I'm in love, I'm in love, I'm in love, I'm in love with a wonderful guy

Today is the day of lurve. Oooh ahhh. Valentine's Day. The day in my previous life as a single girl that typically meant depression and consumption of much chocolate. I was usually alone, abandoned by the most recent "fling" shortly before the holiday.

I was always a hopeless romantic, dreaming of the Valentine's Day when my Don Juan would arrive to pick me up in a horse drawn carriage to take me out for a night of passion and romance. I wished for thousands of roses and candlelit dinners and everything that "they" (whoever they are) tell you Valentine's Day is supposed to contain.

I should have dreamed bigger. I should have been dreaming who would put me first, every single day. I should have been hoping for the safe feeling of always being taken care of. I should have imagined years of laughter and fun and tender, amazing true love. Oh, and some serious passion too.

Maybe it's good that I didn't dream bigger because it allowed me to be completely swept away by the man who gave me everything I was dreaming of, plus everything I should have been dreaming of and more.

Sure, I'm still a girl and a hopeless romantic who wishes my life had a little more "show" but when I really stop to think about it, you couldn't pay me enough money or give me enough "packaged romance" to convince me that what I have isn't the most amazing gift I've ever been given. I consider myself the luckiest woman alive to have the privilege to be married to Matt. He is my everything and on Valentine's Day, I just wanted the world to know it. He is my Don Juan . . . but better.

Reparations

Most of you know that I am a child of a "broken" home. My parents separated when I was six (and my siblings were 4, 2, and 1 month old) and finalized the divorce about a year and a half later. As is the norm, neither the divorce or the circumstances surrounding it were pretty. Both of my parents were left horribly scarred and terribly hurt.

I love both my parents with all of my heart, let's be perfectly clear on that. They are both AMAZING people who have led amazing lives and made myself and my siblings the people we are today. But, my parents were (and are), imperfect, as we all are. They both made some mistakes with us kids as we were growing up. Some of those mistakes left invisible scars on the hearts and lives of all of the children in my family. Some of those mistakes have affected us beyond my words to describe.

The last 21 years haven't been easy. We've been luckier than some children of divorce, in that we know and speak to our Father and that at least our parents were able to be in the same room without killing each other. They were even able to be cordial, but everyone who knew them realized that it was quite forced. It was very, very clear that they did NOT like each other. The graduations, weddings and other occasions requiring their presence in the same state always caused sever stress among my siblings and myself. There was always that worry that all the bottled up anger and rage were going to suddenly emerge, that the weapons would be drawn and a battle of epic proportions would ensue.

I know many of you know the fear and pain of having two parents, whom you love, hate each other. It's hard to describe the feelings to those who haven't experienced it. You feel like a rubber band being pulled apart. Like you have to choose sides, or have to pick a favorite and stick with that parent in the looming struggles for power. It's easy to only hear and believe one side of the story, especially when one parent has custody and the other is living far away (in our case, all the way across the world.). It's easy to begin to resent the more absent parent, and in turn, feel as though they have begun to resent you. It's just never . . . comfortable.

I am the oldest and therefore have more memories of my parents life together than the rest of my siblings, and I can only remember one or possibly two times when they were married and getting along. Most of my memories involving my parents together involve brief encounters in passing, forced kindness at joyous occasions, arguing, or being told stories of how one parent hurt the other. They tried to keep us from it, but I think their mutual disdain took over. It engulfed their lives and eventually all of ours.

This last weekend was another joyous occasion. My brother Sean, who is 25, was graduating from college and my other brother Patrick turned 21. The celebrations were taking place at my Father's home in Pennsylvania, where both boys currently live. My Mom, of course, flew back east for the celebrations. This was a first for us . . . the first time my Mom was on Dad's turf. Most of the other affairs over the years took place in Utah where we were raised, therefore Dad was always on Mom's turf. All four of us kids prepared for the worst. I was the only one not attending, due to work conflicts, so three out of four were in preparations to keep the parental units as separated as possible to prevent any bloodshed.

There was no bloodshed. This weekend the prayers of four hurt, scared kids were answered after 21 years and our family was granted a miracle. That is the only way to describe it. Something changed in both of my parents and this weekend, for the first time in 21 years, they truly got along.

