Shape it up!

Today I went to my first bootcamp at the Y, and let me tell you, it totally kicked my butt! We started out running around the track, which I am used to... but then we had to run single filed and that's where it got tough for me. I have my own slow pace that I like to run, and I know I need to speed it up some, but the people in my class were just too fast for me! It seemed like they all were in tip top shape and were just doing the bootcamp to keep that up. I liked it though, even though my abs are feeling it right now (you know there has to be some abs under there somewhere!), and I may even go back next week! Thanks Miranda for inspiring me!

I have started to pick up more workouts this week than my usual one or two. I went to zumba on Monday and Thursday, ran at the Y and lifted weights on Tuesday, then I did the bootcamp today (Friday). I may start taking some different classes at the Y, instead of going to the zumba on Mondays. I hope I can keep all this up after I go back to working again.

I have also decided to cut down on my portions during meals, try not to snack late at night, and only drink pop on the weekend. Phil and I have been planning our weekly menus the week before, and making up our shopping list with those meals in mind. This has helped on cutting costs at the store each week.

Here is our new favorite recipe for our crockpot:

Lentils

1 cup dry lentils
1 cup carrots (chopped)
1 cup celery (chopped)
1 cup onion (chopped)
1 cup smoked turkey sausages (chopped)
4 cups vegetable broth
Season with salt, pepper, & cumin

Place all ingredients in the crockpot on LOW for 6 hours.

We are addicted to this right now, it is super easy, and before we made it Phil, had never had lentils before! I had never used cumin while cooking and now I love it! So good!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

12 Goals for 2012

Happy New Year!!!

Hope everyone had a fantastic time last night! Phil and I decided to go out to eat then stay home for our first New Year's Eve as husband and wife! It was pretty great to be able to stay home and be an old married couple! haha

This year I am hoping to complete 12 Goals for 2012 instead of making any resolutions at all... I'm not too good at those!

12 Goals for 2012

1. Learn to quilt!

- one I didn't accomplish last year that I made sound more realistic as an overall just "Learn to quilt" instead of forcing myself to make 3!

2. Continue eating healthy and working out!

- this one may sound familiar too, but it is an important one to keep up with!

3. Make dinner and eat at home as much as possible!

- this is a new one for me & Phil since we have started living together, and we have done pretty good so far, but I would like to make it a goal.

4. Make tooth fairy pillows for my cousins/nephews!

- yes, another repeat but Alec is bound to lose his first tooth this year and I need to be a good dental hygienist aunt!

5. Read more books than I did in 2011!

- I changed last year's goal up a little bit this year! I only read 18 books in my busy 2011, and I just bought 3 new books a few nights ago, so I am bound to complete this goal!

6. Wish all my friends and family a "Happy Birthday" on their special day with either a card or a phone call.

- I am pretty bad about keeping in touch with everyone, and relying on Facebook and texting to convey my message just seems so impersonal.

7. Hang out with my friends more!

- they are special people in my life, and they showed up to the most important day in my life, so I need to be able to let them know I will be there for them!

8. To become full-time with my current job (or possibly another).

- It is hard to work only a few days a month, even though I understand our program is just starting out in my state. I just hope I will be thought of as an important member of the team enough to where they will pick me to work and rely on me!

9. Keep up with housework.

- now that we have our own place to take care of, I wanna make sure that I/we keep our house clean and organized!

10. Be a good wife!

- I want to be the best wife to Phil as I possibly can! I want to be understanding, listen to him, and make our first year of marriage go by as smoothly as possible! (they do say that the first year is the hardest!)

11. Pick back up some of my old blog followers and acquire more!

- during my absence from blogging last year, I feel like I've lost many followers and feel terrible I let them down.

12. Continue to blog!

- I know, another repeat, but I love blogging and hope to continue throughout this new year!

Well, there they are!

What do ya think?

What are your goals for 2012?

Accomplishments of 2011

This year was a totally crazy one! It went by so fast, yet played out in slow motion. I feel like I have accomplised a lot in this past year and want to share those moments with you! Here is my list of my "11 Goals for 2011" that I made at this time last year:

11 Goals for 2011

1. Find a DH Job!

- and I can check that one off the list! I just hope that it continues out to be a full time position and things pick up!

