52 Layouts Challenge

Yes, finally we have a glimmer of hope with getting back on track with the 52 Layouts challenge because LOOK... here we finally have a completed week 9. The challenge was to use 7 of something on your layout. Can you spot what I used 7 of?? Well, believe it or not, there are 7 different patterned papers used on this layout. Yes.. I counted them several times to be sure.. I am OCD like that... shocking I know.

Lots of the product here is from the My Minds Eye's Lost & Found line. It was girly, it was glittery, it was PINK... how could I resist. I purchased this from The Doodlebug back in September during the weekend retreat! So what if I'm slow about using my stuff... I get around to it right? I took the little sticker "happy" banner, mounted it on cardstock, cut it out, and the sewed it on the sewing machine to have a real little banner I could "hang" at the top of my photo like that. I think Heidi Swapp posted that idea on her blog at some point... to give credit where its due! The large butterfly in the upper right there is a Jenni Bowlin rubon. I liked the look of just using 1/2 of it on the edge of the page like that. (oh my gosh... while I was grabbing the link for that rubon, I spotted this JB DT layout... wow.. LOVE the sewn hearts on that first one...) OK looking at that JB stuff makes me want to run to my scrap room and make something!

So now... finally I hope to move on to finish up week 11 and move forward. Challenge 11 is to incorporate a page from a book, or sheet music on your layout. I totally already have my subject and pics printed for this one.. Just need to sit down and do it! Hoping I can get back on track now, but also wanting to do a December Daily this year again... so we will see how that goes. I guess we all know how all consuming the Christmas season can be. Hope you will hang in there with me.

Finished this book today. It was a fairly quick read, and as usual for a Richard Paul Evans book, it was good and heart warming. Very good story with some unexpected twists. Something new that went along with this book, was recipes! There were a few things mentioned in the story and recipes for those items are found on the author's web site here. If you click print, it will give you the pdf version. Now I am trying to decide what to read next and am considering this one. (I have it on my Kindle) Was also wondering if I would prefer a Christmas theme book for now... so haven't quite made up my mind.

We put the Christmas tree up today. Well... after the all consuming.. lets try to act like we like each other as we get irritated with each other time of furniture moving... We always think we have the perfect arrangement all figured out in our head. Won't take any time at all. We will just get up and move things in to place, get that tree up and Viola! Done! What a nice fantasy.... soooo not the way it works out. First you find out the furniture doesn't fit as nicely in the room as it did in the picture in your head. Then you realize as you start pulling stuff out that you have to move all the stuff you have stacked next to it or behind it... then you realize OK, now we need to vacuum and dust too..... Usually we try 9 different ways that will NOT require moving the TV and all its components and wires until we finally break down and just move the TV and basically end up with things right where they were last year. WHY do we not start off with this? You will be happy to know we now have the tree up, the furniture in place, AND we are still speaking to each other. Quite an accomplishment!

What do you say we close today with a little bit of little known Christmas Facts about Deanna? A top 10 Christmas list if you will.... Are you on the edge of your seat? I thought so... I mean its still fun even if I make up my own questions and answers right? Who better to answer my own questions than me? :)

1) Favorite Christmas Song... are you thinking Silent Night? Joy to the World? um no.... would you believe "Santa Baby" the Eartha Kitt version.. I am thinking gifts are her love language too... Ha! Something about this song just makes me smile and feel all girly... I know... humor me that you still like me OK? (oh my I just listened to the Taylor Swift version... sorry... just NOT going to cut it...)

2) Favorite Christmas Movie... Bells of St Marys? White Christmas? The Nativity? BZZZZ wrong answer... The correct question would be What is Scrooged.... the Bill Murry version. See now I am thinking you are just sitting there with your mouth open thinking I don't know Deanna at all..... perhaps I am introducing you to my dark side? Ha! I also like One Magic Christmas.

3) I am either secretly OR not so secretly still a big kid when it comes to Christmas. I love gifts. Getting gifts.. giving gifts... opening gifts.. did I mention getting gifts? :) I love all of it and love love sitting in front of the tree with my husband opening lots of presents! (she says with a squeal of delight in her voice...) See... this must directly correspond with #1...

4) When we first got married, we would host a Christmas Party open house every year. I loved cooking 19 things and decorating every nook and cranny of the house and inviting everyone over. These days? Well I got tired... now we have scaled back on the decorations, and I am very happy to have my tree, my snow globes, and my snowmen... and sit in my recliner and admire them.

5) At one time, perhaps in a former life (kidding) I was such a Christmas nut I had like Christmas light earrings, jingle bells for my shoes, Santa hats and ugly Christmas sweatshirts and sweaters. And yes, I would wear all of those at the same time of course. These days, I am quite happy with a nice chic red sweater... or perhaps pink... and my little antique Christmas bells pin. Isn't it funny how our tastes change over the years. I am not sure if I got older and classier.. or perhaps just old and boring...

6) For most of our married life, we would trek out in the woods, the day after thanksgiving and cut ourselves down a big tree. Darrel always thought it was quite hilarious that I would pick out what I thought was the perfect tree, only to find out it was 9 ft tall and didn't have a hope of fitting in our home. Now? I am quite happy with my artificial sometimes pre-lit tree that does not require picking needles out of the carpet or standing on your head to water it.

7) Baking... seems to be an all or nothing kind of thing with me. I either get nothing baked, or I get started and then end up making 101 things. Why can I not be happy with a batch of cookies or two? Instead I have to have like at least 6 kinds of cookies, and if I do that, then I must also make fudge, toffee, chocolate pretzels... and my newest addiction... cake balls.

8) I am 44 years old and still recall quite clearly the first Church Christmas program that I was in. I am not sure how old I was... but it was less than 4 I think. I had a part to say, and the church program lady who was helping all the kids say their part, started to say mine to help me. Apparently I stomped my foot at her... .yes while on stage... because excuse me but I knew my part and could say it my own self thank you very much. Are you surprised to know I could still recite it for you now?

9) my favorite Christmas memory would have to be our engagement... but I doubt that is a little known fact. Just can't leave that one out of a Christmas top 10 right? Our engagement was awesome. Christmas time, downtown Chicago, night time carriage ride with the Christmas lights twinkling, and the bells on the horse jingling, and my husband down on one knee in the carriage. Perfect, perfect moment!

10) Maybe you are wondering why I get so into getting all dressed up and excited for work Christmas parties? I've been thinking about that lately. In high school, or grade school for that matter, I was not the popular girl, not the dating and party girl.. nope. I was the outcast, bullied and made fun of girl. Not much for dating. No one asked. Never went to a school dance or to prom or anything like that. Then my husband walks into my life and sweeps me off my feet right? He makes me feel beautiful. He makes me feel like someone would want to get all dressed up with me and go to a party or a dance. Well by that time, too old now for school dances... we aren't club kind of people.. so what do we have? Work parties, weddings, etc! It's like the one time of year to get dressed up and feel like you might feel to go to prom or a dance or something... of course what would I know about that since I've never been to one! ha!! Well whether I am right or wrong about how it feels, for me, that is why I love getting dressed up and going out with my husband.... It all makes sense in my head... scary I know. ;)

And now... I must get ready for bed so I am ready to face the week and all that entails.. groceries, decorating, cleaning, working, working out... and countdown to the party and Christmas card pictures! yay! Have an awesome Monday. Blessings!

