Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Thank Goodness for....Insurance?

Random...

Tonight I went and had a routine prescription filled. A generic, 30-day prescription.

I paid $5.00 for it.

Had I not had insurance, it would have cost me $148.00. $148.00!!!

Things like that make me sad for the people who can't afford insurance, which means they definitely can't afford certain medications.

Every other week when I get paid I look at my insurance deduction and just sigh....because it's quite a little chunk that gets taken out before Uncle Sam gets his share. But thank goodness I have it!

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Run, Forrest, Run

I just had the BEST run of my life. Sometimes, I go run because I feel I have to. Sometimes, I go run off a really bad or stressful day. Today, I went and ran because I hadn't in awhile. And I was bored, and I knew I'd just sit and eat and eat and eat if I just sat til Chris got home. So, I used our apartment complex's gym for the first time in too long.

And it was GREAT.

I had a goal of running 15 miles/ week by my birthday, and it didn't happen. Closest I got was about 10. But I'm back on the train. Today was my first step back, and before I knew it, 25 minutes had gone by, and I was still going strong.

Thank you Bonnie Tyler for getting my ass in gear. Seriously, girls, "I Need A Hero" is the greatest running song ever.

Right next to "Bodies Hit The Floor," by System of a Down, "Ain't Goin' Down 'Til the Sun Comes Up" by Garth Brooks, and "Go Your Own Way" by Fleetwood Mac.

And you all thought YOUR musical tastes were varied :)

Have great days everyone. I'm off to enjoy my endorphin high!



PS...Thanksgiving updates later!

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Happy November!

Well friends, it has been almost a month since I wrote last....it seems to sound like a broken record, but SERIOUSLY....where is time going??!?

It has definitely been a fun, busy month since I wrote last.

The weekend of Halloween, Chris' parents came over to Columbus, which was fun. We just had a relaxing, fun weekend visiting. Saturday, we explored the market downtown and went to Target, and that night, we went to the Movie Tavern, where we saw "Couples Retreat" (which was really funny!). That night, we played euchre, drank, and then played Clue (fun!). They also got me a $25 gift card to Starbucks and a $25 gift card to Victoria's Secret, which was really nice!

Then, last weekend, Chris and I went to TH on Friday night so that we could see his grandpa Saturday. Fortunately, he was having a good day and seemed to be fairly aware of what was going on. He's at home, but is in constant pain and Chris' grandma has to be there every second. It really bothers Chris that we don't live closer, so he could help out, but hopefully he will be okay for awhile.

Saturday night, we went to Indy to watch my cousin Christopher get married. It was a really fun night with my family, and we all danced the night away. Sunday, we got up and went to Johnny Carino's for lunch (just Chris & I with my family) before heading back to Columbus to watch the Cowboys get a big win at Philadelphia!

Wednesday was the big 2-6, and even though I had to work (landscapers don't get bank holidays :)), my work "made" me a card and took me out to lunch, so it was fun. Chris surprised me that morning with a bouquet of flowers, 2 cards and a "scavenger hunt" around the apartment that led me to my sleeping husband, who was holding my brand new pink iPod, which I have been wanting ever since I washed my old one. Thanks, hubby!

Friday, we both took the day off, and we both slept in (much needed after a crazy week last week!). We then drove down to IKEA in Cincinnati and stopped at the outlets on the way back to Columbus. I found some great deals at Old Navy, and got a $120 pair of running shoes for $55. Yay for birthday money!

Yesterday was a lazy day besides getting errands done around town, which led to today's sorry loss at Green Bay. Whatever. Dallas has the most talent on paper, but if they have no heart, they'll never go anywhere. I'm anxious to see if Wade Phillips lasts through next season.

Well, tomorrow starts my last fiscal week of November, which means a short end of month week next week (2 days off for Turkey Day). I'm ready for Thanksgiving for sure....I've been good so far, not a single Christmas song played at work yet!!

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Sweetest Day(s)

Middle of a lazy Sunday in the King household...the best kind!!!

