Monday, October 15, 2007

Shitty Monday Morning (a.k.a. today)






So about an hour before I planned to wake up I suddenly become alert and turned my lamp on. Tyler, all groggy, is like "What the hell?" and my response was "I smell shit". Sorry for the expletives but that is what we said. You see our cat Baxter has been having bowel movement problems and we have found some runny BM's outside of his litterbox over the last few weeks. Unfortunately for me, Baxter likes to sleep on my pillow above my head. So I wigged out, threw him off the bed & out the door & slammed my door. Then I did the nose test looking for the offending poop. But I couldn't find a trace of poop anywhere (except for the smell that is). Baxter has been known for some stinky farts so we figured it just must have been that & went back to bed (after spraying some Fabreeze).








About two minutes later Tyler jumps out of bed & says "now I really smell it". So we turn on the bright overhead light & go hunting for it. We eliminated the closet & bathroom as the smell was pretty much non-existant coming from there. Then I was like "smell my hair" to makes sure it wasn't there on me...and thoroughly checked over my pjs & under them (just in case). We pulled off the bedding & still nothing. I suggested we check the dog kennels but Tyler insisted that it was a "cat shit smell" for sure. So we turned pretty much every logical place over in the bedroom looking for the smell. I peeked out into the hall & stairs and eliminated that cuz the smell was less out there. We pulled back the mattress and checked by the head board. Nothing. We're like "is this phantom poop?" Finally I was like, we'd better check the dogs cuz we've eliminated everything else. So I pull the two kennels apart & sure enough there is the offending poo. The boys (dogs) run out to get away from the smell. Then, instinkively (pun intended) Charlie decides to "shake off" and splatters runny poo onto our floor, the door & wall and worst of all ME. I almost threw up right then & there.






Tyler says "I guess you're showering with the boys while I'm cleaning the bedroom?" So into the shower I go with two poopy dogs (who don't like to get baths or anything). It was so gross. Oh & since Dominic hates baths (so he's stressed) & probably also cuz of the poop smell he decides to take a poop in the shower as well which was extra gross & I had to dispose of. Tyler's walks in and says "& you want to have kids?" To which I replied "at least kids don't shake off their poo". LOL At least Dominic's wasn't runny. But I don't think I'll be taking a bath in there anytime soon until I've disinfected it like 5 times.






The good news is that I was able to do my elliptical this morning, finished organized my H&G kit for my party tonight & show up to work on time (pretty much) with a Starbuck's Iced Caramel Mocciato in hand since I was up so darn early.






Sadly, after lunch I am off to the dentist to get a cleaning & a new wire put in so I will probably be sore this afternoon. I will however be taking some painkillers pre-emptively!

Friday, October 12, 2007

Ponderings...

Babies:
-So my 19 year old younger brother is allegedly having a baby.
-My friend Diana is now a pround mommy of 7 week old baby girl Jackson.
-My friend Shelley is now a proud mommy of 3 week old baby boy Regan.
-My friend Twylia is now a proud mommy of many months old baby boy Owen.
-A couple of the people I graduated with (and some that graduated before & after me) have baby or babies.
-My brother-in-law & his ex have a 14 month old.

Couple this with the fact that I just turned 25 and I suddenly realized that 30 is practically around the corner. Not that I think 30 is old or anything but I figured I'd kind of be having baby or babies around 27 (you know when you think up a plan when you're a kid). Now that this is only 2 years away it makes me anxious, nervous and optimistic.
Reasons to have babies soon (as in trying next year):
  1. We both have decent jobs; plus I've been working on building a career with Home & Gift which would allow me to work whenever I want.
  2. We are married & have been for 2 years. We've also been together for 7 years as of this month & lived together about 6 of 'em so I'd say we probably know each other fairly well by now & have had our "alone" time as a couple.
  3. We own (well the bank owns) a suitable home.
  4. We aren't planning on moving or up-rooting our life or lifestyle anytime soon.
  5. Tyler's family would love it as they've been begging for grandkids since we announced our engagement.
  6. Tyler works locally now so he'd be home to help.
  7. I'm currently fascinated with pregnant woman & what they are going through. And I think I've always been realistic about what to really expect from children. It's not all giggles & birthday parties. It's sleepless nights, poopy diapers, temper tantrums...
  8. My vehicle is family friendly & reliable.
  9. Some of my friends have babies or are planning babies soon so there will be kids similar in age to mine. Including 1 or possibly 2 cousins for our kids.
  10. People who have less financially, emotionally, intelligently have done it so why can't we?
  11. If my little brother can be excited about it happening & not freaked out that why can't we as a couple be like that?
  12. Many couples have problems conceiving & often even miscarriages happen. If we wait too long to start trying we increase the probablity of there being obstacles. Please if it takes a year or two then we'll be even older when we finally have kids.
  13. In the past Tyler & I have seen many couples who have had accidental babies, or poorly planned babies or even babies had in an effort to save a relationship and the parents have ended up being miserable and the kids are often misbehaving. I think this is what is causing the anxiety we both feel over having kids. Now though, a lot of the new parents I know are very happy to be parents or my co-workers that surrond me have raised really well behaved kids (shout out to Katherine, Cheryl, Nancy) so I see that kids can be something you enjoy. And that you get what you raise. (p.s. i'm still waiting for them to all write me a advice books).
Reasons to not have babies soon (post pone it indefinitely):
  1. Tyler says he's not ready (pretty good reason LOL). But I question if he'll ever feel 100% confident much like I wonder if I'll ever feel 100% confident.
  2. I want my mommy to live closer. While she has said that it's a possibility that they'll move when their house is paid off - 4 years, I have heard time landmarks before (when Calli graduates) that haven't been met. Well Calli isn't graduating any time soon as she's not in school.
  3. I want Tyler's family to live farther away LOL But if I'm waiting for that it may never happen.
  4. My body is at the worst it's ever been and it's important to me to be healthy and provide a healthy start for future children.
  5. I am currently "wage" at my job and in order to get maximum mat leave benefits I need to be "salary" which may or may not happen in the (near) future.
  6. I'm not sure that I'm ready to stop being so self-ish & self-involved to have a kid.
  7. I still cringe when I hear kids screaming & whinning in Wal-mart.
  8. We have 2 dogs & 2 cats that are still a lot of work. When we first got our cats they had our undivided attention. Then when we got our dogs, we had to share our love with them too. I'm worried that if we have kids our dogs will suffer from less attention.
  9. I still have lots of travelling I'd like to do & while it is possible to travel with kids it's a lot easier to do it before hand.
  10. My one friend, Shelley, makes it look so not difficult. She could easily be nicknamed supermom! But I'm guessing that I won't be as easy going or as adaptable and strong as Shelley as been as that is truly the difference in our personalities!

So I've exhausted my brain for the day but be sure to leave comments for all three of my blogs today!!

More to Life...

Back from lunch...my ramblings continue.


So I went to visit my brother (and aunt & uncle & grandma) who live in Medicine Hat & area on the September long weekend. I also got to meet the girlfriend Crystal and boy Blake. It's funny cuz Blake actually looks like my brother, Cody. Both are tall, very slim, naturally tanned, and golden brown hair. Similar facial features too. So if he chooses to make a life with this girl they could certainly come across as a whole, "natural" family. Oh by the way, at this point they have moved in together into a trailer they have boughten with some "settlement" money Crystal is getting for some sort of accident (& she is taking painkillers for some sort of injury I couldn't see). SIDEBAR: When I say trailer, I do NOT mean modular home, I mean trailer in a trailer part that is kind of rough. But kudos to them for investing their money into real estate they can afford. And my brother, so cute, has been "fixing" it up with tiled counters and other fix ups. Crystal was nice to me and everything but she struck me as a little immature (very common you might have noticed) and I didn't like the way she talked to her son. I describe it as "big sis" talk versus "mother" talk. Things like "don't be a bonehead" came out of her mouth. To me a mother is suppose to be a child's safeguard no matter what & if she is calling him a bonehead (as tame as that may sound) it can't be good. Plus my aunt reported that Crystal doesn't really seem to have Blake that often, he's usually with his dad or his grandma and was generally very condescending when she talks to Blake or Cody. So I didn't have the best impression of her.