I wasn't there to witness any of it, but I've heard numerous accounts of our family miracle. My Father invited my Mother to his home for dinner. They sat in the same room and reminisced about when they were married. They laughed, they poked fun at each other. They acted like they liked each other. My Mother offered gifts, chatted easily with my Step-Mother and seemed to have a truly wonderful time. This happened three days in a row. Dad invited Mom to go to the shooting range with him. THEY WERE IN THE SAME PLACE WITH LOADED WEAPONS, people. My Dad taught my Mom how to shoot a gun. Holy crap.

Then, on the last night my Mom was in town, Dad apparently volunteered to drive her to the place where she was staying. They got out of the car and then they embraced. With tears streaming down her face, Mom apologized for any wrongs she had committed against Dad over the years, and my Dad smiled and told her to be happy in her life.

They finally . . . just . . . let . . . go.

I cannot express to you how heavy a weight has been lifted from the shoulders of myself and my siblings. I cannot express the joy in my heart. I don't think I knew how heavily all of this had weighed on us until it was finally over. No more awkward get togethers, no more talks of protecting one parent from another, no more begging them to just drop it and get over it already. It's truly over, and we can finally breathe.

I beg those of you who are divorced and have children to try to get along with the Ex. I know how hard it must be, but I cannot express to you what a difference it would have made in the lives of my family members if my parents had attempted this reconciliation years ago. I beg those of you with families still intact to hold on for dear life and be grateful for your families. Never, ever take advantage of the gift you have been given.

I know that the Lord has had a hand in all of this. I know He has been watching over my family and slowly healing my parents hearts so that this could happen. I am forever grateful. I have never in my life felt such love for both of my parents as I do today. I have never heard my siblings voices filled with so much wonder and so much joy. I will go to sleep tonight with a smile on my face and a prayer of thanks in my heart. I have been praying for more Christmas Spirit and it has been granted ten fold. This might just be the best December ever.

Perfect Day

Today is a great day!

Let me count the ways:

I am getting a fun new toy today, and don't you worry, tomorrow I will show it to you. I'm GIDDY with excitement at my new toy and I can barely stand waiting until my lunch break to go get it. I love new toys.

Today I start physical therapy. Not QUITE as exciting as the new toy, however, I'm running a good, solid mile every time I go to the gym and having my hip NOT hurt when I'm done sounds very, very pleasant.

I cleaned my entire kitchen last night . . . not that it was that dirty, but I did the whole "granite cleaner" and "stainless steel polisher" thing and it's all sparkly and beautiful like it was when we moved in and that makes me happy. I love coming home to a sparkling, clean kitchen. Then I mess it up cooking and have to start all over again, but at least I started with sparkly and clean!

I'm having a good hair day, which hasn't happened much lately. My straight, flat hair even has body, and it NEVER has body unless I tease and hairspray it in!

I found my favorite, previously lost earrings, and I'm feeling all decked out and festive.

My jeans are fitting better thanks to my running, biking thing. Shrink, thighs! Shrink!

My husband is amazing. He said the sweetest thing to me yesterday that just made my heart melt and I think I fell in love with him all over again.

I talked to one of my best friends, Jewels, for 45 minutes last night about singing and I'm still sighing in happiness about it. She's going to kick butt at her audition, I just know it.

This morning I talked to another best friend, Hannah, on the way to work. The subject wasn't exactly pleasant, due to people being retarded, but the conversation once again proved to me that Hannah is awesome and strong and an amazing friend, not only to myself but others as well.

I am hosting Soap Opera Sunday this week and I'm so excited to do it! I have the sequel to my last post all planned and I can't wait to read everything you guys have to say!!

I'm a few short weeks from going home to Utah for Christmas. I get very homesick this time of year and I'm counting down the days until I'm there, but today it doesn't seem very far away!!

I am a lucky girl. I have an amazing husband and family, incredible friends, a great job, a beautiful home . . . I am blessed beyond words and more grateful than I could ever express.

I hope all of you have great days too!

