Halloween

Happy belated Halloween!

I hope everyone had a good one. I went out to Oak Park and kept my mom company while she handed out candy.

First of all, it is just great that my mom is still alive and I get to spend time with her doing normal stuff like that. I know how lucky I am.

Second, my mom had a little clicker/counter thingy so she could keep tabs on how many people she gave out candy to.

Now, technically some of the kids were repeats (though some of them changed costumes before coming back) so our tally should be slightly lower but whatever... it is still impressive.

We had 361 trick-or-treaters last night! And there would have been more but my mom just gave the last couple of kids big handfuls of candy because she was getting cold and wanted to go inside!

Some of the kids were local neighborhood kids but MOST were from bad areas in Chicago. Can't really blame them for coming here- better candy and less chance of getting shot.

We were talking about making a few changes for next year. I suggested a gauntlet that the trick-or-treaters had to get through to get to the front door, but that they would get a full sized candy bar if they made it. Jim said we should plant corn in the front yard and make a corn maze to get to the door.

thank you dinner

So the other night Mike and I decided to make dinner for my parents and brother and sister to thank them for letting us use their house for our wedding. Now, I of course mean that Mike MADE the dinner, but I helped with the decor and serving and doing the dishes. 

Each place setting had a copy of the night's 5 course menu. And each napkin ring had a picture of the person whose seat it was. The photos were all from the wedding. This was Jim's picture, taken in the photo booth with my other brother Mike and his wife Kelly. Jim sat down and said, "Really?" and I said, "What?" and he said, "I don't remember ever BEING in the photo booth with them!!!"

We stayed with the red theme (same as our wedding) but decided to change things up with a bit of a different/ funky centerpiece arrangement. 

None of the pictures of the food do them justice of course, but here is the potato wrapped potato with chorizo and peas and carrots. 

The chef hard at work making some tacos. 

I was going to take pictures of all the courses to document them but then I got drunk/ busy and missed a few. This is the beef with mushrooms and soy butter. Soy butter (which is just soy sauce melted with butter I think) is AMAZING! I asked Mike why he hadn't made that for me earlier and he said, "Because we were trying to eat healthy!" Oh yeah. 

I'd say the dinner was a success. So much so that I think the fam would even be willing to let us host a party there again sometime! 

the honeymoon phase

Yup, I've become that person that totally neglects their blog.

To be fair, I WAS without internet for a few weeks there. But let's be honest, I am just lazy.

So what has happened since my last blog post? Well, for starters I got married! Still sort of hard to believe.

I had such an unbelievably positive bridal experience. I'm not really a huge fan of having so much attention focused on me... but I will say I liked how everyone was so unbelievably NICE to me! "What do you need? I'll do it." I can't believe how many times I heard that phrase! My friends and family rock!

Transitioning to married life has not been difficult at all... mainly since Mike and I had been living together and paying for stuff together for a year already. I can only imagine how big of a shock it would be for couples who haven't been doing that stuff already. Because living together is MUCH different than dating someone. When you are dating someone the time that you spend together is all about each other. But when you live together you also need to do your own thing. So just because they are in the same room as you, does not mean they need your attention.

I think the hardest part for couples are the little things that drive each other crazy. The not squeezing the toothpaste tube correctly. Or the leaving dirty clothes laying around. Mike doesn't really bother me. I've told him to let me know if anything I am doing is bothering him, but he hasn't said anything so far. It's been pretty idyllic really.

I'm just documenting this so that a few years down the road when we have kids and are driving each other crazy I can look back on our "honeymoon phase" and laugh!

pre-wedding excitement

I guess I should write a blog about this coming weekend... my wedding weekend!... for prosperity's sake.

I don't want to bore you with details and whatnot but it is going to be the best wedding EVER!!!!

I was soooo lucky that my mom and mike's mom both just let me (I would say us, but really most of it was my planning) do whatever I wanted. They didn't try to force their will on me at all and for that I absolutely adore them. Thank you!

Second, I have had so many offers from friends and family to help out that I am struggling trying to find things for all of them to do! That's a great situation to be in! :)

I'm not nervous or stressed out about the wedding. Miraculously I had enough money to pay all the vendors. The house shaped up nicely. We were able to keep our guest list to a reasonable level. True, it's sad that we couldn't invite everyone we wanted to, but we compromised and hopefully those people we couldn't invite will understand. I personally feel that all people who are married and have gone through the trial of putting together a wedding and making decisions like that should understand.

