30 Day Challenge Wrap Up

Okay, so a lot of things have happened so I'd really just like to wrap this challenge thing up, forgive me it will probably be long, but I want to post on other things now:

• What I wore today: I'm not taking pictures because it didn't match at all, but it's Sunday and I had no plans to leave the house. With that I wore a black and white tank top (it is white with black and gray hexagon shapes all over it) with pink sweat capris. It was very comfortable and made lounging around the house easier :)
   
• My Horoscope and if I think it fits: According to this site it says The day's general mood should fit quite well with your agenda, Sagittarius. There's no need to fixate on the negative. Keep things light and upbeat and worry about the consequences later. This is the time to be adventurous and explore. Don't let anyone else tell you how to run your show. You have a strong will and strong opinions, so don't be afraid to express either.
  
  And I have to say nope, doesn't fit at all. But I could be really biased, I saw this thing a while ago about how a guy proved that they write these to be so vague that they can fit anyone's life and so people find truths in them because they want to. I haven't been fixating on the negative lately, and I feel I've actually been very light and upbeat lately and there's no one to tell me how to run my "show". I do have strong opinions, but I'm sure a bunch of people do...sorry.
   
• Something I always think "What If..." about: This one probably has to do with my dad. I always think what if I hadn't met him when I did. What if he had been in my life from the beginning. What if I ran into his family at the store (we lived 10 minutes away from them for like 12+ years and went to the same grocery store). I'm very content with our relationship (or at least I wouldn't want to see it changed in anyway that could make it negative), but it's interesting to think how I might be different had things not worked out the way they did.
   
• Something that I'm proud of: This may seem silly but I'm extremely proud of the fact that I wasn't a teen mom. I've heard statistics saying if you're a child of a teen mom you're more likely to become one yourself. I told myself and was taught from my uber-smart mom that it's not something to take lightly and I'm glad I've done other things with my life to make any children we have be given amazing opportunities or have a great start to life. It's been a big one for me.
   
• A problem that I have had: This is a hard one as I've felt really positive and happy lately. I'm not really sure what this one is looking for...I've had a problem with letting people walk all over me in life and being too scared of confrontation, but I think I've done really well with this lately and I'm much happier with being able to stand up for myself.
   
• Five Items I Lust After: Easy, new wardrobe, new car, a vacation, a Nancy Meyers house, and thick hair (seriously). Since we're saving up for New York spending money has been completely removed from my life (other than lunches and gas, all the rest of my money goes into savings) so the first three are out (not that I need a new car...I just want one). I know we have a big one coming up, but we didn't take a just us vacation this year so it's felt weird. I've had cravings for one for some reason (it's a weird feeling). I'll always want a Nancy Meyers home, she writes them so warm and inviting...I hope I can have that one day. And thicker hair would be a dream come true for me...my hair is so fine and thin that I worry every time I color it or do any sort of chemical service. I just want it to be thick already!
   
• My Fears: I'm skipping this one. I don't make fears public. I don't like the idea of letting people use them against me (I know I sound paranoid, but I just don't feel comfortable with that).
   
• How I hope my future will be like: I hope for a lot when I think of my/our future. I hope we have as many kids as we can handle, I hope we have a nice house with a big yard for them to play in, I hope we are able to take annual family vacations that we will remember for forever, I hope my kids have what I had growing up (I was raised by my whole family, not just my mom, and I loved that). I hope we are all happy and healthy and none of my kids end up on TV (it's usually not a positive thing). I hope I'm able to go back to school and finish and (hopefully) do something in Psychology. I look forward to achieving it all.
   
• My academics: I did really well in school, usually a B or A student. I rarely got C's, usually a 3.5+ GPA. I loved going to class and sitting in front, I usually tried to get teachers to remember me (I think that helps get better grades). I never cheated, I never really failed anything, and I always loved being in class. I still do like the idea of being in class, just hate the idea of writing papers.
   
• Something that I miss: Oreo O's, and I'm completely serious. I used to love that cereal and I wish more than anything it would be brought back. I have it on my Amazon Wish List for one day (it only is made in S. Korea for some reason). I also miss days in Elementary school with recess and lunches and everything. It was definitely the best time of my life while in school.
   
• Five words/phrases that make me laugh: I honestly don't think I have one for this...I'm sorry.
   