Hmm, one more thing you should know about my brother. There's sort of a big age difference between us (6 years) and I often had to babysit him & he was, well a psycho. Very bratty, always getting into trouble, very hyperactive, etc. Probably around the time I moved away to college he started smoking pot. While I don't advocate or generally approve of drug use, I will say that it has mellowed my brother out. He is much more calm and easier to get a long with than before. Though still very much anti-authority. So during my visit, on the day I was leaving my brother arrives at my Aunt's house (where I'm staying) in Crystal's car, no Crystal. Which is extra interesting cuz my brother doesn't have a licensce or even a learner's (pot might have mellowed him too out cuz he doesn't have the ambition to go get the learner's). When I asked him "what's up" he said that he had gotten into a big fight with Crystal and only elaborated to say that she was a bitch and condescending. The was the most pissed off I've seen him in a while (granted I don't see him that often). She called while he was there but he made me lie and say I hadn't seen him. As he was leaving (to go drink at a buddy's house) he mumbled something along the lines of "a lot of trouble to go to when it's not even my kid." Then asked me to call him when I was leaving so he could come say goodbye.
Probably about 4 or 5 hours later Tyler & I decided we were leaving so I called Crystal's cell phone (Cody currently doesn't have one & they don't have a land line) to tell Cody I was leaving. Crystal answered, obviously crying and said she hadn't seen him yet and was upset about it (and probably about not having her vehicle I would imagine) and that he must be pretty mad at her. I left thinking this felt like a break up fight and wondered how long they'd stay together. I started trying to think up "good girls" that I could set my brother up with that could lead him to the right path (no not religiously) and not be lead astray by him. This was Sunday.


Thursday night my dad called me, fairly late, and said to me in a voice "So, how are you?" The tone he used is one I'm used to when something is wrong. So I'm like "what's up?" He's like "well we got some news yesterday". I said "good or bad"? He says "Depends on your viewpoint I guess." I'm like "okay what is it?" He says "Guess." So I say "Cody's girlfriend's pregnant." He laughs, "yep you nailed that one on the head." So I asked if Cody was happy about it and my dad said he was. So we all agreed that although it wasn't the best situation if he's happy that's all that matters. But I was really leary of the whole thing as only 3 days before they were in a huge fight & now suddenly she's pregnant. So they say her due date is sometime in April. I have to admit I was a little excited cuz I will be an aunt through blood, not just an aunt in law & I wondered if it would feel different. I wonder if it'll feel different when my sister has a baby versus my brother as well. But it felt really weird to think that my mom & dad will now be grandparents, and not only that but it's not me making them grandparents. I've always joked that Cody & Calli would have kids before me (as I have a more structured lifestyle and am more anal about planning my life while they have always been "rebellious" and free-spirited) but I never really believed it. My mom is a little in negative shock as she is only 41 and doesn't wish that kind of responsiblity onto my brother that she had to deal with when she had me at 16.
I called my brother to congratulate him & he did seem happy about it and gave me permission to tell whomever I wanted to (which obviously makes me happy as I love to spread news) but my mom didn't want me to tell anyone until we "see what happens" whatever that means.
A couple weeks later I'm talking to my mom & I asked her how Cody was doing. She said good & that they were going for an ultra sound for baby that week (which seemed odd as it was still early in the pregnancy) and then said the baby was now due in May which lit many warning bells for me. I'm like, May? Does that even work?

So I googled conception calendar to see if I could find out how far along she'd have to be to be due in May (not nowing if it was May 1st, 31st or somewhere in between).
Here's what I found:


So based an a range of May 1 to May 31 & assuming a 28 day menstral cycle (who knows?) her conception date would have to be between Aug 7 - Sep 6. Meaning that the day my brother told my dad (Sep 5) she was at the most 4 weeks pregnant & at the least not pregnant at all. So this indicates to me a few possible scenarios:

1. She got pregnant on purpose so knew to keep taking the tests until she was positive. A lot of people don't know there are pregnant right away. And a lot of people who have already had 1 accidental pregnancy (like her first) say that it's impossible to have 2 accidental pregnancies cuz you "fricken know better" LOL.

2. She's not really pregnant but is faking it to "save" the relationship.

3. She's one of the rare people that really do know early & went to the doctor, or wasn't feeling well & went to the doctor. It should be noted that she has had a kid before so she probably would remain what it felt like to be pregnant.


I should also say that while I suspect her of being manipulative enough to get pregnant on purpose or fake a pregnancy she doesn't strike me as the type to be screwing around. So if she really is pregnant & a baby happens I will love him/her with all my heart. While I don't have much faith for the future of the couple (my bro & crystal) I do think my brother will be an excellent dad as he's always been really good with kids and has always wanted to be married & have kids.


But another thing that this particular situation has started is it makes me a wee bit jealous that he's having baby before me and makes me wonder what I'm waiting for. I've always wanted kids: never questioned whether or not I'd have them, I've just questioned my ability to handle it at this given time and questioned whether my relationship with Tyler is strong enough to handle the added stress of children.

More on this pondering in my next blog article...

Life...

Well I haven't randomly blogged in a while so please be patient through what will likely be lots of disconjointed ramblings LOL


On June 23rd I called my little brother to wish him a "Happy Birthday" for his 19th. He was groggy even at 11AM, ha ha but we chatted a wee bit and he told me he was dating a new girl & her name was Crystal - a little weird as that's my name :-) but whatever. Then I teased him and said "well does this girl at least not have a baby?" And he's like, "nah, she has a 4 year old, Blake." Which makes me shake my head cuz 19 is pretty young to take on the responsibilities of a child and would normally scare a guy away but it doesn't phase my brother. In fact I think he enjoys it. Oh & p.s. the girl is about 22 or 23 I think.


So on that particular weekend that I called him, it was also the first weekend we were spending time with Tyler's family since we found out Tyrone & Kim were splitting up. Some background on that in case you don't know:

-Tyrone (born '78) & Kim (born '71) then started dating approximately in September of 2005.

-In December of 2005 they announced they were pregnant & due in August. While it's exciting to have a baby joining the family I didn't really approve of them having a kid together when they'd only been dating for like a few months, and I really didn't approve when Kim told me (the first night we met) that they planned the pregnancy in the way that they both chose to use no protection. And I really didn't think they should get married (although my father-in-law of course does) as having a baby is no excuse for marriage in this day & age. Especially since I haven't seen Tyrone with a girlfriend in the five years before that.

-Kim is an interesting mixture of enigma (like really what does she see in Tyrone), fun (hey it's someone on my side against the in-laws & a little bit like having an older sister) and irritating. Though I have to admit that she took the edge off of having Tyrone around (if you don't know my history with him that's a much longer story that you'll have to ask for).

-They move in together and it's fighting from day one. Tyrone is very condescing, stubborn, lazy & well stupid. Kim, while older, is slightly subservant, mothering, but also not so bright sometimes and quite immature for her age (currently 35). So perfect ingredients for dysfunction.

-Tyrone starting making comments to Kim that when she was on mat leave she'd better have the house clean everyday & have dinner ready for him when he got home (coming from the guy who makes less money then his girlfriend).