I woke up this morning to apple cider in the fridge (yum) and a sweet/ funny card from Chris. For Sweetest Day...this, from a man I haven't gotten a Valentine's Day card from in a few years. He's changed his way of thinking, and I like it :) Nothing special, nothing extraordinary, just the little things that make our relationship so good :)

Yesterday was nice; we slept in, had some lunch, went grocery shopping, and I made a double batch of apple cookies after a good 25-minute run. Runs are getting easier everyday, and that's a good thing :) Last night, we went to Pizza Hut for dinner, and went and hung out with some girls that Chris works with. We played Apples to Apples, and I had never played before. It was a lot of fun and definitely spurred a lot of laughs.

Today, we slept in (me a lot more than Chris...but it was SO nice), and have just been hanging around the house watching football and doing laundry. Love lazy days.

The Cowboys have a bye this week, and it couldn't have come at a better time. Hopefully this next week we'll get everyone healthy and ready for a big test against Atlanta next week.

This week is the last fiscal week of October for me, and snow preparations are in full swing. ARGH! Its been cool this past week, but it looks like some warmer weather is in store. Thank goodness...not ready for the cold weather yet.

Alright, back to rooting on the Saints. The Giants' "#1 ranked defense" is allowing Drew Brees to throw all over them right now, and I'm laughing my head off. Go New Orleans!

Friday, October 16, 2009

Longest Week

Well, friends...Friday. Finally. I feel like I am always counting down to the weekends, and time is just going too fast....but this week it felt like Friday couldn't get her fast enough. It wasn't a bad week, it wasn't a great week, it was just a....blah...week.

10 weeks from today is Christmas. Wow. Crazy.

I am exhausted. The sickness that has been floating around Columbus and around my work, and I feel like I am losing the battle against my immune system. Dangit.

Bye week for the Cowboys. One less heart attack for the weekend.

Chris' grandpa is doing so-so. He's back home, but they found a mass on his liver during some tests this past week, and they're doing a biopsy on Tuesday. Pray for good things.

Nothing else to report. I'm watching "Say Yes to the Dress" and am having fond memories of looking for my own dress.

Good night!

Monday, October 12, 2009

1st Week @ 5649

Well, we've now been in our new home for 9 days. Its been a very easy transition - easier than I thought. We've adjusted very well to being on the same floor, a smaller floor plan (only by about 100 sq ft, but still), and a smaller bathroom (hah).

Semi-uneventful week last week; the biggest thing to say is that since last Tuesday I've ran 8 miles. Okay, okay, I know that's only 8 miles in 7 days. But...that's 2 miles, 4 times...and it's a start. My goal is to be running 15 miles per week by my birthday, which is now less than a month away!

The Cowboys are now 3-2 going into their bye week, which is a lot different from 2-3 going into their bye week - the biggest difference is that I'm not ticked off for 2 weeks straight :) Which brings up a pet peeve of mine....don't tell me it's just a game. I know it's "just" a game. I have absolutely no power over what the Cowboys do or don't do, and I shouldn't let their stupid penalties and STUPID turnovers and STUPID losses bother me...but unless you can have an intelligent conversation with me about ANYTHING you've liked for over 20 years, shut the hell up. Seriously. Yes, it's something that got instilled in me by my dad; yes, it's one of the things that bonds me most to my dad (by far not the only); yes, I live breathe eat sleep Cowboys, especially this time of year. Thinking about it though, I guess most of the people that tell me it's "just" a game are the people that have jumped on one bandwagon or another in the last 10 years, so whatever. Anyway.

Another pet peeve? Facebook status "wars." If you have something to say to someone, just say it! This is a real-life status of one of my acquaintances on facebook right now....
sometimes I get shitty at someone who says stupid/shitty things every time I see them (about shoes, clothes, hair color, life choices)...I wonder what in the world makes that person feel the need to do that. Then I realize that that person must be pretty unhappy with themselves to say things like that to everyone they see and I pity that person.
Seriously? Grow up. Have a conversation. I'm getting so irritable in my "old" age...just come out and say it...you gotta problem? Let someone know. Sheesh.

