Thankful Thursday....

1. Audiobooks
2. A husband who cleaned my house yesterday on his day off
3. showers (can you tell I have camp on the brian??)
4. Direct deposit
5. Email
6. Police sirens that make Blue howl
7. new jeans that fit better than any I've ever tried on
8. Dishwasher
9. hashbrowns
10. Mascara

I feel like I've been going a million miles a minute the last 2 weeks!!! Crazy!

Because I'm a twilight dork....

..a handful of us are meeting at my house on friday(8/1) at around 8:30 to hang out, do our toes, watch a movie, eat, etc...... We have pre-ordered Breaking Dawn at the Borders in Coon Rapids and are going to go pick it up at midnight. Does anyone want to come and play with us??? It will be a lot of fun! You don't have to have ordered the book at Borders in order to come. So what do you think?

Zoo sans animals...

So my work had a picnic at como zoo on thurdsay. Ty couldn't get off work and it seemed like a pretty kid central kind of event anyways so Jes, Joshua, and Michael came with me.

We had our charecatures done. Technically I think it was more of a kid thing, but "when in Rome......" What do you think? Does it look like me???

Hot Dog!!!!!!

We took the puppers down to lake calhoun on saturday where homeward bound (no kill shelter) was have a doggie wash fundraiser. Blue and Scout told me that they were REALLY dirty and needed to go. (I didn't have ANY idea how dirty they were until I say them after the bath.) Blue did NOT want to go! We got him near the entrance and he would pull back as hard as he could. I'm not sure he knew that he wasn't going to like it but he did! Ty tried running him down the block and then straight in but he just laid down when we got to the entrance! He may be smarter than we give him credit for.

He was okay once he got it. He howled a bit but I think he realized that he wasn't getting away.

Scout wasn't as opposed!

We went to go walk around lake calhoun and thought we would try and take Scout in the water. She has never been but we think she would LOVE it! It took her a second but she started to like it.

And to top it off, we made them wear bandanas!!! I'm so mean:)

Seriously???????

I promise that I will not do this every week but I was just really excited so sense I'm already sharing...After week one of my decloration, I lost 4.6 lbs!!!! Woo Whooo!!!!!!! Thats all!

Recipe of the Week...

..

I love this recipe! Its easy to put to together, tastes awesome and I know I get my veggies!!!

Chicken Divan

INGREDIENTS
2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped broccoli
2 cooked boneless chicken breast halves, chopped
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

Put broccoli in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Top with the chicken.
In a small bowl, blend the cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup, mayonnaise, and lemon juice. Pour the mixture over the chicken. Top with Cheddar cheese.
Bake 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, until bubbly and lightly browned.

Make sure to serve it over rice, its makes the meal.

I have hobby ADD....

..So I am starting to play with photography a bit. I have read up and played around and think I might have a knack!!!!! Next is photoshop so watch out!!!

And where did my good intentions lead me????

..oh yeah! Straight to hell!

So yesterday I decided that I would ride my bike up to the church for a meeting at 6:15. I thought I might as well get some excersize:)

Well, I got about 3/4 - 1 mile down the road and the chain on my bike busted!!! Not only that but it whipped into the back of my leg make it bruised and bleed a little. By this point it was 6:00 and there was no possible way I was going to get there on time so I had to call and cancel the meeting and then walk back home with a busted bike:(

Oh well, I guess I got my excersize:)

Thankful Thursday.......

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1. Flip Flops. I don't have the prettiest feet but they love the open air! (ok, I don't thing anyone has the prettiest feet. Thanks DAD!)
2. Self Control over tears.
3. hair binders for those out of control hair days (most days)
4. All of the friends that I have become closer with lately, mostly because of blogging
5. CRAIGSLIST....I don't be thankful without being thankful for this!!!
6. A husband who is willing to take the reins when I just don't know what to do.
7. Contacts. I've said it before and I say it again, whoever thought of putting little pieces of plastic in your eyes so you could see better is my hero!
8. Trials
9. air conditioning
10. Faith, Family, Friends, Freedom (okay thats more than one but still.....)

Why is this so hard???

So weight isn't exactly something that is new to my brian but it is something that I keep thinking about lately. I think I have spent as long as I can remember concerned about my weight and body size. I've never been someone who wanted to be a size 4 but I just want to be healthy with curves. I think I was probably as close to ideal as possible back my senior year of high school, although I thought I was a whale. I'm so mad at myself for that.

It only got worse when I went away to school and had complete control over my shopping and life. I went a little crazy. So it makes complete sense to me that the the amount of calories going in needs to be less than the amount going out in order to lose weight. In that sense, its easy. Heres what I've learned. I lost 70 pounds while Ty was in Iraq and the 6 months after and it was definantly hard. sense then I have gained some of that back but definantly not all of it and now I am so over whelmed with kick starting my health again.

