You Know You Eat Out To Much When ...

you are in line at the bank behind the guy from the bagel store. He asks if you will be coming in later.
I told him about my challenge to dine in all week. His reply "See you next week". He's probably right.

Personal Challenges 1 and 2

I decided to start something new for this blog and myself. My blogging friend/ASU alum/cat lover Allison is involved in a project called Rutless. She's way younger than me. I can't hang with her but I feel I need to do something. Each week I'm going to set up a personal challenge or challenges for myself. Disclaimer - don't think Survivor or Fear Factor, nothing too exciting. In fact, they may be things you are already doing yourself or find easy but be assured they will be challenging for me. Challenges will hit upon such areas as food, exercise, money, social situations, habits, etc. This concept may end up being baby steps for future bigger ideas. Each week I will name the challenge(s) and explain why it is a challenge. I have a few things in mind. At the end of the week, I'll sum up how I did.
Challenge #1: I will cook meals or have food available all week at home and will not go out to eat at any time. This includes getting coffee :( To some this sounds easy enough or may be a part of your routine but not a part of mine. I'm not the greatest cook so this will be interesting plus the kids' schedules can make it difficult. While on vacation, I got so tired of deciding on where to eat especially since we moved locations 3 times. We don't do fast food but my children love to eat out and go blank when having to fix food at home. We do not go out to dinner at night often but it seems almost every time we leave the house during the day we're stopping to eat some snack or lunch. It's become a past time. Terrible I know. I think a little inconvenience and less money shelled out will be good for me. What my husband and kids do while away from me will not be included in the challenge.
Challenge #2: I going to read the first Harry Potter book. I started it 8 years ago and not sure why I didn't finish. I've been hearing all the hype about the latest book, seeing people reading it, hearing my blogging friends post about it. I decided to give it another shot. One of the challenges is the fact I have a hard time visualizing things. My husband can read or see blueprints and will paint a picture in his mind. I cannot therefore making the Harry Potter book more difficult for me. I'll be curious to find out if I want to continue with the series.
Again, I realize this 2 items don't have a wow factor. A few down the road may be a little more interesting but let's see how these go.

Wanting Devotion

Yesterday I blogged about green hair so I guess this post is related. A year ago I had to break up with 2 people around the same time - hair stylists. The first person was my hairdresser. I'll call her Anne. I had been going to Anne for years. We were on friendly terms and even went out to dinner together one time. I was pleased enough with the haircut but other stuff got on my nerves. When scheduling an appointment, it worked for me to be there at 9 which happened to be her first appointment of the day. Was it too much to ask for her to be there at 9? She started coming in 10 to 15 minutes late. The other factor was the salon decided to no longer have a receptionist. Each stylist had their own phone. Anne would take calls during my appointment instead of letting it go to voice mail. Sometimes she was rather chatty. I got very irritated and the fact I was paying a good amount of money was a big factor to my break up. I never said anything to Anne but if I run into her I'll tell her. Around the same time, my kids were going to a lesser priced salon to a stylist I'll call Sonya. We had visited her at another establishment and followed her when she opened her own place. Sonya was a single mom with teenage kids. Her father gave her the money to start her business. The reason I mention this is because her kids were always stopping by or calling during our appointments. Her dad creeped me out. He was around often checking out what was going on. He was non American born with old world values. He woulds strike up conversations and I felt he was being judgmental. Plus it appeared Sonya was nervous when he was there leading to haircuts which didn't look great. No surprise she went out of business.
I'm happy to say my daughter and I now have found a great stylist who devotes all of her attention to us. The salon is less expensive as well. My son goes to a female barber near our house. She's attentive, too. Breaking up can be hard to do but worth it.

Lost Focus

When I was just getting a little use to being home and starting to make a dent in my unpacking, I had to go out of town to Raleigh for another continuing education class. I posted about one I attended in May. The classes can be a little boring so I usually end up looking around at the other attendees. The May class had me near an annoying lady who kept using blowing her nose with the hotel napkins and leaving them on the table. She also got up and left a lot. Yesterday's class was not as eventful however I sat behind a woman with green hair. I totally lost focus. She was older and reminded me of Phyllis from The Office. Her natural hair appeared to be light brown with gray mixed in. My guess is she used a blonde semi permanent color resulting in a pea green tint. To make matters worse, she was wearing a green dress. I'm not trying to be mean. I just couldn't stop staring.

