Training at Work

*yawn* Two days of this? Seriously? At least I get paid for it ... And I didn't have to travel, unlike the last time I had an extended training session, which the company paid for (trip to VA nearly 5 years ago, saw my aunt and her family while I was there). AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

I'm ready to start typing on a real account now, TYVM.

CD 24 of my 30-day cycle ...

Yeah, this is totally becoming my TTC blog. hahahaha!

My new theory is that TTC makes smart people stoopid and irrational. I want a baby, therefore I am pregnant, even when you don't know you are. I'm not nearly as nauseated as I've been some months, but my boobs hurt and I'm flipping exhausted -- I think I slept 10 hours each Friday night and Saturday night and Sunday night ... And would have happily done so last night if not for work. That's not normal for me these days. So today, I picked up some progesterone cream -- put some on my inner thigh. Hopefully it doesn't trigger a flare of body acne, but what the heck, I'm already having one. The last time I had acne like this on my body and face, I had the IUD. In my whole life, I didn't start having acne issues until I was pregnant with Munchkin, so having the acne already before the progesterone cream made me think maybe I'm pregnant, and then thought maybe I should get some cream and try and help the bean stick.

Anyway. If AF shows up next week, I'll start the cream much earlier next cycle -- after ovulation. I started temping around ovulation time this month to get in the habit of doing it, and then someone told me vaginal temps were more accurate -- which I can totally believe because the nights I'm cold my oral temp drops a lot, and the nights I'm warm, it shoots up, so it's not giving me a good idea of anything at all ... so today (a week into temping) I changed to vaginal, which of course is higher, but at least I'm getting into habits of doing this stuff *just in case* I'm not pregnant this month. So my chart means *nothing* this month, but at least I'm doing it! Makes me feel better at any rate.

Back to work.

Garlicky Goodness

So, I've been eating very well lately, aside from the chocolate pumpkin massacre. Fruit, veggies, chicken, fish. No red meat in the house. The last few days, I have been absolutely craving it. Oranges and apples and lettuce only stick for so long, y'know?

We had a steak in the freezer. I made it, ate it with brown rice and brown gravy. I even shared some with hubby.

Two days later (today), I'm still craving RED MEAT and wanting grease and garlic in the worst way. I've never had cc's recommended garlic burgers, but man, they sounded good. So I went to the store today -- garlic, red meat, whole wheat hamburger buns, tomatoes, mushrooms ... and since I'd promised hubby I'd use the avocadoes in the fridge instead of letting them go to waste, I made guacamole -- mashed avocado, lemon juice, salsa, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, a little fat free sour cream. Then I diced the garlic, sauteed it in butter, tossed it in a bowl with the meat, worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and mixed it all up. Made 4 giant burger patties and one small one, cooked thoroughly, topped with cheese and let melt. Sauteed the mushrooms in the garlicky pan. Sliced the tomatoes. Oh my gosh ... garlic burger with garlic mushrooms and garlic guac and a tomato slice ... we're all oozing garlic, but man ... I'm full and satisfied for the first time in DAYS. and Princess Picky said "yum!" to the burgers (hers was about one-third the size of ours on half a bun), and she ate the whole thing without arguing or complaining), then stuffed herself silly with guac and chips.

Yum.

Last night, I made a huge salmon filet (topped with melted butter, lemon seasoning salt, dill, parsley, and lemon juice, then broiled). That was good, too, even if I wasn't completely satisfied after dinner like I am right this minute!!!

Auntie Voodoo, visit 3

Well, my reproductive parts are doing better apparently. The rest of me is still fubared, but whatever.

I have gone walking a couple of times -- out to the bus stop, deliberately parking farther away in the parking lots, etc. I need to keep it up, and I need to be doing yoga and other stuff, but my brain has been sucked out by the 2WW (two week wait) of my cycle before I can test for pregnancy. See, it was sucked out for a few days while we BD'd during my "fertile" time, and now it's sucked out while I wait until the day I can test. I'll actually probably test early since hubby's birthday is next Saturday and I'm not due for a period until after that, but ... i have no brain and no desire to wait. lol. anyway. This is what occupies my mind quite a bit of the time now: Pregnant or not pregnant, that is the question ...

Confessions of a Girl

1. Is it cute when guys kiss you on your forehead?
If by "guy" you mean DH, then yes.

2. A big poofy dress or a short party dress?
Uh ...

3. What would you do if you received a long love letter?
Put it with the rest of them. :)

4. Group dates or single dates?
Single dates with DH ... We have group "date night" with his gaming friends, where we all game. I'm not kidding. I need a DATE with him, away from the house, TYVM.