The I can breathe out of one nostril Thankfuls

I'm on the road to recovery! Thank you to all of you for your well-wishes. Half of my face has recovered and hopefully the other half isn't far behind. I can breathe a little better and can sleep better as well. At least my Thanksgiving wasn't ruined! Phew!

I've realized that I have way too much to do lately, and no energy whatsoever with which to do it. I need to get a new couch, but I'm too tired to get up off the OLD couch to go look for a new one. I need to go to a friend's house to pick up some accessories I bought from them but the thought of driving out there has me ready for bed. I need to paint my family room, start decorating for Christmas (and buy new decorations because holy crap my old decorations don't cut it!), landscape the backyard and a whole host of other things that need to be done and I'm just.so.tired.

Oh yeah, and I have to shop for Christmas. Most of you know that a) I love to shop and b)I work for an eCommerce company . . . A tends to conflict with B because I like to go to the mall and shop for presents but I SHOULD shop online to support my industry. I just don't usually do it. Except for maybe this year. I'm thinking of going virtual for my Christmas shopping and even I can't believe it. What do you guys think? How do you shop for the Holidays? Does paying for shipping make you want to pull out your hair like it does me, yet somehow you add up the time it takes to go to the mall, find a parking space, drag your butt from store to store and realize that it might just be worth it? I'm still trying to decide.

Also, what the CRAP do I get my husband? He's very hard to shop for. I can't get him tools because "tools aren't FUN they mean I have to do work with them. I like fun presents." I can't get him what he really wants because hi, I don't have $40,000 sitting around with which to buy him a nice truck. Clothes seem boring to buy because he has a uniform of sorts and getting him the fiftieth blue and tan plaid shirt just seems . . . wrong. HELP!!?!?!?

Ok and on to Thankfuls. I skipped yesterday because, well, see the first paragraph. So ten Thankfuls on the way and then I'll see you all tomorrow!!

1. Hannah. We had the funniest conversation yesterday over email and I miss her and her gorgeous babies to death right now. I was thinking about a night many years ago when we laughed so hard for almost an hour that we couldn't talk, breathe or do anything. All over a guy's lip zit. AHAHAHAHA. Dear Hannah how I love you.

2. A clean car. I'm not good at keeping my car clean and I wish I was because it's sure nice to be in when it's not a disaster.

3. Chocolate hazelnut mousse cake with fondant. It was a co-workers birthday today and we got the most delicious cake. Mmmmm.

4. The ease with which I can buy music on iTunes. It's bad for the bank account but good for the soul.

5. That my husband didn't get one bit mad when I called him up AFTER I'd just spent almost $200 on concert tickets.

6. Instant Messenger. I'm not sure I'd know anything about some of my best friends without it. I haven't talked to one friend on the phone in almost six months, but we talk every day on IM.

7. Carbohydrates. That's all I'm gonna say about that.

8. The thought of eating my Grandma's creamed corn on Thursday. If I could get away with it, that's all I'd eat at Thanksgiving.

9. Little kids voices. SO precious.

10. My brother Sean. We talked yesterday and somehow got on the subject of tap-dancing lawyers and we were dying laughing. He's become such an amazing man and one of my greatest friends. I'm so proud of him and how much he's overcome. He's literally and figuratively my hero.

Medicated Thankfuls

Oh thank jeebus, I finally went to the doctor this morning. Well, I went to Urgent Care and was there for two and a half hours. And then the doctor said "well you are on the verge of having a sinus infection, so I'm going to give you a prescription to hold on to for three days, then if you get worse get it filled."

Um, right.

I've been sick for almost six days and it's been getting worse every day. It ruined my weekend and I spent almost three hours of my Sunday waiting for you to give me DRUGS. If I wait three days and I am still sick, I won't be able to go to my Grandparent's for Thanksgiving for fear of making them sick, so then not only would my last week have been ruined, my entire Thanksgiving break will be too! Not. Gonna. Happen.

So I called Nurse Mom (she's really a nurse, promise) and told her about the symptoms, what the Doc said and what I wanted. Thank goodness she agreed with me and told me just to fill the prescription. Z-pac here I come! Or um, came? Something like that.

