Celebrating David's Birthday

David's birthday was the 29th, but we've been celebrating for days now, and we've had a ball! He got lots of fun presents from Williams-Sonoma from me, and we had dinner with his parents on Thursday, I took him out to Uncle Julio's Friday, and Saturday night we went to Boi Na Braza with his brother, Greg, and Greg's wife Katie. (By the way, amazing food!) Today we went to David's parents house for a Superbowl party. Greg was there, as well as my parents, and we had so much fun! It's been a really wonderful weekend, and I am sorry the festivities are over. Although my parents are taking us out to eat next Saturday night, so we can enjoy the birthday one more night.

Back to the grind tomorrow...I have work and school so it will be a late night for me. I hope everyone else had a wonderful weekend!!

Brrr!

Well, I guess you could say we've had some sort of weather event here. Yesterday I was at my work meeting in Ft. Worth and we left at 9:30am. (Total waste of makeup.) My friend Sandra and I decided to stop and have breakfast at IHOP in Bedford, so that was nice. Mom joined us and we had a good time at the girls breakfast. I pretty much spent all day at home yesterday vegging under the blankets with a fire in the fireplace. David made hot chocolate and we watched movies. But by 8pm last night, I was BORED! We went to Cheddars for dinner as the sleet began to fall, so we ate quickly and came home just in time. It got nasty out there!

This morning we got the call to just not even bother trying to get to Ft. Worth for the last day of meetings. We were only going to be there a half day, and we don't usually go back to the office after that, so we just planned to stay home anyhow. Turns out they ended up closing the office, so no one had to go in! So David and I went out to brunch today, and now I am entertaining myself with Facebook and blogging. Honestly, I have some stuff to do at work so it's not too awful that I am going in tomorrow. I am ready to get out for a while! I think I will go to the gym, too. This afternoon I am going to give the Jillian Michaels Trainer for the Wii. I tried Madden 09 yesterday...that's going to take some work!

Stay warm, everyone!

Peaceful Weekend Ahead!

This weekend promises to be a nice, low key one. David is spending a chunk of his time up at the DMC for the women's market, so I will be having some quiet time. How will I be spending this lovely time? Studying. Yup...very exciting. I got my Economics textbook in the mail yesterday and now I can read and really prepare myself for my quiz. (I have four chapters to read...there will be much coffee!) There will also be a couple of trips to the gym this weekend. I have GOT to make that happen!

I am getting ready for David's birthday next week, and have some really fun things planned for him. I made a change from the original cool plan I had, and now have some really fun stuff planned, but I'll share those after the birthday! But I have three days of festivities on the schedule for him, and the cool thing is that I get to enjoy all the fun, too! It's all capped off with dinner Saturday night (next weekend, of course) with David's brother Greg and his wife Katie. The four of us are dining at Boi Na Braza (this is not a secret) to celebrate, and I am really looking forward to hanging out with Greg and Katie. They're crazy busy like we are, so we don't get to see them much, but they got a babysitter for Ben and Rosemary, so the grownups can whoop it up! And of course, the Superbowl is the 1st, so David gets to finish it all off with a football game. :) He'll have a good weekend! I went shopping for birthday presents last night and had WAY too much fun!

So that's it right now. I am looking forward to some relaxing tonight before I kick off the Economics study-fest tomorrow. Four chapters of that stuff...wow.

Everyone have a great Friday!

Today

I think it's an exciting day, no matter what your political views. Our nation gets to embark on a new year, and it's neat to be a witness to history. I am hopeful that Obama can do good things for our country, although I am also a realist and know that it will be hard for him to do everything that everyone wants him to do. I think the thing we can all do is to want the President to be successful, because when he succeeds, we ALL succeed.

And in much less publicized news, I start my Human Sexuality class tonight at 4:30pm. I've reviewed the textbook, and I really got an eye full! Sitting in a class and talking about it is going to be interesting. :)

I hope everyone has a wonderful Tuesday!!