-Kim, in her stupidity, would enable Tyrone's behavior by sleeping in a seperate room so he wouldn't have to get up in the middle of the night. Have Kira bathed, changed, & fed for when Tyrone got home so all he'd have to do was cuddle her, read her books, stuff like that. Which he allegedly didn't even do most of the time cuz he was too busy playing computer games & online poker (another bone of contention).

-When Kira's birth arrived Kim's mom came to stay for a few weeks to help out. Tyrone & Kim's mom got into a fight(s?) which strained the relationship between Kim & her mom as well. The mom, quite correctly, pointed out Tyrone's emotionally abusive behavior and many faults (no education, broke, no ambition, lazy, pipe dreamer, etc). Kim was/is in denial about Tyrone's negatives so she isolates herself from her mother (who lives in Saskatchewan while K&T live in Calgary).

-Through the relationship ups & downs Tyrone called his mommy to complain about all the things Kim wasn't doing adequetely and claims that his mommy agreed with his side of things (yep mommy does enable him too) which doesn't help the relationship.

-Eventually Tyrone discovers "the Secret" a philosophy that says if we put positives out there & be greatful for what we have in live & act as though we have the things we want the universe will provide it for us. He incorrectly interprets this as "Kim & Kira are annoying so they are creating negatives in my environment so I should ditch them so I can win millions at poker. Oh & Kim is too fat for me to find sexually attractive." I have issues with this statements.

1) I'm sure ditching your girlfriend & baby is not what the Secret meant by creating a positive atmosphere, in fact I think it's the exact oppositve.
2)Tyrone is never going to win millions at poker because there are MANY MANY better players than him who don't even win everytime and any idiot can read the same books & DVDs he does that he seems to think give him a "leg up" on the competetion. Plus there are three elements to poker: luck (which you can't control), inherent skill (that you can't learn you have to have it in you as an instinct), and then the skills you can learn. So basically he's batting 1/3.
3) I don't believe that the pursuit of money is more important than family.
4) I firmly believe that if you choose to bring a child into this world it is your damn job to make sure they have the best life possible.
5) Kim is no bigger than she was when he met her & she's not that big & he is way more fat (& truly disgusting) than she'll ever be.

-After they officially break up in June & become single they still continued to live together until the weekend of September 15th. They didn't treat each other very nicely during this time & I'm not sure of their sexual relationship during these months but I'd bet that it existed somewhat which isn't healthy. And if it were me & my boyfriend pulled this stunt he'd be out on his ass immediately.

-Tyrone is now whining about having to pay child support or even taking any responsiblity for his child's life whatsoever. He hoards the fact that he "gives" Kim money over her head which is disgusting. He also doesn't seem that interested in making his house livable for her to come visit and has made such comments as "I won't have her that often" [to which Kim responded, yeah every other weekend] and alluded to the fact that he didn't need a crib cuz his 1yr old could sleep whereever (like the floor).

-Kim flip flops between bitching about Tyrone's behavior & exposing what he say and being upset about their breakup and wanting to be back with him. Again, stupidity.
-Kim has since spent a weekend at Tyrone's mom's with Kira without Tyrone which is good, but weird.

-Kim came up with Tyrone for Thankgiving weekend allegedly cuz our step-mother-in-law complained about having to watch Kira but I think she just likes to feel needed. But again, she takes the edge off Tyrone so I don't mind that much.

-Kim was still breastfeeding up until a few weeks ago when Kira was about 13 months old which freaks me out (personally) as Kira appears a lot older than she actually is.


P.S. I love Kira but am worried about her future as her gene pool is limited and her parental environment isn't always healthy. Hopefully Kim doesn't go psycho and play the old guilt & manipulation onto Kira.


What I find extra upsetting was that my brother, who is 19, is fully willing to date a girl and help raise her 4 year old son from another guy with no qualms while Tyler's brother who is 29 is unwilling to take full responsibility for his very own child. This both amazes me with my brother & sickens me with my brother-in-law.


More to come...LUNCH BREAK!

Thursday, October 04, 2007

Recipe - One Pot Dinner

Okay so I am always looking for alternative recipes for the things we eat as I HATE repetition. So here is one I tried last night that wasn't too shabby:

Ingredients:
Potatoes
Carrots
Onion
Red Pepper (&/or any veggies you like)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
Meat - I used sirloin steak cut up but you could sub stew meat, hamburger, chicken or even pork...
Spices - I used Montreal Steak Spice w/ my beef
Can of Baked Beans
1/2 cup BBQ sauce (your favorite flavor & brand)

Directions:
  1. Chop your veggies & put into a pot with EVOO (a couple turns of the pot). Cook on medium heat stirring constantly until tender. At one point it may be necessary to use a little water or more oil to keep the veggies from sticking or burning.
  2. After your veggies are started, start cooking your meat in a separate pan also with some EVOO. You can also add any spices you want to, such as Montreal Steak Spice. This one can be a little spicey so be wary of this when adding it in.
  3. Mix your beans into which ever pan or pot is done cooking first & add the BBQ sauce. If both are done at the same time you can just mix everything together at once. Keep on the burner until everything is at the same temperature.
  4. Serve.

You could make many variations of this by using different veggies, meats and spices. You could even add/sub rice, pastas, etc.

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

H&G Update


So just reviewing my party sales last night I'd say that I am over the $10,000 sales mark. I need to sell $40,000 by January 31 to get a FREE trip to Greece or $20,000 to qualify for the half price buy in. I'm happy with my success so far (started May 9th)!



OR if I hire consultants and they earn some money that is another route to go. If you're interested in finding out more email or post me!

Friday, September 14, 2007

August - Woo hoo!

Even though August ended up being a slightly "dry" month Home & Gift wise I still managed to be #12 for New Consultant Top Sales. I LOVE seeing my name in print :-)

Friday, August 31, 2007

Justin Timberlake Concert


To appease my adoring fans (okay stop laughing) I am writing about the JT concert. First off I'm going to steal some lines from an article in the Edmonton Journal:


"The suave pop star FutureSex-ed 18,500 screaming fans -- a new attendance record for Rexall Place -- with his LoveSounds, intricate choreography and high-tech gadgetry on Tuesday night...By the time Timabland finally appeared on stage -- towards the end of Chop Me Up -- most fans likely forgot he was even part of the tour. The rapper/uber-producer, who cancelled his Aug. 5 gig at the River Cree Resort and Casino due to an extensive touring schedule, then went on to perform for another 20 minutes while Timberlake and his crew vanished to take a breather before the second half of their set."


So Justin was amazing...he only had one opening band, Good Charlotte, who played for about 30 minutes. It was refreshing not to have to listen to 2 hours of opening bands before getting to the main event (wait i think i just had an epiphany about how some men feel about foreplay LOL). He took the stage at about 8:40pm singing "Future Sex Love Sounds" (still stuck in my head for 4 days now), then dazzled me for almost and hour and a half with dance moves, lazer show and just his overall sexiness. At this point (about 10pm) Timberland took over the stage with what I now know was his version of a half time show sadly, without the wardrobe malfunction. Timberland was a nice little break however I was freaking out worrying "he still hasn't done SexyBack, Rock your Body, Cry me a River, or MOST importantly LoveStoned..." and thinking he was simply going to have an encore performance now. But he wowed me and everyone else by coming back and singing many, many more songs until about 11:20pm. In fact I thought the show was over when he finished up with SexyBack (an obvious closer choice) but he retured to the stage in a mere t-shirt & pants (still very sexy) and to his revolving piano to see a song or two more (slow ones, i have no idea what they were). At this point some bleached blonde be-otch rushed on stage. Justin held off security and allowed this rule-breaker to sit on his piano bench and sing along. That was the main negative of my evening, that he rewarded her behavior with what everyone would have wanted...that I by the time I arrived at home I had a full blown case of a flu/cold/fever. Yuck. But the concert was worth it!
P.S. Yep that's my photo from the actual concert. ~insert girl squeal here~

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

WOO HOO!