I had a great day at work today, for a Monday....walked in to a lot of stress and fires to put out, but I just took a deep breath and went about my day. At about 10:00, I got an AWESOME email from the VP of our division commending me on my performance in A/R (Accounts Receivable), on how well I'm maintaining my branches' accounts, and how I'm leading the division (10 branches) in this area. And I'm one of the most "junior" BA's! That definitely made my day; it's great to be recognized for the job you're doing.

What else? We are a mere 10.5 weeks away from Christmas, and I love it....time is going quick, and I'm trying to not wish time away as much, but I just love the season so much!

Okay. Enough ranting and tooting my own horn :) Time to make dinner!

Monday, October 5, 2009

Home Sweet Home

Well, we're home! The move went very smoothly, no property casualties and only a few minor injuries (some minor kinks and strains...and...um...you shouldn't drop a screwdriver and try to catch it with your forearm)! Walking in the door for the first time on Saturday afternoon was a little weird...the biggest adjustment will definitely be the fact that we're on a single floor now instead of two, but the setup actually suits our needs much better and we have unpacked about 85% of our stuff. Thanks to a very organized, moving-minded husband, we picked up the truck, loaded up 95% of our stuff (went back for the rest + cleaning yesterday), drove 20 miles west, unloaded everything, and had the truck back to Ryder in less than 6 hours. We did have some help (thanks Alicia and Lisa!!), but Chris was definitely the mastermind behind it all.

Chris and I had today off which was good...I hate living in unsettled-ness, so we've been doing our best today to get settled :)

Pictures are coming soon, I promise. But we made it, safe and sound! We are now Dublin-ers!

Friday, October 2, 2009

T-11 hours

Well, we're 11 hours away from moving day...and I'm just ready for it to be over!! I counted it up, and this will be the 11th time I've moved since I started college in August 2002 (moving between BSU and Terre Haute and to the different houses/ apartments I lived in). I told Chris, with total certainty, that we will not be moving again after this until we buy a house, and we're not buying a house until we know for sure we're going to be here (or wherever) for at least 5 years.

While packing sucks, and switching our address is a pain, and going through stuff (and wondering where it all came from) is a pain...I'm kind of looking forward to moving to a new place. We're on the northeast side of Columbus right now, and we'll be on the northwest side of Columbus after the move (actually, our address is a Dublin, OH address). It's a lot closer to my work (unfortunately not to Chris', but he doesn't have to be at work until 10, so he doesn't have to deal with any kind of rush hour), and while I love where we're at now, I love that side of town too. Not to mention, the best factor is the money we'll be saving...about 50 sq ft less for almost $100 less per month...and only one floor! Living on 2 has been alright, but I miss having my w/d on the same floor as my bedroom!! Plus, Dublin is where Chris was when he first moved over here, so it's the part of Columbus that I knew first. Besides, it's just that much closer to Indiana....(hint, hint, friends and family!!! :)) It will also be nice to move into a place that is automatically "ours." Chris had lived in our current apartment for about 2 months by the time I came over, so he had to adjust to someone living in "his" space. This time, both of our names are on the lease, and we'll be able to decide things together (rather than him deciding, then me changing it when he went to work and I wasn't working those first few weeks after our honeymoon!).

So, tomorrow is going to be a long, long, lonnnnnnnnnnnnnnng day. We're getting up early to get some breakfast (McD diet coke, especially!), and go get the moving truck, then some of his friends from work are coming over to help. Since it rained 2 days this week here, most of the guys I work with have to work tomorrow...so they all got lucky! We're hoping to get everything over there in one shot, unload, then come back and clean the apartment from top to bottom (although we've gotten a pretty good start in the last couple of weeks). It'll be a long day, and a late night, but that means Sunday we only have to be up for the cable/ Internet guy between 12-4, watch the Cowboys at 4:15, and then we both have Monday off to re-coop and get settled.

Moral of the story? Come on, Sunday!!! :)

Wish us luck!

