And they lived happily ever after!

There's been lots of postings in the blog world about how people met their significant others. Which is sort of funny, as that was one of the first things I put on my list of blog topics to consider. So I guess I need to tell this story.

I attended college in the midwest. I was dating a Masters student from the East coast when I graduated. I accepted a job in a town a couple of hours away and it sucked. After 2 months of very little sleep, long boring work hours, and no end in sight, I quit. My boyfriend finished his thesis a month later, and I decided to pack up my stuff and move back to the East coast with him. At this time, my mother lived in the state I had attended college in, and my father lived in a state neighboring the boyfriends parents. The plan was to stay with my BF's parents until he found his new job, and then I would begin my Master's at the closest college. After a year of menial part time jobs for me, and (finally) a job for him doing what I could do with my BS, I had enough of living in limbo with his highly dysfunctional family (they threw knives at each other during arguments...seriously), I decided it was time to get the hell out. I made plans to move in with my father while I took stock and figured out what to do. The BF gave me an ultimatum that if I moved out, he was done...I figured it was a good thing to continue moving out. Not long after moving in with my dad and finding a temporary job, I went to my nephew's birthday party (around Thanksgiving).

We have this little kids play place here...like the Chuckee place, but less video games and bigger play areas...and no scary mice. Our room host knew my nephews mom. He was cute, but had a ring and mentioned his daughter. He thought I was cute (I found this out later) but I had a ring and was holding a baby (my niece). Enter the cupids (my ex-SIL and Stepmother). They managed to exchange our phone numbers and let us both know that the other was actually single. He called me that night, and we talked for a long time. I explained that I didn't really want a boyfriend, as I had no intention of staying here for long. He had just finalized his divorce and wasn't looking for anything other than a friend. We went out to dinner and a movie, and then I met his daughter, and she spent a lot of time with me and my nephew. We continued doing things together, and sort of became a couple. We went out Valentine's Day, and that evening (after midnight) he proposed, and I said yes. We were married that Oct, had our PB the following Sept. And so far, we've lived happily ever after!

What's on your dinner plate?

Dinner...it's such a hard subject to think about. The day to day decision process...what to make, how long do you have to make it, does everyone like it. It gets stressful. I've tried making up the menus for 2 weeks, and it works well...but that just puts on the stress in one 10 minute period instead of every day. So I procastinate it.

Tonight's dinner was grilled pork loin, cheesy scalloped potatoes, and broccoli. It always amazes me how fast I can throw together a simple, nutritious dinner. This simple meal took the same amount of time to prepare as popping in the tv dinners my kids love. (Don't worry, my kids do eat them, I just try not to use them for every day dinners.)

One of our favorite side dishes is so easy to make. It's probably technically a form of pilaf, but we just call it Mushroom Rice.

Mushroom Rice

In a microwavable bowl, combine all the ingredients for the rice (rice, water, butter) following the package amounts. Add in one can of mushrooms and 3-4 bouillion cubes. Put in the microwave for about 20-30 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so.

Easy and yummy...my favorite :)

Roadblock

I love to write. I love the way the words in my head sound on paper. I love the puzzle of making sure the words I choose, and the order I place them in, optimize the readers understanding. I took a semester of Latin, and I hated that there was very little sentence structure. Take all the right words, and put them down however. Yuck. That's part of the process that brings me joy. I had a professor in college that once told me the he felt if he could base my entire grade on written papers, I would have the highest grade he had ever given. That was such a compliment to me, and I thanked him profusely. He laughed and said he was glad I took it as a compliment, and now could I edit our marketing plan...lol.

As much as I love to write, I've never fancied myself a "writer" as such. I never thought I had the "great american novel" sleeping in my brain. I'm more of a factual writer. Or opinion.

I don't get to write much anymore, and I'm still trying to find my way in this blog. There are subjects I want to write about, but haven't had the time or energy to figure out how to maintain anonymity while telling the story, as well as prevent others from feeling exposed. I guess I could find a way to keep a private online diary, but that just seems like more work than I want to go through.

