Power Thought of the Day!

I now go beyond other peoples fears and limitations

It is "my" mind that creates "my" experiences. I am unlimited in my own ability to create the good in my life.

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So true...love it!

Weekly Meal Plan

Monday - Burger, chips

Tuesday - Spaghetti, salad, bread

Wednesday - BBQ chicken, potatoes, green beans

Thursday - BLT's, soup

Friday - Chicken Tacos/burritos

Sat - Grilled chicken, veggies, salad

Sun - Teriyaki chicken, rice, egg rolls

Weekly Goals 4-26-10

1. NO SMOKING!

2. Hang in there with the P90X...Do it EVERY NIGHT you can!!

3. Portion Control

4. Finish Thomas's project

5. LOTS of water!

6. LOTS of sleep!

7. Send someone a letter to say hi!! It's WAY more personal then a facebook message:-)

8. Stay on track with budget!

9. NO eating out!

10. Help Thomas stay focused on school for this last 9 weeks. It's ALMOST over!! Then SUMMER CAMP! He can't wait!!!!

Weekly Goal Results 4-19-10

1. NO SMOKING!!!! - Still smoking...:-(

2. Drink LOTS of water - Yep!

3. Portion Control - Yes, I have been very good with my portion control this week!

4. P90X M-Sa - Almost! I am doing it as much as I possibly can...I am so darn busy!

5. Work on project for Thomas's room - Yes, a little...I am going to try to finish it this weekend:-)

6. Edit and email pics from Village Creek - Done!

7. Have an open mind to life:-) Life is good....LIVE IT! - Oh yeah! Life is good:-)

8. Don't let ignorant people get in your way....it's NOT worth it......stay strong and do what you know is best:-) It will all pay off in the long run! - Haven't even let that person cross my mind...soooo not worth it!

9. Get Thomas signed up for Youth Program - Yes, he went Sunday and had a blast...he is meeting lots of new friends:-)

10. RENT SUITE FOR THOMAS'S SPRING BALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ASAP:-)- Got it! He had a blast at the gym:-)

Thomas's First School Dance:-)

Awe....Thomas had his first school dance this year:-) He took two of his best friend..Katlyn and Nialli. Nailli's little brother Pablo is the other kiddo in the picture. I just picked Thomas up a few minutes ago and he had a blast! When I got there...I went in and he was breakin' it down on the dance floor having such a good time! It makes me soooo happy to see him that happy! He wore a tux for the first time too and man he looked sharp! I have such a handsome son. He is turning in to such a wonderful young man!!!!! I am one proud mama! CHEEEEESE!

I sure do love my husband:-)

I don't care how old you are or how long you have been with a person there are certain things (little things) that give you a feeling in your heart that could never be replaced:-) I love Joel more then anything....and there are little things that he does and he doesn't even know that he does them. These things make me feel all mushy inside...awe! The other day Joel and I were driving down the road...and this song was on. Ok...I know it's totally a teen bop song...but he started singing it to me and took my hand...and I got that little feeling in my heart. I love it when that happens...It reminds me of why I married him and why I enjoy every day that God gives me with him!!! I know that Joel loves me...but when he does little cheesy stuff like that it just reminds me "how" much he loves me:-) I am truly the happiest woman in the world. I am so very blessed to have him and my whole entire family!

Weekly Meal Plan

Monday - BBQ Chicken, Broccoli&cheese, potatoes

Tuesday - Cheese tortellini, bread, salad

Wednesday - I will be at a cooking class...Joel will have to make something for him and Thomas:-)

Thursday - BLT's, soup

Friday - PIZZA/Movie night:-)

Sat - Grilled chicken, veggies, potatoes

Sun - Pork chops, mac-n-cheese, veggies

Weekly Goals - Week of 4-19-10

1. NO SMOKING!!!!

2. Drink LOTS of water

3. Portion Control

4. P90X M-Sa

5. Work on project for Thomas's room

6. Edit and email pics from Village Creek

7. Have an open mind to life:-) Life is good....LIVE IT!

8. Don't let ignorant people get in your way....it's NOT worth it......stay strong and do what you know is best:-) It will all pay off in the long run!