I'm feeling about the same right now, but I have confidence that Mr. Z-pac will take effect soon and I'll be back to normal (for me, at least!)

So today, I am thankful for:

1. Z-pac. Mmmm so great.

2. My Mom. Oh how I love her (and not only for giving me permission to disobey the doctor). She has been my rock and my best friend my entire life and I don't know where I'd be without her. We talked for a while tonight and it made me miss her SO much!

3. Pajamas. Specifically my Victoria's Secret perfect lengthed pant T-shirt pajamas. Oh how I love them.


4. My Ohio State ball cap. It's great for hiding "sick hair."

5. Friendly neighbors. Matt and I went outside to watch the sunset and we had about ten neighbors wave at us. In our old neighborhood we knew NO ONE and we'd wave and they would look away! We didn't know what to do! We are so grateful to live in a place where people are SO FRIENDLY!!

There you have it! And Thanksgiving is this week! YAY! I'm so excited! Mmmmm food.

Soap Opera Sunday Delay and Thankfuls

I am so sorry but I'm not posting for Soap Opera Sunday today. I am unfortunately not feeling any better and try as I might, I can't come up with an interesting story or the energy to write anything coherent. I promise I'll make it up to you next week because I'm going to start with the most messed up, long, drawn out soap opera of my life. It might take me like four months to complete, no lie.

Anyway, if you're playing this week, our Anonymous Soap Opera Blog is hosting this week! This is a place for you to post stories you may not want your name associated with, so if you've got a story you're DYING to tell but are feeling a little shy, head on over and post away!! The rules and all that jive are posted over there too, so head on over!

Anyway, really quickly here are the things I'm thankful for today:

1. THE Ohio State Buckeye Football team. We had a gloriously victorious day over the Michigan Wolverines and it made my day. Go Bucks!!

2. Nasal Spray. One second I can't breathe, then I spray that miracle liquid up my nose and voila! For as long as it lasts I can breathe through my nose!

3. Freshly waxed eyebrows. I was beginning to look like a Wookie and the one thing I forced myself to do today was run over to my community spa and get those babies waxed. I feel SO much better when I look at my face!

4. Our new, huge bathtub. I'm on my way for a long relaxing soak. In the old house the tub just seemed to small so having a big tub seems like heaven!

5. The hand knit blanket Matt's Aunt Lorma made for us as a wedding gift. It doesn't get a ton of use in hot Arizona, but it's awesome to cuddle up with when one of us isn't feeling good.

Hope you all have a great weekend and if I'm still alive, I'll be back tomorrow!!

Thankful Goodness It's Friday!

Sorry I didn't post yesterday. I felt like pooh so I spent the afternoon/evening lying on the couch watching TV. I'm lazy like that.

So, today I have to try to post ten Thankfuls! Here goes!


1. Rivalries, specifically in college football. Tomorrow is the Ohio State/Michigan game and seeing as how my ENTIRE family is somehow connected to Ohio State, I'm a crimson blooded Buckeye Football fan till the end. This also means I hate "that state up north" and can't wait to see the Buckeye's kick the crap out of them tomorrow afternoon. ALSO, the BYU/University of Utah game is NEXT weekend and I'm hoping I can find a place with the right cable (stupid Mountain West Conference TV) so that I can witness the glory of the mighty Cougars. There's just something about the air during those huge rivalry games that can't be beat!

2. My DVR. Oh what would I do without it. I love that I can record all my favorite TV shows and then watch them at my leisure. Which is usually about fifteen minutes after they start, just so I can avoid stupid commercials.

3. My Daddy. We haven't always been super close, but my Dad is an amazing man who I know loves me and my siblings with all of his heart. He's charming, hilarious and SO fun to be around. He called me last night when he was bored and waiting for an airplane (as is his custom) and it was so great to hear from him!

4. My oldest friend, Sheila. Yesterday we talked for about thirty minutes and it made me miss her so much! We don't remember meeting each other and we've just always been the best of friends. I love her more than she could ever know! I can't wait to see her next week!

5. Napkins. As you all know, I'm prone to messy disasters and if I didn't have napkins, I wouldn't be able to go out in public.

