Damaged Goods

Yep, that's right. Today, I had a minor 'fender bender', or better yet, a quarter panel bender (and sliding door).

I was backing out of my space in the parking lot and was about to shift into drive, when I noticed this big ol' truck backing into the side of my van. ACK! There was no amount of screaming I could do to get her to stop. In fact, the only thing that my screaming "STOP!!!!" did was scare the pee out of Kyla Mae.

Anyway, the lady totally accepted responsibility for the damage and hopefully she will convey as much to the insurance company next week. Unfortunately, being the cynic that I am (at times) and a former insurance claims adjuster, I know far too well how people's stories tend to change up when it comes down to admitting fault in an accident. And unfortunately, it is my word against hers... Hopefully, the damage will speak for itself.

I'll keep ya posted.

P. M. S. (Please Make it Stop!)

"What do you mean I'm yelling? I.AM.NOT.YELLING! I just tend to speak louder when I'm PMSing!"

I'll be honest here, folks... this post is mainly for me and the other 85% of PMS sufferers out there. If you are a man or woman-child who has not yet begun PMSing, then move along please.

For the record... I'm not PMSing at the moment. In fact, I'm in emotional bliss right now. I'm carefree, stress-free, calm, collected and blissfully happy!

Yet, in approximately 7 more days, I'll become increasingly agitated, anxious, easily angered and just down right miserable to be around.

Long ago, it was thought that women who complained about PMS were just looney in the brain. That they were whack-jobs. Not so today! Today, we're certifiable whack-jobs who are one anxiety attack away from the looney bin.

Oh, sure, you've seen the laundry list of symptoms, but just in case you've forgotten, here they are:

• mood swings - CHECK!
  
• irritability - CHECK!
• depression -
  
• anxiety - CHECK!
• angry outbursts - CHECK!
• confusion or fuzzy thinking
• tearfulness
• fatigue - CHECK!
• insomnia
• changes in libido - CHECK!
• overeating-
• cravings, especially for salty or sweet foods
• acne - CHECK!
• abdominal and pelvic cramps
• bloating - CHECK!
• weight gain - CHECK!
• headaches
• menstrual migraines
• breast swelling and pain - CHECK!
• difficulty with coordination, being more prone to accidents- CHECK!
• dizziness, decreased balance
• heart pounding (palpitation) - CHECK!
• nausea
• fainting
• urinary problems

Yes, that is quite a long list, isnt' it?

I first began to notice that I might have the onslaught of PMS last year at 34. Sure, I was having the mood swings, etc., but I didn't know why. I didn't know why I would get incredibly angry because of something as small and insignificant as dropping sock out of the laundry basket as I carried the dirty clothes downstairs, or something as utterly ridiculous as that. Heck, if I was getting P.O.'d because of a sock, just think of how I was reacting when my kids fought or disobeyed. It was not (okay... let's be honest... IS NOT) pretty.

The thing that I hate most about PMS is that I cannot control myself. Seriously. I.CANNOT.MAKE.IT.STOP. It is definitely a snow-ball effect. Randy has begun noticing when I'm about to lose it and he'll make me very aware of the fact by telling me I'm PMSing. However, this is not enough sometimes to counteract the snow-balling effect. Sometimes, heaven forbid, I begin railing on him too. (Yes, I'm a prize, I know.)

We've talked about me taking drugs to alleviate some of the mood swings, but I am totally against it. I just cannot bring myself to take mood altering drugs. I am not condeming people who do take them... I'm just sayin' that right now... I am going to take a pass. Then, of course there are birth control pills that will help level off the hormonal imbalances of PMS, but I can barely remember to take a vitamin a day, let alone a pill that if missed will make me start my period again! ACK! Plus, I'm just not thrilled with the whole artificial hormone thingy. Or, the purported weight gain... Or, the acne...

Aside from drugs, there is exercise, which I am doing, which helps a TON to alleviate stress. Unfortunately, I don't have a treadmill at my house. I'd probably be on it all day during my 10 days of PMS. Perhaps I should begin a regimen of push-ups for each time I feel as if I'm losing control. I can just hear Randy now... "Drop down and gimme 5" (because, that is all I can do at the moment!) Heck, I'd probably be up to 20 push-ups in a matter of months. Hmmm...

Last year, my doctor said that it would only get worse before it gets better! Does that mean I would need to hit menopause to make things better 'round here? Oh, so basically, trade in the periods for hot flashes and keep the mood swings? Yay.

