took a taxi to see Blue Man Group, which was awesome! The next morning we had a late breakfast, early lunch then had to go our separate ways.

Joe's Crab shak

2011-02-19T14:25:00.001-08:00

Mike loves crab and I have never had it before so he took me to Joe's crab shak last week on a date. It was awesome!! They went all out and gave us a bib and everything (which we quickly took off AFTER I took a picture.) I LOVE CRAB. Since then we bought some at a seafood market and made it ourselves. It is not cheap at Joe's but it's so easy to make. All you have to do is boil it for about 7 minutes and it's done. Although I do recommend eating at Joe's first and taking their crab shears (or whatever they are technically called) home with you. It's pretty funny trying to open crab without those. I should have taken a picture but when we made crab at my house we ended up with knives, scissors, hammer, pliers, tweezers, forks and pliers on the table!

Before and After

2011-02-16T20:15:00.000-08:00

I let myself get EXTREMELY fat to put it bluntly. THe picture on the left is after I had already lost 25 pounds too! It seems I did a great job avoiding photos for a while so I've had a hard time finding a before picture. The two pictures on the right are from the other day. It is hard to say about pounds lost because it seems like when I lose pounds my size doesn't change but when I don't lose any weight I drop sizes. Anyways, I still have 50 pounds to go, which would put me below my (consistent) weight in High School. Hey, maybe then I will actually fit in with all my skinny sisters.

Canon City

2011-02-16T20:08:00.001-08:00

Mike had a class in Canon City Colorado so we went down to do a few things. Well, there wasn't much to do because the Royal Gorge is closed during the winter but we had sunny weather and took a hike (of course on our OWN path). We went to Red Rock park and had fun. When we were heading back we came across bear tracks that were not there when we first went by so we were in a rush to get home.

Purse

2011-02-16T20:05:00.001-08:00

One of my friends has a daughter who recently had a baby and asked me to make her a diaper bag. She gave me a pattern for a simple tote and I added a few things. I added a thick plastic divider down the middle of the bag. Added pockets on the inside and the outside for bottles and other things and a long strap. Hope she likes it.

Beautiful Weather

2011-02-13T18:31:00.000-08:00

The weather has been getting warmer and warmer. In fact, today it was 64 degrees in February! The other day Mike and I went on another one of our crazy hikes. We trucked through the snow, made our own path and of course got started late in the day so we got back right before sunset. At least this hike we didn't come across any bear tracks on our way back:)

Steve Holy

2011-02-12T23:19:00.001-08:00

I went to a club last weekend and got to see a concert by country singer Steve Holy.

Peanut Butter Drops

2011-02-12T23:16:00.000-08:00

We were wanting something sweet and I found this recipe for peanut butter balls. All it is is peanut butter, baking soda and sugar. You mix them all together, roll them in a ball and bake them in the oven. They turned out so good.

life is hard

2011-01-22T01:55:00.000-08:00

Each day brings a new challenge, but each day brings more happiness.
Sometimes it seems like more tears must be shed for every moment of joy
but those moments of joy are far greater than you could imagine & each
one I have makes me want even more.
Not to steal from brittany but I'm going to because it explains so much:
Two roads diverged & I took the one less traveled, and it has made all the
difference.

I want to shout from the rooftops about my happiness, yet @ the same time
I want to hide from my sadness & wallow in my pain.
The desires of the heart cannot be explained, nor should they have to be. I am
Lost in my own thoughts & want to disconnect from the world.
For those few who want to know: I'm good & happier than I've ever been but I just
Want to be lost for a while.

A new tradition

2011-01-14T21:08:00.000-08:00

We keep driving by these towns with the weirdest names so we decided to start a new tradition. Every time we drive by one of these towns we will take turns taking pictures of these signs. (this probably sounds pretty lame but it is more of an inside joke and we think it's funny.)

Brooke's dress

2011-01-14T21:04:00.000-08:00

I just did a post and realized I didn't even show her cute dress or the cute pea coat we found at Target. Here is a pretty good shot of her dress.

Brooke

2011-01-14T20:51:00.001-08:00

Mike found Brooke the cutest christmas dress (at Sam's) and I wanted to take some pictures of her. We had fun curling her hair and getting her all dressed up. She was such a trooper and here are a couple of shots I got.

What a deal!

2011-01-14T20:47:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago we took a trip to Goodwill and came across these weights. We got all these weights for less than $20! Just the bar alone is usually at least $40. We think that someone new was pricing that day because it was too good a deal. Now Mike is looking for a weight bench....hopefully Goodwill will be good to us again!

What a find!

2010-12-20T21:04:00.000-08:00

We went ice skating for the first time (well first time for Brooke) and she loved it. Since then she has asked Santa for skates. I happen to stop at Goodwill and checked the outdoor area. Low and behold I find a pair of skates her size for $5! We hit the jackpot!

Lesson learned: Stay on the Trail

2010-12-18T09:54:00.000-08:00

So....when you rent a snowmobile and they tell you to NOT go off the trail, what they really mean is....to NOT GO OFF THE TRAIL! We took a little trip and went snowmobiling because we thought it would be fun and Brooke has never been. It started out pretty rough (we should have seen it as a sign and turned around.) The rental place was in the middle of town so you had to drive through town and cross several streets before you can even get to the trail. The signs were not very clear (and some seemed non-existent) so we ended up riding down a main road and had to make a U-turn. We finally got onto the trail and got going. The trails are set up with signs and lots of area around them to travel. After about 30 minutes I took the lead and decided to get a little daring. I would weave in and out of the trail-kind of like when you are skiing down the hill and you can go to the side through the trees and connect back with the trail. I did this twice and on the third time I realized right away that we weren't getting right back onto the trail. Of course I was in the lead so Mike had no choice but to follow me. We kept getting farther from the trail and kept going downhill, but, I was following tracks from earlier that day. Low and behold, Mike's sled got stuck. We had to pick it up and turn it 180 degrees so he could go back the way we came. Because of the time it sat, my sled became stuck so we had to turn it around as well (and boy they were heavy.) Oh boy I forgot to tell you and important part. The day before we went snowboarding and it was Mike's first time. His second to last run he caught the edge of his board and did a flace plant. He thought he might have a slight concusion and possibly ripped a tendon in his arm. So let me get back to the part where we were lifting and moving the snowmobiles after all that Mike tried to take his snowmobiles up the hill but the wheel didn't turn fast enough so he went over the side.Then we spent the next 2 hours trying to dig the sled out. At one point I called back to the rental place and had them come dig us out. We finally made it back to the rental place in town and headed back home. We made it back to town but not in time for Mike's class.