Sunday, September 27, 2009

It's October!

Well...tomorrow is. Fiscal October - for my work. But still...we're only 3 days away from October 1. Crazy!

Speaking of crazy, we got home today from our 4th wedding of the year earlier today. One of Chris' former roommates/ fraternity brothers/ groomsmen got married yesterday, and Chris got to return the favor of standing up with Blake. The weather ended up cooperating beautifully, and the reception was a lot of fun. I always have a great time when Chris' friends get together; I know all of the girlfriends/ wives pretty well from being with Chris for almost 7 years, so being around his friends is almost as fun as being with my own! More pictures to come later.

Also speaking of crazy, this week is going to be nuts and I'm just praying that I can survive it. Since I was off on Friday, I'll spend the first half of tomorrow catching up on emails, etc, and with it being the first week of October, that means I will be spending the week closing out September, which always takes every last second of 40 hours (ha...haven't had a 40-hour week in I don't know how long) plus some, but every month it goes a little smoother. Plus, we're moving on Saturday and we only have....let's see...10ish boxes packed up (but they're all the pain-in-the-butt things...glasses, pictures, plates, etc).

I'm looking forward to getting into our new place together and getting settled...we'll have just a few weekends before Chris' parents come to visit - my cousin's wedding at the beginning of November - and then we're thrown right into Thanksgiving & Christmas. Wahoo!

Well, I'm going to watch a few minutes of this Colts game, but not for too long....the Cowboys play tomorrow night and I'm still sleep deprived from sharing a full-sized bed with Chris for 2 nights! Happy October!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Happy Friday!

.....er, Thursday. But it's Friday for me, so at a time that I'm usually rolling over to turn out my light for the night, I am engrossed in a show on 'E!' called "Going Postal: 15 Most Random Acts of Violence." Nice, right? Seriously, though....I find shows and books and documentation about stuff like this just fascinating...I almost have a sick obsession with things like this. Just like the Holocaust era of WWII, I am very interested in why people do the things they do.

They are on #7, and I believe that 5 of them have had some kind of mental illness (the 6th was the Jonesboro shootings; 2 kids). Absolutely mind-boggling. With my family being closely affected by mental illness, I just find incidents like these fascinating. Sometimes, I think I went into the wrong profession. I had a major interest in Psychology in high school and actually got a 4 on the AP test as a senior (out of 5), which allowed me to get credit for Psych 100 in college. I took a couple classes of Psych my freshman year, but was more enamored by numbers and the black and white side of things rather than constantly searching the gray. What makes these people tick? What is in their DNA that makes them, literally, go crazy? I don't know. Sometimes I wonder if my dad's dad were alive today...if there would be medicine that would have kept him alive. I don't know. No one knows...none of these people know what life would be like if these sick people had some kind of help.

Random thoughts.

Anyway...I'm looking forward to the next 10 days or so....well, this weekend, and then next weekend...tomorrow, I'm sleeping in (thank you, vacation day!) and packing for the weekend - then, when Chris gets off work at 12:30, we're heading to IN for a wedding that Chris is in on Saturday. Blake was in our wedding last August, so it's neat to be on the other end of it. It should be a fun time. Next week is going to be absolute madness. It's end of month week, which is always, at a minimum, a 50-hour work week. I've now been through a full year of month-end closes, but the preparation always is so long. Plus, we have to pack up the rest of the apartment in preparation for our move next Saturday. And, of course, Dallas plays on Monday night, so that'll be a late night, but hopefully this time I'll stay up for a good cause!

I'm anxious to get into our new apartment and get settled...and hopefully we can stay at this apartment until we find a house to buy and stay in for a long time! I'm tired of moving!

Chris is very worried about his grandpa right now...he literally broke his back on Tuesday night and is now in the hospital. He hasn't been taking his Alzheimer's medicines, and he isn't doing very well. Chris feels very helpless this far away, so all we can do is pray that everything turns out okay.