Cheer Competition

So I spent the bulk of my day yesterday watching a cheer competition. My 14 year old cousin, Ashley, is on a competition team, and this was a beat-down like no other! While I loved watching her team's 2.5 minute routine (and can I say that Ash was awesome!!), it was not as much fun to watch the other 2 hours worth of teams. They had 7 exhibition teams of what looked like 3 or 4 year olds in addition to the junior level teams, and that just dragged it all out. It wasn't as cute as a dance recital, I have to say. But if her team comes to town again, I'll be there yelling for her. She's good at it, and she wants to make her high school squad. She really seems to like it, and I am all about supporting activities that teach discipline, responsibility, sportsmanlike behavior, and physical fitness. Go girl!!

Today is kind of busy...I am going to lunch and a movie with some friends and then I have to get home right after that to get to the store and then make dinner for company coming at 5:30. But I still have Monday and Tuesday to relax. :) Oh, except school starts Tuesday, but I am looking forward to it!

Have a wonderful Sunday everyone!

The Tax Man Cometh

Yes, it's getting to be that time of year. For me, it's also accompanied with the treat of getting to pass out free "I told you so" lines. Remember that stimulus check everyone was so hot to get their hands on earlier this year? Yeah, when that came out I told people that it wasn't free money and that we'd be paying it back at tax time. Guess what? I've had a couple of people tell me I was right! Yes, brace yourself...that stimulus check was an advance on your refund. So now it's time to pay it back. Lovely. I didn't want it to start with. I think if Obama wants to do that again I am going to write to my congressperson and ask if we can opt out. I didn't want it in 2008 either. I don't know that it even did much for the economy anyhow.

I've been gathering possible 2008 deductions. I think we have enough to offset the stimulus payback, so hopefully we'll still get some sort of refund. I'll take $1 if I don't have to owe the IRS anything! (Can I get an "Amen!"?)

David comes back from Waco today. He only left yesterday, but it's nice to have him home. :) The kitties and I miss him when he's gone. But as happy as I am to see him, I am leaving him to dine on his own tonight. Christy and I have had dinner on the schedule for quite some time, and tonight is the night! She and I are having dinner at our favorite place tonight, and I can't wait! We haven't had dinner together in eons!

I guess that's about it for now. Everyone have a good Thursday!

Technology is Finally My Friend!

So I finally feel like being on Facebook has paid off! I have been reconnecting with old friends from high school and church, but I got two good friend requests yesterday! One is a friend from high school who was in the US as an exchange student from Germany, and the other was a really good friend from junior high. I have wondered about both for years now, and was ecstatic when I heard from them both in one day! What a wonderful treat! Both guys look like they are doing well and happy, so it's nice to reconnect. :)

I honestly have nothing noteworthy to share. It's been pretty quiet. Work is very slow right now, but it will pick up soon. School actually begins tomorrow, but my professor for my online class already posted stuff for the first week. (This is my economics class) So I read everything and did the first assignment and got it posted. Yes, I am just nerdy enough to have already turned in my homework before the class even begins. My classmates are going to think I am a dork, but I actually have so little to do at work right now that I was grateful for homework!

I think that's about it. It's been quiet lately, and I have enjoyed it. We've been laying low at home, just cooking dinner and relaxing. I made a pork tenderloin for dinner last night that was a huge hit with David, so I am keeping the recipe to add to our recipe rotation. :) But that is really about it!

So on that note, I hope everyone has a great Tuesday!

Warm Weather!

It's a beautiful day! I sure wish I had seen the weather report...I wore a turtleneck sweater today. Oh well...I'll change into something cooler when I get home. :) I do like the break from the cold, though. I did read that we may get an arctic blast next week...brrr! Some weather sites say we'll have 50 degree weather and some saw 30 degree weather. It's Texas...we won't really know until it hits!

I am so glad this week is winding down! It's been a LONG one, and I am ready for the weekend. Christy is doing my hair tomorrow (Yay!) and then we're having dinner with David's sister Lea Anne. She and her husband are taking us to Houston's for dinner, and I have never been. I checked out the menu online and I think it sounds delish! It's an early b-day dinner for David, so it's a special occasion. Glad I'm getting my hair done! (It's time for the blond highlights to go away for a few months!) I'd love a new outfit, but we're on a spending moratorium. We have a mission, and we're hanging on to our money to get everything paid off. We're doing so well, too! Again, I know it's only 9 days into the new year, but if 30 days makes a habit, then we only have 21 more days until we can say this isn't just a fluke!