Here's a shot of Mike and Brooke on their sled.

Here is Mike and Brooke hiking up the hill AFTER the kind man came and dug us out and he rode the sled up the hill. U can't tell (that is until your foot goes through the snow) but it is about 3ft. deep.

I was trying to get a shot of Brooke's hair after she took her helmet off but she kept covering her head up. I guess that's what happens when you take a kid for a snowmobile ride but end up having to make sand castles in the snow for an hour and hike partway back becuase the supposed adults you are with get you stuck!

Mike and me

2010-12-18T09:51:00.001-08:00

I thought these were cute pictures of us.

Ice skating for the first time

2010-12-13T20:25:00.000-08:00

Neither Mike nor Brooke have been ice skating before so we rented some skates and went to a free pond nearby. They both did amazing and were skating better than me in no time.

Cutting down our Christmas own tree

2010-12-13T20:15:00.000-08:00

Mike had a fake Christmas tree that we decorated last week but decided we would follow the tradition in Woodland Park and cut down our own tree. He has never had a real tree and we were feeling adventurous so we headed out in his truck and took a little hike until we found the right tree. Brooke was quite a trooper and held out for quite a while. We found our tree, Mike cut it down and carried it back to the truck. We then had fun decorating it and goofed around and took some pictures. Our real tree looks soooo much better than the fake tree.

A hike in the woods

2010-12-01T17:29:00.001-08:00

Here's a quick update. We went hiking the other day and of course I took my camera with me. I'm not sure of the order of these shots but one should be of Mike and his daughter Brooke. Another is of Mike being goofy and another one is of me and Brooke. I'll update more later because my time right now on the internet is short and I'm headed for a date with my beau!

life is amazing

2010-11-30T19:03:00.000-08:00

Just when you think there is no hope you meet someone who will change your life forever. Who knows what the future will hold but I do know that I'm soaking up every moment. It feels so great to smile again, to laugh & to enjoy life again. as brittany used to say & mike said the other day...two roads diverged & I took the one less traveled & it has made all the difference. Our unique paths have led us through different worlds but that is what has conncected us:)

Visit to the dentist

2010-11-16T21:29:00.001-08:00

Today I finally went to the dentist. I have been avoiding it because my teeth keep falling apart and I knew the bill would not be cheap. I found a dentist and had my first appointment today. Yikes...4 root canals, 2 possible tooth extractions, several crowns and lots of cavities. The exciting part is that she can't do it all in one LONG visit so I have to experience all the pain every time I go. Both with the drill and when paying the bill! Yikes

Cripple Creek

2010-11-11T09:58:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I went with a couple friends to the oldest mining town in Colorado. It is also the biggest gambling town in Colorado. Everyone from Woodland Park goes there to game away their hard earned money. Don't worry, I didn't fall into that trap but it sure was fun to visit and spend time with friends. It was also a really nice drive because the Aspens were changing. Here's a picture overlooking the city.

I am an official "Coloradian"

2010-11-11T09:53:00.000-08:00

Finally, after living here for 10 months I got my car registered and a driver's license. I am no longer an "Idahoan!" Yeeehaw.

THEswankypear.blogspot.com

2010-10-28T16:53:00.000-07:00

I finally decided on a name (then changed it several times, tried to register the "new" name to find it has already been used, decided on a new name), designed the background (which was a feat in itself!)...then started my blog.
Drumroll please......
THEswankypear.blogspot.com.
I was going with pricklypear (Ode to Jan) but it was already taken along with every combination so I ended up going back to what I started and adding THE to swanky pear. I started the blog and did one post. My goal is to post at least twice a week once I get going. I have tons of posts to put on there right now but I am going to pace myself. Plus, several of the posts will be repeats of what is on this blog already. My toughest challenge will be to be patient and take several pictures of my projects so I can call them tutorials. Wish me luck.

Good times in Virginia

2010-10-17T21:43:00.000-07:00

I know it has been over a month since I've been to Virginia but things have been a little busy lately so I am just now getting around to finishing photos from my trip. Even though I am NOT a BYU fan I thought the pic of Jeromy and Braden was cute so I decided posting this picture was worth the sacrifice! And of course Aylin is always cute.

The suit fits!

2010-10-13T20:45:00.000-07:00

We had inventory today and I was pretty excited because I was able to fit into my old suit! I still have a long way to go, but I'm getting there one step at a time. Usually I am NEVER in a picture but someone at work caught me off guard.

Cake in a jar

2010-09-29T21:21:00.000-07:00

One of my friends told me about an awesome thing she does! Apparently, you can bake cake in a mason jar. Then, you put the lids on the jars as it cools and it seals the bottles. The jars will last forever. You don't have to take up space in your freezer and the cake is still moist when you open the jar. There are all sorts of recipes and guides on the internet. It's a whole new world!

Just when you get comfortable someone changes things up

2010-09-25T20:46:00.000-07:00

I had my 6 month eval at work the other day and after it was over my store manager said he needed me to go to Overnights. Of course, I said yes and that I would do whatever the store needed. I have until week 39 (currently in week 35) to start my shift on nights. Everyone in the store is so sad to see me leave them but so happy I am going to nights to "fix" the problems.
I have since decided two things:

1. I need to learn to say NO!
2. I really need to take the next step in my life (and i don't mean to overnights.)
I am contemplating several things
-moving in with James and Brittany and sleeping on their couch.
-finishing my application to Peace Corps (seriously)
-Applying to University of Phoenix to get my MBA online while I work as the princess of Darkness
-Just quitting my job and living off my vestment.
-checking myself into a hospital now!
-quitting my job, taking my vestment and traveling Europe for a year or so.
-signing up for EHarmony, meeting my husband in the next month and get married then quit my job.
-setting up a tent in mom and dads yard (after quitting my job)

No, seriously I am up for anything and everything...except stay working where I am at right now.