I kept waiting to get nervous or stressed about the wedding but it didn't happen. Sort of like when I was getting LASIK eye surgery. I kept waiting to get really nervous and sick to my stomach and freaked out about it... but I didn't and it was a piece of cake.

The wedding has a lot more variables than eye surgery but I plan to just roll with it and have a good time.

I'm SOOOO glad that I made my theme The Muppets. It has made planning this wedding so much fun. It definitely won't be your same old wedding!

Today I got my first ever spray tan. Which, I will admit, looks pretty awesome. Unfortunately you are supposed to do NOTHING after getting it. Don't touch things. Wear super loose clothes (no bra.) Don't carry bags on your shoulders. Don't rub against things. Don't sweat. Don't come into contact with water- which means don't wash your hands. And definitely don't shower for at least 10 hours. I of course went straight to work which meant that I ended up washing my hands, not once, but at least six times!

I find I don't really want to talk about the wedding because I want it to be full of surprises for people. I mean, not huge surprises, so don't get your hopes up. But I love surprises. Even little ones. That's probably why I haven't been flooding this blog with tons of details about my wedding over the past few months.

Speaking of surprises... Mike is off doing some surprise thing for the wedding which he won't tell me about. I keep saying that I hope he is off organizing a surprise Flash Mob. He tells me not to get my hopes up.

the story of my life

I love looking back and finding things that I have written years ago. I also miss writing in notebooks. I think I do my best writing in notebooks. They always say that if you are having trouble writing that you should just start and see where it goes. You don't have to have a storyline all plotted out. Anyways, this amused me so I thought I would share... (And I am going to resist the urge to edit it right now.)

She sat there with her pen in hand. Trying to decide what to write. She always veered towards fantasy stories about magic or strange alternate dimensions. Her own life never seemed "brilliant" enough to write about.
Yes, she could see it now. The storyline would go a little something like this...
Girl, aged 25, moderately attractive. Moderately attractive? What's that? Sounds to vain and overreaching to write "she's hot"?? But you want people to know that she's not bad looking. I mean, when describing her people wouldn't just say "Oh yeah, Nikki, she's really nice." I mean, she's better looking that that.
Not that there's anything wrong with being nice. I'm nice. No, I'm not. Who am I kidding?
Where was I? Oh yes, my character description... girl, aged 25, moderately attractive. At times nice (that's my glass-is-half-full way of saying sometimes bitchy.) Who apparently can't keep a straight train of thought going for more than two sentences.
Storyline... gets up, works out (sometimes), goes to work, hangs out with friends. Riveting. Yes, I can see that captivating the hearts of audiences worldwide.
So instead I write fantasy stories. And not fantasy stories about me either- but about teenagers. Why? Do I have some sadistic wish to relive my teenage years?
Or is it that teenagers make for more interesting characters because of their willingness to make such rash decisions? I mean, think about some of those plots... ooh, a door opens to another world, what will my character do? Will she rush right in? It's not much of a story if she doesn't. But would I rush through a door to another world? Let's think about this one... How long will I be gone? What if I get fired? Who will pay my rent, my bills? What's the weather like there? I should bring some clean underwear? What kind of story would that make? She stumbles across a strange portal to a magic world... she starts to stem through and then decides... I better go pack a bag. Cuz let's face it- I can't even go out to the bar without my big purse. Who knows when I'll need my chapstick or tampon or lotion or gum or toothpicks- yes, that's right, I even carry toothpicks from time to time.

hit the nail on the head- depression

So a friend shared a great link on Facebook yesterday. It is a website with pictures of famous people doing things that you wouldn't expect.

http://www.cracked.com/blog/14-photographs-that-shatter-your-image-famous-people/

I found in fascinating. Because it is true that we end up having a very limited view of people. If you think about all the different facets you have to YOUR personality... why would a celebrity be limited to just the one idea we have of them?

Anywho, that is not the point of this post. The article also gives a description of depression that I think is so right on the money:

#6. Kurt Cobain Eating an Entire Pizza

Via Flavorwire.com

... it's still a shock to realize sometimes the man just sat down and ate an entire pizza like Shaggy from Scooby-Doo.

This is something everybody should understand about depression, by the way. Tell me you haven't at least once heard somebody say, "I refuse to believe it was suicide, I was just out with Mike two weeks ago. He was laughing and joking and eating an entire pizza like it was a video game power-up."