9. Get Thomas signed up for Youth Program

10. RENT SUITE FOR THOMAS'S SPRING BALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ASAP:-)

Weekly Goal Results 4-12-10

1. NO SMOKING! - ugh...still smoking...

2. Work out at least 4 times this week. - Yep...and some...I am diggin P90X

3. No eating out! NONE!! - Not once...I cooked every night:-) Except when my Mom took us out to dinner:-)

4. Stick to budget...save money:-) - Right on track...we can't wait to move!!!!

5. Help with planning of reception - Yep....it's going to be such a beautiful reception for a beautiful couple:-)

6. Learn something new about photography - I have been learning a lot about Baby Bump pictures because I am about to do my first baby bump session!!

7. Pack everything on the walls - Almost...We did pack up everything in the kitchen that we can.

8. Paint nails and toes:-) - nope...they need it though....will do them this week!

9. Bed before 11pm - Every night:-)

10. Portion Control- so so...some days I rock at this and some days...well...not so much:-(

Baby Bump Pictures

Man...I wish I had baby bump pictures taken when I was prego with Thomas. I think they are some of the coolest pictures EVER!! My neighbor is prego...so I asked her I could take some baby bump pictures of her to add to my portfolio. She was super excited and agreed to do it! It will get her some super cute photos and will help me learn about taking them. I can't wait!!!!! I asked her to go online and see if she could find some pictures that she likes...and we would try to duplicate them the best I can...and we would also come up with some ideas as we go...just have fun with it and see what we come up with. Here are some of the pics that she sent me. OMG!!! I love this girl already:-) She didn't send me any boring prego pics...she is really ready to go out there and have fun with this!!! I am really looking forward to taking her pics. Not only is the prego...she is also totally adorable and will take beautiful pictures! I will post them on my photography blog next weekend:-)

Week #1 of P90X---- I DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

Whew!! I MADE IT!!! There were times I didn't think I would....but I did:-) Other than the Yoga...I really enjoyed all of the workouts. They are hard...don't get me wrong...but I know that in a few weeks they will get easier as my body gets stronger. I think I am going to switch out the Yoga next week for a different workout...I just can't bend enough for the Yoga:-( Hopefully in time I will be able to do it! I have been averaging between 350-500 calories burned per night of the workouts...that's pretty darn good in my book. I wonder if I will start burning more once my body gets stronger? I would think so..... Looking forward to my ONE day a week without P90X tomorrow...then back to it Monday afternoon.

Oh...and I will have to get Joel to snap a picture of my great dane Bella while I am working out. She CRACKS me up!! When I do the stretches she gets right beside me and stretches too. I sware she thinks she is human and that she is working out with me. She is freaking ADORABLE! I love that dog to death...couldn't live without her...or my sweet boy Braxton. He comes in the room and chills out and watches me workout but there is no way he will get his lazy butt up and workout with me. Ok....I need to stop....I am talking about my dogs working out with me. You know how they talk about those crazy cat ladies??? I guess I am a crazy dog lady. They seriously are my world:-)

P90X Day #3

WHEW! I have made it to day 3...only 87 days to go. I can't tell myself that or I might just give up now. This stuff is HARD!!! I could seriously hardly walk today. I haven't been this sore from a workout in a long time. I can't wait to start seeing results:-) I know if I stick to it I will start seeing them soon and the workout itself will get easier as I get stronger...but I am a TOTAL weenie right now...so it really sucks:-( One thing I really like is I can do this at home on my own time and I really feel like I am still getting a great workout. I LOVE IT! BRING IT!!!!