A trip back homoe

2010-09-25T20:33:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago I took vacation to visit Jeromy and his kids in Virginia. It's been a while since I have been back home so I decided to take a drive by the old house. I left my regular lens at Jeromy's so all I had on my camera was my zoom lens so I had to settle with a picture from my cell phone. (good thing it has 3.2 megapixels!) Aside from the boat in the driveway and a new door the house doesn't seem to be much different.
It was great to drive by my old stomping grounds and visit with some friends. There were so many memories that came flooding back just by driving by everything. The house, church, Potomac Mills, Red Robin and everything else was still standing (except with several new buildings around them.)
It was great to go back home. I have more pictures of Jeromy and the kids to come...I even had the chance to snap some shots in D.C. on my way to the airport!

Saying Goodbye

2010-09-25T20:26:00.000-07:00

The other day at work we had to say goodbye to one of my Merchandise Supervisors, Reg. He runs (ran) my produce department. We had a little celebration for him and had a kitty litter cake. The first shot is of me and Reg, the second photo is of Reg and Michael. It's not a good picture of Reg but I wanted to show Michael because he is the assistant I work with. He is my rock, my buddy and my sanity...

Jeromy and his kids at the temple

2010-09-23T23:26:00.000-07:00

The kids and me

2010-09-13T21:50:00.000-07:00

Are you smarter than a 5th grader? How about someone in kindergarten?

2010-09-06T11:36:00.000-07:00

I am visiting my brother and his two kids: Aylin is 5 yrs old and Braden is 3yrs. We were driving in the car to the temple when Aylin asked if she could play games on my cell phone. Of course I said allright and she proceeded to play with my phone. A few minutes later Braden asked if he could play Mario kart on my phone. I told him I didn't have that game on my phone but he was welcome to play any other game he wanted. A few minutes later he handed me the phone because he couldn't figure out how to the play the game. I didn't think anything of this becaues he is 3 yrs. old and I wasn't surprised that he couldn't figure out what buttons to push because I was the same way. Ayline said she couldn't figure it out either and handed me the phone so I could figure it out. I looked at the phone and died laughing. Not only had Aylin been playing the games SHE wanted to but she had also downloaded Mario Kart for Braden. He really was playing the game and couldn't figure out the controls. I can't even figure out how to play the games that are already on my phone but my 5 year old niece, figured out my phone in 2 minutes and downloaded several Barbie games and games for Braden. So I ask, are you smarter than a 5 yr.old in kindergarten (wait...she isn't even in kindergarten yet so are you smarter than a pre-schooler because I apparently am not!)

I'll try this again

2010-07-21T21:35:00.001-07:00

I have been really bad about my blog lately...frankly I don't have a family to take pics of, I have serious issues connecting to the internet and I have little patience when I can't get things to work.
Life has been pretty good. Work is busy, the weather is crazy; between hail, rain, sunshine (and usually those are all at once) I can't keep my car clean. I've been trying to do all the packaging and figure out ways to sell all the things I have made and let me tell you...that is time consuming! To top it off I have still been hitting the gym like crazy (although I am getting tired of having to drive 30 minutes each way.) I am still working with a trainer and loving it. My weight hasn't gone down hardly at all(number wise) but i think it has but I am building muscle so #'s are staying the same.
In have decided to go back to school and get my MBA so now it is just a matter of figuring out where and applying. I am starting to narrow my options down and looking at University of Phoenix here in town but it's kind of hard when I can't stay connected to the internet. In ode to James and Brit, I even put in an application for Peace Corps (almost...I had to stop when it asked for my resume and a few other things to upload because I can't stay connected to the internet and Microsoft Word has expired on my laptop.) I have been trying to look for that perfect job where you get to travel all over the world, trying new things and someone paying for it...but no such luck!
I still have 2 weeks of vacation to burn in the next 2 1/2 months so I'll take any suggestions. Mom and dad have some extra points from their Hilton thing so I am seriously considering a cruise. any takers? They seem to want 2 people to a room and since I am without husband (I don't think finding one in the next 2 months is likely) I'd love to take anyone who is up for some fun in the sun and a relaxing few days. Maybe I'll even pop into the country of California and visit the flammers (I guess I should check my passport to make sure it is up to date.)
Well that's life in Colorado Springs.

T-shirt style!

2010-06-11T20:22:00.001-07:00

These two pictures are switched and I tried uploading them a couple times but the pictures seem to refuse to switch. Anyways, I cut strips of a shirt, pin them in a circle and sew down the middle of the strip.

After you have sewn the strips with however many layers you would like put the shirt in the washer fo the final look.

Here is a close-up of the t-shirt.

Trip to Pike's Peak on a cog train

2010-06-07T22:13:00.001-07:00

Today turned out a lot different than we planned. This first picture is actually the "after" picture. A friend came to visit so we decided to take a cog train up to Pike's Peak then we were going to hike to some waterfalls calls seven falls. Well, things changed. We ended up taking a hike but not to the falls and not at all how we planned. On the way down from our cog train ride I was taking pictures with my camera and cell phone. I made a camera strap that has a slot for my lens cap. Well I thought I was pretty smart and stuck my phone in the slot which seemed to fit pretty well. I stood up to take some pictures out of the BIG window in the train. When I sat down my phone happened to fall out of its' slot, out the window and right on the side of a huge cliff. We were about 3 miles from the bottom @ a 30% incline. The conductor saw my phone drop and pretty much said there was no way to stop the train. When we got to the bottom I asked if there was a road or anything close to the train tracks and they told me no. And not only did they tell me no but they informed me that all the land near the tracks was private property and no tresspassing was allowed. I didn't know what to do. I haven't even had the phone for a month, I haven't downloaded it to my computer yet so I would lose all my contacts, info etc. Needless to say I decided I had to get my phone. We drove about a mile up a private road, completely ignoring the no tresspassing sign. Then we hiked a trail, crossed the river and started hiking up the tracks, again, ignoring the LARGE no tresspassing sign. We hiked, had to hide from a couple trains as they went up and down the tracks; literally had to hide in the bushes; got all dirty, broke a nail and bled on my pants! After a LONG, LONG hike I finally found the bottom of my plastic case sitting right on the side of the tracks. We walked (practically ran to avoid hiding from another train) back down the trail and stopped at the office. The next train going up the tracks stopped and grabbed my phone! I was so glad to have my phone back and relieved that all we could do was laugh. It was pretty funny because we got our exercise but in order to do that we trespassed, hid from trains, got all dirty and sweaty! What a day.
Here is a shot at the top of Pike's Peak.

