WW weigh in #1

Down 4 pounds!

DELISH!

My friend Sunny gave me this recipe last year and I filed it away and never tried it until today. It's so easy!

1 bag of o'brien frozen potatoes
4 cans of low fat chicken broth
1 package of country gravy mix

I added:
1 teaspoon of olive oil
1/3 cup of diced onions
1 cup diced ham from a hamsteak

I softened the onions in olive oil, added the ham then the broth. Then threw in the gravy mix and made sure to get all the lumps out then I threw in the potatoes and lotsa pepper. I let it boil for a few minutes and then turned it down and let it cook for 10 or so minutes.

YUM!

BEST dog trainer

Our dog Silver is WILD wild wild! We finally took him to obedience classes starting yesterday. Almost immediately we saw a difference. Silver is doing amazingly well after 1 class, 7 more to go...I can't wait to see what's next! Anyway, here is the trainer:

my mac is back

I have been having issues with it for about 2 weeks now but Donovan deleted and re-installed everything. It is working fantastically again, yay! While it was funky I couldn't get photos off my camera. Funny it feels like I have weeks and months of photos on my camera but really it's like 2 weeks worth! I am just used to dumping them daily. So, here is what I have wanted to blog about for 2 weeks.

I love this feeling, it's like a badge of honor walking through the gym with a soaked back.



Here is Isa talking on the phone to my mom about having a sleepover, she was elated!



I have met like...5 women in my entire life that were taller than me, seriously do the talls need to be this long? I may have to have my pants shortened for the first time in my life.


We have always fought Isabella with meals but this time she actually fell asleep at the table! I made a meal that she used to love, chicken satay and rice pilaf and she refused to eat it.





We had a fun picnic at Shamel park on Wednesday, the kids loved it. I think we will make it a weekly thing.








Ok, here is the last random post. Do you get excited when you make a yummy meal? I made wraps with turkey, lettuce, tomato, cheese, ranch dressing and avocado. It was delish! Oh, and am I the only one that gets excited about finding the perfect avocado? That one was a thing of beauty!

SO brave!

I took Isabella to the doctor for her 5 year checkup today. I was so nervous and fully expecting tears and screaming and she did AMAZINGLY well! My doctor had a student PA and she did all of the tests and Isa loved her. She tested her muscles, eyes, ears, belly, checked for a hernea...she was such a cool doctor. She got 3 shots and didn't shed a single tear.




We got her this cool Barbie house as a (bribe) gift for doing so well. We spent almost an hour putting it together! She loves it and hasn;t left it's side in over 2 hours.

What can I say?

I am a super chef. We got a checp turkey in November and decided to cook it this week. I bought a metal roasting pan from the grocery store and here is the label:



I didn't read the label. I just did all the turkey junk and threw it in the oven. I went to throw away the paper from the pan and looked at this little photo:




Oops. So I open the oven expecting a big lid...nope! It was shrinking before my eyes and by the time I got the pot holder and moved the pan off to the side this was what was left!

ebay frustrations

I have been buying/selling on ebay since 1999 and I have had some incredibly rude buyers lately. Why am I getting stuck with these people?! I am done selling for now, it's not worth being treated this way.

getting back on track

I have been slaaaaaaacking majorly for the last uhh...5 months. I keep putting it off, well...I want to enjoy my holidays, I want to enjoy Isa's b.day party...BLAH BLAH BLAH! But I'm done, I have to get back to the way things were, eating right, exercising, fitting into my new clothes!

I found a Weight Watchers meeting about 5 minutes from my class so it will be much easier to get to it. AND I can go alone so I wo't have the kids as excuse. I am going to sign up on Thursday evening...yay!

I am also very excited that my favorite aqua aerobics instructor is not only back but she is back in MV 2 days a week! She really gives me an awesome workout, pushes me to the max. Thanks, Ruth!

no more bees!

We already had a bee issue in a pillar on our front porch well today I found 5 or 6 bees on Silver's new bowl. What the heck? I just got it on Wednesday. Well, I washed it out and wiped it down hoping whatever they wanted is now gone.

Anyone have a way of killing bees that won't kill my pooch if he happens to eat it?

cuteness

There were a few (thousand) bugs at dance class today and Zach was freaked out and wouldn't leave my lap. I kept telling him that I would hold him and protect him. We were driving home and Isabella was talking about how she didn't like the bugs and Zach said that he would hold her. Ready...1...2...3...AWWWW!

Mac issues

I am having problems with my mac, web pages load incredibly slowly. We did a download test and it came back with no problems. I have no clue what to do. Help?

Wicked

I loved Wicked, more than words can say. The sets were amazing, the actors were spot on, the singing was incredible. My favorite was the costumes, I loved Glinda's dresses, I wish I could sparkle like her! I never read the book, I had no clue what the story was, I just knew it was before Dorothy came into the picture. It's an awesome story, I want to read the book now. If you have a chance, go see it. Plays are only here for a short time, it is totally worth the money.

that was the best part of the show.

Awesome site

http://freerice.com/

It's a word game, for every word you get right 20 grains of rice are donated to the UN to help cure hunger! You get smarter, people get food...it's a win win! I plan to play for an hour a day everyday. Go play!