So I was just reading the August newsletter for the new home business company I am in and my name is in there several times in the success section!




Top New Consultant s - July Sales : #10 in Canada


Top Wish Consulants - July Sales: #15 in Canada


Top Wish Consulants - Year to Date: #25 in Canada


"Top Wish" is money donated to the Children's Wish Foundation.



The last one is extra amazing cuz I have only been active for 3 months and the year to date is for 6 months...crazy :-)




So I am feeling pretty good about my sucess so far...yay me!

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Irks


Do you know what irks me today? How my sister-in-law Kim seems to think that:

a) having a baby makes her time more important than mine,

b) having a baby entitles her to certain things over me,

c) having a baby entitles her to special treatment.

Basically she thinks that the world should revolve around her because her greatest talent was spreading her legs for the world's biggest loser (and I don't mean that NBC show).

Some examples:

-She is rarely on time because she 'has a baby to get ready too'. Therefore she doesn't respect our time.

-She makes plans &/or invites herself over whenever it is convenient for her because we should all 'be thankful' for her allowing us to see her daughter and respond to her beck and call.

-She thinks that her, her boyfriend & her baby deserve the basement bedroom at my mother-in-law's house over me & my husband because they need the privacy. Meanwhile I find out that they are splitting up. So since when does couple-living-in-sin-but-breaking-up-and-have-a-baby trump over married couple for privacy?

And that's all I can think of right now off the top of my head.

Friday, August 03, 2007

Mourning the Loss of My HouseHusband...



For about three years my husband worked in Fort McMurray as an electrician. His schedule sucked, varying from:


-4-10's (four days at 10 hours each, then three days off, repeat), to


-10 & 3's (10 ten hour days in a row, then 3 days off, repeat), to


-18 & 3's (18 ten hour days in a row, then 3 days off, repeat).




Basically it boiled down to he spent WAY more time in Fort McMurray with his co-workers then with me his wife (well I was a girlfriend for part of that time but you know what I mean). During that time I basically felt like a single mom to our 4 pets. I worked during the week, ran errands during the evenings and his weekends away, then had to adjust to his return every other weekend or so. The money was great, but the strain on our relationship was pretty hard. Especially when you factor in overbearing in-laws who seem to forget that you only see your husband 4 days a month and feel the need to intrude on those four days. Plus by the time Tyler got home I would always have this huge to-do list for him or both of us so our weekends were eaten up pretty fast (not to mention the 7 hour drive there and back).




So as of May 3rd or so this year he came home with the intention of looking for local work, building our fence and working on our yard. For the last three months he has basically acted as a House Husband since he wasn't working and I was. I took pretty much full advantage of this, getting him to cook meals, clean the house, look after the pets, help me with my side business, etc. It was nice to go from zero help to someone who could help full time. However, the lack of income he was producing meant our money levels were dwindling...so I helped him build his resume and he made some calls and today he was asked to meet a guy first thing this morning.




He was off to work before 7:30am...(which I'm sure came really early as he was in Calgary last night picking up our new patio set - hmm, I wonder why we have no money now?). Which meant that I had to put out the dogs this morning before I left...and I didn't realized this until I had already gotten out of bed later than usual. So I was extra late this morning. After I got back from lunch (which was not made for me as he wasn't there) I realized that I am going to have to adjust all over again. Hopefully this time it'll be a little more 50/50 (depending on his hours) but I will have to pitch in a lot more than I've had to for three months. Scary. And kind of lonely.




Don't get me wrong, it's very good that he has a job, it'll just be weird getting used to this change again. But, fingers crossed, at least this job is local and not 7 hours away so maybe we can be more of a "normal" family now...

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

Words from my (somewhat former) trainer...


So I used to train with this amazing individual Cabel and now he has a monthly newsletter that he sends out and I am getting it (perhaps his way of working on my mental block for training? possibly). Anyhoo, this part of his newsletter hit home for me & I thought I'd share, and since he encourages forwarding the newsletter I'm sure he won't mind me reposting it:


For many the summer months bring with them a harsh reminder of unmet fitness goals.While the toned men and slender women of the world put on their skin-tastic summer gear and proudly put themselves on display, those with jiggles and dimples would rather opt for a cover up and hang out under an umbrella.So why haven't you met your fitness goals? Why must you go through another agonizing summer, turning your head as you pass by a dozen magazines showcasing skinny celebrities in bikinis? You should be enjoying your summer days without wondering which pair of shorts covers the most. The truth is that anyone can get the body of their dreams...even you. And wouldn't it feel great to pull on your bathing suit without bracing yourself before looking in the mirror? You can turn your fitness dreams into reality-read on for the three things you need to begin achieving amazing results.


Your Mind You may be wondering what your mind has to do with getting your body into great shape. In a single word, your mind has everything to do with getting the body of your dreams. Your mind will single handedly make or break your success. How? Well, your mind works hard to reinforce the beliefs that you hold about yourself. If you think of yourself as a fat person, or an out-of-shape person, or just an average person then your subconscious mind will do everything in its power to keep you that way.It's like self-sabotage. However, if you begin to think of yourself as fit, healthy and attractive, then your mind will do everything it can to make your belief a reality. *Take time everyday to visualize your new body and to focus on your goals.


If you want to see the whole newsletter just give me a post letting me know &/or you can check out his new website at http://www.oneto1fitness.com/

Friday, July 20, 2007

~sigh~


This might be totally lame but I miss New York. I started thinking about it last week and how much fun I had while I was there and how much we missed and I'd still like to see so I am sad. I wish I had some moola so that I could go again like right now. Literally I feel that "home sick" feeling for it. Suggestions?


Monday, July 09, 2007

Interesting...

I just thought of something this weekend. Tyler's dad Willie has had two wives. Mary: blonde and quite skinny. Kris: blonde & quite skinny. So he obviously has a type. Tyler is with me: brunette, not so skinny (working on it though). Tyrone is/was with Kim: brunette, not so skinny. Coincidence?

Thursday, July 05, 2007

Big Brother 8

Woo hoo....Big Brother 8 started tonight. Here's my thoughts on the house guest so far:

Amber - no opinion yet
Carol - negative
Danielle - not sure yet
Dick - i think i like him, but may grow to not like
Dustin - prefer him to joe
Eric - Like 'em. Reminds me of Jason Biggs.
Jameka - neutral
Jen - neutral
Jessica - i like her more than carol at this point...
Joe - i like Dustin better
Kail - i like her...she looks ten years younger than she is too! oh, but i don't like what she said about gay people...so we'll see
Mike - no opinion yet
Nick - no opinion yet
Zach - no opinion yet