Of course we had to take a photo in front of the sign.

Another view

And yet another view.

Teeth...GRRRR

2010-06-04T22:38:00.000-07:00

I know I don't have a picture to go with this because that would totally gross everyone out but I was just eating chicken after work and .....crunch. A crown on the back side of my mouth popped out. Just popped out and left a nice big hole. Seriously, my teeth are falling apart faster than I can have them fixed. To top it all off I don't have a dentist here in Colorado Springs yet and it is the start of the weekend so no dentist will be in the office or they will charge an arm and a leg! So yes, I said GRRRR and I meant it.

Adding some length to a skirt

2010-06-04T22:01:00.000-07:00

I found an old pink skirt of mine that was just a little too short so I decided to add some length and now it fits just right!

This is what the finished skirt looks like.
This is what the skirt looked like when I pulled it out of the box of skinnier clothes.

Take a long piece of white material about 10ft. long x 6 inches. Mark the material every 3/4 of an inch. Fold over the material and iron the pleats in place. Once folded and ironed then stitch the one side of the pleats together.

Stitch the other side of the pleats.

Cut the bottom part of the skirt about 2 inches from the bottom. Then fold them over and stitch the pleat to the bottom seam then to the top.

This is what the skirt looks like after you stitch the bottom and the top parts together.

Use an old t-shirt to cut circles of varying sizes. Fold the larger circles into half, then half again and stitch in the middle. This creates some texture and adds depth to the flowers. Place the circles on top of each other and stitch together.

Lay the flowers wherever you like and stitch to the skirt. And voila! Your skirt is the perfect length.

Hannah sure does get around

2010-05-31T21:35:00.000-07:00

Brit was getting ready and Hannah had no problem entertaining herself. I came down the stairs and caught her, isn't she just so darn cute?!

The Flammers

2010-05-31T21:26:00.000-07:00

Here's on of the photos I was able to get of the Flammer's the last day I was in Utah.

Blue skirt alterations

2010-05-31T20:56:00.001-07:00

I've had this skirt forever but I have hardly ever worn it because it was too long, too big and hard to match the blues so I decided to alter it.

This is the skirt before alterations.
I cut about 2 inches off of the bottom of the skirt.

Fold over the bottom of the skirt and stitch.

Cut 2 long strips of blue; about double the width of the skirt and about 4 inches tall. One strip is for the bottom ruffle and one is for the strip just above the bottom hem.

Fold the bottom of one of the strips over about 1/4 of an inch and stitch. Then pin the strip to the bottom of the skirt and stitch.

Fold the second blue strip in half and stitch together. Iron the strip flat with the seam in the middle (see above picture.) Fold over the skirt material about 1/4 of an inch and stitch.

Pin the light blue strip
over the center of the dark blue strip. Pin to the skirt and stitch about 1/4 of an inch from the top and another stitch about 1/4 of an inch from the bottom.

Use extra material to make a bow and stitch to the strip. To add a little pizazz I left an opening on the bottom ruffle where the end met.

soccer ball cake

2010-05-31T20:45:00.000-07:00

When we were cleaning out my mom's cupboards we found the mold for a round cake so I decided to make it. (yep, really bored.)

The kit comes with two bowls so you split the cake mix and bake in the two pans.

Cut the bottom of one of the bowls to stabilize it on a flat surface. Put some frosting in the middle of the two layers then add the top cake.

cut out the desired shape and start tracing with frosting. Take the star tip and color coordinate the desired color of frosting.

And voila, what a waste of time.

Cereal anyone?

2010-05-21T21:32:00.000-07:00

Ever since James and Brittany came back from Thailand (well it could have started before but I never noticed until after) they have been on a cereal kick. You can find any and every(almost every) kind of cereal at the Flammer household. The funny part is watching James eat Lucky Charms AFTER he picks out all the marshmallows, or combine Cheerios and Cocoa Puffs! He was eating cereal this afternoon and he got rather defensive when he thought I was going to eat some of his cereal (j/k the tough look is just for show.) But anyways, as long as James has his cereal he is happy.

Hannah loves old, crusty marshmallows!

2010-05-21T21:07:00.000-07:00

We, (by we I mean Brittany) was cleaning out the kitchen cupboards in preparation of mom and dad leaving. She made the executive decision to throw away a tin can full of hard marshmallows. Of course nothing gets past Hannah, not 5 minutes after Brit threw them in the garbage can Hannah made her way and started chowing down! Nothing was going to stop her. Of course, instead of taking the old marshmallows away from her I grabbed my camera and captured the moment!

Hannah is so adorable!

2010-05-16T20:02:00.000-07:00

We went to church today and Hannah had the cutest outfit on (we call it the bootie skirt because natalie just loves Bailey in it and how she wiggles her tush when she wears it.) Of course, I took advantage of the afternoon and snapped some shots of Hannah. Check out her hair-it looks just like she stuck her finger in a light socket and you don't even have to put gel or spike it because it does it on its' own.

Vacation

2010-05-15T16:08:00.001-07:00

I flew to Utah this morning and already it has been great weather. It is sunny and warm. It's great to see my parents, my sister and her recently younger (we decided to start counting backwards in years on our birthdays as opposed to going up) husband and my adorable niece Hannah.