2. Find an apartment/house

- another check off the list! We are loving our new place and you can view it here!

3. Learn to quilt - Quilt a t-shirt quilt, a baby quilt, and a quilt for me & Phil

- I unfortunately did not complete this goal, but I kinda think I dreamed too high with this one with all the wedding planning going on! We did receive a quilt from Phil's grandmother and one from my friend Jeff's mother for our wedding!

4. Continue eating healthy and working out

- I did accomplish this goal until the latter part of the year! The holidays hurt me, but I plan on getting back on track! I will list this as goal complete because I did so well for 95% of the year! (that is a made up percentage so don't even try to calculate that!)

5. Use my crockpot

- check! We have made a couple different dishes in the good ole crockpot, including a potato casserole, thai chicken, and chili!

6. Have fun planning mine and Phil's wedding!

- check again! Planning was definately fun, but also very stressful as well! I am glad it is over with, but it was truly the happiest day of my life!

7. Make tooth-fairy pillows for my cousins/nephews!

- this did not happen! Luckily noone has lost a tooth yet! haha I did make the ring bearer pillow for my nephew, Alec, to hold while walking down the aisle!

8. Get a kitty

- this hasn't happened either, but it can't while we are living in our new place cause we aren't allowed to have any pets except our fishies. We did acquire a kitty friend that most likely belongs to a neighbor that comes to visit us and we call Muffin!

9. Continue to read for pleasure as often as I can.

- this I did! Although I didn't read as many books as I did last year, I did read as much as I could with all the craziness going on! I read a total of 18 books and plan to read more next year!

10. Start paying off my loans.

- I started doing this! Big accomplisment here!

11. Continue to blog!

- although I've had some trouble, I have continued to blog as much as I could! I fear though that I have lost many followers due to my absence!

I am happy that I completed 8 out of the 11 goals that I have set for myself! Many of which you may see again for 2012! Come back tomorrow to see what they are!

...and have a safe and happy New Year's Eve everybody!

Hellooooo out there!

Can anyone read this? Are any of you still there? I thought the cute kitten in a sweater may get your attention! I know, I know I have been gone for way too long, but I am going to try my darndest to start updating this blog again on a regular basis! This return to blogging is also my 200th post!

Here are a couple events that have happened since I last blogged:

• September 26th - found a townhouse with Phil!



• September 29th - got a job, an actual dental hygiene job!



• October 15th - Phil and I got married!



• October 16th - October 22nd - Honeymooned in Disney World!



• November 21st - brought our fishy babies to their new home!

So, I have been a busy girl! Now I'm just getting used to married/working life and trying to set up our little nest. I'm also awaiting our wedding photos and cannot wait to see and share those!

I'll be back...

Gettin' Hitched!

I get married Saturday!

Hopefully then I can get started on blogging regularly again!

Week #41

This is what I did this past week, although it may not be the entire week, at least I am posting it! Again, there are multiple pictures of some of the days!

Day 281

We (Phil, Adam, Sarah, Michael, & I) went to the Vandalia Gathering this Sunday to see Adam compete in the annual WV Liar's Contest! The food vendor's are pretty good, but I had a hot bologna sandwich (does anyone else have to sing the spelling part of the Oscar Meyer song when typing this word?!) that was not very tasty. It was in a spicy bbq sauce which I didn't care for cause I usually like b-o-l-o-g-n-a.

This picture shows Adam winning first place as WV's Biggest Liar for the third time! He got a certificate, blue ribbon, and a golden shovel!

This is Phil acting like he is hitting me with the golden shovel.

This is Adam holding onto the Capital as well as his blue ribbon and golden shovel.

Adam is putting the golden shovel to use on the Capitol grounds.

Sadly, I did not get a picture of Sarah & Michael. Sad face.

After Vandalia, we ate the traditional sushi dinner. Later that evening, Adam came over to play a game of MegaMan with Phil and eat some Jolly Pirate donuts.

Day 282

Happy Memorial Day!

Here are pictures of my new Jumbo Waver and the effects of it on my hair. This is a horrid picture of me, but my hair is even more terrible! I don't think it's because of the waver, but because it needs cut badly!