Via Flavorwire.com
Then later played "Cat Puppet" with his daughter while doing a high-pitched cat voice.

Well, depression works that way. Movies have given us a skewed idea of how it works, because there, when a character enters his "dark period," it's with a montage full of sad music and drinking and moping in dim rooms. Real life isn't like that. Not only do moods fluctuate, but even when you're at your lowest you find yourself in social situations where you're not allowed to show it. If you're in a dark place but can't get out of your nephew's birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's, you're going to put on a smile for the camera. You feel selfish bringing everybody else down. You put on a cheerful mask.

Then, ironically, if you start playing the role of the tortured artist later, you have to worry about the opposite -- being photographed in a moment of being goofy and carefree.

Read more: 14 Photographs That Shatter Your Image of Famous People | Cracked.com http://www.cracked.com/blog/14-photographs-that-shatter-your-image-famous-people_p2/#ixzz1uvv2GsMX

do you like this song?

So yesterday I had to give a one day combo which is a thirty minute herbal wrap followed by a one hour massage.

Only the therapist in the room before me (I only work second shift on Sundays) was running late. So I only had about two minutes to put my room together. But that went fine and I got my client and put her in the wrap and then I left her to heat up and relax for the thirty minutes.

Then I undid the wrap and then we do the massage in the same room.

And as I started the massage I heard the little disk-skip noise that the CD does at the end of the CD when it starts over again from the beginning. And I thought to myself... that's weird because it is a 80 minute CD and I only started it about 40 minutes ago. And then it hit me... I had accidentally hit "repeat one" instead of "repeat all" when I stuck it in... which means that she had been listening to the SAME song on a loop for her entire 30 minute wrap!!!

Oops!!!

Now, it is random relaxation music and it is possible that she didn't even notice because, quite frankly, all the music sort of sounds alike anyways, but I felt really badly. She was happy at the end though.

And then my second client was rewarding herself for finishing grad school by NOT having to hang out with her mother-in-law of Mother's Day. I love my clients.

bad mood buster

If you are ever feeling sad, just do a google image search for "puppies."

My god, the cuteness!!!

How can you not smile at that?

scattergories

My wedding showers (we split it into two because my extended family is so big) were this weekend and my sisters outdid themselves with their awesomeness.

For me one of the highlights was when we were playing Scattergories on Saturday night. For those of you who have never played I will quickly explain... you are given a list of categories and a letter (chosen at random) and you have to come up with a word to go in each category.

My sister made the categories be bridal themed so we had such things as:

Something old
Something new
Place to get engaged
Alternative to champaign to toast with
etc.

So you are given the list, then you are given the letter that your answer must start with and then you are given three minutes to come up with your answers. But you want your answers to be unique because if anyone puts the same thing as you, you both have to cross it off and don't get a point for it.

My sister Chestra's husband, Brian, walked in to the room in the middle of the round while we were all silent and had our heads bent over our papers and goes, "So this is what you guys do at these things!" because it looked like we were all seriously taking a test!

My favorite category/answer was "Alternative to a bouquet that the bride can walk down the aisle carrying" and our letter was L.

What would you put?

I put lemons. Other people put licorice, lingerie, lollypops and lightbulbs. We all decided that a glowing bouquet of lightbulbs would be pretty cool.

But my favorite answer was my Aunt Linda who put down "little puppy."

Oh my god! I now want to walk down the aisle carrying an adorable little puppy dog! How cute would that be?!?!

america is pretty awesome

I'm not always in love with everything my country does, but I will say... living in America ROCKS!

I just was reading about the Afghan girl from National Geographic.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2002/04/afghan-girl/index-text

And it made me think (again) about how easy my life is. I mean, I can find things to complain about in my life, but my life is soooo easy.

My mom has cancer... but she has easy access to top notch medical treatments.

My shoulders hurt... from playing volleyball... not from working in the fields all day.

I weigh more than I would like... because I have access to all the food in the world that I could possibly want and money to pay for it.

My little apartment won't hold all my stuff... where to start with this one... my warm, comfortable, with running water, electricity, plumbing, heat and air conditioning that does not have vermin in it, apartment does not have room to hold my oodles and oodles of useless stuff that I have simply to pamper myself, not things that I need to survive. Boo hoo.

The girl in the story is sad because she never got an education. She doesn't know how to read or write. Reading and writing are probably my favorite activities in the entire world. I honestly can't even wrap my head around what life would be like if I couldn't read. Sure, some of us are better or faster readers than others... but to not be able to do it at all??

