Fun-Filled Weekend...and WRESTLING

So the past weekend has been a bit busy…but so much fun! It consisted of soccer, a birthday party, riding a train and a carousel, going to see a movie, grocery shopping, housecleaning, laundry, homework, playing in the sun, reading, and ended in wrestling tonight…but more on that wrestling thing later.

I think that my favorite part of the weekend was going to Freestone Park with Caleb. We were there for my husband’s co-workers child’s party (try saying that three times fast) and I had forgotten about the little carnival that they have there. It was so much fun just to see my little train-obsessed child seeing the train for the first time…and he has been asking to go back about every 10 minutes ever since! We walked around the lake, played at the playground and we also took a ride on a carousel and I haven't gotten to do that in at least 15 years...it really was an amazing outing for Caleb and I.

So back to the last part of the weekend…Yes, that’s right, I said wrestling. A couple of weeks ago my work had some tickets up for grabs to go see WWE RAW wrestling. Being the good little wifey that I am I thought, heck my husband might like to go see that, he used to watch it when we were younger. Never did I think that if I got the tickets that he would want me to go with him. I honestly thought that he would take a friend, but no. Much to my chagrin he (gasp) asked me to go with him. And, to make matters worse he called it “date night.” Whoopee…now that’s my idea of a date! ;-) (I also fear that my redneck roots might be showing, because it’s only March and I have now been to a monster truck show and a wrestling match already this year! AAAHHH!!) In the end it was fun (mostly because of the people watching) and I really did have a good time. It’s like they say, if you’re with the one you love, just about ANYTHING can be fun.

Have a wonderful week and my advice for this week is don’t be afraid of wrestling, especially if it gets you out on a date (sans children) with your special someone!

Dear Swimsuit Season, I’m NOT afraid of you!

Yesterday, I started on my second round of HCG and lost 2 1/2 pounds my first day! I am crossing my fingers that this round goes as smoothly as my first round did and that I lose weight at the same rate. My first round was 28 days and I lost a total of 30 lbs. from my load weight and 26 from my starting weight. I am also down two sizes in pants and I feel great! I did put on 5 lbs. while on maintenance (thanks Las Vegas, you not only took my money but you made me fat!), but that gain was just in the first couple of weeks and over the last 3 weeks I have managed to keep my weight stabilized.

I am proud of what I have accomplished so far and I really feel like this is finally the answer for me on how to get my weight under control. I am lucky to have some great friends that keep me on track and encourage me and a spouse that really supports me and helps me to get through the tougher days in this process. HCG is a great diet that, for me, has helped to make me more aware of my food choices. It also has taught me to weigh my food and keep my portions under control.

My weight loss goal for this round is going to be 35 lbs. from my load weight (33 lbs. from my starting weight.) And, I WILL make this goal...I have confidence that I can do it!

So, swimsuit season, I am ready for you! This is MY year and I finally feel good about myself and where I am going with my health, my weight and accomplishing my goals. I might not ever look like a model, but I will be healthy and thinner and to me that is all that matters!

It's Happy Baby Tuesday!

Just a quick post of one of my favorite photos that I have ever taken of my son Caleb. I took this photo back in 2007 when he was just 7 months old, after one of the first times of going in the pool with us. The afternoon lighting was perfect, his eyes were shining and he just has that beautiful, soft, squishy baby skin. He just looks so happy, without a care in the world...I find myself looking at this photo whenever I need a pick-me-up at work because that smile just works wonders on bad moods. So hopefully, if you are feeling down today, he can help you out of your doldrums also!

Dear Friday, How I LOVE thee!

I love Fridays! We have been working around the house all week, doing some much needed spring cleaning. Oh, how I have neglected doing the little things! I even cleaned the carpets last night, don’t ask me what has gotten under my skin to make me do it, I’m not even sure myself!!!

I am really looking forward to this weekend. My husband actually has this Saturday off and we are having some friends over for a BBQ that night. It should be fun.

But mostly I am looking forward to my spa day tomorrow. Yes, I am finally going to take some “me” time and use the gift certificate that my husband gave me for my birthday. It should be almost 4 hours of bliss that will begin with a massage, followed up with a facial, a manicure and a pedicure. I. CAN. NOT. WAIT. Seriously....I am so freakin’ excited! I think that all mothers deserve to get to do something like this for themselves every now and then. We all do so much for everyone else and never seem to take time for ourselves. A good example of this is that I got this gift certificate almost 6 months ago and am just finally making the time in my schedule to use it!

So ladies...go out and treat yourself! Whether it be just to get a pedicure, go out to dinner with friends (no husbands or kids allowed), or just to go shopping by yourself, DO IT. You deserve it!

Happy Friday!

5 Random Things That I LOVE!

1) The smell of orange blossoms!

