A little yard work never hurt anyone...

This weekend the hubs and I did some work on the backyard and when I say the hubs and I, I actually mean the hubs.  He is so much handier than I am with outdoor activities.  Mainly because I am too much of a girl and really, really hate being dirty.

I was actually tasked with helping him for about 30 minutes, but then I got sand in my hair and I was done.  Don't ask.

This weekend's task was to get our two outdoor umbrella's changed out.

We live in Florida.  It is hot in Florida.  Even if you are lucky enough to have a pool, which we are, the sun can be brutal.  Umbrella's are a must.  We have a lanai that goes across the back of the house and we love that, but you still need some sort of cover for the pool.

Yeah, we're not those type of people to have a fully enclosed pool with a shade all around it.  I don't understand the purpose of those.  I want to be outside.  Feel the sun on my face, until I need shade and then float myself under one of my beautiful umbrellas.

So that was the accomplishment for the weekend.  And don't they look stunning?  Trust me.  They do.

My Pre-Bucket List

Today is Friday and as the week waned for me I found my foolish heart desperately awaiting Friday. Not because I hate the rest of the days of the week.  Not by a long shot.  I am one of those deliciously lucky people who really love what I do.

I'll stop bragging.

But I have recently come to the realization that I do not have enough hours in the day to pursue all of the things I have a passion for.  As the days fly by and time continues to pass, I don't regret the path I have followed, I just wish I had more time.  

I guess that is something that we all start to yearn for, but only as youth fades.  I don't ever remember thinking in my twenties or thirties that I didn't have enough time.  In fact, time was something that never popped up on my radar.  It is only now, as I look to the late fall of my time here, that I wish I had done so much more with my summer.

To that end I have decided to not wait until the dawning of the new year to make change, I am going to do it now.  

Here are the top ten things I want to get complete in the next five years.  This is by no means my bucket list, lets call it my pre-bucket list or better yet, my fuck it list.

1. Travel over-seas, I am thinking Greece or Ireland
2. Travel to one city in the U.S. my husband and I have never been
3. I want to get certified in something for my work, I don't have a preference at this time, just something that supports my career goals
4. Go back to Costa Rica
5. Spend more time with the people I love
6. Make more time for girl's nights with my gal pals
7. Dedicate myself to working out 
8. Make new friends
9. Say yes more to new things
10. Blog more

I don't know why I felt the need to share this today, but I did.  So this is my vow to self.  Let's see how I do.

Waterboarding is less torturous

I saw the commercial.  I read the brochure.

How easy this looked.  How much fun I was gonna have.

Fast forward three weeks.

For. The. Love. Of. God!

Make the muscles stop screaming.

They said you would have fun.

They said it was easy.

They said I would love it.

I don't know who "they" are, but if I ever meet these "they" I'm gonna make them get on this torture device and keep going until they crack.  And believe me, they will crack.

This has got to rank right up there with being waterboarded by the CIA.

But seriously...

I love this thing.  And it's already working.

Now, if I can just get the gym finished.

Stay tuned...pictures coming soon.

Livin Large in Paradise

Two weeks ago we took The Breaktime out for the first time this season.

What a gorgeous day.

Because I'm a giver, I'm gonna share.

I know what your thinking.  How lucky you are that I just shared this.  Right?

Your day can only get better going forward.

You're welcome.

Do you want to party?

Are you getting ready for the Superbowl?

Me too!

I am pretty excited this year.  Why?  Because I am not really invested in either of the teams playing this year.  Last year, well last year, that wasn't the case.  I sat on the edge of my seat praying that that Ravens would bring it home.

You  know what?  They did.  But it was a close call.

Too close if you ask me.

This year, not so much.

I get to enjoy the food and spending some time with my main squeeze.

So I have a favorite team.  No.  But I think the Seahawks may go all the way this year.  Honestly, they have earned it.

So I'm cooking Eric's Taco Soup along with Jim's favorite Buffalo Chicken dip.  I will post pictures next week along with the recipe's so stay tuned.

In the mean time, I'm sharing this Mom Superbowl video because it made me smile.

Cold day in Florida

Yesterday I got a free day.

Why?

Because we had an ice storm in Florida.

You know how ridiculous that statement sounds.  We had an ice storm in Florida.  FLORIDA!

Okay, so they had reduced operations where I work and it was kind of nice having an unexplained day off.  But I was bored.

What did I do?  I'm so glad you asked.  I worked on catching up my GoodReads list.  That was good because I have been taking some time to read since the new year rolled around.  Although, now I am rethinking the whole 200 books in one year.  I only got through ten this month.  Maybe 200 is a little ambitious.