5. Do you hate it when guys act different around their friends?
yes!

6. Are diamonds a girl’s best friend?
Nah, but they're sure nice to get!

7. Is your hair up or down today?
Up ... like most days.

8. Do you straighten your hair?
Sometimes

9. Favorite mascara?
One that doesn't make my eyes itch

10. Do you get your nails done?
No.

11. Small or large purses?
Yes? I have some of both and medium, too.

12. In your purse, what are your must haves?
Phone, keys, camera, wallet, lip gloss ... sunglasses ...

13. Jeans or sweats?
Jeans, if I can find any I like.

14. Do you wear clothes/shoes/jewelry that’s uncomfortable?
sometimes

15. Do you text message a lot?
not so much

16. What would you do if you got pregnant?
I'd probably be thrilled, since we've been trying for ... 9 ... months.

17. What’s your favorite color?
Green? Blue? purple? all three.

18. Heels or flats?
Flats. I'm old. I do wear heels, but mostly pumps, not spikes.

19. Did you ever cry during a romantic movie?
Yep

20. Would you ever leave the house without make-up on?
Yes, frequently do

21. Walmart or Target?
Depends. What am I buying? :P

22. Do you wear collared shirts?
No ... actually.

23. Do you like preppy boys?
No

24. Do you think lip gloss is the best!?
The best!? Maybe close to the best. I sure like it.

25. Do you own any big sunglasses?
Not so much. Need new ones.

26. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
If I'm going somewhere besides dropping off the Munchkin, about 30 minutes. If I"m taking her to school and coming straight home, about 5 seconds.

27. Do you like to wear band-aids?
No

28. Do you like skater boys?
No

29. Do you often wish there was something you could change?
Yes

30. Gold or silver?
Silver/white gold

31. Do you like to receive flowers?
YES

32. Do you like surfer boys?
No

33. Do you dress up for the holidays?
Sometimes

34. Do you like to wear dresses?
Sometimes

35. On a scale of 1-10 how much do guys confuse you?
3

36. In the last 48 hours have you hung out with a guy?
hubby ... the gamers online ...

37. Would you date a guy shorter than you?
I have. Not anymore though, since hubby is taller. :P

38. Do you like to hold hands?
Yep

39. What is the youngest you would date?
... hubby.

40. What is the oldest you would date?
... hubby.

41. What do you notice when you first meet a guy?
BUTT, eyes, smile

42. Is it hott when guys sweat?
it depends on what he's been doing. -- Amen, sistah

43. What is the best feature in a guy?
Kindness

44. Do you like making eye contact?
Yep

46. Would you kill for chocolate?
Not today.

47. Did you ever spend all day/night getting pretty for a guy?
YES. And an entire weekend before the wedding!

48. On a scale from 1-10 how fun is shopping?
Depends on what I'm shopping for and if I'm pressed for time and if I have kids with me. Usually, it's a 3. If I'm having "Stewie" time and can really SHOP, an 8.

49. Do you freak out if you miss your favorite show?
I don't watch TV

50. Do you yell a lot?
Only once a month ...

51. Do you wear sweatpants/pajamas to school/work?
Yes. I work in my house, and am frequently wearing PJs or G's.

52. Have you ever dressed unlike yourself to impress a guy?
Maybe?

53. Do you write a lot of mushy love poems?
NO.

54. What makeup could you not live w/ out?
Eyebrow pencil and lipgloss

55. Do you fall in love easily?
No.

56. Do you have cramps?
Not today.

57. Do you think you have the bestest friends ever?
Well, if I didn't think they were the best"est", they wouldn't be my friends. :P


*****

On the news front, preggo SIL in Japan is in the hospital. She started hemorrhaging over the weekend. They were able to stop the blood and amniotic fluid leak, and she is now stabilized and out of her "emergency" (ICU) room. Baby bean is still swimming around in what little amniotic fluid is left. Hopefully she can go home soon, even if she's on bedrest, but we're all just glad she's still alive. And we're glad the baby is okay, but since she's only toward the end of first trimester, she has a long way to go.

Saw Auntie Voodoo again today. Things are progressing.

Work is *okay*. Wish I could get more focused again. Gah.

AND, today is my mommy's and cc's birthday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Happy Birthday!!!

Pumpkin Muffins

This is a zucchini bread recipe, but you can use pumpkin or applesauce in place of the zucchini. It was my friend's mom's recipe, who gave it to my mom when we lived in the same ward when we were kids. A couple of years ago for Enrichment, we made all three kinds plus some other quick breads for the refreshments, and it went over quite well. Works well for muffins, mini muffins, or bread.

1 c brown sugar
1 c white sugar
1 c oil
3 eggs
2 c grated zucchini (or pumpkin puree or applesauce)
3 c flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp cloves
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
12 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 c chopped nuts*
1 c raisins*
1 c chocolate chips*

*is optional; i only use the chocolate with the pumpkin. i wouldn't use all three in any of them. ew.

Preheat oven to 325. Beat eggs; gradually add in sugars and oil. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Add to first mixture alternately with zucchini. Stir in rains/nuts/chips and vanilla. Pour into two slightly greased and floured 9 x 5 loaf pans. Bake at 325 for one hour. Let stand 10 min before removing from pans.

*I did mini muffins, spraying the pan with pam in between each batch. They only took 14-15 min to cook each batch, and they turned out beautifully. Probably made 4 to 6 doz mini muffins, hard to know since I made a double batch and they disappeared as soon as they were out of the oven, and I gave away 4 dozen.

*****

Munchkin (the pickest eater EVER) gobbled them up. So mamafjord, I'm not so weird. :P

Friday Fave Five!!!

*snort* made you look. It's Tuesday/Wednesday, but I'm in a mood.