Just Like Martha for Thankful Thursday

Do you think Martha Stewart has a pink polka dot apron? Or is that just me? Don't I look all Martha Stewartie? ha! The apron was a gift from my friend Lori for birthday week and it came in very handy on thanksgiving!

So how appropriate is it that Thankful Thursday was combined with Thanksgiving this week? So much to be thankful for, I could write pages and pages here, but lets start with Thanksgiving itself. We are so blessed and were especially blessed that we got to spend the day with my family. We went to my parent's house so Mom & Dad were there and my brother and his family. We had an awesome meal together. I helped by preparing the stuffing, and gravy and also special sweet potatoes for my husband. He loves them. I don't think anyone else likes them, but several years back I sat down with his mother and asked her to explain to me how she makes them so I could make them for Darrel. I have one page of handwritten notes from that talk and that is my recipe. I love that. I always worry I am going to get the candied part wrong and end up with like toffee or something.. but this year, everything came out perfect. Here is my cute husband carving the turkey. I told him to say I love my wife. Pretty good smile for that huh?

Here is a shot of all of us... except um me.. the girl who was taking the picture... as we sat down at the table.
















My nephew Ethan there in front is looking at me like um could we quit taking pictures and eat? The poor boy had been asking if it was time to eat yet for like 2 hours.

I kept thinking how blessed we were just to have the food that we did. Why? Because I kept thinking of the people Darrel met and served in Haiti. I also saw a video recently at a church service that was about orphans and how we could help them. The video was set in the village of Korah, and the people there get their food from the garbage dump. They live on a few hundred dollars a year. They don't have clothes, food, jobs... and the village is made up of lepers and orphans. Can you see why I was so reminded of how amazingly blessed we are? Can you just imagine how much food was prepared across the United States on Thursday? I've thought of this video several times too when I am scraping plates into the garbage. wow...

We have been very blessed this past year. Darrel got his overtime back. We love our home. We both have good jobs. 2 good, running vehicles. We have our health and our family and their health. We have our church and a relationship with Christ. So thankful for all those things. We have clothes, shelter, heat and a/c. We were able to help others when Darrel went over to Haiti this past July and thru many service projects with church. We have amazing friends. I am so blessed by my husband and a good strong marriage. I have been blessed by this weight loss journey. We have a pantry full of food. We have pets that we love. I am so thankful for and so blessed by all of these things and I give all thanks to the Lord.

Specific things I have been thankful for this past week have been:

• My new coat! (even though one person told me "they used to be in style" ... and someone else told me I should check to make sure the fur wasn't from a dog or cat. seriously people? Could I maybe just enjoy my coat for 5 minutes before you wet on my parade?)
• getting a dress for the party that I am happy with
• the vera beaded purse that is on its way to me!
• reading on my Kindle
• great Date Night in town last Friday
• La Caretta!
• Thanksgiving dinner at church
• new light fixtures for the new bathroom
• getting all my work done in time for the Holiday weekend
• my husband
• my Dad coming home
• the sweet ladies at church that come in to fold the bulletins for me every week
• being called "skinny" at the grocery store the other day and then having a stranger look at me and say "I can't even imagine you being big..." That was like surreal for me.
• Thanksgiving with family
• eating at China Wok with Darrel on Wednesday
• my avon necklace that came to wear with my dress
• a new bottle of pompeii purple nail polish
• chocolate mousse royale ice cream

With that I bid you goodnight. I hope your Thanksgiving and holiday weekend have been awesome. Blessings!

Ten On Tuesday

1) Yesterday we had to get the new vanity and sink out of the box to a) see how it was going to fit in the bathroom and where it needed to stand... and b) figure out how tall it was on the wall to see where the new electrical outlets and lights should be placed in relation to the vanity and the wainscoting. Would you believe this was the first time I got to really see the sink? I am a 5ft 2" person people and it does not help one in shopping for a sink when Lowe's insists on placing it up on a shelf that starts at like my chest... I trusted my husband's judgement and the picture on the box that it looked good.

2) I am thinking my new coat is going to have a bald spot before I ever wear it! Why? Every stinkin time I go in the closet, I have to run my hand down the sleeve. Have to. It is SOOOO soft. It just begs to be touched. Although now I am thinking this could be a bad thing while I am wearing it. Lets hope not everyone feels this way because I can guarantee you my husband will not be on board with this idea. :)















3) Apparently I like pumpkin roll. Who knew? I am not a cream cheese kind of girl. I am not so much a pumpkin kind of girl. But during our supermarket adventures, they had samples of this. We tried it. We loved it. We figured we could take one to dinner and it was quicker than making brownies.. and gee, as long as we are buying one, we need one for home this week too right? Good stuff. Especially for grocery store!

4) I should be working. I am not working I am blogging. I am S I C K of working this week... and that is from a girl that LOVES her job. Thanksgiving week is always this way. Short week, extra stuff to do, Christmas stuff is starting. I am just stressed and tired and still have a lot to do before the end of the day tomorrow. I will survive... and then... FOUR days off! Even better... 4 days off with my husband. Yay!

5) So who watched Skating With The Stars? OK... I so wanted to like it. I am a Dancing With The Stars fan. But the skating one? It was seriously a DWTS wannabe and NOT a good one. It seemed so cheesy. Did not like the host from the first 30 seconds and didn't even make it thru watching the whole episode. Will not be setting my Tivo for that one..

6) I am sure you will be shocked. I caved and bid on and won the Vera B 25th Anniversary purse. I love that purse. I had my self almost talked out of it. I kept thinking I wouldn't use it that much. I was thinking of it as a dressy, party kind of purse. Then.. my friend Lisa saw it and said... I can see why you love it. (which was not a surprise cause we like alllll the same stuff) It's so cute. You should get that. It will be great with jeans and boots... So then I start saying hey... it could be my favorite date night purse too. Plus, that price for any Vera purse is pretty much what they cost. Plus.. its limited.. its special.. .I need it... and well now you are up to speed on why a purse is on its way to me! I cannot wait. I want it to come tomorrow!

7) After I told Darrel I bought the purse (with some gift money I recently received) he informs me that he had "almost" bid on one to try and get it for Christmas. Now how sweet is that. I love a guy that pays attention and knows what I like and am excited about. Is he good or what? I told him if he was still liking the gift idea I'd be happy to accept cash instead. ;)

8) I happened to hear this song today. Wow. I love it. Had never heard it before. Is it an old hymn I am wondering? Beautiful song. Beautiful powerful words. I will be getting this from itunes here soon. Wouldn't this be awesome for a late Christmas Eve service with the dark and the candles? I heard it because I was listening to Christian Christmas online on AOL radio. Good stuff on there!