Hold on, it's gonna be a sad one

2010-05-11T23:59:00.000-07:00

I have a birthday coming up, which means the last year of my life is coming to a close. What a year. I can honestly say it started out at rock bottom. I became really depressed and close to suicidal, then I lost my best friend and left alone. I was so emotional that i was failing more and more every day at work. I finally took some time off but that seemed to make it worse. It just enabled me to ignore my problems and sleep the days away. I finally had to go back to work. In dealing with all that my best friend moved out and ended our friendship of being best friends for several years. I really hit rock bottom. Between sleeping\not sleeping, hospital, sick, yelling, screaming, cutting, diet pills, etc I didn't know what to do.I had hit rock bottom and didn't' want to be here anymore. I remember taking a trip to my parents house on my days off just to be near people. I was there a few days and the last night before I had to go back to work I went into mom and dads room and starting sobbing uncontrollable. For probably a half an hour it was all i could do to cry and breathe. I couldn't take for a long time and even when I could it was between the heaves and hard to understand. finally, mom and dad decided that mom would come home with me and help me find a new place. If you know my family at all you know that we don't ask for help, we don't do the emotional thing and we certainly don't talk about it. I was so glad my mom came home with me and took care of me. We were actually able to talk for the first time in our relationship. She listened and didn't judge me at all. in fact, she called and got me set up with a counselor at lDS service. I never thought she would be able to see, let alone admit and support me getting professional health. She set it up, went with me and waited for me several times. Those next few weeks she spent several trips back and forth from Chubbuck to Logan. Mom and I because very close; she was able to comfort me, really talk to me, talk about the church and brought light into my life. I still remember there were a couple nights I was so low I called her and just cried on the phone forever. just cried, sobbed without saying a word. and the whole time she was there supporting me, listening to me and encouraging me to get on my knees and ask for the Lord to calm me and support me. It was so amazing to finally be able to open up to my mom, tell her how i really felt, then we talked about it. It was like she had completely changed from when I was growing up. Actually it was probably me doing all the changing and she had always been there supporting me, she was just learning how to better support my in my unique way. And Dad, of course, he came to see me as well, even if it was for a quick lunch or phone call. I felt like my parents could finally see the real me and they wanted to help and support me however I needed it. They helped me move to a new place to get away from all the previous memories and start over. They let me come visit every chance I got. It was so good to be able to go home and not be alone. I would have much rather been around them then by myself at home. And I just loved watching Hannah being preemie and growing up so quickly. I love her so much and I'm pretty sure it has to do with her cuteness, but mostly because being around her makes me happy. she doesn't care who I am, what size I am or my lack of social skills, all she wants from me is to hold her and make her laugh. Its amazing how much her little laugh, crackle or smile can melt everything else away. Being with my nieces and nephews are like my safe haven
This last year I have grown so much. I went to counseling which helped considerable. I probably should have kept going once I moved but I was too afraid of finding I wanted to be outgoing, fun loving and caring towards others. my goal was to be the me I wanted to be, yet not afraid to admit my weaknesses and be honest about how i feel instead of pretending everything is alright.
Moving to Colorado has been great and one of the best decisions of my life. I know I needed to come here, now I need to figure out what I am going to do for the rest of my life. I look at the people i work with and see all their cute kids and feel sad inside because I want someone to love, to marry and start a family with. I want that more than anything but it's the Lords plan for me that matters. So I'm here, in Colorado, working out as hard as I can, eating well (for the most part), making crafts on my days off (so they can sit in my closet and acquire dust), but truth be told: I'm lonely. I want to meet people but I also just want to be alone and do my own thing. Okay, so I got off track. This isn't really supposed to be about me.
It's about the two most amazing parents I have and how great an example they have been to me, and always been there for me, even more so lately. I am grateful for the honest relationships we have built. i love m,y mom and dad with all my heart and owe them my world. I know for sure, that without them and their love I would not be here today. They are the greatest parents; full of open hearts and minds, full of forgiveness and unconditional love. Ukraine is so lucky to have them. But I am so sad they will be gone for so long because i will really miss seeing their smiling faces every so often.
Mom and dad, you have been the greatest examples to me all my life. You have always been there for me even when I thought I didn't need you. I am so grateful for the Holy Ghost and whisperings he gave you in order to help me. I love you more than words can say and I am going to miss you so much

Make your own pendants

2010-05-11T21:37:00.001-07:00

Handmade pendants: any color you want! You can buy a bag of pebbles just about anywhere. My suggestion is the $1 store for a package of 20 or so. Use any color of paint with a simple brush and cover the back (flat side) of the pebble. Or, you can use any color or style of srapbook paper. Just cut the paper to the size of the pebble and attach with super glue. Make sure you press the paper flat and push out all the air bubbles. Apply as many coats of paints as necessary to reach desired color. Once the paint and/or scrapbook paper has dried, paint the backside of the pebble with clear glaze (also found just about anywhere.) Depending on the scrapbook texture you may need to apply several layers to make it smooth (you want it to be flush so it's smooth when you wear it.)

The next step is to attach the pebble to something that you can hang on a necklace. I tried several different things (I only took a photo of one.) You can buy bails at hobby lobby. I suggest the round ones. I also tried fancy metal hook and switchs found down the sewing aisle near the bra snaps and hooks. Glue the bail (or whatever type of hook you choose) to the back of the pendant with gorilla glue or super glue. Remember: gorilla glue expands so only use a little. Super glue is pretty messy, runs and goes everywhere you touch. So they both have pros and cons.

Let the glue set-up and dry. Afterwards attach pendant to any necklace of your choice. Voila...pendants for cheap!

Aylin

2010-05-11T21:31:00.001-07:00

Jeromy called Natalie wanting to know where to buy some headbands and rather than explaining to him how to make some she called me! (can you see Jeromy trying to use a hot glue gun and buying bling?!) I threw some bows together, wrapped some more headbands (in the specified colors) and made a bow and headband holder. I took Jan's idea and added some strips of ribbon with velcro so you can hang headbands as well. I sent it off to Jeromy today with a few necklaces I made. I hope she likes them!

I don't think it's brokend!

2010-05-11T21:27:00.000-07:00

I was worried that I broke my toe today at work but after much pain and swelling I think it is just bruised! I always have nightmares that I will die by fixtures at work but it always seemed more drastic than dropping a rack on my toe:). Of course I always get the "odd" little injuries that hurt so darn much. Anyways, it frustrates me because I couldn't go to the gym.

