still kickin

just stopping in quick to say i'm still alive...i know you were all probably really worried. (ha!) i've been busy getting acclimated to my new job and new schedule. for the most part i am loving it...but the getting up an hour early not so much! i'm trying to slowly shift my bedtime earlier, which has been hard. the bf is a night owl and i am a "reformed" night owl. it's definitely a work in progress.

in other news, i have recently become a bona fide soccer mom. with the changes to my schedule as well as soccer practices and games for both kids we are busy busy busy. i will start school again in 2 weeks and that will only add to the chaos. here's to hoping i can handle it all and still retain my sanity. (whatever sanity i have left, that is!)

another change is that the bf's two boys are spending more time here for the summer. we are currently in the middle of a 12 day stint with them. it definitely shakes things up around here in both good and bad ways. for example, i came home today to heaps of wet clothes on my laundry room floor and two "good" bath towels that have mysterious dirt stains all over them. lol. but they also help with some household chores which is nice. i guess we just need to work on finding a good balance. and i'm sure we will.

I got a new job!! Starting June 1st, I will be working as a Category Manager on this line: Play with a Purpose

My last day of my current job is Thursday, May 21. On May 22 the bf and I fly to Chicago for a little weekend getaway. The following week I have off, and then will start the new job on Monday, June 1st.

We have started to get our townhouse ready to try and sell it. Putting up shelving in the garage, sheet rock and shelving in the laundry room, painting and redoing the downstairs bathroom. We want to move to a bigger house that is closer to the kids' school. It won't be any closer to my new job (45 minutes away) but it would still save driving time since I wouldn't have to travel 15 minutes every morning just to get the kids dropped off.

I'm not sure how well the selling will go, there are a lot of homes exactly like ours and the value has gone down. But ours will have some special "perks" that the others don't. Hopefully it won't take more than 6 months to sell, but even if it takes that long or longer, we'll make it work somehow!!!

furlough update

i'm back from rochester. mom's surgery went very well, though the tumor was a bit larger than they originally thought. it ended up being the size of a grapefruit! the surgeons thought it looked benign, but we won't know for sure until the biopsy results come back on monday. keep your fingers crossed that it turns out well!

i am WAY behind on my "to do" list for the week, but i'm very glad i went to spend the day with mom, of course. she was in great spirits and was actually pretty funny hopped up on her narcotic painkillers. mom always has a great sense of humor, and she was funnier than ever when the surgery was over.

the diet plan hasn't been going so well this week either, but i'm keeping up on the exercise as much as possible. i am finding it more difficult to hold to a healthy diet without the routine of work...i imagine when i get back next week it will be easier to stick to a plan.

i have some dreaded accounting homework tonight, and then i'm going to try and tackle something from my list. i plan to work my butt off for the next two days getting as much done as possible before the bf comes home friday night. wish me luck, i'll need it!

and so it goes

grand total of layoffs at "our" companies today was somewhere close to 100. at least 4 locations were affected that i know of. random people have been emailing me here and there to see if i made the cut. i did get a chance to go for a few drinks with co-workers and one soon to be ex-coworker :( it felt good to get together and vent but it was bittersweet. our small group is very close-knit and i will be very sorry to see this particular person go.

i am sitting home alone now after getting the kids to bed. i am missing the bf and wishing he was here to talk to! it's just me and the dog, and she doesn't have much to say. i have not slept well the past two nights with him gone and then worries about work, and i'm not sure tonight will be any better. i am not much of a drinker but am considering a very strong nightcap to put this mind of mine to rest!

random updates

The bf’s ex wife got engaged over New Years. They are planning for a February 14th wedding. In 2009! Yep. Planning a wedding in less than two months just to do it on the sappiest of sappy days of the year. Brilliant.

The impending marriage of the bf’s ex puts a bit of a damper on my “I won’t marry you until your ex is married” excuse. Dang.

School starts again next week. I have thoroughly enjoyed the time off and have taken advantage of it by reading several “just for fun” books. I will miss reading books for fun. Because, Economics? Not so much fun.

I have officially succumbed to the cultural “phenomenon” that is “Twilight”. One of my gifts from the bf for Christmas was the first book in the series. And then he bought me the second. I am now partway through the third book…and the fourth is awaiting me on the bookshelf. It hurts me to admit this.

The bf is on his very first “big” trip for work. He is in Atlanta this week. When I am traveling away from home without him, I actually sleep very well. When I am at home alone without him, apparently not so much. I did not get to sleep easily last night nor did I sleep well once I finally did drift off into the land of slumber.