This is one of my favorite things about living in Arizona this time of year...the air has such a wonderful fragrance to it. Just sitting in the backyard at night, smelling this amazing aroma while drinking a good glass of red wine...like heaven on earth!

2) LOST

Oh my gawd, my favorite television show! It is so crazy good and I can’t believe it will be over in just a few short weeks. :-(

3) Fun Fonts!

I love doing my job and sometimes I come across some really fun fonts and instantly I think about how I can use them to scrapbook with. That is when or if I ever get the time to scrapbook.

4) Reading

I absolutely love to read and whenever I get a break I try to pick up a book. Above are two new books that I just bought (A Forgotten Garden and Seeing Me Naked) and one of my new favorites, Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. (Seriously folks...you have to read Water for Elephants. Consider it a necessity!)

5) Margaritas
A GREAT margarita can quickly change me from a bad mood to feeling pretty AWESOME by the time I get to the bottom of the glass! (Just ask my husband)
Thank you Santa for our Margaritaville Margarita Machine...
it was the best Christmas gift ever!

Busy, Busy Weekend!

Swinging at the park!

What a great, busy, fun-filled weekend that I had! We had soccer, a haircut for Caleb, yard and housework, dinner out with friends, a play, visitors, went to the bookstore and the park and now we are just starting to wind down for the night!

Caleb & I inside a slide at the park

Caleb having fun getting his hair cut

This past fall we signed Caleb up for soccer for the first time, shortly afterwards we got an email from the league coordinator asking for coaches so that they didn’t have to turn any kids away this season. My hubby had played soccer when he was growing up and loves to sport, so he volunteered to coach Caleb’s team. It has been so fun, especially watching how much the kids all LOVE my husband. His sister was joking around with him the other day that he was a “Pied Piper” for kids…they all just seem to follow him.

Caleb smiling for mommy at soccer

Action Shot!

While the weekend was fun, I am so glad that I can finally take a moment to just breathe and take a break…now I just need to get myself motivated for the week at hand!

TGIF

I am so glad that it is Friday...this has been a heck of a long week! The first 3 days were spent in Las Vegas celebrating my 10th anniversary with some friends. Let’s just say that this trip was one for the record books! Then back to work I went trying to catch up because I managed to miss some of my busiest days of the entire month...it will probably take me a couple of weeks to catch up on missing just 3 days! I also missed the first day of my last class before graduating from college. Probably not the best way to start class, but for the record I thought that we had a break between classes...that’s what I get for assuming anything!!!

Speaking of school, some AWESOME news came in the mail yesterday...I received a notice from NAU that I would be graduating with honors in May. That’s right kids...I will be graduating with the top of my class with Summa Cum Laude next to my name! What a great feeling that is. These last two years have been hard on me and my family with many late nights of homework, nights in class away from my family, but this makes it all worth it! I have worked so hard for this and have wanted that diploma since I first started college back in 1996, it’s hard to believe that the day is now so very close!

So onto the weekend! Where would I like to be this weekend? In a perfect world I would spend the weekend here, cuddled underneath the covers hiding from everything:

But in my world the reality of the weekend will be spent at soccer, a play with my husband, grocery shopping, doing laundry and working on homework. But, I love my crazy hectic life and wouldn't give it up for anything. Happy Friday!!

My Anniversary

Today is my ten year anniversary to my wonderful husband. And today, I love him more than I can put into words. I’m not going to sugarcoat things and tell you that my marriage is perfect, because it is not. I’m also not going to tell you that it has been smooth sailing each and every one of those ten years. We have had our tough moments and even lived apart a couple of years ago, but today....today things are amazing. I feel that we have went through the tough times to get to where we are today. We have grown together, we have cried together, we have learned together and today I love this man more than I ever imagined that I could have.

What is love to you? What makes a good marriage? These are good questions and they seem easy enough to answer, but in reality they are not. Marriage and love are words that are sometimes interchanged, when in reality they are two very different things. Love can be all encompassing, it can be all consuming, it can be sweet, innocent, hard, and for some it means work. To me love is friendship set on fire...it is compassion, tenderness and caring. It is having someone else in your thoughts often...wondering about how they are and what they are doing. Marriage on the other hand is being completely committed to someone else, it is the physical, mental and spiritual union of two people. Personally, I love being married...I love having someone to share my life with, someone to share my hardships and triumphs with, someone to hold me when I cry, someone to make me laugh so hard that food flies out my nose, and someone to wake up to every morning.

Thank you Chris for being my husband. I love you and love the life that we have built together...most of all, thank you for giving me the best gift I have ever gotten, our son. I love you and am looking forward to many more years together!

Welcome!

I am so excited to begin my new blog. I know that not many people will follow this or care what I have to say, but it will be great to have a place for me to share what is going on in my life, my feelings about things, musings about life and some great photos of me, my friends and family! Welcome to anyone and everyone!