• Something that I currently worry about: Again, I've felt very positive and happy lately so it's hard to think of worries I've had. Maybe I get worried that something will happen to make it so New York doesn't happen. We're planning on going next year and I get worried something will come up between now and then to make it impossible to go or that once we get there something will go wrong and we won't be able to make it work like how I want.
   
• Things I like/dislike about myself: I like my sense of humor, I dislike the fact that I can't do anything to style my hair. I pride myself in making people laugh, but if you ask me to do anything, other than a ponytail, to my hair you'll be waiting a while...I just can't figure it out.
   
• A quote I try and live by: I have two favorites. Live the life you love, love the life you live AND Be the star of your own life show. I really think these have helped me out a lot lately whenever an issue comes up for me.
   
• Somewhere I'd like to move to or visit: I'd really like to move to Washington. Don't ask me why, I think it's the rain factor and the fact that you could have a forest in your back yard. I just have that state on a pedestal in my head for some reason...I'd love to be there. As far as visit I only have New York on my mind...I seriously can't wait for that trip!
   
• Five weird things that I like: I like cats (I'm finding out that's weird for some reason), I like staying home and just watching movies (I'm such a homebody) especially if I can cuddle up with Larry while we watch them, I like dipping chocolate chip cookies in orange juice (YUM!!), I like talking to myself for no reason what-so-ever, and I absolutely LOOOOVE spreadsheets (I have a zillion of them on my work and home computers that I check regularly).
• One thing I'm excited for: Right now it's actually the holidays. I'm SO exciting for Fall. Each morning I wake up and it's not at least September I get a little disappointed. I went out to get lunch today (I know earlier I said I didn't leave, but this was the only time and I did the drive up so I didn't get out of my car) and I heard birds chirping and all I thought was "no, go south so it can get cold already!" Haha I can't wait to decorate for Halloween, I can't wait to start Christmas shopping, I can't wait to go sledding and, possibly, trying out skiing. It's going to be a good one this year, I can just feel it.

So sorry it was rushed and a bit long, but I want to start doing regular posts again. I've got posts on our camping trip, a babysitting adventure, Larry's big hiking trip, and final summer "adventures" :)

Till next time...

My Opinion About My Body and How Comfortable I Am In It

Boy, we've had a bunch of busy weekends and days lately, I'll have a ton to catch up on once I'm done with this challenge thing (I realize I could update still, but I want to finish this thing first), so here goes with the next one: My Body

So this can be a tough one, I used to LOVE my stomach. Seriously, I never worked out but I was never ashamed to wear a bikini or a short top to show it off a little. Not to mention I loved wearing short shorts when we'd go on vacation (even though I'd constantly get the Daisy Duke nickname from my aunt). Then one day, BAM! Metabolism went out the window. Whoever told me that hits at 30 lied big time, because it was 23 for me (and if it goes again at 30 I'm in BIG trouble). I don't hate my stomach now, but I know it could be better. Why the heck are there muscles underneath the belly button that just never get smaller no matter what you do? I mean, come on! And I don't know where it came from, but one day I decided I didn't like my thighs or upper arms. And where did that stupid double chin thing come from? Oh man, nit picking can be exhausting. It's to the point that I don't own a pair of shorts and I think in the last two years I've gotten into a swim suit maybe four times. That all being said, I still love my body, it's not what I wish it was, but it's kept me in one piece all these years. It has scars that have some stories to them (some I love telling, others not so much), it has marks from all my donation days (I'm pretty proud of that!) and it has all the traits I've gotten from my parents (though I hate that I either have to straighten my hair or put it in a ponytail, and I could do with a few less freckles) and I love each little thing that reminds me of something from when I was younger to up to a few weeks ago. I wouldn't say I'm 100% confident and comfortable, but I think we all have days where we just want to look like Jennifer Aniston, but we just can't give up those dang brownies (those are my weakness at least).

I will say these days I do need to work out, but I love it more so now. I get a big high from running on the treadmill, and when I make time to do sit-ups, push-ups, and squats I feel so much more confident, and if I do anything extra (like swimming or hiking) I feel like a million bucks. I'm glad I don't need to do a lot to feel good, and I know it's a huge start to how I was two to three years ago.

So to summarize: I used to love things I don't like now, but I still love where I am today and continue to work to keep things maintained so I don't get too out of hand (with my love of sweets that's bound to happen). So that's where I'm at, till next time...