Back to the ice storm.  It was pretty intense.  I haven't felt temps like that since we went to Michigan to visit or back when we lived in Alaska.  It's just not normal.  See, in Florida we use salt for our Margarita's not for our roads.  (Wish I could take credit for that, but I got it from a friend.)

I also updated my Facebook status.  Quite a few times.  Seriously bored.

Checked my work email way too many times.

I was not sucked into another young adult drama marathon.  But it was close.

Here's what I learned from yesterday.  I am not an idle girl.  Don't get me wrong, I love my weekends.  I look forward to my weekends.  I LIVE for my weekends.  But when I get a day off, unexpectedly, in the middle of the week I need to have a plan.  Without a plan I end up losing a whole day.  There are things I could have been doing.  Unfortunately, they didn't come to me until dinner time.

BORED!

I can't exist without my schedules.  This is what I learned from my cold day in Florida.

What I got out of January

January is almost over.  Wow!

Where did it go?

I have no idea.

In other news, you know I am part of a totally kick ass book club that meets once a month.  We met through Twitter and we have been going strong for over three years now.  Wow.  Three years.

And thanks to this wonderful gaggle of gals, it's official.  I am hooked on sappy YA romance novels.

Don't judge me.

It actually makes a weird kind of sense.  I didn't have the whole love-at-a-young-age kind of thing.  Yes there was a boy I was hung up on, a boy who didn't even know I existed.

Then there was the guy I...You know.

But that wasn't a long drawn out love story.  More like a down and dirty 3 Stoogies movie you can only watch one.  Thank God for that.

So my experience with young love was non-existent until I started reading about it.  And can I just say this?  I love it.  All of it.  The drama.  Lordy, I remember the drama from those days all too well.  Okay, not as much drama as you may find in between the pages of say, an Abbi Glines book, but you get the drift.

So I just finished a new one.  Maybe its not newly published.  I don't know.  But it was new to me, and I loved it.

That's it.  All I got.  I was just in the mood to share.  The picture.  That's the one I just finished.  If you are a fan of the YA romance genre and you like them sappy like me, than give this one a go and let me know what you think.

Cheers!

This year I am challenging myself to a 200 book year.

Can I do it?

Yes.

That is my goal.

I have others.  Those new years resolutions, pesky things.  Of course I've made more, but this year I've decided not to focus on the same old ones I normally do.  Dieting, weight, blah, blah, blah.  Nope, not this girl.  This year, it's all about making me a better me.  

To start with, the hubs and I are going to have a regular date night once a week.  This really isn't anything new, but we have made it official.

Also, we are working to get debt free.  

And finally, we are cleaning out the house.  We are going to go room by room and get rid of all of the stuff we don't need.  Stuff-we have a lot of it.  

So today, I'm resting, relaxing, reading and getting ready to head back to work tomorrow.  I'm going to start tomorrow and every day forward like it was on purpose.  

The ties that bind...

Cooking is a passion for me.  That along with boating, reading and playing with different types of software.  

It seems for the last six months or so I have not had time for anything more than reading.  And the only reason I have had time for reading is because I am taking that time for myself.  Makes getting everything else done that needs to be done harder, but I'm okay with that.

This past weekend I spent all day Sunday reading.  Laying in bed, my laptop, kindle, iPad, tablet and cell phone all within in easy reach.  (Yes I have a little thing for technology.) The day flew by for me.  But overall, it was a productive day.  I completed four books.  Those were full length books, but I also read three novellas.  

I haven't had time to read during the week.  With work, working out and rushing around trying to get everything done before the end of the evening, reading just seems to be a by product of everything else.  But it is my one vice that I am not willing to give away.

During the summer I lose the inclination to heat up the kitchen.  I find sitting behind my computer a drag and boating is something that can only be done on the weekend.  Reading.  Well reading is something I can do any time of the day.  I can carry my devices with me and anytime I have a spare moment I can enjoy some leisurely down time.  

Reading...it does a body good.

What if?

Another week bites the dust.  

I can't believe how fast time if going.  

When I was as kid I was always wishing time away.

I can't wait until the weekend.  I can't wait until summer.  Can't wait to turn thirteen.  Sixteen.  And the big one...Twenty one.  And then before you know it, your turning thirty.

Thirty.  

That was a big change for me.  

Wishing away my life.

I find that not to be so true as I get older.  In fact, it's quite the opposite.  I tend to embrace the seconds, the minutes, the hours, etc.  I don't wish my days away anymore.  