And the girl in the story is not allowed to even look, let alone smile, at a man that is not her husband. I think of all the wonderful interactions I have with men, that are not Michael, and how sad if I couldn't talk to them and joke around with them.

This stuff is really still going on in the world today.

Thank you, Universe, for this easy life. I will take full advantage of it as my way of thanking you.

zits

I'm thirty-two years old and I still get pimples. Not nearly as bad as it used to be, but they are still there. When will they go away? Well, if my 70 year old mother who still gets them is any indication, then never.

But I was thinking about the question that people often ask which is "what is the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to you?" And I don't usually have a good answer. Either A) I don't get embarrassed very easily or B) I have blocked them all from my memory!

But my zit today reminded me of a very embarrassing moment I once had...

It was in sixth grade and a boy I had a huge crush on was staring at me and I was super excited and he came over to talk to me and I was even more excited and he goes, "Your zit is bleeding on your cheek."

OMG!!! Sixth grade was hard!

fears

While I will do it on occasion, I do not enjoy swimming in open water. Pools are fine. Murky water where I can't see two feet away from me, let alone the bottom, is not fun.

And I have gotten lots of grief for this. That's okay.

I don't like swimming with fish.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/maryland-offering-200-gift-cards-dead-snakehead-fish-163943568.html

And sometimes when I see articles like this one, I think I am right and everyone else is wrong. Do you really want to be in the water with one of these things?!?!

They can survive on land for four days! That's just not right!

No thanks.

not doing too bad

I just read a yahoo! news story about a woman that got drunk at a wedding and ended up fighting with the bride because the woman refused to stop slow dancing with the new groom. She ended up arrested.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/drunken-wedding-guest-arrested-slow-dances-groom-brawls-204214485--abc-news-topstories.html

Um... yeah, so I may have been drunk and stupid many times in my life but at least I've never had it make yahoo! news!!! So I've got that going for me!

problems

Okay, the quote that I was looking for that led to the last post was the one about how "If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back."

I think it is really true. Why is that? Are we just used to our problems and know that we can handle them (because we HAVE been handling them) and therefore they are less scary than someone else's problems?

Who is to say which problem is the worst? Is having an abusive husband worse than having extreme agoraphobia? I mean, I wouldn't want either, but having never experienced either, I can't say which is worse.

I don't think they can be compared. Which is good. Because it isn't a competition. Sometimes it seems like it is. You hear one person say something crappy that happened to them and the other person tries to top it.

Are we trying to be empathetic? Letting them know that they are not alone in having problems? Are we just sharing our problems to get the sympathy because we feel that will help us?

All I know is that no alien race will ever be able to understand humans, because humans don't even understand ourselves.

I'm just in this weird state of mind lately where I feel like I don't have any problems.

Don't get me wrong, bad stuff still happens, but I can easily deal with it and thus it doesn't feel like a problem. And it isn't that I don't care. I do. I care a lot.

So I was sitting here thinking about what "problems" I have...

- I have debt

- I have an unreliable income based on commissions so on days like today when I have no clients, I don't make any money, which makes it hard to budget and pay off bills

- my mom is not in great health, though she is currently cancer free so I'm not complaining

- Mike's mom is not in great health, she had surgery yesterday but it went well so I am not complaining

- I watch my friends and family struggle with things/jobs/people that make them unhappy, but for the most part, that is their struggle, their life, their thing that THEY need to do something about, not me- and I know it will all work out

- I get cold sores on my upper lip- total pain in the butt, however it is mostly manageable

- I get frustrated that I can't turn the stories in my head into wonderful stories on the page

- I don't always like my boobs and my body- but a lot of times I do

- I'm not very good at sticking to a diet and then I get mad at myself

- I can't afford amazing vacations, a car, cable, a dog or a nice apartment... but those are all sort of extra things that would be nice, not necessary things to make me happy

- I don't have a good singing voice, which doesn't really deserve to be on this list, but it is the one thing I would magically change about myself

But other than that, I totally am loving my life. All those things are easily made up by these things....

My anti-problems:

-my small, little apartment feels safe and "like home."

- I absolutely adore my fiance and he treats me really well

- I have a job that I love

- I have friends that I love

- I love my family and they are super supportive

- I love Mike's family and they get along well with mine

- I'm smart

- I'm athletic

- I'm attractive

- I have the world's best chef as a fiance

- I'm self confident

- books--- they make everything better! And I'm a good reader

- I no longer have depression

- I'm able to pay my bills on time and have a roof over my head and food on the table and everything is copacetic

- I'm good at finding things to laugh and smile about every single day

So, there you have it. I'm sure some more real problems will crop up again in the future. So thank you, Universe, for this little reprieve.