P90X Day #1

OMG...is about all I have to say. Wow...what a workout. I am really glad that I decided to get it. Let me start by saying that my plan is to do the full 90 days as best as I can and see what happens:-) I am going to take my before pics tonight....then my 30 day pics...then 60 day pics and finally 90 day pics. I will not post them until I have them all and I am done with the program. I am pumped. I can tel you from lasts nights workout that this is going to be tough!! From what everyone tells me it's WORTH IT! I just need to hang in there. I can hardly type today my arms are so sore....LOL. If you are interested here is the website. I bought it new.....I know that you can also find it cheaper on Craigslist.com or ebay.com. I am not sure why I didn't want to buy it used....I just didn't. Maybe I think if I pay full price for it I will be more willing to do the workouts...LOL. Who knows!

http://www.beachbody.com/product/fitness_programs/p90x.do?code=P90XDOTCOM

Weekly Meal Plan

Monday - We had Pizza

Tuesday - Parmesan Chicken, rice, veggie

Wednesday - Chicken Quesadillas, beans, corn

Thursday - Turkey Spaghetti, salad, bread

Friday - Pork Chops, broccoli & cheese, rice

Sat - Turkey Enchiladas, chips/salsa, salad

Sun - Salisbury Steak - mac-n-cheese, potatoes

Weekly Goals 4-12-10

1. NO SMOKING!

2. Work out at least 4 times this week.

3. No eating out! NONE!!

4. Stick to budget...save money:-)

5. Help with planning of reception

6. Learn something new about photography

7. Pack everything on the walls

8. Paint nails and toes:-)

9. Bed before 11pm

10. Portion Control

Weekly Goal Results 4-5-10

1. NO SMOKING.... - UGH...I am totally smoking again....but I am going to continue to keep this as my #1 goal. I will NEVER give up on trying to quit!

2. Vitamins - Yep! Took them every day! Gosh I sure do feel better when I take them!!

3. Lots of water:-) - Yep! I had almost nothing but water all week. Lots of water makes you feel good as well!

4. Exercise at least 3 times this week - Nope:-( I did order the P90X though...and it's coming in this week....so I will be getting my workout on soon! I hear it's a really tough program but has AWESOME results...We shall see!

5. Portion Control - Yes, did really well in this area. My hardest challenge was this chocolate cake that the kids Mom made...UGH! It was really yummy....but I only had a very small piece of it. GO ME!!

6. Scrap page:-) - Not this week. I actually decided to pack up most of my stuff. I will wait until we move to work on my scrapbooking...but I am working on another project:-) A boat shelf to hang in my office at the new house!

7. Stay on budget (cut coupons) - Have LOTS of coupons...will go shopping tomorrow. We have pretty much been eating what we have here....

8. Take another class about photography - I have been doing a lot of research on maternity photography. My neighbor is prego and she has agreed to let me get some shots of her this coming weekend...so excited!!

9. Help Thomas stay focused in school:-) - Yes...He had a GREAT week! Looking forward to many more to come:-)

10. Work on Britney's reception!! - It's in the works...everything is going to be perfect:-)

New Project

Ok....so my neighbors were having a garage sale and the kids wanted to go over and see if they had anything cool...We go by and I see this boat...I LOVE it! I am not 100% sure what I am going to do with it yet....but I know that I will sand it down and either stain it ir paint it. I want to hang it up in my office at the mew house and put a nice picture of the kids. One picture of each kiddo on each shelf! I am soooo excited. It was $2.00. I haven't done anything like this before...but it can't be that hard right?? We will see what I come up with. Here are the before pics...I will post the afters as soon as I am finished with it:-)

Lots of ideas floating through my head......

I am visually moving in our new house already:-) We don't have the extra cash to buy tons of new furniture right away...so I am working with what we have and also coming up with ideas (cheap) that will look good. I am NOT a good person at decorating. I don't really have a style:-( I want my house to look nice but I want to be the one who decorates it...so it's me. I like things that have character...that mix match...and that are useful...or have a purpose. I see so many houses that look great but are full of stuff that never gets used. Makes NO sense to me.