6. Tide Pens. See #5.

7. The sad but awesome fact that everyone at the local Kosher Deli knows my name. I used to be there almost every day when I was an Admin and now when I go I love hearing "Hiiiiii KATIEEEE" from all of the counter staff. And they give me free cookies. Mmmmm.

8. Ultra Fine Point Sharpies. They are so fun to write with! I need to start using one all the time.

9. Online Bill Pay. Oh my heavens it makes my life so much easier.

10. Kleenex. A scratched up nose and face is never a good thing. Thank goodness for super soft facial tissues and a little company called Kleenex.

I will be posting Soap Opera Sunday and another round of Thankfuls tomorrow so be sure to check back and everyone have a great weekend!

Sniffling Thankfuls

Yup that's right. I caught the plague. Whatever Matt, my office and the entire Valley of the Sun have got, they passed on to me. I'm in the early stages and I'm doing everything I can to ward off the evil, so we'll see how it goes. If I'm sick for Thanksgiving I'm going to be PISSED.

That complaint out of the way, I am thankful for stuff today:

1. Advil Cold & Sinus Non-Drowsy. You saved my bacon you beautiful little orangish-red pill, you.

2. Comfort Food. I know I'm supposed to be eating well but while feeling under the weather there is nothing like the food you feel comfort in eating to make you feel a little better. I have a crock pot full of vegetable beef stew simmering at home and I can't wait to get there, make some biscuits, curl up in a blanket on the couch and indulge.

3. The thought of seeing my Grandma in a week. Shirley is one of my life's biggest blessings and I can't WAIT to see her next week, do some shopping, eat her fabulous food and just hang out with my Grandma and bestest buddy for life.

4. My sweet husband. He has been SO sick for almost a week and SO frustrating to me because he won't just TAKE IT EASY. And while that's frustrating to someone who knows just how sick he is, honestly, I'm grateful for that part of him. He works so hard to provide for us and give us a great life. He has never done a selfish thing as long as I've known him and this morning he apologized for making me sick and asked if I needed anything. He is an amazing man and I can't believe he settled for me.

5. The Neiman Marcus Christmas Book. Even though I can't afford even the staples that hold that thing together, it makes me happy just looking at the pretty green, butterfly embossed cover and drool over the designer shoes.

Thankfully

Today I worked from home because I had to meet some servicemen taking care of some issues with the house. I am surprised with how much I was able to get done despite working ten feet from my big screen TV. I was also able to supervise the work being done on my house, which was nice.

Have I mentioned I love our new house? Because I do. It's starting to feel like home and I don't miss our old house anymore. We still have lots of little things to do and some furniture to buy, but I'm not impatient and that will come in time, we're in no huge hurry. I do want to have a Christmas party this year, so I'm hoping I can make it look a little more homey in at least the common areas, specifically the family room. It needs paint in a bad way, but I also need a water softener. And by need, I mean HAVE TO HAVE RIGHT NOW oh my gosh the hard water stains are going to drive me to take pills. For real. So I think the paint may take second seat to the softener, because those suckers are expensive!!

So, now that you're caught up on my boring day, I give you my Thankfuls.

1. Soft carpet. I love walking around barefoot at home and digging my toes into our gorgeous, soft, wheat colored carpet.

2. People with accents. I know, I know, to some people I am the one with the accent . . . but today i heard Paula Deen say "auuul" (oil) like fifteen times and I giggled with glee every time she said it. I also love a British accent. I just watched The Holiday the other night and mmmm Jude Law . . . with his accent. Meow!

3. My recently fixed master bathroom toilet. It's been sorta broken since we moved in and I am overjoyed at the prospect of NOT running through the house to the half bath to use the lou in the middle of the night or early in the morning. Ahhh modern plumbing.

4. Forks. Yep, forks. I spent some time in China several years ago and let me tell you what, whoever invented the fork had the right idea. Eating without them sucks. Chopsticks are hard and spoons just aren't right for SO many things.

5. Feed readers. Oh the joy of not having to search out your new posts. I love using my reader to help direct me to your posts. I do love me some bloggers.