50 life lessons

I was searching for a specific quote today and my googling brought up this list, which I liked and always find to be a good reminder:

50 Lessons Life Taught Me

1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.
8. It’s not OK to get angry with God even if He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.
12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don’t compare your life to others’. You have no idea what their journey is—–about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don’t worry; God never—–blinks.
16. Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.
17. You can get through anything if you stay put in today.
18. A writer writes. If you want to be a writer, write.
19. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.
20. It is never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare and then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: “In five years, will this—–matter?”
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in—–touch.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or—–didn’t do.
35. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.
36. Growing old beats the alternative – dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
38. Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back.

41. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
42. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.
43. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
44. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
45. The best is yet to come.
46. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
47. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
48. If you don’t ask, you don’t get.
49. Yield.
50. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.

Routine

So I am reading my family bookclub book called "The Art of Fielding" which is about baseball which means that I am NOT in love with the book but he does have a way of stringing words together, I'll give him that. Some really lovely sentences and ideas.

There's also a lot of gay sex. Thankfully my grandma (who is also in my bookclub) decided that she didn't like the book and wasn't going to read it, way before she got to that part. Not sure how well she would have done with that.

Anyways, there is a scene between these two guys who get together and have sex in the afternoon and then one of them goes into the kitchen and makes coffee and brings it out in the same two mugs every time...

The routine became entrenched: After they did whatever they did that day, Owen would go out into the hallway and return eight minutes later, always bearing the same two steaming mugs from the particleboard shelf above the coffeemaker: KISS ME I'M IRISH for himself, IF MOMMA AIN'T HAPPY for Affenlight. They sippsed their coffee and smoked a cigarette, chatted, read Chekhov together, passing the book back and forth once Owen's headaches subsided. The kitschy mugs had been culled, over the years, from Mrs. McCallister's home kitchen cupboards. It might have sounded silly, but Affenlight loved the way Owen always picked these same two mugs and even, presumably, went so far as to rinse them in the sink when they were dirty. Such consistency suggested, or seemed to suggest, that Owen found their afternoons worth repeating, even down to the smallest detail. This was the dreamy, paradisiacal side of domestic ritual: when all the days were possessed of the same minutiae precisely because you wanted them to be.

I just love that. You always hear about people being "stuck in a routine." But you don't always hear about the flip side- which is that something can become a routine because it is perfect and exactly what you WANT to do every day.

Makes you think about the word "routine" in a different way. :)

twenty-five things about me

A few years back there was a fad that started on Facebook where people would make and share a list of twenty-five fun facts about themselves. I miss that. So here we go again...

1) I'm not a fan of diamond rings. Mike gave me a cute little claddagh ring as a placeholder until I find the ring that I want but I may just keep this always.

2) I've been dreaming about/planning my wedding since I was a little girl. And it is going to be NOTHING like I thought it would. I always swore that I would NOT get married outside (too chancy) but now I am. Of course, I always swore that I would not marry a redhead either. Mainly what I've learned is that it's a good idea to not make sweeping declarations! :)

3) I'm crazy good at Words with Friends. My friend Sara and I like to make it more interesting by playing dirty words with friends. If the word isn't obviously dirty on its own, you have to put it into a sentence that makes it dirty.

4) One of the best things I have ever done was get Lasik surgery for my eyes. I still feel like I have a super power because I can see so clearly.

5) I have learned to like beer in the last year or two. Which is good since I am marrying a brewer. One of my favorite beers is Guinness.

6) My sister and I tried to learn all the countries and capitals in the world. I don't know all of them but I know over 150 of them! The country of Nauru doesn't have a capital.

7) My least favorite foods are grapefruit, olives, anise, ginger, hard boiled eggs, canned tuna and white fish.

8) I still sometimes dream in French.

9) I get super sleepy in moving vehicles. When I take car trips by myself I need to schedule nap breaks.

10) Mike and I play Yahtzee at least twice a week. We are fairly evenly matched but I like to hang it over his head that I hold the high score of 640.

11) I don't cook. Pretty much ever. Sometimes I bake. But not often since I am trying to eat less sweets.

12) My favorite actor is Stanley Tucci.