Haley and Brenden's rooms will be the most challenging because they are both going to have nice sized rooms...with hardly anything in them. I really want their rooms to be a place that they can go....to do what they enjoy:-) I will set up Thomas's room this way as well...but will have more to work with since he lives with us full time...he has more furniture etc.

Haley is becoming a young woman right in front of me...it's crazy! When I met her she was a little live wire...that could spark at any time. She was FULL of drama and VERY emotional. Like most girls I guess. Now, Haley is starting to really get to know who "she" is. She loves to read and has the most colorful personality I have ever seen. She wants to be, and try EVERYTHING! I hopes she holds on to all of those hopes and dreams forever:-) Don't let me fool you ...she is still full of drama too LOL! I want her room to match her personality. She is not a little girl anymore. I want her room to POP! Color...fun....all over the place! I have a few ideas floating around...that I think will look great in her room and they are very simple things that she could help me make. There is one thing that I know I am going to do. The family that lives in the house that we are buying has one bedroom with what I thought was really FUNKY wall paper. When we looked at the house we noticed that it wasn't wall paper. They took fabric and stapled it to the wall! It looked awesome and is super easy...affordable...and easy to remove when you want to take it down. I am going to help Haley find some really funky fabric that matches her personality and we will put it on one of the walls in her room. I also want there to be a reading area in her room that is comfortable and relaxing because Haley has recently started to REALLY enjoy reading! I am so glad. Reading is soooo good for kids....and if they enjoy it they learn so much from it!! So excited!

Mr Brenden....he is another one that was a live wire when I first met him and he still is. He is just like his father....never sits still LOL! Brenden really enjoys skateboarding and that origami stuff. he is really good at it too! He loves to draw and make stuff. I posted a want ad on Craigslist to see if someone had a bunch of skateboards that they wanted to get rid of ...and it worked!! A kid sold me like 10 of his old boards for $20.00. SCORE!!! There boards are awesome!! They are worn...and some are even split in half. Not sure what I will do with them...but I am sure we can come up with something that will look great in his room. I am also going to make space in his room for him to be able to do all of the origami/art stuff that he wants. I think he will really enjoy that!!

Thomas is more of an intellectual. He loves to read and is awesome at writing. He really has a talent...he doesn't think so...but I see it. I want him to have space in his room to be able to enjoy reading and writing. What fun!!

I can't wait to be able to start working on some of these projects for the kiddos!! I am sure I will have more ideas come around between now and then. My friend Alyson just mentioned a few really cool ideas for Haley's room that I am going to work on too!

As far as the rest of the house goes....I have everything I need. I WANT more new stuff...but that will come with time. That is part of buying a new house right? Over time you can get everything JUST the way you want it:-) One idea that I saw at a restaurant was really cool. They had candle holders full of coffee beans and then placed a tea cup candle in the middle of them....great idea...it smells good...looks cool...and it's cheap to put together!

More ideas to come...........

Goin' Old School:-)

Well...it was nice to have the iphone for a little while...but I am getting rid of it. I really can't justify spending that much a month on a phone that is great...but ultimately does nothing that I can't do without it. The biggest thing I will miss about it is the notes section and the calendar. I put my whole life in that darn thing! It would beep at me to tell me to do a load of laundry. Ok...I wasn't THAT bad...but it was pretty close. I am a "to do" list kind of girl...and I need them:-) So....I am going back "old school" to the typical calendar book. This is what I used before I had the iphone...and I really like it. It's just not as "cool" as the iphone calendar...and it doesn't come with the option of beeping to remind me that I have an appointment etc. I have to get back into the habit of looking at it throughout the day and making sure I write everything in it and I will be good to go. You know...there comes a time (like when you buy a house) that you really have to get your priorities in the correct order...and the bill for the iphone is now OFF my list!!! With the house mortgage about to start I am looking for any simple ways that I can cut back our spending...and the iphone was the first to go. I am working really hard at sticking to a reasonable grocery budget. That is going to be a little more challenging for me:-) I LOVE to cook...and I don't like the cheap stuff (cheeses, meats...etc...) So...I am REALLY trying to find cheaper and more simple recipes. I can't just NOT cook...and start making ramon noodles for dinner....I just CAN'T justify that as a dinner for my family....nope...I can't do it!!!