Thankful x2

It's not a good enough excuse, but Matt is REALLY sick (acute bronchitis AND a sinus infection!) so yesterday I sort of forgot to post my Thankfuls. Oops. SO today you get 10, but I'm going to break it down into 5 and 5 because . . . well I can.

Sunday I was thankful for:

1. Modern medicine. Holy goodness I'm so grateful for so many aspects of this.

2. No Pudge Brownies! Oh my gosh if you guys haven't tried them you MUST. You make them with yogurt and they have low calories and no fat and are SO YUMMY.

3. Hammer and nails. I hung three pictures yesterday and I was SO excited! Sad, I know.

4. Clean bathrooms. It took me two hours to clean my shower yesterday and I was SO PISSED about it (stupid hard water), but now, it looks incredible and sparkly clean.

5. Hand lotion. After all the harsh cleaning chemicals yesterday, it felt great to give my hands some lotion therapy.

Today I am thankful for:

1. Veterans. Being Veteran's Day and all I have to be, but I have a very special place in my heart for the men and women who fight for our country. My Grandfather is an Army Veteran of WWII, my Step-father was a proud Army Veteran of Vietnam who spent his life working for Veterans rights and was one of the most patriotic individuals I have ever met. Finally my brother Sean served in the Marines in Iraq for a year in 2003. I'm so grateful for his service and that he came home safely to us. These three men, and all the members of our Military, make me so proud and grateful to live in the USA.

2. Bobby pins. I am so lazy when it comes to doing my hair and somehow with bobby pins, I can miraculously make it look like I tried when I really didn't.

3. My iPod. I was so irritated with the radio this morning and I just flipped on my iPod and rocked out to Boys Like Girls and was happy as a clam. (Are clams really happy??)

4. My boss. She's so patient with me and helps me learn so much every day. Plus she's like, the coolest lady ever. I'm so lucky to work for someone like that.

5. Dry erase markers. I have two whiteboards in my cubicle and I love being able to write and erase things so easily! Plus they come in fun colors! They're like crayons for big kids! But BETTER!

Phew! I got through it. What are you guys thankful for this week?
2.

Saturday Thankfuls

If you're looking for Soap Opera Sunday, it's just below this post!

Today I'm thankful for:

1. Stores with great sales. I refuse to buy things full price and am overjoyed to report that I saved approximately $400 today and I'm SO happy!

2. Diet Cheater Days. Today is my "day off" and while MOST of the day I was actually really good, I was overjoyed when I ate my cheese ravioli.

3. College Football. Despite my team (the Ohio State Buckeyes) losing HORRIBLY and getting bumped from the #1 spot today, I am grateful for the college football season for many reasons. The heart, the passion and the tight pants. Plus, my other team, BYU, is doing awesome thanks to their star running back (and my brother's best friend), Harvey Unga.

4. Washers and Dryers. I cannot BELIEVE the amount of clothing Matt and I have to wash in a week and I'm so grateful every time I put a load in the washer and am able to close the door and forget about it! Saves SO MUCH TIME!

5. Sunroofs. Since I started buying my own cars, I have always had a sunroof and I love them. I love driving around and being either bathed in sunlight or able to look up at the stars.

Another Lame Post

Let's see . . . I seem to suck at blogging about . . . anything relevant lately. I feel as though I've been in a writers slump. Not that I consider myself a real writer or anything important like that because I don't.

I do have two minor Kateastrophes to report on, so I suppose I should share, and there are a couple of other things to update you on. So I guess I present MORE RANDOMNESS!

First of all, I rolled - that's right ROLLED - my brother-in-law's quad at the Dunes last week. Several things make the story funny. First, Taylor (the B-I-L) laid it down sideways WITH his poor wife on it the first time they rode together. He hurt his wrist but overall they were OK. Second, my father-in-law also laid it down on his first ride on it. So basically, Matt is the only person who rode it who didn't wreck it. The other thing that makes the story funny is that the reason I rolled it was because I was going too slow. That's right. I crashed because I was going TOO.SLOW. I was on the side of a steep dune and rather than gunning it to prevent the roll, I got scared and slowed down. Aaaaaand down I went. Luckily I slid about ten feet down the hill so the quad didn't roll ON me. I was only about fifty feet from Matt and he was so scared that I was hurt and came running down the hill. I was just lying there on my back, holding the quad (which is still running) with my legs so it wouldn't roll any further and of course laughing my head off. I wasn't hurt, thank goodness, but I think that quad might be the devil.