My father is retiring at the end of April, and I am so excited for him! He's worked harder than anyone I know for a very long time, so I hope he thoroughly enjoys the relaxation he's earned. Growing up, I never needed anything, and my parents made sure I had opportunities to do things I wanted. (Everything within reason, of course!) But Dad always made sure I had nice things and he took good care of me and Mom. I can't imagine a better childhood. I am a very lucky girl! (Thanks, Dad!!)

That's it for this beautiful Friday. For some reason, my manager has decided to call a meeting...who knows why. So I am heading off to see what's up there. (Nothing much, I am certain.)

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!!

Yawn!

You know how it is...you're in the perfect spot in the bed, all cozy and warm, and then that ugly alarm clock sound rips you out of your sleep and you have to get up. Yuck! I wish I was still in the spot in the bed! I was sleeping so well. *sigh*

Anyhow, I have very little news today. I got home yesterday and David and I went for a walk. It was a short one because I am lame and was getting tired, but we got up and moved yesterday, so I am proud of us both. :) We tend to be a bit lazy so we're trying to change that. Tonight I am planning to clean out the fridge and the closet on the patio. Both need to be done desperately!

I was going to work out up here today but I managed to forget my gym bag. Actually, I forgot to repack it after getting my shoes and workout clothes out of there yesterday, so I will be sure to do that tonight. I like getting my exercise in early so I don't have to do it later. I did manage to pack fruit and yogurt, though, so that's my accomplishment for the day. I usually pack a lunch, but I am going to lunch with a couple of co-workers today. I am allowing myself one lunch out per week, and this is my one for this week. See? I'm doing better already! Eating healthy AND saving money!! I'm so proud of myself - I just have to keep it up for longer than a week!

I am also fighting the shopping bug. I have gone to my favorite websites and changed my settings so that I don't get all the email notifications about sales. See? I am proactive about avoiding temptation!

On another note, David's friend Jeff email me some pictures he took at our wedding and I love them! He sent me three but he has lots more that he's putting together. In case I didn't rant about it here, our wedding photographer lost most of our wedding pictures in a hard drive crash. Please don't ask me about backups and all that because I already asked and apparently there were no backups of my wedding pictures, so I have some, but not many. It makes me very sad if I think too much about it, but it is nice to see pictures people have taken, and I love what Jeff sent! (BTW, if any of you were at the wedding and took any pictures, we'd sure be grateful if you'd send them our way!) Bottom line, Jeff sent us some awesome pics and I can't wait to see the rest of them! :) Thanks, Jeff! You rock!

So that really is about it for today. A bunch of rambling and silliness. But that's me! Have a great day everyone!

Seven Days In...

Yes, a whopping seven days into the new year, and I am still maintaining my focus. I know, I know...it's only seven days, right? Yes, but I have to celebrate taking things in small chunks, and one week of eating better, not spending extra money, and getting off the couch and moving more. I have menu planned, shopped carefully, and done more around the house rather than doing too much vegging. (Some vegging is allowed, right?) So yeah, I'm pretty proud of my first week in!

Mom and I decided that with trying to pay things off and put money in savings that we're going to postpone our NYC trip for now. It's not cancelled, just put on the back burner for a while. We're both trying to put money in savings and pay off credit cards, so it just makes sense right now. But when we do go, look out NYC!!

Other than all that, I don't have much news. Things are good...nothing big going on. David's birthday is at the end of the month and I have been planning fun things. He knows I am taking him to Boi Na Braza for his birthday dinner, but he doesn't know what else fun is planned! I'll spill the beans here after his birthday. Hey, I don't want him stopping by and finding out!!

That's it for today. Everyone have a great Wednesday!