There are lot of ways we spend time we can never get back.  It frustrates me.  At the end of the week if I realize that I wasted any part of my day it drives me crazy.  This is relatively new for me.  I was never a believer of what if?  But now, now I find myself looking back over my day, or my week wondering.

I'm thinking this has more to do with my age then anything else.  

What about you?  Do you spend time wondering what if?

Divergent...

Show it.

I want it now.

I am so psyched for this movie to come out.  

Very rarely do the hubs and I go to the movies to actually see them.  We normally wait for them to come out on Netflix.  Mainly because I hate to be disappointed.  

But this one.

I'm not waiting. 

I will be in line the day it comes out.

Enjoy...

Ceilings are totally over-rated

Life looks pretty good from the front of a convertible two-seater.


Not familiar with what I am talking about?

Let me show you.

I have had Sheldon since July.  This years birthday present.  You're right, I am a special girl.

Anyway, what I have learned since I started driving a convertible is that I had no idea what I really wanted to begin with.  And by that I mean... a convertible.

I have already logged over sixty hours with the top down.  Any chance I get, that top goes down.  I have never enjoyed driving to and from work as much as I do now.

It's not just the commute to work, its all the other drives I get to make as well.

For example last week we had a girls night.  Yes, that was lovely.  But even more so, the drive home was AMAZING.  I had the setting sun to my back as I traveled west from Spanish Fort.  The rainbow of pinks, purples and blues had me catching my breath and looking back quite often.

There is something poetic if you will, traveling in the dark with nothing over your head but night sky.   Night sky and a sparkling new moon.  It was literally the easiest hour I spent the entire week.  It's also amazing to me how the sky looks different each and every day.  No two days have been alike since I started driving a convertible.  How is it I never noticed it before?  

Yeah, I don't know either, but one thing I am sure of.  I will always drive a convertible.  

Promise.

Speed of Light

So...

Just when I think I have a handle on this blogging thing, it becomes apparent quite quickly that I don't.  If for some reason I don't get all of my posts for the week written on the weekend I can just forget about it.

In a nut shell...I'm screwed.

The new job has me so crazy busy (which I totally love) but it leaves no time for me to try and come up with new blog ideas.

Add to the fact that I am doing school and still trying to squeeze some writing time in.  Well, you get the picture.

So here I am sitting on the couch.  It's Friday.  Not whatever day I selected to post this and I am contemplating what to do with my weekend.

Hubs is on call.  AKA On my own.  Which I'm okay with.  Actually better than okay with as we don't need to live up each other's...well you get the picture.

I have enough work to keep me busy around the house, but I am hoping I get some pool time in.  Since this summer started I have neglected the pool and even worse, we have neglected the boat.  I am truly ashamed.  We have all these wonderful things to avail ourselves of, and no time what so ever to do so. Here's hoping that I don't miss the holidays this year because I am too tired to get anything done.

Speaking of holidays...who's looking forward to some cooler weather?  Me!  I have already starting planning my decorations for Halloween.  I promise I will post pictures.

Friday...you can't get here soon enough!

Really...

What else is there to say?

No, I am not promoting alcohol, I am just supporting the cause.

Loss, it never quite leaves you.

My Gram was a pioneer.

When she was still a girl she made the decision to leave her home and her family for a better life.

She was my hero and I miss her everyday.

This month marks five years since she left us. 

I so wish I could say that there isn't a day that goes by where I don't think of her.  Plenty of them whistle right along.  But then, one will happen and the loss will sucker punch me so hard I can't breathe.

Her time here on this earth was put to good use.  She raised a family.  She stepped in and raised a grandchild when it was called for.  Yep, that would be me.

She didn't complain about her lot in life.  She just lived it.  She laughed.  She loved.  She was loved.

She instilled in me a desire to see the world and be the best women I could be.

I don't always live up to the standard she set, but I do try.

I miss you.

 

Happy Birthday to my friend...

Today my friend is celebrating her birthday.

Marylee.

We have been friends for over twenty years.

She means the world to me and I am so lucky to have her in my life.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Girl we were hot...

We still are, but now it comes in flashes!!!

Happy Birthday from one hot chick to another!

The Story of Us

Recently I completed a collaboration with a friend on a book celebrating his late wife's life.  It's a lovely tribute and completely heartfelt.  When we started this project I thought I would breeze through this.  

I was incredibly wrong.