All in all, Randy loves me. My kids love me. My husband is slowly coming to grips with the fact that his wife can sometimes be a raging hormonal lunatic. And for now... I typically have 18 "good" days and only 10 "PMS" days. That's doable right?

I've not nearly said all that I want to say, or need to say on this subject, but I'll stop writing about it for now. I need to find a support group, but until then, my blog is my outlet.

Air travel tip #4592: You do not have to remove your glasses when walking through the airport security metal detectors and scanners.

Randy asked me this today as he was getting ready for his business trip to NY.

Hah!

You know... for an engineer, he's pretty cute sometimes!

The Real Me

Last night, Randy and I were... um... how should I say this... being husbandly and wifely and during a back rub, he said, "What's gotten into you?" I told him, "This is the real me."

And really the truth of the matter is... I was not in the midst of PMS. How crappy is that? That the "Real Me" is, more so than not, shadowed by the "PMS Me."

I have been rolling around a bloggy post about PMS (again... Read the first one here!) but I'm not ready yet. I have a million things to say about PMS, but no good solid way to put it.

Maybe I'll come up with a list of something...

Just look at that cuppa!

Christmas 2005, my dad just "had to have" one of those new fancy single serving coffee makers. So, I did a little research and settled on the SENSEO brand coffee machine. He was so excited to get it. He had plans of bringing it to work and having a fresh brew whenever he wanted, because we all know, that unless you work at Starbucks, work coffee is nasty!

Well, I'm not sure what happened, but the coffee machine never made it to my dad's work and instead, ended up in the cabinet. Something about the coffee being too strong to drink.

To make a long story short, I am now in possession of the SENSEO coffee machine. And, we love it! Love, love, love it!

I'll admit, it does make a strong cup of coffee, but we like strong coffee. Plus, I add a lot of (fat free) Hazelnut Creamer! But, the coffee is really good. Now, the coffee pods that you have to use in the machine are not cheap, but since we don't waste coffee by brewing up a large pot, only to pour it down the drain, it all kind of washes out in the end.

Plus, the SENSEO brand coffee pods are distributed by Sara Lee/Douwe Egberts, who is also the distributer of Randy's favorite Danish coffee "Cafe Noir".

And, just look at the final product. Can you say yum? I love the frothy goodness on top!


So, if you're in the market for a new coffee machine and have thought... "Hmmm, I wonder if I would like that one?" well, you just might, because we do!

(No, I'm not being paid for this glowing endorsement, but heck, I should be!)

Here we are!

We had a great time last night!

Weekend Fodder

Really? Too pretty to fly?

These girls claim they were unfairly treated on their
Southwest flight because... they are just too pretty!

Read about it here!

Um.... yeah. Sure. Because let me be the first to say
that these women are indeed super-models.

It's that time of the year again. . .

Tonight is Randy's company party. It is a formal event. While I love the idea of getting all dressed up, I know from experience that these parties are lack-luster at best. The food is always... blah. There is dancing, but forget getting Randy on the dance floor... even for a slow song.

So, tonight I'll get all gussied up, pray for low humidity so that my hair will look decent, and head out to downtown Austin with Randy tonight for a mediocre meal with Randy's coworkers. Can you feel the excitement in the air?

At least Randy and I will be on a date sans kids. Too bad we can't just get a room and stay overnight! Maybe next year...

Oh, and here's what I'm wearing.

Growth Spurt!

Although I've never publicly blogged about this, most of my friends and family know that I've been increasingly concerned with Elisan's growth development.

Now, to be fair, I am an average height of 5'4". My mom is 5'2" and Randy's mom is 5'1". So, realistically, Elisan doesn't have women-folk height on her side.

At Elisan's last well-child check up we talked about Elisan's lack of growth. She has been gaining weight steadily, but not growing upward. The doctor told me to keep an eye on things and if there wasn't any significant growth by April, then she'd conduct a "failure to thrive" study on Elisan to determine why she is lacking.

Okay, honestly... that freaked me out! FAILURE TO THRIVE? I have the most thriving-est kids on the block, or so I thought! But, the fact remained, that Elisan was/is wearing 5T clothing and a size 10 1/2 shoe.

(Sidenote: Her foot did not grow at all last year and the funny thing is that I often buy shoes out of season to get a better deal, so she has stacks of shoes in her closet that she hasn't even worn! That is every woman's dream, right?)

