Monday, January 31, 2011

Books Anyone?

  I love to like the idea of reading...long thick chapter books...classics that everyone else reads...or how to be a better ________.  When I was little, I read a lot. But oddly enough, the older I got, the more I liked to talk...and reading took a backseat.  I don't even remember reading an entire assigned book in  high school or college. (case in point..."youth in asia") I just skimmed and studied the heck out of Cliff's Notes.
 Then I became a parent and I began to TRY and pick it back up again. The problem is...I must have a WAY shorter attention span than I thought I did. Without fail..if I start reading something that isn't complete "fluff", my mind starts wandering....What am I going to cook tomorrow night? Did I ever call so and so back? Why can't I loose five pounds? It must be the wine. Remember that time Jaime and I danced in middle of the street at a train track? That was funny. I wonder what  she is doing right now. I should call. But it's late. I'll call tomorrow. Did I lock the door? I wish I was at the beach right now. Dang. I forgot to call the orthodontist. I wonder what this room would look like if it was blue? Maybe I'll paint tomorrow....and on and on and on.  So...based on that information, you should know that I hardly ever  never finish one book at a time...or at all.  On a happier note, at least I'm always THINKING about bettering myself. Just take a look at all of the books I'm currently reading. At night, I just say eeny meeny miny mo..I like to read really really slow..pick a book out and let's go...(read...but i couldn't end with read because it doesn't rhyme).
  Anyway....if you have read any of these, please let me know how they turn out. Because by the time I finish them all, books will probably be like cassette tapes. Gone baby, gone.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

HOLY CALORIES!!

  Oh my! Look what I just found! I have eaten this TWICE before...and I get SOME type of burger just about every other time I set foot in Chili's! AHHHHH! Not that I'm a strict calorie counter...I use Pioneer Woman's recipe's for cryin' out loud(and they are dang good)...but THIS is crazytown!!!!!

Chilis Jalapeno Burger


#2: Chili’s Jalepeno Smokehouse Burger with Ranch
1,780 calories
125 g fat (40 g saturated)
5,240 mg sodium
71 g carbohydrates
Chili’s burgers are like serial killers: Every one is evil in its own twisted way. This Ranch-drenched rascal will cost you almost two days’ worth of fat and sodium. In fact, this burger alone is the caloric equivalent of a dozen White Castle sliders! Finding a decent sandwich on the Chili’s menu is a needle/haystack affair, and it's hard to recommend a single Chili’s burger. Instead, go with the Grilled Chicken Sandwich for less than half the calories and a tenth of the fat.

How Do You Say "NO" to Baby Tears?

 When B goes out of town, I sometimes let both of the kids sleep with me. But when I feel like I just need my space, I let them sleep together in L's bed. After all, these are the only nights when I can watch all the "girly" TV and read all of the blogs I want...AT THE SAME TIME!!!!! whoo hoo!
 Anyway....after activities, dinner, baths, making of lunches, laundry, studying, reading, and prayers...they were together and heading off(I thought) to dreamland. I had just settled in with my laptop, fuzzy blanket, and heated rice sock(how old am I???) when this face comes crying into my room....


Me: What's wrong buddy?
H: L won't let me snore and Mommy, I can snore if I want to....(tears, tears, tears...) Can I get in the bed with you???
Me: (Sigh)...climb in.  

Maybe I'll get quiet time tomorrow night.....


Friday, January 21, 2011

Some Things You Just Don't Say Out Loud...

