Still here...

We are alive and kicking...thank goodness. We are just trying to get through the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. I am off to work Monday and Tuesday of this week and then I am off until the following Monday. Thank you vacation that must be used before the end of the year or you lose it...I love you.

Bryan had his surgery on December 2nd and he is doing great. The surgeon wanted him to lose as much weight as possible before the surgery to avoid being cut open to perform the surgery. I am so happy to report that he lost 50 pounds before the surgery and they were able to perform the surgery through laproscopic (I am pretty sure that I spelled that incorrectly). I am also elated to inform everyone that in three weeks since his surgery he has lost 33 more pounds making his total 83 pounds total weight loss. He looks great, his clothes are falling off of him and he is generally doing quite well. The best part is that he has not even started exercising yet because he has not been cleared by the doctor...whom he will see on the 31st.

So we are on our way to a new healthy lifestyle for the whole family. It is strange to do the grocery shopping and we are spending more time in the fruits and vegetable sections and we completely skip over the junk food aisles. I will post some pictures in the weeks to come...so that you can see the pictures of his progress.

I hope that everyone had a Merry Christmas and that everyone has a wonderful and safe new year.

Crap!

Yes, you read that correctly...CRAP! That is the one word that I can use (well actually I can use many others but I have taken a vow to watch my mouth...to eliminate the vulgar language that is) to describe the last couple of weeks.

I am working out of town, driving 80 miles one way to get to work and then 9 hours later I am driving 80 miles to go home. Time for a hybrid vehicle...my SUV gas guzzler is going to kill me...or at least drain the bank that is. CRAP!

I was sick about three and a half weeks ago with bronchitis and a sinus infection...CRAP! I got some antibiotics and felt great about a week later. NOT CRAP!

Drove 80 miles to work one day and sat in a room full of rude people who sneezed, coughed, and sniffed all day long without covering their noses or mouths. Not to mention that we were passing around papers all day long that they touched. Then guess what! The next day I felt like CRAP! I was sick again. Drove 80 miles home, went to the doctor (this is crap too!), got more antibiotics, cough pills, and miracle mouthwash (which is beyond crap...the word to describe this is way to vulgar for this blog). The diagnosis is...drum roll please!

Bronchitis AGAIN! CRAP!
Sinus Infection AGAIN! CRAP!
Ear Infection (something new) CRAP!
Walking Pneumonia (again...something new) CRAP!

Today is Friday and well the weather is cold (44 degrees) and wet (extremely rainy)...CRAP AGAIN!!!!

October 12th is my 37th birthday...SUPER CRAP!!! Only 3 more years until the big 4-0! Normally I would say HOLY SHIT but I am not saying that...I am only saying HOLY CRAP!!!

Have a great weekend!

Big Project Update...

Just when I thought I could strip, stain, and makeover my kitchen...drum roll please!

I hit a snag.

I know, you are all thinking that it is not a big deal. Everyone runs into snags when doing a remodel, a redecorate, or anything that involves fixing something that should be pretty simple. Well not us. We are the ones who bought our dream house for a fresh start to our new marriage and our new life together. Once we moved into our home, we decided that we should replace the roof the following year because it was leaking. We are the ones who had the contractor from hell who ripped off our existing roof during a torrential downpour. We are the ones who came home to find our belongings floating because there was six inches of water floating in our living room. We are the ones who got the phone call that one of the roofers fell into our bedroom from the roof. So forgive me when I say that if anything can go wrong in our house...it will.

I took all of the doors off of my upper kitchen cabinets. I was so happy that I was not going to have a blue kitchen anymore. I was going to have beautiful wooden cabinets that I stained myself and saved a huge amount of money. Now here is where the snag comes in. Are you ready???

I stained the first 6 doors only to find out that the doors are not the same wood from one cabinet to the other. The stain that I applied seriously looks like crap. For some reason the grain of the wood for whatever reason is extremely different on all of the doors and the grain for some reason took on a really light highlight when the rest of the stain is really dark. It seriously looks as if it is a hair highlighting job gone bad.