I know that I am completely capable of losing weight, its my brain!!! I am somewhat of an obsesive person. When I am focused and watching what I eat, all I can do is think about food!!! I don't understand! This is where my will power fails me. There is nothing wrong with me, I am completely able to lose weight, I keep screwing myself up!!!! I'm so mad about it! I have always had a bad relationship with food. I would hide it, or gourge on it, and even eat something that I don't nessescarily like just because I could. I remember eatting sugar cubes and even, this is embaressing, equal packets as a kid because no one was looking.

I have lost some weight in the past and I never told anyone I was doing it until they noticed it for themselves. For some reason, that has always been really hard for me. I know I'm fat (I'm not being mean, I'm just really comfortable with using that word. It is what it is) and I know other people can see that so why am I so scared to admit that I am actively working on it? I guess I never wanted anyone looking at me thinking "she shouldn't be eatting that on her diet" or "she looks like she gained weight" or just judging me. I am struggling with that A LOT just writting this. So I am embarking on changing my health again and I decided I need to share it so that maybe I will hold myself more accountable if people know.

I don't post this because I am looking for advice or fishing for compliments/symphthys or anything, its becasue I need too. So here is the plan:
1.I will be doing the couch to 5k program x3 which means that I will follwing the program but do each week 3 times sense I am not nearly in shape. I have always wanted to loving running so I am going to go for it and take it slowly.
2. I don't know why this one is so hard for me but for some reason I feel inclined to gaurd this with my life. So here goes, I signed up for weight watchers online.

So knowing this, please don't look at me differently or judge me. I know this doesn't show much faith in my fellow man, but I'm working on it.

A topic serious enough to force me to finally blog

Audrey has been politely suggesting that I post something for a while now and I finally decided to do it. I listen to a lot of talk radio and I always hear plenty of pressing issues, but one has finally pushed me too far.
On the Dairy Queen commercial where the girl scouts go to the Dairy Queen's house, why does the Dairy QUEEN have a male voice? Shouldn't the Dairy Queen have a female voice. What is up with that? The only thing I can think of is that the word "queen" is being used in the more modern sense. As in "drag queen".

Ode to Craiglist...

Oh how I love thee. You have brought me so many wonderful things. Let me list them here:

wii
wii fit
dance dance revolution
mario cart
stove
dishwasher
microwave
cell phone


I think that is everything.....
oh wait, I forgot our new CAR!!!!

Hmmm....My once a week recipe has become once a month...

I'm in love with this!

CROCK POT BROWN SUGAR CHILI
1 lb. extra-lean ground beef
½ c. brown sugar
4 T. prepared mustard
1 medium sized onion, chopped
2 cans (14 oz. each) kidney or red beans
2 c. low-sodium tomato juice
½ t. salt
¼ t. pepper
1 T. chili powder
Brown ground beef and onion in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Stir in brown sugar and mustard. Combine all ingredients in slow cooker. Cover. Cook on HIGH 2-3 hours. If possible, stir several times during cooking.
If I don't have time to put it in the crock pot or I'm going to be gone too long, I will make this on the stove top the same way and simmer for 10 minutes or so.
This is FANTASTIC with cheese sour cream and fritos. Serve the way it is for kids, I add a signifigant amount of hot sauce becaue I like it SPICY!

10 things you may not know about me!

1. I fought to have a dog at my wedding reception. Jerimone was a great guest.
2. I don't use shampoo, only conditioner scrubbed in.
3. I have 5 birth marks.
4. I didn't have steak for the first time until I was in college.
5. One of my childhood family nicknames was "Oddley"
6. I have used Dove deodorant sense I was 17 and will never switch.
7. I have never seen Star Wars and I have no interest.
8. I have never had fake nails. Its not that I don't think they look good, I just can't understand WHY gluing little pieces of of plastic to the ends of your fingers is attractive. If I don't undersand it, I don't do it.
9. I got accepted to Aveda institute but never went.
10. I have a scar on my leg from falling down the side of a volcano in Guatamala.

This week in review....

..So I have gotten behind in my blogging. I have spent all of my time looking for another car, cleaning, cooking, and working on our budget. So here is the noteworth(or not so noteworthy) events of the week:

1.We had a duck on our roof! He stayed there for about 30 minutes. I guess we have a comfortable roof!

2. Our car is gone!!! The grand prix has offically been retired and it was a sad day. This is the car we drove away from a wedding in. Its the car I dropped Ty off to go to Iraq, and picked him up in. It was Ty's first car and his baby. She is gone and she will be missed:(

3. I made a cheesecake! I have found my recipe! Ty said that is better than the cheesecake factory.

And I took this cool picture. Thats all!