1. Sinus Rinses. MONTHS ago, maybe even a year ago, I was looking up a product for a report I was typing, and thought, "I should try that." I even told DisGrace about it, who bought it and has been using it. I never did anything about it ... until now. I bought it yesterday when I was at the pharmacy picking up my BBT thermometer, and used it this morning and tonight. It is so nice to be able to BREATHE. I can breathe deeply through my nose for the first time in recent memory, AND I didn't have to take any allergy meds today. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! It is weird to do, but oh my stars ... I'm sure I'll post again whether it gets better, worse, or stays the same. But for now, I can BREATHE!!!

2. Pumpkin chocolate chip muffins. They are oh, so good, but evil.

3. Warm socks and a space heater. Office is cold.

4. My SIL in Japan is still alive. She's having really serious complications with her pregnancy, but so far she and the baby are both still alive. She's still in the hospital even as I type.

5. Hubby has been helping around the house again. GO HUBBY!



I have the funniest kid ever. She's going to be my WoW toon for Halloween. Try explaining that to A) A third grade class whic has never heard of WoW, B) Your in-laws who don't know you play because they *hate* videogames, C) Your friends who also hate WoW and don't know you play, and D) Random people in the grocery store asking her what she's going to be.

I told her to tell them all she's a witch ... wearing red and white robes, a black pointy hat, carrying a wand, and holding a black cat. The thing is, it's Halloween in WoW, and they celebrate by doing fun things ... My toon now has a pointy hat and a Siamese cat and rides a broomstick. She's always had a wand. Close enough, right? GAH.

Embarrassing Moments

So, on our company forum, somebody asked if anyone had had laser hair removal. Not thinking anything of it, I said yes, and I loved it. So then she asked, "how long until you could go out in public again?" She was thinking she wanted it done on her face. At that point, I should have messaged her privately, but noooo ... I had to admit I'd been undergoing Brazilian hair removal and rather enjoyed the results. She then asked, "Why, do you swim a lot?" LOL. Yeah, I swim, we have a pool, but that's not why I got it. I should have just said, "Yep," and shut the heck up. I didn't. I said, "Hubby wanted me to get it and he was very persuasive." Which he was. So the conversation continued with her saying, "EW! I don't think I'd want my hoohah naked!" LOL. About this time, two other ladies came to my rescue and said they had theirs laser Brazilianed and loved it, too. And then another gal came on and said, "What's a Brazilian?" I explained it, but am not going to here. Look it up on wiki if you don't know and want to, but there are naked pictures. :P

So today I said that was probably a very embarrassing moment for me, having to explain all of this to these ladies, even with two other hairless wonders in my corner, explaining that it's easier to keep clean and that there were various other bennies to having it done, and another gal posted the following:

"For a good laugh and an embarrassing moment: I went out and bought some wax strips last night because this thread had me curious. Shaving is torturous for me..I hate it. *whispering* When I was all done, my butt cheeks were sticking together because I couldn't get all the wax off. Now I can never show my face around here again... "

hahahahahahahaha ... oh how mortifying ...

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

I'm driving myself crazy.

I started feeling weird "flutters" in my belly the last couple of weeks. One time, I was lying on my side and felt something rub against the part of my belly that was on bed, like it was trying to push the pressure away from it.

Now, I know I'm not pregnant. Okay? I got that. It just FELT like a baby. Then I thought, "You know Stewie, if you hadn't lost that baby in May, you would be feeling a baby moving right now." And realized it was just that part of my brain that was rebelling against all evidence to the contrary.

Since then, I still feel weird things: Things that feel like feet or hands pushing on a spot on my tummy, then moving away again, or flutters down in my lower pelvis. It's insane. Talk about delusions, right?

Anyway.

Apparently, this is becoming a baby and diet/weight loss blog, since that's all that's on my mind.

Bought a BBT thermometer today to check my temps to track my ovulation in case we don't get knocked up this month.

Haven't done so good in the food area the last couple of days ... tired, cranky, sick of feeling all weird for no good reason. Bah.

Saturday SIX!!!

I never get my Fridays in these days. Owell. Here's SIX.

1. This is funny.

2. Hubby decided he's going to increase his work schedule again, to 36 hours, but since 5 of those hours are on Sunday morning (going in Saturday night), he'll get paid double time for them. And, thus, he'll be getting paid for 41 hours. Hopefully he can keep it up and still get school going and all that, but honestly, the budget needs it.

3. Halloween celebrations on WoW. I readily acknowledge that I am a geek, but there is something hilarious to me about being able to trick or treat with various characters, with tricks being turned into snakes, cats, toads, little diablos, etc., and seeing a giant pet bear (vicious creature, attacks your enemies) following the tiny housecat into which my hunter has been transformed. It also cracks me up that my head got turned into a pumpkin, and that I can ride a broom once in a while, too. Crazy stuff.

4. I'm glad my FIL and DisGrace's hubby are both better and out of the hospital. It has not been a very good week.

5. Birthday parties for kiddos! So fun to see Dizzy covered in frosting and Bru loved the Magnetix we got him (which Munchkin didn't want to give over -- little does she know hubby and I already decided to get her and Small Fry their own sets after they fought over the neighbors' this summer).

6. TGIS. I'm ready for a day off.

And seriously, I had an embarrassing thing happen this week. Someone on our company forum asked about laser hair removal, and I said I'd had it done and loved it, and she said, "how long until you could go out in public?" WELL, I then had to say something about how getting a Brazilian doesn't stop you from going out in public. She then freaked out -- "I wouldn't want my hoohah naked!" Fortunately, a few other ladies on the forum said, "Hey, I had mine done and I love it, too." Woooooooooooo.