13) I'm obsessed with the Muppets. My favorite characters are Waldorf and Statler- the grumpy critics. I got two of the exact same birthday card this year because both Mike and Jake saw it (it had Waldorf and Statler on it) and thought that it would be perfect for me.

14) I own a Kindle but have never read a single book on it. It sounds like such a great idea in theory but I just love the feel of books.

15) I sneeze whenever I go from a dark place to a really sunny place.

16) I play in a rec volleyball league and I am the youngest person on my team. Some of my teammates are in their 60s! And we still usually win first place!

17) I'm happier now than I've ever been in my entire life.

18) I had my first kiss when I was 11 years old- playing Spin the Bottle.

19) When I was little I wanted to be an archeologist.

20) My best feature is my smile. I get complimented on it all the time- despite the fact that I have a huge gap in between my front teeth. I can blow bubbles through that gap.

21) I'm a Mac person.

22) The weirdest thing I have ever eaten was a chicken heart and I have no desire to ever eat it again. Kinds of makes me nauseous just thinking about it.

23) I love the smell of spring... the world coming alive again.

24) I'm terrified of ladders. Mentally I don't think I am, but physically every time I try to go up on one my body just panics and starts shutting down.

25) My favorite song when I was growing up was Puttin' on the Ritz by Taco.

cleanse revisited

I'm doing a cleanse again.

Anytime I feel like my eating/drinking habits are getting out of hand, I think it is a good idea to do a cleanse. Not a full blown thing, but a mini one for a few days. Clear out the system. Stops me from doing my bad habits. Clean slate.

I am finishing day one and I feel awesome. If I remember correctly, day two is the hardest. So that should be fun. Or maybe this cleanse will just be easy the whole time?? A girl can hope.

It is amazing how much time and energy takes in my life normally. And it is so nice to just have exactly what I am going to eat laid out for me and not have to think about it at all.

I have heard that Jennifer Aniston eats a cobb salad for lunch every day (or at least a few times a week) and that is part of how she stays so thin.

There is way too much wonderful food out there for me to be eating the same old bland stuff every single day. But I do think it would work in terms of dieting. And by eating the same thing again and again you don't have to make a choice of what to eat. Which means you won't make a BAD choice of what to eat.

But where's the fun in that? So until someone starts paying me to be thin, I won't worry about it. Just saying that not thinking about food while on the cleanse does make my life easier.

yogurt

My thought of the day:

I love fruit on the bottom yogurt. I bet when they first started making it they tried and tried and tried to get it to stay mixed and it just wouldn't do it. And they were like, "Damn it! Why won't this work?!" Then finally some guy had the brilliant idea of "hey, why don't we just market it as 'fruit on the bottom yogurt'??"

valentine's day recap- happy post

I decided that I need a happy, happy post. It's been a rough week for a lot of people. So today I am just focusing on the good.

I loved Valentine's Day yesterday.

Okay, so Mike and I have a joke about "one bite courses" like you get at fancy restaurants. So while I was in the living room and he was in the kitchen, he came out with my first course- which was just a blackberry, but cute nonetheless.

This is what the plates started looking like- with tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, shallots.

But then he decided to pile everything on... so the chicken, the eggplant (some crazy sort of eggplant that looks like a banana), the mushrooms and the arugula. Not the prettiest plating job I've seen, but it was DELICIOUS!!!

This was our little set up. He picked up some hyacinths because they are his favorite, and then as an afterthought, got some daffodils which are my favorite and super cheap.

He told me I wasn't allowed to take a picture of the dessert because it was so messy. But the blueberry and blackberry tart with strawberries and chocolate sauce was still great.

I also got my ring yesterday. Just something simple and easy that I had picked out. I NEVER wear rings so it felt so weird when I put it on- but within five minutes it felt so natural.

This is a little note I had drawn for Mike on our message board. I'm only including it because I think my little panda drawing looks adorable.

My present from Mike (besides my ring) was an embosser! He had a special plate made for me which is so cute. Normally they charge extra for adding drawings (the panda in the middle) but they did that for free because they thought the writing/sentiment was so sweet!

So yeah, life is good. I mean, there are some sad/bad things happening. But life is good.

I hope everyone found some things to be happy about yesterday. And if not, well, today is a new day! :)

valentine's day

There are lots of reasons to dislike Valentine's Day. Most people do. Seriously, you RARELY hear about someone who loves Valentine's day. Mike and I have made a deal that we never have to celebrate it after this year... and truthfully we aren't really celebrating it this year. I mean, he is cooking me a delicious dinner tonight and we are exchanging a few little presents and cards... but really, we do that all the time, so it isn't like it is something crazy and new for Valentine's day.