Back To Work

Ugh...it's hard to look at the upcoming week and know I have to work all five days! But the new year is here and it's time to get back to it. How can I complain? I had plenty of time off and took a cruise and had a great holiday!! So I guess now it's time to get on it.

We worked HARD this weekend. Saturday we moved the spare bed out and cleaned out all the junk we could. Then on Sunday after church we headed out to IKEA and bought two desks and get them set up last night. (Oh, and we had to make a second trip to IKEA to pick up some hardware we forgot on the first trip!) It's not near complete yet, but David and I both now have a desk. He desperately needed an office and I needed a place to study and do schoolwork, as well as budgeting and bill paying. Now we have all this! We need to get rid of the old computer desk and get a futon to put in there, and as soon as we have some decor up on the walls, it should be complete! We have ideas, we just have to get it all done. But we're almost there!

So far, I have been doing well with my focus for the year. We've eaten very healthy, and although I haven't been to the gym yet, we've been very active at home getting things cleaned out. My body is so achy and sore, but that's a good thing. :) Today I am going to the gym here at work and am putting in 30 minutes on the treadmill. Hey, I am still sore from the weekend, so 30 minutes is good for me! We didn't go out to eat, so we've saved money. The bummer is that we went over budget on the stuff for the office, but I think we'll be fine since we're eating at home more. It will balance out.

School begins a week from Wednesday!! I'm actually excited about getting back into school...it means I'm getting closer to graduating! It's going to be a busy year, but a good one. I am planning to attend summer school to get my Spanish out of the way, so that will be a challenge itself: summer school is M-Th from 6-10pm. A lot of work, but in 10 weeks I can knock out 6 hours. Not a bad gig!! So while this is going to be a challenging year, I can do it! :)

Well, I guess I better eat my yogurt and get back to work. I hope everyone has a wonderful Monday!!

Focusing on 2009

I refuse to use the "resolution". I never keep them, so I won't make any. What I am doing, is deciding where my focus needs to be for 2009. Here's my list of things I am going to work on this year:

1. Weight - yes, I know how tired everyone here must be reading about how I am yet again embarking on the weight loss journey. Sorry, but I refuse to give up on myself. But I am taking a new approach with myself, so I will post periodic updates here as I am ready to do so.
2. Finance - This is a new one for me. David and I have an awesome plan in place to have all debt (yes, I mean ALL) eliminated by June. I will post an update to that in June and let you know how it's going. I expect this to be a great success, as David and I are a really good team and are very focused on this one. We have other goals that will follow once that is accomplished. :)
3. School - This is ongoing for me. I am taking 9 hours this semester, so I am going to be busy, but it will help me graduate sooner. That's the big motivator! Oh, and along with school, I plan to keep myself on the Dean's List. That's a list I enjoy!

That's my three. I don't want more than that because they are three big ones, and are of utmost importance to me. It's going to be a good year, and I am excited. One year from now I look forward to patting myself on the back for being so disciplined, and hopefully I'll be within a year of graduating!

What are you focuses for this year? I'm curious to know what is of importance to everyone else!

Happy New Years!

I hope everyone had a wonderful New Years! We went to Jeff and Lyn's annual party, and as always, thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! We always pack our jammies and just spend the night so that we don't have to mess with the drunks on the road. After we got up this morning, we went over to Joseph's catch up with him. They are doing well, and he is loving his new job.

It's a nice, laid-back day today. We stopped at Central Market on the way home, as we are grilling a special dinner of tuna steaks, asparagus, portobello mushrooms, and sliced avocado tonight. It's a new year, and we are ready. David and I have made commitments for the year and we're looking forward to accomplishing our goals. (I refuse to refer to them as resolutions...I never manage to keep those!)

So I hope that whatever you wish to accomplish you are able to achieve this year. I think 2009 is going to be good!

(Oh, and go check out http://www.therussocorner.blogspot.com/! Jess is doing her very first Oprah-esque "Favorite Things" giveaway!! :) She's my MAC soulmate!)

Home

We're home and settled back into real life. This is a very short post, as we have a ton of things to do, but I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas!!!!