Derf

I have been eating so much better lately -- fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean protein ... I haven't had any dairy for a few days and no cheese for over a week. When I was a baby/toddler, I had milk allergies, and when I was a teenager and in my early 20s, I didn't do dairy at all in the fall months because it flared my other allergy symptoms even more. So I decided that might help the allergy symptoms and stuff, and I'd been feeling sooooooo much better. Until I took Munchkin out for breakfast this morning, thinking no big deal, right? I had a breakfast sandwich with American cheese on it, and I feel like CRAP. guess there is something to eating healthier after all ...

ADDICTION

But I can quit anytime ...

You Are 69% Addicted to the Internet

In your opinion, life without the internet is hardly worth living. Could be, but you probably need a bit more fresh air and sunshine to think clearly.

Are You Addicted to the Internet?

Auntie Voodoo again (and no, she doesn't know I call her that!)

Walked over there and back -- about 3/4 mile each way. Foot zone didn't hurt quite as much this time. Tubes are better -- no blockage, normal texture. YAY! Thyroid is still out of whack, but that's okay -- it'll get better. I am off of dairy for a while, hoping it helps. I'm a bit less congested today, so that's always a good thing.

I'm not dropping weight a whole lot yet, but I *am* shrinking out of my fat shorts I bought this summer. That's a good feeling.

Saw the midwife this morning. She's a certified nurse midwife (CNM) who works in an OB/GYN office attached to a hospital. I really like her -- my mom really likes her, hubby likes her but says it's most important I feel comfy with her.

We talked about the past 8 months of TTC (trying to conceive). They don't think I'm truly ovulating every month since the my stripe on the hormone test strips isn't as dark as the control stripe, so I'm probably surging, but not enough to trigger ovulation every month (which could be another reason I don't feel pregnant every month!). She wants me to try Clomid for one cycle and see what happens, and if I'm not pregnant by the time my December period is due, I'm s'posed to go back in for testing. I'm comfy with that plan. I haven't told hubby the plan yet since he's finally sleeping. I'll tell him later.

I didn't tell her what Auntie Voodoo said about my tubes or anything, and I don't intend to tell Auntie about the plan with the Clomid. Auntie Voodoo told me to wait a few more months, but the longer we wait, the more urgent I feel like we're not supposed to be waiting. BUT because I'm too late in my month to start the Clomid this month, she has a few more weeks to do her majick before I take the Clomid.

And as DisGrace put it, maybe it'll get me twins and I can be done being pregnant that much sooner, and I'm comfy with that too -- Boy howdy it'd be hard, but I'm so ready to have a baby ...

I don't intend to really blog much detail about this every month, but wanted to post the plan for now for all who are curious. There ya go.

Infertility

Saw the midwife this morning. She's a certified nurse midwife (CNM) who works in an OB/GYN office attached to a hospital. I really like her -- my mom really likes her, hubby likes her but says it's most important I feel comfy with her.

We talked about the past 8 months of TTC (trying to conceive). They don't think I'm truly ovulating every month since the my stripe on the hormone test strips isn't as dark as the control stripe, so I'm probably surging, but not enough to trigger ovulation every month. She wants me to try Clomid for one cycle and see what happens, and if I'm not pregnant by the time my December period is due, I'm s'posed to go back in for testing. I'm comfy with that plan. I haven't told hubby the plan yet since he's finally sleeping. I'll tell him later.

I didn't tell her what Auntie Voodoo said about my tubes or anything, and I don't intend to tell Auntie about the plan with the Clomid. Auntie Voodoo told me to wait a few more months, but the longer we wait, the more urgent I feel like we're not supposed to be waiting. BUT because I'm too late in my month to start the Clomid this month, she has a few more weeks to do her majick before I take the Clomid.

And as DisGrace put it, maybe it'll get me twins and I can be done being pregnant that much sooner, and I'm comfy with that too -- Boy howdy it'd be hard, but I'm so ready to have a baby ...

I don't intend to really get into to much detail on the blog about this every month, but wanted to post the plan for now for all who are curious. There ya go.

Innie versus Outie

In typing a medical report today, I had to look up the spelling of "innie" just to be sure I was correct in my spelling of this slang term. Yep, really.

While doing so, I ran across a website for people with belly button fetishes ... and soon found myself wanting a survey on BELLY BUTTONS.

Hi, I'm Stewie, and I'm a survey addict.

So, is yours innie or outie and do you prefer either in the opposite gender?

Mine's an innie, hubby's is an innie, and I rather like it, tyvm.

Seven Deadly Sins

WRATH
Who did you last get angry with? Hubby
What is your weapon of choice? Silence
Would you hit a member of the opposite sex? Have
How about the same sex? Have
Who was the last person who got really angry at you? Hubby
What is your pet peeve? whining
Do you keep grudges, or can you let them go easily? Depends on the topic at hand. but I usually try to let it go.