What do you think?
http://www.cbs.com/primetime/bigbrother8/

Wednesday, July 04, 2007

My Brother-In-Law

Although I am trying to be a positive person I have to get this off my chest...
So it's no secret that I'm not my brother-in-law's biggest fan. I have my reasons and I have many. Christmas 2005 I had the pleasure of meeting Kim, his first serious girlfriend in the five years I'd known Tyler, and finding out that she was pregnant.
Now, while I am the first one to say I don't think people should rush into marriage due to pregnancy, I do NOT advocate getting pregnant with someone you have only known about 6 weeks. Generally speaking I think that couples are in a "honeymoon" period during the first four months of a relationship and you hardly find anything wrong with each other, but down the line you tend to see those flaws. So when I found out that Kim & Tyrone were pregnant I was a) relieved; I thought it might get rid of some of the baby pressure we were getting from Tyler's parents & b) horrified; that two people who barely know each other are going to be raising a baby (especially Tyrone).
I hoped that my opinions of Tyrone were just that: opinions not truths. However with the birth of Kira his selfishness & ignorance did not go away (exhibit 1 is the baby shaking incident at new years). Throughout the last six months or so Tyrone has really been showing his true colors to Kim and she has been enabling him for quite some time.
1. Kim slept in a seperate room with Kira so that Tyrone wouldn't have to wake up in the middle of the night.
2. Kim did all the work regarding Kira: cleaned, fed, changed diapers so that when Tyrone got home from work he had a clean & happy baby to "take care of".
3. Before Kira was born Tyrone started talking about how Kim "better have the house clean and dinner ready" by the time he got home from work. Completely oblivious to the fact that babies (especially new borns) are a full time job, that Kim wasn't his slave and that Tyrone shouldn't be the center of the world anymore.
4. After Kira was born I found out that Tyrone was saying things to Kim that most would consider verbal abuse. Calling her down, saying she's stupid, lazy, etc.
5. Tyrone told Kim, infront of his family, that he wasn't going to bother proposing until she was "perfect" (defined as lost weight, listens to him, doesn't talk back).
6. I found out that Tyrone basically never did anything with Kira unless Kim nagged him (including but not limited to cuddling, bathing, changing diapers, feedings, etc).
So about 2 months before Kira's first birthday Tyrone tells Kim that he's just not that much in love with her anymore and that he doesn't want to live with Kim & Kira anymore. His other reasons include:
-they are interferring with him playing poker
-they don't create a positive environment for him and so he's not happy & he has to be positive & happy so that he can become a millionaire (a la the Secret).
So correct me if I'm wrong, but the point of the Secret is to create a positive environment & mentality for yourself and throwing away your girlfriend & baby isn't all that positive in my books.
So now he is whining and snivelling about how much child support he might have to pay and he is going through their possessions and telling her what she is ALLOWED to take from the house.
His behavior and selfishness disgust me. The only things going for him as far as I was concerned was that he had a family that consisted of a girlfriend and a beautiful baby. Now he's throwing that away. Here's a picture of him: he lived in a basement suite, he works in a warehouse for minimal money (especially considering it's Calgary), he is ugly, overweight, lazy, ignorant, abusive, condescending, chauvanistic, argumentative, selfish...pretty much any negative word you can think of. He has no ambition, he is 29 years old, he got himself kicked out of college a few years back cuz he couldn't be bothered to attend school. Everything that is wrong with his life is "someone else's fault" according to him. He wants everything he wants handed to him and doesn't want to work for anything. And now a baby is involved.

Joy Journal

I re-watched the Secret this weekend and realized fully that I am entirely too negative. Last year my therpist told me to keep a "Joy Journal" and write down daily the things that had brought me joy. Here's a few things to catch up:

Brought me JOY

1. Thinking about my 'Tea of the Month' coming.

2. Getting a Free slush today.

3. Seeing my name in print under the "$1000 Party Sales" in my company's newsletter.
4. Picking up my puppies from Cheryl on Monday.
5. Getting my reimbursement cheque for benefits in the mail today.
6. My bosses' being out this afternoon; peaceful.
7. Having a FREE evening tonight.
8. Downloading "Cupid's Chokehold" last week.
9. Finally solving a Sudoku today.
10. Having a chance to write on my blog today!!

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Love is...


On Thursday last week I came home from a chiro adjusterment and a massage feeling really wiped & sore but knowing I had two heaping baskets of personal laundry to do. My husband came bounding up the stairs with my freshly washed laundry minutes after I got home. I hadn't even asked him to do it.
Love is having someone know your intimate desires without you saying a word!!

Monday, June 11, 2007

If I won the lottery...



I'm trying to utilize "the Secret" more so I decided I would blog exactly what I would do with my money once I win the lottery (ideally). That way I can also figure out how much I need to win LOL






In no particular order:


1. Buy my parents a house in the town/city I want to live in.


2. Buy any of the following a home in the town/city I want to live in (within reason, for example some might get a condo some might get a house): My Aunt Darlene, My Grandma Ghislaine, My Grandma Johnson, My Aunt Sara, My Uncle Richard, Tyler's Mom, Tyler's Neice (in her name but allow Kim & Tyrone to live there LOL).


3. Build my dream home including:


-indoor (with outdoor capablities) swimming pool, heated


-large library style office


-front attached garage


-theatre room complete with theatre seating, projector & screen, popcorn machine...


-nice yard


-Master Suite (corner jet tub, 2 person shower, double sinks, separate toilet room, 2 walk-in closets)


-minimum 2 bdrms + guest room


-home gym with tv (digital cable) and elliptical trainer


4. Buy myself a nice new vehicle like an SUV &/or Jeep &/or Honda Civic. Buy Tyler a nice vehicle.


5. Give Tyler $30,000 to fix up his Pontiac.


6. Set up education funds for our (future) children.


7. Rent out our current home or possibly sell it and buy 2 smaller properties to rent out or possibly allow one of my friends/family to live in it.


8. Pay off my student debt & credit card debt.


9. Hire a full time hair stylist, chef, gardner and maid (different people).


10. Travel to New York (yes again. Spend as LONG as I want there), Greece, Italy, Austrailia, Europe and many many more places.


11. Quit my day job.


12. Buy presents for my friends. I'm not sure what presents & which friends but it'll happen. I want to help people out but I don't want to set the up for failure either (as Dr.Phil says "money doesn't solve money problems") But maybe an all expense paid trip somewhere.


13. Have some babies. Hopefully twins.
14. Try to get some backstage passes for "the Office".
15. Donate to SPCA regularly.




I'm sure there's much, much more but I'm running out of time in my work day. Basically I need the whole $40 million from this Wednesday's 6-49!

Tuesday, June 05, 2007

This Morning...

Knackered: adjective British Slang. exhausted; very tired
I am knackered. I set my alarm for about 5:50am so that I could go for a morning swim and instead I played snooze button until 7:30am at which time I then had to hustle my butt to be on time for work. I stopped and got a medium coffee on the way in. I only get coffee or drink coffee about 20% of the time.
Last night I had a weird dream. I dream that I was having surgery: both liposuction and some other mystery surgery. The actual dream took place as I was waking from the first surgery. I felt a bit stiff and not sore yet but I knew I was on some painkillers and that they might wear off at any moment. That is a WEIRD feeling, impending pain. So in the dream they had lipo'ed my stomach but only a little bit of my legs so I was oddly porportioned...and had creepy scars. That'll teach me to watch a 30 second clip about a surgery show before I fall asleep.