This picture is of my new cell phone and proof that my friend, Jeffs, actually texted me back! It says, "I thought of you yesterday when i was ordering a blueberry donut :) they didn't have any whole wheat". It is common knowledge amongst my bffs that Jeffs loves a whole wheat donut!

Week #36, #37, #38, #39, #40

Hello! Long time, no blog! This long weekend inspired me to finally update with my Pic-A-Day Challenge (which, I guess I have failed now, but I keep going!). I am not presenting it like I usually do cause I have more pictures for certain days, and no pictures for other days. Here goes...

This last week in April I have no pictures! I can tell you that I had an orientation, for the temporary job I am currently working, the Monday & Tuesday of this week. The last 3 days of the work week, I was working for a hygienist in another office in the area.

Day 253

The Mole (aka my car) turned 100,000 miles this Sunday! I had planned to take these pictures all week and was happy I remembered to do so! I took the 99999 mile photo cause my lucky number is 9.

The other picture is of my loaner phone from Ntelos. My old flip phone was breaking at its hinges, so I needed this one to get by until Phil and I decided which phone company to stay with/go to together on one plan. We had decided on staying with Ntelos cause we figured it would be cheaper, but they messed up our paperwork and it was going to take forever for our phone numbers (we wanted to keep) to move to one family plan. My service was ending soon, and they made us mad so we went to Sprint. It ended up being slightly cheaper for us anyway. And it somehow was easier for our phone numbers to switch over to another provider than to keep our old provider and switch the phone numbers over to another plan. Go figure.

Day 254

I worked for yet another hygienist in the area 5 days this week! This is a picture of their old pop machine in the lunch room.

Day 257

A perk of working is that I actually was up to see the sunrise! It was a beautiful, foggy Spring morning without any rain!


This Wednesday, I also met up with the place who is making the cupcakes for our wedding! They are actually going to make us a brownie "cake" for the top of our cupcake tower that Phil & I can cut into at the reception! This relieves me that the place I wanted from the beginning will actually do this for us!


The Friday of this week, I took my local anesthesia exam so I could give anesthetic injections. It was a crazy week for me cause I hadn't studied in a year, but also cause I put this exam off til the last minute (some things never change!) and this was a week out from the deadline in taking it! I got it done though and still I'm waiting for results.

This was my first week working for the hygienist who is out on maternity leave for the next 3 months. They have a crazy computer system, that the chief dentist praises that I have learned how to use faster than anyone else that has worked there. I don't think it is necessarily hard, there are just lots of steps to go through to complete a patient note. The whole office is paperless and the x-rays are digital.

Day 267

Today, Phil & I went to his sister's pinning ceremony for nursing school! So proud of his sister for achieving her goal after so many obstacles! The downside of this ceremony was that it lasted 2 1/2 hours... not fun!

Day 269

How could I have not bought nail polish during these past 5 weeks!? Well, I couldn't pass up the sale stickers of 75% off of course! I need to try them out soon!

Day 279

My parent's anniversary was this past Thursday and they took a mini-vacay! So Phil & I decided to do their grocery shopping for them this Friday and went to the Kroger. I had to go to the little girl's room and when I came out I saw Phil pushing around this buggy full of pork rinds! I thought he'd filled up our buggy, but found out it was one that just had them all in there to sell like that. It was funny anyway, so I got this pic and it has that guy's hilarious face on the sign in it too! I think he wants some pork rinds!

I also used some of those Real Nail Polish Strips by Sally Hansen this evening! They were fairly easy to apply and turned out pretty good! I got the Laced Up strips to go with my current lace obsession!

Day 280

This Saturday evening, Phil & I met up with his parents to go out to eat at the mall. After our meal, his mom and I went to Charming Charlies where I got this watch! It is one with the rubber band that I have been eyeing lately!

Earlier this day, I went with two of my bridesmaids and my friend Lee, who will be marrying us, to order their bridesmaid dresses. We had a great time and went to eat lunch together as well!

---------------------------------------------------------

Also during these past 5 weeks, I have been running every Monday, Zumba-ing 2 days a week, and for the last 2 weeks, I have been kick boxing! I'm feeling pretty good exercise-wise, but just have to get my eating on track, especially on the weekends!

Well, that's all I have for you for now! I hope everyone has had a great holiday weekend and will have an even better short work week!

Working Woman

Hey all!