I agree that I dislike how people make a big show out of valentine's day and showing their affection once a year. I agree that it should be an every day thing. I get that people hate the commercialization of it. It's a "hallmark holiday." Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know all that.

But I still can't find it in me to dislike Valentine's Day! Because at the root of it, it is about showing friends, family and lovers that you care. And I can get behind that. I fully agree that is a wonderful thing to do. And I try to do that every day.

So I WILL celebrate Valentine's day. Just like I will celebrate the other 364 days a year.

And the power is back on, so I will celebrate that too! I love you!!! Happy Valentine's Day! :)

thankful list

Today I was in a super sad mood. My uncle/godfather is in the hospital and it really got me down. Everyone seems to be in a bit of a mood today so maybe it was the alignment of the planets too. But then I had great clients and got cheered up.

So now it's time for a little shout out to the Universe to tell what I am thankful for:

1) had a really nice bus driver who stopped and picked up people who were hustling to the bus stop but were still half a block away.

2) Mike is cooking me a delicious dinner tonight. I don't know how he makes things smell so good. Seriously, we have no food in the house so he is just cooking hot dogs and Kraft mac n cheese and kale and yet it smells better than anything you can imagine and he will plate it so prettily that you will think it belongs in a fancy restaurant.

3) I get to marry Mike!

4) I'm treating myself to a framboise lambic beer which always makes me happy because it reminds me of my dinner at Kith and Kin (which has sadly closed) which is the first time that I looked over at Mike and thought "I love him." Not the first time I said it, but the first time I thought it.

5) I'm not fighting with anyone. No big feuds. No big stress.

6) Wedding planning is going well. Oh, except for the part where we have like 100 more people than we can really fit and that if it rains we are totally screwed. Though we did decide that if it rains we are just saying screw it and going with it and busting out the Slip N Slide!

7) my little bonsai tree with it's adorable little panda is still alive

8) I own the movie Sweet Home Alabama now which is one of my guilty little pleasures and I get to watch it tonight

9) my bad mood is gone. I used to battle so hard against depression and when I got sad it would make me worried because I didn't know when the bad/sad mood would end. But for the last few years I haven't had depression and the sad moods are just normal sad moods that end quickly.

10) tea. I love tea. I don't even need to put sugar in it any more. Who is this person that I've become??

11) I was going through my wallet and saw a receipt from the grocery store from Friday that told me the name of my cashier on the bottom of it. It said, "Your cashier today was Jesus." How awesome is that?

12) Despite being awake right now, I actually have been sleeping through the night better.

13) Luna bars. yum!

14) I really, really love my friends. Great, interesting, funny people.

15) I made Mike play the guitar for me last night. How is the guitar so damn sexy??!?

16) I'm thankful for art and paintings.

17) I'm thankful I live in a place where I feel safe. I mean, yes, there are times on public transportation or while walking that I don't feel 100% safe, but for the most part I do. And I'm thankful I have such a happy home environment. I don't get yelled at. I never get hit. And these are things that I just take for granted as a basic right. Some people aren't that lucky.

18) Sports and yoga and a really good workout.

19) The show How I Met Your Mother and Neil Patrick Harris!

20) Being fully booked and having big paychecks

21) Tax refunds

22) The Muppets

23) Love

24) not living in fear. taking control of my life and doing things that scare me and having my life be better for it.

25) George Takei- that man posts some funny stuff on Facebook! It's so nice when you go on Facebook and it makes your day brighter rather than making you cringe and roll your eyes in exasperation.

wedding planning

This wedding stuff is a piece of cake! I mean, apart from dealing with crazy relatives.

But I already have the cake, the dj, the venue, the wedding party, some of the entertainment, and possibly the rental company.

And I have talked to people about possibly helping me with my dress and the invites. Who needs a year to plan a wedding? Maybe before the internet was around, but nowadays?

I think it is frustrating having to wait five more months til the big day! I can't imagine having to wait a year!

Speaking of stuff that I finally got off my butt and did, you can check out our wedding website too:

http://Nicolette-Michael.ourwedding.com/

I'm engaged!!!!

I guess it's time I updated this blog, huh?