   I have the January blues. It happens every year at the same time...so I'm used to it. But...I am so OVER the cold, dreary weather. And "wintry mix" (as they call it on the weather channel) you can gladly go back to where you came from. We had our one good snow for the season and now I'm ready for spring.  Between last week's over abundance of food and wine(H.E.L.L.O. 8 pounds) and the hubby being out of town all this week...I'm ready for a change of...something. So...I thought I'd tell you one of my MOST embarrassing stories from college. Ahem....here goes nothing....
   I went to a small community college my first 3 years of school...(did you get that? first THREE years? yes..it took me that long to get TWO years of classes completed) Let's just say that me and school weren't exactly best friends. And I became a TEACHER! bahahahahahahahahahaha  Anywhoo.....my first semester I had an English Literature class. Classes were small (THANK THE LORD) and I knew quite a few people from my high school. So that made me not AS nervous, but I was still scared to death. I think it was around the second week there, and our teacher assigned us a chapter to read on Euthanasia. We had to were supposed to read and then answer a few questions regarding how we felt about the subject.  Discussion time would take place during the next class.   Well...since school wasn't on my "top 47 things to do" list, I didn't read the chapter until I was pulling into the parking lot the next day. I guess you can say that I skimmed it at best. But I did get that it was about the elderly and being sick and blah blah blah and I was a little confused because it wasn't about what i THOUGHT it was going to be about....so then I started thinking that maybe I had  read the wrong chapter. Oh well!
 Once in class we broke into groups and started our discussion. People were still using the word euthanasia but talking about the elderly. I was seriously confused but was not ABOUT to ask any questions. Then my professor came over to our group...and was listening...and may or may not have seen me flirting with a boy...so she put me on the spot. 
Professor: Soooo Hannah, what are some of your thoughts about this chapter. 
  (I stalled...turned 29 shades of red...and then proceeded to say...)
Hannah: Well...it was interesting, but I really don't understand what it had to do with the YOUTH IN ASIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 YES. I. DID. I actually said that out loud...and was dead serious. Everyone just stared at me with their mouths wide open. Then they all BUSTED out laughing. And I'm sure most of them were wondering how in the WORLD I ever made it out of high school. Then I just flashed a big smile and started laughing right along with them. Ha ha ha ha ha! I was just kidding!!  But what they don't know...won't hurt them. :)
   

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Frog to a Prince

  When L said that she wanted a room makeover for her 10th birthday, I was so happy! Neon green was starting to burn holes in my eyes..plus I was ready for a project. When she said that she wanted a "shabby chic" look, I jumped up and did three twirls in mid air. Be still my heart. All of that dragging her around to antique stores was starting to pay off.
  We started collecting things here and there, but by far my score of the year was "THE FRAME"!  Both of the kids were off of school that day, and with some bribing, I convinced them that running to the goodwill "just for a second" would be a great idea. We made a beeline to the furniture and frames section...because let's face it...I had approximately 2.5 minutes before the whining began. We rounded the corner, and there they were! Two HUGE dirty gold frames that were EXACTLY what I had been looking for. I could see the potential immediately! I made L put her hand on one(for the save) and I had a death grip on the other. Now for the price....$21.97 each. I had seen frames HALF that size at junk stores for TWICE the price. SOLD! We practically ran to the front of the store to pay, getting comments from people the entire way there!  Once we were safely in the car, I screamed and did the happy dance(which got strange stares from my kids).  Then I called everyone who I thought would care and told them about my deal of the century. Oddly enough, nobody seemed quite as excited as me. But I'm sure they'll change their tune when they see this....

Before

After
Memory Keeper

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

L's Room Make-over

When  we moved into this house 4 1/2 years ago, it was straight out of 1974. Not a THING had been changed since the day it was built and decorated.We have slowly but surely re-done every room except one bathroom which has had a mini-makeover and the kitchen which has had about a 50% makeover. I really enjoy re-decorating...and have gotten many ideas from blogs and magazines! Unfortunately since I have decorating ADD, I am already ready to start changing the rooms AGAIN! HA!
Inspection day (before)
(Hey Kim!) :)

old bed, bench, and side table

green!!

old bulletin board and mess!

closet curtain

new bed, side table, painting by kim
lamp re-do, candles over bed,
new color!

window view

new bulletin board

MISTAKE! ha! note to self:
wash and dry curtains BEFORE hemming

view from door
 So...H's room got its second make-over last summer, and L's room (#2) is finally finished! Don't tell my hubby but the playroom is next! :)

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

My Favorite Photographers

Back in October, we were lucky enough to have our pictures made...and boy were they made....they made us look more beautiful, more shiny and happy, more relaxed, and more skinny(thanks for all of the right angles guys) than we had ever looked before as a family!  I was in love OBSESSED with EVERY picture that they took. So...I'm going to send a shout out to them every so often...until they are so booked solid...they can't even breathe. Because who doesn't admire someone who quits their "real" jobs to follow their dreams? I wanna be them when I grow up....
 Just look at how gosh darn cute they are! :)


Thanks Laurie and Will. You're the best!!!

http://streetlightrepublic.wordpress.com/

Monday, January 10, 2011

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow...