Let the Music Play

I love music of all kinds. Our music collection runs the gamut from country to rock to jazz and classical and a little bit of Indie. I have Sirius Satellite radio, and my cell phone is also an IPod. I surround myself with music all day long. And because it has always been that way, I remember prime events from my life not by dates, but by songs. I hear songs, and can remember when...Remember when my bestest friend and I sang along and joked about being the Woo Woo girls for Elvis (even though he had been dead most of our lives)...remember singing "Stand By Your Man" when I was 5 with all the twang I could muster...Remember standing in that recording booth at Kings Island with my best friends in high school singing "That's What Friends Are For." I also hear songs and feel the emotions from the lyrics. "Godspeed" by the Dixie Chicks always makes me think of my son and smile. "I Hope You Dance" is my song for PB. Music touches my emotions in a way that television shows and movies aren't able to. Listening to the congregation sing Silent Night in candlelit church on Christmas Eve always chokes me up. My family always teeses me about having kleenex available.


My family has different levels of musical attachment. My husband also likes many different types of music, but can take it or leave it most of the time. My oldest loves Top 40 and a little bit of country, just like so many other teenagers. She doesn't want to learn about or appreciate anything that wasn't a hit sometime in the last 10 or so years. She does occassionally ask what a song means, but most of the time could care less. PB loves all types of music...the more upbeat, the happier she is. I sometimes catch her choosing to watch the videos on CMT instead of the latest show on Nick or Disney. She will sit and draw and color while the radio plays in the background. She loves to sing along and she wants to know the artist and title for every song on the radio. She sings me songs about her day that end up being 15 minutes long. My son also loves all types music. If you ask him what his favorite song is, he will tell you "Sweet Home Alabama." He also loves "Who Are You" (my husband watches a lot of CSI). His current love is Christmas songs. I admit that our family saturates itself in Christmas music from Thanksgiving until sometime after Christmas. The other day, sitting at a restaurant waiting for our food, my son busts out "the very next day, you gave it away"...yes, the Wham song. He strums his guitar, and sings songs that he's made up...And says things like "Let's rock it out now" and "Thank you for coming out to hear us." That boy has never been to a concert in his life, but can quote concert comments like a seasoned roadie. I hope that he enjoys a vast musical buffet as he grows too.

What part does music play in your life?

Updates

Well, I've managed to go to the gym 2 nights this week...woohoo, double last week! I had a crazy bad headache today, and still forced myself to go. Hopefully a routine will set in by the end of this month and it won't be so bad.

I've had a hard day. January is already a hard month for me, but the last few days have really taken their toll even more than usual. Crawling into bed and pulling the covers over my head permanently doesn't sound like such a bad idea. But I'm still moving along, trying to fight it off with a good diet, exercise, and looking for the good things. I have to say, reading other people's blogs is such a good way to relieve some stress.

Apparently this is Delurkers week or something to that effect. So if you are here, leave me a comment! I thrive on them. Maybe they will make me feel better. And really, I'll find my groove soon. I promise.

First of all, sorry for not posting much. There have been some personal issues happening in my family that I'm just currently not ready to share with the outside world. Really, they aren't my stories to share, and it's hard to share my views and feelings without sharing other peoples stories.

I'm not going great guns, but I have managed to get to the gym a few times and do some exercises at home. I've cut back on what I'm eating and trying to choose the healthier items I know I should be eating. Haven't gotten back on the scale yet...maybe tomorrow.

It's been crazy warm here on the East coast, and today was a bite of what real winter is usually like here. But no worries, cause come this weekend, it's supposed to be downright balmy again!

Getting healthy

This isn't really a New Year's resolution, just a rebirth to what began last fall and went on hiatus during the busy birthday and holiday hell that is the last quarter of the year. I will lose weight and get fit and healthy. I will be more active with my children all year round. Today I found this great blog that I'm hoping will help! Get_fit_in_2007 is looking to be a great motivator...you should check it out!