Five Guys Whom I Find Attractive

So I'm going to take a twist on this one (I'm not choosing real guys, because I don't believe anyone but my husband should be on that list) so here goes with my 5 un-real guys:

1. Arthur (from Inception) or Adam (from 50/50): both played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt and both very attractive characters. I really like when he's all dressed up and clean cut as Arthur in Inception (not to mention how much I'm obsessed with the spinning room/fighting scene in that movie), but the emotional scenes from 50/50 get me every time! I don't think they could've gotten a better person to play either role....both movies just give me the chills when I watch them, probably because of him!
2. Thomas Gabriel (from Live Free or Die Hard) or Nick (from A Perfect Getaway): These are both played by Timothy Olyphant (who I think would be my #1 actor, but some roles I just don't get) and I love them both. I really like how much he is such a bad guy as Thomas Gabriel, but how smart he is in Perfect Getaway is awesome. I also like (spoiler alert) how nervous he gets to propose to his girlfriend in that movie (I think the smart, manly, but sweet idea is so charming).
3. Captain Malcolm Reynolds (from Firefly/Serenity): Played by Nathan Fillion. There isn't a single thing I could say I dislike about this character, while I don't necessarily find Nathan super attractive, I LOVE Mal! He's not afraid to tell someone what's what or be "the man". Granted, he has to be to be a captain of a ship, but he's awesome in just every way. When he makes you laugh sure doesn't hurt too. There's something to say about a guy with a good sense of humor!
4. Spock (from Star Trek...duh, the new ones though): Played by Zachary Quinto. I know, this one is going to get me A TON of crap, but I LOVE Spock. I love how smart he is, how he can be a smart ass, he's so strong, he's just so awesome....very attractive to me. I struggle with why I could find him so attractive, but I do and I have to leave it at that (as a side note, I like him in American Horror Story season 1, but Spock makes it to my official list).
5. Jacob Palmer (from Crazy Stupid Love): Played by Ryan Gosling. I know Ryan Gosling himself should just be on the list, but I really loved this character. I don't think I'll ever get over him and Emma Stone as on-screen lovers. When she bites his shoulder and he plays along while he's on the phone...adorable! When they are lying in bed together talking about all the crap he's bough off of QVC (or wherever they are talking about)...ah! I'm in love with them as a couple and his character is enough to sweep any woman off her feet.

Special shout outs: The Salvatore brothers (from Vampire Diaries)...just watch it :)

So there's my 5, yes they aren't real people, but I love the portrayal each actor brought to them. I would recommend each movie/TV show on this list, but if you can't watch them for some reason...I'm sorry. Hope you enjoyed it just the same.

Till next time...

My Family

Woah...I really forgot about this blog and the 30 day post challenge thing for a bit there, sorry about that. Today's post is about: My Family

I feel like this will be a loaded one, I think I could write a long, albeit probably pretty boring to others, book about my family and all that that includes for me. Since there's a bit to tell and I feel differently about some of them most days, I'll just go with my immediate family: Parents and siblings (and Larry and me as my mini family, of course).

For my mom's side I have: my Mom, my Stepdad, Will, and three brothers (Andy, Shawn, and Colby - I believe that's the order oldest to youngest). I also have my sister-in-law, Amber, and my nephew, William (on Shawn's side). This side of my family is probably the side that I share my sense of humor with, we are always joking around and/or messing with each other. We're not the most emotional or mushy together, but we will have each other's backs no matter what. Considering how long I've known this side of my family they have the heaviest influence on who I am today and my values and I'm very proud of that. There's not a single thing I would change with this side of my family, I love each of them and am so happy that they are in my life. My mom is my best friend in life (next to Larry) and I can tell her anything and everything. My stepdad has taught me so much real life experience, but also not to take things too seriously. My brothers have their own lives and I hardly see them, but when we do we will laugh for hours! Amber is one of the best sister-in-laws and baby Will is so cute and funny it's hard not to love him right away when you meet him.