Well, they're down to the top 5, and I'm predicting: Columbine, 9/11, Oklahoma City, Virginia Tech...hmm....what will round out the 5?

I'm weird. You can all say it. But maybe someday mental illness won't be around anymore. We can only hope...but I guess that still leaves all the terrorists and angry people out there.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

FRUSTRATED!!!!!!!!!!!!

ARGHHHHHHH!! I am so MAD right now!! I know it's just a game, and that there are 144674679209874 other things that are more important than football, but for anyone that knows me on even a superficial level knows that I live, breathe, sleep, eat Cowboys year-round. And to open the 1.2 BILLION dollar stadium the way the Cowboys did tonight?!? Argh. I will never NOT be a Cowboys fan, but MAN they make me so MAD!!!!! Romo throws TECHNICALLY 3 picks (1 being such a fluke it was sick), plus the other turnover....you hand a team 24 points, they will beat you. Even if they do nothing but kick FGs in the red zone, they will beat you.

I have to be up in less than 6 hours. I would've been a lot happier going into work at 6:30 had we won. But no. We lost, 33-31, on a last-second 37 yard field goal. I could puke.

Next week, home against Carolina for MNF. Let's hope Romo screws his head on straight for that one!

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Kanye, Serena, and Society in General

So, I'm not cool. I have to be at work so early (between 6:30 and 7) that I don't generally stay up too late (okay, who am I kidding. It's pushing it for me to stay up til 10 on a Friday night), so I didn't stay up and watch the VMA Awards the other night. I'm going to comment briefly and move on with it.

Kanye West is a douchebag. There really is no other nice way of putting it (sorry, Mom). I'm still not convinced that the entire thing wasn't staged, but whatever....it was ridiculous what he did to Taylor Swift. I used to think of him as an overly-political artist, but with some decent songs. I now refuse to listen to him, or talk about him, or read anything more about him. And I hope that the rest of America does, too. He's an attention-whore who clearly has a problem with alcohol (he was said to be inebriated at the time of the mike-grabbing) and has no respect for other people or his peers. It ticks me off. A normal person wouldn't do that. Was he not hugged enough as a child? Anyway. I'm done thinking and talking about it. I hope from here his career takes a nosedive into hell, because he deserves it. Enough is enough.

Serena Williams. YOU ARE A LADY!! Far be it from me to give women lessons on ladylike-ness, but I can tell you right now that I was at least raised well enough to not go off on random people....especially on national TV (like I was ever on national TV anyway....but moving on....) I just can't get over celebrities' behavior these days. I know I sound like an old grandma, but really...when I was younger, it just seemed that celebrities didn't do stuff like that. Now, it's about money, endorsements, publicity, and who's dating who. The NFL may not even have a season next year (my heart stops just writing that) because there may be no salary cap. Guys will quit playing because they're not making as much as the next guy. Seriously....guys on the bench still make more than most people do in a year, and it makes me sick. I love football, and I love the NFL, but as a whole, NFL players, owners, GMs, and coaches are a bunch of greedy people (and other athletes in general). YES, I know that many of these athletes donate time and money to charities, etc, etc, etc.....BUT....they still have enought leftover.

Anyway. Random rant. Sorry.

On a good note, my boss' boss' boss' boss (you get that?) came to the branch today. He's the COO of Brickman, and he had a lot of great things to say. It was pretty cool, but I have to admit that I'm glad this day is over. People get pretty uptight when bigwigs come to town!

Relaxing for 30 minutes before I have to start dinner. Plus, all these empty boxes are just staring at me...I KNOW I KNOW I NEED TO START PACKING!!!!!!!!!!

Monday, September 14, 2009

The King's Weekend: By The Numbers

28: number of hours it took for my cousin, Kristi, to deliver her & her husband (Wes)'s first child, Ava Grace Reed. They started the inducing at 5:30 on Friday night and Ava made her arrival at 9.12 pm on 9/12/09. Welcome, Ava!

3: number of great hours I spent in the mid-September sunshine on Saturday afternoon.