9)Walked on the treadmill after work today. If sweat is any indication on how good something is for you, well then I should be really really healthy. Today was one of those days when I felt like I was trying to keep up with the treadmill the whole time. Like it was maybe going a little faster than my legs are capable of and so I kept like trying to stay at the front before I got too behind and found myself riding right off the back of the thing...

10) Our dog loves baby carrots. We started giving them to him when he was a puppy because we heard on a TV pet show they were good for puppies. Good to chew on, sweet, cold, etc. He loves them. He used to also get milk bones as a treat after taking care of his business outside. We have now been dealing with him having allergies and scratching all the time so the vet said to switch his food. We have to buy the expensive food now, and had to stop the milk bones but no more constant scratching. This is a good thing for my sanity. So now, he gets carrots for his treat all the time. You cannot even say the word carrot unless you are going to give him one cause he freaks out! Now, he so enjoys getting them, that if we forget, he comes and gets Darrel and I until one of us will follow him into the kitchen and get him his carrot.... Now don't you wish you could get that excited about a carrot rather than say... a Godiva Chocolate bar? No? I am thinking it would be good for the weight loss journey.

And with that my friends... I shall go put in a couple hours of work... so I can go to bed... so I can get up and go to work.... Blessings!

Adventures in Grocery Shopping....

But first.. coat #2 has arrived... and I may be in love... It was here when I got home from work on Friday. The dress I ordered online for the Christmas party came too and I was trying that on, under the coat. The tights did not go with the outfit, I just happened to have those on that day and did not want to wrestle them off and back on just to try on my dress... more thoughts on tight wrestling later. Back to the coat. It is Dennis Basso Faux Fur in Chinchilla. I love this one so much more than the first one. When I was little, maybe like 5 years old? (mom??) I got this fuzzy brown winter coat for Christmas from my grandma. Um... it looked like the coat was wearing me. There is a great picture of little bitty me in the giant brown coat. I totally wish I had it here because I'd post it as the perfect example of what I felt like in the first coat. This new coat is sleeker, softer, not as thick feeling, its a better length, its a darker color.... love love love it. Every time I go in the closet for any reason, I have to like stroke it... I may have a new faux fur sickness...

Friday night we headed to the big city for date night. We had Crazy Buffet and then began dress shopping. Yes.. I just told you above that the dress I ordered came. When I tried it on before we left for date night, I loved it, yet still felt the need to go scour every store in the big city to make sure there wasn't something out there I loved better! There wasn't. I found that I liked the dress at home so much I was actually like worried I would find something that would confuse me! Is that a girl thing or perhaps I am just that ill? I did look for matching jewelery and a cool evening purse, but no luck on either front. I have since ordered this necklace from Avon. If I don't like that I am going to go with my pearls and a cool enhancer I have. No luck on the purse. I wish money was no object and I could afford to buy the Vera B. 25th Anniversary beaded bag. It's available on ebay, but like $50-$90!! Sooooo don't need to pay that for a use once or twice a year kind of purse. Although.. its soooo pretty... I might need to carry it everywhere just to look at it. I did bid on one today... and almost got it for under $45 but got outbid at the last second. Probably a good thing.

Let's talk about grocery shopping on a Sunday afternoon. We just went in for a quick stop to pick up ingredients to make banana pudding to take to the church Thanksgiving dinner which was tonight. Bad idea. Never go grocery shopping on a Sunday afternoon. And.. if you do.. DO NOT go to the little grocery store in town (not to be confused with the big city! Ha! ) This is the weirdest laid out store I have ever seen. They like trap you on the outside and you have to go thru like the produce, meats, cold stuff, before you ever get to actual aisles. It makes you feel a little claustrophobic and like you can't get there from here... if that make any sense. PLUS.. .since you can't get there from here.. you sure don't want to forget anything in the section you are in because I don't think they allow you back in that section unless you like get your hand stamped or something! ha!!

The people in the store today were an adventure as well. First we had this slow elderly lady. I politely stood back and let her pass so she could go on ahead, which she did. Yet somehow, everywhere I went, there she was. SLOW and in front of me and behind me. How did she manage that? She was like the energizer bunny or something.. but the batteries were dying. Then there are the people who seem to be under the impression that they are the only ones in the store who need to look at anything in the aisle so its OK to completely take up the aisle. One lady was looking at something on the end cap. Where did she park her cart? Completely across the end of the aisle next to her. She purposely turned her cart to put it there. What is up with that? We had to like say um excuse me... could we please get thru? Then I made the bad mistake of needing eggs.. There was a family of like 3 having a huge discussion in front of the whole dairy case. I stand there politely and wait for them to move. The decide to have an argument instead. Then the Dad (I think) tells the teenager to move out of the way. The teen proceeds to yell "you just told me not to move, blah, blah blah..." and the whole time he is doing this instead of moving away... he moves his cart CLOSER to the dairy case and right in front of the eggs... I had to say.. "excuse me could I please get to the eggs..." before he would stinking MOVE and then the 3 of them moved the entertainment to the next aisle where they proceeded to have another fight/discussion. Fun times. Now its time to check out. The checkout had one of those bag carousel things like Walmart has. The guy fills bag #1. Does he turn the carousel and start on bag #2? No. He takes the bag off and sits it on top. Does he turn the thing after bag #2? NO. He takes it off and sets it on top. Um... he could see we did NOT have a cart. We had a little handheld basket. Darrel was paying. Was he wanting me to juggle all our bags or perhaps make a nice little pile on the floor? He did this for ALL the bags. Never turned the stinkin thing once. Piled them all on top. I was seriously close to asking him if he was aware the thing turned and maybe I could help explain the concept to him.... We proceeded to leave the grocery store just moments before I lost my mind or my patience. I wasn't sure which one was going to come first. I got in the car and posted to facebook "blogging topic for later today, things I wish I could have just said at the grocery store." It made me feel much better.

I have also decided I would like to find the guy who invented tights and force him to wear a pair for a day. I thought about strangling him, but I am thinking wearing a pair would be a more fitting punishment for the person who invented these objects of torture. I have never been a tights kind of girl till this year. I have been enjoying the look of tights with a skirt and boots...but wearing them? Not so much. I mean pantyhose are not the most fun thing in the world to put on (I mean I am thinking there is a reason the whole bare leg look is more in fashion) and tights...well they are just the pantyhose issues amplified. Seems no matter how careful I am, I manage to twist one leg or another and then can't figure out what needs to be turned so I don't walk like John Wayne all day. My most used pair of tights are the brown ones. Um.. I'm like on my 5th pair of brown tights.... They look heavier than pantyhose lulling you into this false sense of security about putting a run or a hole in them... the inventor guy is probably laughing all the way to the bank on that one. I would also like to know how they decide that anyone from say 5'6 to 5'2 can wear the same pair. Um where am I supposed to put the extra? Should I bunch it up behind my knee or perhaps just let it bag around the ankle so I can practice my support hose look? I also vote that not all tights and hose need to be control top... I have control top issues people... It's hard enough to get the stinkin things stretched and on without having to add that extra bit of spandex to fight me back as I labor to get the things in place. I mean are you supposed to need a shower after getting your tights on? Perhaps I am doing it wrong. I do see a light at the end of the tunnel. I tried some legacy legwear tights from QVC this week and so far, they have been my fav... lets hope I didn't just jinx it by saying that huh?