For my dad's side I have: My dad, Don, my "bonus" mom, Tracy, three sisters (Ariel, Tori, and JR - that definitely is the oldest to youngest order, I know that) and a brother (DJ). I also have one brother-in-law, Nathan (from Ariel's side), but no nieces or nephews yet...right? I met them when I was 21 years old and the last 5 years (Am I 26...is that right?) have been so much more fulfilled because of them. I never realized having this many more people and constantly adding family members would mean so much to me, but it really does. They love to joke around as well, in many different ways, but we still will laugh for hours. Some of my favorite memories are sitting around their living room and just talking, about anything and everything, especially when a card/board game is involved! I know we don't have the most conventional family and we didn't meet in any "normal" way, but I wouldn't change how we met or how our relationships grew one bit.

Of course for the closest side I have Larry and me and our kitties, I love this little family and house he and I have created. Marrying Larry and getting our cats have been among the best decisions I've made to date, but I know I've gone on and on about us before so I'll leave this short and sweet.

I think the only thing I would change about my families is that we don't live close by each other. My mom lives in Mississippi, two brothers are in Heber and one is in Taylorsville. My dad's side lives in Indiana, except Ariel who lives in Idaho with her husband. We are all scattered so it makes organizing any sort of family event really hard and I would love to see all of them much more than I do, but we make do in other ways. Either way, I'm a lucky girl when it comes to who I get to call family!

Playlist Songs Shuffle

So when I put my playlist on shuffle I get the following random songs (I'd like to note I started it off with Cell Block Tango from the Chicago soundtrack, but since I selected that I won't count it):

1. Rain Song - Cold
2. Smoothie King - Bowling For Soup
3. Tip of My Tongue - Kelly Clarkson
4. Going Through Changes - Eminem
5. I Can Wait Forever - Simple Plan
6. Soar - Christina Aguilera (so my collection is old...)
7. Mine - Christina Perri
8. Imaginary - Evanescence (I mentioned my collection is old right? Haha)
9. Gone - Daughtry
10. Too Bad - Nickleback

It's weird that NONE of my top bands made it on the list, but they were good to hear again. Most of those I hadn't heard in a really long time. I will admit I skipped songs I couldn't stand because I didn't want them on my list and should probably take them off my songs anyways, but there you have it. It's a day late, but good enough right?

Till next time...

How Important I Think Education Is

So it's funny this topic came up today because I had a texting conversation with both my older sisters about college earlier. However this topic doesn't say college, per se, it says education. I believe education by itself is one of the most important things we could have in our lives, I mean everyone should have a want to continue to learn. I'm reminded of an email "conversation" I had with my bio dad where I mentioned the "learn one thing a day" comment and he said something along the lines of while that's a good motto, it limits you to learning only 365 things a year. At the time I laughed and thought that's still a lot and wondered why that wasn't good enough. Now, however, I see the wisdom in his words, why only limit yourself to one thing a day? Why not learn as much as you can in life? I have always loved being in a classroom, loved the smell of a new textbook, heck even when I wasn't in school I still loved buying notebooks and pens each back-to-school season time in stores, it was my favorite time of the year. School is kind of a different topic, schools can be tricky and I hope I don't offend anyone but sometimes I don't think we get what we should out of schools. There's so many politics that go into schools and I think it's more than it needs to be.

Now my opinion on college is simple (sorry Tracy, if you're reading this it's just my honest opinion from experience): it's not worth the money if you have to pay out of pocket or get student loans, it's just not. UNLESS you are going into a specialty, like engineering for example, where they payout will eventually be worth it. If you go for English or Art History, it's probably not going to be worth it. Another loophole to this theory is if you are getting a scholarship or it's being paid for you somehow, take advantage of that no matter what you are studying! Student loans can bite the big one! They put you in more debt right off the bat than most people should have to deal with! Talk about being dealt a crap hand right off the bat, by the time you get your degree you better have a nice job or a very understandable, supportive family that will take you in for a while because you probably aren't going to have a whole lot to your name for a bit (your debt to income ratio will be ridiculous!). I'm lucky enough to have a smart husband who learned to save a bunch of money which is why we were fortunate to buy a place of our own so young (or at least it feels young to me).

For anyone who thinks they don't need an education, I invite you to watch this video, if you're guilty of any of those "crimes" well you better go back and read more because those things are just awful and need to be fixed. Well that's my two cents, hopefully it didn't cause too much controversy.

Till next time...

What I Ate Today

Well this one seems boring, but here goes:

What I ate today was...