Elisan has even noticed that she isn't quite as tall as the other kids in her class. She's not devastated, but she notices. She asked me a while back why she wasn't as tall as some of the other kids in her class and we talked about how my mom and Randy's mom were short and that she'd probably be short just like them. We also talked about how I wasn't very tall either. She mentioned that Kyla was getting tall and I honestly told her that Kyla Mae would probably be taller than her. Heck, Kyla Mae will probably be taller than me!

Yesterday, I decided to measure Elisan with our decidedly ultra-precise measuring device and take a look at the results! Not only has Elisan grown, but she grew 1 inch since October. That is incredible news.

I'm so glad too, because now, we'll be able to forgo the growth testing in April if she keeps it up. I'm thrilled!

Soccer is upon us!

Soccer season is upon us, which means, we'll be busier than usual. With practices for both girls on Tuesday, then games on Saturday... we'll be living and breathing soccer until mid-May.

Last night was the first practice. Randy is coaching Elisan's team again this year. He said she looked great on the field.

Meanwhile, I was with Kyla across the field for her practice. This is her first year to play, but has had plenty of practice playing outside with her sister and daddy. The coaches must have noticed, because they kept telling her that she was going to be the star of the team. She even told us that she was the "star!" Nuthin' like a lil' modesty, 'round here.

Thank you all for all of the comments about my painting dilemma. While looking at painted rooms on-line, I realized that Pottery Barn is now posting the name of the paint at the bottom of each picture. Cool, eh?

I'm going today to pick out some paint chips! I'm getting excited!

Let the painting begin!

I'm in the painting mood! But, woe is me... my husband has sworn off painting interiors walls for the rest of his life, so I am stuck doing it myself.

My ongoing and thus time consuming painting projects will include our gigantic gameroom, the hallway connecting our bedrooms, Kyla's room, the girls' bathroom and re-painting Elisan's BARBIE (BARF) PINK bedroom.

So, what are the new "in" colors? I need some help here!

Elisan's Barbie Pink Room - What was I thinking?

Oh! I know... I was thinking that that 1x1 color swatch was the perfect pink color when I was at the Sherwin Williams store two years ago!

The previous owners did the stencil. It was okay for their "theme", but I have never liked it. I'm thinking a pale lavender color here.

This room is HUGE! It needs a major update, but I'm at a loss. I'm thinking of making some window coverings, too.

And finally, what is a good bathroom color for girls? I'm at a loss here.


This is the color I'm thinking of for Elisan's room. (Pottery Barn)

HELP ME!!!

I {heart} post-Valentine Day's sales!

One of my favorite shopping days of the year is Feb. 15th! I love all the heart stuff that goes on sale. And, because I have two girls... heart stuff is a SURE win around here.

I only made it to one store on Friday because I was hosting a party at the house that evening and had loads of cooking and cleaning to do. So, I headed to Wal-Mart to pick up some groceries and some V-day stuff.

Wal-Mart's selection (as always) was vast, but sub-par. Just the typical standard fare... BUT, I found these adorable galvanized tin buckets with embossed hearts that I could not pass up. They were priced $1.00 each, but they were 50% off. I bought 16!
I figure they would be perfect as gift bags (or buckets!) throughout the year. Wrap it up in cellophane, make a big bow and wha-la! A beautifully presented gift.

Impulsive!

Those know me personally, know that I am not an impulse shopper. Sure, I do the typical "retail therapy" from time to time, but hardly ever do I impulse shop.

I'm the girl that sees the (fill in the blank) item at the store, then goes homes, obsesseses over it, looks it up on the internet, studies it, THEN decides to go buy it. Yep, that's me.

So, imagine my surprise when I saw this cute little purse at T.J. Maxx and decided I needed it right then and there. I don't even know why I was in the purse section, to be quite honest with you. But, I saw it and I promptly placed it in my shopping cart and merrily skipped to the register to buy it.

And for once, I'm not suffering from buyer's remorse! Yay for me. Because, realistically, I would have come home, obessessed, researched, etc., only to find out that when I returned to the store to buy it, it would be gone!

So, here is my retail therapy impulse buy. Should you decide that you love this purse as much as I do, it is the "Tignanello Perfect 10 Pebble French Tote" (in red, of course!) Although, I saw that Amazon (here's the link to the purse!) had metallic colors (Ooooooo!) and essentially every color, except red.

Not for the faint of heart!

Ready!


Set!


Go!
(Now you see why we call her Go-Go Girl?)

What's Cooking?

I tried out a new recipe and it was very good. A nice change of pace 'round here.