SLOTH
What is one thing you're suppose to do daily that you haven't? Cleaning my house
What is the latest you've ever woken up? In the last year, probably 10
Name a person you've been meaning to contact, but haven't? Jen and/or Stephanie
What is the last lame excuse that you made? This isn't a good time
Have you ever watched an infomercial all the way through? Yes.
How many times did you hit the snooze button on your alarm clock this morning? Once

GLUTTONY
What is your overpriced yuppie beverage of choice? Um ... I don't drink them anymore, but I do make chocolate breakfast drinks and add either coffee-flavored or chocolate cherry flavored ginseng juice. tastes like an iced mocha.
Are you a meat eater? Yes
What is the greatest amount of alcohol you've had in one sitting/outing/event? I don't recall, probably several screwdrivers
Are you comfortable with your drinking and eating habits? I no longer drink alcohol, so that's covered, but I do eat too much, although I am also working on that.
Do you enjoy candy and sweets? YES.
Which do you prefer: sweets, salty foods or spicy foods? SWEETS.
Have you ever looked at a small house pet or child and thought, "lunch"? EWWW.

GREED
How many credit cards do you own? ... *counting* 5 or 6, but only two have balances, and one of them is medical.
If you had a million dollars, what would you do with it? Tithing, bank, house, bank, clothing, bank, brand freaking new Town and Country with the revolving seats and the kidtainment system. --- hahahaha ... DITTO
Would you rather be rich or famous? Rich. -- Ditto
Would you accept a boring job if it meant that you would make megabucks? Yeah.

PRIDE
What's one thing that you have done that you're most proud of? Being a success as a single mom, with a happy, well-adjusted child, owning a home and paying the bank for a car, and then meeting a great man and still having all of the above. And staying true to the gospel. hehe.
What's one thing you have done that your parents are most proud of? Probably the same.
What thing would you like to accomplish late in your life? Possibly going back to college.
Do you get annoyed by coming in second place? Depends.
Have you ever entered a contest of skill, knowing you were of much higher skill than all the other competitors? Probably
Have you ever cheated to get a better score? Probably
What did you do today that you're proud of? ... oy. I am a diva -- the choir director asked me to sing in the choir (apparently, I need an engraved invite), because they needed a soprano. Well. It was a descant no one else in the choir could do, and during the last verse, Munchkin and hubby could hear me over the choir/organ/piano. And they were sitting in the very back row. Not that I was louder than the whole choir, just my voice carried very well, and everyone complimented me. One person (hehe) told me I'm opera material which just made me laugh. Ahem. Moving on.

LUST
How many people have you seen naked (not counting movies, family, strippers, locker rooms)? ... three or four ...
How many people have seen you naked (not counting physicians, doctors, family, locker rooms, or when you were a young child)? three or four ...
Have you ever caught yourself staring at the chest/crotch of a person of your chosen sex during a normal conversation? yeah.
What is your favorite body part of a person of your gender choice? my husband's butt
Have you ever had sexual encounters (including kissing/making out) with multiple persons? not at the same time, no. -- ditto
Have you ever been propositioned by a prostitute? No.

ENVY
What item of your friends would you most want to have for your own? item... or body ...
Who would you want to go on "Trading Spaces" with? I have no idea.
If you could be anyone who existed in the world, who would you be? I'd still be me. -- ditto
Have you ever been cheated on? Yes, I think.
Have you ever wished you had a physical feature different from your own? Hello.
What inborn trait do you see in others that you wish you had for yourself? high metabolism -- ditto

What deadly sin...
Do you do the most often? Envy
Do you do the least often? Greed or Wrath
Is your favorite to act on? Lust

Fave Five

So, I realize I haven't done this in for-freaking-ever. But here's my five fave things from this week:

1. Oranges. I'd forgotten how much I love them. I get to eat a lot of them these days.

2. A rational discussion with mamabear about politics -- it was brief, but nonetheless there were a lot of things we (surprisingly) agreed on, and no one hurt anyone else's feelings.

3. My boss asking me to proof 20-25 hours a week (during my night shifts and on Saturdays) and type the rest of the time. My wrists and hands are already happier, and I'm able to focus more mostly, so I'm making more money per hour again. Yay.

4. The time I have spent one-on-one with my husband.

5. Cuddling Munchkin and watching Twitches Too (Disney channel movie) and the premiere of their new series. Mostly just kicking back with her is the best.

I wouldn't say I *enjoyed* my zone treatment or the cardiologist appt Thursday, but at least they both gave me hope for my future health, so that's good, too. And being able to pay the bills but also have some fun with some of the money is also a bonus. YAY! Still budgeting, but doing a lot better.

Also got to chat with my SIL the other day, which was good. Her SIL (the one with the breast issues after her baby was born) is now home with her baby and doing much better. She has a long road of recovery ahead of her, but she's happy to be home and feeling better.

AND, if I were to include LAST week in my five for this week, I'd have to include time with CC and BA last weekend. It was good to see them -- even if I did act like I was on drugs. *mwah*

Survey! only ...

I changed/deleted some of the questions because they were STUPID. Who cares what kind of birth control I use or if I've gotten naked at a party or had sex in a very inappropriate place??? GAH.