Simplifying and Buzzing

Sugar Mama hit the nail on the head when she commented on my last post about keeping the vacation buzz going. I'm trying! Life was a heck of lot less simpler while on the trip. I was with my family, traveling, and in the beautiful outdoors - 3 of my favorite things. My life can get complicated and I'll admit I do a lot to make it complicated. Here's an example: I had a Sandisk mp3 music player for a few years. It still worked but for my birthday I asked for a new one with more storage. I got a new Sandisk with all the bells and whistles. I probably should have gone the iPod route but since all my music was already on a Sandisk in WMA format I stuck with the same brand. Anyway, I don't even want to think about all the time I spent transferring my music, adding new music and podcasts, arranging playlists, etc. to have for the trip. Then midway through our vacation the damn thing crapped out. I lost a majority of my files. I stayed pissed all morning then thought - here I am on vacation in one of the most beautiful places in the country and I'm upset about a stupid mp3 player. Then and there I realized I didn't need to spend hours storing every song I knew and that my old player was all I really needed. Now that I'm back home, I'm returning the new one not to be replaced. I actually felt I was getting a sign I had my priorities screwed up.
I'll also admit I try to please or at least appease my kids. If they want to be taken somewhere or need something I'll usually do my best to accommodate them. According to my husband, all the children around here get coddled. Well while still on my vacation buzz, I realized this type of behavior was complicating things not simplifying my life. We live out in the suburbs. Driving to and fro is very time consuming plus I'm trying to get in a little work. I may not be the most popular person at my house right now but I still have a little buzz going!

Back in the Burbs

We're home. We got in Sunday evening. NC looks very green, lush, and populated compared to what we've seen recently. Despite 2 different people checking on Chloe each day, the kitten is wild. I know our vacation affected her and hopefully she will settle down. 'Back to work this morning :(

On Top of the Mountain

Today our daughter turned 10! We took the gondola up to the top of Jackson Hole Ski resort. It was beautiful.

Our son looking at the paragliders

I've always heard about wildfires but didn't think much about them until we got out here. In 1988 Yellowstone had a huge fire. You can still see the effects. Wednesday we crossed this area of Idaho near Arco. The next day about 4800 acres caught on fire. It was 1 of 16 fires that day. Luckily it was sagebrush no real property. This photo was taken the day after.

Vacation Continued

We just back into the Jackson Hole Wy area after being in Stanley Idaho. My husband's brother is the executive chef at a guest ranch outside of Stanley. We did not stay at the ranch but we had a great visit with my brother in law, wife and little boy. Stanley is beautiful. It is a summer vacation land for rafting, fishing, and hiking. On the way back we went through Ketchum and Hailey - mountain home to many celebrities. I have to say parts of Idaho are pretty desolate. There is one area called Craters of the Moon. It is 75 square miles of volcanic rock and mountains. I'll try to weed through my tons of pictures and post one of it some time. Many areas reminded me of the movie Napoleon Dynamite. It was filmed in Idaho. A few things of note: Idaho/Wyoming don't have churches on every corner like NC. If you see a church in Idaho, there's a good chance is Mormon. In NC, it's probably Baptist. I was reminded by my brother in law that in most of the US barbeque is a verb. In the south, it's a noun. We eat barbeque and grill our steaks.
Here are pictures of Stanley ID. The Salmon River shot was from the deck outside our motel room.

What I Did Today Part 3

We took it easy today which was fine with me after spending 2 days tackling Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. I'm not sure if I'll have Internet access after we leave Jackson, Wy tomorrow. We're heading to Idaho for a few days then return to the Jackson Hole area - Teton Village this time.

Here is a picture taken tonight at dusk of the Teton mountains at Jackson Hole, Wy.



On a much different note, I'm sad to say Brian Stoll passed away. I followed his blog about his courageous fight with cancer and have written about it. He attended Appalachian State University a few years ahead of me. I read his last post Friday and sent him an email before leaving on my trip. My prayers go out to his wife and 2 daughters.

What I Did Today Part 2

Today was Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. We did the lower loop. I have to say I wasn't terribly impressed with Old Faithful. It was crowded and had all the tourist tackiness trappings. I loved the rest of what we saw. The park was very diverse. There were mountains, valleys, meadows, lakes, geysers, etc. plus buffalo everywhere. Also spotted were deer, elk, and a wolf.
This is Old Faithful

One of my favorite places was Midway Geysers. The color of the water was amazing. My camera doesn't do it justice.