Power Thought for the Day

My thoughts are creative

I say "out" to every negative thought that comes to my mind. No person, place or things has any power over me, for I am the only thinker in my mind. I create my own reality and everyone in it.

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Good one! Nice thought of the day:-)

Weekly Meal

Well...this week and I am not setting a meal plan. We have lots of leftovers from our cookout this weekend...and I am going to work from that and what's leftover in my kitchen. I did do some SERIOUS coupon clippin' tonight...so when I do go shopping later this week I should be able to save some serious moola!!

Have a great week!!

Weekly Goals 4-5-10

1. NO SMOKING....

2. Vitamins

3. Lots of water:-)

4. Exercise at least 3 times this week

5. Portion Control

6. Scrap page:-)

7. Stay on budget (cut coupons)

8. Take another class about photography

9. Help Thomas stay focused in school:-)

10. Work on Britney's reception!!

Weekly Goal Results 3-29-10

1. NO SMOKING YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!!!!!! - SMOKED WAYYYYY too much this week.:-( I AM going to get back on track!

2. Stick to budget - YES! I am doing great in this area

3. Exercise at least twice this week - I worked out once this week.....I need to STEP IT UP!

4. Portion control - YEP! Doing good here

5. Start making plans for repairs on the house before we move out - Yes, have been working on this as well

6. LOTS of water - Didn't do bad...but could drink more:-)

7. Take vitamins daily!! - Totally slacked off of this....will start working on it more this week...gosh...how hard is it to take a few pills every day....Ii don't forget my birth control...LOL

8. Bed no later than 11pm - Doing good here...other then Sat night...I couldn't sleep...I was up until 3am...BOOO!

9. Read more.scrap more - Read more....didn't scrap any....but will try to do more this week!

10. Take some online photography classes - Yes, I learned more about white balance this week...

Cosmic Cafe - Dallas TX

OMG!!! This is some of the best food I have had in a LOOOOONG time! If you haven't ever ventured down to the Oak Lawn area....you need to just to try out this place! It's vegetarian...and since my son has recently decided that he is going vegetarian I figured we should try it out. I was worried that the menu was going to be full of a bunch of weird stuff...tofu...meatless this and garden that. But it isn't at all. It's all vegetables....salads....sauces...tea...smoothies. It's very FRESH ingredients with an idian flare to it. There is curry in a lot of the dishes and it's used beautifully! YUM! If I could figure out how to make these recipes I wouldn't have ANY problem going all vegetarian. I am not a huge meat person...and did go vegetarian for a while...Now, I eat everything except hamburger meat...yuck...and I still try to incorporate a few vegetarian meals into our dinners throughout the week:-) I am going to try to make some of these recipes one day....and if I can come even close to how good these are I will be set!!! Don't be scared....go check this place out. The place itself is also really neat...the decor and the people are lots of fun...oh and don't forget to hit a yoga class upstairs before you sit down for a nice meal and a hot cup of tea. This is my kind of place!!!

Bonding.....

The kids have been together for almost 5 years now....They have gone from...not knowing each other...to being totally jealous of each other....to hating each other....to really starting to care for one another. It has been a transformation that Joel and I knew would happen over time...but is more rewarding to see then we ever thought it would be. Haley and Brenden love having a "big" brother. As you can see in the picture they simply adore climbing all over him. A few years ago this would have really made Thomas mad...but now...he really enjoys hanging out with them when they come over:-) Building a family isn't easy....and these little moments mean more then anything:-) I love these guys!!!