1. Do you know anyone in prison? My ex may or may not be there.
2. Have you ever logged onto a boyfriend/girlfriend/crush's myspace? I don't know that I've ever logged onto myspace ...
3. When is the last time you ate peanut butter and jelly? a few weeks ago.
4. Do you have a desk in your room? had one in my bedroom, but it is now back in my office!!!
5. What kind of car do you have? 2005 PT Cruiser. and a 1991 Exploder.
6. Are you named after one of your parents or grandparents? My middle name is my great-grandmother's maiden name.
7. Does your first significant other still live in the same town as you? Actually ... he lives in Highland or American Fork, which isn't that far from me. My brother and SIL see him once in a while. My second SO was his best friend (yes, really) and I think he still lives around here, too, but my family never "updates" me on him because they hated him, and the first one wasn't so bad.
8. Do you throw up gang signs? Uh, no.
9. Have you ever broken a rib? Nope.
10. Would you rather be a girl or a guy? As my mom pointed out when I was a teenager, I wouldn't want that "thing" to get stuck in my zipper. EVER.
11. Who is the most spoiled person you know? Probably my kids ... or me ...
12. Would you rather have a million dollars or true love? Why does this have to be a CHOICE? I want BOTH.
13. Do you watch the Grammys? No
14. Would you ever work for the border patrol? No
15. Which one word would describe your last/current relationship? hahahaha ... Awesome.
16. Would you rather date someone 2 years older than you or 20 years older? I've done both, would rather have my current husband than anyone, which is why we're married.
17. Have you ever had a eating disorder? Yep. Anorexia/bulimia as a teenager, overeating as an adult.
18. How many proms have you been to in your life? None. Got dumped by my then-boyfriend (the one my family hated) just before the prom.
19. Have you ever been in a interracial relationship? um ... yes ... I'm in an interracial marriage.
20. Is your birthday on a holiday? No, although sometimes Easter is close.
21. Are you old enough to vote? I'd dang well better be with an 11-yo and an 8-yo.
22. Do you have any friends or family in the war right now? Maybe? Hard to keep track of 50+ cousins.
23. Where are you? In my office.
24. Do you worry about global warming? Sometimes.
25. Do you like polar bears? Yes, especially the neurotic one at the Portland Zoo.
26. Have you ever been cheated on? Ex-husband claimed he didn't, but his family said he did.
27. Are you an atheist? NO.
28. Did or do you think your childhood dreams will come true? I'd like to think some of them will ...
29. Do/did you wear your sweetie's clothes? I have -- too bad I outgrew his HUGE jeans ...
30. What do you think of gold diggers? They get what they're looking for but will never be truly happy.
31. Are you a country or city girl/boy? a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll ...
32. Do you want to hit something? The creator of such a dumb/lame/13-yo girl survey.

Even easing into it this week and yesterday's junk fest, I'm down to 239.8 (fully clothed but no shoes), which is still less than I was a couple weeks ago before the period bloat. I feel pretty good, too. I'm planning to hit it a bit harder next week though, and try and start exercising again. Getting through some of the dairy this week so it doesn't go bad, then cutting that out next week, too. which will only help hubby with his goal to quit eating cheese, wince his body hates him when he does it and punishes him, even with lactaid. gah. Changed my tracker down there to reflect what I started at this week.

244.2 this morning, but uh, today was a very hard day and we ate out. Twice. JUNK FOOD. Crapola.

Had a foot zone treatment by my aunt today. She said we need to wait a few months while we work on the foot zones and the antiestrogenic diet (only she said no dairy for a few weeks, too) and exercising more. All of it should help my girlie parts function better before we try and get pregnant again. Apparently, she says that my tubes aren't normal: One has a blockage and the other is sort of mushy and flat. The sperm are getting through the mushy/flattish one, but the fertilized egg isn't moving back through fast enough to implant into the uterus in the limited time it has to do so. Which is why it's not every month I feel pregnant -- only one side is able to get the mommy part and daddy part together (which is sort of how I explained pregnancy to munchkin when I was single when she was a toddler and she kept asking for a baby brother or sister ... told her we needed a daddy for that, 'cuz we need daddy parts). Auntie is surprised we haven't had a tubal.

This last month was a replay of May, so we decided we needed to go ahead and try some stuff to see if I can get a bit healthier so we can bring our babies to this world. We've both seen them in dreams, so we know we're s'posed to have them. Off to the midwife next week for hormone checks. Yay me.

Hoping I keep feeling better with the dieting. Gotta exercise and take supplements, too, but I'm really doing MUCH better than I had been. Until today. But it's one day, not the end of the world.

Yearly Heart Checkup

Well, today I was s'posed to see my cardiologist and have the yearly echo done to make sure the membrane that was in my heart stays gone. I panicked yesterday for a bit because Chrysler's auto strike meant the parts for my PT Cruiser got stuck in Denver, and we couldn't drive it. The parts got there this morning and they hustled and got it done just in time for us to go to the appointment (although it's still making noises ... just not the really bad ones). The Exploder is just not a happy car and we didn't want to take it to SLC. Hubby was s'posed to go with me, but something happened at work this morning with some other Tongans being horrible to him (he doesn't speak Tongan but he understands it, but they figured it was okay to bad mouth him and call him horrible names in Tongan because he wouldn't understand). It caused a bipolar crash of course, so he wasn't sure he could go but in the end, he went with me, even if he was a Grumpy Wumpuss the whole time.

Took Munchkin to my SIL's and then hubby and I grabbed sandwiches at Arby's and headed for the hills ... er, Sandy to the heart doc. Their Sandy office is sooooooo much closer than the one at LDS Hospital, and it wasn't nearly as busy, so we got done a LOT faster. I think we were there for 3 or 4 hours last year, but we were done in about 1-1/2 hours this year.