2010-05-04T21:12:00.000-07:00

Oopsy Daisy.
I think this is going to be my name for the things I am going to try and sell. What do ya think?

Training for his mission

2010-05-04T21:05:00.001-07:00

I took this picture at our family reunion. We all joked at how long it had been since dad had been on a bike, but little did we know this was just the beginning. Without a car in Ukraine, dad may be spending a lot of time on a bike! Maybe dad was a psychic and wanted to start his training early!
And FYI-don't go to spin class on a regular basis without biking shoes. If you wear normal tennis shoes, it puts a lot of pressure on a nerve in your foot and causes you to have pinched nerves when you try to sleep. So if anyone has a size 9.5 pair of bike shoes laying around and you aren't using them, send them my way!

What to do in life

2010-05-04T20:56:00.001-07:00

"Oh, I don't know!"
I was flipping through some old pictures when I saw this one and it made me laugh. Kennedy's expression seems to sum up exactly how I have felt lately. I've moved to Colorado and love it here. But now what? What should I do next? I know I don't want to stay in retail (or at least I don't want to be on the store side of it.) Do I go back to school, become an entrepreneur, join the Air Force, volunteer abroad or become Natalie's maid and live in her basement? So many options, so few answers.

Spring door wreath

2010-04-20T22:54:00.001-07:00

This afternoon I re-decorated the wreath on my front door. I finally got ride of the "winter" colors: brown and white and made it more "springy." It was really easy; just needed a hot glue gun, some ribbon and thread I had hanging around and a couple flowers.

Phone died!

2010-04-20T22:49:00.000-07:00

While I was at the gym on Saturday my phone went nuts and died. I tried to get it working but to no avail. There is no Sprint store in the town I work in and since I work from 7am-8pm everything was closed by the time I got home. Finally, today I was able to to go the sprint store and had to get a new phone. 4 days without a phone...yikes. The funny part is that I finally got a new phone today but I couldn't even figure out how it worked until tonight. You wouldn't think a phone is that hard to work but my new one is. Sorry to everyone who tried to get ahold of me, and sorry because I have no phone numbers so I'll have to wait until you call me in order to get your number.

The results are in

2010-04-17T22:31:00.000-07:00

I had my final weigh in for the

Gold's Gym 12 week challenge.

Here are the results:

POUNDS LOST: 34

PRE POST

HIPS: 47 43.5

THIGH: 23 3/4 23

ARM: 13.5 13

AB'S: 48 3/4 34

BODY FAT:

TRICEPS: 40.1 34.7

SUPRAIL: 45.3 35.6

THIGH: 51.7 37.3

PERCENT: 43.9 37.7

So, overall I am proud of my numbers but, it is just the beginning. I don't think I have a chance at winning the contest because I was up against a lot of other successful people, but we will see. They are starting another contest in May and I think I will join that one too. I am about 1/3 of the way to where I want to be. I have worked HARD and plan to keep working. I love working out, feeling healthy and being proud of who I am.

Now, I have 24 hours to write my about my "journey" and submit it to the gym for the final judging. That may be harder than losing the weight :)

Denver Zoo

2010-04-16T23:07:00.001-07:00

My parents drove to Colorado and we spent the day at the Denver Zoo. The kids enjoyed themselves; the weather was decent and we took lots of pictures. I had my camera and zoom lens, Natalie took a few with her camera and Caelie took a picture of (just about every single) animal we saw with my cell phone. She just kept clicking away, and she did a pretty good job too! It was a good day and we enjoyed ourselves.

Tomorrow is Weigh-in Day

2010-04-16T23:04:00.001-07:00

Well, tomorrow morning is weigh-in time. It has been a long 12 weeks and I haven't had quite the results I have wanted but I have still had some success. I am not going to be too happy with my numbers in the morning, especially since I didn't tough things out the last 3 days like I should have, but I am happy with how far I have come. I love the feeling of working out and sweating. I have to work after the weigh-in but the first chance I get I will post my results. Wish me luck

Allergic reaction

2010-04-13T21:53:00.000-07:00

Sunday night I started itching, Monday morning I woke up with parts of my face swollen and today things just got worse. I wore a pair of heels yesterday and without even realizing it I was scratching my feet every time I sat down. By the time I got home from work (after sitting in car for 30 minutes) I could hardly walk into the gym. Today, things just got worse. I had hives pop up everywhere and boy did they itch. I took some benadryl, tried bag balm (which seemed to work the first time but maybe made it worse the second time). The only thing that seems to relieve the pain is a HOT shower. The hot water burns so fat but it seems to take the sting away. But as soon as I get out of the shower the pain and itch come back twice as hard. It's now all over my body and everything itches. Everyone has asked me the typical question, "have you changed anything lately?" This has happened to me once before and that time I didn't change a thingn but, this time I changed about a dozen things. I swam in the gym pool for the first time, went biking and hiking in the hills, changed soap, shampoo, razors, did laundry at a public facility etc. I keep thinking I have figured it out and then more hives appear to discredit my idea. At this point, my feet are so swollen, I have hives everywhere and it is getting worse.
Of all times this is not the greatest time. My parents are coming to town tomorrow and I have weigh-in on Saturday. I want to hae fun with my parents and I sure don't need the extra "swollen" weight for saturday. Grrr..
Tomorrow is going to be a long day: I have to go back to work because I need to finish my schedules and a few other things. Then I am am probably going to the doctor to do something about these hives then I need to work out for about 5 hours (to make up for yesterday and today) then head to Denver to spend time with my parents.

Landscapes by Mangelsen

2010-04-10T21:25:00.001-07:00

The trees are my favorite photo. It reminds me of all the trees in Virginia but the colors of the fall in Utah. I would give anything to have this print about 8 feet wide above my bed!

Thomas D. Mangelsen

2010-04-10T21:22:00.001-07:00

My friend send me some cards of my favorite artist: Photographer Thomas D. Mangelsen. I just love his work. I first saw his work at one of his studios in Jackson Hole. He captures color in such an exquisite way, and he catches nature in its' own playful way.