Loving This Vacation!

Hello everyone!!

I am going to make this pretty brief because they charge $.55/minute and their computers are so slow! I heard through the grapevine that I managed to miss the icy weather! Crazy! I am in Roatan, Honduras today and the weather is wonderful!! We took the island tour and did a jungle tour and saw lots of native fruits and veggis as well as beautiful trees and even a few small animals. People in Roatan are wonderful, and when the ship pulled into port this morning the natives were in costume dancing for us on the pier...very cool! We were in Cozumel yesterday and swam with the dolphins. What an amazing experience! Tomorrow we will be in Costa Maya for some beach time and snorkeling. I can't wait! I've been good and haven't sunburned yet, so I am hoping that stays the case for me. I must say that the food here is wonderful! We ate lunch at a restaurant in Cozumel yesterday and I loved it! Lots of authentic food that was very tasty! Food on the ship is excellent! I thought I would gain a ton of weight, but so far I am doing well...I haven't been able to be sedentary...we've been up and running a lot! I sang karaoke Monday night and made the cut to perform on Saturday evening, so who knew that would happen? It's so much fun and there is always something to do on board.

When we got to Galveston Saturday, we drove over to Bolivar and the devastation from Ike is horrifying. It's still a mess in some places in Galveston, but nothing like across the ferry. I'll post pictures when I come home...it's heartbreaking, and as I saw it all I found that I didn't even know how to express what I was feeling. There's almost nothing recognizeable there.

Enough about the sad stuff. It's beautiful weather here! Oh, and funny thing...as we got on the elevators to go down and disembark in Roatan, there was a very familiar couple on the elevator. It was Kevin Alexander's parents!!! What a hoot! It was great to see them and I hope we bump into them again!

It's ben hard adjusting to the rocking of the boat. No seasickness, I'm just walking like a drunk everywhere I go! (Yes I have had my share of the "drinks of the day", but I've been sober!!) It's funny on land when you have these odd sensations like you're still at sea even on land. I think I will have to reacclimate when I get home. We've taken tons of pics and I will post them when I get home. There's a good one of me with a parrot on my head and David next to me holding a HUGE iguana! Yeah, we party like animals!!

I think that's it for now. I don't know if I will post again until after I get home, but I'll try. Seriously, if you've never cruised before, do it! It rocks!

Twas The Night Before Cruisemas...

Tomorrow we head down to Galveston!! It's been a rush the last two days just getting everything done. I am finally getting packed tonight, and it's exciting! It's hard to pack...I always have a habit of bringing a little more than I need, so I am trying to pare down but that's not easy.

We had a lovely lunch today with David's parents. It's his father's 75th birthday so we took them to Maggiano's for lunch. YUM! Then we made the mistake of stopping at Williams-Sonoma afterwards. $65 later we left with cookie cutters, a snowflake shapped spatula, a hot chocolate pot with a frother, and a $10 donation to St. Jude's (probably the most worthwhile way to spend any of that money!). But we will make hot chocolate tonight to try our new pot out...it's way cool! And we do love the hot chocolate when the weather is cold! :)

So 48 hours from now we'll be on our way to Cozumel! Warmer weather, here I come! Check back during the week, as there is an internet cafe on the ship and I will try to blog at least once or twice!

Dean's List

I am posting late, as I just took my final in Adolescent Psych and I have made an A in the class! Couple that with my B in Dynamics of Mental Health and that equals the Dean's List for me!!!! I am a VERY excited girl!!

Now I can finally focus on getting ready for the cruise! Oh, and this means I also have no school until January 19th!! Woot!

One Down, One To Go

So I got my Dynamics of Mental Health exam out of the way now, and I think it went pretty well. (yay!) Now I have to spend my evening getting prepared for my Adolescent Psych exam tomorrow night. This is the class I take online, so my exam is online and I have until 10pm tomorrow night to take it. I just want to make sure I am as prepared as possible. If I feel ready, I may take it tonight but I doubt it.