My heart is fine. Everything is good except my lipids, which they told me not to be on the meds last year since they can cause birth defects and we're hopeful we might get pregnant some time this milennium. They haven't checked them since then, but whatever. They just encouraged lifestyle modification, and the doctor (who is so cute my mom has a crush on him) said he hopes next time he sees me I'm holding a little baby. lol.

So, I brought hubby home and, well, he was still being a stinker, so I left and picked up Munchkin. On my way over to SIL's, I called the dealership again and the guy said, "bring it in and we'll do a test drive so we can hear what you're hearing." And then my PEPSI (which I wasn't s'posed to be drinking, but only had a few hours of sleep last night) exploded all over me and the car, so I called him back and said I'd come another time and then went to my SIL's. Cleaned up the car and myself a bit, and then every time I tried to leave, she brought up something we needed to talk about. So I was there for a couple hours. I love her, don't mind spending time with her, and I was hoping it would give hubby a chance to get some good sleep before we got home. Not the case. Took Munchkin to Wienerschnitzel for chili cheese fries (wasn't s'posed to eat them either -- NOT a good day), and when I got home hubby was still watching anime instead of sleeping. Mind you, he didn't sleep much yesterday and he didn't sleep at all today, and he had less than 5 hours before he was s'posed to leave for work. We sort of got into a tiff but he did go to bed. I'm gonna go snuggle up to him in a minute.

BEFORE the car and the heart doctor, I had my auntie do a foot treatment on me. It's like reflexology, only different. And it hurts like mad, not soothing like a foot rub. I don't think I've had one done since before Munchkin was born. After Munchkin was born, she was having problems with constipation and her meconium never really came all out, and she was really jaundiced. Had auntie do a treatment on her when she was a month or so old, and her next poop was the rest of the meconium. She still had some constipation, but she was a lot better after that. So on me today, basically, if you believe all that stuff, most of my organs are not functioning right, and my fallopian tubes aren't normal -- one was blocked and the other was "mushy" and sort of flat, so even though sperm can get through them, the fertilized eggs are having a hard time getting back down, especially in time to implant. She's very surprised I haven't had an ectopic pregnancy yet, and it explains why nothing is implanting. My thyroid is basically inactive ... my digestive system is sluggish ... lotsa stuff. So she said with the antiestrogenic diet I'm working on, and exericising, and getting a foot treatment every week, in about 3 months I should be functioning a lot better and can then try for pregnancy. I've been really emotional all day and obviously turned to comfort foods, but it could have been much worse. So yeah. There's my day.

Gonna go snuggle and have a nap or something, then either take hubby to work and get to work myself, or let him go to work and then work myself. *mwah*

Antiestrogenic Diet

Okay, this wasn't my idea. It was cc's. But I figured it can't hurt. I'm going to probably buy the book this weekend, but the gist is to go organic, avoid sugar and caffeine (although that is a little tricky since I sometimes need caffeine to get me through my shift), load up on fruits and veggies throughout the day with organic yogurt and eggs for protein, eat beans and whole grains and only fish for meat at night for the first two weeks, then add in other proteins gradually.

I started Monday, but I started my period Sunday, so I'm not sure where my weight is, but Sunday I was 247.6 and today I am 244.6, so whether that's from period bloat going away or the diet or both, that's better than I was. I'm not perfect at this, but I *am* eating better than I was.

Since I'm so darn sensitive to hormones, it occurred to me that the hormones in the food I eat could be negatively affecting my fertility. I'm talking to my homeopathic auntie about the diet tomorrow. She mentioned to me that my hormones may be out of whack, and if I don't have enough progesterone I won't be able to carry a pregnancy. She'll do a foot zone treatment and hopefully trigger some more of this stuff to release. I have an appointment with my midwife for next week to get my hormones checked and stuff, so hopefully something will help me release some of this baggage and get pregnant sometime soon!

Cars and Work and Kids, Oh My!

Hubby took the Cruiser in this morning and they dropped him off just as I was hanging up from my conference call. They need to keep it overnight because they need parts and it's not entirely safe to drive -- wheel bearings going bad in both front wheels.

Thank heaven I got the extended warranty on that thing. Bad wheel bearings in both front wheels can be very expensive to replace due to the labor costs -- having to remove brakes, rotors, drums, whatever, just to get to the bearing. So yeah. Happy dance, prayer of thanks, etc.

But the Exploder has a tire leaking air and hubby still needs to go to work tonight. We haven't driven it since my brother brought it back in August ... which is just over two months (although my math in my head just a minute ago said three ...). So I took it to the gas station and put more air in it (bro had done the same while he'd had it for the weeks they were here). We'll have to deal with it more permanently later -- still wanting to sell it, but right now, I guess I'm glad we didn't yet.

Other than that, the conference call went well this morning -- nothing bad dropped on us, at any rate. Not really any good news, like closing down India, came in, but that's okay. I didn't really expect it to.

Munchkin went on a field trip to the Timp Cave a few weeks ago. It was a pretty big deal and turned out well. Today, they took a field trip to a grocery store and a library and a park. They ate lunch while they were out. She has gotten so grown up about some stuff, like when they asked who wanted school lunch the week before the field trip, she stood up so she got counted. Before this year, she would have panicked and not known what to say. lol. But she's good. Happy.