Well although its a short work week, it will be BUSY. Lots to do before the end of the day Wednesday so I am off to bed. Hope your weekend has been great and that you have an awesome Monday! I hope to have my next 52 challenge layout to show you by 10 on tues. I am just waiting for the layout tag game to finish up at TSS so please check back!

Thankful Thursday

Ok... is this not the coolest faucet handle you've ever seen? I LOVE it. I am SO glad we did not settle for the offerings at Home Depot or Lowes. LOVE this and it is perfect for what we want our new bathroom to look like. I was a little nervous about ordering from the Internet from a place we knew nothing about.... I need not have worried. This order came quickly. The faucet is excellent quality! You should feel how heavy and nice all the pieces are. It came in this box with everything in its own section and own little bags and pieces like the main faucet are in a bag that feels like a sock! Very impressed and very happy with our purchase.

In case you couldn't guess, this week I have to say I am so thankful to finally get a new bathroom! When Darrel and I first got married we lived in a mobile home. It was brand new and very nice and we were happy there for 15 years. When we moved from there, we came to the home we have now, which was my grandparents house. It's old and small and needs lots of work. We thought when we moved in, we'd have all that work done in like a year at the most. Now here we are 9 years later... with lots still to do. So far we have remodeled the bedroom, which included building a closet, since the house did not have any closets. We have remodeled the kitchen and put in beautiful new cabinets. We have put a new roof on our garage and spare room. We have done yard work, and worked on our back porch. Doesn't sound like that should take 9 years but when you add in our jobs, keeping up with the yard during the warm months, and all the other aspects of life in general, finding time to remodel can be difficult. So I am thrilled and so thankful we have finally carved out some time and resources to get this bathroom updated. It needed it so badly. And now, it is so fun and exciting to get to pick out the things we want and to create this vision we have in our heads! ha!

Other things I've been thankful for this week are:

• a great pizza/movie date night last Friday
• Getting to be worship leader and sing at church last Sunday
• DVD's and my pretty pink laptop to keep me entertained while on the treadmill
• my borrowed treadmill
• space heaters and heated blankets - cause yes I am freezing all the time!
• Kindle books!
• a very nice evening with my husband on Monday
• watching the tv shows we like together
• Jack
• a nice Sunday lunch with church friends
• hearing from a 92 year old friend today that she likes the way my husband and I look at each other and how we are together
• losing inches even when the pounds aren't coming off
• my husband telling me today I looked "slim" and the smile on his face when he said it
• fitting into a sweater today that didn't fit last winter
• boots!
• Danskos!
• old TV re-runs on DVD (been watching thirtysomething on the treadmill)
• my church family
• the coming 3 day work week and Thanksgiving
• chocolate
• manicures and pedicures
• blogging
• baked ruffles
• vera bradley stuff
• pink stuff

My new coat came today. I soooooo wanted to love it and now I am not sure if I do. It is a gorgeous coat. Gorgeous. Dennis Basso makes great coats. I am just not sure I like how it looks on me. It is not bulky, and its very soft. I am just feeling like I look bigger in it and that is sooooo NOT the look I am going for. I am thinking the collar is a bit overpowering on my short frame too. A few days after I ordered the one that arrived today, I saw a similar one that was quite a bit cheaper, and a darker color. I was thinking I might like it better so it was ordered too. I figured I could try them both and return the one I don't like. I hope I like it. Doesn't it seem goofy to be disappointed about not loving a coat? Perhaps I am weird... don't answer that. There are a few others I like, but I don't want to keep ordering and paying return shipping either. I might consider this one, or if I give up on the all fur idea, this one.

A friend had asked if I have a master list of the 52 challenges. I had not thought of doing that but think its a great idea! I plan to get one put together and will post that asap. Thanks for thinking of that Shawn! In the meantime, there is a 52 Layouts page in the sidebar to the right where I have my examples posted. I did a brief description of each challenge in the comments below each layout. The two that are missing there (the ones I was/am behind on) are to use 7 of an item on your layout, and do a layout using a page from a book or a sheet of music.

With that, I am off to bed. Day at home tomorrow but lots to do so it would be good if I could get up at a decent time in the morning. I am going to try and find the dinning room in the midst of all the remodeling supplies. I am going to try once again to win the battle against the remodeling dust! An unending battle, that one is! I am thinking I will make my homemade mostaccioli for dinner. YUM. And somewhere in there, I need to get in an outdoor walk! Looking forward to that since I've been stuck inside all week. I hope you have an awesome Thursday. Blessings!

Ten on Tuesday

1) So I go out to the spare room to walk on the treadmill today and I drag with me my laptop, several DVD's, my Kindle and my phone... nothing like a little entertainment while walking. I have found a good DVD or reading on my Kindle can be quite successful in helping me to remain on the treadmill rather than jumping off after like 5 minutes... when you are secretly sure it has really been like 20 minutes... or maybe that's just me.

2) Have I mentioned that I do not own the aforementioned treadmill? It is on loan from a friend. I am thinking that is a pretty good friend that will loan you her treadmill. I mean she could be using it at her house to like hang laundry on or something if she doesn't want to walk on it right? Kidding. I've had it for quite awhile and she tells me she feels like this is her way to help and support me. How awesome is that?

3) Did I further mention that I almost shot myself off the treadmill no less than like 3 times today. This was my first day back on the treadmill after being outside walking all of the spring, summer and fall. Apparently if one gets too engrossed in the entertainment she is using to keep herself on the treadmill, it is also quite easy to step off the belt on the side... I would not recommend this....

4) I watched an episode of Thirtysomething while walking today. I've been getting them thru blockbuster video online. I used to love that show. Today was a Christmas episode. Melissa was decorating her Christmas tree and for her tree topper, she used a Barbie dressed all in pink... I am thinking I could get on board with this idea. I am also thinking I need more favorite TV shows on DVD for my walking entertainment. I am thinking like Mad About You, more seasons of Family Ties and Designing Women (I have season 1 of both) .. perhaps ER? Anyone jotting this down for their Christmas shopping list? Why do I always tend to like the earlier seasons of a series I wonder?

5) We had a funeral at church (work) today. Our Pastor is on vacation. I learned I have no idea about all the things he does because I was running from the time I walked in the door. There are doors to unlock, furnaces to turn on, lights to turn on, sound system to turn on, video projectors to turn on, having someone to run the sound system (which today was me), getting podiums and other things needed by the funeral home, etc... It was a busy day, but was glad to help and realized how we tend to not understand or appreciate someone else's job until we have to do it. I was nervous about running the sound. I know "enough" about the sound system to turn things on, get the mics working, etc. I did OK, but there were 6 songs that needed to be played and on the first song... I played the wrong one! Ugh! Was not happy with myself about that. See I don't know the CD player that well, so I didn't realize it was on the wrong track, and I was not familiar with the song, so I had no idea the wrong song was playing until it was almost over. I sooooo do NOT like making mistakes. Especially for something like this. The family was very sweet though and told me it was OK.