Let me just begin by saying I am not a chicken lover. I will eat chicken, but would MUCH prefer a medium rare ribeye any day, heck... everyday of the week for that matter. I usually avoid cooking chicken, but since Randy has begun watching what he is eating as well, I decided that I will have to develop a new flavor for chicken.

After spending over an hour on Recipe Zaar, I came up with several tasty readin' recipes. The one I tried out last night was a stuffed chicken breast.

I tweaked the recipe a bit to accommodate our taste buds and here is a picture of the finished product.

The recipe calls for feta cheese, but I substituted freshly grated Parmesan cheese instead.

Enjoy!

Stuffed Chicken Breasts

4	chicken breasts, pounded thin
1	medium red bell pepper, diced
6	garlic cloves, minced
5	large sun-dried tomatoes, diced
1	teaspoon thyme
8	ounces feta cheese, crumbled finely (TRY PARMESAN INSTEAD!)
1/2	cup breadcrumbs (I use Italian style)
	olive oil
	salt
	pepper
	toothpicks (or Butcher String)
	green onions, chopped (for garnish)

1. Sauté garlic and red bell pepper, in Olive Oil, for about 3 minutes (just enough to"combine" the flavors).
2. Put aside to cool.
3. In a bowl, combine cheese, breadcrumbs, thyme, sun-dried tomatoes, and garlic and red pepper mixture.
4. Toss until well mixed (this will be your "stuffing").
5. Lay a flattened piece of chicken breast on a cutting board or your counter.
6. Put a 1/4 of the above mixture on the flattened chicken breast like you would be making a burrito and roll as tight as you can get it.
7. Secure it with a toothpick or butcher string.
8. Place chicken breast "roll" on a baking sheet (I spray it with Pam so it doesn't stick), brush with olive oil (this gives it a nice golden brown texture), and season with salt and pepper.
9. Preheat oven to 350°F.
10. Cook for about 35 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 180°F.

I served it up with tossed spring leaf mix salad, complete with tomatoes, red onion, kalamata olives, capers, red bell pepper and spicy pepper rings. Topped with fresh Parmesan cheese and croûtons. Mmmmmm!

You like me, you really, really like me!

I have been awarded the "BODACIOUS BLOG" award by Anna at "Journey with the Jenks." Anna thinks I'm "super creative" and has made my "blog so fashionable."

The sad thing is, that I'm only fashionable in cyber-space, not IRL. But, nonetheless, I humbly accept this award!

I would also like to proudly bestow it upon my IRL cyber-friend Stormi. That girl has a blingin' blog for sure.

K-I-S-S-I-N-G

Oh my! Were my eyes opened on Saturday!

Did you know that those first grade little girls talked about boys non-stop? Stuff like kissin', chasin' and even marryin'. If I am not mistaken, boy craziness isn't supposed to begin this early. No?

I was telling this story to my BFF on the phone today and she agreed it begins early. She told me that on Saturday, her 4 year old little girl was kissed ON THE MOUTH by another four year old little boy.

There's so little time that I can chant the "BOYS ARE YUCKY!" mantra around here before they see through my attempts at keeping boys away! I just pray that I will be able to reign 'em in before it gets serious.

Valentine's Tea Party

Today, the Girls' hosted their very first tea party in lieu of Valentine's Day. We had so much fun. Each girl made four cards with lots of Valentine arts and crafts. After the cards were complete, they all feasted on cupcakes, heart shapes mini-cakes and iced sugar cookies. Don't forget the tea... Cinnamon Apple (decaf of course!).

Everyone had a great time!

Into the light...

I have been tagged by Heidi, the ultra-cool and clever Minnesota Mom, from... well... Minnesota.

This gist... post two wish lists, 5 material wishes and 5 spiritual (or more meaningful wishes.)

Here goes:

MATERIAL
1. I wish Randy's job was firmly placed in Texas and that a possible job relocation would never enter our conversations again.

2. I wish my family (parents and sibling) lived close by.

3. I wish my husband was a little more understanding about home decor'. Unfortunately, as it stands... he likens spending money on home decor items, as to having a root canal (or anything of equal or greater value of pain.)

4. I wish my BFF still lived in my town.

5. I wish I would figure out what it is I want to do with the rest of my life.

SPIRITUAL
1. I pray for God's favor on each of my family members.