YAY!

Heading out to see Wicked in about an hour. Pray for a safe drive, I hope the rain holds off!

??

So where's this torrential rain they keep talking about? First it was Thursday-Monday, now it's Friday-Sunday. Will it ever rain, Dallas?

I did it!

I was walking throught the Costco parking lot a few hours ago and a lady drove by me with a baby in a sling/infant carrier strapped to her chest as she was driving! Her window was down so I yelled "Your baby would be a lot safer in a car seat". I saw her give me a dirty look and mumble something as she drove off. Well, I tried. Thanks for whoever lent me some...guts.

Why didn't I say anything?

I was at the grocery store walking down the aisle and a family was looking at something on the shelf. A little girl, maybe 2 or 3 was in the middle of the aisle. I had no problem, I would just have asked her to move. The mom grabs the little girl by the hair pulling her in the other direction and yells at her to move. I was immediatly sad and mad at the same time so what did I do...I walked away. =/ Why didn't I say anything?! Kids can't stand up for themselves, we have to do it for them. I just need more...what's the word without saying "balls" well, you get it. As I was checking out I started crying thinking about the little girl and how she wasn't at all effected by it so I assume it happens a lot...and I'm sure worse happens. Poor little baby girl, I wanted to scoop her up and give her a big hug. We won't say what I wanted to do to the mom.

exhausted

We spent the last 2 days doing nothing but working on the backyard. Donovan started building this retaining wall before Zach was born but we always run out of time, money or it just gets too hot to work on it. Well, we worked on it again and finished the entire bottom row! And when I say we I mean Donovan. I worked on it for about 4 minutes and then gave up.







Donovan and I built this table about 3 years ago and it looked awesome until the stain wore off. Isabella said she doesn't like to sit on it because it's ugly! So Isabella and I picked out some paint and we worked on it all day today. They love it now and can't wait to sit on it!

before:



after:



How was your weekend?

another one

Donovan's mom gave us this, I love it but I have no clue what it is.



A very big salt shaker?
Some sort of potpourri thingey?

91/60/215 flyover

How I love thee! I left my house at 9:57, got gas at Costco and got to the Galleria at 10:33! I would have never got there that quick, even if I skipped the gas. I felt like I was on a ride, I was so far up above everyone else. It was super fast, maybe 1 minute instead of 10 in traffic. Yay for completed projects...1 out of 10,000 going on in the area.

5 years ago...

I was in labor! I was making Christmas cookies (that I would never get a chance to eat!) and waiting for my husband to get home from work. After dinner we went looking at lights. I can't read a map to save my life so I was driving and Donovan was reading the map. Driving...and having contractions! I went to the hospital at about 3:00am and finally had Isabella at 11:45PM. What a Chritmas gift...

Happy Birthday to my Christmas baby.

Her birthday


3 days later


1st birthday


2nd birthday


3rd birthday


4th birthday

reminiscing

We got moms and dads digital frames for Christmas and I have spent a few hours today looking through old photos. I hardly remember Isabella's baby stage. I feel like I missed it! She has grown so fast and changed right before my eyes. My baby girl will be 5 on Tuesday!

sewing

I bought Isabella's curtains when we did her room about 3 years ago and I hated them from the start. The colors were blah and the fabric was cheap. So I finally decided to sew my own. I have never really sewn much, I usually give up pretty quickly after starting. I took my time and made sure to measure everything perfectly and pin everything. They turned out fantastic!





I ordered this book:

http://tinyurl.com/23faxv

It had great reviews and started from the very beginning. I can't wait to get it and start sewing more.

my favorite new blog

http://heatherbailey.typepad.com/heather_bailey/

I have just spent like 2 hours reading through all her posts. LOVE IT ALL.

this is great

And P.S. I'm still fighting with my stove.

I love Trader joes!

This insulated bag was only $2.99! The reuseable shopping bags are only $.99 and look much more sturdy than most. I want to get 4 or 5 next time I am there but today I was on a mission to get the steelcut oatmeal. This stuff is SO good! Try it out, friends.

Christmas party

We went to Donovan's company Christmas party last night, it was fun but fa-fa-freeeezing!



I love The Mission Inn all decked out.

We were in the San Gabriel room right above the rotunda.



Here we are at my parents house dropping off the kids. Thanks mom and dad!

Gay and Larry's

I miss you.

news!

I was asked to be an aqua aerobics teacher! I am so excited. We'll see what happens next, I'll keep you posted!

prayers

My parents have 2 dogs that they love more than us kids. Ok, I'm kidding but pretty dang close. They sleep on my parents bed and on their couch. Eat tons of table food...etc! Well, Molly is about 11 now and is having kidney problems so my mom is spending tons on special food and doing everything she can for Molly. Now her other dog Jacob hurt himself jumping on the couch, the vet thinks he has a slipped disc. Jacob won't eat, won't pee. It's just really sad. My parent's have paid so much money in vet fees for both dogs (Jacob had doggy chemo a few years back!) but how do you not have a procedure done? It's been really hard on them.

Anyway, could you please say a little prayer for my parents and their dogs Jacob and Molly? Thanks.