6) I am looking forward to the release of this book, Made To Crave. I have read about it on the author's blog, and it seems like she believes like I do that weight issues, can be spiritual issues. This is totally true for me, so I am hoping the book might help me get further in my journey. OK... while getting the link for this post.. I just pre-ordered the book for my Kindle. Love how it will just appear on the day its released. So cool!

7) Is it a bad thing that I am blogging for 10 on Tuesday and I can only come up with 7 things.. .assuming this can can count for one of the 7 things?

8) The Scrapping Spot has some very cool looking sneak peeks up for their December kit! You can check them out here... I have heard they are taking pre-orders on the message board.... just in case you might want to check that out.

9) Have you seen the latest Avon book? They have tons of cute PINK stuff for like Christmas I guess... Look at these slippers! Cute Jammies here and here. Pink boots! Pink scarf set with sparkles! Is pink like the hot new color for Christmas or something? What a good idea! :)

10) Did you see this cool idea for a gratitude album on Cathy Zielske's blog? I just love that... if my scrapping to do list wasn't already overflowing.. .I might just have to make one of those. Perhaps I should concentrate on finishing last years December Daily album before its time to make this years.. oh wait.. it is time...

Hoping any day now I can share my layout for the 52 layouts challenge so stay tuned! Until next time, Blessings!

52 Layouts Update and Monday Misc.

So lets start with some bathroom progress... well sort of. Here is the new flooring. I love, love, love it! Cannot wait to see it installed!! Right now its all in the boxes which is where it will remain for at least the time being.

Here is the new window. Finished, installed, functioning! It would seem such a simple pleasure to have a functioning window that actually opens and closes on request! ha! Darrel did a great job of installing it, and replacing some wall studs and plywood that had old mold and water damage on them. Looks soooo much better now. Darrel is still having a lot of work overtime, so still not as much time as we'd like to make progress on our remodel. This makes me thankful for any movement forward. Currently we are working on installing new plumbing and then comes the electric. The big debate on Saturday was trying to determine the proper height at which one should install the tub faucet, shower controls and shower head. It would seem that the result of our research indicates that if you ask 10 plumbers that question, you will get 10 different answers. Quite helpful! Apparently the answer is to put it wherever one stinkin' wants to! Ha! We finally got it somewhat pinned down to an average range and seem to have enough information to get our plumbing placed correctly. I am getting very impatient to see pretty stuff like faucets and flooring and walls! It's not near as fun doing the foundational stuff... but then again as you might remember, patience is not my best thing.

One of the blogs I read fairly regularly is Kayla Aimee's. She recently had a baby girl, quite prematurely. Her daughter Scarlette was born weighing 1 lb 9 oz. and is currently in the NICU. She has been posting updates here. Kayla and her husband struggled with infertility before becoming pregnant. Since Darrel and I deal with infertility as well, her story has hit close to my heart. I cannot imagine what they are going thru. I know they are people of faith (as Darrel and I are also) and they are asking for and would appreciate your prayers.

Thought I should give you an update on my 52 Layouts Challenge hiatus. Um... I'm still hiatusing... Is that a word? Can we make it one? Ha! Darrel's hours, the bathroom remodel and um life in general has been all consuming leaving little or no time for even entering the scrapping room. I did complete the using 7 things challenge, and will hopefully have that layout to post for you sometime this week, as soon as the layout tag game that I also used it for is complete. I plan to do the use a book page or music page on your layout this week and hope to get back to regular posting by next Monday starting with that layout, and then posting the new challenge. Thanks so much for sticking with me!

OK... beginning to panic about the dress for the husband's work Christmas Party. How much panic you ask? Enough that I ordered a dress, and a wrap online tonight just in case I can't find anything in the big city this Friday/Saturday. I figure if I find something I like better, I can return the packages. If I can't find anything at least I'll have something.. well... assuming it fits and doesn't come down to my toes since I am somewhat height challenged. This is the wrap. This is the dress. It has an empire waist, a faux wrap and its black... all things that tend to be good things for me. Let's hope huh? Watch... will probably hit the big city on Friday and find like the perfect thing at the first place in like 5 minutes. Who can believe a Christmas party is 2 weeks from this Saturday?! Meanwhile.. are you thinking goodness... such drama over a dress... It's a girl thing isn't it? You understand right? I guess also, when you are a wife that has been to this party for 7 or 8 out of the last 9 years almost 100 lbs heavier... it becomes somewhat important to want to go now as the new person... and not the old person anymore. And this new person has discovered that she forgot that she likes fashion and shoes and all that fun girly stuff... who knew you could forget?

So what is up the rest of the week? Funeral at work tomorrow. Lots of cleaning to do at home. I mean who can keep up with the dust generated from remodeling anything? So not me... Need to hit the grocery store for all the things they didn't have last week. Need to get back up to speed on working out, hopefully after Thursday which is when my 2 weeks of resting my injured muscle are up.. Although.. I have taken all my meds and am still having some pain. Thinking this is not a good sign. We hope to finish up the plumbing and electric in the bathroom. We have to get to Lowe's and pick out our new ceiling and vanity light, plus an exhaust fan. Date night in the big city as I mentioned, and then Sunday the big all church Thanksgiving dinner which means I'll need to cook something on Saturday for that. Guess what happens next week though? 4 days off in a row! Yay!!! Hope your week has started off well. Until tomorrow... blessings!

Thankful Thursday Via Date Night Friday

Yes.. I missed Thankful Thursday. I have a good excuse and a note from home. May I please be excused? :) Yes? Good!

Let's talk about Thankful Thursday. I am thankful this week for time with my awesome Mom. We spent the day together yesterday and I meant to take our picture together to use for today's post. I guess I get an F on that assignment because I totally did not get that done. Is that like not remembering to do your homework? Mom met me yesterday a little before lunch time so the first thing we did was head out for lunch. We went to Zanders and had some very yummy chicken salad on a fresh bun and a pretty good salad bar... even though there were a bit stingy with the fixins... It was kind of funny. The check out guy tells us he will bring us out more lettuce, which he did, but then there was like 6 pieces of grated carrot left.. I mean did he not want to part with any more carrots, but the lettuce was OK? We managed to make a good salad and had a nice lunch. Then we did a little Vera shopping. The picture there is this highly cute little mirror that I found. It was $6. I almost put it back and thought I'd tell Darrel to get one for my Christmas stocking... but then I decided that probably by the time he'd go to look, there would be none to be found. Here is the inside.















How cute is that? One side is magnified. and it folds up nice and flat and looks like a cute little Vera purse. Mom was looking for the tote sweet. We saw a few of them at 2 different stores, but not in the pattern she was looking for (Barcelona) I also saw this cute little bangle wristlet! How cute is that!! Saw the Christmas Ornaments too, but did not buy one. I didn't like it as much in person as I did seeing it online.