Friday, June 01, 2007

Banff Part I

So despite the fact that I have about a bazillion things to do workwise, I am SO not in the mood for work so thought I'd work on journalling our trip to Banff (the non-fat part).
Saturday:
We drove to Calgary, where we spent some quality time with our niece Kira, then drop onwards to Banff. Arriving at about 3:30pm we found the map a bit deceiving in terms of distance: we thought everything was a lot farther away from things then they were. Which is mostly a good thing LOL So it turns out that our hotel, the Rimrock Resort, is a very short walk to the Gondola ride and the Hot Springs. Bonus! Our hotel was really beautiful and our room got upgraded so we got a view of Rundle (I believe) Mountain. The room itself was nice but nothing to right home about...it just had all the basics. After checking in we decided to grab a few phamplets of local activities and then take the bus into town for some window shopping and dinner. Since we aren't much for clubbing we decided we would shop until about 8:30pm (stores closed at 9pm) then go for dinner. We had fun looking into the shops and when we headed to the Saltlik (it was suggested to us) we were informed that it would be a 1.5 hour wait! Guess everyone had the same idea as us LOL So we wandered over to Giorgio's Trattoria to see if the wait would be less there. It was only about ten minutes there.
Giorgio's was kind of a fancy place. I decided to order a crab risotto and Tyler got a stuffed pork chop. Then, last minute I decided to order the antipasto appetizer. What an experience that was :-) Tyler and I aren't that fancy of people. I thought it was like that mixed stuff and crackers...instead it was a platter of greens, weird meat slices, olives (yummy), white beans, and strong cheese. Some of it was good, some okay, and some gross. We had fun with it but probably wouldn't order it again! The rest of our meal was good. Then we each had dessert...and a few drinks. Our bill came to about $130! Just for the two of us...we are expensive.
Then we took a brisk walk to the bus stop & waited for it to come...then saw it coming on the other side of the road. So we ran across and flagged it down. The bus driver was super nice, and the bus went right to our hotel door. The moutain air really exhausted us so we settled in for an "early" night shortly before midnight and not sure what we were doing the next day. We were considering:
-ATV ride
-White Water Rafting
-Horse Ride
-Gondola
-Hot Springs
-Shopping

This morning...

I went swimming again. The first time in about a month. I don't know why it is so hard for me to stay motivated or to stick to stuff. Anyhoo the swim went well but now I am starving and tired.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Being Fat is my disability

First off, wow. It's been about two weeks since I've posted at all. What a slacker I am!
So my husband & I went to Banff this weekend for some alone time and sight seeing. All in all we had a good trip. But there were a few instances when I was like “It sucks to be overweight”. And I know that some of you are thinking “Duh” and “Okay so do something about it”.
First off I have certainly tried to have a healthier lifestyle and it is pretty difficult to create and maintain good eating and exercise habits when you have been practicing the bad ones for so long. And if some of you “skinny” peeps are getting on your high horse I have few questions for you:
Do you smoke?
When was the last time you hit a gym?
Do you eat balanced meals all the time or can your skinniness be attributed to a good metabolism?

So anyway that’s not the point of my blog. Please read on.

So my first negative experience with being fat in Banff was when we went for a horseback ride. I had to get on the horse for one…no easy feat to swing your leg around when you are less than flexible. Then the whole 2 hour horse ride I found myself questioning if my weight was crushing the horse, and clenching my muscles in fear of falling off or being thrown off the horse. Towards the end of the ride I started thinking about how I was going to have to get off this horse.
Banff is a place for fit people. There are beautiful trails for hiking, mountains to climb, etc. When we went up the gondola there were tons of sculpted, tanned people who just finished climbing the mountain hanging around. I couldn't help but stare at them and wish that I hadn't screwed up my physcially self so much. Just climbing up a baby hill or stairs makes me out of breath and I feel so, subhuman.
That night we went to the hot springs. Being in a bathing suit is always traumatic but it's especially so when there are woman all around you in great shape. It's even worse when you see Mom's who have young babies or toddlers who have already sprung back to their tonned bods.
The next day we had a spa day. The lady directed us to the change rooms and asked us to change into the bathrobes provided. Suprise they only come in one size. It's an XL and it's too small...unless I want to flash my boobs & crotch for all to see. So that's upsetting. Then for my wrap the lady used some very small towels to cover my naughty bits. At one point I'm sure she had a not-so-nice view of my butt cheeks.
So I came home feeling not so great about my shape. Pretty depressed about it actually. So I'm going to try to get back on my swimming regime. And hopefully my new business venture will keep me busy and now that it's summer there isn't much good TV on so there isn't that to thwart me.

Tuesday, May 15, 2007

I am Annoyed

I am annoyed when I have to do my job twice because someone else couldn't do their job once.
I am annoyed when I have to photocopy anything, but especially when it's multiple sheets of paper, as our photocopier sucks.
I am annoyed when I have to make copies of things (killing trees) or keep paper around (cluttering the office) "just in case" (e.g. duplicate copies of timesheets from 1999).
I am annoyed when I have to numerically organize a BAZILLION sheets of papers that are currently in a random order.
I am annoyed when my bosses hand me a project that should take a few days and tell me they needed it yesterday.
I am annoyed when each of my three bosses each thinks I should drop whatever I am doing (hey even facebook) to answer to their beck and call.
I am annoyed when I have to take minutes of 10 catty women who go off on irrelevant tangents and debate anal things such as the use of "is" vs "are".
I am annoyed when my one boss lady insists on printing ever stinking email, paper, etc onto the inkjet (versus the lazer) and then loses the papers so has to print them again.

Thursday, May 03, 2007

Hmmm...

it's been a while. I blame facebook...among other things.




Shameless Plug:


Everyone & their dog should join www.facebook.com It is completely free, you can post pictures, notes, profile information, onto people's "wall" as well as send messages and "poke" people! If you haven't yet joined, do so, then add me as a "FRIEND".




So on Saturday I was trying to get tickets to see Justin Timberlake in Edmonton. He's only doing one show in Alberta so the following does make some sense:


I was logged on to the appropriate website at 9:30am (tickets went on sale at 10am) with plenty of time to putz around. At about 9:57am I started hitting the refresh button waiting for the drop down menus to appear so I could request my tickets. It was 10:02am. I punched in that I need 6 tickets, "best available" and submit....no tickets available. So I typed in 3 tickets, "best available" and submit...no tickets available. So I typed in 2 tickets, "best available" and submit (getting worried now)...no tickets available. Panicked I type in 1 ticket...no tickets available. The concert was sold out already? They've only been on sale for like 3 minutes! So I try calling ticketmaster to see if there was some mistake, busy signal. So I keep trying on the computer while re-dialing the number. Eventually I decide to call Kelsey and break the news that we may have missed out on tickets. All the while still trying, typing in different amounts of tickets, hoping something will come up. A single ticket comes up: Kelsey & I are like, well it's no fun by yourself right? So I hang up with Kelsey but decide to keep trying. I go to call ticketmaster again (genuisly hitting re-dial) and I got 2 tickets! And ended up calling Kelsey again because that's the last number I dialled not ticketmaster. So I bought the two, told Kelsey she got to be the lucky person to accommpany me (as she was the first to say she wanted to go) and kept looking. No other tickets came up for the next half hour, or the numerous random attempts I've made since.




So my beef is that it's impossible to call in for tickets because the lines are uber busy. I refuse to go to the ticketmaster because they give you a random number for your place in line instead of first come first serve (happened to me at my first BEP concert) and in reality the tickets may sell out in minutes so how many people in line can you really serve? So the only real option is on-line where obviously everyone else goes too. So by the time my computer even showed me being able to pick tickets they were gone. How crazy is that?




Meanwhile I am torturing myself again this week by going for Nickelback tickets! I'm excited as I had such a great time the last time I saw them. Last time I really just went cuz my sister was a big fan & I bought her and I tickets for the show. I myself wasn't really a fan, in fact some of the songs annoyed me. Well the energy from the show was so fantastic that now they are in my top 5 fave bands on my iPod. The power of a concert eh? And I also think Chad is uber hot now.