Sorry I've been MIA for the last week, but I've been working temp jobs nonstop. I have everyday except holidays booked up until the 2nd week in August! Woohoo! Now to try and figure in the rest of my stuff that needs to get done, including sleep and this blog.

Don't worry, I will return... even if posts get backed up for a while!

SMILE!

Week #35

I hope everyone had a happy Easter! I actually have a pic for each day this week, and also slept so much better!

Day 239: Phil and I are pretty much finished registering! We finally found these pint glasses we've been looking for forever and put them on the registry! haha All I have to add is some bedding stuff and maybe a few other decor items that he isn't too interested in!

Day 240: Mom got me this handbag from the new store here at our mall called Charming Charlie! I love this purse cause it's lacey! This place is pretty much awesome and is organized by color! You could spend hours in there and still not see everything! It's pretty overhelming!

Day 241: This is a pic of my orchid sprouting a new little branch! I've had this orchid for about 10 years, and this past year it has grown more than in the previous years combined!

Day 242: Mom and I went to the florist today for a wedding consultation! I know this can be a big expense for a wedding but we are trying to do our best to keep it as low as possible! It is probably one of the most exciting parts of planning for me!

Day 243: Today I had a girl's day out with my friend Heather! We went to Panera Bread to eat lunch/soup, then shopped at Target and Sally Beauty Supply. The main point of going to Sally was to get this crackle nail polish that came out recently! I really wanted grey but all they had was black, white, and this blue color. You can see which I picked. Sorry for the pic of my toe, but I painted under the crackle a yellow color so my toenail isn't really yellow! haha The crackle worked pretty well as long as you worked pretty fast, cause it dries on the brush fast and goops up. Try to make it a thin layer on your nail.

Day 244: Before I left to go to Phil's house today, mom and I colored Easter eggs!!! I LOVE to do this! I got the one where you have to color the egg then glue it and then apply the foil! I think they turned out pretty well, but they got kinda sticky after we hid them in the damp grass on Easter!

Day 245: Phil and I went oot and aboot today to a game resale store where I actually bought the 1st Harry Potter book for $1 (that I will be able to read after the last Harry Potter movie comes out!) and got a computer game as well. We also went to a antique store that had this fantastic (*sarcasm*) inflatable Incredible Hulk that Phil loved. I love the Hulk probably almost just as much as Phil, but where would I put this??? Let me just say that it was nice that it cost $500 cause Phil is probably just as frugal as me, if not more!

I hope everyone has a happy Monday! I get to go to an orientation today and tomorrow for a job that I will be working for the next 3 months! It's only temporary because the hygienist will be out on maternity leave. Yay for working! haha

Week #34

So it's pretty sad that I really don't remember what I did this week, and had to remind myself from the few tweets I post! I just didn't sleep well all week for some reason, except for the first part - I do know why... Day 232: Today Phil was in major pain because of his tooth! His face was starting to swell, and in hindsight I should have just taken him to the hospital. I reluctantly left his house that day, couldn't really call and talk to him cause it was hard for him to open his mouth. I didn't get much sleep cause I was worrying so much. Didn't take any pictures... sorry!

Day 233: I got up early this morning and drove back to Phil's house cause I was so worried! He had already set an appointment to get this tooth pulled previously for Tuesday, but he was going to call this Monday morning to see if they could get him in since he was so bad. They could and I was glad I was there to drive him. They pulled it even though it was infected and put him on an antibiotic (for the second time). They said that if he swelled any more to go straight to the ER. So today I took care of him. I know I'm doing bad but no picture today too! My worrying got the best of me. When I went home again tonight I didn't sleep well again.

Day 234: Phil was okay today and I didn't worry as much, but still didn't sleep well. It was like I would get my hours in, but didn't feel rested when I got up. Anyway, I had to do stuff today like go find wedding invitations. I found these at Target that I liked, but when I went with mom today to get them, they only had one box. Sooo, I was frustrated cause everytime I find them the place doesn't have enough or you can't order/find them online. We decided to go to a place in town that designs/prints them for you and it is for a good price. This pic is of the paper we want, you can't tell very much but it is a ivory color with a bit of sparkle!