This is called the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.

This is actually Jackson Lake in Grand Teton Park. We passed it going to Yellowstone.

What I Did Today

I hiked around the Lake Jenny area of Grand Teton National Park, Moose Wyoming

Vacations vs. Travel

I assume most people have at least one thing they would spend money on if available. For some it might be a nice car, expensive clothes, the latest and greatest electronics or perhaps a professionally decorated home. I've written about this in the past but for me it would be travel. I understand if this choice would not be a priority for a lot of people. It's not like it is something tangible. I believe part of my reasoning is because I grew up and now live basically in the same town. My husband is not from here and liked the area when we married. My family always took vacations. We are fortunate to be in driving distance to beautiful mountains and beaches. We went a few places further away but Mom does not fly. That fact and I'm sure monetary issues limited the family's vacation options. I didn't go to Florida or fly until my senior year in college during Spring Break. Now I've been fortunate to have gone to a few more places and out of the country. I'm heading out now as well as going on a wonderful trip in October. I'll keep you posted.

Week In Review

It feels like it's been one of those marathon weeks. Remember Monday was my birthday. I work in a small office and we had always acknowledged birthdays up until I guess ... Monday. They forgot mine :( I felt both a little hurt and p.o.'d. I won't say anymore. The morning art camp my daughter was enrolled in this week was totally screwed up. I un-enrolled her :( Wednesday I had planned on meeting my friend Mikey for coffee before he moved. However, childcare issues kept me from coming in to work Tuesday. I had to much to do to leave the office and had to cancel :( Oh, I forgot to mention there is major renovation at work. This week they knocked walls down around me, cut down trees, and bulldozed in front of my window :( I did get refunded on that the cell phone charge :) Our kitten went a missing. My husband left the front door open while outside. She was nowhere to be found. Our daughter was hysterical. :( Turns out he had left the interior garage door open as well. Chloe was hiding in the storage hutch :) My friends (not coworkers) threw my a belated party Thursday:) (It was planned in advance.)

Here's to you Sugar Mama. Happy Birthday!

Rule To Follow

Ever forced to be around people who can get on your last nerve? All the time, I have to come in contact with a certain someone who loves drama. She has situations with everyone and everything. She is loud and obnoxious. No way would I recommend a doctor, service person, store, etc. to this person. She always end up having issues. I truly believe she thrives on this kind of thing. She gets her jollies telling people off, acting like they are more important than they are, and really enjoy relaying the story back to others. Like we care. I try to turn a deaf ear. Ironically I do have a deaf ear. Anyway, I have to say this person has influenced me in the other direction regarding how I treat others. This week I got our cell phone bill. We had made some changes in our plan and I was upset about an additional charge. I didn't feel it was fair or logical for that matter. I went to the cell phone store I usually go to. The guy I normally deal with was busy. I should have left but I talked to his associate. Big mistake. Right away she said nothing could be done. I swear she was smiling when she said it. I brought up some good points but could tell I was getting nowhere. The ultimate in poor customer service. We've been customers for 14 years. My husband uses his phone for work so our total plan is around $300/month. Not that she bothered checking any of that stuff. Honestly, I had the urge to tell her off and threaten to take our business elsewhere but she wasn't worth the energy. I walked out irate. I went straight home. I pulled out the business card of my cell phone guy and sent him a well thought out email mail describing the situation. The next day he called back. He refunded me the charge then some. He said my email was so well written he wanted my permission to forward to corporate. A life rule: what would Ms. Obnoxious do? Then do the opposite.

Gotta Love Those Love Songs

This video from the Plain White T's "Hey There Delilah" is one of the sweetest love songs I've heard recently. It's about a long distance love. The singer is trying to make it as a musician. His girlfriend is a student across the country in NYC. I had 2 long distance relationships which caused me to make poor choices and limit my options. Live and learn.

I've created an eclectic play list of love songs on my mp3 players. I added Hey There Delilah.
Here is a sampling of a few others: More Than Words-Extreme, Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want-The Smiths, With or Without You -U2, Never Tear Us Apart-INXS, You Take My Breath Away-Berlin, In Your Eyes-Peter Gabriel, Always On My Mind-Willie Nelson, Every Breath You Take-The Police, Let's Get It On-Marvin Gaye, Nothing Compares 2 U-Sinead O'Connor, and the ultimate love song (imo) though it was before my time: Unchained Melody by the Righteous Brothers. I have a few others that aren't love songs more introspective but they are quiet: Landslide-Fleetwood Mac, Wasted Time-The Eagles, While My Guitar Gently Weeps-The Beatles, Kid Fears-Indigo Girls, and Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) by Green Day. Any suggestions for additions?
I listened to most of these last night and still couldn't go to sleep thanks to a late afternoon iced latte. Finally at 2 a.m. I popped a half of a Lunesta and was out.
P.S. Thanks for all the birthday love!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to me. Also birthday shout outs to Katie (July 8) and Mikey (July 10).