My second Kateastrophe happened the night we got back from the dunes. I was doing serious laundry because EVERYTHING smelled horrible, and I didn't clean out the pocket of my riding pants, and I washed my iPod shuffle. What's really sad is that on the drive home, I told Matt I was worried that I'd wash it so he needed to help me remember to clean out all the pockets. After he found out I washed it he laughs and says

"You know what's funny, wifey? You KNOW what you're going to do wrong. You always ask me to remind you NOT to do something stupid that you think you might do."

It's totally true. I know I do this crap. I know I forget stuff like that, so I ask people to help me remember not to be stupid. Unfortunately, it doesn't always work. So I figured my iPod was dead, but remembered a time a few years ago when I dropped my cell phone in the lake and it somehow survived the damage after it dried out for a few days. SO, I let the Shuffle dry out and magically, it works! I'm guessing it's going to be a little retarded for the rest of it's life but it WORKS! YAY! Kateastrophe averted! That sure doesn't happen very often!!

Update on my fatness . . . I'm on a serious diet. I've started eating less than 2000 calories a day and making sure that it's mostly veggies, whole grains and lean protein and I give myself one day off a week to eat what I want. The only cheating I've done in over a week was last night for the chicken noodle soup. It's actually very healthy but the noodles aren't made with whole grains. So my cheating technically wasn't that bad but I do have to call a spade a spade and admit to the cheat. I'm sort of sick of salad and lettuce but I'm loving the Trader Joe's whole grain mixes. They are super delicious! I'm a carb junkie, so the NO carb thing doesn't work for me, but the whole grain carb thing does. I figure I can do the calorie counting and some of the other stuff . . . it doesn't feel as extreme. I'm also loving fresh fruit. Mmmm yum.

In addition to the diet, I'm also working out six days a week. Right now I'm working up to serious workouts, but I do 45 minutes of cardio every day and when I have the energy I add in some weight training. It feels pretty good.

Sadly, I'm being UBER superficial and using my ten year high school reunion as my motivation right now. I don't really know why . . . I'm still in touch with most of my friends from high school and they know what I look like now but I guess any motivation is good motivation right?!

So um, I will end this post with Friday's Thankfuls, as most of you will see this post on Friday.

1. Perfect weather. We're finally, FINALLY out of the hotness in Arizona and the weather is gorgeous. I sure love me a good 78 degree day.

2. Dove shampoo and conditioner. See I used to be a hair care product snob. Only Aveda was good enough for my hair. But then I got a house and a husband (and a life?) and got cheap and I got the HUGE, cheap bottles of Dove at Costco. Surprisingly, I LOVE it! My hair always smells clean and is SO soft and silky. Yay for cheap, great haircare!

3. Julia. I got the FUNNIEST message from her today at work and died laughing right there in my cube. I'm so grateful for her and her undying friendship and amazing sense of humor. We've been through a lot and I'm grateful that it's only brought us closer rather than ripping us apart. I love her so.

4. Chapstick. In such a dry climate my lips always feel so parched, so I'm glad somebody a long time ago had the good sense to package some of that goodness in a tube.

5. Remote controls. How annoying would it have been to have to get up to change the channel? Ugh. Yay for laziness and fun buttons.

Today's Thankfuls

1. Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup (recipe courtesy of my Grandma Shirley). My husband is sick and in my opinion, that stuff can cure anything! Plus, it's fun to make and my house smells delicious!

2. Long pants. I mean the ones that are long enough that they look perfect with high heels. There's nothing like that awkward "my pants are too short feeling" and vice versa. I love long pants!

3. My sister, the great Tofutti. We talk about four times a week and she is amazing and funny and witty and I miss her and love her.

4. Bottled water. Arizona tap water is gross and I love that I can just grab a bottle of cold, tasty water and go!

5. Costco. That place and it's giant amounts of giantness rules. 'Nuff said.