I'm sleepy, but need to get a bit more work done before she gets home from activity day. then i'll make dinner and have a nappy. yay.

Happy Houey

Made an appointment a couple weeks ago for our poor car to get checked out at the dealer since it's making not-good noises. Boss lady called a mandatory conference call for tomorrow. At the exact same time I'm s'posed to be at the dealership. Hopefully hubby really takes the car in.

Conference was good -- not that I remember much of it now. My niece and nephew slept over Saturday night, and they were pretty good, but about an hour after hubby went to bed Sunday, their parents came over and everyone started yelling and my brother-in-law POUNDED on our bedroom door. I was upset, but BIL is hubby's friend, and I just figured he wanted to see him. Hubby didn't come out, but I sure heard about it that night. They finally left. After I put kiddo to bed, he got all snuggly with me, but something happened that set off an argument, and we were up until 5 a.m. arguing. GAH. I hate nights like that, but y'know, now I know why I don't remember much of conference this time.

It's like as soon as I start to feel the Spirit more and start to get more determined to live the way the Lord has told us to, Satan sticks his big fat nose into my life and marriage and, well ... tries to destroy us. He's so annoying.

Let's break his kneecaps.

I tried to dye my hair today. Yeah, didn't work so well -- I thought the black dye from before had faded and gone away enough to try something lighter, but I was oh so sadly mistaken. So, my roots are the shade I wanted to about 2 or 3 inches, and then the hair is still dark and not anywhere close to the other. BUT I found my hairdresser's phone number (in my cell phone of all places) so I'm calling her tomorrow.

I'm also calling the midwife tomorrow as I am NOT pregnant and she said to come in if we were having problems getting that way. Well. We are. And not because of fighting most of the time ... That's probably the worst fight we've had in a really long time. *sigh*

I sure love him though. And he loves me, so I think we're a happy family ...

PS, I forgot! We watched Blades of Glory with Jon Heder and Will ... *blank out* from Elf ... and Bewitched ... Anyway, we watched that Saturday night. It was HILARIOUS, but had a lot of inappropriate humor (jokes about sex addiction, gays "they're making ice skating even gayer than it already is", incest, etc.). If you're sensitive to that stuff, I wouldn't recommend it. But Jon Heder was very good and even though he did have a scene in blue briefs (*snort*), he didn't swear, he did speak Japanese (he went to Japan on his mission), and he wasn't the one feeling someone up. AND they were totally making fun of that movie about the hockey player becoming a figure skater starring DB Sweeney. Not that I can remember the name of THAT movie, but I remember having a huge crush on DB. LOL. That's all I'm gonna say on the matter.

I gotta get to work.

Parent Teacher Conference

Had PTC with Munchkin's teacher last night. I was in a bad mood when I left, an even worse mood when I walked up to the table and another mom RAN to get there first, swiped the sign-in paper, then slapped the table and sat down hard in the chair saying, "We have a LOT to talk about," and when I was finally able to yank the paper away from her and sign it then take a vacant chair in the waiting area, a couple came and sat next to/on me and the husband kept getting up and down and every time he did, the wife hip-checked me to make room for her toothpick of a husband. Yeah, not conducive to a good PTC, right?

Well, Munchkin is a little angel this year apparently. Of course, her teacher being one of my high school friends and me being volunteered to be head room mom might have something to do with that -- Lark behaving better and the teacher viewing her through rose-colored glasses so she won't have to call me for any bad behavior ... hahaha. Munchkin is polite, settles down when the teacher asks her to, hasn't beat up any kids (whew), and is doing VERY well in school. She is missing 3 or 4 rather large assignments and still has an A and two A-'s (reading/english/written is the A, and spelling and math are the A-'s). With this being the first year for letter grades, she's rather pleased with herself. Her teacher was pleased as well and assured me that if math is where Munchkin struggles (and it is), then we have nothing to worry about since she's one of the top students in the class.

Now that's a PTC I would go to again, and I left in a much better mood than the one I was in when I arrived.

And yeah, I'll be calling THAT mom to take care of some stuff I don't want to do. hahahahah.

Geek Stewie Strikes Again!

For some reason, I can't post pictures of my toon's new pets. BUT, rest assured, I am still quite the geek.

I had to level my toon to 40 tonight so I could buy a mount to ride so I can move faster. I bought a blue ostrich. Yay me!

Then, it's Brewfest in WoW land, which means lots and lots of "beer". My toon got drunk (do I need to 'fess to the bishop for that?) and caught 5 Wolpertingers, which could only be seen while intoxicated (and the screen moves around weird and in and out and the toons don't run where you tell them -- much like *you're* drunk). My reward was one to live in an ale tankard to be a pet I can summon at will. A Wolpertinger is sort of like a jackelope, only it also has wings. Hilariousness. And then I thought, hubby has a toon here, too. So I pulled up his (which he's since given to me) and got her drunk too (he said at least I didn't get any of them pregnant), and got her a Wolpertinger as well. hahahaha ... The whole thing just makes me laugh.

Only, now I keep expecting this monitor to go all wonky, too. *snort*

Happy Dance!

Guess what hubby did while I was running little errands this morning? He put my office back in my office (except the computer -- he let me do that, hahaha). I'm so flipping happy. The Monkeys are just going to have to get along next time Small Fry visits.