I’m still fairly certain layoffs are coming tomorrow. There have been many, many signs (as well as the usual rumors). It’s hard to be productive today and tomorrow will be worse, not knowing exactly what is coming. I would prefer that they rip the band-aid off quickly, but I have a feeling it will be a long, drawn out afternoon of paranoia.

My New Year’s resolution to get healthy is off to a bit of a stumbling start. Lack of sleep is making a workout seem like an unbearable idea. Right now all I can think of is sleep. I am eating okay but not great. I have a feeling this will be a slow process…

my apologies...

my apologies that this blog has become kind of a grump fest lately! i'm really not an unhappy person, but i've sure come across that way lately. i tend to use the blog as a more of a venting tool than anything. but, i decided i need to post some positives, just to prove i'm not a sour grapes all the time person!

1. the bf came home early (for him) last night bearing gifts (a dairy queen blizzard). we settled in on the couch to catch up on a couple of episodes of dexter, one of our fave shows. (sick, right? i know, but i love it anyway!)

2. i am working through a refinance of my house that would mean a normal, fixed rate 30 year mortgage at a very good rate. i'm keeping my fingers crossed for the appraisal today!

3. i got a 30/20 on a school paper. yes, you read that right. 30/20. that has NEVER happened. never. yahoo!

3. school for this session is over on sunday, and then i have four weeks off! i am sooo looking forward to the break!

4. we found out last week that we are getting paid for THREE extra days off during the holiday that we were originally told would be off without pay. this means i have SIX paid days off over christmas and new years (and two VERY long weekends)! Hurrah!

5. i made it to the playoffs in fantasy football, and i think i have a good chance of winning this week. even if i don't win, i made it to the playoffs! yay!

6. i was able to see my bff from kansas a few weeks ago while she was staying with her parents in iowa. i got to play with her adorable little boy and spend some time catching up with her.

7. had time last night to get a new lasagna recipe put together to bake tonight. also tried out a new sugar cookie recipe. cookies were yum, hopefully the lasagna is just as good tonight!

8. did i mention i have SIX DAYS OFF over the holidays? okay, just checkin.

stuff and things

is it the weekend yet? cuz i am sooooo ready for it. it will be semi-busy, we have a baptism for my niece on sunday. which means getting up gosh damn early to drive the 1.5 hours to be at church at 9:30. but it will be a lovely time of hanging out with family, so i won't complain. ; )

i also have to study stats this weekend. i've pretty much been slacking off on it this week, and i'm pretty sure i will regret that if i don't make up for it. but for some reason the last two nights i have been so incredibly tired...and i'm not sure why. we've had a really busy week but i have been ready for bed at 9:30 the last couple of nights, and that is unusual.

fitness update: i weighed myself on wednesday morning and i am down 7 pounds from when i started trying three weeks ago. i have been eating very well during the week and keeping track of my calories. i have also been exercising a lot: walks at work, biking with the kids, walks with the bf, elliptical at the gym...it feels really good and i am hoping i can keep it up. three weeks builds a habit, right?

argh!

so...the school thing is kinda sorta killing me this session. i hardly have time to breathe! the housework is behind, the laundry is piling up, the dishes need to be done, i haven't been to the gym in almost a week...and on and on and on!

my instructor this session is a lot harder on us. expects a lot more. i am putting in a lot more hours. consequently i will probably learn more from her. but right now it's hard finding a good balance between home-work-school.

work has been a bit stressful. there have been some rumblings about my place of employment closing by the end of the year. i'm hoping it's just rumors, but i honestly don't feel it's out of the realm of possibility. and neither do my co-workers. i'm not going to panic about it, there isn't much i can do. just continue to work my ass off and hope that sales come in, even though restaurants are struggling and they are my main customers.

finally had a chance to take a breather and get a bit caught up tonight, hope all is well with everyone!

freedom rocks!

today marked the first day of my week long vacation. i don't remember the last time i took vacation like this...usually the only time i get time off is to care for sick kids!

i didn't waste a second of this day. i was actually up EARLIER than normal! i got the kids off to their daycares and headed for target...LOVE target. i was there at 8:30 and they were OPEN! after a few more stores and dollars later, and i headed home to begin my organization projects. i tackled kolby's room first. it took a bit longer than i had anticipated, but it's looking good!

i managed to get a few other odds and ends done, including planting grass seed in the front yard. AGAIN. damn dog. i also took my darling doggy to the vet today. set me back $75! just as much or more than when i take the kids to the doctor!