Tuesday, April 24, 2007

And...

what makes me so mad is that Kim and Tyrone act like we owe them because Tyler makes lots of money. For one thing Tyler works for hard for his money, 10 hour days for 11 days straight if not more. Not to mention that he is away from home that whole time. Plus he had to work his way up to where he is by going to school and working to get his apprenticeship hours in. During this time we had NO help from his parents. Meanwhile Tyrone was living rent free at his mom's house while he skipped his schooling (he was attending Devry) to play poker &/or drink. Tyrone has every excuse in the book why he isn't farther ahead in life and why none of it is his fault but I disagree 100%.
My uncle got Tyrone a job last January after he met him at Christmas and found out that Tyrone was jobless and had a baby on the way. It was bushwork so tough, away from home but good money and that's what you get when you have no education. After a few weeks Tyrone quit by not showing up when he was suppose to. His excuse was that he didn't know what was going on or that he didn't have a ride to get there (which is garbage cuz he talked to my aunt a few days before). Plus who ever heard of a company getting you to your job...you get to your job or the pre-arranged group busing. So anyway there was a lot of whinning from Kim and Tyrone about how they didn't like him being away from home cuz she was a few months pregnant. Yet at this point Tyler had been doing it for about two years. So we have made the sacrifices that have put us in the position we are in now.
Tyler's parents basically give him no credit whatsoever for what he has accomplished: married, home owner, journeymen, no knocking women up after one month...all before the age of 24. And with no help from them...here is a comparision.
Tyrone: was bought his first vehicle...wrote it off in an accident and lost his license for DUI.
Tyler: bought his first vehicle FROM his dad for way more than it was worth as he then had to sink $2500 in it to get it road worthy.
Tyrone: lived rent free at his mom's for several years
Tyler: paid rent from the moment he turned 18, was the only one in his household with a job when i met him (step mom retired, dad unemployed).
Tyrone: gets cash donations from his parents all the time
Tyler: lent his mom money when she lost her job
Tyrone: got plenty of hand me down furniture
Tyler: bought his dad's shi-tay couch set and tables from him when he moved out
Tyrone: dad offered to pay for his wedding as he knocked up his girlfriend of a month
Tyler: offered to pay for our liquor but then took all the money from the toonie bar
That's all I can think of off the top of my head.

Um, yeah...

So Tyler and I were thinking of doing "no birthday gifts" for this year for like parents, siblings, etc. The one person we'd likely buy for still is Kira who would be one this year. Other than her everyone else is old enough to buy themselves things. So we told Tyrone and Kim about it and that weren't too enthusiastic - probably cuz they go to the dollar store for us and buy us junk and we buy from their list. I'm pretty tired of going to lots of effort and spending my hard earned dollars on other people when they don't return the favor (in effort at least). Plus Tyler's work is sporadic so it's nice for us to save sometimes. Her was Kim's email response last night:
This is going to sound greedy, but, I like the idea of you guys not buying b-day gifts and was thinking of doing it myself, however, my birthday usually goes by un-noticed most of the time and being that last year was the first year I spent my birthday with Tye's family, I want to see what happens this year. Then I think we'll re-visit that idea.
What the f*ck does that mean? Please comment.

Monday, April 23, 2007

Lily Allen


If you every want to expand your music tastes try checking out Lily Allen. She's a British rocker with some fun lyrics...I'm possibly attracted to her music simply for the hilarious accept LOL

www.lilyallenmusic.com

Swimming

I went swimming this morning which was the first time in two weeks. I don't understand why I am so motivated some times and so not motivated others. I am going to a counselor tomorrow so hopefully she will have some insight &/or a prescription that can help LOL I am also asking her advice on how to deal with my inlaws.

My Weekend

So remember how Tyler's parents spent the night Friday so they could go shopping? Well first they wanted to go out for breakfast. I told them I had a nail appointment at 9am so they could wait for me or go without me...so they went without me cuz they couldn't wait that long. Tyler went along. After my appointment I called to see where they were, at totem shopping. So I told Tyler I'd meet him at home. An hour later I called him again and said "Didn't know it took an hour to drive 3 blocks?" So he got home at 11:00am. So basically we had about 24 hours together as he had to leave on the bus the next day (Sunday) at 12:30pm.
Tyler's mom called Sunday morning to ask us when we are getting together again. We just spent the weekend with them on Easter, plus Mary came to my spa party last weekend so I saw her again too. We just can't seem to get away from these people. Tyler actually responded to his mom "I don't know. I just saw you. I want to spend some time with my wife." Which was nice to hear.
Tyler's job in Fort Mac is hopefully ending on May 3rd so he'll be home for a while then. I want him to look for some work locally at that point, he wants to build our fence. I like when he's home but I hate when he's home and not working because:
a) I am still at work.
b) We then have little money coming in, but money still going out.
c) He gets lazy & unmotivated (as anyone who's off work would).
d) He gets really needy as he's home alone all day,.
e) Tyler's dad seems to think that Tyler's time off equals free labor for Tyler to help renovate Willie's house.
On a positive note I am my Great Aunt Sara called yesterday to tell me she's planning on coming down for my Home & Gift party and a few days of visiting, fun!

Thursday, April 19, 2007

AAARGH!

So I invited Tyler's dad & stepmom for dinner tomorrow night (Friday) because they have been pestering us endless to come over dinner (read every time Tyler is home) so I offered for Friday because then it doesn't give them the opportunity to come for the whole day like Saturday would. Tonight I get a phone call from Tyler's dad asking if it would be okay if they could spend the night. I asked why...he said because they wanted to go shopping in the morning. They live all of a 30 minute drive away. I also want to point out that they refused to spend the night on Christmas Eve because they "like to sleep in their own beds".
It's probably only annoying cuz it's them.

Monday, April 16, 2007

Sam: Ugliest Dog in the World







Pictured Left:This dog freaks me right out so I had to share it all with you.




Sam is a Chinese Crested Hairless but the breed isn't normally this freaky (shown at bottom right). He is a real dog and has won the "ugliest dog" title several times. He actually died shy of his 15th birthday on June 28, 2005.




Susie Lockheed (pictured above with Sam), his owner, loved him fiercely despite his appearance. A direct quote that sends shivers down my spine from her "I have snuggled Sam under my blankets on my bed for six years." For more information you can check out Susie's blog at http://samugliestdog.typepad.com/.




And...

I do know the difference and right way to use:

too & to

But i think i frequently use the wrong ones due to my brain working faster than my fingers...

Outlaw Inlaws

This stems from my entries on weddings and in-laws...I began to write about my friend Shelley's wedding and her in-laws but it is way to complicated and detailed for one blog...here's a start of it.

-Shelley’s parents were happy to help out financially with the wedding as the couple was just starting out. Scott’s parents would help out to a degree however there were strings attached: they wanted receipts for purchases, would only pay for certain items, insisted on inviting 75 of their personal guests (at a cost of $20/plate) and wanted pretty much everything done their way. Also, they offered to pay for the liquor and told Scott & Shelley that the couple could keep the money from the toonie bar but at the end of the night the parents pocketed the money.

Budget Breakdown
Shelley’s Parents: $20,000
The Couple: $7,000
Scott’s Parents: $1,000*
*Did not include cost of alcohol or toonie profits as these are unknown.

Now I am not saying that parents HAVE to pay for their kids’ weddings or that they are required to pay as much as the other set HOWEVER I think if you don’t pay you don’t get a say.

-Shelley had 4 bridesmaids in her wedding plus a maid of honor, one of which was Scott’s sister. However Shelley did not ask both of Scott’s sister’s to be in the party, nor did she ask his niece and nephew to be in the wedding party (I think 10 bridesmaids & groomsmen are enough don’t you). Well this was the end of the world for Scott’s family. The sister not directly included, Michelle, called/emailed her parents to complain who then threw a big fit about it. Um, hello isn’t it the couples choice who they pick? Shelley and Scott asked the kids to do the guest book table so it’s not as if she didn’t give them something.