60(ish): pool temperature (it felt like)....had to jump in after getting too hot, and promptly got out....COLD!

18: points USC scored against hometown favorite (duh) Ohio State on Saturday night. OSU only scored 15. It got worse...

4: the number of points OSU's UNRANKED archrival Michigan beat #16 ranked Notre Dame by on Saturday afternoon. Ouch.

11: OSU's new ranking, falling 3 from #8

353: Tony Romo's new career high passing yards in a game, Sunday vs. Tampa Bay

1965: before yesterday, the last time a Cowboys team had 2 or more plays of 60 yards or more

13: number of points the Cowboys beat Tampa Bay by...in hot, humid Florida

2: number of hours Chris & I spent going through old documents, bills, statements, and general junk paperwork in our apartment. Two bags full of trash and one full of shredded paper later, we now have no more bills hanging around from 2006 (they were somewhat organized, but who knows when I might have had to prove that I DID pay a Vectren bill back on Bethel?)

0: the times Chris & I ate out this weekend. Boo.

102: days until Christmas!

1: box so far earmarked for Goodwill. Many more coming I'm sure!


That pretty much marks our weekend. A great weekend of football, sunshine, and being together. And - praising God for Ava's safe arrival. Congrats Kristi & Wes!

Monday, September 7, 2009

Happy Labor Day!

Well, it has been a very quiet and uneventful weekend at the King household....a much-needed one for sure, since the next month is going to be pretty crazy! We have two "free" weekends, a wedding in Indy (which Chris is in), and then we're moving the following weekend, which, by my calculations, takes us right into October (CRAZY!). So, the next two weekends are going to be spent packing up and sorting out and getting things ready to move....in between football, of course! The regular season is now a mere THREE days away (kickoff is Thursday night between Pittsburgh & Tennessee), and Dallas plays Sunday. I can't wait! Unlike last year, I'm not overly confident that Dallas will win it all, but I am cautiously optimistic that they'll at least make the playoffs and WIN a game in the postseason! I'm calling it now! 11-5, a Wild Card spot, and at least getting into the divisional round!

With people all around me getting pregnant right and left lately, it has been hard to keep myself away from baby fever. I have several sorority sisters that are pregnant (including a close friend who just found out that they're expecting their first...can't wait to be "Aunt Nikki"!), a cousin who is due anyday, a guy at work whose g/f is expecting twins in April, my immediate boss who is due in February....but we're staying away from that (for now...sorry everyone!) However, we did get into a discussion on baby names on Saturday night, and that was fun. We're just not ready for babies yet, and we know that. But hopefully, when the time is right and presents itself, everything will go swimmingly :) It's fun to think about for now, though.

It has been a very random, fun, lazy weekend. Saturday, we both slept in late, got some lunch, and Chris went to watch the first OSU game at an old co-worker's house. I watched the first quarter, but the beautiful sunshine was calling my name and I went out to the pool. So sue me....I'm not a full-fledged Buckeye yet! I did catch the end of the game though, and there was a collective sigh of relief as the Bucks escaped a close call by Navy. Football season is always so much fun! That night, we went out for a quick dinner, and laid around the house. Yesterday was more of the same, with grocery shopping mixed in. I have to say that grocery shopping is one of my favorite things to do with Chris (98.9% of the time!). We both love people-watching, coming up with ideas for dinner (even though most of the time I have the whole week's meals already planned out), and generally goofing around. We went back to the pool yesterday for a little bit more sunshine, and I again braved the cold water to swim some laps. I have found that being in water just relaxes me, and I don't even feel tired or sore after doing any kind of activity in the water. Maybe I was an Olympic swimmer in a former life! It's something to look into, though....swimming is a great form of exercise, and I'm always up for something to get me out of my normal boring (not so much right now) routine.