We are snowed in...and by snowed in, I mean...they are saying it may not be safe to drive until SATURDAY! It sure is fun though...dressing up like mummies and making redneck sleds out of tupperware tops. Now if I can just make my wine (oh and the food) last until Saturday, we'll be in good shape! Here are a few highlights of our day!



Redneck sled

Super dork!


Snowman!

???????????

Friday, January 7, 2011

I can dress myself...

If you forget to put on your underwear...have no fear....you can always place them ON TOP of your pj's. Great  look for you H!

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Is it me? It's the machine, right???

It all started in the 8th grade when I had to take a home economics class. After we had all suffered through weeks of nutrition information, it was time for our final project...sewing a t-shirt. Easy?? Not for the guys...and apparently...not for Hannah. To this day, I'm not really sure what I did wrong, but in the end, my shirt looked like this...
..and that's not a lie y'all. It was pitiful, embarrassing, and shocking all wrapped into one. Right then and there I decided that sewing WASN'T for me...so I focused my sights on greener pastures...like batting my eyes at the boys and seeing how fast I could complete 200 write-offs given to me for talking during morning study hall! :)
 Fast forward 15 years and I actually decided to try again. Who can't sew a straight line? I wanted new pillow covers but was too cheap to buy them...so pushing my first experience with sewing out of my mind, I went for it. And long story short, after my entire living room was covered with fabric and piles of knotted up thread(for some reason the machine was just parked in the same place going over and over itself), I gave up. For the second time in my life. We(the machine and I) exchanged nasty words and MAYBE I shed a few tears(H was a baby so I blame hormones for that one) and then I marched in the kitchen and got myself a cold beer...at 11:30 in the morning.
 When that sewing machine was declared "defective" by my MIL, I gladly gave it to the Goodwill. And when Christmas time came around this past year, guess what I asked for? You betcha. A new sewing machine. After all...it was the MACHINE not the USER right????  Maybe third time really is a charm....

Hannah

PS. As I was about to post this, H came up to me, looked at the screen, and said..."Hey...what is wrong with that shirt. Why does it look like that?"  Well little fella...your guess is as good as mine.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Eating Healthy???

For the new year, we  I decided that we would TRY and eat more veggies. B agreed, the kids groaned, and I said a silent good-bye to my "everything is better with butter, sour cream, and bacon" approach to cooking. After feeding the kids stir-fry on Day 2...I walked upstairs to find them in bed reading this...
 I guess they were still hungry...we'll see how long THIS lasts!

Here I Go...

Well....this is something I have been thinking about doing for TWO years now...and I figured I better start soon or my kids will stop saying funny things and I won't have anything to write about! HA! Mostly this will just be used as a journal for me so I can keep track of things that we do day in and day out...and remember them in 10 years. Apparently I am not good at that seeing as L reminded me THREE times this morning to pick her up at 3:30 NOT 2:30 from school, and H told me not to forget to close the garage door as we were leaving the house! Are they trying to tell me something??? :)
 Hopefully within a couple of days I can figure out how to work this blog thing. I'm definitely a pro a READING them...not so good at designing them. I was worried that they would not have spell check and my third grade spelling skills would be sent out into web world for all to see and make fun of. Yes...I fully admit...I am a TERRIBLE speller. Just ask my mom...who still makes fun of me for it...or my husband, B, who gives me the stink eye when I ask him how to spell certain things! ANYWAY...I overuse exclamation marks, commas, and smiley faces...so please don't send me any mean comments about it! :)
 I'm off to figure out how to post pictures! This only took me 21 minutes to write. Remind me not to listen to rap next time I post...50 Cent is distracting....

Hannah