Changeable flip-flops

2010-04-10T21:05:00.000-07:00

I got my mail today and my friend sent me an awesome package. There were lots of goodies in it; one of which were these changeable flip-flops. I saw them on a blog with a tutorial on how to make them but never gave them another thought. Then I opened my package, and....voila, flip flops with 2 changeable straps. The straps are put on with velcro and you can switch them out as easy as 1..2..3! Aren't they so cute. Thanks Magoo!

Biking trip

2010-04-10T20:54:00.000-07:00

I love spin class, but after today I love it even more. The weather was great, sun shining, I had already gone to the gym and decided instead of going back for my second trip I would go for a bike ride along "Garden of the Gods." I haven't ridden my bike yet this year so I had to pump up the tires, adjust the seat and other minor adjustments. Then I spent 30 minutes trying to get the darn bike in my car-I finally figured out how to take off the tire after I unscrewed about 20 bolts. I made it to the park spent another 20 minutes getting the bike out of my car and re-assembling the tire. I FINALLY started biking and boy-it was hard work. My gears are all messed up and kept clicking and the chain kept falling off. Long story short: I walked most of the way, took some pictures then gave up. Afterwards, I went to the gym. I guess my next trip will wait until after I get a tune up! Until then I'll stick to spin class.

Mom Blogs - Popular Mommy Blog Directory

2010-04-07T23:21:00.000-07:00

Totally Tutorials - A directory of free craft tutorials

2010-04-07T23:20:00.000-07:00

Totally Tutorials - A directory of free craft tutorials

sweat, sweat and more sweat

2010-04-07T22:52:00.000-07:00

I'm in the middle of my 5 days off this week. I was soooo ready for some days off after the long weekend I had. Every 3500 calories burned is a pound of fat. My goal is to burn 2000 calories every day this week. So far, I have been successful. Between cardio, trainer sessions and lifting I have done at least 2000 the last 2 days. Whether or not I will be able to walk tomorrow, let alone work out is another story! I gotta tell you that working out is addicting. I never would have thought I would enjoy being at the gym 5 hours a day!
I have good news and bad; depending on how you look at it. I had a doctor's appointment today to follow-up on my labs I did last week. The good news is: nothing seems to be wrong with me. The bad side of that: I was kind of hoping that we would find something to explain why I am working so hard and having such a hard time losing weight. No such luck. Well, not everything was ruled out. My thyroid is borderline low/normal. My liver enzimes are high (I think that is what he said.) So after labs and talking to the doctor for an hour, I have to go back in 3-4 weeks to check my thyroid and liver again. If my thyroid is still borderline low/normal we will look at a prescription. I my liver enzimes are high he will ahve to do an ultrasound to determine if it is fatty or some other serious thing is wrong. In the meantime, he sent a referral for a sleep study to see if I have sleep apnia (sp?) Apparently not hitting REM sleep every night could be the cause of everything wrong with me (well, almost everything:) So I will have to see.
That was my day in a nutshell (except I also worked on several necklaces.)

Happy Easter

2010-04-04T20:54:00.000-07:00

Today is Easter and most people probably spent time with their family, searched for eggs and had some sugar. I, on the other hand spent my day at work, running registers, working freight and moving all the Easter stuff around. I am just glad the day is over cuz I am tired. I have one more day until I get 5 days off! Yeah. Actually, the part I don't like about the days I work is not being able to spend time in the gym. I feel so awful not working out and sweating all day. 13 days until weigh-in and I am regressing. Yikes, I better find my mojo soon or I have no chance at winning.
I hope everyone took pictures of all their kids and the fun things they did on Easter! I can't wait to see them and how much fun everyone had.

14.5 Days to go

2010-04-02T22:52:00.000-07:00

As of midnight tonight I will have 14 (and a half) days to lose as much weight and body fat as possible before the FINAL weigh in. Will my journey stop there? Heavens no, I am just getting started but the 17th is when my final weigh in is and if I win in my category I get $$$, then I can go on to win out of the entire gym, then against all of the Gold's Gyms! It sure would be nice to lose weight, feel great and win some money! (hey, then I could pay my taxes!!) My goal: 15 pounds by then. I know that is a lot of weight in a short time but that was my goal about a week and a half ago but i haven't lost anything since then. It's been work, work, work and little time and/or energy for working out. So wish me luck and I'll keep you posted.

List day

2010-04-02T22:34:00.000-07:00

My goal was to try and post more often, and take as many pictures as possible. I am here to say: I deserve an F, for being a big, fat failure! I haven't posted in a while and I can't take any pictures because when I went to Nat's last week I managed to leave my camera there. I was even keeping my camera in my car in case I had any "picturesque" moments. Of course I didn't find one opportunity to use my camera until I didn't have it this week. The past week I have wished I had my camera on me several times, and my phone camera doesn't work so well (I think it's just about the resolution of Natalie's old camera! ((one last poking fun at nat's old camera since it's been a while!)) I had even made a brand new camera strap. Enough about my camera.
I had my ONE day off this week and I go back to the grind in the morning. It's amazing how many things you can get done in a day when you make a list and STICK to it! Like always, my list was twice as long as I had time for. In case you didn't know; mom says noone can pack things in a closet like I can. This can be a very good thing (when your closet is half the size of a shower) but it can be VERY bad when you need to re-organize the closet. It was time to pull my bike from my storage closet right outside my aparment. Its about 4 ft x 1.5 ft x 8 ft. but by the time I finished unloading it my living room was full and nowhere to walk. It just kept coming and coming. The good news is that I re-organized everything, threw some stuff out and managed to fit a whole tote of clothes into my closet! Now the closet is organized, useable and still has plenty of room for more stuff!
The exciting part about going through my storage closet (aside from getting my bike out and prepped for warm weather) was the fact that I could empty an entire tote of clothes! I made the (1st of several) step in taking the clothes that don't fit anymore out of my closet and put the new (well technically old but seemingly new) clothes in their place. If the "fat" clothes are gone, I can't go back into them. Besides, I think everyone at work is tired of watching me pull my pants up every 5 seconds and having them hang off me. I didn't want to say anything because you are going to think that next time you see me I should look totally different. That's not the case, I went up ALOT of sizes so I have several smaller sizes to go. Like I said, this was the first of many but it was so exciting to switch clothes that I had to say something!