Beside shopping for Vera, we checked out Kohl's (where I got 2 shirts on clearance for a total of $11.49!) , Goody's and Lowe's. At Lowe's we picked up our new bathroom floor tile which had come in! It is sooooooo cool. I cannot wait to see it on the floor! When we were all done shopping we headed back home for dinner. I had cooked some chicken in the pressure cooker before we left so we came back and finished making chicken and rice. Yummy. It was a good day.

I am very thankful for time with my Mom. She is great and we've been not only mother and daughter but good friends. She takes good care of all of us and rarely thinks of herself. I have a great mom.

Other things I've been thankful for this week are:

• great date night last week & getting to see Secretariat
• a mostly quiet Sunday at home
• several more great walks outside
• new bathroom stuff! This week we got towels, tile and tub!
• new window installed in the bathroom
• nice weather
• my husband helping me with grocery shopping
• enjoying a good book! (Her Daughter's Dream)
• being featured on Scrapscene
• 2 new PINK shirts
• a new winter coat and pink robe that are on order
• soft warm fuzzy lounge socks
• cuddling with my husband
• La Caretta
• kind words from friends
• our home
• muscle relaxers that helped ease the pain in my shoulder
• singing a duet in church with my husband
• singing on praise team
• OK... just plain singing... love singing..
• holding Darrel's hand
• double chocolate sprinkle cookies

So it's date night and you are wondering... she never gives up date night.. .why on earth is she blogging on date night? Well I am waiting for my date to get home. I got off work at 3 today. He didn't get off till 4. It was my job to pick up some movies and movie snacks. It was his job to get the pizza.. which is what he is currently doing. We will be viewing Charlie St Cloud and Extreme Measures this evening soon as he gets home. Love snuggling up on the couch with my husband with movies and popcorn.. and OK... probably some chocolate too. Everything is more fun with chocolate right?

Did you see this robe on QVC yesterday? It was the TSV. I ordered one. Are you wondering what color I picked? Blue right? Um nope... PINK. See going back and forth to the shower now that the weather is turning colder is an adventure. It's not something you like want to get completely dressed up for either you know? So I've been using my robe... which is about the length of a mini skirt. Sometimes I grab Darrel's sweatshirt which is quite soft and warm and it comes to almost my knees... He informed me the other day I needed to get a better robe. Well Viola! Next day, QVC has a fluffy pink robe as the special. How could I pass that up? I did have a long pink wrap robe, but I had it pre-weight loss. I pulled it out today just to see how it fit. At first when I was doing the inner tie I thought.. well its not too bad, maybe I didn't need a new one. Until I wrapped the other side... Um it wraps clear around my front and past my hip.... the pocket that should be on the right side.. well its all the way over on the left side. I should take a picture and show you cause its kinda funny! Hope my new robe will be extra pink, extra soft.. extra fluffy!

As for the new coat... I'm going to wait till it comes and decide if I like it then I'll have to take a picture and share! I had to get a new winter coat last year because of being smaller. Problem is, its a jacket. Not so good for dresses and skirts and the fact that I am like freezing all the time these days. Before I lost weight I had a Dennis Basso coat from QVC. Nicest coat I've ever owned. So I figured I'd check out what he had currently and I found one... It's a fake fur. I've always always wanted one.. I figured why not give it a try. Just not sure how I'll like it... a little nervous.. but secretly want to just like LOVE it. I am just now having all these questions.. will it be a good cut on me, will it be too bulky and add bulk (which is the LAST thing a girl wants to do), will it shed, will it be warm, will it be long enough... goodness.. you'd think I was like trying to decide on buying a house or something!

OK... my pizza and my date are here... so I am thinking its time to sign off! Hope your Friday night is awesome! Blessings!

Ten On Tuesday

1) Went bathtub shopping this evening... Now there's something you don't hear yourself say everyday! ha! We purchased a plain simple white porcelain over cast iron kohler tub. One could tell its cast iron I am thinking by the look of exertion on my husband's face as they try to hoist it up into the back of the truck. And now that it's home, the back of the truck is where it shall remain until someone big and strong can help him remove it from said truck...

2) We have looked at bathroom "lavatory" faucets for the sink at like umpteen places and have found little or nothing that we like. This would seem impossible since there is like 900 to choose from. I really didn't want shiny chrome. We wanted the stainless/brushed nickel look. Almost went with one that we thought we could live with tonight, but decided to wait since we don't have to have it just this minute yet. The one thing we did see that we liked had a vintage look and some white porcelain with the metal. It only came in chrome though, unless you wanted to special order and pay OVER $300! Are they serious? So instead, got home, popped on the Internet, typed in "sink faucet brushed nickel porcelain" and look what I found! Yep... it is ordered. They don't show any in stock, so let's hope one can be obtained and shipped sometime before the next ice age...

3) OK, can you guess who was one of the people featured on Scrapscene today? LOOK! It was me. I received an email this morning telling me I would be in today's post. What an awesome way to start the day. I wasn't even out of bed yet when I read that email. Thank you Scrapscene for posting about my layouts and sharing my work! You made my day.

4) I noticed a new blog follower or two! Love, love new blog readers so I just wanted to say welcome and thank you for being interested in the small details of my life. I will try not to bore you too much with my need to discuss pink stuff, scrapping, shoes, and date night among other things. ;)

5) We got groceries tonight after the all consuming and exciting bathtub shopping. I would like to know WHY walmart checkout people insist on putting my bunch of bananas in the same bag as the bread. Are they not aware that although a banana may be soft to eat... it will in fact crush my nice fresh loaf of bread? I would think this is not rocket science...

6) I have decided another good thing to add to the Christmas wish list will be amazon gift cards so I can get more Kindle books! Why have I not thought of this idea earlier? More Kindle books is always a good thing. I was reading on my Kindle all the way to the big city and back this evening. Currently I am enjoying this book. It is every bit as good as the 1st book in the series.

7) I believe in my last post I linked you up to some dress ideas for the husband's big Christmas Party. My plan was to go back to the big city however and look for a dress there. Good plan... until I started looking at my calendar today and realized the party is 3 weeks from this Saturday! Yikes. Not much time if I strike out finding something in the store and need to order something. I am thinking I better get with it!

8) Over at TSS during the weekend crop, one of the prizes was this cool triangle punch. I need one of these. How cool would that be to use for making the little banners that are so popular right now. Of course... from what I am seeing on the Internet so far, this puppy is not going to be easy to find... GRRRR Why is that always the way it is as soon as you spot some scrapping supply you are sure you must own NOW. A few people have said they found one at their Michaels but sounds like they were on clearance... so I am not feeling hopeful that they will still be available by the time I get to the big city again. Anyone see these anywhere?

9) After completing my layout for the TSS scraptag game and my 52 layouts challenge recently, I have been itching to get some more scrapping time in. I have pics ready and my idea in mind for my next 52 layouts challenge which was to incorporate a page from a book or sheet music on a layout. Soon as I get that completed, we will get back on schedule with the weekly challenges for 52 layouts. Yay!