So I sit here contemplating what color to paint my cabinets because in addition to the staining fiasco I have found that the bottom cabinets are paint grade cabinets only. So as you can see, painting is my only option. Well not really my only option, I can pay someone a thousand dollars to order me new doors and still have problems because the cabinet itself will not match. Ugh! I am so frustrated. I want to close my eyes, cross my arms, and wiggle my nose and have my kitchen be done. Anyone have a magic lamp and one wish that I can have?

Big Project

So if you know me, you know that I like to change things around. I like to change my office furniture around. I like to change my furniture at home as often as possible. I like to change things around in my kitchen, my bathroom, my computer room, and my dining room. My brother in law says that every time he comes to my house there is something different about it.

We have installed a chain link fence to keep our little pooches in. We did this over the long weekend of the fourth of July. Well now that you all know that, I must say that I am changing something else. I am stripping my kitchen cabinets and staining them. This is a big project and I am excited as I can not wait to get rid of my very blue kitchen cabinets. I will be posting pictures of the progress as well as the before and after pictures. I am thinking that I should consider a career change. Who knows, I could be the next DIY show host.

Wish me luck!

Still Kicking

Welcome Summer!

I know that it really isn't technically or officially summer but it has been really nice here this weekend. I went to a local strawberry farm and picked up a couple quarts of the luscious red berries. They are wonderful, I did not put any sugar on them and they taste like I did. Bonus, they are healthy! Well as healthy as can be until I put them on top of angel food cake and topped them with cool whip. YUMMY!!!!

We are planting a garden again this year, although we have toned it down from last year's garden. We only have three tomato plants, three pepper plants, and two banana pepper plants. I am looking forward to making fresh salsa.

I received news that Suzie will be coming home again for another visit. I am the luckiest person in the whole world, I get to see her again this summer. Just when I thought that this year would suck because I would not get to see her like I wish I could, she will be here again! I love it! I just wish I could see the kiddos and her hubby too but the Army will not allow me to see him this time either. Bummer!

Well I hope everyone has a great week, enjoy the nice weather!

Happy Birthday Zman!

Happy 13th Birthday Zman!

This is Zman at about 2 1/2 months old...maybe three months.

This is Zman on his 1st Birthday.

This is Zman a few days before his 13th Birthday!

This is Zman now, a teenager!

My Dearest Zman,

Thirteen years ago on May 20th I gave birth to a precious little boy who gave my life meaning. That little boy gave me a reason to live today, dream tomorrow, and cherish yesterday. That little boy has grown up to be a handsome little man. That little boy is you. You are my world, you are the reason for my drive and determination.

I am very proud of you for being you, not the kid who society says you should be. Yes, I may get discouraged and angry at times with some of the crazy things you do. But I have to sit back and remember that the crazy things that you do, make you...you! We all make mistakes and there is nothing wrong with that as long as you learn from your mistakes.

I am very happy to have you in my life and I want you to have the best birthday.

Love,

Mom

Thank you!

Thank you all for the prayers. My hubby had his tests done today and we were told by the doctors that everything looks fine. He has been diagnosed with Wolfs Parkinson White Syndrome. Basically that means that he has more than one electrical line going through his heart and could cause his heart rhythm to be erratic. We were told by the doctor today that many people have this syndrome and do not even know it. As long as he feels fine and does not have any problems then everything should be fine.

So after spending the day with my hubby and going through three doctors appointments I am glad to say that things are moving forward with his bariatric surgery. I tease him that he will leave me when he is all skinny but he has assured me that he is doing this because he wants to be able to be with me for many, many years to come. My goal of this is that we are going to go back to the weight loss group meetings and we are going to stand up and tell the group that one of us had bariatric surgery and one did not...can you tell? I have to learn how to cook all over again and I have to be his partner in this so we are getting two weight losses for the price of one.

Thanks again for all of your prayers, they were greatly appreciated and helped tremendously.

Wish us luck!