For breakfast I had a blueberry bagel with no cream cheese because I accidentally forgot to pack the Strawberry Cream Cheese and accidentally packed the Chive and Onion one. I didn't put that one on my bagel because chive and onion with blueberry sounded disgusting and I bought that one for a recipe this week and couldn't remember how much of it I needed so I didn't want to use any of it just in case. I also had a strawberry applesauce and some OJ. It was a nice camping breakfast (did I mention we came back from camping today? I'll post about that later).

I didn't eat lunch because once we got back from our trip I just wanted to shower and take a nap. Instead I showered and snacked a little while watching TV and starting laundry, so I guess my lunch was a Chocolate Chewy Bar, a couple truffles, and maybe some chips...I can't remember. I know I snacked a lot though.

For dinner we tried out this new recipe from Kraft, the No Time Pesto Pasta recipe. I don't know why but I'm having a meat aversion lately. I just don't feel like eating a bunch of meat so I've been picking new recipes to try that don't have meat in them. This one was pretty good. I think next time I'd trade tomatoes for the peppers, I'm not big on Feta cheese so I did Parmesan instead, and then we added some spinach to it and I had some olives on the side so it was pretty yummy to me. Larry didn't seem to mind it too much either. I love the recipes I find on Kraft's website, they are usually quick to make so I don't spend so much time during the week just cooking, but I love that they don't require reheating frozen food (I like the idea of cooking with original ingredients, unless it's veggies, then I get a frozen bag of them and put that in it).

Other than that it's just been lots of water and I finished off our last root beer (I LOVE root beer lately). Happy Sunday, beginning of another week :)

Until next time...

My Five Pet Peeves

So I'm doing this one early in the day since I'm waiting for Larry to wake up so we can take Minnie to get her stitches out (from being "fixed"). So my five pet peeves would be:

1. Blinkers is my number one pet peeve, it has been for a while and probably will be for forever. I HATE when people do not use blinkers properly or not at all. You don't turn your blinker on when you're already in the turn lane, you don't turn your blinker on when you're halfway into the lane you want to get into, you don't turn your blinker one once and then move over. People don't seem to understand it's a type of warning system to let people know your intentions, if you don't use it people have NO idea you're coming over or your about to turn left out of a parking area or anything. Start using them and using them correctly people!!
2. The your, you're, their, there, and they're conundrum. I don't get how people can consistently use these words wrong! It's not that hard, once in a while is understandable, but every single time you write something? C'mon!
3. People using the handicap stall in the bathroom when others are available and they aren't handicap. This happens at my work a lot and it drives me crazy when people do that. I will only use it if nothing else is available and I REALLY have to go to the bathroom. I just think it's a bit messed up to use that stall when you don't need it. I always hope that they come out and someone in a wheelchair is waiting and looking at them in that way.
4. When people say words WAY wrong, like suppsebly, Illinois (WITH the s), stuff like that. Now I know I'm in Utah and we don't pronounce Mountains or Hunting correctly, but that's an accent thing and I wouldn't hold that against anyone, but some words there's just no excuse.
5. Texting R for are and U for you and 2 for to/too...this kind of goes with #2. This one really irritates me. I used to do it a lot and then I stopped and when I go back and read my old messages I think it sounds just so uneducated and ridiculous, learn to type words out people!

I'm sure I'll think of better ones and end up altering this post, but those are my morning pet peeves...happy weekend everyone!

Till next time :)

My View On Mainstream Music

So, music is not something I would say I always enjoy. Don't get me wrong, I listen to it and have some favorite bands, but I'm a MUCH bigger movie person. Saying that I will say I get into moods where music just helps me get through the day, but my music of choice is more rock than mainstream. Most of the bands I like hardly play on those top 40-like channels (bands like Three Days Grace, Sick Puppies, Skillet, Theory of a Deadman, etc.) so I will usually listen to those channels in the car while I'm driving to work and back or if I'm running errands, but it's mostly for the commentary from the DJ's on the stations. If I'm cleaning, listening to music while I work, or on a long road trip I much prefer my bands.

So I won't say mainstream music sucks, but it's not really my thing. However, I feel I have a biased opinion since I hardly listen to music as it is and when I do it's hardly that kind of music (some bigger names I can't stand though). I guess that's my two cents, sorry the last two posts have been kind of lame, the pet peeves one should be a fun one haha.

Till next time...