Long road ahead

2010-03-30T21:13:00.000-07:00

Today was the start of a long week. My schedule had to be adjusted so I work 3 days, have 1 day off then work 3 days again. You might be thinking that is not really that bad of a deal, but, when your work day starts at 7:30 am (have to leave home by 6:50 am to commute) and goes until 8 pm (again 40 minutes for commute) that makes a long day. I also have to factor in going to the gym after work for an hour then driving all the way across town, arriving home at about 10 pm. You can imagine how I will feel after 6 of those days right after another. The crazy thing is before we went on this new schedule I used to do that all the time. Most of the shifts weren't as long but I did 8 or 9 days in a row all the time.
I finally found and went to a doctor yesterday. With as much as I am working out (600-1200 average calories burned while working out) and eating between 1200 and 1800 calories a day, I should have lost much more weight than I have. Something has to be wrong somewhere, somehow. They drew blood and are running tests (thyroid, anemia etc.) I will find out the results next week. For the first time, I actually hope something may be wrong-that way at least I can get it fixed and lose the weight I am working so hard on.
The good thing about all of this is that I absolutely love working out and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE spin class. I even went to spin class twice yesterday. It is such a rush, it feels so good, and it burns a lot of calories. I highly recommend everyone try it.

The DEVIL

2010-03-28T21:08:00.000-07:00

The stair machine is the devil in disguise. I hate this machine but I also love it. It is harder than ever but it burns so many calories so fast. I have been spending more and more time on it lately.

Another snowstorm!

2010-03-26T21:40:00.000-07:00

Again, when I went to work this morning it was clear skies, warm weather and teh sun popped out. When I left for work, this is what I saw when I got to my car. It piles up so fast. The crazy part is that when I got back to the Springs it was clear.

A little storm...or a BIG storm!

2010-03-26T20:39:00.000-07:00

On my last 3 days I went to Natalie's to visit. I went to the gym in the morning, left about 11 am. At that time, it was 56 degrees outside and the sun was shining. I showered after my workout, put on capris and flip flops. We did a few errands, went to a couple stores then re-decorated her kitchen ledge and made some plans for her curtains. While we were out it started raining. After we got back to her house it started snowing. Not long afterwards, we looked out the window and the snow had really started to stick. Jeff came home, we had dinner and before I knew it a few hours had gone by and I needed to head home. When I went out to clean my car I think there was about 7 to 8 inches! NO kidding! In about 3 hours it accumulated that fast. I looked at the weather, on the internet and determined it was allright to go home. If I left fast enough, I could beat the storm home. I had to go to work the next day so I didn't have much of a choice. I headed home, it was slow and steady, going about 40 miles an hour. Just as I got past Denver traffic stopped. In about 2 1/2 hours I moved about 200ft. During my exciting standstill, Natalie looked up traffic reports, weather etc. After a while I found out they had closed the freeway for 40 miles because of the weather and amount of accidents. I FINALLY got to move, they forced us off the freeway. I had to make a pitstop then I snuck my way back on the next exit and drove home. I leftt Natalie's about 7:30 and didn't make it home until 1 am! 6 hours to go about 70 miles. And yesterday, my shoulders were so sore from holding the steering wheel all night! Thank heavens I got snow tires on my car this winter. But the poor Noall's having to be on the phone and internet with me all night.

The pictures are from my phone as I was sitting in my car on the freeway, going nowhere fast!

3 weeks to go

2010-03-21T22:16:00.000-07:00

I have 3 weeks left in my 12 week challenge. I am excited for it to be over but bummed because I am no where near my goal. It seems no matter how well I eat, how much I work out I just can't lose weight. Grrr... I just wish my body would cooperate.
My schedule had to be re-arranged at work so I have 5 days off in a row next week. It's the last week of my challenge so it wouldn't be good to go home. I wish it were a week later so I could go home, I'm a little home sick. I can't wait to see my parents and of course, cute little Hannah who is growing up too fast. Oh well, 3 more weeks then maybe I can plan a trip home.

Yesterday 65 degrees, today 7 inches of snow!

2010-03-19T22:35:00.001-07:00

I swear to you it was 65 degrees yesterday, I washed my car made it all pretty and clean. Then, today....wham it snows all day! There was a little snow on the ground when I drove to work, but by the time I left work 13 hours later there was almost 7 inches and it was still snowing! I guess the saying is true, "If you don't like the weather in Colorado wait 5 seconds and it will change!" I'm curious to see how the roads are up the pass when I drive to work in the morning?!

Aprons

2010-03-16T23:04:00.000-07:00

So they are not near as cute as Natalie's aprons, but I tried. I have to give credit where credit is due..... I got the idea from Natalie and tips from her. I just love the fringe!

A little hike

2010-03-16T22:56:00.001-07:00

After my taining session today I decided to go for a hike. A date took me to this place a few weeks ago and since the weather was so nice (59 + sunshine) I decided to go for an adventure. I grabbed my camera and took some pictures. There was a couple little waterfalls (which I am a sucker for!) The top picture is a view from the canyon overlooking Colorado Springs. It felt so good to get out, get some fresh air and use my camera. I'm not so sure my legs were very appreciative when I went back to the gym for spin class :)

Bears, Bears and more Bears of my...

2010-03-13T20:40:00.000-08:00

Wal-Mart is trying to reduce their waste, go all green and recycle everything. One of the things we started doing is recycling all our "organic" material: produce, baked items, plants etc. in big dumpster bins that get picked up weekly. Today I got an e-mail today talking about some stores that are having issues with bees around the organic bins because the temperature is warming up and how to prevent them. I started talking to some of my associates in produce about bees and they starting laughing. I asked what was so funny and they replied that we won't have an issue with bees, but it's bears we have to worry about! Bears! Seriously I asked. How crazy is that, or rather, how COOl is that? My store is right in the mountains, so close that we will have to worry about bears getting into our trash out back. Then everyone started telling me about all the bears in their yards, bobcats and mountain lions. Of course I told them that they better call me as soon as they see a bear in their yard so I could take some good pictures :)