While she was still alive I saw their life together through the lens of friendship.  But after, diving in and taking the reins on this project, I saw my friend in a new light.  Their marriage was built on a solid foundation of love, friendship and mutual respect. And in the years that would follow, their fairy tale would be the stuff that inspires the next generation.
  The undertaking of this work was such an emotional roller coaster ride.  I was reintroduced to my friend's wife and had a front row seat to how their happily ever after played out.  

In the end; her life was cut short way too early.  But I have comfort in the knowledge that she got to spend the rest of her days with the man of her dreams.  

I'm also proud to call him my friend.

We ordered the first book to see how it turned out and I am on pins and needles with the hope that he is completely happy with what we did.  While the words were all his, the design and detail were mine and I desperately want this to be right.

It was such a pleasure, even as it wrung me dry, to participate in this love letter he put together to leave for his children and grandchildren.  A legacy that will be passed on from one generation to the next.

Thank you Houston for trusting me with something so important to you and yours.  It was truly an honor.

When getting banged isn't dirty at all...

September 26, 2013

You can't get here soon enough.

Why?  Why?

Because that is when Sheldon and the gang will be back for the new season.

I have missed them.

Much!

At least I have something to look forward to as we say Goodbye to Summer.


But don't worry, I haven't been without.  I have spent the summer watching re-runs.  I know that those of you who know me are not surprised.  Or maybe you are.  Maybe you weren't aware that I was a BBT junkie.  How you wouldn't know is beyond me.  I have a Soft Kitty mouse pad on my desk at work.  

The lanyard I wear around my neck to hold my badge has Bazinga stamped all over it.

Plus I named my new Mini Cooper Sheldon too. 

These are the things that make me happy.

Now I am just waiting for summer to wind down so Sheldon and I can pick up where we left off last May.  

It's not really cheating, the Captain is aware.

Besides I have questions that can't be answered until the show is back on the air.  I'm wondering if Raj will still be speaking to girls and if Leonard had a great summer working for Hawking.  

What shows are you guys looking forward to in September? 

Hypocrisy...the new political party

My nephew is having a birthday.

We pitched in with his folks to get him this sweet ride.

I'm jealous.  I want one.



I love how excited he gets.

But what I really love is how video on the go and social media allow us to share these moments with him.  Of course at the same time I am so grateful that I didn't grow up in a world where all of my childhood indiscretions were posted for the entire world to see.

Yeah, I see the hypocrisy.  

May the force be with you...

Recently, I got a convertible.

I never wanted a convertible, or at least I never thought I wanted a convertible.

Back in the day, when I was much younger I had a Suzuki Samurai and I loved that little Jeep.  I took it with me to Alaska where we spent many a cold days driving the snow covered roads and hot dogging on top of large snow drifts.

Unfortunately it was so cold in Alaska I only ever had one day where the sun was shining (petering sadly through clouds) and the temperature reached a balmy 42 degrees.  Trust me, in Alaska that was balmy.  I felt it was worth it to take that rag top off, bundle myself up into three layers of clothes and take a drive.  Of course there was wind in my hair, the wind drifts off the water were enough to freeze my eyes to the open position.   The sun was in my face, or a blindingly bright facsimile.  During the day the glare off the snow was enough to convince you the sun was shining. Sadly if the sun had come it would have burned us all like vampires since we hadn't seen it in so long.  True Story.

Even if I did lose feeling in all my extremities, I was grateful for that drive.  It was glorious.
 
Yeah, not so much.  After that I pretty much realized that driving a convertible wasn't really worth it.  Too hard to take the top off.  Could have had something to do with the three pairs of gloves I was wearing and this was 1992.  I don't think they had electric rag tops back then. 

So when we started looking at Coopers I was positive I didn't want a convertible.  I can still hear myself telling the hubs why.  "I will never drive with the top down."  I was emphatic.  By the way emphatic used this way is just another word for dumb ass.  Seriously.

The salesmen said, "Just take the car for a spin."
It was like nothing I have ever slid into before.  If I were a guy I would compare this to apple pie.  (Please tell me you get the reference?)  But the part that took my breath away was the 12.2 second release I have on Sheldon to lower the top.  (I bet the boys can relate with the 12.2 second release as well.)  I can even do it while the car is in motion.  But that's a story for another day.

 Suffice it to say life is looking pretty cool from the front seat of a my new Coop, which I have loving christened "Sheldon".  For those of you who know me, you already know why.  For those of you who need some education, it's simple really.  The car is the color of Luke Skywalker's light saber before it was digitally remastered.  And if you don't know what that means, well, I can't explain it to you.