10) In new "healthy" grocery purchases this evening we have for you the following: a new fruit crisp thing from Dole and this cereal from Kashi. Tried the cereal when we got home and found it to be quite yummy. Why is it you like feel proud of yourself for eating a "grown up" cereal even though secretly we know that we'd be just as happy with a nice bowl of frosted flakes or fruity pebbles... bwa ha ha ha!! Hope to try the fruit crisp thing tomorrow. It says you can even eat it warm. Now that sounds yummy.

So now... before I nod off on my pretty pink laptop... I bid you goodnight. See you on Thursday for Thankful Thursday. Blessings!

We're A Little Bit Country...

Yes, we did it. We are now officially a country singing duo. Ha! Kidding. We did sing our first "country" song in church this morning but I doubt we could now be classified as a "country singing duo." I am thinking perhaps my muscle injury meds are beginning to go to my head! One can get a little um shall we say mellow while under the influence of muscle relaxers, pain meds and a nice warm heating pad. I may not be fit for blogging. At the moment perhaps the most I am fit for is a nap....

After we sang this morning, on the spur of the moment, my husband.. yes... my quiet husband, tells me to wait a minute and proceeds to say to the whole church how important it is to have God in your marriage and how important good strong marriages are. Wow. It was awesome. He was emotional and I was ready to cry right along with him. I'll cry right along with anyone.. I seldom need an invitation. It was awesome singing with my husband and awesome hearing him speak like that.

My husband just headed back to church. He is helping out with the youth meeting tonight. The kids don't know it (I don't think) but their lesson tonight is about the persecuted church and is designed to get them thinking about how Christians are being persecuted and martyred in the world even today. My husband is playing a role so to speak, as a "guard" who is going to "punch" and arrest the youth leader for sharing the gospel. Did you know my husband used to be an armed security officer (Lt.) at a nuclear power plant? He has been trained on arresting someone so this could be a good show.

Have you started making your wish list for Santa yet? I am sure you would not be shocked to find out I have.... I am in love with these slippers (in the bright pink of course). Not so much with the price though. Although, if they feel as amazing as my fully lined boots do.... they just might be worth it. Maybe Santa won't mind the price. I've been a good girl. ;) I also have things on my list like Vera B. stuff, Passion perfume, that pink heated throw, clothes!!, and all things pink. :)

Although the pounds have been s l o w coming off.......I discovered yesterday that I've lost a total of 4-1/2 inches since the last time I took my measurements in June. This would explain why I've gone down another size even though the stinkin' scale refuses to cooperate. I've lost a total of 15-3/4 inches since January of last year. I've lost 36.5 inches since I began trying to lose. I really needed to see that because if you get too focused on the scale... which I can certainly do...you can tell yourself lies and stupid stuff like, "why bother to work out, it's not working anyway because I'm not losing." Yep... I've told myself that one. The truth is, even though its not reflected on the scale in the way I'd like, my body is still changing and toning and becoming more healthy. Apparently Zumba is making more of a difference than I thought! Also, when I saw the DR on Thursday, my blood pressure was 122 over 88. I went there immediately after walking 3.5 miles. So I had a good bp reading (for me), right after working out, and this is for a girl that used to take BP meds remember? Both very good things that I needed to see! So glad I took measurements yesterday. It helped my head and heart which were beginning to get very discouraged while having such a hard time reaching that 100 lbs mark. This blog post and this one really speak to me about this whole weight loss journey. Something my DR said has stuck with me too. He said he was concerned about me because he sensed this frustration in me that he hadn't seen before and he suggested to me that maybe I was no longer enjoying the journey and that I needed to go back to that. Wow... I don't know if I had even thought about actually enjoying this journey. His words might have been straight from God because I haven't been able to get them off my mind.

It's about 1 month now until Darrel's work Christmas party. What does this mean? Time to start looking for a dress. I know what I want... now the trick will be to find it. I see a few online possibilities but am thinking I'd like to be able to find something at the mall so I can try things on. Here are a few that are the styles I am thinking... like this one, this one, this one or this one. Definitely want black!

This week will include yet another trip to the Home Depot. We need to get our new tub so Darrel can get to work on the plumbing and we also need to go ahead and get light fixtures, and exhaust fan so he knows what kind of electric we need done. We are going to add several outlets and a light switch as well. There were like NO outlets. Just one in the 100 year old medicine cabinet. It was a closet remember? Who needs outlets in the closet I guess.

Hope your weekend has been good. See you on Tuesday for 10 on Tuesday. Blessings!

Progress....

I had to document this. Do you see what is happening here? This would be a man actually reading instructions.... Bwa ha ha ha ha.... I am totally kidding because actually, my husband most often does read the instructions. Pretty cute though don't you think? This is the new window for the bathroom. The one that was there was not in good shape. It was an older crank type which no longer cranked.. .not too handy for when one wants the window open. Very happy to have a nice new sliding window to replace it!

Here is what it looks like to have a big hole in the side of your house. Remember how I said the bathroom was a closet when the house was first built? Well because of that it had a full size window at one time too. The whole area here that is either open, or white, was window. They had put in the smaller window I think when the shower got put in? And boarded this up with plywood and added wall studs. There was mold on some of that so Darrel removed it all and is replacing it along with the window. He is still in there hammering away at something while I type.















Last night while we were out for date night, we stopped at Kohl's and started purchasing our new towels for our new bathroom. We wanted to go ahead and get a few so we had the colors we are wanting. We plan to match the paint above the wainscoting to the blue colored towel. It just looks sorta light blue in the picture, but it's actually a little different than that. I always think of it as a "spa" blue. I have no idea why... have never set foot in a spa so how would I know?! Ha!! Is it a sad, sad thing that these are 3 of the nicest towels we've ever owned in the course of our marriage? We got married 23 years ago and our towels at this point consist of a mix and match of wedding gifts, and things picked up over the years. Nothing matching. SOOO happy that we will now have thick, soft, pretty, MATCHING towels. These are the colors I want in the bathroom for obviously... the towels and other linens, then also for shower curtain, paint, and any other accents. Cannot wait to see it all put together!

Other than towel shopping, our adventures on date night consisted of dinner at a local restaurant (Braytens). It was stinkin' cold in there! I guess we now approach the seasons of the year where Deanna is freezing all the time. I had my coat over my lap the whole meal. I just need to carry a heated throw with me wherever I go apparently. That or a space heater! Do those come in battery operated cause that right there is a good idea. After dinner we headed "downtown" to peruse the shops that were having holiday open houses. The only thing we purchased was a 2011 calendar for my office. Next came the trip to Kohl's. Part way thru our visit there it occurred to us that it had probably gotten too late to see a movie. Nope! According to the Internet on my handy dandy Android, there was a show starting in 10 minutes! We somehow managed to check out of Kohl's, get to the theatre, wait behind some annoying people that acted like they were the only customers in the place, get popcorn and m&m's and sit down in the theatre just in time for previews! We are good. We saw Secretariat. It was SO good. How is it you can know what is supposed to happen (since its a true story) yet still have your adrenaline all pumped up like you don't know the horse is going to win the race. Good movie. Go see it!