2. I pray for the 3P's: Peace, Protection and Prosperity for each of my family members.

3. I pray that I will find a ministry that I can be fruitful in with the gifts that God has given me.

4. I pray for salvation of each of my family members who are not saved.

5. I pray that my children will choose a life filled with joy and not despair.


I am now passing the tag torch onto some of my church girlfriends: Pam, Kristi, Stormi, Kimi and Sheryle

I know who you are!

Okay, Ocean Springs, Mississippi... stop being so elusive and email me for goodness sakes!

Love ya,
Erica

EDITED TO ADD...

Okay, that is the last time I call anyone out who reads my blog!

A sweet mom named Erica (at the blog..."life's not a paragraph") emailed me saying that she is the likely guest from Ocean Springs, MS who visits my blog.

A little back story... I have a cousin in Ocean Springs and I *thought* it was HIM reading my blog and not commenting or emailing me to say, "howdy!" So... there it is folks... I'm nuts AND a dork!

Now, go on and check out Erica's blog!

There's how many calories in that?

Since I began losing weight, I am often asked what I eat for lunch, so here's a peek of what I ate yesterday!



Now, before you go, "BLECH! Tuna fish!" Hear me out. Tuna has always been "edible" to me, but it has certainly not been a favorite of mine, until recently.

Why the recent change of heart? Because one 3oz pouch of tuna fish (which is a single serving - shown in the photo) packs an incredible amount of protein - 19 grams to be exact. In addition to that, it is only 90 calories and 1 fat gram. You cannot hardly beat that!

Here's how I fix it up!
3 oz pouch Starkist Tuna Fish - 90 calories
1 serving of Kraft Fat Free Mayo - 10 calories
1 serving of horseradish sauce - 10 calories
1 Claussen Dill Sandwich Slice - 5 calories
1 hard boil egg (whites only) - 16 calories




I'll also have:
10 baby carrots - (about) 40 calories
1 tomato - (about) 25 calories
4 sugar snap peas - (about) 4 calories

All together, the grand total is: 200 calories, 3 fat grams and 24 grams of protein!


I will caution you, there is a lot of sodium in this lunch, so if you are watching your sodium intake, be sure to look for lower sodium tuna and eliminate the pickle.

Now... go out and eat properly!

All nutritional information derived from: THE DAILY PLATE

Are you smarter than a 1st Grader?

Um... I don't remember doing this kind of stuff in 1st grade!? My kid is 6! She's smarter than me.

REMINDER: Don't forget about the drawing today for the "Hoo Loves You" Valentine's Day Gimme. Be sure to sign up before 2:00 CST!

Valentine's Day Gimme!

It's that time of the year again! Time for a Gimme!

This year, I'm giving away 20 (2x3) "Hoo Loves You?" Valentine's Day cards customized with your photo and text! Leave a comment and you will be entered into the drawing to be held on Wednesday! These are perfect size cards for class Valentine Card exchanges. (Or, just mail 'em out to friends and family.)

I came up with the idea from the latest issue of of "Scrapbooks, Etc." so I cannot take credit for the design. But, I did pretty darn good of digitally re-creating it! I love the owl theme! Owls are so "in" right now! (I speak as if I am hip to all that!)




EDITED TO ADD THE WINNER!

Momoftwinz of
Each Day is a Gift

Have I lost my mind?

My husband is not a golf guy. He doesn't hunt or fish. He doesn't play sports. Truly... he works all day, then comes home and spends time with us.

I will say though, that my husband is a car guy. He loves cars. He restored a 1965 Mustang fast-back in his late teens. He only recently sold it about 3 years ago. In the years that we have been married, he has bought me a super-fun sporty cars like my Nissan 240 SX and a stylin' BMW 328! Now... I drive a mom-mobile a.k.a. mini-van.

Since purchasing the mini-van, he has not had a fun car to drive. He drives a truck and I have the mini-van.

So, why was I surprised when he caught the car bug recently and decided he needed another sports car?

On Saturday, he went out looking for a super-fast car. This is what he came home with.

BMW M3 Roadster

Let me just say, the BMW M3 Roadster is one of the fastest, most powerful cars on the road. It is a "Boxster Beater", according to Randy. It is a convertible. It is a 2-seater. Ahem... we have 2 kids?!

As you can imagine I was (and still not) thrilled with his decision. But, as long as I don't have to drive it and as long as the kids don't go anywhere with him, I'm okay with it. Of course, perhaps maybe that was his plan afterall? A wife and kid repellent? Hmmmm, I'll have to keep my eye on him for sure now!