I am off work beginning Thursday, and I don't have to come back until the 29th...this is exciting to me! I started pulling clothes out of the closet to try and figure out what to wear on the cruise, but I felt like I needed to keep my focus on school. I'll start really getting ready to go on Thursday. :) I am taking my friend Wendy to lunch on Thursday as a belated birthday treat. She is kind enough to be watching the kitties while we are away, and I know they'll be in good hands. (But they're going to be mad at us for leaving, that's for sure!) Friday we are taking David's parents to lunch to celebrate my FIL's 75th birthday. We head on out to Galveston on Saturday morning. I am eager to see how things look down there after the hurricane wiped everything out. We got word from our travel agent (insert shameless plug for Memory Maker Travel here) that the Port of Galveston is open and we're leaving from there, so we're happy about that. We have reservations at a hotel that finally has it's phone service back and is ready for guests, so everything is going according to the original plan. Yay!

With the shape of the the economy, we hadn't been planning for David to get his Christmas bonus this year, but they got word yesterday that they will be getting so we are VERY excited about that! We're going to chunk most of it into savings, but we'll be using some for fun! We've decided to issue a challenge to ourselves for 2009...we're going to try and live on just one income and sock the other away into savings. I think we can do it, we (translation: me) need to cool our spending as we've done our part to boost the economy lately. As long as gas prices stay down, I think we should do pretty well! It will be fun to see where we are at the end of next year!

That's it for today. Lots to do since tomorrow is my last day in the office until after Christmas. I hope everyone has a great Tuesday!

Final Exam #1

Tonight is my final in Dynamics of Mental Health. This class has been good, but a real challenge for me, so I am trying to make sure I get an A on the final. If I do, it will pretty much solidify a B for me, which I will be okay with. I am pretty sure I'll make an A in my Adolescent Psych class, so if I get an A and a B this semester, I will make the Dean's List which would make my day! Yeah, I'm a school nerd and I love it. :) I spent the day yesterday studying for my test tonight and I do feel ready. I just need a calm day at work and for nothing to distract me during my test.

I started trying to figure out what to take on the cruise last night. When I went to Paris, I way over packed and I am trying not to do that this time around. However, I think I am already on that track, so tonight I am going to sit down and actually put outfits together and see what really makes sense to take. I am getting excited, but I am having to stay grounded so I don't lose my focus on school. I can cut loose after Wednesday, though! I am off work beginning Thursday morning, and I am excited! I am taking Wendy for her birthday lunch, Shanna's girl's are coming over to make chocolate dipped marshmallows for her classmates, and I think Friday we may be taking David's father to lunch to celebrate his 75th birthday. We have a busy week this week! It should go quickly, but in a way I don't want it to...too much to get done!! But it's all good. :)

I think that's enough for today. I hope everyone has a wonderful Monday! (Is that possible?)

The Belated "What I Am Thankful For" Post

I try to do this and this year I just forgot! However, I still think it's important to list those things I am thankful for:

1. Family - Where would I be without you guys? I am a lucky girl to have the husband, parents, "cuz", grandfather, step-grandmother, aunts and unlces, etc. that I have. I love you all!

2. Friends - I am so grateful for you guys. It's been a trying year for me with school and stuff, and your patience is not only needed, but appreciated! I know I don't get out as much as I used to and I'm not available for ladies' nights these days, but I don't love you any less. You all mean the world to me.

3. Job - I am thankful to have a good job. There are days when I don't love it as much as other days, but I am happy to have a place to go and a good paycheck. :)

4. Cruisemas - Yes, this one is totally selfish. I am looking forward to our cruise in two weeks! Dave and I call it "Cruisemas" since it's the week before Christmas. Clever, right? Besides, it's coming the week that I finish my finals and I am going to need it!

5. School - Yes, as much work as it is, I am grateful to have the chance (and the desire!) to go back to school. I love it, even though I have no life anymore. :) But one day I will be done and I will be able to do something meaningful. I owe my chance to mom...thanks so much!! (I don't have to pay my tuition thanks to her!)

That's my top 5. I'm grateful for much more than that, but that's enough for now. I hope all of you had a chance to think about what you're grateful for!