Last night was more laying around the house, and Chris was in a really goofy mood that kept me laughing for most of the night. We went on a memory journey when we watched a slideshow of all of our honeymoon pictures, and we both were bemoaning the fact that we were in Jamaica just a short year ago. Hopefully, we'll be able to go back soon....we loved every minute! We slept in late again this morning, and have been lazing around in our pj's all day. I plan on making banana pancakes for dinner - we grilled out last night since we knew the weather probably wouldn't cooperate today (we were right....it's been cool, rainy, and cloudy all day). I also got a Christian marriage study from a coworker last week, and we're excited to start it to see what it can bring to our marriage.

Well, apparently I am more than a wife. I am a playmate....Chris is yelling "I'm bored" from upstairs, so I should probably go see what he's up to before he starts messing with my paperwork up there :)

Happy September! Fall is a mere 14 days away!

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Bad Attitude

I have a very bad attitude today. I don't know why. Nothing in particular has happened today, well, besides the fact that my car's alternator seems to be going out, but besides that....I'm just in a BAD mood. The day started off great....talked to my Dad for a few minutes (I had to quiz him on a Cowboys trivia question), which always cheers me up. He is always able to keep me from spinning out of control and putting things in perspective - he just tells it like it is. Black, and white. That's it. Of course, Mom is good at putting things in perspective, too - she and I just like to put a little more...."emotion" in things though, sometimes!

My problem is, I think, that I let the people around me affect how my day is going to go. If people around me are stressed, I get stressed (well, that kind of goes with my job. If people around me are going crazy with work, I'm their support system). If people around me are sad and down, I feel myself coming down. If people around me are happy and "up," so am I. Is that normal? Maybe it is, coming from a female perspective. We tend to want to help people...and no one wants to be THAT person...the downer when everyone is happy, the super-hyper-happy person when people are down.

I'm an adult. I should be able to completely think for myself, and do my thing, and not really care what people think. But that's not the case. I let people get to me. I let things that don't even INVOLVE me or my family or loved ones get to me. Why can't I just block out that "bad" stuff? Go about my day, go about my life, live my life, do my thing...without worrying what other people are going to think?

PSHT. I need to get out of my own head right now and count my blessings. Focus on the good, the potential, the promises. I have so many wonderful things to be thankful for that I just can't let people get to me as easily as I do.

Easier said than done.

Time for some deflation. Tomorrow is a morning full of meetings and an afternoon of preparing for having Monday off. Is it 5:00 on Friday yet?

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

This Time A Year Ago...

We were in the Miami airport, waiting to board our final plane to Jamaica. Well, I guess it would've been yesterday (Monday), but technically the 1st. Whatever. We have now been married for a year and 2 days. No longer newlyweds. Just another "old married couple." But what a year (and 2 days) it has been.

We've been married over a year already?!? Crazy. Crazy how much has changed in the last year, but yet so much has stayed the same. I live in a different city (STATE), have a different job, have different living arrangements (I live with a BOY....which has its perks, some days more than others!), and am now further from my family than I ever have been. BUT - Chris and I are still together....amazingly enough, it must seem to some....I still have the same super supportive family, my Cowboys have yet another promising season ahead, and the seasons keep changing. Like clockwork, my friends have gone back to school (to teach AND learn), and the leaves are on the cusp of turning again.

Chris and I went to Newark, OH this weekend - a small town about 30 minutes away, and had absolutely no plans. We had a really nice suite - we just relaxed, and swam in the hotel pool (alternating with the amaaaaazing hot tub), and had a cheap dinner at Pizza Hut. We just enjoyed each others' company....watched some movies on TNT, watched a little preseason football. Did absolutely NOTHING....which felt great. No laundry waiting to be done, no kitchen to be cleaned. Just talking....talking about this last year and what we've been through. We've made a lot of great memories this year....not always good, but at the end of the day, things we've learned from. Do I miss my family? Every single day. But I still think it's been the best thing that we've lived so far away. We have no one to depend on but each other. "Never go to bed mad"???? Um, no. We learned a long time ago that that rule doesn't apply to us, and probably saved one or both of us from being killed this year (half joking there).

So much more to say....but Chris just barbecued some chicken on the grill, and who knows how many more times I'll get that before it gets too cold??!?? It's chow time!