Sounds good. You can add that Michelle said that being guest book attendants weren't good enough for her kids, and if they weren't the ring bearer and flower girl, that they weren't coming to the wedding.

-At the wedding, during the “Welcome to the Family” speech, Scott’s dad talked for about 45 minutes (my best guess). It was 90% about himself (the dad) and how he had such a challenging life and how he’d like to thank his MLA…blah blah blah. And then 10% Scott - there was one story about the night Scott was born (the night it was revealed who shot J.R.) and one story about Scott borrowing his dad’s vehicle and getting an eyebrow ring (I’m still not sure of the relevance of that last story). There was exactly zero about welcoming Shelley to the family (I don’t think they even said her name) and there was zero about thanking Shelley’s family for putting on the wedding. This is especially heinous when you consider that shortly before Shelley’s parents went up and said a lovely (and concise) thanks to his family (not deserved) and a beautiful welcome to Scott.

-Remember how Scott’s parents paid for the liquor? An announcement was made that every table got a bottle of wine and we were to go up and get it. A guy at our table went and misinterpreted the announcement as one bottle of red and one bottle of white. Apparently we were suppose to choose as Scott’s mom came to our table (a table of strangers to her) and told us we were allowed one and to choose which one we wanted. She then proceeded to take the bottle to the table RIGHT beside us, sit on a male’s lap (no it wasn’t her husband, it was a half drunk guy in his 20s) and pass the bottle around the table where each person drank directly from the bottle. Oh and yeah they already had their one bottle of wine. Classy & nice, eh?

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Message from Kyla

Everyone should take some time and comment on Crystal’s blogs! It’s fun to voice your opinion and it probably makes Crystal feel good! So, leave comments :-)

Monday, April 09, 2007

Persia


My cat is so vain she checks herself out in the mirror. I am not even kidding.

My gorgeous cupcakes


What do you think?


So I am going to write about something that I think will be controversial. It's why I think my sister in law should stop breastfeeding.


1. Kim doesn't have any decency to hide her boob when she's feeding. She'll just whip up her shirt and pull out her boob from her regular bra (not a breastfeeding bra) and go to town regardless of the company. I don't care what any of you all say about it being "natural" we all know that boobs are a sexual object and I don't think that my husband, me, my mother in law, father in law, step mother in law, or mother in law's boyfriend need to see Kim's tits. Especially when we are trying to play a game or eating. Could she at least grab a blanket?


2. Kim can't even produce enough on her own so she needs to take pills. Meanwhile she goes on and one about how the pills are expensive (and they're poor) so she should breastfeed all the time. She says that Kira needs all of these vitamins & nutrients that only she can provide. Hmm, I don't know about that...lots of babies don't die by eating formula or baby food instead of breastmilk.


3. Kim will drink all night and then go breastfeed. Is that how baby gets all of these secret nutrients moran?


4. Kira will be really whiney, crying and have to feed ALL the time then will nap...but when Kim goes shopping and we have to feed her pablem or baby food she is a super happy baby. And is very alert.


5. It strucks me that Kim uses the breastfeeding as something only she can provide for Kira so that she can monopolize her time and feel important. Kim was going to give Kira some baby food so I offered to hold Kira in the meantime so she'd have two free hands and Kim puts on a big show about "oh no Kira will scream her bloody head off if she goes to anyone else"...not two minutes later Mary got up to help and Kira went to her no problem.


6. Kira grabs at Kim's boobs all the time and tries to lift up her shirt. If she can do that isn't it a little creepy at that point?


7. Kira has a lot of interest in food (she nearly ripped Mary's arm off going for a cracker Mary was eating), eats well (when she has baby food etc) and can drink from a sippy cup. [See in the picture she is trying to eat chocolates right the wrapper]
8. She is eight months old...a recent statistic says that 90% of mothers have weaned their babies by 4 months old.



And on a slightly different note I just want to complain about something else Kim does: frequently when Kim hands Kira over to another person Kira throws a temper tantrum. But when Kim walks away it gets worse for a second but then she's fine. However Kim will walk back in the room and it'll start over again. It even happens when Kim gives Kira to Tyrone (the father). I feel like Kim has trained her to be spoiled for her mom and it makes Kim feel special so she likes it and doesn't try to make it stop. Down the road though, in August when Kim goes back to work it is just going to be painful for the sitter.


Also, I've asked Kim if they are going to have another soon (cuz Kim is 35 and not getting any younger) and at one point in the day she'll comment on her age and say yeah they are trying right now. Then the next moment she'll say, oh no I'd like to work for a couple years before we have another and we can't afford it right now. Um, those are completely opposite statements...do you have multiple personalities?

Pop Quiz RE my weekend

Questions:
1) Who annoyed me by repeatedly not using coasters all weekend?
a. Kim &/or Tyrone
b. Mary &/or Robert
c. All of the above
2) Who annoyed me by leaving half finished drinks all over the house?
a. Kim &/or Tyrone
b. Mary &/or Robert
c. All of the above
3) Who annoyed me by giving me a book called “Reframe you Blame: Taking Personal Accountability”?
a. Kim &/or Tyrone
b. Mary &/or Robert
c. All of the above
4) Who pleasantly surprised me by staying an extra day?
a. Kim &/or Tyrone
b. Mary &/or Robert
c. All of the above
d. Tyler
5) Who made it sound like it was such a big deal to leave by 1pm on Sunday?
a. Kim &/or Tyrone
b. Mary &/or Robert
c. All of the above
6) Who’s request to have two bedrooms was shot down by my passive aggressive way of leaving one room uber messy?
a. Kim &/or Tyrone
b. Mary &/or Robert
c. All of the above
7) Who had a birthday this weekend?
a. Kim &/or Tyrone
b. Mary &/or Robert
c. All of the above
8) Who made it sound like she was in a shitty relationship but made zero mention of ending it?
a. Kim &/or Tyrone
b. Mary &/or Robert
c. All of the above
9) Who was incredibly cute and starred in tons of my pictures?
a. Kira
b. Dominic
c. Charlie
d. All of the above
10) Who kept annoying me all weekend just by existing?
a. Kim &/or Tyrone
b. Mary &/or Robert
c. All of the above

Answers:
1c (And there was no shortage of them lying in front of their faces), 2a(Kim), 3a(Kim), 4d (like anyone else would be a pleasant surprise), 5a, 6a, 7b(Mary), 8b(Mary), 9d(I love my pets just as much as I love my niece), 10a(Kim).

Swimming Update

In case you all were interested in my progress I have swam 16/26 days...that is about 60% of the time.

Question/Poll

To all the mother's out there who read my blog:
How did you know when it was time to stop breastfeeding?

Friday, April 06, 2007

Song List Dedictated to Shelley's In-laws

So I still haven't gotten around to writing a blog about Shelley's In-laws but I am working on a song list to dedicate to them. So far I have the following (feel free to offer more suggestions):

We Didn't Start the Fire - Billy Joel
Crazy Bitch - Buck Cherry
What Goes Around - Justin Timberlake
Virtual Insanity - Jamiroquai
You're So Vain - Carly Simon
Devil in a Blue Dress [or was it more like gold?] - Mitch Ryder & the Detroits
Asshole - Denis Leary
Fuck the Bullshit - 311
Shut Up - Black Eyed Peas
Hate it or Love it - 50 Cent
Crazy - Aerosmith
Try Honesty - Billy Talent
No More I Love Yous - Annie Lennox
It's All Been Done - Barenaked Ladies
Move Along - All American Rejects
We Are Family - Sister Sledge
Come Together - Beatles

Creepy


So at this very minute my mother-in-law is having a bath with my 8 month old neice and my sis-in-law is taking pictures...is that not creepy?