i joined a local 24 hour fitness place today. joined today but didn't get a chance to USE it today. ugh. i am going to make use of it tomorrow though! my original plan was to purchase an elliptical machine but was talked into trying this first. it is within biking distance of home, which is nice. now i just need to find the time to go! i am trying this for a month. if it doesn't work out it's back to elliptical shopping for me.

my list for the next couple of days is probably way to extensive. but i'm still going to do my best to tackle it. it feels so good to get some of these things done! then wednesday night the kids and i are heading to my mom's until the 4th. going to mom's is always relaxing for me. mostly cuz they help out with the kids, and they let me sleep in!!! : )

i could never be a stay at home mom. i love my work and the challenges it brings. but...right now; FREEDOM ROCKS!!!

busy, busy, busy...

starting class two today! no real breaks in store, classes run in 8 week sessions one after the other! but we do get a week off over the 4th of july, which i found pleasantly surprising!

hope all are having a wonderful summer, i've been trying to keep up reading your blogs but haven't done well writing on mine!

cheers!

chicago

i'm still alive, in case anyone was wondering. ; ) in chicago for a conference through tomorrow.

for photos check here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=125091&l=57af2&id=650795429

the trip has been cool, the conference has been good. i'm back home tomorrow night.

if i wasn't so tired i'd tell y'all about my experience on the flight in.

p.s. don't planes have airsickness bags anymore?

long weekends rock

this weekend has been absolutely delightful...and i don't want it to end!

friday we were let off of work at 1:00, and a few co-workers and i enjoyed an early happy hour on the patio of a local establishment. (just one!) then i got a much needed hair cut and met some old work pals for yet another happy hour! came home afterwards and hung out and slept in with the bf.

saturday went to southdale and ate at the cheesecake factory with two of my favorite boys. (bf and b) had my beloved peach bellinis, a chicken soft taco, warm brown bread, pot stickers, crab cakes...yum yum yum. it's a good thing i don't live closer or i'd probably weigh 900 pounds in no time. i never would have associated the cheesecake factory with much more than well, cheesecake, until i tried it and became a huge fan of pretty much anything i've tried there. hello, my name is angie and yes, i am a chain restaurant worshiper. ; ) went shopping and to a movie at southdale as well. it was a lot of fun.

today we slept in, i did some things around the house and then we went to a friends place to grill, chat and watch a movie. it was relaxing and great to see friends we don't get together with often enough!

i really, really don't want this weekend to end. even though i have two short weeks and a business trip to chicago ahead of me, i feel just plain TIRED of work. it's been quite a while since i've had a REAL vacation, and i'm feeling it. knowing we have monday off is wonderful, but i need more time!

highlights

1st week of school is under my belt, including my 1st paper. yay!

getting new "Giant" bike as a mother's day present from the bf. should be ready this week!

managed to exercise daily last week and promptly end my streak over the weekend. ugh.

plan to start up again tonight. really, i do...

am enjoying a cinco de mayo themed food day at work today. yum!

currently listening to and loving the new tristan prettyman cd.

visited the living green expo at the mn state fairgrounds this weekend. bought two organic cotton baby blankets for gifts. awesome!

impatiently waiting for my surplus check. plan to use it to pay bills though that is not the original intended use. (it will take a lot more than $900 to stimulate me to spend more than what i owe on my credit cards.)

finally have some gorgeous weather, going out for a nice brisk walk with co-workers this afternoon.

currently obsessed with plants, though i have a brown thumb, zero plants in my house and one dying one at work. plan to go shopping for a little window herb garden and another plant or two for my desk. green things make me happy.

breaking the silence

hi, my name is angie and it's been 20 days since my last post. 20 days! holy crap that's a long time! i usually feel all funny if i go four days without posting. 

here's what happened while i was out...

one disasterous business trip to michigan, involving airline cancellations, creepy hotels, next to no sleep and frequent internet outages. (the internet was essential for what we were doing there)

a first time bowling trip for the little ones, kyleigh and kolby.

a wedding reception at a casino.

various arguments with the bf.

a very pleasurable viewing of the movie "bourne ultimatum".

a disappointing viewing of the movie "superbad".

illness/allergies brought on by a very damp, dank, disgusting movie theatre i will not be visiting again.

becoming a workout fanatic, not going more than two days without a workout for the last three weeks.

becoming absoultely determined to lose those last 8 pounds.

getting my daughter ready to start kindergarten in a little over a week. trying not to cry thinking about how fast my little girl is growing up!

trying not to dread my 31st birthday, one week from tomorrow. (something about adding on that one freaks me out a bit...)

trying not to be pissed off that the bf has "fantasy football draft night" on my birthday. and the fact that he actually FORGOT that my birthday is that day.


until next time,

over and out.