Day 235: Today, was my bub Adam's birthday! I also finally got to the Y! It was a hard workout mostly because I was so exhausted. Also, this morning my dad calls me up to talk to him before he was leaving to go to work, and I look him in the eyes and one of his pupils is dilated and the other isn't. I freak, thinking that he's had a stroke or something and tell my mom to come look. They start laughing at me while I have tears in my eyes! Turns out dad had gone to the eye doctor that morning and they only had to dilate one eye! It was okay, but it was a bad joke on me!

Day 236: Mom and I went for a walk in the park. We walked to the place where *I think* will be the place in the park that we are having the ceremony(pictured). Later today, I went to Zumba with Rachel again! So much fun!

Day 237: Phil is feeling much better now with the help from his antibiotic, and got to come to my house for the weekend! The lymph nodes under his chin are still a little swollen, but the rest of his face is much better! Those swollen nodes are stopping him from getting some early Easter treats!

Day 238: Phil got a new game for the DS that I decided I would try out before him! It's called "9 hours, 9 persons, 9 doors" and sort of feels very "Saw"-ish to me. There is a lot of reading to this game but you do get to figure out some puzzles, get to know some people, and search some rooms to get through the 9 doors.

So that was my week, and I'm happy to say that Saturday I had a good night's sleep!

Week #33

Hey all! How was your weekend? Mine was pretty good, mostly so because of the weather, except for that crazy severe thunderstorm with hail I drove in on Friday! At least it was warm!

Day 225: Today, Phil and I went for a walk around his neighborhood then went bike riding with his nephew! It was a beautiful day as you can see from this picture with the blue sky and pretty spring tree!

Day 226: This is my favorite gummy bear, the clear or pineapple one! Yes, I had gummy bears today! Yum!

Day 227: So I worked at the dentist office again today for the hygienist that hurt her shoulder. I have never worked at or been to a dentist office where they wear the surgical hair nets, but that is what I have to wear there! Too funny!

Day 228: It was gorgeous out today, so I worked out at the Y and at the park! I walked 2 miles and took a few pictures along the way. I would have ran some, but my ankle was hurting and I feel weird running around so many people right now. I still feel like I have some work to do before I get to that point. Here is a pic I took while there, tulips are one of my favorite flowers!

Day 229: I got to work again today too, at the same office. After work, I met up with my friend Rachel to go Zumba! Obviously this isn't a pic I took, but I didn't have my camera on me at the time! Forgive me?

Day 230: Today was just one of those days where it felt like everything went wrong! I woke up early (for me) today to go meet one of my friends for lunch. I called before I was getting ready to leave the house and he said that he didn't feel good, so that ended that. I then decided to do this extravagant online thingy for a certain place that wants me to do temp work for them - it took way too long and all the pages took forever to upload. I then needed to get my TB test read for same said temp job and had to wait an hour because they were way under-staffed, and it only took them 2 seconds to look at my arm and say it was negative! When I got home (mom had driven me before) and was getting ready to leave in my car so I could go to Phil's for the weekend, The Mole (my car, pictured) didn't start. So I ended up taking mom's car and having to drive in the severe thunderstorm with hail in a car I wasn't used to! Then my day got significantly better cause I got to spend it with Phil :-)

Day 231: This day was much better than the last, except that Phil was starting to experience some tooth pain with a tooth that he is getting pulled this upcoming Tuesday. We had gone to Lowe's and to eat lunch with his mom and grandma, then we went shopping for me some wedding shoes and to look at some possible wedding invitations. I didn't find any shoes, but I found these invitations at Target that I like a lot!

I hope this week goes well, and that Phil can get his tooth pulled ASAP cause it is hurting him so much! I just want him out of pain!

Have a great week everyone!

Week #32

Happy Monday everyone! I hope it is going okay for you so far! I hope some part of my week will make you smile!

Day 218: This Sunday, Phil and I sat around and watched our collection of Jack Ass movies and finally watched the newest one. In a lot of ways I cannot stand to watch these movies, but in part they are quite hilarious and I cannot take my eyes away! haha No matter what, it's always nice to be able to laugh together!

Day 219: Today, I went to the Y and ran! I also finished up watching the Square Pegs DVDs I got for Christmas. Has anyone else ever watched this TV series? It is like totally 80s, totally! I had never heard of it before I got it as a gift, but it was a lot of fun to watch! I believe this was one of Sarah Jessica Parker's first roles.