UPDATE: Happy Birthday Wendy (July 10)!

Toys for the Trip

This post ties in to my last one about podcasts. I'm starting to get ready for our trip to Wyoming and Idaho (albeit at a snail's pace). I don't consider us high tech people but I'm beginning to wonder. We will want to take pictures of course. The kids (and me) need to be entertained on the flights. My husband, unfortunately, has to check email and voice messages. Therefore that brings us to:

• 2 digital cameras with their SD cards and battery chargers
  
• 3 music players. 2 with batteries. 1 with a charger, 3 headphones
  
• 2 cell phones, 2 wall chargers, at least 1 car charger
• 1 computer and power cord (husband's)-I am fighting the feeling about bringing mine
• 1 Nintendo DS, charger, and games

I did nix the portable DVD player. The kids will be taking books as well.

Listening But Not Moving

Every once in a while, I will get wrapped up in some new obsession, wasting a lot of time. The latest is podcasts. I was getting tired of my music when I ran and took my walks. I thought listening to something new would inspire me. I started searching the Internet. Now I've spent a lot time and bookmarked more minutes of podcasts than I'll ever use exercising. I will be on some flights this month so the podcasts may come in handy then. Here is a sample of my listening: Runner Steve, Rev Tim, Hip Tranquil Chick, PodChick (though this girl can be annoying), Chickonomics, and Weight Loss and the Mind. I've learned "chick" is a popular word in the podcast world. Did I exercise this morning before it got hot and humid? No I browsed podcasts.

A Little More About Me

Wendy tagged me to list 8 things about myself. I was similarly tagged earlier and didn't finish it so here is a new and hopefully complete listing:

1. I don't like to go barefoot. I did as a child. Now if I'm outside I worry about what I will step on. When I'm inside, being barefoot brings attention to the fact floors need to be cleaned and carpets vacuumed. I wear socks or my Teva flips inside a lot.
2. I have to sleep with covers no matter the temperature. My favorite item is my Mexican blanket - a gift from my husband's company when we were in Cabo San Lucas.
3. I decided when I was 10 years old I wanted to attend Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. One of the few things I've followed through with!
4. I've dated three guys with the same name-not at the same time. I married the last one.
5. I make sure the house is picked up when I go to bed so it will look nice when I wake up. It is a loss cause once my children are up.
6. I cannot parallel park.
7. I think I would practically be a vegetarian if I lived by myself - not for ethical reasons but because I love pasta, sweets, vegetables, fruits, and dairy more than meat.
8. I snore and I am embarrassed by that. My husband is so quiet. I have to check to see if he's still in bed. I warn my friends when we take trips together.

I don't think I'm going to tag anyone. I've checked through several blogs and I believe most people have done this meme in some form or fashion. If you haven't, considered yourself tagged.

The Jokes Are on Him

My son (S) and I like to play jokes on my husband (D). One day my husband thought our son and I were in totally different places but in fact we were in the car together. When my phone rang, S picked it up and convinced D even though he had meant to call me and that's what his phone said, the network system had gotten crossed and D got S's phone instead. My son had his dad convinced blaming it on the phones being together on the family plan. Then D called me. I played naive to the whole thing. Later S left a message on D's phone saying he was "punk'd". D called back cracking up. Yesterday S got his braces off. He, his sister, and I knew in advance but didn't tell D. We're waiting to see how long it takes him to notice. So far no clue.

UPDATE: After 24 hours, we couldn't keep the secret any longer. I finally asked my husband "Do you notice anything different about your son?" He looked at him and got it right in about 15 seconds.

Does This Make Me An Old Lady?

I made an impulsive purchase today. I bought a pill box at the grocery store. My husband cracked up. No, I'm not on any prescription meds. I'm hoping it will remind me to take my vitamins in my continuing quest for a healthy lifestyle. I do have a birthday coming up soon so I guess I will be a little older regardless of the box or not.