Today I/we slept in some. I was up sick during the night. Not sure what was up with that. Second time that has happened within a few weeks. I am always fine the next day. We had a nice breakfast which consisted of sharing a pomegranate for the first time. I had tried one years ago in grade school. Darrel had never eaten it. We both liked it! He said it was even better than our recent first tastes of mango. Darrel has been working on the bathroom all day. A project I am not allowed to help with at the moment due to my restrictions with my injured muscle. I did go and have a great walk today! I am closing in on a 15 minute mile. I think I could possibly do a 15 minute mile now on a flat track where I am only walking the 1 mile. My regular walk is 3.5-4 miles at once, up and down hills the whole time and then my Nike+ gives me an average pace during that time for the whole distance. I've been getting 16:14 or 16:13 the last few times. I have never had a pace that good so I am happy about that! Still been walking the cemetery and enjoying the challenge. I had another dog run at me today. This time I had my pepper spray in my hand. I don't want to hurt anyone, but if I am feeling in danger from a dog... he is getting sprayed. The one today was big and there was no owner around. He seemed friendly and when I said "get" in my most firm, Deanna means business voice... He stopped in his tracks and didn't bother me anymore.

Are we all remembering the time change tonight? All evening I am looking at the clock going it's 9:00....no, really its like its 8:00... It's 12:05, no its really like 11:05... which either way is like time for bed shortly. We have church in the morning and Darrel and I are on praise team and we have a duet tomorrow! I am thinking he will need to finish banging on the window before we can go to bed though huh?

Speaking of heated throws.. I was speaking of them earlier remember? Look at this one! It's pink and its that soft microplush stuff. Love it. Not loving the price, but seems to be the price for heated throws from what I've seen. Maybe Santa will bring me one? I do own a heated throw... but I do not like it. It's like old fashioned blanket fabric which is not all that soft. I like soft and fluffy... like enough to sink in OK?

Time to go over the duet one more time before bed. Our first rehearsal a few hours ago had us both worried.... the words train wreck come to mind. However we prayed and managed to pull it together so hopefully we are ready for tomorrow. We have matching outfits planned and everything. And yes.. pink is involved. Even for the boy in the group. :) Hope you are having a good weekend. Blessings!

Thankful Thursday

OK, how cute is this? Darrel is sitting in the floor working on more work overtime and apparently Tanner needed some attention. He walked under the table and popped his head out from under it, right in Darrel's lap. It was so funny & cute! Then he walked up in his lap, laid down and promptly went to sleep. Darrel of course just goes right on working and the 2 of them stayed like this for quite awhile.

For Thankful Thursday I am focusing on my Dr today. I meant to take a picture of his office today but forgot! Anyway I love my DR. When we lived in IL we had an awesome DR. He took his time, he listened, he understood, he helped. We were so worried when we moved to Indiana that we'd never find anyone like him. However we needn't have worried. First time I visited his office I knew he was awesome and fit what we wanted in a DR perfectly. He is kind. You feel like he really cares. He sits down and talks and listens to me. He doesn't make me come in for every little thing but gets us meds when we need him. He is patient. He has been such an awesome encouragement and support to me in this weight loss journey. He comes in the room wanting to hear how its going. He gets excited for my success. He is easy to talk to. He has been so great at explaining the changes in my body as I've lost weight. I feel like he is a friend. I am just so pleased with him and his staff and so glad to have a DR we admire and respect to treat both Darrel and I.

I have been seeing him every 3 mos. throughout my weight loss because I have hypothyroidism and it needs to be monitored as the pounds come off. The 3 mos. since his last visit have probably been my hardest in the whole weight loss journey. I have been having an awful time moving forward. He talked with me for the longest time and really helped me today. I came away feeling encouraged and less frustrated. I am actually looking forward to continuing this journey and doing better from here. So thankful for a great DR and good health care so close to home.

Other things I've been thankful for this week are:

• 2 new pairs of Danskos
• great date night at the pizza place last Friday
• Harvest Party at church last Sunday
• some great compliments and encouragement this week from friends. This was actually a specific answer to prayer. God is so cool like that.
• Scrapbooking
• our home
• Double Chocolate Sprinkle Cookies
• sleeping in
• having a scrap room
• hot chocolate, especially with whipped cream!
• still on the tights/boots/skirt kick
• Kindle books
• reaching my best walking pace
• the housework I accomplished today
• the girls at The Scrapping Spot
• Bath & Body Works shower gel
• my great hair dresser
• muscle relaxers and heating pads... I'll explain in a minute
• PINK stuff
• 2 new pink shirts... is that different than pink stuff? I think so.
• getting that shirt I thought I lost out on
• apples
• my android phone.. yes.. again.. it makes my life easier!
• having a great job
• good friends
• making a lunch/shopping date with my Mom next week
• my booties heels - LOVE them
• 2 pairs of boot cut jeans I got new this fall
• new highlights in my hair
• getting to redo our bathroom
• my husband

As for the muscle relaxer comment... It seems I have injured my trapezius muscle. I did it 2 weeks ago. I don't remember what I did, but it was hurting like when you sleep on your neck funny. I thought that was all it was till I saw the bruise.... I had been moving some boxes and things cleaning and vaguely remember bumping it. Bruise went away, pain has gotten worse. I didn't think much of it. According to my DR, the problem is that I injured the muscle and then did not rest the muscle. Instead of resting the muscle (cause I was just thinking it would go away) I spent the next several days ripping plaster and lath off the bathroom walls and carrying it all outside. Then I decided to start walking with hand weights and was carrying a 2 lb hand weight every walk... Gee... you think that might have done it? DUH... So now I have a very sore shoulder with pain that is about an 8+ on a 1-10 scale. I am officially now on pain meds and a muscle relaxer and am told to "baby" the muscle for the next 2 weeks. No lifting.. no more hand weights...that kind of thing. I am also doing heat treatments.

By the time Darrel got home with my meds this evening I was tired, hurting, and yes.. weepy. See when one of us is stressed and working tons of OT it kind of trickles down because the other one of us is trying to pick up the slack and handle everything else. I had also looked up the "trapezius" muscle online and the first thing I read was that just stress alone can cause pain in that muscle. No wonder I'm in pain. The OT, the bathroom project, housework piled up, being frustrated with weight loss stuff....can you say stress? Basically I think I've done everything I can to make sure my muscle is good and injured.... Ha!! However.. now, a few hours later, 2 doses of muscle relaxer, pain meds and sitting under my heating pad... and wow... I am feeling like a much more mellow girl.















I completed a layout. Here is a peek! This is for a game of scrap tag at The Scrapping Spot. We are not allowed to reveal our full layout till the game is over... so this is all I can share for now. This will also be for one of my 52 layouts challenges that are due. The one I was most behind on was to use 7 of something on your layout. This LO has 7 different patterned papers. :) Are you curious to see the rest now? Can't wait to show you! It will be another week or so at least though, there were a few people still to go after me in tag.

Speaking of TSS they are having a great online crop this weekend. Lots of fun challenges are already posted. Anyone can join in, just head over to the forum at the link above and register so you can play too!

Goodnight for now. Work is early in the AM and then date night! We are heading to town... not the big city... for dinner, a holiday open house and possibly a movie. Can't wait!

Blessings!