Day 220: Mom and I went to another florist's shop today to get a feel for how they would be for the wedding. The woman was really nice there and I have a feeling she is who we are going to go with! From there, we went to Hobby Lobby and picked up a few things including these (pictured) that we are going to use as table numbers. What do ya think?

Day 221: I spent the better part of this evening going over our gift registry and figuring out everything we still need to register for. I printed off this checklist and compared it to what we already have bought/registered.

Day 222: Today, I got called into temp work at a new dentist's office (that's #5)! Their dental hygienist hurt her arm which is so sad considering her line of work, but I'm glad I got an oppurtunity to fill-in somewhere new and meet new people. My aunt, uncle, cousin's wife & daughter (Asyra) left today to see my cousin graduate from basic training in Texas! This pic is Asyra and mom playing the 'scrub your ears' game she made up!

Day 223: I went to Phil's house this weekend. This evening Phil and I went to Point Pleasant to eat at a new place. Then, we went back to his house to relax. This pic is of Phil's mom's dog, Baby. Baby loves me and cuddled up on my lap tonight and went to sleep. I sure do miss having a doggy!

Day 224: Phil's nephew Alec turned 6 years old the day before, but today we, along with Phil's parents, took him to Chuck E. Cheese's to eat pizza, play games, and get prizes! He had a blast! After, Phil and I went to the bookstore where I finally got "Dead in the Family" by Charlaine Harris since it just came out in paperback! I cannot wait to go read it!

Have a good week!

Week #31

Hey all! I had another busy week this past week, but my weekend was a little more relaxing so this is posted at the regular time! Woohoo!

Day 211: Isn't it lovely that when the calendar says that it's finally Spring that nature decides it is too!? Today the grass looked greener and the little white & purple wild flowers sprouted making my backyard look so happy! Yay!

Day 212: I actually did it folks, I took down the Christmas tree!!! Then I got into full on Spring cleaning mode with the rest of my house!

Day 213: This is a new nail polish I got! I keep seeing these pale shades of pink polishes and had to purchase one for myself! (Peter Piper Picked...) This color is called Easy Going by Sinful Colors. It took about 3 coats before it covered properly and since it's so pale it is not very forgiving for someone who doesn't polish neatly (me)! I like it okay, but may try finding a better color next time. Also, I got to work today at a dental office I've worked at before! It's nice to know that they'll call me up when they need someone and found out they want me to work a week for them in May!

Day 214: Got another call this morning from another dental office saying they need me! Feels great to be loved! haha It had been raining this day, but the sun came out so strong when I was driving home that I needed to put on my sunglasses for the first time this year!

Day 215: So I went to a "working interview" for the pediatric clinic that I regular interviewed with before. They say that they work so differently than a regular dental clinic that they wanted me to come in and make sure it would be a good fit for all. They are totally paperless, so I had to get used to their computer system and what they enter into that system, which was the major part that was different. The other dental hygienist there said that I did really well with that cause it took most of them a lot longer than it did me in just that one day. I hope that will make me look good, not only that but all my other qualities as well!

Day 216: My television in my living room has been on the blink for the last month or so, and with that is my TiVo, which you know I can't live without! So I've been recording all my shows to watch on my parents TV. Anyway, Phil came over this weekend and said he wanted to mess with it. He turns the TV on and it is working perfectly fine. Just him looking at it. This is not the only time this has happened, and it is pretty weird. Also, I actually ran at the Y today for the first time since I hurt my ankle! I didn't try to push myself cause I was afraid of hurting it, but I did pretty good!

Day 217: Today was my daddy's birthday!!! It just so happened that Phil and I were getting some more free cupcakes (and brownies this time) from another bakery for our wedding tasting. This is a pic of the brownies, which may look okay and all but they did not taste good. They were more like cake (and you know by now Phil does not like cake), but they were not good tasting cake, and the cupcakes weren't good either. So this was a FAIL on being dad's birthday treats, but luckily Phil and I made brownie cupcakes (brownie mix poured into cupcake tins and baked) the night before that turned out deliciously! Too bad we ate all of them before I forgot to get a picture of them!

Hope everyone had a good weekend, I did even though it was entirely too cold for me!