So my big news is that I am engaged! I'm a little nervous about the logistics of it- we currently need to cut our guest list in half! (wish me luck!) That's what happens when you have a girl with a huge family who marries a boy with a huge family. My mom's advice is to just not invite the families! She is still bitter because when she got married her mom controlled everything and she wasn't allowed to invite any of her friends. I'm sure we'll figure out some sort of compromise.

The only weird/awkward part of being engaged is that every girl says "oh, let's see the ring!" not realizing that I don't like rings, hate wearing them, can't wear it at work so the chance of me losing it is huge from taking it on and off all the time and, quite frankly, I think they are a ridiculous waste of money.

So I don't have a ring yet. I'll have to get something but it won't be a diamond. Mike and I were talking about it and how someday we will stumble upon it and it will be the one. Maybe we find it next month... maybe we find it in two years.

So I don't have a ring and I'm very fine with that. I think if the thing that you are most excited about in terms of getting married is the ring, then that isn't a good sign.

But yes, rings are very pretty, and I don't begrudge other people for being excited about theirs. It's just not my thing. And I just don't think it should be the most important thing. And I get why people ask... because it is the thing that is there and tangible. When you find out someone is getting engaged you can't say, "Show me the invites!" or "Show me your love!" so instead you say, "Show me the ring!"

My friend Carly is getting married this summer as well, in the Dominican Republic and she is thrilled because all she had to do was pick out a cake and a bouquet and the people at the resort provide and choose everything else. All she has to do is show up.

And her wedding is going to rock, because how could it not? You're on a beach in the Dominican Republic!

But doing a cookie cutter wedding is so not my style. My wedding will not be fancy. Even if I had the money to make it fancy, that is just not who Mike and I are.

So when Mike and I were discussing and he was asking what I was thinking about doing for the wedding and I described it for him, he said, "That sounds like a Half Acre party!" and I said, "Yes, now you get it! And you know why? Because people WANT to go to a Half Acre party! People don't want to go to a stuffy, awkward wedding."

So I'm planning on doing it July 28th unless something major comes up that makes me change my plans. That was the day my brother was planning on having his annual Kegs N Carnies party anyways. So while we won't be having the moon walk or dunk tank (I'm not against them, unfortunately there just won't be room) we will keep the same low-key and fun vibe of Kegs N Carnies.

There isn't much to tell about the proposal. We've been discussing it for some time now. He gets home before me on Monday nights so he set up the house with flowers and candles and romantic music and a fabulous meal and poured me a glass of wine and toasted me with a very sweet toast and then asked me to marry him.

He's just the best. And I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with him. And every time I step into his arms I know I made the right decision.

foam roller

I'm an idiot. I give my clients all this great advice but do I take it myself?

For years I have been recommending that my clients use a foam roller. Most gyms have them. You get down on the floor, prop yourself up in a plank position or a side plank or crab walk (but with your legs straight) and then you roll your legs over the roller.

And it works like a miracle. Really loosens up tight muscles.

Sure, it hurts like hell if you are really tight. But it works. And you can control how long or hard you do it.

But I forgot about the added bonus... goodbye cellulite!

Cellulite isn't just about having fat... but usually it is about having fat UNDER tight skin/connective tissue. That's why you get that dimpled look. But when the connective tissue isn't as tight, it doesn't pull over the fat as much and you get a much smoother appearance. My legs look SOOOOO much better!

I'm so glad I finally took my own advice and used the damn thing!

saving money

Do you know what I hate? When you read advice for saving money that's really stupid. Or improbable.

My least favorite one is when people (my financial planner actually said this one to me) say "You know, kicking the Starbucks habit can save you tons on money. Those couple of dollars that you spend every morning on your cup of coffee can really add up. Try making your coffee at home instead."

That's great advice. Except that I don't drink coffee. I have a hard time forking over $4 at the Jewel for a box of tea that I make myself at home, I'm not about to be paying $3 every morning for a cup of it at Starbucks.

It's not the advice so much that bothers me, it's how proud the people who give it to me are- as if that were the solution to all my money woes!

Like the advice that says that I can rent a designer purse instead of buying one. Anyone who has ever met me (seen my wardrobe) will know why I find that piece of advice amusing.

I don't know why I am ranting about this today. I'm not struggling with my finances at the moment, there are just lots of articles out there that I keep running across.

Anyways, enough about that.

I'm finally getting some decent writing done. Go me! But for every 45 minutes of writing, there has got to be a 15 minute internet break, right?

Alright, alright, I'll go back to my writing.

Hope today is going well for you.